Lists: All Those Things I Don’t Want to Read About

I’ll make a confession.  I just slammed the cover on a novel by an author I have enjoyed in the past.  I read 150 pages or so of this, his third book, which was, under the circumstances, way above and beyond the call of duty for any reader.  There was some amazing writing on those pages, sentences I yearned to have written, descriptions that were so vivid I was sucked right into the scene.

At the same time, there were so many things I didn’t like, I finally realized I was torturing myself.

You’ve been there, right?  You’ve wanted to love a novel so much (perhaps even one of mine) that you’ve kept reading well beyond the point when you know the book just  isn’t for you.  And you probably know the reasons why the book didn’t work.  Sometimes, quite simply, there are things we just don’t want to read about.

So that’s today’s list.  Here are the top five things I don’t want to read about in anybody’s novel.  Quirky my reasoning may be.  Revealing?  Possibly.  But think of your own list and add one or more items here under comments, so we can consider them together.

Remember, at the end of the month Random.org will choose a reader from everyone who added to any April list to receive an autographed novel.   Please stay away from politics, religion and general snarkiness, or the gatekeeper (that’s me) will “lose” your entry.

All Those Things I Don’t Want to Read About

1:   Grasping ex-wives who only exist to make life miserable for the poor hero, who is in no way at fault.

2:  Alcoholic cops/lawyers/FBI agents/etc.

3:  People who have been buried alive.

4:  Animals dying.

5:  Vampires.  (And my mind can’t be changed, but have fun trying.)

BTW, don’t forget that today, Friday the 13th, will be your lucky day if you download  a Friday the 13th FREE Kindle offer of 13 FREE reads from 13 authors–including Joanna Campbell Slan, who mentioned it here last week. But remember, the FREE books are only available today! Here’s the link.