So I hate it when an author leaves stuff hanging, and no, I don’t mean their junk or a chad or anything like that. But rather belabor or harp on stuff that *poof* when it’s no longer needed it doesn’t matter any more–despite how very important it was five pages ago.

Years ago, I read a romantic suspense book. The heroine was having her life threatened THROUGHOUT the book. The “bad guy” was a hired hitman, not incompetent, mind you but the heroine just got very lucky several times, then the person who hired him went after her himself. Towards the end of the book, the hitman makes a clear exit from said book–no repercussions, no other mention. (I mean c’mon, he spent 2/3rds of the book trying to off her and when the dude who hires him dies he just … leaves) Frankly, it pissed me off surprised me.

I actually met the author a few months later, mentioned the fact, “You know you just let him go w/o so much as a wink.” She told me she’d never even thought of that… I just kind stared for a moment, thanked her and walked away. (What am I going to do, tell her to rewrite it and make him get caught? No subsequent books w/ him ever followed either, so…. it wasn’t like she was saving him for later.)

Cut to recently. I’m reading a paranormal book–for me, the has MAJOR issues suspending disbelief gal, this IS a big deal! The story is cute–though I so could easily strangle the simpering at times heroine–but the concept was what I was wanting to read. And through it all, the hero keeps harping on something the heroine cannot do, cannot under any circumstance do, or else. She does it and you know what… nothing, nada, zip. He doesn’t even COMMENT on the fact she did it. And it affected several people–who also have not made mention of the fact it changed ALL of their entire worlds… completely. Were I not reading to find out who the “bad guy” is I’d have chunked the book. (Yes, we have already discussed the fact that I have this foible!)

GGGRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!!!

That drives me insane… or rather MORE so than usual.

I would say this is not the norm, but it happens often enough to be annoying. This may be why it takes me a while to wrap my head around *my* stories, and finish it up. I start wondering about the left-hanging moments; I have to reread through stuff to make sure the consistency is, well consistent. And yes, I am completely anal, so this would happen one way or the other.

Have you guys read books where the author just leaves stuff just kinda out there and seems to have forgotten about it? (This is not to be confused with the rules-changing in the middle of the story authors–that’s an entirely other gripe topic.)