Top 5 Tuesday is hosted by Shanah at Bionic Book Worm..
This weeks topic Books I’d Rewrite well, honestly I’ve thought quiet a bit about this one in the past so it seemed like the perfect time to hop on! Granted I truly hope I’m not insulting anyone’s favorite reads below!
The Raven King
Overall I still love the series for its characters and it’s first two and a half books but the ending of The Raven King felt so anti-climatic. Unfortunately particularly in the area of Gansey’s search.
IT
This actually wouldn’t be a complete rewrite because I actually quiet liked it but I would definitely remove the orgy scene, change up Bev’s adult relationship with Bill, and naturally have Richie and Eddie’s relationship more center and obvious.
The Wicked Deep
There were some good elements to this book- but I found some other elements including the romance, the relationship, and some of the implications surrounding it (boy am I trying not to spoiler anything!) very problematic.
And I felt like I was supposed to like it but just eh, couldn’t get past that.
Unfortunately when it comes right down to it that and the curse is a big part of my problem with the book- so rewrite!
A Court of Wings and Ruin
Think what you may of the series as a whole but I think she completely botched the final book. From cut aways, last minute saves, problems with characterization, everyone’s a FAE, etc, etc.
It has to be one of the laziest yet longest endings in recent book history.
Plus she took Rhys and Feyre from eye-rolling but okay smutty fun to just plain annoying. Which I heard only got worse in the novella.
So I went back and forth on deciding what should be my 5th book- do I rewrite A Storm of Swords solely to save Catelyn? Well, I probably would but it would just be that one section so I wanted to go with something I’d rewrite much more of and not a pick that’s so personal…
House of Leaves
This weird house story is a cult favorite but I was disappointed in many of the elements of this book. I’d take out the endless ramblings of the in-between narrator who finds the book. I think I’d just make this about the house and family and their investigation. That was the strongest part and the rest just brought it down.
And as much as I bought the book for its format I think it’s present it as a straight book- maybe some newspaper articles, maps and pics throughout but none of the twisting shrinking words, the repetitive stuff, the endless footnotes (narrator ugh!) again I thought it wound up taking away from the story so rewrite.
I would dig that re-write of IT tbh. I still wish King would take out that orgy scene and write something new.
I’m kind of surprised it was never edited out in the last what thirty or so years? It’s so pointless and out of place it could easily, easily be removed!
Nice picks! I’d re-write IT as well by not putting Beverly in an abusive relationship and shorten some of the scenes where Mike explains the history of Derry. Those make the story like 5x longer than it needs to be.
Yeah you make a good point. I did like the history but sometimes King just doesn’t know when to stop so definitely shorten them!