The Latest Breaking News from BookTok

Barnes & Noble shopper reads the sign ‘Commercial Fiction’ at a table. Then she looks at the books and claims the store is doubling down on a bias

The pattern is what upset her

We Got This Covered · Oct 8

The Love Hypothesis and the rise of romance adaptations: how readers became part of the marketing machine

By the time a romance book reaches the screen, readers have often already built a whole world around it: analysing it, recommending it and imagining its characters. The Love Hypothesis, a romantic comedy set in the world of STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) academia, is one such example.

The Conversation · Sep 24

The Love Hypothesis review – hit BookTok romcom lacks spark on screen

Riverdale’s Lili Reinhart does some heavy lifting in adaptation of Ali Hazelwood’s hit book, but it’s not quite enough

The Guardian - US · Sep 23

Luke Bateman says boys need books ‘written for boys’ to become readers. But it’s not that simple

This week, Australian Story profiled former NRL player, BookTok creator and fantasy author Luke Bateman. The episode explored his recovery from addiction, his struggles with mental illness and his love of reading, which led to a three-book publishing contract after his BookTok account went viral.

The Conversation · Jul 30

Romantasy star Stacey McEwan: ‘You’re not going to recommend Fifty Shades of Grey to your Catholic grandma’

The author and BookTok luminary on the nightmare trope, how to convert a straight man into loving fantasy romance, and words that should never be used in a sex scene

The Guardian - AU · Jul 25

Thursday briefing: Why magical kingdoms feel more relatable than real‑world romance​ for today’s young women

In today’s newsletter: The boom in romantasy fiction reveals a thirst for escape from the political misalignment plaguing many modern relationships

The Guardian - UK · Jul 16

Pittsburgh’s new romance bookstores sell more than happily-ever-afters

“I’m looking for a book where …” has become a defining phrase of BookTok, TikTok’s massive community of readers and book influencers.

The Conversation · Jul 10

‘It’s more than just fairy smut’: Inside the UK’s first romantasy bookshop

Between enemies-to-lovers and ‘shadow daddies’, BookTok has fallen in love with the spicy stories combining romance and fantasy. But there is more to the subgenre than sex, say the fans who queued for hours outside the brick-and-mortar Oxford store

The Guardian - UK · Jul 6

Obsessed, Adapted, Exhausted: How Prime Video Is Rewriting YA For Streaming

Hollywood is betting big on adaptations, and Prime Video’s Obsessed Fest shows that, raising questions about what happens to original stories.

Pedestrian.tv · Jul 3

Chicago Man Tried to Give a Review on Remarkably Bright Creatures. The Netflix Sticker Threw Him Off: ‘An Eyesore!’

Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt recently became a Netflix adaptation, sparking book reviews on TikTok. While book reviews on BookTok are usually informative and straightforward, Anthony Koz’ (@anthonykoz) commentary took a turn nobody would expect. In his review of the recent adaptation captioned “book review gone awry,” Koz…

The Mary Sue · Jun 17