I was just reading the best book thread and was thinking that even the best authors sometimes just miss the boat.  Do you have any?

For example:

Stephen King..Gerald's Game

Interesting idea...

Robert A. Heinlein - I have read 37 of his books, and really enjoyed almost all of them.  One, I Will Fear No Evil involved an old man having his brain transplanted into a young woman's body.  It was just weird.

Joe Haldeman - I have read all his books written under his own name.  He was successful early on with The Forever War, but for some unknown reason he joined the pulp train and wrote a couple of bad Star Trek novels after that, Planet of Judgement and World Without End.

Orson Scott Card - I have read 43 of his books, and met him in person.  He improved as he went on, I think.  A couple of his early books, Songmaster and Hart's Hope were not very inspiring.

Even the best authors have a clinker now and then! Great idea for a thread. My nomination,

Careless in Red by Elizabeth George. I have enjoyed all of her other novels, even What Came Before He Shot Her. But this one was just too many dysfunctional characters and a plodding story line.

Amy Tan's Saving Fish from Drowning.  I love her books but this one was a total piece of shite.

Salem Falls by Jody Picoult. Still can't believe she wrote it herself!

Patricia Cornwell's last few books.  I no longer list her amongst my favorite authors.

I'm with you Diane. Cornwell's last book "Trace" was the worst. I wrote a review and said that she should stick to Scarpetta! Her next book, "Scarpetta" sounds like it might be about Scarpetta, so I thought I'd give her one more shot!!!

Well, I love Richard Bach, but his early books about planes were way too boring to enjoy unless you are crazy about planes like him. His later books always reference planes or flying but atleast there is more of a plot.

Agatha Christie has great books, but I didnt like the book The Unexpected Guest. She wrote it as a play and someone else transfered it into a book.

Anne Lamott's book Crooked Little Heart  just didn't do it for me.  Her non-fiction is just great and Joe Jones, Blue Shoe and Hard Laughter are my favorites of her fiction.

Most of Stephen Kings later works... total crap.  I did like Geralds Game though. 

The last SK book I read was "From a Buick 8".  I was like... huh?  through the whole thing, wondering when it finally was going to get better.

Ugh Patricia Cornwell what are you thinking lately? The Kay Scarpetta novels used to be so good, but the last few have been total crap. I have to know what happens with the characters so I'll keep reading, but I'm not going to get the hardcovers anymore, I'm waiting for paperback.

Beth, ditto on Gerald's Game.  I love SK, but Gerald's Game was a real stinker.

I love Sidney Sheldon and I own ALL of his books, including his memoir. I especially love his early works, Master of the Game, If Tomorrow Comes and Rage of Angels. I was very disappointed in Tell Me Your Dreams and The Sky is Falling:(

Burning Bright by Tracy Chevalier.  I loved all her books.  This one just didn't do it for me.

thanks

Shade's Children by Garth Nix.  All his other books are amazing, but this one just got too depressing and weird for me.

She hasn't written that many books, but the woman who wrote one of my all-time favorites, "The Secret Life of Bees," followed it with one that was unbelievably bad---"The Mermaid's Chair."

Bees was so original, and great; the Mermaid's Chair was just one long cliche. I do not think I've ever been so disappointed in an author!

I really enjoyed "The Silence of the Lambs" and "Red Dragon" by Thomas Harris.  I've always felt guilty that I asked our library to buy "Hannibal" because I thought it was one of the worst sequels ever written.  Did I say I hated it?

I feel the same way about Patricia Cornwall...I used to haunt the bookstores for her next book - haven't read one in several years now.

I have read and reread "Anne of Green Gables" time after time - but didn't like any of the sequel books. 

"What Came Before He Shot Her" - Elizabeth George. Love her Lynley series. Couldn't finish this book, even though it involves events in the series.

For L.M. Montgomery, it would have to be Magic for Marigold.  Complete saccharin.

I've pretty much given up on Patricia Cornwell as well....the Scarpetta books just get worse and worse, and I thought Trace was unreadable -- I couldn't make it out of the first chapter.   I'm still debating over whether to get Scarpetta at the library...I vaguely want to see what happens, but IMHO the characters get more unlikeable with each book.

I was so disappointed when I read Clive Barker's Mister B. Gone.  I think I was expecting something like Imagica and made assumptions before reading it.  It wasnt a bad book, but I was disappointed as I was expecting a different Clive Barker. 

I was sooo disappointed with Gregory Maguire's "Lost." Before "Lost" I had read "Wicked," "Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister," and "Mirror Mirror." While "Wicked" blew the others out of the water (in my opinion), the other two were still great books. "Lost," however, was never able to fully grasp me attention. It was almost a chore to finish it.

Anne Rice - Christ the Lord: Out of Eygpt

The first Anne Rice book ( and I have read plenty) that I could not finish

I used to love Stephen King!  Used to get all his books, then he started getting yucky.  I really didn't like Misery, then there was Gerald's Game.  What the heck is it with him?  They weren't just scary, they were brutal and disgusting!!  I wasn't going to read any more of his, then I heard Bag of Bones was back to his old style.  I read it and that one wasn't bad.

I'd have to say Rainbow Valley by L. M. Montgomery. I love the Anne series, but this one had none of Anne's charm, it barely had any of Anne at all. I didn't like how it didn't really have a main POV either, because the other books weren't written in that style. I was a little disappointed with Rilla of Ingleside, but at least it had a main POV again, and I did like Rilla.

I also like "The Land" series by Mildred D. Taylor (I've only read the three main books). It feels like you are listening to the author tell her story, however, the Road to Memphis was utterly disappointing in that area. Yes, it was nice to see what happened to everybody as they grew, but it didn't feel real. It was just another book.

I can't think of any others. :)