What do you do when a book is boring?

[shelly blomker]

The last few books I've tried to read have been so boring that I didn't even finish them. I can't write reviews on books that I don't finish. I don't think it would be fair to my readers if I did.

 

So, what do you do when a book is so boring?

[V Taylor]

This is a great idea, perhaps this can be a new meme that is done once or month or so. We can all list books we DNF and the reasons why.

 

Vivian

The Book Diva's Reads

[Jennifer Kitchens]

Sometimes, if the book is boring or bad, I still feel obligated to review it since I said I would.  But, like you, I won't review something that I haven't finished.  Sometimes I go into "power-reading" mode where I power read or skim it a bit.  Sometimes I have found that a book redeems itself by the end.  Sometimes not.  But I feel that if the author/publisher took the time to contact me, and I agreed, then I should do a review.  Of course, if it's a library book or something, I'll just put it down.

 

Clean Romance Reviews

[Katie]

I don't force myself to finish books I'm really not enjoying. If I'm not hooked after a couple of chapters, I don't bother continuing, and I don't review the book.

 

I have yet to encounter this problem with an ARC, since all the ones I've received came from NetGalley, and were books I knew I would love when I requested them. But my review policy does say " On the rare occasion that I struggle to connect with a book, there is a chance I will not finish reading it, and therefore will not give it a review." What KW mentions above sounds like a good policy - just politely decline, and then move onto the next book in your TBR pile.

 

Katie

Secrets & Sharing Soda

[Grace]

If a book is so boring I can't finish it, I make note of it in a review.

“Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell” by Susanna Clark

Here's an example of a review I did for a book I couldn't finish.  I mentioned in the review why I didn't like it, and did explain that I read far enough into it to have at least given it a chance.  (after 500 pages there was still no plot!)  Part of a review for me is evaluating whether or not I'd recommend a book, and if it was so boring I couldn't finish it, then I definitely wouldn't recommend it.  Then again, it would be more complicated if someone had asked me to review their book.  I think in that case I'd have to be far more selective from the start about what type of book I'd review.

[Christine Amsden]

If a book is so boring I can't finish it, I will write a review for goodreads and say so, but I won't put it up on my blog. I certainly wouldn't fault other reviewers for putting it up on their blogs, I just don't feel, given the purpose of my blog, that it's useful. (The purpose of my blog being partly to review, partly to offer writing tips, and partly to promote my own books.)

 

Goodreads, on the other hand, is more about my actual reading personality. My reviews tend to be less formal there, and I say what I mean. If that's how you see your blog, I wouldn't hesitate to mention books you couldn't finish reading (as long as you did try to read them).

[Iben]

So true. I'd probably warn other readers on goodreads rather than on my blog :)

[shelly blomker]

Hmmm, thanks for the advice. I've noticed that my prefence on books has changed to over the years. I just can't stand a book that takes for ever to get into. To much dialog about one person and not enough action to make me stay with it.

I'd rather my readers enjoy a book, that's why I created my blog in the first place. Other then that, to write about what I don't finish would be a waste because I haven't finished it.

But, every idea you guys have is a good one. Maybe I should start another blog for books I don't like or can't get into...lol.

[Gareth Wilson]

To be honest I tend to power through it and hope that the next title is better.  After all you can't trash a title as it may well pick up not long after you've put it down.  The best thing that you can do is state that this review is based on reading X amount of pages and as such the writing/arc was not to your personal taste and thus you were unable to finish.

[Jill Elizabeth]

That is always my fear - that the page after the point where I stopped reading contains brilliant, clever prose that makes sense of everything!  I am going to finish the book I originally commented about - I am still pretty new to the book blogging/review thing and it's the first person who ever asked me to review their book, so I'm also afraid of bad karma if I bail.  It IS going to be tough to write a review that fairly represents what I think (which is not much - neither plot nor writing were very good, and the characters were utterly unsympathetic and uninteresting - eek, she said), that isn't a complete slam, and that doesn't bore my blog readers as much as the book bored me!

[Julia Hughes]

Don't even start me on this! When I first published as an Indie I was tempted by the "I'll review yours if you review mine." The two I promised to review sucked big time. Sorry, no other word for it. They stunk. But the authors seemed really nice and had already posted reviews for me (for all I know they could have thought mine sucked!)

Anyhow, the real problem started with the second book. (Shudder). The person requesting the review had warned that the book contained graphic violence. I'm ok with that provided the story line calls for it. What he didn't say was that his main characters presented as psychos. I honestly thought it was a satire of James Bond to begin with. The book veered wildly from lst to 3rd person pov. Then the flash backs started. One of the characters had been abused as a child. And the author went into graphic detail. I skipped to the last chapter, read his own book description and cobbled something together. Never ever again. From now on, I'm choosing what I want to review, and if someone wants to review mine, that's great.

Lesson learned!

Julia xx

 

[shelly blomker]

I may have picked the books I want to read. Just didn't think it would be so dang boring. I couldn't get into it and had to go onto another book. Yeah, I could have set it aside and gone back to it. But, I probably would have taken me forever to finish it. Its a shame to, it has been on the bestsellers list for awhile. I guess really its my choice.

Thanks for answering. Some good stuff to think about too. Each person always has a different view on how they'd do things.

[Robert Parry]

Most authors would appreciate a quick e-mail stating that you can't get on with it, especially if the copy has been sent directly from the author rather than through the publisher/publicist. But it would probably need to be put in a way that doesn't invite a come-back, because you don't want to be stuck online for hours debating the merits or otherwise of something you don't like!  So, perhaps unfortunately, it all has to be fairly impersonal and business-like.