Welcome to another TTT! This week’s topic was submitted by Sia @ everybookadoorway.com, and is Books That Defied My Expectations. I decided to share books I expected to love and ended up DNFing (did not finish) instead. I rarely talk about the books I abandoned partway through, so I thought it would be an interesting change. I won’t elaborate too much on why I DNFed because I hate hurting feelings. In most cases, these books just weren’t for me!

1. Love on Deck by Kasey Stockton (DNFed at 30%)
There were some things mentioned that indicated that either the author has never been on a cruise before or didn’t research what they are like beforehand. I won’t go into all the nitty gritty, but I really struggle when this happens.

2. Raiders of the Lost Heart by Jo Segura (DNFed at 34%)
This was one of my most anticipated 2023 releases, but I really didn’t like the characters and the dialogue was extremely corny/cheesy.

3. The Heiress at Sea by Christi Caldwell (DNFed at 15%)
I love a romance on the high seas, but found the writing style to be incredibly frustrating. The heroine is also one of the stupidest heroines I’ve ever read about. The story is way too silly and lacking in all plausibility.

4. What Lies in the Woods by Kate Alice Marshall (DNF @ 15%)
I am a very character-driven reader, and I couldn’t stand the main character here.

5. The True Love Experiment by Christina Lauren (DNFed @ 57%)
I tried so hard, but I just did’t like Fizzy as a main character. I couldn’t connect with her and didn’t care about her journey. This also really didn’t feel like a romance to me.

6. Seatmate by Cara Bastone (DNFed @ ?)
Sicne audible hates letting us know what percentage we’re at, I didn’t mark where I was when I stopped. I LOVED the first two books in this series, but this one just didn’t do it for me.

7. When in Rome by Sarah Adams (DNFed @ 51%)
After ADORING The Cheat Sheet, it’s hard to believe this book is by the same author. I felt no chemistry between the main characters, the same things and the same conversations kept happening over and over again, and Noah’s eyes kept getting more and more obnoxiously green as the book went on. I kept reading about how everyone in this book is so beautiful and so perfect and so pretty, and that was it. It felt very shallow.

8. The Book of Cold Cases by Simone St. James (DNFed @ ?)
I feel like this might have been a bit too creepy for me? lol. I don’t remember now!

9. An Accidental Odyssey by K.C. Dyer (DNFed @ 39%)
I remember feeling a very passionate hatred for the main character. LOL

10. Then Came You by Lisa Kleypas (DNFed @ 33%)
I. Love. Lisa. But I did not love this book. There’s major consent issues, and some very unlikeable characters.

Feel free to disagree with me, but please be nice! lol.
What books have you read that defied your expectations, good or bad?

Welcome to another TTT! This week’s topic is super broad: Water. These can be books that take place on/in/under the water, books with water/bodies of water in the title or on the cover, etc. If you know me, you know I love a pretty cover so I decided to share book covers with water or bodies of water on them! These are all books I’ve either read and enjoyed, or hope to read soon!

Would You Rather by Allison Ashley
(I know this is not the cover the book ended up being published with, but I wish it was and this is my form of protest.)

The Secret by Julie Garwood

438 Days: An Extraordinary True Story of Survival at Sea by Jonathan Franklin

Catch of the Day by Kristan Higgins

Rebound by Noelle August

Captivate by Vanessa Garden

On the Island by Tracey Garvis Graves

By Love or By Sea by Rachel Rager

The Love Academy by Belinda Jones

The Widow by Carla Neggers

Welcome to another TTT! This week’s topic is genre freebie, which means you get to pick a genre and build a list around it. I’ve talked about romantic suspense and historical fiction in previous posts like this one, so today I thought I’d talk about the romantasy (romantic fantasy) genre! I’ve fallen in love with this genre over the years, but good ones are hard to find (I’ve DNFed quite a few)! I’m hoping maybe some of you have recommendations for me based on the ones I’ve enjoyed and the ones I think I’ll like! I’m purposely not including YA fantasy (unless they’re steamy) because I like the spice!

Romantasy Books I’ve Enjoyed

A Court of Thorns and Roses series by Sarah J. Maas
(I don’t consider this series to be YA, even though one could argue that it is.)

