Almayer's Folly, by Joseph Conrad128 pages
It took me a long time to finish this relatively short story. It wasn't until about three quarters of the way through that I finally admitted to myself that it wasn't "off to a slow start", it simply sucked and wasn't going to get any better. Conrad's writing is great; it's full of rich description, characterization, and provocative insights. Nevertheless, all literary techniques are employed in service of a dull plot. It's analogous to James Cameron shooting an IMAX film about spoons. And the score was written by Hans Zimmer.
Almayer is the only dutch trader on a certain Malaysian island during the 19th century colonial era. In his search for wealth he must deal with tension, mistrust, and hostility between himself, the natives, and his Malay wife who he married for material gain only. At some point he becomes involved with a Malay prince who enlists Almayer's help in smuggling gun powder for the prince's ongoing war with the encroaching Dutch. My description is a testament to the plot's lack of depth, as I've just given you 98% of the story, and the remaining 2% can be safely left undiscovered.
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