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. :)