The “No Thank You” Shelf

Certain storylines are a no-no for me. Two examples: I avoid crime fiction centred on gangs or drugs. Gangland stories often involve a level of violence, intimidation, and unlikeable characters that I don’t care to read about. As for drugs, I’ve spent my life avoiding them. They’ve never interested me in real life, so I’m not keen to waste with them in fiction either.

Domestic abuse is a little different. I will read novels that include it if the author handles the topic with care, but I still find it uncomfortable to read. And to take things a shade darker, my editor advised me to keep the torture scene in ‘Silent Winter’ brief and skimp on details. She was right. That’s a scenario where ‘less is more’ — except for authors like Chris Carter, of course!

I realise this is all a matter of personal taste. One reader’s ‘not for me’ is another reader’s gripping page-turner.

What about you? Is there a crime or thriller storyline that makes you place the novel back on the shelf with a muttered, ‘No, thank you’?