For me it was Stephen King (quit reading after 'The Stand' , though 'Salem's Lot' for me was one of the scariest books ever)  |  Patricia Cornwell   |  Jeffrey Deaver  |  hmmmmmm, kind of a pattern there!   |  Maeve Binchy.

I don't read a lot of fiction. Definitely Stephen King. Salem's Lot was very scary to me, as was The Shining, and then it was downhill from there. The Stand was the last book of his I read for over 20 years. Picked him up again with Bag of Bones. Haven't tried Lisey's Story yet.

Jan Karon's Mitford series. The first two books were nice gentle reads, pleasant, well-written. We read them in a reading group I was a part of. Then she started repeating herself and by the end of the series I barely bothered to check them out from the library for a 1-hour skim through.  

I read the first four or five of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum novels. How could I pass up a book that caused my wife to fall out of bed laughing? The plot and character development stalled out early on, and I haven't read the last, what, 8 or 9 in the series, although my wife still does.

On the other hand, Laurie R. King just gets better and better, I think.

Les

I've veered off into memoirs and more non-fiction in the last year or so.  My next book to read happens to be Laurie R. King...now I'm excited about it.  As much attention as Lisa See has been getting, I had to struggle a bit to get through 'Flower Net'.  Hoping to finish her off tonight!

For me..

  Laurell K Hamilton, Angela Knight, Christine Feehan., Lora Leigh,...all romance/  paranormal romance authors.

Hmm Lester no falling out of bed for you? I can see where the Evanovich Plum series might be geared more toward women.

I am into Dana Stabenow's Kate Shugak mystery series set in Alaska. I really like them and hope they don't go down hill.

The Coffeehouse Mystery series.  I really enjoyed the first few, but then several characters began grating on my nerves, and I wound up reposting the last one I read without finishing it.  Ah, well.

I agree, Kristen, I stopped mid-way through number 3 in the coffee series...

Stephanie Laurens is my used to buy new author, now I pass on most of hers

There have been a lot of series that slipped away.  Already mentioned were Patricia Cornwell, although I only read a couple, also the Stephanie Plums, Robert Parker's Spenser.  I haven't been keeping up with Elizabeth Peters series since she aged everyone.  I enjoyed them a lot in the beginning.

More recently I became disappointed in Carolyn Haines "Bones" books, which are being  titled "A Southern Belle Mystery" blech.  I also burned out quickly on the Victoria Laurie "Psychic Eye" series.  Actually I'm beginning to think that perhaps if the cover of the book features a woman's legs (or the sunglasses/hat thing) and it's not a classic detective novel, I should skip it.  I stopped on page 18 of Nancy Martin's "How to Murder a Millionaire" and the cover featured a woman in a large hat with long legs and high heels.

I confess that I also don't care for series when the author uses the plot device of having the main character's SO become paralyzed/badly injured (usually because of the main character).  I can name 3 series off the top of my head that have used this one and they stopped me cold.  I suppose if I stretch my brain back over years and years, I'll think of some real-life situation something like that but it's not that common.

I know there are more, but it's early.  Unfortunately many of "my" authors just die :( 

I read a lot of Patricia Cornwell's books in a row, and that burned me out quickly.  They all seemed very similar.  It's been a few years so I'd like to go back and read some of her newer ones now.

Laurell K. Hamilton is a good one, too predictable, turned into bazaar supernatural romance.  Robert Heinlein, started reading them all, now own none, only 3 or 4 very good.  Frank Herbert, started reading them all but DUNE stuff is best work.

I edit my reply.  I would agree with Anne Rice.  The first three from Interview with a Vampire made for a very readable trilogy.  After that I could not keep interested.

I've burned out on Stuart Woods Stone Barrington novels.  They've just evolved into "Let's eat at Elaine's and name drop."

I still like the Elizabeth Peters novels; even though the characters have aged, to me, the younger generation makes up for it.

I agree with LKH and Anne Rice. Both just got bizarre. One went on a strange mystical spiritual journey that made no sense to anyone else and the other got lost in wereanimal porn.

Many, but these come to the forefront: Patricia Cornwell and Iris Johansen.  I could take only so much vice against human beings.  Dean Koontz after Watchers and Lightning, my favorites.  He was worse than a romance author with the beautiful heroine and flowery language back then.  I was a Stephen King lunatic, until Gerald's Game, and I was so disgusted with the first couple of chapters of that that I stopped reading and didn't pick up anything of his again for years. 

 Anne Rice. I  loved the first 2-3 vampire Chronicles, and I REALLY loved the Mayfair Witches.....but then it just got over-the-top, and tiresome. (but I never liked any of Laurell Hamilton, paranormal romance just not my thing)

  And I treasured Sharyn McCrumb's "Ballad" series, but   not the more recent ones that deal with NASCAR, etc.

OHHHHH-now it's coming back to me.....the absolute worst: Christopher Moore. His first 2-3 were fabulous. Then he wrote one called "Fluke". Talk about jumping the shark......(and those are not even continuing series)

I don't know if it's fair to say that I'm 'tired' of Melissa Bank, since she only has two books.  The Girl's Guide to Hunting and Fishing is one of my favorite books of all time, and I was so excited when The Wonder Spot came out, only to be disappointed.  Maybe the next will be better?

  I was a big big fan of Stephen King's until Gerald's Game. That had to be one of the worst books I've read.   I did pick up Bag of Bones which I enjoyed, but haven't gotten back into him.  Patricia Cornwell is another.  And Sue Grafton. I may try her again, I've been on a long hiatus from her.

Kate Elliot Star series, really like the 1st book, got the series, then bogged down in 2nd book, never finshed. I loved Elizabeth Haydon's Rhapsody, Prophecy, Destiny series, but have never gone on to read the other 3. Patricia Cornwell I adored her Kay Scarpetta but she has gotten so far out in left field i can't even find her with my telescope any more; bought but never read Predator & nothing from her since; to bad; I am currently reading an Unquiet Grave by P J Parrish (who is actually 2 sisters) & really enjoy their books all but 1; but am glad I took a chance to read her again & have been thrilled with the series. James Patterson's i loved most of his books; then when he started writing with so many different authors, I will "try" the book, many I don't complete reading; others I really enjoy.

 The "Secret Life of Bees" was one of the best books I ever read. I waited a long time to read because it did not sound that great, but when I did, it was so fabulous I must have given away 10 copies.

  Then she did "The Mermaid Chair,"  which I advance ordered without even  looking at it, because I was so sure it would be good. THAT may be the biggest book disappointment ever. It was a trite, so un-original, book about a woman's mid-life romantic crisis, with a priest, yet! And set at the beach. It had every cliche you can imagine. It was awful.

For me it was the V.C. Andrews books

Anne Rice for sure.  I loved the Lestat books, until Memnoch.  Everything after that read like it was nothing more than a contractual obligation.

I'm going to start a new thread with the opposite take...What author have you enjoyed MORE as you continued to read his/her books?  Maybe more appropriate in Members' Thoughts though? 

I loved the early David Baldacci books which were character heavy... the later books seems to be more plot heavy and policial and conspiracy laden and I lost interest.  My favorite was "The Winner".

John Grisham, Nichols Sparks, James Patterson.

I'll still read their stuff, but I'm not as rushed to go get their books. 

Barbara Kingsolver -- I loved her early stuff! Poisonwood Bible completely turned me off of her work...

Kaye Gibbons, although I'll still revisit her stuff. I love 'Ellen Foster' and 'A Cure for Dreams', and then there was one other one that I really enjoyed... but her most recent stuff just seems like Hallmark cards to me.