u/Kayd3_

(sorry if the post is abnormally long and all over the place)

Basically the title. Horror/thriller/mystery romance books have honestly become one of my favourite sort of fiction. Perhaps the liking was caused by the fact that it was some of my fave genres squashed together, or maybe it was created from that one middle grade horror book series i got from the library and read around a couple years ago (I got mad when the main dude and the girl didn't have any sort of love confession/any kind of kiss or proper handholding even though they were legit thirteen, but then was like "oh whatever, as long as they still have that deep emotional connection then I'm fine with it!" only to be absolutely devastated when >!she frickin died as he sobbed!< 🙏 amazing MG series from what I remember tho, I adore middle grade books that get surprisingly amazing).

Anyway, I like most genres like paranormal, romance, thriller, mystery, psychological, fantasy, sci-fi, dystopian, etc! Horror was just one of the main genres that got me into reading when I was younger (ex. Goosebumps, other random middle grade fiction I can't remember, etc). :D you don't even have to rec anything particularly romantic, like I don't mind anything from a romance murder mystery YA book, to an MG mystery series with a bit of a crush between the main leads or something.

some examples which are books I want to read (didn't add the more mainstream ones like Five Survive or The Naturals):

- Together We Rot

- Lockwood & Co (the rest of the books)

- Small Favors by Erin Craig

- When We Were Monsters by Jennifer Niven

- House of Hearts

- House of Salt and Sorrows

- Wake The Bones

- The Diviners by Libba Bray

- Girls Who Burn

- Teen Killer Club

- The Thrasher by Julie Soto

- The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer

- My Throat an Open Grave by Tori Bovalino

- The Devil Makes Three by Tori Bovalino

- Girl From The Well (dunno if this is romance but it still looks interesting to me and reminds me a lot of Anna Dressed In Blood)

- I Am Made of Death by Kelly Andrew

- The Whispering Dark by Kelly

- Bittersweet in the Hollow

- The Luminaries by Susan Dennard

- Possess by Gretchen McNeil

- Scary Mary by S.A. Hunter

- The Bone Houses

- The Companion by Katie Alender

- there's a lot more but I just figured the list would be long

some I have read:

- Lockwood & Co. (Peak. Forgot to finish the rest of the series lol but I plan to reread it and finish it when I can)

- Anna Dressed In Blood (nobody will ever understand how much I love this dynamic. monster/demon x monster/demon hunter? especially when the demon is a girl and the guy is curious about her? SO CUTE. reminded me of This Savage Song, even though I read this before This Savage Song)

- The Haunted by Danielle Vega (I didn't realize I was into surprisingly caring emos until I read this a few years ago and met Eddie 😞 I actually haven't read the sequel yet!)

- Lying in the Deep (reminded me so much of The Haunted. From the broody but surprisingly sweet love interests, the compassionate & empathetic main girls, or even the girls' exes, there was a lot of similarities. surprisingly liked this one I think.)

- None Shall Sleep by Ellie Marney (I actually forgot to finish this one, so I should get back to that. Kinda Scream-esque, which, as a girl who grew up in a Scream fanatic family, is great)

some books I've read and haven't read yet that aren't exactly horror but I like the dynamics of the MCs (whether its gentle, tender, has deep emotional connection, is endearing, or whatever):

- The Chaos Walking Trilogy by Patrick Ness

- Half A Soul by Olivia Atwater

- The Winner's Curse

- I Was A Teenage Slasher

- Tell Me Three Things (one of the only things I disliked about this book was honestly Scarlett 🥲 she and her stupid bf kinda annoyed me up until the end where she ended up being okay)

- Analee, In Real Life (like Tell Me Three Things, this has one of the most tender relationships/dynamics of the MCs ever, at least that's what I hear from my friend)

\l- The Epic Crush of Genie Lo

I don't read spice or anything like that, and I don't usually like it when there's detailed mentions of underaged scx or drinking but it depends on what kinda extent. I like spookiness and horror and whatever else, but if there's anything too heavy then please let me know if possible.

some other things I like/bonuses:

• if the main girl and boy have a kind of sweet dynamic or a dynamic where they gradually grow really loyal to each other even if something happens (note: Invisible Fiends by Barry Hutchison), it doesn't have to be particularly romantic but I would love if it's some kind of emotional connection

• romantic subplot or some kind of romance in it

• if there is a romance, I would prefer if it's m/f, out of preference if that's okay!!

• sassy MMCs, simply because I vaguely remember my fascination with sassy boys for some reason as a kid 😭 also, YOU CAN'T CHOOSE PERCY JACKSON FOR THIS ONE. That's too obvious.

• adventure, or just something super engaging in a fantasy kind of way (not mandatory), for ex. Monsters of Verity, the Ascendance series, Magisterium, etc.

