When one reads a book they dislike, there are two optional reactions:
(Well, there are more than two, but we’re talking about two specifically right now because I said so.) MOVING FORWARD. You can either (A) decide never ever ever eeeever to read from that author again because it didn’t work out between you, or (B) you can try an alternate book of theirs later because maybe it was just a fluke you didn’t like the first one.
When faced with these two options: WHAT WOULD YOU TYPICALLY CHOOSE??? That is my question of the day, and yes, it’s a difficult one because life is full of difficult cupcakes to consume.
DO YOU GIVE AUTHOR’S BOOKS SECOND CHANCES?
Does an “I hate this book” mean all the author’s works are now in the “NOPE” list? Are you a stubborn apple and refuse to give up on an author if they’ve written multiple and different-sounding books?? Do you take risks? Or is life too short for retrying nonsense?
“CAIT, IT’S TOO HARD,” you shout most pleasantly. “HOW DO I KNOW IF RE-TRYING AUTHORS IS WORTH IT???”
Well, lucky for you, I am in your life to write pros and cons lists.
P R O S
- It could’ve been a bad apple. Not everyone has a good hair day or a good writing day. And honestly you’d be surprised at how much hair and writing are alike. (Both are unruly and tend to shed.) Not all author’s books are created equal!
- Writers can get better as they go along! Debuts might not be as strong as a later written book. GIVE IT A GO. Plus writers often try different styles as they continue writing because #variety.
- At least if you’ve read two books by an author and decidedly disliked them both…no one can say you didn’t give them a fair chance! You did. You are done now. Goodbye. Someone leave you with your popcorn and tears of regret.
C O N S
- You might go into the book expecting to dislike it. Which can actually lead to you disliking it BEFORE GIVING IT A PROPER CHANCE. Because brains are rude sometimes.
- There is definitely a higher chance for it dying in your face. Which equals wasted time, wasted money, wasted chocolate that you must eat to get through it. (Actually lies — chocolate eaten is never wasted.) Because sometimes an author + reader = just don’t work out! Which makes sense because everyone is different.
- There are SO MANY other new books to try! Why would you try a book that you’re preeeeetty sure isn’t going to click for you because, ya know, YOU HAVE EVIDENCE TO THIS FACT??? Life is so short and the books call to you.
I, personally, am a big believer in trying something twice.
I try lots of things twice. Like can I stack my TBR halfway to the ceiling without it falling and killing several small civilisations??? No? OKAY BUT I’M GOING TO TRY IT AGAIN JUST TO SEE. (Same with eating pumpkin soup + wearing white. I mean, the first 87 times I splashed myself orange mean nothing.) Apparently this is the definition of insanity but hush. Don’t let that bother you.
My vague motto is: always try an author twice. Although it’s not a hard and fast rule, because if a book really really hugely catastrophically makes me rage, I will put it on the “politely blacklisted” pile. Yes the pile is polite. I’m not a monster. *
* Except through Tuesdays to Fridays. I have a roster for evil, I might remind you. The days and hours rotate though, because I like to keep everyone surprised.
So how has retrying authors worked out for me in the past?
OH OH. I’m glad you asked so eagerly because this is something I definitely wanted to analyse. Well it’s something I wanted to make pretty graphics about, but that’s the same sort of thing, yes?
I was so underwhelmed by Mind Games I thoght Kiersten White books might be a NO DO NOT GO category for me. But luckily (A) I never listen to myself, and (B) I tried And I Darken which was a complete genre switch and a complete amazing feast. I AM STILL THINKING ABOUT THIS BOOK I LOVE IT SO.
Noggin promised me beheadings but was JUST AN AWKWARD ROMANCE but then I tried Highly Illogical Behaviour and WOW. I highly adored it. (Get it?? GET IT?? Okay okay don’t roll your eyes at me like that, I was just checking you didn’t miss my stunning wit.)
Of Metal and Wishes is a Phantom of the Opera steampunk retelling…sounds so cool right? WELL, IT DIDN’T MAKE ME SING LIKE THE ANGEL OF MUSIC. I sung like a rusty spoon of unhappiness. But then I tried The Impostor Queen and love love love loooooooooooove.
I spent 97% of my time reading Panic yelling “USE YOUR GOD GIVEN BRAINS YOU DELINQUENT AVOCADOS” and generally stressing. But come along Vanishing Girls and I think my heart gave out…in a really good way. Like there is Bad Book Pain where you want to turn the book into a hat. And then there’s Good Book Pain where you are DYING but not sad about it.
But let’s talk about how Lauren Oliver girls need to brush and maybe tie back their hair?
In which I was so bored in Under the Never Sky I ended up falling asleep, but I was SO IN LOVE WITH RIDERS that I ended up running away with the book and marrying it at dawn. #AsYouDo
Taken is about a city where all the boys disappear by the end I just felt like “Well good riddance” SO THAT WAS AWKWARD. But Vengeance Road??!?!??? Like all the stars and numerous snort/laughs from me while reading this masterpiece.
I mean…obviously IT DOESN’T ALWAYS WORK.
I thought The Alex Crow was the most confusing thing in the universe and lowkey hated it. But then Winger???? JUST AS BAD. Like when you say “ooh I’m in love with fictional boys!” just go read these fictional boys and you’ll be cured. They’re gross. The chances of me trying another Andrew Smith book are very low.
Everyone and their French Uncle’s fish adores Marie Lu…AND I REALLY REALLY WANT TO AS WELL. But Legend left me feeling slightly “meh” and The Young Elites promised evil and…well, no.
(I still actually intend to re-try Legend and finish the series BECAUSE DANGIT, I FEEL LIKE I SHOULD LIKE MARIE LU BOOKS SO I WILL KEEP TRYING.)
Since Richelle Mead is sooooooo famous I figured my unhappy frolics with Soundless must be a fluke. So I tried The Glittering Court. I would rather have sprinkled glitter in my eyes. But I tell myself I’ll at least try Vampire Academy before retiring…
In this case, it’s the writing that really does it in for me: I connect to it as much as I connect to an empty pizza box. Which is to say “not at all but just vaguely disappointed in its existence”. Matched was meh, and Atlantia didn’t improve things at all. Chances of trying again are dwindling into the single digit possibilities.
When it comes to books, I am an avidly curious risk-taker!
It comes from this need to read all the books of ever. (Shh, no I still haven’t given up on that goal and my people are working on immortality right now.) And I HATE the idea of missing out on a potentially good book. But. It honestly depends for me. If the author’s second book option is: (A) a different genre to the first, and (B) a premise that sounds so good I WANT TO EAT IT IN TWO BITES — then I am 100% more prone to try it.
And other times I do just leave well enough alone because #sensible.
how likely are you to try an author again if you didn’t like their first book??? is life to short for that or are you a stubborn apple? is there an author you’ve tried and felt “meh” about but then re-tried and loooooved??! SPEAK WITH ME, FIENDS.
** EDIT: Just wanted to add (and can’t believe I forgot!) that I’m talking about the authors’ WORKS and not the author themselves! I never want to bash an author. Books are subjective and me liking/disliking a book is not my opinion on the author as a person. Authors are glorious creatures and are all to be commended for their work.
AHHH very interesting post Cait. I am all about giving authors second chances, because, WHAT IF THEY BLOW ME AWAY AND I MISSED OUT?! Also….I NEED VENGEANCE ROAD NOW!!! THAT COVER plus love western books
Exactly! I can’t take that idea of maybe possibly missing out on an epic read.😂 I AM TOO KEEN TO READ ALL THE GOOD BOOKS OF EVER. *shrieks from the hilltops*
I’m a firm believer in second chances. Sometimes I even read more than 3 books from an author, depending on what I disliked in their other books. If I like the writing style, I’ll definitely try another book again. The only way I’d ever write an author off completely is if I don’t like their writing and/or they did something problematic. The only two books from your list that I’ve both read are Riders and Under the Never Sky, and I wasn’t a fan of either of them, but I’ll probably try more books by her. Writers grow with every book in my opinion, who knows, maybe I’ll like her next release.
YAYYY WE ARE THE SAME IN THIS!! 3 books is definitely a good number too! I tend to usually aim for just 2? But like if the premise of a new book snabbles me, I am sure going to try it. I have basically no sense when it comes to books. I WANT THEM ALL. I have to really really really have hated a book to decide never to try the author again.😂
I thought the Matched trilogy was meh and I was not going to read Atlantia, but there were certain people who were raving about it, bloggers who I now know rave about every new least little but hyped YA offering, so I picked up the sampler from Netgalley and bleh. If it is a debut book I will usually give the next book a go, or as in the case of Margaret Atwood’s The Heart Goes Last, where her fans were saying they didn’t like the book, I will give the author another look. I am still planning on reading Atwood’s A Handmaid’s Tale. Other than those two situations, probably not if I hated the book. XD
Atlantia is VERY similar in style/feel/characters to Matched, so yeah…if you didn’t like the first, I don’t recommend the later.😂 Which is a pity because underwater dystopian cities SOUNDED SO COOL. *heavy sigh*
It usually takes a couple of books for me to be confident in saying that I dislike the writer, rather than the book.
If a writer changes genres, I tend to regard it as a clean slate. I mean, a bad fantasy writer might be a good contemporary writer. Maybe it took time for them to find their true and destined genre. 😉
First books can be awkward kettles of fish. You have to let people find their feet. 🙂
YES! (Actually I should’ve mentioned that distinction in the post *headpalm* of knowing when it’s a book dislike vs author’s style dislike…like no hating on authors here or anything! Just it’s a fact that we’re not all going to love every author *nods*) I did notice that when I switch over to liking an author after a bad first start, it’s usually when they’ve swapped genres!
Hey Cait,
yeaaaah, finally someone who disliked Matched *-*
I completely did-not-like the writing style so I decided not to read Atlantia ^^
But generally, I´m open to give others a second try. Like, there is one German author I´ve read 9 books from o.O And well, the first books in her series are ALWAYS soooo great but then the later books are just *meeh* And as I´ve read 3 series of her now, I finally have to decided to not read books of her any more…. But her ideas are always soooo great, but like I siad, second & third book: Pure chaos :/
Mary <3
WE ARE TWINS IN THIS THEN. *hi fives* I didn’t get that story at all.😂 And yes if the style is what you didn’t like, skip Atlantia. It’s very similar!
I didn’t like Fangirl, but I gave Eleanor & Park a chance and I loved it. I’m sure I have some more examples but eh.
Going the other way is so devastating though. Like, the first VE Schwab book I read was Vicious and I loved it more than air. Then I read ADSOM, so excited, and I could have done with some glitter it my eyes too. Nope. This Savage Song was better but still just a three star. Sigh. I’ll just sit here and patiently wait for the sequel to Vicious.
It’s kind of hilarious because I’m like the opposite to you with the Rowell books!! I didn’t adore E&P but I did adore Fangirl!😂 I’m actually glad authors write tons of books (well, some of them do :P) so they can reach more fans, basically. Not everything is going to work for everyone AND IT’S OKAY THAT LIFE IS LIKE THAT.
I WANT THE SEQUEL TO VICIOUS SO BAD TOO.
I usually did not give second chance but the problem are somehow the author I hate is super popular and her/his book is best seller, so I try to read her/his book. I often found out yes they do better/improve in writing but I still think their theme or issue did click with me so I end up think they did not click with. You are so nice Cait to give author second chance.
Hehe, what can I say? I’m VERY STUBBORN.😂 I just often get totally sucked in by a premise and then it doesn’t matter who the author is because I just want to try the book again! But there are definitely some authors I’ve tried once and am not trying again. Ever. So you’re not alone!😂
I heard a lot of good things about Andrew Smith but 100 Sideways Miles was just TOO TEENAGE BOY + super weird, so I’m glad that the other books of his seem similar. I am willing to try authors again….but I would rather read a book I’m more certain that I’ll love. I loved Legend, but the Young Elites was very meh, and so was Rose Society (but at least I tried!) I can’t think of any examples right now though, but great post.
Omg Andrew Smith is VERY good at the gross teenage boy sort of books. I…I don’t think I’ll try more of his because I can’t take the gross teenage boy thing.😂 I DON’T WANT TO KNOW IF THAT’S WHAT THEY’RE TRULY LIKE. Ahem.
Everyone seems to love The Young Elites evilness so much and I was just…this is not evil??? But I will finish the Legend trilogy eventually!!
Oooh this is a tricky question. You had a great list of valid pros and cons (as usual). 😀 I try to give authors second chances, but if I hate the second book too I’ll probably never pick up a book by them again. But sometimes on my first time reading an author, if I don’t connect the writing, characters or plot, that’s it, no more. Thankfully this hasn’t happened very often to me, except with Matched. The story and the writing style just wasn’t for me.
