I’m slowly but surely narrowing down my reading tastes so that I am able to source and read more books that are 4 stars or more, something I used to struggle with immensely. Defining my reading tastes has been pivotal and vital in my reading enjoyment.
It’s not enough to know you like a genre, as all genres are massive umbrella categories with vast differences within each one. If you’re in a reading slump, confused as to what you like, or new to reading, do some digging into sub-genres, tropes within a genre, and niches to see what you might like specifically. Then, thanks to great sources online, you can search for books in your desired niche!
Here are some of the niches within genres that I’m drawn to right now:
Horror sub-genres, tropes & niches
- Femgore
- Cannibalism
- Grief explored through horror
- Colonialism or racism explored through horror
- Repressed woman becomes undone
- Botanical horror
- Eco-Horror
- Social Horror
- Sapphic Gothic
- Sapphic Horror
- Brat Girl (whatever that is!)
- Body Horror
- Fantasy Horror
- Erotic Horror
- Queer Horror
- Folk Horror
- Psychological Horror
A lot of this list from Pinterest interests me:
Contemporary sub-genres, tropes & niches
- Older person with younger person platonic, sweet relationship / help each other (think A Man Called Ove, The Reading List,
- About books and bookish people
- Characters who banter, great witty dynamic (think Ali Hazelwood books)
Niches / Tropes that cross genres
- Weird Girl fiction
- Female Rage
- Unhinged Female
- Sapphic love > Hetero
- Obsession
- Dual POV, Dual timeline, or episodic narratives that flash back and forth across time to reveal elements of the story / mystery
Basically, I want gritty, weird, unsettling stories with complex themes, complex characters, and that don’t shy away from social issues and hard topics.
Sincerely,
S. xx
S. R. Crawford 