TGIF (4) and Follow Friday (3)!

Follow Friday is a weekly meme hosted by Alison and Parajunkee that spotlight two blogs and allows bloggers to link up and meet other fabulous bookish friends and share the Following love.

This week's spotlight blogs are: Omnom Books and Progress and Procrastination

And the question of the week is:

Define what characteristics your favorite books share. 

Do they all have a kickass heroine or is the hot love interest the Alpha Male?

You know, I'm not really sure what similar characteristics there are between all my favorite books...I don't notice if it's strong heroines or obnoxious manly love interests. I know I have a type of Book Boys I quite like: that quiet, strong sorta-sensitive-but-still-gruff man (see: Sean Kendrick in Scorpio Races).  But that doesn't necessarily mean I'll always like the book or it's exclusive to that type. (I adore Cricket in Lola and the Boy Next Door, and I would never use the word "gruff" to describe him.)

I think the main thing is if the characters are relatable and real. I have problems when characters are too stereotypical or weak (cough *BELLA* cough...I've gone through some pretty bad heartbreak, but I don't shut down for months and have blank pages in my life).  If I feel like the character is written poorly or created in a certain way just to have a function in the book (a literary manipulation, in a way), then I'm almost immediately turned off.  I need to feel as though a character could be me. Even if I've never been in a situation like the book plot or even fathomed it, I still need to feel as though the character is sensible and that every motivation makes sense.

What about you? Leave your link in my comments and I'll come check it out!

And I'd love to return a follow :)

TGIF is a weekly meme hosted by Ginger at GReads! This week's discussion is:

Book Appeal

When you're browsing goodreads, the library, or another blogger's reviews, what grabs your attention to make you want to read it?

Truthfully, the cover plays a major part: the colours, the fonts, any pictures or the general style. I know we all say "you can't judge a book by its cover" - and of course that's true, there are plenty of novels I loved that I was not crazy about the cover (Looking For Alaska, as an example). But I'm a designer and editor by nature; since 2003 I've had a hand in designing hundreds of pages, newspapers, magazines, websites, newsletters...the list goes on. I know how easily a different font can change the entire tone of a presentation, and it's spilled over into my book decisions.

So obviously, when sites don't post covers or don't have a cover yet, it's difficult for me to give it my attention unless it's an author I've already heard of or if I've been directed to it. I will at least skim and look for some key words that catch my interest.

In terms of reviews, I'm more apt to read any if it seems to be split into manageable portions and paragraphs to be read, or if there are sections - basically, if it looks organized, I'll give it a shot. I get lost when there are tons of links, or mass paragraphs that have every other word linked to different websites. It's like a sensory overload when it's just TEXT (unbroken paragraphs and mile-long sentences) - all those words and letters blend and blur to me.

However, I do trust my friends' opinions. If I really like the blogger or the taste of a blogger, then I'll read their writing/review/suggestions, even if s/he is guilty of all the aforementioned.

What grabs your attention? Leave a link and I'll come check it out!