Over the last few years I’ve gotten much better at embracing the concept of DNFing (did not finish) books. I’ve been drowning in a never-ending pile of review books for about 8 years now, so it has become necessary for my health and happiness that I give up on books I’m just not enjoying. Life’s too short for bad books! Most of the time I’m very confident in my decisions to DNF, but every once in a while I worry I’ve given up too soon. Perhaps it’s a book I really wanted to love and was super excited about. Or maybe it was a book that has gotten a ton of hype and I’m worried there’s something wrong with me! I’ve also DNFed a book because I wasn’t in the mood for it at the time and just never went back. Did I make the wrong choice?

Today I’m sharing with you some of the books I’ve given up on in the hopes that you can help me decide whether or not to give them a second chance. I understand that some of these are very popular and might elicit some pretty strong opinions, so I’m ready for your comments! Hehe.

 

1. To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo
I DNFed this at 13% because it just felt too dark and depressing to me.

2. The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden
This one is hard for me because it has SUCH high reviews and I know so many people who loved it. It also sounds like something I’d love, and I was so excited when I received it for review. I just found it to be slow and boring.

3. The Girl On the Train by Paula Hawkins
This book is SO popular, and I love thrillers so I was super excited for this one! But at 15% I still wasn’t feeling it and ended up setting it aside. Nothing was happening, and I was getting tired of hearing all about what this woman saw from the train.

4. Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff
The unique format of Illuminae is what drew me to it, and probably what made me DNF it. I just could not connect with the story or what was going on. I felt like I was reading from a pile of paperwork instead of a book. I made it to page 65 before I decided to come back to it some other time, and I still haven’t.

5. Days of Blood and Starlight by Laini Taylor
At 18% I sheleved it as “try again later” and never did. Now I can’t remember anything about book #1 and I’m just stuck. lol.

 

6. Pivot Point by Kasie West
I wasn’t in the right frame of mind when I picked this one up, and have not found the motivation to go back to it since.

7. With Malice by Eileen Cook
At 17% I felt that this book seemed too similar to something else I had read and decided to move on. Maybe it started out too slow for me?

8. Love, Lies, and Spies by Cindy Antsey
At 17% I updated Goodreads with: “Started out super cute and interesting, but things are really dragging for me. I’m not sure how much longer I can hang in there…” I DNFed at 32%. This made me so sad because it started out so great for me and had all the makings of something I’d love.

9. A Madness So Discreet by Mindy McGinnis
I found this too be too dark, dismal, and depressing for me and DNFed at 29%. I LOVE gothic stories, so this made me sad.

10. The Girl from Everywhere by Heidi Heilig
I made it 13% through and gave up because it wasn’t what I was wanting at the time. I want to love this book SO much, so hopefully I can eventually go back to it! I’m just not motivated, and worried I’ll DNF it for real the second time.

Do you DNF? Which books did you DNF too soon?
Should I give any of these another chance?
Which books have you set aside, gone back to, and ended up really enjoying?

Welcome back to another Top Ten Tuesday! I’ve been out of town for the last three weeks and had pre-scheduled those last three topics to go up while I was gone. So even though it looked like I was here, I wasn’t! I really missed discussing the weekly topics with all of you, so I’m happy to be back home now and have the time to do that again!

This week’s topic is Bookish Worlds I’d Want to/Never Want to Live In. I’m the kind of reader who loves to immerse themselves in whatever world my books take place in. I always find myself having more fun doing that in fantasy or dystopian novels than any other kind of book because those worlds are usually magical and/or exciting. I wrote about the top ten worlds I’d never want to live in back in 2014, so today I’m going to share with you the worlds I’d actually really love living in. The links will take you to my review.

1. Whistling Tor in Heart’s Blood by Juliet Marillier
The Tor is mysterious and mystical and atmospheric. It is home to beings trapped between life and death, and a pretty swoony man as well. There’s lots of little rooms and nooks and crannies to explore.

