This Week’s Topic: Great Expectations
Do you ever feel, that your expectations can make or break your enjoyment of a book? Well, I think they definitely play a significant role for me.
When expectations can be a good thing
I find that when I go into a book with little to no expectations, I tend to not be disappointed. Since I didn't set the bar very high, the book really didn't have to deliver much. But, what I really love, is when I don't expect much, and I get so much more. Case in point: Just for Clicks. Looking at the cover, I thought it would be this fun and fluffy read, but then it had all this depth. It really took me by surprise, and these are the kind that I welcome with open arms.
Then, there are the books that were exactly what you expected, and left you satisfied.
When expectations can be a good thing
I feel like this happens quite often. We pick a book and have certain expectations. When those expectations are met, we are sad, disappointed, and sometimes even angry. Three situations like this, that come to mind are:
- When a favorite author stays from their typical type of books. I want to be supportive of someone, who has given me so much joy in the past. There are some authors who are SO GOOD at jumping over genre and age barriers, but others, not so much. And, it's hard to adjust my anticipations, because I have grown to expect certain things from this author. I am usually just left hoping they return to their regularly scheduled program.
- Books in a series, where all the books, but the finale, end in cliffhanger. I find this frustrating, when I am caught off guard, especially, when the book started out as a stand alone and became a series, which they then kept adding books to without giving me any sort of closure. I find, when I know ahead of time - how many books or if it's a cliffy, I can prepare myself for it, and it doesn't bother me, but I don't like being blindsided.
- Genre lies. I am talking about misleading marketing. I see this a lot with romance and women's literature. I read a book recently, which I THOUGHT was a romance, because the publisher listed it as a romance and they made it seem like a romance, but in reality, it was women's lit. I ended up enjoying the book, but only because I warned by Nick, and I readjusted my expectations. This has also happened to me, when I expected something light and fluffy, and ended up with a heavy and sad story. Not only am I disappointed, but I feel angry, because I was bamboozled.
- This one is the most major for me. When I read a romance, I expect an HEA. Point. Blank. Period. The End. The genre is well defined by this, yet there are these people trying to make romance more "realistic", and tanking the relationships. I say:
Now it's your turn!
Do your expectations affect your reading enjoyment?
Let us know in the comments!
I HATE genre lies! I'm close to giving up on urban fantasy because I keep ending up with paranormal romance and love triangles and relationship angst all in one book. I hate that!
ReplyDeleteMu understanding of UF was that there was no romance, but I think there are blurring the lines so much on genres these days. It is disappointing to intentionally pick a certain kind of book, and then it turns out to be something completely different. That's a foul on the part of the marketing team there.
DeleteThat's exactly what I thought about UF too or that at least the romance is background to the main plot. I can be ok with that! But getting constant sex scenes and relationship angst is so frustrating when the blurb has no mention of it. Like AJ says I want to know what the book is going to offer so I can make better decisions on what to buy or not buy. Gah marketing people!!!
DeleteI totally agree
DeleteI get irritated when a book isn’t marketed correctly. Sometimes I get all excited about a synopsis, but then the synopsis turns out to be a lie. I want to know what books are about before I buy them. Give me an accurate synopsis!
ReplyDeleteAj @ Read All The Things!
That is essentially what Chuckles just said too, and I know I have been upset, when a book was marketed as something, but then turned out to be the type of book I DID NOT want to read. I am not a huge women's fiction reader, and I get frustrated when I am looking to read a romance and it turns out to be women's fiction. I also hate, when I think I am picking up something fun and light, and it sends up being heavy and depressing. Boo!
DeleteYes, expectations can make or break a read for me. I hate being disappointed by favorite authors whose books I count on. I also agree about mislabeling books. Cliffhangers are the worst for me. If I go in expecting and ending because I think it’s a stand alone and then get slapped with a cliffie, I get mad.
ReplyDeleteI have started to appreciate those synopsis that indicate if the book will end in a cliffy or not. I don't see that on too many big press books. I bet they don't want people to know, because there is a market segment, that will wait until all the books are released to buy the book.
