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Original poster

Books I wanted to like but didn't

199 replies

Rayn22 · 12/03/2023 23:31

I so wanted to like The Thursday night murder club but it was not what I expected. I thought it would be a gritty thriller. I disliked it immensely but noticed people are raving about Richard Osman books on other threads.

Another one is The midnight library. My friends kept going on about it. Kept it for my holidays and found it really slow and dull.

Anyone else got any others they were excited to read and were disappointed in?

I hate it when it happens as it puts me off reading for a while as I feel cheated. Silly I know!

OP posts:
ThatWhiteElephant · 14/03/2023 19:29

Rayn22 · 12/03/2023 23:31

I so wanted to like The Thursday night murder club but it was not what I expected. I thought it would be a gritty thriller. I disliked it immensely but noticed people are raving about Richard Osman books on other threads.

Another one is The midnight library. My friends kept going on about it. Kept it for my holidays and found it really slow and dull.

Anyone else got any others they were excited to read and were disappointed in?

I hate it when it happens as it puts me off reading for a while as I feel cheated. Silly I know!

I really disliked The Thursday Night Murder Club too, definitely will not be reading any more of his books.

CoffeeChocolateWine · 14/03/2023 19:35

Came on here to say Midnight Library too but see it's already been mentioned A LOT! I don't really understand the rave reviews about it. I liked the idea behind it but didn't think it was well done or well written.

Also, Blood Orange. Again was quite excited by the reviews but didn't find it a good read. Not a single likeable character and not well written.

Enthrallingstoryofstillnessandlight · 14/03/2023 19:43

I'm

senua · 15/03/2023 12:06

I liked the idea behind it but didn't think it was well done or well written.
This seems to be true of so many modern books - they get praise for the concept rather than the execution.

Cocoandcleo · 15/03/2023 12:06

senua · 15/03/2023 12:06

I liked the idea behind it but didn't think it was well done or well written.
This seems to be true of so many modern books - they get praise for the concept rather than the execution.

Totally agree with this!

whateverthisis · 15/03/2023 12:26

Lost Children Archive. I kept reading as I hoped it would get better. It did slightly and the subject matter is important (child migrants arriving in the US) but just so many boring pages about 'soundscapes' and I found the two main children hard to relate to/not accurate portrayal of children of those ages. Overall left me with the impression that perhaps I wasn't intelligent enough to get it.

Nzyellowbelly · 16/03/2023 00:28

The Book Thief. Tried it on audio & proper book. Couldn't get pastyhe first few chapters. Loved the Midnight Library - Matt Haig is a genius. Can't see what all the fuss is about Colleen Hoover??? Sally Hepworth's books have all been goid so far and Taylor Jenkins Reid always hits the mark - amazing author.

RainyReadingDay · 16/03/2023 08:48

So many books on this thread that I agree about. I won't list all mine, but am throwing in The Roanoke Girls. Can't recall author's name, but that novel was so twisted and vile that I had to get it out of the house. Reading it made me feel grubby. Trigger warning for child abuse and suicide. It was nasty.

senua · 16/03/2023 09:27

We had The Roanoke Girls for bookclub. Chosen for some fatuous reason (pretty book cover or somesuch). The chooser was very embarrassed when she realised what she had inflicted on us.

RainyReadingDay · 16/03/2023 09:46

senua · 16/03/2023 09:27

We had The Roanoke Girls for bookclub. Chosen for some fatuous reason (pretty book cover or somesuch). The chooser was very embarrassed when she realised what she had inflicted on us.

It really was awful, wasn't it? I picked it up after reading a review of it, which carefully avoided what the underlying theme was. If I'd known that I wouldn't have touched it with a bargepole.

clpsmum · 16/03/2023 23:29

ourflagmeansdeath · 13/03/2023 00:02

Oh I also didn't like And the mountains echoed by Khaled Hosseini as much as I thought I would. His other two books The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns are absolutely beautiful, so well written so I had high expectations. While I still liked this book, it wasn't as good. It did make me cry a ton though which is expected with all of his novels!!!!!

Completely agree with you

Original poster
Rayn22 · 17/03/2023 10:56

I forgot I posted this! Can't wait to read it all!

