Happy mid-week Wednesday to you! For today’s Top 5 post, I decided to share popular book serials that I will probably never get around to reading. In my defence, I have tried to read quite a few of these, if not all of them, but they simply ended up being something not to my tastes, for one reason or another.

Some of these are super hyped and quite beloved, and as such I just want to offer a disclaimer: if you are someone who has read these serials and enjoyed them very much, then that is wonderful! My opinion of them is in no shape or form any type of judgment on or against you as a person and as a reader.

If you see a series that you believe has a crappy first volume, but gets better as you read on, please let me know in the comments and I’ll consider giving them a second shot. 😊

5. The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant by Stephen R. Donaldson

This is a fantasy series that was hyped quite a bit by a lot of people that I know and as such I decided to try it out because I love the genre. However, I read the first book and was wholeheartedly appalled by the aloof nature of the main protagonist, Thomas Covenant, particularly when he rapes a teenager girl (he is in his mid-to-late 30s, early-40s). This immediately created a negative vibe between me and the book. But as I read on, I became even more frustrated and enraged by the way the girl reacted to Covenant, as well his entitled and shitty attitude towards what he had done. Toss in bad writing (women who are written in such ridiculously unrealistic and fetishised ways) and misogynistic themes as well, it turns into a definite nope.

4. The Broken Empire Trilogy by Mark Lawrence

This British dark fantasy series is one that was very disappointing to me after being something that I had been anticipating for a while. You can check out my review for book one here where I go into detail as to what I didn’t like, but essentially there were tons of inconsistencies and just the most awfully written female characters ever. I seriously don’t understand why it’s so damn difficult to write women. Also… I’m tired of rape being the go-to crime for people to be viewed as antiheros or villains. There are other ways to create a villainous character that doesn’t involve this over-used garbage.

3. Black Dagger Brotherhood by J.R. Ward

This is a paranormal romance series. I read the first book for this a long time ago, or at the very least, I read the first half of book one. Either way, I came to understand that romance is a genre that is difficult for me stay engaged with and interested in. A lot of that may have to do with the fact that I don’t feel romantic feelings like the majority of the population or that I am asexual and found the sex scenes to be rather bland. I don’t think there was anything truly wrong with the book aside from those elements, making it a case of: simply not my cup o’ chai!

2. Shatter Me by Tehereh Mafi

This is a young adult fantasy series. I also tried reading the first book and very quickly (about thirty pages in) realised that if I kept reading, I would be extremely frustrated. I detested the main character and I didn’t care for the writing style. It was jarring and very awkward, as well as forced and unnatural.

1. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

Another fantasy one! This is classified as young adult, but many reviewers have told me that due to the sexual content it is more akin to the new adult genre. I refuse to read this series for two reasons. The first is that the premise sounds sincerely off-putting to me, and the second reason is that anytime someone doesn’t like the series, the fandom goes on the attack. If I had to choose a third reason, it would be the offensive way that Maas likes to toss in marginalised characters into her story to feel validated in offering representation, even if that rep is harmful as fuck, which is a huge problem in this series from all of the reviews that I’ve read by marginalised reviewers. No thank you! I will say this much though: I did receive Maas’s Throne of Glass series as a gift, so one day I will pick those up. If they weren’t a gift from a dear friend many years ago, I would probably pass on that one as well.

Have you read any of these serials? What did you think? If not, then what are some book serials that you will probably never read or have no interest in checking out?

Thank you so much for visiting me today. Until next time, keep reading and keep otakuing. 💜

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