WICKED IS (not) THE REAPER | BOOKTOK ROMANTASY

The FIRST EVER SILENT TOY is here, which means FREE TOYS FOR ALL! Everyone who signs up to my giveaway with Bellesa wins either a free WhisperBullet or AirVibe with their WhisperBullet order! www.shopbbouti...
PANCAKE RECIPE: www.theppk.com...
SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:
Join this channel to get access to perks:
/ @readswithrachel
Patreon: / readswithrachel
Merch: www.bonfire.co...
Wishlist: www.amazon.com...
CONTACT ME:
Business inquiries please email me here: [e-mail]
All other emails go to: [e-mail]
Support Roma children and youth in Ukraine:
chuffed.org/pr...
Support Palestinian children: www.pcrf.net/
Support Democratic Republic of Congo during their humanitarian crisis:
www.doctorswit...
SUPPORT INDIA DURING THEIR COVID CRISIS:
donation links
-www.careindia....
-www.projecthop...
SUPPORT COLOMBIA:
resources and info
-mailchi.mp/cb9...
BLACK LIVES MATTER.
Resources:
-Massive list of places and people to donate to: nymag.com/stra...
-Find a protest or fundraiser near you: / events
Find literature to read
Watch Vee Kativhu's video on recommending books to learn about racism: • 10 books you MUST read...
-Support some Black youtubers by watching Myonna Reads' playlist of Black booktubers: • Black Booktubers
Support my channel
-Patreon: / readswithrachel
-Tip me on Ko-fi: ko-fi.com/read...
-Use my link to get $10 off your first Instacart order: inst.cr/t/VTNr...
Follow me on socials
TIKTOK: / rachelwithreads
INSTAGRAM: / readswithrachel
BLUESKY: bsky.app/profi...

[@ReadswithRachel]

The FIRST EVER SILENT TOY is here, which means FREE TOYS FOR ALL! Everyone who signs up to my giveaway with Bellesa wins either a free WhisperBullet or AirVibe with their WhisperBullet order! www.shopbboutique.co/vibe/readswithrachelyt-whisper

[@Author3DJohnson]

It can stay silent. Can you? 🤭

[@Venzynt]

spam

[@champion_soap_eater]

??? waking up and naming your child Wicked is so wild

[@user-vw9lj1yn1b]

when theater kids grow up

[@frankensteinlives]

Much like that real life person who named their kid "Cabal" like what?

[@joyc.e.7511]

I used to read a wattpad story where the MC was named Misery. Tbf, I remember it being kind of relevant? Like her mom was in a bad place when she had her and that's led to tension between them

[@Scarlet_Starlight]

@@joyc.e.7511Little Misfortune type backstory

[@Show_Love_Serina]

@@champion_soap_eater They're probably called Wiki for short. Wiki leaks when they cry. XD

[@lagggoat7170]

Wicked is the Reaper sounds like a Sims mod...

[@ReadswithRachel]

TRUE LMAO

[@kiricappuchin]

getting flashbacks to the Sims 3 Patch Notes video

[@strawberriesarah]

not the Wicked Whims reference 💀💀💀💀🙈🙈🙈🙈

[@jaxj968]

LMAOOO

[@ZugTheMegasaurus]

I can't help but think of the title with any other name. "Tim is the Reaper" would be a good name for a horror comedy.

[@marocat4749]

Can Tim be an aprentice for a dude that turns out to be death. I know Terry pratchet did it already, but its a story you can use for a lot probably. A dark comedy XD

[@sonder122]

There is a series titled “Fred the Vampire Accountant” and another brilliantly funny series about a Necromancer called Timmy by L.G. Estrella which begins: “ “There comes a time in every necromancer’s life when they begin to seriously consider a career change. The fact is that necromancers are not the most popular people. In fact, the average necromancer is forced to run from angry villagers at least seven times over the course of their life, which may explain why so few necromancers are overweight. Magic is all well and good, but there are times when a high level of cardiovascular fitness is better

[@thomasakagi7545]

"There are those who call me... Tim."

[@ZugTheMegasaurus]

@@sonder122 Oh I have to add this to my TBR

[@Flame-rp6yq]

My name is Tim, the enchanter! *_casually throws a fireball at a mountain_*

[@lidaw.5145]

A fey giving their true name VOLUNTARILY? That's like, lore violation 101

[@jaxj968]

exactly like did Nisha NOT read Holly Black???

