my BOOKTUBE TWIN picks what i read 👀📚🌟

[@megwithbooks]

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[@bookslikewhoa]

Oh noooooo 😭😭😭 I feel like I failed you… next time I’ll go for more sure things when I rec for you 💛

[@MoominAlanna]

Would you consider doing a second video with the other 3 books to see if you just read the wrong 3? 😂

[@maryclarke9894]

That would be interesting!

[@_daniela_s]

you giving yourself the best recommendations actually makes sense 😊 I feel like you need a whole month of picking up books intuitively, read a few pages and see if the vibe is right, because your book picks overall are very impacted by external factors. And then just take us along for the ride, I will be there to watch 👌🏻(You're one of my few auto-watch channels, I drop everything lol)

[@Nico-lk5hb]

Yes pleaseeeee !! read the books u already owned and the ones you are **actually** excited for!!

[@meghanwalsh8952]

I agree, I love a themed vlog for entertainment but I much rather watched slice of life reading vlogs where people read books they are excited for!

[@meljstephan]

Mara is one of my favorite Booktubers. I relate so much to her as a reader, a chronic illness girlie, and a cat mum. She's great. Anybody watching this who isn't subscribed, you should go fix that asap

[@EmmyAngua]

If you would like some genuine and well meant advice, you seem to have very little control over what you actually read. Everything is a challenge, or chosen at random, etc. You have very little control over your reading so of course the results will be very mixed. Even in this you held up a book you clearly WANTED to read and then saved it for a future video. Maybe take a step back and choose three books you actually WANT to read next with no other demands on you? Love your vids and the kitty is adorbs x (Also I HATED Eight Detectives so feel very vindicated.)

[@mickeyhank]

I’m glad you’re still being honest in your ratings, that’s vital, but this is, as you said, starting to become concerning, how you haven’t had many really outstanding reads in a while. Here’s my idea for your reading: YOU and only you select exactly what you want to read. I love the videos where you get your reading ideas in fun ways but I think you definitely deserve to choose precisely what you want to read for like the next 5 to 10 books. Or whatever number you think is right. I’m thinking that youyou have some books that you really want to read, that you think could very well be five stars, so I think you should treat yourself to reading what you and only you choose. It’s how most of us outside of book tube choose our reading so you’re entitled to be able to do that as well, especially when you’re starting to question reading in general. They may not all be hits, but the odds probably improve. 😊

[@Rebentischin]

Oh that kitten is so adorable 😍 no wonder you all love her, who wouldn’t!

[@elizabethward4024]

Almost every booktuber I watch has made the same comment about not enjoying any books recently. I feel like the whole world is burnt out on life right now… we’ve been through a traumatic few years and most of us haven’t fully processed the impact of the pandemic, wars, climate change, etc. I also have a theory that because booktubers have been reading more and more books every year - sometimes only spending a day or two on each book - they aren’t giving the same amount of time to savor a book and enjoy a slower pace of reading anymore. There’s so much pressure to find a 5 star book and being very disappointed with every book that doesn’t get that perfect rating. It doesn’t leave room for enjoyable books that aren’t mind blowing or quite perfect. PS - your new kitten is so adorable!

[@hknowles97]

I see a lot of comments telling you to just mood read, but I know you’ve said before that you really enjoy making themed videos and that’s part of the fun for you! So you should make the content that you want and I hope you have some great reading experiences during the rest of the year that bring you joy and that you find a new favorite❤️❤️

[@KatieColson]

Omg that cat is the absolute CUTEST thing I’ve ever seen. When her little face was pressed against the side of the chair as she laid on your lap 🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩

[@jessicagolden1631]

I completely relate to the struggle to reading! I’ve found that trying to explore another genre has been helpful for the momentum bc I’m not as used to the tropes and it feels fresh.

[@natashalast9688]

Came here to say this. Yes! Trying a new genre (or revisiting one you haven’t read for a while) always makes me fall in love with reading again.

[@magda_mf]

I agree with you, I've also noticed that over the years I get fewer favourites of all time. Sometimes I feel like I've already read all the best books of a genre and there's nothing else left that would blow me away

[@anniiij]

Please read Magpie murders, you will love it!! It's a book within a book, the premise is fun and the tone of the book is funny and it's a classic whodunit, it's great!