DeleteYep, I hate it when they promise me a romance and don't give me a happy ending. That's total nonsense. If I wanted real-life I'd watch the flipping news or read non-fiction. :(
ReplyDeleteI love it when I have no expectations and a book turns out awesome. Having high expectations just makes me nervous and I think the more excited I am for something the harsher I often judge it.
PREACH! If I've said it once, I've said it a million times, my fiction does NOT need to be realistic. I think I read a lot of lesser hyped books and debuts, because I have no preconceptions about the book or author, and then if it's meh, I don't get all disappointed. But, if it's great, that's a wonderful treat.
DeleteGenre lies are a big thing for me. I try to avoid books that rely on book comparisons as well.
ReplyDeleteKaren @ For What It's Worth
Name dropping other books is either an omen or a deterrent for me. When they hit up like 4 HUGE books, I doubt that can be similar to all of them.
DeleteGenre lies are a huge problem for me. I find a lot of women's fiction are classified as "thrillers" when they really aren't, and then when I'm reading, I'm waiting for action to happen that never comes. Big disappointment!
ReplyDeleteThat would annoy me too. It seems the mislabeling of women's lit is a real thing, huh?
DeleteNot knowing when a cliffhanger is imminent will make me rate the book lower out of sheer spite! The genre lies are also very annoying. I don't understand how a publisher finds urban fantasy and paranormal romance interchangeable. I've lost count of how many books have gotten a lower rating because my expectations were too high due to reading other reviews or how hyped everyone else was about it :/
ReplyDeleteI see people stripping stars off for exactly that. I am seeing a lot of frustration with the PNR/UF switcharoo today too. Personal expectations plus hype can definitely lead to a lot of disappointment.
DeleteExpectations well I fear them Sam! Because as you've said when we have them we can be disappointed! The worst for me is when I loved a first book in a series and expect the second (or third or ...) and when I read it I am disappointed. My worst experience was The Fate of the Tearlings, the last book of the trilogy where the authors changed her characters so much that I did not recognize them!
ReplyDeleteAlso when a book is really hyped it can be deterrent as I am afraid my expectations won't be met. So I am wary of expectations but can't help having them LOL Sophie @bewareofthereader
I am kind of glad I have been avoiding series (for the most part), because I remember all those feelings. Final books letting me down, the second book slump, etc. Series require a big commitment, and I think the let down is tougher with those. I have become so weary of hype, that I block it out. After I read a book, I may add to the hype, but I try to keep it out of my mind, while I am reading, because I feel like the hype monster does not share my tastes.
DeleteI try so hard to go into books with no expectations! Honestly, I live my life that way (or attempt to). Things always turn out better when you don't expect much! But I'll admit I expect a lot of my auto buy authors and I get really bummed out when they don't deliver. And I am absolutely with you on genre lies! I've seen this a LOT lately with books marketed as fantasy but they're really sci-fi or historical fiction. Like??? Why?? Just be yourself, book!
ReplyDeleteAuto buy authors are definitely held to a high standard by me as well. "Just be yourself, book!" <-- I love this.
DeleteI am usually most surprised if I get into a book without any expectations. The best feeling is when a book lives up to the expectations!!
ReplyDeleteI think having little to no expectations is the best, but I also go into many books with lots of assumptions, if I had read the author before, and other expectations based on hype too.
DeleteI love being pleasantly surprised by books that I go into with no expectations. On the flip side, I could definitely do without the genre lies. I don't want to pick up a book being marketed as a thriller and have it end up being something else entirely. I have a love-hate relationship with the cliffhangers in series. I think they can be effective ways to end a book, but I don't think every book in a series needs one. If I'm invested in a series, I'm still going to keep reading even if one book doesn't have a cliffhanger.
ReplyDeleteI have definitely poked the bear with respect to genre lies. Seems many of us are frustrated with duplicitous marketing. I do feel that some cliffhangers are well placed and make sense, BUT sometimes I would like to know what I am getting myself into before I embark on a series. I think in the back of my mind, I always leave room for the fact that a book in a series can end in a cliffhanger, which is why I do not get as frustrated as some readers I have seen, but it also makes me wish I had waited to read the book, because releases can seem like eons apart while I am waiting for some answers.
