Not only are these books that everyone seemed to love, but these are books that I really wanted to love, too. Each of these books covers a topic, theme, or trope that I adore! Whether it was the writing style or execution, something fell short in all of these that stopped me from loving them in the same way that others seemed to. Read on to see the top 8 books that everyone loved, but I didn’t.
Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff
A space opera told through found documents and interviews. Two lead characters who recently broke up are all each has left, and something starts to rekindle as they use their wits to save their colonies and find each other.
So, I listened to this one on audio, which might have been part of the problem. I chose the audiobook because it was a full cast, which I typically love. However, that meant that I had to listen to all of the dialogue read aloud, and the back and forth between the characters was my least favorite part of this book. Sure it was witty and snarky, but it felt out of place when the characters were in such dire circumstances. Along with that, the plot just didn’t connect with me and I listened to the audiobook feeling disconnected and apathetic about the outcome. That being said, I really liked the artificial intelligence character and looked forward to listening to the scenes with that character, so there’s some positive to be found here! I don’t think this book is bad by any means, it just didn’t work for me.
The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden
A take on Russian folklore, we follow Vasya as she grows into her magical abilities in a small Russian village amidst conflict with her family and the church
Speaking of books that aren’t bad, The Bear and the Nightingale is a great example of a book that is objectively good, just not for me. I LOVED Arden’s writing style (so lush, so fairytale-like, so atmospheric, so beautiful), but I didn’t love the story overall. I thought I would like it since it deals with religious fundamentalism and small villages and folksy magic (all things I tend to enjoy in books) but somehow the pieces didn’t come together in a way that I liked. This book put me in somewhat of a slump because of the way that the plot meandered and the magic system that didn’t fully make sense. If you like meandering folksy fairy tale fantasies, you might like this. I didn’t love this story, but I did love her writing style, so I decided to read her middle grade series, Small Spaces, which I totally enjoyed!
Less by Andrew Sean Greer
A mid-list author nearing fifty accepts every literary invitation in order to avoid his birthday and take a trip around the world
When I heard the premise of this, I was like, “sign me up!” I thought I’d absolutely love this! This is another case of a book that I think is extremely well-written and absolutely an important book, but not one that ultimately entertained me. If you really like literary fiction, you’ll probably like this. Unfortunately, I entered this book thinking I was getting a mass-audience contemporary, but instead I got something a little more fussy and a lot less fun than I was hoping for.
Fix Her Up by Tessa Bailey
A former baseball player known as a womanizer and a career clown who wants to be taken more seriously fake date to improve their reputation
I should probably start by saying that I’m not a romance reader, so I’m probably not the intended audience for this book. In my opinion, there are some romances that are solidly “romance” in genre, but work well for someone who tends to reach for “contemporary” with a hint of romance. Christina Lauren is a good example of an author that writes solidly romance but plays nicely with contemporary readers. This book had so much buzz on Booktube that I thought I’d give it a try. I knew I was getting something steamier than what I typically go for, but people also raved about the characters and the plot, so I thought it would still work for me. Unfortunately, the characters and plot fell totally flat for me, and I even found some of it problematic. The intimate scenes were definitely more explicit and steamier than I’m used to, but again – they fell flat and were also somewhat problematic in my non-romance reader opinion.
Well Met by Jen DeLuca
A romance set at a Renaissance fair, two characters who seem to hate each other have intense chemistry when in character at the festival
This book is the kind of book I was talking about above – a softer romance that falls in-between hard romance and contemporary. Less explicit and more focused on the build-up of the romance and the characters, this book had so much potential. I mean, setting a romance at a Renaissance fair? Heck yes! Unfortunately, the attempts at characterization totally failed for me. Attempts at making the characters more complex and well-rounded felt cheap and at times laughable. The author does a lot of “tell not show” here, especially when describing attributes of the main character. Also, I never really bought the romance between the two characters. They go from hating each other to loving each other over night, and even though the author tried to explain why the male lead transforms while in character, it didn’t make the romance more believable to me. I won’t totally write off Jen DeLuca, especially if she writes another romance in a fun setting, but this debut was a low rating for me.
The Devouring Gray by Kristine Lynn Herman
A girl moves to a small town where a group of founders have special powers to control a monster that inhabits the town
The really vague summary that I gave above? That’s literally all I remember about this plot. My main issue with this book is that it was poorly plotted. When I started this book, I thought I was getting a diverse cast, village-based fantasy of cool teens using magic to fight a monster. And I sort of got that? But I also thought that I’d be getting something that made sense. Unfortunately, the world building in this book only poses more questions than answer, and we’re left with a story that is nearly impossible to engage with because the plot and lore don’t add up. Many people note that the representation in this book is excellent, which it is, but it also felt a little bit forced.
Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco
A wealthy nobleman’s daughter is fascinated with forensics and works with her uncle and his assistant to solve the mystery of murders happening in their city. Light romance, light mystery, light gore/horror.
This is a case where me not being the intended audience for this book stopped me from enjoying it. There are many cases where I enjoy middle grade and YA books despite not being the intended audience, but sometimes I read a book in one of those genres and I can only notice how much I would have loved the book if I was 10+ years younger. This is one of those cases. I probably wouldn’t have noticed the excessive and explicit pointedness that the author takes to show how “different” our female character is and how unfair it is that she can’t openly work at the forensics lab because she’s a girl.
Keeper of the Lost Cities by Shannon Messenger
Sophie, a girl who can read minds discovers she’s an elf. When she leaves her family to live in the elven world, she discovers that the politics of the elven world aren’t as friendly as they seem, with a vigilante group that is more involved in Sophie’s life than she thought and a sinister rebel group that are complicating her life.
I’ve already talked about this series and how I keep reading them despite knowing they aren’t for me and not particularly enjoying them. The main issues I have with this series are – the threads of world building and lore that begin then disappear, the relationships between Sophie and the male leads that focus on her physical appearance, the way all of her male friends are pining for her affection, and the over-the-top “kids doing things adults should be doing” trope that goes beyond what typically happens in fantasy. I read through book four of this series because I do genuinely enjoy the characters and the world, so I was hoping the author would correct some of the shortfalls.
Tell me about a book that everyone else seemed to love that you didn’t enjoy in the comments below!