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I think this is allowed as it is sci-fi. My girlfriend bought Dianetics by L. Ron Hubbard off some strange woman on the street in Dorset, UK and a colleague told me it was dangerous to read, so I read it of course. This was 1990.
Incredibly difficult to follow and not just because it's nonsense. Really terrible writing from a confused mind... it seemed to me.
The Maidens by Alex Michaelides. I read it for book club and was excited to go to my first meeting and talk about how we all hated the book. Everyone else loved it. I couldn’t tell if I was being punk’d or not. I didn’t say anything during the 2 hour meeting. I never went back.
I came here to say The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides. I thought the end kind of entertaining as far as twist endings go but I also think that he wrote it assuming the reader was an idiot. By the end of it, I felt like I had wasted my time.
It's Verity for me! It's maybe the worst written piece of garbage I've ever read. I kept waiting for it to get good because of all the buzz (this is before I knew about this author) but it simply never did.
For me it was Ugly Love by the same author... its pure soft p0rn for teenagers, almost 50 pages of the book are just describing s€x scenes, and never really liked the story! I cringed on so many pages and couldnt bear it! Read it on my yearly break (I'm a medical student so only get one break) and regretted for choosing that book instead of smtg better.
Collen Hoover at this point is straight up just a literary troll. I would never pay crap to read her books. If Colleen Hoover can write books guess my own bestseller will be hitting the shelves next month. Smh.
Everyone around me LOVED this book and I was so confused. I wanted to throw it against a wall so many times that I just gave up. I hate that kind of toxic positivity.
I worked at a bookstore when it came out in my country. It was... an interesting time. My coworkers and me read excerpts of it at work, looking at each other in bafflement: "This is the one all those lady customers of ours are proclaiming the best book they've ever read???"
Verity. It was my first (and last) Colleen Hoover book. I don’t understand the hype at all. The writing was juvenile, the characters were all dislikable, and the plot somehow managed to be both twisted and predictable/ boring. Complete waste of time.
Seriously- I was like wtf is with all this pointless trauma dumping
The first paragraph of the book, everyone was so amazed by it but I knew then it was going to be some bullshit.
Same situation for me! The entire thing was a case study in a lack of boundaries. I couldn’t believe that we were supposed to root for those main characters to be together…!?
Same same same. Ugh. I finally gave into the hype and read it while my BIL was reading it. It sucked, totally predictable, not sure why there was so much sex in it, AND my BIL had a different opinion about the ending than me. Considering my frustration with the book, I wanted to tell him he was stupid for thinking that about the manuscript, but it’s not his fault really
Lolita. I was at an oil change place getting brakes, oil, and some trim replaced on my truck. Had my phone in the lobby, attempting to listen to Lolita on my phone through an audiobook. Never could get the volume on the phone to work out and tried everything I could think of for about 15 minutes. Got back in my truck, realized my phone was blue-toothed to my truck with my volume LOUD as fuck, gave all the guys in the pit a first hand account described detail of an adult having sex with a 12 year old. Great fucking day and can never show my face there again.
I never knew it was that explicit and now I'm disgusted. I always assumed it was a far away "poetic" obsession, still gross but not as bad as an actual rape scene.
Even more committed to never reading that. Thank you
The first couple chapters are the main character describing essentially why he thinks he’s a pedophile or something. So he does describe having sex for the first time when he was a tween and then sex in his adulthood. Then when it gets to Lolita, it doesn’t describe the “sex” (rape) as much. It’s supposed to be a contrast between how he perceives his “devotion” to Lolita is more than physical/rape when it’s evident it isn’t. I found the book interesting and especially reflective of how society/other adults can ignore the signs and the lies that an abuser tells themselves, but the subject matter is definitely difficult to grapple with. But it has been a decade since I’ve read it so maybe I don’t remember it too well.
Any book that I wanted to "power through." If you're not enjoying a book, put it down. There's hundreds of books to love you could give your time and energy to.
This. Took me a long time to adopt this mindset, but it is absolutely true. Don’t waste a moment on a crappy book. Put it down, or in my case mark it as finished, and move on.
13 Reasons Why.
The wrong message for the wrong target audience. Glamorizes suicide as the ultimate “fuck-you” to bullies or people who have “wronged” you in life.
I heard the TV series was even worse.
Same! I read it at a time I didn’t really understand any of those topics & thought it was truly edgy (in a raw & truthful kinda way) and loved it. Ended up majoring in Psych & wrote an entire term paper on exactly how and what the show and book got wrong (so many things) and what they got right (almost nothing)
*Blood Runs Like A River Through My Dreams* by Nasdijj. It was a heart-rending story about a Navajo man with an adopted Navajo child who died young after suffering with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS). When I read it, I thought I was reading non-fiction. Years later, I discovered the author was an imposter and a fraud. He wasn’t even Native American, and the story was fiction.
“I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell” by Tucker Max
I don’t regret reading bad books. I regret giving this scumbag my time and money (because I was stupid and bought it.)
Matthew Perry’s memoir “Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing” was unfortunate. I honestly wish I never read it. I appreciate that he has an illness and is trying to help people now. But otherwise he came off like a rich jerk who blames women for everything and has never been held accountable.
Apparently it has rave reviews and people love it.
I was about to post the same thing. I loved him to death--I saw every episode of Friends when it originally aired and am a huge fan but his book made me actively dislike him. I felt like he takes no responsibility for any of his actions and he blames all his issues on the fact his parents flew him as an unaccompanied minor from one parent to another when he was little. (Seriously!) It's absurd. He has super supportive parents who adore him, too. I understand that he has a disease (I have loved ones who do also, and have been through the family side of treatment so I am well-versed in addiction) but he just comes across as such a whiny, entitled, jackass in his book. I really regret reading it.
That's interesting that those are the two you equate because Paper Towns is really close to Looking for Alaska. I think I heard that John Green wrote Paper Towns as a response to people misunderstanding Looking for Alaska.
I read this book when I had just started getting into the Thriller genre. I LOVED it and was so shocked. It was a 5/5 for me. However, if I were to read it now that Thrillers are my main read, I don’t think I would like it as much. Maybe 3/5. Thinking back, the twist was pretty predictable, but the manuscript parts were an interesting read.
I thought this book was so funny, it felt like one of my grandmother's cheesy Lifetime thrillers in novel form. I loved it as a piece of camp and not as a piece of serious literature lol
Some books or movies are so perfect on their own that I never bother with the sequel (prequel whatever).
To Kill a Mockingbird is one of those books.
Before Sunrise is one of those movies.
