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Bad characterization is one thing that will make me drop a book fast. Characters making decisions that don't fit their previous actions, plot depending on people suddenly being different, they all make we lose interest in a book, because if an author can't keep track of who they're writing about why should I care about the story?
Example:
Character A (I'll call him Arnold) was presented as a very independent person, to the point where it simply didn't occur to him that anyone could or would help. He didn't think depending on others was a viable option, and when other people suggested asking for help he completely ignored it and sometimes ridiculed the idea. Then all of a sudden Arnold was voluntarily depending on a character he'd previously loathed, and doing everything he was told, and I had to put the book down because it was just completely unbelievable.
That's an extreme example, but similar stuff happens regularly and I have to put the book down. It's one reason I'm so fond of Andre Norton, despite her sometimes awkward language. I've never yet seen a major character change she hadn't already laid groundwork for.
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