Overrated Authors?

[acasto]

J.K.Rowling. Still good, but I couldn't bring myself to re-read Harry Potter.

[David Dawson]

I'm not sure that Dan Brown, Stephanie Meyer, even J.K. Rowling etc. can count as overrated. Surely even fans of their books aren't claiming that they are great writers, just that they enjoy the books...

[nikki_p]

I think John Green is over rated to be honest. I don't think he's the best writer in all of YA and I honestly cringe when a teenage girl replies to the question "who's your favorite author?" with "JOHN GREEN!!" Or, "what kind of books do you like?" with "ANYTHING BY JOHN GREEN!!" I just don't think he's all that great, if you're really only interested in YA there is so much out there to explore, and there are authors out there ten times better than he is. I just don't understand the hype. He's a great guy, don't get me wrong. He does a lot for the internet world and YouTube community, and his books ARE very well written. I just don't think he's worthy of being the sole author that some people devote themselves to.

[paperleopard]

Veronica Roth is overrated! I really liked the Divergent series at first, but I couldn't get past the glaring cliches and weird dialogue. I skimmed over most of it, and can't remember two things that happened in book 2 despite reading it three times. Its all the same. The idea for the story was brilliant, so that's why I loved the movie. Roth was better as a movie director.

[Sarah1]

Jodi Picoult. I know a lot of people love her stuff. My sister has even read almost everything she's ever written but I just don't get the hype.

[saviolo]

J.K.Rowling. Still good, but I couldn't bring myself to re-read Harry Potter.

A little harsh perhaps. The first two are quite OK children's books, and I quite liked some of the plotting. The later ones really need an editor and I would agree that having read them once, I don't think I could put myself through it again.

-- 17 May 2014, 18:59 --

I'm not sure that Dan Brown, Stephanie Meyer, even J.K. Rowling etc. can count as overrated. Surely even fans of their books aren't claiming that they are great writers, just that they enjoy the books...

I'd agree with the last two. They write books of a particular type and if you don't get it, then you won't enjoy them much. If you do - well I suppose the actually 'quality' doesn't matter so much.

Dan Brown is another matter. There's just no excuse for what he writes.

[Titanoboa92]

I think Emily Bronte is overrated. I haven't read any of her poetry, but Wuthering Heights was very disappointing for me. It might be because of all the hype and how it's considered a classic. It might also be because I'd read Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte before reading Wuthering Heights and it was one of my favorite books. Wuthering Heights was a let down for me and I wasn't impressed by Emily Bronte's storytelling.

[gmelford]

John Green

[ylisa7]

Here are some authors I have tried and I have no desire to read any of their other books:
Hemingway
Shakespeare
Janet Evanovich
John Green after three of his books I give up
Cormac McCarthy…I had to stop reading The Road


Some I just don't care for the genre:
Cassandra Clare
Richelle Mead

[vrussell001]

Umberto Eco is a wonderful author but it seems he doesn't always translate well. He has an international reputation but if you can only get the book if it is read in Italian I'm not sure how well deserved that reputation is.

[DorianC]

Sherrilyn Kenyon. At first, I thought her stories were good. Romance mixed in with a dash of magic. More recently, she has been trying too much. Either that, or her editor has been slacking.

[JessiAnne26]

finally some other people who don't enjoy Austen.

[FNAWrite]

"Dan Brown is another matter. There's just no excuse for what he writes."

A possible excuse is that hundreds of millions of people will pay him in order that they might read what he has written.

What is it you find inexcusable about his writing?

[thsavage2]

I'm going to go with Leo Tolstoy. I read Anna Karenina, and while it is probably fair to label it as "good Literature," it was not a good book. I think it could be half as long and still have too many words. Tolstoy himself thought it was too long, and when he was writing it (we read one of his letters in AP English), even he complained about how he hated it and just wanted it to be finished.

I'm going to defend Dan Brown, despite his flaws (no point denying he has them). He does his research, and while he might capitalize on controversial topics, his books are impossible to put down and fantastic rides from start to finish.

[Sajarin]

Shakespeare is NOT OVERRATED.

Are you kidding me? He is one of the greatest authors of all time.

Clearly ylisa you are ignorant. Read more of his works.