[@llumpiah]

I just found Mara through this video, I never watched her but OMG! her recs are legendary. I feel like she should open personal recs service or smth. I'm def checking her out after this❤❤❤❤❤

[@gracea75]

How about an episode of recs from past you? You could pick 3 books you loved years ago (maybe like when you started the channel) and see how you feel about them now

[@kartik3719]

You should do a video rereading your favs

[@NovelsWithNicole]

I vote for a jane eyre vs. the highest rated retelling vlog ( i enjoyed the pride and prejudice version ✨🖤 you did)

[@heabooktubes]

Heeeeeeck yeeeeaaaah I love Mara

[@andrewannotates]

Same

[@looseleafreads]

Maybe you can do a series based on your 5 star audit of reading either like all the books in 1 video are around 1 trope or topic or all the videos have a handful hitting different tropes/topics in your audit. I feel like maybe your theme next year can be like finding your element. Maybe visit different genres and do a video on each reading 1 book you feel like you would be most likely to love, a book that's a little outside of your comfort zone, and a book that is a different swing on the genre?

[@glenda9730]

The Susan Ryeland series ( Mag pie Murders) is one of the best series I have ever read. Not sure about author drama, I don’t get into that or look it up, but his writing is amazing. The British Tv adaptation is one of the absolute best series I ever watched. Can not say enough good things about it

[@maria83maria]

I love Remains of the day, but i'm a literary girly, i loved Stoner too and there really nothing happens whatsoever 😂 I would say please be kind to yourself, we love your videos because you put so much care in them but read one week just what you are exited to read, like the Richard Osman book

[@helenwhitfield4654]

I never normally comment but in the kindest way, you need to give yourself a break. You are grieving whilst simultaneously falling in love, I'm sure your head and heart are all over the shop. Be kind to yourself and perhaps mood read for a while and don't chase those 5 stars, it's disappointing and frustrating to pick up book after book that just don't hit the spot. Horror middle grade or a bit of mindless smutantasy usually does it for me 😅. Much love ❤ xx

[@maryclarke9894]

I'm sure this has to be disappointing but I'm also sure that you will love reading again. Everyone's tastes are different, book twin or not! I think you should definitely read Magpie Murders -- it's so well done and unique. It might restore your faith in reading. Or give into temptation and read the Richard Osman!

[@carolinesch.]

I feel the same with my reading this year, especially certain subgenres. Now that I read some, I no longer just see the stroy and enjoy it but I see certain tropes or character types that are often used, certain plotpoints and even the same scenes I have read before. I cant turn that off anymore because it isnt the new shiney thing.

[@anasofiaaceves]

For murder mystery meets cozy fantasy that's Jane Austen inspired read Manners and Monsters. For an actual Jane Austen with a mystery, Gothic vibes, coming of age story about friendship and love Northanger Abby.

[@witchymary5246]

I have the feeling that a lot of people are struggeling with loving reading this year. Personally I've been in a phase where I just give everything 4 Stars bc the books were good but didn't make me love the process of reading. Honestly I was just hoping for a 1 star just to have some variation. But today I actually found a new favourite and it made the book even more special to me ❤ (it was The Eyes Are the Best Part by Monika Kim)

[@heatherbocks]

Awwww congrats on the addition to the family 💕💕 she’s so stinking cute!

[@carissa1446]

Have you tried just mood reading? That would probably help.

[@jacsYT]

eight detectives sounds like it’s a short stories collection in a coat pretending to be a novel

[@endlessshelf1614]

I've been in a similar boat with my reading ESPECIALLY when it comes to my favorite (sub)genre. Lately I've found that nudging myself out of my comfort zone has been really helpful. Not a total abandonment of my likes, but trying books that otherwise wouldn't be on my radar because I don't look to those genres. BooksandLaLa did a video called "my alternate reality tbr" and that could be a fun (but low pressure) way to try new things. You could use different genres, internet aesthetics, memes (what my parents think I read, what my friends think I read, what my...), ect to generate a tbr that's not your norm

[@wolfme4030]

I wasn’t aware of Anthony Horowitz’s questionability but I do love his books especially the Alex Rider and the Hawthorn and Horowitz series.

