#meh books

[blebbblez]

“Is that what I am? The Hyde to your Jekyll? This is just some kind of bedtime story and I’m the bad guy?! I’m the bad guy for killing the people you sent to shoot me and my sister in the back?!” Nyx tugged angrily at the collar latched around her neck, tears pooling in her eyes. “Heaven forbid I be exactly what you made me to be! Heaven forbid I use the claws you gave me!”

Caren arched an eyebrow and knelt down to Nyx. She gently cupped Nyx’s chin on her palm and wiped the tears off of her pale cheeks. “You’re no Hyde and I’m no Jekyll. I’m Frankenstein and you’re my monster. I never blamed you for being what you are. I only wished you’d let me guide you better into becoming the perfect weapon.”

“I’m not a weapon… I’m just a person!” Nyx’s black claws dug out from under her fingernails and she sunk them into Caren’s arm. “Bleed just like you made me do for years. You’re the monster.” Nyx opened her mouth barring her fangs.

Before Nyx got a chance to finish her attack, Caren simply grabbed a handful of Nyx’s hair and tugged her head back. “Don’t play games with me, angel. You won’t win.” Caren pried Nyx’s claws out of her skin and eyed the blood trickling down her forearm. “So ungrateful… I made you one of the most powerful beings alive and you lash out at me. Me, of all people, the only one who’s given a crap about you- despite how many you’ve killed.”

“The only person who’s ever given a crap about me is my sister- and you cursed her just like you did me!” Nyx slowly pried Caren’s hand free from her own white hair. “I hope you choke on all the blood you shed to make us.”

© 2024 OtterRMS aka blebbblez

[xieliancore]

ghost king!

[twinkrespecter]

finally beating the illiteracy allegations

[theorahsart]

Hello, apparently it's Banned Books Week and I wanted to say something about it.

It's makes me sad that my book has become one of MANY to be banned in libraries. It doesn't affect me much personally or financially, but its scary/worrying because Ive been watching this ripple effect over the last few years, it's a reflection of increasingly visibly hateful attitudes in recent years, and we're starting to see similar protests against books and libraries here in the UK, along with the transphobic and queerphobic violence against those trying to stop these bans.

Pls help to stem misinformation. Pls go to protests. And support authors of banned books/share their books with teens and kids who might no longer have access to them!

[nelistry]

honestly the fact that nico di angelo ended up happy and with a hot bf with a chest tattoo and weird demon kids is literally the best possible ending he deserves it all

[somewhereincairparavel]

My hottest take in the pjo fandom: The lost hero >>> The blood of Olympus

The lost hero was a great book and Jason's pov in that particular book was more interesting than his povs in the other hoo books.

[tonhalszendvics]

As I was looking for a copy for myself in English, I came across this one. This is from Slovakia.

I wasn't able to find Brisingr, but here's the other three:

[cheerclaw]

warrior cats fans don't read other books hows star a good book

[foldingfittedsheets]

At the local bookstore there’s a system where employees can write a snippet about their favorite stories and they go on the shelf under the book as a little endorsement. On the last visit I very quickly noticed that every book I’d loved in the past year was marked and I instantly trusted the employees.

Then I started bouncing along the shelves to see which books were marked that I hadn’t read yet and instantly put holds on all the ones I was unfamiliar with. I didn’t even read the synopsis. One upshot of this was discovering T. Kingfisher.

Nettle and Bone had a little employee card so I popped a hold on it. It came in a few weeks later and I adored it. The storytelling was beautifully done and I thought, okay, what else you got.

So I got my hands on A Wizards Guide to Defensive Baking. I think I’d seen it floating around and written it off cause of the silly cover. Fucking phenomenal, great storytelling, tight pacing, just overall wonderful. Read Thornhedge. Loved it.

So I just moved T. Kingfisher to my “Always Read” list. She has not failed to delight with any of her stories and I’m now pretty confident that regardless of content I’m gonna have a great time.

[arfisrar]

Dramione Month Day 18: Pride and Prejudice

"--you have bewitched me, body and soul, and I love--I love--I love you. I never wish to be parted from you from this day on."

"--your hands are cold."

My favourite scene from the movie 💕

[karleksmumskladdkaka]

RukiYui (+Mukami fam) scans from the Vandead Carnival Official Fanbook (*´ω｀)♡

Spoilers for Ruki's route below!

