Top Ten Books I'm Not Sure I Want To Read
16:59There are plenty of great authors in the world, and many,
many amazing books. But not every book is going to suit every reader, and
sometimes I find it hard to decide whether I’m going to enjoy a book or not. I might have heard mixed reviews about a book,
or might not able to make up my mind whether it interests me enough to attempt
to read it. In this week’s Top Ten Tuesday, a link up hosted by The Broke and the Bookish, I’m spotlighting ten books that
I’m not sure whether I want to read.
1. The
Maze Runner
James Dashner
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I’ve heard plenty of good things about this book. Lots of
people have read it and given it great reviews. And the concept behind it
sounds pretty cool too. So why am I undecided about this book? I tried to read
one of the later books in the series (without knowing it was part of a series.
Bad idea) and just couldn’t get into the writing style, or the characters. So
I’m not really sure whether to try it or not.
2.
Stardust
Neil Gaiman
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I loved the movie of this book, and I was interested to find
out that it was actually based on a book by Neil Gaiman. He’s a famous author,
and I’m guessing the book would be quite good. Why am I unsure about this book?
I am always a little nervous about reading the book after I’ve watched the
movie, just in case it turns out not to be as good and my expectations are
crushed. There are some movies and books should never be connected.
3.
A Wizard of Earthsea
Ursula Le Guin
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The Earthsea Chronicles have been recommended to me by
several people as being a great fantasy series. Fantasy is my favourite genre,
and I love series, so I should be super excited about this and be rushing to
read it. So why aren’t I? Well, I tried one of her books, and I just didn’t connect
with her writing style, and it’s making me quite tentative about trying again.
4.
The Mortal Instruments
Cassandra Clare
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Cassandra Clare has a reputation for being a great author,
and this series is very famous. It should be an instant read. I’ve been
thinking about trying this series for a while. It sounds pretty cool, and lots
of people have enjoyed it. So why am I hesitating? I’m just not sure about some
of the paranormal elements, which is not a genre I would normally read. Plus
it’s a really famous book, which brings a whole lot of expectations. I’m still
trying to work my way up to this one.
5.
Shatter Me
Tahereh Mafi
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The whole concept of this book excites me. Someone can kill
with just a touch, even if she doesn’t want to? Why didn’t I think of that
first? And there are some cool things going on in the text with all the
strikethroughs. But I just can’t bring myself to read it. And for this one I
don’t even have a logical explanation. I like the concept. I’ve been told it’s
good. But I still can’t bring myself to read it. Maybe I’m just not excited
enough. Or maybe I’m saving it until I really feel like reading it.
7.
Insurgent
Veronica Roth
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I read the first book in this series, Divergent and I did enjoy it. I liked the set-up of the world, and
the characters were great too. Surprisingly my library even has this book. But
I haven’t read it, and I’m not sure if I want to. I’ve heard mixed things about
this series from many trusted sources, including my sister, who read it, and
what I’ve heard doesn’t fill me with confidence.
8.
To Kill a Mockingbird
Harper Lee
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This is a very famous book, and it’s rumoured to be very good. I’ve heard about it many times from other writers and from my uni course, and I have actually been thinking that I should read it. But nothing about the book has exited me enough to actually start it yet. And I don’t really want to start a book I’m not going to like.
8. Ender’s Game
Orson Scott Card
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Ender’s Game is another book that has a really great
reputation. It’s got a great concept too. I love the whole idea behind this
book. But I still haven’t read it. It’s partly because it’s very popular, which
brings with it a whole host of expectations, and partly because I just haven’t
managed to be quite interested enough in it to actually start it.
9. Lamplighter
D. M. Cornish
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I read the first book of this series and I really enjoyed it. The writing was quirky, the world intriguing, and the characters were fun to spend time with. But when I first tried this book, I couldn't get back into the swing of it. I don't know if I was reading it at the wrong time, or I didn't try hard enough. I do want to read this book, but after trying once before, I'm not sure if I should try again.
10. Requiem
Maggie Stiefvater
This book isn’t even out yet and I’m already debating
whether to read it. One one hand, I am a huge Maggie Stiefvater fan. Her Raven Chronicles
are amazing. But this is the third book in another series, and I can’t quite
make up my mind if I like it or not. I didn’t like the first book. I loved the
second one. Will I like the last one? Won’t I? Should I take the risk of not
liking it? I just can’t decide.
What books aren't you sure about reading? Have you read any of these books? What makes you unsure about reading a certain book?
