The Plot's The Thing (oh, wait...)

Over dinner last night, an intriguing discussion came up, leading to a further intriguing discussion that will take place... Here.

While talking about the wonderful (non-trashy) book The Sweetness At the Bottom of the Pie, I was noticing that a lot of people who had read it had a lot of trouble finishing it, myself included. I liked the book, would go so far as to say that I loved the book, and will definitely read its inevitable sequels.

But I still had to force myself to sit down and finish it.

So I've decided that it has everything to do with characters versus plot: when you love both, it's easy to sit down and read the book, no problems, no questions, no hesitation. When one of those elements is askew, things get a little more difficult. In Sweetness, I adored the characters, but didn't care one way or the other about the plot and its mysterious resolution.

I have a feeling this particular scenario is symptomatic of series: you come to know and love the characters, and eventually you can get tired of the plot. Or vice-versa.

A specific example of this in Romancelandia? Every Stephanie Laurens novel I have ever tried to read. For the record, I have picked up probably 10 of her books over the past five years and have only managed to finish two: Captain Jack's Woman (a personal favorite) and The Promise in a Kiss (though to be honest, I now cannot tell you what that one is really about). I always like the characters and don't mind the plot, and never stop reading the books on purpose-- there is no deliberate "This book sucks, I'm going to read something else."

At some point I just stop reading, and literally cannot compel myself to finish.

So here's the question: when only one thing can be good (plot or characters) which is the MOST IMPORTANT one to get the book reading finished? For me, it's got to be the characters every time. If I don't care about them fully and completely, there is no possible way for me to finish the book. While I may have liked Laurens' characters well enough, they didn't compel me past what I considered to be pretty bland plots. On the other hand, Flavia De Luce and the remarkable characters around her were the only things that got me through to the end of Sweetness.