[@chickennoodlesoop]

"was this written in a hurry" made me laugh so hard

[@gothamtruecrime]

i’m surprised that the fmc did not immediately ditch wicked upon seeing the ogre’s bigger hands.

[@camillesharem]

I've seen a lot of dumb MMC names, but "Wicked" is absolutely heinous.

[@sensoryeuphoria6947]

I think Im actually pretty forgiving with names but even for me that is the choicest choice to ever choice and it is a lot.

[@AlejandraPaolaGuerreroRadillo]

When I read this I thought that him not saying his real name was part of the curse or something, and maybe her finding it out and saying it was the way to break it, but no. It was disappointing.

[@camillesharem]

@@AlejandraPaolaGuerreroRadillo That is giving the story far too much credit I fear 😅

[@nicestpancake]

@@camillesharem Sometimes it feels nice to be nice X'D TVT

[@frankensteinlives]

Cover: Dia De Los Muertos themed neon caberet/nightclub Book: Not That

[@atherisGAY]

You're right 😭 I was just trying not to look at it the whole time because it's so unappealing.. Why does it look like a 2009 print on a notebook from the dollar store

[@TashaxMack]

@@atherisGAYlmaoooo

[@CSRaeburn]

The more Beauty and the Beast “retellings” BookTok releases, the less convinced I am that anybody understands that story let alone its origins.

[@ghostoyster]

is his name wicked, or wicked? like a candle. we’ll never know.

[@Ektambo]

Omg this is an incredible question and I’ll be thinking about it all day lol

[@TheNumnutRandomness]

"So why do they call you 'Wicked'? ;)" _gets to the bedroom_ "... Oh :/"

[@ghostoyster]

@ lmao 🤣

[@jaxj968]

LMAO i’m wondering too

[@jaxj968]

@@TheNumnutRandomnessHAHAHAHA

[@maggiewinnike7309]

Hearing the name Wicked just reminds me that in the Anita Blake series by Laurell K Hamilton there's a set of brothers named Wicked and Truth and everyone just refers to them as The Wicked Truth and that will never not be hilariously stupid.

[@sonder122]

Yea those books got old real quick for me. I absolutely loved her world building- a world that was actually shaped by all the supernatural elements in it, not just a world just like this but with, you know, vampires and stuff. Then… each book had more beautiful men falling for the heroine, more amazing sex and I’m like please, please, please can we get back to the (quite interesting) story you’re trying to tell. I think I gave up at the sixth man to enter harem, but not before I found myself wondering about just how big her bed had to be to fit all these bodies without someone falling out during the more ‘energetic’ movements.

[@maggiewinnike7309]

@@sonder122 I used to be super active on her message boards and also have professional experience with her from working at a bookstore where she did a signing. I've got so many stories about her. Let's just say she's way too self important for the quality of her work. Lol

[@cervanera2228]

"This one is a beauty and the beast retelling" Good lord I'm barely thirty seconds in and I'm already scared

[@asiamurphy3460]

when you started describing the love interest, i started shouting out "OH MY GOD OMG"; i think someone should write a book where all the characters are described like the love interest, no matter what

[@roselover411]

Omg that sounds hysterical, I'm adding that to my writing ideas

[@AlejandraPaolaGuerreroRadillo]

​@@roselover411Please write it I would love to read that 😂

[@TheNumnutRandomness]

"He has your eyes," Gnarly cooed, tucking a silken strand behind my ear. "And he has your..." My eyes swept over Gnarly's sharp jaw covered in a thin layer of stubble with full lips and dark wavy hair, then looked down to Krystophfir's equally sharp jaw, full lips, and dark wavy hair- all balanced precipitously atop his newborn body, "... Everything else, I guess?"

[@roselover411]

@@TheNumnutRandomness not the baby!! XDD

[@jaxj968]

@@AlejandraPaolaGuerreroRadilloi second that 😂😂

[@MykkiOnTheCusp]

Wishy-washy is how I describe all of Tuli's writing. "Throwing stuff at the wall" so accurate.

