My shelf has five pretty books I never finished, lol. @pathall, I totally get it. Now I read the first chapter online or skim a few pages in the store. Like, if the opening scene doesn't grab me, I put it back. It saved me from buying that hyped-up mystery novel last month. The cover was all dark and fancy, but the writing felt flat.
Cover art is such a trap sometimes. I bought a sci-fi book because the spaceship looked amazing, but the characters were all cardboard cutouts. Skimming the first few pages at the store saved me last week from a fantasy novel with gorgeous maps. The prose was just so clunky right from the start. It feels good to walk away from a pretty cover when the words don't work.