I read Ali Hazelwood's new SPlCY WEREWOLF book

[@ReadswithRachel]

FREE TOYS AND GIFT CARDS! Everyone who signs up to my giveaway with Bellesa wins something! www.shopbboutique.co/vibe/readswithrachel-yt

[@Kimberly_Sparkles]

The thump doesn't work well for mid-size fat or larger women, especially if you have a lot of FUPA. Just FYI. I experienced visceral disappointment when you brought it up. XD

[@ReadswithRachel]

@@Kimberly_Sparkleswhat no way?! As a fellow FUPA owner it’s been the play for me. Everyone’s body is so different though, what works for others does not work for me. I’m so sorry it wasn’t the one for you! Fingers crossed you find the vibe to vibe with ❤

[@Kimberly_Sparkles]

@@ReadswithRachel Possibly, it's the combo of short arms and round fupa. I'm part T Rex evidently.

[@ReadswithRachel]

@@Kimberly_Sparklesokay that made me laugh out loud

[@valerielevasseur8674]

I keep forgetting the protagonist is called Misery, then hearing "remember how misery loves peanut butter?" It sure does.

[@phoenixfritzinger9185]

Misery loves company, and peanut butter

[@Seren-Star]

It’s certainly an experience seeing how omegaverse went from normalizing same sex couples having biological kids together into normalizing knotting between heteros

[@E_Does_YT]

I can’t deal with the main stream-ification of Wattpad tropes- it’s both deeply unsettling in a way I can’t describe and absolutely hilarious to watch

[@jasminv8653]

​@@E_Does_YT omegaverse comes from ao3 supernatural fanfiction though, not wattpad romances

[@nobody4248]

I really want to make a white women joke right niw.

[@CommanderDarcy]

The heteros always invade our spaces 😭😭😭

[@booktales1687]

What? I didn’t even know they could have biological kids. That’s so sweet. All I’ve heard of it is knotting 😭

[@haunting_bluejay]

Ali Hazelwood has one formula "Smart yet dumb smol girl who doesn't know that the big standoffish man is crazy in love with her"

[@exomake_mehorololo]

Can we get that trope banned? Can we make smart yet dumb protagonists illegal? Cause it's been trodden to death and there is nothing to add

[@Axel_Was_Here433]

Yeah like The Love Hypothesis, I recently had the misfortune of reading that one and I hated every minute of it 😭

[@another_youtube_bot4400]

@@Axel_Was_Here433 The smart but dumb trope. God f*cking dammit. The Love Hypothesis's FL is a literal PhD candidate in STEM and we still have to show her doing and thinking dumb sh*t because she's sooooo quirky and she needs a man to come in and fix her. I literally screamed at the prologue/chapter 1 where they have their meet cute because she put EXPIRED contacts on her eyeballs.

[@Axel_Was_Here433]

@@another_youtube_bot4400 You're so right dude, and have her not figure out she's in love with the guy until the near end when the signs were so obvious it was a waving flag in her face. That made me so mad when reading it bc like... Aren't you supposed to be smart? You're in this high end college, and the reveal of the twist villain was honestly so poor that an INFANT could've seen it before this girl who was in COLLEGE. That book made me angry and I'm never picking it up again, and I'm scared to pick up Twisted Love after buying it

[@kimvarki]

​@@Axel_Was_Here433 "and have her not figure out she's in love with the guy" Well to be fair, being intellectually smart does not mean that she's emotionally mature. Some academics I know are also the dumbest people I know.

[@Artbyhurricanyounot]

Ali missed the opportunity to name the love interest Company

[@billyalarie929]

A moment of silence

[@yungstilla5685]

LIMBUS COMPA-

[@circuslollipopart]

i find it sooo funny that the werewolves in this are called "weres" when the origin of the word werewolf is literally old english for "wolf-man", with the prefix "wer" meaning "man", so essentially these werewolves are just called "men"

[@bbo7002]

Ok but I am literally ALWAYS going on about this whenever there's werewolf/were-adjacent media around. My family is probably sick of me crying about old & middle English but I can't STOP im sorry 😭

[@robertborland5083]

Honestly, "wearg" might work better than "were" as a one-syllable, Old-English term for werewolves in this case. (The term "warg" Tolkien used to refer to the orcs' malevolent mounts is something of a blend of "wearg"/"wearh" and its Old Norse cognate "vargr".)

[@jasminv8653]

​@@jaginaiaelectrizs6341 imagine if an old english word suddenly got reintroduced for anything else though 😂 oh yeah, i'm making some scrambled eyren for my brethren today....

