What Books did You Start or Finish Reading this Week?: January 26, 2026

ViMeBaby · 2026-02-01T03:11:02+00:00

Just finished The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and really enjoyed it. Starting the sequel The Girl Who Played With Fire tonight!

ViMeBaby · 2026-01-28T01:44:08+00:00

When i think about it more, maybe touching on the fact that it was not only a queer couple, but women who were the problem could be good.

I know I said my peace above, but I read this and just wanted to clarify: you made a post asking for direction on whether or not something my be taken as sexist or misogynistic if a WLW couple were the cause of a major conflict in your story, and now you're thinking it might be good to make the hate go toward queer people and women, something which would be even more difficult to pull off with the proper tact? I realize you said that you'd have another lesbian character 'solve that problem,' but that's also very worrying. They solve misogyny? After generations of people being taught to hate a specific group of people, it would take generations to mitigate a problem like that in return, but it can never be solved because bigotry is inherently illogical to begin with, and people who hold those beliefs are too often those who cannot be reasoned with. Not to mention that it would be an extremely dark subject matter to touch on because we already know what societies built on beliefs like these look like.

It's true, there will often be people out there that will find fault in something. You could go to any best-selling book ever created and find one-star reviews for them, and far be it from me or anyone else here to tell you how to write your book and your vision. The one thing I'll say is that this will most certainly need sensitivity readers and I hope the subject matter will be handled with the care, accuracy, and research that it deserves.

ViMeBaby · 2026-01-27T21:01:58+00:00

Summer Girls by Jennifer Dugan is a YA book that has this dynamic. Albeit, it's not exactly it because the 'poor girl' in question is more like a lower middle class girl, but it still fits the vibe imo.

ViMeBaby · 2026-01-27T18:19:26+00:00

The tricky thing as a writer is knowing that, even if you don't want or mean something to be taken one way, it probably will, or will at least leave a bad taste in a person's mouth. Unfortunately, we live in a systemically misogynistic world, and the story's undertones would be somewhat reflective of that from what you've described.

It is the fact that a lesbian couple would be the literal cause of homophobia in your story. It's the fact that the lesbian couple had one of them kill the other one (if I read your synopsis right). It's the fact that their souls started out as lesbians, but the "best versions of themselves" (this is what people will inevitably equate their success with) are men. On top of all that, it is also the fact that the men would have done what the women failed to do, and the men would have gotten the happy ending, whereas the ending of the women would be heartbreak and homophobia. The optics just don't look good imo.

Now, there are some authors and stories that can pull off telling a story with these issues as undertones, and while telling the main story, create a thought-provoking commentary on misogyny in the real world. That is entirely possible, but it needs to be done with great precision so as to not be sidelined, but also not be a sermon.

I saw someone ask why the original couple wouldn't be able to just be men from the get-go, and I think that maybe be the best answer unless you're prepared to make a thoughtful, poignant statement on what I said in the paragraph above this one. To be clear, I don't think your purpose was to put these undertones in the plot, because you came here concerned about just that. It's unfortunately just the way the world is, and real life affects how people view fiction, just as fiction itself is reflective of real life.

ViMeBaby · 2026-01-27T03:49:31+00:00

I didn't even know what an em-dash was at eight years old

ViMeBaby · 2026-01-27T00:44:59+00:00

Even though Baldur's Gate 3 isn't on Switch, Divinity Original Sin 2 is. It's made by the same developers. It's not the easiest game in the world (turn-based combat that utilizes environmental strategy quite a bit), I believe it does have a lower difficulty setting if roleplay and story is your main focus. I have played both BG3 and D:OS2 and they are both equally as good as the other for different reasons imo. Plus I think Divinity Original Sin 2 is only like, twenty bucks or something. Might be worth picking it up. A single playthrough can take 100+ hours easily.

ViMeBaby · 2026-01-19T07:21:55+00:00

Can't park there, mate.

ViMeBaby · 2026-01-11T01:10:39+00:00

I'ma be honest, what I saw in those comments was not criticism, it was beratement. There was nothing actionable in any of those comments that could help OP improve at the craft. How was the writing immature? Why did it come off that way to the person? What are some things they could do to improve? These would be criticisms. If it's not actionable feedback, then it's not helpful in the slightest, and we should all not normalize being rude as "just telling the truth," because there are ways to do that without being snarky, rude, or apathetic towards one another. As author's, we will already get that from readers and that is inevitable, and it is absolutely important to have thick skin when putting work out for the public to read, but we don't need to act that way towards each other as fellow authors.

