Hey bookworms! Sorry if you weren't looking for a rant in a video like this, I just don't like bullies on Twitter going after booktubers. Hope everyone had a great Christmas!
I'll admit, I usually don't care for rant-videos or "worst-book"- kind of videos, but I don't mind the ones you've done. You're never mean-spirited or shouty about it, you're always up front about it being your opinion, and acknowledge that others might disagere. I like that. I've followed one or two book-tubers who've slowly slid into having rage-reading and "bad books" as their main content, and after a while it just gets exhausting to watch. I mean, I get it, some people like that kind of stuff, and all better for them. And although I don't much like those videos myself, I agree with what you said, I don't think it's right for twitter-bullies to go after those book-vlogers.
You guys are not book critics and official reviewers, you are better. Why? Because you are down to earth, no circlejerk of elitism and writing for peers and not for consumers. No agenda pushing, etc. And i love it. Merry Christmas, Mike and everyone who reads it, and happy new year.
I, in general, try to stay away from books that have great “reviews” from the professional reviewers, because usually those critically-acclaimed books are not my style at all. I come to Booktube to get recommendations, because the creators are real people who actually read the books and enjoy the same type of things I do. Down-to-earth is SPOT ON!
@@jericosha2842 I tend to agree. It's been a while since i've read it, so I'm shy on a lot of the details but I remember it dragging on a bit at times. Also I had trouble connecting to some of the main characters. Plot was good overall though.
I liked Elantris well enough. I read it after I read Mistborn, which was the first of Sanderson's stuff I read. I'm glad I didn't read it first because I don't think I would have continued with him if I had.
While I didn't like Elantris as much as Warbreaker, (I expected to love it.)I still liked the worldbuilding and the characters...hmm need to reread it.
And OMG the duel between Rand and Darth Demandred was so epic, although I didn't like that they explained being able to channel the One Power with midichlorians, oh well.
I like when people talk about books they didn't enjoy. It makes it more authentic. When somebody only raves about every book I question if they're honest or not.
You Booktubers are more important than “journalists.” Your opinions are real and come from your hearts. I have chosen many books because of you alone, Mike. Thank you! Keep it all going💕
Thanks for your respectful video. Actually, one of the things I like most about your channel is your balanced approach to all your reviews. I don’t always have the same experience with a book, but we don’t need to have the same tastes. Keep doing what you do. Merry Christmas Mike!
This is why I read all the three star reviews for a book(they tend to be more thoughtful and balanced and you can get a better sense of the books quality from them) or wait for a book tuber whose tastes are close to mine to recommend it before buying. Books are too dang expensive and too much of an investment of time to read something you don’t enjoy and honest reviews are a gift to people who only have so much free time. I have two kids I hustle to different events and cook meals for a house to maintain and a wife I like to spend time with. My reading time is basically me sacrificing sleep and it is precious, so from the depths of my heart...Thanks for being honest.
Amen, Mike! If we only ever said wonderful things about the books we review, no one would have any reason to listen to us because we wouldn’t be believable. I love the therapeutic pause after you mentioned Sanderson. Ha ha! Even a writer with as much success as he has can have a miss.
I think you're more likely to write bad books if you're successful. You already know a good chunk of people will buy and like it regardless of quality.
Great video! I completely agree with you, by the way. It was disappointing to see the behavior of certain authors toward that booktuber. I am relatively new to "booktube", but it's quite clear that "most disappointing books" videos are not a new phenomenon. People have every right to express their opinions, even negative ones, respectfully. There are a few of these books (Elantris, The Talisman, The Hunger) that are on my TBR. I still plan to read them, but will temper my expectations a bit. This is off-topic, but there have been similar situations in non-book fandoms, where certain folks get quite rude and aggressive when fans dare to have a negative opinion about something: Star Wars (The Last Jedi), Supernatural (the finale), TMNT (lesser known example regarding the 2012 cartoon series; also a very long story) Anyway, thank you for taking the time to make this, and for sharing this.
The sip of coffee before talking about Sanderson is priceless LOL 😂 Elantris didn't work for me either, that's why I used to stick to Mistborn for a long time. But now I've read other stuff from the cosmere.
Let me guess, the author vs. reviewer drama was from Book Twitter, wasn't it? I don't have Twitter but I'd be surprised if it wasn't from there because Twitter, whatever faction it is, is the home of all things bigoted and disgusting. Like most of this is just unnecessary drama. I honestly feel like most people on Twitter just need a nice, attractive therapist or a fluffy pillow to scream their fucking heads off!
The Phantom Menace reference broke my heart haha. I love the prequel films. Anyways, loved the video! You are spot on when you said that writers should expect criticism, and, as an author myself, I can say it's the nature of the beast. Some people will love your work, others will think you can't worth crap. On one of my stories I had people who thought it was well written, while a few others thought my writing was subpar. You can't please everyone, and to be a professional writer (or a hobbyist who enjoys putting their work out there as I am), you need to learn how to take criticism, valid and bullshit alike.
Booktubers ARE legitimate critics. I don't understand why some people refuse to acknowledge this fact. Just because Booktubers aren't a part of a major journalist publication doesn't mean that they aren't performing the same cultural function of a critic. And, yes, Mike, I agree, Booktubers should be left alone to make their lists, as long as they're not being malicious. On the other hand, those Booktubers (just like the authors they criticize) need to be okay with the criticism they receive, whether that's from their fanbase or from anyone really. PS. Can't wait for the MALAZAN read-along :)
Strongly agree with your rant! The point of reviewing books is that you help other people decide what books they will probably like and probably dislike. A reviewer disliking a book doesn't necessary harm the author, because their reasons to dislike a book, might be my reasons to be interested in it and pick the book up. I do agree that it needs to be done respectful, but if a reviewer can only praise books and not say anything negative, it kind of throws out the entire point of making and watching reviews.
Mike , you keep going. You are obviously a lover of books and a seeker of stories and that's good. Remember when we speak out about anything at all ,we are vocalising not just our point of view but the point of view of others who may feel seem the way. Others may disagree with our assesments and that's fine; their voices will represent others who feel the way that they do since you cannot have an absolute. So keep ranting ,commenting and criticising that is the way we all gain true knowledge
I think it sometimes just depends on where you're at in life. What your emotional levels are. I have read books and depending on the mentioned aspects, my enjoyment of the books differed. Perhaps this applies to other people too and would influence what they feel is their most dissapointing reads of the year.
I appreciate that you took this opportunity to address this controversial topic (and it should really not be controversial at all). And you did it with the approach that I like the most: constructive criticism. And let's be honest here. There are many books competing for our attention as readers; from a purely economic perspective, the time I spend on one book cannot be spent reading another book so resources are limited. It is appropriate (in fact, welcome!) for reviewers to say whether a book worked for one's taste or not and help understanding why it worked or not. It helps audiences to decide whether to read the book (above, too many books for the time available and a reader has to select what to read) and, in my opinion, authors as well if they are willing to listen. Constructive criticism is at the heart of growth for anyone, in my opinion. Well done Mike!
I appreciate all of your work. Everyone has a right to their opinions too. Gavin didn’t make his worst books or most disappointing books video to insult anyone, he even said it was his opinions. Much like you, he talks about why the books didn’t land for him. I appreciate Booktubers who actually read the books, and who are honest - not every book is going to be great, and that’s not an insult to the author. If an author can’t handle that people have differing opinions, maybe they need hide in a basement away from anyone who thinks differently. They need to put on their big girl panties or grow a pair. I think most Booktubers create videos as a work of love for the books, not for some kind of spotlight. The authors that reacted and targeted Gavin on Twitter lost any business from me (although, to be honest, I had never heard of any of them, so they may dabble in different genres than I read). Keep doing what you are doing, Mike! You’re content is spot on, and you are by far my favorite creator on Booktube. I appreciate this video too.