[@Yanmay851]

@@jasminv8653 eyren is middle english tho, not old english, but it's a cool idea for fantasy stuff

[@daddytchaik]

yeah when I first read it I got excited bc I thought it meant we would get different were-animals? I don’t get the point of shortening it when they are just werewolves

[@ebony7177]

This shows true love. The fact that Carlos hasn't run screaming from you anytime you say "Hey, wanna hear about a book I just read?" shows that he is your one and only. He's your ride or die cause I would've locked myself in a room with the cat screaming "Nooooooooooo! Fourth Wing makes no sense and I can't take anymore!" 🤣🤣

[@nancyjay790]

I can't always talk about stuff like this with my husband, not because he wouldn't try to listen etc but I know by now that some subjects just fly through his ears and out into the ethernet. He's still a terrific person who is my best friend and all the other stuff.

[@kit922]

Ooooor he has a VIP front row seat to our queen's video

[@sarahlarock4070]

I really look forward to the reviews of ridiculous spicy books! The fact you have to explain 'knotting' basically immediately is both hilarious and unfortunate. 😂

[@ReadswithRachel]

Wait til you hear me yell this weekend about Gothikana

[@nicolefucci7258]

@@ReadswithRachel oh I’m excited!

[@marymac3572]

Petition for Rachel explaining new and 'exciting' terms to Carlos to be included in future episodes.

[@CursedCatTruffa]

​@ReadswithRachel Oooh, that book is SO bad! I cannot wait to hear your take!

[@billyalarie929]

@@marymac3572YES

[@tesscarlson5552]

I’ve always been firmly of the opinion that straight omegaverse is just gender roles but hornier. (I’d actually be kind of interested in reading something with a male omega/female alpha relationship though…)

[@ReadswithRachel]

GENDER ROLES BUT HORNIER I AM DEAD ☠️

[@rainydayjules]

I know that a lot of fanfics refer to it as a “secondary gender” which I think has the potential to be interesting in storytelling actually but in the end it just boils down to the sex dynamic lol

[@bctc1085]

@rainydayjules I remember in a fanfic I read this guy got dropped in alternate universe hims body. And when the whole explanation of the sexes happened, he just replied with so basically, I'm a woman ,. The love interest was dumbfounded and concerned

[@asteridshydrangea-jt2hf]

@@bctc1085well, it’s accurate - queer omegaverse is established societal gender roles but hornier too? 🤷‍♀️ all of the things said about women are said in a derogatory way about gay men (and straight men to imply they’re ‘lesser’ or acting ‘gay’) IRL (hormonal, hysterical, submissive/weak) and they say those things specifically to compare them in a demeaning way to being ‘womanly.’ A/B/O worldbuilding is usually RL patriarchal myths writ into biological justification, including the way misogyny is used against gay men in the patriarchy. Which is fine, people interpret oppression violence and other issues they deal with through the lens of fetish or kink all the time. In more or less widely accepted ways. But acting like queer a/b/o isn’t doing the same thing is funny.

[@randomthoughts0829]

​@@asteridshydrangea-jt2hfI actually had an idea for omegaverse with queer themes that also sort of kept sexism. Like female alphas aren't treated as good as male alphas and are sort of forced to either downplay their womanhood or their alphahood. Meanwhile omega boys are still treated as the "boys will be boys" type but are also still seen as fragile babies who need to be coddled. Not to mention being trans and nonbinary and all that

[@VariousAndSundryBee]

Your explanation of knotting has me crying and laughing and cringing and choking and dying 10/10 completely understood

[@ReadswithRachel]

Imagine me sitting at my computer editing this footage with my head in my hands like “how tf did I get here” Real thing that happened 🫠

[@teslashark]

@@ReadswithRachel Sanity is for the weak!

[@SalayaSkystone]

"You're a hacker. You can't mind palace your way into the answer?" Is now my go to meme in my mind palace

[@kerrikearse2944]

In the style of “ Misery Lark” your Ali Hazelwood name is your emotion during your workday + the state bird where you grew up. My name is “Jaded Cardinal.”

[@user-kt3zv1cm5j]

Queasy Eagle 😂

[@whxmsii]

Neutral Blue Crane (the bird does not belong to a state but instead my country since I don't live in America)

[@dazeslays]

unemployed black-capped chickadee

[@jorieshouse]

Vague Interest Mockingbird

[@frognamedjog]

Soulless blue crane 😔🙏

[@AtticusRat]

In all my years of reading Wattpad fanfiction, this is giving 2012 Wattpad fanfiction written by a twelve year old with unrestricted Internet access.

[@ReadswithRachel]

100% I had a friend who wrote stuff that felt like this in middle school in her notebooks that she was hiding from her parents

[@rebecca537]

I love it because in the acknowledgment section, ali mentioned archive of our own, a predominantly fanfiction site.

[@rebecca537]

I know she got famous from i think a star wars fanfic, probably from that site, but still 😆

[@OryxArya]

I swear I read this story on wattpad, one scene that particularly stood out was the way Mick betrayed her, I swear I have read an identical scene.

