The WORST Books of 2024

[@Brigi_K]

I read The Fault in Our Stars when I was about 16/17 in a day and still remember that I pulled an all-nighter for it, loved it, cried through the end and then went to school with puffy eyes. If I read it now, a little more than ten years later, I would probably have the same feelings as you though. I don't really care to read S.J. Maas' books anymore, but I do love watching the plot breakdowns and the reviews.

[@renakellner4448]

Honestly, exactly my feelings on both matters.

[@Kedai610]

As a high schooler, I loved John green’s books. But when I went to reread them as an adult, I found I couldn’t. They reminded me too much of my pretentious high school self, which is probably what drew me to them in the first place. Still absolutely love the green brothers, but I can’t read John’s books anymore.

[@moby517839]

I get what you mean but you could try his non fiction. Anthropcene reviewed was a good read

[@hah.365]

I never got into them for the same reason. I'll double the rec for The Anthropecene Reviewed.

[@annihlud6569]

For high school freshman year we had to read books from a list given, the summer before school starts to make a report on it. I chose Looking for Alaska. And I found it really boring. I couldn’t relate to anyone and the story wasn’t interesting to me. At the time I thought I wasn’t grown up enough to get it. And I haven’t thought about it much since.

[@Kedai610]

@@moby517839 oh yeah definitely a good read there. Should’ve said his YA fiction specifically

[@Mermer-16]

I disliked it too, for the same reasons. Oddly, what stuck with me the most (other than annoyance at the cigarette thing) was their egg conversation at the breakfast table. I wanted to throw the book across the room.🤣

[@Mrecb9]

16:51 Narnia for adults? "No book is really worth reading at the age of ten which is not equally (and often far more) worth reading at the age of fifty" -C. S. Lewis.

[@TheOnlyTinMS3]

I have to reread this quote 50x to understand.

[@jenniferm.2142]

@@TheOnlyTinMS3In a nutshell, he’s saying kids’ books don’t need to be dumbed down. If they’re written well, anyone at any age should be able to enjoy them.

[@MsJayteeListens]

@@jenniferm.2142As someone who just started rereading the Narnia books, he’s not wrong

[@willw.1466]

He's saying all the books you like are shit, not the other way around

[@Mrecb9]

@@willw.1466 nope

[@Stewsimpson]

I loved 'The Fault In Our Stars' as the story mirrors my life. I had the same cancer as Augustus (osteosarcoma), had my leg amputated, fell in love with someone I met through my cancer journey. I watched the film, and so much of it was my life. It might not be a book/film for everyone, but myself and my cancer friends loved it as it's relatable. Teen cancer is a big thing to go through and it can be powerful to read/watch when you've lived through it.

[@MichelleP-t7o]

I hope everything gets better for you

[@Stewsimpson]

@@MichelleP-t7o Thank you. After 2 relapses, another theme in the film, and 2 more big operations, I am currently 21 years in remission 🙂

[@th3aft3rlif3]

I loved Remarkably Bright Creatures. I understand the mystery wasn’t really a mystery but I think it’s because of how much I loved Tova. Rarely do I read a book with an older protagonist and being a fellow widow but her also dealing with the loss/disappearance of her son made me just want to hug her. One thing I think the author did extremely well was talking about loss. You knew who Tova was comfortable with based on who she would talk to about her husband and son. It just resonated with me in a way other books about loss don’t. I totally understand the other issues with the book, my love of Tova has blinded me to any other issues. I’m aware of and okay with that.

[@Omni798]

I havent read this book but its so refreshing when i see people who love a book for its strengths while also recognizing their downfalls. Im the same way with one of my favorite film series, The Rebuild of Evangelion. Such flawed films, and also some of my favorites. Their exploration of grief, trauma, connection, and escapism paired with absolutely stunning visuals, direction, and music will never cease to astound me despite their awful pacing, drawn out fights, and relatively weak secondary characters. To me, loving a story while recognizing its faults is the mark of a reader who can consume their media critically, and not let that override their empathy. Thats an incredible skill to me. I loved reading your comment, thank you!

[@copascribe7472]

Yes! I loved this one, agreed with all the others on the list. But Remarkably Bright Creatures is a top 20 read for me.

[@LaurenMelisa]

Yes!!!!!

[@reillywilloughby]

Couldn't agree more about Remarkably Bright Creatures. It was a cozy, not a mystery. Tova was a gem of a character.

[@palamedes4740]

"Get over it Feyre has" Is such a good quote cause it's really how it feels sometimes to talk to ACOTAR fans.

