I think that in many of these romantasy books (which I don't mind necessarily), some authors seem to confuse being strong, with being violent! A character can be strong, without ever hurting anyone. They're two separate things. But some authors seem to think the FMC can only have character development by their capacity to murder and stab as many bad guys as possible. Strength without violence is more interesting.
agreed. What happened to kindness, or being intelligent enough to find solutions that side-step violence? It can even be a mix, like how the more endearing male protagonists of my youth were young men who were optimistic/idealist, but willing to fight only if they had to. I feel like "strong female characters" don't often receive the same kind of nuance.
@Tessa_Ru yeah it's like they have to completely "reject" anything that could be construed as anything remotely "feminine," in order to be seen as an equal to their male MC, or a worthy adversary to the villain. And of course the most masculine thing (or levelling of the playing field) a FMC can do, is resort to violence 🙄
For real. To this day, when I think of a TRUE "strong female character" I don't think of characters that kick all kinds of ass. You know who i ACTUALLY think of? I think of Mrs. Brisby in "The Secret of NIMH", a childrens book! She's just a little field mouse, nothing special about her whatsoever, but everything she does is for the sake of saving her children. THAT is her strength, her LOVE for her family! I also think of Eowyn from The Lord of the Rings. She THOUGHT she needed to prove herself just as capable as the men in battle, she THOUGHT that's what she wanted, but in the end, she CHOOSES the opposite. She chooses to be a HEALER, not a warrior, she chose LOVE and COMPASSION. Heck, even Sailor Moon! She can be a whiny crybaby sure, but she stands up for what's right, for her friends and family, her strength is LOVE. To me, a "strong female character" isn't a skilled assassin, mercenary, soldier, whatever. It's a character who is WELL WRITTEN and happens to be female, and ultimately has traits like LOVE, compassion, empathy, and hope as their driving strength!
I really enjoy how blunt you are in your videos! I feel like a lot of people on booktube will just say they like books because everyone else is “loving” them and they’re popular. So your videos are very refreshing.
I am patiently awaiting the end of the ACOTAR clone and myth-retelling fads. The mythical retellings were fun for a while but now it’s past-old. Need some proper High fantasy. Maybe it’s time i try again at Malazan. Re your last book on this list, maybe try the Banewreaker duology, if you want a “LOTR but Sauron” tale. It’s not earth-shaking but it was decent.
For a better version of the concept of To become a dark lord or die trying try the interactive fiction Fallen Hero. The entire premise is a hero that becomes a villain, CYOA style where u can play as multiple different types of villain from mass murder to anti hero political anarchist. It's great- bit different in that it's CYOA Interactive Fiction but worth a look for the concept.
Okay so… about Grady Hendrix. I am a HUGE fan of his work. He does add a lot of humor and satire in his writing so yeah, HTSAHH is definitely quirky and over the top. It is not my favorite book by him. Kinda mid compared to his other stuff. If you want a really good example of his writing, My Best Friend’s Exorcism and A Southern Bookclub’s Guide to Slaying Vampires are, imo, his best. There are some disturbing bits in both, so be aware! However, his ability to portray relationships between friends is so good! You feel for these characters. You become afraid with them. As far as horror goes, they’re more on par with shlocky slasher films than deep psychological thrillers or torture horror. I love his work. I agree with your analysis. But he has much better reads!
I do think, with particular reference to the last book, that this helps illustrate why the medium of consumption can be very important. I listened to How to become the Dark Lord and because of that I wasn’t interrupted by snarky footnotes which didn’t add substance- they were part of the flow of the dialogue. Sometimes, small things like that elevate a book and make it less annoying.
If you like the *idea* of _Dark Lord_ but didn't like the execution, you might want to try _Long Live Evil_ by Sarah Rees Brennan. Similar basic concept, VERY different execution--primarily that LLE is definitely women-writing-women and satirizes and celebrates female-based tropes and stereotypes.
I have a coworker at the library I work at who loved How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying. She's at least 60 and most of what I know about her is that she loves Star Trek. I would love to understand what she sees in it. It does not sound like my sort of book at all lol
I feel like The Warm Hands of Ghosts might’ve suffered from being dubbed “historical fantasy” and also from expectations set by Winternight. As Elliot said, it’s more in the realm of speculative. I think the book is a metaphor in a sense and that the speculative elements play into that. As a result though, it’s a much more subtle read than you might expect from a war narrative. Laura wasn’t the most fascinating character but I got the impression she was intended as a vehicle for the story more than being the story herself. Tbh, I think that’s kind of true about all the characters.
