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rabidbreeder t1_ivyrppe wrote

Everyone on booktok is like, 18. I thought Evelyn Hugo was alright, but I would have loved it if I was in high school when I read it.

I forget this periodically and then get burned when I get anything suggested on TikTok.

I've also noticed that "booktok" readers generally don't read with any eye towards prose quality. They literally do not notice/care(?) if the writing is shit.

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twee_centen t1_ivzdebe wrote

I've gotten to the point that I'm extremely hesitant if the original source of the hype is booktok. The amount of crap my book club has had me slog through because booktok said...

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Hi-isLiv OP t1_ivysbnv wrote

I think age might play a part here. I’m not even on tik tok. Am I dating myself? but I found it on display on the bookstore and got intrigued by Goodreads review.

Does quality of prose beat story? I tend to go with the story, if the story is good I can overlook a lot of things. In this case… meh

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rabidbreeder t1_ivzsgbb wrote

But a huge part of why it's on display is its popularity on TikTok. It has a massive influence on book sales and interest right now.

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Hi-isLiv OP t1_ivzvbo1 wrote

I’ll admit I was a tad naive lol. I hoped to live outside of the bubble and here it comes biting me in the butt

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theaudacityofthi t1_ivzmiru wrote

I’m not a writing expert but even I can tell the writing is shit when Evelyn would go “that day I was wearing a pale blue v neck sweater that accentuated my chest with this type of necklace and hairstyle” about something that happened 50 years ago. It really bugged me cause it felt forced and not natural at all.

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fragiumily t1_iw10tug wrote

THIS. I think Booktok is mostly content over quality. It’s like how Verity blew up. They just want cheap shock value.

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WhitePeppermintMocha t1_iw4vlso wrote

A friend recommended it to me and described it as “the greatest love story of this generation”. We’re in our mid twenties. I read it based on this recommendation, as a romance lover, and found it extremely mediocre; didn’t love it, didn’t hate it. Definitely not the greatest love story of any generation.

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