What is your guilty pleasure?

Submitted by Sea_Concentrate_6543 t3_11dvlri in books

I can't just ask a question like this without giving my own can I? I've read a bunch of the classics, and many people claim will be classics. I've even read my fair share of young adult trash, high fantasy, and sci fi. But the one that I would define as my "guily pleasure" is a Japanese light novel that got 2 seasons of anime called 'Arifureta: from commonplace to worlds strongest.' This series has all the makings of true garbage, edgy MC with white hair and an eyepatch, typical harem element, scantily clad bunny girls, and an evil religion that only the super over powered MC can defeat. And yet I've had so much FUN reading it that I've read all 11 books that are out in English.

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jawnbaejaeger t1_jabgoqo wrote

NO GUILT! ONLY PLEASURE!

I'm too old to feel any kind of guilt or embarrassment about any of the shit I like, even if it's widely hated or considered "cringe" or whatever.

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InkSorrow t1_jadnv9y wrote

Absolutely. There's a really important aspect in being a broad reader, too, in that you get to hear a lot of voices that have traditionally been excluded by an Establishment that proclaims in a very authoritative way that "THIS IS PROPER WRITING!". Élite snobbery long excluded writers that were working class, low-educated, outsider, female, non-European, etc.

I'm reading to please my own brain. Who cares what someone else judges as good or bad? Read on, everyone!

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Catsandscotch t1_jab3rl7 wrote

Sarah J Maas. Her books are so hated here but I think they’re fun

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Mundane_Walk_9230 t1_jabymp2 wrote

Binge-read the ACOTAR series and yes SJM books have MAJOR flaws, but they're fun and I can still enjoy them. Currently reading Crescent City haha

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lizifer93 t1_jadf0uy wrote

When I was 15 I would've lived for those books. I read much worse faerie fantasy trash back then.

I read them last year (a crusty dusty 29 now) and they're honestly entertaining. I'm not asking for YA romance to be filled with depth and meaning, I want a bunch of drama and action with an interesting world and premise.

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TemperatureRough7277 t1_jabh93r wrote

Same here! I don't care if it makes me insufferable, sometimes I just want to read about hot faeries.

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tabs_jt t1_jacb9qf wrote

I loved ACOTAR. At the moment i read ToG and i know it has many flaws but its so good

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Katie_Rea t1_jaf3iy8 wrote

Yes! I fully acknowledge that her books leave a lot to be desired plot-wise (especially ACOTAR), but they’re still enjoyable imo

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Superb_Tiger_8376 t1_jabyyrh wrote

Her books are not hated. Many people love them. Just because some snobs on the internet hate it and dudbros who do not want any romance in their fantasy stories but call a guy aka Rotfuss the second coming of Tolkien for writing a thirty page fairy smut fanfiction does not mean they are bad.

Says someone who did not even enjoy the only book I read from her, but for sure there must be something in the books that makes people like them.

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arcoiris2 t1_jab9r5r wrote

Dan Brown- I happen to like how the books are written, formulaic or not.

Dave Barry - his books give me good belly laughs.

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NermalLand t1_jabd0ra wrote

Big Trouble was possibly the funniest book I've ever read. I picked it up because I had read Dave Barry's column and enjoyed his humor. After I read it, my BFF read it. Then her husband. His brother. His wife. Their friends. By the tine it came back to me it was falling apart. A well-loved and much read treasure.

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arcoiris2 t1_jacqo03 wrote

Big Trouble is on my tbr list this year.

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WomanNotAGirl t1_jab79lg wrote

I don’t feel guilty about any of my pleasures.

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Sea_Concentrate_6543 OP t1_jab7f0u wrote

A guily pleasure doesn't have to be something you're actually guilty about, but usually just refers to something you enjoy that is widely hated.

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Superb_Tiger_8376 t1_jabz30r wrote

Most guilty pleasures are not widely hated. They are just sneered at by a loud majority on the internet.

By the internets logic Rowling is the most hated person ever but in real life never met a single person who cares about her beyond her books.