I hear ya with Matched *nods* And I thought that maybe things would change because her books have SUCH good premises? But not really. If it’s the actual writing that is not working for me, I feel it’s okay to skip off across the meadows and read something else.😂
Oh please please please try Vampire Academy before giving up on Richelle Mead. And if you don’t get wowed with first book, the series improves by a lot. It’s part of the reason soundless and glittering court are so hard to swallow, because VA and Bloodlines were sky high good. And then… She ruined. I’m really upset she’s continuing writing glittering court books instead of finishing her Age of X series. Seriously wannabe princesses versus dystopian mythology…and she chooses the first *enraged*
I will!! I PROMISE.😂 I’ve been told that a lot so I really will before ditching altogether. Plus I see a lot of her fans are really unenchanted by her latest books?! So I’m listening to the fans.😂
I (almost) always give authors a second chance! Most of the time, it’s not so much the writing as it is the characters and the story that don’t work for me. So if there’s another book out there that does sound interesting, I’ll definitely give it a shot. Most of the time, that tends to work out. Although some of the time, it really doesn’t. And yet I can’t seem to properly give up on an author altogether. What can I say? I’m too tolerant and too good for this world.
Agreed!! And like sometimes things change/mature so much from book to book. Like I really didn’t like Veronica Rossi’s style in Under the Never Sky for some reason (I don’t even know why tbh😂) but then in Riders it was JUST MY THING. So I appreciate that author’s try different things sometimes too!!
Aw, you are too good for this world. AN ANGEL OF GOODNESS AMONGST WE RABBLE.
For me, it depends on WHY I disliked the book. Like, I read Rainbow Rowell’s Fangirl (which I DNFed) and just knew that her books aren’t for me. She just couldn’t make me feel ANYTHING. (let’s ignore the fact the it’s contemporary which I gave up on reading anyway, but that happened before….) NO SECOND CHANCE FOR YOU ROWELL.
I also really disliked Of Fire and Stars because of lots of reasons but the characters were just so meh and the world building sucked/was pushed back for the romance, so I don’t really think that would be any different in her next book. No second chance for her either! (sorrynotsorry)
If it’s only the story itself that didn’t work but I still liked the character and the world building, I would probably give a second chance.
I’m trying to think of authors I gave a second chance, but apparently I never do LMAO.
Fair enough! This is me with some authors too, like if I really really know it isn’t going to work out between us. But then again, I can be persuaded if they come out with a new epic sounding book because BASICALLY I HAVE NO RESTRAINT AND NO SENSE. #mylife
Omg Of Fire and Stars was AWFUL BEYOND WORDS. I am with you. Maraia and I tried to buddy read it and I don’t think she went past the first couple of chapters? I DO NOT BLAME HER hhaha I finished, but omg my rant was long for that one.😂
It depends on how badly I didn’t like the first go for an author. Scott Westerfield (spelling?) made me want to throw things, and I tried 3 of his. Whereas Lauren Oliver, I kind of liked parts of the Delirium/Pandemonium/Requiem thing, but it was really hard to get through all of it.
Right now, I’m reading Lady Midnight (i.e. the latest in the long line of Shadowhunters books by Cassandra Clare), and there have been many times I wanted to give up on those series. But so far so good…
The Young Elites, I did not like. Marie Lu is great at her world-building, but she’s just not at writing from the evil characters’ point of view. Basically she kept apologizing throughout for the narrator wanting to go evil, and that gave the whole tale a conflicted, sort of messy feeling.
Do finish Legend. The characters and the writing style grow together. 🙂 Personally, I loved Legend/Prodigy/Champion, and the ending was pretty daring for a YA-slotted trilogy (not typical, but happy, but in a circular way).
I didn’t feel like Adaline was evil AT ALL.😂 She just felt like a tragically abused main character…which is great villain origin material, but she was too justified. Which made her not scary, to me. hehe. (I’ve read Game of Thrones though and THOSE are very very decently horrible villains omg.) But I will go back and finish the Legend trilogy because I HAVE QUESTIONS AND THEY NEED ANSWERS.
Trust me, the questions are definitely answered by the end of Champion. (She’s certainly not a sloppy author like some others!)
I didn’t like those two books by Richelle Mead either! But luckily, I read VA and Bloodlines first and like the author. I reaaaallly liked Bloodlines series. But since she’s trying new things, I’m giving these a no.
I will so totally read the VA books! I WILL. I’ll at least try them before I quit altogether, heheh, because people rave about them so much!
I gave Kelley Armstrong’s Sea of Shadows series a second chance, and it was sooo worth it. The second and third books were SO MUCH BETTER AND SOOOOOO GOOD.
I tend to give authors more than two chances, I give all the chances. This is why my TBR is out of control. “OH THAT AUTHOR WHOSE BOOK I DISLIKED? WELL THEY ARE WRITING ANOTHER BOOK LOL I SHOULD READ IT”
ALSO you should finish the Legend trilogy, it’s sooo good.
Omg maybe I should try them then?!? I’d kind of mentally quit on that series after Sea of Shadows.😂 But I think 2 chances is a pretty fair amount!! i MEAN LIFE IS SHORT WE GOTTA FIGURE OUT HOW TO PRIORITISE THE TBR SOMEHOW. *drowns in books*
I will definitely finish the Legend books eventually! I PROMISE.
It was only when reading this I realised that I rarely give authors second chances. There are just too many good things to read! Although one instance where I did give an author a second change was with Leigh Bardugo. I thought Shadow and Bone was okay,,, but just okay. Not particularly memorable and not unique enough to have me reading the rest of the series. But I did love the world/setting, so I thought that with all the hype of Six of Crows I’d give her writing a second chance. And I didn’t regret it! Everything about that book stood out so much more to me than Shadow and Bone and I can’t wait for the sequel.
But I’ve got to say this hasn’t really changed my mind about giving authors second chances. If an author releases a new book with a premise that really excites me and promises really dynamic characters and a fast pace I may pick it up, but if the reason for me hating their previous book was because I found it insulting or offensive and poorly researched or just plain uncomfortable then you can be sure I’ll be steering clear of everything they release in the future.
I totally get that!! Because LIFE IS SHORT! We have to prioritise books somehow, right?! But omg I had a similar experience with Leigh Bardugo actually! Well, I gave Shadow and Bone 4-stars but I found it kind of confusing and not really memorable either? But Six of Crows? OMG HOLD ME I CANNOT GET ENOUGH OF THAT BOOK AND I HAVE RE-READ IT AND I LIKE RECREATIONALLY OBSESS OVER IT.😍
But yes! Sometimes it’s about the book and not really who the author is, right? But there are a few authors I don’t want to retry because of hose kind of reasons: it being problematic or offensive. *nods*
Great post. If I like an author’s writing style but not the characters or plot of a book, I’ll give their work another try. But, if I get REALLY irritated at a book, I probably won’t read another one by that author. I disliked 13 Reasons Why so much that I won’t read another Jay Asher book. It angered me that much.
OMG THAT IS ME TOO WITH 13 REASONS WHY. I was just saying in another comment that there are 2 authors I will never retry and Jay Asher is one unfortunately. *sighs* It made me feel so sick when I read that book that I stopped reading for several weeks. Not good!
I’m not very “author picky” but rather “story picky.” I don’t really have auto-buy authors (well, maybe just a couple), because it’s more about the story/plot for me. So if a book sucks, I’d definitely give the author another try if the story appealed to me (:
That is actually a very wise place to be.😂 Sometimes I wonder if I think about authors too much and should just focus on the BOOK. I’m actually going to write a post about that … some day. But not yet, because #LAZY. Ahem. But yes! If the book appeals, I want to read it no matter who wrote it. 😀
I love this topic but THIS IS INDEED TOUGH, CAIT. Ahem, I think for me, the answer is quite complicated 😉 I am willing to give an author a second chance if 1) the one I read and didn’t like is released before the book in question, because theoretically author should be getting better, right? If I… say… read the latest book first and don’t like it, there’s a very small chance of me checking out the previous books. 2) the books are on completely different genre. 3) what I dislike is a minor thing, the “it’s not you it’s me” thing because I still think she/he might improve. 4) the books are getting rave reviews everywhere.
BUT if the first book I read is completely problematic, I most likely won’t be giving it another chance. There was the time I read Wings by Aprilynne Pike and OMG there were SO MANY THINGS THAT DIDN’T WORK OUT FOR ME. The plot, the characters, the writing are impossible and I just… couldn’t. But there was also the time when I read The Fault in Our Stars and didn’t like it (weird, I know, I re-read it and ended up liking it) and I gave John Green another chance by reading Looking for Alaska. ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT and John Green ended up being one of my auto buy author.
Great post as always! <3
Ahh, I agree with this! Like the “why” is a big deal when giving second chances *nods* I definitely am cautious if I find the first book seriously problematic. Like there are 2 YA authors I plan to never try again because I consider them problematic and their books damaging (I wn’t say who tho, because it’s so subjective and just personal opinion). But, like, if the book wasn’t my thing but the author writes something that sounds complete different? I AM THERE FOR IT.😂 I live in fear of missing out on a great book. hehe.
John Green is definitely an auto-buy author for me too!! :’)
Me too OMG I’m scared of missing out amazing books! I think that’s the main reason why we keep taking risks with books :’) there’s also some authors whose books I didn’t enjoy but I’m planning to give them second chances pretty soon! Like… the authors who didn’t do well with their previous books but I feel like they had so much potential??
omg cait i have a post with this exact same topic scheduled for the end of next month 😮 and lauren oliver is also on my list of second chance author! i just hate hate hate delirium, but she’s one of the most well loved author in ya i just go”????” that’s why i’m giving her another chance. i really enjoyed vampire academy and bloodlines, so i think you should’ve start your richelle mead journey there xD and while matched isnt really THAT bad, it leaves me no desire to try allie condie’s other books. oops. i’m also a big believer in second chances, even third or fourth if the books from certain authors keep being a incosistent hit and miss (i’m looking at you, rainbow rowell).
WE ARE TINWS, TASYA!! *HI FIVES* I can’t wait to read your post.😂 And I’m kind of glad we have the same feelings about Lauren Oliver then! Like I haven’t read Delirium, but omg her latest books are basically on my insta-acquire list. She’s just getting better and better tbh. And I agree I started my Richelle Mead journey in just entirely the wrong place. GAH. MY BAD!😂
It depends how badly my first outing with the author went as to whether I’ll try the book again. Like when I first read Throne of Glass I wasn’t keen, but it was a 3 star so I decided to read the sequel and I’m glad I did because I love the series! John Green on the other hand, I hated The Fault In Our Stars and know without a doubt that I will not be reading another John Green book.
That’s fair! Like it definitely can depend on the WHY you didn’t like it. The content of ACTOAR by Sarah J Maas definitely made me know I wasn’t going to be okay with more books in that series, which is fine.😂 Too many books to try to waste time on ones you won’t like!
I will often give authors another chance. Thanks for stopping by my blog yesterday 🙂
Yayyy, you and I are in agreement on this!
I liked Matched a little more than you (hated the end of the series though) but was SO disappointed in Atlantia. ally Condie lives near me and I went to her Atlantia launch party and everything and I Was so excited to read it and it was so boring. One of my least favorites ever.
As for Marie Lu. Again, I liked Legend a bit more than you (not a fan of the end though…geez I think I need to write a post about the ends of trilogies/series) BUT I didn’t like the Young Elites at all. But I seemed to be the only one. I don’t know if I’d pick up another book by her.
Second chances? In my earlier reading days I think I was more lenient. As I read more and know there’s more out there to read, I think I’m less likely.
For example: I LOVE the Throne of Glass Series by Sarah J Maas, I Loved book one in her second series A Court of Thornes and Roses. I started book two and was so disappointed in the use of detailed sex scenes that I returned the book. Now I’m wary to read book 5 in throne of glass because I no longer trust her as an author. It’s hard to win that back.
Aren’t series endings SO HARD THOUGH?!? *cries* I almost always finish a series and feel dissatisfied haha. Ahem. But I’m actually glad I’m not the only one underwhelmed with Atlantia and The Young Elites!! WE ARE TWINNING HERE.
And it is hard to give tons of second chances when there are so many new authors to try omg! If I was immortal, well, that would be a different story.😂
And I was the same with ACTOAR, but then I fell out of love with ToG too, so, I’ve basically quit on Sarah J Maas, but I did read about 6 books from her.😂 So I’m right with you there. (We seem to have a lot of similar book tastes/opinions?!? That’s super awesome. GO US.)
