My Toxic Traits: Book Edition

I love hearing about other peoples “toxic traits/red flags” and I know Im not the only one! So I thought, let’s do a toxic traits, book edition post. And I would love to hear what yours are too, so don’t be afraid to share with us in the comments!

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My toxic traits when it comes to buying books . . .

1. Judging a book by its cover

I just shared this on Instagram & Facebook but Im so guilty of this. I have a bad habit of picking up and buying books based on the cover. I can’t even begin to tell you how many books I have purchased, where I know nothing about it; like nothing besides what the title and cover tell you. Which brings us to the next one . . .

2. Not reading the blurb/summary

I rarely read the summer/blurb of a book. Sometimes I skim it to get a feel. Which is usually only when I have “too many” books in my pile and have to make some decisions. But if the cover or title grabbed me, I’m likely already sold. This has become an issue a few times, where Ive started reading and questioned what I was thinking. Or have had to make the decision not to finish because it wasn’t a book for me.

3. Buying books because they’re popular/trending

I know Im not the only one with this problem. Especially given the booktok movement. Books have become the hot girl thing to do. Now this will all depend on which side of booktok/bookstagram you’re on, but I have yet to come across a book I didn’t like that has been hyped on social media. And again, I barely know what they’re about, but Ive read them anyway.

Examples: The ACOTAR series, Fourth Wing Series, Assistant To The Villain, Twisted Love, Lovelight Farms, The Christmas Fix . . . to name a few

Another book on my TBR - its popular on social

4. Buying books because they were recommended

Going off the above. I see a lot of books on social media and if it grabs my attention, add to cart. Or I write it down on my wish list in my reading journal and it eventually gets crossed off that list. I also have a few book buddies I bounce book recs off and am part of an online book club. If it’s recommended by them, its automatically gets added to the list. And yes, without really knowing what it’s about. Most of my book pals have similar tastes in books/genres so its worked out pretty well.

5. “Buying” books that are free

Ahh this one gets me. How can you pass up a free book? Amazon does a stuff your kindle for free event a couple of times a year and I have found a lot of great ebooks this way. But also a few poor choices too. I do a lot of Pinterest Pinning so Im constantly looking for new books to pin/read. Several times I have come across books on sale for 0.00. Yup, I “buy” them based on all the above criteria obviously lol.

6. Kindle Unlimited

Kindle Unlimited is also a toxic trait of mine. Cuz book math duh! It’s all basically free. My problem is, my KU library is ALWAYS full. Which in turn creates a very full Amazon Cart/saved for later. IDK if I’ll ever get through them all.

WOW! That list was a lot longer than I originally anticipated. No shame here! I love books and that love has definitely grow over the year. But Im definitely curious if any of these vibe with you? Do you have any more to add to the list?