What are the worst books you've read this year?

[JiltedJohnsJulie]

Having read the What is the best book you've read this year? thread I was wondering what the worst book you've read so far in 2012 is?

Mine would have to be either 50 Shades or Before I Go to Sleep.

Well, I've just finished The Sense of an Ending and am underwhelmed,

puffpants - ditto, read it early this year and just thought hey? really?

Now I read that one for book group and we had a great discussion about it. Mainly due to one of the members googling beforehand and giving some weird and wacky theories.

The Greatcoat by Helen Dunmore. What a dreary supposed ghost story. It was really only a novella and I still couldn't plough through it all. Dreary dreary dreary

We need to talk about Kevin by Lionel Shriver. I think it was cheap or something so I downloaded it after having seen the film. I didn't finish it, I just found it awful to read.

Me too Shelley - after a few chapters I just decided I didn't need to know.

Before I Go To Sleep!

I haven't read 50 shades of grey, because I don't care.

I was rather disappointed by a Graham Greene's novel: Stamboul Train. Shame, as I usually enjoy Graham Greene.

I was also disappointed by World War Z, I was expecting it to be more engaging.

puffpants It's listed quite a lot on the best reads

I also thought The Finkler Question was a load of toss. Kalooki Nights, OTOH, is quite good, if a bit too long. but Howard Jacobson does seem to have a problem with women, especially non-Jewish ones.
Also underwhelmed by the Sense of an Ending. Arthur and George much better. They quite often give someone the Booker several books after they really should have done, don't they?

Well I personally generally make a point of avoiding whatever won the Booker. I've read several 'winners' and thought they were awful and pretentious. They are often quite keen on post-colonial literature and I'm afraid I'm often not.

Well, having refused to read 50 Shades I then wasted far too much time reading 77 Shadow Street by Dean Koontz. I still don't know why I actually bothered to finish it - I must be into serious mental pain. He used to be a good writer but has now become a wingnut Tea Party caricature.

I am officially not going to read anything new of his ever again, will stick with rereading the old stuff.

50 shades by a mile.

A Discovery of Witches and even worse, it's sequel. Fucking stoopid.

Close third after the popular 50 shades of shite and BIGTS is The Suspicions of Mr Whicher

Oh dear am currently reading the first 50 shades!
Loved BIGTS, and We Need to Talk About Kevin.

Hated the Lovely Bones, that tosh with the dead bf who leaves her envelopes to open every month or whatever, Time Travellers Wife and The Slap was just awful.
I've always finished every book I've started until one recently which I got to page 2 and thought 'fuck this life's too short'. I can't even remember the name

Before I Go To Sleep wasn't that bad. It raised interesting questions like "What is identity without memory?"

I haven't read 50SOG and can't believe so many of you have so my "worst of 2012" is Victoria Hislop's The Island.

I really liked A Discovery of Witches - but then I don't rate it as serious fiction, just as a rather good supernatural romance type thing.

A Discovery of Witches was okay, the second one was drivel.

It has to be 50 shades- my inner goddess would have ripped off his sausage and served it to him on a platter- but still, each to their own.

Time Traveller's Wife. Just couldn't finish it. So boring - and I really liked the concept but ... yawn!

and that one about the American Missionary family in the Congo ..um..um.. so tedious my brain has deleted all memory ...

oh yeah, The Poisonwood Bible!

gok snoooooooort at inner goddesses and sausages.

God, the inner goddess and the subconscious. Firstly, you cannot talk to your sub-consious. Clue is in the name. Secondly, when you get two competing voices in your head, that is time to obtain professional help, not embark on an ill advised relationship with an abusive billionaire.