What’s a piece of SF that you just couldn’t get into, even though you feel like you should?
I tried to watch Babylon 5, for instance, and just couldn’t connect to it. I know it’s popular and people love it, but it never hooked me.
Another is The Three Body Problem. I tried reading it after a friend’s glowing recommendation, but I couldn’t get past the first chapter. I even tried reading it in another language in case it was the translation I couldn’t connect with, but the same thing happened.
Both are things I feel like I should like, but just don’t.
The popular ones that come to mind (unpopular opinions):
-Hyperion by Dan Simmons. Tried twice and couldn’t even finish it.
-Pandora’s Star by Peter F. Hamilton. Tried reading it twice and audiobook twice, give up each time.
-The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers. Finished it but it didn’t really like it.
-Fifth Season by N. K. Jemisin. Finished it but didn’t really care about anything going on in the book.
I tried to read Fifth Season because I followed Jemisin on Twitter back when I still used Twitter and really liked her. But the book just did nothing for me and I stopped after a chapter. I feel like I should give it another shot, but eh.
I almost put The Fifth Season down after the first chapter, I remember thinking: “This author has a chip on their shoulder”. I’m glad I persevered though, and I definitely recommend the series to people as it is quite different. I’d suggest giving it another shot.
My issue was the writing style, oddly enough. I liked her tweets, so I was really surprised that I didn’t like her actual writing.
Oh certainly, that series took quite a risk on writing style and it’s quite divisive.
If you enjoy fantasy, you could try her other series as an alternative. The Inheritance Trilogy is a more standard writing style.