I Like 'Em Simple

So, you're reading along and there all these characters and clues, and the detective wonders off and suddenly nabs the bad guy with a few lines, a few references to things you vaguely remember reading.

And the book ends.

Now, maybe you like that. Maybe you like trying match wits with the author/ detective. I don't. It infuriates me. When I'm reading-- and particularly when I'm reading for fun-- I don't keep close track of clues or characters. I'm not working that hard for my fun. So, I like when the author helps me out a bit.

It doesn't have to be a whole 'here's what happened' scene like in Monk. But I do so love it when authors drop me little a reminder. A little clue here and there to trigger that one synapse to fire and help me recall who/what/when/where/why/how. A little line.

But more than that, I don't like my mysteries too convoluted. I like to be able to draw a line from crime to criminal through the book, connecting the dots into a lightbulb. Too many twists and turns, too many attempts to throw off the reader, and like I've been bucked from a mechanical bull, I'm sitting on the side going WTF?

I just don't like to think that hard when I'm reading for fun. I don't want to have to take notes just to understand who killed the woman in the flowerbed. Like watching TV... it's entertainment. If I wanted to work, I'd be writing my own stories, not trying to figure out yours.

Nothing wrong with books that make the reader work. I just don't care for 'em that much. I also don't like coconut, cotton candy or romance.