[@jaxj968]

did you too suffer through Trial of the Sun Queen 😂

[@CL-lx2pm]

I genuinely wonder why booktok doesn't just read Harlequin novels. Like, is there some kind of superiority complex about books clearly only written for the smut but disguised as romantasy? Literally just go read good smut instead. Save yourselves the page length and plot questioning.

[@onarosebeam]

As far as I know most harlequins are historical (correct me) and the romantasy smut girlies are very invested in the fantasy backdrop whether that be creatures, palaces, or magic. Genre is important for context

[@giorgia4733]

For a second I thought you meant Harley quin the dc character and I was severely confused 💀

[@MuslimahNefertari]

Omg I have been saying this! I’m like the women of booktok are clearly just horny and dressing erotica up as badly written fantasy novels, I don’t mind sex in my stories, but give me a compelling story that has characters, I would like to see explore the passion that’s CLEARLY between them. Not some 🍆 that’s hot, that somehow gets the hot girl……because he’s hot. Like😩

[@qwinlyn]

@@onarosebeam I have a bunch of harlequins from the 90s and while they got known for the historical stuff, they printed pretty much everything. Cowboys, aliens, shifters, witches, love potions, vikings, timetravel, sex genies (yes, that's exactly what it sounds like) and of course weres, vamps and fae were all topics I personally read from them. But when I mention to the book tok girlies any of these plot lines and that they existed in pure smutty romance long before "romantacy" was portmanteaued into being I get told that they "don't count."

[@Gretelsbetterhalf]

Booktok is full of tasteless, lazy readers.

[@jabberwockybooks]

this is the skin of a reaper bella

[@pixelsbykris5494]

Watching these romantasy book reviews simultaneously makes me fear for my own series not getting picked up because there's no enemies to lovers, no "edgey shadow boo" as don't fret puts it, and the male love interest isn't 10 times the size of the woman. But also makes me hopeful that enough people are tired of all these stories being similar that mine will stand out. On a related note to the actual novel in particular: I don't know whether I'm mad or not that this isn't a romance with the Grim Reaper because he gets enough slack as-is just for doing his job. 😭😭😭

[@marocat4749]

Yeah death as romance partner can be pretty fun. I know ther are stories but they exist for a reason, its interesting.

[@AlejandraPaolaGuerreroRadillo]

Yeah, with the title I expected him to be the reaper, or at the very least have some death magic.

[@jaxj968]

oh believe me, as a reader, i am so sick of these romantasy books. Write your novel, i’m in the mood for something refreshing

[@Lilthecat-lj7qo]

Honestly, the covers pretty cool? I like that it isn't dark and muted. It makes it stand out, even if the skull/flower motifs are overused.

[@ReadswithRachel]

I like the font but the rest of it is just not my taste. But we all like different stuff! I think I would have preferred making the colors less neon looking and replacing the skull with something like the beaten down castle in the book to make it feel more relevant to the inside

[@marocat4749]

But is lying, its not some theme about death and life or something like that. Its false advertising. an edgy dudes face would fit better

[@Lilthecat-lj7qo]

@marocat4749 I think you misunderstood what I was trying to say? I dislike the skull and the flowers, every fantasy and/or dark romance has those on its cover.

[@mnmixer]

but it also very much looks AI generated 😭 the chains and backgrounds leaves are super blobby and it has that shitty generative sheen. no wonder it doesnt reflect the book

[@SorasShadow1]

fae rules are a perfect set-up for some freaky magic enforcement, too it's actually so simple to add stakes here even if the fae are all long gone. just have any couple who ignores the hunt get some kind of curse, maybe they turn into deer! i could even see a great plot twist wherein the cursed deer are especially large, making the next hunt much easier so a sacrificial princess every few generations would make for easier hunts for chosen suitors who the kingdom wants on the throne. i dunno how the "only the first born" thing works out if she gets turned into a deer, so maybe in a situation where there's no king chosen this way the throne is passed down the hereditary line instead. and that'd solve the issue of how no kingdom, even one formerly ruled by fae magic, would just allow civil transfers of power into the hands of just any random guy who got lucky on a buck. there's a whole potential intrigue here on how a kingdom would maintain its power structure and nobility while also bending the knee to fae magic goddammit but that's not what we got... dammit and now i want fantasy political intrigue where they have to dance around fae rules the whole time.

