When Miserable People Get Happy Endings: "Unlikeable" Protagonists in Alexis Hall's Writing

Books That Burn

Hello and welcome to Books That Burn with another book essay from Robin! Thank you to Case Aiken, who receives a monthly Patron shoutout. This essay discusses (and moderately spoils) the following works by Alexis Hall:

• ROSALINE PALMER TAKES THE CAKE (2021)

• 10 THINGS THAT NEVER HAPPENED (2023)

• GLITTERLAND (2013)

• WAITING FOR THE FLOOD (2024 edition)

• FOR REAL (2015)

• A LADY FOR A DUKE (2022)

• BOYFRIEND MATERIAL (2020)

• HUSBAND MATERIAL (2022)

• THE AFFAIR OF THE MYSTERIOUS LETTER (2019)

A brief note: when I first conceptualized this essay, I thought I was going to read every published novel by Alexis Hall, then I intended to discuss at least one book from each of their series. It turns out that their catalog is so extensive that even after taking two months to read (and occasionally, reread) as much of their work as I could get my hands on, I still haven’t gotten to everything. Neither do I, on balance, want to spoil major elements of their entire catalog. Therefore, I haven’t read everything they've written, and I don’t reference every single thing that I read. However, I read enough to be sure of my point generally, and am happy with what I’ve chosen to reference specifically.

Link to the full Essay.

Preamble (00:00)
Content Warnings (01:29)
Introduction (01:52)
Learning to Be Okay with One's Own Flaws (5:05)
Becoming Less Reactive to the Shortcomings of Others (11:05)
Reaching for Community (14:12)
Accepting Something Already True (23:51)
Internal Reflection and Attitude Adjustment (25:49)
Change Inspired by Others (30:59)
Not Changing At All (36:24)
Conclusion: Challenging "Likeability" As A Goal (38:02)