[@mcthurman8822]

“Fake dates and fanged mistakes” is a good vampire/werewolf get together for political reasons. And the “bro and the beast” is a good omegaverse one, it is m/m and the premise is frat bro get transported into 80s romance novel.

[@ReadswithRachel]

Okay that first one has a GREAT title I might need it

[@dectren]

YES Bro and the Beast is so fun!!

[@thetamperer9784]

I am adding "chicken coop building" to the list of things for my sapphic couple to do in that one concept I've been working on LMAO thanks

[@ReadswithRachel]

WHEN ITS DONE I WANNA SEE

[@angelawossname]

I have a lesbian chookhouse, at least, I'm a lesbian and I have a chookhouse.

[@discendos]

Me an ex dog groomer: HIS SCENT GLANDS???????????

[@ReadswithRachel]

As a former vet worker I KNOWWWWWW

[@asteridshydrangea-jt2hf]

Wait omfg. Cats have scent glands in their cheeks (as well as anal) so I thought maybe I was confused and just didn’t know about dogs other scent glands lol but - I googled it and is my google search correct in suggesting dogs only have the anal glands ? ETA: like from what I’ve seen occasionally glancing at omegaverse on AO3 at 2 AM they usually put some on the neck, but everything a/b/o related in this book seems to come back to purely werewolf stuff so -

[@Destinnies]

I miss the person I was when I didn't know what Knotting meant in this sense

[@amandapanda5087]

I've unfortunately known for a while before this book came out... one fanfiction read is one too many.

[@ihaveaname699]

KNOT a great plot HA

[@ReadswithRachel]

Knot great but definitely kNot bad for laughing at 😂

[@nancyjay790]

​@@ReadswithRachelYou do seem to have a gift for comedy and/or snark.

[@soobindoll9561]

Please that was good 😂

[@spacetraveler-fd4fu]

​@@ReadswithRachelahahaha imagine making jokes about this you have no idea how WEIRD this makes you look 😂

[@HeartseekerJinx]

Someone pointed out in another video how the names mirror Reylo (Lowe = Kylo, Misery = Miss Rey) and I’ve never been able to unsee it since then.

[@amandapanda5087]

I'm not surprised, the Love Hypothesis was Reylo fanfiction

[@HeartseekerJinx]

@@amandapanda5087 I think everything Hazelwood has written has been Reylo fanfiction tbh

[@gregoryvn3]

Ewwwww

[@rubeuspotter719]

Are we talking about Star Wars Kylo and Rey? Because that’s gross. But yeah I see it.

[@mimisezlol]

​@@rubeuspotter719yup! If I remember right, the Reylo community is tight knit because of how people view the ship, and has produced other authors. Cait Corrain was actually a Reylo, and when she tried to lie about a friend from the Fandom making her sock puppets, people in the reylo community showed up with receipts proving that such a person could never have existed.

[@AModelWhosRead]

I was listening to this while doing my makeup and had to stop because my eyebrows were coming out two completely different shapes from laughing so hard

[@ReadswithRachel]

Hahahahaha

[@baka9466]

I found this book to be painfully mediocre. The only thing I liked was laughing at all the vanilla contemporary romance readers discovering knotting and being horrified (gay monster romances are one of my favorite genres, so I'm very familiar with omegaverse)

[@ReadswithRachel]

Oh the plot made it the most mediocre thing ever ITS LIKE ALI DID NOT EVEN TRY. Her just stumbling into finding Sabrina like that? Was Ms hazelwood asleep??

[@baka9466]

@@ReadswithRachel I would forgive people for forgetting it was a paranormal romance because other than the smell thing, they weren't exactly wolfing out or anything. It was basically a supposedly smart woman taking a lot of baths and a bunch of people having a cookout. The mystery was so disappointing

[@steverainbow2.0]

Yes i agree with you 100%

[@voicememosforthevoid]

i haven't finished yet but i gotta say naming your twin characters Misery and OWEN is so funny to me. let's keep the corny going all the way through please

[@asteridshydrangea-jt2hf]

Should have had eccentric crackpot parents, Addams Family style, and they each got to name one kid and thought that ‘Owen’ was the weird, exotic one 😂 I feel like more fiction deserves weird parents that have to be circumvented because they lost track of social mores a century ago and think eating people over the tv remote is acceptable, instead of circumvented because they’re generic flat evil

[@user-kt3zv1cm5j]

I once saw a video of feral or free-roam dogs that were interrupted by a pack mid-coitus, and the terrifying and no doubt deeply painful, at least uncomfortable, ordeal of the mating pair being stuck to each other while facing off a worked-up group of like 15 other dogs was so unpleasant that I just can't ever think about knotting without that video coming into my head 😂😂 talk about a mood killer

[@ReadswithRachel]