I would like to say I’m kind and give second chances. But I’m actually just a rude potato who will, more than likely, not give authors a second chance. I’m honestly a very picky reader. I value the quality of the books I read over the quantity. And now I’ve made a vow to stop forcing myself to finish books I hate. So if I don’t like you I’m shelving you. Because I’m hard core like that, Cait. Hard core.
A perfect example of this is with Cassandra Clare. I shelved City of Bones because I could not do it. Since then, I’ve had several opportunities to read Lady Midnight but all I do when I see it is scrunch my nose. Which I shouldn’t. I should give her a second chance. I guess I’m just #rude
P.S. I wanted to let you know I read every blog post, even if I’m too lazy to write a comment that day. Keep it up. You are so great at what you do.
yOU ARE HARDCORE. COMPLETELY METAL. *nods sagely* I think a reason I’m so big on reading a million books by one author is because I’m a fast reader so if I hate it, it’s not as if I wasted weeks of my life at least.😂
YOU ARE SO KIND. <3 THANK YOU. That means so much to me, actually, omg, I feel like my posts have been a little subpar lately.😂
NO, NEVER. I have not once read a sub-par post by you. It seriously brightens my day when I see Paper Fury in my inbox. Silence the rude voices in your head, because they lie.
YOU KINDLY MORTAL. I SHALL SQUISH CAKE OF APPRECIATION IN YOUR HAIR NOW. AREN’T YOU GLAD I SHOW MY AFFECTION SO WELL? :’)
I give authors second chances. But if after two books they dont attract me, I dont pick up more. As you say the first one would be a bad apple. SO I always choose the second one after reading reviews or asking fans of the author which book is his/her best?
That is a good way to approach it!! *nods sagely* And sometimes I just look at like the premise too, and see if it interests me despite who the author is. Because sometimes I probably think about the author too much when I should just notice the book for its own self!
vampire academy is SOOOO much better than the Glittering Court, trust me.
I WILL TRY IT I PROMISE!! EVENTUALLY!!
I basically don’t re-try authors. If I love an author’s book I will probably read every book of theirs in the universe EVER, if I thought the book was moderately good/just okay I might read them in the future if it comes up, and if I hated their book… They probably don’t get a second chance. Like Victoria Aveyard seems like a perfectly great person but I absolutely HATED Red Queen so I doubt I’ll ever read any more of her books.
Then again, I really disliked Shatter Me and I do plan to read Furthermore… So I guess those books are just different enough?
I definitely try not to think of WHO the author is while reading! Like I like to keep books vs authors separate, if you know what I mean? It’s just whether or not their work clicks with me. I should’ve made that clearer in the post, eeep. It’s not really the author I’m giving another chance, it’s their work!
One of your examples is an author that I love as a person, but I’ve never really enjoyed their books. For some reason, I kept trying and trying and trying and there was ONE BOOK that I was absolutely obsessed with. And I’m glad I kept thing because it hurts my heart to think I could have missed it.
I think that if I like them personally, I’ll keep trying because I was to support them. It’s easier for me to stop trying if I haven’t met them.
Interesting idea, thanks for sharing!!
Yesss, I love it when there’s that ONE book that totally is everything and you can’t imagine life without it! That’s me and The Impostor Queen. I would be a sad puddle of nope if I hadn’t of tried it. And I can imagine it’d be hard/different if one was actually friends with the author too *nods*
I honestly think it depends on the books. As a general rule, I tend to notice title first, plot second, author last (and sometimes I don’t even notice the author until I say “Ok, this sounds cool, who’s it by so I can look it up in the library.” So even if I don’t like one of an author’s books, I might still read another one because I didn’t realize it’s by the same author. Or I might never read another of that author’s books because the other ones just aren’t terribly interesting to me.
Excellent post!
That is a really good way to approach it, actually! I sometimes wonder if we bookworms (well mostly me, probably hhah😂) think too much about the author when maybe the book should speak for itself?! I NEED TO WRITE A POST ON THAT BASICALLY TOO.
It really depends on the book -as you already said, if it was the author’s first novel I’m more inclined to give him/her a second chance. Even if it’s not a debut I’ll try not to immediately banish the author’s books from my to-read list for the rest of my bookish life. I mean, did I loathe it and wanted to burn it in the fires of hell? Well, then I probably won’t try a second book. But did I just think it was a bit boring/juvenile? Why not?
This did work for me with Alison Goodman’s, Suzanne McLeod’s and Patricia Briggs’ books! Although concerning the latter: I admit me disliking the first novel of her Mercy Thompson series was likely caused by the fact that I actually read it in German. Or what the person who translated the book and clearly didn’t know what all the hype with this “grammar-thing” was about called German. Unfortunately, I have waaaay more negative examples. #mybad
Still, I think authors should be given second chances! A friend once told me that since I loved reading that much I should become a writer. I simply asked her if she wanted to kill me. What I want to say is: I highly respect the effort, research, blood, sweat and tears an author puts into his/her work and therefore one should try to be as nice as possible given the circumstances. (You can’t expect me to be nice if the book is sexist/judgemental etc.)
Eeep, it would have hard if a translator didn’t stick to grammar?!? That’s terrible! BUT YES. I think it’s good to always approach books with an open mind, tbh, although I know that’s hard.😂 And I don’t always do it. hehe. But I live in fear of missing out on a glorious book, so I nearly always re-try an author!!
aNd omg YES absolutely! And I also like to say that “reading is subjective”. It’s like the #1 thing I shout these days.😂 I don’t think a book or author is ever “bad”…they’re just not for me. Writing is so hard omg.
It depends really…. like you said, there are so many books out there… so it can be difficult sometimes to pick up a book by an author who I did not like much previously.
That is not to say that I don’t think they cannot write good books. One of my favorite authors, and yes, you’ve guessed right, Haruki Murakami… it’s not like I love each and every one of his books equally… but I dread if I’d read a bit so great book first and then decided never to give him a chance… I’d be missing out so much!
On one instance, I read a book by the other Murakami… Ryu Murakami… and thought it was kinda mehh… didn’t read anything else by him for months… later I was reading an interview of my favorite Murakami (so many Murakami’s…it’s confusing) and happened to mention Ryu M. and one of his books and how much he loved it. So I decided to give that book a go and lo and behold, to this day, Coin Locker Babies by Ryu M. is one of my all time favorite books… I probably liked this book even more than some my favorite Haruki M. Books!
I guess the point of that long a** story is that I totally believe in second chances… its just that, it is not always the easiest thing to do… pick up a book by an author you didn’t love the first time… strangely, the book-world is a world of love-at-first-sights. Crazy, eh?
Oh for sure! I didn’t mean the post to indicate that a book is “not good” because I just didn’t like it. I should’ve actually said that more. :/ Fail to me. Books are subjective and I firmly believe that!!
I love your Murakami story! (It’s very handy when favourite authors suggest books, right?!) And honestly that’s how I feel about some of the books here…like I have books I’ve rated 5-stars which I NEVER would’ve found if I hadn’t of given the author’s work a second chance!
SECOND CHANCES ARE WONDERFUL.
Yes, I ardently believe in giving authors second chances. Mainly because I myself know that there is a 73.8% chance that I will require many a reader to give me a second chance. But whatever, MY ODDS ARE GREAT.
YES I THINK OF THAT TOO!! And like authors often try really different things from book to book, and that’s awesome, because different books will appeal to different readers!
I guess I never thought about it until now, but looking back I have a really consistent pattern of giving authors a second chance if I’m super intrigued by the premise of their next book. My inner optimist is all, “But this time it will be different because there are GENIES!!!” If the second book disappoints though, I’m pretty much done.
YAY WE ARE THE SAME THEN! *hi fives* I think a big part of my problem is I don’t want to accidentally miss out on something.😂 So I just keep trying everything hehe. But yes, after 2 fails, I’m generally less enthused to try for a 3rd…
For me, these days, it’s all about my friends. If I didn’t like am authors work and a friend listens to why, acknowledges my concerns, and then suggests I pick up x by that author instead, I do.
Otherwise any generous notions of second chances tend to die in my acres wide TBR.
That’s a good way of approaching it too!! I have many bookworm friends who I’m definitely trusting their opinions. *nods* I can always be easily convinced to read a book though haha.😂
I’m glad to know that I’m not the only one on this world disliking Matched. Thanks. I read the whole trilogy and … meh. No. I really wanted to like it but …
YOU AND ME BOTH, MY FRIEND. WE SHALL SHARE CAKE TOGETHER NOW.
Haha whenever you want! 😉
I’m fairly unlikely to read a second book by an author if I didn’t like the first, just because there are so many books I want to read it seems like I’m wasting precious reading time on a book I in all likelihood won’t like. It might be different if I was a faster reader though!
Ohh that is true about the speed of reading…because I am a fast reader so it’s not like I’m going to waste weeks and weeks on a potentially boring book SO YEAH. I do think that’s something to take into account! YOU WISE BEAN.
I tend to, for the most part, be one of those people who doesn’t retry an author. If a book is just vaguely lackluster but there are a lot of things I liked, I’ll probably try the author again. But if their was content I disliked or the writing style disappointed me, then, no, probably not…
Fair enough!! There are a lot of books out there to try right?!
I think it HIGHLY depends on *why* I didn’t like their book. If it was writing style, or genre, or characters it will change whether I give it another go. I hate that that is my answer, but honestly there are certain things that are extremely important in stories that really comes down to how well the author can do said things.
Fair enough!!😂 There are a lot of variables, right?!? Like I’m way more prone to retry if I just felt meh about the first book…or if the new book is a different genre. IT COULD BE GLORIOUS, WHO CAN KNOW.
I go by the book not the author. Now there are some authors that I just haven’t liked anything they have written. Sarah Fine comes to mind. BUT I received a copy of her new NA book Reliquary and well I about died on how good it was. I really need to grab book two and three. But I read everything and give each book the chance to win me over. Out of your list. Kiersten White I really hated her series but I loved The Chaos of Stars and Illusions of Fate, I also really liked And I Darken.
Lauren Oliver is one author that I haven’t found anything of hers that I really cared for. But of course I snagged a copy of her upcoming book so of course I’m going to try it. lol. I also have one of her older ones but for the life of me I can’t remember the title. Under the never sky is one of my favs lol. I really didn’t care for her newest one.
Marie Lu didn’t work for me at ALL I felt really bad about that to since I had gotten all my copies signed.
As for the other two authors you have shared I really do think you should try the Vampire Academy series but if you make it to blood promise be warned its SLOW!!!! I really hate that book in that series.
And the last author ya those didn’t work for me at all. ugh. Matched was way to close to Lauren Oliver’s series.
That is a really good way to be, tbh! Sometimes I wonder if we readers (well, me anyway😂) concentrate on the author too much when we should just look at the book and see what it’s about! I actually want to write a post on that someday but #lazy and haven’t gotten to it.😂 It’s kind of awesome, though, when you think you don’t like an author’s work but — kABOOM — it turns out it was just one book that didn’t work for you. Like I am such a rabid fan of And I Darken! I can’t stop thinking about it ahhh!!!
I’m like so hot/cold with Lauren Oliver tbh.😂 I’ve read 4 books of hers and like they each get a different level star rating! IT’S EXTREMELY ODD. So I just keep reading her books because they always surprise me anyway. 😉
I do not give authors second chances. I am a heartless biscuit. If they fail me once, we’re over. I mean I GUESS I could try again, but WHY, when there are other things that I haven’t read yet that I’m almost certain that I WILL like? I just can’t justify it.
That being said, though, I’ve read one book from an author that I LOVED, and then read another that I really, really didn’t, so you’re probably right to be so forgiving.
That’s fair! Life is short and we have only a limited amount of time to spend on books, right?!? I just know if I didn’t give authors second chances I would’ve missed out on THREE incredible books this year that are now my favourite books of ever!! It’s mind blowing honestly.😂
YES YES YES THIS. THIS IS SO TRUE. I usually try to give authors second chances, but it’s SCARY. For example. I had a bad experience with Holes when I was younger, but a few years later I loved it. But Half Bad??? I KNOW YOU LOVE IT. I DID NOT LOVE IT. I BARELY LIKED IT. IT IS EXTREMELY UNCOMFORTABLE. I MUST TRY EITHER HALF WILD OR A DIFFERENT BOOK BECAUSE #NOTGIVINGUP.
And, I mean, The Selection. I loved the first three, and the fourth was hideous. And now anything by Kiera Cass thoroughly scares me.
