Hyped Books That I Found…Just Okay

Like Leggy always says, art is subjective. And books fall under that umbrella. Every avid reader has a never ending TBR list that is made even longer by the books of the moment that are getting all the buzz and being talked about everywhere. Sometimes, it’s tough reading a book after hearing all the hype but I have never thought that should be a factor in determining how one feels about a book. Regardless of what the masses say, every read is personal and every opinion will be unique to the reader.

All that being said, I wanted to share some titles that most people loved and when I read it – while not bad – just didn’t give me that book giddiness. I wanted to caveat that I have been hesistant to do this post because majority of my reads are by black women authors so naturally my list will have them in the mix and I didn’t want to feel like I was bringing them down. Again, a book on this list doesn’t mean it was a bad book!

Okay here we go:

The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

I can hear the gasps already. I always say this. I liked the writing on this but I thought the storyline was lacking a little bit. On the flip, I liked the story on her debut, The Mothers but the writing was weaker. I think for me, not fully understanding why she did what she did left me unsatisfied. I didn’t feel like I had closure

Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman

I have spoken so much about this book but I still put it on for the newcomers that don’t know about how I feel LOL. Anyways, my issue with this was I didn’t quite enjoy the main character and while I know it’s possible to like a book with unlikeable characters, I have realized that Iiking my characters goes a long way in me loving a book.

Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson

Another book that was rich with story and history but it was a lot of story that just didn’t make my book nerves tingle.

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

I read this back before I discovered the YA genre is not for me. I couldn’t connect with this story. In fact, at the end I think I said “that’s it?”

A Place For Us by Fatima Farheen Mirza

This was Leggy’s favorite book in 2018. Leggy reads all the good things, so I wanted to be a part of it. Guys, I tried and tried. I read it, I audio’d it and it just wasn’t hitting the mark for me. I felt so sad but I had to admit that it just wasn’t working for me.

I’ll stop here but these are just a few of the books that I have read that I felt didn’t hit the mark for me. What are some of those books for you?

Taynement