Thieves of Time

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There is no thief worse than a bad book. ~Italian proverb

Is it me, or are others finding themselves abandoning books right and left these days?

Here it is, two weeks into the new year and already, I’ve tossed aside TWO books.

Maybe it’s my fault. After all, I didn’t check Goodreads reviews of either of these books before selecting them (and reading those reviews now merely confirms my opinion).

One — let’s call it Book A — was by an author I’ve read previously and enjoyed. It was a new genre to me (fantasy), so I stuck with it longer than I normally would.

Hoping my unfamiliarity would lessen and I’d grow to enjoy it.

That didn’t happen.

I put it aside before I reached the halfway mark … but then thumbed to the end so I could see if it might have been salvaged after all.

Nope.

There wasn’t much of a plot, and the female protagonist was so infuriating that I wanted to slap her silly. Additionally, I couldn’t decide (and neither, apparently, could she or the author) whether this woman was alive or dead.

Or floating in some mystic realm in between.

Gah!

The second book (Book B) also was by an author I’d read before. In all fairness, there have been some of her books that I wasn’t crazy about, but in general, I’ve found her to be a reliable storyteller.

Not this time.

This was a new book as of late 2024, but as soon as I finished reading the prologue, I abandoned it.

This author has been writing long enough to know you don’t dump a gazillion facts at your readers all at once. You kind of set the scene, introduce your characters and what they want, present some challenges, and ease them into your fictional world.

Uh-uh, not her.

I had so many facts and characters slammed at me that my head grew dizzy. I was yanked from one decade to another in the blink of an eye. And I decided that if I had to prepare a spreadsheet just to keep up, my time could be better spent elsewhere.

Checking Goodreads, I learned this was her third book in a series, but you’d be hard-pressed to know that from the cover. Nowhere did it indicate this was anything other than a standalone. No wonder I was confused.

Grrr!

So I ask you — do you regularly abandon books you can’t get into, and what is it that makes you do so? (just consider this my way of doing author research — thanks!)

28 thoughts on “Thieves of Time”

    • Thanks for stopping by to leave a comment! Yes, most books are probably too long, but I think publishers figure if a book is going to take up room on a shelf, it might as well be worth the space. Too bad they aren’t asking readers if having a “fat” book is better than a “lean” one … providing the story makes sens and is complete!

    • That’s the thing, Frank. These both were authors I’ve enjoyed in the past, and I figured I’d enjoy again. I guess every author isn’t for every person, nor is every author’s book. Live and learn — there are LOTS of books to choose from!

  3. Debbie, I have to be totally honest with you and say that it has been years, and mean YEARS since I picked up a book and read it. And when I did, it was usually an instructional book about something I was interested in learning – a How-To book.

    My biggest time reading books was back in the 80s (Danielle Steel, Mary Higgins Clark, Sidney Sheldon), in other words, melodramatic fiction novels. Lol!

    I have a very short attention span. So if a book doesn’t grab me within the first two chapters, I put it down.

    I’m that way about movies too. As you know, I watch A LOT of movies (primarily documentaries and biopics), and if they don’t grab me within the first 20 mins, I turn them off. In fact, I just recently did that with a film I attempted to watch, but couldn’t. I like books and movies that move forward quickly. What can I tell you, I’m a Libra with a VIRGO rising. I’m not the most patient person. HA!

    Have a great week, my friend! X

    • Hmm, you bring up a good point, Ron. I’m not the most patient person either — maybe that’s my problem! As a matter of fact, just this morning I abandoned my third one this year, again from an author I’d enjoyed previously. Perhaps it’s my Virgo pickiness that’s making me do this?!

      I don’t watch many movies, but again, they have to grab my interest pretty much from the get-go to keep me tuned in. I can’t abide stupidity, and if things don’t make sense, I’m outta there!

      Hoping for a brief warmup this week before things go into the Deep Freeze. Stay warm! XX

  5. It takes a lot to make me abandon a book because I’m always afraid I’ll be sorry if I do. If I stick with it, I’m often glad I read it, even if I didn’t love it. That’s just me, though. I never fault anyone for setting one aside. Life is too short!

    • Kelly, you must be more persistent than I am! I can’t abide slogging through something like reading that should be enjoyable. And like you said, there are far too many other things to capture my attention (and oh, so many books on the shelves!!)