[@M24071]

They can be very annoying and immature

[@uhuhuh1966]

I loved meeting the favorite author in Fault in Our Stars, the whole interaction really stuck with me because never meeting your heroes is so real lol

[@danielle7988]

lol what happened

[@uhuhuh1966]

@ he wasn’t at all what the protagonist had built up in her mind, he was just a sad angry man

[@lizziejoa]

As a mental health counselor, Silent Patient also pissed me off to no end. I felt the same way about Never Lie by Frieda McFadden. I just could not suspend my disbelief with all the ridiculous ethical violations that went ignored. I had to take the MMPI-II before I got accepted into my program which I actually appreciated because it was a very effective way to evaluate individuals for any serious psychopathology.

[@CocoLicious]

And this is the better book by the author - the second one is even worse, so many characters are just unbelievable plot vehicles in these.

[@ItsNormenDay]

I feel like the same could be said for books and movies about cops or doctors, etc. Nothings gonna be completely accurate. They do stuff in those things that they can't do in real life. But that's the thing, if it's too accurate, then it's not entertaining. You wanna read... Idk... a mystery novel where the main character detective does everything by the book? Does that sound entertaining to you?

[@onemin8729]

​@@ItsNormenDayI don't think that's the problem with this book lol

[@rosiealma4276]

It's like he thinks psychiatrists are psychics. And why would it take this new guy coming in to suggest giving the artist who is not communicating art supplies? No one thought of that earlier?

[@imo9193]

I also work in mental health (less qualified tho!) But I enjoyed this book? I know the ethical violations in this book were EXTREME but there have been some very real and horrific historical ethical violations in the field! I read more fantasy though so maybe I'm a little too primed to accept unrealistic parts of fiction stories!

[@IizJessieify]

This is my beef with ACOMAF as well. It felt like Maas wanted to switch love interests and decided that in order to do that, she had to come up with a bunch of reasons why Rhysand was secretly a morally correct feminist king the whole time. It would have been much more interesting, IMO, to see them reckon with his Book 1 actions in any meaningful way. I’ve read the whole series and Maas seems allergic to having her protagonists be in the wrong (and then wildly overcorrects with Nesta and has her take the blame for stuff I wouldn’t even consider her fault).

[@FlyingFocs]

I remember reading Remarkably Bright Creatures, and I kind of enjoyed it… holy crap, could I not stand Cameron after a while. The fact that we share a name probably made it sting more. I had no problem with the octopus being smarter than the people, though. I’ve met people where that seems plausible.

[@crazybiogeek]

TFIOS is a weird one for me. I loved it and read it when it came out and reread it a few times over the next couple of years. But these days, I'm not sure I could reread it. Not after I had cancer myself. It would hit too close to home. However, I think reading the book made me a little less afraid my own future death. As someone who could have cancer come back any time, I could be like Augustus Waters and light up like a Christmas tree in the PET scanner. I can relate to the fear the characters feel. I can relate to the fact that even if you survive, you've lost something. Augustus and his leg, Hazel and her lungs, etc. And if the cancer comes back, you'll keep having parts of you chipped away, and you can survive with less and less until the cancer takes everything. Like how Issac lost one eye, then the cancer came back and took the other. So while I don't know if I'll ever read TFIOS again, I do know that it helped me with my own experiences with cancer. Also, if anyone is looking for good "waiting room" books for medical appointments, I recommend Becky Chambers books in general.

[@shesagift1]

Thanks for sharing your connection with TFIOS’s characters. I hope you’re doing well ❤

[@crazybiogeek]

@@shesagift1 I'm doing well so far! I can just keep hoping it doesn't come back. They always say it's the worry that's worse than anything else. And I hope you are doing well, since the end of the year is stressful for most people.

[@alannapenner37]

Completely agree with you about ACOMAF! Nobody prepared me for the massive shift in tone. I actually did like the first book (while acknowledging that Maas deserves every criticism her writing gets 😅) because it felt like I was whisked off to a fairy tale. And then everything I loved about Book 1 was ripped away from me and replaced with lingerie shops and night clubs 😭 I was waiting to become a Rhys stan the whole time and he just made me more and more angry as the book went on😤

[@elskabee]

i was contemplating reading Bride, but now I'm not going to so thank you for saving me from that! I really hate inconsistencies in world building but hardly anyone else even seems to notice most of the time

[@victoriarose4506]

You should still give it a chance. I love Bride, have read it twice. It's very different, though.