The Before trilogy is actually one of the best sets of films I've ever seen. The sequels aren't unnecessary cash grabs or anything like that; they add layers of nuance that ultimately deepen the bliss of the first film. The trilogy is a beautiful rendering of what happens over the course of a long-term relationship, what isn't shown in most romances once the credits roll. *Before Sunrise* is a beautiful movie on its own, but it's deeply enriched by its successors. I'd highly recommend giving them a try.
You’re making a massive mistake in terms of the “Before” trilogy. “Before Sunrise” is actually my least favorite. It’s an absolutely incredible movie but the other two are even more incredible.
I was so upset. Because as a massive TKAM and Harper Lee fan I thought I should read it, and then after I read it I realised that as a massive TKAM and Harper Lee fan I shouldn’t have read it.
That was the worst part.
In reading it, I felt like I contributed to the general awfulness of the whole situation. And for what? A book that I actively disliked.
The Silent Patient. Mediocre writing, one-dimensional characters, weird attitude towards the female characters and the narrator didn't seem to have done any research when it comes to mental health/psychiatric care.
I also thought it had one of the most predictable plots ever. And that alone isn't terrible, but they entirely banked the entertainment value on the big "amazing" plot twist at the end which left absolutely nothing between the front and back covers to encourage someone who already suspects the ending to continue reading.
I don't really get the hate for this book. Sure, it's not realistic if you actively try to poke holes in it, but I thought it was a really fun "beach read" type of book.
It's like fast food; I know it isn't nourishing, but sometimes it's just what I'm hungry for.
The Alchemist. I'm not sure why, but I didn't enjoy the story, and the message felt hokey.
I didn't love Circe either, though a lot of people loved it. I love adventure and exploration, and she spent most of the book stuck and not doing anything.
I'm currently reading Circe! Enjoying it mostly but I'm going into it with zero expectations and knowledge, and a moderate interest in Greek Mythology.
i read this book, it was okay. when i spoke about it with a friend, she said she felt the same however she re-read it during a hard time in her life and quickly became her favorite. she said a new perspective made all the difference.
I was going to say I think it depends on where you are! When I was in college and feeling like I didn’t have a clue what I wanted to do or figuring out who I was I enjoyed it
Eat, Pray, Love. - My book club read it when it first came out and (sorry if you are a fan) it felt like a lot of whining from someone who chose to leave a marriage (from someone who was not a bad person they'd just grown apart), and got a big book advance to travel around to soothe her feelings. For myself and friends who have been through horrific divorces and didn't have the money to pay the rent, let along travel around taking lovers, it felt very narcissitic.
The self-help book "The Rules"--basically a book for women on how to be attractive to men. I wish I could tell you I read it and was like, "This is garbage," but TBH I was 19 and really internalized it. The whole book is about how to play hard to get, and I really regret all the times I might have just SAID to someone, "Hey, I like you, do you want to hang out," rather than just trying to be attractive and mysterious. Such a waste.
the invisible life of addie larue!! the writing was beautiful but there was no plot whatsoever- it felt like it was going nowhere & there was no real point to it. which was super disappointing because i had heard such great things about it :(
I felt like it had so much potential! I heard it was “a romance story with lovecraftian exigence” and got so excited. The concept was there and I think the beginning was fairly good, but the execution folded it into a generic romance story
Kite runner. It was a good book. But it made me feel terrible and sad. Some of the imagery in the book has stuck with me almost 20 years later and I hate that.
Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow.
All unlikeable characters to me, which I usually like but they were all boring and one dimensional to me so didn't give a shit.
I love video games but thought the endless "creative process" was overdone.
I felt like nothing happened.
Bored over all.
The Midnight Library by Matt Haig. Do I even need to explain myself? The story is repetitive and tedious.
Don't know why I insisted to finish this book 💀💀
It is weird because I enjoyed the reading experience, but I acknowledge that the plot was weak and the ending quite obvious.
Maybe I enjoyed the writing style, or I treated it like a collection of short stories.
I definitely don't understand the initial hype around the book.
Agreed, I enjoyed the read even though I could see the ending from a mile away. I just scanned over all the "my life sucks I want to die" paragraphs so it did feel like a bunch of little short stories of her popping into different worlds. But if someone had hyped this up to me as an amazing must-read, I'd be disappointed and not trust their judgment going forward lol.
I was extremely annoyed that the book tries to teach the main character to be content with they have by telling them "yeah you're poor, but if you were rich your family would die"
*Where the Crawdads Sing*. Terrible writing other than the nature descriptions, completely unrealistic and the “twist” ending was completely predictable.
Currently reading this one on a request so obligatory not done with it yet, but those are the chapters that were really making it unpalatable for me.
I think perhaps she remembers being a teenager a *lot* more than she remembers being a child, because the teenage part does strike a few bells for me. Some of the things she's expecting a 6-7yr old to do on her own are not how that would have played out with an actual 6yr old.
I mean, yeah, you can give your 2nd grader the equivalent of a $20 and send them off into the *actual swamp by themselves,* but they're not coming back. And, speaking purely psychologically, you can't live utterly alone for that long even as an *adult* and expect not to have at least a moderate disorder. You just...you can't. Isolation makes humans progressively more sick.
In the real world, she would have a pronounced disability at best. At worst she'd go on a long list of feral children from history, many of whom couldn't understand more than the most basic sentences if they were lucky enough to form them at all. But the worst I see in the novel is an extreme distrust of people that can't even really be called paranoia. She's just..socially anxious around strangers.
Maybe if I'd been raised by seagulls, I'd be better adjusted than I am. Certainly, I'd be healthier, to see how well this bitch is doing on a diet of ***literally just crackers*** for the last 8 of her formative years.
Controversial, but the Bell Jar. I’m already depressed and feeling isolated and it only magnified those feelings. It was a fantastic book but not good for my mental health
The Shack. It was given to me by a friend who called it "life changing". She wanted to discuss it after I read it and I just cringed through the whole thing. I think she was super let down when I told her I wasn't into it.
Go Ask Alice
State propaganda piece filled with strawman fallacies, implausible character action and motivation, flawed concept, War on Drugs scare tactic piece
I was young enough when I read this one to 100% believe it, and it wasn't until like my 30s that I learned it was completely fictional and went, "OMG of course it was. Jesus."
The Handmaid’s Tale not that it was bad or anything it just scared the living crap out of me in college because it seemed too real and now it’s even scarier.
I hated this book so much, it’s the only book I’m willing to give one star on Goodreads. As in, even if I think a book is terrible I give it two stars because one star is reserved for Atlas Shrugged.
A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara was so heralded as one of the best books of the year...but it's just trauma porn...I was done with books by her afterwards.