Elantris is definitely the weakest Sanderson novel in terms of quality, but I am still excited for a sequel, because Sel as a world is one of the most interesting worlds in the Cosmere, and I'd like to see him revisit those characters with all this extra experience under his belt. Edit: That said, I also want a warbreaker sequel more, because Nightblood. Nightblood alone is enough reason to make it my most anticipated book.
I'm someone who loved The Talisman, but then I originally read it when I was 18 and living in Belgium as an exchange student wayyyy back in 1984. I was already a fan of both authors, and so I gobbled it up. Straub is much less accessible than King, but I dig him. I completely understand why you wouldn't like the book, and I'm even willing to admit I liked it less when I re-read it a few years ago. Sometimes a book "speaks" to you when you're in a certain frame of mind or even place. At the time I needed anything that reminded me of home. With regards to negative reviews in general, I'm totally with you, Mike. In my case, I've had to weather a number of negative reviews of my first book. My attitude is to take them with a grain of salt, and to understand that some people are just not going to like what you write/have to say. Most of my reviews have been very positive, so I don't sweat the negative ones.
@@turtleanton6539 I love Daniel Greene. So no hate for him here. I also appreciate people being passionate about their Fandom. Just makes me laugh when people are shocked I don't really care for BS.
As a Sanderson fan I agree with others that the fanbase is sometimes really toxic and we tend to put him on too much of a pedestal. I personally like Elantra’s, even though I agree with your review. You can clearly see the beginning of ideas he would later develop, but it just still isn’t there. And also as you said no one is perfect.
I happen to enjoy when readers give rant reviews to bad books. There are so many positive reviews for books that are horrible; we really need to achieve some balance. Liked and subscribed.
HOT TAKE.... I actually find it MUCH more helpful to read negative reviews than positive ones! Here's why: When I go on Amazon to buy anything, I tend to head straight to the 1 and 2 star reviews. I find that most 5 star reviews for a product are all the same. "I loved it!" "This was awesome!" "This product worked just the way it was supposed to!" "It arrived in great condition and quickly!" (Ok, the last one has no business on an Amazon product review page, and I can't fathom why people can't understand that the delivery of a product and it's condition should be under the "seller" section.... but that's neither here nor there). But it all boils down to the fact that negative reviews are a LOT more detailed. I can find out the ins and outs of a product by reading the specific complaints from customers. But the 5 stars are just all gushing praise and saying things that I ALREADY expect from a product I am looking at. Well, the same goes for book (and movie) reviews. I find too many reviews from Booktubers that gush and praise a book. Yeah, they may give a couple of reasons why the books was good, but many of the positive aspects I could pick up on by reading a synopsis of the book. But the negative book reviews go really in depth and tend to be much more analytical. And that's what I miss from Booktube. A couple of years ago, there were so many more critical analysis and reviews of subpar books. But over the past year, it's almost all sunshine and roses. And while this is no one's fault, I find that I've been more disappointed in the books I've been reading lately. I've also noticed that many Booktubers are starting to interact much more with the Author community. There have been a ton of interviews and discussions with big time authors over the past year. I know a lot of this could be due to the pandemic, but I also feel that this is partially what has lead to so many Booktubers avoiding negative reviews. They don't want to sour a relationship with an author (or to have other authors be more likely to decline an interview for fear of their book being panned in the future). But all in all, keep up the good work. I find your reviews (even the positive ones) to be more even-keel and critical than most. PS - As you might remember... I've been the biggest shouter of Michael J. Sullivan and the Riyria books over the past year. So I am DEEPLY saddened that you didn't like the Emerald Storm. You didn't like Wesley or ANY of the crew? It is actually one of my favorite books of the series! But I guess if you don't like the boat setting, then it wouldn't float your boat!!! But I URGE you to finish the series! The final book (Percepliquis (specifically), or the omnibus Heir of Novron) gives us the single greatest ending to any fantasy series of all time! I do not exaggerate. The entire book is a great quest story, with twists, turns, suspense, tension, brotherhood, romance, magic, history, mysteries, reveals... and the final scene brought me to tears. No one knows how to incorporate every single detail they've been laying since book one into their finale like Sullivan. PLEASE read this series till the end. You will love it!!! And it's a pretty quick read too.
Agreed on all fronts! Very few of us knowingly pick up books we expect to dislike, so when you're stoked to get into something you've been looking forward to picking up for a while and it is a dud to you it sucks. It feels good to commiserate with others who may also have been disappointed. That's the value in lists like these for me anyway. My most disappointing books this year include Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo (I've either enjoyed well enough or loved all her other books she's ever put out, but I DNF'd Ninth House after 100 pages) and Home Before Dark by Riley Sager (ugh, it's like a store brand Haunting of Hill House, which is my favorite thing ever so I don't appreciate cheap knock offs of it).
Ninth house was my introduction to Bardugo and I was very “this is it?” All the time. Not a bad book but I was expecting something more I guess, since the author is hyped as hell.
I just started Theft of Swords (only on page 34). I picked it up based on the fact that the used bookstore had all 3 of the first trilogy and knew/know nothing about it. Kinda nervous about the boat book, but we'll see how it goes. Not gonna give up on it. I'm thinking about doing the Malazan read-a-long, but I'm also nervous I won't keep up. I devoured books throughout school, but made a goal to read 12 books this year and I'm only on 9 (and I don't think I'll finish before the 31st). All that to say I don't trust myself to keep up, but will probably get Gardens of the Moon and at least try. Really enjoy your channel!
Merry Christmas Mike! Good list can definitely see where you're coming from but I would still rather read every book on this list back to back than have the experience I had reading Rythmn of War
I read Elantris a while back and remember liking it pretty well, though I remember Mistborn and Warbreaker being a huge leap forward for his writing even then. And after reading Rhythm of War recently, I wanted to go back and reread all the Cosmere stuff so I could catch whatever cross-overs I may have missed. But I DNF'd Elantris that second time through, about 150 pages in. It just wasn't doing it for me and a figured I definitely didn't need to RE-read it at that point, so I moved on to a trilogy my dad was wanting me to read. Elantris really does pale in comparison to pretty much all of his other works, but I suppose that just speaks to how well he was able to springboard into writing and keep his momentum. One decent book and then hit after hit is still a fantastic career.
They most likely feel threatened by some of the influence that 'book bloggers' can have due to the platforms they use being so large and Booktube increasing in popularity/size. Probably makes them feel better to decrease that threat in their mind by belittling it. The criticism they receive could be their best friend and some authors could do well in taking it with a pinch of salt and using it to improve on their writing flaws. I agreed with you though Mike, criticism does not equal hate and there are plenty of writers out there who are still good people and decent writers regardless of flaws!
All very valid points. No book or author will ever appeal to everyone, and anything created that gets put out in public will receive criticism. As long as the criticism is a fairly given opinion you can learn from it , engage in a discussion or ignore it . Even if it's unfair or stated as fact, you can learn, discuss or ignore. Attacking is never the right option, and mostly a sign of immaturity.
Some books are good. Some books are bad. If they were confident enough to publish a book and have it beaten by critics, they should expect the people that are actual consumers/readers/fans to do the same. I'm not a critic professionally but I studied literature for years. I can have an educated opinion on a book and so can everyone else.
Not disappointed with this video. The older I get, the easier it becomes for me to get disappointed. Especially when a book becomes so popular, is everyone's "favorite", and is a "must read". When I was younger I had a thing about finishing every book I ever started to read whether I liked it it or not. Now It's like, man there's just not a lot of time left! I know there's still so many good books out there to read. Happy New Year!
