My most disappointing reads of 2020
I’ve been thinking about the books I’ve read over the past 12 months. I’ve been largely lucky; I have enjoyed the majority of books I’ve read. However, there have been some that, I really didn’t like.
I was quite nervous about how brutal to be with those books that didn’t hit the mark to begin with, then I realised I’d always say if I didn’t like a film and actually it’s okay to not like something. I don’t like slating books for the sake of it, they are a labour of love, but these books just didn’t work for me, you may disagree.
The Elephant keeper’s daughter by Julia Drosten
I read this in April, it promised so much but didn’t deliver.
The Elephant keeper’s daughter
Phera is the third daughter of the elephant keeper of the Sinahlese kingdom of Kanda; the elephant keeper needs a son to take on the job after him, so Phera is raised as a boy.
It also tells the story of the British invasion of Sri Lanka. I needed more background to understand the history, it felt glossed over, parts of the plot felt pretty rushed and it left me irritated and a bit flat.
Someone Knows by Lisa Scottoline
I hated this book. I really fancied a thriller at the time, I should have picked more wisely because I really felt like I’d completely wasted my time.
Again, Someone Knows promised far more than it delivered
20 years ago, Allie, Sasha, David and Julian find a gun. When new kid Kyle wants to join their group, they play a cruel prank and get him to play Russian roulette as part of his initiation. The gun is supposed to be empty, obviously it isn’t. 20 years later, Allie is determined to find out who put the bullet in the gun.
I thought it sounded like a decent plot, unfortunately it got really messy and EVERYTHING was thrown into the story.
The Sight of You by Holly Miller
I was really conflicted at the end of this one. I should have liked it more than I did.
The Sight of You is about Callie and Joel; Joel is terrified of life. Since he was a child he’s had visions of what is going to happen, good and bad. Callie has been struggling since the death of her best friend. They meet and fall in love; they bring out the best in each other until Joel has a dream about how it’s going to end.
My biggest gripe with it, is that it was just too slow. It felt like it took an age to get going and it took me weeks to read. I liked the final quarter of the book; I really liked the concept and message of the book it just needed to get there a bit quicker for me.
American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins
American Dirt Lydia and Luca are on the run from a cartel boss who have murdered the rest of their family.
This one just really missed the point, it felt like it relied heavily on stereotypes. It’s an important story tell, understanding of why people take life threatening risks to enter the US is needed but this felt patronising and like trauma porn. It didn’t hit the right note and that’s a shame.
I think four out of 52 isn’t bad going, I’m quite good at knowing what kind of books I’m going to enjoy and love.
There will people who may disagree, these just didn’t work for me and fell flat, I’d love to know if you’ve read any of these and what you thought.
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radiosarahc View All
Journalist, writer, traveller, music lover, collector of hats, news addict, bookworm
Sarah Collins Bookworm 
I read American Dirt. I thought some of it was poignant but that there was a lot more story to tell. Spoiler Alert.
Would La Lechuza let go so easily? I’d rather go to Denver than Maryland. Soledad and Rebeca went back to high school. Really?
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Agree, I just think it could have been a better story and more in depth. It was a shame that this fell so far off the mark for me 🙂
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It was only her third book. I will check out her next book I think.
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When American Dirt was first released I was so excited. Now I’ve heard so much negative feedback that I don’t even want to bother with it.
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I wouldn’t bother, there will be far better books on the subject out there
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