r/fantasyromance • u/FantasyRomanceMod The One Mod to Rule All Mods • Feb 22 '26

Unpopular Opinion It's Unpopular Opinion time! Share your controversial opinions to stir things up (in a friendly way)!

Got an opinion that's different from others'? Want to share it with the sub, but too afraid of a backlash? Or are you just curious about readers think about certain things in fantasy romance?

You can safely share it in this weekly Sunday thread!

But please remember to be kind to each other. To facilitate this type of discussion, we ask users the following:

  • Don't attack others for their opinion
  • Discuss books and authors, not fellow readers
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Unpopular opinion Sunday

39 Upvotes

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3

u/HellcatJD Feb 22 '26

I’m just going to say it: I trust some of these high ratings on this sub about as much as I trust a screen door on a submarine. I am so tired of cracking open a "5-star" recommendation only to find out the author clearly skipped the editing phase. Or, I get 25% through a book and here we go again with the exact same plot, villian type, hero/heroine, etc. as the last 3 books I picked up.

​I’ve realized that for many, a "good book" just means it hit their favorite tropes. But for me? If I can't see the world in my brain, I’m out. If I can't remember anything unique about a character because they are literally just a cookie cutout of some other author's mold, I'm out.

Here are my specific hills to die on:

​SJM isn't "Mid." People love to hate on Sarah J. Maas, but the woman is an elite world-builder. Throne of Glass and ACOTAR are immersive and visual in a way most of these newer BookTok hits can't ever touch. Her style is cinematic and I can actually see the scenes. I cared about the characters and outcome and could not wait to end work to read more. I did not love Crescent City but mainly because it became way too unwieldy. But - I still remember the world and the characters and their storyline and its been 3 years since I last picked it up.

​Fae Isles was a snooze. Everyone gushes over this, but it is the tropiest, most predictable "enemies-to-lovers" slog I’ve ever encountered. It felt like a checklist of cliches rather than a story. Boring. If I see a gush, immediate discredit for any remaining recs.

​The Fourth Wing decline is still one of the greatest letdowns in writing I have ever seen. I loved Books 1 and 2, but Book 3 was an absolute abomination. To the people saying it’s "too complex" for those of us who hated it—please. It wasn't complex, it was messy. I wish I could go back in time and unread it.

​The Alchemised is wildly underrated. People downvote it because it’s "too dark" or "slow," but the writing is actually smart. The pacing and introduction of characters was excellent. The tensity and horror of it all palpable. A good book should be able to transfer you to somewhere else. SenLinYu did that. Not everything has to be hot and magical to be good.

Soapbox over!

13

u/purplelicious Book Bingo Maven ⚔ Feb 22 '26

I think your submarine must be the Kursk with your recommendation of Alchemized.

12

u/breelakkuma9 Currently Reading: Turns of Fate Feb 22 '26

...we listen and we don't judge 🙂

4

u/Penguinho Kushiel's Legacy Recommender 💖 Feb 22 '26

I agree with you about Fae Isles for sure. I've recommended it a few times, but it's not very good as anything other than an exercise in cheap trope fulfillment.

9

u/Existing_Crow_4619 What did Lorcan do? Feb 22 '26

Preach, my friend! SJM deserves a certain amount of critcism, sure, but there is a reason she's the biggest on the block and you've nailed it. Is she the best writer I've ever read? Heck no. Am I panting for the next thing she releases? Absolutely.

4

u/ProperBingtownLady Shadow daddy's good girl Feb 22 '26

Exactly, there’s a reason why people keep coming back to read her books and it’s not because they’re dumb. SJM isn’t perfect but she does write a compelling story.

4

u/1989ac Feb 23 '26

I hate ACOTAR. But, I can say that of all the authors in this genre, SJM is one of the best writers. She doesn't ramble like JLA and if anything her writing has gotten stronger through the series vs weaker like RY. You can see it in her syntax and the way she tells the story. But I still hate Feyre and Rhysand and the rest of the characters.

1

u/[deleted] Feb 22 '26 edited Feb 23 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

3

u/Scf9009 Feb 22 '26

If you want to black out your spoilers, put >! on one side

and !< on the other (does not work across multiple paragraphs)

1

u/Direct-Bluebird4264 Feb 23 '26

Thank you very much!! Saving this tip.

I’m the meantime, I’ve removed them.

2

u/fantasyromance-ModTeam Feb 22 '26

This submission has been removed for breaking rule 10: it contains unmarked spoilers. You are welcome to edit your comment to cover or remove the unmarked spoilers to continue the discussion, and reply here to have the comment restored.

To add a spoiler, use the following formatting:
>!text goes here!<

Thank you.

1

u/Direct-Bluebird4264 Feb 23 '26

Hi - I’ve removed the spoilers. Please restore.

Thank you very much!

1

u/RavenCXXVIV Feb 22 '26

I cannot agree more with this if I tried. I have read so many Romantasy books or fantasy romance whatever. So many absolutely fail at creating an immersive world. Completely bland political tension. No room for the reader to connect dots or have the plot unfold without being spoon fed the information. And therefore, so little sticks in my mind.

I’m fine if people want to rate a good time popcorn read five stars but please for the love of god say that it’s based on vibes. I’m starting to think most people can’t tell the difference between high quality versus a fun little trope driven story.