I know this video is old but Amazonia, the Yagga Tree was one of the coolest concepts I'd seen in a while but my god the tropes were like an avalanche of sludge and the characters were as lively as cardboard.
I think that Talisman reads best for a younger reader. I read it when it was new(ish?) book, in my sophomore year of college (1984/85). I read it after reading Eyes of the Dragon, by King, which I also loved. I have never gotten around to reading the Dark Tower series, but now that I know some of my favorites (Talisman, Eyes of the Dragon, The Stand, It, Rose Madder, 'Salem's Lot) are tie-ins with the series, I'm going to be diving in, starting in October. I'm looking forward to be reading the expanded world version, using Jimmy Mango's list as my guide.
Merry Christmas, Mike. I don't comment often but I do love your content and you're definitely one of my favorite booktubers. I'm glad you released this video because the idea that you shouldn't voice your disappointment in books from booktube is dumb. Of course you will have books you won't enjoy. Heck, while I enjoy you praising stuff, seeing you pinpoint exactly why you dislike a book and constructively point out a better example a revision actually is a useful tool. Namely, for the author if they are willing to listen and also future writers as well. Nobody seeks to make a bad book/ bad product. But what one should takeaway is that your work will always have some kind of flaw. And that's ok. Strive to improve the best you can. The moment one becomes complacent is when they are prone to failure.
I don't know what I was doing wrong this year, but I read mostly books that ended up being just ok, in my opinion. I was most disappointed by the final few books in the Witcher series. The series started out fairly strong, but in my opinion it kept getting worse and worse, until I finished Lady of the Lake and just said "wait. what?" Two others that come to mind are Royal Assassin, which was a total surprise because I loved Assassin's Apprentice, and Armada, which disappointed me enough that I have no desire to read anything else by the author. I'm going to pay better attention to my book selection next year. Personally, I prefer honest reviews of books even if it's an unpopular opinion. I adore Sanderson's works but Elantris just wasn't up to par. Makes sense, since it's his first (or one of his first, I forget). He hadn't yet hit his stride.
Well my disappointing books of the year are: 1. Six Sacred Swords - I DNF'd it which I honestly very rarely do with a book but this just kept destroying a character that I really liked in the Arcane Ascension series. I chose to "keep the character in my mind" how I remember him from AA. 2. Ready Player Two - So...I bought this one and then decided to not even start it. Bullet dogged there. AND unpopular opinion time (but it's a hill I'm willing to die on) 3. The Mistborn series (era 1) - The Final Empire was the first Brandon Sanderson book I read. It was fine but didn't quite hook me. Couple of month later I picked up SA (became my favorite series of all time) and after that I went back to Mistborn. Still didn't like it. I finished era 1 and while the ending was great I still think the series is just meh. I'm going through Elantris now and while definitely not SA quality I think it's still better than Mistborn.
I kinda agree with Winter's Heart. There were some parts I didn't particularly care about, but to me, what lessen enormously the enjoyment, was the pacing. We get excited about the cleaning of Saiding, then the story jumps to Mat, I had to re build my excitement and then again we jumped onto other character. Not my favourite to be sure.
I recently finished B&N's H.P. Lovecraft's complete fiction. I really enjoyed most of his stories but had to slog through "The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath." One of my favorite series of books is the Foundation series by Isaac Asimov. I made the mistake of buying (on Kindle thank god) the three Second Foundation trilogy of books "Foundation's Fear" by Gregory Benford, "Foundation and Chaos" by Greg Bear and "Foundation's Triumph" by David Brin. I slogged through the first book, couldn't make it through the second and haven't even tried reading the third.
Entertainment Weekly & People magazine do a Best and Worst Lists every year. No one goes after them for doing that. Mike, just keep posting what you want. If you want to make a Worst List, then do it.
Here.. I'll go too. I adore Stephen King, he has been my favorite author for over 35 years. I was disappointed in If it Bleeds. The three short stories were great, classic King, except for Life of Chuck which was a departure but I still enjoyed it.. very experimental/weird fiction. The title story took up half the book and bored me to tears. It featured a character that has been in four of his recent novels and I'm beyond tired of... and was an inferior copy of The Outsider. There was no reason for this story to exist. The first chapter was fabulous and I wish he had taken that and gone a completely different direction with it. When I realized where it was going I actually put the book away and didn't finish it for months... and I typically read a new book of his the minute it comes out and finish it within a day or two. It won't stop me from snapping up the next one, in fact I already have it on reserve.
@@mikesbookreviews Jerome was in the story as was his sister.. but they were just kind of there, bascially name drops as anyone could have taken their places in the plot. I liked Holly at first, it was nice to see a character on the spectrum (she reminds me of my daughter actually) and she was handled well.. but enough already lol. I wouldn't have minded as much if the story itself were more original and took the characters somewhere new.
I completely agree with you about the rant argument.I also learned that the reviews on Booktube are very subjective. The best example for me is Elantris, it was my first Sanderson book and I loved it. After that,reading Warbreaker and Mistborn I saw the differences, but still, I enjoyed Elantris more (the only book I cried for) than Mistborn Era II. My most disappointing book this year was:The Doors of Eden by Adrian Tchaikovsky. P.S.I hope you will make a video about your best books which you read this year.
I just got Ryria Revaluations for Christmas. Can't wait to read them, and knowing one of them takes place all on a ship sounds awesome actually! I'm a big Master and Commander fan.
I chose to read Sanderson's works in publication order. When I read Elantris I was completely blown away by how good it was. Now that I've read a lot more (including almost all of his other work) I'm not sure it would hold up to another reading
I loved the last two Dark Tower books. They worked for me. The first one, not so much. The bigger point being that it is totally okay to share your own personal reactions, positive or negative, to books, and it's totally okay for other people's reactions to differ.
Coming to this video super late, but have to comment. I am literally SO HAPPY you are talking about Sullivan and that you are buying his books and mostly enjoying them! He is definitely underrated! I do have to say that I LOVED the Emerald Storm.😅 I'm now 3 books into the Ryiria chronicles and really enjoying it!
Huge Sanderson fan here and I totally agree. I read Elantris after both Mistborn trilogies and had the same feelings. Should've read them in publication order!
My disappointments that I read in 2020: 4. Rhythm of War, I liked it overall but it didn’t live up to my built up hype. 3 and 2. Baptism of Fire and Tower of Swallows, the series started to feel off to me here and I was surprised at the praise these books get. The Lady of the Lake did end up making the payoff worth it though. 1. Saints Blood, I have the same criticisms that Mike has.
Mike, I love your channel, and I appreciate what you do here. We here have your back brother! I too have read books that didn’t work for me. And I’m a lifelong Prince fan, and I don’t like every song of his. It’s life. Merry Christmas and keep doing what you are doing!
Thank you for your honesty and humor! I loved the Greatcoats! Although Saint's Blood might not be the strongest, it has one of the most devastating scenes of the series.
Mate you are the man for bucking social norms. One point, I think authors should have every right to respond to critics if they want to. But if they do it in a duchey way, people will see it.
My most disappointing read of the year was Bird Box by a substantial margin. *ducking behind cover* And I don't like Sanderson's books, they feel very bland to me. Same for WoT, where every good idea that was hinted at got lost along the way. Every story thread I kinda liked was dismissed. And the only unpredictable thing was how many books it took to reach the very obvious conclusion to several of the threads that were not dismissed. Well, it just wasn't for me, I also didn't enjoy the writing style, same with Sanderson.