All I can say is WOOF Pun intended

[@thatrantinggirl7376]

Lmao, I read an omegaverse fic once where the couple was in the middle of having sex and they got ambushed by a group of bad guys. In this fic, the omega was the much bigger and stronger man so the alpha held onto his back as the omega just fought them. It was really funny and kind of a similar situation but omegaversified

[@chronosclaimsall]

@@thatrantinggirl7376 Oh that's absolutely hilarious😂😂

[@TheReadingRambler]

Everytime Maroon5 jumpscares me I'm like "well...HE is not in Misery"

[@blueriverbane69]

first time ive heard it called hotdog water 😭

[@ReadswithRachel]

Hopefully also the LAST time

[@s.y.k.a1912]

"I don't have teeth down there" I'm sorry but, stories about vagina dentata *EXISTS*😭😭😭

[@aiglentinaa]

I hope you don’t sleep comfortably tonight after giving me that terrifying imagery

[@sms4077]

you can absolve SJM of blame for the phrase slides in to the hilt (or any similar version thereof)-- that one was old loooong before her time.

[@asteridshydrangea-jt2hf]

This lol, my eyebrow went up. Sword and sheath imagery has also been around as innuendo for a long time, probably where it came from. Also when people don’t want to just come out with the cruder possibility lmao

[@ThatPurpleGirl81]

I enjoy shifter books but that's why I don't understand why everyone lost their damn minds over Bride. Wolf smut has been around forever and done way better so why booktok pushed this particular book to the front of the class is baffling. I guess this is to Omegaverse what 50 Shades was to BDSM. 😅 ETA: 🐶🥜

[@ReadswithRachel]

I think you’re right!

[@marocat4749]

Yeah, if she literally had fangs and explained odd vampire sex characteristics woo i guess it could be, but why?

[@bumbabees]

ive heard a few different people say the people on booktok seem like people who didnt have a wattpad phase when they were younger and...i think that explains a lot.

[@spacetraveler-fd4fu]

Imagine liking this sh*t buncha freaks in here

[@TheCranberryKnight]

The name Lowe is derived from "Lowell" which means wolf. The creativity is astounding.

[@ReadswithRachel]

Is it really?!

[@steverainbow2.0]

No pleaseeeeee tell me this is a lie because is so basic and boring if this is true 😭

[@jonweman6128]

I couldn't find anything to confirm that. "Löwe" in German is another animal, lion.

[@steverainbow2.0]

@@jonweman6128 oh I find low means hill and ell is a variation of wulf , so Lowell is wolf hill

[@maightandmagic]

the hot dog water analogy made everything within me shrivel up. that's just asking for an infection.

[@jaxj968]

THE EMOJI BRO???? HOW DID YOU EVEN TYPE THAT???????

[@nienkeachternaam2938]

@@jaxj968 Maybe a copy paste from somewhere? As a kid I used emoji websites to get emojis for my emails. And having said that now I feel really old hahaha

[@LuxIsPeachy]

I feel like my biggest grievance with Bride is she managed to make vampires super boring lol. They weren't immortal, they didn't have cool powers, and their society wasn't anything to write home about. No idea how they managed to fight werewolves in a war!! At least make them cool 😭

[@mikankitsune0440]

The politicking in Bride isn't politicking it's polidicking. Also, when it comes to Vampire and Werewolf subgenres, I follow the 3Gs Rules: *Gay, Gothic, & Gruesome.* if it doesn’t have some or all of that, it's probably not that good.😅

[@doobat708]

Have yuo read Hunger Pangs by Joy Demorra?

[@lidaw.5145]

amc’s interview with the vampire is all those three! (also season 2 is just coming out and it’s unhinged in the best way)

[@xVALIKAx]

I appreciate you. Reading books for our entertainment so i can know which books to avoid and instead recommend them to my worst enemies. 😊

[@ReadswithRachel]

You’re a genius

[@xVALIKAx]

​@@ReadswithRachel Thank you🤭

[@vaelia1203]

wow your worst ennemies take recommendations from you? Even my own twin won't, I can't imagine someone who hates you... wait nevermind that might be why... ah siblings...

[@cheyennetrumbos]

All of the cut-ins of "I am in misery", just made me laugh while working and listening to this. 🐶

[@OfWebsAndChocolates]

the name misery IS very odd. the only other time i've seen it used is for the book-within-a-book character misery chastain in king's 'misery'.

