Most Disappointing Books of 2024

It is once again that time of year where we begin to get into everyone's favorite 'best of' and 'worst of' lists. As I've said previous years, I always like to start my series of lists off with my most disappointing reads at the end of December so that we can get it out of the way and start off January with some positive posts. I only chose six books for this year's post, and although there are still plenty of books I don't enjoy every year, I do feel like I'm pretty good at gauging what books are and aren't going to work for me, so there are less flops overall. 

I specifically name this post "most disappointing books" instead of "worst books" because this list, for me, is not a list of books that are "bad" or horribly written or anything (usually), but rather a list of books that for some personal reason just ended up being disappointing. I don't tend to hold any hate for these books–unless otherwise noted–and instead see them as books that maybe I was really looking forward to and ended up falling flat for one reason or another, or maybe they just really didn't connect with me and that was disappointing. As a result, they become my lowest rated books and end up on this list. (Also, I usually include my DNFs on this post, but I was looking the ones I DNF'd this year and I really just felt nothing about them, so I figured there was no need to include them this year.)

If you loved any of the books on this list, that's awesome! I love that we can all have such varying opinions on books and still come together as a group of readers. I always stand by the fact that I have found some fantastic books on other bloggers' "worst books" lists because what doesn't work for one person might be exactly what another person loves. And vice versa–favorites could be another person's least favorite book. It's all subjective and we all have so many different experiences to bring to our reading journeys, and to me that's the beauty of reading. 

And just a quick note to say that my 'best of' lists and end of year stats post will be up in January! I'm still reading through the 31st, so it's too soon for me to have them up before then, but once the year is done I'll get to work on those. :)

Now, with all of that out of the way, let's take a look at my 2024 Most Disappointing Reads!

         

Nineteen Claws and Blackbird by Agustina Bazterrica, translated by Sarah Moses

I absolutely devoured (pun intended?) Bazterrica's Tender is the Flesh and thought it was one of the best and most visceral and thought-provoking (and grotesque) books when I read it in 2021, so I was really excited about this new story collection from her. Unfortunately, this set of stories just felt like a bit of a mess and were all over the place, and I struggled to find much meaning in many of them. I really wanted to love these, but they just couldn't hold my attention or convey much for me to get invested in. I don't regret reading it, but I was definitely disappointed in the quality.  

Fathomfolk by Eliza Chan - Review
 It's always painful when a book with a cover as beautiful as this (and have you seen the Illumicrate special edition? The naked hardcase is absolutely stunning) is a disappointment, but here we are. This book had so much potential for a creative, intricate world with interesting characters, but unfortunately it felt like the author just tried to do too much and didn't really full flesh out any of it, and any complexities to the world were lost amidst everything else. The characters also sadly didn't have much that really drew me to them, so I found it hard to maintain my interest in the story. I would potentially consider reading a sequel if I heard it was leagues better than this one, but otherwise I'll probably leave this story here. 

         

The Mercy of Gods by James S.A. Corey - Review

 I was excited to finally read James S.A. Corey... and then I was less excited once I started. It's hard to say exactly what didn't work for me, but I think a big part of it had to do with the somewhat cardboard-feel of the characters. Everyone had a specific role and they played that well, but it didn't leave much nuance for my preference. In my review (linked above), I stated that I would absolutely still read the sequel, but I'm going to wait and gauge my interest level once it's out. The premise for this one is still compelling enough to grab me, so I may just let it try to redeem itself with a sequel. That being said, I still felt this was one of those books that was a massive disappointed given how much I was looking forward to it and how many amazing things I've heard about. James S.A. Corey. 

Guillotine by Delilah S. Dawson
Before you come at me, this book is actually good! This is only here because it disappointed me that there wasn't more to it. It has a fun eat the rich premise, but it really stops there. There was no other depth or substance to it–and maybe that's enough, maybe that's all it's supposed to be, but for me, I wanted more. It felt like gore for the sake of gore and torture for the sake of taking out frustrations, and while that's not always bad, it was honestly a little boring at times. It felt like it existed just to exist. I still love Delilah S. Dawson and will happily read more from her, though! This short novel just was a miss for me, I guess.  (I do heartily recommend her book The Violence, which was fantastic. Also gory, which you may be able to deduce from the title). 

         

The Maidens by Alex Michaelides
I feel like I shouldn't have been surprised by how much I really, really disliked this, and yet I still chose to read it so clearly I thought there was something promising. I always know I shouldn't go for the books that have Classics and Greek professors and subsequent secret societies in them because I know it's all just going to end up frustrating me when it's done poorly, but still I fall into the trap and then I regret it. This felt so scattered and all over the place and the characters were unlikeable in a way that I don't like (I really like a well-written unlikable character–this was not that) and the plot progressions just made no sense half the time. It was just one of those that you keep reading because you really need to see where the author is going with everything. And maybe that's the mark of an author who does know what they're doing because it kept me reading, right? Nevertheless, I won't be fooled again and will probably not pick up something from this author again in the future (never say never, but...). 