• something fastpaced/addicting to break my slump preferably! A book series is okay as long as you think it will be addicting enough for me to fly through.

a note: I wanted to read Percy Jackson because I really LOVE the humour and creativity, but I'm not super comfortable with the glorifying greek gods thing (I apologize if this is a big disappointment), just to clarify because I knew people would rec it. Also, I've been in a pretty big slump as of late, and I haven't read any books (aside from manga) since December of 2025 (which was An Enchantment of Ravens)🙏 I'll probably make another post as well asking for book recs to break my slump but idk

hi everyone :D thank you in advance! I apologize if my post is really messy.

(sorry if the post is abnormally long and all over the place)

Basically the title. Horror/thriller/mystery romance books have honestly become one of my favourite sort of fiction. Perhaps the liking was caused by the fact that it was some of my fave genres squashed together, or maybe it was created from that one middle grade horror book series i got from the library and read around a couple years ago (I got mad when the main dude and the girl didn't have any sort of love confession/any kind of kiss or proper handholding even though they were legit thirteen, but then was like "oh whatever, as long as they still have that deep emotional connection then I'm fine with it!" only to be absolutely devastated when *she frickin died as he sobbed* 🙏 amazing MG series from what I remember tho, I adore middle grade books that get surprisingly amazing).

Anyway, I like most genres like paranormal, romance, thriller, mystery, psychological, fantasy, sci-fi, dystopian, etc! Horror was just one of the main genres that got me into reading when I was younger (ex. Goosebumps, other random middle grade fiction I can't remember, etc). :D you don't even have to rec anything particularly romantic, like I don't mind anything from a romance murder mystery YA book, to an MG mystery series with a bit of a crush between the main leads or something.

some examples which are books I want to read (didn't add the more mainstream ones like Five Survive or The Naturals):

- Together We Rot

- Lockwood & Co (the rest of the books)

- Small Favors by Erin Craig

- When We Were Monsters by Jennifer Niven

- House of Hearts

- House of Salt and Sorrows

- Wake The Bones

- The Diviners by Libba Bray

- Girls Who Burn

- Teen Killer Club

- The Thrasher by Julie Soto

- The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer

- My Throat an Open Grave by Tori Bovalino

- The Devil Makes Three by Tori Bovalino

- Girl From The Well (dunno if this is romance but it still looks interesting to me and reminds me a lot of Anna Dressed In Blood)

- I Am Made of Death by Kelly Andrew

- The Whispering Dark by Kelly

- Bittersweet in the Hollow

- The Luminaries by Susan Dennard

- Possess by Gretchen McNeil

- Scary Mary by S.A. Hunter

- The Bone Houses

- The Companion by Katie Alender

- there's a lot more but I just figured the list would be long

some I have read:

- Lockwood & Co. (Peak. Forgot to finish the rest of the series lol but I plan to reread it and finish it when I can)

- Anna Dressed In Blood (nobody will ever understand how much I love this dynamic. monster/demon x monster/demon hunter? especially when the demon is a girl and the guy is curious about her? SO CUTE. reminded me of This Savage Song, even though I read this before This Savage Song)

- The Haunted by Danielle Vega (I didn't realize I was into surprisingly caring emos until I read this a few years ago and met Eddie 😞 I actually haven't read the sequel yet!)

- Lying in the Deep (reminded me so much of The Haunted. From the broody but surprisingly sweet love interests, the compassionate & empathetic main girls, or even the girls' exes, there was a lot of similarities. surprisingly liked this one I think.)

- None Shall Sleep by Ellie Marney (I actually forgot to finish this one, so I should get back to that. Kinda Scream-esque, which, as a girl who grew up in a Scream fanatic family, is great)

some books I've read and haven't read yet that aren't exactly horror but I like the dynamics of the MCs (whether its gentle, tender, has deep emotional connection, is endearing, or whatever):

- The Chaos Walking Trilogy by Patrick Ness

- Half A Soul by Olivia Atwater

- The Winner's Curse

- I Was A Teenage Slasher

- Tell Me Three Things (one of the only things I disliked about this book was honestly Scarlett 🥲 she and her stupid bf kinda annoyed me up until the end where she ended up being okay)

- Analee, In Real Life (like Tell Me Three Things, this has one of the most tender relationships/dynamics of the MCs ever, at least that's what I hear from my friend)

- The Epic Crush of Genie Lo

I don't read spice or anything like that, and I don't usually like it when there's detailed mentions of underaged scx or drinking but it depends on what kinda extent. I like spookiness and horror and whatever else, but if there's anything too heavy then please let me know if possible.

some other things I like/bonuses:

- if the main girl and boy have a kind of sweet dynamic or a dynamic where they gradually grow really loyal to each other even if something happens (note: Invisible Fiends by Barry Hutchison), it doesn't have to be particularly romantic but I would love if it's some kind of emotional connection

- romantic subplot or some kind of romance in it

- if there is a romance, I would prefer if it's m/f, out of preference if that's okay!!

