# Given Up on a Book?



## Avalon3

I tried reading this book by Neal Stephenson and couldn't get into it. Has anyone else read books by him?


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## tc

I am looking at this book to buy.  Read the sample and it was ok.  What didn't you like about the book, it will make me think twice about it.


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## Guest

Avalon3 said:


> I tried reading this book by Neal Stephenson and couldn't get into it. Has anyone else read books by him?


I bought it, but was so disappointed in how badly his Snow Crash failed to live up to the hype that I've never even started it.

I tried to read Atlas Shrugged three times and never made it more than 50 pages in.


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## marianneg

Yeah, I read the sample just the other day, but I wasn't feeling it either.  It got deleted.  I didn't like how the author was trying to be all cutesy with the story - like calling Alan Turing Al.


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## Essensia

I tried to read Snow Crash.  I really, really tried.  After about 50 pages (the paper version), I finally threw in the towel.

(Also recently gave up on The Whiskey Rebels.  Hey, at least that one was free on Kindle.)


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## Linda Cannon-Mott

Essensia said:


> I tried to read Snow Crash. I really, really tried. After about 50 pages (the paper version), I finally threw in the towel.
> 
> (Also recently gave up on The Whiskey Rebels. Hey, at least that one was free on Kindle.)


The Whiskey Rebels sounds very good, I haven't sampled it yet though. Samples are a definite pro for the Kindle. Reviews can go either way because different people like different things. Disappointed to hear The Whiskey Rebels isn't good.

Linda


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## luvmy4brats

I've tried Pillars of the Earth at least 3 times and I just can't get in to it.  (I got maybe 1/2 way through the first time) I think it's time to throw in the towel.


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## Gertie Kindle

luvmy4brats said:


> I've tried Pillars of the Earth at least 3 times and I just can't get in to it. (I got maybe 1/2 way through the first time) I think it's time to throw in the towel.


Much as I love historical novels, this one did nothing for me. I finished it because when I read it way back when, I considered it a sacrilege not to finish a book.


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## Sherlock

I tried Pillars of the Earth too and just didn't care for it.  When I was much younger I felt that I had to finish any book I started.  Being older makes you realize you don't have all the time in the world and there are so many other GOOD books out there to read.  It's a waste to keep reading something you're not enjoying.  Selection is a wonderful thing so that we can all have choices we like!


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## Wannabe

Thanks, I always feel a little guilty when I give up on a book. That's what's nice about the samples- you can get a better idea of the book before you buy. Although this is not fool-proof. Sometimes the sample seems OK, so you buy the book only to find out later that the book's a dud.


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## Michael R. Hicks

Well, I've finished all the ones that I've bought, but one that I almost didn't finish (and probably shouldn't have) was Peter F. Hamilton's Pandora's Star. Unfortunately I sort of let myself get into that trap of "maybe something'll click _soon_..." but it never really did. The thing has what seems like a dozen sub-plots that don't seem to have any relationship until toward the end of the book (and this is a LONG book) - and THEN it ends right in the middle of the action that *finally* started! I hate it when that happens. And I hate it even more that I was a goon and bought the second book - Judas Unchained - although it was a bit better because things were finally starting to come together. I figured I already had so much time invested, I may as well finish the bloody thing. I was also feeling money-guilt, because Pandora's Star is close to full-price, although Judas Unchained was only like five and a half bucks at the time. Oy!

In short, interesting, but very easy to put down...


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## Mike D. aka jmiked

I still haven't finished Neil Gaiman's American Gods, going on two years after I bought the hardcover(!). I'm halfway through it and I just don't care. I pick it up every so often and try to go a few pages, but it just doesn't jell for me.

Mike


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## Essensia

> Disappointed to hear The Whiskey Rebels isn't good.


Oh gosh, Linda, please don't put too much stock in my opinion. You might love The Whiskey Rebels. I should tread a little more lightly.


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## Avalon3

tc said:


> I am looking at this book to buy. Read the sample and it was ok. What didn't you like about the book, it will make me think twice about it.


I might give it another try. It seemed to jump around so much without enough information on the characters. Maybe I have to get into it more to enjoy it.


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## Guest

jmiked said:


> I still havent finished Neil Gaiman's American Gods, going on two years after I bought the hardcover(!). I'm halfway through it and I just don't care. I pick it up every so often and try to go a few pages, but it just doesnt jell for me.
> 
> Mike


This was the book that was ballyhooed so much on the forum I used to frequent that I finally gave Gaiman a chance. And while I have become a Gaiman fan, this was far and away my least favorite of his books. I barely made it through myself.


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## Mike D. aka jmiked

Bacardi Jim said:


> This was the book that was ballyhooed so much on the forum I used to frequent that I finally gave Gaiman a chance. And while I have become a Gaiman fan, this was far and away my least favorite of his books. I barely made it through myself.


Yeah, I'm a fan now, myself. But it is not because of this book.

Mike


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## Eclectic Reader

I tried to read War on the Margins by Libby Cone but couldn't get through it. Someone here on this board mentioned it after I recommended The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. Both books are about the German occupation of the British Islands between the coast of France and England during WW II. I was fascinated by this little-known (to me, anyway) piece of history.

TGLAPPS was a delight to read. WOTM was rather disjointed; I may try it again some time....or not.


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## Leslie

Eclectic Reader said:


> I tried to read War on the Margins by Libby Cone but couldn't get through it. Someone here on this board mentioned it after I recommended The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. Both books are about the German occupation of the British Islands between the coast of France and England during WW II. I was fascinated by this little-known (to me, anyway) piece of history.
> 
> TGLAPPS was a delight to read. WOTM was rather disjointed; I may try it again some time....or not.


The recommender was probably me. I haven't read either book (I have samples of both on my Kindle) but when you mentioned TGLAPPS, I thought of Libby's book. Too bad it didn't catch you!

L


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## Tris

I find it REALLY hard to give up on books, but right now I'm at a tipping point with Stephen King and Peter Staub (I think that was the name of the second author)'s collaboration book called "The Talisman".  I mean it had me interested in parts, but now it's kind slow going and reminds me of the Narnia series.  I just can't seem to get into it.  Right now it's kinda 'on hold' while I go on to other stuff. 

Tris


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## Guest

*dies a little*


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## chobitz

Bacardi Jim said:


> *dies a little*


*ditto*

Tris have you read the Dark Tower series yet? If you hadn't I could see how the book would _off_ to you. Its one of the closest novels related to the DT series.

Jim have you read the sequel to it, Black House?

Oh I am trudging through the Anita Blake books _trying_ to find the reason its so well liked. I don't understand how zombies are poor defenseless creatures but vampires are evil..

Rachel Morgan and Sookie Stackhouse are spunky while Anita Blake comes off snarky and whiny ALL THE TIME. I love Jean Claude but obviously he is suppose to be a 'bad guy' cause he is an _evil_ vampire. She contradicts her beliefs by saying zombies need rights but vamps don't deserve them.

PLEASE someone tell me Anita Blake gets less snarky and less vamp hating??


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## Guest

Maggie: I made my comments about Black House (with which I was extremely disappointed) in the SK thread. You can probably use the Search function to find them.

Oh, and vampires are every bit as evil as zombies. More so, since they are intelligent and not mere flesh-eating machines.


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## Lotus

The last book I gave up on was a Kindle freebie cowboy romance from last summer sometime. I don't remember the name of it. I'm not a romance fan, and I read a couple of chapters before giving up on it as being too ridiculous.

One thing that bugs me to no end is injecting modern concepts and knowledge into a historical novel, or a novel that contains historical references. That particular book had a smattering of it, and it just tipped the balance for me.


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## chobitz

no one kill me but...

I don't understand the love of Discworld. Honestly , I tried to like CoM. I couldn't even finish the sample! I was expecting more Christopher Moore type humor I guess.


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## Guest

*deletes all Moore samples from Kindle*

If the two types of humor are incompatible, I guess I won't like him.


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## chobitz

Bacardi Jim said:


> *deletes all Moore samples from Kindle*
> 
> If the two types of humor are incompatible, I guess I won't like him.


Well its more like Discworld seems to be high fantasy humor and Moore is more modern fantasy humor..if I'm explaining it right..


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## 1131

I tried reading Neal Stephenson’s Snow Crash, Cryptononmicon and Quicksilver because friends kept recommending him to me.  I couldn’t get through any of them.  I have decided he just isn’t an author for me.  I ended up giving away all three books when I cleaned out my bookshelves after getting my Kindle.  The latest book I couldn’t get through was Twilight.  Everybody tells me I’m making a mistake by not reading it – I don’t care.


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## Vegas_Asian

chobitz said:


> Rachel Morgan and Sookie Stackhouse are spunky while Anita Blake comes off snarky and whiny ALL THE TIME. I love Jean Claude but obviously he is suppose to be a 'bad guy' cause he is an _evil_ vampire. She contradicts her beliefs by saying zombies need rights but vamps don't deserve them.
> 
> PLEASE someone tell me Anita Blake gets less snarky and less vamp hating??


I agree with you. I read the series....waiting for it to end. i can't start a series and not finish it. I need to know what happens. I like the books up to number 3.....Now I just cross my fingers and hope there an improvement. If there isn't an improvement in the next book....AB will the first series I will drop.

although, I like the character Rafael. not a fan of Richard


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## DeDe

I did get through Twilight but there was way too much teenage dramatics...I liked the later books much better, less love story and more paranormal activity. I hate not to finish a book so almost always slog through.

I really like the Anita Blake series...I could do with less _ardeur_ and more of her friend Edward. I wish they would have lost Richard at least 2 books ago.


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## Vegas_Asian

DeDe said:


> I really like the Anita Blake series...I could do with less _ardeur_ and more of her friend Edward. I wish they would have lost Richard at least 2 books ago.


Yay! Less ardeur. Less Richard. More Edward. Still effy about Olaf. I like Bernardo. With the setting of the next AB book I hope for decreased ardeur and more detective/slayer Anita.


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## Gertie Kindle

Tris said:


> I find it REALLY hard to give up on books, but right now I'm at a tipping point with Stephen King and Peter Staub (I think that was the name of the second author)'s collaboration book called "The Talisman". I mean it had me interested in parts, but now it's kind slow going and reminds me of the Narnia series. I just can't seem to get into it. Right now it's kinda 'on hold' while I go on to other stuff.
> 
> Tris


I'm not a Stephen King fan, but some of my co-workers nagged me into reading first The Green Mile, which I really liked, and then The Talisman. Loved Wolf (am I thinking of the right book?). I won't say I was crazy about the book, but it was good enough for me to finish.



Bacardi Jim said:


> Maggie: I made my comments about Black House (with which I was extremely disappointed) in the SK thread. You can probably use the Search function to find them.


Yes, Black House was disappointing, but it was okay. Neither book made me a fan of SK and he's not a must read author for me.


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## Leslie

I don't intentionally give up, I just sort of stop reading, usually when I find something else I like more. My most recent unfinished books are *The Reincarnationist* and *Waiter Rant*. A couple of people here said *Waiter Rant* got less interesting as it went on, so I'll probably never get back to it.

L


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## Wells83

Leslie said:


> A couple of people here said *Waiter Rant* got less interesting as it went on, so I'll probably never get back to it.
> 
> L


One of those people was me. 

That book was such a disappointment. I skimmed the second half.


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## robin.goodfellow

> Oh I am trudging through the Anita Blake books trying to find the reason its so well liked. I don't understand how zombies are poor defenseless creatures but vampires are evil..


If you already don't like them, do yourself a favor and stop trudging now. Honestly. You'll thank me. I started reading the AB books from the beginning, and I'm still reading them b/c I have some bad karma to work off. In the beginning, I thought Anita was whiney and indecisive, and there was far too much descriptive language about how she held her gun. And unfortunately, that's not a metaphor or a euphemism or anything else.

Then she picked up the ardeur, and there was entirely too much descriptive language about the triumvirate. Is that word spelled wrong? I've tried to block it completely out of my consciousness, so it's hard to tell.