[@ninjasandcoffee]

In some cultures, mothers intentionally give their kids bad names to ward off evil or bad fortune. Like nameing a child something like "abaddon" so when evil comes for them, the evil just assumes the kid is already hated, so they will be left alone But i seriously doubt thats what this book was going for.

[@amberlynnroberson1961]

In middle school there was a girl named Poison.

[@eggs_777]

@@amberlynnroberson1961🎶that girl is poiiisoooon🎶

[@dulcimerthefairy4793]

When it said Ellis was poring through texts my Millennial brain went to text messages

[@TheNumnutRandomness]

"I spent ages poring through texts!" _Cue hacker montage. Bing searches of "Reaper curse" and "Fae power-scaling" scroll overhead_

[@eplrid]

i'm like six minutes into this video but i wanted to comment because agatha all along was so good omg. aubrey plaza and kathryn hahn together on screen was life-changing (although i must say alice wu-gulliver is my all-time favourite, my brain short-circuited every time ali ahn was on screen)

[@nancyjay790]

There was much good in Agatha All Along. Surprised they had such a gay show on Disney of any variety.

[@jo_aspen]

I kept hoping against all hopes that Shrek was gonna pop up every time there was a mention of the ogre

[@ReadswithRachel]

I cannot believe I missed that opportunity

[@amateurmagician]

Maybe it's just a coincidence but this feels much more like a Rumbelle fanfiction from the tv show Once Upon a Time rather than a direct Beauty and The Beast adaptation (the whole plot back then was moved by ogres too)

[@roselover411]

I can see where you're getting that, but if so they really mischaracterized Rumpel because this guy sounds nothing like him XD

[@amateurmagician]

@@roselover411 Oh yeah I agree!! But then again, I think that is to be expected from a fanfic-turned-published-book. Call it a blanding machine if you will, because they always make their characters bland and flavorless; the FMC loses personality whilst the MMC is altered to become a bit more "regular", making him fit into whatever himbo/bad guy/jock tropes they want. Like with those Reylo books, I struggle to find Rey and Kylo Ren in those characters, it's a very different fanonized version, much different from what I know from the trilogy.

[@marocat4749]

@@roselover411 To be clear Rumbelle with time, became pretty toxic, but thats nothing like him. At worst Rumple is a mad sorcerer, not that needless edgy, and if theatralic, and very much did keep his word. Also Rumple , woulsnt use Belle to lure ogre. Why? Rumplres charme is that he gets , yeah we see why he acts that way. And he is very motherly if too in toxic waays.

[@roselover411]

@@marocat4749 oh it 100% did, I agree, but yeah rumpel wasn't this sort of edgy bad boy. He was definitely crazy capricious and snarky and I loved him for that. The first few seasons with him as the dark one were really great

[@cursedepub]

11 minutes in and I am giggling hysterically at you saying "What if someone turns up tomorrow and is like, 'I have an EVEN BIGGER stag!' ... Record my stag, BITCH." I also love the sarcastic shadow-daddy voice you use for all the edgy love interests. I agree this is actually pretty fair as the romantasy books you review go. As typical with romantasy it is not terribly original and a lot of things are just thrown in for vibes and don't make sense, but I can support this couple despite some rocky parts. Lastly, your idea of having the princess Rowan engineer being kidnapped by Wicked would be a lot cooler as a premise - I think there is a lack of FMCs having real agency in the genre.

[@sagemustburn]

Obligatory algorithm comment because you deserve it. 🖤

[@nancyjay790]

Comments for the chaos algorithm godless hordes controlling socials!

[@PirateQueen1720]

I think the only Beauty and the Beast retelling I really love is 'In the Vanishers' Palace'. Which is Sapphic with a Vietnamese dragon...and also aliens.

[@foxymochakitten]

Got this from the library immediately after reading your comment. I'm so excited for sapphic vietnamese fantasy

[@cakt1991]

I haven’t read this one, but I have read Trial of the Sun Queen and its sequels (Artefacts of Ouranos) and Heart of Night and Fire (Nightfire Quartet). I understand they’re not the best, but I think it’s great that more BIPOC authors are getting the opportunities to write books that aren’t “high literature” and don’t center their trauma, because white authors have had this by default for years, maybe decades in publishing. That doesn’t mean I’ve never been disappointed by these books (there’s a couple romantasies by Black authors that came out this year that fell short for me). But I love that Nisha combines some tropey elements with South Asian cultural touchstones. It doesn’t sound like it’s that present in this book, and Artefacts, not so much either, but I loved how that was present in the Nightfire Quartet.

