Which books have you decided not to finish and why?

The Hearing Trumpet by Leonora Carrington.
I kind of skim read it to sort of see what happened. The genre is 'fantastic' fiction, imo one batshit thing after another.

It was bought for me as a joke. There is due to be a film out about the author.

I've been trying to read Middlemarch too, I know what you mean about the sentences being dense. I think I might just watch the BBC adaptation instead!😂

I ploughed through two of those in sheer obstinacy, but I hated them. I also persevered through The Goldfinch and wished I hadn't, so have given up on Tartt entirely.

I couldn't be doing with Sally Rooney either, and gave up on the two of hers I've been loaned. I also have given myself permission to never have to finish Les Miserables - started it 4 times, gave up each time.

I realised at about 50 that I'm not going to have enough life left to read everything I want to. Not unless I quit doing everything else, at least. So why blow valuable reading time on something I don't like?

Oh dear a few of these are on my tbr pile, and I almost bought The Milkman yestetday but decided i need to read what i own..

I'm reading The Correspondent at the moment. I'm enjoying it somewhat but finding I'm having to stop and think as to who each person is. Now, a book with a similar format was The Appeal by Janice Hallet, and that absolutely grabbed me. Like they say on all the front covers, I really couldn't put it down! 😆

Piranesi by Susanna Clarke. I didn't read much of it. I hated the writing style, I didn't understand the story, I didn't understand who the characters are...just a big NOPE from me.

I'm currently reading Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke. Not loving it so far - not sure I'll be able to continue with it. I hate the writing style, and I hate the main character, Natalie.

I somehow, and miraculously, managed to read The Correspondent by Virginia Evans, but it was far from being my favourite book. I liked the letter-format of writing, but I didn't like the main character, Sybil, at ALL - and I hated that so many of her letters were her reminiscing her past. I generally don't enjoyreading about people's past and memories - neither in books or in TV series and films.

Some years ago I tried to read Blue Mind by Wallace Nichols. It's not a Fiction book, but I'm interested in water science so thought it would be an interesting book to read. It had some facinating points, but he waffles too much, and repeats points, which made me not finish the book.

'Cormac McCarthy’s The Road
A more depressing book would be difficult to imagine'

I slogged through that one. It was pretty brutal, but v interesting and well written so I stuck with it. But yes, grim

Elinor Oliphant. Painfully obvious plot from the get-go, badly written and unlikeable character.

Memoirs of a a Geisha. I'd just been to Japan and was looking forward to reading a modern classic but found the first 3 chapters so unbearably depressing I couldn't face the rest

Oh yes! I did finish the goldfinch but only because a friend of mine told me how she’d loved it so I kept thinking it would get better and then I was so far through I thought I might as well finish it. It was a slog though.

The Secret History sounds like the kind of book I might like but I’ve never tried it because I’m put off by the goldfinch.

Oh, I liked A Gentleman in Moscow. I did have to sort of 'slow down' to get into it, and let it unfold at its own pace. Found it rewarding in the end, though.

I couldn't get in to the Time Traveller's Wife either. I gave up on Cloud Atlas after persevering when a new character with a new voice was introduced about half way through. Painful.

We did this at university and I remember thinking it was just gratuitous horror. Awful book. Well written but absolutely not my thing.

The Hurricane Wars series - stopped halfway through book 2. Brilliant plot with interesting world building. But once the main characters had sex - which was described in detail - it just seemed to abandon the plot for sex scene after sex scene.

Silver Elite - same as above. It became porn and the plot stalled.

Both well written though and interesting and easy to read. Such a shame.

I’m getting really annoyed because the entire fantasy series seems to have changed into Mills and Boon with Magic and none have any age warnings on the outside. What happened to classic fantasy where you could say they’d had sex without describing any thrusting?

I couldn't read the Milkman and gave up quickly.

I read all of Gormenghast when it was cult reading in 6th Form in the early 70s.

Cormac McCarthy’s The Road
A more depressing book would be difficult to imagine
I read a synopsis to see if it was going to get any better - it wasn’t

The Midnight Library - sooo boring! 🥱

Like others, I gave up on The Milkman. I was given it as a present, and the blurb sounded ok but I got really bored. Nice to see it mentioned on this thread as I thought it was just me.

I've given up on Gormenghast a few times. I want to like it and I appreciate the writing but always struggle to get into it.

Practically every book described as genius, so all the literary nominees and winners- give me cosy books any day over the waffly books people admit they didn’t totally get!!! (Publishers are such evil geniuses!!)

I agree with this. I know that I would have given up on Middlemarch if I had tried reading it but I loved the audible version. I don't think an unabridged audio book is cheating - especially for a Victorian novel when books were often read aloud.

Edited to add: I would also recommend audio books for anyone struggling with Dickens (Bleak House was mentioned earlier in the thread). Martin Jarvis has narrated quite a few and he's brilliant. I enjoy reading Dickens but, for me, Martin Jarvis takes them to another level.

@HorseandHeron some arctic explorer time travelling to present day. I love timeslip novels but this seemed written by AI.

This must be The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley - I did finish but have no idea why the TV rights were snapped up before publication.

How far did you get with Wigan Pier? I have read it several times, but the second half is like a different book compared with the first half.

The Road to Wigan Pier
The Picture of Dorian Grey
Crime & Punishment
Also started A Little Life then shelved it. I may try it again.
Read Yellowface but honestly, it was a slog. No idea why it got such praise. Ditto To Kill a Mockingbird.

Another vote for Cloud Atlas here!

And Wolf Hall cannot plough through it in either book or audio format! Haven’t tried the TV version yet 😂

A Prayer for Owen Meaney. Nothing happens. It is just so tedious.

Wolf Hall. How can someone take a really interesting and exciting period of history and retell it in such a way I never want to hear about the Tudors again?

There are many more but these two stand out as I will never attempt to read them again.