2. The Night Court in A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas
Anywhere Rhysand goes, I go. But seriously, the Night Court and the secret, beautiful city of Velaris sound so perfect and magical. It sounds so dreamlike and enchanting. And the people that live there are wonderful.

3. Enchanted St. Petersburg in The Crown’s Game by Evelyn Skye
The Crown’s Game is about two enchanters who must battle one another through a series of magical tasks to ensure that the son of the Tsar has a memorable birthday. The winner becomes the royal enchanter, and the loser dies. The battle begins, and the beauty and opulence that encompasses St. Petersburg as a result of this magic is amazing. I absolutely must mention the intricate system of fountains and color-changing lights that fill the city’s canal system. That entire scene was beautiful, and is still my favorite in the entire book.

4. The city of Celestrus in Of Sea and Stone by Kate Avery Ellison
This city has, what I can only describe to be, glass spheres that are suspended in the water. Each sphere is a library dedicated to each of the different cities of Itlantis. You can see sea life swimming by and light from the surface dancing. The libraries are filled with books, foliage, sculpture, fountains, and walkways. I’d LOVE to visit!

5. Albion in Illusions of Fate by Kiersten White
I love this place called Albion. It seems to be kind of a conglomeration of the Regency era in England and historic New York City. There were times I felt like I was sitting in Central Park, and there were times when I felt like I was sitting in an Austen-esque sitting room with lavish couches and tea on the table.

6. Venisia in What Is Hidden by Lauren Skidmore
This city is basically Venice, but not. There are canals and water taxis, though, and any book that takes me to Venice or a Venice-like place is welcome on my shelves. The descriptions of the scenery in this book are beautiful.

7. Hogwarts in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone by J.K. Rowling
I’m still reading my way through these books and am currently on Chamber of Secrets. But I’ve already fallen in love with the magical school of Hogwarts and the students and professors that live and learn there.

8. Marin in Captivate by Vanessa Garden
I think maybe I like underwater worlds… Marin is a gorgeous and colorful and sparkling city on the ocean floor. The city has rivers and gondolas and a modern colosseum where people go to watch criminals get thrown to the sharks in a big aquarium-like tank. When they look up to the sky they see the ocean instead. Their world is lit and warmed by light crystals that sparkle, and oxygen is brought down to them through air shafts. There’s a garden and a park with real grass. I could go on and on. I’m in love with this place.

9. The futuristic Russia in Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
My absolute favorite thing about Shadow and Bone is the world Leigh created for us. I love all of it, from its setting in futuristic Russia, to the elaborate keftas, to the mysterious Shadow Fold (a dark and barren wasteland filled with volcra, which I swear are some kind of dragon on steroids), and all the awesome talents of the Grisha. This world is complicated and complex with its own language. It’s amazing.

10. Atlantia in Atlantia by Ally Condie
Atlantia is a beautiful, self-sustaining, world under the sea that actually sounds a lot like Venice. They have canals and gondolas, and the city is colorful with lots of shops and places to visit. There’s a market in the depths of the city, plus an arena for after-curfew swimming competitions. Basically, the city is unique and very fun to read about.

Which worlds would you love to live in?
Did you choose to showcase worlds you’d like to or never like to live in this week?

Welcome to another Top Ten Tuesday! This week’s topic surrounds the best character names. This can be as broad or as narrow as you’d like it to be. We did a similar topic on The Broke & the Bookish back in 2013. Check out my responses that week! I won’t be duplicating any of my picks, but I will be stealing my list format! It’s REALLY hard to find unique names in novels with contemporary settings, don’t you think? I found a couple, but most of these are fantasy/sci-fi. I love the creativity authors use when they get to create an entirely new world. We get some pretty cool names out of it.

Zorie and Lennon from Starry Eyes by Jenn Bennett

Legend from Caraval by Stephanie Garber

Puck from The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

Rio from Atlantia by Ally Condie

Winter from Winter by Marissa Meyer

Tarver from These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner

Stellan from The Conspiracy of Us by Maggie Hall

Aaru from Before She Ignites by Jodi Meadows

Anluan from Heart’s Blood by Juliet Marillier

Hale from Heist Society by Ally Carter

Which names did you pick this week?

