Fun fact "undulate" is used 6 times in Tress of the Emerald Sea, a book which Merphy stated was one of her favorites of the year.

Girl why would you read Colleen Hoover why would you do that to yourself 😭

The only thing I know about Ugly Love is that “We both laugh at our son’s big balls.” is a real quote from the book and that’s enough for me. 😂 I will not be reading her books.

The rule of thumb for Colleen Hoover is "if it seems like a red flag, Colleen thinks it's romantic"

Ugly love is one of the worst books I've ever read. I'm glad to know you've suffered too. 😊

I know it's controversial but I didn't like a single Colleen Hoover book

The Curse of Oak Island show, being a History Channel production, is far more reality tv than documentary, and it sounds like the book is basically a novelisation of the show, which does sound absolutely awful.

The Curse of Oak Island is a show that me and my dad constantly make fun of. There's been so little discovered on the island that the show just constantly goes on wild tangents and grasps at straws for new info. Not surprising that the book is the same way. 😂

My favorite line when people are talking about romance in the booktube sphere is: "This was supposed to be a romance but it felt like a thriller." Your describing the hero in Ugly Love as a serial killer was just perfect 😂

For anybody contemplating shoud they read Ugly Love, ''We both laugh at our son's big balls'' is a real quote from the book and I just think everyone should know that before getting into it.

It is funny that I felt like I was the only person in this world that hated happy place. I haven’t heard one other person give a negative review of it. I do like romance books along with fantasy, but this one was absolutely out of the park ridiculous in my opinion. Love this video. 😉

I once had a crush on a girl who loved Ugly Love. She recommended me to read it and after finishing it I decided to never contact her again

99% of Merphys videos are happy and enthusiastic. But these… these are my super bowl

Merphy this is kinda maybe off topic but I would 100% watch a vlog of you trying out 5 different romance novels and maybe try to discover the kinda tropes you like in romance..? or something along those lines 😂

If people can get past the tonal shift that came with the author change The Climber is an amazing story about sacrifice and the loneliness that comes from obsessively pursuing your dreams.

Your rant on Happy Place reminds me of the Manga Rent-A-Girlfriend. - Pretending to be a couple. - Drama born out of miscommunication. Etc. The thing I dislike is just HOW MUCH the story baits the love confession; what everyone wants to see happen. There are way too many moments where they'll be in the middle of confessing, and then it gets interrupted by something random. And now suddenly you're on an arc that goes on for 30+ chapters where nothing major is happening. And it's incredibly frustrating because like... I think all romance fans know that feeling of how a story has reached all those beats and there's just that one major beat left. But you can just tell the writer is dragging it out.

4:13 in the video and I just realize the t-shirt and now I can't stop undulating of laughter.

We need the bad books to help us really appreciate our beloved ones u_u

Very excited for the pirate themed video! I've been looking for some sea-faring novels after getting into One Piece. Part of Cloud Atlas was also a big thing for me. For some reason, I just find stories about exploration and life at sea to be engrossing.

I enjoyed Traitors Blade, and just finished reading Knights Shadow and I think second book is better, its like all the puzzles coming together, but this book gets much darker.

I am watching because I’m sooooo curious about what you disliked about Traitor’s Blade since it seems like something you’d typically enjoy! I’m not into nautical or swashbuckling reads but I love how passionate you get when you’re talking about them 😂 so it’ll be interesting to see one you don’t like!

Lucky me having 0 interest in reading Colleen Hoover. I enjoyed Traitor's Blade, except for *that* scene, but I completely understand. I read it at a time I really needed some swashbuckling fun. Its actually the only Fantasy series I've finished this year 😂

I saw the title and knew Colleen Hoover would be here without even looking at the thumbnail 😂

That “Oak Island” rant was exactly what I was looking for when I clicked on here. 😂. I really enjoyed “Happy Place” but totally see all those complaints. Think I’m just used to seeing miscommunication and even manipulation in romance, so I expect it and don’t find it as bothersome anymore. I know it’ll all blow in the characters faces and get resolved at some point.

Thanks for videos like this. I love your regular content of books you love, but it really helps to hear those you don't.

Idk if anyone told you this yet but for The Climber there were initially two mangaka but one kind of quit (for lack of a better world) and Shinichi Sakamoto had to work on it alone. It’s interesting your opinion on it says it went downhill from there but I’ve heard generally the opposite from other KZfaqrs. I personally haven’t read The Climber yet but I really love Sakamoto’s other manga, Innocent. Love the video!