  6. I, too, have already abandoned a book this new year. Absolutely GREAT writer, who chooses to write the most depressing novels, which I’m surmising stems from the belief that folks need to know how bad life can be for some people. I know s–t happens, I just don’t want to read about it!

    • Oh, dear, a misery-fest. I’ve slogged through a few of those myself and wondered why I didn’t just put them aside in favor of something more uplifting. Yes, I realize bad things happen, too, but sometimes we just need to immerse ourselves in the positive side. After all, if I wanted to wallow in misery, I’d tune into the news 24/7!

  7. Ha, well, you know I abandon books and I’m usually pretty frank about my reasons! 😉 I always find it’s worse if it’s an author I’ve enjoyed before because not only do I feel disappointed, I feel kind of betrayed – as if I know s/he can do better so why didn’t s/he?? Reviews on Goodreads are a double-edged sword, I find. For a start, they’re often full of spoilers. I tend to look at the ratings before I read a book but only read the reviews afterwards.

    • “Betrayed” is a good description of it, FF. I guess that’s what I was feeling, too. It’s as if, I trusted you to tell me a good story, and you failed. Gah!

      I don’t usually read Goodreads reviews until I’ve finished a book (or abandoned it). I prefer making up my own mind (and not being told how it all ends!). And I rarely leave a review myself either (unless I feel particularly strong about the book).

  8. I can’t remember the last time I abandoned a book, but from time to time I’ll set one aside and come back to it later. Of course, my reading is a little different. I don’t read much fiction, and prefer histories, journals, non-fiction related to my interests, and so on. That kind of book is easy to dip in and out of. I am a great re-reader, though. Every time I re-read a favorite, I make notes in a differently colored ink, so I can see how my response has changed over time.

    Where I make a fast escape is with bad films and bad poetry. I don’t have one bit of time for either of those, no matter what the critics have said. I don’t feel guilty about it, either. Life’s too short to waste it with writing that doesn’t appeal or watching that leaves me glassy-eyed!

    • Re-reading isn’t something I do much of, Linda, although lately I’m finding myself doing a bit more of it. I chalk it up to author research, you know. If I can figure out what works and what doesn’t (at least for me), I’m gaining valuable knowledge. I appreciate what you said about bad poetry and films. I’ve waded through lots of really awful poetry (again, in my quest for knowledge), and I often wonder how some of that stuff ever wins awards (yet that’s exactly what seems to garner accolades). Oh well.

  9. I do abandon books I can’t get into, I’d say maybe half of the ones I start. Most of my favorites tend to be historical fiction, and though I try science fiction and fantasy at times I rarely stick with them. Autobiographies and memoirs are usually interesting, but are often abandoned.

    • I’m glad to hear I’m not the only one abandoning books, Barbara. It sometimes makes me feel bad, but hey, I’m not the one who’s failing! One book I abandoned had the protagonist’s eyes blue on page 3, but two pages later, they morphed into green! Yep, that one I abandoned, ha!

  10. Hi Debbie
    We never ever trust the reviews published by Goodreads. We go for the Guardian or New York Times reviews. Like many readers, we choose a book by looking at the publisher. Some publishers guarantee quality and some publish debatable books.
    We like the Italian proverb.
    Happy reading
    The Fab Four of Cley
    🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

    • What great advice! Thank you … and welcome to my blog. It’s wonderful “meeting” you. Sadly, some well-known publishers of noted authors still slip now and again by coming out with a dud. Perhaps authors turn away from the “magical formula” that got them to the top of the heap and attempt to try something new — and maybe they need time to get that right. It’s fascinating to see how authors grow over their lifetime!

  11. Personally, I read the first two pages of a book before I buy it. If I don’t like the writing style, I won’t like the book either. And I haven’t found GoodReads to be all that helpful, because my opinions don’t always align with other opinions. I think you are perfectly right to toss a book aside if you arne’t enjoying it. There are too many good books waiting to be read to waste time on bad ones!

    • That’s so true! And I’ve probably “exhausted” some of these authors that I keep reading, just because they’re so prolific and generally good. But trying new authors can be a mixed bag — sometimes you discover a real jewel; other times, you have to abandon right and left. I don’t often agree with reviews either (that’s why I typically only read them after I’ve finished — or abandoned — a book).

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