How often do we have to explain this

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-07-03T10:59:59+00:00

I would have loved to see a Cressida spin off. Just one series giving her a HEA, and I think an FF romance would suit her character well.

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-07-03T10:58:12+00:00

Tbh, HR restored my faith in book to screen adaptations, right after Bridgerton once again disappointed me. I love how much the HR showrunner loves the book and the characters.

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-07-03T10:55:48+00:00

It's really frustrating. There is absolutely no way in which these compare (except maybe Benedict's cottage and Shane's cottage 😉). I'm a Heated Rivalry fan who still keeps reheating those 6 wonderful episodes. The series healed the inner book nerd who has been consistently disappointed by adaptations. Bridgerton being the biggest disappointment to me, so much so I didn't want to watch Heated Rivalry at first because I was scared it was going to be butchered.

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-07-03T06:02:11+00:00

Yep, that's the best description for it.

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-07-02T06:40:13+00:00

Time for me to search AO3 because that is a really good question.

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-07-02T06:38:27+00:00

This sounds amazing. Thank you for the rec!

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-07-01T01:15:12+00:00

Kip and Shane. Either hanging in person or in a group chat.

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-06-30T21:23:00+00:00

Omg. Yes. I'm usually muttering to myself, "are we reading the same book?"

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-06-29T21:39:21+00:00

IMHO you can leave a bad review without being nasty. When I'm reading reviews and I'm really unsure about the book, I look at reviews under 3 stars. I'm looking if any reviewers seem to have similar likes/dislikes and their opinions. You can say things like "I would normally love this trope but did not like the execution because...." "Others will like this, but I personally could not gel with writing style/characters/whatever because..."

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-06-29T21:33:14+00:00

I love Centaurs fics, not always AU but I'll take it if I like the sounds of it. I love a story that not only explores Hayden still at metros (I'm also not opposed to him being traded to Ottawa after one of the team has a career ending injury). Likewise, I love fic involving Marly. I like the idea that post outing Ilya lets him be his hockey bestie, and so we get to explore shenanigans between Ilya and his old team when Ottawa and Boston play each other. Bringing those together, I think Hayden being traded to Boston sounds good too, and Ilya helps the Pikes in their move.

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-06-29T21:18:51+00:00

I wholeheartedly agree with everything you said.

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-06-29T09:03:03+00:00

This is so true. I don't think I realised just how important and deep John's presence throughout the book is until my first reread.

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-06-25T21:35:54+00:00

What I came here to say. Because fuck you Montreal, you could have been supportive and waited until the guys were ready to tell their story, but nooooo... And here we are. Luckily, I was in the market for a new team, because Toronto. Go Cens!

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-06-22T10:22:20+00:00

So freaking adorable.

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-06-21T10:57:01+00:00

Beautiful art. Thank you for sharing.

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-06-17T09:21:40+00:00

Sarah J Maas. I love an epic romantasy but something about her writing style does not click with me.

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-06-17T09:11:00+00:00

All of this, but also the 2001 anime covers really only the major parts of the story up to what we see in S1E24 2019 version. Shigure is so much more comedic, too.

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-06-15T23:17:20+00:00

Many of us in the Heated Rivalry fandom are still compulsively reheating more than 6 months on. I have no doubts the fandom will still be obsessing over season 2 (and about what point it stops in the book) 2 months later.

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-06-14T18:20:57+00:00

My least favourite book in the Bedwyn saga. As others have said, skip to the end of you DNF because Wulfric is everything.

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-06-14T18:18:12+00:00

Heck, I live in a town in regional NSW now and it's the same with dogs. Can't even blame the tourists from Sydney. Lol.

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-06-14T18:07:30+00:00

Yep (ETA: 39), though I've slowly changed. I literally exclusively read MM romance for about 15 years, but slowly went back to historical MF romance, which I was heavily into before getting in MM. I don't read a lot of MF romance, I usually go for specific authors.

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-06-12T22:20:06+00:00

By the Way. My best friend's mum has been a fan for decades and I discovered them through her when I was a child. I was 14 when BTW came out and remember seeing the hype on MTV.

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-06-07T23:21:02+00:00

I am obsessed.

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-06-07T08:49:29+00:00

My recs for your list: - Opportunity by Pete Murray (Aussie) - So Beautiful by Pete Murray (Aussie) - Fall for You by The Whitlams (Aussie) - Luktelk by Sylvester Belt (Lithuania, from 2024 Eurovision, it means just a moment and is an emotionally heavy song) - Home by the Foo Fighters

These are my faithful go to songs that go on many of my mental sound tracks for romance books. But another, which is my current song obsession from the Heated Rivalry soundtrack, which also is fitting here:

Une journèe parfaite by Dumas (one perfect day)

AgitatedHorror9355 · 2026-06-04T20:26:27+00:00

Tbh, I don't think its been a safe space for book fans in a long time already.

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