[@alexisweidner1450]

Agreed . I loved bride

[@kibert135]

Funny, I haven't read Fault in Out Stars but am hearing Dear Hank & John, where John Green and his brother just talk to each other (and answer questions). So I heard a lot about the time in their youth where Hank randomly pretended to be british while having a terrible british accent ^^

[@KFoxtheGreat]

This is exactly what I thought of, too!

[@nichescenes]

@@KFoxtheGreat Yeah i thought that was the point. Your not supposed to think he's being cool.

[@milksoup328]

this video inspired me to check how many of my reads this year were bad - below 3 stars - and out of 65 reads, its only 8. not bad! the latest one is a court of thorns and roses, which i knew i would dislike, but my friend wanted someone to complain about it with :P im not excited for the 2nd book either, but what wouldnt i do for a bookish friend!

[@merphynapierreviews]

Wow we have very similar numbers! I’ve read 70 books and 8 were below three stars!

[@milksoup328]

@merphynapierreviews so a good year as well 🩵

[@jesse8924]

Haven't read it, but I rolled my eyes when the guy in The Fault In Our Stars kept talking abut the cigarette metaphor in the movie.

[@MizzInterpreted]

John Green's non-fiction The Anthropocene Reviewed is excellent. A beautiful take on the small things that make us human. Nothing like his fiction books.

[@x-i-am-jinx]

I can’t read John Green. I like his Crash Course work and watching vlogbrothers, but I’m a far bigger fan of his brother Hank. I’m a huge fan of Scishow. I do really appreciate their charitable work.

[@anisa2273]

same here. although i disliked John's stance on Palestine... made me pretty disappointed on him

[@sassysuzy4u]

Thank you for your review of Bride. Everyone I have talked to was so happy with it but I had a hard time getting past a couple of chapters and stopped reading, and was getting tired of everyone talking about how amazing it was.

[@Nagchampa765]

I just started the video but I saw it in the thumbnail,,, GOD the silent patient pissed me off so bad!!!! The twist makes 90% of the book pointless and no sense… I hate a twist that is just done for the shock value and doesn’t make actual sense in the narrative

[@ToriTalks2]

You have no idea how much it pleases me to see Bride at the bottom of this list.

[@TheEowyn22]

I love Remarkably Bright Creatures - but I listened to it. I do think this story needs to be heard, especially Marcellus.

[@lizziejoa]

I loved the audiobook too! It felt like such a cozy story overall. I’m realizing I really appreciate stories that point out how we often view older people as fragile and incapable. Tova felt like a deeply relatable character to me.

[@tanyahotchkiss5403]

I agree with you about ACOMAF. Feyre's journey with grief and PTSD is what kept me reading. Maas' way of exploring these with her female characters are what keep me reading her books. But, I hate the switching she does, and the lack of exploration with Tamlin. I found it annoying that there was so much right there of grief and trauma making healing in a relationship difficult, but she just jumps from one thing to the next. I get its a romance, but its just right there it feels like nails on a chalkboard that its not explored. My biggest wish is that she goes back to characters like Tamlin to flesh out these things and give me closure.

[@mattbuxton]

I needed something small to read while waiting for Wind and Truth and picked up "The Answer is No" and really loved it. I never read a Backman book but know he is your favorite author. Very surprised you didnt enjoy it. Though short, I really connected with the story immediately.

[@jeannecorsby-hale1009]

Very interesting our whole book club loved Remarkably Bright Creatures a lot.

[@BadgerOfTheSea]

John Green books are a product of their time when being pretentious made you an instant best seller. Long before booktok there was Fandom Tumblr and they lapped that stuff up

[@mrstrangeworld5977]

nah they've stood the test of time

[@925263]

@@mrstrangeworld5977 They absolutely have not lmao. They're mostly hated even by teens nowadays.

[@xaviersmith1388]

@@925263 the only one that still holds up is paper towns

[@livresetsortileges]

I have grown to reaaaally dislike SJM BUT I love ACOMAF... Because of the treatment of mental health, depression, PTSD and for that only reason it remains one of the fantasy books that portrayed it best. For that sole reason I still resonate so much with Feyre s story and love seeing her heal. Agree with the rest AND I dislike the first and hate the third in the series (and pretty much all the other SJM books haha)

[@commonviewer2488]

Who describes their behavior, out loud, with "it's a metaphor," with absolute seriousness?

[@m.g.3618]

silent patient was soooooo horrible in every aspect. it has an unintentionally sympathetic character though, elif. the only normal person (well, not exactly, but yknow) among pathetic hypocrites

[@LaGiramondo]

I personaly think The Silent Patient is great (maybe because I'm a thriller junkie), but I still loved your review and can agree, that it has some unusual plotholes. 😅

[@laurieeyebee]

It was an awesome read and literally had me gasping.