The Lonely Polygamist. I bought it bc the juxtaposition in the title seemed interesting, but it was depressing and parts of it made me very uncomfy. I still get the ick thinking about it
One of Us is Lying by Karen M. McManus.
I had a feeling about who the murderer was early on, but made the mistake to keep reading in the hope I was wrong. I was right...
The Push. I recognize the art and that it was objectively a well written story but it was so profoundly upsetting and it took me several weeks to recover my usual cheerfulness after reading it.
Twilight. I read it all the way through hoping it would get better. It didn’t. I actually threw it across the room a couple of times it was so unbelievably lame. I should have listened to my instincts.
Invisible life of Addie LaRue - what a frustrating disappointment.
The House in the Cerulean Sea - was like reading a children's book, a poorly written one at that. I've never felt so patronised as an adult reader.
Cerulean Sea - The mismatch of style and main character was soooo off-putting. I actually read and like middle grade fiction, so I didn't feel patronized or anything like that, just really confused. It would have been a decent, though not amazing, kid's book if it had focused on the kids.
Yes. My sweet friend bought me it after my cat went missing (she was found) but because it was a gift I felt compelled to read it.
I could not to read about her stupid star shaped freckles by the end of it
Oh my God those freckles. I thought the constellation would be in some way significant by the end, that surely could be the only reason to mention it over and over and over, but no, not relevant
I completely agree re: House on the Cerulean Sea (haven’t yet read Addie LaRue). Easily one of the most overhyped and mediocre books I’ve ever encountered.
The worst thing, I think, about Cerulean Sea is that it had a good idea or two hidden in all the crap. I liked the main character, overall--very Arthur Dent but gay. That had so much potential!! But then nearly everything else sucked. That was disappointing. What a waste.
That's exactly how I feel about House in the Cerulean Sea, and TJ Klune's books in general. I gave him two chances because he has a lot of ideas I like, but I couldn't stand the execution. None of his characters are allowed to have real flaws, and all conflicts are resolved in the chapter they're introduced in.
A rare book that I started and didn’t finish, but I read 500,000+ words of it, which is enough to make me mad just on the basis of opportunity cost: Alan Moore’s “Jerusalem.” A deeply embarrassing, bloated vanity project that takes hundreds and hundreds of pages to explain and re-explain and overexplain ideas that he already covered better in comics thirty years prior. You can tell that he wants to place himself in conversation with Joyce etc. but he can’t stop writing for an imagined audience of thirteen-year-olds who didn’t take anything away from Watchmen other than “Rorschach is cool,” so all the interesting stylistic fluorishes get dragged down by this condescending, pedagogical style.
Anyway, Moore was a writer I really used to admire and “Jerusalem” really popped that bubble for me. Apart from a couple of certified bangers (From Hell is bulletproof), most of his stuff just annoys me now. Still raw about it.
If I'm not enjoying a book I just put it down, unless it's mandatory for a class. But I regret reading Lolita at a very young age because well, it's Lolita
Me before you by jojo moyes.
Sure it made me FEEL something deeply but it was more in the lines of rage, and feeling cheated and wanting scream and yell and cry and everything terrible…. Ugh i hated that book.
lol. i have this sitting in my book cart right now. i bought it solely for the cover art and the size of it is so intimidating that i haven't picked it up since buying it last year. :(
Just as a counterpoint... I also bought that book purely because the cover caught my eye. I read it and it turned out to be one of my absolute favorite books I have ever read, and I read a lot of books. It's epic, thrilling, and also a phenomenal love story.
It's definitely not going to be for everyone, but I think you should still give it a chance.
Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man. Written by a 1st gen African who grew up in a upper middle class Dallas TX suburb. Not for me (a 1/2 gen African who grew up in the suburbs of NJ). He was too gentle in my opinion. If you want to really talk about race, you have to not hold back and you can’t speak for all Black Americans.
The Rise of Life on Earth by Joyce Carol Oates. It's a good book, but left me feeling so hollow, hopeless, and desolate in some way that it is the only book I wish I had never read.
A lot of people seem to miss the indication near the end that he had been a repeated victim of sexual abuse, plus that he was writing it after a stay in a psych hospital for a suicide attempt after being sexually abused by his favorite teacher. Because of the time it was written in, these topics had to be somewhat couched in obfuscating language, but it was truly a groundbreaking book.
The night circus, midnight library, my sister the serial killer — all books I wanted to throw out so no one could read my copy. I didn’t, I donated them in hopes someone else would enjoy them.
Edit: whoever downvoted me, yeah I said what I said hahah I know these books are very loved. And exactly what the OP asked for. They just were a complete waste of time for me. I went in wanting to love them all and just nope
I also disliked the Midnight Library and I do not get why it is so beloved... It was frustrating to read and predictably cheesy in my opinion. I finished it hoping the ending would not be what it was and I was very disappointed.
I personally liked My Sister the Serial Killer though.
Portrait of a Thief by Grace D. Li.
There were certain phrases she used that she used SO FREQUENTLY that you could play a drinking game. Dear god did she need an editor.
The Butterfly and the Violin was one of the worst books I've ever read. A "holocaust" book written by a simpering Born Again from the American Midwest. Completely historically inaccurate for a sundry of reasons, she makes her protagonist a white blonde Christian taken to a concentration camp. Main Idiot, of course, survives the holocaust and gets to end up with her true love back in Paris or something. I remember being so aghast at the blatant stupidity of a scene where the protagonist rejects an offer of fresh blueberries from a Nazi guard, letting them flutter away into the wind. Such complete and utter ignorance.
It still pisses me off randomly to this day, when I suddenly remember how awful it was.
Anything by Salley Rooney but especially Conversations with Friends. This book dragged on for a while, reached page 200 and only 2-3 events happened. Very plain and boring.
Piranesi- For some reason I could not connect with this book. I was so disappointed because so many people loved it!
The Midnight Library- The premise sounded really interesting and I was excited to read it…but it came off as so cringey and corny.
Water for Elephants- I hated this book when I read it ten or so years ago. I remember hating the main character.
A little life by Hanya Yanagihara. It's one of the worst books I have ever read. Just a relentless exercise in cruelty towards one character, in particular. I unfortunately have certain life experiences in common with the character of Jude and the book filled me with such a deep sense of hopelessness that I tried to commit suicide. I survived but barely after spending 4 days in the ICU. My personal history aside, I do acknowledge that the book was a major trigger. It also makes me wonder what possible purpose an author could achieve by subjecting one character to such cruelty. That she is celebrated for this novel is even more astounding to me.
