The Unpopular Opinion Book Tag

Everyone has opinions when it comes to books, and it just turns out that sometimes those opinions are not so popular. It’s always interesting to find out what peoples opinions are on books and characters and OTP’s and all the good stuff, so we thought we’d do the unpopular opinions book tag to let you get to know a little more about our popular likes and dislikes.

1. A Popular Book or series that you didn’t like.
Sarah: Girl Online by Zoe Sugg – I have not hidden the fact that i cannot stand this book. I don’t think it got the hype it deserves, and it definitely did not deserve to take away a record from the queen herself Ms J.K. Rowling. But I know the Girl Online series by Zoe Sugg is popular. Without a doubt it’s because of her YouTube status though.
Sophie: The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare – It is no secret that I am not a fan of this book series. I think I have mentioned it twice before on this blog. I read the first two books because of how many people recommended them to me and just couldn’t carry on because the story itself and the writing were not my cup of tea.

2. A Popular Book or series that every one else seems to hate but you love.
Sarah: Fifty Shades Of Grey by E. L. James – okay this one is a little controversial. Some people love it and some people hate it, there isn’t really an in between with this book is there? But I actually love the storyline and characters, especially Anastasia Steele.
Sophie: Allegiant by Veronica Roth – I know this isn’t an obvious choice and I admit I’m stretching the truth since I don’t LOVE this book. However, there is some outright hate for the ending of this novel whereas I liked the ending. It was different, it broke stereotypes and tropes of most dystopian YA stories. For that, I have some great respect for Veronica Roth, as it was a risky decision but one I personally stand by.

3. A Love Triangle where the main character ended up with the person you did NOT
want them to end up with OR an OTP that you don’t like.
Sarah: Audrey and Linus from Finding Audrey by Sophie Kinsella – This is just an OTP that I really didn’t like. I’ve heard nothing but great things about Finding Audrey which must mean that people ship Audrey and Linus a lot. However I found Linus to be pushy and not a good match for Audrey at all. I just didn’t believe their relationship.
Sophie: Harry and Ginny from the Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling – I have never been a fan of Ginny’s character and was always unhappy with the relationship between her and Harry. I always envisage Harry not in a relationship (but also slightly ship him with Luna) so this has always been an unsatisfying ending for me. I felt their relationship is rather forced and is only relevant so that Harry, Ron and Hermione all become a part of the same family.

4. A popular book Genre that you hardly reach for.
Sarah: Romance – There is a big difference between Chick-Lit and Romance. I pick up a lot of Chick-Lit novels for easy reading when I feel like it. But I draw the line at Mills and Boon.
Sophie: High Fantasy – Though I do love many fantasy novels, I never pick up books such as The Hobbit or Eragon. However, since watching the television adaptation Game of Thrones, I am interested to read the book series it is based upon, which is classed as high fantasy, so maybe this will be my bridge into the genre.

5. A popular or beloved character that you do not like.
Sarah: Cath from Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell – Once again I haven’t really hidden my distaste for Fangirl. I’ve read a few novels by Rainbow Rowell and this was probably my 
least favourite. I could not connect with Cath at all and found her whiny and annoying often. I just really cannot understand why so many people adore her.
Sophie: Gus Waters from The Fault in Our Stars by John Green – I know this will be unpopular and I am sorry! I don’t hate Gus but there’s just something about his personality that grates on me. The arrogance and pretentious flair he has is something I never like in real people and it continues onto fictional characters too. He has many lovely qualities but the things he says do irritate me a little.

6. A popular author that you can’t seem to get into.
Sarah: Richelle Mead – I’ve never attempted the Vampire Academy series, nor do I ever think I will. But I read Soundless earlier on in the year and I was not blown away by the writing of it. She’s okay as an author, and her ideas are unique and very special indeed, I just cannot get on board with the hype around Richelle Mead.
Sophie: Scott Westerfeld – The Uglies series had good reviews which led me to try them, and although I did think the story was really clever and fascinating, I was not a fan of the writing style which has put me off reading any more of his work.

7. A popular book trope that you’re tired of seeing. (examples “lost princess”, corrupt ruler, love triangles, etc.)
Sarah: The fact that a really attractive guy always ends up with the unattractive girl in YA fiction. This is ridiculously cliche and in reality, no it wouldn’t happen, everyone just hopes it does.
Sophie: The specific kind of ‘romantic saviour’ trope where a girl or guy are miraculously cured of their mental illness because they fall in love with someone. It undermines and romanticises mental health issues as well as implying that you need a relationship to save you.

8. A popular series that you have no interest in reading.
Sarah: The Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead – I promise I’m not a Richelle Mead hate blog! For the same reason I mentioned Richelle Mead earlier, I just have no interest in reading The Vampire Academy series.
Sophie: The Lord Of The Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien – As I stated before, High Fantasy is not a genre I read, and these books have never interested me. Although I know many people who love them, I just cannot bring myself any motivation to begin and I am pretty certain that I personally wouldn’t enjoy them.

9. The saying goes “The book is always better than the movie”, but what movie or T.V. show adaptation do you prefer more than the book?
Sarah: The Mist by Stephen King – I picked up The Mist a few months ago after having sit on my shelf for a while. It was okay. I did’t love or hate it. Once I finished the novel I wanted to see how the movie differed. Once again i didn’t love it or hate it, but the ending of the 
movie is so much more dramatic and well thought out than the novel ending. I enjoyed it a lot more.
Sophie: The Birds by Daphne Du Maurier – I am unsure if the fact I watched the film before reading the book influences this but I really do prefer the adaptation. The protagonists are completely different and the setting changes from Britain to America. Although the changes are huge between the book and film, the themes are shared between the two. For me, however, the film has characters which I much prefer to those in the book.