[@KendraPeaceAndLove]

I can’t tell you how much I NEEDED kitten content ❤

[@throughherpages]

I'm going through a similar thing right now where all of my reads are really mid and I'm not really enjoying reading but one thing I've found is that I'm really enjoying non-fiction! It's the only thing I'm really excited about right now, even when I'm in the bookstore the fiction just makes me feel sad lol.

[@jsalnut]

Love your autumn sweater in the end 🎃

[@bethloubet4650]

I agree about Eight Detectives. I was kind of bored. I did, however, love The Bloody Chamber. Don't give up on the other three! :)

[@tamidawn8383]

Maybe try some Horowitz? I loved all his recent murder mysteries. Take the plunge with the Hawthorne series …or the magpie murders is good too.

[@LisaK1075]

Omgggg I love the kitten!!! ❤

[@iheartwalle]

My favorite Nora Roberts is Montana Sky. It's an older one, but i didn't guess the killer, and it kept me on my toes.

[@crushgoil]

I’ve been waiting for this edition.

[@bagelsbooks3901]

I have also not been OBSESSED with a book in a while. I’m in a large slump because of it. BUT I just started Immortal Dark and it’s giving me a lot of hope for a 5 star

[@katdance2106]

I love your videos and appreciate how open you are to trying new books and genres. But hun, read something you want for a bit. Enjoy the books you have, just put less pressure on yourself! We’ll watch you regardless because your videos are fire 🔥 🧡

[@alexswatton5883]

I don't comment very often and you probably won't see this, but hey ho... I don't think you need recommendations for 5 star books right now. Life has been really stressful, and it's adding unnecessary pressure. What you need is some no expectation recommendations, where you just read to read. Here's my 3 no expectation recommendations that you haven't asked for, The Christmasaurus by Tom Fletcher, The Illusions by Liz Ryder and reread The Thursday Murder Club.

[@Bookbonkers8439]

Have you read The Veronica Speedwell mysteries? They take place in Victorian times and they are pretty entertaining IMO

[@jaimee-kate]

I definitely feel you. This year I've read basically nothing but just ok, middling books. I want books that are going to blow me away and I just haven't found them this year :(

[@andreabelec7852]

I am sure you wont see this but I have been feeling EXACTLY the same as you and then I picked up Blood over Bright Haven and like....wow. WOWOWOW. I finally FELT something while reading, I was open mouthed like so excited for every chapter. I highly recommend! I dont think you have read it that I remember.

[@al700000]

Aww I’m getting a ragdoll kitten in a few weeks. I’m so excited 😊

[@SuboJvR]

Surprise kitty content!! Beautiful, love the new addition

[@tanellenash7383]

I highly suggest Catherine Cowles if you like the romantic suspense of Nora Roberts. It reminds me so much of her peak writing years before she started to recycle the same plots over and over again. And I agree with Meg’s Mom, I haven’t thought that NR has written her own books in years

[@MarinaJohan]

I love why Mara picked those books for you because it's always nice to venture out and then we'll know whether we found something new we like or not. I'm sorry there were no 5 stars ): I was really interested in that Nora Roberts book but I dont think I'd be able to stand the reno/romance chapters too much haha. I vote for Booktube Twin Mara part 2!

[@kay-ls6ec]

my cat passed around the same time as yours and i recently got a new kitty too! your girl is so cute!!!

[@MattMilu]

🐈 The kitty stole the show! 😊

[@camfan54lisa]

Nora was my first romance read and I consumed it. I recently read again and forgot how much I just enjoy her writing but unfortunately I always figure out the 'killer'. It's kind of annoying!

[@jessicagolden1631]

Also dita is the cutest thing ever !!!

[@angelaluz405]

I really need to have a bowl of popcorn while watching this!

[@DominiqueVango]

What a beautiful kitty!

