DNF: Chosen for Power by Kathleen Brooks

Chosen for Power by Kathleen Brooks
Series: Woman of Power #1
Source: Free kindle copy
Publisher: Laurens Publishing
Publication Date: April 21st 2014
Age Genre: Adult

Somebody is out to destroy Elle Simpson and everything she’s worked hard to build. As the CEO of a corporate conglomerate, Elle is used to fighting off challengers. However, this new threat comes at a time when she finally lets her guard down to meet Prince Charming. And it’s unlike anything she’s been up against before.

Drake Charles’s work on mobile technology has made him a wealthy, powerful man.
But he quickly sheds the fame and publicity for a more private life, which earns him the label as a man of mystery. Drake adds to that mystery every year when he hosts a masquerade ball for charity. It’s also his best chance to find the one thing he really wants . . . true love.

Having met behind masks of anonymity, Elle and Drake enjoy a whirlwind night of romance that leaves them both wanting more. But Elle must question everything and everyone as she battles to save her life and career. Can Elle trust Drake to help get her life back or will she lose everything?

A le sigh. Another DNF review, mere week apart. I don't seem to be having too much luck with books this month. At least I got this one for free...

And yes, I'm rating this one. Just so you know, I rate about 50% of the books I don't finish. The ones I don't rate are those I acknowledge are good, for other people. Those I do rate are those I just couldn't stand. I'll you to figure out which one is this.

The premise for Chosen for Power sounds good enough - a female CEO fighting for her company, finding love along the way. It even started good - the book is readable. Fact is, I reached 27% even though the sheer ridiculousness of this book started at about 10%. So, it was good enough to make me give it another try... until I really, really couldn't.

Because this book is INSTA LOVE. All capital letters insta-love, which is doubly ridiculous considering both of them are hot-shot young billionaires who've been burned countless times before. They know each other five hours, give or take, before both of them are confessing love.

Yes, that's right - love. And they don't even know each other's names. All they know is that his boy part and her girl part fit nicely together... That's ridiculous enough, but the fact that after being separated he finds her, and she jumps into his arms happily... I don't know about you, but I'll be slightly wary if a guy I met yesterday managed to find where I live and meets my family. Which is, indecently, where I learn who he is. And I only learn that because my mother knows him.

Am I the only one seeing how stupid this entire scenario is? This is where I called quits.

Not to mention the actual fighting for my company plot has still not shown itself.

And this book tries very hard to say "these are not your normal CEOs! They're not ruthless, heartless human beings! They volunteer! they have tragic pasts! people are always trying to use them! they're just looking for someone to be themselves with! and I don't mind that, it's just that it tries too hard.

I mean, they should be a bit ruthless and tenacious to hold on to their companies at such a young age. Why is that wrong? Why must you show them in such a positive, sickeningly bright light? Maybe we'll see that farther into the story, but the way the book was being handled made me think not so much (just because a magazine says they're ruthless does not mean the book shows it...)

Nitzan★

DNF: The Alchemyst by Michael Scott

The Alchemyst by Michael Scott
Series: The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel, #1
Source: bought paperback
Publisher: Corgi
Publication Date: August 5th 2010
Age Genre: MG-YA

The truth: Nicholas Flamel was born in Paris on September 28, 1330. Nearly seven hundred years later, he is acknowledged as the greatest Alchemyst of his day. It is said that he discovered the secret of eternal life.
The records show that he died in 1418.
But his tomb is empty.
The legend: Nicholas Flamel lives. But only because he has been making the elixir of life for centuries. The secret of eternal life is hidden within the book he protects — the Book of Abraham the Mage. It's the most powerful book that has ever existed. In the wrong hands, it will destroy the world.
That's exactly what Dr. John Dee plans to do when he steals it. Humankind won't know what's happening until it's too late. And if the prophecy is right, Sophie and Josh Newman are the only ones with the power to save the world as we know it.
Sometimes legends are true.
And Sophie and Josh Newman are about to find themselves in the middle of the greatest legend of all time.

DNF

A part of me really wants to viciously rate this book one star, despite knowing how unfair that would be considering I only got to page 77 before calling it quits. And in all honesty, I know that would also be irrational because it's not like I can truly say this book is horrible.

