Top 5 Tuesday || Hyped Books I Didn’t Like

Oh, to like every book I’ve ever read!

If only, right? It would be just so nice not to dislike things. But today, thanks to Meeghan @ Meeghan Reads popping this can of worms wiiiiide open, we’re going over some of the big hyped books I didn’t like. Do I dare say, even hated?

Admittedly, a large part of this post comes with a generous heap of salt on top. Do with that information what you will, my friends. And hopefully, maybe we even agree… 👀

Wicked Saints by Emily A. Duncan (Something Dark and Holy #1)

Even before Twitter cracked down on the author’s antisemitism and general not at all okay behavior towards readers and other authors, this one was a huge flop for me. It’s possibly one of the only one star reviews I’ve ever written thanks to its casual racism, its deeply boring characters, and the constant insistence that the love interest is sometimes a man capable of dangerous and cunning designs, and other times just a confused sad boy.

Nope, not having it, and not touching the rest of the series with a ten foot pole. I’ve got better things to do with my time.

 

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas (Throne of Glass #1)

Okay, technically, I moreso have beef with the series as a whole. When I read ToG back in 2015, I was really intrigued, and wanted to see more of the characters and world. By the end of the second book, I was getting a little skeptical, as the plot was dragging and my favorite characters were dying or shoved out of the spotlight. And by the end of the third book?

No more of that, thanks. It just got endlessly boring, with characters I felt little to no love for, and lots of circling around to drag the plot out over seven books. Plus, fae books just aren’t for me, and this only helped confirm it. Definitely high on the list of hyped books I didn’t like, even if I’m talking about the series as a whole here, and I have no plans to revisit it.

 

Finale by Stephanie Garber (Caraval #3)

Admittedly, I was starting to become skeptical partway through Legendary. But by the end of Finale, I ended up outright frustrated. I felt like some plotlines were entirely abandoned in order to give others much greater weight, and I was so tired of every single love interest. All of them.

If Finale was supposed to be the big finish, it…wasn’t. Too much came together with all the grace of a wasp drunk on fermented fallen fruit (specific metaphor, I know, let me live), and I just couldn’t find myself invested by the end of it. Cool concept, really rough execution, and the big reason why I won’t be reading Once Upon a Broken Heart.

 

Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo (The Shadow and Bone Trilogy #1)

I cannot and will not apologize. While I really enjoyed Six of Crows, trying to get through Shadow and Bone was like pulling teeth. Not a single character interested me very much, and by the time I reached the end, I wanted to punt the Darkling out the window for taking up so much space.

Naturally, I did not get to do that.

Honestly, I was more interested in that fancy white deer than anything else in this book, and I have basically no intention of going back. I didn’t even watch the Netflix adaption (even though the Crows are in it), because this trilogy means nothing to me. Maybe even less than nothing, seeing as I never bothered to read the second book. Sorry, folks, but it was so deeply not my jam.

 

Uprooted by Naomi Novik

Sometimes, I feel like I would pay people, genuinely pay them, to get them to stop recommending Uprooted to me. I read it. It went straight to the list of books I didn’t like. I gave it away.

I know people really love this one, but I can’t get into it, no matter what I do. The romance never fails to make me uncomfortable (I hate mentor/mentee romances, and like Agniezska/Kasia better anyway), and the overall character development was flat at best, in my eyes. People rave about this book all the time, but it just doesn’t do it for me, and I don’t think it ever will. So many interesting things could have been done here, and I continue to feel that none of them came to pass. 🤷

 

So, are we in agreement on any of these books? Or have I just made myself look like a fool to you? If it’s the latter, it’s okay to tell me; we’ll just have to agree to disagree, and maybe find some other books to bond over.

Or, if we do agree, maybe we can just have a little party away from the hype. With other books. And maybe snacks, because that sounds like a very pleasant alternative. Hmm… 🤔