I love when you rant, so enjoyable, funny and relatable 🤣 😅

"Stop undulating." That's a perfect t-shirt. 🤣 I'll admit when i was a LOT younger, I used to use 'undulate' to describe the movement of snake-like characters, or, in some cases, their hair. I'm glad I grew out of it, and now, thanks to Merphy, have completely eradicated the word from my vocabulary.

I like watching you talk about the books you loved most. But I LOVE watching you rant about the ones you hated. Also, having a t-shirt that has "stop undulating" written across your chest is a bold choice and also hilarious.

I'm so glad I stumbled back onto your channel. Id been watching you and other booktube for years but I fell into a hyperfixation hole last year and booktube went out of the algorithm to be replaced by musical theater history and video essays about fictional character philosophy. Also cinema therapy. But I stumbled back into booktube via you and daniel greene playing jeopardy and now i get to binge booktube happily once more. (Adhd i have bad object permanance about yt channels) I hope you encounter more books that hit the sweet spot. Like dires ire dires ire.

Great video Merphy, your passionate rage is top-notch entertainment (and very relatable). I think these videos are even better because you're usually so positive, so it's like watching a dormant volcano on a beautiful sunny day, suddenly erupting in fury (but no one is actually drowned in lava or harmed or anything - you're a pretty nice volcano after all...except for the books. The books are incinerated). Also, I don't read a huge amount of contemporary romance anymore, but I was trying to think of a recommendation you might like, and I think you should give the 'Bergman Brothers' series by Chloe Liese a shot - they're well-written and give those nice feelings, and they depict healthy(!!!) relationships between imperfect characters who actually behave like real humans...that you like. Anyway, happy reading!

Entertaining vid like always, Merphy! And shout out to Alizee's movie length rant reviews on Colleen Hoover's books ;)

Love the shirt!

You are such a hoot to watch 😂😂 I have questions about the shirt 😂😂

Im so excited for pirate recommendations!!

Well, it is nice to hear you rant😂😂 It is so entertaining

Also that shirt is hilarious. Love your videos!

I love hearing you just ranting about books and seeing how you think. Even though I haven’t read the same books as you 😅

If people are recommending The Climber to you, you might like Yama no Susume or Yuru Camp (one is about hiking, the other camping)? Unfortunately I've only seen the anime for both, so I can't speak to the quality of the manga. They're both very wholesome and make you want to get out in the great outdoors 😊

I really can’t wait for that pirate video.. argh 🏴‍☠️

Ohhhh can’t wait for the pirate video😊. I’m in the middle when it comes to Colleen Hoover I haven’t read Ugly Love yet but a coworker loved it lol

Top worst for me this year is Lightlark. I saw the audiobook come up on Libby when I was browsing available books at my library and I remembered seeing the author on TikTok. I recognized the "pantser" plotting technique from a mile away, because I did the same thing when I used to write. She basically thought of a bunch of cool ideas and tried to shoehorn as many of them into the story as she could, whether they fit or not. Many of them did not. Like, how in the world was that a "deadly game?" First it seemed like Isla could be killed at any time, but then it turned out it wouldn't even count unless a ruler was killed after a certain point, even though the most danger she was in was basically her first night. Just because. And she has a ridiculously powerful, story-breaking artifact that is only there for the big twist. It's so full of contrivances, it hurts my brain to try to remember them. I eventually listened to the whole thing in between books that didn't hurt my brain. Also when I just looked up the blurb (to make sure I had the "deadly game" bit right), I saw somebody has posted a 7.5 hour video on how bad it is. 🤣 I also saw it's apparently been optioned to be a movie. Honestly, that's probably going to be better than the book if it ever gets made. A talented scriptwriter could probably pull together a sensible story as long as they handle certain things (like the artifact) in an actually sensible way. At the very least it'll be shorter!

I’m so glad to find someone who didn’t like Happy Place, but did like some of her others. I’ve actually read I think 4 of her other works and had never given anything below 4 stars. But Happy Place was such a disappointment. I found the relationship between Harriet and Wyn so uncomfortable. I remember there was a scene near the beginning where Harriet was about to say something to her friends about their breakup and Wyn cuts her off. Which that coupled with the fact that he not only broke up with her, but did it over a short phone call created a weird power dynamic that I could get over and had to eventually DNF. I also really felt like everyone acted so childish. I mean not telling your friends immediately after you break up? Fine. But not telling them and it’s now been six months? Weird. And that combined with making the one couple feel bad because they couldn’t take off time from their jobs to come down and visit? I just knew it was going to be a ton of miscommunication throughout the whole book.

