Just spent $45 on a hardcover book club pick and it was a total dud

Tbh I was excited for this month's pick, a literary fiction novel that got all these five star reviews on Goodreads. Ngl, I dropped $45 on the hardcover because I thought it'd be a keeper for my shelf. But man, the pacing was so slow I almost fell asleep three times, and the characters felt flat as a sidewalk. Meanwhile, my buddy grabbed the paperback for $12 and said it was decent enough but nothing special. So now I'm sitting here wondering if I should've just borrowed it from the library instead of blowing cash on hype. Has anyone else shelled out for a book that just didn't deliver, or do you think the hardcover somehow made it worse?

3 comments

3 Comments

river_hart1826d ago

Read somewhere that publishers actually charge more for hardcovers because they know collectors and book club people will pay it, not because the binding costs that much extra. I grabbed a $35 hardcover of a buzzy debut last year and the spine cracked on page 40, felt like a total rip-off. My rule now is to wait for paperback or check the library first, especially when Goodreads reviews seem way too glowing. Hardcovers don't make bad writing better, but they sure make the disappointment sting more.

troy99626d ago

Dude same. Bought a $32 hardcover of a hyped thriller last year. Spine cracked on page 50 and pages started falling out by chapter 10. Felt like a fool. Library waitlist is free and paperbacks are half the price. Hardcovers are just fancy traps for people who fall for the buzz.

betty_scott1818d ago

maybe it's just me but i don't think a cracked spine is the end of the world. like yeah it's annoying but it's still readable.