Hey everyone!!
Today I have a very special post as my sister is making her debut as a book blogger *everyone cheers* so you might say that this is now ‘We and Ink’…. *waits for you all to laugh in hysterics* Not going to lie I was actually, pretty, shamefully proud of that.
Anyway here is the post from Beth, my sister, *she says hi* talking about whether there is one genre for us all….*oohh… interesting*
SO, DO YOU HAVE A GENRE SOUL MATE?
The short answer for me is no. Not really. When it comes to my book genres I’m a self-confessed floozy. So allow me to regale you with my roller-coaster ride of falling in and out of love with different genres, a book lovers tale as old as time. Pfft.
Like all good childhoods, I started off with fantasy books and if it involved horses then even better, I was all ‘sparkle this’ and ‘unicorn that’. A truly fabulous time for me. As I grew older fantasy stayed with me, my next fixation was The Edge Chronicles written by Paul Stewart and beautifully illustrated by Chris Riddell and from this delightful set of books comes my favourite childhood book *drum roll please* ‘Beyond the Deep Woods’. I couldn’t even begin to tell you my favourite adulthood book, how on earth are you supposed to choose? It’s impossible says I. All those in agreement raise your hand.
…anyway, I digress. Fantasy actually stuck with me up to the ripe old age of 15- I’m 23 now if you all must know– where I had a gorgeous affair with The Mortal Instruments, all hail Cassandra Clare, I raced through all of those and have re-read them three times over, not to mention the prequel series (and now the new sequel series) that Clare has gifted us- her world is a second home to me. But this wasn’t all, throughout my early to mid-teens I buried myself in the magic of young adult fantasy fiction of all sorts: witches, vampires *cough, cough Twilight*, angels, daemons, hunks, damsels and more; my flag was firmly planted in the YA section of Waterstones.
And here comes my first change of heart. Horror. Is that fantasy still? Well, yes ok you might have a point. Same kettle of fish? Oh hell no my bookling friends.
At the age of 16 up to 18, I took the side step into Stephen King and company, a more ‘adult’ and scary place to get lost in and I tried my very best to get through ‘IT’- a hearty and meaty book if you’ve ever seen one but for some reason I couldn’t do it, I don’t know why but we were not perfect partners. And so that brought about the end of the horror season in my life, which surprised no one really because I’m a wuss. Which leads me to my next genre, and hold on because this might give you whip lash; lovey-dovey soppy romantic drama books. Aaah.
My love for the romantic perhaps reflected my life at the time where I felt that I wanted Prince Charming to come and sweep me off my feet straight into the nearest restaurant so we could eat loads together – anyone else have dreams like that? Moving forward this heart shaped bubble of slightly predictable yet wholly amazing loveliness was popped to make way for the similar yet different genre of ‘life drama’ books, and what I mean by that is reading stories revolving around the gritty and heartbreaking affairs of characters’ lives but then being comforted because at the end because they – mostly- still get the guy of their dreams and/or they live happily ever after. What can I say? I love a juicy bit of scandal. I grew up to be semi-evil.*
*Sophie here– she is grew up to be ALL evil, she eats my food all the time!!
And this is where I stand now, ‘real life’ fiction and with no urges to pick up a fantasy novel. Where will I be in 3 years’ time? Maybe there’s a future in murder mysteries for me, who knows? I’m excited to find out and with any luck by the time I’m knocking on death’s door and you ask me if I have a genre soul mate, I’ll tell you the truth: yes darling, so many.
Me & Ink 
Hi Sophie and Beth,
this was a very fun post to read.
And yes, I have a genre soul mate: Fantasy. In my booklover life I started by reading books from very different genres: contemporay, realistic fiction, mistery, thriller, magical realism and fantasy. I didn’t care about the genre as long as the plot was interesting. However I started to notice that realistic stories bored me, I always needed something magical and everything became clear as I picked up Harry Potter in elementary school.
I started reading Fantasy YA (I don’t consider Young Adult as a genre, only as a category and I mostly read YA). I had my Twilight period and I don’t regret it, then I also fell in love with Shadowhunters and my favourite series of this world will always be The Mortal Instruments. After that I knew what I liked and sticked to it. Sometimes I also read Adult Fantasy, but i prefer the charcters of YA.
