As we’re winding down 2020, which has been THE most disappointing year of my life, I thought what best post to kick off with than the reads I was really looking forward to but did not deliver! All of the books featured in this post were ones that I thought I was going to absolutely love but ended up feeling less than satisfied. On that note, let’s jump into some disappointment!
My biggest disappointment of the year has to go to YOU by Caroline Kepnes. When YOU was released on Netflix, I quickly binged Season 1. When I realized the show was based on a book, I knew I had to read it! In the show, the main character (Joe) was a creepy but likable anti-hero. Even though he had some sick, twisted ideas you still wanted to root for him. In the book, we got more of Joe’s internal dialogue which was vulgar and over-the-top. I won’t be reading Hidden Bodies or the other 2 books that have been announced. I will, however, be continuing to watch the Netflix series!
Next up on my list is another thriller-is book, Everyone Knows How Much I Love You by Kyle McCarthy. I received an ARC of this book and was excited when I got my approval email. This sounded like it was going to be a quick, fun and toxic book that was going to whip through in a single sitting. The main character was demented and the story was outrageous. Initially, I didn’t understand why this book was getting such bad reviews on GoodReads and Netgalley. Then I hit the middle. The whole tone of the book changes and the main character engaged in an affair with her best friend / roommates boyfriend. The fling was disturbingly graphic and really did nothing to advance the story. Eventually, this part of the novel ends and the story gets back on track. The ending, however, was so random and strange that I didn’t understand how we even got there. McCarthy definitely tried to be edgy, shocking and unique but these efforts completely fell flat.
I’ve always loved the idea of self-help books but they tend to never deliver the content I’m expecting. A prime example of this is How To Lead When You Aren’t In Charge by Clay Scroggins. There was an overabundance of religious references, “God’s Plan” and it generally lacked any actual leadership advice. I opted to listen to the audiobook and Scroggins voice sounded like a used car salesman. At one point he even spoke some rap lyrics and I cringed so hard it physically hurt. This was a HUGE pass for me!
We’re over halfway through and winding down. The next book, for me, was a personal disappointment: Eldest by Christopher Paolini. I read Eragon years ago and loved it. I loved the sense of adventure, dragons and epic story. I was looking forward to continuing the journey and decided to pick this up for a round of Tome Topple. To start, this book was unnecessarily long (200 pages could’ve easily been cut). Multiple POVs is usually something that I enjoy but the storylines were BORING. Initially, I was really invested in one of the stories. Eventually that interest fizzled out and I had to slough through the rest of the book to finish it.
The final book rounding out this list is Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia. I remember when this book was released earlier this year. It was sold out on Amazon and I saw a ton of Bloggers, Bookstagrams and YouTubers RAVING about this horror novel. Eventually I snagged a copy for my Kindle and decided to read it during October when I read only horror books. This wasn’t an overly long book but after the first 50 pages things really slowed down and nothing really happened. The story continued to crawl for the next 150 pages. Once I was about 100 pages from the ending, the plot found it’s groove and moved like wildfire until I turned the last page. After all the praise, I was expecting something a little more addicting and had to put down.
So there you have it, my top 5 biggest book disappointments of the year! Have you read any of the books I mentioned? Were you also disappointed or did you love them? What are some of your biggest book disappointments of the year? Leave me a note in the comments if you agree/disagree and any books I should avoid!
Until Next Time,
Mr Geek
Treat Yo Shelf By Mr Geek 
What a fun idea for a blog post! I haven’t read any of these (but have seen Netflix’s adaptation of YOU. You’re in for a WILD ride!). I’m considering picking up To Sleep in a Sea of Stars. I vaguely remember reading Eragon as a child, but vividly remember watching the movie. (I actually liked the movie, which I have recently found is a hot take 😂). But, I’ve heard a bunch of negative things about it so… maybe?
The only book I could not get through but heard good things about was The Sundown Motel. It just… DRAGGED. The writing style drew me in, and I was semi-interested in the romance-y aspect buuuuuut meh. The plot fell flat and I just couldn’t do it – had to put it down mid read.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you!! I’ll be anxious to see what you think of “To Sleep in a Sea of Stars.” When I was co-hosting Tome Topple in November, one of the participants tweeted me during a reading spring about how terrible it is. Apparently there’s a scene where the main character touches herself through her space suit (and supposedly that’s just the tip of the iceberg). Kind of disappointed me because that was on my radar as well!
I also really liked the Eragon movie, but we’re apparently in the minority! I also have a copy of The Sundown Motel waiting for me on my Kindle but I’m just a tad less excited to read that not after hearing this! Who knows, maybe something will click for me?
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh wow 😳 that’s something 😂 Well, no matter what the content should surprise me lol! I would never have expected that from Christopher Paolini. That’s an idea! I might put it on my list for potential Tome Topples, we’ll have to see 😂
I hope Sundown works out for you! I read it in January when I was feeling kinda slumpy (Winter normally gets me a little down when it comes to reading). I’ve been told that there’s hope toward the end!
LikeLike