Tag «burn rewrite reread»

Burn, Rewrite or Reread Tag – 2022 Edition

Burn, Rewrite, Reread Tag 2022

As I’ve done for the last few years, I’m doing this tag as part of my annual wrap-up traditions. I just love doing it! It’s great to highlight some of the titles I read this year that wouldn’t necessarily make my Year’s Reads in Review list. I always find it interesting to see if my thoughts about a book have changed much since I read it.

Here’s a recap of what you are supposed to do:

The Rules:

-Randomly choose 3 books.

-For each group, decide which book to burn, which one to rewrite, and which to reread.

-Repeat until you completed ~~three~~ (I do 5) rounds

To get the books for each round, I used a random number generator to pull titles from my “Books Read in 2022” excel file. This includes any DNF’d titles for the year; and if a number repeated itself (or landed on a heading), I reran the generator until I got a fresh title.

Round 1

Burn: I’m going to be a little cheeky about picking Captive Bride as my burn title because I honestly really loved this book. I actually enjoyed all of these romances in this grouping; I’d say that they were my most anticipated in all their respective series! Which is why I have to say the chemistry between our leads is what creates these burning sparks 😉

Rewrite: Like I said above, Twisted Lies was probably my most anticipated book in the Twisted Series. And while I really enjoyed the novel, I did struggle with the pacing sometimes so that would be the only thing I would tidy up for this great book.

Reread: Dark Reign is a standout read for me in the Midnight Dynasty Universe. It was such a refreshing romance for me to read and I would definitely reread it in the future!

Round 2

Burn: I haven’t finished the Spy Girl series yet but I’m enjoying watching this lighter romantic espionage story. It isn’t the greatest series I’ve ever read–albeit entertaining–which is why I would burn it in this grouping.

Rewrite: I actually had no plans to continue reading the Hellfire Club Series (or at least finish it right away) after I finished the first novel, Wicked Idol (it was a spinoff character from the Midnight Dynasty Universe). But I really wanted to see this romance unfold in Callous Prince! However, there are a few things I would tweak, like the Veronica Mars angle as well as the somewhat rushed ending.

Reread: I feel like I just need a refresher of what happened in Kingdom of the Cursed before I pick up book #3 to remember those finer details.

Round 3

Burn: Unfortunately, for every Ella Miles novel I love, there are a few that just don’t work for me. Pretend I’m Her which is only available in the boxset for the Pretend Series was a book that just didn’t work for me.

Rewrite: I honestly don’t know what I would rewrite about Stone Cold. I gave it a 5 stars, read it in one-sitting and loved every moment of reading it. I wouldn’t burn it but I don’t think I would reread it either. It just feels like one of those books that you savor the first time you read it because you don’t know what will happen next. But maybe I’d rewrite it so that the characters could have more answers (though I think that is part of the charm of this novel and its story).

Reread: I forget so much of what happened in Defy the Night so I should brush up before I read the sequel. But I also think that it would be interesting to reread to catch some of the twists earlier now that I know they are there.

Round 4

Burn: Prince Charming falls into the typical book-2-of-a-trilogy-slump for me. It wasn’t overly exciting, especially compared to the first novel. It sets up some stuff for the finale but I also think this series could have easily been a duet by omitting this novel.

Rewrite: I feel like the romance between the two leads in Exposed has been building throughout all the other novels in this series. So maybe my expectations were too high? This story was just missing something for me–though I can’t pinpoint what that is exactly. But if I could figure it out, that is what I would rewrite into the story.

Reread: Clearly I had a thing for dark romances this year (I did binge read most of the Midnight Dynasty Universe novels in a two month span). Dangerous Temptation was another highlight for me. It was a great forbidden, taboo romance and I just loved these two so much!

Round 5

Burn: I’m sure I’m the minority for picking King of Scars. Don’t get me wrong, there are definitely things I really enjoyed about this series, but at the same time, there are some things I could have done without. Getting through this series became a chore for me near the end as I didn’t love a lot of the things that happened along the way. So perhaps I’m just bitter with the turn of events but I did feel let down by this series.

Rewrite: I love a good slow burn romance which is what A Million Kisses in Your Lifetime is at its core. I just felt like it took me a long time to get into the story, so I would add a few little sparks at the start to get the momentum going earlier.