Then the ardeur kicked into really high gear, and now the books talk way WAY too much about bizarre kinky sex. Don't get me wrong. I enjoy a good romance novel as much as the next girl....as long as it's a romance novel. I've never in my life read so many books where sex was an obligation or a chore or a really brutal punishment. Also, imo, Anita has remained just as boring and just as whiney, but now she almost never deals with raising zombies. She's always moaning about how she can't cope with the "metaphysical


Spoiler



shit


" (her words, not mine), and trust me: we get it. We know she's incapable of dealing. Also, I think she's self-righteous and judgemental, she constantly reverses herself on things she absolutely will and won't do, and it's just...blech. Read something else. Anything else. Try Sookie. At least she sticks to her guns. The Sookie character can pull off naive way better than Anita. Even the Rachel Morgan character is spunky, and I couldn't even finish "Dead Witch Walking". The Stephanie Plum character is also a good idea of a girl caught in increasingly bizarre situations.

I think I loathe Anita Blake.

/rant.


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## Guest

I found my comments on Black House.

http://www.kboards.com/index.php/topic,785.msg16340.html#msg16340


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## Guest

Eclectic Reader said:


> I tried to read War on the Margins by Libby Cone but couldn't get through it. Someone here on this board mentioned it after I recommended The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. Both books are about the German occupation of the British Islands between the coast of France and England during WW II. I was fascinated by this little-known (to me, anyway) piece of history.
> 
> TGLAPPS was a delight to read. WOTM was rather disjointed; I may try it again some time....or not.


I think you are reading my mind. I loved "Guernsey" (see my review elsewhere on the board). I just finished "War" and thought several times that I might not finish it. Too many characters, only snippets of each storyline interspersed with boring memos and written orders. The ending was a bit too neat for my tastes.


Spoiler



All the disconnected seemingly unrelated storylines tied up in a pretty little bow.


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## Guest

chobitz said:


> no one kill me but...
> 
> I don't understand the love of Discworld. Honestly , I tried to like CoM. I couldn't even finish the sample! I was expecting more Christopher Moore type humor I guess.


Having read only "The Stupidest Angel", I can tell you that Moore's humor is nothing at all like Pratchett's. Pratchett leans more towards Douglas Adams and Monty Python. Lots of word play and twisted use of language. Moore is straight forward situational humor. I enjoyed "Angel" and will probably read some of his other stuff, but I don't see him pushing either Pratchett or Adams off of their pedestal.

If you didn't like "Color of Magic", you might want to try "Equal Rites" before giving up on Discworld. It is much funnier and better written. It took Pratchett a while to find his voice.


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## chobitz

robin.goodfellow said:


> If you already don't like them, do yourself a favor and stop trudging now. Honestly. You'll thank me. I started reading the AB books from the beginning, and I'm still reading them b/c I have some bad karma to work off. In the beginning, I thought Anita was whiney and indecisive, and there was far too much descriptive language about how she held her gun. And unfortunately, that's not a metaphor or a euphemism or anything else.
> 
> Then she picked up the ardeur, and there was entirely too much descriptive language about the triumvirate. Is that word spelled wrong? I've tried to block it completely out of my consciousness, so it's hard to tell.
> 
> Then the ardeur kicked into really high gear, and now the books talk way WAY too much about bizarre kinky sex. Don't get me wrong. I enjoy a good romance novel as much as the next girl....as long as it's a romance novel. I've never in my life read so many books where sex was an obligation or a chore or a really brutal punishment. Also, IMO, Anita has remained just as boring and just as whiney, but now she almost never deals with raising zombies. She's always moaning about how she can't cope with the "metaphysical
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> sh**
> 
> 
> " (her words, not mine), and trust me: we get it. We know she's incapable of dealing. Also, I think she's self-righteous and judgmental, she constantly reverses herself on things she absolutely will and won't do, and it's just...blech. Read something else. Anything else. Try Sookie. At least she sticks to her guns. The Sookie character can pull off naive way better than Anita. Even the Rachel Morgan character is spunky, and I couldn't even finish "Dead Witch Walking". The Stephanie Plum character is also a good idea of a girl caught in increasingly bizarre situations.
> 
> I think I loathe Anita Blake.
> 
> /rant.


I'm surprise you didn't like the Rachel Morgan series. Its alot like Sookie but I think I like Rachel more (maybe its because of the sexy pixie Jenks or that True Blood slightly tainted my tastes of Sookie). Try giving her another chance.

As for Anita Blake you are right she is soooooo judgmental. Sookie judges by individual people and so does Rachel but geez Jean Claude (I think I have the name right) seems like a nice vampire. Vampires can be nice right? LOL

TBH my favorite 'spunky girl' series is out of print. If you can track down the Sonja Blue series give it a chance. She's more Blade than Buffy tho Joss Wheadon (Buffy TV show creator) swears Sonja Blue is his main influence for Buffy. Sonja hates all supes, being raped by a vampire and being made into a dhampire(half vamp) would mess with one's head wouldn't it? But unlike Anita Blake , Sonja is likable.

I've been eying the Plum series. Is it just plain mysteries or supernatural mysteries?


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## robin.goodfellow

Plain mysteries, in the sense that there are no vampires, no werewolves, no fairies (except in the Between the Numbers series).

However, there is Ranger, and there is Grandma Mazur, who enjoys going to the viewings at the funeral home. Trust me, this is much, much funnier than it sounds. There are certain argumentative factions on this board (joking! all of you Morelli girls are not argumentative, but I think the case could be made that you are a faction.) that will tell you there is also Joe Morelli. Technically speaking, they are right. However, I'm a Rangeman girl all the way. If I could afford it, I'd wear all black every day, just in case.

The first one (One for the Money) is grittier than the rest of them, but it's a pretty good mystery. And the books take place in New Jersey, which is an interesting change of scenery from both Shreveport and St. Louis.

I think you are right: not all vampires are bad. Eventually, Anita gets to sort of thinking that, or thinking at least the vampires in her harem are not all bad. Or not all bad for her, but still bad for everyone else.

I'll have to try the Rachel Morgan books again on my Kindle. I find that I can read things faster on Lola, and that helps. I'm still struggling through "The Light Fantastic" from the Discworld series too. I had to just leave "Color of Money" to the side, and maybe if I find the rest of the series funny, I'll try it again. But I just couldn't do it. I think I bought that one b/c Amazon said people who bought Douglas Adams bought Terry Pratchett. So far, I'm just not seeing it. Maybe I actually have to have the Arthur Dent-connection to earth character to relate, b/c I can't relate to these books at all. And they're definitely not Christopher Moore-type humor, but then, very very few things are. To be fair, I haven't finished a lot of Christopher Moore books either. Boiled down, they sound hilarious


Spoiler



(A town is host to a sea monster named Steve who disguises himself as a trailer but accidentally eats the paper boy)


, but I found the actual reading tended to drag. And I couldn't read Island of the Sequined Love Nun at all after I found out what it was about. But I enjoyed Lamb and Coyote Blue and the Stupidest Angel. Even Practical Demonkeeping had some pretty good moments, but I must admit that I read that one mainly to shock my co-workers with the title. I'm currently trying to work my way thru You Suck, but I have found that I'm just better off walking away from books that start with someone peeing on a sidewalk. I'm just happier that way.

I'll try to find the Sonja Blue books, and appreciate the recommendation.


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## Guest

NO!  Vampires cannot be ni--LKJ:L&(*^($&@&^

Damn censor.


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## Gertie Kindle

robin.goodfellow said:


> Plain mysteries, in the sense that there are no vampires, no werewolves, no fairies (except in the Between the Numbers series).
> 
> However, there is Ranger, and there is Grandma Mazur, who enjoys going to the viewings at the funeral home. Trust me, this is much, much funnier than it sounds. There are certain argumentative factions on this board (joking! all of you Morelli girls are not argumentative, but I think the case could be made that you are a faction.) that will tell you there is also Joe Morelli. Technically speaking, they are right. However, I'm a Rangeman girl all the way. If I could afford it, I'd wear all black every day, just in case.
> 
> The first one (One for the Money) is grittier than the rest of them, but it's a pretty good mystery. And the books take place in New Jersey, which is an interesting change of scenery from both Shreveport and St. Louis.


You can get the first three Plum books together. Listen to Robin. They are funnier than they sound. Stephanie is a bounty hunter and not a very good one. You pretty much know who the bad guys are and there's not much of a mystery, but the books are falling down funny.


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## robin.goodfellow

> but the books are falling down funny


Indeed. Especially in the later books, when we get to hear about Lula's wardrobe. And tastycakes. Babe.


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## Geeky Girl Karin

I downloaded The Reincarnationist by M.J. Rose when it was free. I was getting into it, but somehow just lost interest and abandoned it. It's still on my Kindle but in back of a very long line of other things I will read first.


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## Leslie

Geeky Girl Karin said:


> I downloaded The Reincarnationist by M.J. Rose when it was free. I was getting into it, but somehow just lost interest and abandoned it. It's still on my Kindle but in back of a very long line of other things I will read first.


That's exactly what happened to me. It wasn't that I disliked it, it just wasn't grabbing me. Now it has drifted down to page 6 of my home screen.

L


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## Guest

> But the books are falling down funny


Gravity malfunction?


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## chobitz

robin.goodfellow said:


> Plain mysteries, in the sense that there are no vampires, no werewolves, no fairies (except in the Between the Numbers series).
> 
> However, there is Ranger, and there is Grandma Mazur, who enjoys going to the viewings at the funeral home. Trust me, this is much, much funnier than it sounds. There are certain argumentative factions on this board (joking! all of you Morelli girls are not argumentative, but I think the case could be made that you are a faction.) that will tell you there is also Joe Morelli. Technically speaking, they are right. However, I'm a Rangeman girl all the way. If I could afford it, I'd wear all black every day, just in case.
> 
> The first one (One for the Money) is grittier than the rest of them, but it's a pretty good mystery. And the books take place in New Jersey, which is an interesting change of scenery from both Shreveport and St. Louis.
> 
> I think you are right: not all vampires are bad. Eventually, Anita gets to sort of thinking that, or thinking at least the vampires in her harem are not all bad. Or not all bad for her, but still bad for everyone else.
> 
> I'll have to try the Rachel Morgan books again on my Kindle. I find that I can read things faster on Lola, and that helps. I'm still struggling through "The Light Fantastic" from the Discworld series too. I had to just leave "Color of Money" to the side, and maybe if I find the rest of the series funny, I'll try it again. But I just couldn't do it. I think I bought that one b/c Amazon said people who bought Douglas Adams bought Terry Pratchett. So far, I'm just not seeing it. Maybe I actually have to have the Arthur Dent-connection to earth character to relate, b/c I can't relate to these books at all. And they're definitely not Christopher Moore-type humor, but then, very very few things are. To be fair, I haven't finished a lot of Christopher Moore books either. Boiled down, they sound hilarious
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> (A town is host to a sea monster named Steve who disguises himself as a trailer but accidentally eats the paper boy)
> 
> 
> , but I found the actual reading tended to drag. And I couldn't read Island of the Sequined Love Nun at all after I found out what it was about. But I enjoyed Lamb and Coyote Blue and the Stupidest Angel. Even Practical Demonkeeping had some pretty good moments, but I must admit that I read that one mainly to shock my co-workers with the title. I'm currently trying to work my way thru You Suck, but I have found that I'm just better off walking away from books that start with someone peeing on a sidewalk. I'm just happier that way.
> 
> I'll try to find the Sonja Blue books, and appreciate the recommendation.


Ah I ended up buying the 3 in 1 Plum book..ya'll are terrible! I haven't bought this much books AND stepped out of my comfort zone genre wise in a long time.

As for the Sonja Blue series, be aware that its a more 'hardcore' book then sookie or rachel. Picture a female Blade or a more dangerous Buffy! She's all about the hunt.

Here is the amazon link for the first 3 novels:
http://www.amazon.com/Midnight-Blue-Sonja-Collection/dp/1565049004/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1230658054&sr=8-2

its out of print but some sellers have used DTB copies of it.


