What Books did you Read and do NOT Recommend in 2014?

I thought you liked Fever when you were reading it? I haven't read it yet.

I read Mary Beth Keane's Fever--and loved it. So maybe we're talking about two different books here.

I'm not one to give up on a book, but this year I sure did! Beggar King: The Hangman's Daughter was unreadable. I also deserted Hilary Mantel's Bringing Up the Bodies (I could not abide her Wolf Hall either, though I did finish that one--I've loved most of her other books), and I know there's a couple more. (These were all book club choices.)

I often don't finish books if I don't enjoy them 1/3 of the way into them. I've got better things to do! I also don't remember the titles, so yeah, I've been known to check out the same bad book from the library that I didn't finish the first time.

The Dovekeepers by Alice Hoffman. Segments told by different characters but they all had the same voice. The author didn't do a very good job of distinguishing them from each other. I finally went to the audio version as each character was read by a different narrator and that helped a little, but overall I have read better books about the subject (Masada).

Still Life with Breadcrumbs by Anna Quindlen. First (and last) book I'll read by her.

Ape House by Sara Gruen. LOVED her Water for Elephants but was very disappointed in this soap opera.

The Invention of Wings by Susan Monk Kidd. Such a rich true story she could have done so much with but at least I learned the names of the main characters (abolitionist sisters from Charleston SC) who had slipped through the cracks of my history education so I did search further for more info.

These 4 I finished. There were others that I never made it all the way through so aren't here on my goodreads list. If I think of them, I'll be back.

I'm not going to finish Prince Lestat by Anne Rice. I'm disappointed that I don't like this book. I read some of the reviews before I decided not to continue with it and one said she learned vampires liked scented candles.

Anne Rice was on qvc in 1993 and my mother bought me Lasher. She autographed a plain white plate (paper square) and it was pasted in the book. Of course qvc said the book was autographed but I guess that counts as the same thing. Have I read this book yet? no because I haven't read The Witching Hour yet but I have it too.

On 12/14/2014 insomniac said:

I read Mary Beth Keane's Fever--and loved it. So maybe we're talking about two different books here.

I'm not one to give up on a book, but this year I sure did! Beggar King: The Hangman's Daughter was unreadable. I also deserted Hilary Mantel's Bringing Up the Bodies (I could not abide her Wolf Hall either, though I did finish that one--I've loved most of her other books), and I know there's a couple more. (These were all book club choices.)

Look again. I posted that it was Fever by Megan Abbott.

On 12/18/2014 qvcaddition said: One of Ernest Hemmingways books for book club. Can,t remember name about an American ambulance driver in Italy during the war. Also WILD, the new movie with Reese Witherspoon.. at first I thought it was good, but it just got boring for me. Both of these were Book club at Library books. GONE GIRL another.

We had to read A farewell to Arms too for our book club a few years ago. I had only read Old Man and the Sea by Hemingway before so thought "It can't be a bad (boring) as that". I was wrong. I really don't understand what the attraction is to his writing. Long boring books made up of short choppy sentences. (I know, it's "minimalist", but I don't like it). I didn't like any of the characters, either.

OT: I did enjoy the biopic HBO did about his relationship with author and war correspondent Martha Gellhorn and I just picked up her memoir, Travels with Myself and Another" to read. Clive Owen portraying Hemingway helped, too.