[@steverainbow2.0]

Noooo 😂😂😂😂😂😂 you explaining what is knotting 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@ReadswithRachel]

IT WAS FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES OK

[@steverainbow2.0]

@@ReadswithRachel hahaha 😂😂🤣🤣 I am Dying Laughing 🤣🤣🤣

[@ctuten5275]

I am here for it! Hahaha

[@eulacuteuwu738]

i had to explain the whole omegaverse to my best friend a few days ago, needless to say the look on her face was amazing. cant wait to see ur reactions to the omegaverse themes in this book (even tho theyre pretty mild) 😂

[@silentstephi]

I CACKLED AT THE MAROON FIVE OMGGGG

[@TheReadingRambler]

I appreciate the commitment to "vampire with a y"

[@slyharu8829]

With all the talk about the knotting before I read it, I was expecting some a bit closer to fanfiction levels, but this was so… mild 😂 Never knew knotting could be written to be so vanilla

[@Evelyn_Okay]

I think knotting is getting so popular bc it's basically a "forced" only-one-bed trope, which leads to obligated pillow talk and cuddling. 🐶 (Bc that's the only way the fmc can make the love inrest enjoy hanging inside - I mean hangouting with her)

[@Dragoon601]

Books like these remind me that even though my writing is shit, as long as I can write sexy scenes well then my romance book will sell like hot cakes

[@andiman44]

Nah they ain’t gotta be well-written

[@Marie45610]

A Vamp*y*re named Misery... ok. It already sounds like she's trying to be edgy but doesn't know how. I recently accidentally read a book that I think is part of the Omegaverse. It was a NetGalley book by Ruby Dixon. I failed to look into it first why the author sounded familiar before requesting the book. I skimmed those "spicy" scenes. If anyone is curious, the book was Bound to the Shadow Prince. It was way longer than it should've been by about 200-250 pages. It's a 530 page book. It had the idea of a plot, strung together by a collection of scenes and under-explained reasoning for why things happened the way they did.

[@ReadswithRachel]

Why is Ruby Dixon writing a 530 page book nooooo 🫠

[@lauracamille4065]

The snort-laugh I let out at "INSIDE YOU ARE TWO WOLVES" was enormous

[@XLovelyMeX23]

Oh honey I've been waiting for this. Bride was a HUGEEEEEE letdown for me and everyone has been making me feel weird about it!

[@ReadswithRachel]

It’s best use is for laughing at it. I had a good time laughing at it. Sometimes with it. Mostly at it. Except that last sex scene that really just ruined the comedy

[@simplesimply3753]

I was letdown too!

[@michellecgb]

It kinda took a bit of the fun out of it that we know they’re mates IMMEDIATELY and it’s constantly highlighted, meanwhile, Misery is stupid about it for most of the book

[@kaialexander6806]

When I heard the name "Lowe Moreland", I had to pause to take it in for - I shit you not - about five minutes now. His name is Lowe Moreland as in Low Moorlands, but moors are found upland not lowland. His name is Low Habitat-Found-Up-High. 10/10, nailed it, so many fucking notes.

[@angelawossname]

My bff, who is also a lesbian, bought over some leftover materials from when she built her chookhouse the other day so we could extend our chookhouse. Our first chookhouse actually came from lesbian neighbours who wanted to get a bigger chookhouse. All of my lesbian friends have chookhouses. I didn't realise it was a lesbian thing but it makes sense.

[@jamiepx9]

Not a romance but My Heart Is A Chainsaw is a Horror/Mystery where main character is obsessed with slasher movies and is convinced one is about to happen in her small town so she needs to warn the "final girl". Has paranormal elements. I highly enjoyed it. It is written by Stephen Graham Jones who wrote The Only Good Indians.

[@Mushroomelixir]

ONE OF THESE CHARACTERS HAD AN ALMOST IDENTICAL NAME TO MY UNCOMMON DEADNAME (AND WHEN I SAY UNCOMMON I MEAN NOBODY HAS BEEN RECORDED TO HAVE THIS NAME) AND WHEN I HEARD HER NAME I ALMOST HAD A HEART ATTACK.

[@CommanderDarcy]

"I'm so sad- GLAD you asked" KSKSKSK Celestia bless everyone that ever had to explain what a knot is in... this context

[@MeganTHEEcatlady]

“I wanna die.” **Relate.** 🙌🏾 “I want to leave the Earth.” **RELATE.** 💃🏾 “I am also in a state of misery.” WE MAKING OUT OF MY THERAPY APPOINTMENT WITH THIS ONE 🔥🔥🗣😭🔥🔥🗣😭🗣🔥 Why are you always serving ✨relatable queen✨, ma'am, I can knot- 🤧 (Thank you for the review! And for your 5-hour put together of “Fourth Wing”! Listened to it while getting my housework done, woo! 🥰)

[@dontfretreadbooks]

Intro had me like “no not while I’m eating dinner”

[@moonstone___]

or knot while you’re eating?

