Inspired by a recent post I saw, what is a book or series that you really wanted to like but couldn’t bring yourself to finish for whatever reason?

For me it’s the Dresden Files. The story itself is everything I love; magic and monsters clashing with modern reality, great visual storytelling, and so much promise for a massive world to explore. Yet despite constant insistence it gets better with every book, and constant attempts to to get to that point, I have never made it past the third one. If I had to put words to it, the world never seems to pull me in the way other stories do. It’s actually a problem for me when reading that I get completely submerged in the reality of that story and I can’t consume any other media until that journey is done. Sadly, I never felt it with TDF.

  • Sonseeahrai@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    The Witcher. I’m polish, so it’s kind of a national treason not to read Sapkowski’s books, but his writing is just so awful for me, like there was no talent, just an idea put into the least creative sentences.

  • Aromatic_Ad5473@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    I couldn’t get into it either. The main character’s “chivalry” was just over the top and annoying.

    Have you read the Checquy Files (trilogy) by Daniel O’Malley? Fantastic

  • kranools@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    Clan of the Cave Bear. The writing is so bad I don’t think I even made it through one chapter.

  • pktrekgirl@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    So many women I knew were into 50 Shades of Gray.

    I was not really interested, but I wanted to be. Able to chat with them about it. Especially when the movie came out.

    So I downloaded the first book.

    Ugh. It was so horribly written I couldn’t stand it. I gave up about 75 pages in, even though I gave it way more time than I do other books because I really did want to be able to discuss.

    Such a horribly written book.

  • RandomiseUsr0@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    I loved Iain Banks (or can we talk about late authors in the present tense? I think we can). I love Iain Banks, I love cyberpunk, never got to grips with Iain M. Banks!

  • gimmemoregummybears@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    Daisy Jones and the Six.

    Really wanted to like it, as it came highly recommended. But I just didn’t enjoy the style of writing and found it to be pretty clichéd.

  • haileehawkins@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    I’ve always been a great reader and liked most books but one series that I could never get into was the divergent series believe me I tried I also tried the twilight series but could never really get into those either but i love the movies of both

  • thagor5@alien.top
    BEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    Having trouble with Malazan. Seems like the perfect series for me. I liked book one by the end, and Anamanda Rake is a good character. But can’t get into book two for some reason

  • qerelister@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    The Neuromancer by William Gibson. Good lord, his prose is exhausting to read. I love me some sci-fi and have a pretty high tolerance for jargon. But he had to combine that with horrible over-complicated descriptions, figurative language, and over-the-top purple prose which made it a chore to read. I didn’t even finish it. I dropped it 75% in.

  • Parasight1942@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    lord of the flies. i know it’s considered great literature, but it would also make great kindling. sorry, sorry sorry, that wasn’t a political statement. but 50 shades of grey would make a great pile of ash. ALSO, 1984. ALSO supposed to be great big important literature. sorry. i don’t like the book. never did.

  • CasperOrillian@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    A series of unfortunate events. For me theres only so many times I can read things like “this is a terrible event stop reading” before I think ok I will. I really dont understand the point of telling the reader to stop reading.