[@ghar5173]

I also loved it. Can you recc someone?

[@laurieeyebee]

@@ghar5173 for what?

[@LaGiramondo]

@ghar5173 if by any chance you haven't read it yet, I'd strongly reccomend Freida McFadden's Never Lie. For a more "obscure" recomendation I'd say maybe try Confessions by Kanae Minato.

[@MichelleP-t7o]

I read ACOTAR to see what the hype was. The cover was pretty. That's all I got. Happy holidays

[@lordshavron]

Your little rants are always so fun.

[@evilgenius4213]

I am still pissed off that The Fault In Our Stars didn't end mid-sentence.

[@jordylont1879]

I loved the idea of The silent patient, but the way the write did it was not what I hoped for. Still really enjoyed reading it though

[@denisejeffries2675]

Agree, Bride was trash. And I LOVE fantasy, vampires, werewolves, cryptids. But this was awful. I completely agree with you, the author managed to make these fascinating entities completely mundane. What I DID love was every episode of your collaboration with Amber Alise, you two are so much fun to listen to!

[@arson55]

Maas is a writer I like despite myself. Her books are poorly written slop, but holy hell do I love the Fantasy Melodrama. Her writing style is both basic and formulaic. Her villains are typically poorly sketched out (for example each series has an evil king WHO IS NEVER GIVEN A NAME as primary antagonist--although in one series it is backfilled as a plot point in I think the last book(?)). There are always weird anachronisms in her settings which wouldn't bother me if they were actually a stylistic choice, but I don't think she even recognizes that they're there. Characters will waffle back and forth between idiocy and hypercompetence on a whim. AND YET...and yet...Both series have at least a couple of characters I really like, there are typically a handful of really badass moments that suck me in, and I adore the messy relationships between the characters. I've always been a fan of relationship/romance heavy stories set in fantasy settings (despite being a straight guy--go figure) and Maas sure as hell provides that. So, yeah. I don't really believe in 'guilty pleasures' because if you like something you like it. But if I did, Maas' would be my guilty pleasure books.

[@jensenwahlquist]

Merphy I can’t believe you read acomaf lmao my jaw literally dropped when I saw the thumbnail

[@TheAbigailDee]

I'm so grateful to see someone else who didn't like The Silent Patient! I cannot believe that book is so beloved. I honestly wonder if there's a conspiracy or something because it was unbelievably misogynist and contained the phrase "her eyes were like lamps, unblinking" and I'm supposed to take it seriously???? The twist is super obvious like 30 pages into the book. It's wild.

[@VictoriaMorganawesometori]

I didn't see the twist at all but it was my first thriller. The twist makes no sense and makes me so mad. I also hated being blatantly lied to by the character in a first person book.

[@lisadjls3781]

Hey, i loved this video as always!! Did you opt-in getting your videos auto translated by YT with an AI generated voice over for other languages ? Because as a french watcher it's really jarring to open the video and get a really weird no human voice speaking in french over your video when i'm expecting to hear you...

[@wallajoia845]

I had a funny experience with this new AI as well. It started to translate a video from a Brazilian creator into English when I’m literally a Brazilian living in Brazil who consumes content in Portuguese. It made no sense for KZbin to try and translate the video at all

[@Hadeshy]

I hate the way they implemented the new feature. Putting the translated audio automatically is so annoying, they litteraly could've give the option to pick our preference instead of having you put the original audio everytime, even on videos where you already asked for the original audio >_> It's crazy that, to get the option to not auto translate, I need to use revanced And of course the traduction is litteral cuz an AI can't pick up on context and understand, for exemple, that "spilled tea" doesn't actually refer to tea.

[@AverySometimesReads]

For anyone who doesn’t vibe with John Green’s fiction but does like the meaningful moments and ideas scattered throughout his novels, I would highly recommend his nonfiction work The Anthropocene Reviewed, if you’re willing to give him another try. I think he really shines as a nonfiction writer, and I think it’s his greatest work yet and well worth a read even for people who dislike his fiction.

[@anastasiakurakina1908]

I read The silent patient a few years ago. And it wasn't bad, but the ending didn't... just didn't work for me. And it's not about 'what happened', but more about 'how happened'.

