I live by the belief that life is too short to be reading a book that you aren't enjoying. I give a book about a hundred to two hundred pages (depending on the length) before I'll put it to the side. There is also books I haven't finished because of the content. I don't make it a habit to DNF books, but sometimes you got to do what you got to do. Here is the round up of books I decided to DNF between January and October of this year.
DNF @ 27%
Half-Blood meets Antigoddess in a thrilling, romantic new series from New York Times bestselling author Brenda Drake. When a stranger gives Analiese Jordan a list of names before he dies, the last thing she expects to see is her own on it. Not. Cool. Her search for answers leads to the man’s grandson, Marek, who has dangerous secrets of his own. Both are determined to unlock the mystery of the list. But the truth is deadly. Analiese is a descendant of the God of Death, known as a Riser, with the power to raise the dead and control them. Finding out she has hidden powers? Cool. Finding out she turns corpses into killers? No, thank you. Now the trail plants her and Marek in the middle of a war between gods who apparently want to raise an army of the Risen, and Analiese must figure out how to save the world—from herself.
I actually really liked the premise of this book. But me and the writing style didn't mesh well and I wasn't the biggest fan of the main character Analiese. I found her to be rash and self centered.
Nevernight (The Nevernight Chronicle #1) by Jay Kristoff
DNF @ Page 120
In a land where three suns almost never set, a fledgling killer joins a school of assassins, seeking vengeance against the powers who destroyed her family. Daughter of an executed traitor, Mia Corvere is barely able to escape her father’s failed rebellion with her life. Alone and friendless, she hides in a city built from the bones of a dead god, hunted by the Senate and her father’s former comrades. But her gift for speaking with the shadows leads her to the door of a retired killer, and a future she never imagined. Now, Mia is apprenticed to the deadliest flock of assassins in the entire Republic—the Red Church. If she bests her fellow students in contests of steel, poison and the subtle arts, she’ll be inducted among the Blades of the Lady of Blessed Murder, and one step closer to the vengeance she desires. But a killer is loose within the Church’s halls, the bloody secrets of Mia’s past return to haunt her, and a plot to bring down the entire congregation is unfolding in the shadows she so loves. Will she even survive to initiation, let alone have her revenge?
I am a little disappointed in myself for not loving this one. I actually DNFed this twice this year. I figured the first time I was just in a weird reading mood so I tried it again in April and I just couldn't get through it. I am a fast reader but it took me 4 days to get through the 120 pages that I did read. I wasn't crazy about how the story flipped back and forth between the past and the present the way it did. I was also really confused with the world building and found myself going back to reread because I just didn't get it.
DNF @ 30%
Octavia has only ever had one goal: to follow in the footsteps of her parents and become a prestigious whitecoat, one of the scientists who study the natural wonders of Faloiv. The secrets of the jungle’s exotic plants and animals are protected fiercely in the labs by the Council of N’Terra, so when the rules suddenly change, allowing students inside, Octavia should be overjoyed. But something isn’t right. The newly elected leader of the Council has some extremist views about the way he believes N’Terra should be run, and he’s influencing others to follow him. When Octavia witnesses one of the Faloii—the indigenous people of Faloiv—attacked in front of her in the dark of night, she knows the Council is hiding something. They are living in separate worlds on a shared planet, and their fragile peace may soon turn into an all-out war. With the help of Rondo, a quiet boy in class with a skill for hacking, and her inquisitive best friend, Alma, Octavia is set on a collision course to discover the secrets behind the history she’s been taught, the science she’s lived by, and the truth about her family.
This the third time I’ve tried reading CONSPIRACY OF THE STARS and I really just struggled to get into it. I love how the MC is a POC and I love the whole concept of terraforming another planet, government hijinks and deadly secrets. But I also hate insta-love and I feel like Octavia gets butterflies and all flustered and can’t stop thinking about Kondo from the moment she meets him. The concept of the book was cool and I was super excited but this one really wasn’t for me sadly.
DNF @ 10%
Cassie McKinney has always believed in the Hive. Social media used to be out of control, after all. People were torn apart by trolls and doxxers. Even hackers - like Cassie's dad - were powerless against it. But then the Hive came. A better way to sanction people for what they do online. Cause trouble, get too many "condemns," and a crowd can come after you, teach you a lesson in real life. It's safer, fairer and perfectly legal. Entering her senior year of high school, filled with grief over an unexpected loss, Cassie is primed to lash out. Egged on by new friends, she makes an edgy joke online. Cassie doubts anyone will notice. But the Hive notices everything. And as her viral comment whips an entire country into a frenzy, the Hive demands retribution. One moment Cassie is anonymous; the next, she's infamous. And running for her life. With nowhere to turn, she must learn to rely on herself - and a group of Hive outcasts who may not be reliable - as she slowly uncovers the truth about the machine behind the Hive. New York Times bestselling authors Barry Lyga and Morgan Baden have teamed up for the first time to create a novel that's gripping, terrifying and more relevant every day, based on a story proposal by Jennifer Beals and Tom Jacobson.
I didn't make it too far into The Hive before I DNFed it.The concept was really interesting, it's basically social media gone wrong and it was a realistic concept. But Cassie, the main character was super unlikable that it just pissed me off. She was rude, self centered and a bit patronizing at times. I know not every character is going to be a ray of sunshine, but Cassie was just cruel.
The Girl the Sea Gave Back by Adrienne Young
DNF @ 15%
For as long as she can remember, Tova has lived among the Svell, the people who found her washed ashore as a child and use her for her gift as a Truthtongue. Her own home and clan are long-faded memories, but the sacred symbols and staves inked over every inch of her skin mark her as one who can cast the rune stones and see into the future. She has found a fragile place among those who fear her, but when two clans to the east bury their age-old blood feud and join together as one, her world is dangerously close to collapse. For the first time in generations, the leaders of the Svell are divided. Should they maintain peace or go to war with the allied clans to protect their newfound power? And when their chieftain looks to Tova to cast the stones, she sets into motion a series of events that will not only change the landscape of the mainland forever but will give her something she believed she could never have again—a home.
I just couldn't get into this one. It took me 4 days to get through what I actually read of it. The idea is interesting and Young's writing is beautiful. Simply, this one wasn't for me.
Sadly these books weren't for me. But that doesn't mean that won't be for you. Some people like Tea and some like Coffee. I like Coffee and these books simply weren't my cup of tea. Have you read these books? If so what did you think?
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