I'm planning on reading Happy Place later in the year but I will definitely be going into it with two minds as I have heard such mixed reviews about it. The book sounds quite melodramatic and irritating- I'm either going to hate it or love it with no middle ground.

I have liked 2 Colleen Hoover books because those two dealt with real life topics that people experience. (It Ends With Us and Regretting You)...friends who have experienced infertility have loved All Your Perfects. But yeah that book Ugly Love... not a good choice. Lol Disclaimer: i don't read contemporary romance any more. I read those when i was getting back into read several years ago.

Something about Merphy ranting is soooo cathartic 😅❤

OMG I NEED THAT SHIRT

Idk why bad Romance books annoy and anger me 10x more than bad books of any other genre

I love hearing the "I didn't like these books" videos! Also, given your disdain for the word, I laughed when I saw the quote on your shirt!

My friend and I always pick up the line 'Invade me.' whenever we talk about Ugly Love and die laughing 💀💀

I have ugly love but not read it yet. I’ve been wanting to read Happy place so I was so happy to see it in your video. I’ve started another Colleen Hoover book called It ends with us but I still haven’t finished it

I was also disappointed with Happy Place as the lack of communication also drove me crazy. Maybe a 2.5 stars at max as I liked the scenery and some, just some of the banter. I enjoy Colleen Hoover books only because they're trashy easy reads for me and sometimes I just need that. I don't take them seriously. Ugly Love reminded me of a extra trashy episode of Jerry Springer 😂😅

Every time I watch a Merphy video to the end I listen to the end music all the way through and I bet a ton of other people do too. Someone has great taste in end music! I generally enjoy negative videos that aren't "this sucks and is bad!!!" just because I guess it gets so boring seeing everyone trying to be positive about everything, especially when KZfaq buries negative comments in the pits of heck if they aren't the mainstream opinion. I'm glad you like the things you like.... but _tell me bout somethin you dislike and you may have my attention better_

"i don't think this book is 500 pages long, but he talks about Sir Francis Bacon for 500 pages" LOL

New Fan! My advice for you is to check out these romance books: The Unforgettable Series: 1. The Unforgettable Summer 2. Unforgettable Nights 3. Unforgettable Dreams 4. Unforgettable Memories (My fav book!) 5. The Unforgettable One 6. Unforgettable Mistakes The Home Duet Series: 1. Dreams Lost and Found 2. Finding Home By Nikki A Lamers Award Winning Author

I didn't know what I was doing last year and didn't realize what this book was so I bought into the hype of Verity... UGH. AWFUL! NEVER AGAIN!

I havent tried decastelle but i own the greatcoats, so ill get to them eventually. They sound promising

the most embarrassing thing about me is that ugly love got me out of a reading slump because i loved it. i realize that it’s just not good now, but it took me a while to see that.

Really like Traitors Blade. Bought the series. Love the sarcasm. The others I would never even consider. Ever

“I loved it so much I forgot it.” Fantastic comment

I love the moment when you say a characters unusual name outloud and second guess yourselves. Very relatable.

I'm one of the few non-romance readers in my book club and they always try to have me read contemporary romance 😅 Me not reading romance has become a trope in itself!

I want your t-shirt!

I actually really enjoy your negative videos (positive and not with specific mood too)

Nice shirt Merphy and thanks to this wednesday video as well. And dont be hating...

Rachel is also the only character’s name I remember from Ugly Love for the exact same reason as you. The main guy was so obsessive and everyone else that I’ve talked to about it somehow didn’t see it that way. Also major spoilers, but what you said at 16:10 does kind of end up happening in a way

That oak island book sounds exactly like the TV show ... or at least the episodes we listened to while painting walls.

I didn't even realise how much the word undulate was used until Merphy said it

Oh my gosh, I have not heard ONE good review about Happy Place yet 😬 I’m glad to hear your thoughts on Traitor’s Blade because I had been wondering about reading it, but I don’t think I would be able to stand the narrator.

Try the manga world trigger I think you’d love it Merph

Top tier shirt!