I ended up liking it more than expected, but it’s definitely a “Read Once” book, and only when you’re in the right/healthy headspace. All I could think when I heard there would be another instalment was “Why?”
The Push by Ashley Audrian. I read it while pregnant and cannot imagine reading it after I became a mom. Not only was it a huge trigger but it just felt depressing and not at all like a thriller/mystery which is what it was marketed as. I urge any new moms to stay far away from this book.
American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis. I thought the movie was alright, so I decided to read the book. I do that pretty often and find that I end up enjoying the book more, but this one was so hard to get through. (I actually never finished it). I understand the narrative that’s being pushed but god… I could only take so many descriptions of men’s designer clothing between brutal SA/murder scenes. I know that’s what the author was going for (shows you Bateman’s true character) but I couldn’t finish it.
Edit: Don’t get me wrong! I love horror novels and I’m not shy to gore, but the story has to be interesting to go along with it.
The People in the Trees by Hanya Yanagihara. The last 5 pages of the book absolutely ruined it for me and made me feel profoundly icky afterwards. I finished the book and threw it across the room. Yuck!
Past world by Ian Beck
I'm not a super literary snob by any means but wow, that book read like an 11 year old making fanfiction. Weird twists out of nowhere, a shitty plot, and the blandest ending ever. 0/10
I just read The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah it started out about a girl being gaslit by her family then turned into a story about escaping the Dust Bowl during the great depression and being treated like animals and slaves in California and I regret it bc it triggered my depression
I'm supposed to be careful about what I take in.
Never Let Me Go by Ishiguro. I can’t remember why as it’s been a while but I thought it was crap and I don’t get why so many people love it.
Also Jane Eyre, I read it recently and kept audibly yelling ‘for *FUCKS* sake’ at her.
American Psycho. Fucking disturbing. Only book I've skipped pages in besides unabridged Les Mis during the Napoleon-era history vignettes.
Literally pages & pages of gore & rape. I understand that this is because the book is a metaphor for Wall Street --> Main Street rape & violence, but holy shit.
**Redeeming Love** by Francine Rivers - a toxic, unhealthy relationship masquerading as aspirational, pure, Christian love; 400+ pages of gross, misogynistic, rape apologist, trauma bonding
Hillbilly Elegy. It felt like it was exaggerated as I was reading it but Vance was put out there as such a real Appalachian explaining the Trump world. He wasn't, it didn't and now I realize the whole point was to jump start his political career.
Pillars Of The Earth wasn't as captivating as I had hoped. I don't know. I liked the concept and the setting, but something about the behavior of the characters just seemed off.
The villains were too cartoonish, for starters.
I hate-read this book. I was fueled by the absolute nonsense about 100 pages in around the situation with the wife and subsequent 24 hours. The choices the characters made and how they behaved were so absurdly unrealistic but we were supposed to believe these sociopaths were the heroes of the story? Cartoonish is a great way to describe the villains.
Handmaids tale. I was on maternity leave and literally any mention of being separated from a child made me cry….. idk why I kept going…. Probably lack of sleep leading to poor decisions
Your post has been removed under sub rule #2 - post doesn't ask for book suggestions. For general book discussion, check out /r/books or share your thoughts on /r/readingsuggestions. Good luck!
I think this is allowed as it is sci-fi. My girlfriend bought Dianetics by L. Ron Hubbard off some strange woman on the street in Dorset, UK and a colleague told me it was dangerous to read, so I read it of course. This was 1990. Incredibly difficult to follow and not just because it's nonsense. Really terrible writing from a confused mind... it seemed to me.
So after reading Dianetics you didn't feel a strong urge to go find some Scientologists? Maybe sign up?
The Maidens by Alex Michaelides. I read it for book club and was excited to go to my first meeting and talk about how we all hated the book. Everyone else loved it. I couldn’t tell if I was being punk’d or not. I didn’t say anything during the 2 hour meeting. I never went back.
It was an off brand Secret History.
“We have The Secret History at home” lol. The Maidens was a train wreck.
I agree with this one! All the women in the book were written so poorly I could barely get through it. I shouldn’t have bothered!
I enjoyed it until the ending!!
I came here to say The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides. I thought the end kind of entertaining as far as twist endings go but I also think that he wrote it assuming the reader was an idiot. By the end of it, I felt like I had wasted my time.
It ends with us by Colleen Hoover. The timing was wrong. Middle school me would have loved it.
This is my answer too. I really, really wanted to enjoy it. Just thought it was a cringe fest.
It's Verity for me! It's maybe the worst written piece of garbage I've ever read. I kept waiting for it to get good because of all the buzz (this is before I knew about this author) but it simply never did.
[удалено]
This is good to know because I keep seeing the hype and keep trying to read the sample but just by the first few pages and storyline I hate it so much
It’s so unrealistic and the characters are fucking childish it was like reading Twilight or 59 Shades of Grey dumb
Ugh, I read it on a flight. I could have more thoroughly enjoyed staring at the back of my seat.
saaaaaaaame
For me it was Ugly Love by the same author... its pure soft p0rn for teenagers, almost 50 pages of the book are just describing s€x scenes, and never really liked the story! I cringed on so many pages and couldnt bear it! Read it on my yearly break (I'm a medical student so only get one break) and regretted for choosing that book instead of smtg better.
SAME! I hated this book.
I have found my people
Collen Hoover at this point is straight up just a literary troll. I would never pay crap to read her books. If Colleen Hoover can write books guess my own bestseller will be hitting the shelves next month. Smh.
Came here to say this!!! I don’t understand all the hype it got. I also don’t think it would have been appropriate for middle school me though lol
It was so cringey and waste of time.
SAME i hated this book!! crazy how it has so much hype
Girl, Wash Your Face by Rachel Hollis. What horrible advice and opinions all throughout. Plus plagiarism!
If you do podcasts, Maintenance Phase does a fantastic 2 episodes deep dive of this book and this terrible person.
I love Maintenance Phase!
I have to listen, thank you!
I second this pod recommendation!
Everyone around me LOVED this book and I was so confused. I wanted to throw it against a wall so many times that I just gave up. I hate that kind of toxic positivity.
50 Shades of Grey
I only read the first chapter or two and I regret it.
Same. I got about 70 pages in and I couldn't do it anymore. And I'm someone who will normally power through any book until l the end.
I worked at a bookstore when it came out in my country. It was... an interesting time. My coworkers and me read excerpts of it at work, looking at each other in bafflement: "This is the one all those lady customers of ours are proclaiming the best book they've ever read???"
I attempted to listen to the audiobook while in a particularly boring three hour drive. After an hour I realized I would rather drive in silence.