Internet snobs are 0,00001 percent of the population.

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WomanNotAGirl t1_jab7ynw wrote

I’m aware. It has shame attached to it. I refuse to feel shame for things I personally enjoy.

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iambluest t1_jab8yza wrote

So what are some of those things?

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WomanNotAGirl t1_jab9u2g wrote

I like some of Justin Bieber’s songs.

I am unintentionally loud when I’m pleasured during sex and I don’t care if people hears me ie: roommates and stuff

I like TikTok a lot

I like cheerios and juice boxes

I like watching cartoons

I procrastinate and I’m more productive when I work on something the last minute

I love reality tv shows

Though I am not a die hard fan, I like Kim kardashian

Edit:

Guilty pleasures are activities, products, or habits that a person participates in because it brings them joy, yet it also makes them feel slight shame

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iambluest t1_jabaaoj wrote

I'm 'guilty' of most of those myself.

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WomanNotAGirl t1_jabbvtj wrote

It’s all good. Doesn’t mean I don’t have substance. As one psychologists said it’s good to have those things. They are “mostly” healthy coping mechanisms. I’m big on looking at where terms come and on purpose trying to reframe them.

Like the term male dominated industry actually means an industry that’s refusing to adapt to accommodate women into it. I should know I’ve worked in such field for years.

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iambluest t1_jabcozu wrote

I just retired from a female dominated trade in public education.

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WomanNotAGirl t1_jabd17p wrote

I hear that’s very difficult as well. Curious to hear your experience.

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iambluest t1_jabh8cm wrote

It was good, I got lucky and worked with a good group of people. I may have been blind to things.

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Amphy64 t1_jabm1lb wrote

Weird/obscure eighteenth century French stuff, at least if I felt guilty. Did you know Marat wrote a romance novel? Yep, that Marat. It's basically a kind of eighteenth century Polish War and Peace, about the then topical conflict involving the Confederates, with a bit of Romeo and Juliet in there too. It's very very period, sentimental, a bit Gothic, he is not the greatest literary talent but I unironically love it, found the central romance super cute because I have admittedly awful aesthetic taste in romance (still want more like it, Paul et Virginie was a disappointment, Lettres d'une Péruvienne is genuinely good but ultimately not actually romantic) and (not even in spite of his insistence on bringing the plot to a grinding halt to go off on one of his classic political rants at one point) it cemented my attachment to the writer. His anti-military views came across very strongly. It was prefaced with some comments from the creeps who underhandedly obtained it from his widow and lost the last page -fortunately the story remains fairly complete- and they didn't seem to know how to fit it into their preconceptions about him. Believe there's another one as well but afaik it only exists in manuscript form (and even if I had access I can't read his handwriting). There's still an awful lot of his political work I could have read instead (The Chains of Slavery is interesting and the original is the English version fwiw), I know I could be much more systematic about studying this period (guilt), but I'm not that sorry. Or for reading his essay on the treatment of gonorrhea. I'm in this in part for those little details.

Also, although it was a popular bestseller at the time and far from obscure, I want to know if anyone still reads Rousseau's terrible parenting advice? 10/10, absolutely hilarious and (I think deliberately, he seems like that) infuriating.

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CrazyCatLady108 t1_jab9wl8 wrote

Jack Reacher - i read all of them, and do not intend to follow the ones by his brother, so technically a past guilty pleasure.

Hard Luck Hank series - the protagonist is dumber than a box of rocks but he is indestructible and immortal so things usually work out for him. i do wish the author would tone it down on sex with virtually every woman Hank meets, because even taking the Kama Sutra into consideration those women would not survive. still it is a fun romp with aliens and gangsters and a very proper butler and quite a few laughs.

i am almost done with the series. i will have to find something else to satisfy the 'popcorn' cravings.

