Which authors' success is a complete mystery to you?

[emkana]

Tony Parsons

Jodi Picoult

Horrid Henry. Baffling..

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philip pullman

that "abortionists daughter" woman

Jane feckin Austen, fgs

• must admit I do like some chicklit just for the pure escapism. Gotta stick up for Marian Keyes, Lisa Jewell, Jane Green and Adele Parkes as I have enjoyed most of theirs. Not sure who said Thomas Hardy with Tess but nooo - I love that book.

Ones I don't understand are

Jodie Picoult
Cecilia Ahern (nepotism perhaps?)
Chris Manby - especially Marrying for money - THE worst book I have ever read
Carole Matthews
Anything with "Please Daddy stop it" or something similar in the title

Hoorah for other people who don't like Philip Pullman - or at least His Dark Materials - the man can write but he can't PLOT - threw book 3 at wall in frustration !

Paul Coelho is terrible, I can't understand why people like "The Alchemist" etc at all unless it is that they are really short books for people who don't otherwise read!

Also kind of agree about Tolkien, the plots are all so linear and the word "doom" is grossly overused. However I do like the ideas in his books, which is probably why I like the recent Lord of the Rings films.

The misogny (?sp) in Martin Amis' work can be really distatesful.

Also Will Self has anyone mentione him? One of the only writers I can think of whose work actually made me feel physically ill.

brett easton ellis

ITA with Jodi Picoult posters. She writes terribly. Formulaic, stilted, amateur-ish prose.

jodi picoult is awful turgid, shallow pseudo-moralistic dribble- i will never get that time wasted back

but Rachel Cusk's writing in Arlington Park was beautiful, almost filmic

haven't read any of the other books tho so they may be shite for all I know

I vote for the bloke who wrote Birdsong - could not read that however hard I tried

I love Martin Amis and Will Self - I think its a generational thing

Worst author has to be Jeffrey Archer

Interesting to see such consensus on Rachel Cusk. I still haven't read Arlington Park but I haven't met anyone who had a good word to say about it, including the friend who's lent me her copy (after failing to sell it on Amazon marketplace ).

A Life's Work, at the time I read it (7 years ago now?? My copy is a hardback anyhow so must have been fairly new), felt to me like it expressed exactly how I felt about motherhood. Having seen the comments above I am now retrospectively very concerned about my mental health at the time.

I enjoyed The Lucky Ones though. Saving Agnes eminently forgettable.

Gosh, I seem to have read quite a bit of hers. hmm.

Cam, yes, I was thinking that but didn't want to out myself as ancient. Mind you, still don't like Will Self, sorry...

I knoe people say Martin Amis is mysogynistic, but a lot of his characters are leering caricatures - we are not meant to agree with their sexist views...
I was bowled over by his autobiography - he didn't come across as sexist at all - quite the opposite.

Its good to be ancient redadmiral, one has such a broader overview of things

Yes totally agree re his autobio I normally never read autobiographies as they are generally rubbish/ghostwritten by someone else

But when you get one written by a real author...I find Kingsley interesting too

DH Lawrence -what a creep
Salman Rushdie - how has he got away with it for so long? Self-indulgent lazy writing

Has anyone said James Pattinson? Truly awful

Dan Brown

Captain Corelli something, fell asleep before I could read the title.

Barbara Taylor Bradford and that Catherine Cookson womans stuff.

Most male authors.

Helen Dunmore

Margaret Atwood from Alias Grace onwards.

But most of all, I can't understand how Jane Austen is rated at all. Dreadfull stuff.

Sakura - burn it. The most depressing book I have ever read in my life. Save yourself and burn it now. Read her articles instead.

Also unreadable are:

Jeanette Winterson

Angela Carter

Joanne Harris - she seems to be both critically rated and popular - Gawd knows why - find her books (yes I've tried to read 3) stodgy and full of bollocks about the wind changing.

Nice to see this ailing thread revived!

Agree about Rowling. Haven't her fans EVER READ Diana Wynne Jones, who is ten times smarter? Rowling is the sausage product of publicity.

Also awful...
Ian McEwen. So far up self he's now reversing.
Carol Ann Laureate Self-Righteous Duffy.
Awful old scrote department - Kingsley Amis.

But I like Hemingway....

I love Jane Austin, Helen Dunmore and all Margaret Attwood.

I would say Jodi Picoult (read one read them all)and Sophie Hannah and Time Traveller' Wife -just off the top of my head.

I am not at all surprised about J K Rowling-she tells a good story and that is what children want (and why Enid Blyton has remained popular despite being banned by libraries at one point)

James Patterson. Truly dreadful dreadful stuff.