Books everyone seems to love, but you just can't

[Davies]

Hearing the Bible described as basically any other piece of pop fiction makes me wonder, semi-seriously, if there are any Bible shippers out there

<serious> Yes, David/Jonathan has a long history behind it; Fate/Grand Order implies Ramses/Moses at times. And of course there's all the Jesus/Mary Magdalene.

 

[TheSword]

Book 4 was my favorite. And sadly, having reread and finished the series, none of the laters ones are able to push it out of the way - or even really come close. The last ones were decent, but I think Sanderson had a fundamental misunderstanding of Matt and how the Red Hand interacted with him. Plus there were so many threads that Jordon added that got wrapped up, but didn't get made feel like they were required enough to be included so they feel like filler in a series that was way too long already. I realized that I would never again want to reread the series and gave it away.

Book 4 has an awesome ending. I was particularly impressed with how clever the history of the Aiel is I think.

I’m fascinated to see how they adapt it for the screen. I just hope they don’t do another Shanara. I think they’ll be cleaving close to the plot of the books. A lot of the filler that people object to will just be detail on screen.

 

[Tyler Do'Urden]

Psalms is the highlight of the whole collection, IMO, but yeah this is a fair list. I do disagree with starting with the gospels. IMO, the heroes and kings and prophets of the OT are more interesting.

The Psalms are great, yes, but better for dipping in slowly. I've never been one for reading massive chunks of poetry in one sitting, though - better savored and contemplated a little at a time.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

The Psalms are great, yes, but better for dipping in slowly. I've never been one for reading massive chunks of poetry in one sitting, though - better savored and contemplated a little at a time.

That’s fair. The Psalms are gorgeous poetry, best studied, not just read casually.

 

[Sacrosanct]

Book 4 has an awesome ending. I was particularly impressed with how clever the history of the Aiel is I think.

I’m fascinated to see how they adapt it for the screen. I just hope they don’t do another Shanara. I think they’ll be cleaving close to the plot of the books. A lot of the filler that people object to will just be detail on screen.

The shannara TV series was a disaster for existing fans. They tried too hard to focus on making an appeal to teens, and threw out any semblance to the stories from the books.

 

[DammitVictor]

People here are talking about dropping out in the 5th Harry Potter - but Covenant is a far more annoying and despicable character than Harry acting as a petulant (and developmentally appropriate) teen.

I never read the Harry Potter books-- no real interest in Young Adult by the time they came out-- but I watched the first four movies and the fifth is an insurmountable and painful brick wall. Harry's behavior has nothing to do with it; are you sure that Harry's the dealbreaker for most people who brick off Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix?

Within genre, Butcher's Harry Dresden series' popularity just baffles me.

Oh, I do love The Dresden Files, the novels and the comics and the RPG and even the short-lived TV series. They told me that if I liked The Dresden Files, I would love Kevin Hearne's The Iron Druid series.

They lied to me. Pretty sure Hounded set a lifetime record for the least of a fantasy novel I've ever read before DNF.

Hearing the Bible described as basically any other piece of pop fiction makes me wonder, semi-seriously, if there are any Bible shippers out there

They're called Gnostics, but there's really only one non-canonical ship in the whole fandom.

 

[Gradine]

And of course there's all the Jesus/Mary Magdalene.

Isn't that the plot of the Da Vinci Code?

 

[Levistus's_Leviathan]

Hmm. This is hard. I tend to like good books (Percy Jackson, Da Vinci Code, Adventurer's Wanted, Fablehaven, Eragon and the rest of the Inheritance Chronicle, Narnia, etc) and hate bad books (Twilight, Neanderthal, etc).

How about the Hobbit?

I will ditto the Bible, though.

 

[Davies]

Isn't that the plot of the Da Vinci Code?

... among others, yes.

 

[Zardnaar]

Not Christian but ad the bible stories as a kid. Quite enjoyed them.

Was reading about Assyria earlier in the evening so yeah from that point of view I like the setting but don't buy into the message I suppose is the polite way.

Throw in Egypt, Babylon, Caanites, Phoenicians, Sumeria etc I'm happy.