- sassy MMCs, simply because I vaguely remember my fascination with sassy boys for some reason as a kid 😭 also, YOU CAN'T CHOOSE PERCY JACKSON FOR THIS ONE. That's too obvious.

- adventure, or just something super engaging in a fantasy kind of way (not mandatory), for ex. Monsters of Verity, the Ascendance series, Magisterium, etc.

- something fastpaced/addicting to break my slump preferably! A book series is okay as long as you think it will be addicting enough for me to fly through.

a note: I wanted to read Percy Jackson because I really LOVE the humour and creativity, but I'm not super comfortable with the glorifying greek gods thing (I apologize if this is a big disappointment), just to clarify because I knew people would rec it. Also, I've been in a pretty big slump as of late, and I haven't read any books (aside from manga) since December of 2025 (which was An Enchantment of Ravens)🙏 I'll probably make another post as well asking for book recs to break my slump but idk

hi everyone :D thank you in advance! I apologize if my post is really messy.

This is a bit random, but as a teen myself, I recently quit ai chatbots, character ai, and this other chatbot site that i was forced to stop using because of a new age verification feature (which I realized was probably a really good thing because it forced me to stop). I feel like I'm doing kinda well, and I'm going back to mostly spending my free time with reading, writing and watching international shows without all that AI chatbot stuff to cure my boredom or soothe me when I'm down. I just wanted to know if anyone can tell me if my dopamine system will be okay though, because I hear that it affects our dopamine even though I don't know how any of that stuff works.

That is the only thing that really worries me, considering I'm making this post in the middle of the night. I hear that it's completely normal for my brain chemistry to feel out of balance at first after getting rid of that overstimulation and gratifying, kinda hxrny rubbish, but that my dopamine system is highly resilient and that it will recalibrate to normal baselines over time. Still, I'm a bit nervous and I want reassurance that I'm going to be okay.

thank you in advance :)

I wanted to get back into animated shows (not counting anime), so I would like some recs!

here is some of my faves or shows I had a phase with when I was younger (can't remember everything I watched for clarification):

- Carmen Sandiego (a very brief phase but I vaguely remember having a crush on Player)

- Teen Titans (OG. I LOVED THIS SHOW SM.)

- Star Vs. The Forces of Evil

- Pantheon (more recent, everything else was a couple years ago aside from Invincible's recent season & X-Men. I think I only watched a bit of this, but I'll probably continue it)

- anything Ghibli but that counts as anime

- Marvel's Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur

- Scooby-Doo Mystery Incorporated

- also old Disney films (Aladdin, Cinderella, Princess and the Frog, etc)

- DuckTales reboot (vividly remember me and my brother jumping up and down when a new episode came out)

- Over The Moon

- PINY

- Gravity Falls (don't think I ever finished it)

- Totally Spies (loved this one so much when I was younger)

- Big Hero 6 the series

- Avatar: The Last Airbender (best for last! Not adding Korra because that kinda annoyed me a bit here and there)

- Invincible (only adult animation I will watch lol I watched it with my siblings)

- Spectacular Spider-Man

- TMNT (2012)

- Justice League Unlimited

- Batman (og animated show)

- X-Men (newest cartoon)

- Miraculous

some I wasn't interested in or didn't want to watch for whatever reason:

- The Owl House (I can't really remember why honestly but it was probably for a very middle school reason like I had a fight w a friend who liked this and didn't want to watch it out of pettiness 🙏)

- Hazbin Hotel (for obvious reasons)

that's kinda it! I don't mind most genres: romance (as long as it's m/f, due to that just being my preference), mystery, horror, action, fantasy, etc. nothing too kiddie would be nice (whatever you deem kiddie). I also have a strange liking for at least a little bit of romance instead of none, but that's just a bonus, and something that hasn't been cancelled or cut short, and is actually interesting/engaging.

I would prefer not to watch adult animation because I'm still a teen so I apologize if I narrowed it down too much.

I've already seen When I Fly Towards You after stalling it for years because I wasn't into c-dramas, but recently I decided to pick it back up again and i really adore this media now!! :D I've spent days watching tiktoks of cdrama recs but still wasn't sure where to continue. For clarification, I started Mr. Bad and it's my 2nd ever cdrama but I haven't finished it just yet. I'm halfway through and I love it, even if I thought it was corny at first. I've only seen WIFTY and I'm watching Mr. Bad atm.

