If you’ve been reading my reviews lately, you’ll noticed I’ve been underwhelmed by most of my reads this year. So I thought it would be interesting to have a post listing out some of my biggest bookish peeves that have caused me to give some books lower ratings.
10 reasons I will rate a book 2 stars:
- Someone forgot to hire an editor. Or, at least the book reads like it did not go through a formal editing process. If my ESL self finds the book to be full of mistakes, clearly there’s a problem. EDIT YOUR BOOKS PEOPLE!
- The characters are all despicable. Ok, characters are important, right? We have to like them somewhat. If they are all awful people to the point of me, the reader, not caring about them in the least, I’m probably not going to enjoy the book.
- The characters are flat. Again with characters being a very important part of the book. They have to be believable and relatable in some way. If they are poorly developed and their actions don’t make sense, well, we have a problem.
- The plotting left a lot to be desired. I’m very much a plot person. I must be entertained first and foremost by what I’m reading – isn’t that the point of a hobby?
- The book goes nowhere. I’m talking about a book with an action-packed plot with a major conflict or quest or something that decides to end in a plot twist of nothingness. I’m talking about something happening to put the characters pretty much back where they started at the beginning of a book. I’m talking about a book that just wasted my time and didn’t go anywhere.
- Non-endings. By this I mean the book is builds up the conflict and starts to resolve things and then just… STOPS. Oh, wait, you mean this will be a series? So does that make it OK to just stop in the middle of a great scene to force you to buy the next book? This is different than cliffhanger endings.
- Cliffhanger endings. I really don’t like them. Not all cliffhangers are awful, but some are. Whether or not that earns a book 2 stars will depend on the height of the cliff I just got left on.
- Clichés. I really like to see originality in an author’s work. What I don’t want to see is a phrase or idea I’ve seen before, over and over. For example, every time I see the phrase “I let out the breath I didn’t know I was holding”, a book loses a star rating. Just like that.
- A book marketed as one thing that turns into something else. This rant applies toward YA books that seem like they will be action-packed thrillers or dystopias or sci-fis or anything else that turn into a high school drama book instead. Please to make the book blurb reflect the book’s true premise, mkay?
- Romances that are awkward and take over the entire book. I tend to not read too many books that are only romance books without some other plot stuff going on. But sometimes a book is disguised as a paranormal romance or a romantic suspense, when it really doesn’t have much plot to speak of other than the romance. Or, the book *thinks* it has a good plot, but the plot takes such a back seat to the sexual tension between the characters that I just roll my eyes so hard the entire time. There needs to be a good balance, and if the book introduces a major conflict, the characters can’t just spend most of the time frolicking in each other’s arms, mkay? Let’s rescue the kidnapped person sometime soon, yes?
I’m sure there’s tons more and I could go on all day. What are some of your turn offs that cause you to rate a book 2 stars? I’d love to hear them.
Subscribe to Chapter Break posts.
Join 2,818 other subscribers
[…] already discussed how we feel about tropes in novels, and I previously shared why I might rate a book 2 stars. Now let’s talk about features I would love to see in a new series (especially of the YA and […]
[…] post on your blog. (aka written by you!) My one favorite post? Wow um… I think my post on why I would rate a book 2 stars is a favorite because as I’ve become more picky in my reading, it takes a lot more to wow […]
This is a great post. I have been frustrated with the same things lately. I gave up on at least 40 supposedly great books in 2014.
I would add
** use an editing process where the editor cares about all the above. A competent editor should be noticing all these things.
** books that are slow. If there is information included that does not contribute to the plot, the theme, etc. then it should not be there. I am sick of reading highly rated books 800 pages long that have about 100 pages of relevant information in them.
** books that are flat. There must be something magical or inspiring or transporting or wholly original about the book. Otherwise, what is the point?
I’d also add that a lot of the books I read that have the problems you describe are winning the biggest awards or getting high praise from critics or getting thousands of great reviews on Goodreads. And then some great books are getting overlooked or only a small readership. There is something that I haven’t quite figured out yet that is not right about the whole system.
