Topics That Make Me Stop Reading a Book
This is a little difficult to answer, as I usually finish books, even if I’m not a big fan. But here are several things that make me dislike a book, when I may have enjoyed it otherwise.
A Hero Who Thinks the World Owes Him Everything
I mainly read this type of thing in medieval fiction, and I’ve read it farrrrr too many times that it gets annoying. Basically, the hero wants land. He coerces or tricks a titled woman to marry him to get said land, forcing/tricking the consummation to make it official.
This type of character just isn’t likeable for me, even after I gave them a chance to learn from their greed and mistakes.
Trading the Story for the Sake of a Sex Scene
Ugh, I hate this! I’ve read several books that have had an amazing storyline, amazing characters, and then instead of ending the book with awesome amazingness, the author ends the book with sex. Umm. No. I hate this. I don’t think this is a good way to end a book.
Excessive Sex
Now that we’re on the topic of sex, I really dislike books with excessive sex. One or two scenes, fine. But when it keeps going and going. And going. I can’t stand it, especially if they’re detailed and take up pages in the book. It detracts from the story and the sexual tension is suddenly gone because the characters crossed that line.
Skipping Vital Scenes
I recently read this book that said something along the lines of “We went on the first date last night…” Umm, what? Why didn’t we get to see this date? Romance in retrospect is a no-go for me. I would much rather see romantic scenes in the moment, that way I can root for the characters to get together and feel a connection to them.
Long, Drawn-out Paragraphs
Excessive inner reflection. Descriptions that go on a bit too long. For this, I will actually put down a book before I even reach page two. It doesn’t necessarily mean the book is bad, but if I’m looking for the next book to read, a book that doesn’t immediately grab my interest likely won’t make the top spot.
