The cranky one has a bone to pick with …silly book reviewers. First repeat after me "it is okay to read formula novels". The literature police will not come for you. Even they realize that formula novels can be great entertainment and lots of fun.
I recently read a novel that I felt was a very good example within its genre which happens to be the thriller novel. I began to read some other readers reviews and many of them criticized the novel for being formulaic. Well duh, Of course it is formulaic, many novels within genres are. (BTW don't spam me for this comment, yes I know that there are novelists who do bring originality to their work within various genres)
Mystery novels generally have a murder, a sleuth, and the resolution to the murder; romance novels have two protagonists who may initially hate one another but initially fall in love and then have a happily ever after. Many people read the same author because they know there will be familiar motifs with the works of the aforesaid author.
I myself enjoy Robert Crais because I know Elvis is going to be conflicted, Pike is going to be enigmatic and that there will be at least one really good shootout.
If you are going to review a novel within a formula then critique writing, character development ete. Formula authors can fall flat and its perfectly fine to point out problems, just don’t trash the book because it is exactly what it purports to be.