Do you ever find yourself totally not liking a book, but continuing on so that you can say you read it? Maybe it’s a book EVERYONE has read, and you were feeling left out about. Or maybe it was a required read in school and you’re proud of yourself for reading it even though you didn’t want to. Or maybe it was a book club read and you’re glad you could actively participate in the discussion. Whatever the reason may be, I think we can all say that we’ve read books we didn’t like just so we could say we read them. I could only come up with eight this week!

The Shivering Sands by Victoria Holt
My mom grew up loving Victoria Holt, and as a lover of Gothic romance myself, I’d been intrigued for ages. I finally read this one, which has pretty good reviews overall, and it was just a little slow and meh to me. I liked the setting and the writing, but I felt like not a lot happened. I’m so glad I finally gave her books a chance, though, and I’m not giving up yet.

A Study In Scarlet by Sherlock Holmes
I think I read this for bragging rights. It was ok, and I’ve even read the next one… but they are not what I would call gripping and entertaining reads. I’ve always wanted to read the books by that have taken pop culture by storm, and now I can say I have. And honestly, I know I’m going to read the rest of them for more bragging rights.

Heartless by Marissa Meyer
I LOVE Marissa Meyer. Her books are some of my favorites, and her writing is wonderful. That’s why I’m glad I read Heartless. I like reading all the books my favorite authors have written. And really, Heartless was very well done. I just hate Alice In Wonderland. lol

The Fault In Our Stars by John Green
I read it so I can say I read it. I hate sad/cancer books and I am really not interested in any of John Green’s work. But at least now I can say I’ve read this famous book that so many people have connected with.

A Wrinkle In Time by Madeleine L’Engle
I think it’s safe to say that A Wrinkle In Time kind of set the world of YA lit on fire. Millions of children and adults have read and loved this book across the generations. It’s the kind of book a young person fell in love with in the 1930’s and then recommended to their child and their grandchild, and they loved it too. It teaches reaers some great lessons. It’s beautiful and timeless and influenced so many of today’s great YA authors. I think my problem with it is that I wasn’t a kid when I read it. I found it to be kind of weird instead of magical. It was a chore to get through. I’m so glad I read such an iconic piece of literature, though, because I feel like a part of history for it.

Halo by Alexandra Adornetto
Haha. This book is horrendous. It’s SO bad on SO many levels. I’m really glad I read it, though, because I have never had more fun writing a rage-filled review before.

The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton
Bragging rights. Completely and totally. I read this as a kid in school and hated it. It upset me and traumatized me and made me hate reading. But I can say I’ve read every stinkin’ page. So there.

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
Umm… ditto to the above statements about The Outsiders. I feel very lucky that I eventually (at age 19) found my love of reading again after years of crappy/boring/upsetting required reads in school took it from me.

Which books did you not like,
but are happy you can say you’ve read them?

This week’s topic surrounds your favorite color. It can either appear on the cover or in the title itself. I have a ton of favorite colors, and my Favorite changes all the time depending on my mood. Does anyone else go through phases with their favorite colors? I also like different colors for different situations, such as colors I wear versus colors of things I own. Anyway, I’ve chosen to showcase purple covers today!

That Inevitable Victorian Thing by E.K. Johnston
Wicked Like a Wildfire by Lana Popović

A Thousand Nights by E.K. Johnston
The Bone Witch by Rin Chupeco

Goldeline by Jimmy Cajoleas
Toil & Trouble: 15 Tales of Women & Witchcraft by Various Authors

Traitor to the Throne by Alwyn Hamilton
A Dance of Silver and Shadow by Melanie Cellier

The Library of Light and Shadow by M.J. Rose
Reign of Shadows by Sophie Jordan

I haven’t read any of these, but I want to!
Tell me which ones to prioritize and which ones I should pass on.
Which color did you choose this week?