It's just that I... I... I'm completely baffled. Why is this so popular? so loved? Why have most of my friends marked this three or higher? WHAT AM I MISSING, dammit?

I went into this expecting an awesome Riordan-ish adventure featuring the infinitely awesome Nicholas Flamel. What I got instead was just... one big mess. 

Let's start with the names - what's up with this book's tendency to call its character by their full names, all the time? Well, you're right. Not all the time. Occasionally it would use only the first name and you'd relax for a minute thinking it had finally stopped, but then it's back again to Josh Newman that, and Nicholas Flamel this, or Sophie Newman there...

We will not forget their last name that easily, Scott. Even if we did, they don't really matter that much. So you can relax and just call them by their first name. Especially considering that's a literature tactic to bring readers closer to the characters, while last names tend to do the opposite...

Speaking of all the above characters - I really couldn't discern any personality in them. I get it that maybe that would develop farther into the book, but I would like to point out that both Harry Potter and Percy Jackson were very clear, distinct characters by... well, by the end of the first chapter really. They kept developing throughout their stories, no doubt, but you already recognized them. That... was not the case here.

And the repetition! OMG, how much repetition can you have in seventy seven page!? I've heard they're twins more times than I can count. I heard that Nicholas is THE Alchemyst. I've seen scenes repeat from different povs without any additional info... enough is enough already.

And then there was the "action". The quotation marks are to indicate how I did not find it exciting. At all. Like, I was drifting away while there were fighting with Golems and rats and making floorboards into trees. That was the moment I decided to give up on this, really. If it couldn't peek my interest with that, there's really no hope for this book and I.

And, honestly, I have so many books to read that I've long gave up on forcing myself through mediocre, passable books that fail to grab me.

Especially ones where the writing fails to impress me on every possible level: 

"The rats meanwhile raced toward the open door at the end of the corridor. Most of them survived the scything blades..." 

anyone else finds this paragraph completely awkward and clumsy, or is it just me?... (that is the whole paragraph by the way. Including the three dots).

Maybe this is my fault, maybe I should've read this a few years ago. God knows I was less picky back then...

   Nitzan★

DNF: Dead Witch Walking by Kim Harrison (Rant)

Dead Witch Walking by Kim Harrison 
Series: The Hollows #1
Source: Bought Paperback
Publisher: Harper Voyager
Publication Date: January 5th 2012
Age Group: Adult
Challenges: TBR-Cleaning my Shelves
Challenges: Flights of Fantasy

Welcome to the Hollows...
Forty years ago a genetically engineered virus killed half the world's human population and exposed creatures of dreams and nightmares that had, until then, lived in secret alongside humanity.
Rachel Morgan is a runner with the Ireland Runner Services, apprehending criminals throughout modern-day Cincinnati. She's also a witch.
Used to confronting criminal vampires, dark witches and homicidal werewolves, Rachel's latest assignment - apprehending cable-stealing magic students and tax-evading leprechauns - have prompted her to break her thirty-year contact with the I.S. and start her own runner agency.
But no one quits the I.S.
Marked for death, Rachel is a dead witch walking unless she can appease her former employers and pay off her contract by exposing the city's most prominent citizen as a drug lord. But making an enemy of the ambigous Trent Kalamack proves even more deadly than leaving the I.S.

DNF Review

Why is this series so popular?

Normally, I don't rate books I DNF. However, since I DNFed this one because I couldn't really stand it, I felt like I would be forgiven for passing judgment in the form of stars.

I've been really looking forward to reading this book. I heard so many great things about this series, from great sources. I was expecting a kickass witch, in a kickass world, with shipping to be had that will make me want to read sequel after sequel (I guess, in other words, I was expecting nothing less than the Kate Daniels series, or the Charley Davidson, or The Others, or Mercy Thompson. All great series you should read).

Alas, none of my wishes came true.

In retrospect I a) shouldn't have read it straight after a mindblowingly awesome book such Written in Red and b) should've known to lower my expectations when a first attempt to read this book a couple of weeks back resulted in me dropping it after a couple of pages.

I don't know Brit... I honestly don't know. 

