Books That Were Hard For Us To Read For Various Reasons

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Today we are talking about books that were hard for us to read (because difficult of book, subject matter, because it was cringeworthy-- however you want to interpret)!

Bridget's Picks

1. Game of Thrones - George R. R. Martin. This series has been really hard for me to get through, especially right now. I'm currently reading A Feast for Crows, the fourth book, and it is such a slog. I was warned about that, but I'm still mad that I don't get to hear about Tyrion or Daenerys in this book. (For those of you who aren't familiar, the events of A Feast for Crows and A Dance with Dragons, the fifth and most recent installment of the series, take place over the same timeline, but apparently there was just TOO MUCH STUFF happening to make it one book. So it's two books. And this one is a snoozefest.)

2. A Safe Place - Lorenzo Carcaterra. I read this in college for one of my classes. It's a horrific account of the constant domestic abuse the author and his mother suffered at the hands of his father during his childhood in Hell's Kitchen. There isn't much that can make me woozy when I'm reading, but there were several moments that I had to stop and look at puppies or something while I was reading this book. I don't recommend reading it unless you can stomach terrible violence.

Jamie's Picks

3.  Serendipity by Carly Phillips: Honestly this was so hard to read because some of the sexytimes were so cheesy and eye-rolly and corny that I just couldn't. I wanted to laugh half of the time and sometimes I felt really uncomfortable...especially a certain weird leg humping in a Target thing that happened. I do love me some sexytimes and romance novels but this one didn't work for me.

4. Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson: I LOVED THIS BOOK but it hit so close to home. I don't think I've ever cried harder. In the book a girl is watching her dad slowly pass away from cancer and it took me back to when I was watching MY mom slowly pass away from cancer and it was just so vivid and intense that I had to pause sometimes so I could calm myself down.

5. Live Through This by Mindi Scott: I don't want to spoil what this book is about too much but I'll just say I felt SO uncomfortable reading it and that always makes for a hard reading experience. I though it was a good book but MAN..tough subject!

6. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn: I really liked this book but omg the characters are so AWFUL. It was so hard to read this one because I wanted to punch everybody in the face and plus it was so twisted that I felt squicky.

Julia's Picks

6.5 Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn: I realize that Jamie already picked this, but I have a different reason for wanting to include this book on the list. It was chosen for book club and as soon as I started reading it it felt like the author was talking down to me the reader. The best word I have for this book is pretentious. I couldn't stand it. I disliked almost all of it. The characters are meant to be hated, I guess, but urgh I just hated this book so much. 

7. Dune by Frank Herbert: I read this because a boy I liked at the time gave it to me and told me I would like it. Determined to like it, I started. Soon I was just determined to finish it and focus on the parts I liked rather than the ones I didn't. My problem with this book was the same problem I had with parts of Tolkien's Lord of the Rings series. The authors get on tangents describing the sand or the forest or the rock for pages, chapters even sometimes (I am looking at you The Two Towers). I liked this concept much more as the sci-fi miniseries then I did while reading it.

8. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak: This is an amazing, amazing book, but it's subject matter makes it hard for me to read. I've actually only read it the one time, and I really loved it, but many the feels just take over with that book. Don't read it without a box of tissues. 

9. 14 by Peter Clines: This was an early pick for my work book club. I was a little hesitant since it was supposedly classified as horror. But it was actually pretty interesting ... to a point. Then it got hard to read because it went to far over the line of believability, at least in my opinion. I ended up skimming the end because I just couldn't believe it in the context of the world I was introduced to.

10. A Feast for Crows by George R.R. Martin: HOW did I almost forget this one?! This book is seriously the longest amount of time I have read a book without giving up. There would be months where I wouldn't read. Why was it so hard? It's long and the plot doesnt go anywhere AND most of my favorite characters were not in it. The only reason I finished this was because I went overseas for work and this was the only book I brought. If I ever read it again I am reading it mixed with A Dance with Dragons. I think reading them as one big book would help a lot!

Alright guys, how about you? What books did you guys have trouble reading for whatever reason? Link up below!