The Winter King by C.L. Wilson

The Bridge Kingdom by Danielle L. Jensen

Ledge by Stacey McEwan

Romantasy Books on my To-Read List

A Promise of Fire by Amanda Bouchet

Winter of Ice and Iron by Rachel Neumeier

Throne of the Fallen by Kerri Maniscalco

The Serpent and the Wings of Night by Carissa Broadbent

Of Earth and Flame by Elayna R. Gallea

The North Wind by Alexandria Warwick

Welcome to another TTT! This week’s topic is Characters from Different Books Who Should Team Up, which was submitted by Cathy @ WhatCathyReadNext. What a fun topic! I enjoyed looking through all my books and thinking about the different characters and who would make good friends. It was a challenge in some cases, but I now need all of these authors to team up and make my ideas come to life.

1. Evie from In the Weeds by B.K. Borison and Nari from Christmas at Frozen Falls by Kylie Dunbar
Both Evie and Nari travel around for their social media accounts, Evie to showcase small businesses and Nari to showcase fun travel destinations. I think they’d love discussing what they do and traveling together!

2. Olivia from First to Fall by Jenny B. Jones and Olive from The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren
Their names are similar, and both of them pretended to be married to someone they didn’t like before ultimately falling in love with them! If that doesn’t bond you, I don’t know what would.

3. Mila from The Diamond Eye by Kate Quinn and Grace from The Last Bookshop In London by Madeline Martin
Mila and Grace are both brave women who sacrificed a lot and fought against Hitler in different ways during WW2. And they’re both bookish, so I think they’d have a lot in common.

4. Nathan from The Cheat Sheet by Sarah Adams and Dallas from My Phony Valentine by Courtney Walsh
These guys are both athletes who fake date the women they ultimately fall in love with in order to gain better publicity for themselves. Nathan plays football and Dallas plays hockey, so I can picture quite the bromance between them as they talk about sports and living life in the spotlight. I think their partners would be great friends, too!

5. Leah from Snowflakes at the Little Christmas Tree Farm by Jaimie Admans and Stella from Lovelight Farms by B.K. Borison
Both Leah and Stella bought Christmas tree farms on a whim! They live in different countries, so they won’t be each other’s competition. They can just share tips and bond over their love of trees!

6. Adam from The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood and Matt from Hotshot Doc by R.S. Grey
This one is hard to explain because it’s just a feeling I have. Matt is a cocky surgeon, Adam is a cocky professor. Both are young and successful and they like science/medicine. I dunno! I think they’d be buds if they ever had any spare time!

7. Maybell from Twice Shy by Sarah Hogle and Zoey from The Tourist Attraction by Sarah Morgenthaler
They’re both so sweet and have similar personalities!

8. Noah from Enemies Abroad by R.S. Grey and Caleb from Mixed Signals by B.K. Borison
If these two taught in the same school, I’d want to go there for sure. They’re both super nice guys!

9. Avery from Roman Crazy by Alice Clayton & Nina Bocci and Sunday from Love, Loss, and Pasta Sauce by Stephanie Taylor
Both ladies flew off to Italy after hitting a major pothole in their love lives for a fresh start and found love. I think they’d love going out for gelato together!

10. Easton from Enjoy the View by Sarah Morgenthaler and Graham from The Roommate Pact by Allison Ashley
These adrenaline junkies would make great mountain climbing/hiking buddies!

Do you agree with any of my picks?
Which two characters from different books do you think would make good friends?

Welcome to another TTT! I’ve spent the last few days thinking about today’s topic, Books I’ve Read/Want to Read Because of Top Ten Tuesday (submitted by Ellie at Curiosity Killed the Bookworm), and finally realized I just don’t have the spoons to make a list this week! Do you ever have a day or a week (or a month or a year, hi Friends theme song!) where tasks feel daunting and unachievable? That’s where I am right now, and I think it’s important to recognize this and give yourself some grace. So if you’re in the same place I am, pull up a chair and a throw blanket and read everyone else’s lists with me this week! I’m so excited to see what books you’ve discovered by participating in Top Ten Tuesday! I know it’ll make me smile (and maybe break my TBR, oh well)!

I’m going to be updating the TTT page with the topics for the rest of the year over the next week or so. If you have any ideas for fun topics, please fill out this form! This meme has been around for so so long and I’m running out of ideas!