Books that you thought you'd love but didn't.

[CaramelJones]

I thought that I was going to love We Have Always Lived in the Castle and The Haunting of Hill House but I didn't, in spite of how many boxes they ticked for me.

Which books were you disappointed by?

Where the Crawdads Sing - the blurb makes it sound as though it would be just my sort of thing, I love stories of the lives of women and girls and I know it's very popular, I thought it was completely unbelievable, the two major plotlines didn't work together, random poetry.

This is Going to Hurt by Adam Kay - I also love memoirs and again, very popular, it was just shocking, sneery and nasty, not at all funny.

The Da Vinci Code, everyone was raving about it and my friend kindly bought me the paperback as she loved it and so wanted me to read it. I hated it. I'm not university educated and yet every paragraph had me grinding my teeth and wanting to rewrite it. I don't think this was down to the fact that it is written in American English as I have read loads of American authors and enjoyed their books, but this book seemed to me, to be written so badly with such poorly constructed sentences that I couldn't concentrate on the actual story.

Persevered to the end by speed reading and then chucked it into the recycling bin (didn't think it was good enough for the charity shop), but didn't tell my lovely friend.

I didn't like Eleanor Oliphant at all. I thought the main character was unrealistic and unbelievable. Over rated in my opinion.

Interesting to see what books everyone felt let down by. I'm going to read WTCS soon and I suspect that the main character is too much of a Manic Pixie Dream Girl for my liking but I still want to read it.

The Da Vinci Code was shite. My late dad gave me his copy when I was pregnant with DD. It was so awful it made me cross that something so badly written could get published.

Where The Crawdads Sing - again disappointingly awful. Terrible dialogue, atrocious poems, but some lovely nature writing.

I thought I'd really love My Brilliant Friend and sequels. I've tried twice, can't get beyond half way. It should have been exactly what I love but I hate it.

I'm reading Uprooted by Naomi Novik. The description is totally my jam. I'm finding it really irritating.

Last Days Adam Nevill. I'm about two 3rds through it and really struggling to finish it. Its so boring!

Richard Osmans first book (not read the others). Everyone is always racing about it online and we're very eager for the second and third in the series buy I must have missed the memo. It was ok but only just.

Sorry for all the typos :(

Mr Norell and Dr Strange - thought I would love it - over 600 pages of rambling text

Jonathan Strange even - I watched Dr Strange at the weekend 😂

The Lovely Bones. Dreadful book.

The Secret History - Donna Tartt - love a novel set in a university but just found this annoying and dull.

The Thursday Murder Club - Richard Osman - so twee.

Come Again - Robert Webb - good concept of going back in time to your student days but really bad car chase episode which went on far too long and was just odd.

Richard Osmans first book (not read the others). Everyone is always racing about it online and we're very eager for the second and third in the series buy I must have missed the memo. It was ok but only just.

I read his first book last week and I agree with your assessment.

Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson - classic American fiction, had seen it recommended by so many people whose opinions I respect. I could understand why it's well regarded as a work of literature, but I just didn't gel with it.

Still Life by Sarah Winman - again, recommended and loved by lots of people, but I found it horribly twee.

The Slap. I gave up after 50 pages.

Piranesi - still don't really know WTF was going on there. Albatrosses, statues, not for me.

Crawdads absolutely, I love books with great focus on things like nature so thought I would love it but the romantic plot and the totally unbelievable scenarios, girl brings herself up in the wild and grows into this amazing beauty! yeh right

Revolutionary Road. Horribly depressing and I hadn’t realised it involved a situation painfully close to one I had been in.

This Is Going To Hurt. I’ve worked with medics a lot and know they can have very dark humour about patients, but this was another level. Really nasty stuff, lack of empathy for vulnerable patients. He said he didn’t like doing the menopause clinic - “old women with saggy pelvic floors” - I hate to think of needing to see a gynaecologist who despises women.

Graham Norton's Holding. I found it rather pedestrian and I really wanted to like it.

Jaws - stick to the movie. Honestly, don't waste your eyes.

Catch 22 - everyone seems to rave about it. But it's one of the most puerile and misogynistic shambles I've ever read.

Piranesi. Sounded like just my thing, and I wish I liked it, but I haven't managed to get past the first couple of chapters.

Haha yes this exactly!

Agree with those saying the Da Vinci Code. I only finished it because I was on a long haul flight and couldn't get off. Honestly, how many times in one night can you have a gun in your face?

Wolf hall- I wanted to like it but just couldn't get into it
Any book by Kazuo Ishiguro - the premise is fine but the writing sends me to sleep.
I agree with Eleanor Oliphant. Also can't get into Kate Atkinson I am afraid.