Books I Couldn't Finish (3)

I used to finish ever book I started, whether I was enjoying it or not. But life is short. I’ve realised that I don’t have time for books I’m not fullly involved in any longer so if I don’t like something or don’t connect with it as much as I want to, I’ll put it aside. It still makes me feel guilty though, especially if I received them for review so I still want to talk about them, explain why I didn’t like them. Here are the most recent books I DNF-ed.

Black Ice, Becca Fitzpatrick

I struggled finishing the Hush, Hush series for the same reason I didn’t get very far with Black Ice: the characters. Britt is an entitled, spoilt ass who I immediately disliked and I couldn’t see that changing anytime soon. Now, I don’t believe that characters have to be likable, but they have to be at least vaguely redeemable, or at least interesting, and Britt isn’t. I had no connection with her and so her story felt over-dramatic and unimportant to me.

Magisterium: The Iron Trial, Holly Black and Cassandra Clare

My love for these two authors is no secret. I worship the books written by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare and they have written some of my favourite worlds and stories ever, but I just didn’t feel it in The Iron Trial. Lots of the beginning felt very familiar to me, but not familiarity with the authors; it felt like Harry Potter. Magical school, messy, black hair and a mum who died to save him all reminds me of a certain boy wizard... I would have been able to move past this if I could feel the spark and promise of these authors, but I couldn’t. I have been told that it gets better so I intend to give it another go.

Naomi and Ely’s No-Kiss List, David Levithan and Rachel Cohn

I’m a huge fan of David Levithan but I struggled to connect with this one. Levithan’s characters are usually complex and interesting and slightly obnoxious, but I didn’t feel anything from Naomi and Ely. Add to that the emoticons that litter Naomi’s chapters and you get pure annoyance. I didn’t really enjoy Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist either – where’s my David Levithan love going?!

Sophie