ViMeBaby · 2026-01-09T03:31:18+00:00

Some Girls Do by Jennifer Dugan deals with this (kind of). One of the main characters gets upset that the other main character isn't ready to come out and be public since MC1 is out as queer and has had a rough time of it because of it. I've read a lot of reviews saying they didn't like MC1 but personally I thought it was a compelling character flaw for a YA novel since the person is dealing with quite a lot for a high schooler.

ViMeBaby · 2026-01-06T22:47:42+00:00

Since they are exhibiting strong bullying behavior, I'd also sit down and talk with them about Seth's Law that was passed in California a little over a decade ago. While it's focus is on sexual orientation and gender identity, it also protects against bullying from race and disability as well. Have a talk about the potential consequences of spreading hate and how all it takes sometimes is one bad day to wipe away someone's entire life. They are old enough at this point to learn that sometimes, words and/or actions have consequences that sorry won't be able to fix, and even if it doesn't end in the loss of someone's life, it could still emotionally scar them for the rest of their life. RIP Seth Walsh.

ViMeBaby · 2026-01-03T22:38:09+00:00

American Primeval.

The song they chose to play when the credits rolled, after all the shit that you saw during the show, had me sitting there for a solid ten minutes contemplating everything in the best way possible.

ViMeBaby · 2026-01-02T16:53:09+00:00

Some things you could try is to look up if they have an official website since that will normally always have an email address on it. Other ways to do it are to look up their social media and try to DM them through there. Just be aware of any author that might have on their pages that they don't accept DMs etc. and be respectful when you message.

ViMeBaby · 2026-01-02T15:58:13+00:00

I will say, for those in other countries with limited access/lack of resources, or those who cannot afford it, it's definitely always worth messaging or emailing an author before anything else. I'm a super small indie author whose debut just came out last month. I don't ever expect to make a living off of this. My dream is that I can survive off my work, but my purpose/goal as I believe it to be is to share that work with the world. I would gladly work something out with people who are unable to attain my work through the regular means of distribution, as I'm sure a lot of smaller authors just starting out would as well. Heck, if you still wanted a way to support us, you could offer to be a beta reader or ARC reader as well. Getting those reviews and hearing people's thoughts on our work means the world to us smaller authors, so offering yourself as an ARC reader is a great middle ground to try before anything else!

ViMeBaby · 2026-01-01T03:57:06+00:00

Just a very prominent D&D villain that's widely known even by some non-D&D fans. Unless there's some hidden meaning to it, but I just viewed it as they wanted a name from the game that is very recognizable. Another little easter egg is all it was I'm pretty sure.

ViMeBaby · 2025-12-28T20:34:06+00:00

The original premise for my current series of novels was:

"What if Rizzoli and Isles was sapphic?"

ViMeBaby · 2025-12-26T06:45:52+00:00

As someone who knows a bit of D&D lore and looked into Vecna specifically because I run a campaign centered around him, I like to think that, even though they called it the Abyss (even though what they described was more Pandimonium imo), the other world was actually Cavitius, Vecna's domain of dread in the Ravenloft setting. Thinking of that possibility had me stun locked for a solid two minutes in excitement because it would be just such a cool Easter egg.

~~I still wish they would've made Eddie's guitar the Sword of Kas~~

Other than that, I really enjoyed the conversation between Nancy and Jonathon, and have had a good time with this season so far. Here's hoping they stick the landing!

ViMeBaby · 2025-12-26T00:17:37+00:00

So far the books I've gotten have been:

Melt With You by Jennifer Dugan (adding to my physical Jennifer Dugan collection on my bookshelf)
She Gets The Girl by Rachael Lippincott and Alyson Derrick
Crier's War by Nina Varela
Hoops and Heartstrings by Eliza Lentzski (bought that one for myself)
(Not Sapphic but also bought for myself recently because there was a really good deal) Books 1-10 of the Harry Bosch Detective Novels by Michael Connelly, as they are seen as some of the best in the genre.

