Active discussions

Please or to access all these features

Talk
What we're reading

Find your new favourite book or recommend one on our Book forum.

Original poster

Which books have you decided not to finish and why?

239 replies

Fiddlesticks1 · 20/08/2026 07:20

Are there any books you decided not to continue reading and why?
For me two books.
The Plague Dogs- just found it too upsetting
and in the days of devouring books by Russian authors I gave up on Dostoyevsky because I found them depressing.

OP posts:
FionnulaTheCooler · 20/08/2026 07:49

Trainspotting. I just can't get on with Irvine Welsh's writing style.

MilkBreadToiletroll · 20/08/2026 07:48

Little Friend by Donna Tartt. The author was recommended to me by someone I admire so I really wanted to like it. I found it so slow that I gave up a couple of chapters in.

poundshopkardashians · 20/08/2026 07:42

@Timeforabiscuit yes to A Little Life - utterly miserable and no likeable characters, also completely unbelievable. I have no idea why such an awful book is so popular, it was truly miserable. I sort-of finished it by skipping large chunks (the abuse bits) but was left baffled by its popularity.

Cloud Atlas and Catch 22 I also abandoned, plus numerous others I can’t remember.

RubyPowderPuff · 20/08/2026 07:39

1Q84 by Haruki Murakami. Faltering at the last 1/4, because of where the story goes. The first 3/4 are worth a read.

Timeforabiscuit · 20/08/2026 07:38

A little life - overwhelmingly horrible and miserable to read

Piranesi - people raved about it, but I couldn't connect with it

PersephoneParlormaid · 20/08/2026 07:35

Tuesdays with Morrie was recommended on TikTok and I just can’t take to it.

TheChosenTwo · 20/08/2026 07:34

Atonement - just found it so dull.
only made it through the first 2 or 3 chapters and threw the towel in.

LemonRedwood · 20/08/2026 07:34

I wish I hadn't finished The Miniaturist, but I did plough all the way through. It was recommended to me by a friend who I must have done something to offend and they wanted me to suffer.

Mt563 · 20/08/2026 07:34

The midnight library.

AlwaysExtraHot · 20/08/2026 07:34

Prophet Song, Paul Lynch. Realised I was dreading going to bed while reading it, and going to bed with a book is usually just about my favourite thing to do. I do know it’s meant to be grim, but I decided I didn’t need to feel like that.

LemonRedwood · 20/08/2026 07:32

As a PP said, I also found Life of Pi dull so didn't finish.

American Psycho was also difficult to read, for different reasons. I didn't finish it because it made me feel physically ill. I did look up the ending though.

WhatNextImScared · 20/08/2026 07:31

The paper palace. Just didn’t get the hype and was bored

Lexy2345 · 20/08/2026 07:29

A lot less highbrow but I’ve struggled to get through The Divorce by Frieda McFadden, and Daniel Hurst’s The Happy Family. Both authors have written well in the past but seem to be phoning it in these days. The books are formulaic and the twists are predictable.

tsmainsqueeze · 20/08/2026 07:25

Time travellers wife and life of pi.
Difficult to read and boring.