I just finished a book that I recognize as being beautifully and skillfully written, but I just couldn’t connect to it. Perhaps it’s a genre thing for me (or similar). It feels wrong to rate it three stars because it genuinely feels like it deserves way more than that, and I would definitely recommend it to others if it sounded like their cup of tea. I’m at the point of adding it to my book list for the year and I’m unsure of how to handle it.
Edit: Thanks all! Your responses were super helpful. I ended up going with this (brevity due to Twitter):
The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
Written w awe-inspiring precision, artful dialogue & moody atmos BUT for some reason didn’t connect w me. Perhaps a genre thing, maybe POV not deep enough for me.
I enjoyed it 3⭐️ but it deserves 4⭐️
REC.
by meroboh