There’s honestly so many but if I had to choose, these 3 came in mind: 🍋 As Long as the Lemon Tree Grows by Zoulfa Katouh 🩸 Tempest of Tea by Hafsah Faizal 💜 Shatter Me first trilogy by Tahereh Mafi (the 3 books got me out of an insane reading slump)
I’m reading Priory Of The Orange Tree right now just because I don’t want to bring it into 2025 but gosh it’s so hard to get into. I’m so used to reading chinese fantasy, so reading western fantasy is hard for my brain tbh. But it is very interesting so far, I wish the plot did move a bit faster though. I have seen Ministry Of Time quite a few times in the store and was always hesitant to buy it but you have convinced me to buy it next time I see it in store.
I'm new to your channel and I've been loving your videos. You're inspiring me to try to vlog myself and it's nice to find another booktuber that doesn't love spice 😅
I also loved The Ministry of Time, so happy to see you enjoyed it! Another reason for it's lower rating is that it got review bombed when it was first announced due to sharing a title with a Spanish TV show. The plots are completely different, but some people labelled it plagiarism just based on the shared title and time travel themes. If you're interested in reading anything else from the Scifi category, I also quite liked The Other Valley. It's about a valley that is duplicated on either side - on one side, it's the same valley 20 years in the past and in the other it's the same valley 20 years in the future. Residents can apply to travel to the other valleys, but are not allowed to do anything that might change events. Super unique and interesting story, but the biggest drawback for me was something that also came up in this video - no quotation marks 😬
@@KiraKiera WHAT? I didn’t know about that, I feel like Goodreads should clean the incorrect reviews out… The valley concept sounds so interesting! I feel like I need to read books with quotation marks for the foreseeable future, but can check it out when I’m ready to go there again! 😂
Aww when your cat was looking like he was reading 😂 ministry of time sounds interesting, I’d definitely try it! I voted for Five Broken Blades and Don’t Let The Forest In!
Wild Love was also my first Elsie Silver book and I had the same reaction to the spice. You hit the 50-60% mark and the spice just smacks you in the face! It’s disappointing, because I actually do enjoy her characters and overall writing. But all the spice totally takes away from that - plus the style of the spice is not for me. I tried Wild Eyes as well and one scene from that still haunts me. So I’ve learned she is not an author for me. I LOVE your videos - thank you for all the time and thoughtfulness you put into them!
So hard to narrow it down to one book… so many good books this year. I did read Funny Story twice so I’ll go with that for now, but I’m currently reading The will of the many so that may change soon.
I couldn’t read Intermezzo. Literally, it was illegible. Words dropped on the page. And the LONG paragraphs that went on forever… pages and pages and pages of what? This was the first Sally Rooney I’ve tried, but I had warning that the writing was particular in its quirkiness and was told I would appreciate it because it’s “kinda how you talk sometimes”. So, evaluating that friendship and DNF’d the book. It was a Libby loan and someone else got it earlier than expected, though maybe that’s why it came to me so quickly too… 🤔
i haven’t read intermezzo yet, but i loved normal people, and i heard that intermezzo wasn’t the best one to start with for sally rooney’s books so maybe you’d like her other books more
The Ministry of Time sounds so interesting but when you mentioned the main guy saying some outdated words\ideologies I started to reconsider buying it coz I hate getting mad at MC's that I'm supposed to love😶🌫
no no, it shouldn't discourage you from reading! they way it's done is really good - it's just like he's used to certain things... but is open to learning
Your review really makes me want to pick up the ministry of time! I think it’s important to allow ourselves to be uncomfortable. Not everyone is going to cater to our feelings and that’s okay
I’ve only ‘read’ two Sally R books via audiobooks and they are not for me. I’m not into her books mainly bc the two I read were in the ‘messy/frustrating relationship trope’ which I’ve determined is not my jam.
My top read was tales of the body thief by Anne rice book 4 in the vampire chronicles I really enjoyed this book and was series because many fans said that the other books were not good
Thanks for the forecast! Could you help me with something unrelated: My OKX wallet holds some USDT, and I have the seed phrase. (alarm fetch churn bridge exercise tape speak race clerk couch crater letter). How should I go about transferring them to Binance?
Same. I was so disappointed but hey it helped me take naps and sleep at night so I gave a star for that. 🤷🏽♀️ Edit: I am happy you enjoyed it @jaimefok
Does anyone actually know why Sally Rooney doesn't use quotation marks? It annoys me sooo much too, it just feels like lazy writing....like you cant take the time to add them in 🤣
My only 5 star read that I read this year was actually published in 2011. 11/22/63 by Stephen King was the best book I read this year out of 70 books. Sally Rooney is not for me. I tried one of her books and it was a DNF. Hey I miss your workout reviews. Are you still working out?
