Wednesday, January 24, 2018

Couples I Shipped (and Didn't) in 2017

Hey, everyone! I've never done a post like this before, but I love Sam from Thoughts on Tomes' video and I was inspired to do  a blog post of my own. I honestly haven't really reflected on the characters and ships from 2017 and I figured this would be a fun way to look back. Also I love taboo books and I have a tendency to ship things that some would find problematic/disgusting/degrading/unsettling hate me for it, but I am trash for books that make me uncomfortable and ship things I shouldn't.

NOPE COUPLES
(from worst to worse)
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Nadine with anyone from The Stand. Nadine has a weird kind-of love triangle going on with Randall Flagg and Larry Underwood. Larry is a super nice guy and she is a part of God's plan for the creation of the antichrist (i.e. the weird relationship with Flagg). I just hate Nadine plan and simple, but I also felt bad for her because she saw the Flagg's true form and that is a psychological hindrance.
Harold and Fran, also, from The Stand. Harold is a creep  and this is a big NOPE. He had a few redeeming moments, but I just couldn't like him. He has no sense of boundaries, is obsessive, a stalker, and a psychopath who will murder for revenge. NOPE.
Noah and Dev from Ride Me Hard & Break Me are a huge NOPE. In I didn't have a problem with this couple until I got to the second novella which is completely disgusting. I like taboo stuff, but this is degrading and it romanticizes this fake whipping scene. I DON'T SUPPORT THIS AT ALL. I have read books with scenes like this, but they didn't romanticize rape and that is where my problem lies.
Willow and Alex from Angel Fever- I used to ship this couple back when I first read this trilogy, but this book was a hot mess and the dynamic between Alex and Willow was not swoon worthy, but cringey.
Willow and Seb from Angel Fever- NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE I can't stand this "couple" and I'm so over forced love triangles.
Gillian and Charles from My Fair Princess were a bust. This novel should've been a favorite, but it was so boring and the dynamic between these two was lackluster. 2017 was a bad year for HRs and I just didn't like this couple at all.
Camille and Joel from Someone to Hold was a complete bust. I didn't like this couple at all. It just didn't do it for me. The sex scenes were also...ugh...nope. The only redeeming factor was the adoption storyline, but that can't be the only thing that makes me like a couple.
Jenna and Mr. Anderson from Drowning Instinct are taboo, but they don't make me ship them even though it's wrong and I start questioning my sanity. I didn't hate them, but they made uncomfortable and also this book had a cheap ending, so... this ship just wasn't good and it definitely didn't sit well with me.
MEH COUPLES
(from MEH to potential ship)
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Mina and Jonathan from Dracula are bland. I'm pretty sure I'm supposed to root for their love and yada yada yada, but I just couldn't muster up enough to like their dynamic and it was just BLAH.
Maddie and Olly from Everything, Everything aren't a horrible couple, but they do absolutely nothing for me. I couldn't care less about this couple and I wasn't a big fan of the book in general. Disliking a romantic couple in YA Contemporary generally predicts how I will feel about the book. MEH.
Thalia and Joss from Iron Butterfly is also a mediocre couple from a mediocre book. This is a really generic YA novel from that time when YA novels were riding out the paranormal wave, but this one  tried the fantasy angle and failed. They were a boring couple. I shipped Thalia more with an older man (Joss' uncle) than  did with this guy. Also there is probably going to be a love triangle. YUCK.
Nina and Deacon from Better Homes and Hauntings are not a bad couple. They have their cute moments, but they are not all that interesting either.
Jake and Cindy from Better Homes and Hauntings, again, not a horrible couple and at times, they were a lot of fun. However, they didn't keep all that interested and I wasn't super invested in them. They are cute though.
Pip and Estella from Great Expectations are not a couple people think about shipping, but back in the day before this was a classic, everyone was fighting over whether Estella and Pip should wind up together. I personally don't think they should, but I'm pretty certain that Pip will never be happy with anyone but Estella.
Lynet and Nadia from Girls Made of Snow and Glass were an odd couple. I didn't like the together and I didn't hate them together. I was kind of meh from the beginning, but towards the end I started to like their dynamic much more and their relationship had a stable ground.