11 comments
I've read 6 of these....which makes me feel mildly accomplished. Hehe. ;) Okay, I totally understand about Cassandra Clare. It took me forever to try her. And also Ender's Game made me mildly worried because I'm not a fan of the classic style so I had no idea if I'd like it or not. BUT I DID. I didn't like Lament, so I get your distrust of Requeim. But James. Jaaaaames. And come now, I've been waiting YEARS for that book and I don't even care what's in it now, I just want it. ;) lol
ReplyDeleteHere's my TTT!
It's taken me years to even get around to thinking about reading her books. One of these days I'm going to take the plunge and read it. I will! James is the reason that I'm debating over this. If there wasn't a chance of seeing him again then I wouldn't read it. But how can I pass up a chance to read his epic funniness again?
DeleteThe Divergent series gets worse and worse after the first book, so I don't recommend reading the sequels.
ReplyDeleteI loved Stardust, I thought that it was better than the movie.
I was one of the people who enjoyed the Mortal Instruments series a lot, though the first three books in the series are way better than the others, and since the story technically ends after those I recommend new readers to stop reading after "City of Glass".
My TTT
I've heard polar views about the last book in particular, with a lot of people saying it's terrible, so I've been very nervous about reading books 2 and 3. I think, after hearing your view, I probably will give them a miss. Keep my nice feelings about book 1. Ooh, if it's better than the movie I am definitely going to have to give this a chance. I didn't know anything about the book, and I'm always afraid the movie might have ruined the book for me. Thanks for stopping by!
DeleteI'm totally with you on The Mortal Instruments. I don't know why but I'm just not bothered about that series at all. I also feel a bit like you do towards Insurgent. I liked Divergent, I just don't feel particularly inclined to read the rest. I've also got To Kill a Mockingbird on my list :) Great minds think alike. x
ReplyDeleteGreat minds do indeed think alike. It's just one of those books, isn't it? There are just some series that are incredibly popular and one just doesn't feel bothered about reading them. Which is a pity. Ah well, we may read them one day, mightn't we? Thanks for stopping by!
DeleteI think we read "To Kill A Mockingbird" at school, actually. There's nothing particularly great about it, it's merely a story that takes you to another time and shows interesting dynamics between the people and culture of that time. I say there's nothing particularly great about it, because it's not really something that will make you want to stand up and shout, but...sometimes these things are good to read because they educate you and help you see different viewpoints. So in that way, it's valuable.
ReplyDeleteYou could always watch the film first, if you wanted. It has Gregory Peck! :D
With regards to the Earthsea quartet, I actually recently bought it again for my brother, because it has been many years since we've read it. He actually warned me off reading the fourth book when I was a kid - Tehanu, and I never have, though I've read reviews saying with the publishing of an additional two books in the series, the latter trilogy pairs interestingly with the former. So I might pick that up now - it must have just been a sort of downer without the remaining two.
Still, the first three are great. The prose is environmental, sure, but once you get into the flow you can get into the story. A lot of books used to be like that - the way it was written informed the atmosphere as much as the story being told. It still happens sometimes now, but I feel like there's a standard way of writing that's pretty accessible, but that accessibility means you don't so much 'sink' into the book as you could. Once your mind adapts to the way the book is written, your mindset also changes to understand it. Almost like a subtle shifting in language.
I think it's that which makes us more oblivious to the world around us, while our minds go into that other land and explore it. Though it does mean the book is much more difficult to just pick up and put down.
I can't remember why everyone says that it is a book that every person should read. Seeing different viewpoints is always a drawing point, but I guess it's not quite enough for me. I may read it eventually, just to find out what all the fuss is about though.
DeleteThe writing style of the Earthsea books was very off-putting when I tried it before, which I was very disappointed about as I heard such great things about it. Maybe I should have tried harder with it, but at the moment, I just don't have time to waste on books I'm not sure about. Still, I would like to give it another go, especially after what you just told me. Maybe I'll be able to get my head around the writing style if I try harder.
Some things just don't appeal and that's fine, but sometimes a day comes when you feel like...actually you'd like to give it a shot, like maybe the world just gives you that feeling. That's usually the day you get into it.
DeleteThe beginning of the first book is a bit oblique, but...settles down once you get to Ged's point of view. As far as I can remember anyway, did I mention I don't read any more? :p
Oh yes. Time is a big factor in reading. I remember reading Oliver Twist at a fairly young age. I had to read it for school work, and I hated reading it. It wasn't the right time for me to read it, and now I've never been back to try and enjoy it. Maybe I will try these in the future, when I feel more like it might be my sort of book, but I don't want to rush reading anything that might ruin the experience of an otherwise good book.
DeleteThat's partly why I was thinking about reading it too. But I just can't bring myself to reading it after my previous experiences with this series. which is a pity because I loved his 13th Reality series so much. Thanks for visiting!
ReplyDelete