In Mysteries
2. Too many coincidences - Occasional coincidences happen but when huge pivotal parts of the plot turn on a conversation you happened to overhear or a newspaper that happened to be left out than it's hard to keep my eyes from rolling.
3. No explanation with the reveal - I love a good why mystery and the why usually interests me as much as the who so when the reveal is basically "this guy did it" I'm very unhappy!
4. The killer was not mentioned in the book - This drives me crazy! I read a mystery once where the night manager of this hotel was the killer which is all well and good but the night manager was mentioned precisely once and only in his capacity as a night manager. That's just cheating!
In Romances
2. Cheating - Nope just nope. Don't care if you're about to break up with your girlfriend or boyfriend or haven't done anything if a romance starts in anyway shape or form when they're in relationships with other people I'm out.
3. Holding on to romance/grudges from high school - I don't understand it! Granted I've been out of high school way longer than a lot of the main characters in a romance but still! No part of me wants to be the person I was in high school and that includes not having a deep longing for past relationships
On Television
A multi-show story arc - I tend to watch crime shows (NCIS, CSI, etc) where the show starts with a dead body and ends with an arrest. I can handle a plot taking a couple of shows to flesh out the story but if it gets more than that I'm out. My main issue is that when a plot goes more than a few shows the plot gets really convoluted, the characters go crazy, or you end up with an arch-nemesis and I hate those!
In Real Life
People who leave shopping carts in the middle of the parking lot - This drives me CRAZY! The only exception to this if a shopping cart is pushed out of the way in the handicapped parking area.
I could go on but I think I should stop now! I'm going to go drink some calming tea and do some yoga. Turns out I'm not nearly as relaxed as I thought I was! What are your pet peeves?
Oh... I agree with all of the mystery ones and the romance ones actually :) Now with television, I mostly watch shows that have long lasting arcs. I do like the occasional crime show and there obviously I prefer a case per episode otherwise it gets convoluted, agreed! Great rant :)
ReplyDeleteOh my gosh, I am so with you on your romance pet peeves. Cheating is a definite NO NO! And I hate when the balance of power is totally unequal. That makes me so uncomfortable. And I also love my TV shows to be very episodic for the most part.
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ReplyDeletePeople who leave shopping carts in the middle of the parking lot - This is my biggest pet peeve!! Like just put the cart back. I do agree with most of your mystery ones too. Fun post!
ReplyDeleteThe killer not being mentioned in the book is something I only came across once. It was a Mary Higgins Clarke (ok they were briefly mentioned) and I'm still mad about it 20 years later!
ReplyDeleteI'm with you 100% on the romance issues. Also the shopping carts left in the lot. What's up with that?
ReplyDeleteWhat a great article! My pet peeve? I hate a huge info-dump at the start of a book in semi-omniscience instead of bothering to stitch in all the necessary backstory and character information throughout the narrative. It's lazy!
ReplyDeleteYou must really have a love hate relationship with NCIS then cause it does that story ARC thing a lot. :) I don't mind it. I can see some of those things that bother you bothering me but not all of them. It's funny what we love and hate in our reads. :)
ReplyDeleteI hate shopping carts left everywhere. I usually grab one and put it back on my way in the story. I have to agree with everything on your list. I don't really watch a lot of TV but the bigger story arc doesn't really bother me.
ReplyDeleteOh, good. I'm so glad I don't peeve you IRL! Since The Man is a disabled veteran, that is always where I leave our cart. It's nice to have one there for the next person! I totally support both #1s all the way. When the romance one revolves around money and desperation, I feel weird, too.
ReplyDeleteI agree with pretty much all your points, Katherine. Even the shopping cart thing. The unequal power issue in romance tends to really bug me as well. And not mentioning the killer until the end... I feel cheated when that happens. I don't mind red herrings and misdirection now and then, but please don't invent a killer out of thin air right at the end.
ReplyDeleteCoincidences are a big one for me. Like I just read a book where the WHOLE thing turned on a coincidence- nothing else would happen otherwise- and I was like, no. :) And yeah I also need a plausible reason for the person to be investigating. Just being nosy doesn't cut it.
ReplyDeleteLol about shopping carts. Exactly.
Yes! Coincidences! Ugh. I hate them! And, things that go against the laws of Physics in real world situations.
ReplyDeleteI love the way you included tv and real world pet peeves. :)
You made me so chuckle! Never seen the shopping carts like that but would annoy me if it happened. Other than that I suspect I am a slightly undiscerning reader!!
ReplyDeleteYes, yes, yes to all of those! And a lovely laugh at the start of the day! Hope the yoga and tea helped.
ReplyDeleteComment won't be accepted but yes to all of the above
ReplyDeleteMe again and it worked this time YEAH. loving your posts
ReplyDeleteYes to all of the above (!) except until you mentioned them I wasn't really thinking of some of them :)
ReplyDeleteHate major coincidences in books-- romance or mystery. That's just lazy writing to me.
IRL pet peeve is: rude people talking loudly on their phone in enclosed places-- doctor's waiting room, elevator, restaurant, etc. At the end of my working career I took a job as a sales person in a store near me, and folks would keep talking on their phone while I rang them up, & ignored me even when I said something like "have a nice day". Ugh!!