Reread: When I want a feel good story that is sweet and charming, Cookie O’Gorman’s books do the trick. I was so happy that we got to spend more time with the Southern U O’Briens in The Sweetest Game and I can’t wait to go back!

What would you Burn, Rewrite and Reread from 2022?

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Burn, Rewrite or Reread Tag – 2021 Edition

Burn, Rewrite, Reread Tag 2021

Here’s a recap of what you are supposed to do:

The Rules:

-Randomly choose 3 books.

-For each group, decide which book to burn, which one to rewrite, and which to reread.

-Repeat until you completed ~~three~~ (I do 5) rounds

To get the books for each round, I used a random number generator to pull titles from my “Books Read in 2020” excel file. This includes any DNF’d titles for the year; and if a number repeated itself (or landed on a heading), I reran the generator until I got a fresh title.

Round 1

Burn: I actually have nothing against The Immortal Vow, it’s simply that I rated the other two books as a 5-stars! It was a fun paranormal romance, it just doesn’t compare to the other two!

Rewrite: Despite giving it 5-stars, I did struggle with some of the content in Ruin. Maybe things didn’t have to be so intense with Celia and we still could have achieved the fantastic character evolution we get from her.

Reread: Colin’s book was one of my most anticipated reads in the Bridgerton Series, so it should go without saying that I loved Romancing Mister Bridgerton.

Round 2

Burn: I honestly think that every woman should read Long Shot. It’s a powerful story about how you can get trapped in an abusive relationship but not realize it until it’s too late. The only reason I would “burn” it is that I hope it never becomes anyone’s reality.

Rewrite: I wasn’t overly pleased with how one character’s story wrapped up in particular in A Sky Beyond the Storm so that would be what I rewrite.

Reread: The reason Rivalry is even on this list is that I reread it this year before I finished the rest of the series. But I loved it just as much the second time and it’s the start of one of my favourite contemporary romance series ever.

Round 3

Burn: Again, I really enjoyed Washed Up Royal. I thought it was a fresh take on modern royals. I guess I just wouldn’t reread it and there was nothing I would change about it so here it is in the burn pile.

Rewrite: I adore Ana Huang’s work and Twisted Love was no exception. My only “low” for this book was that the pacing of the plot felt choppy at times so if I could smooth that out, I would!

Reread: I’m a sucker for forbidden romance and I really loved the Romeo and Juliet take Enemy Dearest had. And I think I might have to reread it when Soren’s book comes out!

Round 4

Burn: Even if I did enjoy the simplicity of High Society, it could have used more development for its characters and plot.

Rewrite: I really thought These Violent Delights would be a 5-star read for me thanks to its 1920s Shanghai retelling of Romeo and Juliet. But I was left disappointed in the romance and I struggled at times with the plot.

Reread: As I said, I love Ana Huang and Twisted Games was everything I wanted it to be!

Round 5

Burn: While I loved the wild ride that was The Burning Kingdoms, I felt like the ending was rushed and almost a cop-out so I was left disappointed.

Rewrite: There were parts of Never is a Promise that didn’t work for me when it comes to the romance so I would rework that second chance reunion.

Reread: I like a good happy ending it was quite the read to see if that was what we would get in Fighting for You.

What would you Burn, Rewrite and Reread from 2021?

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Burn, Rewrite or Reread Tag – 2020 Edition

Burn, Rewrite, Reread Tag 2020

I’ve been doing this tag as part of my annual wrap-up traditions for the last two years and I just love it! It’s great to highlight some of the titles I read this year that wouldn’t necessarily make my Year’s Reads in Review list. I read a lot of books in a year and I’ll admit that I forget about most some. But doing this recap helps remind me of the various books I spent time on this year.

Here’s a recap of what you are supposed to do:

The Rules:

-Randomly choose 3 books.

-For each group, decide which book to burn, which one to rewrite, and which to reread.

-Repeat until you completed ~~three~~ (I do 5) rounds

To get the books for each batch, I used a random number generator to pull titles from my “Books Read in 2020” excel file. This includes any DNF’d titles for the year; and if a number repeated itself (or landed on a heading), I reran the generator until I got a fresh title.

Round 1

Burn: I didn’t finish Now or Never because it couldn’t get into the romance. Things happened quickly and the way the hero would describe the heroine just grossed me out. Such a shame because I really enjoyed the other books in the Irresistible Series.