I used to never notice the word undulate, or even know what it meant. But thanks to watching your videos I see it everywhere! I hate this

I also really disliked Happy Place for all the reasons you mentioned!! You said it so well.

As soon as I saw Colleen Hoover in the thumbnail I knew she’d be number one!! I’m fortunate enough to have avoided her books, but I’ve heard they’re really bad.

Love your shirt- but it is missing the word Don’t or Never, either would work Do you still have them available?

Saaame! I want to be a romance reader too, but I just can't get into it for some reason. Maybe it has something to do with the genre conventions in Romance; I just don't like any of them. But I tend to enjoy romance in Manga though or when it's a subplot in a different genre.

Because I watch You (Merphy Napier), Johanna and Elliot, I do not read many books I don't like. I did just finish NK Jemisin's Broken Earth Trilogy last night. It was a quick read. It was very well written. I just never got into the plot. There was no character I really loved. I generally don't like Scifi and this blended too much with Scifi for me but it was a good book. I am starting The Five Warrior Angel Series by Brian Lee Durfee this weekend. Have you read The Five Warrior Angel Series? I thought The Broken Earth Series was very good but it just wasn't my cup of Baxter's Coffee. It was more of some ones cup of Boutique Tea.

Oof. That NUMBER 5. I can’t wait to see the way you feel about THE BOOKS YOU THOUGHT WERE WORSE

Alternatives to "undulate" oscillate fluctuate wave flutter vibrate shake flicker convulse quiver shudder sway jiggle agitate wobble tremble wabble bucket jerk quake jolt shiver swing rock jounce joggle judder beat chatter thrill pulsate twitch quaver waver throb palpitate pulse dodder pit-a-pat pitter-patter

Awesome thanks

I need that T-shirt

I wouldn't mind a pirate recommendation video. Top 5 Pirates in fiction or non fiction??? 😂😂

🤣 we have someone & someone- I don’t remember

Interesting about the Emily Henry books. I started with Happy Places and really liked the book. I read Book Lovers the next day and I just didn't like it anywhere near as much. I'm going to read People We Meet on Vacation today ... they all have the same formula... so far with different tropes. In Book Lovers... they don't talk about their problems (the sisters) either.

The moment you said you are not a romance reader was the moment I subscribed. I also don’t enjoy romance books and all the book tube people I have found almost only read romance. Haha

This year I finally read two Colleen Hoover books and dnfed two. I decided to give up on her. She's just not my thing, but at least I now know for sure 👍 Out of the 4 books I read, all of the male love interests were stalkery and crossed the MC's boundaries. So it seems that Ugly Love follows the same formula.

I liked People We Meet on Vacation well enough, but I loathed Beach Read -- or Beach whatever, I can't bother to keep them straight. If you would be interested in trying historical romance, Mary Balogh is great. Heartless can be read as a standalone, and it has some twists as well as Balogh's typical deeply emotional content.

You should do more "worst lists," your outrage is very compelling! Regarding Oak Island, that has always seemed like a hoax to me. Or more kindly, wishful thinking. I'm looking forward to you pirate video!

Maybe off topic but I am curious and I will ask until I get your answer... Have you ever read the truth books by Dawn Cook???

Have you tried Mia Sheridan's books? She writes very in-depth romance books. Try 'The Wish Collector' from her. LOTUS is another good one.

I have to buy this shirt

Merph: 6 humans in total... Me: Dogs? Important dogs? Merph: ...3 couples. Me: Oh.

Merphy - If you like pirate books you should check out Deep as the Sky, Red As the Sea by Rita Eppig Chang

My sister in law is reading Happy Place right now, I’m curious to see how she feels about in comparison to Merphy

The author didn't change in The Climbing what are you saying 😅 Are you talking about the novel ? It's really a great work but I do agree about a moment in volume 5 I think that was unecessary. Still, Sakamoto progress through his manga and it became a big classic imho like his next manga.

I wrote some undulating egg sacs in my short story, just so you know.👀

People i need ur help. I've never read a story book i wanna get into fantasy books, any recommendations.

Love your love for pirates and love your dislike of romantic novels. I like drama in the form of action not domestic/social/unnecessaries.

YOUR SHIRT 🤣

I've just read "Beach read" by Emily Henrey and really enjoyed.I want to read some of her other books but I've seen many negative reviews about "Happy place", so I think I'll skip that one.