[littlecrow4]

Sometimes when I’m drawing and something doesn’t look right I just sit there for a sec and think “I forgot how to draw basic human anatomy” so then I retry for a million hours until it looks decent enough to me lmao

.

.

.

I also still don’t know how to to do clothing folds so I just kinda draw lines where I think they fit

[murasaki-cha]

To all of you who say Nico and Will are too cringe I would like to pinpoint these two things:

THEY ARE 15!?!? Who wasn't absolute cringe when they were 15? And on their first relationship no less!

This is literally a book for middle schoolers

And people are too used to the fanon characterization of them

[nenehyuuchiha]

Tim Drake is DC Taylor Swift

[tadpole-apocalypse]

Someone in my life decided to declutter their dragon age media so…got a pretty big reading pile ahead of me 😳

Not pictured: a hand bound printout of all of Inquisition’s codex entries.

[merwgue]

The A Court of Thorns and Roses (ACOTAR) fandom is one of the most divided literary communities today. It’s not just a matter of which characters people ship, but rather a deep schism over how people interpret the characters, themes, and real-life issues embedded in the story. The arguments go far beyond typical fandom disagreements and have morphed into full-fledged debates about morality, trauma, and the human condition. At the heart of these conflicts is the tendency for fans to project their own experiences and values onto the characters, creating new "canon" versions of the story to fit their narrative. What makes this even more significant is that ACOTAR isn’t just fantasy fiction—it touches on real issues like domestic abuse, sexual coercion, trauma, and mental health. These are not fictional concepts; they are lived experiences for many people. By brushing these topics aside or simplifying them, the fandom risks doing a disservice to the people who see their own pain mirrored in the pages of these books.

"It’s Just Fiction" — A Dismissive Take on Real Issues

When people say "it’s just fiction," they’re missing the point. Fiction, especially in fantasy, is often used as a mirror to reflect real-world problems. In ACOTAR, we see characters grappling with trauma, mental illness, abuse, and recovery—things that real people face every day. It’s not simply a story of faeries and magic; it’s a story of survival and the human struggle to overcome deep-seated pain.

Take Rhysand’s actions, for instance. Under the Mountain, he subjects Feyre to what can only be described as sexual coercion, making her dress in revealing clothing and sit on his lap while drugged, all under the guise of "protecting" her. In the real world, this would be considered sexual harassment or even assault. The argument that he was forced into these actions to protect her doesn’t erase the trauma it inflicted on Feyre. Fans who brush this off as a romantic plot device are ignoring the very real dynamics of power, consent, and coercion that exist in abusive relationships.

Similarly, Gwyn’s backstory, though not heavily detailed, strongly implies that she was gang-raped by Hybern’s forces during the war. The fact that this is left as an undertone in the series, not explicitly addressed, doesn’t make it any less important. Sexual violence, like what Gwyn endured, is a topic that has far-reaching emotional and psychological consequences for survivors. Yet, in some corners of the fandom, these moments are glossed over in favor of debating which romantic pairing is better.

Tamlin: Abuser or Victim of Circumstance?

Tamlin is one of the most hotly contested characters in the series, and it’s easy to see why. His actions in A Court of Mist and Fury—where he physically confines Feyre, restricts her movements, and isolates her from the outside world—are textbook examples of domestic abuse. There’s no argument that what he did was wrong. But there’s also context that complicates his character and, in some ways, makes him more sympathetic than he’s often given credit for.

Tamlin was traumatized by the events Under the Mountain, forced to watch helplessly as his people suffered for fifty years. He was powerless, and that sense of impotence likely contributed to his need for control once Feyre returned to the Spring Court. He was terrified of losing her, and that fear manifested in controlling behavior. Does that excuse what he did? Absolutely not. But it provides a context that many readers seem to ignore. Tamlin was also suffering, and he lacked the emotional tools to cope with his trauma in a healthy way.

Feyre, too, was suffering, but neither of them communicated effectively, and their relationship deteriorated as a result. Both were deeply broken, but instead of healing together, their trauma pulled them apart. Some fans take this complexity and reduce Tamlin to a one-dimensional abuser, ignoring the fact that many abusers come from places of deep pain themselves. Others take it too far in the opposite direction, defending every action he took. The truth lies somewhere in between: Tamlin was an abuser, but he was also a victim of his own unresolved trauma.