I need to pick that one up at some point!! I've spoken several times about why I've shifted out of fitness content on my channel, but for various reasons - I decided it just wasn't the best for me to keep sharing that part of my life :)
The ministry of time has a low rating because it starts out really hot and then the book just absolutely comes to a standstill. It’s also a pretty unfulfilling ending. It wasn’t controversial. 90% of the negative Goodreads reviews pretty clearly agree it was just boring. The dialogue was boring and hid itself behind big words and naivety in an attempt to make the characters personalities interesting. Even the male main character coming from a failed arctic expedition was just a super boring historical pick. Nothing interesting there that made me feel for or want to understand this character.
Actually, the most common Goodreads rating for The Ministry of Time is a 4 star (37% of the votes). So saying 90% didn’t enjoy it is false. You are welcome to your own opinion, and as I mentioned in the video- I can see why it might not be the book for everyone! In my own personal circles, I also know people who either loved it or hated it - so it seems pretty controversial to me!
what was your top read of the year? 💕
There’s honestly so many but if I had to choose, these 3 came in mind:
🍋 As Long as the Lemon Tree Grows by Zoulfa Katouh
🩸 Tempest of Tea by Hafsah Faizal
💜 Shatter Me first trilogy by Tahereh Mafi (the 3 books got me out of an insane reading slump)
Beach Read and Funny Story! Emily Henry just always does it for me 💕
Pachinko!
@@FutureSakuraStar99 omg love this! I NEED to read Tahereh Mafi
@lia.0510 she's magical!
Ahhh grabbing my coffee, you read it so fast! Excited for your thoughts on The Ministry of Time!
ENJOY
😢 Loving these longer videos ❤
I was hoping the 40 minute reading vlog wasn't too much... 😂💕
@jaimefok Keep them coming! 🤣
same!!!!
This was such a fun video!!
@bubbleclayshop8780 so glad you liked it! 💕
I’m reading Priory Of The Orange Tree right now just because I don’t want to bring it into 2025 but gosh it’s so hard to get into. I’m so used to reading chinese fantasy, so reading western fantasy is hard for my brain tbh. But it is very interesting so far, I wish the plot did move a bit faster though. I have seen Ministry Of Time quite a few times in the store and was always hesitant to buy it but you have convinced me to buy it next time I see it in store.
Priory is one of those books that I loved, but if you ask me to recall anything... I can't LOL, so I get this!
It took a couple hundred pages for the pacing to pick up but then it gets so good!
You and I have such similar tastes! I loved The Ministry of Time. I feel like I can reread it over and over and get something new every time.
it was SO good!!
THE SWEATSHIRT SO CUTEEE
thank yooouuuu!
I'm new to your channel and I've been loving your videos. You're inspiring me to try to vlog myself and it's nice to find another booktuber that doesn't love spice 😅
aww welcome to the fam
I also loved The Ministry of Time, so happy to see you enjoyed it! Another reason for it's lower rating is that it got review bombed when it was first announced due to sharing a title with a Spanish TV show. The plots are completely different, but some people labelled it plagiarism just based on the shared title and time travel themes.
If you're interested in reading anything else from the Scifi category, I also quite liked The Other Valley. It's about a valley that is duplicated on either side - on one side, it's the same valley 20 years in the past and in the other it's the same valley 20 years in the future. Residents can apply to travel to the other valleys, but are not allowed to do anything that might change events. Super unique and interesting story, but the biggest drawback for me was something that also came up in this video - no quotation marks 😬
@@KiraKiera WHAT? I didn’t know about that, I feel like Goodreads should clean the incorrect reviews out…
The valley concept sounds so interesting! I feel like I need to read books with quotation marks for the foreseeable future, but can check it out when I’m ready to go there again! 😂
Hehe I am one of the ones waiting to hear your thoughts on Wild Love 😂 I agree, the smut was too much! I ended up skipping them all as well.
so not necessary to the story!
Aww when your cat was looking like he was reading 😂 ministry of time sounds interesting, I’d definitely try it! I voted for Five Broken Blades and Don’t Let The Forest In!
hahah she totally knows how to read :P
i just started Beartown but def bumping up Ministry of Time on my list after this video 🤩 and also Intermezzo cuz im nosy
I'm also reading Beartown
Me too, i am also Reading Beartown haha 😄
omg I LOVE that everyone is reading Beartown, I need to get to that this winter as well!
Currently I am reading Intermezzo and after watching your video, I am even more motivated to finish it 😂
it's tough work, but rewarding 😂
@jaimefok I had to read the first chapter out loud and slow because I couldnt understand a thing 😅
@@joanadomingues5524 reading out loud definitely helps LOL
Wild Love was also my first Elsie Silver book and I had the same reaction to the spice. You hit the 50-60% mark and the spice just smacks you in the face! It’s disappointing, because I actually do enjoy her characters and overall writing. But all the spice totally takes away from that - plus the style of the spice is not for me. I tried Wild Eyes as well and one scene from that still haunts me. So I’ve learned she is not an author for me.
I LOVE your videos - thank you for all the time and thoughtfulness you put into them!
I'm so scared to hear that Wild Eyes has a traumatizing scene LOL
So hard to narrow it down to one book… so many good books this year.
I did read Funny Story twice so I’ll go with that for now, but I’m currently reading The will of the many so that may change soon.
love that!!!
