I reflected on my best reading experiences of the year earlier this week, and I had a lot to share. Honestly, I needed to cut myself off because this has been a really great year of reading, particularly when it comes to how I’m approaching my books. But there were a few less than great bookish endeavors I took on this year, and those taught me a lot as well. Today I’m sharing a few of the things that just didn’t work in my reading life in 2025 and how I’m taking what I’ve learned into the new year.

Four less-than-stellar reading experiences in 2025

1. Feeling betrayed by blurbs and marketing copy. I’m not new to how the book marketing world works so I know not to rely too much on what I find in the publisher’s pitch copy or author blurbs. I’ve even written about the responsibility of readers to adjust our expectations based on what a book is actually doing. But sometimes, the description is so heinously wrong or the blurbs so incandescently positive that it is impossible not to be affected.