[@tmd_95]

This is a really good point. Everyone should have the opportunity to write books that are just brain candy

[@stardoogalaxie9314]

The way you describe this book makes it seem like a comedy its so funny hgagagsg. Also! Whoa! Didnt think it'd start with Wicked coming in right away!

[@emilyb5307]

Wait a sec so - "I don't want to be king" "I built this entire castle that I own by hand in hopes people would fill it one day..." ...yeah ok

[@lycianempire]

Honestly, a romance with a reaper sounds delightful (and i know this won't scratch that itch)

[@Feral_Shadows]

As a sex-repulsed asexual, romance books like this make me die inside. However, I love your reviews of them because you make them hilarious and I feel like I get to experience a book that I literally cannot read without gagging. Thank you for your work, and sometimes, with the truly terribly written ones, the sacrifice of some of your brain cells. It is greatly appreciated.

[@stolen_stardust]

As a sex-neutral ace i feel like im just studying allos under a microscope with these reviews 💀 like hwuh?? these levels of horniness are possible?? fascinating. tell me more

[@TheFran2555]

​@@stolen_stardust same here

[@rae3781]

Glad to see we're all in the same boat 😂😂😂

[@FemboyMisa]

Ace Gang

[@asterya6913]

As an asexual who switch between slightly repulsed to indifferent to liking it like she like horror novel. I feel all of those comments. Sometimes it feel like I'm studying some dark, occult and eldritch knowledge. My eyes weren't supposed to see, but my morbid human curiosity pushed me to dig into.

[@sonder122]

If I had to name my favourite Beauty and the Beast retelling I’d have to go with A.F. Dery’s “Broken Mirror” duology. It doesn’t have any sex in it but it is a lovely read with two very memorable main characters who each carry heavy personal burdens and who complement each other beautifully.

[@MuslimahNefertari]

And also what’s crazy is in these beauty and the beast retellings, they don’t make the girls home life something to want to go back to, granted this was done better, I guess, than the opening of A Court of thorns and Roses, where I found no reason why she wanted to leave her opulent life and return to snow and hunger and sibling that didn’t like her, this girl is a princess who likes her family, but it’s still giving not enough to want to hurry back home. Like I need the girls to love their home life but is taken, like Bell, of course she wanted “more” from her life but she never thought it would be getting kidnapped by a literal beast that she would learn to love despite how he looked and his attitude about his dire situation for his kingdom.

[@mariacoyle4416]

I just want normal names for characters. like they can be unique and all fantasy like but it’s still okay to have a nice Charles or Henry sometimes. I will take George RR Martins like eight different people named Aegon over some of the names I have come across recently.

[@marocat4749]

To give it to martin, its historically accurate that royal families, reuse the same names again and again. And especially the ptolemies the inspiration fro targarians

[@Eeeli_Jah]

GRRM also gave us normal sounding names like Jamie and Jon too. A balance is healthy

[@MeganTHEEcatlady]

****9:33**** "THE REAPER!!" my mother whispered. It's giving ✨"HARRYDIDYOUPUTYOURNAMEINTHEGOBLEETOFFIRE?!" Dumbledore said calmly.✨ Very brat. (Love listening to long videos while cooking! Tonight is roasted shrimp atop linguine alfredo!)

[@kerriharris7418]

😅 sexy talk almost always gives me the ick. Thankfully no one was around to see the faces I made watching this 😂

[@courtnsession_]

what happened to dubiously evil male love interests with brown hair. auburn? dirty blonde? hell red hair is almost exclusive for the second male lead or the female lead but i'm sure the male lead can have a streak or two 😅 i'm over the 'wavy/curly (which is never actually curly) black haired and "dark olive" (who is actually just medium tan) devilishly infuriatingly handsome" love interest unless it's a butch/stud

[@sanakimchi88]

Fr I’m so over these corny mfs only eating up the same mmc in every fuccing book. It’s always the dark haired ryat/rhysand/xaden clone it’s so hilarious and corny like I can’t take any of these books or their fans seriously anymore

[@definitelynotashark1799]

Wow time to do the dishes I guess (and then do some knitting)

[@pettyella6607]

thank you for this comment, now the video is watched and the dishes are made😌

[@idontknowwhatimdoing6296]

the whole taking the princess into the woods for reasons they don't fully understand reminds me For the Wolf by Hannah Whitten but that book actually had world building

[@cuckooursula4192]

Honestly, I want someone to write a gay book with the actual Reaper and a dead guy. 😂. PS, I love your videos and hope to see you at booknet Fest 2025.