[@Derys2001]

Great video, kitten so cute 🥺🥰

[@yogibean]

Dida is beautiful 😭so happy for you and your family 💗💗

[@JessNovelNook]

Dida is PRECIOUS😫😍 i am so in love with her im so glad you guys are loving having her❤️❤️

[@Hillary429]

My tortoise shell calico cat loved biting fingers and toes as a kitten. She grew out of the toe biting but still bites fingers, especially when she wants more pets, even if you’re actively petting her haha

[@amygiuliano4828]

Bloody LOVE Mara

[@KittyxKult]

I am going to make you cry so sorry in advance, but if you are open to middle grade I think you should read Nimbus. I think it fits perfectly where you are in your life right now. It is about a kitten who is abandoned, and the old cat lady witch who has just lost her familiar who rescues Nimbus and then magical things happen. There is also a mouse in a sweater. It is simultaneously light while being very wholesome and heartwarming. I read it after losing my soul cat and it’s in my top books of the year. It really spoke to where I was at in my grief and my desire to continue my rescue efforts but also feeling afraid to get attached to a new cat. You are currently grieving your baby, falling in love with a new kitten, and that was the exact space I was in when I read this book and it absolutely hit the spot.

[@anthropomorphicpeanut6160]

It's like this series started yesterday. Time passes so quickly

[@chellyfishing]

Everybody’s having a rough time with reading this year! I lost a fur baby too, in April (and am now also raising a tiny new demon who loves to bite), so I’ve barely read anything for the last five and a half months. I’ve really liked most of the stuff I’ve read but truly loved very little and I just want something to hit!!! My mom is also a big Nora Roberts/JD Robb reader and I have access to her ebook library so maybe I’ll give her a try. Also your new baby is so sweet, I had a Siamese when I was a kid and she was the best little kitty.

[@co-mee]

what song is playing at 15:30?? Also KITTY!!!

[@carriecongo7616]

Magpie murders is great and the tv show is awesome

[@robyntotheTee]

I read The Eighth Detective last year and I gave it 2.5 stars. I was really disappointed in the ending. And to your point about the short stories in it, yes, I felt the same. It's like as soon as you figured out how the characters were connected to each other and you start speculating what could have happened, the story is just about over. But the short stories were more interesting than the overall mystery.

[@samworley3960]

OH IM PUMPED FOR THIS

[@AnotherTurning]

I definitely need you to circle back to the Duke Who Didn't! It's an incredible romance

[@itchystitchy]

Try reading Never Let me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro; it's heartbreaking, and has stayed with me.

[@bethanamyh]

Pleeaseee give Ishiguro another chance! all his books are so different, I wasn't a fan of Remains of the Day controversially but Klara and The Sun, Never Let Me Go and A Pale View of Hills are all 10/10. He adapts and changes his writing style to different genres so effortlessly but they all have themes of memory, loss and humanity.

[@wolfme4030]

Love Nora Roberts and especially the In Death series she writes as J.D. Robb. The Circle trilogy? Starting with Morrigan’s Cross as a paranormal romance is pretty darn good too 😊

[@Catherine_Dubya]

Nora Roberts is a palate cleanser for me. The first one I read was Carolina Moon. Also, The Haunting of Velkwood was a fun book and the Priory of the Orange Tree is good.

[@DanaGildersleeve]

I was slightly horrified when I saw her recs! I completely agree with you on Remains of the Day and I gave Eighth Detective a lower rating. I considered DNFing that so many times and by the end I regretted pushing through it.

[@racheltfisher]

Your kitten is so cute 🥰

[@chrissyanne5897]

Love this series! I think you would LOVE Bad Men by Julie Mae Cohen. So underrated, so up your alley, such a fun read, and I can absolutely see it being a winner for you 🥺☺️

[@Oceanweeks]

Oh my god! You have a ragdoll too? I WAS RIGHT! I took one look at her and thought "Ragdoll" Also, can confirm ragdolls love to nibble on your toes, my ragdoll piper is turns into a shark at night! She's a blue point mitted, so very similar look to Dita, just grey instead of the brown markings!