[@angelawossname]

I have read some queer spicy shifter romance. For the most part, it's just as bad and just as hilarious. For some trans writers/readers, though, omegaverse can be very important and I appreciate how it can be affirming to write/read about men who can get pregnant and female "Alphas". I can give you the names of some trans authors if you are interested. Edit: "Bro and the Beast" by L. C. Davis. L.C. Davis is a trans author, the book is super meta and doesn't take itself very seriously and mildly takes the piss out of omegaverse. "Evil Omega" by S. Rodman, a non binary transmasc author. Not as silly but still good. I have to admit, I do skim over the spicy scenes. Both available on KU.

[@ellys106]

Ali Hazelwood is like "a woman can be into STEM or she can have good social skills/the ability to read people BUT not both"

[@the_magic_celery]

Huh, a book called Bride. Should have guessed it was about tying the knot... and using it too

[@palamedes4740]

And Bellesa will not stay stuck, so that's a plus, Highly recommend no ER visits so far, we love to see it😂😂 Jk jk the toys are great tho

[@ReadswithRachel]

STAY STUCK???? NO FUCKIN WAY I’m gonna need you to warn me off whatever brand is staying stuck because I do not have the time or the courage to explain that in the ER oh my god

[@palamedes4740]

@@ReadswithRachel Luckily no personal experience but I did hear horror stories from size queen wannabees 😬😬

[@Caroline_Creative]

Chicken related sapphic romance rec -- hen fever by Olivia Waite. Actually so good- a cute historical novella!

[@NRB_EndArc]

“I am in misery” Lit- Liter- Literally.

[@cloudyrainee]

Tbh, when I saw your comments on goodreads about it, I knew this was going to be a good rant video

[@IlIlIlIlIlIlIlIlIlIlIlIlIl.]

one time in a previous life I wrote like 70 trashy erotic ebooks. bear and wolf shifter romances were huge at the time and I never got too far into that but I'd put that kind of thing in as a joke because at least at the time Amazon had a zero tolerance policy on anything resembling bestiality. I'd have the characters tell each other stuff like, "I'm definitely not a bear right now. I'm a human being." anyway if you're allowed to write about stuff like "knotting" now I might need to come out of retirement and publish an even more crude, obnoxious one.

[@spacetraveler-fd4fu]

Seek help

[@IlIlIlIlIlIlIlIlIlIlIlIlIl.]

@@spacetraveler-fd4fu pretty sure I'm capable of writing weird and gross books on my own. it would be cool to team up with a zoologist or a veterinarian to make sure all the details were right.

[@spacetraveler-fd4fu]

@@IlIlIlIlIlIlIlIlIlIlIlIlIl. no I mean seek help for even wanting to write about that stuff. You need serious help

[@P4Stalot]

Okay this was funny and a good response 😂 ​@@IlIlIlIlIlIlIlIlIlIlIlIlIl.

[@P4Stalot]

Please do!!

[@tyler-df3wy]

For a quick demographic test that I feel is relevant for this video: pineapple in a hydraulic press

[@noga9895]

The psychic damage I just took

[@diesdas5851]

please no have mercy I cannot start my day like this

[@tsifirakiehl4250]

W H Y ?

[@glamourpossum5292]

I never comment on anything ever, but I needed to laugh so badly the other day and the “I am in misery” snippets had me close to tears. Thank you so much for that, from a longtime fan 😂

[@ReadswithRachel]

I'm so glad!

[@10puppyluv]

Ive been reading fanfic for over 10 years, ive discussed omegaverse with my friends multiple times, ive read omegaverse fic on occasion and yet and yet i am still baffled by the use of "hot dog water" that may haunt me for awhile

[@KRUKOLIBIDINOUS]

I went to walmart with the goal of buying a cheap book to get back into reading, and I like vampires so I picked this up after skimming the back, I also grabbed some highlighters in case there was anything in the book I'd want to remember. I ended up highlighting every single time I cringed from the writing or what the characters were doing, and subsequently the highlighter was dried and unusable 1/3 of the way through the book. I had to put it down and buy other books because it was so bad I was dreading finishing it. In a way it did get me to read more, I'Ve read 2 whole books in an effort to avoid finishing bride 👰‍♀

[@KRUKOLIBIDINOUS]

Also bonus point, count the amount of times Misery says "I'm a vampire" if you count with shots you'd have alcohol poisoning

[@seraphonica]

weird that they mention vampires have trouble reproducing... can they not convert humans in this 'verse? usually the problem vampires have is too many, not too few.