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[deleted] t1_jabb2o3 wrote

I don't really have any book guilty pleasures. I believe everything I like to read has some artistic merit to it. However, if we're talking about the eyes of r/books then definitely the HP series 💀

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lanxiin t1_jabw012 wrote

Cassandra Clare - I didn’t even like her newest Last Hours Trilogy, but I’ve read so many of her books, feels like such easy reads for some good old drama at this point.

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crepuscularthoughts t1_jad4s4f wrote

I read her Harry Potter fan fiction long ago..so so good. She basically writes the same things, with different names.

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nerd_teacher t1_jadhb6x wrote

I really enjoy reading bl manhwa😅 They're cringe and trashy but the art 👌🏻

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Gullible-Sherbet-428 t1_jabby7v wrote

Coleen Hoover. Yup. Not all of them but It Starts With Us remains a favorite.

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lucyjayne t1_jacqksx wrote

I don't know if they're guilty pleasures but I enjoy some books that I see a lot of people hating on.

The Inheritance Cycle, by Christopher Paolini - LOVED those books and I don't care who says they're bad, I really liked reading them.

Dark Matter by Blake Crouch - loved this one too and only seem to see people saying it's boring.

Ready Player One - same as above. Really liked it and only see people talking about how it's bad or uninteresting.

Probably true guilty pleasure would be the Shopaholic books.

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Just_Me_UC t1_jaebzap wrote

I loved loved LOVED Dark Matter. Absolutely mind-bending!

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Deliriums_Fish t1_jadrfos wrote

Currently making my way through the Ice Planet Barbarians series by Ruby Dixon and even though the first one feels like she read Clan of the Cave Bear and watched James Cameron's Avatar and thought "these need to combined and at least 20x hornier" I AM EATING IT UP.

I also LOVED The DaVinci Code and Angels and Demons by Dan Brown. I still own the beautiful illustrated versions of each and reading the story and looking at the art pieces and locations referenced is a fantastic experience.

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literattina t1_jabg59e wrote

I try not to subscribe to the whole guilty pleasure concept and proudly read whatever seems good to me, however in real life you’ll never get me to admit I enjoy a historical romance or two when I need some sugar in my life. Most of them are badly written with shallow characters, still entertaining when you need to rest your brain though!

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AtraMikaDelia t1_jabg9cv wrote

I see your Isekai light novels and raise you any number of the various ecchi manga I've read.

And yes partially I do read them for the obvious reasons, but honestly the best ecchi is always just so funny that you have to stop what you're doing because you're laughing too hard.

I don't want to say any names because this comment will already make me look degenerate enough, but if you've read Arifureta I'm sure you at least have some idea what I'm talking about.

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NekoCatSidhe t1_jabmap2 wrote

I don’t think I have one. I have read and liked a number of books that I would describe as dumb fun / shallow entertainment, including Japanese light novels (like Bofuri : I don’t want to get hurt, so I will max my Defense, Reign of the Seven Spellblades, or Death Daughter and the Ebony Blade, to mention some light novel series I read recently), but I think it takes actual talent to write that kind of books in a way that is actually fun and entertaining instead of just dumb and shallow.

Also, none of these series were particularly trashy (no harem of scantily clad bunny girls, sorry), just fun and entertaining, so I do not really have anything to feel guilty about reading them. While I may have read a lot of classics and history books when I was younger, I now mostly read for fun, and there is nothing wrong with that either.

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Sea_Concentrate_6543 OP t1_jabmfyh wrote

I am a big fan of Bofuri the anime, its a wonderful show to watch while eating breakfast

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NekoCatSidhe t1_jabnmfd wrote

I love the Bofuri anime as well. The books too are a lot of fun, but they get into a lot more details about the game mechanics and fights than the anime does, which may not appeal to everyone.

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Pipe-International t1_jabmhop wrote

Brandon Sanderson’s Cosmere novels. That shit is like crack to me.

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[deleted] t1_jabuwz6 wrote

I have written fan fiction, unfortunately my muse is on an extended vacation because it was really fun

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PixieBaronicsi t1_jac9bry wrote

John Grisham. I call it a guilty pleasure because I don’t really think the books are great, but I do enjoy reading them because they’re suspenseful. I’m often disappointed with the endings though and when I finish them I feel I should have read something better. I think if it the same way as getting drunk, I don’t feel good afterwards but I still like doing it

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Ineffable7980x t1_jacfqlf wrote

Clive Cussler novels.