My preference for Fantasy does not exclude that I also read other genres, such as Dystopian, Sci-Fi (I’m trying to get more into this genre), sometimes a Horror or a Thriller and a contemporary every now and then. I also like classics, preferably from the Romanticism.
To sum up, I think that Fantasy is my genre soul mate because it has always been part of my reading and I’m sure that it will always be so.
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Hello!! I’m glad you enjoyed reading this!! 😊
I think it is good to try so many genres out to see what you like best and to explore the different books. Yes being a fantasy lover myself I can understand why it drew you in and Harry Potter is a great series– I love the magic!!
I’m glad that you could find so many books to love in YA fantasy, there are so many wonderful books there. I agree the characters of YA are really interesting to read about.
It is good to mix up the genre of books you read but to still have that one that you always go back to. I have been trying different genres out recently and really loving it but I’m glad I always have fantasy there just like you!! 😊
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Hi Beth, Hi Sophie!
What a great post, I loved it SO much and yes I approve if you ever feel like writing more posts, Beth, it would be AMAZING 😀
I think I had a little bit of the same reading journey as you did, I read a lot of fantasy as I grew up and, right now I’m more of a contemporary fan, even if I enjoy reading fantasy books every now and then… my true love right now is contemporary haha 🙂
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Hello!! Yay I’m so glad you loved this post– I loved reading it too. I am sure that would make Beth very happy when she reads this so thank you so much. I think she should write more too 💕
That is so cool that you had a similar journey to Beth and I have to say that lately I have been loving reading contemporary so I wonder if I will have a similar pattern 😂 it is nice that you can still read a fantasy now and then though 😊
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It’s funny to see how our taste change with time. If I adore contemporary so much, I’m re-discovering my love for some fantasy reads too and it feels nice 😀
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Yes it is interesting to see our tastes change over time but it is nice that you can go back to your old favourite and love it just as much!! 😊
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Hi Beth (and Sophie)! I can totally relate to this genre swapping – I used to be all about fairy books when I was younger, then it was chick-lit (which made me feel oh-so-grown-up), then thrillers and horror (also Stephen King – I did manage to make it through IT, but it took me a year), and now my current vice – YA, Fantasy and Sci-Fi. Throw in a bit of contemporary sometimes too.
This was such a fun post, it definitely made me think about my own reading journey. I would love to read more from both of you! 😄
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Hello Abi!!
I’m glad you could relate to the genre swapping as you grow up. Yes I remember reading fairy books too and chick-lit books did make me feel grown up too 😂
IT is a very big book so I can see why it took a year to get through!! 😂
And now to YA fantasy and sci-fi which I do love myself. It was interesting to read about your reading journey and how it has changed over time.
It makes me (and Beth I’m sure) so happy to hear you enjoyed this post and you could relate to it. Aw.. thank you so much 💛
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Yay this was wonderful (: you’re right about your sister having a great blogging voice and she should definitely write more posts.
I don’t really think I have a genre soul mate. I love all things YA – especially if it’s supernatural – but I also really enjoy adult books of the supernatural variety and thrillers. I really want to read more contemporary and historical novels. And I have several horror books on my TBR although they’ll probably freak me out 😅 oh and I adore vampires and fairies. I could never pick just one genre though.
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Aw.. thank you!! Yes she does have a great blogging voice and I hope she writes more as well. I’m sure that will mean a lot to Beth when she read this so thank you 💛
I think it is great that you can love lots of different genres at once and always be reading something different. I like to read YA as I think the books have a very captivating voice. It is nice that you love supernatural so much!!
Yes I have been meaning to try more historical fiction as well 😊
Haha I know reading horror can be a bit scary– I’ve only read a few myself 😂
Vampires and fairies are so cool too!! I love that you love so many genres!! 😊
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Does she want to? I hope so (: it’s true and she deserves to know she’s good at writing.
To be fair for a long time it was only really YA & supernatural. Now I read thrillers too though.
Hopefully we both manage to.
Yes especially if you’re alone. Or the dog decides to bark out of nowhere whilst you’re really engrossed in the book – thats made me jump before 😂
Which have you read?
Thank you (: it doesn’t help make my TBR manageable though 😅
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Yes she said she would if you thinks of an interesting idea but I think she will so Yay!!
Aww.. Thank you so much!! ❤❤
Yes your reading genre can grow as you try out more books I find!!