Rewrite: I loved the inaugural series Vicious Lies stemmed from (Truth or Lies), and I did enjoy finally getting this particular story. I think it could use a few tweaks (like less mention of rape and recycling the plot) would make this book fabulous!

Reread: I don’t think I’d actively seek out The Wright Mistake to reread it. However, I would pick up a print version as the accents in the audiobook drove me nuts!

Round 2

Burn: I wouldn’t actually burn the entire book of The Royal We, just a few chapters because this book is SO LONG!

Rewrite: I wasn’t a huge fan of the romance in the Sinful Truths Series so I would tweak a few things in Fallen Love to get my onboard. I wouldn’t change that ending though!

Reread: I’ll probably have to reread Dance of Thieves before I read its sequel just so I can remember what happened!

Round 3

Burn: Oh, I’d burn Kingdom of Ash without a doubt. I struggled to get through this book: 3 serious attempts over the last year. This series morphed into something that just wasn’t for me.

Rewrite: I actually thought The Everlasting Rose was a much stronger book than its inaugural series title. But it could use a few changes to make the story even more epic.

Reread: I thought Inferno was a great finale for the Talon Series.

Round 4

Burn: Honestly, Love the One You’re With is an entertaining, albeit quick, read so I feel bad burning it. But you could find the plot on any Hallmark Movie.

Rewrite: I was very excited to see our leads in I Hate You fall in love. Their banter in the other books in the series had me hooked! But I feel like some of the logic for staying apart could have used some refinement.

Reread: I really liked how the relationship came together in Rescue.

Round 5

Burn: I had kept Soleil on my TBR list for years because I loved the other books in the series. But this one was a little too quirky for me and I got lost in the Alice in Wonderland allusions.

Rewrite: I loved the premise of A Daring Sacrifice and it’s allusions to Robin Hood. I just think having a second narrator for the male POV would make the audiobook fantastic!

Reread: Now that I know what to expect from Neighbors and Favors, I think I would enjoy it more if I read it again.

What would you Burn, Rewrite and Reread from 2020?

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Burn, Rewrite or Reread Tag – 2019 Edition

Burn, Rewrite, Reread Tag 2019

Last year, I made doing this tag a part of my annual wrap-up traditions. I just love the idea of highlighting some of the titles I read this year that wouldn’t necessarily make my Year’s Reads in Review list. I read a lot of books in a year and I’ll admit that I forget about some. But doing this recap helps remind me of the various books I spent time on this year.

Here’s a recap of what you are supposed to do:

The Rules:

-Randomly choose 3 books.

-For each group, decide which book to burn, which one to rewrite, and which to reread.

-Repeat until you completed ~~three~~ (I do 5) rounds

To get the books for each batch, I used a random number generator to pull titles from my “Books Read in 2019” excel file. This includes any DNF’d titles and if a number repeated itself (or landed on a heading), I reran the generator until I got a fresh title.

Round 1

Burn: This one was hard to pick because I actually liked Cruel Fortune the best out of the trilogy. It was a refreshing sequel for a romance series that follows the same leads. However, the series as a whole never lived up to my expectations, thus the burn.

Rewrite: A classic case of great idea, poor execution is how I’d sum up my experience with Girls of Paper and Fire. I’d speed up the romance, cut out the redundant first half and add some more politic intrigue to keep this story at a strong pace.

Reread: I have to great More than Music for getting me out of a major reading slump. I loved the romance, the chemistry and the plot! I just devoured this book!

Round 2

Burn: I feel bad burning What’s Left of Me because I did enjoy it. I love the concept of the hybrids but where it fell short was differentiating itself from other novels in the genre.

Rewrite: Oh the things I would do to make Tempest more of what I wanted it to be. I’d change up the romance, make the plot more dramatic and thrilling and shorten it just a touch.

Reread: Do You Want to Start a Scandal not only wrapped up two of my favourite series by Tessa Dare, but it was also my first audiobook by her…and certainly not my last.

Round 3

Burn: While Part One ended on a promising note, Leopold Part Two was basically a regurgitation of the events of the first book and melodrama.

Rewrite: I really enjoyed the mystery of The Hummingbird Dagger but I did note in my review that I wanted more from the characters in terms of development.

Reread: I adored this series but Escaping from Houdini was the first one where I gave a full 5 stars. I just loved everything about this book!