Just finished reading "The Teller of Small Fortunes" by Julie Leong. If you love "Legends and Lattes" by Travis Baldree, you will fall in love with "The Teller of Small Fortunes"💗
I read Guns of Dawn a few years ago and enjoyed it. I loved the home front where we see the secondary effects of the war and it reminded me of my Mom's description of growing up in Nazi Germany where you know things are off but you carry on. Romance didn't bother me and (it's been three years so I may be off) I remember the threat of SA as a background threat which she kinda confronts once rather than something that is ongoing. And the love interest didn't bother me.
I really really appreciate critical videos like this(!) because as a slow reader with a absurdly long to-read list I'm genuinely always on the lookout for books to cross off so as to narrow down my list
I'm over ACOTAR from the beginning as its a clone of Anne Bishop's The Blood Trilogy. Everytime I read Rhysand I think Daemon with Lucivar's wings. So many elements in The Blood Trilogy is in ACOTAR. Sigh
I was so excited about When The Moon Hatched and it ended up falling soooooo flat for me. It felt like watching a bad play in my head. Also the world building had me hella confused and definitely needed better explaining 💀
Having read and fallen in love with The Winter Night trilogy, I was excited for The Warm Hands of Ghosts but I found it a slog to get through, I only didn’t DND it because I wanted to know if she finds her brother. But yeah, I found it kind of an un engaging story. Disappointing from a book with such a great title. Have you read The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo? I enjoyed that altho it’s had mixed reviews.
I tried "That Time I got Drunk and saved a demon" and found it way too short. The main character has her entire religion and worldview upended and she gets over it in like 2 pages because the whole book is only ~170 pages
I so wanted to love TWHOG so much, but something just didn't work for me. Between the duel POV, how the relationships were built, even the climax felt a little flat. Arden is a great writer though, and I do love the winter night trilogy so I cross my fingers for her next book.
I love messed up love stories, the ones that are labeled "toxic" in particular, but I hate a stupid story with insufferable characters. I feel like characters should be flawed but they must be relatable, if they just make dumb decisions for no good reason then it's a no thank you.
I got When the Moon Hatched- and now I’m worried!!! I really hope I like it despite similar “dislikes” maybe I should I reserve for a mood when I just want guilty pleasure trash fantasy. Odk when I’m ever in the mood for that! 😂 it’s not like I can plan it. I apreciate your critical review so I dont go in expecting one thing that doesn’t deliver.
Thank you for this......because I had a few of these on my tbr even after your other reviews thinking "sounds interesting otherwise, yeah I can put up with a hide and seek scene and some sex jokes" but here you called out several of my pet peeves that i can NOT put up with! saved me some time haha
Hi Elliot, I’m writing thr climax(final battle) for my book and I'm almost done with it(both the climax and the book) please how do I write what happens after the climax? I want to add just a few chapter like 2 or 3 but I don't know what or how to do ot
Guns of Dawn is probably my least favorite Adrian Tchaikovsky book. Also his Science Fiction is pretty much universally better than his fantasy, or at least works better for me.
First muahaha Edit: Also this is my first time commenting on one of your videos so I just want to let you know I appreciate you making them. I've enjoyed several of the series you have recommended (except green rider wasn't for me lol). Keep up the good work!
I think that in many of these romantasy books (which I don't mind necessarily), some authors seem to confuse being strong, with being violent! A character can be strong, without ever hurting anyone. They're two separate things. But some authors seem to think the FMC can only have character development by their capacity to murder and stab as many bad guys as possible. Strength without violence is more interesting.
agreed. What happened to kindness, or being intelligent enough to find solutions that side-step violence? It can even be a mix, like how the more endearing male protagonists of my youth were young men who were optimistic/idealist, but willing to fight only if they had to. I feel like "strong female characters" don't often receive the same kind of nuance.
@Tessa_Ru yeah it's like they have to completely "reject" anything that could be construed as anything remotely "feminine," in order to be seen as an equal to their male MC, or a worthy adversary to the villain. And of course the most masculine thing (or levelling of the playing field) a FMC can do, is resort to violence 🙄
For real. To this day, when I think of a TRUE "strong female character" I don't think of characters that kick all kinds of ass. You know who i ACTUALLY think of? I think of Mrs. Brisby in "The Secret of NIMH", a childrens book! She's just a little field mouse, nothing special about her whatsoever, but everything she does is for the sake of saving her children. THAT is her strength, her LOVE for her family!