Love the Channel. You have introduced me to several books over the past year. As far as books that didn't work for me I read in 2020. Quil by A.C Cobble, Malorie by Josh Malerman, Unsouled by Will Wight, The Shadow of What Was Lost by James Islington. Keep up the great videos.
Free speech includes criticism. No one likes to be criticized, but everyone has the right to. I am reminded of Fahrenheit 451 in terms of a need for protection from anything that isn’t positive. A great book. Great video too!
If I was an author I would like to get criticism because it is a way to improve. And one thing, I think the booktubers, youtubers, blogs, etc are the most important reviews and critics nowadays because they represent the average reader, the actually people who gonna buy the book. Merry Christmas Mike and to all of your viewers.
I am curious which authors are doing these kind of claims. I’m a university prof. When someone gives me a bad review yeah it sucks…but I don’t send those who DO like my teaching to gun for them.
No!!! I just got Elantris to try out Brandon Sanderson. Now I'll go into the book knowing that some people hate it. It's okay though, I love your channel!
or... you read it, and love it. then realize; sanderson gets way more polished as an author after Elantris. and you have a ton of books to look forward to reading now. happy reading!
Good example of how to do a video like this. Completely respectful and valid criticism. Also I'm reading Winter's Heart right now and even though I kind of like it I definitely agree it spends a lot of time on lesser characters.
Interesting! One of the reason to follow booktubers is to hear other opinions than my own. I read Elantris and Mistborn (both eras) this year. And Elantris was the one who stuck with me. Not perfect. Not one of my favorites in any way. But it had some really interesting ideas. So I looked forward to see what he did with this Mistborn series I've heard so much about. But wow, that let me down (I need to DNF things more often). Certainly one of my own most disappointing reads (technically I listened) of the year. I do agree though, that Elantris do not need a sequel. Part of what I liked was that it was a stand alone.
have you checked out the Emperor’s Soul audiobook? same world as Elantris & similar magic. but stands alone, and is shorter. and one of my favourite sanderson works.
I read my first Brandon Sanderson book this year. I chose "Steelheart" because superpowers interest me more than magic. I felt the writing was pedestrian. I'm willing to accept that this series might be for a younger crowd, but it makes me hesitant to pick up more of his work because the prose really left me cold. Is "Mistborn" really that much better written?
I warned you about winter's heart. That was the one that beat me in my original read. I did the first six books in like six weeks. Seven and eight took like two more months. Winter's Heart... 3 years
I can certainly understand how they would be upset though after putting their heart and soul into something, and then having someone - it on social media. So I deafly think we should take into account their feelings and their investment. Criticism should always be constructive.
Hey Mike! Thank you for turning my attention to Steven Erikson. I knew about the books, as I worked in a bookstore way back in 2002-2004. I just started reading Gardens of the Moon, and am already 1/4 of the way through. I'm going to keep reading. Thank you for your insights!
Mike, I'm sure you don't get to read all your comments. But if you get all the way down to...looks at the count...number 223...this video has almost convinced me to subscribe finally. I agree with you that one disappointing book doesn't make a bad author. And any criticism offered with explanation can be constructive. I'm a Sanderson fan and I TOTALLY understood when you held up Elantris. And I'm right there with you about Talisman. I've always felt weird about that one. There are a lot of scenes that work for me and character writing that feels true, but something in the delivery often feels false. Are you on GoodReads? I would love to be your friend on that site and follow your reviews/ratings. I get about 100 in a year (I consider graphic novels books, dammit) and my reviews are something like a paragraph at most on average. Just something to give myself and others an idea of how I felt and what I was focusing on as I finished the book. Same picture. Same name.
So, I'm about to venture into Sanderson's adult books, so would Elantris or Warbreaker be the best places start? I prefer to read the weakest ones first, because I really enjoyed the Steelheart trilogy probably because I haven't read his best work yet. Loved the video!
Absolutely right. There is nothing malicious about a balanced opinion of a piece of work. Obviously it would be awkward for you to call out which author or authors had something to say about booktubers, but for me to have a further opinion on this I would need to see what has been said and what examples were given.
I completely agree! I pushed though, and found it did pick up after a while (they introduced a companion for Jack who immediately made the whole story far more engaging delightful and interesting). Once he was introduced, something clicked into place and I was able to get fully into the book. There were still pacing problems though, but by the end, I enjoyed the reading experience as a whole. Totally get where you’re coming from though. :)
I wonder if The Talisman hits better with people like myself who aren’t huge into the fantasy genre. Admittedly, my palate is not as refined in that regard compared to someone like yourself who reads a lot of books in the genre, so it felt more fresh and original to me. I actually prefer Black House to this book. it’s way darker and leans a lot more heavily on the horror elements. It’s more in my wheelhouse. And as a viewer, I’d be disappointed to get anything other than honesty from a BookTuber. I think you always do a great job of being critical in a respectful manner.
Book 10 of The Wheel of Time is the one I warn people about. I think all the other books are good but man that book is a hard read even on multiple read throughs.
If you haven't read it, a really good collaboration book is Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. It was written about 30 years ago but they just recently did a mini-series adaptation (the mini-series was ok imho, but the book is better).
I don't know which author was talking shit, but I would strongly encourage them to go right ahead and put out that list. Every booktuber and blogger they mention will get a huge uptick in views, and the author in question will get a much-deserved tanking of their reputation (and maybe even career).
Hey bookworms! Sorry if you weren't looking for a rant in a video like this, I just don't like bullies on Twitter going after booktubers. Hope everyone had a great Christmas!
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@@Dave-sk9mn 0
I'll admit, I usually don't care for rant-videos or "worst-book"- kind of videos, but I don't mind the ones you've done. You're never mean-spirited or shouty about it, you're always up front about it being your opinion, and acknowledge that others might disagere. I like that.
I've followed one or two book-tubers who've slowly slid into having rage-reading and "bad books" as their main content, and after a while it just gets exhausting to watch. I mean, I get it, some people like that kind of stuff, and all better for them. And although I don't much like those videos myself, I agree with what you said, I don't think it's right for twitter-bullies to go after those book-vlogers.
You guys are not book critics and official reviewers, you are better.
Why? Because you are down to earth, no circlejerk of elitism and writing for peers and not for consumers. No agenda pushing, etc.
And i love it.
Merry Christmas, Mike and everyone who reads it, and happy new year.
I, in general, try to stay away from books that have great “reviews” from the professional reviewers, because usually those critically-acclaimed books are not my style at all. I come to Booktube to get recommendations, because the creators are real people who actually read the books and enjoy the same type of things I do. Down-to-earth is SPOT ON!
No one is ever above criticism. Ever. Keep doing what you do, Mike!
Even Brandon Sanderson says Elantris isn’t very good. People need to chill.
That's funny, because it's still a good story lol.
@@jericosha2842 I tend to agree. It's been a while since i've read it, so I'm shy on a lot of the details but I remember it dragging on a bit at times. Also I had trouble connecting to some of the main characters. Plot was good overall though.
I liked Elantris well enough. I read it after I read Mistborn, which was the first of Sanderson's stuff I read. I'm glad I didn't read it first because I don't think I would have continued with him if I had.
While I didn't like Elantris as much as Warbreaker, (I expected to love it.)I still liked the worldbuilding and the characters...hmm need to reread it.
Trevor Wingard I’m glad he knows it wasn’t very good. I read that book. And it was definitely a disappointment.
It really feels like booktubers/readers don't criticise the books enough.
I’m making my way through the Wheel of Time, really looking forward to the pod racing scene in Winter’s Heart!