I am proud of everything I read, but with these I do carry a bit of shame. They are so damn fun though. Switch off my brain and just roll with it kind of fun.

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knightcourt_98 t1_jado7dc wrote

Mines a trope but I could be on tik Tok or instagram and the video literally just says, "take your hand off of her or I'll f'ing kill you" and I'm sold. I absolutely love touch her and you die stuff. I don't know why because in real life if a guy were like that I would be like eww unattractive but in these books I EAT IT UP like it were ben and Jerrys.

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Consistent_Quit_315 t1_jae77zg wrote

Robin Cook books - but only pleasure no guilt ☺️☺️☺️

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stitchingandwitching t1_jabhcje wrote

Dean Koontz, I think I've read every book he ever wrote 😂

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Fabi-97 t1_jabw3qy wrote

Why is Dean Koontz a guilty pleasure? He has written some good novels 😮

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theMadameKate t1_jabu9dp wrote

I don't consider any of my books as a guilty pleasure. If I enjoy reading it, it's a good book!

They don't have to be quasi-intellectual or pretentious to be good.

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theMadameKate t1_jabuha0 wrote

But, to get to the heart of your question. I'm a big fan of Regency Romance as my escape

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bibliophile222 t1_jabzutv wrote

I don't really have any book-related guilty pleasures, since I'm not super into any of the typical "guilty pleasure" genres (no shade if you are into them, they're just not for me). I definitely have TV guilty pleasures, though, namely cooking competitions.

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South_Honey2705 t1_jac6bwo wrote

As far as books go I have no guilty pleasures. They all pretty much bring me pleasure equally through the joy of reading. But my shoe fetish now that's my guilty pleasure

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TGByrom t1_jacrcyv wrote

Artimus by Andy Weir.

Absolute pile of trash but I read it all in one day without stopping. its like a completely predictable episode of a bad sci fi show. But I can recall what goes on way clearer than I can a book I love like 'Brave New World'

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ak7887 t1_jacrkzu wrote

I like the satire of Plum Sykes, the debutante divorcee I think it's called.

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AuntOfManyUncles t1_jacsuy6 wrote

The Horus Heresy-books.

So many bad ones.

So much fun😭

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lizifer93 t1_jademxt wrote

I love silly, trashy, shallow thrillers. If they take place at a college, amongst the obscenely rich, or in a small town with seeecrets, I am 100% onboard no matter how dumb the plot is. My fave thing to do in the summer is blow through a bunch of them while at the pool.

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mooimafish33 t1_jadmmv0 wrote

I wouldn't say I'm guilty about it but after about 3 drinks I switch from books to manga

I feel a little guilty for liking the Enders Game series with Orson Scott Card being such a piece of shit. What is it with writers sneaking in the fact that they are ultra religious bigots?

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chummybuckett t1_jadnx0u wrote

My guilty pleasure is buying more books when I have unread ones sitting on my shelf.

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vypernight t1_jaedgua wrote

Zastrozzi. Knowing my dad walked out on us when I was younger, I love what he does to his dad. Plus it’s a fun read.

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masterofunfucking t1_jaeu4rn wrote

I used to tell people that Hemingway got me into writing but now I keep it close to the vest. Not that he’s a bad writer or anything, but just in today’s climate, more often than not, if you rep a problematic writer you need to come equipped with a sword and shield to defend them haha

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Superb_Tiger_8376 t1_jabyucu wrote

I hate the term guilty pleasure. You ought not to feel guilty about enjoying something that does no harm to anyone.

I read a lot of classics but also silly mangas as a teenager and I would never regret reading them lol

Sometimes, I still re-read the childish mangas and books I loved as a child: Dragon Ball, Yugioh, Eragon, Harry Potter etc.

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