They say you always remember your first. Mine was Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead. Maybe if I would have read a Jodi Picoult or Meg Cabot or Nicholas Sparks first my niche would be different. Maybe – if we’re getting really philosophical – I never would have read a Jodi Picoult or Meg Cabot or Nicholas Sparks first because that’s not my niche.
What comes first, the niche or the book?
If I opened Pandora’s box, would it release every stereotype I love to read or all the books with those bad stereotypes?
If I looked into the Mirror of Erised, would I see myself surrounded by corporeal niche representations or stacks of books that feed the niche?
If I were Gollum, would my precious be a ring-shaped niche or a book-shaped ring?
You get the point.
Since blossoming into a bookworm (or a bookwyrm- which design is selling better on Redbubble these days?) I’ve lusted after stories that contain the same premise: A troubled/”evil”/cocky love interest, magic, contained within a series (or at least a standalone that’s particularly thicc), war-driven (but less action and more plotting), sass.
I know, I know. That’s pretty specific. The thing is, you could go into a bookstore or library and pick up almost any fantasy or science-fiction novel right now and get at least 3/5 of these things; 4/5 depending on the size of the collection. Some of you might be like, “Hey, that’s pretty good,” but it makes me want to dig a hole, bury myself, and never see the light of day again.
Dramatics aside, some of my favorite books of all time have the majority of these qualifiers! A few of them even have *gasp* them all (I’m looking at you, V. E. Schwab). But each little taste of perfection sends me on the next hunt, and the satisfaction is too far and in-between for contentment.
This isn’t to say I don’t love reading books that don’t fit my niche- believe the strain of my bookshelves; I do. I just can’t help but wonder if my first love was so epic that I’ll be forced to wonder this Earth in search of something like it forever.
A huge thank you to Marissa for writing this guest post while my son is in the hospital! Make sure you follow her on Twitter and if you’re interested in doing a guest post let me know through my contact form!
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