OP posts:
Original poster
Rayn22 · 17/03/2023 10:57

Deadringer · 12/03/2023 23:53

Crawdads, a little life, a secret history, and the goldfinch, all well written but way too long with quite ludicrous plots.

The Goldfinch was another one I disliked too!

OP posts:
Original poster
Rayn22 · 17/03/2023 10:58

scoobycute · 13/03/2023 07:51

The Seven husbands of Evelyn Hugo...just didn't really get the point of it. Couldn't finish it as it was draaaaaging

I have been wanting to read this too!

OP posts:
Deadringer · 17/03/2023 11:21

Seven husbands was good but not brilliant imo, worth reading but not especially memorable.

Nixbox · 17/03/2023 12:52

Gerald’s Game by Stephen King. It was like reading a book then a really long explanatory note.

Fifthtimelucky · 17/03/2023 13:46

In general I love 19th century novels but two I have never been able to get on with are
Wuthering Heights and Pickwick Papers.

I've read Wuthering Heights a few times as I keep hoping I'll like it one day. I never do.

Pickwick Papers is the only Dickens novel that I've never been able to finish.

MrsDanversGlidesAgain · 17/03/2023 13:51

Siegfried Sassoon: Memoirs of A Foxhunting Man. I so admire that WW1 generation, and love anything about people like T E Lawrence. I love Robert Graves’ Goodbye to All That, and Lawrence’s Seven Pillars of Wisdom. But no, another disappointment

Exactly the other way round for me. Love Sassoon, couldn't get on with Lawrence at all. Have you read Memoirs of an Infantry Officer?

beguilingeyes · 17/03/2023 15:19

Fifthtimelucky · 17/03/2023 13:46

In general I love 19th century novels but two I have never been able to get on with are
Wuthering Heights and Pickwick Papers.

I've read Wuthering Heights a few times as I keep hoping I'll like it one day. I never do.

Pickwick Papers is the only Dickens novel that I've never been able to finish.

I loathed Wuthering Heights. The only Brontë I've got any time for is Charlotte.

GandhiDeclaredWarOnYou · 17/03/2023 15:23

beguilingeyes · 17/03/2023 15:19

I loathed Wuthering Heights. The only Brontë I've got any time for is Charlotte.

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Wuthering Heights is awful.

Deadringer · 17/03/2023 15:27

I love wuthering heights, but it took a few goes to get past the first couple of chapters. Even better is The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, which I only discovered a couple of years ago.

Somanycats · 17/03/2023 15:52

Qbish · 13/03/2023 17:07

A Little Life. Massively hyped, so I thought I would try it.

Dear god. I got about a third of a way through and couldn't do any more. I decided to Wikipedia the rest of the plot, and I actually laughed out loud at it.

Yeah I hate this, but am still reading it, as I never give up! It is so bad. The number of times I have read 'I'm sorry Jude/Harold/Andy', must be at least a bloody 1000 by now and I've still got a third of it left!

RainyReadingDay · 17/03/2023 18:06

GandhiDeclaredWarOnYou · 17/03/2023 15:23

Wuthering Heights is awful.

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Yes it really is, isn't it? I loathed it.

JoonT · 17/03/2023 19:33

beguilingeyes · 17/03/2023 15:19

I loathed Wuthering Heights. The only Brontë I've got any time for is Charlotte.

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I’m always so interested to hear people’s views on the big classics. It’s fascinating to read the different responses they have. Personally, I had mixed feelings about Wuthering Heights. In other cases, though I love certain authors, I can see why not everyone does. For example, I love Dickens and P G Wodehouse, but I understand why some people really dislike them.

JoonT · 17/03/2023 19:35

MrsDanversGlidesAgain · 17/03/2023 13:51

Siegfried Sassoon: Memoirs of A Foxhunting Man. I so admire that WW1 generation, and love anything about people like T E Lawrence. I love Robert Graves’ Goodbye to All That, and Lawrence’s Seven Pillars of Wisdom. But no, another disappointment

Exactly the other way round for me. Love Sassoon, couldn't get on with Lawrence at all. Have you read Memoirs of an Infantry Officer?

Interesting. Yes, I have it on my shelves (unread). I loved Goodbye to All That with a passion, so maybe I should give it a go. Is it similar?