Smmr's booknook

Fav's:-

𐙚 Books- The inheritance games saga, The naturals, The cruel prince, Fake skating, The fixer duology

𐙚 Shows- Friends, Two broke girls, The big bang theory, One day, Desperate housewives, All of us are de*d

𐙚 Movies- She's the man, Zootopia, Ratatouille, Three Idiots, Legally blonde

𐙚 Music- Olivia Rodrigo, Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, Katseye, Conan Gray, The neighbourhood, Arctic Monkeys, Arijit Singh

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I've seen a lot of people say on and off this app that they don't like or connect with Avery because she feels too "safe" or because it seems like the plot happens to her rather than her actively controlling it. Basically they see her as a passive protagonist.

And honestly... I understand where that criticism comes from. Avery can absolutely be non-reactive at times especially because so much of the plot involves circumstances she never asked for and cannot control.

But I don't think "passive" is a fair description of her entire character arc and I especially don't think it accounts for why Avery behaves the way she does.

Avery grew up in poverty. She learned very early that wanting too much, expecting too much or making herself too visible could lead to disappointment. So she learned to keep her expectations low. No money meant no room for mistakes.

She ran on the motto "no expectations, no disappointment"

And I think that kind of conditioning continues to influence her even after her circumstances completely change. Avery goes from worrying about money and her future to suddenly inheriting an unimaginable fortune but becoming rich doesn't magically erase the person she had to become before she had that money.

Her formative experiences shaped her. They influence how she thinks, how she approaches risk (the literal degree she wants to pursue is related to risks), how much she expects from other people and how comfortable she is with taking up space.

I think of it like pottery (I love pottery sorry guys). Once you've made a pot and fired it in a kiln you can't simply throw it back on the wheel and expect it to become something completely different because the circumstances around it changed. Avery's life changed overnight but not the way her brain works.

And then there's also the fact that wealth didn't actually make Avery safe so she can't really go around being bold and experimenting.

If anything, she suddenly had more threats to deal with. She was surrounded by media, people with money, influence, connections and information she didn't have. In that setting constantly charging forward, playing on the front foot or making yourself the biggest target in the room isn't necessarily the smartest thing to do.

This is where I think people misunderstand Avery's agency... Her agency doesn't look like taking control of the entire room. It often looks like observing the room first. People around her in this new world know more about it than her so she simply goes with it while having her own opinions and plans.

Avery watches. She listens. She notices things other people overlook. She plans. She adapts. She plays along when she needs to, waits for an opening and then makes her move. (Blake is the example where you can point this out easily)

Being strategic is not the same thing as being passive. Also one of the marketing points of this series is that Avery is a normal girl who was thrown into a bigger, with more opportunity world and no guide.

Sometimes Avery is genuinely reacting to things that happen to her because realistically she can't control them. She didn't choose to inherit the Hawthorne fortune. She didn't choose the threats that came with it. She didn't choose the people trying to manipulate or hurt her.

But she does get to choose what she does with those circumstances.

And more often than not she uses her intelligence to turn circumstances she didn't choose into something she can work with.

I also think this is why the "Avery is too perfect" criticism doesn't entirely work for me.

I don't think Avery is literally incapable of making mistakes nor do I think every decision she makes is objectively the perfect one. I think she's deliberate.

Avery grew up in a situation where she couldn't afford to make careless decisions. So she tends to think things through before she acts. She weighs her options. She considers consequences. She doesn't always act on the first impulse that comes to mind. (Even after years with the fortune this habits continue even if she starts being a little impulsive). This is why she is careful.

And I think the love triangle is actually a good example of this. Avery doesn't simply make her romantic decisions based on whoever is more "cool" or "easy" to be with. She takes time to understand what she wants, what she feels and what kind of relationship and version of her actually works for her.

Which brings me to what I think is the most important part of Avery's arc:- She never needed to become a stereotypical "badass FMC". Avery never wanted to become cold, ruthless, unforgiving or someone who held grudges just because she had the power to do so.

She wanted to travel, she wanted to have a stable job.

This list had an addition after she got the stabilty a job could have given her. She later in the books wanted to travel, she wanted to play/have fun, she wanted to help people, she wanted to give other people opportunities she never had.

And technically she was always playful... That part of Avery didn't suddenly appear after the inheritance. It was always there. It was simply suppressed by Hannah aka her entire world dying and everything she had to worry about growing up.

So when Avery becomes more playful, starts dreaming bigger and allows herself to actually enjoy her life I don't see that as her becoming a completely different person. I see it as her finally getting back a part of herself that she had to suppress to survive.

That is one of the reasons I think Avery's arc is one of the most beautiful I've read in YA. (This statement is me glazing)

I completely understand why some readers don't connect with her. If you prefer FMC's who are outwardly confrontational, reckless, ruthless or constantly driving the action themselves Avery may not be the protagonist for you.