And OMG the duel between Rand and Darth Demandred was so epic, although I didn't like that they explained being able to channel the One Power with midichlorians, oh well.
*blurt laugh*
! Spoiler Alert !
I like when people talk about books they didn't enjoy. It makes it more authentic. When somebody only raves about every book I question if they're honest or not.
I buy books because you recommend them. That makes you official in my eyes.
✊✊
PS - I dig the 90s throwback tee.
Happy Christmas to all of the book worms out there.
You Booktubers are more important than “journalists.” Your opinions are real and come from your hearts. I have chosen many books because of you alone, Mike. Thank you! Keep it all going💕
my sister just started Winter’s Heart.. i made sure she was appropriately warned.
Make sure you give her a bigger warning for Crossroads of Twilight.
Thanks for your respectful video. Actually, one of the things I like most about your channel is your balanced approach to all your reviews. I don’t always have the same experience with a book, but we don’t need to have the same tastes. Keep doing what you do. Merry Christmas Mike!
Hear head !
This is why I read all the three star reviews for a book(they tend to be more thoughtful and balanced and you can get a better sense of the books quality from them) or wait for a book tuber whose tastes are close to mine to recommend it before buying. Books are too dang expensive and too much of an investment of time to read something you don’t enjoy and honest reviews are a gift to people who only have so much free time. I have two kids I hustle to different events and cook meals for a house to maintain and a wife I like to spend time with. My reading time is basically me sacrificing sleep and it is precious, so from the depths of my heart...Thanks for being honest.
Amen, Mike! If we only ever said wonderful things about the books we review, no one would have any reason to listen to us because we wouldn’t be believable. I love the therapeutic pause after you mentioned Sanderson. Ha ha! Even a writer with as much success as he has can have a miss.
I think you're more likely to write bad books if you're successful. You already know a good chunk of people will buy and like it regardless of quality.
@@forwhy8723 Excellent point, and that definitely happens!
I read Elantris after Mistborn and I felt exactly the same, then realising it was written earlier took away almost all the disappointment. :)
Great video! I completely agree with you, by the way. It was disappointing to see the behavior of certain authors toward that booktuber. I am relatively new to "booktube", but it's quite clear that "most disappointing books" videos are not a new phenomenon. People have every right to express their opinions, even negative ones, respectfully.
There are a few of these books (Elantris, The Talisman, The Hunger) that are on my TBR. I still plan to read them, but will temper my expectations a bit.
This is off-topic, but there have been similar situations in non-book fandoms, where certain folks get quite rude and aggressive when fans dare to have a negative opinion about something: Star Wars (The Last Jedi), Supernatural (the finale), TMNT (lesser known example regarding the 2012 cartoon series; also a very long story)
Anyway, thank you for taking the time to make this, and for sharing this.
"I covered A LOT of Brandon Sanderson this year."
Long sip of coffee...
lol
The sip of coffee before talking about Sanderson is priceless LOL 😂 Elantris didn't work for me either, that's why I used to stick to Mistborn for a long time. But now I've read other stuff from the cosmere.
Let me guess, the author vs. reviewer drama was from Book Twitter, wasn't it? I don't have Twitter but I'd be surprised if it wasn't from there because Twitter, whatever faction it is, is the home of all things bigoted and disgusting. Like most of this is just unnecessary drama. I honestly feel like most people on Twitter just need a nice, attractive therapist or a fluffy pillow to scream their fucking heads off!
Of course it was. Everyone just turns it to 11 with the anger on that app.
See that's why I don't go there. Nothing good happes there.
I'd forgive Erickson anything, up and including murder (not that he would ever do it).
I was like "IF HE HOLDS UP RHYTHM OF WAR WE ARE GONNA RIOT" then he said Elantris and I was like.... "oh okay. That makes sense." LMAOOO
No book is without criticism
@@forwhy8723 of course. All art is subjective!
I was kinda enjoying it, though I'm yet to finish it.
@@cybersketcher1130 Elantris or Rhythm if War?
@@mooahhdeeb Elantris, though not for the characters.
The Phantom Menace reference broke my heart haha. I love the prequel films.
Anyways, loved the video! You are spot on when you said that writers should expect criticism, and, as an author myself, I can say it's the nature of the beast. Some people will love your work, others will think you can't worth crap. On one of my stories I had people who thought it was well written, while a few others thought my writing was subpar.
You can't please everyone, and to be a professional writer (or a hobbyist who enjoys putting their work out there as I am), you need to learn how to take criticism, valid and bullshit alike.
Booktubers ARE legitimate critics. I don't understand why some people refuse to acknowledge this fact. Just because Booktubers aren't a part of a major journalist publication doesn't mean that they aren't performing the same cultural function of a critic. And, yes, Mike, I agree, Booktubers should be left alone to make their lists, as long as they're not being malicious. On the other hand, those Booktubers (just like the authors they criticize) need to be okay with the criticism they receive, whether that's from their fanbase or from anyone really.
PS. Can't wait for the MALAZAN read-along :)
Strongly agree with your rant! The point of reviewing books is that you help other people decide what books they will probably like and probably dislike. A reviewer disliking a book doesn't necessary harm the author, because their reasons to dislike a book, might be my reasons to be interested in it and pick the book up. I do agree that it needs to be done respectful, but if a reviewer can only praise books and not say anything negative, it kind of throws out the entire point of making and watching reviews.
Mike , you keep going. You are obviously a lover of books and a seeker of stories and that's good. Remember when we speak out about anything at all ,we are vocalising not just our point of view but the point of view of others who may feel seem the way. Others may disagree with our assesments and that's fine; their voices will represent others who feel the way that they do since you cannot have an absolute. So keep ranting ,commenting and criticising that is the way we all gain true knowledge
I think it sometimes just depends on where you're at in life. What your emotional levels are.
I have read books and depending on the mentioned aspects, my enjoyment of the books differed.
Perhaps this applies to other people too and would influence what they feel is their most dissapointing reads of the year.
I appreciate that you took this opportunity to address this controversial topic (and it should really not be controversial at all). And you did it with the approach that I like the most: constructive criticism. And let's be honest here. There are many books competing for our attention as readers; from a purely economic perspective, the time I spend on one book cannot be spent reading another book so resources are limited. It is appropriate (in fact, welcome!) for reviewers to say whether a book worked for one's taste or not and help understanding why it worked or not. It helps audiences to decide whether to read the book (above, too many books for the time available and a reader has to select what to read) and, in my opinion, authors as well if they are willing to listen. Constructive criticism is at the heart of growth for anyone, in my opinion. Well done Mike!
I loved Elantris, I didn't have any expectations because I knew it was his first published book.
I appreciate all of your work. Everyone has a right to their opinions too. Gavin didn’t make his worst books or most disappointing books video to insult anyone, he even said it was his opinions. Much like you, he talks about why the books didn’t land for him. I appreciate Booktubers who actually read the books, and who are honest - not every book is going to be great, and that’s not an insult to the author. If an author can’t handle that people have differing opinions, maybe they need hide in a basement away from anyone who thinks differently. They need to put on their big girl panties or grow a pair. I think most Booktubers create videos as a work of love for the books, not for some kind of spotlight. The authors that reacted and targeted Gavin on Twitter lost any business from me (although, to be honest, I had never heard of any of them, so they may dabble in different genres than I read). Keep doing what you are doing, Mike! You’re content is spot on, and you are by far my favorite creator on Booktube. I appreciate this video too.
Elantris is definitely the weakest Sanderson novel in terms of quality, but I am still excited for a sequel, because Sel as a world is one of the most interesting worlds in the Cosmere, and I'd like to see him revisit those characters with all this extra experience under his belt.