Aww, that’s okay! I’m so rabid in my love of Half Bad but I know a lot of people don’t really like it. SO I LOVE IT DOUBLY HARD TO MAKE UP FOR THAT. <33 😂
Hahaha okay. YOU DO THAT, CAIT. YOU DO THAT. YOU SHALL MAKE SALLY GREEN (?)’S DAY.
I’m definitely someone who would try an author twice! I think your hard and fast rule of checking out another book from the author if its in a different genre, or if it’s no longer their debut book is something I apply to my own process of whether or not to read something 🙂
Yesss, we are twins in this then!! I think the genre switches are the safest way to know to try again, because so much changes from genre to genre!! And like sometimes I find out it’s not the author’s style that didn’t click with me, it’s just the actual plot of the previous book!
Oh goodness. There are so many variables that go into if I’ll try a second book by said author. For instance, if there was content that I was actually uncomfortable with, then no, that author gets a goodbye wave from me. But, if the book just didn’t grab me? As non-logical as this sounds, there’s probably a chance that if I wasn’t really excited about the book *before* reading it and being disappointed, there’s a greater chance that I’ll read a second one by the same author. BUT, if I *was* really excited and the author let me down? Most likely not.
For real though, do you know what’s worse than a first-time-read-by-an-author-let-down? A second or third book by said author being a let down. Then it’s time to just make mad faces at the book and try not to bash it too hard in public, because even though authors *should* know better, you still adore them…
That makes complete sense!! Like if the author really makes me rage with the content or the handling of a topic, then I will probably not retry…but, like you, if it’s just a “Meh” feeling I’m probably more likely to try again.😂 I just think if I DIDN’T try again, ohhhh gosh, I wouldn’t like have of my favourite books of this year!!
It’s always hard with books being a letdown though, because…like, books are so subjective!!😂 Is it the author’s who’s written a less subpar book or did the book just not ring really true to a particular reader?
I usually will give an author a second chance, especially if I feel like I am “missing” something since everyone seems to love the books so much. For instance, I was not a huge fan of Throne of Glass, so after reading it I didn’t pick up another SJM novel for about a year. Then when I finally got around to Crown of Midnight….I was completely converted. Every other Sarah J Maas novel I’ve read (all of them) have been 5 star reads! I’m so SO glad I gave her another chance.
However, I will admit that sometimes there are authors who write AMAZING debuts that I love, but then I can’t really find that same love for their subsequent novels. It’s almost the inverse of what you’re describing in this post. Has that ever happened to you?
Same with the “missing” feeling.😂 Like sometimes I wonder if it was just a bad time to read the first book, and like if I’d read it at a different time I might’ve liked it better?!? I know I’m SO hard on all dystopians right now, but if I’d read them 2 years ago I would’ve loved them! LIFE IS HARD.
And yes, the inverse has definitely happened to me too!! Like nothing can quite live up to that first book. *sobs* I know The Book Thief wasn’t Markus Zusak’s debut, but it’s the only book of his I love!
It really depends on how I felt about that first book and if the popularity or summary of the new book is enticing enough. I read two books in a series by James Patterson and I’m don with. Sorry, you can’t convince me. I don’t care how popular and well liked he is. Then there was Sarah Dessen who’s first book I read by her was eh…. so disappointing. But then SAINT ANYTHING – PERFECT BOOK. So unless I hated the first book I read by the author then I would give them a second chance.
Same with Marie Lu but I haven’t given her a second chance yet.
I haven’t read ANY books by James Patterson hhahha.😂 I kind of feel I will someday because he’s so famous. Ahh that’s awesome about Sarah Dessen though! I was actually going to try Saint Anything as my first book by her, and so that would be a good life decision yes? 🙂
Stubborn apple. My criteria is similar to yours; must be different style/genre, preferably other people reviewing it and saying “X was a disappointment, but Y blows everything else out of the water”, that sort of thing. Generally, you have a chance at a second chance if your first one was only “meh”, not totally shredding my feels and sticking them in an inferno and crushing my precious little cupcake characters and winning the Guinness Book of World Records prize for WORST MOST EVIL SOUL-DEVOURING BOOK IN ALL OF EVER.
Like so.
Some authors mess up so grievously as to put themselves beyond ever earning my trust again. For example, James Dashner after The 13th Reality series (IN WHICH THE MC DIES OMG! I mean wut!?!?), or Pittacus Lore/James Frey post Lorien Legacies (because killing 98,000,000 characters and murdering members of like 3 separate happy ships + destroying remaining living characters’ lives, happiness, and very souls is not cool and also illegal). They will never get a second chance. THEY HAVE GONE TOO FAR INTO THE FLAMES OF ETERNAL SUFFERING FOR THEIR CRIMES TO EVER RETURN OMG. I literally raged for weeks (or months or lifetimes) after reading those and practically couldn’t sleep at night and contemplated violent murder. Basically.
So to protect my criminal record and save lives, I make the wise choice to abstain from these authors. Aside from them, I am extremely magnanimous and give lots of second tries most of the time.
WAIT. I HADN’T FINISHED THE 13TH REALITY SERIES OMG I DIDN’T KNOW THE MC DIES.😳😭
But that’s good you’re willing to give lots of second-tries too!!🎉
But…but…but I love Marie Lu! I read your reviews for The Young Elites and Legend, and The Young Elites is kind of her backstory, and in the sequel, The Rose Society, she actually is the villain. I read The Young Elites thinking of her as the hero, and it is really good if you’re not expecting Adelina to already be the villain. And I’m confused by your Legend review, because it was three stars, but it was very, very positive.
I usually don’t give authors a second chance, because I typically dislike a book for three reasons: unrealistic characters, ridiculous/overly predictable plot, and writing style. If their style bothers me in one book, that doesn’t change, so I won’t read another one of their books. I feel the same about the other two reasons. But this post made me rethink that. An author can grow, and be more original.
Great post!
That’s great! I’m not dissing anyone’s love for Marie Lu, and I did just say I want to go and finish the Legend trilogy. 😉 And I read Legend ack…omg, 2013 maybe?? And back then I didn’t feel like I could leave negative reviews because I was a scared fish and didn’t want hate. But it’s a 3-star book for me.
I want into The Young Elites expecting villainy because that’s how the book was pitched, imo! It just didn’t deliver for me, but I’m not saying it’s a bad book, just that it wasn’t for me. 🙂
I think what makes me decide if I will give the author another chance is what I disliked about the book. For example, if I hated the characters because they were all bad-boys, that doesn’t mean the author is awful: it just means the book wasn’t for me, because I dislike badboys a lot. But when I realize a lot of plot-holes, flat characters and a very mehhhh writing style, I become very unmotivated to pick another book by the same author. I also think it has to do with genres: sometimes, you find authors that can be pretty terrible with contemporaries, but great fantasy writers!
Oh I don’t think ANY author is ever awful! Because books are so subjective! Even if I don’t like a book, I don’t consider it has anything to do with the author, tbh.😂 Just whether or not their style is for me and whether I should read more. But yesss, I do agree the WHY is a big thing too!
It’s tough… because if you give an author a second chance and you still dislike their books, how do you know you didn’t just pick the two worst ones they’ve written? For me, this whole thing usually goes the other way: I’ll read a book, love it, and then be completely disappointed by my next read from the same author.
I read Unwind because I’d read Resurrection Bay (a short story) and enjoyed it. So I thought I’d enjoy one of the author’s novels. Nope. If I’d tried Unwind first, I probably would’ve been completely turned off the author altogether. So sometimes it’s also a matter of coming across the book you like at the right time!
I’m trying to think of an author to whom I gave a second chance. I felt so-so toward Joy Preble’s Dreaming Anastasia, so I gave her a second chance with The Sweet Dead Life. That was just so-so as well. Then there’s Patrick Ness. I didn’t like More Than This, but everybody’s always raving about his books, so I tried A Monster Calls… and DNFed it. Oh, well. Sometimes we just don’t click with authors.
I once gave a translator a second chance! Years ago, I tried to read Inkheart, and I just couldn’t get into it. I felt like I was reading another language or something. I chalked it up to being a problem with the translation. Then, years later, I read Tiger Moon, which was translated from German by the same translator. That made me a little nervous… but Tiger Moon ended up being one of my favourite books of all time. So you never know! Sometimes giving second chances can turn out great.
Yes that is the trial, tbh. And also sometimes it can just be a bad time for us too? Like I always wonder…was it just a bad time for ME to read a certain book? Like, for Unwind for instance, I LOVED IT. But I read it before I was burned out on Dystopian. Would I feel the same if I read it now?! GAH.🙈🙊 Reading is actually quite complicated omg.
And like with Richelle Mead, according to her avid fanbase, I just picked her two worse books and need to still try VA! So much depends omg.
Ohhh, I’ve never even really thought about translator’s and like how they’d play a part in books too. I’m glad Tiger Moon worked out for you!!
I will mostly NOT give a second chance. (because I am a pitiless monster.)
BUT… sometimes if there’s a lot of hype, a nice cover, and an interesting blurb (or if I’m feeling particularly nice) I will read it.
Also, you should most definitely read Vampire Academy. I read the first three books and I really liked them. I just read Soundless and ugh.
I read Lauren Oliver s Delirium and me didn’t likey, do you think I should still read Vanishing Girls?
Anyway, really interesting topic! Love your posts ☺
Oh and totally irrelevant: I started reading The Raven Boys since you constantly mention it. I’m really liking it so far!
Bahahha you’re saying you don’t give second chances but tell me to. YOU’RE WONDERFUL.😂 AND I TOTALLY WILL TRY VA I PROMISE!! *flails* I don’t think Soundless/Glittering Court was a very good introduction for me? Whoops.
I haven’t read Delirium, so I can’t compare them, actually!! But Vanishing Girls is a thriller and SO SO GOOD.
Awwww, YOU SAY THE NICEST THINGS I’M JUST GOING TO SIT HERE AND FLAIL. <3 THANKYOU! (Also afdjksalfd THE RAVEN BOYS ARE MY LIFE.😍)
Oops. I hadn’t realized I contradicted myself. 😖
Noooo, you’re fine.😂 <3 Don't even worry about it! Because I totally retry anyway, IT IS MY THING, so yay!
I like to think that I am an open-minded person. Like when I ate broccoli for the first time, I was not in love with it (but who really is?). Instead of giving up on the underappreciated vegetable, I tried it again, this time with a glorious serving of cheese. And I have been in love ever since. Sometimes you just need to try things again on different terms. For example, when I read the Starcrossed series by Josephine Angelini I was not impressed. The characters were flat and boring and terribly cliche. Overall, the series get like 2.5 stars from me. Then I saw that she wrote a series about witches and alternate universes and I had to give her a second chance. Trial by Fire ended up with 5 stars and a huge thumbs-up. The same thing happened with Jennifer Lynn Barnes. I cannot believe that she used to write werewolf books earlier in her career! The Naturals series is one of my favorite YA thrillers, and is completely different from her earlier works.
Authors definitely deserve second chances. Their styles and genres change so much that they can never write the same book twice. I also really like the point you made about debut authors and how they grow into better writers. There have been a few debut books that I disliked, but I hope to give the author a second chance as their writing career goes on.
everything is better with cheese tbh. I think if all vegetables were cheesified I WOLD BE A FAN. *nods* And I think you’re a hero amongst mortals for trying broccoli again!!
I love your second chance stories too! EEEP. I have to be a second-chance giver because I just live in fear of missing out on an awesome book otherwise.😂 And like if I hadn’t have retried Sarah Fine, I would’ve missed on of my TOP READS OF THIS YEAR!! *flails*
Wow, I’ve never really thought on this. AM I MERCIFUL TO AUTHORS WHO FAIL WITH FIRST TIMERS??? I’d say I am. Depending on why I didn’t like the first book. But most of the time I do like to give authors second chances; a chance to redeem themselves.
Wait… okay, sometimes I just feel *meh* about a book, stop, and start reading something else and totally forget about the sucky book I just abandoned. x) AH! I don’t even know who I am anymore.
