my answer to the OP's question: a definite yes.
there are tons of novels out there that are bestsellers despite the fact that they are badly written. i'm thinking of the romance category (but without malice
)
the paradox is that people do enjoy the books even though they roll their eyes at the repetitiveness, the stereotyping and the honest-to-God bad writing of some authors. i am one of those readers... before you throw the tomatoes
. so yeah, in my experience, a popular novel can be badly written.
at the same time, i've come across well-written novels that i could not finish. brilliant novels by awarded writers that plumbed humanity to its darkest depths, novels where every I was dotted, every T crossed and all conditionals used correctly.
i guess it's a case of whatever floats your boat.