Gen(l)ry Ai and Estraven from The Left Hand of Darkness had the potential to be an amazing couple that could have stolen the show. I loved their dynamic and the possibility; it contributed to a lot of angst, but the problem lies with the ending and how this ship was carried out. Even more interesting is Estraven's lack of gender. This offers a really interesting dynamic into the relationship and it shows a love based off of self and not gender.
Anwen and Colin from Too Scot to Handle are a cute couple. I really liked them a lot, but they don't stand well together as a novel. If this was a novella, I would've loved them as a couple, but as a couple in a novel they didn't shine.
TABOO COUPLES I SHOULD HATE, BUT DON'T
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Wavy and Kellen from All the Ugly and Wonderful Things are taboo and definitely not an okay couple. A lot of people say this book supports pedophilia, but I've read worst and shipped worse (hello, Nine Minutes) and I honestly didn't see or interpret in that way. Also, I keep hearing about all these horrible sexual scenes, but there was only one graphic scene and it occurred the day before she turned a legal consensual age to marry. Also, this book is set in the '70s and times were different. That's why it's taboo and problematic. I'm  here for it. So, hate me.
Aria and Braith from Captured & Renegade were so taboo and captivating that I had to keep reading and picked up the sequel. This relationship is taboo because Aria is bought as a blood slave for the Prince, Braith, and I ate their romance/Stockholm Syndrome ship up. NO REGRETS.
Frank and April from Revolutionary Road are the epitome of toxicity. It's kind of disgusting, really, but I also absolutely loved it and loved reading about them and their dynamic. It was horrendous and tragic.
Zelda Sayre and F. Scott Fitzgerald from Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald is a great historical representation of a taboo relationship that has been romanticized by the media and in today's culture. This relationship is toxic and it made uncomfortable, but also I can't imagine them not being together because their toxicity doesn't function without the other. It's really confusing and like an old school Gone Girl relationship.
SHIP SHIP SHIP
(From SHIP to Ship)
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Feyre and Rhysand from A Court of Wings and Ruin is still reigning supreme for me as a ship. I just love this couple so much and they make me so happy. Rhys has my heart.
Angel/Sarah and Michael Hosea from Redeeming Love is the representative for my perfect Christian husband (there is no such thing), but regardless of whether or not a perfect Christian man exists, Michael Hosea comes pretty close. He's patient, understanding, and he let the love of his life leave because she needed to. If that's not love and devotion then I don't know what is.
Agniezska and Sarkan (The Dragon) from Uprooted were my last couple of the year and I shipped them so hard. I love their dynamic so much and they make my heart so happy.
Anne and Gilbert from Anne of Green Gables make this list even though this was a reread. I shipped Anne and Gilbert the minute he tugged on her red hair and a feud began. I only want to read the sequels because of this ship. I do love the story and the characters, but the ship drives my soul.
Riley and Gabe from Outcast was a complete shipping surprise for me. I loved this ship because there is Cajun dancing and it's beautiful. I cried at the ending and this ship had me really invested in the story. If I didn't love Gabe as much as I did, I probably wouldn't have loved this book as much as I did.
Eve and Jake from Donners of the Dead is a horror romance that involves an expedition looking for the Donner party, but they find monsters. This romance has it's problems, but I don't care. I AM HERE FOR IT.
Mina and Felix from Girls Made of Snow and Glass were MY SHIP in this book. I mainly shipped them so hard because Felix isn't a human, but created from glass. His devotion to Mina is fast and true, but she never sees this as love and the angst was killing me. 
Maddie and Aiden from The Highland Commander are an incredibly cute Scottish couple that will tug at your heart strings and warm your shipping spirit. They weren't amazing or perfect, but their relationship and dynamic stole the show and made this book so enjoyable.
Fran and Stu from The Stand are the main couple in this novel, even though there are about five other couples. I really liked their dynamic and as a couple they worked well together. They aren't the best couple ever, but they have a lot of strong traits.


Are any of these your ships or nopes? What were some of your favorite and least couples of 2017? Let me know down below in the comments!

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