I’ve DNFed a record number of books this year, giving up on them after a few chapters. Mostly they were e-books borrowed from the library. I’ve become more ruthless at abandoning books that I’m not enjoying, because why spend precious reading time on them? There are so many books and not enough time to read even a tiny fraction of those I’m interested in. Here are some recent DNFs:
The Love Square by Laura Jane Williams. I liked Our Stop but unfortunately her next book didn’t draw me in. Maybe I wasn’t in the mood for a comedy romance.
Who Killed John Lennon? by Lesley-Ann Jones. I was very disappointed in this one, as her biography of Freddie Mercury was so good, but the writing style was so wordy and unreadable.
The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix. I thought this started off well but it got a little too gross for me and I wasn’t keen on the characters.
Final Cut by S J Watson. The latest novel from the author of Before I Go To Sleep and Second Life was an advance copy from NetGalley. I found the writing disappointing and not gripping at all.
The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern. I liked The Night Circus (although I found it too long). Sadly I couldn’t get into her next book, which I found hard going.
Here is the Beehive by Sarah Crossan. I so wanted to like this book but I found the strong language uncomfortable and couldn’t get into the verse format.
Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami. The only Murakami novels I’ve really liked so far are Norwegian Wood and Killing Commendatore. His style can be frustratingly dull sometimes.
The Guest List by Lucy Foley. The concept for this one sounded like such a page-turner but I found that it didn’t interest me, once I was reading. I suppose the wedding theme put me off.
The Babysitter by Phoebe Morgan. Having been impressed by The Girl Next Door, I mistakenly thought this one would be as gripping. I think I’m going off domestic thrillers too.
If you’ve read any of these, I hope you liked them more than I did. Particularly in these troubled times, when reading is an important escape, I want to be gripped and engaged by what I read.
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