Yes hopefully!! 😊
When you are alone it does feel scarier 😂 haha I imagine your dog barking would make you jump 😂 I’ve read Say Her Name by James Dawson and Carrie by Stephen King so not that many at all!!
Haha I get that, my TBR is all over the place!! 😂
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That’s great 😀 It must be amazing to have someone to share blogging with in real life.
Yes definietely. I always find it odd how I watch genres that I don’t read quite often /: I guess it just takes trying them out.
Yes being alone doesn’t really help :L I made the mistake of trying to watch American Horror Story when I was alone then heard a noise in the kitchen (that time it was the cat) and just… gave up :L
Ooh I think they’re both on my TBR. What were they like? The only ones I can remember off the top of my head are Misery by Stephen King, Wish Me Dead by Helen Grant & Wayward Girls by Amanda Mason.
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Yes it is nice to have someone in real life to talk to it about and it nice that she is excited about posts as well as the joy is quite infectious!!
I know like my favourite shows and movies are usually comedies but I rarely read comedies– they are all dark haha!! I agree sometimes you just need to try the books out!!
Haha yes when watching a horror any sounds can be daunting!!
Ohh yay!! I read them a while ago but I enjoyed Say Her Name– I don’t think it was scary scary but really enjoyable and a good YA book. I thought Carrie was alright– I think it was too short to get into really but I want to try a different Stephen King book. Ohhh… I think I’ve heard of Misery but the other two I haven’t– I will have to look them up 🙂
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It must be wonderful 😊 and great to inspire each other like that.
To be fair I do love more YAish shows like TVD, PLL, Sabrina but I also love period dramas (which I definitely need to start reading) and thrillers. I don’t actually know that many comedy books 🤔 all that comes to mind is My Lady Jane and a few people’s biographies which I feel could be funny.
That’s good to know, I’ll have to keep an eye out for it. I’m an absolute wimp but I do want to try and read a few more horror books.
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It is nice!! 🙂
Oh yes, I actually watched none of those shows but I know of them all and want to watch some!! No I don’t know too many but a few– I can’t think of the names at the minute which is so helpful. My Lady Jane would be one of them.
Ok good, glad I could help!! 🙂
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I hope you get a chance to sometime 😊 I love the new Sabrina but just as a heads up it can get very dark at times. I kind of want to rewatch the old series but I’m scared it won’t live up to my memories /:
I never know many Christmas books either which is a pain as I’d lov to read some this year 😅
You really did 😊
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Hopefully– I’m glad you loved it and thanks for the heads up!! I get that– I’m always worried old things won’t live up to my memories either but sometimes you’ve got to keep them a chance.
Yeah I only know The Afterlife of Holly Chase but that’s about it for Christmas books. 🙂
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It’s fine (: yeah I agree. I think if I want to watch it I’ll have to get the box set too as it never seems to be on anything /: so I’m kind of wary of buying an entire box set in case i don’t like it now but I’m pretty sure I’ll cave and do so soon
I’ll have to find some before December lol
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Yes I don’t see it on anything either!! Haha I would probably cave and buy it as well 😂
Haha yes, best of luck on your search!! ❤
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I don’t think it’s over expensive tbh. I was just hoping it would end up on Netflix along with the remake
Thank you ❤️❤️
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Hi Beth anddd Sophie! WOW this is hilarious!! Beth definitely has a strong blogging voice and I’m lovin’ it! I don’t think I have a genre soulmate- maybe two then 😉 which would be fantasy and contemporary/romance. I’ve also started to get into mystery and historical a bit more, but my heart has remained in the fantastic and realistic realms 😂
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Hello!! Yay I’m so glad you loved this and found it funny– I had a great time reading it as well 😂 Thank you so much– I am sure that will mean a lot when she reads this 💙
Yes you can have all the genres soulmates you want!! Fantasy and contemporary are probably my favourite two as well 😊
Ooh… mystery and historical sound interesting!!
I think the fantastical realms will always hold my heart as well though but who knows?! 😂
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Yay no problem! It was my pleasure 😀 💛💛💛
Exactly! Wow, twins 🙂 I’m also a fantasy-contemporary junkie with mystery as a side fling and historical as that one partner who will be there for you when everything goes bad (aka a reading slump haha 😂)
Yes, same! They kinda kindled my love for reading with HP!