[@tiffanyvantine3322]

I came here because I just finished reading Bride, and I was interested to see what you had to say. First off, you’re ruthless (not an insult, just an observation) with your ratings! I kind of love it! I could tell from the beginning , when you started talking about Remarkably Bright Creatures, which I really liked, that we would probably have differing opinions. So, here are my points of disagreement on Bride. 1. You felt the lore set up was uninteresting. I disagree. I’ve read lots of vampire books in my day, and I thought the idea of what are normally supernatural species being natural was a different and interesting take. Clearly we’ve got some differences in blood biology with the different colors, and I wish that had been explained a bit more. 2. You felt a lot of the lore was on one page and then discarded later. I think a lot of what you considered inconsistencies, I chalked up to Misery having spent so much of her life away from Vamp society. Her understanding of inter species relations is limited by her isolation as Collateral, and the species are really bad at communicating across lines, so I think that creates a lot of gaps. 3. I think I know the heel turn you’re referencing, and, when you consider how that character has been trying to protect others, and the phone call that comes right at that moment, I think it’s more understandable. But generally speaking, I tend to be a big proponent of “suspend all the disbelief!” and “I’m just here for the plot/romance.” I’ve read some books in the book club I belong to that we’re all setting and character study, and I was bored out of my mind. And classic suspenseful romance is. It may jam, but it sounds like you really like it. For example, in ‘23 on of my least favorite reads was Wuthering Heights, and this year, Rebecca is in the lower depths of my list. I can see the value in those books, and I’m glad I read them, but they just weren’t for me. But I really enjoyed this video, and hearing your perspective.

[@sandeesandwich2180]

The audiobook of Remarkably Bright Creatures is awesome. I probably would have liked it less in print.

[@jadebatugo]

I enjoyed the book in print, does the audiobook have multiple narrators?

[@sandeesandwich2180]

@@jadebatugo Yes. Two narrators. One woman who reads the main text, and Michael Urie who reads all the chapters that are in the octopus's voice. They are both excellent, but Urie really is memorable.

[@jadebatugo]

@@sandeesandwich2180 that’s so cool! i’ll have to check it out

[@ridingwilding760]

I completely agree about Remarkable Bright Creatures. I read it a couple years ago and DNF’d it at 2/3 through. I just couldn’t see the point in finishing it with so many other options available.

[@annalena9563]

Couldn't agreee more on what you said about A Court of Mist and Fury. I read that book for the sake of my best friend since she loves the series and I will nevel listen to her taste in anything after this ever again. However, I really like the Fault in Our Stars. This is because of personal experiences, my mother has cancer herself and a lot of media tackling chronically sick people often shows how that life is not worth living or uses it as inspiration p*rn for people who do not deal with the same issues. That book didn't do that or at least I didn't recognize it as such. It showed that these lifes are still worth living even if the time you have left is less than it is for others and the story over all helped me deal with a lot of pent up emotions I had about my mother. I can very much understand your gripes with it, though. The teens are very pretencious and if they were a few years older I couldn't have tolerated them either. It just spoke to me on a very personal level, which is what made it so special in my eyes.

[@alaynajordan8459]

I feel sorry for your friend

[@BookReviewsWithBecky]

OMG! I LOVED Remarkably Bright Creatures, and The Silent Patient! 🤩🤩

[@tiananesbitt7156]

😂Most readers hate it I enjoyed it 🎉

[@gallerhea5410]

The main thing that won me over with "Remarkably Bright Creatures" was the person narrating the voice of Marcellus in the audiobook. I am sure I would not have enjoyed this book as much in print form.

[@gregperianayagam4522]

I am curious how blood banks work in a world with vampires. Real-world blood banks have to keep asking for donations because they don't have enough blood. So to introduce a race of people that need blood to survive is through this one avenue seems to break this system. Unless you say people are donating many times more just to feed the vampires.

[@Montie-Adkins]

Maas, I read her first two assassin books and basically liked them but never continued on and they are all I have read from her. She gets her own table in B&N she has become so popular. I have some DNFs this year but the book I disliked the most that I completed was Moby Dick.

[@andreakimmel6651]

Yeah, I read 'Fault in our Stars' as a twenty-something, and did not enjoy it. I think it's something you have to read as a teen to really fully enjoy. The line about the cigaret being a metaphor made me want to throw the book across the room, but I was reading on my first Kindle and that would have been way too expensive.

