I see a lot of posts about good books and suggested readings. So I wanted to go the opposite way. What is the most disappointing book that you've read. Mine is:

Stranger in a Strange Land by Heinlein

I finally got around to reading it as it's pretty much required reading for Sci-Fi fans. I appreciated the concepts in it, especially for being written in the early 60s. But it was a really boring read. Got really bizarre too. I think that was when he was entering is "exploring sexuality period".

The Spy Who Loved Me

The Spy Who Loved Me

I just read the wiki on that. I see why you'd choose that. That would be a big disappointment for Bond fans. Thank goodness for the silver screen.

Dune.

I have read just about every classic sci-fi book ever written. I enjoy nearly all of them. I was so mad that I spent time on Dune.

Frank's books were fine, it was his son that ruined the franchise.

I'll second Dune being a huge disappointment. That book dragged.

I'll be honest, I wasn't a big fan of Lord of the Rings. The movies were great, the book(s) read like a verbalization of an atlas.

"Leviathan Wakes"

James S. A. Corey

I hate bad guys done where they do bad things that have nothing to do with the objective they are trying to obtain.

The fact that none of their deeds make any logical sense for the aim of their philosophy was apparently lost on the writer of this.

Almost anything written by Dean Koontz that does not have Odd in the Title.

But over all I think the most disappointing would have to be The Great Gatsby by F Scott Fitzgerald. had heard so many things about this book and it sucked.

The similrilian.

The Bib- No no! Mustn't troll!

Some Peter Straub and Dean Koontz books. Not bad but not that great either.

I also like the latter Diskworld novels less than the earlier ones.

I'll be honest, I wasn't a big fan of Lord of the Rings. The movies were great, the book(s) read like a verbalization of an atlas.

Tolkien is a linguist, not a writer. He actually wrote one of the Elvish languages (he made 2), and then decided to make a story behind it. He's like Lucas: He's good at the story but dear God don't let them write the dialogue or develop the characters.

I don't know for certain which single book I hated most but any of the Lando Calrissian Adventures are definitely in the running. I hated them so much that I refused to read any later Star Wars EU novels for three or four years after reading them.

The Plains of Passage. The fourth book in the Clan of the Cave Bear series. You guys think Tolkien is dull (something I have never understood, LotR can still bring tears to my eyes), PoP is sometjing like 600 pages of description of prehistoric landscape. NOTHING HAPPENS. The entire book can be summed up with a single sentence "They travel from Russia to France, she's pregnant". The rest of the series is really very good, but that book was unbelievable.

A close runner up is the final book of Robin Hobb's soldier son trilogy. Everything else she has written has been among the best fantasy novels I have ever read, that book, the protagonist spends most of the book possessed. He can observe the world and sort of communicate with the personality controlling his body but he cannot interact with anyone else.

The Bible...

...too soon?

The Bible...

...too soon?

Shots fired.

The Silmarillion is one of my favourite books, I usually re-read it every couple of years. But as it's more a rich compilation of lore, myth and history for Middle Earth rather than a single complete story, I can understand that it's not for everyone.

As to which books left me thoroughly underwhelmed, there's been a couple of space opera books I've tried but simply could not get into. Alistair Reynolds was a prime culprit.

And reading Wolf of Wall Street left me feeling physically ill.

In a serious response to the topic.

Some interesting diversity of views. I really enjoyed Dune, I think having spent time in the Middle East gave me a different perspective on it.

Kudos to you Gecko for being a Silmarillion fan. It wasn't for me, but I think like many folk I was seeking to prolong the joy that was reading the Lord of the Rings and latched onto that as a 'logical' progression only to be disappointed by the completely different thrust of the narrative.

I'd nominate Count Zero by Gibson. The worst crime it committed was putting me off reading Neuromancer for many years - brilliant piece of work that in contrast.

Yeah, Simlarillion is likely going to be appreciated by those who warn to learn more about the mythical universe Tolkien created rather than those looking for a typically structured sotry along the lines of the Hobbit or LotR itself.

I always loved the hints at a greater mythos within Lord of the Rings (for example, Bilbo's writing of a song based on Beren and Luthien, and the connection attributed within the story to Elrond), so I feel into the former group.

The tales in the Silmarillion (while fragmented) really opened up Tolkien's world for me. After reading it I understood why the Elves were leaving Middle Earth, just how far Aragorn's bloodline stretched, where the orcs came from, the true scope of Gandalf and Saurman's powers, and much more. The tales of the first men (Beren, Tuor and Turin) are real highlights.

Plus of course, Balrogs. Balrogs EVERYWHERE.

Gecko. Thanks for those thoughts. Maybe I should give it another try - it's been more than 20 years!

I was very much into the whole universe back then. The MERP/Rolemaster RPG and I poured over the pages of my Tolkein Bestiary too - brilliant artwork.

Yeah, I always loved the artwork that accompanied Tolkien's work, particularly the work of Alan Lee, Ted Naismith and especially John Howe:

I think the best way to view the Silmarillion is as a collection of writings, histories and tales rather than a single narrative - it is presented in (roughly) chronological order, but some parts - especially the earlier parts - are more lore than story.

The first section - Ainulindalë - is essentially a creation myth for Middle Earth. Let there be light and all that (or in this case, music).

The Valaquenta is essentially a biography of Tolkien's divines beings (the Valar and Maiar, aka Gods and Angels), and a list of their spheres of influence, relationships scattered with a little bit of pre-history (i.e. Aulë's creation of the Dwarves).

The Quenta Silmarillion is the main narrative section of the book, encompassing the First Age of Middle Earth, including the coming of the Elves, their fall from grace, the coming of men and the impossible war both races end up waging against a god. Although it is chiefly a narrative it is broken up by chapters devoted to the geography of the world, depictions of characters and their relationships, the various kindreds and houses etc. It's pretty bleak and tragic at times (especially the tale of Turin, which was published as a stand alone novel not too long ago).

Then you get the Akallabeth - a (brief) history of the Kings of Numenor influenced by the Atlantis legend, and Of The Rings Of Power & The Third Age , which expands on the Lord of the Rings by giving insight into events from the point of view of other characters (such as Gandalf, Saruman etc) - it's essentially similar material to the LotR appendices.

The Silmarillion is one of my favourite books, I usually re-read it every couple of years. But as it's more a rich compilation of lore, myth and history for Middle Earth rather than a single complete story, I can understand that it's not for everyone.

As to which books left me thoroughly underwhelmed, there's been a couple of space opera books I've tried but simply could not get into. Alistair Reynolds was a prime culprit.

And reading Wolf of Wall Street left me feeling physically ill.

Alistair Reynolds was highly recommended me to. I read his Pushing Ice, which isn't the book/series he's known for. It was more like a near future sci-fi that didn't feel too fictional. I didn't love it but it had some really interesting perception on the passage of time. I will pick up his first book in his popular series and see if I want to continue.

I don't know if its the most dissapointing but i had to read 'the blind assassin' by margaret atwood for a book club once and that was bloody awful...

I tend to force myself to finish most books in case they surprise me with a clever twist or improve towards the end but i really had to slog through this one.

I download free books off amazon and it's a mixed bag sometimes i find a gem and go on to buy others in the series and others will be self published dren not worth getting into.

Yeah, Simlarillion is likely going to be appreciated by those who warn to learn more about the mythical universe Tolkien created rather than those looking for a typically structured sotry along the lines of the Hobbit or LotR itself.

Plus of course, Balrogs. Balrogs EVERYWHERE.

Forget the Balrogs! I just like Melkor and Ungoliant effin up the Eldar with just the two of them.