I also think of Eowyn from The Lord of the Rings. She THOUGHT she needed to prove herself just as capable as the men in battle, she THOUGHT that's what she wanted, but in the end, she CHOOSES the opposite. She chooses to be a HEALER, not a warrior, she chose LOVE and COMPASSION.
Heck, even Sailor Moon! She can be a whiny crybaby sure, but she stands up for what's right, for her friends and family, her strength is LOVE.
To me, a "strong female character" isn't a skilled assassin, mercenary, soldier, whatever. It's a character who is WELL WRITTEN and happens to be female, and ultimately has traits like LOVE, compassion, empathy, and hope as their driving strength!
what I also sometimes see is strength equaling resilience to inhuman levels
I really enjoy how blunt you are in your videos! I feel like a lot of people on booktube will just say they like books because everyone else is “loving” them and they’re popular. So your videos are very refreshing.
I am patiently awaiting the end of the ACOTAR clone and myth-retelling fads. The mythical retellings were fun for a while but now it’s past-old. Need some proper High fantasy. Maybe it’s time i try again at Malazan.
Re your last book on this list, maybe try the Banewreaker duology, if you want a “LOTR but Sauron” tale. It’s not earth-shaking but it was decent.
I recommend the gael song series by Shauna lawless for a new-ish high fantasy!
For a better version of the concept of To become a dark lord or die trying try the interactive fiction Fallen Hero. The entire premise is a hero that becomes a villain, CYOA style where u can play as multiple different types of villain from mass murder to anti hero political anarchist. It's great- bit different in that it's CYOA Interactive Fiction but worth a look for the concept.
Okay so… about Grady Hendrix. I am a HUGE fan of his work. He does add a lot of humor and satire in his writing so yeah, HTSAHH is definitely quirky and over the top. It is not my favorite book by him. Kinda mid compared to his other stuff. If you want a really good example of his writing, My Best Friend’s Exorcism and A Southern Bookclub’s Guide to Slaying Vampires are, imo, his best. There are some disturbing bits in both, so be aware! However, his ability to portray relationships between friends is so good! You feel for these characters. You become afraid with them. As far as horror goes, they’re more on par with shlocky slasher films than deep psychological thrillers or torture horror. I love his work. I agree with your analysis. But he has much better reads!
My thoughts exactly
My best friend's exorcism is my favorite..😊
I do think, with particular reference to the last book, that this helps illustrate why the medium of consumption can be very important. I listened to How to become the Dark Lord and because of that I wasn’t interrupted by snarky footnotes which didn’t add substance- they were part of the flow of the dialogue. Sometimes, small things like that elevate a book and make it less annoying.
The extremely-hyper-bisexual woman is very tiresome. As a bi-woman, I am tired.
Yeah, same
Same 🥴
Same!
Yes!!! Same... Also straight authors that sexualize the queer community..
Have you considered not fucking women?
Learned this year that cozy fantasy is not for me, though it works for so many.
If you like the *idea* of _Dark Lord_ but didn't like the execution, you might want to try _Long Live Evil_ by Sarah Rees Brennan. Similar basic concept, VERY different execution--primarily that LLE is definitely women-writing-women and satirizes and celebrates female-based tropes and stereotypes.
oh agreeeeee I love that book so much!
Yes, LLE was a lot of fun!
Agreee! Or dreadful by Caitlin Z!
I have a coworker at the library I work at who loved How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying. She's at least 60 and most of what I know about her is that she loves Star Trek. I would love to understand what she sees in it. It does not sound like my sort of book at all lol
I feel like The Warm Hands of Ghosts might’ve suffered from being dubbed “historical fantasy” and also from expectations set by Winternight. As Elliot said, it’s more in the realm of speculative.
I think the book is a metaphor in a sense and that the speculative elements play into that. As a result though, it’s a much more subtle read than you might expect from a war narrative. Laura wasn’t the most fascinating character but I got the impression she was intended as a vehicle for the story more than being the story herself. Tbh, I think that’s kind of true about all the characters.
I agree, but I still found it a slog and only finished it to find out if she finds her brother.
Just finished reading "The Teller of Small Fortunes" by Julie Leong. If you love "Legends and Lattes" by Travis Baldree, you will fall in love with "The Teller of Small Fortunes"💗
I read Guns of Dawn a few years ago and enjoyed it. I loved the home front where we see the secondary effects of the war and it reminded me of my Mom's description of growing up in Nazi Germany where you know things are off but you carry on. Romance didn't bother me and (it's been three years so I may be off) I remember the threat of SA as a background threat which she kinda confronts once rather than something that is ongoing. And the love interest didn't bother me.