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Thank you 💛
Yay snap!! Fantasy and contemporary are amazing!! I love that mystery is a side fling!! 😂😂 haha historical is there to rescue you from the slump 😂
Yes Harry Potter!! Classic 😍!!
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Hi Beth and Sophie!
This is such an amusing post to read, I love it!
Beth you have an amazing blogging voice!
I don’t know if I can say I have a genre soul mate, unless I can say the entirety of YA!
– Emma 🙂
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Hello Emma!! 😊
Yay I am so glad you loved this and it will mean a lot to Beth when she reads this so thank you 💛
I think it is great that you can explore so many different genres and I do love YA too — the books always have a great voice.
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This is such an interesting discussion, and Beth already has such a great blogging voice! As a kid, I never had a genre soulmate—I just read anything recommended to me. But as I grew older, I grew to absolutely love the Fantasy genre, and it has been the same ever since… although lately, I’ve found myself loving Romance more and more 🤔 I think it’s amazing that our genre “soulmates” change regularly, and this discussion made me realize this!
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Yay!! I’m glad you enjoyed reading this and I agree Beth does have a great voice and thank you for saying, that will mean a lot to her 💛
I think it is good to explore so many genres so you can find the one that you love the most 😊
Yes I love fantasy too– it is a very magical genre 😉 same, I have been loving contemporary books more lately but I still love a good fantasy!!
I think it is interesting how are tastes can change over time and we end up reaching for different genres as different things happen in our lives we might look for different stories. I’m glad this post made you think of this!! Thank you for the comment Caitlin 💛
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yay, i was excited for this guest post since you mentioned it, sophie!
surprisingly, as a kid, i was mostly into contemporary books. i still really enjoyed some fantastical ones, but i was super into those uber girly books such as the clique, where you have a group of girls obsessing over fashion and stuff. but when i turned 11 and started reading percy jackson, my fantasy obsession truly kicked in.
i think it’s very hard to find a genre soul mate. i can see myself changing and gravitating towards different genres in the future. this year, i’ve started reading more adult romance & historical fiction and i realize i actually enjoy them a lot too!
i do think i’ll always enjoy YA contemporary, though. even if i don’t read it as much in the future, i’ll always have a soft spot for these books that shaped me into the person i am today and because of that, i think i’ll never truly let go of contemporaries, since i can see myself re-reading my favorites for a really long time.
i super think beth should write more posts, btw! please let her know, sophie!
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I’m glad you were excited for this post as I was very excited to share it!! 😊 Thank you!!
I read some contemporary when I were younger and I liked them too. The covers were definitely appealing. Yes cliques and fashion could be a big part of those 😂
I still need to read Rick Riordan’s books but I’m glad that they could start your love for fantasy!!
I agree I think genre soulmates constantly change over time as you experience different things and change so you want to reach for other books. I think thats the great thing that you can love so many genres and end up with so many genre soulmates.
I’m glad YA contemporaries will always hold a special place in your heart as they mean so much as I think that is wonderful. You can experience so many different books but always have those old favourites.
Aww.. thank you so much. I will be sure to tell her and I am sure she will read all the comments as she will really appreciate it so thank you for the kind words Lais 💛
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Beth has such a great blogging voice!
This was really funny (yes, even your dreadful pun at the start, Sophie) & I really enjoyed it!
*votes more Beth*
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Yay thank you so much– that will mean such a lot to her!! 💛 and I 100% agree!!
I’m glad you could find this funny and that you appreciated my wonderful pun 😉😂
I am so happy to hear you enjoyed this post!!
Yes I vote for more Beth as well!! 😂 I will definitely tell her!!
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Hi Beth and Sophie!! ❤ This is such a wonderful post! I love it so much! My favorite genres have certainly changed over time, and I imagine they will continue to evolve in the years to come. I also go through certain phases when I prefer SFF books over realistic fiction, and vice versa. It's so funny how our tastes can change so drastically over the years!
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Hello Kelly!! I’m so glad you loved this post and I’ll tell Beth as it will mean a lot to her!! My genre has changed over time– funny how that happens but as you change so do your tastes. I think they will continue to evolve over time as well.
Same– sometimes I am craving a fantasy whilst like now I am loving realistic fiction!! It is interesting to see the changes!! Thank you for the lovely comment!! ❤
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