Dead Witch Walking is told from the point of view of Rachel Morgan, which means that if you don't like Rachel, you won't like the book. Can you guess what I thought of Rachel? That's right. Hated her.

Seriously, she's just one of those characters that constantly pisses me off.

It's started with how she refused to accept the idea her ex-boss will put a price on her head, even though everyone warned her, and her boss literally told her he will. In no uncertain terms. I frowned at that.

Then, she's supposed to be a witch of some powers (or else, people won't be so interested in her / she wouldn't be the damn good runner she claims she is). And yet she decidedly lacks in powers. By page 90, she's been almost killed about 5 times, and four of those times she was saved by others who happened to be around and she didn't even realize she's been in danger until they nullified it. And you expect me to believe you're capable? You, lady, are no badass. 

Second, she treats her friends awfully. From page one, she is pretty much condescending, judgemental and unforgiving. Her friends help her. Does she thank them? Umm... nope, she complains. She get's angry. She feels justifies at being so. She never shows them any gratitude. And she hurts them constantly, and so callously!

(It's like she thinks Ivy being a vampire means she has no feeling. I'm not a particularly big Ivy fan, and STILL I was just indignant on her account.)

And let's not get me started on Jenks, the only likable character in this whole fiasco. Jenks is awesome. He is by far the most badass of the lot - saving Rachel constantly. He does a lot more than Ivy or anyone else. And yet he is treated as mere comic relief, with Rachel turning decent toward him only when she's turned his size and realizes that, hey, he's pretty hot!

Then, there's the world. For the life of me, I don't understand why the IS operates the way it does. Why can't it just fire people? Why is getting out a death sentence? Seriously, why would they go through all the hassle of hiring assassins of all kinds? It seemed so stupid and over the top to me when you can just fire someone. And considering this is a huge part of the story, it made the whole thing hard to swallow.

But the real reason I put the book down at page 190 instead of braving the rest of it as I already got so far has to do with Trent. Now, I have this thing. When I'm not clicking with a book that's part of a series, I tend to go read spoilers (I know, WHAT?) so I could make an informed decision on whether I want to read of those events, or rather pass. Which is what I did here.

This is why I know SPOILER Trent is end game END SPOILER. I was on board with that, for a while there. Until he killed that man. The whatever-he-is is a psychotic, murdering SOB. And I honestly don't want to read of him redeemed because, there is no good excuse for that murder and cruelty.

Too bad, too, because the book did start picking up around page 150...

   Nitzan★

Relatively Famous by (The Lovely) Heather Leigh

Relatively Famous by Heather Leigh 
Series: Famous #1
Source: Free Kindle Copy
Publisher: Shelbyville Publishing
Publication Date: June 7, 2014
Age Genre: Adult
Relatively Famous on Leafmarks

This is NOT your average Hollywood romance. There are no virgins falling in love with hot actors. There isn't a famous guy falling for the normal girl next door.
What there IS in this book, is a fragile, damaged girl and the sexy alpha who rescues her.
Sydney Allen is trying to be your average 24 year old New Yorker. It’s hard to be average though when your mother is Evangeline Allen, an Oscar winning actress known as “America’s Sweetheart” to moviegoers across the globe. It’s even harder to be average when your dad is Reid Tannen, Hollywood Bad Boy and one of the highest paid actors in the world.
Their divorce when Sydney was 12 years old was set off by a series of haunting incidents that left Sydney scarred mentally and physically. Hollywood destroyed her parents’ marriage and almost destroyed her. She hasn’t owned a TV, read magazines or watched movies since the divorce, refusing to take part in an industry that brought her so much pain.
Now 12 years after her mother took her from LA and hid her in New York to keep her safe, no one but her best friend Leah knows who Sydney is or that her parents are famous movie stars and she’s determined to keep it that way. She guards her identity fanatically, not letting anyone get close enough to her to find out who she is.
When Sydney meets the gorgeous but mysterious Drew Forrester at a rough MMA training gym one morning, her life changes. It’s time for her to decide if he’s worth sharing her secret with, or if she’s better off being alone forever. Or maybe she’ll find out that she’s not the only one hiding something. Dating Drew, Sydney is forced to confront all of her fears at once; celebrity, fame, tabloids, stalkers. Can she survive another high profile exposure to the world?