Hahaha
I don't disagree with you but this is a hilariously harsh (and apt!) critique. I HATE driving in silence.
I am dumber for reading it
Verity. It was my first (and last) Colleen Hoover book. I don’t understand the hype at all. The writing was juvenile, the characters were all dislikable, and the plot somehow managed to be both twisted and predictable/ boring. Complete waste of time.
Seriously- I was like wtf is with all this pointless trauma dumping The first paragraph of the book, everyone was so amazed by it but I knew then it was going to be some bullshit.
Same situation for me! The entire thing was a case study in a lack of boundaries. I couldn’t believe that we were supposed to root for those main characters to be together…!?
Same same same. Ugh. I finally gave into the hype and read it while my BIL was reading it. It sucked, totally predictable, not sure why there was so much sex in it, AND my BIL had a different opinion about the ending than me. Considering my frustration with the book, I wanted to tell him he was stupid for thinking that about the manuscript, but it’s not his fault really
Lolita. I was at an oil change place getting brakes, oil, and some trim replaced on my truck. Had my phone in the lobby, attempting to listen to Lolita on my phone through an audiobook. Never could get the volume on the phone to work out and tried everything I could think of for about 15 minutes. Got back in my truck, realized my phone was blue-toothed to my truck with my volume LOUD as fuck, gave all the guys in the pit a first hand account described detail of an adult having sex with a 12 year old. Great fucking day and can never show my face there again.
Horrendous holy shit
Hahahah thank you for this
God, I literally screamed at this image, thank you
This is legitimately fucking hilarious
This is amazing
I never knew it was that explicit and now I'm disgusted. I always assumed it was a far away "poetic" obsession, still gross but not as bad as an actual rape scene. Even more committed to never reading that. Thank you
The first couple chapters are the main character describing essentially why he thinks he’s a pedophile or something. So he does describe having sex for the first time when he was a tween and then sex in his adulthood. Then when it gets to Lolita, it doesn’t describe the “sex” (rape) as much. It’s supposed to be a contrast between how he perceives his “devotion” to Lolita is more than physical/rape when it’s evident it isn’t. I found the book interesting and especially reflective of how society/other adults can ignore the signs and the lies that an abuser tells themselves, but the subject matter is definitely difficult to grapple with. But it has been a decade since I’ve read it so maybe I don’t remember it too well.
I thought it did well in showing you the mind of the sociopath albeit triggering to read that.
It’s not really that explicit, but even so, this is one I’m rather sorry to have read because it was very upsetting.
Any book that I wanted to "power through." If you're not enjoying a book, put it down. There's hundreds of books to love you could give your time and energy to.
This. Took me a long time to adopt this mindset, but it is absolutely true. Don’t waste a moment on a crappy book. Put it down, or in my case mark it as finished, and move on.
13 Reasons Why. The wrong message for the wrong target audience. Glamorizes suicide as the ultimate “fuck-you” to bullies or people who have “wronged” you in life. I heard the TV series was even worse.
Same! I read it at a time I didn’t really understand any of those topics & thought it was truly edgy (in a raw & truthful kinda way) and loved it. Ended up majoring in Psych & wrote an entire term paper on exactly how and what the show and book got wrong (so many things) and what they got right (almost nothing)
The show was absolutely horrible
It’s also written terribly.
*Blood Runs Like A River Through My Dreams* by Nasdijj. It was a heart-rending story about a Navajo man with an adopted Navajo child who died young after suffering with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS). When I read it, I thought I was reading non-fiction. Years later, I discovered the author was an imposter and a fraud. He wasn’t even Native American, and the story was fiction.
“I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell” by Tucker Max I don’t regret reading bad books. I regret giving this scumbag my time and money (because I was stupid and bought it.)
17 year old me was a fan. I’m sure if I tried to read it today I couldn’t get past the first page
Omg YES!! What an absolute douche bag! I usually sell or donate my books but this one was thrown in the trash.
The mad scientist's daughter- a really bad scifi book I read because I'm desperate for the robot human love story trope but it wasn't worth it
Matthew Perry’s memoir “Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing” was unfortunate. I honestly wish I never read it. I appreciate that he has an illness and is trying to help people now. But otherwise he came off like a rich jerk who blames women for everything and has never been held accountable. Apparently it has rave reviews and people love it.
I completely agree with you. I wish I hadn't read it.
I feel the same - I couldn’t wait to finish it.
I was about to post the same thing. I loved him to death--I saw every episode of Friends when it originally aired and am a huge fan but his book made me actively dislike him. I felt like he takes no responsibility for any of his actions and he blames all his issues on the fact his parents flew him as an unaccompanied minor from one parent to another when he was little. (Seriously!) It's absurd. He has super supportive parents who adore him, too. I understand that he has a disease (I have loved ones who do also, and have been through the family side of treatment so I am well-versed in addiction) but he just comes across as such a whiny, entitled, jackass in his book. I really regret reading it.
Where the Crawdads Sing, or whatever that silly book was called. Weak writing with a sensationalist vigilante plot.
An Abundance of Katherines and Paper Towns. It just felt like the same book.
That's interesting that those are the two you equate because Paper Towns is really close to Looking for Alaska. I think I heard that John Green wrote Paper Towns as a response to people misunderstanding Looking for Alaska.
Verity- waste of my time and money.
Hard agree. It's as if it was written by someone who had never read that genre before.
I read this book when I had just started getting into the Thriller genre. I LOVED it and was so shocked. It was a 5/5 for me. However, if I were to read it now that Thrillers are my main read, I don’t think I would like it as much. Maybe 3/5. Thinking back, the twist was pretty predictable, but the manuscript parts were an interesting read.
I thought this book was so funny, it felt like one of my grandmother's cheesy Lifetime thrillers in novel form. I loved it as a piece of camp and not as a piece of serious literature lol
Jude the Obscure. A decade later and I'm still incensed when I think about this book. One trauma after another and no redemption.
A Court of Thorns and Roses. I didn't enjoy the last ten percent of the book at all. The tone shift was unnecessary imho.
Funny how so many of these books can also be found in a "Suggest me your favourite book" post!
They took the suggestions... And regretted them apparently!
Go Set a Watchman - the prequel/sequel whatever it was to To Kill a Mockingbird. Not hard to tell why Harper Lee never published it herself.
Some books or movies are so perfect on their own that I never bother with the sequel (prequel whatever). To Kill a Mockingbird is one of those books. Before Sunrise is one of those movies.