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## Guest

I have no use for the Anita Blake series.. I've heard too much about them to ever want to start the series.

I am a big Kim Harrison fan boy. i love her books.

Don't judge Stephen King on one or 2 books. He writes in wide range of genres. Everything from Shawshank Redemption to It. Dragon Eye is another good one from him that is very different from the rest of his books.

With all that he has written 2 of the books i have never finished. They are *Black House * and *Lisey's Story*. BH, I just couldn't finish. LS, could get past the opening.

There is only one other book that I can think of that i was unable to finish, *Twilight.* It was not written with me in mind. 

I still tried Stephenie Meyers other book, *The Host*. It's not any sort of master piece but I liked it.


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## Guest

^^^As I recall, you were the one who read my comments about Black House and said something like "Sounds about right to me."


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## cheshirenc

I made myself finish _House of sand and fog_ and afterwards I was so mad at myself for wasting that time. I hated that book.

I also hated _in the lake of the woods_


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## Mike D. aka jmiked

Bacardi Jim said:


> Gravity malfunction?


That reminds me...... I bought the Kindle Mission of Gravity a while ago and need to read it (probably for the 4th or 5th time). It got pushed way to the back of the Most Recent listing.

Mike


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## Avalon3

cheshirenc said:


> I made myself finish _House of sand and fog_ and afterwards I was so mad at myself for wasting that time. I hated that book.


I didn't like The House of Sand and Fog" either. Was that an Oprah pick? Then a movie?


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## Gertie Kindle

robin.goodfellow said:


> Indeed. Especially in the later books, when we get to hear about Lula's wardrobe. And tastycakes. Babe.


Hah! Cupcake.

And boy do I miss Tastycakes; creamies, chocolate cupcakes, butterscotch krumpets. Yummy.

I just finished #9. I'm only reading one a month. Can't stand too much hilarity.


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## Guest

Avalon3 said:


> I didn't like The House of Sand and Fog" either. Was that an Oprah pick? Then a movie?


I don't know about Oprah, but it was a pretty good movie. It starred Jennifer Connelly in her anorexic "sorry, audience, I don't have those glorious boobs anymore but I've become a much better actress" stage.


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## tecwritr

I've given up on Tom Clancy novels, period.  I forget which was the last one I tried.  Clancy spends way to much time showing how much he knows about hardware/software used in spying and war.  I mean, come on, 3 or 4 hundred pages just to explain the technology he writes about in his books?


----------



## pidgeon92

I loved this book when I read it years ago.... I lent it to somebody else, and he didn't care for it at all.


----------



## Z06 Nav

I gave up on Pillars of the Earth after the third try and I still don't know why it didn't appeal to me.  Another one I couldn't get into was Outlander - and it's one of your upcoming book clubs - eeeeeeeeek!  I'm so  


Dawn - Z06 Nav
Lone Star Open Road Racer


----------



## Gertie Kindle

Z06 Nav said:


> I gave up on Pillars of the Earth after the third try and I still don't know why it didn't appeal to me. Another one I couldn't get into was Outlander - and it's one of your upcoming book clubs - eeeeeeeeek! I'm so
> 
> Dawn - Z06 Nav
> Lone Star Open Road Racer


Just to show you how personal tastes vary even within one person, I didn't like Pillars of the Earth at all, although I finished it. But Outlander is my favorite book. Go figure.


----------



## Guest

*sneaks in and steals Gertie's entire HP collection, including her wildly overpriced Collector's Edition of Beedle the Bard* Since they aren't your favorites....


----------



## Gertie Kindle

Bacardi Jim said:


> *sneaks in and steals Gertie's entire HP collection, including her wildly overpriced Collector's Edition of Beedle the Bard* Since they aren't your favorites....


And after the nice thing I did for you in the Thanks for the Clicks thread.  Besides, I've got a six foot Han Solo cutout guarding my collection.


----------



## Wells83

Z06 Nav said:


> I gave up on Pillars of the Earth after the third try and I still don't know why it didn't appeal to me. Another one I couldn't get into was Outlander - and it's one of your upcoming book clubs - eeeeeeeeek! I'm so
> 
> Dawn - Z06 Nav
> Lone Star Open Road Racer


I enjoyed _Pillars_ but I found _Outlander_ hard to get into as well. I ended up enjoying it though--the second half picked up a lot.


----------



## Michael R. Hicks

I have to second Robin's comments on Anita Blake. I think I read the first two books, but couldn't take any more (not sure why I even read the second now). And Hamilton's up to what, now, nineteen?? Good grief! Some things should be given the dignity of a decent burial, if you'll pardon the semi-pun.

Tom Clancy is another one. I loved his books until...they weren't really his books anymore. I think Executive Orders was the last one, and that was getting a bit thin for a thick book. Too bad, though - he wrote lots of good stuff early on.


----------



## robin.goodfellow

> Gravity malfunction?


9 times out of 10. The 10th time, too much buffet food is the culprit.

Indeed, the Anita Blake series should have been retired 8 or 10 books back. And as much as I love the Stephanie Plum books, at the end of #13, I turned to Mom and said "Really? That's it?" But the 14th was back funny again.

I was also sorely tempted to walk away in the middle of the last Harry Potter book. Honestly, if I want to listen to people argue for hours in the woods, I'll go on a camping trip for my family. I finished it, but mostly I view it as time I can't get back.

And although I realize it's a classic, I can't get into Dracula. I even bought the annotated edition, thinking that having someone else's notes to read would help. It hasn't so far.

On the plus side, a new restaurant has opened up in town, and it was clearly opened by people from up North. They advertise that they are the only tastycakes distributor for something like 6 states. I may have to go there. Of course, being a Stephanie fan all these years, I understand that I should walk the 15 miles across town to get them, and then walk back.

One other thing: I tried to read the Elizabeth Peters Vicki Bliss novels, and some of the later Amelia Peabody novels. I think the publisher should really have to put a warning on books like that saying "Warning. This is not the Elizabeth Peters you were looking for. You need to be in a used book store. You will only be disappointed in this product." if they're going to let other people assume the name of a previously popular author. Mom loves EP's stuff, and I couldn't figure out why for the longest time. Now I know: we're talking about at least two different people.


----------



## chobitz

robin.goodfellow said:


> 9 times out of 10. The 10th time, too much buffet food is the culprit.
> 
> Indeed, the Anita Blake series should have been retired 8 or 10 books back. And as much as I love the Stephanie Plum books, at the end of #13, I turned to Mom and said "Really? That's it?" But the 14th was back funny again.
> 
> I was also sorely tempted to walk away in the middle of the last Harry Potter book. Honestly, if I want to listen to people argue for hours in the woods, I'll go on a camping trip for my family. I finished it, but mostly I view it as time I can't get back.
> 
> And although I realize it's a classic, I can't get into Dracula. I even bought the annotated edition, thinking that having someone else's notes to read would help. It hasn't so far.
> 
> On the plus side, a new restaurant has opened up in town, and it was clearly opened by people from up North. They advertise that they are the only tastycakes distributor for something like 6 states. I may have to go there. Of course, being a Stephanie fan all these years, I understand that I should walk the 15 miles across town to get them, and then walk back.


Stephanie is right!
Having grown up in Philly I sorely miss tastykakes. My favorite was CandyCakes, sponge cakes with peanut butter on top enrobed in milk chocolate. I also loved their lemon pies..yummy!
I really have a hard time eating Little Debbie's after growing up with Tastykakes.
http://www.tastykake.com/


----------



## Gertie Kindle

chobitz said:


> Stephanie is right!
> Having grown up in Philly I sorely miss tastykakes. My favorite was CandyCakes, sponge cakes with peanut butter on top enrobed in milk chocolate. I also loved their lemon pies..yummy!
> I really have a hard time eating Little Debbie's after growing up with Tastykakes.
> http://www.tastykake.com/


Oh, I forgot about the lemon pies. So good. They've had Tastycakes here in SoFla for a long time, but they just don't taste the same. Then there's Taylor Ham (Pork Roll) and mustard pretzels. At least my arteries are thanking me for not eating this stuff anymore, but my stomach is still mad at me.


----------



## Avalon3

tecwritr said:


> I've given up on Tom Clancy novels, period. I forget which was the last one I tried. Clancy spends way to much time showing how much he knows about hardware/software used in spying and war. I mean, come on, 3 or 4 hundred pages just to explain the technology he writes about in his books?


I gave up on Tom Clancy too. His later books were just not as good as in the beginning. I think the last one I read was "Red Rabbit". Someone that reviewed it said it should have been called "Dead Rabbit". I was sorry I wasted my money and time on it.


----------



## 1131

tecwritr said:


> I've given up on Tom Clancy novels, period. I forget which was the last one I tried. Clancy spends way to much time showing how much he knows about hardware/software used in spying and war. I mean, come on, 3 or 4 hundred pages just to explain the technology he writes about in his books?


I've given up on Tom Clancy as well but I quit on his second book. When I read a half page about the protagonist putting on and tying his shoes I had had enough. As far as I'm concerned, the only book of his worth reading was the Hunt for Red October, and the movie was better than the book (well at least as good)


----------



## sjc

I didn't give up...but put myself through the torture:  I am definitely in the minority here; given Oprah and all...but I absolutely hated White Oleander.  I am not fond of O's choices...she likes dark depressing material.  I've tried a couple of her reads and I'm not impressed though others rave.


----------



## Tris

Vampyre said:


> I still tried Stephenie Meyers other book, *The Host*. It's not any sort of master piece but I liked it.


Oh man! Stephanie Meyer's "The Host" was the last DTB that I read and absolutely could not get into! It seems like it is one of those "you either like it or hate it". I got 2/3 of the book read (I had about 100 pages left), and just couldn't finish it for the life of me. Supposedly it doesn't pick up until the middle or so, but I was bored to tears and just wanted to fling the dang thing out the window. Unfortunately it was a library book, or should I say fortunately it was a library book? Hmmm... See this is why I will not stop going to the library even with my Kindle. Some books you are just not sure about, just check it out from the library and save some cash.

Is it just me or are Meyer's main female characters really whiney and immature? Or is it just me being in my late 20s-early 30s reading a YA book?

Tris


----------



## chobitz

Actually The Hoost was an adult and not YA book.

I liked it. It might have been a little too "romantic" for my taste and Meyer's always insists on a happy ending. But I've read worse.


----------



## Vegas_Asian

In my senior year of high school, we all had to pick a book from a long list of selections. We all drew numbers on what turn we got to call dibs on a book. Of course, I got the last number in the whole class. So I picked the most interesting title and picked Caesar's Women. Over the course of the weeks that followed, I tried again and again to read the book, but never could get into it....With it being senior year, I finally gave into senior-itis...I'm sorry, but I wiki'd the book and got a detailed summary. I also wiki'd The Great Gastby the year before.


----------



## Micdiddy

gertiekindle said:


> Much as I love historical novels, this one did nothing for me. I finished it because when I read it way back when, I considered it a sacrilege not to finish a book.


I have never really given up on a book that I've read more than 20 pages of.


----------



## Ann in Arlington

Vegas_Asian said:


> t....With it being senior year, I finally gave into senior-itis...I'm sorry, but I wiki'd the book and got a detailed summary. I also wiki'd The Great Gastby the year before.


It's students like you sounding the death knell for Cliff's Notes.


----------



## Libby Cone

Dear Eclectic Reader and LuckyRainbow,

Thank you for the comments on my book, War on the Margins. I think you have brought up the same points about disjointedness that others who didn't care for it also mentioned. I guess I need to convey irony differently; it was my thought that dry documents with harrowing contents would be a good way to portray what Hanna Arendt called "the banality of evil," but since the consensus is that it doesn't, I may change it if/when it is picked up by a publishing house. I am working on a new book that is a much more straightforward first-person narrative with maybe one document in the whole thing. I hope you like it better. Thanks for sticking with the book, and thanks for the honest feedback.


