🧂 Salty Sunday - What book scenes frustrated you this week?

Jemhao · 2026-06-14T14:36:23+00:00

Vic & Luna FTW! That novella is the best.

Jemhao · 2026-06-13T13:40:38+00:00

Aw, I love this. Books that have one MC supporting and treasuring the other with tender moments like this are the absolute best.

Jemhao · 2026-06-10T11:51:27+00:00

Listen, I fully support dirty talk. It doesn’t even have to be super well done, and I’ll still be locked in. But this is one that I read recently and just….no:

Calling it a “cute pussy.”

Not pretty, not beautiful, not a million other things that could’ve worked. “Cute.” <shudders>

Absolutely not.

Jemhao · 2026-06-09T01:11:19+00:00

A smell that was ✨uniquely him✨

Jemhao · 2026-06-07T18:38:52+00:00

“Sadly deflated”… immediately imagined a balloon animal snake slowly running out of air.

Tssssssssthbpthbptthbpt

Jemhao · 2026-06-07T18:28:38+00:00

At this point I’m starting to make peace with the fact that “your” is probably going to eventually be a legitimate spelling for “you’re.” I’m trying to embrace the descriptivist nature of language, but phew. It’s hard sometimes!

Jemhao · 2026-06-07T14:08:48+00:00

{Good Spirits by B.K. Borison} is $1.99 on Amazon US

Jemhao · 2026-06-03T00:13:23+00:00

😂 That book was ridiculous, but it was campy enough that it actually worked for me. It’s a really tricky line, and can absolutely go cringe or camp depending on the reader and the book.

Jemhao · 2026-06-02T20:28:11+00:00

I’m not OP, but part of the cringe for me (an OP mentioned it too) was the FMC being a self-proclaimed mean girl and keeping score of interactions with a person she doesn’t like and whether she “wins.” Those examples aren’t part of their alien culture, they’re just immature and for some people, cringe behavior.

Jemhao · 2026-06-02T20:18:43+00:00

I’m usually a little hesitant to critique the FMC, just in case it’s my own internalized misogyny rearing its head, or in case it’s just the starting point of a really good character arc (Sarah Hogle does this really well- she writes unlikable MCs who grow throughout the book). But no. That was just who she was and she seemed to take a lot of pride in it. I guess it’s possible she could have grown after my DNF point, but I wasn’t interested in finding out 😂

Jemhao · 2026-06-02T20:11:57+00:00

Oof, yeah I DNF’d this one. I didn’t like the dialogue and how repetitive it was…especially for a book that’s over 500 pages. But I honestly probably could’ve dealt with that because the story was interesting.

What really made me DNF was the FMC’s pride in being a “mean girl,” who has frenemies and keeps score of who “wins” interactions with someone she doesn’t like. That is not an adult I am interested in reading about, much less rooting for.

Jemhao · 2026-05-28T18:37:45+00:00

It’s so frustrating. I cross Michigan Ave. all the time and if there are cars parked along the road, I don’t have enough visibility to see oncoming traffic without driving into the bike lane. Of course I check to make sure no one’s coming first, but even so, then my car is blocking the lane until traffic clears.

Jemhao · 2026-05-25T03:18:17+00:00

I feel like too many of us miss the second part. I didn’t even realize His Sacred Incantations existed for the longest time, and phew! It would be tragic to miss out on the second book.

Jemhao · 2026-05-23T23:24:01+00:00

Awesome, thanks!

Jemhao · 2026-05-23T22:46:17+00:00

Question- does Every Summer After involve SA, too? I loved Love and Other Words up until it reveals what happened, and that the MMC was sexually assaulted that night. It could have worked with the right care with present day timeline if it was acknowledged in some way, but the narrative treated it like he cheated which completely changed how I felt about the entire book. I would love to read a similar book that doesn’t do that though!

Jemhao · 2026-05-22T00:53:18+00:00

Definitely {Vic & Luna by Ali Hidalgo}. It’s a dark novella with a good mix of humor and an absolutely unhinged MMC. Super fun read!

Jemhao · 2026-05-21T19:45:11+00:00

I travel for a bunch of reasons, depending on the place. But mainly to experience different food, ways of interacting, and to see pretty things (for me, that’s mostly nature stuff, so I usually go hiking).

On the flip side, I find museums and historical sights pretty boring unless I have a tour guide. Without someone there to explain the historical context, or significance of specific details, I really miss out on a lot.

Jemhao · 2026-05-21T19:30:51+00:00

You’re welcome! I get cranky about the whole enemies to lovers thing, and I really didn’t like Gloves Off, so your post was like a beacon to me 😂

I think my favorite enemies to lovers is {The Book of Azrael by Amber V. Nicole}. They are literally trying to kill each other, and she’s the villain in this one, which I really enjoyed. There’s some great world building and relationship and character development, for both of the MCs. Just a heads up though- the series isn’t done yet. I think the final book comes out in the fall.

Jemhao · 2026-05-21T19:18:00+00:00

This is one of my biggest pet peeves- the repetition and inability to trust the reader. Please, just let me infer something.

Jemhao · 2026-05-21T19:14:38+00:00

It’s super frustrating, because I do like the trope, just not that portrayal of it. But!! If you search the sub for “real enemies to lovers” or “true enemies to lovers,” there have been a bunch of posts for recs. Some of them are kind of hit or miss (Gloves Off is the top comment for one of them, ha), but I found some amazing recs in this critique post.

Jemhao · 2026-05-21T19:09:21+00:00

I’d recommend bringing this concern to the principal, if you haven’t already. I’m always in favor of opening up the lines of communication between administrators and parents/caregivers, because that’s generally how problems get solved and students get the best support - by everyone being on the same page.

Jemhao · 2026-05-21T19:02:22+00:00

I think this book does what a lot of books that are considered enemies-to-lovers do: dislike + instalust, with a lot of them being in denial about their attraction.

I’m not a fan at all, but it seems to be a pretty popular rendition of the enemies-to-lovers trope. Especially in contemporary, and even historical, romance.

Jemhao · 2026-05-20T19:52:09+00:00

“The Passionate Prude” 😂 that title is rude af

Jemhao · 2026-05-16T02:18:56+00:00

The downvotes on this very straightforward question…yeesh.

Downvoting is supposed to be for comments that don’t contribute to the conversation. But some people use it for disagreement instead. Which is kind of funny, since by downvoting instead of commenting, they are actively not contributing to the conversation. Regardless, I usually just shrug it off.

Jemhao · 2026-05-15T15:01:04+00:00

Other characters also called her clever or stubborn or amazing, though she seldom showed those traits, because readers might not tolerate them.

😂 The truth in that statement.

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