Author: Fives @ Down The Rabbit Hole

An avid reader whose current interest lies in mysteries and thrillers. Line 'em up! Also personally love fantasies and any stories to do with magic, and a sucker for the occasional (good) romance.
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Let’s Talk Bookish – Overused Book Tropes

Fives @ Down The Rabbit Hole

Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme, hosted by Rukky @ Eternity Books & Dani @ Literary Lion, where they discuss certain topics, share their opinions, and spread the love by visiting each others’ posts.

OCTOBER 15: OVERUSED BOOK TROPES (SUGGESTED BY ARIA @ BOOK NOOK BITS)

Prompts: Connected to my previous topic where we talked about tiresome characters, what are some tiresome tropes? Have you seen enough love triangles? Getting sick of enemies to lovers? What tropes have you had enough of, and can they ever be done well?

Welcome to the middle (already?!) of October, another LTB! Today’s topic kind of follows the previous topic of tiresome characters – this time we’re talking about tiresome tropes.

Overused? Or perhaps classic? I think sometimes it really just depends on how much the author leans into the tropes. Is it a classy or cheesy use? I think that’s what it usually comes down to. I really don’t have inherent problems with love triangles and enemies to lovers. Yes we can usually see them with a blaring red alarm a mile away. At the same time, I feel that just a hint of a suggested love triangle, or just a tense relationship becoming a close one…I really do think can be effective ways to kind of move the plot forward and to create the right amount of emotional tension.

I think where the real problem arises is where it’s just too much and they belabor the point that there’s a love triangle and both guys are so attractive and it’s just so hard for the girl to choose – these are the times that I desperately wish the author wouldn’t use such a trope.

For the genres that I tend to read though, there aren’t usually too many tropes that are overused. I feel that in thrillers and mysteries, tropes appear in so many different ways, sometimes in ways I didn’t even see coming, and I feel that rather than being “overused,” it’s more like an avenue for creativity – and I actually enjoy the same trope being twisted different ways and presented to me. In fact, I’d say that I’m often looking for the trope and trying to see how that type of character or plot is being fit into the thriller genre. Honestly the plots aren’t all that different when you break it down to its core elements, but the way it is executed really can change it from a 1-star all the way to a 5-star book.

For the books you all read, do you find that tropes appear too much? Or just the right amount? If you’re getting sick of a trope, is it because it isn’t executed well (or how you wanted)? Or is it because you personally just don’t enjoy the trope? Are there any tropes that just never work? Let me know in the comments below!

4 star, YA

Review: The Dazzling Heights by Katharine McGee

Fives @ Down The Rabbit Hole

The Thousandth Floor #2

New York City, 2118. Manhattan is home to a thousand-story supertower, a breathtaking marvel that touches the sky. But amid high-tech luxury and futuristic glamour, five teenagers are keeping dangerous secrets…

Leda is haunted by memories of what happened on the worst night of her life. She’ll do anything to make sure the truth stays hidden—even if it means trusting her enemy.

Watt just wants to put everything behind him…until Leda forces him to start hacking again. Will he do what it takes to be free of her for good?

When Rylin wins a scholarship to an upper-floor school, her life transforms overnight. But being there also means seeing the boy whose heart she broke, and who broke hers in return.

Avery is tormented by her love for the one person in the world she can never have. She’s desperate to be with him…no matter the cost.

And then there’s Calliope, the mysterious, bohemian beauty who arrives in New York determined to cause a stir. And she knows exactly where to begin.

But unbeknownst to them all, someone is watching their every move, someone with revenge in mind. After all, in a world of such dazzling heights, just one wrong step can mean a devastating fall.

Book #2 in the The Thousandth Floor series. Once again we return to the beautiful 1000-floor tower constructed in Manhattan 2118. The elite are at the top while the rest are at the bottom. Continuing from where we left off in the first book, once again we dive into the drama and heartbreak of the elite, after the tragic events of the first book. Have they moved on? Or does everything just keep coming back to haunt them?

The Dazzling Heights really does describe the heights at which these characters stand. As we all know, the higher up you are, the harder you can fall. This is truly embodied in this novel. As each character struggles to continue their lives in the aftermath of what happened in the first novel, a new character comes into town to mess with everyone’s lives. Once again told through multiple POVs, the story is intricately woven together, and it is impossible to tell what will hold strong and what is about to break.

Continue reading “Review: The Dazzling Heights by Katharine McGee” →
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Let’s Talk Bookish – Cut and Paste Character Archetypes

Fives @ Down The Rabbit Hole

Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme, hosted by Rukky @ Eternity Books & Dani @ Literary Lion, where they discuss certain topics, share their opinions, and spread the love by visiting each others’ posts.

OCTOBER 8: CUT AND PASTE CHARACTER ARCHETYPES (DANI)

Prompts: Are there any characters you feel like you’re seeing over and over again recently? The same love interest in multiple romances? The same protagonist over and over? I’ve seen a lot of complaints about Rhysand-like characters recently so I’d love to hear what characters you’ve seen too much of.

Welcome to another LTB in October everyone! Today we’ve got a prompt from our very own Dani at The Literary Lion. If you don’t already follow her on her blog (linked in the quote above) please go check her content out! She posts consistently and is always a source of bookish content. Thanks to her (and Rukky) once again for hosting this wonderful meme.

First admission, I don’t know who Rhysand is! But looking him up on google…I’m not surprised that his type of character appears often. Some character types are just too good not to have repeated I suppose – whether that’s a good or bad thing though, I can’t really say. I haven’t personally really noticed the same character types popping up in my own series. It’s usually the same old, same old, but nothing that’s particularly repetitive to the point where I start rolling my eyes.

The same love interest in multiple romances would be a common theme though. I haven’t read any romances recently, but back when I did more, there were always the same kinds of love interests – mainly the good-looking but bad-for-you types. But I suppose that’s kind of what people read it for, and so… in that sense it’s okay? Honestly not sure what else I’d like to see, but for sure creativity these days would be much appreciated. The more reading and books I get under my belt, the more I love when there’s something new that I haven’t seen (which of course gets more rare as the days go by).

If I could have the same(ish) protagonist over and over, I honestly wouldn’t mind too much. But that’s probably because I generally read books looking for that same kind of powerful (on the inside) protagonist who struggles and (mostly) triumphs despite all odds. Because I tend to like the same kind of story, I tend to want the same type of protagonist, except facing different scenarios with more and more impossible choices. Is it just me? Maybe I’m weird for liking the same type of thing all the time.

In mysteries and thrillers there are definitely common characters that appear all the time, but it’s more about the way they are written than about who they actually are. There are always those “suspicious” characters, some of which are downright thrown in your face as a suspect, and others who are portrayed as innocent (which in itself makes you suspicious), or those who are completely unrelated (which also makes you suspicious). The “formula” for how these kinds of books are written are often not too far off – although when a trope is good, why change it? I definitely appreciate the authors who can use these tried and true archetypes to great effect.

What do you all think about seeing the “same” characters throughout different books? Yay or nay? Let me know in the comments below!