[@fallun9678]

I am CACKLING at the Maroon 5 clips.. especially when he's NOT IN Misery yet! XD

[@rebecca537]

Surprisingly there also seemed to be a lot of things her editors missed. I cant remember what exactly, but i read the book basically in 24 hours, and there seemed to be a lot of consistency errors and stuff, small things you wouldnt really notice if you read it over a few days, or if you were the author. I know she has an editor tho, wonder why they didnt pick it up

[@easilydistractedauthor]

The heroine half-assing investigative work only to have the answer fall into her lap near the end of the book has plagued Urban Fantasy forever. I want to help solve mysteries, not watch people have sex and make out. (Chicagoland Vampires still haunts me.) 🐕🥜

[@ReadswithRachel]

THISSSSSS

[@d4rkbore4lis20]

Love your reviews as always, though I’ve gotta say I find it absolutely hilarious that a bunch of reviewers are attributing fanfic language in published media to sjm when I honestly think it’s just that a lot of writers these days got their start in fanfic before moving on to writing their own stories, and some of them simply haven’t been able to let go of fanfic smut style language/managed to mature their writing styles to be distinct enough beyond it.

[@HelghastEnigma]

Its just somewhat kinkier standard supernatural fiction, its not even remotely actually omegaverse, bloody normies, I swear.

[@ReadswithRachel]

Yeah it’s not really omegaverse. That’s definitely what it’s been called though!

[@HelghastEnigma]

Yeah, but whomever decided to call it that is wrong and deserves to be subjected to reading wattpad tier Omegaverse fiction for a year, and nothing else.

[@ReadswithRachel]

You know what that’s completely fair

[@asteridshydrangea-jt2hf]

@@HelghastEnigmasomeone else said it was to omegaverse was 50 Shades was to BDSM and I almost choked

[@HelghastEnigma]

@@asteridshydrangea-jt2hf and I'd have to say that's pretty accurate, and hilarious

[@TheBlackstaff]

oh god I am writing a werewolf book the whole knot thing has traumatized me. I never even thought of that the internet finds new ways to ruin my fragile little mind.

[@Mj-lr3nc]

Any Ruby Gloom fans in the house sitting smugly, knowing that we stan the superior "Misery" character?

[@adrianavanhoofrodriguez576]

SJM influence has had catastfophic results for the romance/fantasy tiktok community and ill never forgive her for that. Because WHY am i recognising ACOTAR references in other books that arent SJM's, absolutely disgraceful

[@missmishka8379]

Not a book, but OMG do I forever love the Terminator movie for Kyle Reese being a virgin because there are more important things in a war torn future & he maybe fell in love with Sarah Connor's photo & myth & unintentionally saved himself for her. Yes, that's kind of just my headcanon, the "saving himself" but all that is one of the reasons why Terminator is my favorite romance movie ever.

[@monster-enthusiast]

I love the immediate anatomy lesson at the start of the video lol

[@kaseyg9013]

Sending you love. I've been there with losing the ability to read. It's so disconcerting. It came back for me, and I'm sure it will for you, too. You're so smart to take a step back and give yourself space. ❤️❤️❤️

[@EviePontecorvo]

Rachel, thank you for your service for explaining knotting.

[@ReadswithRachel]

It was my civic duty 🫡

[@HinataUchihaInuzuka9]

AHAHAHAHAHAHA as an omegaverse fanfic blob, your comments and facial expressions had me HOWLING (pun VERY much intended), Rachel. This was such a good listen while I worked. I read precariously through you, my bookish saviour. Cheers and I wish thee a happy Mother's Day (in Mexico, it's celebrated on May 10th). Also, her name didn't jump out at me cause ajajajaja in Mexican culture (and hispanic culture in general), women are often named some WILD names. Some notorious examples are: Soledad (solitude, loneliness), Dolores (multiple pains), Consuelo (Like, when you console someone after they die), Concepción (conception, yep, to conceive a child), Socorro (Help! yeah, what you shout when you're in danger), Pilar (Pillar, yeah w like, column), Remedios (Remedy), Merced (Mercy ahaha), etc. I'm sure there are more ajajaja

[@carolinesch.]

This book was such a dissapointment for me, I have read this exact premise and setup before in fanfiction, and I know the potential it had. You take two differnt cultures who dont know anything about eachother and actually talk avout differences, maybe one is set up completly differnt and then you have discussion about power structures, family units, misogyny etc. Also the entire werewolf dynamics lend itself really good for gay pairings because you have these subgenders and in contrast to most vampire having a stricter hirachy. And then you make them really understand eachother culture and overcome differences. There is so much potential here with that setup.

[@geektrash180]

I have a hard time accepting omegaverse in m/f relationships, it's just heterosexuality, you don't need to add the omegaverse to it.

[@bzzzzzzzzzz2075]

I mean, I've been on ao3 long enough, and in weird enough circles to have seen m/f omega verse that still feels gay. But that takes a special kind of bisexuality, and this author DOES NOT HAVE IT. Like, this isnt even really omegaverse, it's heteros with knots.

[@geektrash180]

@@bzzzzzzzzzz2075 agreed! pretty much what I was thinking!

[@sarahfields3589]

@@bzzzzzzzzzz2075 honestly it seems very basic shape shifter/vampire fic more than omegaverse.