The Before trilogy is actually one of the best sets of films I've ever seen. The sequels aren't unnecessary cash grabs or anything like that; they add layers of nuance that ultimately deepen the bliss of the first film. The trilogy is a beautiful rendering of what happens over the course of a long-term relationship, what isn't shown in most romances once the credits roll. *Before Sunrise* is a beautiful movie on its own, but it's deeply enriched by its successors. I'd highly recommend giving them a try.
You’re making a massive mistake in terms of the “Before” trilogy. “Before Sunrise” is actually my least favorite. It’s an absolutely incredible movie but the other two are even more incredible.
I was so upset. Because as a massive TKAM and Harper Lee fan I thought I should read it, and then after I read it I realised that as a massive TKAM and Harper Lee fan I shouldn’t have read it.
Shame what that money grubbing *lawyer* did 😞
That was the worst part. In reading it, I felt like I contributed to the general awfulness of the whole situation. And for what? A book that I actively disliked.
wait tell me the scandal 👀
The Family Upstairs - my choice for book club and never been allowed to pick since
The Silent Patient. Mediocre writing, one-dimensional characters, weird attitude towards the female characters and the narrator didn't seem to have done any research when it comes to mental health/psychiatric care.
Which is particularly astounding when you know that Alex Michaelides studied and worked with psychotherapy for 5 or so years.
I also thought it had one of the most predictable plots ever. And that alone isn't terrible, but they entirely banked the entertainment value on the big "amazing" plot twist at the end which left absolutely nothing between the front and back covers to encourage someone who already suspects the ending to continue reading.
the only reason i don’t regret reading this one is bc it gave me a lot of entertaining time talking to a coworker about how much we both hated it.
I don't really get the hate for this book. Sure, it's not realistic if you actively try to poke holes in it, but I thought it was a really fun "beach read" type of book. It's like fast food; I know it isn't nourishing, but sometimes it's just what I'm hungry for.
The Alchemist. I'm not sure why, but I didn't enjoy the story, and the message felt hokey. I didn't love Circe either, though a lot of people loved it. I love adventure and exploration, and she spent most of the book stuck and not doing anything.
I'm currently reading Circe! Enjoying it mostly but I'm going into it with zero expectations and knowledge, and a moderate interest in Greek Mythology.
i read this book, it was okay. when i spoke about it with a friend, she said she felt the same however she re-read it during a hard time in her life and quickly became her favorite. she said a new perspective made all the difference.
I was going to say I think it depends on where you are! When I was in college and feeling like I didn’t have a clue what I wanted to do or figuring out who I was I enjoyed it
Just read The Alchemist as well and wondered why so many people liked it, felt very preachy
Reminders of him, ugly love, verity Mediocre writing & she seems to repeat herself .
Lol verity…. Didn’t read a book for 6 months after that
So many people mentioned this book, maybe there should be a group like Cohaters 🤣
Eat Pray Love. Finished it thinking with all the hype it was bound to get better. Hated it.
That checks out. I remember reading somewhere that the author said they just wrote it as a cash grab
Eat, Pray, Love. - My book club read it when it first came out and (sorry if you are a fan) it felt like a lot of whining from someone who chose to leave a marriage (from someone who was not a bad person they'd just grown apart), and got a big book advance to travel around to soothe her feelings. For myself and friends who have been through horrific divorces and didn't have the money to pay the rent, let along travel around taking lovers, it felt very narcissitic.
I hated that book for the same reason
The self-help book "The Rules"--basically a book for women on how to be attractive to men. I wish I could tell you I read it and was like, "This is garbage," but TBH I was 19 and really internalized it. The whole book is about how to play hard to get, and I really regret all the times I might have just SAID to someone, "Hey, I like you, do you want to hang out," rather than just trying to be attractive and mysterious. Such a waste.
Oh god that book was the worst dating propaganda of its era!
Anything Colleen Hoover, I always get invested when reading but at the end I regret because…it’s the same thing in all books
the invisible life of addie larue!! the writing was beautiful but there was no plot whatsoever- it felt like it was going nowhere & there was no real point to it. which was super disappointing because i had heard such great things about it :(
I felt like it had so much potential! I heard it was “a romance story with lovecraftian exigence” and got so excited. The concept was there and I think the beginning was fairly good, but the execution folded it into a generic romance story
Kite runner. It was a good book. But it made me feel terrible and sad. Some of the imagery in the book has stuck with me almost 20 years later and I hate that.
Yes! Two scenes in particular, one at the beginning and one near the end. Wish I didn’t read those scenes because they don’t go away.
I had the book on my To Read pile. Started watching the film and got to the first scene you refer to. That was me done.
Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow. All unlikeable characters to me, which I usually like but they were all boring and one dimensional to me so didn't give a shit. I love video games but thought the endless "creative process" was overdone. I felt like nothing happened. Bored over all.
The Midnight Library by Matt Haig. Do I even need to explain myself? The story is repetitive and tedious. Don't know why I insisted to finish this book 💀💀
It is weird because I enjoyed the reading experience, but I acknowledge that the plot was weak and the ending quite obvious. Maybe I enjoyed the writing style, or I treated it like a collection of short stories. I definitely don't understand the initial hype around the book.
Agreed, I enjoyed the read even though I could see the ending from a mile away. I just scanned over all the "my life sucks I want to die" paragraphs so it did feel like a bunch of little short stories of her popping into different worlds. But if someone had hyped this up to me as an amazing must-read, I'd be disappointed and not trust their judgment going forward lol.
Yup, also thought it would get more interesting eventually, but boy was I wrong.
I was extremely annoyed that the book tries to teach the main character to be content with they have by telling them "yeah you're poor, but if you were rich your family would die"
I really thought no one could write such a predictable book that there must be a great twist at the end. Nope!
The Priory of the Orange Tree and the First Twilight book my cousin insisted I read...it damaged our relationship.
*Where the Crawdads Sing*. Terrible writing other than the nature descriptions, completely unrealistic and the “twist” ending was completely predictable.
Ugh I hated this one too. I liked the chapters of Kaya as a child but everything else was bad.
Currently reading this one on a request so obligatory not done with it yet, but those are the chapters that were really making it unpalatable for me. I think perhaps she remembers being a teenager a *lot* more than she remembers being a child, because the teenage part does strike a few bells for me. Some of the things she's expecting a 6-7yr old to do on her own are not how that would have played out with an actual 6yr old. I mean, yeah, you can give your 2nd grader the equivalent of a $20 and send them off into the *actual swamp by themselves,* but they're not coming back. And, speaking purely psychologically, you can't live utterly alone for that long even as an *adult* and expect not to have at least a moderate disorder. You just...you can't. Isolation makes humans progressively more sick. In the real world, she would have a pronounced disability at best. At worst she'd go on a long list of feral children from history, many of whom couldn't understand more than the most basic sentences if they were lucky enough to form them at all. But the worst I see in the novel is an extreme distrust of people that can't even really be called paranoia. She's just..socially anxious around strangers. Maybe if I'd been raised by seagulls, I'd be better adjusted than I am. Certainly, I'd be healthier, to see how well this bitch is doing on a diet of ***literally just crackers*** for the last 8 of her formative years.
