That moment I realized I was skipping chapter 1 for 15 books in a row

I used to always skip the first chapter of any fantasy book because I figured it was just boring setup. Then last month I picked up "The Fifth Season" by N.K. Jemisin, skipped to chapter 2, and got totally lost by page 30. I went back and read chapter 1 and realized it had all the key info about the world and why the main character acts the way she does. Has anyone else had a book where you had to restart because of a habit like this?

2 comments

2 Comments

cora_perez53m ago

The same thing happened to me with "A Game of Thrones." I skipped the prologue and was so confused about the White Walkers for way too long. Finally went back and it all clicked. Now I just force myself to read chapter 1 no matter how boring it seems.

fiona_webb33m ago

Kinda disagree with @cora_perez here. Skipping chapter 1 isn't always a bad move. Some authors frontload way too much boring info and the real hook comes later. I skipped the first chapter of "The Way of Kings" and didn't miss a thing because the actual story started in chapter 2 with Kaladin. Went back later and the first chapter was just a dry history lesson that would have made me put the book down. If a book makes you hit chapter 2 before it gets good, that's on the author, not you.