DeleteI definitely agree that expectations can sometimes make or break a book. I can't begin to tell you the number of times a perfectly good book was ruined for me because I went in expecting something completely different and the book never lived up to what I was hoping for. Sometimes those surprises can be pleasant, but more often than not I find them jarring.
ReplyDeleteNicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction
Sometimes I feel like I can be my own worst enemy, when it comes to that. As I get older, I start to expect less and less from generally everything, and many things have gotten better because of it.
DeleteExpectations can definitely make or break a book for me -- Force of Nature and Jane Harper I'm looking at you. Usually, if an author strays from the books that attracted me to them in the first place, I give it a go but! when Kelley Armstrong whose supernatural/paranormal writing I loved ventured into thrillers, I just couldn't keep reading her. I don't really mind cliffhangers if everything works, but oh yes, misleading marketing drives me bonkers. BONKERS.
ReplyDeleteSometimes it is difficult to grow with the authors and trying to shift our expectations for them, when we already have such a clear picture of what they are to us. I know the same thing happens with musicians and even actors to some extent. Seems like a lot of us are put off by some marketing ploys, which I think, for me, is a combination of not meeting my expectations and feeling deceived.
DeleteOh expectations can be terrible at times. I try not to get into books with too much expectations, but when it's a book I've been anticipating for so long, a book everyone is hyping up so much or an author I love, I kind of can't help it and... it makes me so, so sad when I end up feeling disappointed. I always try not to build up too much expectations, but sometimes, it's hard not to haha :)
ReplyDeleteGreat discussion! :)
Absolutely. I have gotten better with hype, but always have certain expectations from authors I have already read and loved.
DeleteOh, it definitely impacts my enjoyment. Not so much whether I expect a book to be great or not, but more along the lines of examples you gave about genre and stuff. I am a major mood reader, and a picky reader, so if I pick up a book expecting it to be ABC, it's because ABC is what I want at that moment. If it turns out to be XYZ, it may not even be the type of book I like, let alone the one I'm in the mood for. Of course, there are always exceptions. Books have surprised me in good ways! But I do also get frustrated when I think a book is a standalone and it turns out to be a series. I love series! But again, mood reader. And I go into books with a different mindset when it's a standalone or a series book.
ReplyDeleteOMG, yes! If I want something light, and I pick up something, which looks and sounds light, and then it's all sad -- I rage. I have read books that became series and it was frustrating, because - no closure.
DeleteI don't mind having expectations, as in my own. So when I liked a book by an author before and loved it so I usually get myself expecting good things of the next book of theirs that I read. At the same time though, if there is too much hype I don't read it. I usually get it if I am actually interested, then wait until the hype has died down before I read it so my expectations aren't too high!
ReplyDeleteI have learned to ignore the hype monster, but I cannot quiet my own hype/expectations, which is probably worse.
DeleteI agree with you about expectations being a BIG deal. The thing with me though is, I think 9 out of 10 times, it's my OWN fault that something didn't meet my expectations? Like- I don't bother reading synopses, or hyped myself up too much, or forgot that I didn't even like X Genre hahah. Though the series thing is REAL- I want to know what I am signing up for! I am still salty that now I have to be invested in a whole host of Shatter Me books, and Legend books, and like... I was done with those guys, you know?
ReplyDeleteSee, you picked two series that I loved so much, and I actually squealed when I saw we were getting more of those (Iron Fey too)
Deleteurgh I hate it when a book is marketed as light but turns out to be a real downer. Films are the worst at that though - so many 'comedies' lure you in with a few laughs in the trailer, and the rest of it is actually really depressing!
ReplyDeleteI would say deceptive marketing applies to all things for me. I guess some of that comes down to one person's opinion, but in my heart, I think they know they are leading us to believe one thing, when the book/movie is clearly something else.
DeleteI guess I go in with exceptions and can be surprised either way - whether it being good or bad. There are many times I am surprised that I like the book. I can not stand when they mislabel their books. If it's a thriller I want to know that. If its a romance I want to know that too. I always, always want a HEA but most times don't get it. =)
ReplyDeleteMary
I feel like the marketers toy with us a little sometimes. I don't know if it's because they feel there is wiggle room in there or not, but I am not a fan of such deception. What kind of books are you reading!! I almost always get my HEA or hopeful ending.
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