DNF★

I'm not going to rate this one, because I didn't finish it and I didn't hate it quite enough to rate it one of my rare one stars. Honestly, I didn't hate the book at all. I just found it frustrating and ridiculous. Usually, I give a book at least 30% to impress me before DNFing, but with Relatively Famous, I called it quits at 23%.

I just reached this point where I couldn't stand to hear how his smallest touch made her nipple harden one more time. I mean, I get it. He's hot, and looking at him makes you hot and blah blah blah, but you really need to stop telling me about it. Move on to the actually important stuff - getting to know him!

Not to mention that by this point, I already knew Sydney and I do not get along. I found her so ridiculous. She would be in an awkward position, and when the guy tries to make small talk she uses the term 'awkward ass' on him in her head. Why is he an ass? Oh, and let's not talk about the fact somehow telling someone two generic sentences equals in her head to spilling her gut. Her gut must be truly tiny and empty, then. And her narration style really didn't make me sympathetic. Instead of feeling for Sydney, I felt indifferent. Instead of truly feeling her trauma, I felt like I was being beaten by Sydney with how many times she says it. Show and not tell, Syd. Stop telling me how traumatized you are and make me truly and honestly believe it, because I didn't.

But the straw that broke the camel's back, was her whole relationship with Drew. Or really lack of thereof. She knows Drew for two days, the first of which they exchanged two words. But their second meeting, which evolves into a date, she mentions a bond. They feed each other (first date!). She thinks of the possibility of a future. Entertains the idea of one day telling him the truth. Sydney, the supposedly traumatized girl who doesn't let anyone in. Very believable. Not. 

The only thing I'm semi sad not to read more of, is the story of her mother and dad. There's something there, and it's kind of intriguing. The only intriguing part of this whole book. I want to know what really happened, and what her dad's version of events is. Sadly, I don't want it enough to suffer through everything else...

Now,

I didn't really plan on posting this review. I don't really know why - I just decided to post it on GR and LM and that's it. But then I got a comment from the author. When I got a message telling me I had a comment from Heather Leigh on my review, I was semi petrified to read it. My review is not positive, and I was afraid the comment will be hurtful. I never encountered such an author, but I knew they existed.

I couldn't be more wrong. Instead of anything bad, the author... agreed with me? She told me she's heard similar critique from other readers and was working on fixing these problems. She told me she'd love to send me a free copy of her newest book to show me she has improved since this book. She asked me to be a beta reader.

I've rarely had such a pleasant conversation with an author - and never with one regarding a bad review from me. I just had to share it. 2014 held many author scandals where authors Behaved Badly. So I had to share with you guys this lovely instance of the contrary.

The titles calls Heather Leigh lovely because I truly think she is. She's also a really intelligent woman, and despite this negative review I know I will read other books from her just because of the kind of human being she is. So, this is a positive review of the author ;)

Nitzan★

DNF: Adventures of a Graveyard Girl by Milda Harris

Adventures of a Graveyard Girl by Milda Harris
Series: Funeral Crushing #2
Source: Bought kindle copy
Publisher: indie
Publication Date: April 23rd, 2012
Age Group: Young Adult

Kait Lenox is back! It's Homecoming Dance time and Kait is excited. It's her first dance with a date and that date is none other than one of the hottest, most popular guys in her school, Ethan Ripley! For once Kait doesn't feel like a funeral crashing weird girl and it's the most perfect romantic evening ever...at least until a girl gets murdered in the high school bathroom. Rumors fly, panic ensues, and Kait can't help herself, she assigns herself to the case!

DNF

Wow, a third DNF review in so many weeks. I know this makes me look bad, I do, but I swear things are not as bad as they seem. I only have thirteen books marked a DNF on Goodreads. I probably have a few more I didn't mark, but no more than twenty, twenty five - in three years of over 470 books. That's a pretty good percentile, don't you think? I don't DNF that often, or that willingly. At least, I didn't use to.

But I think I've also reached the point where I treasure the enjoyment I get from every book, and if I don't really enjoy it... well, there isn't much point in reading it, is there?
Still, I don't always review DNF books... Only if I can explain exactly why I didn't finish it, and I'd like to share that.