Edit: That said, I also want a warbreaker sequel more, because Nightblood. Nightblood alone is enough reason to make it my most anticipated book.
I'm someone who loved The Talisman, but then I originally read it when I was 18 and living in Belgium as an exchange student wayyyy back in 1984. I was already a fan of both authors, and so I gobbled it up. Straub is much less accessible than King, but I dig him. I completely understand why you wouldn't like the book, and I'm even willing to admit I liked it less when I re-read it a few years ago. Sometimes a book "speaks" to you when you're in a certain frame of mind or even place. At the time I needed anything that reminded me of home.
With regards to negative reviews in general, I'm totally with you, Mike. In my case, I've had to weather a number of negative reviews of my first book. My attitude is to take them with a grain of salt, and to understand that some people are just not going to like what you write/have to say. Most of my reviews have been very positive, so I don't sweat the negative ones.
I feel you, people get out the torches and pitchforks when I say that I don't really dig BS
Overhyped by daniel greene and his cult.
@@turtleanton6539 I love Daniel Greene. So no hate for him here. I also appreciate people being passionate about their Fandom. Just makes me laugh when people are shocked I don't really care for BS.
As a Sanderson fan I agree with others that the fanbase is sometimes really toxic and we tend to put him on too much of a pedestal. I personally like Elantra’s, even though I agree with your review. You can clearly see the beginning of ideas he would later develop, but it just still isn’t there. And also as you said no one is perfect.
I happen to enjoy when readers give rant reviews to bad books. There are so many positive reviews for books that are horrible; we really need to achieve some balance. Liked and subscribed.
HOT TAKE.... I actually find it MUCH more helpful to read negative reviews than positive ones! Here's why: When I go on Amazon to buy anything, I tend to head straight to the 1 and 2 star reviews. I find that most 5 star reviews for a product are all the same. "I loved it!" "This was awesome!" "This product worked just the way it was supposed to!" "It arrived in great condition and quickly!" (Ok, the last one has no business on an Amazon product review page, and I can't fathom why people can't understand that the delivery of a product and it's condition should be under the "seller" section.... but that's neither here nor there).
But it all boils down to the fact that negative reviews are a LOT more detailed. I can find out the ins and outs of a product by reading the specific complaints from customers. But the 5 stars are just all gushing praise and saying things that I ALREADY expect from a product I am looking at. Well, the same goes for book (and movie) reviews. I find too many reviews from Booktubers that gush and praise a book. Yeah, they may give a couple of reasons why the books was good, but many of the positive aspects I could pick up on by reading a synopsis of the book. But the negative book reviews go really in depth and tend to be much more analytical. And that's what I miss from Booktube. A couple of years ago, there were so many more critical analysis and reviews of subpar books. But over the past year, it's almost all sunshine and roses. And while this is no one's fault, I find that I've been more disappointed in the books I've been reading lately.
I've also noticed that many Booktubers are starting to interact much more with the Author community. There have been a ton of interviews and discussions with big time authors over the past year. I know a lot of this could be due to the pandemic, but I also feel that this is partially what has lead to so many Booktubers avoiding negative reviews. They don't want to sour a relationship with an author (or to have other authors be more likely to decline an interview for fear of their book being panned in the future). But all in all, keep up the good work. I find your reviews (even the positive ones) to be more even-keel and critical than most.
PS - As you might remember... I've been the biggest shouter of Michael J. Sullivan and the Riyria books over the past year. So I am DEEPLY saddened that you didn't like the Emerald Storm. You didn't like Wesley or ANY of the crew? It is actually one of my favorite books of the series! But I guess if you don't like the boat setting, then it wouldn't float your boat!!! But I URGE you to finish the series! The final book (Percepliquis (specifically), or the omnibus Heir of Novron) gives us the single greatest ending to any fantasy series of all time! I do not exaggerate. The entire book is a great quest story, with twists, turns, suspense, tension, brotherhood, romance, magic, history, mysteries, reveals... and the final scene brought me to tears. No one knows how to incorporate every single detail they've been laying since book one into their finale like Sullivan. PLEASE read this series till the end. You will love it!!! And it's a pretty quick read too.
I value honesty in the BookTubers I follow even if my opinion differs. Thanks for an awesome year of reviews, Mike!
Thanks for watching!
Agreed on all fronts! Very few of us knowingly pick up books we expect to dislike, so when you're stoked to get into something you've been looking forward to picking up for a while and it is a dud to you it sucks. It feels good to commiserate with others who may also have been disappointed. That's the value in lists like these for me anyway. My most disappointing books this year include Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo (I've either enjoyed well enough or loved all her other books she's ever put out, but I DNF'd Ninth House after 100 pages) and Home Before Dark by Riley Sager (ugh, it's like a store brand Haunting of Hill House, which is my favorite thing ever so I don't appreciate cheap knock offs of it).
Ninth house was my introduction to Bardugo and I was very “this is it?” All the time. Not a bad book but I was expecting something more I guess, since the author is hyped as hell.
I just started Theft of Swords (only on page 34). I picked it up based on the fact that the used bookstore had all 3 of the first trilogy and knew/know nothing about it. Kinda nervous about the boat book, but we'll see how it goes. Not gonna give up on it. I'm thinking about doing the Malazan read-a-long, but I'm also nervous I won't keep up. I devoured books throughout school, but made a goal to read 12 books this year and I'm only on 9 (and I don't think I'll finish before the 31st). All that to say I don't trust myself to keep up, but will probably get Gardens of the Moon and at least try. Really enjoy your channel!
Merry Christmas Mike! Good list can definitely see where you're coming from but I would still rather read every book on this list back to back than have the experience I had reading Rythmn of War
Appreciate the rant and agree 100% with everything you said 👏🏼
I loved Elantris but then again it was my first Sanderson.
people often make the Mistake that Elantris is about Raodin... they are wrong the Main Character and the best Character is Hrathen.
I felt the same exact way about Elantris. It was the last book I got to in the cosmere and I really had to just force my way through it.
I read Elantris a while back and remember liking it pretty well, though I remember Mistborn and Warbreaker being a huge leap forward for his writing even then. And after reading Rhythm of War recently, I wanted to go back and reread all the Cosmere stuff so I could catch whatever cross-overs I may have missed. But I DNF'd Elantris that second time through, about 150 pages in. It just wasn't doing it for me and a figured I definitely didn't need to RE-read it at that point, so I moved on to a trilogy my dad was wanting me to read. Elantris really does pale in comparison to pretty much all of his other works, but I suppose that just speaks to how well he was able to springboard into writing and keep his momentum. One decent book and then hit after hit is still a fantastic career.
They most likely feel threatened by some of the influence that 'book bloggers' can have due to the platforms they use being so large and Booktube increasing in popularity/size. Probably makes them feel better to decrease that threat in their mind by belittling it. The criticism they receive could be their best friend and some authors could do well in taking it with a pinch of salt and using it to improve on their writing flaws.
I agreed with you though Mike, criticism does not equal hate and there are plenty of writers out there who are still good people and decent writers regardless of flaws!
All very valid points. No book or author will ever appeal to everyone, and anything created that gets put out in public will receive criticism.
As long as the criticism is a fairly given opinion you can learn from it , engage in a discussion or ignore it .
Even if it's unfair or stated as fact, you can learn, discuss or ignore.
Attacking is never the right option, and mostly a sign of immaturity.
Some books are good. Some books are bad. If they were confident enough to publish a book and have it beaten by critics, they should expect the people that are actual consumers/readers/fans to do the same. I'm not a critic professionally but I studied literature for years. I can have an educated opinion on a book and so can everyone else.
Winter's Heart was my least favorite WOT book, too.