[@LarsUelf]

Reader it at fourteen years old, didn't enjoy it then either haha I think what killed the book for me is that you can predict the entire plot after the first chapter

[@Hadeshy]

I distinctly remember being at a bookstore and being asked what I was looking for and saying "something without romance" cuz I was tired of teen romance and being recommandes this book. "I said no romance" "This isn't a romance book" When I saw the movie later as it was airing on TV, I was glad I didn't listen to them

[@bridgettelair370]

The only John Green book I've read is Looking for Alaska when I was in high school and I hated it. I hated it so much I was banned from the discussion about it in class. All the characters were so annoying and pretentious and "deep", so I never really picked up any others of his. For some reason though I always get The Fault in our Stars mixed up with Number the Stars, I have no clue why, I always think oh yeah I liked that book and then I see the cover doesn't have a girl on it and I'm like ah wrong book.

[@mikesbookreviews]

Thankfully, I missed all of these. But I did read one Backman book and it was a huge miss for me.

[@Sunshinysky432]

I read over 100 books this year. I loved Remarkably Bright Creatures and Silent Patient!!

[@ghastlymagician3336]

Im glad you spoke the truth on A Court of Mist and Fury, I actually didn't mind the first book, but the way the shift happen, caught me off guard and honestly offended. Yes Tamlin is not perfect and has faults, but that can be said for a majority of the charecters in the series, but forwhatever reason there wrongs were made ok and explained away, and Tamlin, even as he tried to do better, was made the scape goat. Still makes me rage thinking about it.

[@VoidDWG]

This the video I've been waiting all year for. Thank you murphy

[@AustinBeeman]

20:25 You missed the chance to say Maas en Masse.

[@heatherauton655]

I wish more who like the basic concepts of SJM would try The Black Jewels by Anne Bishop. Older series, much darker, more exploration of trauma, much better world building.

[@Bryanchappell3188]

Lost Story was my only DNF this year. I found the world to be kitschy and the love story to be forced and unecessary.

[@sheldonmack9977]

I literally can not understand the hype behind SJM at all. Her writing is mediocre, the plots are unfocused, and the angst/smut is just not enjoyable and makes her book feel juvenile.

[@richnewman]

It’s manufactured tik tok hype. Terrible author, horrific prose. Publishers pay for Barnes and Noble to push these authors/feature them on tables, etc.

[@celloishsugoi]

Agree with everything you said about Bride. I also just don’t understand why Ali Hazelwood cannot spell “vampire” like a normal person??

[@keyamazed1038]

Haven't read the Court books, the first one bored me to tears, but the other Maas book that came out this year, Crescent City 3, is probably the worst thing I read this year. The character of Bryce is insufferable. No matter how many times she does things behind her friends and lover's back, no matter all the bad decisions she makes, every single character can't help but blabber on about how great of a person she is, how great of a leader she is, yadda yadda. They try to pretend like Bryce is all these amazing things, but not only are there no examples of her being this amazing friend, there are examples of her being clearly the exact opposite. Crescent City 1 was so damn good in my opinion, but CC3 is honestly the book that made me quit Maas for good. Will always have the Throne of Glass with Elide and Lorcan at least.

[@clarkbayles9795]

RBC is the first book we have disagreed on! I am not sure how to feel about this. :)

[@greenjay7471]

I clicked on this purely for the Fault In Our Stars because I’m still mad about the Anne Frank house scene.

[@honestlythough7250]

I also hated fault in our stars when i was a teenager for mostly the same reasons, tho i also vividly remember being anti-augustus bc i didnt like his name 😅

[@simonchirps]

All the Opposites Attract books were great, Amber is the best, everyone needs to read these so you can be the Sunshine to Merphy's Grumpy!

[@suzboeh633]

Of your list I have only read The Silent Patient and Remarkably Bright Creatures. I liked aspects of both, so 3.5 stars for me and I spent an hour on vacation that included a trip to an aquarium to enjoy watching a GPO. Thank you for sparing me from reading the others on your list. So many books, so little time. Just subscribed. Look forward to seeing what you really like.

[@Paul_McSeol]

I had so many people recommend the Silent Patient. I enjoyed it but it didn’t feel like anything special like Gone Girl or Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. It was just…fine.

[@Horrorbabe4]

I have Gone Girl on my shelf and everytime I try to read it I get bored. Liked the movie though.

[@LightningRaven42]

The Millennium Trilogy works so well, at least for me, because of how it leans heavily on the characters and their relationships. When I was younger, I enjoyed the first book a lot more because it the most focused on the mystery, while the second and third were far more political. Rereading them after 10 years and a lot more understanding about politics, sexism, corruption and the role of investigative journalism, I enjoy the sequels even more (I didn't read the stuff after the original trilogy).

[@Paul_McSeol]

@@Horrorbabe4 Fair. I always found the second half of the book to be infinitely better, once you know what’s happening.

