Double DNFs

Welp, I had a pair of DNFs happen in the last week or so. Figured I'd go ahead and share my short reviews of them because why not.

 

What Abigail Did That Summer by Ben Aaronovitch


I was honestly just very, very bored with this one. I also didn't appreciate the footnotes explaining modern slang terms Abigail uses. Either don't use them at all or trust your readers to figure out what they mean on their own.

Tea & Alchemy by Sharon Lynn Fisher

Largely alright, but certain plot similarities to Twilight kept jumping out and taking me completely out of the story. That’s not to say the plot is actually following the Twilight model, just… ya know, I saw the bits and am nope-ing out.

Dragon's Code by Gigi McCaffrey

Really just not a fan of this at all. The stakes just aren’t there for me, especially after reading The White Dragon, which Dragon’s Code takes place during. I don’t think I’ve ever been that big a fan of Piemur’s, so having him as the POV character most of the time is just whatever. Dragon’s Code just isn’t inspiring me to pick it up half the time, so… DNFing.

Senlin Ascends by Josiah Bancroft

My first DNF of the year. I was just not into Senlin Ascends. I found too much of the story just straight-up confusing and I really didn't care about any of the characters. The setting was kind of interesting... The Market reminded me a lot of Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman. The Parlor was my idea of Hell, to be completely honest. That's really where the first bout of confusion set in, too, so it didn't help. The Baths were meh. I kind of liked the heist that Senlin had to pull off, but, again, didn't really care about the characters so... yeah. Got to New Babel and several chapters into Senlin's plan an preparations before I decided to call it quits. Just felt like banging my head against a wall.

The concept: great. Execution: not to much, in my opinion.

Enchantress of Numbers by Jennifer Chiaverini

Enchantress of Numbers is a DNF for me. I got a teensy bit over halfway through before I gave up. I feel it’s just not as engaging as I wish it were. I was really looking forward to learning about Ada Lovelace but this is just not the way I’m going to do it apparently.

Enchantress of Numbers Reminds me of those princess diaries books I read when I was 12, only with far more actual biographical information. As I haven’t really done much reading about Ada Lovelace or her family, I don’t really know how much of it is true to life. It is, however, really focused on Ada’s relationship with her mother, Lady Byron, for at least the first half I read.

Lady Byron does strike me as a bad mother, with the caveat that mothers of her rank were apparently quite absent from their childrens’ lives. Her attitude toward stifling Ada’s imagination and denying her things like fairy tales really bugs me. And later her attitude toward anything imaginative as Ada grows up is just… ugh. I just can’t. I also just cannot with the Three Furies and her reliance on them and their opinions over that of her daughter. Just no.

It’s probably a pity that I’m leaving off Enchantress of Numbers right as Ada has met Charles Babbage, but yeah… I’m just not into it and so I’m done. At least for now. Might return to see if I can finish the second half at some stage, but right now… nope.

Reviews Batch 12

Ever After by Kim Harrison
Originally Posted to GoodReads: October 7, 2020

This was a lot. A lot went on and it felt like chaos. I’m so very glad a certain villain is FINALLY dealt with. He bugged me to no end. Was not a fan in the slightest.

Also, I just want to take a moment to talk about the book cover. Specifically Rachel’s hair on the cover. What. The. Bloody. Hell. Is. With. The. STRAIGHT. Hair? It’s said MULTIPLE times throughout the books that Rachel’s hair is crazy curly. So why is it straight on the cover? And the next cover, too? What. The. Hell. This bothers me so, so much. Figure out how to draw friggin curly hair, for the love of whatever deity you choose. 

Alice In Wonderland by Lewis Caroll, adapted by Eliza Gatewood Warren
Originally Posted to GoodReads: October 14, 2013

I've probably been spoiled by the Disney movie adaptation and pretty much all the other adaptations I've seen, but this book was seriously lacking in actual storyline.

 

 

The Hob's Bargain by Patricia Briggs
Originally Posted to GoodReads: October 22, 2018

Life is too good for bad books and this one... while not completely unreadable, is not one of the good ones. I only got halfway through it -- to a part where the perspective keeps randomly shifting from first to third between a pair of characters -- and I just can't anymore. It's definitely more tell than show in terms of narration and the main character is just bland, visions or no visions.