Brian Scott Allen
Dark Lord
Hated Pride and Prejudice.
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Books you really hated?
- Thread starter Devouring Wolf
- Start date
Ireth
Mythic Scribe
Of Human Bondage. I don't even remember most of it, it was so boring.
Axaran
Acolyte
I don't know if any of you have even heard of this series but 'Chronicles of Blood and Stone' trilogy by Robert Newcomb was probably the only book I actually despise, not only was it totally cookie cutter (and bad at that) but the villains were hyper female sex pervert maniacs (and badly written ones at that) the hero saves the world by accident by dropping one of the witch's amulets because he is too stupid to do it himself. But when I read about the actual author he really admits that he had never actually read a fantasy book in his life. So basically take the most boring cookie cutter fantasy archetype and add in hours of meaningless rape and BDSM and that is what it is.
I try to learn something from every book I read, on this one I learned if you can have submissive BDSM sex with an editor you can get your god-awful book in print.
Why I hate this book is because it actually got published when there are plenty of strugling authors with good ideas who are refused
I try to learn something from every book I read, on this one I learned if you can have submissive BDSM sex with an editor you can get your god-awful book in print.
Why I hate this book is because it actually got published when there are plenty of strugling authors with good ideas who are refused
Pretty much anything by R.A. Salvatore.
Clearmadness
Apprentice
Eragon, and the Inheritance Cycle.
I don't know that sup par cliche ridden nonsense was ever published.
I don't know that sup par cliche ridden nonsense was ever published.
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- Thread starter
- #46
Devouring Wolf
Mystagogue
Anything by China Miéville. I tried to read two of his books first Kraken and The Scar and couldn't finish either. It feels like the way he wrote the book was by smoking a joint, writing 600 pages of drug-fueled description, adding his political ideology into it, and then going "hm, maybe this should have a plot" a statement my sister who adores him agrees with.
I'm beginning to think the new weird genre just isn't for me. Recently I tried reading another book in that category, The Unwrapped Sky. I didn't hate it, in the beginning I actually really enjoyed it, but somewhere in the middle I just stopped caring about the characters so i didn't finish it (and I'm pretty good at finishing books once I've committed to them)
I'm beginning to think the new weird genre just isn't for me. Recently I tried reading another book in that category, The Unwrapped Sky. I didn't hate it, in the beginning I actually really enjoyed it, but somewhere in the middle I just stopped caring about the characters so i didn't finish it (and I'm pretty good at finishing books once I've committed to them)
Mythopoet
Dark Lord
Whenever I find myself really liking a book until at some point in the middle I realize I don't care, I don't think it has anything to do with the genre. Rather, it always seems to be the author's lack of skill in utilizing the genre to tell a compelling story.
- Thread starter
- #48
Devouring Wolf
Mystagogue
That's true. There were definitely things in The Unwrapped Sky that if I'd been writing it I would've done differently (mainly the fact that the characters felt a bit inconsistent) but at the same time, I really am beginning to think new weird is not for me. Even if I had liked that book, it would've ended up being the exception rather than the rule.
tiggywinke
Apprentice
I've hated many books in my life, most of which I was required to read for school. One book I hated that I theoretically read for fun was "Ruins" by Kevin J. Anderson. It was an X-Files novel--or at least it claimed to be on the front. It's probably easiest to list the things that this book did right. Mr. Anderson successfully adhered to the basic conventions of the English language. The punctuation was lovely. Also, it was well-put-together enough that I could tell it was a novel, and not a cookbook, or a hastily-scrawled sign saying "HELP ME" held up in the back window of a car. On every single other point, this novel was an abysmal failure. It's almost worth reading just so you can see how bad a novel a literate person can produce.
Ray M.
Journeyman
Brent Week's Beyond the Shadows trilogy
I'll stay far, far away from those. My uncle bought them to me as a gift. I really tried hard to like at least the first one; my uncle would be sad if I told him he got me books that I thought were shit. It got to the point where it was unreadable. The book throws plot points at you, skips parts of the story (laziness?) that might've been vital or a good read, characters are two dimensional and most of the times made of cardboard, the writing shallow and indifferent. It reminds me of very bad fan fiction that a teenager would write for free online, it has just been edited so it's actually coherent, and that's the worst part, it's a mess that actually works. In the end, I had to lie to my uncle, because I found nothing good to say about those books.
There may be people who disagree, but I honestly think this author gives fantasy a bad name. I'm not one to hate books, and I don't hate anything else I've come across, but they do take the cake.
I'll stay far, far away from those. My uncle bought them to me as a gift. I really tried hard to like at least the first one; my uncle would be sad if I told him he got me books that I thought were shit. It got to the point where it was unreadable. The book throws plot points at you, skips parts of the story (laziness?) that might've been vital or a good read, characters are two dimensional and most of the times made of cardboard, the writing shallow and indifferent. It reminds me of very bad fan fiction that a teenager would write for free online, it has just been edited so it's actually coherent, and that's the worst part, it's a mess that actually works. In the end, I had to lie to my uncle, because I found nothing good to say about those books.
There may be people who disagree, but I honestly think this author gives fantasy a bad name. I'm not one to hate books, and I don't hate anything else I've come across, but they do take the cake.
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I thought it was great. From the first line, I knew it was going to be a good one.
CupofJoe
Istari
There have been many books I have stopped reading because I really didn't like something about them. There are few that I have hated.
About the only book I have finished and hated was Bored of the Rings.
I was told it was the funniest thing EVER... As I was trying to go out with the book's recommender I struggled through it hoping it was going to get good. It didn't.
Another is The Younger Gods by D&L Eddings. The whole of The Dreamer series [The Elder Gods, The Treasured One, Crystal Gorge, & The Younger Gods] was a diminishing return, but I was hoping that there was going to be a twist in the tale to make the really bad story come together in a way I hadn't foreseen.
Again dear Readers, it didn't... I felt cheated. And then sad as I found about David Eddings becoming ill.
About the only book I have finished and hated was Bored of the Rings.
I was told it was the funniest thing EVER... As I was trying to go out with the book's recommender I struggled through it hoping it was going to get good. It didn't.
Another is The Younger Gods by D&L Eddings. The whole of The Dreamer series [The Elder Gods, The Treasured One, Crystal Gorge, & The Younger Gods] was a diminishing return, but I was hoping that there was going to be a twist in the tale to make the really bad story come together in a way I hadn't foreseen.
Again dear Readers, it didn't... I felt cheated. And then sad as I found about David Eddings becoming ill.
I started to read one of his books, it literally began with a little kid crawling around in mud and shit. I powered through to about page 100 but couldn't find like about it. I realize different strokes for different folks but this was not for me.
I'm surprised. I really liked The City and The City and Embassytown. He's capable of some gorgeous prose. Perdido Street Station was a bit of a sprawl but some good imagery, the Slake Moths are amazing monsters. Haven't read the two you tried to read but maybe he's better at shorter books. The ones I mentioned don't have much in the way of political ideology (maybe Perdido Street a little bit)
The Sword of Truth series. Perhaps it's not fair to knock the entire series because I didn't read it. I barely got through the first book and maybe two chapters in the second. That's as far as I could make it and I doubt that it gets any better. Too preachy for my liking.
I'm in the same boat. However, much like the mostly maligned Dragonlance books, I think Bob Salvatore aims for a younger demographic. In that regard I think they hold up well.
Tom
Istari
Dragonlance. Oh my. That really dredges up some cringey memories...
If you want to see cringe-worthy, read the Sword of Truth books.