I’ve been completely absent recently, and that’s because one of my best friends came down to visit this weekend. She was here Friday-Monday, so I’m waaaaaay behind on both reading posts since about Thursday afternoon, on reading in general, and on blogging myself! However, I couldn’t miss a Top Ten Tuesday topic that I’m here to turn into a controversial post. This week’s TTT topic comes from That Artsy Reader Girl, and this is going to be a list of both TBR books and not. Prepare yourself for some light roasting.

When I first finished all of David Mitchell’s novels, I was in a state of despair. How would I ever find anything as amazing? I quickly went to Google, typed in books like David Mitchell, and after some thorough searching, I accidentally bought a book in second person and promptly got rid of it and House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski, and honestly? This books looks insane, like the actual formatting of it, and I’m not sure I’ll ever read it, but I also own it, so kind of feel obligated, but like. Ughhhhh.

I’m usually the one rec’ing books, but one of my yoga friends rec’d this to me, summarizing it as a smutty love affair between a witch and an ancient vampire, and um yeah, excellent job on selling me on never picking this up. Sorry Deborah Harkness, but A Discovery of Witches is a definite book I’m avoiding.

Oh my god, I know, everyone and their mother loves this book, and this list is only going to make you angrier as we go, but I’ve heard this has a confusing format, and I’m just kind of over formats that aren’t straightforward. Especially when the formats are not only odd, but confusing, and I’ve seen a lot of “how the hell do I even read this” when it comes to Illuminae by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff, so um. Yeah. Not really on the top of my list.

Really, I should just list all Stephen King ever because I’m avoiding every book written by him because he scares me, but also because one of my best friends hates literally 95% of his endings, and I’m just, whyyyyyy. However, I’m only listing Carrie because it’s the only one I own, and I totally intended to read it before Halloween, but I’ve been avoiding it like the plague, so here we are.

It’s like I saw this topic and went “how can I most piss off everyone” because if I’m really being honest right now, I have no interest in this series purely because of the hype. Like wowwwww, Nevernight by Jay Kristoff is technically on my TBR, but it’s also probably never going to be something I actively pick up in a bookstore. The more reviews I see touting its violence and how fantastic that is, the less I want to even think about it.

I can’t even truly say how many times I’ve picked up A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas in a bookstore and put it back after only a few seconds. First, it doesn’t sound interesting to me. The summary is awful, and the names make my head hurt. Second, the reviews. Oh, the reviews. I’ve heard all the good and the bad about this series, and at this point, it’s just not worth my time.

I don’t normally let reviews sway me, unless they’re like “wow this has blatant sexism & homophobia ^^^^^^,” so I’m kind of mad at myself for avoiding Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan just because some people have been meh on the sequel. I am going to read this eventually, and because I’m me, I’ll probably like the sequel, but still, it’s making me avoid it a little right now.

Am I ever going to read the Percy Jackson series? Who knows? There is truly nothing stopping me from reading Rick Riordan’s beloved middle grade series. Even though I don’t own them, my best friend does, and I could easily borrow them. And yet? I don’t know what it is, whether I don’t actually want to or it’s been too hyped or I’m just like “wow another endless series no thanks,” but this is on a kind of maybe eventually someday TBR.

Look, I’m sorry, but if you get all this is the next Raven Boys, I’m gonna be pretty damn skeptical right away. Especially when that’s in reference to a story about sports that’s notorious for being a literal “chore” to get through, but the rest of the series is worth it? #sorrynotsorry, I’m way past reading books that aren’t good just so I can get to a book that is good.

Sure, I own this book, but I wouldn’t necessarily count it on my TBR, and honestly? Am I ever going to read this? Probably not? I’ve got some kind of death wish, so I’m attempting Anna Karenina this winter, so who knows, maybe that’ll convince me to read War & Peace, too, but Tolstoy got paid by the word, and y’all. I’m not that into this.

Wow, 7 out of 10 of these are adult novels, and I think that may explain part of why I’m avoiding them. Whoops!

Are you also avoiding any of these novels? If not, which ones are you avoiding?