----------



## DawnOfChaos

I'm getting ready to pitch The Other Boleyn Girl about 2/3 of the way through.


----------



## Beth A

My most recent was 'The Story of Edgar Sawtelle'. I totally disliked that one.


----------



## Gertie Kindle

DawnOfChaos said:


> I'm getting ready to pitch The Other Boleyn Girl about 2/3 of the way through.


That's one I liked, but not enough to reread nearly 700 pages. I liked The Boleyn Inheritance better.


----------



## Micdiddy

I'm thinking of ditching The Blind Assassin but I'm over halfway through and i know people who say it's there favorite book! One is my sis who reads more than me so I def trust her. I just can't get into it, I read half a chapter then come online.


----------



## 1131

DawnOfChaos said:


> I'm getting ready to pitch The Other Boleyn Girl about 2/3 of the way through.


I almost gave up on The Other Boleyn Girl but I worked my way to the end. I can't see reading the other books by Pilippa Gregory though.


----------



## Gertie Kindle

imallbs said:


> I almost gave up on The Other Boleyn Girl but I worked my way to the end. I can't see reading the other books by Pilippa Gregory though.


_
The Constant Princess_ was about Catherine of Aragon starting from when she was a young girl. It took half the book for Arthur to die and set up for the other half. I did make it through, but I won't read it again.

The Boleyn Inheritance has a lot about Anne of Cleves, Catherine Howard and Jane Rochford. It was much more interesting.


----------



## kjn33

Oh man!  Stephanie Meyer's "The Host" was the last DTB that I read and absolutely could not get into!  It seems like it is one of those "you either like it or hate it".  I got 2/3 of the book read (I had about 100 pages left), and just couldn't finish it for the life of me.  Supposedly it doesn't pick up until the middle or so, but I was bored to tears and just wanted to fling the dang thing out the window.  Unfortunately it was a library book, or should I say fortunately it was a library book?  Hmmm...  See this is why I will not stop going to the library even with my Kindle.  Some books you are just not sure about, just check it out from the library and save some cash.

Is it just me or are Meyer's main female characters really whiney and immature?  Or is it just me being in my late 20s-early 30s reading a YA book?

Tris


I sooo agree. I have tried & tried, but I can't do it. I got the hardcover as a birthday gift right after finishing the Twilight series so I was excited to get into another of Meyer's books, but it was really rough going.........I could only get thru about 70 pages.


----------



## Tippy

I *made* myself get through Pillars of the Earth. Why I decided to finish that torturous book is beyond me. WILL NOT read the sequel. I have been getting into Freebies on Amazon. I got the three Charles Huston books -- first one Caught stealing. I finished the book, and am still disgusted about torturing the poor cat. Dang that burns me up. So I decided to try the second one. Well it too is violent, at least they haven't tortured an animal -- so far. But am trying to decide if I really want to finish the book.


----------



## intinst

Avalon3 said:


> I tried reading this book by Neal Stephenson and couldn't get into it. Has anyone else read books by him?


I was given this book sometime ago with glowing recommendations, but I made it half way through and just gave up. the only other book that i have not been able to make myself finish is Conrad's Lord Jim. Tried it as a junior in high school, and three times since but never make it past the third chapter. When my kindle arrives, I guess I try again since I can get free as a "classic". Maybe by reading a chapter at a time and mixing in some other things...


----------



## luvshihtzu

Beth A said:


> My most recent was 'The Story of Edgar Sawtelle'. I totally disliked that one.


I agree about The Story of Edgar Sawtelle and I was listening to the audio version. Got about a third of the way through and finally gave myself permission to stop. It was just too annoying for me.

My favorite audiobook in the past couple of years was Water for Elephants by Sarah Gruen. The narration and writing were superb. The story was very interesting, at least until the very unbelievable stupid ending. The book was worth reading in spite of the ending.

I remember reading one of Nancy Pearl's Book Lust chapters about a formula using your age for how many pages to read of a book before letting it go for lack of interest. I see it as time you will waste and never get back if you continue to read a book you can't stand.
luvshihtzu


----------



## Daisysmama

I love Cornwell's Scarpetta series....but, her first novel away from the Scarpetta books, Hornet's Nest...I didn't get past page 65 and it was a struggle to get that far.  The character names alone were so disgusting and then the things they did were even more.  I mentioned this to my Cornwell buddy at work and said I wanted her to read it ignoring my opinions...she agreed and too couldn't get past about page 65.  Thank goodness it was from the library and could be returned immediately!!

Another ridiculous indie published book I happened across in the library was Plutonium Murders by a Dr. Davis.  The overall idea for the plot was interesting, but the writing was so bad and what he had the main character physically do in 24 hours while suffering from radiation poisoning was unbelievable.  I will confess I did read this one to the end just to see how ridiculous it would actually get...and it just kept getting worse and worse!!!


----------



## Anju 

Essensia said:


> Oh gosh, Linda, please don't put too much stock in my opinion. You might love The Whiskey Rebels. I should tread a little more lightly.


It's ok Essensia - I could not read The Whiskey Rebels, but then I picked it up after Gone for a Soldier, no comparison whatsoever. I got it when it was free, so I don't feel too bad about not reading it.

I try to read 50 pages before I give up. Somewhere the comment was 1500 location was the same, I think it might be a little longer. Too many good books to read here to waste time.


----------



## Wells83

imallbs said:


> I almost gave up on The Other Boleyn Girl but I worked my way to the end. I can't see reading the other books by Pilippa Gregory though.


I loved _The Other Boleyn Girl_, but I have the same problem with Gregory's other books.


----------



## 1131

intinst said:


> I was given this book sometime ago with glowing recommendations, but I made it half way through and just gave up. the only other book that i have not been able to make myself finish is Conrad's Lord Jim. Tried it as a junior in high school, and three times since but never make it past the third chapter. When my kindle arrives, I guess I try again since I can get free as a "classic". Maybe by reading a chapter at a time and mixing in some other things...


I agree with you on Cryptonomicon. I couldn't get into any of Neal Stephenson's books. They were highly recommended to me by a friend who's tastes are usually pretty similar to mine.


----------



## Avalon3

My sister's Kindle is under my account. We both like a lot of the same books and authors. I'm going to ask her if she'll read Cryptonomicon and see if she can get into it.


----------



## Leslie

Avalon3 said:


> My sister's Kindle is under my account. We both like a lot of the same books and authors. I'm going to ask her if she'll read Cryptonomicon and see if she can get into it.


That's the approach...torture the poor woman! LOL.

L


----------



## BambiB

kreelanwarrior said:


> Well, I've finished all the ones that I've bought, but one that I almost didn't finish (and probably shouldn't have) was Peter F. Hamilton's Pandora's Star. Unfortunately I sort of let myself get into that trap of "maybe something'll click _soon_..." but it never really did. The thing has what seems like a dozen sub-plots that don't seem to have any relationship until toward the end of the book (and this is a LONG book) - and THEN it ends right in the middle of the action that *finally* started! I hate it when that happens. And I hate it even more that I was a goon and bought the second book - Judas Unchained - although it was a bit better because things were finally starting to come together. I figured I already had so much time invested, I may as well finish the bloody thing. I was also feeling money-guilt, because Pandora's Star is close to full-price, although Judas Unchained was only like five and a half bucks at the time. Oy!
> 
> In short, interesting, but very easy to put down...


oohh...I hate to hear that about Pandora's Star. I got my Kindle when I was in the middle of reading PA and I stopped reading my paperback and switched to the K book. I do think he has a lot of plotlines, but PA will always hold a dear spot in my heart in that it was my first K book.  Seriously though, I love Hamilton's books.


----------



## BambiB

Vampyre said:


> Don't judge Stephen King on one or 2 books. He writes in wide range of genres. Everything from Shawshank Redemption to It. Dragon Eye is another good one from him that is very different from the rest of his books.


I agree...Dragon's Eye is really good. It was one of the first SK I read and I always end up rereading it.



Vampyre said:


> With all that he has written 2 of the books i have never finished. They are *Black House * and *Lisey's Story*. BH, I just couldn't finish. LS, could get past the opening.


Lisey's Story is really good as well...you should really try it again. Although I will always remember the Family Guy episode and SK's "lamp monster"!! Too funny!


----------



## geko29

tecwritr said:


> I've given up on Tom Clancy novels, period. I forget which was the last one I tried. Clancy spends way to much time showing how much he knows about hardware/software used in spying and war. I mean, come on, 3 or 4 hundred pages just to explain the technology he writes about in his books?


He's ALWAYS been wordy, I don't know who you've been reading before this.  In his very first book, he spent like 17 pages describing how fuzzy Ramius' hat was.


----------



## Dooterbug

I've made it through Book Five of Terry Goodkind's Sword of Truth novels... stopped and started this one so many times, I don't think I'll finish the rest of them.


----------



## Boston

When I used to read paper, I gave up on books a lot (maybe 15%).  I see reading as use of my "free" time and its too short trying to get through something I am not enjoying.  So if I am not engaged within the first hour of reading, I often put it down.  If I can't get into it after a couple of tries, I give up.  Sometimes I'd give a book I'd given up on to a friend (with appropriate disclaimer).  If they come back with rave reviews, I will usually give it another try (often finding that the book does get better).    

The cool thing with the Kindle, is that you can read the sample before buying.  I think I've finished all the books I've started and purchased except one.  One reason that I'm saving money although reading more.


----------



## hackeynut

Should have hit the sample button on this book...

http://www.amazon.com/The-Screaming-Room/dp/B000P0JGJQ/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

It was just beyond incredibly awful.


----------



## Leslie

hackeynut said:


> Should have hit the sample button on this book...
> 
> http://www.amazon.com/The-Screaming-Room/dp/B000P0JGJQ/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top
> 
> It was just beyond incredibly awful.


Interestingly, Harriet Klausner gives this book a 5 star review. She also gave the worst book I read in 2008 a 5 star review.

Who is Harriet Klausner? Is she a paid shill? Interesting that she gave glowing reviews to two such very different books.

L


----------



## Ann in Arlington

If I'm remembering right. . . .she reads A LOT. . . and reviews it all. If you look her up on Amazon you'll see she basically doesn't have a life.  

but, no, I don't think she's paid. . .it's just public service to her.

Or I could be completely wrong. . . . .

ann


----------



## Rye

She reviews for like 80 different websites. I don't think she gets paid but maybe she just likes everything she reads!


----------



## Leslie

Rye said:


> She reviews for like 80 different websites. I don't think she gets paid but maybe she just likes everything she reads!


Sounds like it! Another name I see all the time is Amos Lassen.

L


----------



## Ann in Arlington

Rye said:


> She reviews for like 80 different websites. I don't think she gets paid but maybe she just likes everything she reads!


Which makes the reviews just as useless as those of someone who _hates _everything they read.

oh well! 

Ann


----------



## Guest

That's why MY reviews are so.... preshioussssss.....


----------



## hackeynut

Ann Von Hagel said:


> If I'm remembering right. . . .she reads A LOT. . . and reviews it all. If you look her up on Amazon you'll see she basically doesn't have a life.
> 
> but, no, I don't think she's paid. . .it's just public service to her.
> 
> Or I could be completely wrong. . . . .
> 
> ann


Haha. I'm guess they send her free books for reviews. She gets a lot because she gives them ALL good reviews. Oy.


----------



## Guest

Ann Von Hagel said:


> Which makes the reviews just as useless as those of someone who _hates _everything they read.
> 
> oh well!
> 
> Ann


Thus my philosophy, if I don't agree with a critic at least 80-90% of the time, I don't listen to a thing they say. The one exception is Oprah, I always tend to forget that I really very rarely agree with her book tastes.

Good thing for BJ, though. He rarely points me in the wrong direction, but there was that one time.......hehehe.


----------



## libro

Years after reading Edith Wharton's Age of Innocence, I decided to read House of Mirth and loved it...in a tragic sort of way!  Anyway, decided to try another one of her novels, The Custom of the Country, and I'm not warming up to it, about 50 pages in.  Not to mention it's a DTB from the library and smells like cheap perfume, which isn't helping.  Doesn't even read like Edith Wharton to me, at least so far.