[@ASHLEY.397]

Yayyyyyy! I love these ones

[@karenjobim5794]

I read many NR but they have almost the same vibe, my fave series is In Death, J. D.Robb. It has romance and steamy (Eve & Roarke are one of my OTPs) but the cases are great.

[@BooksStarringMissy]

Aww Dida is so cute my kitten is almost six months now and she’s getting so big so fast I miss when she was just a baby 😂 but I’m very glad she’s starting to mellow a little bit but she’s a ginger so not much 😂😂😂

[@Galaxia7]

17:10 that reminds me of how my cat got her name (rip she was the best, lived untilshe was 16, the cuddliest cat). She was a black and white cat and it looked like she had a mask on almost. We thought she was male at first so we called her Zorro, but then we found out she was a female so we called her Zorrine instead

[@katrinaandallthebooks7993]

I also just got a kitten who is very naughty and loves to sleep on my pillow above my head, I’m obsessed too. I read The Remains of the Day for ALevel and know I loved it then (25 years ago 😮) but when Mara said his bossed helped the rise of the Nazi’s I was like, what! I must’ve completely wiped that part from my memories.

[@Thehennies]

Now read the other three! Bloody chamber is so up your street ❤

[@JayGTheAwkwardBookworm]

I’ve yet to read a Nora Roberts book! I see them EVERYWHERE though🥹

[@kuramasgirl06]

If you want a good romantic suspense, check out Karen Rose. It's a great balance of suspense and romance. My favorite is You Can't Hide.

[@Nico-lk5hb]

pleaseeeee read the books u already owned and the ones you are **actually** excited for!! 😻💜 so here for your mood reading era and not your “forcing myself to read and to find a 5 star because someone told me what to read instead of me”

[@amyc8871]

My all time favs are Tana French (Dublin murder squad series) and Kate Quinn (the rose code is my favourite - about 3 women in Bletchley park - it is split timeline tho…)

[@AliDoisRead]

Dita is the cutest girl to ever exist 🙂‍↕️

[@novaartino2874]

Suggestion for a year of recs video: all recs from your most trusted patreons! They know your reading taste the best! (Maybe you’ve already done it, it that’s the case sorry 😂)

[@caitlinhall4663]

Never let me go is my favourite book ever, but I also rated The remains of the day a 3.5 stars - I could see what it was doing and I could recognise it was a high quality book but it didn’t impact me in the same way that Never let me go did. I also DNF’d Eight Detectives, I’m not the biggest fan of short stories and I just found it quite boring 😅

[@emmal7510]

I'm fairly certain Nora Roberts does write all her books. I haven't ever finished a full length Nora Roberts book, but I keep trying them, and the writing feels consistent with the In Death books, which, weirdly, I fly through. I don't think you can really get that level of consistency with ghost writers. I also follow a different author on SM who publishes an insane number of books a year and she definitely writes them all, because there's no way she's making enough to hire a ghost writer. (Seanan McGuire)

[@emmal7510]

Nora Roberts is, primarily, a romance author, so your pickings will be slim if that's not what you want. Her J.D. Robb books aren't romances, but romantic subplots are definitely present. Plus, they're all police procedurals, so if that's not your thing, it won't help much.

[@TheHotaru21]

i've been feeling the same way about reading. everything i've read this year has been so mid. i want to feel something, even if i were to hate a book at least i would be feeling some strong emotion. but everything has been meh :(

[@boxersandbooks]

I have a siamese too and he is sooooooo mouthy

[@avsambart]

I think someone is in love and it's Meg with Dida.

[@benjaminashank]

THE EIGHTH DETECTIVE ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

[@carolinesch.]

I just read the remains of the days a few weeks back, I get the hype but also I was kinda bored😅

[@abbywonder3825]

2 of my cats passed in july and august. I have one left and she hates me. I hadn't planned on getting another cat but I think she needs someone.

[@ehdfpropertiesllc4632]

Sounds like you are ready to start down the spicy paranormal romance path. It will make you feel something for sure!

[@VaneLovee]

Try JD Robb! 🗣️🗣️🗣️There is romance as well, but I think the cases are super interesting

[@MelanieDennis-q2p]

Nora Roberts dragon legacy series is AMAZING