Really Rubbish Books

Couldn’t stand any of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, or any Harry Potter. Enjoyed Girl on the Train but hated the film adaptation. Captain Corellis Mandolin is a ‘Marmite’ book apparently. I really enjoyed it but again disliked the film adaptation- they changed the ending to a Hollywood ‘happy ever after’ type- more box office appeal it would seem than the actual ending.

I remember The Slap, I didn't enjoy it that much, but it wasn't one of the worst. All the characters I recall were horrible people.

Loved The Goldfinch, thought Troubled Blood was the best of the Strike books, really enjoyed it far more than the others.

Like Sarah I found Possession a bit heavy going at first but glad I persevered, I remember I thought it was wonderful when I finished it, that was a long time ago now.

Even further back when I was about 18 or so I remember being quite enthralled by Lord of the Rings, I used to lug it up to town with me to read on my daily commute. I can't imagine wanting to read it now, no it definitely wouldn't appeal.

I will also add The Luminaries to my list of very, long and boring books.

I couldn’t read The Hobbit either. A neighbour lent it to me - said “You’ll enjoy it!” I didn’t.
Margaret Attwood’s “The Blind Assassin”. Tried a few times to get into this and failed.
C. P. Snow’s “The New Men” which we were studying for English literature when I was on a college course in the early eighties. I thought I would die of boredom!

The Goldfinch didn’t do anything for me, I knew from the first chapter that I wasn’t going to like it, but I plodded on in hope, but it was a waste of time, I just couldn’t get into it.
Another book I really didn’t like was The Essex Serpent, just couldn’t see what all the fuss was about

I am a big fan of Kate Atkinson’s books and I recently bought Transcription on Kindle and really struggled to finish it. DH kept saying don’t bother with it but I felt I had to persevere. The only book I’ve given up on was Catch 22 by Joseph Heller.

mamaa

Couldn’t stand any of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, or any Harry Potter. Enjoyed Girl on the Train but hated the film adaptation. Captain Corellis Mandolin is a ‘Marmite’ book apparently. I really enjoyed it but again disliked the film adaptation- they changed the ending to a Hollywood ‘happy ever after’ type- more box office appeal it would seem than the actual ending.

And how miscast was Nicholas cage!

The book took me a while to get into but then I was hooked.

Just thought of a repeat offender!
Maeve Bunchy
I've tried with several of her books, as has my Nan, and neither of us can get anything from her books
I'd love to hear from any fans of Maeve.
(I'm hoping that we really can accept others opinions on this thread, instead of getting into some never ending psychodrama.)

Up until a few weeks ago I’d never read a book recommended by someone I didn’t know, but a poster recommended
Where The Crawdads Sing. I absolutely loved it: one of those books I never wanted to end.

I have a friend who up until a few years ago read the most awful rubbish ( I make no apologies for that statement)
One day I gave her The Far Pavillions: she absolutely loved it. It changed her reading choices.

Sarnia

Ilovecheese

I have another confession about not liking a classic, I don't like Trollope, Anthony I mean, quite like Joanna.

If you haven't already read it, her book 'Mum & Dad' is very good.

Oh...I thought it was very poor. I’m sure I used to like her books a long time ago.

Blind Assassin I just loved that book, definitely right up there in my top ten.

The Essex Serpent, was ok, nothing special, massively over hyped, however it's being filmed at the moment, so maybe like Normal People another pretty mediocre book imo, it might turn out to be a very good drama, the recent NP television series was so much better than the book. Usually it's the other way round. I also thought that about Elizabeth is Missing, book nothing special, but thanks to Glenda Jackson's sublime performance the programme was very memorable.

MerylStreep

Up until a few weeks ago I’d never read a book recommended by someone I didn’t know, but a poster recommended
Where The Crawdads Sing. I absolutely loved it: one of those books I never wanted to end.

I have a friend who up until a few years ago read the most awful rubbish ( I make no apologies for that statement)
One day I gave her The Far Pavillions: she absolutely loved it. It changed her reading choices.