[@Horrorbabe4]

@@Paul_McSeol ill just open the book to the middle next time 🤭

[@amritasengupta5251]

I dnfd gone girl.😢​@@Horrorbabe4

[@pitstop_calvin]

I'm only about halfway through "The Fourth Wing" and it's already my top worst book Ive read in 2024! 😂

[@EmilyAnn634571]

Have you read fireborne? I didn’t bother with fourth wing because I’d heard fourth wing was a much worse rip off that’s only getting traction because of the spice. Fireborne has romance, but it’s the most adorable pg-13 thing I’ve read in a while. There’s a full page on him just being delighted that she’s holding his hand, it’s the cutest, but also an interesting take on young dragons not breathing fire until they “spark” and what makes them spark being a mystery and a compelling revolution plot

[@luckyowl6432]

When The Moon Hatched. No idea why I was so excited for this one I'm on my third try and I doubt I'll get any farther than the other attempts.

[@onemin8729]

Truee

[@VictoriaMorganawesometori]

I'm surprised you've given it a third shot.

[@DutchIsraeli]

I want to read the book about the octopus now! 😅 It sounds really unique. I agree about ACOMAF. I'm reading it right now and it's... annoying me.

[@he-might-be-giant]

12:28 Uh.. is that a Canadian I smell? How do you promise "sorry"

[@marywebb9264]

Silent Patient basic subpar and mediocre! It was part of the surge that started the horrid and overhyped (chick lit) “thriller” genre. Or should I say convoluted the actual thriller/mystery genre. I’m trying really hard to avoid them but they’re EVERYWHERE! I can’t search the genre anymore without a “silent patient” or a “gone girl 🙄” being thrust in my face!

[@alexsamatorchen97]

The silent patient sounds similar to a real patient who was catatonic and nonverbal and they found out after 20 years that she had lupus. They treated the lupus and she got better. Great story

[@chaotin42]

Satisfying to see "Bride" got only 1 star, it's so so bad! I DNFd it, though. But I didn't have a good time for the first 30% of the book

[@Missfireblossom]

First time to your channel and really enjoyed listening to your take on the books! I liked The Silent Patient, being a fan of medical-type yarns. However, while I have not--and now will not--read The Fault In Our Stars, I have just finished his Looking For Alaska and gave it 2 stars. What is it with John Green and cigarettes?

[@keravnos2231]

Hahahahahaha "can shred as fast as M&M shreds a line" 😂 what did I just hear. Please tell me that wasn't an actual line from the book

[@merphynapierreviews]

IT WAS THERE!

[@jenniferst.george810]

with remarkably bright creatures I found people were broken and needed Marcellus to bring them together. It was a cozy setting and sometimes we need that in life

[@missmaex3]

I had to dnf bride this year. I just was never gripped, and I was bored. I also dnf'd fear the flames and the serpent and the wings of night. I remember years ago, like mid-2010s reading the acotar series and not really getting the hype everyone else had for it, again never really gripped me. I think I've concluded that most romantasy might not be for me? I have better luck with just romance and just fantasy separately 😆

[@QuestLegacy]

Something tells me I might love the fault in our stars and that terrifies me

[@mcp0y3]

Omg i hated the silent patient it was so stupid, obvious, so many questions unanswered, corny ending.... Laughable that this was so popular. I realized popular and i don't mix

[@VictoriaMorganawesometori]

Mhhhmmm that was one of the first books to realize I need to be skeptical of Best Sellers

[@mcp0y3]

@VictoriaMorganawesometori as you should

[@Alicia_1970]

I read The Fault in Our Stars a few years ago and hated it so much 😂 I was so annoyed with the dialogue and I can't remember what else annoyed me lol

[@knittingnana2939]

I read the first "court" book and found it to be juvenile. Finished it and tried to read the second one and just could not.

[@vikillustrations]

I read The Fault in our stars when I was about 16-17 because my mom insisted I have to, it is important and she loves it... long story short I hated it. I couldn´t handle the pretentious ridiculous way it was written. It was the first book I ever gave 2 stars. You are the first person in those 6 years who agrees with me and it is downright therapeutic

[@violetlilith]

I absolutely hated The Silent Patient. It was just so stupid!

[@geraldmartin7703]

The inspiration for the first book might be based on a real event. An octopus in an aquarium escaped from its' tank and escaped down a drain which led to the ocean.