[@marocat4749]

Best wishes. Maybe ponderin about life and regret and the reaper taking him as , whatever you cook.

[@TheNumnutRandomness]

Closest thing would be "Under the Whispering Door" except the Reaper is just a guy who guides spirits to the afterlife

[@voicememosforthevoid]

romance tropes come and go, but twilight references are eternal

[@lornetc]

My theory about why sex scenes in these romantasy books are so bad is because they are written by 100% "vanilla" people who for them the idea of kinky is her being on top.

[@SilverDragonJay]

dude, a romance with literal death would be so great. I mean, that possibility was at least 10% of the reason I played Hades. I heard that you could date Thanatos, death incarnate, and I said 'sign me up.' The fact that it was a very fun rouge-lite was just a cherry on top....or a death god on top, whichever.

[@Deliafuchs]

Sounds like Belladonna. It’s a trilogy and pretty gothic. death is a character and super charming

[@amandapanda5087]

​@@DeliafuchsI've read those books

[@ThatPurpleGirl81]

Guarded by the Reaper by Cara Wylde

[@FemboyMisa]

I recommend the visual novel A Date With Death

[@victoriasenn3818]

"was this written in a hurry" LMAOOOO

[@TashaxMack]

These romantasy books are getting out of hand. This one is NOT up my alley and I am also avoiding Quicksilver, I really applaud you for getting through these books lol

[@raquelbumgarner]

"OH NO NOT A SHIRTLESS MAN" "what is this FANTASY FLORIDA?!" LMAO tHANK YOU RACHEL

[@Evelyn_Okay]

Imma put on my tinfoil hat and say this was written and published asap to gain attention from the Wicked movie coming out

[@ReadswithRachel]

Oh no it’s a couple of years old!

[@Evelyn_Okay]

@ReadswithRachel They've made the musical Wicked into movie. It's coming out on the 22nd! I actually saw it on Broadway 10 years ago, but I'm super excited to see the movie staring Ariana Grande as Glinda 🤩

[@ReadswithRachel]

It’s my favorite musical! I’m going to see the movie with my sister!

[@ninjasandcoffee]

5:33 agreed i love Aubrey Plaza ❤❤

[@elisaflore2850]

They're all STARTING to sound the same??? STARTINGGG????

[@nancyjay790]

Reminds me of one of my favorite lines from DarkWing Duck. "I'm going insane!" "Going?" Helps that the first speaker is dressed in a harlequin outfit with a banana as a ventriloquist doll.

[@Gretelsbetterhalf]

Literally about to comment this 😂 how do people keep getting excited about this copy paste basura?!

[@h2o2630]

I love your pumpkin cup! 🥰

[@maddoraptor]

My first early access video! 🎉🎉🎉

[@ReadswithRachel]

Welcome!!!

[@maddoraptor]

@@ReadswithRachel Happy to be here! Your videos have helped reignite my reading spark and gotten me through many tedious hours of paperwork - so thank you!

[@leannj.3706]

your hair always looks amazing, but in this video especially it looks stunning!!

[@einsame_Maria]

11:25 If you read Stag as a penis metaphor, this part becomes quite funny

[@null79]

thank you for the upload queen

[@CoolKitCat123]

OMG @22:50 “get used to disappointment” is also a line that Edward says tho 🤣

[@lordknightalex]

ive read MANY beauty and the beast retellings, fanfic authors love a fairytale premise, pretty sure most of them had better smut scenes (the rest just didnt have smut)

[@ViolettaSachra]

0:32 laughed out loud at this, it's 4:30am here, literally too early ;)

[@artemisvoltaire4743]

Ok but the heart thing was genuinely funny. Good on her for being willing to do it.

[@Queencereal]

I saw the cover and thought it was some kind of spin-off of Kingdom of the Wicked. If it has “wicked” in the title, does it automatically require a skull and flowers?