YAY YOU ARE A KIND BEAN. 😂 I live in terror of missing out on an awesome book so I basically just want to read everything haha. And sometimes it’s just a particular story line that doesn’t work for us, right?!? So if we try something new by that author = it might be the best book we’ve ever eaten. 🙂
(Just so you know, I’m going to give you a number of Goodreads links. Because I’m talking about lots of books, and I’m not sure if you’ve read them or not, so just in case what I say makes you think “OOH!”, I’m giving you handy links. 🙂 )
This is such a fantastic idea for a post, Cait! I loved it! The author that sticks out the most for me is Holly Bourne. I really wasn’t a fan of Soulmates, her debut novel (soulmates actually exist, but it is absolutely catastrophic for the world if they get together – they bring on apocolyptic-like chaos), but her third (I skipped her second stand alone because of not liking the first), Am I Normal Yet? sounded so good. I hadn’t long read Only Ever Yours, and I was all for YA focusing on feminism, and this also had a mental health angle, which was also a major draw for me, AND I LOVED IT! (I was a little disappointed by the second book in the trilogy, How Hard Can Love Be?, I just don’t think I’m as big a fan of the main character of that book, Amber (the trilogy is focused on three friends who set up their own little feminist club, and each book is a different girl’s story), but the third book, What’s a Girl Gotta Do? WAS COMPLETELY EPIC IN THE FEMINISM DEPARTMENT AND WOW! I think you might like the third! It’s SO awesome! But I don’t know if you’d fancy the others?) So this is a situation where it definitely worked to try an author for the second time. And I now have Bourne’s second novel to give a go 🙂
However, I gave Sarah Rees Brennan a second chance, and it didn’t work for me. I didn’t like The Demon’s Lexicon, and then I tried Unspoken, and so much nope. I don’t like her writing style. They both had the same overly sarcastic feel, and I just find her characters really grating. So nope, not giving her another go.
And yet… Maggie Stiefvater is an author I have read only once, and then gave up. I found Shiver to be quite the disappointment after really looking forward to it. I didn’t really warm to Grace or Sam, and I didn’t believe their relationship, either. I remember being bored. >.> Don’t hate me. That book was SO hyped, and was such a let down, I’ve been really wary of trying anything else by her, because her other books are also really hyped, and I really don’t want to be let down again. But you keep raving about The Raven Boys series, and I have been tempted… BUT WHAT IF I DON’T LIKE IT, CAIT? Like you said, it can feel like such a waste of time, and there are other books! But I generally trust your judgement. We don’t always agree on books, but most of the time we agree, or, if I read a book on your recommendation, I love it. So maybe I’ll give Stiefvater another chance… we’ll see.
An author I simply will never consider trying again is M. Anjelais, who wrote Breaking Butterflies. I know neither of us got on with that book. It made me so angry, I simply can’t. Also, Tommy Wallach. We’ve discussed him before. I actually liked his first book, but then when the Paris attacks happened in November last year, he said really awful things about religion and those who have faith, and he was just so insulting, and I just can’t support someone like that.
Loooove this post, Cait! Especially seeing which authors you re-tried and what the results were!
THANK YOU FOR THIS LONG AND WONDERFUL COMMENT. <3
and actually all your flailing over Holly Bourne has totally got me keen to try something by her! It's on the to-do list I promise. 😀 (And I won't start with Soulmates. hehe.) Do you have to read the books in order? Or is it just like they're in the same universe and not necessarily follow-ons?
WELL I'M A BAD PERSON TO TALK TO ABOUT STIEFVATER BECAUSE I CAN'T HEAR ANYTHING BAD AGAINST HER.😂😂😂 I just love all her books so much and Sam was such a precious character for me omg. <3 But I did have the gloriousness of not having had it hyped up before hand. 🙂 I read it pre-blogging (well, I mean, I WAS blogging, but not really networking with the blogging community SO; I knew nothing) But anyway! I mean, I WANT to recommend you try The Raven Boys, but I also don't in case you don't like them.🙈🙊
And ugh yes, I don't really want to try Tommy Wallach again. I didn't like THanks For the Trouble because I thought it actually had a really awful message PLUS I hate what he said about religion PLUS I read somewhere else where he said Thanks For the Trouble doesn't have a manic pixie dream girl and his readers are "wrong" for saying it does. Like, I think you can't tell your readers what to think. And secondly if there was a manic pixie dream girl checklist...his character ticked every box. *rolls eyes* So YEAH. I'm less likely to try an author again if they tick me off! (I once saw a previously-favourite author bashing a blogger too, and I haven't read from them ever again and probably won't.😕 But bad author behaviour is probably a HUGE topic for another time.😂)
I haven’t read an author yet that has turned me off reading any of their work completely with just one book so I guess that’s a good sign. Usually if I haven’t liked a book I like to go seek out another book from the author to see if it’s any better because I hate making judgements on an author purely based on one book. I also tend to get intensely curious about books even if I wasn’t a fan of the authors writing originally, I mean what if it book is phenomenal and I haven’t read it just because of another book that I didn’t particularly like. I can’t miss out on things.
I like to save my judgments for more than one book too!! I feel like it’s fairer that way?!? Although, tbh, I don’t ALWAYs do that…especially if I rate a book one star.😂 Life is short! There are so many books! But yes I have a huge fear on missing out too…CAN I JUST READ ALL THE BOOKS OF EVER? YES PLEASE AND THANKYOU.
For me it just depends. I may still try a different book by an author. I did that with Lauren Oliver and I just decided her books are NOT for me lol. However, I tried a V.E. Schwab book, didn’t like it, and I have zero interest in trying any more of her books. So I’m weird?? I could go either way LOL. Fantastic discussion topic though! I’m not even sure what factors into why I go one way or another. 😛
I guess it just really depends on the book right?!? Because everything is soooo subjective when it comes to reading.😂 Which is actually GREAT because there are so many different books to appeal to so many different people.😂
Yes! That’s exactly it. 😀😀
I definitely don’t give up on an author after one book – unless the writing style is just SO wrong for me and I can tell that the next book is written in that same style. Even then, I’m not very organized, so I probably wouldn’t have any sort of official ban on an author – I’m too forgetful for that!
I’m forgetful for like EVERY. SINGLE. THING…except remember which authors I do and do not like.😂 And actually I have a ridiculous talent for remember book cover colours. Seriously, can’t remember like, my own niece’s birthday but I KNOW WHAT COLOUR A BOOK IS SO GO ME. 😂
I definitely am a second chance person – I really didn’t like the first Anne Rice book I read, but the next one was amazing and one of my favorite books of all time.
John Green is one author I didn’t like the first time around and want to try again – trouble is, none of his books really appeal to me. Abundance of Katherine and TFIOS don’t interest me in the least, and the common complaint against Looking for Alaska seems to be the same thing I hates about Paper Towns (the book could have ended halfway through), so I’m rather suspicious of that one.
Okay, Of Metal and Wishes looks amazing. I may just have to try it out!
Ellie | On the Other Side of Reality
I felt like looking for Alaska and Paper Towns were like exactly the shame characters.😂 haha. Ahem. But I STILL LOVED THEM SO IGNORE ME OVER HERE. HEHE.
I do think it’s a good idea to give authors another chance. I can’t think of specific examples in my own reading, but it’s nice to see how it DID and DID NOT work for you! You never know.
Yayy, I’m glad you liked my post! And yes, it’s kind of exciting to give these second-chances because you never do know if a book is going to turn into a new favourite. 😀
I have yet to give a second chance for Stephenie Meyer with The Host, but truly intended to give it a try. I watched the film, though. And it had an interesting premise despite it being executed quite badly. But then again the book is soo thick like a brick… So, yeah. And I’m not sure if I’m gonna read Veronica Roth’s next book (forgot the title and what it’s about) but eventually I think I’ll give it a try. I like the Divergent series but I have to admit it has a lot of issues as it progresses.
I haven’t read Panic by Lauren Oliver, but before reading her Vanishing Girls I read all three in the Delirium series. Have you read those?
I’m kind of the same with the Host.😂 I mean, I WILL READ IT, but the size is off-putting. I didn’t hate Twilight, I just thought it was “meh”. So. I need to work on trying the Host eventually haha. Ahem. And YES I was dubious about Veronica Roth’s next book, because I did love Allegiant but I actually feel like Roth’s style is a bit bland…but I’m like rubbish when it comes to hyped books so I WILL DEFINITELY TRY IT I GUESS.😂
And I haven’t read Delirium yet! I want to, but also I’m so over dystopian so I don’t know! I really like Lauren Oliver’s thrillers though. 😀
I definitely give authors second chances. I mean, I’m not a fan of ToG BUTTTTTT I love ACOTAR and ACOMAF. So there’s that. But some I just keep trying and they keep disappointing me. Eg David Levithan (awkward since he’s going to be at the Rainbow Rowell event).
I think everyone deserves a second chance 😉
JUST DON’T MAKE EYE CONTACT WITH DAVID LEVIATHAN. THAT WON’T BE OBVIOUS AT ALL AND YOU’LL BE FINE! #GoodadviceFromCait (Also omg you are meeting Rainbow Rowell?! *flails*)
This is such an interesting question Cait! I think it depends on what I didn’t like about the book. If it’s the plot or characters, I’ll definitely consider giving the author a second try since every book has a new plot and a new set of characters. (Of course, this is assuming that the Goodreads reviews from people I trust [aka you] are positive haha). If it’s their writing style, then I’ll probably think harder about giving them a second try since an author’s writing styles tends to stay the same. Thanks for sharing and, as always, fabulous discussion! <3
Awww, YOU SAY THE SWEETEST THINGS THOUGH.😂 Honestly sometimes I see you rate a book low but I still want to read it so bad, so I do, AND LO AND BEHOLD I RATE IT LOW TOO.😂 I should just learn tbh hahha. Ahem. But yes, I agree that the “why” of what didn’t work in the book/author is a big thing!! It varies so much!
Yes? No? Maybe so? I’m so torn and confused when it comes to this one, Cait. I guess it depends on WHY the book sucked. Like I doubt I’ll ever read anything by Jessie Burton again after the atrocity that The Miniaturist turned out to be. But now that I think about it, I don’t really ever judge books by their authors, only by their synopsises. There are VERY few books I even read at all just based on who wrote it… Like Maggie Stiefvater, for example.
Hehe, I understand!! The “whys” are actually pretty important! I actually find myself judging books by their authors A LOT but I wish I just paid more attention to important things like blurbs. And covers. (Covers are important. Covers ARE LIFE.)
And yes, omg, I’m just like guaranteed to give all the Stiefvater books 5-stars.😂
I loooove a good second chance! I am such a fan. I get all excited, like it’s some great shot at redemption for us all 😂 I mean, maybe I take it too far, who can really say? Now, I am trying to think of some authors’ books I did not enjoy during my first foray, but then did later… Well, as it turns out, I guess I like this more in theory than in practice, because I legit cannot find ANY. I have some that I HAVE tried a second time, only to dislike the second book also, but I don’t think that’s what you’re going for 😉 Does it count if I tried the sequel and actually liked that? Cause I have had that happen! I gave a book 2.5 stars and didn’t love it, but the sequel was quite good!
OMG. You know what I just realized? I think I unconsciously shy away! Your post has enlightened me to how UNenlightened I have been! I mean, I have BOUGHT books as a second chance, added them to my TBR, my wishlist, you name it. But I haven’t really given as many as I thought I had! I will have to read some soon, and then let you know how I feel about it because what if I don’t feel the way I think I do!?!? Leave it to you to give me an existential crisis, Cait 😂
Oh I think it’s amazing if you continue with series even if you didn’t like the first book! For THAT I am terrible.😂 Although, like Legend, there are a few I do plan to attempt…but seriously, I can’t even finish series of books I like. I AM THE WORST AT SERIES. Ahem.
Anyway, I’m very glad I have got you to have this existential moment and realise your fear. You’re welcome. I should become like a counsellor or something right??? GO ME AND MY GENIUS. Ahem.
This hasn’t happened that much to me yet but just recently I received Throne of Glass for my birthday and found myself most hating it and I felt kind of terrible about that. It was okay but it was filled with stuff I felt it didn’t need. I began not feeling to sure though i had tried reading before but it was from the library and time and school and I don’t know I didn’t finish it. But then someone gave me Crown of Midnight and I was so excited for it. And I LOVED IT. I liked it so much better than Throne of Glass and can’t wait to read the next book. So I guess the lesson for me is to try try again. Anyway that felt really long. Great post Cait with some great points. 😀
I totally agree about Crown of Midnight! I LOVED THAT BOOK. Sadly I was opposite with the series and rated the first 2 five-stars and then…eep, I’m kind of off them now. But I hope you enjoy the rest of the series if you try it! 🙂
Yes you need to at least read Vampire Academy series before giving up on Richelle Mead! Huhu. I’ve loved the series so much but heard so much mixed reviews about Soundless & The Glittering Court, I’m so scared to pick up both to read. Huhu.
http://laxsourire.blogspot.my
I will!! I promise! It’s on the to-do list (which is like 394839 books long😂) but I feel like I really should because that’s where she got so famous!
I am so with you on the Taken/Vengeance Road path. I liked Taken okay but it didn’t stand out that much to me. Vengeance Road however… On my favourites shelf for all time!!!
