Extreme dislike/hatred of an author like Brown, Meyer, Goodkind, Paolini, seems to come from a sense of superior opinion or taste on the part of the critics. This seems mostly to grow out of a response to the extreme fanboy/fangirl response these authors enjoy. The vocal members of that group often display shockingly oblivious/naive/stupid opinions about the quality, depth, and meaning of the work they love. After a while, people who consider themselves discerning readers, or at least more well read, start getting annoyed by this over exuberance for what is mostly mediocre and sometimes entertaining, sometimes not, fare. That seems to turn into actual vehemence toward anything at all attached to that author's name.

For Goodkind, it's a bit different. Most people who 'hate' his books, really just dislike the man, his ego, and his rather overblown opinion of the value of his own books.