Rhysand: Savior or Manipulator?

Rhysand, on the other hand, is often seen as Feyre’s savior, the one who rescues her from Tamlin’s abuse and shows her how to be strong. But the fandom’s lionization of Rhysand ignores many of his own toxic behaviors, particularly his emotional manipulation of Feyre.

While Tamlin physically trapped her, Rhysand’s control was far more insidious. He isolated Feyre mentally, ensuring that the only people she trusted were members of his Inner Circle—people whose loyalty ultimately lies with him. Over time, Feyre’s connections to anyone outside of Rhysand’s immediate orbit are severed. Lucien, who had been a close friend, is gradually pushed away, and Feyre is left with no one to question her relationship with Rhysand.

This emotional isolation is a form of manipulation that can be just as damaging as physical confinement. Rhysand controlled the narrative around Feyre, making sure that she only saw the world through his lens. This is most evident in A Court of Silver Flames, when he instructs his Inner Circle not to tell Feyre about the dangers of her pregnancy. He withholds vital information about her own body, taking away her agency and reducing her to a bystander in her own life. The fact that Mor, Cassian, Amren, and Azriel all follow his orders without question only reinforces the power imbalance in their relationship.

Many fans excuse Rhysand’s actions because he’s portrayed as the "good guy" in contrast to Tamlin. But when you strip away the romantic lens, Rhysand’s behavior is just as controlling and manipulative, albeit in a different way. The fact that Feyre wasn’t physically confined doesn’t make his actions any less problematic.

The Creation of a New "Canon"

Given the complexity of these characters and the morally gray areas they inhabit, it’s no wonder that parts of the fandom have taken to creating their own "canon" versions of the story. Fans rework characters’ motivations, rewrite key events, and even create alternate universes to fit their preferred narrative. In some ways, this is a normal part of any fandom; people create headcanons and fan fiction to explore different possibilities within the world. But in the ACOTAR fandom, this rewriting often feels like a necessity rather than a choice.

Pro-Rhysand fans, for instance, downplay or outright ignore his more problematic actions, painting him as the perfect mate for Feyre. On the flip side, anti-Tamlin fans erase any nuance in his character, labeling him irredeemable and unworthy of any sympathy. It’s as if the original narrative can no longer be accepted as it is because it doesn’t fit into a simple good vs. evil framework.

This rewriting of canon can be harmful because it erases the complexities that make these characters human. Tamlin is not just a villain, and Rhysand is not just a hero. Both characters have committed acts of abuse, but they also have their own traumas and struggles that inform their actions. Ignoring these complexities simplifies the narrative in a way that doesn’t do justice to the story’s deeper themes.

The Seriousness of ACOTAR’s Themes

The divisions within the ACOTAR fandom aren’t just about ships or character preferences; they’re about how seriously the themes of the series should be taken. Domestic abuse, sexual coercion, trauma—these are not just plot points to be dismissed as fiction. They are real, painful experiences that people face every day.

Feyre’s experiences with both Tamlin and Rhysand reflect different forms of abuse, and neither should be diminished. Tamlin’s physical control was overt and obvious, while Rhysand’s emotional manipulation was more subtle but no less damaging. Both forms of abuse are real, and both deserve to be addressed with the gravity they warrant.

Similarly, Gwyn’s implied assault is a reflection of the horrors that many survivors of sexual violence face. Her story is not just a subplot; it’s a reflection of the very real trauma that many women endure. Dismissing these moments as mere fiction invalidates the experiences of readers who may have lived through similar pain.

Conclusion

The ACOTAR fandom is divided because the series itself is complex, filled with morally gray characters and real-world issues that demand serious consideration. By rewriting canon to fit personal narratives, parts of the fandom are erasing the very complexities that make the story impactful. Domestic abuse, sexual coercion, trauma—these are not topics that should be brushed aside or simplified. They are reflections of real pain, and they deserve to be treated with respect and understanding. Both Tamlin and Rhysand are flawed characters, and both engage in abusive behaviors, though in different ways. Acknowledging these complexities is essential to understanding the series as a whole, and it’s something the fandom, as divided as it is, must come to terms with.