AHHH WE ARE SO TWINS IN THIS!! I read it as a library book (because I was too nervous to buy it on account of hating Taken) but afjdakslfd I WANT TO BUY IT NOW BECAUSE I LOVE IT SO.
OKAY so your views on Taken and #goodriddance boys? That was legit the way I felt about Amy disappearing at the beginning of Gone Girl and the entire reason why I have yet to read it despite owning 2 copies. Eeep! I just…she was such an asshat and her missing was def a #goodriddance moment. Like no I’m not wondering who took Amy, I’m kinda lowkey glad she’s gone. Gone baby gone.
I am glad that you tried Vengence Road though, because I’ve heard it’s basically shoot outs and western and badassery (and those are kinda all the same thing, right?) and I’m so excited to read it – hopefully soon.
Is the French Uncle’s fish a reference to The Little Mermaid?? Because if so, I THINK I LOVE YOU (but what am I so afraid of? no, not funny? ‘kay).
My feelings towards giving author’s second chances is complicated. For the most part, it depends on why I disliked the book. If it’s a storyline thing, I’ll most likely try another hopefully better plotted story because sometimes I just gotta see what you’re working with. But if it’s a writing style thing, I have to seriously consider why I disliked the writing and if it’s the kind of thing to be matured out of, if that makes sense. Still, I’ll like check out the sample of the next book or something. The only time I 99% probably won’t give another chance is if the first novel offended me. Because I’m not easily offended and if your book manages to anyways… just NO.
Bahahhahah.😂 I kind of agree about Gone girl! I saw the movie first and I was actually not prepared for what it was about! I thought it was a court case?! #oops It was not a court case and I’m traumatised.
Vengeance Road is SO VERY WORTH IT IT’S JUST GLORIOUS. Honestly goes down as one of my top reads of this year! *shrieks*
And yes, the “whys” of the dislike are very important. Like I’m less likely to want to give second-chances if I hated the message or something. But if it was just a “meh” to the storyline, then why not have another go?!😂 So I’m with you there too!
I’m happy to give second chances – but not third.
For example: Kendare Blake. Nothing against her obviously, but I’ve just had to accept that her writing doesn’t click with me.
I tried Antigoddess first and it was a DNF for me. I just couldn’t get into it (despite LOVING the premise). Then I tried Three Dark Crowns and it was exactly the same. I just can’t connect with her writing style. So I have no plans to try a third time!
oh yes! Nothing against any authors in general in my post (or, like, ever) because it’s subjective. And just because I don’t like a book doesn’t say the book is the most awful thing to ever grace the universe. It’s just about tastes. *nods* I actually couldn’t get through the first chapter of Anna Dressed in Blood because I felt it was massively ripping off Supernatural.😳 But I AM keen for Three Dark Crowns…although I’ve heard it’s slow so eeeek. I’m nervous.🙈🙊
I’m a big believer in giving authors second chances. I normally judge a book by it’s cover/description, not on whether or not I liked the author’s previous novel(s). For instance, I found Brenna Yovanoff’s THE REPLACEMENT kinda okay, but I just read PLACES NO ONE KNOWS and liked that one so much better! Also, sad that you don’t like Andrew Smith’s books 🙁 I absolutely loved GRASSHOPPER JUNGLE, so idk maybe that’s one of his better books?? Lol, it doesn’t matter ’cause (as you said) THERE ARE PLENTY OF AMAZING BOOKS OUT THERE! Great post 😀
Oh that’s actually a really good idea!! I’m all for cover judging tbh.😂 Ohhh so maybe I should try Grasshopper Jungle then?! Like I was debating it but then figured 2 strikes was out. BUT I’M WILING TO GIVE IT ANOTHER GO IF YOU SAY IT’S GOOD!! *flails*
I liked Panic but.. SO MANY THE STUPID PILLS. (Oh, in case you haven’t heard me say this before – I reckon fictional characters have a semi-permanent supply line to a nebulous little substance that I like to call stupid pills. It’s when they do something that any normal person would see is stupid from a mile away. BUT THEY STILL DO IT. This also works for TV shows; one TV show got so bad in this respect that one of the characters ACTUALLY ASKED THE OTHERS IF THEY’D BEEN TAKING STUPID PILLS. See? My theory is valid.)
(Also, I blame you for the way I keep slipping into all-caps. I seriously rarely did that before I started reading your blog. YOU HAVE RUINED ME.)
I’m going to pretend that you didn’t say mean things about Under the Never Sky. Because then we can still be friends 😉 (assuming we are friends, or at least acquaintances, and you’re not looking for a way to get rid of me – which is entirely possible.)
Ohhhh “stupid pills” makes me laugh.😂 They were definitely swallowing them by the TRUCKLOAD FULL IN PANIC. Like what was the point?? Maybe I’ll win money…maybe a tiger will rip off my face…. It just makes me mad grr. Ahem. Your theory is awesome.
Also you’re most welcome for my ALL CAP INFLUENCE. I’D BE SORRY FOR RUINING YOU BUT I’M NOT MWAHHAHAH. Ahem.
Oh I’m glad we can still be friends.😂 Because, like, I’ll give you cake and that will make up for my Under the Never Sky failings, right?????
CAKE MAKES UP FOR ALL FAILINGS!!!!!!!! XD
I just heart the crap out of this post. THANK YOU! I agree with it as an author AND as a reader. I mean, what if you asked someone to judge your signature today based on how you signed it as a third grader? I’m serious…the difference in how writers (and artists in general) grow and develop is that drastic. I am CONSTANTLY taking writing classes, reading-reading-reading, doing practice drills, reading, revising my sh** , reading (did I mention I read a lot?) all in the name of trying to GET BETTER. Even so, as a reader, I prefer angsty contemporary over lots of paranormal, so even my favorite contemporary writers lose me with their PNR stuff. That doesn’t mean I do not one-click the hell out of them when my favorite contemporary series get new additions.
Thanks again for the wonderful post! I am so totally sharing.
Oh yes! It’s ridiculous to assume writers are always going to stay at the same level. And reading is like THE BEST way to improve your writing, I think. (I mean, apart from writing a ton hahahha…but ahem.) And omg I’m just really glad you liked the post and we’re in agreement here!! 🙂
I will try an author again, but I usually won’t buy a second book. I’ll library it or get an ARC or borrow it. Then if I like it, well, I can trying buying the next book! Second chances, but not wasting money.
That might be because me and my wife are broooooke.
YUP! AGREED. I debated buying both Riders and Vengeance Road for AGES because I didn’t like the author’s first books…but then I loved them and I’m so mad at myself for not buying them.😂
Ooh I don’t actually know what my answer to this question is. Hmmm. I think in theory, I am all in favour of giving authors a second chance. After all, every book is different. But now that I really think about it… I can’t recall any authors where I have given them a second chance?! I mean, I might have said in my mind that I will try another book of theirs but in real life, I just get carried away with new things and it seems like an anti-climax to go back to an author whose writing I may not like?!?! I don’t know. You do ask very tricky questions Cait. 😉
But omg the similarities between hair and writing? “Both are unruly and shed” – that made me actually laugh out loud! But it’s true!
SEE, I GOTTA ASK THE TRICKY STUFF. IT IS IN MY NATURE.😂 And yes every book is different, which is glorious, and just because book doesn’t work for us, doesn’t necessarily mean that aaall the author’s works will fail for us! Books are so subjective omg.
I’M GLAD I MADE YOU LAUGH. THAT IS MY ULTIMATE GOAL HERE.
So everyone and their mother was ranting about how amazing Gone Girl was, but one of my friends told me to read Sharp Objects first. So I did and while I liked the idea I hated the main character (mainly because I worked in journalism and she had bad ethics) but I decided to try Gone Girl and it was so good I finished it in two days. Now I can’t wait to read Dark Places.
Oh that’s awesome!! 😀 I admit I’m like 100% traumatised by the Gone Girl movie.😂 I won movie tickets and went to see it and omgggg it was not good for me. I am a delicate soul. I actually thought it was about a court case. hahah. Ahem. But I actually do want to try the book eventually!! I’m glad it worked so well for you!
I can see why you were so traumatized if you weren’t expecting it! I hope you enjoy it when you finally get to it 🙂
For me it depends WHY I didn’t like the book. If the author is offensive in some way and doesn’t acknowledge it in further novels or if their writing is so off putting that I stop reading, I probably won’t pick up the next one they write. But sometimes I wait for a second novel to read an author then go back to their debut if need be. This is a great post!
That seems fair! I do have authors that I really didn’t like the messages they brought across and that’s a big reason I’m turned-off their books!
Ooh this is a good thing to think about. I’m sitting with you here on the second chances business, for sure. I mean, for me, Lauren Oliver is someone I’ve tried twice with the Delirium series and Before I Fall – both were magnificently good reads but the endings left me so unsatisfied I rampaged for days. I’m really not sure if I can’t bring myself to give her another go.
I fear I’m going to agree with you for Ally Condie (is that how her name is spelt? I’m too lazy to scroll back up and check) too. Atlantia was..umm….a lil’ bit disappointing? But I did pick up the entire Matched series second hand so at some point I’m going to brave her again.
Gah. The struggle is real.
Oh good. It is nice when people sit with me. I mean, yo could STAND with me, but also sitting is less tiring and more comfortable. *shares cake with you while we sit on our standards*
Ooh, I still need to read Before I Fall!!! I’m pretty sure Vanishing Girls has one of THOSE kind of endings too, just so you know.😂 But I love ambiguous endings. IT MAKES ME EVIL SOUL VERY HAPPY FOR SOME REASON. But yeeeah, I don’t even know what was up with Atlantia. I actually thought it was going to be about mermaids so #fail.
This is such a great post, Cait, but I’m not surprised, you always write GREAT posts! <3 I have to admit, I haven't given this a thought until you just mentionned it, but I think I'm more likely to give authors second chances, because OF EVERYTHING you said here. What if the first book isn't their best, what if I am missing out on my next favorite book because I was so stubborn I didn't give it a try?! No no, NO I don't WANT to let that happen, EVER. BUT, I think I would probably wait and read a couple books in between, you know. Otherwise, after HATING a book I would probably start another by the same author, expecting bad things. And I wouldn't want that to happen.
Great post!! <3
AWWWW. THAT IS THE KINDEST THING OF YOU TO SAY I SHALL JUST SHRIEK NOW. *beams happily* ahem. Anyway. I’m glad we’re in agreement here anyway.😂 The potential of missing out on stuff IS THE WORSE. Like, worst nightmare stuff, gawsh. I need to read all the books. (And live forever too, probably.)
50/50. for example sometimes a book is meh because the previous book was oh my gooosh ( anybody read that guys who wrote the book thief’s latest book) other books are almost unforgivable until maybe they switch genres. but some authors redeem themselves ( dare I say it Maggie stefvater with the Raven cycle nailed it for me after a slightly meh experience with that wolf book) others it’s like what? Rochelle Mead
Hahha, well I’m not a good person to talk to about Maggie Stiefvater BECAUSE I LOVE ALL HER BOOKS RABIDLY AND EQUALLY.😂 But yes, I’m sturggling with Richelle Mead! Hopefully when I try Vampire Academy I’ll have better luck! 🙂
Absolutely give an author a second chance! Sometimes, an author’s first book may be a bit shaky, but with time and experience, everyone improves. You may have a favorite author whose work you have gobbled up, but then you pick up their next book only to find yourself disappointed. Well, these things happen. The smart reader realizes it was a one-off for the author and simply anticipates the next novel from that author. None of us is always perfect. Authors are amazing people and I love them dearly for working so hard to write a story that provides ME with so much pleasure. Three cheers for our authors. Thank you.
So true!! And sometimes it’s just the topic that I’m not a fan of or something, and then the second book’s topic does work better for me! And agh yes, falling out of love with an author is awful. I’m definitely written a post on that too (it’s like opposite to this, right?!) And YES AUTHORS ARE MY SUPERHEROES. Just because I don’t like their book doesn’t mean they’re not good writers! It’s so subjective anyway. :’)
YES YES YES YES YES. I guess I do believe in trying authors again, but sensibly, y’know? Like if I disliked an author I’d be more likely to try them again if their new book wasn’t a sequel, especially if I didn’t like the plot/characters/setting etc. And sometimes this has good results! Sometimes it doesn’t but hey at least I tried. I liked the Matched series when I read it, but I was also about 13 (haven’t tried Atlantia). And I didn’t love Under the Never Sky (especially the other cover with the gross shirtless guy) . I wasn’t a great fan of The Young Elites, and also I didn’t even realise it was supposed to be a villain novel until Shanti told me (#oops) but Legend is pretty good. I’m on the 3rd book only I left it somewhere and it’s a library book and WILL I EVER FIND IT OH NO OH NO (that was the Shar panic attack) *tells self to go find Champion*
Oh yes totally! I don’t generally try sequels if I didn’t like the first book (although I do sometimes because I’m an idiot ahhah😂) ahem. But if it’s a new series / new genre — then I’m 100% more likely to give it a go! BUT SAME ABOUT THE YOUNG ELITES VILLAINY, I MEAN WHERE WAS IT.😂 And now that I’ve read a lot of adult fantasy….my levels of “oh that’s what you call villainy?” *raised eyebrow* have gone up drastically and it’s pretty bad.😂😂 AHem.
