Reading has been blah for me lately. Which is really disappointing. But it is what it is. I think in the first 2.5 months of 2019 I have DNF’ed more books than I did in all of 2018. I didn’t keep good records for 2018 so I don’t actually know how true that is but it feels like it. But for me, DNF isn’t always that it is a bad book but is usually because the book just isn’t working for me.
This week it was Hired by Zoey Castile that I had to declare as a DNF. I really loved the first book, Stripped. It was fun, light hearted and sexy. This one had a little heavier tone that started out fine but around the 25% mark it started to drag. The heroine, Faith, is the daughter of a politician. Aiden, the hero, is a stripper/escort. They meet and are instantly attracted to each other. That worked for me. To me, it felt like the middle of the story was lacking any sort of forward motion. It was probably trying to build a slow burn, but that is not what I wanted, so I moved on with my life.
Have you DNF’ed any books this year? If so, why?
I have DNF’d a lot of books this year. My TBR pile is too large & I just decided that my time is more worthwhile than a bad book. This is a constant struggle, however – I was raised in a finish everything on your plate kind of home, & books are the same. I have struggled with books that have been highly praised on Twitter & blogs too, which makes me think there is something wrong with me! But no, I just can’t get on the bandwagon for a book where there is a sexual relationship between an employer and her employee, particularly if the place of employment is her house. I tried it, but all I could think was ick. I want books with an engaging plot & characters, not just an endless run on of internal monologues. I want to fall in love with the book I am reading, but it is not happening for me. Sigh.
It is a struggle. And I definitely go in waves where I will DNF several in a row and then feel like I HAVE to suffer through the next book I pick up. That is kind of where I am right now.
I’ve DNF’d two books so far this year. I already mentioned one here: Jenny Holiday’s SAVING THE CEO which featured my least favorite authorial device: presenting secondary female characters in a bad light so that the heroine shines brighter by comparison. Sorry writers—that’s not how it’s done. It was the first Holiday that I’ve read and I really wanted to enjoy it because so many people swoon about her books, but when women are presented negatively for having manicures and highlights in their hair, that’s a DNF for me.
The second book I’ve DNF’d this year was Elle Kennedy’s FEELING HOT. I know Kennedy’s writing style is on the burning side and I’ve liked a couple of her books in the past, but there has to be more to erotic romance than endless descriptions of the hero’s (ahem) private parts and how horny he is. After a couple of chapters “I’m hard as a rock”-level writing, I was, “Check please!”
DiscoDollyDeb, don’t quote me on this, but I feel like I remember Holiday saying she was working on re-working some of those older books. Her newer ones are feminist AF and no mention of other women as villains.
I’m happy to hear that (although no one will know that I heard it from you—lol). Holiday is such a Romancelandia favorite and I have several of her Bridesmaids books on my ever-expanding tbr list, I really wanted to like SAVING THE CEO, but it just didn’t work for me. Perhaps I should limit myself to her more recent work.
I don’t DNF very often, but sometimes, you’ve just gotta do it. Recently, I DNF’ed a historical that’s been sitting on my shelves for several years. At the time, the book sounded great, and I loved the previous book in the series, but my reading tastes have definitely changed. All of the books in the series feature alpha-hole heroes and I have no tolerance for them anymore. I’m also realizing that if I reread the first book now, I’d probably DNF it also!