It's been a couple years since I did my first BookTok Hit or Miss challenge and I've been wanting to do another one ever since. I've read quite a few BookTok darlings since then and I figure that now is the time for part 2 of this new series, with part 3 coming in the next few months most likely. The last time I did this it was mostly just romances and I'd definitely say my tastes have changed a bit since then. For today, I've got a few misses and a few hits to talk about so let's go ahead and dive right in!
Priest by Sierra Simone: Miss
I read this a while ago and the longer it goes from reading it, the more my disappointment in this book grows. I was really anticipating this one as I'd heard nothing but amazing things for years about how good it was. Unfortunately, this book was not for me. I think the way this book was marketed to me and the actual way this book went were completely different. This isn't a bad book per se, but it was a miss for me.
The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood: Hit
Now, like many people, I read this when it was at the height of its popularity. It's still very popular and Ali's books continue to perform well on BookTok, though this is the only one of her full novels I've read so far. I absolutely loved this book. Fake dating, an academic setting, good side characters...it was so fun and addicting, which is really the main thing I look for in a romcom. Even some tropes I don't typically enjoy were ones I enjoyed in this one. Because of this one, I'm also excited to continue reading Ali's other books.
Icebreaker by Hannah Grace: Miss
Icebreaker is a more recent read and it's a sad miss for me. Now, unlike with Priest, I actually did enjoy parts of this book. Overall I would say I didn't dislike it but it fell flat. It was so much longer than it needed to be and I felt like there wasn't much of an actual plot. For example, this is supposed to be a story about a hockey player and an ice skater teaming up to skate and...yet...there's not much actual skating in this story. I liked the characters a lot but overall it was a bit of a disappointing read.
The Mindf*ck Series by S.T. Abby: Hit
I read this last summer and then reread it this summer and it remains a massive hit for me. It's a new all-time favorite series that I absolutely love. It's about a serial killer who starts dating the FBI agent who's hunting her. Of course, it's about more than just that and throughout the series we really dig deep into the cruelties of humanity. Mindf*ck is not for the faint of heart and it's got an extensive list of trigger warnings but it's so good. It's heartbreaking and addicting and I couldn't stop reading.
Twisted Love by Ana Huang: Miss
This is mostly a miss for me. Twisted Love was enjoyable at first, but when I finished it I realized it was nothing memorable for me. I think it's mainly because even though I enjoy romances, I struggle with finding romances memorable when the only plot is the romance. There's only a few over the years that have made my overall favorites and, unfortunately, this wasn't one of them. However, I am interested in continuing the series with some side characters we met in this one that have their own spotlight.
Broken Bonds series by J. Bree: Hit
I've dubbed 2023 the year of J. Bree for a reason...her books just hit all the boxes for me. Of the 62 books I've read at the time of writing this post, 20 of them have been J. Bree books. This series is huge on BookTok and I can definitely see why. It's a paranormal why choose enemies-to-lovers romance series that's just completely addicting. I blew through the series. While I do think the last two books were a bit long and unnecessary, overall the series is a hit for me and I will be rereading it in the future.
Thanks for reading!
xoxo
Lauren
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