[@fz_dracohart1255]

PREACH! I don't mind tye hettest of het relationship but pls season it to fit omegaverse pls. If it’s the dogwater vanilla alpha dude/omega chick, make the omega girl got crush on an alpha girl or smth. Or the alpha dude got history with an omega dude or smth. Omega dude/alpha girl will always be my favorite because I always love to see how authors who dares to tackle this dynamic handle the gender norms literally turned upside down topsy turvy. Yet sadly this is the rarest thing you'll ever get in omegaverse because, I'll say as omegaverse afficionado, most of us are cowards ):

[@FemboyMisa]

Didn’t think it was possible but watching this made me more asexual than I already was.

[@KerriB]

Same!

[@bbo7002]

I don't think I like this A/B/O thing very much. Aside from it being super lame that your whole life is defined by your biology/hormones and not by your choices, it also sounds like you don't have any fcking privacy AT ALL if ppl can literally SMELL things about you! They're rubbing scent glands and and sniffing each other?? That's so invasive, as a shy introvert I would literally rather die than have other ppl SNIFF OUT and acknowledge my personal business out loud. This kind of world is not good for someone with my levels of anxiety 😳 Idk it just doesn't sound like much fun to me personally, but to each their own 😅 No hate to Ali Hazelwood! And thanks to Rachel for the great video, as always 😊

[@kajielin4354]

I'll finish knitting a hat for my mom to this video lol

[@ReadswithRachel]

You can kNot tell her that you did this or she will consider the hat tainted

[@kajielin4354]

@@ReadswithRachel Yeah no way, I hope she never has to find out what knotting even is!

[@theoctopusesgardener]

i misread “knitting” while listening to the anatomy explanation and i was a bit flabbergasted i’ll admit

[@kajielin4354]

@@theoctopusesgardener Oh no! xD

[@Jean-Luc_Renard]

Why do werewolves have copper-based (green) blood? Normal wolves have iron-based (red) blood, and so do humans. My best guess is that the author was referencing Star Trek. The Romulans from Star Trek are descended from Vulcans. Vulcans have green blood. So naturally, Romulans have it, too. Okay, that's cool, but what does that have to do with wolves? Well, according to the Roman origin myth, Romulus and Remus were twin brothers who were raised by a mother wolf. That's all I got. Additionally, I can't stand when people talk about "alphas." That's not how wolves work!

[@thisisavivistanaccount7866]

i needed you to review this lol I didn’t trust anyone else

[@lndcruz721]

i love that you cut in that marron 5 song. its perfect lmao. I was also waiting for the pun of being in misery and i was not disappointed

[@akossiwak]

Thank you for the laughter! I desperately needed it! ❤️ 🥜🥜🥜🥜🥜

[@airplanetowardsthesky3265]

The thumbnail 😂 I could knot click on this

[@howdyitsren]

thank you for making your pain to funny and entertaining for us your sacrifice is brave and appreciated

[@robirb_]

23:50 the timing of this is the best comedy I've seen in a while, I'm genuinely still in hysterics

[@commanderkittin1873]

I've spent the last 10 hours dedicating every free moment to plotting out a new project which is.... a paranormal mystery with a background romance in which the main character is searching for her missing childhood best friend. so sitting down for this video was a trip lol.

[@zi2651]

So what you're saying is that Lowe is the alpha, Lowe is the leader, and Lowe is the one to trust?

[@zi2651]

I'm so sorry for this lmao 😂😂😂 Also, these names are something else. I feel like Misery would work better if all the vampires were named after emotions/virtues.

[@ReadswithRachel]

I did kNot understand why they named her Misery and then her brother was… Owen. Like… for why? Lmao did her dad just hate her at birth?

[@GailRDelaneyNovelist]

"Like lovebugs..." Good GOD, I will be unable to keep this out of my head every time I sit outside with the dogs and see the damn lovebugs!

[@legendaryfrog4880]

I just want to comment, smugly, that 'were' in the word werewolf means 'man'. Werewolf literally means man-wolf. So if the mortal enemies of the Vampires are the Weres then the mortal enemies are just humans.

[@thewordsofdestiny]

I do like the idea of the vampire feeding from their human partner as a romantic and trust worthy thing but the green spicy blood is weird

[@rikkifishy]

I don’t know if ABO stories is having a renaissance or if I just managed to hide from it this long after it blew up in my main fandom on AO3, but either way, I do knot like it.

[@Unregulatedtomfoolery]

I'm so glad for those included Ms. Perky scenes 😂 one of my favourite movies

[@singing_sloan]

It's always great when a booktuber can remove a book from my tbr. I knew this would either be a fun mystery or hilariously bad, but somehow I didn't see the omegaverse coming.

[@marrrst]

I will be using 'wow, ok I super did not ask' as my daily response to many things, thank you Rachel.