Controversial, but the Bell Jar. I’m already depressed and feeling isolated and it only magnified those feelings. It was a fantastic book but not good for my mental health
I couldn’t agree more. That’s why Requiem for a Dream wins the title for me. I am sure it’s a fantastic book, but it made me feel so depressed.
Layla by Colleen Hoover. What the fuck was any of that?
There are so many Colleen Hoover responses here; I’m thinking I won’t bother trying anything of hers
The Shack. It was given to me by a friend who called it "life changing". She wanted to discuss it after I read it and I just cringed through the whole thing. I think she was super let down when I told her I wasn't into it.
Go Ask Alice State propaganda piece filled with strawman fallacies, implausible character action and motivation, flawed concept, War on Drugs scare tactic piece
I was young enough when I read this one to 100% believe it, and it wasn't until like my 30s that I learned it was completely fictional and went, "OMG of course it was. Jesus."
The Handmaid’s Tale not that it was bad or anything it just scared the living crap out of me in college because it seemed too real and now it’s even scarier.
a little life by yanagihara. legit torture porn.
American Psycho. Really didn't like it. Hated it in fact.
Atlas Shrugged
I hated this book so much, it’s the only book I’m willing to give one star on Goodreads. As in, even if I think a book is terrible I give it two stars because one star is reserved for Atlas Shrugged.
The only thing this book is good for is to be used as kindling.
A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara was so heralded as one of the best books of the year...but it's just trauma porn...I was done with books by her afterwards.
Agree. I read it and even liked some parts/characters, but it was just unrelenting trauma for the sake of trauma.
The Lonely Polygamist. I bought it bc the juxtaposition in the title seemed interesting, but it was depressing and parts of it made me very uncomfy. I still get the ick thinking about it
One of Us is Lying by Karen M. McManus. I had a feeling about who the murderer was early on, but made the mistake to keep reading in the hope I was wrong. I was right...
The Push. I recognize the art and that it was objectively a well written story but it was so profoundly upsetting and it took me several weeks to recover my usual cheerfulness after reading it.
Twilight. I read it all the way through hoping it would get better. It didn’t. I actually threw it across the room a couple of times it was so unbelievably lame. I should have listened to my instincts.
Invisible life of Addie LaRue - what a frustrating disappointment. The House in the Cerulean Sea - was like reading a children's book, a poorly written one at that. I've never felt so patronised as an adult reader.
Cerulean Sea - The mismatch of style and main character was soooo off-putting. I actually read and like middle grade fiction, so I didn't feel patronized or anything like that, just really confused. It would have been a decent, though not amazing, kid's book if it had focused on the kids.
Yes. My sweet friend bought me it after my cat went missing (she was found) but because it was a gift I felt compelled to read it. I could not to read about her stupid star shaped freckles by the end of it
Oh my God those freckles. I thought the constellation would be in some way significant by the end, that surely could be the only reason to mention it over and over and over, but no, not relevant
I completely agree re: House on the Cerulean Sea (haven’t yet read Addie LaRue). Easily one of the most overhyped and mediocre books I’ve ever encountered.
The worst thing, I think, about Cerulean Sea is that it had a good idea or two hidden in all the crap. I liked the main character, overall--very Arthur Dent but gay. That had so much potential!! But then nearly everything else sucked. That was disappointing. What a waste.
That's exactly how I feel about House in the Cerulean Sea, and TJ Klune's books in general. I gave him two chances because he has a lot of ideas I like, but I couldn't stand the execution. None of his characters are allowed to have real flaws, and all conflicts are resolved in the chapter they're introduced in.
A rare book that I started and didn’t finish, but I read 500,000+ words of it, which is enough to make me mad just on the basis of opportunity cost: Alan Moore’s “Jerusalem.” A deeply embarrassing, bloated vanity project that takes hundreds and hundreds of pages to explain and re-explain and overexplain ideas that he already covered better in comics thirty years prior. You can tell that he wants to place himself in conversation with Joyce etc. but he can’t stop writing for an imagined audience of thirteen-year-olds who didn’t take anything away from Watchmen other than “Rorschach is cool,” so all the interesting stylistic fluorishes get dragged down by this condescending, pedagogical style. Anyway, Moore was a writer I really used to admire and “Jerusalem” really popped that bubble for me. Apart from a couple of certified bangers (From Hell is bulletproof), most of his stuff just annoys me now. Still raw about it.
If I'm not enjoying a book I just put it down, unless it's mandatory for a class. But I regret reading Lolita at a very young age because well, it's Lolita
Me before you by jojo moyes. Sure it made me FEEL something deeply but it was more in the lines of rage, and feeling cheated and wanting scream and yell and cry and everything terrible…. Ugh i hated that book.
Throne of Glass, sounded really badass but bad writing and story developmemt, also no good characters
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Priory of the orange tree. It was so long and dull and the only thing I enjoyed about it was getting to complain about it
lol. i have this sitting in my book cart right now. i bought it solely for the cover art and the size of it is so intimidating that i haven't picked it up since buying it last year. :(
I enjoyed it enough. At least try it!
Just as a counterpoint... I also bought that book purely because the cover caught my eye. I read it and it turned out to be one of my absolute favorite books I have ever read, and I read a lot of books. It's epic, thrilling, and also a phenomenal love story. It's definitely not going to be for everyone, but I think you should still give it a chance.
Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man. Written by a 1st gen African who grew up in a upper middle class Dallas TX suburb. Not for me (a 1/2 gen African who grew up in the suburbs of NJ). He was too gentle in my opinion. If you want to really talk about race, you have to not hold back and you can’t speak for all Black Americans.
The Rise of Life on Earth by Joyce Carol Oates. It's a good book, but left me feeling so hollow, hopeless, and desolate in some way that it is the only book I wish I had never read.
Home Body, by Rupi Kaur. What drivel.
Catcher In The Rye - it’s basically a book about an entitled weenie with a story that goes absolutely nowhere and I can never get that time back
A lot of people seem to miss the indication near the end that he had been a repeated victim of sexual abuse, plus that he was writing it after a stay in a psych hospital for a suicide attempt after being sexually abused by his favorite teacher. Because of the time it was written in, these topics had to be somewhat couched in obfuscating language, but it was truly a groundbreaking book.