GO FIND CHAMPION, SHAR. I BELIEVE IN YOU. *sends you motivating cookies*
I couldn’t imagine NEVER giving authors a second chance… Maybe the book is their first and they’ve improved on there writing style, for one! But I usually choose to read it based on the synopsis. If it happens that an author keeps coming out with books I love, I’ll notice and jump on new ones by them.
But really… Some story lines appeal more than others, some writing styles, too… Like, how can you choose not to read anything else by the author after disliking a book?? I feel like it’s not a commonality in the bookish community… Like, I really liked Vampire Academy, but also didn’t like Soundless and The Glittering Court doesn’t really appeal to me. But I will still read Mead’s books if I see one that sounds good.
I think deciding never to touch a book by an author after one go is pretty limiting too!!😂 If I did that….omgggg I WOULD’VE MISSED OUT ON SO SO MANY BOOKS I LOVE!! Which is why I’ll definitely try Vampire Academy at some point! Honestly the biggest reason I’m procrastinating it is because I know there’s so many books so if I get addicted my TBR will explode again. hahhah. Ahem.
Yes, definitely keep trying with Marie Lu! Perhaps read The Rose Society? The series gets progressively darker as it goes on, and it’s awesome. I just finished The Midnight Star and it was SO PERFECT and dark and just.. read it! XD
I am all for giving authors second chances. For example, I *might* consider Veronica Roth’s next book Carve The Mark, even after the disaster that was Allegiant. But then again, I really loved Divergent and Insurgent, so I’m hoping she could replicate some of those feels without disappointing me in the end. Great post, Cait! ^_^
Brittany @ Brittany’s Book Rambles
Oooh, don’t tempt me, Brittany.😂 I need to whittle down my TBR not add to it hahahha. JUST KIDDING. Okay, I am actually very tempted. Because everyone seems to love The Young Elites and I’m like “WHY DO I HAVE TO BE THE BLACK SHEEP I WANT VILLANIY.” So. Maybe I’ll audiobook them so it’s a different medium and it’ll be more like a fresh start!
I actually really liked Allegiant, but I’m not that enthused for Carve the Mark.😂 But knowing me, as a sucker to all hype, I will no doubt read it. haha. And I was watching an interview-y thing with Veronica Roth on epic reads recently, and she is such a nice person! I kind of just want to support all the nice authors BECAUSE NICENESS.
I would always give an author a second chance. I’ve even been knowing to give a third or fourth chance. In the case of Tammy/Tamar Cohen, I’ve read four of her books now? And have I liked one? Have I heck. But I see the praise heaped upon her books and I’m like, “Hmmm, I must be missing something”, so I try her new book and it just falls flat for me. Some authors just clearly don’t work for me. Ditto Mhari McFarlane, I just can’t click with her books. But I’m trying to get better at it, because I don’t want to waste time buying and reading books I’m not going to like, that’s just how the world works, I can’t like everything, etc.
I also think authors can just have a stinker of a book – I love Paige Toon, I would class her as one of my favourite authors, but there’s two of hers that I just didn’t get on with at all. It’s not even that the book is a stinker, in fact, really, it might just be me. Oftentimes I’ll read a book and wonder what I’m missing that everyone else saw as the best book ever. But here’s the thing: I’m always honest about what I read. If I hate a book, I hate a book. I don’t mince my words (although those words will likely only ever appear on GoodReads, where I don’t mind venting). I read Jane Green’s newest one Falling and it was going SO WELL. Until it wasn’t and I was absolutely fuming with the ending, but would it put me off another of Jane’s books? Not likely.
I don’t know if you’ve read Kiersten White’s Paranormalcy trilogy but they are huge fun! Especially if a girl with a taser, named Tasey is your thing 😉
Oh yes I’m the same with always being super honest about my opinions! I mean, I hate to say “the author write a bad book here but the rest are good” because…like, it’s probably super subjective. And some books just don’t work as much for a certain person, right?! ALTHOUGH I totally have had that happen to me. Like I love so so many books by one author but there’ll be this one that I’m like “wut even happened here”. 😂😂 hahaah. Ahem. At least we’re not alone. *comes to hang out with you*
I haven’t tried Kiersten White’s Paranormalcy series yet! I will now that I loved And I Darken so much.😂
I am 1000% in favor of giving an author a second chance. I couldn’t think of an example where this worked, but you provided one for me. I read the entire Taken series by Erin Bowman and I was not impressed. It was just . . . meh. But Vengeance Road, on the other hand, was AMAZING! Now if I read a second book by the author and hate it, then I give up completely.
AHHH I’m glad we’re in agreement on Erin Bowman! *hi fives* 😂 I just cannot get over how much I loved Vengeance Road! I like hummed and haaed trying to figure out if I would read it, and eventually I libraried it instead of buying, BUT GOSH DARN IT I WISH I’D BOUGHT IT I LOVE THAT BOOK!!
I think it depends on what the book is, and how much I really didn’t like the previous one. If it’s something of a different genre or setting, then yes I think I’d try again. But if it’s another dystopian YA or whatever by the same author, then probably not.
That seems logical and fair!😂
I do typically give authors a second chance, Cait. This is because I understand that it could be something as simple as my mood or me having a book hangover that affects how I feel about a book. But it also depends on how much I disliked that book. Have you ever had it go the other way? Where you thought a book was decent, not necessarily brilliant but good, only to read another from the author and be underwhelmed? Great post, as always! 😀
YAY. WE ARE THE SAME. *flings confetti* And yes, sometimes I wonder if, like, I was in a bad mood when I read that book and it really affected my view??! Like if I had read it a different week would I have liked it better?!? GAH. BOOK REVIEWING IS SO HARD SOMETIMES. And Yes! I actually want to write a post about falling-out-of-love-with-authors too! I have most definitely had that happen, unfortunately. :/
USE YOUR GOD GIVEN BRAINS YOU DELINQUENT AVOCADOS.
I pretty much yelled the same thing, minus the avocados. Apart from Paper Butterflies, it was one of the most cringe worthy books I’ve read. I made it to around 80% and couldn’t take anymore. With authors, most of the time I forget about the horrible books, so it’s like discovering a new author until I start reading and remember the authors OTHER book. I’m always willing to give actual books another try. Like Red Rising. I’ve tried to read that three times and still haven’t made it to even halfway through. But I tried and it’s such a shame with Pierce Brown being so attractive, but narrates his characters to sound like elderly professors suck in a 16 year old boys body.
A real shame.
YOU GOTTA START YELLING THAT PEOPLE ARE DELINQUENT AVOCADOS. It’s very releasing. Very worth it, I promise. *nods*
And oh YES, forgetting their previous books is great, actually. Sometimes it’s nice to have a swiss-cheese memory because honestly I can read a gazillion books by one author and not even remember I hated them, like, 2 seconds ago. #winning #orlosingprobably
Omg “it’s a shame with Pierce Brown being so attractive”…😂😂 I CAN’T STOP LAUGHING. Well I love the Red Rising series, but yes. Darn you, pretty authors, who don’t write world-wide-appealing books!😂😂 *laughs head off*
I can completely relate to this. For some authors, it can depend entirely on the book. As in, book X had a good premise but failed to live up to it, but book Y is better written (perhaps they’ve become better writers in the interim? It can take a long time for a book to be published). But there are a few authors I won’t read because the first book I read of theirs was so bad, it’s just tainted all their other books, There were so many problematic aspects of Bitten, I can now no longer read anything written by Kelley Armstrong, despite so many book-bloggers telling me how she’s such “an awesome fantasy writer” (I’m sorry but no).
I understand! And plus it’s like life is very very short and why not try ALL THE AUTHORS instead of re-trying ones that didn’t work for us, yes? It’s logical. *nods*
Sometimes it can be the opposite. I like Malorie Blackman’s books that are more suited to children but her young adult books are not something I would ever want to try again :/
Yes! I do want to write a post on the opposite….like when you fall out of love with an author!
It’s funny, because I wasn’t a massive fan of The Young Elites when I read it, but it’s kind of grown on me in my memory. I’m planning to reread it before I read the rest of the trilogy (but I have to wait until the third book comes out, boo). But Legend isn’t Marie Lu’s strongest book either. I definitely preferred Prodigy and Champion over Legend, which is interesting, because too often I end up feeling vaguely disappointed with the last two books in a trilogy.
I want to read Riders, but I’m also on the fence about it. The cover is great and the premise is interesting, but I thought the premise for the Under the Never Sky trilogy was really interesting, and, well, the books just got worse and worse. *shudders* I probably shouldn’t have finished reading the trilogy, but I wanted to see if it would get better. And maybe it’s just the story and I should give Veronica Rossi a second chance with a separate story, but also, ew.
It really depends on why I hated a certain book, tbh. If a book was really offensive and gross, I’m quicker to assume it’s the author’s personality and taste in writing that I’m not a huge fan of, so I’m less likely to pick up another one of their books. But if I just felt the story was a little weak, I’m quicker to forgive and try again.
Oh I like it when I feel more kindly toward books as I go on.😂 Like And I Darken?!? I rated it only 3-stars initially, but now I’d call it one of the best books I’ve read this year. hehe. LIFE IS STRANGE LIKE THAT. I definitely want to finish up the Legend trilogy at some point though *nods*
Oh I totally get you about Riders! THAT IS HOW I FELT, LITERALLY 100% WHAT I WAS WORRIED ABOUT. But it was glorious. Not like a book that’s going to change my life.😂 But it was fun and sassy and stabby and I have a weakness for any character that is Death personified. I can’t help it. :’)
Oh, I’ll definitely give an author another go. I mean, I wouldn’t want someone judging me on one bad day, so it would be unfair for me to do just that. There have been a few times even when I have picked up a book by an author I enjoyed before and wondered how both books could’ve been by the same author…. yuck! But think about it, if I had picked up the bad book first and missed out on the good one… :(:(:(:(:(:(:(:(:(:(:(:(
waltzandwillow.com
That’s a really nice way to look at it! Although sometimes I don’t know if the book is “bad” per se, or it just really didn’t work for me.😂 Reading is so subjective, it’s hard, right?!? But omg it’s SO WEIRD when the books don’t even feel like they’re written by the same person!! AHHHH. Sometimes it’s awesome, though, because it shows they have a lot of ability to write widely.
I like to think I always give authors a second chance, but at the moment it’s hard. It’s not that I don’t want to (I do, honest, I’m not that judgmental I will judge an author based on a single book) but when there are so many books to be read how do you justify getting a book by an author you’ve already seen you didn’t like once before? It’s hard to convince yourself to get that next book in the first place. I mean, the library helps with this endeavour so at least you don’t waste your money on the book but even so. I have a lot of books to read, you know?
I don’t know, as shown by your experience it does get better for a lot of authors and really you need two books to be able to form an opinion, right? So I just need to get better about picking up that second book… but it’s really hard, I can view this task as improving myself, right? I am committing to improving myself and my ability to give folks a second chance (or books, in this case) and only after a second disappointment will I abandon all hope for an author.
I TOTALLY UNDERSTAND. *nods* And honestly when I re-try authors I always either library them or get them as review-copies, because money = preciousness and I want to spend it on something I’m sure to like.😂 And yes! I find my logic totally ridiculous when I’m there re-trying an author and there are HUNDREDS I HAVEN’T TRIED AT ALL YET. BUT THERE WE GO. I MAKE NO SENSE.
I feel like two books is fair to form an opinion, but tbh, I don’t really look down at people if they read one and abandon authorly ship. Life is short, as we’ve just established.😂
It depends on how much I disliked a book previously from that author. Like Lauren Oliver, I didn’t finish Delirium or Panic because I didn’t like them. I did love Rooms and The Vanishing Girl though (I think I will love her newest book too). Andrew Smith books I love, except his first two novels. But I loved Winger, Alex Crow, and Stand Off. They made me laugh at the craziness of them but they also had really heartfelt moments (my heart will forever mourn for Adam from Winger). Sometimes though I feel like I start off liking an authors work and then as they write more my likeness fizzles into uncarbonated soda.Like I loved (a lot) The Tiger’s Curse by Colleen Houck, but her new series, Recreated, I have been hating. It seems too much like Tiger’s Curse (but Egyptian, and with a selfish main character).