Are you the type that finishes most every book or do you give up on those you don't like once in a while?


----------



## Ann in Arlington

There was a book I got through Scholastic once when I was a kid that I never did finish. It was called _Midnight_, but I don't recall the author. It was about a horse, I was a 12 year old girl: it should have been perfect. Not.

But mostly once I start a thing I finish it. . .but sometimes not, if it's stupid. 

Ann


----------



## Leslie

We've had a long running thread on unfinished/given up books over in the Book Corner. I am going to merge these two together in the interest of keeping things neat and tidy.

Thanks,

Leslie
Global Mod


----------



## libro

Thanks, Leslie.  BTW, I'm back on with The Custom of the Country by Edith Wharton.  It turned into a page-turner and I decided to continue.  It's not her best novel (in my humble opinion) by any means, but so far it's good enough to continue.


----------



## Goofy370

I forced myself to finish Wicked. I just hated that book... I am one of those silly readers that hopes upon hopes that it will just get better. That was one book (for me) that never did. I have never read anything else by that author for fear that it will be the same torture...


----------



## Leslie

Goofy370 said:


> I forced myself to finish Wicked. I just hated that book... I am one of those silly readers that hopes upon hopes that it will just get better. That was one book (for me) that never did. I have never read anything else by that author for fear that it will be the same torture...


I have yet to hear of one person who was able to make it through Wicked. I never even picked up the book although I did see the musical.

L


----------



## chobitz

Leslie said:


> I have yet to hear of one person who was able to make it through Wicked. I never even picked up the book although I did see the musical.
> 
> L


I finished wicked but just because I forced myself to! Ugly Step Sister is better but not by much..

I never got a chance to see the musical BUT I did go see Repo: The Genetic Musical tonite and it was great if you like gore, horror and goth music. I wish I saw Wicked.


----------



## jkent

i've read all the neal stephenson books.  he is probably my favorite author.  the books are long but so engrossing i have trouble putting them down.  try snow crash first.  maybe a little easier to get into then cryptonomicon.
judy (with no avatar)


----------



## ScottBooks

Leslie said:


> I have yet to hear of one person who was able to make it through Wicked. I never even picked up the book although I did see the musical.
> 
> L


Wow, I didn't realize Wicked was so reviled. I liked it. I think Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister was funnier though.


----------



## Guest

Leslie said:


> I have yet to hear of one person who was able to make it through Wicked. I never even picked up the book although I did see the musical.
> 
> L


I actually finished _Wicked_ and enjoyed it. I have read most of Gregory Maguire's books. I have not bought the 3rd book of the Wicked series yet (still debating Kindle version vs. DTB like the rest of my set). My favorite so far has been _Confessions of a Ugly Stepsister_. The only one I really disliked was _Lost_, not much story to it.


----------



## 1131

LuckyRainbow said:


> I actually finished _Wicked_ and enjoyed it. I have read most of Gregory Maguire's books. I have not bought the 3rd book of the Wicked series yet (still debating Kindle version vs. DTB like the rest of my set). My favorite so far has been _Confessions of a Ugly Stepsister_. The only one I really disliked was _Lost_, not much story to it.


hmm...I finished Wicked but thought it was a little long for the story; it was OK. A lot of people seem to think Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister is better. I still of a copy of that so I might have to give it a try.


----------



## yogini2

I looked for the reference of someone who also disliked the Charlie Huston book, Caught Stealing because of the cat torture. Not only was the cat torture hard, but also the depiction of a guy who was hit in the head with a baseball bat (by the "good guy" no less), as well as how people act when they are really, really drunk. They were very true to reality and thus, way too much to enjoy reading about. The book reads quickly.  The only parts I skipped had to do with too much detail about the football teams (too boring for me).  I have the second book, but will  probably not read it.  I don't need all the violence.

I never finished The Story of Edgar Sawtelle.  Just way too draw out and going nowhere.  

I've start The Reincarnationist but just stoped. I may finish it, but I'm presently not drawn to it.

I loved Pillars of the Earth.  Read the second book as well, but as happens with books of that nature, the second is just more of the same.  

I stopped reading any vampire books after I burned out on Anne Rice books.

[email protected]


----------



## Guest

I finished Wicked. And it wasn't even on a bet. I read most (couldn't get ahold of all of them) the _OZ_ books in 5th grade.

I admired the originality of Wicked. I even found the political subterfuge and allegory a little interesting. The combination of the style and the gynocentrism mostly turned me off and made it a struggle to finish the book.


----------



## chalkmaven

yogini2 said:


> I never finished The Story of Edgar Sawtelle. Just way too draw out and going nowhere.


I should have stopped before getting to the end. The ending made me want to throw that book across the the room.....except it was on my Kindle.


----------



## Guest

I'm so glad to see that I was not completely off base in my feelings for Edgar Sawtelle. It was not to my liking, but I finished it mostly to justify the cost of the hardback.


----------



## Guest

I ask to be
Or not to be
A cur or mixed-breed pooch is what you see
A pup who loves
His mother's teat
And so I ask to be or not to be.


----------



## Guest

Neither a terrier nor a hound dog be
Do not forget
Avoid the vet.
Be wise
And take this good advice from me
You'll lose masculinity!

Remember that despite
Your Uncle's gain
You are the Great Dane!


----------



## yogini2

LuckyRainbow said:


> I'm so glad to see that I was not completely off base in my feelings for Edgar Sawtelle. It was not to my liking, but I finished it mostly to justify the cost of the hardback.


So sorry you had to pay hardback costs for useless book, but I know how it feels to force myself to finish a book that you wished you didn't buy. Decades ago I read "Sophie's Choice" The choices she had to make were heart-wrenching. The story-that-never-moved was similar to Edgar Sawtelle, except Sophie's Choice was written by a higher quality of writer.


chalkmaven said:


> I should have stopped before getting to the end. The ending made me want to throw that book across the the room.....except it was on my Kindle.


So now I'm really glad I didn't finish it. I had a feeling the bad guys were going to win.

Yogini


----------



## yogini2

Bacardi Jim said:


> Neither a terrier nor a hound dog be
> Do not forget
> Avoid the vet.
> Be wise
> And take this good advice from me
> You'll lose masculinity!
> 
> Remember that despite
> Your Uncle's gain
> You are the Great Dane!


Very clever. So now I can guess what happened without having to drag myself through the rest of the book. Did you like this book Jim?


----------



## Guest

Didn't read it.  Never will.  I didn't care that much for the original.


----------



## yogini2

Bacardi Jim said:


> Didn't read it. Never will. I didn't care that much for the original.


So what was the original? I'm lost here.

Yogini2


----------



## Guest

Alas, poor Yorkie
I knew him well


----------



## Guest

Hamlet, of course. http://articles.latimes.com/2008/jul/13/books/bk-wroblewski13


----------



## yogini2

LuckyRainbow said:


> Hamlet, of course. http://articles.latimes.com/2008/jul/13/books/bk-wroblewski13


I read the article. I like books with backstory and I like to read books with long background information, but this book, it just started to go nowhere and no reason to finish.

Yogini2


----------



## Guest

For me, the backstory was the best part of the book. After about the 1/3 point of the book,


Spoiler



when he runs away


, I just got so bored.


----------



## Mikuto

I try not to give up in the middle of books, I really do, but I was unable to finish Dark Resurrection. Lucky it was a freebie, so I don't feel so badly about it, but I may try it again later. The story was okay, the plot was okay, but the characters were so unsympathetic and unrealistic that you couldn't feel horrified for them when terrible things happened to them.

I agree wholeheartedly about the Anita Blake series, except in a different way. Everyone I know loved it, thought it was great, so I borrowed Guilty Pleasures from a friend and set to reading it. About 1/3 of the way through the book I just put it down and stopped. I couldn't stand LKH's style of writing, and hated Anita right off the bat, so that was the end of that.


----------



## Guest

I finished Dark Resurrection.  It was OK but definitely no prize winner.


----------



## Mikuto

Vampyre said:


> I finished Dark Resurrection. It was OK but definitely no prize winner.


I think I'll probably go back to it, just not right now. It's nitpicky, but the author was really into repetition and infodumping and it got on my nerves. Plus I didn't connect with any of the characters, so I really didn't feel any motivation to continue reading.


----------



## Brenda M.

chalkmaven said:


> I should have stopped before getting to the end. The ending made me want to throw that book across the the room.....except it was on my Kindle.


Have to agree with you here, I am still mad about the ending!!


----------



## Boston

I'm about to give up on "The Hour I First Believed" by Wally Lamb...too many tangents and side-stories...The ease of clicking the "Next Page" button is becoming too convenient.


----------



## Tippy

Leslie said:


> I have yet to hear of one person who was able to make it through Wicked. I never even picked up the book although I did see the musical.
> 
> L


I actually finished Wicked, both in hb and audio. I liked it, but will admit some parts were a little tedious.


----------



## Guest

I made it through.  But I wasn't really happy when I finished the journey.  LR loved it.  YMMV.


----------



## Mikuto

Honestly I'm surprised I made it as far in this book as I did. I like erotica, but this just got worse and worse as it went along. I do not need two paragraphs to describe one kiss, nor do I need the characters to be excessively verbose while...well you know.


----------



## Linda Cannon-Mott

Mikuto said:


> Honestly I'm surprised I made it as far in this book as I did. I like erotica, but this just got worse and worse as it went along. I do not need two paragraphs to describe one kiss, nor do I need the characters to be excessively verbose while...well you know.


Thanks Mikuto for saving me some time. I will delete this one.


----------



## cheshirenc

Goofy370 said:


> I forced myself to finish Wicked. I just hated that book... I am one of those silly readers that hopes upon hopes that it will just get better. That was one book (for me) that never did. I have never read anything else by that author for fear that it will be the same torture...


boy was I glad to see this. I'm on page 224 and just can't pick it up. I've haven't hated what I've read so far it's just not grabbing me enough to want to continue. At the point of giving it up. It's a library edition so it it becomes due before I finish I will not re-new it.


----------



## Neekeebee

cheshirenc said:


> boy was I glad to see this. I'm on page 224 and just can't pick it up. I've haven't hated what I've read so far it's just not grabbing me enough to want to continue. At the point of giving it up. It's a library edition so it it becomes due before I finish I will not re-new it.


Re Wicked: I had the book for a long time, and finally started reading it when I got tickets for the musical. I was halfway through the book when I saw the musical. Loved the musical; forced myself to finish the book, all the while thinking/hoping it would get a lot better. Also bought Ugly Stepsister at the same time I purchased Wicked. I made it about 1/3 way through that one several years ago, but can't see myself finishing it.


----------



## Wells83

Neekeebee said:


> Re Wicked: I had the book for a long time, and finally started reading it when I got tickets for the musical. I was halfway through the book when I saw the musical. Loved the musical; forced myself to finish the book, all the while thinking/hoping it would get a lot better. Also bought Ugly Stepsister at the same time I purchased Wicked. I made it about 1/3 way through that one several years ago, but can't see myself finishing it.


I heard from one of my cousins that _Wicked_ is a great book but I too had issues with it. I only read a few pages, then returned it. Not my thing. My family loved the musical though--I didn't get the chance to see it.


----------



## Guest

I guess _Wicked_ falls into the Love it/Hate it territory. I did really enjoy it. _Son of a Witch_ was even better. I have not started the third installment yet, but probably will read it, too.

_Ugly Stepsister_ is my favorite of Maguire's books.


----------



## Guest

LuckyRainbow said:


> I guess _Wicked_ falls into the Love it/Hate it territory. I did really enjoy it. _Son of a Witch_ was even better. I have not started the third installment yet, but probably will read it, too.
> 
> _Ugly Stepsister_ is my favorite of Maguire's books.