I'm not super picky, I just don't watch anything too spicy and I always like at least a little bit of romance instead of none. Good chemistry, storyline, etc, would be preferred. A soft, feminine FL or even a soft/possessive/unique personality ML (ABSOLUTELY LOVE THE ML IN MR. BAD) would be so nice to see, but that's just a little bonus.

I like most genres like horror, romance, mystery, time travel, thriller, supernatural, etc, but I have a special liking for a romance subplot because I can rarely watch any drama that doesn't have a bit of romance and I prefer happy endings. I like it if there's equal love and the FL isn't super cold or the ML isn't overly puppylike to the point where he's sacrificing a lot and she doesn't even care much about him like he does. I also don't really watch BL so that isn't much of an interest for me. I was told that maybe modern dramas would be easier to get into so I want to watch some of those first before moving onto a bit of historical/xianxia/wuxia/whatever else.

(the asterisks are for ones I'm most excited to watch)

in my watchlist:

- Hidden Love

- The First Frost

- Always Home

- A Love So Beautiful

- Reset* (I have a feeling I'm gonna adore this one so much so I want to marinate it)

- 19th Floor* (same as above 2x)

- Embrace in the Dark Night (seems like trash but entertaining trash apparently)

- Meteor Garden (also apparently good trash)

- Flourish in Time (though not a fan of the siblings part at all, it looks cute)

- Go Ahead

- Twelve Letters*

- Be Passionately in Love

- Hidden Love

- Love Between Lines

- City of Romance

- A River Runs Through It*

- Accidentally In Love

- Time and Him Are Just Right*

- Meet Yourself

- Meteor Garden

- Falling Into Your Smile

- Unforgettable Love

- Ski into Love*

- Put Your Head On My Shoulder

- Amidst a Snowstorm of Love

- Hi Venus

- Legally Romance

- City of Romance

- Our Secret

- Love Scenery

- Hikaru no Go

- Love O20

- Exclusive Fairytale

- South Wind Knows My Mood

- Love Me If You Dare*

- Dazzling (upcoming drama I'm interested in)

- Crush

- You Are Desire

- She and Her Perfect Husband

- Reborn

- Sweet Trap

- Filter

- Deep Affectionate Eyes

- Make A Wish

- My Page In 90's

some I've wanted to watch first (most interested in):

- Lovely Us

- My Girlfriend is An Alien

- Everybody Loves Me

- Reset

- The Best Thing

- Love is Sweet

- Go Go Squid

- Back to Seventeen

- 19th Floor

non-modern ones (including dramas I'm most excited to watch. do note that I'm very overwhelmed with this side of cdramas and I have no idea what should be my starter ones 🙏 as well as the modern ones aaa):

- Love Between Fairy and Devil*

- Story of Kunning Palace* (so excited to start this one but i'm afraid of having too-high standards after)

- the Legend of Shen-li*

- Blossom (was thinking of starting with this but I'm so stuck because most of these I really want to watch as my starter to non-modern so let me know what's best for a starter intro into historical, costume, wuxia, and xianxia!)*

- Love In The Clouds*

- Warm On A Cold Night*

- Legend of The Female General

- The Romance Of Tiger And Rose *

- Love Game In Eastern Fantasy *

- The Double

- When Destiny Meets The Demon

- Pursuit of Jade (don't wanna get to this just yet in case my standards get too high)

- Love Better Than Immortality

- Melody of Golden Age*

- Prisoner of Beauty

- Moonlit Reunion

- Feud

- Maiden Holmes*

- Royal Rumours

- Perfect Match

- Legend of Fei

- Wonderland of Love*

- A Familiar Stranger

- A Dream Within A Dream

- Oh My Sweet Liar*

some kdramas I've liked and loved just so u understand my taste:

- Happiness

- Twinkling Watermelon

- Lovely Runner

- Psychopath Diary (I haven't seen a lot of thriller/mystery cdramas around surprisingly, specifically with teens, so I would love some recs!! bonus if there's a psycho ml in it, simply because that's just fun)

- 2521

- Chicago Typewriter

- Night Has Come

- W: Two Worlds

- If Wishes Could Kill

- Crazy Love

reset, mr. bad & 19th floor are def one of my faves already aside from wifty. I know I have a lot of cdramas in my watchlist- and some more I didn't even write- especially considering I've already forgotten why I put them there and what most of them are about, so it would be nice if you could tell me what you think of some of them or give me little notes on them (how the ml and fl are like, some things to watch out for, etc, sorry if it's a big ask, I just figured maybe I'd make my mind up more that way), and if you'd like, lmk what I SHOULDN'T START FIRST AS A NEWBIE. Feel free to also rec any other new ones!