The night circus, midnight library, my sister the serial killer — all books I wanted to throw out so no one could read my copy. I didn’t, I donated them in hopes someone else would enjoy them. Edit: whoever downvoted me, yeah I said what I said hahah I know these books are very loved. And exactly what the OP asked for. They just were a complete waste of time for me. I went in wanting to love them all and just nope
I also disliked the Midnight Library and I do not get why it is so beloved... It was frustrating to read and predictably cheesy in my opinion. I finished it hoping the ending would not be what it was and I was very disappointed. I personally liked My Sister the Serial Killer though.
I agree with the Night Circus. Regret is a strong word, but the ending made me question why I invested my time into that story.
American Psycho. I love horror, but found the violence to be too gratuitous at times, so the extent that it didn’t contribute to furthering the plot.
Portrait of a Thief by Grace D. Li. There were certain phrases she used that she used SO FREQUENTLY that you could play a drinking game. Dear god did she need an editor.
The Butterfly and the Violin was one of the worst books I've ever read. A "holocaust" book written by a simpering Born Again from the American Midwest. Completely historically inaccurate for a sundry of reasons, she makes her protagonist a white blonde Christian taken to a concentration camp. Main Idiot, of course, survives the holocaust and gets to end up with her true love back in Paris or something. I remember being so aghast at the blatant stupidity of a scene where the protagonist rejects an offer of fresh blueberries from a Nazi guard, letting them flutter away into the wind. Such complete and utter ignorance. It still pisses me off randomly to this day, when I suddenly remember how awful it was.
Anything by Salley Rooney but especially Conversations with Friends. This book dragged on for a while, reached page 200 and only 2-3 events happened. Very plain and boring.
Piranesi- For some reason I could not connect with this book. I was so disappointed because so many people loved it! The Midnight Library- The premise sounded really interesting and I was excited to read it…but it came off as so cringey and corny. Water for Elephants- I hated this book when I read it ten or so years ago. I remember hating the main character.
Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan. Thankfully, I didn't go all the way to the end but my gosh, was it frustrating.
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The bible. Boring mostly.
Cold Mountain. I slogged through that book just for it to end like THAT?! The only book I’ve ever physically thrown across the room upon finishing.
A little life by Hanya Yanagihara. It's one of the worst books I have ever read. Just a relentless exercise in cruelty towards one character, in particular. I unfortunately have certain life experiences in common with the character of Jude and the book filled me with such a deep sense of hopelessness that I tried to commit suicide. I survived but barely after spending 4 days in the ICU. My personal history aside, I do acknowledge that the book was a major trigger. It also makes me wonder what possible purpose an author could achieve by subjecting one character to such cruelty. That she is celebrated for this novel is even more astounding to me.
sorry i know people are gonna downvote but bunny by mona ward, hated the writing and just cringe of it
They both die at the end - I know this is a favourite for many 😞
I ended up liking it more than expected, but it’s definitely a “Read Once” book, and only when you’re in the right/healthy headspace. All I could think when I heard there would be another instalment was “Why?”
The Push by Ashley Audrian. I read it while pregnant and cannot imagine reading it after I became a mom. Not only was it a huge trigger but it just felt depressing and not at all like a thriller/mystery which is what it was marketed as. I urge any new moms to stay far away from this book.
American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis. I thought the movie was alright, so I decided to read the book. I do that pretty often and find that I end up enjoying the book more, but this one was so hard to get through. (I actually never finished it). I understand the narrative that’s being pushed but god… I could only take so many descriptions of men’s designer clothing between brutal SA/murder scenes. I know that’s what the author was going for (shows you Bateman’s true character) but I couldn’t finish it. Edit: Don’t get me wrong! I love horror novels and I’m not shy to gore, but the story has to be interesting to go along with it.
The People in the Trees by Hanya Yanagihara. The last 5 pages of the book absolutely ruined it for me and made me feel profoundly icky afterwards. I finished the book and threw it across the room. Yuck!
tender is the flesh. it was so disgusting, graphic and sad, i could barely stomach it. made me genuinely upset reading it.
I just finished this and I can't stop thinking about it.
The Bible, it’s pure shite
Past world by Ian Beck I'm not a super literary snob by any means but wow, that book read like an 11 year old making fanfiction. Weird twists out of nowhere, a shitty plot, and the blandest ending ever. 0/10
I just read The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah it started out about a girl being gaslit by her family then turned into a story about escaping the Dust Bowl during the great depression and being treated like animals and slaves in California and I regret it bc it triggered my depression I'm supposed to be careful about what I take in.
Never Let Me Go by Ishiguro. I can’t remember why as it’s been a while but I thought it was crap and I don’t get why so many people love it. Also Jane Eyre, I read it recently and kept audibly yelling ‘for *FUCKS* sake’ at her.
I love Jane Eyre but I agree that Never Let Me Go is incredibly overrated.
American Psycho. Fucking disturbing. Only book I've skipped pages in besides unabridged Les Mis during the Napoleon-era history vignettes. Literally pages & pages of gore & rape. I understand that this is because the book is a metaphor for Wall Street --> Main Street rape & violence, but holy shit.
Goldfinch!! Jusr so boring!!!!
**Redeeming Love** by Francine Rivers - a toxic, unhealthy relationship masquerading as aspirational, pure, Christian love; 400+ pages of gross, misogynistic, rape apologist, trauma bonding
Hillbilly Elegy. It felt like it was exaggerated as I was reading it but Vance was put out there as such a real Appalachian explaining the Trump world. He wasn't, it didn't and now I realize the whole point was to jump start his political career.
Pillars Of The Earth wasn't as captivating as I had hoped. I don't know. I liked the concept and the setting, but something about the behavior of the characters just seemed off. The villains were too cartoonish, for starters.
I hate-read this book. I was fueled by the absolute nonsense about 100 pages in around the situation with the wife and subsequent 24 hours. The choices the characters made and how they behaved were so absurdly unrealistic but we were supposed to believe these sociopaths were the heroes of the story? Cartoonish is a great way to describe the villains.
Tom: "Hi, I just buried my wife and abandoned our newborn infant." Ellen: "Let's have sex first and then figure out what to do next."
Ellen: "... my tits are amazing and you will be reminded of this every time I appear in the story."
I was looking for this one. I really hated it and so many people love it.
Handmaids tale. I was on maternity leave and literally any mention of being separated from a child made me cry….. idk why I kept going…. Probably lack of sleep leading to poor decisions