Not disappointed with this video. The older I get, the easier it becomes for me to get disappointed. Especially when a book becomes so popular, is everyone's "favorite", and is a "must read". When I was younger I had a thing about finishing every book I ever started to read whether I liked it it or not. Now It's like, man there's just not a lot of time left! I know there's still so many good books out there to read. Happy New Year!
I know this video is old but Amazonia, the Yagga Tree was one of the coolest concepts I'd seen in a while but my god the tropes were like an avalanche of sludge and the characters were as lively as cardboard.
I think that Talisman reads best for a younger reader. I read it when it was new(ish?) book, in my sophomore year of college (1984/85). I read it after reading Eyes of the Dragon, by King, which I also loved.
I have never gotten around to reading the Dark Tower series, but now that I know some of my favorites (Talisman, Eyes of the Dragon, The Stand, It, Rose Madder, 'Salem's Lot) are tie-ins with the series, I'm going to be diving in, starting in October.
I'm looking forward to be reading the expanded world version, using Jimmy Mango's list as my guide.
Merry Christmas, Mike. I don't comment often but I do love your content and you're definitely one of my favorite booktubers. I'm glad you released this video because the idea that you shouldn't voice your disappointment in books from booktube is dumb. Of course you will have books you won't enjoy. Heck, while I enjoy you praising stuff, seeing you pinpoint exactly why you dislike a book and constructively point out a better example a revision actually is a useful tool. Namely, for the author if they are willing to listen and also future writers as well. Nobody seeks to make a bad book/ bad product. But what one should takeaway is that your work will always have some kind of flaw. And that's ok.
Strive to improve the best you can. The moment one becomes complacent is when they are prone to failure.
Its absurd authors don't want bad reviews....its art, its subjective. Personnal opinions. Tell these authors to grow up.
The end of Winter's Heart is what keeps people from bashing it as much.
Honestly, I can listen to whatever you say and your voice just helps me calm down.
I don't know what I was doing wrong this year, but I read mostly books that ended up being just ok, in my opinion. I was most disappointed by the final few books in the Witcher series. The series started out fairly strong, but in my opinion it kept getting worse and worse, until I finished Lady of the Lake and just said "wait. what?" Two others that come to mind are Royal Assassin, which was a total surprise because I loved Assassin's Apprentice, and Armada, which disappointed me enough that I have no desire to read anything else by the author. I'm going to pay better attention to my book selection next year. Personally, I prefer honest reviews of books even if it's an unpopular opinion. I adore Sanderson's works but Elantris just wasn't up to par. Makes sense, since it's his first (or one of his first, I forget). He hadn't yet hit his stride.
Well my disappointing books of the year are:
1. Six Sacred Swords - I DNF'd it which I honestly very rarely do with a book but this just kept destroying a character that I really liked in the Arcane Ascension series. I chose to "keep the character in my mind" how I remember him from AA.
2. Ready Player Two - So...I bought this one and then decided to not even start it. Bullet dogged there.
AND unpopular opinion time (but it's a hill I'm willing to die on)
3. The Mistborn series (era 1) - The Final Empire was the first Brandon Sanderson book I read. It was fine but didn't quite hook me. Couple of month later I picked up SA (became my favorite series of all time) and after that I went back to Mistborn. Still didn't like it. I finished era 1 and while the ending was great I still think the series is just meh. I'm going through Elantris now and while definitely not SA quality I think it's still better than Mistborn.
I kinda agree with Winter's Heart. There were some parts I didn't particularly care about, but to me, what lessen enormously the enjoyment, was the pacing. We get excited about the cleaning of Saiding, then the story jumps to Mat, I had to re build my excitement and then again we jumped onto other character. Not my favourite to be sure.
Internet: yea you should be able to critique books without backlash
Also internet: how dare you besmirch WalMart!! 😡🤬
I recently finished B&N's H.P. Lovecraft's complete fiction. I really enjoyed most of his stories but had to slog through "The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath." One of my favorite series of books is the Foundation series by Isaac Asimov. I made the mistake of buying (on Kindle thank god) the three Second Foundation trilogy of books "Foundation's Fear" by Gregory Benford, "Foundation and Chaos" by Greg Bear and "Foundation's Triumph" by David Brin. I slogged through the first book, couldn't make it through the second and haven't even tried reading the third.
It is great but not every h.p lovecraft story is a winner for everyone
Entertainment Weekly & People magazine do a Best and Worst Lists every year. No one goes after them for doing that. Mike, just keep posting what you want. If you want to make a Worst List, then do it.
Here.. I'll go too. I adore Stephen King, he has been my favorite author for over 35 years. I was disappointed in If it Bleeds. The three short stories were great, classic King, except for Life of Chuck which was a departure but I still enjoyed it.. very experimental/weird fiction. The title story took up half the book and bored me to tears. It featured a character that has been in four of his recent novels and I'm beyond tired of... and was an inferior copy of The Outsider. There was no reason for this story to exist. The first chapter was fabulous and I wish he had taken that and gone a completely different direction with it. When I realized where it was going I actually put the book away and didn't finish it for months... and I typically read a new book of his the minute it comes out and finish it within a day or two. It won't stop me from snapping up the next one, in fact I already have it on reserve.
I like Holly, but without Bill and Jerome I don’t find her as fascinating as King does.
@@mikesbookreviews Jerome was in the story as was his sister.. but they were just kind of there, bascially name drops as anyone could have taken their places in the plot. I liked Holly at first, it was nice to see a character on the spectrum (she reminds me of my daughter actually) and she was handled well.. but enough already lol. I wouldn't have minded as much if the story itself were more original and took the characters somewhere new.
Sanderson is one of my favorite authors for sure, and Elantris is definitely one of his that I don't like.
I completely agree with you about the rant argument.I also learned that the reviews on Booktube are very subjective. The best example for me is Elantris, it was my first Sanderson book and I loved it. After that,reading Warbreaker and Mistborn I saw the differences, but still, I enjoyed Elantris more (the only book I cried for) than Mistborn Era II. My most disappointing book this year was:The Doors of Eden by Adrian Tchaikovsky. P.S.I hope you will make a video about your best books which you read this year.
I just got Ryria Revaluations for Christmas. Can't wait to read them, and knowing one of them takes place all on a ship sounds awesome actually! I'm a big Master and Commander fan.
Here I thought I was one of the few who dug those books. M&C I mean.
I chose to read Sanderson's works in publication order. When I read Elantris I was completely blown away by how good it was. Now that I've read a lot more (including almost all of his other work) I'm not sure it would hold up to another reading
I planned to do a "disappointing books of 2020" video back in March! 😅 it'll be up in January though! love that you added this to your schedule!
Ahhhh my soul hurts! I loved Elantris! Please take this knife out of my heart! 😁
Irrespective of which year it is, the last two dark towers books should be put on all these lists for good measure
I loved the last two Dark Tower books. They worked for me. The first one, not so much.
The bigger point being that it is totally okay to share your own personal reactions, positive or negative, to books, and it's totally okay for other people's reactions to differ.
Coming to this video super late, but have to comment. I am literally SO HAPPY you are talking about Sullivan and that you are buying his books and mostly enjoying them! He is definitely underrated! I do have to say that I LOVED the Emerald Storm.😅 I'm now 3 books into the Ryiria chronicles and really enjoying it!
Huge Sanderson fan here and I totally agree. I read Elantris after both Mistborn trilogies and had the same feelings. Should've read them in publication order!
My disappointments that I read in 2020:
4. Rhythm of War, I liked it overall but it didn’t live up to my built up hype.
3 and 2. Baptism of Fire and Tower of Swallows, the series started to feel off to me here and I was surprised at the praise these books get. The Lady of the Lake did end up making the payoff worth it though.
