Picked the literary fiction pick over the thriller for our book club last month

Our group couldn't decide between a buzzy thriller or a quiet literary novel about a family in rural Maine. I pushed hard for the literary one because I was sick of predictable twists. We read it and honestly half the group hated it, said nothing happened. The other half loved the slow burn. Now we're stuck on which direction to go next month. How do you guys handle these split votes in your club?

3 comments

3 Comments

rowan72523d ago

Nothing happened" is such a weird complaint to me. I mean, did the characters breathe, eat, think, argue, sit on a porch for 30 pages describing the light on the lake? Because that's what happens in real life too. People always say they want realistic stories until they actually get one. Your group sounds like it has two different ideas of what makes a book worth reading. Next time just pick the thriller and let the slow burn fans suffer through a few chapters of people running from a killer. It'll balance out eventually.

paigep2023d ago

We alternate genres each month to keep everyone happy.

the_joseph23d ago

Is it really that serious though? @paigep20 I get that people have preferences, but acting like alternating genres is some kind of peace treaty for the book club feels a little dramatic. Like, you're not negotiating a UN resolution, you're just picking what to read next month. If someone's that upset about a slow burn versus a thriller, maybe they need a different hobby.