Top 10 Tuesday: Things That Will Make You Instantly NOT Want to Read a Book

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Wow, my first ever Top 10 Tuesday. I’m excited! (That sounds sarcastic, but I really am excited, especially since this week’s topic is so good). This week’s Top 10 Tuesday topic is: 10 Things That Will Make You Instantly NOT Want to Read a Book. So, what makes me say no to a book?

“And then she meets Boy and everything changes”: Why must so many female protagonists’ arcs begin when they meet a boy? Why is the boy always both the catalyst and the love interest? It’s so irritating how male-focused many story arcs supposedly about female characters can be.
Biphobia: Honestly, any bigotry is an instant way to get me to not read your book, but biphobia hits me on a personal level. As someone who is bisexual, I am both hurt and bothered by all the stereotypes that somehow still permeate throughout many books (and other media). It’s lazy storytelling and exposes prejudices and I absolutely do not want to sit through that.
Love Triangles: This is probably going to be on everyone’s list, but it’s just so played out. (Not to mention, unrealistic.)
Cheating and Affairs: What is it with writers and romanticizing cheating? I find this more in adult novels than in YA, which both gives me hope and also confuses me. Cheating is never okay, but I’m a little more likely to sympathize if it’s an unthinking, impetuous kid rather than a bored adult (“more likely” being still not much at all because I don’t condone or even understand cheating).
Abuse: This one comes with a two-pronged explanation. First: I don’t like reading stories about abuse because they make me sad. It’s an important story, but it’s a topic I’ve always found too upsetting to read. Second: abuse masquerading as romance is a HUGE turn-off. And it’s so prevalent! Hell, the current best-selling series of all time fits that description! And it’s so fucking damaging and pisses me off so much!
Unattractive Covers: Let me preface this by saying not all unattractive covers are ugly covers. They just don’t entice me to read them. I only read books with bad covers if I already like the author or previously heard good things. Otherwise, I won’t touch them.
“I’m Not Like Other Girls”: Often, you can tell just by the blurb that the protagonist is this sort of character. And it’s a statement filled with pretentiousness and girl-hating and I WILL NOT ABIDE BY THAT.
Authors Who are Shitty People: I thank the universe we live in the age where social media exists so we can more easily determine which authors are pieces of shit. This can be displayed in several ways: racism/sexism/lgbtphobia/ableism/etc., defensiveness of the aforementioned, treating fans like shit, and more. I don’t want to support a book by an author who does not support their audience.
Werewolves and Zombies: I grouped these two together because they are both mythical beings that I don’t care for. I’ve never liked werewolves and their once-a-month transformations and zombies are just… well, there’s nothing to them. I’ll read about pretty much any mythical being but those two.
Low Ratings: I have absolutely disagreed with the majority before, but if I’m unsure whether or not I want to read a book and I see it has a low rating, I’m not going to bother with that book. Why put time and energy into a book that has a very good chance of not resonating with me?

And there you have it. The top 10 things that will cause me to say no to a book, in no particular order. What are some things that turn you off from reading a book?