Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.
I feel like I don’t often get to talk about books I disliked or found middling in lists like these, so I thought I’d take this opportunity to highlight a few books I think could have done with…well, less, in general, really. The prompt for this week is Books I Wish Had More/Less [Insert Your Concept Here] In Them, and I went for ‘less pages’ as I really do think a lot of the time, that’s the main reason behind me giving a lower rating than I otherwise would have.
Top Ten Books I Wish Had Less Pages
The Lost Girls of Foxfield Hall by Jessica Thorne
Genre: Fantasy – Historical/Contemporary
Age: Adult
Format: ebook
Published: March 26th, 2021
Review
This book could have done with being just that bit tighter, and dropping a lot of the repetition and back-and-forth around the middle. I gave this 3 stars, because although it wasn’t bad, it felt like a bit of wasted potential, especially when it came to the setting and pace.
A Better World by Sarah Langan
Genre: Sci-Fi – Thriller
Age: Adult
Format: ebook
Published: April 9th, 2024
Review
I feel like a lot of what could have been really interesting in this novel was just ignored – it’s hard not to wonder about ‘Plymouth Valley’ attitudes towards race, sexuality, gender, etc, but these aren’t even touched on. There’s elements of classism, but it doesn’t quite click here. The book itself was decent enough, but dragged on for a fairly long time, and with a fairly flimsy MC, I found myself wishing things would just hurry up, and hoping something would happen soon.
Gambling on the Duke’s Daughter by Diana Bold
Genre: Historical Romance – Regency
Age: Adult
Format: ebook
Published: July 13th, 2007
Review
This is actually a relatively short book at around 230 pages, but it truly felt like it would have suited novella length much better. As it is, a promising story with an interesting hero and heroine soon becomes tedious and frustrating post-wedding. The whole last third of this book dragged on, and the strong start made me feel even more let down by it.
The Unforgettable Loretta Darling by Katherine Blake
Genre: Historical – Thriller
Age: Adult
Format: ebook
Published: June 13th, 2024
Review
This initially felt like one of those books destined to end up hyped, but generally seems to have gone in the other direction. It just goes on for too long. It’s over 400 pages, and neither the plot or characters can carry this for that long. Again, it started off strong, but it became fairly messy. If you want a summer Hollywood novel, go for Chuck Tingle’s Bury Your Gays instead.
Kissed by Carla Krae
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Age: New Adult
Format: ebook
Published: November 3rd, 2013
Review
Honestly, I just wanted this book to be over. It just wasn’t very good – the characters didn’t feel like they had an actual chemistry, and there’s way, way too much backstory here, so much it ends up making the romance between the two characters feel a little on the creepy side. Not a series I’ll be continuing with.
An Improbable Season by Rosalyn Eves
Genre: Historical Romance – Regency
Age: Young Adult
Format: ebook
Published: April 26th, 2023
Review
This one felt like it was trying so hard to be a YA Bridgerton, but honestly, Regency just doesn’t work for that age group, unless it’s got more of a fairy tale element to it, I guess? There was too much crammed into this, and, again, overall it ended up feeling messy.
The Once and Future Witches by Alix E. Harrow
Genre: Historical Fantasy
Age: Adult
Format: ebook
Published: October 13th, 2020
Review
This was an interesting concept, but it felt like there was no real reason (beyond possibly genre convention) for this to be as long as it was. There was a lot of repetition in what the characters were doing, characters going back and forth, and certain scenes felt like they were there simply to fill up the pages. It meant this was, ultimately, a frustrating read.
A Curse of Blood and Wolves by Melissa McTernan
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Age: Adult
Format: ebook
Published: April 11th, 2024
Review
There was not enough going on in this book to justify 356 pages. Again, a lot of repetition, and a lot of scenes that felt fairly pointless. The ending left way too many things open, and any ‘teasers’ for book 2 fell really flat.
Genre: Sci-Fi
Age: Adult
Format: Paperback
Published: April 30th, 2020
Review
Lam is a good writer, and this isn’t a bad book – my complaints about this one are definitely ‘me’ complaints, rather than objective ones, but I just found stretches of this one to be a bit boring. I’ve found, too, as I’ve got older, I’ve become less of a fan of “women save the world!” or “look how hard done by women are!” Maybe it’s me, maybe it’s because of the general state of things, but I find it a touch too simplistic. And that’s not a criticism of the book, either – I actually think it was set up well here, and it feels realistic, but even since 2020 I think we’ve – I’ve? – definitely gained more of an understanding of intersectionality and the issues impacting trans men, non-binary folks, women of colour, and so on. I like an element of “girl power”, but I like it to come with a bit more now. Anyway! This could be a whole essay in itself, so I’ll end with this isn’t a bad book (again), Lam is a good writer (again), and I’ll definitely check out more of her work, this one just wasn’t to my taste.
Welcome Me to Willoughby Close by Kate Hewitt
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Age: Adult
Format: Audiobook
Published: August 18th, 2020
Review
Again, this isn’t a bad book as such, but it was definitely middling, and the length made it hard to stay connected to the characters throughout. It felt like what could have been interesting aspects of the book were handled poorly, and the ‘Welsh’ representation was…badly done. I found myself more annoyed by the end than enjoying it.
Are there any books you wish had been cut down just a little? Or maybe books you think could have been a touch longer? If you’ve read any of these, too, I’d love to hear your thoughts!
Unwrapping Words 