I picked up this book because a while back (like, two years ago), I read the first book and enjoyed it. It wasn't A-mazing, but it was cute and fun and I decided I wanted to continue with the series. But then I couldn't. At 48% of the book, I called it quits. My heart just wasn't in it. I kept looking at reading the book as a chore, which is never encouraging.

I had three big issues with Adventures of a Graveyard Girl.

1. It was way too... dare I say it?... childish to me. I don't need characters to be my age to enjoy them, but here they just read like immature 12 year olds, and not teenagers. And I've read and enjoyed books with twelve year old more than this. It was just... too exaggeratedly childish. Teenagers are allowed to have their immature moments, for sure, but not 100% of the time.

2. Then there was the poorly edited text. There were a lot of missing punctuation marks, or places where I felt a dot should've been but weren't. There were a lot of duplicated words in a way that made no sense. A lot of describing sentences that lacked finesse. It felt like... well, like an amateur job. Like no one actually read over the book and corrected all of these. It was like reading a draft, and not a finished product. And I don't know about you, but that bothers me.

3. And finally, the repetition. How many times can you say the same thing on one page? apparently, a lot. Enough that I totally lost count. It was like Harris didn't trust we got the information the first time, so she mentioned it 50 times more just to be sure. In very similar wording. That's one of my major writing pet-peeves.

So in the end, despite enjoying the first book, I decided this is as far as I and this series go. It's just not for me, really.

  Nitzan★

DNF: The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch - A Tale of Failure

The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch
Series: Gentleman Bastard #1
Source: bought paperback
Publisher: Gollancz
Publication Date: 2007
Age Group: Adult due to character's ages and language

The Thorn of Camorr is said to be an unbeatable swordsman, a master thief, a friend to the poor, a ghost that walks through walls.
Slightly built and barely competent with a sword, Locke Lamora is, much to his annoyance, the fabled Thorn. And while Locke does indeed steal from the rich (who else would be worth stealing from?), the poor never see a penny. All of Locke's gains are strictly for himself and his tight-knit band of thieves. The Gentleman Bastards.
The capricious, colourful underworld of the ancient city of Camorr is the only home they have ever known. But now a clandestine war is threatening to tear it apart. Caught up in a murderous game, Locke and his friends are suddenly struggling just to stay alive...

DNF

The Lies of Locke Lamora sounded like the perfect book for me. I love thieves, I love imperfect characters, I love schemes and acts and the whole scene, and so I went crazy and bought books one and two together (they were on sale, though).

Probably a big mistake, because from page one, Locke and I were a story of hardships and struggle, and eventually - a bad breakup. The first time I opened the book, I stopped after the prologue. It was probably a combination of my mood and the time of the day I read it, but I just couldn't keep my head straight with the names, times, and locations. I was oh so confused, and I couldn't get a fixed image of all the scenery and world as I was reading--and there was a lot of those.

So I put it down, very dejected, to say the least. I picked it up again eight months later after seeing a favorable review from a much loved reviewer, but I had no real illusions. I put my goal at reading one chapter per day. And yes, it was easier. I wasn't confused, and I guess that's why I think my confusion originally came from a combination of things unrelated to the book, but I had also given up on the world as a whole and decided to just focus on what we were seeing (or reading) at any given time because I just couldn't follow.

There were so many parts of just describing stuff, and telling us stuff (a lot of it about the world, and not the plot), and those I just couldn't take. I wish there were more conversations and things actually happening, because those I did enjoy. They were just so overshadowed by the descriptions and world building it's not even funny! 

However, at page 153, when I was still struggling through every page, I lowered my goal to two/three chapters a week. Quite frankly, my only propose while reading this book was to finish it. Because I had already gotten book two. Because I wanted to love it so desperately. Because I wanted to prove to myself that this book would not beat me.

But it did. Because the moment I lowered my page count, it became more and more difficult to pick it up at all. And so, ten days later, I had only read 10 new pages of the book. And the worst part was I kept giving up after mere sentences. I just couldn't do it! Add to that that I knew what was going to happen in the broadest sense of the word, as I read a few spoilers to see if it was even worth continuing and I came to the realization - why am I reading a huge book I'm not enjoying? Why am I wasting time fighting with a story that doesn't appeal to me? With characters that I've failed to become attached to?