I really really appreciate critical videos like this(!) because as a slow reader with a absurdly long to-read list I'm genuinely always on the lookout for books to cross off so as to narrow down my list
I'm over ACOTAR from the beginning as its a clone of Anne Bishop's The Blood Trilogy. Everytime I read Rhysand I think Daemon with Lucivar's wings. So many elements in The Blood Trilogy is in ACOTAR. Sigh
I was so excited about When The Moon Hatched and it ended up falling soooooo flat for me. It felt like watching a bad play in my head. Also the world building had me hella confused and definitely needed better explaining 💀
Having read and fallen in love with The Winter Night trilogy, I was excited for The Warm Hands of Ghosts but I found it a slog to get through, I only didn’t DND it because I wanted to know if she finds her brother. But yeah, I found it kind of an un engaging story. Disappointing from a book with such a great title.
Have you read The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo? I enjoyed that altho it’s had mixed reviews.
I tried "That Time I got Drunk and saved a demon" and found it way too short. The main character has her entire religion and worldview upended and she gets over it in like 2 pages because the whole book is only ~170 pages
I tried and couldn't get into it at all and ended up DNFing it
I so wanted to love TWHOG so much, but something just didn't work for me. Between the duel POV, how the relationships were built, even the climax felt a little flat. Arden is a great writer though, and I do love the winter night trilogy so I cross my fingers for her next book.
Can't give my opinion on these books BUT Lies of P is amazing! 10/10 recommend!
I love messed up love stories, the ones that are labeled "toxic" in particular, but I hate a stupid story with insufferable characters. I feel like characters should be flawed but they must be relatable, if they just make dumb decisions for no good reason then it's a no thank you.
When the Moon Hatched sounds like something for me. I'm going to give it a shot! 😁
I dnfed become the dark lord or die trying bc of the reasons you said. It had so much potential but eh. It didn’t work for me.
I got When the Moon Hatched- and now I’m worried!!! I really hope I like it despite similar “dislikes” maybe I should I reserve for a mood when I just want guilty pleasure trash fantasy. Odk when I’m ever in the mood for that! 😂 it’s not like I can plan it.
I apreciate your critical review so I dont go in expecting one thing that doesn’t deliver.
I really loved The Warm Hands of Ghosts 💙 it was exactly what I needed when I picked it up and I think about it often
Thank you for this......because I had a few of these on my tbr even after your other reviews thinking "sounds interesting otherwise, yeah I can put up with a hide and seek scene and some sex jokes" but here you called out several of my pet peeves that i can NOT put up with! saved me some time haha
I got bored reading The Warm Hands of Ghosts. Which was a disappointment because I wanted to love it
Same
Hi Elliot, I’m writing thr climax(final battle) for my book and I'm almost done with it(both the climax and the book) please how do I write what happens after the climax? I want to add just a few chapter like 2 or 3 but I don't know what or how to do ot
I also did not have a good experience with How to Become the Dark Lord & Die Trying. I DNR at like 20%.
Great Video!
Your intelligence (and humor) always comes through.
I see this particular author's handling of sensuality has not improved. I had hopes.
Are you on Good Reads?
I’ve had when the moon hatched on my TBR for so long now
Lies of P is so good! deserved way more hype than it got!
DNF'd Dark lord- felt the same!
You have an amazing voice
Yeah... no. None of them appeal to me.🤣
Great video.❤
I've actually loved Guns of the Dawn, but I'll recover from this video 😅
I disagree so much with How to Sell a Haunted House!
Guns of Dawn is probably my least favorite Adrian Tchaikovsky book. Also his Science Fiction is pretty much universally better than his fantasy, or at least works better for me.
How to Sell a Haunted House was a DISSAPOINTMENT! As well as The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires. I'm done with the author.
DNF’d How to Become a Dark Lord on page 2. So disappointing.
💜💜💜
OMG , how to sell a hounted house was a painful read. this book and weyward, i thought were too cheesy and just boring
I DNFed The Dark Lord.
First muahaha
Edit: Also this is my first time commenting on one of your videos so I just want to let you know I appreciate you making them. I've enjoyed several of the series you have recommended (except green rider wasn't for me lol). Keep up the good work!
40th hahaha 😂😂😂😂love this lady and her amazing channel and I am so glad to be back too ❤❤❤
Lol
Hey wanna start a group on truth social. ?🤷🏽