That's a preference and varies from person-to-person.

But I don't think that preference should become an objective judgment that Avery is badly written, bland or has no agency. Not every female protagonist needs to be the loudest or most intimidating person in the room to be compelling.

Diversity in female characters also means allowing girls to be soft without being weak, cautious without being passive, kind without being naive and strategic without constantly having to prove how powerful they are. Avery's agency simply looks different. I think that difference is one of the best things about her.

So when I see people say that Avery should have been more confrontational or should have handled certain situations completely differently by being bolder and playing more on a front foot, I always come back to the same thought... If Avery behaved like the character you're asking her to become she wouldn't be Avery anymore.

Her personality, her coping mechanisms, her relationship with risk, her decision-making and even the way she approaches power all make sense when you consider the girl she was before the inheritance. You don't have to really love that characterization.

But I think it's someting to ponder on whether Avery is actually a "vanilla" protagonist... or whether she's simply a protagonist whose strength doesn't look the way we would have acted or we have seen in media before.

P.S:- Avery breaking laws for fun in different countries is a flaw and a plot point which shows she is not perfect.

☆ Javery as "Ok Jaanu"

The couple is playful yet angsty... And have the weirdest meet cute.

☆ Rohannah as "Ram Leela"

The enemies to lover this movie has... and the banter! There is a scene where the FMC and MMC both point a gun at eachother.

☆ Tobyhannah as "Main Vaapas Aaunga"

Both were alive yet separated in life... also they never stopped loving eachother (I sobbed alot)

☆ Lyrason as "Brahmastra"

The couple in this movie has insta love and are very clingy.

☆ Gigi x Slate as "Highway" (It's criminal they don't have fanart.)

The dude is not a bad dude and 'kidnaps' the FMC so yeah go figure.

Before anyone misunderstands what I mean... let me be very clear:- I am not hating on Libby, I am not blaming her for Drake's abuse and I am absolutely not undermining or dismissing the trauma she experienced. Libby was a victim too. Her trauma matters and I have empathy for why she struggled to leave Drake and why she kept letting him back into her life.

But understanding why someone makes a decision does not mean that decision was safe or acceptable for the people who depended on them. And my criticism of Libby is specifically about her role as Avery's guardian and how her choices affected Avery.

Avery was a teenager who was dependent on Libby for a safe home. Instead, Avery had to live with Drake, who was abusive and who even referred to Avery as "jailbait" which is absolutely disgusting and completely unacceptable. It got to the point where Avery felt safer sleeping in a car than sleeping in her own guardians' home.

That is why I struggle to call Libby a good guardian even afterJLB'S canon explanation.

I don't think Libby should have brought a teenager into a living situation where there was a serious possibility that Avery could also be harmed. And Drake wasn't directly abusing Avery, Avery still had to witness her sister being abused. That is not a safe environment for a child. Avery should never have been put in the position of having to live around that.

And yes, I know the argument:- "But Libby saved Avery from the system."

I understand that argument. I understand why people view Libby as someone who gave Avery a home when the alternative was foster care or being separated from her only living relative nearby (even JLB talks about it). I also understand that Libby herself was dealing with an abusive relationship and was not operating from a place of freedom or safety.

But I don't think the existence of a worse alternative automatically makes the situation Libby provided a good one.

Avery being spared the system does not mean she was actually safe.

I can have compassion for Libby as a victim while still being critical of her as a guardian. Those two things can co-exist.

And honestly, I think Avery's own behavior says a lot about how unsafe she felt at one point. In the original trilogy (book 1 or 2 I don't remember) Avery suspects that Libby might have been involved in planning her murder. Obviously, that suspicion is wrong and Aver even feels guilty thinking that, but the fact that Avery entertained that possibility that the person who was supposed to protect her might want her dead says something about the level of trust and security Avery had in that relationship.

I don't think Avery's fear was irrational when she thought of this possibility for even a millisecond because afterall Drake, who shot at Avery was an abuser Libby had let back into hers and Avery's life multiple times.

When the person responsible for your safety repeatedly allows an unsafe person back into your home, it makes sense that you would struggle to trust that guardian completely. Avery's fear doesn't mean Libby didn't love her or that Avery did not love her. It means love alone wasn't enough to make Avery feel safe.

Avery often felt more like Libby's protector than the other way around, and no 17 year-old should have to feel like they have to carry that responsibility.

And that's ultimately my point.

Libby was a victim. Libby loved Avery. Libby was doing the best she could with her own trauma. And I still think she failed Avery as a guardian.

Those statements can all be true at the same time.

I don't think Libby is evil. I don't think she deserves hatred. I don't think her trauma makes her a bad person.

I just don't think being a victim excuses the ways in which her decisions negatively affected another victim, especially when that other victim was a teenager who depended on her for protection.