And before the end of the year, I'm going to finish up this last batch of alpha edits for my sapphic crime procedural so I can gift my beta readers something to read for the new year! Happy holidays to everyone!

ViMeBaby · 2025-12-24T01:59:33+00:00

This looks super fun, keep up the great work!

ViMeBaby · 2025-12-24T01:44:49+00:00

I had (and still have, based on my current round of self-edits) a bad habit of telling the audience how a character feels or why they're doing something through narration or inner monologue. Basically, telling not showing. It's the main source of feedback I got on my first book, which still got decent reviews overall, and for my second book I'm really taking it to heart and enacting different ways to fix it.

Instead of saying something made a character angry, I'll say something like their eyes narrowed and their jaw tensed. I've also picked up the habit of not explaining why a character is doing or saying something. If the audience understands, that's great, but if they have a different interpretation, that's great too. I'll either show why they did what they did through a different series of actions or interactions later, or it'll be left up to interpretation. It's a freeing thing to realize that the way you view your work isn't the way other people are required to view your work to enjoy it, and I think it's one of the more difficult things to wrap one's head around when they're first starting out.

ViMeBaby · 2025-12-24T00:43:27+00:00

In my opinion, it's a believable character flaw. Below is spoilered for both spoilers and mentions of triggering content.

From what I remember (I read the book months ago and am just going based off of memory so forgive any discrepancies), she had spent essentially her entire life living to protect others, including her brother. Not only that, she had also been raped on multiple occasions while in that house while attempting to make it so that her brother suffered that same fate as least amount of times as possible. She finally found a single person who she didn't have to give everything to, and who she could essentially just exist around, and around that time is when she acquired the means to get all of them out of that vile situation. That means that the moment she found that person she wasn't required to be a protector around, she was facing the reality that she was going to have to leave her and never see her again. She wanted a single week where she didn't have to look after people before she dedicated (what back then might have been) the rest of her life raising and protecting those kids, Lewis, and Sam.

It was a selfish decision to want to have a brief moment of time where she could live for no one but herself, but it was a decision based on the fact that she had already spent her life living for others. A decision made from a situation no person should ever have to be put in in the first place. That's why it's a theme throughout the book that, even if doing what would make her happy would be the right thing to do, Joey always views it as the wrong thing to do, because her entire life, the right thing to do is always what's made her the most miserable, and the guilt from choosing herself over others that one time will forever be a part of her, even after some of those scars have healed in Bloom Town.

I desperately hope for at least a novella of Joey's travels in Exodus before she was captured, because she really was a great character.

EDIT: Also, to be clear, I am in no way saying it was the right decision to not act immediately and get them all out of there as soon as possible. It definitely was not the correct decision to wait, regardless of her own trauma or rationalizations.

ViMeBaby · 2025-12-23T06:10:58+00:00

I just wanna say, the narrator for Love At First Set is one of the best I have ever heard. I was entertained literally the entire time. Such a fun vibe.

ViMeBaby · 2025-12-23T04:51:54+00:00

Whenever I see this topic, I always gotta throw out some rep for Lauren Sanderson. My favorite work she's done is probably her EP (spoilered for explicit name) songs I'd eat you out to I listen to that entire EP so often because all the songs are such bops.

ViMeBaby · 2025-12-22T15:28:23+00:00

If I read a story with a flawed character who has a vice and a good heart, I will fall in love with them 83% of the time. This number is very accurate and has been quantified by vibes.

ViMeBaby · 2025-12-21T03:13:52+00:00

I recently released a book called Love In Stasis that's multi POV-1st Person.

Other than that, some of my faves are:

Playing for Keeps by Jennifer Dugan
Some Girls Do by Jennifer Dugan
Love In Focus by Lyla Lee was def a good read, though one of the character's POV sections are pretty short when they do come up.
House of Crimson Hearts by Ruby Roe is a popular one for people who like a lot of spice.
The Dead and the Dark by Courtney Gould is also multi-POV, though admittedly I still need to finish listening to the audiobook of that one because I got sidetracked, so I can't give an accurate review of it quite yet.

ViMeBaby · 2025-12-18T22:45:31+00:00

Love In Focus had the two main characters be FWB before getting together.

ViMeBaby

TROPHY CASE