What do you think about the news about the Twilight re-imagined gender swap story? Is there a book you think would actually benefit from a gender swap?
Julie:
I haven’t read the new Twilight book, and I don’t think I want to. The story was right as it was, but the switching of the genders just sounds a bit creepy to me, and quite a bit of seeming to milk the franchise for all it has left. As for gender swapping other books where it may work – I love a kick ass or brilliant heroine. Let me think of a few famous boy-protagonist books for a few seconds. I don’t think Harry Potter needs to be gender swapped because we have Hermione, and she’s dabomb.com. I can’t say if a gender swap would save The Maze Runner because the story was just yawn. Maybe a different perspective would make it interesting, but not likely. I really liked that there was a male protag in Anna Dressed in Blood, searching for a female ghost. I think it would lose something swapped. As for Beautiful Creatures – I liked that the boy was the human and the girl was the creature, so that is already swapped from what we typically see. I honestly can’t think of a book series where gender swapping would improve upon the story.
Lynn:
I read this quote from Tom Hardy
and thought, yes, why not write crime fiction, or action adventure, or any other genre with a female protagonist. Why can’t we have a female Dirk Pitt. Or Willa Grayson, Willa Grayson? Imagine if Paul Atreides from Dune was a woman. Or Robert Langdon from the DaVinci Code. I would totally read those books.
I clearly need to search out more books with female protagonists. And yes, Hunger Games, Divergent, and other dystopia series exist. But most of these are YA. What about actual adult women characters?
On a side note, I’d love to see the Stephanie Plum books with a bumbling male lead. And a tough female Morelli. And a female Ranger.
I don’t know about the whole gender swap thing – except for fairy tales – those are sometimes fun!
Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction recently posted…November Recap
I am so behind the times. I did not know the new Twilight was even a thing. I will probably read it, because I read all of the other ones. I agree with Julie about milking a franchise for all it is worth on that one. I can’t think of a book series that would benefit from a gender swap. That being said, if I love a book, and they release it written in any other way, I will probably check it out. LOL
kaitlin michelle recently posted…Throwback Review: Betrayed (House of Night #2) by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast
The Twilight thing really bugs me with Twilight. I really think she was doing it just to make more money. It’s the same exact story and I don’t think it could benefit from a gender swap. But maybe that is because I am not a huge fan of the story. As far as others that may benefit from a gender swap, that is an interesting question. Maybe the book You by Caroline Kepnes? It is an AWESOME book about a man who stalks this woman he meets and becomes obsessed with her. I wonder if it would still work if it was a woman who was the stalker? Great discussion.
Cynthia @ Bingeing On Books recently posted…November Wrap-Up!
I liked the story, and I still don’t think it would benefit from the swap and is just not interesting to me at all. Ooh a woman stalker book would be an interesting swap.
“seeming to milk the franchise for all it has left” This. I wouldn’t mind if it was a situation like you mentioned in the other books but I mean come on. While I didn’t mind the original Twilight too much I’m definitely skipping this gender bent version because I don’t want to read the same story over again, basically.
I kind of feel like the gender swap is a new version of a POV switch. There was a trend for a while to release the same romance book just from the guy’s perspective and it really is the same issue – reading the same story again (unless the author is really good at this and provides a lot of new content, which some did)
Ooh, this is an interesting question! I agree that gender-swapping Twilight seems a bit odd. I’m not for books that are out currently being gender-swapped, but I’d definitely love to see more female orientated stories…like not chick-lit. But yes let’s have the cop be a women, and the crime-lord be a woman. Hehe. I don’t read much Adult, so I don’t know about that! But I do know there are lots of epic female protagonists in YA so that’s fabulous.
I adored seeing that interview/gifset! 😀
Thanks for stopping by @ Paper Fury!
Cait @ Paper Fury recently posted…Their Fractured Light // Toot! Toot! All Aboard This Galactically Wonderful (Space) Ship!
Thanks, Cait! And, yes, you don’t see a lot of female crime-lords!
I don’t mind the idea per se. And I will probably read Life & Death, eventually. 🙂
Bookworm Brandee recently posted…2015 Bookish Resolutions Challenge Update ~ November
I need someone I know to read it, Brandee. So I don’t have to!
I thought this was a weird idea too. I can’t think of any book that I would want to read with a gender swap.
Melanie Simmons @mlsimmons recently posted…Nice Dragons Finish Last Audiobook by Rachel Aaron (REVIEW)
Thanks, Melanie. I totally accept that.