Sleep Tight by J.H. Markert
I feel like this book catfished me because the cover looks like horror and all the marketing I saw for it screamed horror... and yet it was more of a mystery/thriller. I know the synopsis talks about a serial killer and a detective, but for some reason I was thinking it would be less crime procedural/basic kidnapping story and more... I don't know, horror-y? Silence of the Lambs-esque? Police procedurals/FBI agents/detectives are all usually keywords that make me pass on books, but I went for this one anyway and let is sneak under my radar, and honestly, I shouldn't have. It's not a bad book, I'm sure so many people who love those types of things will love it, but I am not one of them. 

Did you read any of these books? If so, what'd you think of them? I'd love to hear if you loved them, hated them, felt so-so, etc. in the comments! And be sure to let me know what your most disappointing reads of 2024 were either in the comments or with a link to your own posts, I'd love to read them. :)

Most Disappointing Books of 2023

 

The time has finally come to explore some of my most disappointing reads of 2023! I always kick off my end of year posts with my most disappointing reads list so that we can get that out of the way and end on some high notes with the best books and some reading stats. I'll be honest, I was actually very pleasantly surprised by the small amount of books I had for this list–only six! I was going through my lowest ratings on Goodreads and found I really didn't have all that many super low ones, and even a lot of my three stars didn't seem to fall into the 'most disappointing' category. I think a big part of that is that I've started DNF-ing books a lot more often now when they aren't working and I'm trying to be more aware and honest with myself about what books I might like and what ones I won't, and I guess it's working out okay, haha. 

As always, I'd like to note that most disappointing does not equate to these being the worst books or terrible books, as a lot of these are really great books that I would still recommend to people, they just didn't work for me. Some I just flat out didn't like, and some just had elements that aren't to my personal taste. Some I just had really high hopes for and they fell flat. And of course, if you loved any of the books on this list, then I'm genuinely really happy about that! Everyone has different taste and I actually think it's awesome that we can always take in and perceive stories in different ways. So without any further ado, let's check out some of my more disappointing reads from 2023. 

        

In the Lives of Puppets by TJ Klune - Review

This wasn't a bad book, but I felt it was a considerable step down from both The House in the Cerulean Sea and Under the Whispering Door. It felt a bit too contrived at times and I couldn't get past some of the awkward dialogue and forced jokes, which seemed to take too much of a center stage from the rest of the story. The plot was already fairly thin in this one, and it ended up feeling like it was just backdrop for the rest of the characters to have their cliche conversations and explorations. I wish I had liked this one more than I did, but sadly that didn't happen.

Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh - Review

It's hard to say exactly what I didn't like about this book, but it just didn't grab me at all. I really tried to stick with it and immerse myself in the world and/or care about the characters, but I just didn't. I feel like I don't have that much to say about this book outside of the fact that I just felt a bit bored reading it and nothing really intrigued me all that much. On a positive note, I would say some of the world-building elements were interesting, but that's where a lot of my enjoyment ended. 

        

Last to Leave the Room by Caitlin Starling - Review

This definitely was not a bad book and I think it had a lot of great things going for it. I was mainly disappointed because it sounded liek it had so much potential, and the execution was a bit flat and it was missing something that really would've grabbed me. I found the protagonist frustrating to follow or care all that much about, and some of the narrative choices didn't work for me, either. I loved Caitlin Starling's The Luminous Dead so much and I continue to read everything she puts out in hopes of something else that grabs me the way that one did, but so far that hasn't happened (but I'm always hopeful and that's why I keep reading her books!).

The Sun and the Void by Gabriela Romero Lacruz - Review

I wanted to love this so much, but I just didn't. The concept was really cool, but as with a lot of fantasy I've read lately, I'm just struggling with the characters and plotting. The author tried to input so much background and detail into the story that never really fit into place. I'm not sure at this point if it's just me getting really picky about things or if books are all having the same issues lately, but this just started to feel like a bit of a chore at some point and my enjoyment really began to wane. 

        

Wild Spaces by S.L. Coney

This was a bit of a mess. I felt like the plot was all over the place and this just didn't work. It was definitely weird and I usually do love some weird fantasy horror, but I think this one just didn't quite work out. There was nothing in here that really stood out to me or made it something that I would really pick out from the crowd, unfortunately. There was also something to do with a dog that I have not forgiven and will not forgive. 

Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir

I'd heard so many people raving about this one and how good and weird it was, so I finally caved and decided to give it a go. After finishing it, I feel like I understand the hype–sassy/quirky protagonist, sharp dialogue and banter, enemies to lovers, etc.–but it didn't work for me. Honestly, it's not nearly as weird or confusing as people made me think it was, and I found it fairly... ordinary? Obviously the world is different, but the general plot felt a bit tired and uninteresting and I just couldn't connect with the story or really care about the characters. 

Most disappointing DNF:

The Jasad Heir by Sara Hashem

If I hadn't DNF'd this one, it would've ended up on this list probably. I feel like this one had a lot of the same problems as The Sun and the Void for why it didn't work for me, I just decided to not push through on this one. 

Have you read any of these books? What were some of your most disappointing books from 2023?

Most Disappointing Books of 2022

Well, it's finally that time of year where we get to start looking back at our year of reading and reflecting on all those books. Some of those reflections are warm and full of great memories, and some of those reflections make me want to surgically remove the memory of ever reading that book from my brain–okay, maybe that latter part is a bit too dramatic because I didn't hate any of the books that are showing up on this list, but it can definitely feel that way sometimes! 

This list is actually all about my most disappointing reads, which basically means any books that didn't live up to my hopes or that ended up being generally disappointing. Many of these books got pretty solid ratings still, but they are all ones that I felt pretty 'meh' about after reading or even made me feel a little angry because of how letdown I felt. I feel like this list is going to be a little... controversial (?) because some of these books were incredibly popular, but we're just diving into it and getting messy. I have less books on this list than I expected to have, but that's probably a good thing. These are the ones that stood out the most to me.

As always, if you loved any of these books–that's awesome! I am in no way saying anything negative about anyone who loved these books. I often find at least book recommendation from other peoples' worst of/most disappointing reads lists, so I hope this list might even help someone find something new. Now, let's dive in! (Please note also that these are in no particular order.) My best of the year books will be posted sometime in January, as I'm still in the middle of reading some books and the year's not over just yet. :) 

     

Wild and Wicked Things by Francesca May: I don't know that I really have all that much to say about this book, and that's pretty accurate to how I felt about it. It was perfectly fine and had some interesting things going on, but it was a bit convoluted, rushed, and not fleshed out enough in many ways. The pacing was super weird and I really struggled getting to know the characters involved, and that combined with a plot that left me wanting more really made this book a bit of a letdown. (Review)

The Daughter of Dr. Moreau by Silvia Moreno-Garcia: I was really bummed to realize that this is one of those books that I would be including on my list this year. I was so very excited for The Daughter of Dr. Moreau and subsequently immensely disappointed when I realized I was on the verge of DNF-ing it at multiple points in the story. This wasn't really anything like I expected it to be, and save Moreno-Garcia's beautiful prose and amazing setting, I just felt so bored reading this. It felt like the focus was more on the protagonist's love life than the Dr. Moreau part, which maybe I should have expected, but I didn't since I thought it was more The Island of Dr. Moreau-inspired. (Review)

     

Babel by R.F. Kuang: This is probably the one that is most controversial out of any others that are on this list... but I can't lie: Babel was supremely disappointing to me. I have a very in-depth review up already where I get into some of my thoughts (it probably could have been longer, but who wants to read that?) so you can check that out if you're interested, but I just felt very letdown in regards to characters, plot, and a few other areas. I really appreciate and like and support the themes and messages that Kuang promotes in Babel, but the storytelling elements got lost in this and everything and everyone just became a lifeless mouthpiece for her lectures. I would love to read essays or nonfiction from Kuang because this shows me that they would be amazing, but this just bored me (and not for the reasons you might think!). (Review)

Age of Ash by Daniel Abraham: I had been meaning to read something from Daniel Abraham for quite a while, so when I saw this book coming out I was really excited for it! And then I started it... and then I lost interest so quickly I almost had whiplash. This book had so much potential, but the execution just felt very flat and it felt like I had read this book so many times already. I had zero interest in the protagonist and nothing about the rest of the plot was capturing. I thought the setting seemed interesting, but it wasn't enough to keep me reading. I really love the cover, though–it's always a bummer when an awesome cover doesn't pan out. 

     

The Hacienda by Isabel Canas: This was another book that just didn't live up to what it promised. I was promised a Maxican Gothic x Rebecca-esque story and, well, I think it tried? This lacked any sense of suspense and I felt it was overly predictable in mostly negative ways. I also recall finding the ending pretty disappointing and left me struggling to decide what the point was and ultimately feeling like I wasted my time. (Review)

Mordew by Alex Pheby: This had such a compelling premise and was just a convoluted mess in the end. I wanted to be excited by this book, but I struggled staying engaged. I don't feel like I have all that much to say about this one because it didn't really stick with me. I will say I really enjoyed the overall premise and concept of the world set up, but the execution lost me. 

Have you read any of these books? What were some of your most disappointing books from 2022?