Omg does Lauren Oliver have a new book coming out?!? I MUST HAVE IT. I really liked Rooms and Vanishing Girls too! And also the Spindles. And I haven’t read Delirum but my interest in dystopian has, like, RUN AWAY.😂 So I’ll probably never get there.
Ooh, that doesn’t make me very keen for Recreated hahaha. I have that to read soon! Except I wasn’t such a fan of Tiger’s Curse. *heavy sigh* So maybe the opposite will come true for me and I’ll like Recreated more?!
Well, once I kinda had the opposite happen to me…. 😛 I read Shannon Hale’s book, The Goose Girl and absolutely LOVED it!!!!!!! But then… I read….. the sequels….. *Looks down in shame and despair and anger* They were just terrible. That all you need to know. Their morality status was nonexistent. Their theme was likewise. The secret powers and awesome romances got less secret and awesome and more stereotypical and boring. It got less and less fairy-tale-ish. The chivalry became zip. The toughness in characters vanished (and got replaced with self-pity!). Their characters got more and more obscure (and senseless!) and less and less loveable as it went on. It kinda went from 😀 🙂 :/ 🙁 if you know what I mean…. hehehehe…. 😛 But, I will give the poor, senseless author another chance, as I intend to at least try reading Princess Academy (another of her books which I hate the title of, but the plot sounds okay). Also, I read the book 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea (abridged) when I was seven. Disliked it highly. Read Jules Verne’s other book, Journey To The Center Of The Earth and it was awesome, and what’s more, re-read 20,000 and loved it the second time. 😉 So, for any of you who still hate Jules Verne for his science-y rants, try him again! See what you think. 🙂
Oh that’s totally a discussion topic for another time.😂 = when you FALL OUT OF LOVE with an author. I gotta write that one too because I have very specific examples hahha. Ahem. But yes, it’s hard when a series you started out liking goes down hill. It feels like such betrayal! Although I never want to fall into saying the author is the problem or saying they’re senseless or anything.🙈🙊 Because not all readers are ever going to like all the same things! So! I’m sure, for someone, the author is doing a dashing job. If that makes sense.😂
OMG YOU READ LIKE CLASSICS WHEN YOU WERE 7?!? YOU ARE A GENIUS!
Yep, falling out with the author doesn’t happen very often with me. But as for The Books Of Bayern (Goose Girl’s Series)…. uh…… ;P Well, I loved abridged classic from a very young age. Like, uh, reading Little House In The Big Woods at age four….. 😛
I do like to give authors a second chance. Sometimes it was just the book? And sometimes it depends why I didn’t like the book. I mean, if it was a contemporary, well, there’s the problem. If the author decides to write a fantasy, I might try reading that instead. I love giving author’s books a second chance, especially if I liked the author’s writing style but not the book’s plot.
YES! That is fabulously logical reasoning there, Ashley. *nods* I sometimes find it hard to actually figure out if it was the writing / style / or something else that I didn’t even like.😂 Hence I have to keep trying everything. Ahem.
I do give an author a second chance if I think that other of his/her books sound promising. I am happy I did that with Brandon Sanderson after I disliked ‘Elantris’. Everything else I read by him was awesome!
Oh YAY!! I really love Brandon Sanderson too (have you read the Steelheart trilogy?!? Those are, legit some of my favourite reads of this year😍)
For me it depends on why I didn’t like the book, and how much I didn’t like it. If I DNF’d it because I couldn’t get into it, then I’ll give the author another chance with a different book. If I finished it but it was a kinda “meh” book, I might try another by the author if one sounds appealing and I think about it.
If on the other hand, I hated the book (like 2 stars and under) there is very little chance I’ll read any more by that author. Unless I see reviews complaining that x-book is completely different from the one I hated. Then MAYBE. But most likely still no. I rarely hate books, dislike yes, but hate? Not so much. So if it happens, I trust that there is very little likelihood of me liking anything else by the author. The exception to that is if they change genres. Sometimes it’s like they become an entirely different author because the writing style changes and stuff. So then they get another chance.
I’m glad you rarely find books to hate!! I used to not? But I do more these days.😂 I think I’m a super fussy pumpkin. Like if I rated a book 1-star there is a very low chance I’ll try more from the author too. *nods* But sometimes I find that the changing-genres things does WONDERS. Not to say an author is particularly “bad” at a genre (because who’s to judge!) but it just didn’t work for me, so huzzah, if they do something in a different style.
I’m willing to try another book of an author’s. I think I’ve had that experience before though I can’t think of an instance. Perhaps with Margaret Petersen Haddix. Anyway … good discussion topic!
Love this topic so much! I will (almost) always give an author a second chance if I try one of their books and don’t like it . I mean, if I hate absolutely EVERYTHING about a book (plot, pacing, characters, writing, genre, dialogue) then I will probably put that author on my Life Is Too Short List. But very often I’ll read a book where I love the writing but am not that into the genre. Or I’ll read a debut book and think the book isn’t awesome but the author has a lot of promise. I wish I had a mental list of authors I gave a second chance to. Maybe when I catch up on blog comments I’ll do that…
Jen @ YA Romantics
Ahhh!! I’m glad, Jen, THANKYOU. And I love that you have a “Life is Too Short List”. 😂 That is glorious. But I’m pretty much the same with you and those reasonings. Plus a cool premise wins me over EVERY TIME. I’m an absolute sucker, tbh. Even if I’ve sworn off the author, if their next book comes out with a good premise…goodbye. I am there.
I’m the same with the Erin Bowman books. I almost didn’t read Vengeance Road because of Taken.
Whether or not I give an author a second try or not depends on why I didn’t like the book in the first place. Some books can just be not for you and that doesn’t make them a bad book. But others can bother you for reasons where it is best just to walk away and do not further engage.
I had issues with the Shiver books, but I ended up loving The Raven Cycle. So I do give second chances sometimes, but I find I’m less willing to as time goes by.
Did you like Vengeance Road?!? Like I would seriously almost auto-buy from Erin Bowman now which is RIDICULOUS because of how much I didn’t like Taken hahah. But VR was aaaamazing. *hugs it* And agreed on your reasoning behind why/why not to read more from an author. I try not to think of any book as “bad” per se because everything appeals to different people. But there are a few books I so growlingly disagreed with that I won’t be trying further from the author.😂
This will sound funny but it kind of depends on how much I didn’t like their first book and for what reason. For example, if the writing is just terrible, I am probably less likely to give an author a second chance. If, however, I just have some minor POV or plot issues, I generally will give the author a second chance. Great topic!
That doesn’t sound funny! I think that sounds logical and reasonable.😂 Although I genuinely hated a few of these author’s first books that I listed, but then went on to give the 2nd nearly five-star ratings and things so I DON’T EVEN KNOW. I’M NOT THAT LOGICAL.😂
I would give authors second chances. I haven’t done it often, not on purpose, I just don’t necessarily run towards their books if I didn’t like the first one. But I did give John Green three chances, I liked TFIOS but hated Looking for Alaska and Paper Towns. I’ve also tried reading Clare A LOT. I’ve read 3 of TMI and 2 1/2 of TID. I gave up haha Oh, and I read ACOMAF even though I didnt really like ACOTAR xD So, I take that back, I guess I have done it a few times…..
You have done it a lot!! Well done!😂 And you’re braver than me with ACAMOF…I like swore off that series after ACTOAR hahah. Ahem. So I suppose there are a few instances when I don’t give authors second-chances come to think of it.😂 (Although it was like my 4th SJM book so that probably doesn’t count.)
For me it’s usually not the author, but the book itself that makes me want to read it. Of course, there are authors whose books I want to read just because they wrote them, but this is not what you are discussing here. If a book has an interesting title/cover/summary/etc I will want to read it despite the author in most cases.
Oh it’s great when we just judge books PURELY on the book alone! I kind of wish I did that more instead of overthinking who the author is.😂
I’m always so happy when I see the other rare unicorns out there who didn’t love Under the Never Sky. I totally DNF’d it because I cared 0% about anyone except Roar.
I always have the intention of giving an author a second chance, but since I read 40ish books a year I’m less inclined to than I would if I read 100 books a year.
We are SUCH rare unicorns! *comes to stand next to you* I just didn’t even care about anything and it was really slow.😂 And confusing tbh, ahem. But yes! I think it’d be easier to give authors a second chance if you read a lot…which I do. Haha. So I definitely like also have the time. Otherwise life is too short for wasting reading time, right?!?
I love this post, Cait! I always try to give them the benefit of the doubt, because there are several situations where I hated one book by a certain author and liked another. I despised ACOTAR with the fire of a thousand suns, but I loved Throne of Glass. And Crown of Midnight. (didn’t care for the other two and the series has gone downhill – we’ve talked about this – but maybe my tastes are just changing? WHO KNOWS.) I didn’t like Girl of Fire and Thorns at all, but really enjoyed both Walk on Earth a Stranger and Like a River Glorious. Really enjoyed Struck by Jennifer Bosworth, kinda hated The Killing Jar. I’m the same with Erin Bowman books, but it’s funny because mine are the exact opposite! I enjoyed Taken and didn’t like Vengeance Road. I’m not a fan of Historical, though, and I also read it right after Walk on Earth a Stranger and it just felt like a knockoff. Hated Goddess Test, liked Pawn. Hated Feed by Mira Grant, really enjoyed Parasite. So I’d be missing out if I didn’t give second chances! Also Lauren Oliver = SO MUCH YES. Panic was AWFUL. Absolutely awful. Yet Before I Fall is my all time favorite contemporary! It’s kinda crazy how two works from the same author can be so different. Maybe it’s a genre thing?
Holly Black, on the other hand, I think I’m going to have to give up on. I DNFed White Cat AND Coldest Girl and didn’t like TDPotF at all. Claudia Gray is about the same for me. Hated Fateful and ATPoY both!
Ah YUS we are like twins on the Throne of Glass opinions.😂 ToG and CoM are like some of the best books I ever wrote but then…what happened? Sometimes I feel like it’s a different author writing? But ah well haha. OMG I’M SO EXCITED FOR LIKE A RIVER GLORIOUS I CANNOT EVEN. I LOVE RAE CARSON.
Oh oh you’re ruining our bookish twin status with liking Taken but not Vengeance Road. 😉 😂 JUST KIDDING. That’s actually really funny!
But yes I’d have missed out on way too many excellent books if I didn’t give second chances!
I’m so happy you liked Highly Illogical Behaviour! Noggin definitely isn’t the best of the three books John Corey Whaley has written. I feel a sense of pride seeing as how you’ve changed you’re opinion on one of my personal favourite YA authors. After reading Me, Earl and The Dying girl I really didn’t like it but it’s not put me off wanting to try the Authors new book The Haters. I’m all for giving authors a second chance if the first book of theirs I read didn’t make me want to just shut my eyes and pretend I never read the book.
OH OH I’m really glad I have started liking John Corey Whaley then!! JUST FOR YOU, SARAH. 😉 I definitely want to try more books by him too!! Although I did read The Haters (after mildly liking Me & Earl) but hahah…nope. That one didn’t work for me very well.😂 I will just hope it works better for you!!
I recently found a new series by one of my fave authors Simon R Green, who has recently begun to release books that I didn’t click with. So I haven’t read his books in a while… until I found this new series. I am torn because I was absolutely dissappointed in hsi last work and if I get dissappointed again, I might just stop reading him altogether and I’d really hate that. So that’s my quandry about giving an author a second chance. It in part does depend on how severely dissapointed I get in the book lol
Ohh that is a huge quandary!! And I know how that feels. *collapses in a puddle of indecision* I generally take the risk though because curiosity always KILLS me if I don’t.😂
This is a great topic! I completely agree on you should give an author a second chance you never know what you are going to get. I have only read the Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead and really enjoyed it. Although now I am afraid to read anything else of hers because I have heard it is not as great.
It’s so true! Like one book not suiting us doesn’t actually equal the entire author’s works being not our thing! SO MUCH GOODNESS IN SECOND CHANCES.
I can’t speak to many of your second chances. I did quite enjoy And I Darken 🙂 But I haven’t read anything else by Kiersten White. My favorite books by Richelle Mead are the Georgina Kincaid books — I’ve been hit or miss with her YA books but I LOVE her adult books.
I should really try Richelle Mead’s adult books at some point too then!! I mean, I’ve had two duds from her so far, buuuuut, I’m willing to be persistent.😂