Because I can honestly say I didn't connect or relate to Locke, the twins, Jean, or anyone. Sure, they were kind of cool. Very cunning. Joked a lot. But that didn't exactly made me feel anything toward them. I didn't particularly root for them, and I didn't feel much when they encountered difficulties.

I have so many books I want to read. So many stories that are for me, and here I am, with one that's not. No thank you. It was depressing me, honestly.

   Nitzan★

I might giveaway my copies of books one and two. Would you guys like that?

DNF: Ink by Amanda Sun

Ink by Amanda Sun
Series: Paper Gods #1
Source: Gifted to me by Megs <3
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Publication Date: June 25th, 2013
Age Genre: Young Adult

On the heels of a family tragedy, the last thing Katie Greene wants to do is move halfway across the world. Stuck with her aunt in Shizuoka, Japan, Katie feels lost. Alone. She doesn’t know the language, she can barely hold a pair of chopsticks, and she can’t seem to get the hang of taking her shoes off whenever she enters a building.
Then there’s gorgeous but aloof Tomohiro, star of the school’s kendo team. How did he really get the scar on his arm? Katie isn’t prepared for the answer. But when she sees the things he draws start moving, there’s no denying the truth: Tomo has a connection to the ancient gods of Japan, and being near Katie is causing his abilities to spiral out of control. If the wrong people notice, they'll both be targets.
Katie never wanted to move to Japan—now she may not make it out of the country alive.

DNF

I know Megs doesn't do DNF reviews, but I do, when I feel like I need (and can) explain why I didn't finish a book.

On the surface, Ink is the perfect book for me. It's in Japan, a place I love and dream to visit. It's anime-ish, and I love anime. And to top it all, it's fantasy. A fantasy, anime-ish story set in Japan? Sign me up! 

Or maybe not. Because I just couldn't finish this book. At page 97, after 97 pages of pure frustration, I decided to call it quits, which I don't normally do. But from page one, more or less, I was considering putting this book down. 

From the start, I saw I didn't like how Japan was portrayed in this book. It just... didn't feel authentic, you know? It felt like what someone like me, who loves Japan and anime but doesn't really understand it might write. It didn't feel real. It felt like it was trying too hard to grasp Japan.

The writing itself wasn't a favorite, either. I felt like there were over descriptions, like that delicate balance between too much and too little hasn't yet been mastered (but it is hard). Then there was the trying to intricate Japanese words into the story. It just wasn't well done. A Japanese person doesn't say Ketai Phone. It's like saying Cell Phone Phone. Ketai is, on itself, "cell phone". There were other examples where I felt the usage was wrong, even if slightly. 

(And I'd just like to point out I may be the one in the wrong, as my knowledge comes from watching and listening to anime, but it still ended up bothering me, the individual)

Now, I will backtrack a bit. This writing may be intentional. The main character is an outsider. She may make these mistakes, be slightly off. And if that was all that bothered me with this book, I would've overlooked it, but it wasn't.

First, there was Katie herself. Even 100 pages into the story, I couldn't pin her down. I didn't know her. And when you don't have the slightest idea about a character even 100 pages later, it means something.

Then there was the "romance". Pfft. More like "worst case of insta love eveeeer". She's thinking of Tomohiro, and how pretty he is, and "understanding" him, when she's had maybe one decent conversation with the guy, and the other encounters were mostly compiled of grunts and looks (which, by the way, I don't believe you can glean that much from a look when you don't know the person...) and him being mostly a jerk.

In fact, it was Katie thinking "The wildness of it drove fear into my heart, as if I didn't really know him at all--and maybe I didn't" that convinced me to drop this book. No shit, Sherlock? You might not know him? what DO you know about the guy? I could sum it in three sentences, and most of it ain't good. Did you think you know him? The guy you truly spoke with twice, who spends his time trying to intimidate you and--according to you--blowing up you pens?!

Give. Me. A Break.

I'm so done with insta love it ain't even funny, and I'm not suffering through yet another book with it for anything, especially one that hasn't impressed me in any other way either. Sign me out.

Nitzan★