Great additions! Yes, it is so sad when mediocre books get all these awards and great books get overlooked. Me and you can’t be the only people who feel books need to be more interesting to be worthy of awards.
Awesome post. I found myself nodding at everything you wrote. Yeah, all those things don’t work for me as well, especially the non-editing thing.
Nish recently posted…Blouse Love aka I Go Crazy Over Thanksgiving
Thanks for nodding along 🙂
I am so bad at spelling and grammer I usually don’t even notice when a book isn’t edited. Unless it’s really bad I often read right over the mistakes. Plot, characters and world buildign are very important to me and when a book doesn’t do well in one or mroe of those areas a low rating is much more likely. I don’t mind cliffhanger endings as much, but I prefer non-cliffhanger endings and that each book at least has some sort of ending and wraps up something.
I also hate it when I have different expectations thanks to the blurb or soemthign else and then the book turns out very differnet. Sometiems I can adjust my expectations and sometimes it just makes me not like the book.
I am not a fan of clichés and predictable books. Although I usualy don’t mind romances that take over the book, but it has to be realistic and there still has to be a plot as well.
Lola recently posted…Sunday Post #103
Glad you agree on those important points of plot and character building. I just think it is really important for a book to have a definitive beginning *and* ending.
[…] Julie @ Chapter Break had a great post listing the “10 Reasons I will rate a book 2 stars” […]
[…] Julie lists ten reasons why she will rate a book two-stars. […]
Great list! Though this makes me wonder what a book looks like that you’d give a one star rating
Celine recently posted…Finishing ALL the Series
Ooh that’s an interesting question. I don’t think I’ve reviewed a book that I rated 1 star. That might be applied to books that were so bad that I didn’t even want to continue?
OMG YES! All of these things will make me lower my rating also!
Kaitlin Michelle recently posted…December Movies
See? Authors and publishers need to take note of this.
Aah, all of these things are so frustrating! I read a book recently with a non-ending and I was completely bewildered – the book went absolutely nowhere and the plot resolved itself without the characters doing anything. Anyway, great post 🙂
Zareena recently posted…Waiting on Wednesday #51: Rock Hard (I want T-Rex!)
Wow, I would be sooo frustrated with the book you just described. The angry ranty review would be fun to write though heh.
Julie this was fantastic!!! I agree with all your points. Especially the first one. Not editing is like my pet peeve and I’m an ESL too. Great job! You should write more posts like this 😀
Stefani recently posted…WWW Wednesdays: December 3, 2014
I had so much fun writing this post. I hope to write more, as long as ideas come to me.
I have found that I am far more critical of the books I read since becoming a full time writer. The last four books I have read, by well known, successful crime writers, have all been littered with mistakes. One book used the word aplomb and skullduggery repeatedly. So much so, it was just plain irritating. Another flitted from one POV to another in the same chapter (Chapter 1). It was from the victim’s point of view throughout the chapter and then wham – she was dead and the POV changed for the last sentence. I didn’t feel this was done for effect. The chapter could have ended perfectly ommitting this last sentence. I could write all day about “beginners errors” I have found over the past 12 months. But I do believe it is because I have been learning the do’s and don’ts. Lesson learned: Be sure to prevent these mistakes in my own future novels 🙂
I think you definitely notice issues more if you’re a writer and are focused on avoiding them yourself 🙂
Ugh yes so many of these things ruin my enjoyment of novels too. Characters need to be at least decent because if you can’t connect to them you won’t care about what’s happening to them. The only thing I might disagree on are cliffhangers! I love them. Usually. Some of the best books I’ve read end mid battle scene which is FRUSTRATING. But my love or hate of it really depends on how it made me feel, what happened during the rest of the book, and if it was really necessary/a good plot device or just something to bring readers back for book two.