Round 4

Burn: This is one of the rounds where I actually gave all three books 5 star reviews. So my decision to burn Hate F*@k mostly stems from the idea that the rest of the series went downhill from here for me.

Rewrite: I adored On Thin Ice. I thought it was a great way to wrap up the Juniper Falls Series. My only note from my review was that I wish Brooke’s character development got a little more screen time so that’s what I am going to “rewrite”.

Reread: I can vividly remember getting to the end of Stolen by Truths and being so shocked, my Kindle fell out of my hands. I can’t wait to one day reread that series and see all the little inklings along the way.

Round 5

Burn: I was so excited for Easton’s story in Fallen Heir but wound up majorly disappointed. The romance just didn’t work for me and the drama just got to be a little much.

Rewrite: I think I read For Lila, Forever in one sitting (or close to). The only thing I’d change is strengthening the romance connection so it doesn’t seem to insta-love.

Reread: Surviving Ice was a solid conclusion to the series and I loved Ivy’s character so much!

What would you Burn, Rewrite and Reread from 2019?

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Burn, Rewrite or Reread Tag – 2018 Edition

Burn, Rewrite, Reread Tag

While I essentially gave up doing my random tags over the last two years (I have so many other things to post!), I remembered doing this tag back in December 2016 as a way to wrap up my reads for the year. So this year, I thought I’d bring this back and make it an annual tradition. I always do my Year’s Reads in Review feature but this one really makes you think about things and features some books that wouldn’t necessarily make my Top Picks of the Year.

Here’s a recap of what you are supposed to do:

The Rules:

-Randomly choose 3 books.

-For each group, decide which book to burn, which one to rewrite, and which to reread.

-Repeat until you completed ~~three~~ (I do 5) rounds

To get the books for each batch, I used a random number generator to pull titles from my “Books Read in 2018” excel file. This includes any DNF’d titles and if a number repeated itself, I reran the generator until I got a fresh title.

Round 1

Burn: There were definitely things I liked about Double Exposition, but it got the lowest ratings of this group so it’ll get burned.

Rewrite: The predictability of Exmas is what stopped that book from being a 5 star read for me, so I would rework it a bit so the plot wasn’t as obvious.

Reread: There is a bit of a mystery to The Unbelievable, Inconceivable, Unforeseeable Truth About Ethan Wilder— one I didn’t figure out at all. So I think it’s always interesting to reread those books that had you stumped the first time around to see if you could figure it out earlier.

Round 2

Burn: I had high expectations for Watching You as a YA thriller but it got a little lost in the romance. Plus, now that the suspense of the stalker is mute, I’m not sure if I would enjoy another read through it.

Rewrite: First, I find it crazy that I would rewrite anything by Colleen Hoover (she’s one of my all time favourite authors), but Without Merit just had a little too much going on to make it cohesive and amazing.

Reread: When I need an emotional read with strong characters, Free to Risk is a great one to pick up!

Round 3

Burn: This has more to do with the audiobook narrator than the actual book itself — I can’t stand how she does male voices in The Shadow Hour.

Rewrite: There isn’t much I would change about Blood Match except the one super obvious plot point of this novel. And maybe more sexy times?

Reread: I DEVOURED Sweet Black Waves when I read it June. I just loved the characters so much!

Round 4

Burn: I had high expectations for Be With Me after reading its predecessor but this book fell flat very quickly. Immature characters, a lack of chemistry between the leads (which was crazy because it was so there in the first book when they were there for all of 5 minutes!) and just a boring plot–nothing new here! Which is probably why I DNF’d it a third of the way in.

Rewrite: I thought Gunslinger Girl was going to be something completely different than what it actually was so I would totally rework parts of the story to make it more exciting…and more Wild West.

Reread: If you want to read about characters with tragic pasts and flaws, you don’t need to look further than Only Between Us. It will cause absolute havoc on your heart.

Round 5

Burn:I DNF’dThe Wager at 14% so clearly something didn’t work for me very early on. The chemistry was off and the plot wasn’t very mature so I had no problems putting it down.

Rewrite: While I enjoyed Stripped Bare, there were some predictable twists and I wanted to see the leads talk to each other more than just jump each other’s bones all the time. So you could definitely make this story stronger with some additional scenes.

Reread: There wasn’t much I didn’t enjoy about Legendary. I thought the pacing was great and I loved Tella as a heroine!