[@gabrielleduplessis7388]

Imagine how much better this would be if Wicked kidnapped both her and Ellis because he was too late to stop her marrying anyone else. So Ellis is trapped in a cell and a guard that likes Rowan gives her the key to unchain Ellis and they find a room for Ellis where Wicked won’t enter. Or Rowan hides Ellis in her room and as the weeks go by, they fall in love. The whole point of Beauty and the Beast is that the Beast was good inside, but didn’t know how to articulate himself well. I don’t understand authors just making the Beast a villain with no redeeming qualities in these retellings. Also am a friends to lovers girlie, so her and Ellis not being attracted to each other at first and falling in love while being trapped in the castle would be fun to read.

[@KayLyda]

The Twlilight references had me howling!

[@iFlutterbye]

Right out the gate? The thumbnail is super pretty for this video! 10/10!

[@genevievelok9496]

It’s been 300 years, right down to the day! 🎶

[@peijji]

Rachel (and chat lol) i really recommend the "Beloved Villains" books by Rebecca F. Kenney. They are CRINGE (and delightful) but actually well written. Very decent retellings of Disney villains.

[@Katranga]

Confused about why he likes her “more than he expected to” because all she’s done is complain and want to go home. Of course, he said this immediately after the handiwork so perhaps that had something to do with it

[@silvercoronet]

I would love romantasy more if most of it wasn't just poorly disguised erotica. Give me someone fighting the world for their lover, but the only thing they share on page is a kiss or cuddle

[@ThatPurpleGirl81]

I will never stop recommending Tara Grayce's Elven Alliance series. Zero spice. All the feels. Excellent characters and world building. 👌

[@davidchess1985]

So in the next story there'll be someone named Feral, who isn't actually the Beast...

[@Kruhee]

The sponsorship for this video is awesome, and your delivery is divine XD

[@ReadswithRachel]

I’m glad you liked it!

[@equinoxcrow]

I got the scene from Men in Tights with the wild boar instead of the scene she wanted

[@tyler-df3wy]

I think the topic of colonised people internalising the values of their colonisers is such an interesting thing to discuss in fiction, but I have a sinking feeling that it’s just an excuse to get the plot going. Like colonisers forcing indigenous people to adopt their marriage traditions is a very real thing that happened, and it still impacts colonised people to this day, but this book really doesn’t seem like it wants to explore that

[@ReadswithRachel]

Definitely a real thing, just logistically in this world I was confused about the motive and stakes due to the flip flopping, and if the motive was to carry out their moral ideas upon this population then the lack of detail as to how they will ensure that’s happening.

[@lampdisease]

The skull on the cover looks AI-generated. There are weird ridges between the teeth and nasal cavity for some reason, which seems like a mistake a computer would make.

[@ReadswithRachel]

I don’t think Nisha J Tuli is cool with AI, it’s probably just not great picart

[@DesertKitsune]

Now that you mention it, you can see the bottom teeth but there's no bottom jaw...

[@silverdirtdraws9828]

​@@DesertKitsune Ooh no you're mistaking where the lips would be for teeth, no bottom teeth OR jaw

[@static_ked5892]

I read the gilded crown a few months ago and was like “this is so up Rachel ReadsWithRachel’s alley” lmaoo Glad you enjoyed it!!!

[@alexis_95474]

Commenting early in the video but you could have told me this cover was just the Phantasma cover with a new color grading and I’d believe you. All these covers look IDENTICAL.

[@PistachioGold]

Rachel doing the dialogue always takes me out 😂😂😂

[@breenaj1095]

I just finished listening to a good high fantasy series recently. It was long, like avg 30 hours each audiobook. The Obsidian Trilogy by Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory. -Little romance, definitely no sex -talking unicorn friend -interesting magic system/religion -interesting characters -the only misogyny is by specific characters, not the author (and is seen as bad) For warnings, there's violence at like the same level of lord of the rings i would say. Theres mention of consensual inc*st on the antagonist side, and torture there. Um maybe also a warning for abandoment and violence towards corrupted monster children?