Oh my goodness “the far pavilions “. I loved that ! Read it about 40 years ago (0h how old I am?)

Jane43

I am a big fan of Kate Atkinson’s books and I recently bought Transcription on Kindle and really struggled to finish it. DH kept saying don’t bother with it but I felt I had to persevere. The only book I’ve given up on was Catch 22 by Joseph Heller.

Agree, I didn’t even finish it.
Also thought Big Sky was disappointing

Some years ago I read The Rosie Project and The Rosie Effect and enjoyed them both. After a hiatus of about 10 years Graham Simsion wrote the 3rd book The Rosie Result.I gave up about a third of the way through. All the humour seemed to have been sucked out.

GillT57

Alima

Raven Black by Anne Cleeves. I plodded on and finished it, never again. So many people on GN rate A C, I will never again be able to read any by her.

well that's strange, because I loved the Shetland series, have really liked many of her books but really couldn't get started on Raven Black. I gave it a couple of attempts, convinced it must be me, but finally admitted defeat after just a couple of chapters. Life is too short to read awful books.

Interesting! I too could not get on with Raven Black and it put me off reading more, even though I had bought the whole Shetland series when they were on offer on Amazon. I seem to recall that I did plough on to the bitter end - heaven knows why because I usually ditch any book that I can't get into.

However, now you've said, GillT57, that the others in the series were good, perhaps I'll try them after all.

Maeve Binchy's books were great once I really loved her early ones, I can't remember the names but I'd Google them in the order they were published.

Joanna Trollope's too were really good, she wrote very well about families. I thought Other People's Children was one of her very best. Then they both seemed to go right off and turned in a right load of old rubbish imo. I read Mum and Dad it was ok, thought I would give her another go after she reached an all time low in the abysmal Friday Nights, definitely one for the bin!

When The Clan of the cave bear came out I devoured every book until the last one. Some years ago I thought I would read them again.
I just couldn’t get into them, strange isn’t it with some books.

Jane43
Very glad it’s not just me, regarding Catch 22, it was just awful.

I’m always reluctant to reread a book I’ve loved, in case it’s just not the same.

MerylStreep

When The Clan of the cave bear came out I devoured every book until the last one. Some years ago I thought I would read them again.
I just couldn’t get into them, strange isn’t it with some books.

I loved those but gave up on the last one - I'm sure it was ghost-written. It was tedious.

The first couple were so different to anything I'd read before (or since).

Sara1954

I’m always reluctant to reread a book I’ve loved, in case it’s just not the same.

I never reread books for that exact reason. DH rereads Jane Austen every now and again

Yes,Sara1954 I know exactly what you mean. I used to like Miss Read but when I read one again after a gap of some years I no longer liked it.
Regarding Joanna Trollope, agree Other People's Children was one of the best, also The Spanish Lover. I thought the Mum in Mum and Dad was written as if she was about twenty years older. Ditto The Friday night one was dire. Such a disappointment when that happens.

I reread Barbara Vine's Asta's Book last year, I remember I loved it when it first came out some time in the '90s I'd forgotten all the integral parts of the plot, it was just as good second time around. I'm glad I kept it, I usually do though if I've loved a book.

I agree with you Lucca, I found Big Sky disappointing too, not up to the standard of the other Jackson Brodies for me at any rate.

TerriBull
I agree with you about Joanna Trollope, I did enjoy her early books, but something seemed to go wrong, I agree that Friday Nights was a load of old rubbish.
Perhaps she was trying to pull away from her ‘Aga Saga’ imagine, perhaps she should have stuck to what she knew.

i have about 200 books on my kindle, everything from supernatural, paranormal, romance, thrillers and mysteries, i read 3/4 books a week, if i can't get into a book by chapter 3 then i give up, i don't follow any authors but loved john francombe, dick francis and tess gerritsen (rizzoli and isles).

Image, not imagine