"_Hated_ it." *snap*


----------



## KCFoggin

Well, I held off replying to this thread as I was hoping I would overcome my frustration at reading "Uncle Tom's Cabin: for the second time.  First time was mannnnny years ago and I don't remember ever having a problem with reading the english words spoken as they are in UT'sC.  I don't know whether it is just my age now or what but I found it downright annoying.  Now how's that for abject failure?


----------



## KindleKay (aka #1652)

If I may bump this thread and add my 2 cents  

I gave up on Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy.  I tried and tried!!  REALLY!  But I just couldn't finish it.  SO wordy, SO descriptive, SO long....just get ON with it already!!!  I finally allowed myself to let it go.

Also, I had to give up on "Scarpetta" the most recently released of the Scarpetta novels by Patricia Cornwell.  I mean, I would TOTALLY recommend about the first 4 or 5 in the series, then, out of nowhere, the writing style changes and it never goes back.  Never.  By the time I lumbered to "Scarpetta" I just couldn't take it anymore.  I didn't care.  Do yourself a favor and after 4 or 5 books, when you see the writing change, and believe me, you will know exactly what I mean...stop there.

Just my opinion.  I let them go....feels good to unload the guilt!


----------



## intinst

I have tried to read Lord Jim by John Conrad several times in my life. Most recent was since getting my Kindle. I thought that by breaking it up into smaller pieces I would be able to make it through. I have finally decided that it just isn't worth my time to read this book. I can't make myself read paragraph long sentices about absolutely nothing any longer. I did, however, make it far past the first two chapters this time, I never had before.


----------



## pomlover2586

Books I've given up on [or finished because it was for school and pulled out my hair as I did so.....]:

Catcher In the Rye - for school....hair puller
Lord of the flies- Same as above
1984- Same as above......notice a pattern here?
the Road- Still have it......hate the way it's written.....can't seem to get into it but I haven't completely given up yet because it's such 
a "classic"


----------



## KindleKay (aka #1652)

Did anyone see Sunday Morning this morning?  They had a short that was about the most lied about books: meaning the books that people have lied the most about reading.  I don't remember the exact list, but I do remember 1984 was #1.

I read it, for realsies, in high school.  I even remember that I kind of liked it! :/


----------



## intinst

KindleKay said:


> Did anyone see Sunday Morning this morning? They had a short that was about the most lied about books: meaning the books that people have lied the most about reading. I don't remember the exact list, but I do remember 1984 was #1.
> 
> I read it, for realsies, in high school. I even remember that I kind of liked it! :/


Read it in high school and a couple times since. Don't know why I liked it but just can't do Lord Jim. When I tried to read L J in school, it wasn't even assigned, I was just trying to impress the teacher, I guess. Only failing grade I ever got on reading.


----------



## Mycroft

I have a book on my Kindle that I stopped reading several months ago: Stonehenge, by Bernard Cornwell.  Bernard Cornwell is one of my favorite authors and I like historical fiction in general. But I think the lack of any well known historical people or events makes Stonehenge more difficult for me. I still think I'll pick it back up one of these days, though.


----------



## drenee

I read 1984, also in high school.  Did not have any problem getting through it.  I think I liked it.  
I absolutely cannot get through the Iliad and the Odessy.  
deb


----------



## KindleKay (aka #1652)

I think that the Iliad was on the Iliad was on the list on Sunday Morning this morning....


----------



## drenee

KindleKay said:


> I think that the Iliad was on the Iliad was on the list on Sunday Morning this morning....


I'm not surprised. Makes me feel better to know that. I did read it. I'm just not sure I retained any of it.


----------



## KindleKay (aka #1652)

OK...I found it in CBSnews.com......here is what Sunday Morning reported on:

Sixty-five percent of participants in a Book Day survey confess to having LIED about reading a famous book. There's even a Top Ten list of never-read books: 

10. "The Selfish Gene" by Richard Dawkins (6%) 
9. "Dreams From My Father" by Barack Obama (6%) 
8. "Remembrance of Things Past" by Marcel Proust (9%) 
7. "Midnight's Children" by Salman Rushdie (14%) 
6. "A Brief History of Time" by Stephen Hawking (15%) 
5. "Madame Bovary" by Gustave Flaubert (16%) 
4. The Bible (24%) 
3. "Ulysses" by James Joyce (25%) 
2. "War and Peace" by Leo Tolstoy (31%) 

... and the Number 1 unread book: "1984," by George Orwell (42%), the novel about a dictatorship that proclaims, among other things, that "Ignorance is strength."


----------



## intinst

Wow, I really did make it through two of those, The Bible (NIV) and A Brief History of Time and Space. Sort of different genres...


Oh, forgot to add 1984 , DUH! I guess it's three.


----------



## KindleKay (aka #1652)

I posted this list in it's own thread to get a Kindleboards response to see how accurate it is.  Since I read (and enjoyed) 1984 in High School and you, intinst, read the Bible and A Brief History...., I am guesing that these boards will have a different response.

By the way, I have read probably 80% of the Bible......


----------



## Guest

I have a new one to add to the list of books I've given up on, "An Arctic Mystery" by Jules Verne.  The mystery is how I got through about half of it before deciding to give it up.

Long, windy descriptions of tundra and 19th century English is just too dull for me to deal with right now.  I may finish it later but i don't really care what happens to the characters so far.


----------



## Mike D. aka jmiked

I think the last book I couldn't finish was _Deja Dead_, by Kathy Reichs (the TV show _Bones_ is based on this series). I may have made it a third of the way through before I lost interest. I wouldn't claim it's a bad book, it just didn't hold my interest at the time.

The one before that, if I recall correctly, was _Don of the Dead_ by Casey Daniels.

Sometimes I just have to be in the right mood. As I think I have related here previously, I tried to start _Dreamsnake_, by Vonda McIntyre three times before I finally got into it enough to finish, and now I like it so much I've re-read it several times. Now I try to be a bit more charitable when I can't finish a book. 

In regards Harriet Klausner, I've read a few of her "reviews," and they strike me as a crib from the inside dust jacket, followed by a statement of whether she liked it or not (actually, I've never seen her state that she didn't like something). That's not what I would call a review, since there was zero analysis or insight stated.

Mike


----------



## NurseLisa

Avalon3 said:


> I tried reading this book by Neal Stephenson and couldn't get into it. Has anyone else read books by him?


I am reading "Keeping Faith" and at first it seemed like a pretty good book, but now (I'm about 25% through it) it just is not holding my interest........
has anyone else here read this book? Does it get better? I almost feel guilty about considering giving it up.........hoping it will get better...............


----------



## VMars

Okay, I didn't give up on this book but *I should have!!* I regret not flinging this one across the room. Though it's so heavy it may have made a whole in my wall.  The Historian.  This book strings readers along, hinting that the plot will REALLY get interesting in the NEXT chapter...no wait...the next...no. It. Never. Gets. Interesting. And then it ends!


----------



## Atunah

Pillars of the Earth. I keep trying but its like pulling teeth. I just don't care about any of those people in there. I can't figure out how there can be so many words describing absolutely nothing really. I am not getting a picture in my head. Everytime I think I might, poof. I love historical stuff, I don't mind long books, but I have to care about something. Its just all so well bla and colorless. 

I might keep trying, don't know.


----------



## Marguerite

OK OK.. For everyone who hated Pillars of the Earth.  I absolutely loved it and it's one of the few books that I will reread.  It probably helps that the first time that I read the book, I was sitting on a bench outside of the great unfinished church in Spain. La Sagrada Familia.  It really seemed that it was written for me for the time I was living.  Sorry that you didn't like it.

I have to admit thought that I only skimmed the last half of The Shack.  It was a little too preachy for me.


----------



## Gertie Kindle

Atunah said:


> Pillars of the Earth. I keep trying but its like pulling teeth. I just don't care about any of those people in there. I can't figure out how there can be so many words describing absolutely nothing really. I am not getting a picture in my head. Everytime I think I might, poof. I love historical stuff, I don't mind long books, but I have to care about something. Its just all so well bla and colorless.
> 
> I might keep trying, don't know.


A lot of people loved that book. Not me. I don't know why I finished it. _Sarum _was much better, but not yet available for Kindle.


----------



## Atunah

Marguerite said:


> OK OK.. For everyone who hated Pillars of the Earth. I absolutely loved it and it's one of the few books that I will reread. It probably helps that the first time that I read the book, I was sitting on a bench outside of the great unfinished church in Spain. La Sagrada Familia. It really seemed that it was written for me for the time I was living. Sorry that you didn't like it.
> 
> I have to admit thought that I only skimmed the last half of The Shack. It was a little too preachy for me.


See, thats why I thought I would like this book. I am from Bavaria, the small small town I grew up in was first found in records of being founded in 1080 or something like that, the church I had to walk to every Sunday was started to be build somewhere around there, heck most churches from there are old. I even went into a profession once almost painting and restoring churches and for lack of religion I went to be a "regular" painter and still ended up restoring church figurines and benches and the such. I just wasn't allowed to officially touch the paintings on the walls. So I have the interest in the subject of the book. Not sure what it is, maybe its one of those "lost in translation" kind of things.

Maybe I try again and read further, maybe it gets better? Yes?


----------



## worktolive

I'm so glad that several people have commented about not liking Pillars of the Earth. I sampled it and thought "Bleh" but it has had so many rave reviews that I thought I was missing something and had decided to go ahead and get the book. After reading these comments, I've changed my mind. I think I'll just delete the sample and move on. Too many other books waiting for attention.

Wicked - loved it, have read Son of a Witch and liked it even more than Wicked. Am definitely planning to read the third. Interestingly enough, I didn't like the musical as much as the book. I have Ugly Stepsister also but haven't read it yet.

The Story of Edgar Sawtelle - just finished this for my bookclub. Not impressed and hated the ending.


Spoiler



I don't mind tragic endings, but


 this ending was so untrue to the rest of the story. The bookclub consensus was that everyone hated the ending although the others like the rest of the book more than I did. I thought it definitely needed some pruning. At least 100 pages could have been cut with no loss to the story.


----------



## TM

I may be one of the few who did not like Son of the Witch as well as Wicked. I still need to finish it in fact. Am about a third of the way through and went on to other books becuase it just isnlt catching my attention (normally I would try to finish anyway but I had, when reading it, downloaded a couple I really wanted to read so left it and haven't went back yet).


----------



## KindleKay (aka #1652)

Hmmm...I read "Wicked", in it's entirety, but it went waaay over my head.  My sister and her friends just loved it and I feel a bit slow cause I sure didn't "get" it at all.  I have "Son of a Witch" in DTB but I don't want to read it for fear that it will, again, go over my head and be a waste of my time.....


----------



## Betsy the Quilter

A friend who loved it gave me Wicked but I couldn't get into it.  Gave it up.

Betsy


----------



## Figment

VMars said:


> Okay, I didn't give up on this book but *I should have!!* I regret not flinging this one across the room. Though it's so heavy it may have made a whole in my wall.  The Historian.  This book strings readers along, hinting that the plot will REALLY get interesting in the NEXT chapter...no wait...the next...no. It. Never. Gets. Interesting. And then it ends!


Oh, and I LOVED "The Historian"...only problem I had with it was how weeny-teeny the print was in the edition I purchased. It was one of the first books I re-purchased in Kindle format, as I really do intend to go back and re-read it. (It was actually one of those books I would have re-started immediately after finishing it, just to go back and pick up on all the stuff I missed on the first reading. The type size was, however, really a problem for me.)


----------



## robin.goodfellow

I liked the Historian, VMars, but it took a really long time to pay off.  I mean, a REALLY long time.  I almost gave up reading it several times, but then I would wake up thinking about it, and finally set out to finish it just so I could get it out of the house.  Like all the action happens three chapters from the end, and the wrap up is really weird.  Like, I didn't see it coming even after I read it weird.  And still, at odd moments, pieces of it will pop into my head and I think WTH? 

On the other hand, there is a LOT of really tedious detail about Eastern Europe, and she throws out a lot more red herrings than are strictly necessary.  I was afraid to skip anything, b/c I thought it might be important later.  And many, many times, it wasn't.