[@matchknee]

13:03 I thought you meant like Travis Walton abducted by aliens Fire in the Sky and was so so confused for a sec lmao

[@appelsinpiken]

Why, Rachel, you were on fire! 🔥

[@weasel_boy_]

omg rachelll!! not using chappel roan as the visual for the mc was such a missed opportunity lol

[@zpurplex]

The twilight references are hilarious!

[@scribblemyface]

53:11 - Ah, yes. The dreaded Idiot Plot trope.

[@tartpeony8446]

44 seconds in and i got to tell you, I read Trial of the Sun Queen and it is so bad!!!!

[@ReadswithRachel]

Oh no 😩🫠

[@cur1ouscatf1sh]

Wicked is the Reaper? What’s next, Rent is the Reaper? Hamilton is the Reaper? Jesus Christ Superstar is the Reaper? Dear Evan Hansen is the Reaper? Cats By Andrew Lloyd Webber (Specifically Not The Movie With Taylor Swift) is the Reaper?

[@cur1ouscatf1sh]

I was torn between commenting this and a blue oyster cult joke, just fyi 😂

[@MsLPSFOREVER]

​@@cur1ouscatf1sh this 😂

[@finchfry]

Book 2: Wicked introduced her to his brothers, Hairspray and Grease. Their evil uncle, Chicago, makes a play for the throne. At the end, Wicked's cousin, Les Miserables, who we've known for all of three pages but are expected to care about, sacrifices herself to save his life.

[@antonymeanonyme8944]

27:43 - i haven't watched all the video yet so it might get answered later but isn't it winter? where do the tomatoes come frommmmmmm where are they frommmmm do you have a greenhouse where are they frommmm

[@ThiskidKnowledge]

Part of me still wants to read this book

[@ReadswithRachel]

Try it!

[@TheNumnutRandomness]

Honestly, I'm kinda down too! I love the heroine's enthusiastic response response to sex and I like that the guy also gets to be a little flustered too! Too many of these romantasy books have the guy be some obnoxious and smug know-it-all who's like "I know you better than you know yourself, hehe." Other than the lack of communication and loose world-building, it definitely seems like my kind of trash 😆

[@skylar4390]

you're my comfort youtube channel

[@melanievigueria]

i recently read the inheritance of orquídea divina, now THAT'S a good book

[@linasroom]

omg i cannot with the dialogue😂😂😂 it's like a married couple trying something new in the bedroom

[@Shadowchamp01]

I fucking love agatha all along, agathario give me brainworms

[@idongesitusen5764]

I’ve had an idea for a reverse beauty and the beast retailing with a succubus & a male human mgician- mainly a take on the Disney version but with spicy love scenes. With all the uses of “Princess”, I’m getting flashbacks to your Roughing the Princess video. 😂

[@Gretelsbetterhalf]

Editing and proofreading have left the stratosphere 😅 I hate the waste these books create just being printed. The trees didn’t deserve this 😔

[@cynthiaybarra7317]

For a B&B retelling, I really enjoyed The Wrath of Roses by Violet Taylor. It's not in KU, but I got it as an ARC through Booksprout. For a Reaper story, I loved Mort by Loki Renard. CW for depression, attempted self-unaliving, and alcoholism. It's been a while, and there may be more triggers that I'm not remembering.

[@fr4nkensk4nk]

ill be honest ive been meaning to look into getting my first ever _specific use_ toy and this might just be the moment

[@justoomint]

im obsessed w muir's locked tomb series right now!! i'll have to read her short story too :')

[@Antiloottioy]

Well, this is not a Beauty and the Beast retelling so to speak, but more like Beauty and the Beast is based on this, and it's Psyche and Eros by Luna McNamara. And yes, I am suggesting this everywhere I can.

[@michellecgb]

I read Trial of the Sun Queen by this author and it was my first and last book by her, so this feels correct. That one was a rip off of ACOTAR (without doing anything creative with it), which I’m already sick of in fantasy, and the writing was juvenile, the characterizations shallower than a puddle.

[@mistyeyedreamer]

I so deeply wish for the alternative version where his castle is where you get sent if you don’t have anywhere else to go and they meet and make this plan to free him

[@woundworship]

"get used to disappointment"? like edward said to bella in twilight? "i hope you enjoy disappointment"? enough

[@katieb63]

The whole being cursed by a witch to have facial tattoos or scars or whatever that fade when the curse breaks reminds me of Beastly (I know, no Fae in that)