I couldn’t read Intermezzo. Literally, it was illegible. Words dropped on the page. And the LONG paragraphs that went on forever… pages and pages and pages of what?
This was the first Sally Rooney I’ve tried, but I had warning that the writing was particular in its quirkiness and was told I would appreciate it because it’s “kinda how you talk sometimes”. So, evaluating that friendship and DNF’d the book. It was a Libby loan and someone else got it earlier than expected, though maybe that’s why it came to me so quickly too… 🤔
hahah it's TOUGH to get into the writing style 😂
This is how I felt when I read Calypso earlier this year...When you're an English major, the weird writing hurts the brain. 🤣
i haven’t read intermezzo yet, but i loved normal people, and i heard that intermezzo wasn’t the best one to start with for sally rooney’s books so maybe you’d like her other books more
@@lunalennert Intermezzo is definitely a lot more stylized than her others!
Two contenders for my top read of the year are Natural Beauty by Ling Ling Huang and Diary of a Confused Feminist by Kate Weston
Haven’t heard of those!
So curious about The Ministry of Time!!
Def give it a try!
You're the first person I've watched who liked Ministry of Time, and now I'm super curious.
it's a controversial one!
The Ministry of Time sounds so interesting but when you mentioned the main guy saying some outdated words\ideologies I started to reconsider buying it coz I hate getting mad at MC's that I'm supposed to love😶🌫
no no, it shouldn't discourage you from reading!
they way it's done is really good - it's just like he's used to certain things... but is open to learning
@@jaimefok Oke then I'll defo give it a shot, I js hope I'm part of the group who love that book coz the book's idea sounds so intersting :D
Your review really makes me want to pick up the ministry of time! I think it’s important to allow ourselves to be uncomfortable. Not everyone is going to cater to our feelings and that’s okay
totally agree!
I’ve only ‘read’ two Sally R books via audiobooks and they are not for me. I’m not into her books mainly bc the two I read were in the ‘messy/frustrating relationship trope’ which I’ve determined is not my jam.
she definitely does lots of that!
My top read was tales of the body thief by Anne rice book 4 in the vampire chronicles I really enjoyed this book and was series because many fans said that the other books were not good
ooooh that sounds fun!
Thanks for the forecast! Could you help me with something unrelated: My OKX wallet holds some USDT, and I have the seed phrase. (alarm fetch churn bridge exercise tape speak race clerk couch crater letter). How should I go about transferring them to Binance?
Cannot stand the no quotations. Not sure if I can read Intermezzo.
it was rough, but UGH why did the book have to be so good LOL
I found ministry of time so boring 😅
Same. I was so disappointed but hey it helped me take naps and sleep at night so I gave a star for that. 🤷🏽♀️
Edit: I am happy you enjoyed it @jaimefok
I can totally see this haha!
I didn't like it so much, but was really well written
same!! i thought the writing was beautiful at times & the concept was sooo cool but the execution felt like a chore to finish🤧
I am strict at watching my subscriptions in post order. But your vids always skip the line!
LOVE YOU FOR THAT 💕
❤❤❤
💕
I read the ministry of time, but I didn't enjoy it. I feel like it dragged. 😢
that's fair!
Please please pleaseee read The Book of Doors!! My top read of this year! (And a debut novel!!)
I really need to AHH!
Does anyone actually know why Sally Rooney doesn't use quotation marks? It annoys me sooo much too, it just feels like lazy writing....like you cant take the time to add them in 🤣
it would help with the reading experience IMMENSELY! 😂
My only 5 star read that I read this year was actually published in 2011. 11/22/63 by Stephen King was the best book I read this year out of 70 books. Sally Rooney is not for me. I tried one of her books and it was a DNF.
Hey I miss your workout reviews. Are you still working out?
I need to pick that one up at some point!!
I've spoken several times about why I've shifted out of fitness content on my channel, but for various reasons - I decided it just wasn't the best for me to keep sharing that part of my life :)
At times when you speak, you sound and to some degree have the same bubble personality like Jasmine Pak from tasty/buzz feed. I mean it in a good way.
ooh i don't know who she is! but I will accept that as a compliment, thank you so much!
@jaimefok you're welcome. It is a compliment. She has her own channel by the same name
The ministry of time has a low rating because it starts out really hot and then the book just absolutely comes to a standstill. It’s also a pretty unfulfilling ending. It wasn’t controversial. 90% of the negative Goodreads reviews pretty clearly agree it was just boring. The dialogue was boring and hid itself behind big words and naivety in an attempt to make the characters personalities interesting. Even the male main character coming from a failed arctic expedition was just a super boring historical pick. Nothing interesting there that made me feel for or want to understand this character.
Actually, the most common Goodreads rating for The Ministry of Time is a 4 star (37% of the votes). So saying 90% didn’t enjoy it is false.
You are welcome to your own opinion, and as I mentioned in the video- I can see why it might not be the book for everyone! In my own personal circles, I also know people who either loved it or hated it - so it seems pretty controversial to me!