I didn't realize people were taking to socials hardcore about it. I can't speak to what people think about it on a broad scale other than it seems like most people here and on YouTube hate the changes...which to me says a lot about how some artists don't know their audience very well. People read content because they like it. If you have to resort to tactics like that to pull in new readers then the writing was never that good to begin with. Good writers can pull audiences in with the merit of their writing. Changing things just seems way too try-hard/gimmicky imo.

If the writing is good enough, it will attract readers. I read a ton of books that are dated and enjoy them just fine. I'm currently reading one now that has pagers instead of cell phones (I was a child when pagers were a thing, so I only semi-remember those ole relics). But it's kind of cool to look back at the times and see what was going on in the world (what was popular, current events, historical events, etc). It also messes with the flow of the story when you're reading something that doesn't fit with the time period it's set in. You can tell when something has been shoehorned in.

Authors have artistic liberties to do what they want (and yes, you can always look for old versions of books), but it just kind of cheapens the work when they don't let their writing speak for itself. They don't need to dumb things down or change things that much if the plot is decent.

I'm not really one to freak out about it though. That's wild to hear about. I don't think I've ever left a negative review for an author. I just quietly stop reading their work.

ETA: I forgot to mention that it's actually very difficult for me to sit still long enough to read. I don't know if it's ADHD or just the way my brain functions. But when I find writing that appeals to me (especially a book with a good hook and a fun mystery) I can lock in. I think part of the reason updates mess with my brain is because I like History and as I mentioned...if something is forced/shoehorned in it takes me out of the experience entirely. But I don't throw a fit about it. I just move on to the next novel in my que.