----------



## busy91

I started *1984 * but never finished it, I didn't even get that far in. I don't think it was the book, but the print (too small).

*The Historian* I found to be very good. I enjoyed it and read it rather fast, I surprised myself.

*Pillars of the Earth* was another one I couldn't finish because the print was too small. But I did get a ways in and really liked it, so I will finish that book, and I had the nerve to by the sequal.

And for books like *Madame Bovary*, I get an audio book, because I am more apt to listen to a classic than I would be to read it.


----------



## BK

This is such an interesting thread... I seem to love books that others hate.  Pillars of the Earth was one of my all-time favorite books!  Follett's sequel, World Without End, was not nearly as riveting, but I finished it and was entertained, just not as fascinated as I was with Pillars.  1100 pages, pre-Kindle -- whew! it was heavy!!


----------



## kevindorsey

I've given up on Sherlock Homes about 3 times.  I guess detective stories just not my cup of tea.


----------



## KindleKay (aka #1652)

Any thoughts on Scarpetta?  (The new Patricia Cornwell)


----------



## Leslie

KindleKay said:


> Any thoughts on Scarpetta? (The new Patricia Cornwell)


I gave up on Patricia Cornwell a few books ago...the one with the person on the island with Ebola or something? It was totally ridiculous. And then I read that crazy one about people in Charlotte, NC or somewhere and stopped about halfway through. The last one I tried to read, I got three pages in and quit. After that I said, three strikes, she's out. No more Patricia Cornwell books for me!

L


----------



## Kind

busy91 said:


> I started *1984 * but never finished it, I didn't even get that far in. I don't think it was the book, but the print (too small).


 The book wasn't too bad. Slow at times for me but still not bad.


----------



## Robin

I struggled through The Other Boelyn Girl. Really didn't like it, but others rave about it. The one I just couldn't tolerate was Running with Scissors. I couldn't deal with his putting up with abuse when he clearly wasn't consenting, & yet he didn't walk away from it either. I through it in a trash barrel on the roadside in Yellowstone. I won't be doing that anymore with my Kindle  .


----------



## chobitz

Robin said:


> I struggled through The Other Boelyn Girl. Really didn't like it, but others rave about it. The one I just couldn't tolerate was Running with Scissors. I couldn't deal with his putting up with abuse when he clearly wasn't consenting, & yet he didn't walk away from it either. I through it in a trash barrel on the roadside in Yellowstone. I won't be doing that anymore with my Kindle .


Supposedly Running With Scissors is full of BS. There were a series articles with the family and friends of the guy who said he made a lot of the abuse up. Its another of Oprah's 'oops its really fiction' memoirs.


----------



## Veronica

KindleKay said:


> If I may bump this thread and add my 2 cents
> 
> I gave up on Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy. I tried and tried!! REALLY! But I just couldn't finish it. SO wordy, SO descriptive, SO long....just get ON with it already!!! I finally allowed myself to let it go.


Oh my goodness!! I just finished Anna Karenina. I tend to like Russian novels, but this one was quite painful. I did finish it, mostly because I did get invested in the characters and wanted to find out how the story ended for all of them. I probably skimmed half of it, although I prefer the term "spead reading"!

I finished it about a week ago, and haven't been able to start another book yet. I think after that one, I needed a sabbatical.

I've given up on several books, though. It's hard to do, but I have to convince myself that my time is more valuable than that. Catcher in the Rye is one I really wanted to like, but gave up about 1/4 of the way through.


----------



## luvmy4brats

Anna Karenina and Pillars of the Earth. I couldn't connect with either book.

I really wanted to listen to Anna Karenina because the narrarator is the same as the Outlander series (Davina Porter) and she's amazing.


----------



## Linda Cannon-Mott

Robin said:


> I struggled through The Other Boelyn Girl. Really didn't like it, but others rave about it. The one I just couldn't tolerate was Running with Scissors. I couldn't deal with his putting up with abuse when he clearly wasn't consenting, & yet he didn't walk away from it either. I through it in a trash barrel on the roadside in Yellowstone. I won't be doing that anymore with my Kindle .


I read Running with Scissors but found it most disturbing.


----------



## Sparkplug

I'm glad I'm not the only one who couldn't get through _Wicked_...

I generally finish whatever book I started, so the ones I've given up on, easily stick out in mind. _Wicked_ is the first book that came to mind. I started and gave up on the book no less than six times in a course of two years. I managed to complete _Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister_ -- barely -- but I never could get past the first 3/4s of Wicked. I thought maybe Wicked was a fluke and tried to read another book by the same author, the one based on Snow White. I gave up on that one a few chapters from the start of the book.

_Great Expectations _ is the only required book in school that I didn't finish. It didn't surprise me to learn that Dickens got paid by the length of his work. I've been scared off Dickens ever since.

I started _The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society_ last January. My mom gave me her DTB-version, but I just couldn't get past the first few chapters. But maybe because I had just gotten my Kindle, I just wanted to play with my new toy instead of reading a DTB. This book shows up on the top of my Amazon recommendation list. Maybe I'll give it another shot after I finish a few other books on my "To Read" list.


----------



## Guest

Sparkplug said:


> I started _The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society_ last January. My mom gave me her DTB-version, but I just couldn't get past the first few chapters. But maybe because I had just gotten my Kindle and I wanted to play with it instead of reading a DTB. This book shows up on the top of my Amazon recommendation list. Maybe I'll give it another shot after I finish a few other books on my "To Read" list.


That is such a special book. It was one of the first ones I read on my Kindle. I absolutely loved it so much it inspired me to quickly write a review of it. You can see it here: http://www.kboards.com/index.php/topic,287.msg2953.html#msg2953


----------



## akpak

I haven't read this whole thread, so please pardon any duplication.

For those who can't get in to Neal Stephanson, I'd recommend The Diamond Age. It's about a book! (mostly)

I like him a lot, but he lost me with the Baroque Cycle, and *almost* lost me with Cryptonomicon. I finally got into it, but it seems like around then was when he got Successful and fired his editors. (See also: Robert Jordan, George RR Martin) I haven't even tried Anathem yet.

Snow Crash was the first one I read, and it grabbed me from page 1, but then again I'm a nerd.

Sparkplug, I'm totally with you on Wicked. It took me forever to slog through it. Along the same lines, I did give up on Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrel (or however it's spelled).


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## luvmy4brats

akjak said:


> Along the same lines, I did give up on Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrel (or however it's spelled).


I forgot, I gave up on this one too.


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## Ann in Arlington

I finished Jonathan Strange. . .but I don't remember much of what it was about and I recall being fairly confused throughout most of it.

Ann


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## ConnieK

I've really enjoyed this thread and the wide variety of opinions on these best sellers.  

Most recently gave up on:
The Gate House by Nelson DeMille (and I'm a huge fan of his other books) and Brisingr by Paolini

My 2 cents of the books mentioned recently in this post:

Edgar Sawtelle - one of the most beautifully written books I've ever read - completely ruined by the ending.

Loved:
Pillars of the Earth and World without End
Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrel (listened to this on audio - great narrator probably helped)

Meh:
Wicked and Son of a Witch
Anna Karinina

Couldn't stand:
Running with Scissors

Still looking forward to reading:
The Historian and
Geurnsey Literary something, something, something Society (who in the world can actually remember this full title without looking it up?)


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## Neekeebee

Sparkplug said:


> _Great Expectations _ is the only required book in school that I didn't finish. It didn't surprise me to learn that Dickens got paid by the length of his work. I've been scared off Dickens ever since.


I read the same thing about Charles Dickens when I was trying to get through _David Copperfield _ in high school. We were assigned the book during our two week Xmas break!!!(Talk about making kids hate a classic! ) I still remember spending half of vacation complaining about having to read the 800+ pages!

N


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## Thumper

busy91 said:


> I started *1984 * but never finished it, I didn't even get that far in. I don't think it was the book, but the print (too small).


Small print is about the only thing that keeps me from finishing a book. That's been the biggest YESSSSS! thing for me with the Kindle--I can change the type size if I need to.


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## Guest

> Geurnsey Literary something, something, something Society (who in the world can actually remember this full title without looking it up?)


LOL. I usually shorten it to Guernsey Literary Society. And yes, you should read it right away. It is a wonderful book. LOVED, LOVED, LOVED it.


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## Leslie

I have heard from so many people who couldn't get through _Wicked_, that I haven't even bothered to look at it.

Likewise, I have heard so many positive comments about _The Guernsey Society_, that I will have to look at that. It takes place in WWII, right? I probably should read it for this writing project I am embarking on.

As part of that, right now I am reading:










and










They aren't on the Kindle though, and I wouldn't want them on the Kindle. It's better to read the real books, which are facsimiles of the originals.

L


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## ginaf20697

VMars said:


> Okay, I didn't give up on this book but *I should have!!* I regret not flinging this one across the room. Though it's so heavy it may have made a whole in my wall.  The Historian.  This book strings readers along, hinting that the plot will REALLY get interesting in the NEXT chapter...no wait...the next...no. It. Never. Gets. Interesting. And then it ends!


OMG I LOATHE this book too! I liken it to sex without the payoff. Just thinking about it pisses me off.


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## WalterK

> For those who can't get in to Neal Stephanson, I'd recommend The Diamond Age. It's about a book! (mostly)
> 
> I like him a lot, but he lost me with the Baroque Cycle, and *almost* lost me with Cryptonomicon. I finally got into it, but it seems like around then was when he got Successful and fired his editors. (See also: Robert Jordan, George RR Martin) I haven't even tried Anathem yet.
> 
> Snow Crash was the first one I read, and it grabbed me from page 1, but then again I'm a nerd.


*Snow Crash* was an easy read for me as well. I've tried reading *The Diamond Age* a few times and I always seem to lose interest after 50 or so pages. I'v re-read the opening chapters multiple times, but always bog down. I don't dislike the book, I just seem to get distracted and never get back to the novel once I've started. ? I have *Cryptonomicon* but prefer to read author's works chronologically, so it has been on the "to read" pile for some time.

- Walter...


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## Avalon3

WalterK said:


> *Snow Crash* was an easy read for me as well. I've tried reading *The Diamond Age* a few times and I always seem to lose interest after 50 or so pages. I'v re-read the opening chapters multiple times, but always bog down. I don't dislike the book, I just seem to get distracted and never get back to the novel once I've started. ? I have *Cryptonomicon* but prefer to read author's works chronologically, so it has been on the "to read" pile for some time.
> 
> - Walter...


I started this thread with this message. This was the first book I tried by him. Now I don't want to try any of his other books.


Avalon3 said:


> I tried reading this book by Neal Stephenson and couldn't get into it. Has anyone else read books by him?


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## Marguerite

BK said:


> This is such an interesting thread... I seem to love books that others hate. Pillars of the Earth was one of my all-time favorite books! Follett's sequel, World Without End, was not nearly as riveting, but I finished it and was entertained, just not as fascinated as I was with Pillars. 1100 pages, pre-Kindle -- whew! it was heavy!!


We seem to like the same things. What else did you really like?


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## V

Avalon3 said:


> I tried reading [cryptonomicron] by Neal Stephenson and couldn't get into it. Has anyone else read books by him?


I don't feel so bad now. My wife and I both read the synopsis and thought we'd really like it. It's been collecting dust for quite a while now. I made it about 70 pages, I don't think my wife got that far. I couldn't care about any of the characters and, I know, sometimes you have to give a book 25%-30% before it finds it's way, the pretentious real-time voice pushed me over the edge. I've read a book or two in that voice in my time and it never phased me but something about how he was writing in it just...I dunno, felt more like an author's arrogance and self-importance than a device to cement you into the story. It's put me off reading anything else from him.


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## VMars

I had a hard time with "Wicked" too. But I did read it....my feelings were mixed. I sort of hated the ending, it go even stranger than it already was. I was sort of tempted to give "Ugly Stepsister" a try...but I think the urge went away.   I think that Wicked ending had something to do with it.


