Happy Monday! Today I (Amber) have another DNF round up post featuring a few of the books that I chose to DNF over the last three months. Since March my reading how slowed down dramatically and I have struggled trying to find the desire to read. As always I still encourage you to check out these books if you were planning too, just because they weren't for me doesn't mean they won't be 5🌟 reads for you!
Summary: New York Times bestselling author Amanda Hocking returns to the magical world of the Trylle with The Lost City, the first book in the final Trylle arc. Nestled along the bluffs of the forested coast lays the secret kingdom of the Omte—a realm filled with wonder...and as many secrets. Ulla Tulin was left abandoned in an isolated Kanin city as a baby, taken in by strangers and raised hidden away like many of the trolls of mixed blood. Even knowing this truth, she’s never stopped wondering about her family. When Ulla is offered an internship working alongside the handsome Pan Soriano at the Mimirin, a prestigious institution, she jumps at the chance to use this opportunity to hopefully find her parents. All she wants is to focus on her job and the search for her parents, but all of her attempts to find them are blocked when she learns her mother may be connected to the Omte royal family. With little progress made, Ulla and Pan soon find themselves wrapped up in helping Eliana, an amnestic girl with abilities unlike any they have ever seen before—a girl who seems to be running from something. To figure out who she is they must leave the city, and possibly, along the way, they may learn more about Ulla’s parents.
I won't even lie, I was so excited for this book. I read Amanda's Trylle trilogy and then the Kanin Chronicles when I was in high school and adored all six of those books. I always hoped that one day she would revisit this world and these characters again and I was thrilled when I saw The Lost City on NetGalley. I've been reading this book for a month and I been finding every excuse not to go back and pick this up and it's because I'm bored. At about 30% into a fantasy novel you typically have a general idea of what the challenge in the story is going to be, your main characters and just a general gist of what was going on. The only thing I had was that this book was set in the Trylle world. The Lost City did have the potential to be an amazing read if it wasn't for the pacing and lack of information.
Cut Off by Adrianne Finlay // August 11th, 2020 by HMH Books for Young Readers // DNF @ 35% // ARC Provided by Publisher through NetGalley Summary: Warcross meets Lost in this haunting young adult sci-fi thriller in which teens compete to survive in the wilderness for one million dollars on a new virtual reality show. When something goes horribly wrong and the contestants realize no one is coming to save them, they must question their very reality—and how much of the game is really for show. Each contestant has their own reasons—and their own secrets—for joining the new virtual reality show CUT/OFF that places a group of teenagers alone in the wilderness. It’s a simple premise: whoever lasts the longest without “tapping out” wins a cash prize. Not only that, new software creates a totally unprecedented television experience, allowing viewers to touch, see, and live everything along with the contestants. But what happens when “tapping out” doesn’t work and no one comes to save you? What happens when the whole world seemingly disappears while you’re stranded in the wild? Four teenagers must confront their greatest fears, their deepest secrets, and one another when they discover they are truly cut off from reality. Sci-fi, mystery, and romance converge in this high-stakes, fast-paced read that will leave you guessing to the very last moment.
First things to know about me: Lost is my favorite TV show and Warcross is one of my favorite books of all time. If you tell me that a book is going to appeal to fans of that show and book, you know for a fact I am going to read it. Here is my dilemma with Cut Off, I think the idea behind it is really cool. You have the Lost vibes, I can see why they compare it to Warcross and at some points I even got The Hunger Games vibes from it. It has that thrill and mystery factor to it that had me wanting to keep reading. But the bad points outweighed the good ones with Cut Off. I had no interest in the characters at all and I could form no connection with any of them. I mention it in tons of my reviews, if I can't connect with any characters, I am going to struggle with the book. Second, I DNFed Cut Off at 35%, that far in and nothing had enticing happened that pulled me into the story more. I was ready for all of the science fiction aspects and the mind bending I was promised and just nothing. I am sad I had to DNF this one because I was really excited for it, but sadly it just wasn't for me.
Summary: When she was a child, Cassidy Pratt accidentally started a fire that killed her neighbor. At least, that’s what she’s been told. She can’t remember anything from that day, and her town’s bullies, particularly the cruel and beautiful Melody Davenport, have never let her live it down. But then Melody goes missing, and Cassidy thinks she may have information. She knows she should go to the cops, but she recently joked about how much she’d like to get rid of Melody. She even planned out the perfect way to do it. And then she gets a chilling text from an unknown number: I’m so glad we’re in this together. Now it’s up to Cassidy to figure out what really happened before the truth behind Melody’s disappearance sets the whole town ablaze.
Just look at that cover, it literally screams horror/thriller novel. I honestly don't have much to say about this book. I was really excited for it and the first few chapters were really promising but from there and it went downhill enough that I decided to put the book down. My biggest issue is that from the summary of the story we know the Cassidy started a fire that killed her neighbor and now she is bullied because of it. It took 30% of the book before the reader is told this from the narrator and this detail is actually a really important detail that would have left a lot of confusion out earlier on in the book.
Summary: The Wicked Deep meets A Curse So Dark and Lonely in this gripping, dark fairy-tale fantasy about two girls who must choose between saving themselves, each other, or their sinking island city. Every year on St. Walpurga's Eve, Caldella's Witch Queen lures a boy back to her palace. An innocent life to be sacrificed on the full moon to keep the island city from sinking. Lina Kirk is convinced her brother is going to be taken this year. To save him, she enlists the help of Thomas Lin, the boy she secretly loves, and the only person to ever escape from the palace. But they draw the queen's attention, and Thomas is chosen as the sacrifice. Queen Eva watched her sister die to save the boy she loved. Now as queen, she won't make the same mistake. She's willing to sacrifice anyone if it means saving herself and her city. When Lina offers herself to the queen in exchange for Thomas's freedom, the two girls await the full moon together. But Lina is not at all what Eva expected, and the queen is nothing like Lina envisioned. Against their will, they find themselves falling for each other. As water floods Caldella's streets and the dark tide demands its sacrifice, they must choose who to save: themselves, each other, or the island city relying on them both.
My relationship with The Dark Tide is the biggest "it's not you it's me" scenario that I have every experienced with a novel. The Dark Tide includes so many aspects I love and the idea is so interesting and so exciting but I can't get past the first initial segment of world building. I'm struggling mainly with the writing style more then anything else. I'm more dissapointed in myself then in this book, right now it isn't for me. But I will be giving it a shot again some point in the future.
Closing Thoughts:
Sadly these books weren't for me and that is perfectly okay! I know I am not going to love everything I read and I'm also not going to force myself to read it if I'm not enjoying it. My reading tastes are also starting to change and shift, which is normal when you are an avid reader and a human. But with that being said, I do encourage you to go out and check out these books and see how YOU feel about them.
If you have read any of these books yet, what did you think? Share with me in the comments below!
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