Bec @ Readers in Wonderland recently posted…ARC Review: All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven
I definitely agree that cliffhangers could go either way. Sometimes they work so well, and other times, they feel forced. Like the publisher said stop here so you can sell more books. Heh. I think it would be cool to do a post discussing good and bad types of cliffhangers with specific book examples. Maybe even an ask the bloggers type where we would post input from several bloggers. What do you think, interested?
UGH. #9 gets me all the time too. It’s soooo annoying to go into a book expecting one thing and to totally get another. >.> Sometimes it’s okay, but mostly I feel cheated. I’m okay with cliffhanger endings and weird-stopping-places. x) They kind of make me feel happy! But definitely no to those boring horrible characters. -_- I was reading a quote the other day (I can’t remember where, I should’ve book marked it!) that says characters don’t need to be perfect or 100% likeable, but they need to have something that makes us connect to them. We have to have empathy for the character or what’s the point, right?! I thought it was very wise. xD
Thanks for stopping by @ Notebook Sisters/Paper Fury!
Cait @ Paper Fury recently posted…Guest Post: Characters vs Me by Amanda @ Book Badger
Ooh if you find that quote again do share it. But that is so true – we have to *care* about the characters, for one reason or another.
I really care about characters so I definitely am with you on that. And editing is SO IMPORTANT. I actually am ok with cliff hangers a lot of the time, but some are killer. Same thing with cliches – if the whole book isn’t a cliche but some elements are, I’m usually okay with it. But it wont be five stars. Great post!!
Berls @ Fantasy is More Fun recently posted…Pinching Pennies | November 2014
Maybe we should discuss good cliffhangers vs. bad ones.
Idea: I wanna do an ask the bloggers type discussion post where we would post input from several bloggers on the topic of cliffhanges, with specific book examples where it worked and where it didn’t. Interested?
I have to agree with every point you’ve made here. The editing is a big issue for me. Plus 2 star reviews are hard to write and trying to remain fair to the author and their book. Great post.
Sharon @ Sharon’s Book Nook! recently posted…Now on Audible – A Shade of Vampire by Bella Forrest
You’re right that it is hard to remain fair to the author when you thought the book wasn’t all that great. Maybe that’s why I stopped taking review requests.
As usual, I’m in complete agreement. I have to say that the editor thing is the biggest deal. That and proofreading. And I’ve had authors say they hired editors and/or proofreaders, but the book still had issues. When I hear that I want to ask how much they paid and what said professional’s credentials and experience were!
Leila @ LeilaReads recently posted…A Year Without Buying Books (I May Actually Die) – Show Your Shelves Some Love Challenge 2015
Yea sometimes I wonder if they didn’t “hire” a family member to “edit” their book heh.
I have to agree with your 10 reasons. But I giggled over the cliffhangers…you *really* don’t like cliffhangers! 🙂 I don’t necessarily like them either but I won’t necessarily rate the book lower because of one. 😉 Of course, if any of the other 9 reasons you’ve listed occur, I’m seriously gonna the cliffhanger! LOL
Bookworm Brandee recently posted…**Release Day Blas & Giveaway ~ Havoc ~ Autumn Grey**
I just feel like they are a ploy to sell the next book most of the time. But yea, just one of those things won’t automatically give the book a 2 star rating.
That was supposed to say hate the cliffhanger…yeah, I agree with the ploy part. I do appreciate it when an author gives me an ending that has me wanting to go to the next installment but is still satisfying enough that I can wait for it.
Bookworm Brandee recently posted…**Release Day Blas & Giveaway ~ Havoc ~ Autumn Grey**
YES exactly! I want to *want* to read their next book, not *need* to.
Love this list! I’ve been underwhelmed by books lately too – even from some of my favorite authors! Either I’m just grumpy or my expectations are higher now. LOL Get a few really good books under your belt, and it’s harder to rate.
Karie {Girl Going Country} recently posted…It’s a Boy!
I definitely think the more you read, the higher your expectations go. You recognize a good book or a mediocre one very quickly 🙂