They say there are a limited number of stories to ever be told; that only the names and faces revolve. And sometimes the tale is admittedly in the telling – when the ending to a story is either so obvious or so well-known that it’s not what the reader is there for at all. They may know how it pans out, but what’s keeping them hooked is the mechanics of it all. Like Game Of Thrones readers tackling the TV version, at least before the writers started throwing everyone for a loop ...

But sometimes the twists and turns serve their purpose well, keeping the reader in the dark and searching for glimmers of light as they try to make guesses as to the conclusion. I love that. I love trying to figure it all out and I especially love when writers don’t cheat. In other words, when they manage to lead you down the wrong path, but with the benefit of hindsight, you can go back and find that the pieces do fit together - that it would have been possible to solve the puzzle of the story, if only you had read the clues right. I love that because it makes a second read, maybe even a third or more, still hold fresh value.

And I love it because, much as I like twists and turns, I don’t like knowing that it would have been absolutely impossible for the reader to see it the ending coming. It doesn’t feel fair somehow.

It may sound like I’m talking about crime fiction or thrillers in particular, but for me, the same applies to anything I read. I like being left to unravel the story, following threads and seeing where they might lead. To me, that’s the whole point of any story. The journey.

“All great literature is one of two stories - a man goes on a journey, or a stranger comes to town." - Leo Tolstoy

My pet peeve? Having it all spelled out for me right from the off-set. It smacks of those big Hollywood blockbuster films with their multi-million dollar trailers that contain all the best scenes and leave you wondering why you bothered with the film. Or someone sitting down to tell you an "amusing" story over a pint, but starting with the punchline and heading swiftly downhill from there.

Everyone wants different things out of their reading experiences, I get that. But no matter whether I’m engrossed in a gritty thriller or resting my brain with some mindless fluff, give the game away and any sense of tension is lost. Why should I get invested in characters, root for them, worry for them, if I know they all live happily ever after in the end?

Television works on the same principles for me. Spoilers are tempting. Who doesn’t want to stop living in fear that their favourite character will meet a sticky end? (Daryl Dixon, I’m looking at you, dude ...) But deep down, I know that my heart would plummet into my stomach if I accidentally stumbled across an article that laid it all on the line. The best bit about all my must-watch shows is that oh-my-god-I-need-more feeling.

But sit me down and tell me flat that there are two more seasons and Daryl lives, Beth is lunch, Rick turns walker, Carol gets dead, Maggie puts down walker Glenn, etc, etc ... My reaction isn’t going to be: “Yay, I can’t wait to see!”

It’ll be more like: “Oh. Um, fine. I guess I could go watch that Breaking Bad boxset ...” Then I might stamp on your toe. Hard.

I want to get sucked in. I want to hold my breath, I want to laugh out loud, I want to shed a tear. I want these characters you’ve created to come to life in my head the way they have in yours and, most of all, I want them to matter.

They say you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover and, generally, it’s a point well made. But as a rule never to be broken? I call bullshit. Sometimes I can tell plenty from a cover. And one thing I can absolutely guarantee – play your hand in the cover blurb and I won’t bother calling your bluff.

In short, don’t leave thrilling to the thrillers.