I am somebody who unhauls books often, so I never do a large unhaul or share the books that I get rid of very often. That said, I was in a spring cleaning kind of book and I decided to finally get rid of some books I was holding on to despite not loving them. I am really trying to curate my shelves so that they reflect who I am and my reading taste.
Final Girls was my first Riley Sager and my introduction to the “final girl” trope. I had a good time with it because I wasn’t reading a lot of thrillers at the time. However, I have read a couple more books from Sager since then a did not enjoy them. Home Before Dark seems to be a lot of people’s favourite, and it just didn’t work for me. I think I have decided it is just time to give up on Riley Sager. My best friend loves thrillers, so I will pass it on to him!
I read They Both Die at the End years ago and thought it was fine. I know that it has had a bit of a resurgence because of BookTok, so I will happily pass it along to someone who will be more excited about it! It is not a book that has stayed with me or one that I have ever had displayed on my shelves. I have only kept it because I knew it was so popular!
Stalking Jack the Ripper is another book I read years ago and I remember really loving the atmosphere. I have said this many times, but I am terrible at completely series. I have so many that I want to complete, and this series is just not a priority for me. I don’t need it taunting me from my shelves. Into the little free library, it goes!
The Nest was very popular when it came out and I was so disappointed with it. It is too bad because I normally love family dramas! I have been holding on to this one for sallow reasons- the cover is absolutely stunning! I realize that is not a good reason to keep a book around, so I hope one of my neighbours will be happy to find it in the little free library.
After the End was sent to me from the publisher and I was so excited because Clare Mackintosh wrote one of my favourite thrillers- I Let You Go. I was not prepared for what After the End ended up being, which is not a thriller. It follows a couple whose son is terminally ill and they disagree about how to handle his care. It was just too difficult for me to read and I never finished it!
I wanted to love A Darker Shade of Magic because the premise was so interesting, but it just wasn’t for me. I have struggled with all of V.E. Schwab’s books- I don’t know what it is! I do have a copy of Gallant and I think it will be the book that determines whether or not I will ever read anything else by the author. A Darker Shade of Magic is, once again, the first book in a series that I know I will never complete. I have a feeling that my neighbour will love this, so I will see if she has read it or not.
Surprise, surprise- another series! I thought The Bone Witch was interesting, but the books are available for free on Audible if you are a Plus member, so if I ever feel compelled to complete it I can always listen to them. It is another book I think my neighbour might enjoy!
Last Chance Books is an ARC I was sent, and it always pains me to get rid of ARCs. I just didn’t love it, though I really should have. It is a You’ve Got Mail retelling! I just didn’t love the characters or buy into the romance. What do you do with ARCs you didn’t love?
Paula Hawkins’s books aren’t my favourite, but I will always try them! I do think that I enjoyed Into the Water more than most readers, but I just don’t hold on to thrillers unless they are 4 or 5 stars, which is rare for me when it comes to this genre. Into the Water was a solid three stars, but I do know some readers in real life that would enjoy it!
It makes me sad to let go of Red Rising because I did really love it! It was one of the first SciFi books I ever read and it was so unique to me at that time. Sadly, I finally read Golden Son last year and I just couldn’t get invested in it. A lot of what I loved about the first one wasn’t present in the sequel, and I have been told that Golden Son is actually the best book in the initial trilogy. I also have Morning Star, so I will be donating the entire trilogy.
What do you do with books that you want to unhaul?
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For books that I want to unhaul, I usually give them to a friend who might like them, or to youth/children’s shelter or a free library. I rarely see a free libary that is full around here so I usually carry a sack of books in my car and then, fill up the free library with what’s in my sack.
Stalking Jack The Ripper! I’ve just added this to my to buy list!!!
I do love an unhaul, it feels so refreshing!
I really do think you are going to love Stalking Jack the Ripper. It feels like your kind of book!
I listened to the whole series and now need that physical copy!!!
That makes sense! I figured you would have read it!
I don’t have many physical books to unhaul. I love this post and how you explain why you’re unhauling a book.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! It was freeing to finally let these go.
If I unhaul books I first ask friends and my co-workers if they want to read them. Second I give them to charity shops or out exchange shelf close to work.
Ohh I love that your work has that!
I’m forever unhauling books, especially when I’m making room for new books, and whilst I’ve given the odd few to friends over the years, I tend to donate mine to charity shops.
I’m the same way. It’s never a lot of books at once. I usually know as soon as I’m done a book if it is one I want to keep!
A lot of the time that’s the same with me too. If I DNF or don’t like a book that much on finishing it, I know it will go straight into the unhaul pile. The only problem is that I let them pile up because I don’t get rid of them straight away.
You sound exactly like me with The Nest! I had a hard time getting rid of it because of the cover because I didn’t care for the story. I have books just sitting on my floor currently that I need to find new homes for 😅