[@alexsamatorchen97]

The characters in TFIOS sounds exactly like my high school. Everyone was insecure and pretentious and trying to make other people feel bad. You could not pay me to go back to high school

[@nonstoptalkingwvivianlu3455]

Of this list, I’ve read three books: Bride, Fault in Our Stars, and ACOMAF. I liked those three when I read them.

[@petra1995]

I wanted The Fault in our Stars for my 18th birthday. I got it, but I never got around to reading it. Now I'm 29... Should I bother?

[@booksandtropes]

I'm happy I'm not the only one who disliked the silent patient (though the drama was fun, lol).. I'll say his other book 'The Maidens' was worst :(

[@marilynmillerwriter]

Do you have a video about Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow? I loved your critique here, BTW. You could go harder and give spoilers. If a book has been out 6+months, it's ok. Give a warning. You'll be able to illuminate structure and character flaws more, perhaps? I like your work 😊

[@enablingcuriosity]

I DNF'd _The Silent Patient_ I just didn't care about anybody. I did read the end before DNFing, because sometimes that makes me curious to see how the author got from here to there. In this case, it felt like a cheap trick, and I stuck with the DNF.

[@VictoriaMorganawesometori]

Absolutely a cheap trick. I loved the book up until the twist, ruined the whole book for me.

[@hej.anneli]

I didn't like ACOTAR, I already hated the extract or books sample online and I've been told so many times to give it a 'proper try' . Various BookTubers have been recommending it and praising it like liquid gold without giving anything to really entice me. Boy, do I love your breakdown of the books and why they didn't work for you! I feel 100% reassured and know that I wouldn't have liked them. Since I'm not one to DNF a book, I would probably have put myself in a slump or read on through gritted teeth just to finish it and hating every second of it! Thanks for sparing me ❤ I know how you felt about 'The Fault in Our Stars'. I read 'Five Feet Apart' this year because it's been on my bookshelf for ages and I felt so frustrated with their actions, dialogues and the characters but I know I would have LOVED it back in High School. I also loved the way they talked about CF, their hopes, dreams and how it feels to live with a chronic disease but I think I grew out of the characters somehow.

[@JLind854]

I’m just barely getting back into reading this year, particularly in the last few months mainly juggling between cosmere, acotar, and Hawthorne and Horowitz series. I feel like I had a fine time reading acotar, tho it felt a bit surface level and derivative, and the romance just never worked for me. I’m gonna start reading book 2 here soon after finishing Elantris and I’m almost more excited for it to just be bad because I know it’s gonna gloss over anything I actually find cool

[@t.a.summers]

I think reading The Fault in Our Stars, I definitely didn't like a lot of things about it. I read that book a little bit after my own mom passed from cancer. I can understand people gravitating to certain things about it, but I didn't like it. (I think I gave it 2.5 stars.) Left a sore space for me after I finished it, unfortunately.

[@t.a.summers]

Good to know on The Lost Story and Remarkably Bright Creatures, both are on my TBR and I'd heard praise on both, but I feel like I would have the same issues you did with them.

[@t.a.summers]

I loved your Bride review. 😂 Thank you for this video.

[@elrilmoonweaver4723]

GASLIT! Finally! A word to justify why I felt so put off by ACOMAF. After my initial read of the 4 books + novella published by Maas, I later went back and reread the first 2 books and I attempted to prove that Rhysand's deeds are not worth brushing under the rug as they are abhorrent in and of themselves. A lot of the gaslighting is done by Rhys himself as he plants seeds of doubt in Feyra's mind and Feyra being the depressive mess that she is, she does not question anything Rhys says, despite the guy literally twisting bone shard lodged in her shoulder in the first book - which counts as torture!

[@KyleTrebble]

Quick question- is your background a greenscreen? I’ve watched your videos for years and remember you used to grab books from the shelves, so I know they were real at some point. But now, it kind of looks like it isn’t actually there-maybe it’s just the depth of field or something. Either way, it’s got me wondering, haha!

[@leilanijenna]

I choose not to re read John green books bc I know in my heart of hearts that they are not going to be for me anymore as an adult. I refuse to let them be tainted in my grown up adult mind.

[@Theblondebass1]

Will you be reading wind and truth?

[@sandbun7348]

Yes, but not in Dec. Hopefully Jan.

[@cardboardtubeknight]

So glad to see someone else talk about The Fault in Our Stars like this. I tried to read it and quit when I got part of the way through, like the girl talking like the British Socialite was almost the last straw, but it was just cancer kid tragedy p--n and it felt emotionally manipulative.

[@harrypotter20083]

I love how Merphy just randomly forgets the name of a character 😂