A Good Thriller discussion

Hello! This is probably a strange first post, but I’m still miffed about this book four months after having wasted my time on it.

I had a decade of not reading (no judgement, I have ADHD and was busy trying to read research articles for school). In trying to get into reading, I have been aghast at the garbage out there, especially with books that make top lists. So many seem to be written for the same audience as primetime television, information spoon fed with elementary vocabulary. What’s the secret to finding an actually good book? I’m trying to find people to follow who rated highly the same books as I, and that may work out.

On another note, how does the PIFM work? I can’t seem to find instructions.

Thanks, hope y’all are having a great day!

Sumer wrote: "Hello! This is probably a strange first post, but I’m still miffed about this book four months after having wasted my time on it.

I had a decade of not reading (no judgement, I have ADHD and was b..."

I had the same reaction you had. :-)

I had been burnt so many times by the hype machine of the latest psychological thrillers, looking at you Woman in the Window, I did not risk it. Glad to see I was right.

I agree, that book wasn't great. I wish I had the secret of picking books, but I don't. The so-called thrillers with twists are almost universally mediocre, but I keep trying to find the rare gem.

Sumer wrote: "Hello! This is probably a strange first post, but I’m still miffed about this book four months after having wasted my time on it.

I had a decade of not reading (no judgement, I have ADHD and was b..."

Well said, Sumer. I would suggest reading the reviews first. There are plenty of five stars out there

I find thrillers tend to be fairly scripted despite the twists and action, so I rate them gently,. They are filling a well loved niche. Not that they aren't true 5 star winners for me. But people's taste vary, TG. If a book isn't working for me, I'm much better at putting it down. I get most of my books at the library or their E-site, so that makes it easier to abandon.

BTW, in PIFM you select around 5 or 6 books and other people vote on which one you should read that month. I need to head over there. haven't done it in a while.

Recommendations here are the best thing, but I have read books that are so rubbish I wish I had not bothered.

Sumer, welcome to the group.

Pick It For Me, is very popular (PIFM)

5 to 10 books. Pick them add them to one post

Then vote for other members books for that month on another post

The third post is to chat about your books, other books or just chat.

Three posts to help keep it easy to read/post.

Enjoy

Life's too short for resentment. It's also too short to judge people.
I'm sure we all do the best we can, but I've kept to reading classics the past few years because so many of the newer books were just rubbish. Ah, C'est la vie!

I thought I was the only one who didn’t like the Silent Patient what a stupid ending

I didn't care for the book at all, but didn't feel resentful for having read it. Not every book is for every person.

The Silent Patient surely was for me a letdown. What was worse imo was Near the Bone. I guess for any book you are taking a gamble even when you see reviews that really make it look amazing. There's still plenty of good stuff out there being written, ya learn as you go.

Thank you. I couldn't get past the first few pages. Now, I don't feel so guilty. I've had the same problem lately ... hyped books that don't meet expectations. I've also meandered back toward the classics.

Sumer wrote: "Hello! This is probably a strange first post, but I’m still miffed about this book four months after having wasted my time on it.

I had a decade of not reading (no judgement, I have ADHD and was b..."

NO, I liked it. However I am still trying to figure out how so many people think Gone Girl was so great.

I loved The Silent Patient and thought it was brilliant. I say this only to show how different readers are affected by the same book. Every book is not for everybody - not only are books vastly different...so are readers and that's a great thing. How boring it would be if everyone felt the same about everything. I love getting different opinions about books, but I never base my decision to read a book solely on reviews because I know my reaction could be totally different from other reviewers. For me, it's what makes the reading world interesting.

Sandra wrote: "I loved The Silent Patient and thought it was brilliant. I say this only to show how different readers are affected by the same book. Every book is not for everybody - not only are books vastly dif..."

You are so right, Sandra. And thankfully so. I'm sure many of my favorites are NOT on everyone's list. =)

Yes two of the worst books with the most hype and both rubbish

Gone Girl

Girl In The Window

not read Silent Patient

I didn't read The Silent Patient - it was highly recommended to me by someone who hyped a book by Kristin Hannah that was so awful I decided not to waste more time.
But to the original post - yeah, I have been very disappointed lately in a lot of contemporary books mostly in the thriller or psychological suspense category. And I absolutely refuse to read anything if its all written in the present tense. I find it pretentious, artificial and distracting.
There are other cases where I like one book an author wrote, so I pick up their other books and are disappointed - almost as if the one I liked was a fluke. Or there are series writers who just seem to be padding their books that make them over-long and not as good as the first - Lee Child comes to mind.

Since Gone Girl (2012) I've read approximately 300 psychological thrillers since I was reading in "my genre" before the publication of my own psychological thriller a couple of months ago.
The Silent Patient was one of those thrillers. I couldn't wait for its pub date because I'd read so many GR reviews that all talked about the absolutely, amazing "jaw-dropping twist."
The hype totally spoiled that book for me -- an issue I wrote about in a review of TSP on my website.
I also disagreed with characterizing what happened as a "twist."
For me, it was more of a dishonest, sleight of hand. But, I was obviously in the minority considering TSP was a major bestseller.

I can't say that I am resentful for having read the book, but it did not live up to the hype. I now avoid all of the author's other works.

I was very surprised that I could not get into the book after all the hype. I thought it was just me.

I did not like the book at all someone had commented that the end was mind-blowing. I thought the ending was the worse but that is me. I just don't get the hype.

I have never read this one, but I always get a little skeptical from overhyped books with overabundance of praise in reviews, especially ones in the thriller/psychological suspense variety. The one that I really did like that had quite a bit of hype was The Shadow of the Wind.

Sumer wrote: "Hello! This is probably a strange first post, but I’m still miffed about this book four months after having wasted my time on it.

I had a decade of not reading (no judgement, I have ADHD and was b..."

Hi Sumer,
Hopefully by this time you have discovered some authors that you enjoy reading. I have to agree with Jazzy in msg 8 above. I stay with established authors like Stephen King, James Patterson, Dean Koontz, Daniel Silva, Nelson DeMille, Dan Brown, Anthony Horowitz, and of course the great classics by Agatha Christie. Good reads to you!

I felt the same letdown with "The Silent Patient," but finished it. While it wasn't episodic, the story felt "surfaced," like a magazine article that didn't delve very deeply into its subject. Glad I'm not alone, and I'm paying attention, after dropping that kind of $$$ on "The Silent Patient." Vetting the authors' previous work first and the books they produce much more closely than before to segregate hype and find the stories that resonate.