1. Saints Blood, I have the same criticisms that Mike has.
Mike, I love your channel, and I appreciate what you do here. We here have your back brother! I too have read books that didn’t work for me. And I’m a lifelong Prince fan, and I don’t like every song of his. It’s life. Merry Christmas and keep doing what you are doing!
Thank you for your honesty and humor! I loved the Greatcoats! Although Saint's Blood might not be the strongest, it has one of the most devastating scenes of the series.
Mate you are the man for bucking social norms. One point, I think authors should have every right to respond to critics if they want to. But if they do it in a duchey way, people will see it.
My most disappointing read of the year was Bird Box by a substantial margin.
*ducking behind cover*
And I don't like Sanderson's books, they feel very bland to me.
Same for WoT, where every good idea that was hinted at got lost along the way. Every story thread I kinda liked was dismissed. And the only unpredictable thing was how many books it took to reach the very obvious conclusion to several of the threads that were not dismissed. Well, it just wasn't for me, I also didn't enjoy the writing style, same with Sanderson.
Blasphemy!!! 🤣🤣🤣
100% agreed on The Emerald Storm, I almost dropped the series there. But it bounced back for me, hope you like the 3rd omnibus too!
Love the Channel. You have introduced me to several books over the past year. As far as books that didn't work for me I read in 2020.
Quil by A.C Cobble, Malorie by Josh Malerman, Unsouled by Will Wight, The Shadow of What Was Lost by James Islington. Keep up the great videos.
Free speech includes criticism. No one likes to be criticized, but everyone has the right to. I am reminded of Fahrenheit 451 in terms of a need for protection from anything that isn’t positive. A great book. Great video too!
F451 should be required reading.
6:59 👏👏😂
Is it something you aquire when you become a dad or is it a learned skill?
If I was an author I would like to get criticism because it is a way to improve.
And one thing, I think the booktubers, youtubers, blogs, etc are the most important reviews and critics nowadays because they represent the average reader, the actually people who gonna buy the book.
Merry Christmas Mike and to all of your viewers.
I am curious which authors are doing these kind of claims. I’m a university prof. When someone gives me a bad review yeah it sucks…but I don’t send those who DO like my teaching to gun for them.
No!!! I just got Elantris to try out Brandon Sanderson. Now I'll go into the book knowing that some people hate it. It's okay though, I love your channel!
or... you read it, and love it. then realize; sanderson gets way more polished as an author after Elantris. and you have a ton of books to look forward to reading now.
happy reading!
Good example of how to do a video like this. Completely respectful and valid criticism. Also I'm reading Winter's Heart right now and even though I kind of like it I definitely agree it spends a lot of time on lesser characters.
Interesting! One of the reason to follow booktubers is to hear other opinions than my own. I read Elantris and Mistborn (both eras) this year. And Elantris was the one who stuck with me. Not perfect. Not one of my favorites in any way. But it had some really interesting ideas. So I looked forward to see what he did with this Mistborn series I've heard so much about. But wow, that let me down (I need to DNF things more often). Certainly one of my own most disappointing reads (technically I listened) of the year. I do agree though, that Elantris do not need a sequel. Part of what I liked was that it was a stand alone.
have you checked out the Emperor’s Soul audiobook? same world as Elantris & similar magic. but stands alone, and is shorter. and one of my favourite sanderson works.
@@odiums_taint Oh? Now that's interesting. Had no idea. Added to my TBR! Thanks!
“The Tale of the Body Thief” -Anne Rice......takes place on a boat. Awesome book.
I read my first Brandon Sanderson book this year. I chose "Steelheart" because superpowers interest me more than magic. I felt the writing was pedestrian. I'm willing to accept that this series might be for a younger crowd, but it makes me hesitant to pick up more of his work because the prose really left me cold. Is "Mistborn" really that much better written?
No.
I warned you about winter's heart. That was the one that beat me in my original read. I did the first six books in like six weeks. Seven and eight took like two more months. Winter's Heart... 3 years
I can certainly understand how they would be upset though after putting their heart and soul into something, and then having someone - it on social media. So I deafly think we should take into account their feelings and their investment. Criticism should always be constructive.
Hey Mike!
Thank you for turning my attention to Steven Erikson. I knew about the books, as I worked in a bookstore way back in 2002-2004. I just started reading Gardens of the Moon, and am already 1/4 of the way through. I'm going to keep reading. Thank you for your insights!
Mike, I'm sure you don't get to read all your comments. But if you get all the way down to...looks at the count...number 223...this video has almost convinced me to subscribe finally. I agree with you that one disappointing book doesn't make a bad author. And any criticism offered with explanation can be constructive. I'm a Sanderson fan and I TOTALLY understood when you held up Elantris. And I'm right there with you about Talisman. I've always felt weird about that one. There are a lot of scenes that work for me and character writing that feels true, but something in the delivery often feels false.
Are you on GoodReads? I would love to be your friend on that site and follow your reviews/ratings. I get about 100 in a year (I consider graphic novels books, dammit) and my reviews are something like a paragraph at most on average. Just something to give myself and others an idea of how I felt and what I was focusing on as I finished the book. Same picture. Same name.
So, I'm about to venture into Sanderson's adult books, so would Elantris or Warbreaker be the best places start? I prefer to read the weakest ones first, because I really enjoyed the Steelheart trilogy probably because I haven't read his best work yet. Loved the video!
Absolutely right. There is nothing malicious about a balanced opinion of a piece of work. Obviously it would be awkward for you to call out which author or authors had something to say about booktubers, but for me to have a further opinion on this I would need to see what has been said and what examples were given.
It's one thing to be trolling creative work but criticism is how we get better.
Love your honesty Mike. You’re a good man. Merry Christmas to you and your family.
Merry Christmas!! Sadly I've DNF'd Elantris and have tried to finish it twice.
audiobook it if you can. sure helps with the sections that are poorly paced.
@@odiums_taint that's a great idea! Thank you!
I'd tried reading The Talisman when I was a teen, and yea it dragged so much so I think I'd DNF after maybe 8% of the book.
I completely agree! I pushed though, and found it did pick up after a while (they introduced a companion for Jack who immediately made the whole story far more engaging delightful and interesting). Once he was introduced, something clicked into place and I was able to get fully into the book. There were still pacing problems though, but by the end, I enjoyed the reading experience as a whole. Totally get where you’re coming from though. :)
@@ryanb3665 Thanks! I may revisit the book again based on your enjoyment of the book.
I wonder if The Talisman hits better with people like myself who aren’t huge into the fantasy genre. Admittedly, my palate is not as refined in that regard compared to someone like yourself who reads a lot of books in the genre, so it felt more fresh and original to me. I actually prefer Black House to this book. it’s way darker and leans a lot more heavily on the horror elements. It’s more in my wheelhouse.
And as a viewer, I’d be disappointed to get anything other than honesty from a BookTuber. I think you always do a great job of being critical in a respectful manner.
Book 10 of The Wheel of Time is the one I warn people about. I think all the other books are good but man that book is a hard read even on multiple read throughs.
Crossroads is definitely the Slog in full effect.
If you haven't read it, a really good collaboration book is Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. It was written about 30 years ago but they just recently did a mini-series adaptation (the mini-series was ok imho, but the book is better).
I don't know which author was talking shit, but I would strongly encourage them to go right ahead and put out that list. Every booktuber and blogger they mention will get a huge uptick in views, and the author in question will get a much-deserved tanking of their reputation (and maybe even career).
I'm very curious to know which authors complained.