A few months ago, Becca asked me if I would do a post about the top five things that guaranteed that I would pick up a book and the top five things guaranteed for me to put down a book.
I totally forgot about it until I was weeding through my favorite Tweets the other day, but hey, why not do it now!?
A good cover.
Okay, I'm vain. But something needs to catch my eye, and if it's a good cover that accurately reflects on the book, I'm going to want to pick it up. (Think Unspoken by Sarah Rees Brennan, The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater, Beauty Queens by Libba Bray.)
A lack of a love triangle.
I hate love triangles. I LOATHE them. Anybody who reads this blog can tell you that I complain about them and rant about them often. There are too many and are there for no reason than that they're popular. I just can't.
A recommendation from Donna.
Donna from Bites is my favorite blog. Donna has impecabble taste in books, at least in my experience, so if she ever recommends something I'm bound to pick it up. Perfect example? Shadow and Bone.
A fantasy standalone.
Is your book a fantasy? Is it also a standalone? Well congratulations, you just made my to-read pile! There's nothing I love better than a well-rounded story and world placed into a single book for me to love, even if I'm let wanting more. (Also see: Brightly Woven and Enchanted Ivy.)
Characters who happen to be head bitches in charge.
There's nothing I love more than a good woman. Jacky Faber? Alexia Tarabotti? Grace O'Malley? Widdershins? Let me love you!
A terrible cover.
The flip side of having a great cover, if your cover is terrible, I won't want to pick it up. I loathed The Immortal Rules cover; if it hadn't had Julie Kagawa's name on it, I never would have picked it up.
A love triangle.
Also see: above on lacking a love triangle.
Mermaids.
Those damned finned creatures. I just can't understand the love. Or how they reproduce. Or childbirth. Or pee. These are the questions I need answers to, not how they fall in love with a human!
"We're in twu wuv!!1!!eleven!11!"
Okay. If you're in a relationship for a week and have proclaimed that your characters are in true love - no. Excuse you. Please go and hide your face in the corner of shame.
Bonus hatred if there's a comparison to Romeo and Juliet.
Part of a series that never ever end.
I've gotten recommendations for Gossip Girl in the past. And I remember trying to work my way through Rachel Caine's vampire series. But holy hell, do they ever end!? It seems like they go on FOREVER. If there's too many books, or no projected end, I just can't do it. (Though, for some reason, fantasy books are an exception to this rule. Curse you, Wheel of Time. I love you too much to hate the rest of your genre.)
What about you? What makes you want to pick up or put down a book?