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## cheshirenc

It was hard, but I did get through Wicked.  I was giving myself until the book was due back at the library, not gonna renew it.  I finished it and the last part was better for me.  I'm going to see the show in May, hopefully I'll enjoy that much better.

I checked out Son of a Witch, but my kindle arrived so I immediately took it back to the library.


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## KindleKay (aka #1652)

ches, I have the DTB of both Wicked and Son of a Witch....want 'em


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## WalterK

> I started this thread with this message. This was the first book I tried by him. Now I don't want to try any of his other books.


I realize I'm repeating myself, but if you decide to give Stephenson another try, you may wish to consider *Snow Crash*.

Being employed as a software developer, I am a big fan of Stephenson's *In The Beginning... was the Command Line*, his treatise on the nature of computer interfaces, their evolution, and the metaphors associated with them. Apple's older Mac OS, Microsoft Windows, Linux, and the Be OS are all discussed in this book.

- Walter...


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## akpak

I'll repeat myself and Walter: Stephanson's early work is much more accessible (and I think better also)

If you can find The Big U, you'll find an entertaining little college story where you can see the clear roots of Snow Crash. The Diamond Age meanders a bit, but all the threads come together nicely in the end.

Starting with Cryptonomicon, I think he fired his editors.


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## bg816am

I'm glad to see that I am not the only one who can not get into Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. I've tried several time to read it (I would even probably try again if it came out on Kindle) but just can't get too far. The thing that bugs me about it is that, I really like "alternate-history-england-with-magic" idea of the book and fantasy and historical fiction are 2 of my favorite genres, but I just can't get into this book...

I know some people have mentioned Pillars of the Earth and World without End, for my 2 cents, Pillars of the Earth was probably one of my favorite books of all time, however World without End couldn't end soon enough for me. I just found the characters in Pillars of the Earth much more likable and World without End, which just seemed like more of the same, but just didn't have the same "WOW factor"...


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## Lizzarddance

Count me in as another who hated Wicked. Read 3/4 of it and I just couldn't read anymore. Boring. Another one was Morrigan's Cross by Nora Roberts. Nothing happens!! I also read almost 3/4 of this and they were still where the book pretty much started. So irritating!!


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## NurseLisa

Lizzarddance said:


> Count me in as another who hated Wicked. Read 3/4 of it and I just couldn't read anymore. Boring. Another one was Morrigan's Cross by Nora Roberts. Nothing happens!! I also read almost 3/4 of this and they were still where the book pretty much started. So irritating!!


Is there anyone who actually _liked_ Wicked Seems like a pretty boring book......


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## KindleKay (aka #1652)

Well, it was "good" enough to make a Broadway musical

My sister liked it....I kept waiting, and waiting, and waiting....I did finish it, but I sure can't tell you why!!


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## revgroucho

bg816am said:


> I'm glad to see that I am not the only one who can not get into Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. I've tried several time to read it (I would even probably try again if it came out on Kindle) but just can't get too far. The thing that bugs me about it is that, I really like "alternate-history-england-with-magic" idea of the book and fantasy and historical fiction are 2 of my favorite genres, but I just can't get into this book...


Same here. I really wanted to like it, too, and I really tried, but I found it so boring. It wasn't engaging at all, at least to me, anyway.


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## Guest

NurseLisa said:


> Is there anyone who actually _liked_ Wicked Seems like a pretty boring book......


I actually did like _Wicked_. Although, I enjoyed _Son of a Witch_ more. And my favorite Maguire is:


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## KMA

I enjoyed Wicked. It was a little over-written at times, but I appreciated the depth and scope. It was full of wry jokes for geeks like me who practically memorized the Oz books as a child.

On the other hand, I am currently taking a break from Outlander. It has come so highly recommended, but I think that I am not in the proper frame of mind to enjoy it this week. After a couple of other books, I'll go back and finish it.


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## Leslie

KindleKay (#1652) said:


> Well, it was "good" enough to make a Broadway musical
> 
> My sister liked it....I kept waiting, and waiting, and waiting....I did finish it, but I sure can't tell you why!!


I heard that the musical was very different from the book but I don't really know since I didn't read the book. I did see the show and enjoyed it very much but the music all started to sound the same.

L


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## Ann in Arlington

My son. . .an admitted theatre geek. . .loved Wicked on stage (saw it with Kristin Chenoweth who is a very little girl with a Very Big Voice) . . .we'd read all the Oz books together when he was little so there was good background there. . .he got the book because he thought he ought to.  Told me not to bother to read it, that the play was better, and to just go see it when it came around.  The kid's generally got good sense so I followed his advice. . .so many other things to read anyway. . . .  Wicked DID come to DC but we didn't get a chance to go. . .it'll either come again or one of the high school's will do it and we'll see it then.

Ann


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## worktolive

As I commented earlier, I was one of the ones that really liked the book - most of my bookclub was lukewarm on it though. The musical premiered in San Francisco (where I live) so most of the bookclub went to see it since we had just finished the book a few months before. The book and musical are quite different so if you tried the book and didn't like it but do like musicals, you'll probably enjoy it. I was also lucky enough to see it with Kristin Chenowyth - wow, that girl blew me away with her voice. 

I always find it fascinating the way everyone has such different likes and dislikes in books. I often find myself in the minority at my bookclub, but I think that's because I'm most influenced by an author's writing style rather than the subject or genre. I can't really even define what it is that I like, but I know it when I read it. That's yet another reason I love my K - having samples is great.


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## ConnieK

worktolive said:


> I always find it fascinating the way everyone has such different likes and dislikes in books. I often find myself in the minority at my bookclub, but I think that's because I'm most influenced by an author's writing style rather than the subject or genre. I can't really even define what it is that I like, but I know it when I read it. That's yet another reason I love my K - having samples is great.


I agree! With one great friend in particular - if she hates something (book/movie), I know I will love it - and vice versa - always. It's led to some very interesting discussions - especially during our book club.


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## KMA

Kristin Chenoweth is an amazing performer. I wish I'd seen her in _Wicked_.


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## akpak

Hmm... Maybe you had to have read Oz to enjoy Wicked? I didn't read much Oz when I was a kid...


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## VictoriaP

akjak said:


> Hmm... Maybe you had to have read Oz to enjoy Wicked? I didn't read much Oz when I was a kid...


Nope, I didn't read Oz (still haven't, I have the set on the K2 waiting patiently), and I loved Wicked. I read it when it first came out on the recommendation of a friend who absolutely raved about it.

I think it's simply one of those books you're either going to love or hate.


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## Leslie

VictoriaP said:


> I think it's simply one of those books you're either going to love or hate.


From what I have heard, that really seems to be the case.

L


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## russr19

I couldn't get into the wicked books either.


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## Figment

russr19 said:


> I couldn't get into the wicked books either.


And I loved them. Of course, urged on by my father, I think that I read all the OZ books by L. Frank Baum as a child. This made it easier to appreciate how Maguire drew from so many parts of the stories to create a whole new mythology.

Actually, the only book by Maguire (adult book, as opposed to all the stuff he writes for children) I didn't like was _Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister_. (I liked the twist at the end, but other than that, meh...) And I really liked _Lost_.

Maguire is one of the five or six authors I keep on the list to check pretty regularly for new books (Lisa See, Keith Donohue, Christopher Moore, Jasper Fforde, Neil Gaimen, a couple of others).


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## Aravis60

Le Morte d'Arthur- I still plan to go back to it some day, though.


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## Lizzarddance

Aravis60 said:


> Le Morte d'Arthur- I still plan to go back to it some day, though.


No!!! Really I was looking forward to reading that. I'll still read it eventually but I hope it won't be a chore.


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## KMA

Aravis60 said:


> Le Morte d'Arthur- I still plan to go back to it some day, though.


Oooh, I love Arthurian legends. Mallory can be a tricky place to start, though. Personally, I love to compare, contrast, and read several versions at once. Heck, I once took an entire course on _Sir Gawain and the Green Night_.

I still haven't managed to get into Outlander, though.


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## drenee

Outlander takes a couple or three chapters to get into.  But once you do, watch out!!  At least that was the experience for me and some of the others here at the Boards.
deb


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## Linda Cannon-Mott

KMA said:


> Oooh, I love Arthurian legends. Mallory can be a tricky place to start, though. Personally, I love to compare, contrast, and read several versions at once. Heck, I once took an entire course on _Sir Gawain and the Green Night_.
> 
> I still haven't managed to get into Outlander, though.


Keep reading KMA. I had the same problem and now I am on the third book.


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## Gertie Kindle

KMA said:


> Oooh, I love Arthurian legends. Mallory can be a tricky place to start, though. Personally, I love to compare, contrast, and read several versions at once. Heck, I once took an entire course on _Sir Gawain and the Green Night_.


I've got an Arthurian encyclopedia which I love. I have read Mallory, but I was pretty young and read much meatier stuff then.



> I still haven't managed to get into Outlander, though.


How far have you gotten?


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## KMA

OK, you are all a bad influence. Last night, I curled up with a pot of tea, a blanket, and gave Outlander another try. I'm about a third of the way through and starting to get it. I think it's a book to luxuriate in rather than read in tiny segments.


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## Laurie

Linda Cannon-Mott said:


> The Whiskey Rebels sounds very good, I haven't sampled it yet though. Samples are a definite pro for the Kindle. Reviews can go either way because different people like different things. Disappointed to hear The Whiskey Rebels isn't good.
> 
> Linda


I enjoyed Whisky Rebels. It's different from what I'd normally read, but I thought it was a good.

Edit: When I started reading this thread I guess I didn't pay attention to the dates!! Oh well....


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## Laurie

I'm trying to read "Life, Love, and a Polar Bear Tattoo" but I'm iffy on this one. I'm only at the start of the book and I like the story line but some of it just seems too - for lack of a better term - juvenile. There are parts where I really like the writing style, but then there are other parts that seem like they could've been written by a teenager in creative writing class. The instant drama about the ex-boyfriend sounds silly to me. And the "terror" of the test result is just too much. Seriously,


Spoiler



an abnormal pap smear


 doesn't strike me as something that would have somebody thinking "should I tell my mother!? should I tell my husband!!? should I tell anybody at work!! OhMyGod-OhMyGod-OhMy God!!!!" That is just bizarre to me. I know sooooo many people who've had this - including myself three times over the course of 30 years - and I don't know anybody who was terribly traumatized about it. It's like sneezing twice in a row then going into an instant panic over whether or not you're coming down with pneumonia. My daughter also had this negative test result, and in her case it required minor surgery. But even then it wasn't an enormously huge deal that had people fretting for her life. I don't know anything at all about the author, but I get the impression that she (?) is young and is just starting out. I feel like someday she'll be a good writer but right now the skills are a bit underdeveloped. That's just my opinion... I know others really liked this book a lot and that's why I got it. I'm just not sure whether I can stick with it. I'm hoping someone can tell me it's going to get better!! I hate giving up on a book and I usually force myself to get through it - so please, please, please, if you're one of those who liked it then convince me it will be worth my time!! Again, I think the story itself has a good theme, I enjoy the writing style except for the way drama just pops up with very little build up to explain the sudden high level of emotion that's supposed to be being expressed. Convince me it gets better!


----------



## Gertie Kindle

KMA said:


> OK, you are all a bad influence. Last night, I curled up with a pot of tea, a blanket, and gave Outlander another try. I'm about a third of the way through and starting to get it. I think it's a book to luxuriate in rather than read in tiny segments.


That's a good way to describe it. At about chapters 21-25 it gets pretty intense.



Laurie said:


> I enjoyed Whisky Rebels. It's different from what I'd normally read, but I thought it was a good.
> 
> Edit: When I started reading this thread I guess I didn't pay attention to the dates!! Oh well....


I liked _The Whiskey Rebels_, too. I d'ld a sample of _The Coffee Trader_ by the same author and it also looks pretty good.


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## drenee

I really enjoyed _The Whiskey Rebels_. I see it's 9.99 now. I got it when it was offered free. I think I'm going to try another one of Liss's novels. His other novels are 7.96. I guess I better get one before it goes up. 
deb


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