As readers, we have the right to close a book and never open it again. For those of you who don’t know what DNF means, it is for Did Not Finish.
Sadly, there have been quite a few books I’ve marked as DNFs. I do not like wasting my time with a book when I know I could be reading something better. Some are disappointing and I stop half-way through the book, and others I stop early but keep them in mind in case I feel like going back to them at some point (usually I don’t, but I could surprise myself).
So here’s a list of some books I’ve marked as DNF in the last couple of years since I opened my bookstagram!
The Folk of the Air Series
When The Cruel Prince by Holly Black came out, everyone was talking about it. I had never read any books by Holly Black, but I knew of her. I’ve also always been interested in fae fantasy, so when I saw the book at my local bookstore I bought it right away.
The book stayed in my bookshelf for months until I finally read it. By that point, I had heard so many good comments about it! In fact, the second one came out as I started reading the first one.
Foolish that I was, I liked the first few chapters and immediately bought the second book in the series. I regretted that purchase as soon as I kept reading more of The Cruel Prince. I got bored with the book. The plot wasn’t exciting and I didn’t connect with the characters.
I finished the first book, but it was a huge let down because I had very high expectations for it and none were met. The second book still lays unopened in my bookshelf and it is kinda sad that I didn’t enjoy the series as much as I thought I would.
Gods of Jade and Shadow
I bought this novel by Silvia Moreno-García because of the Mayan mythology. I’m from Guatemala and Mayan civilization rose here so I was very excited to read a book that included all of it.
I have to be honest, I did not finish this book because I got distracted with many others. I only read a couple of chapters and it didn’t capture me enough to keep reading it. I’ve heard some good comments about it, so I may still go back to it at some point in my life, but I seriously doubt it.
Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine
I bought this book because my sister recommended it to me. She LOVED this book and I saw that a lot of people read it and enjoyed it, so of course I got excited about it.
Sadly, this book got caught on a very awkward spot on my reading journey. I got it when I started transitioning from reading solely YA literature to reading adult fiction. At that time I was still getting used to reading things outside of my comfort zone. This was one of the first ones I tried and sadly it didn’t capture me.
Maybe if I try to read it again I’ll like it more, but back then I just couldn’t move past the first few chapters and I got bored really fast so I moved to another book.
Lore
This one I marked as DNF this year. I bought it in April and I was really excited. I am obsessed with everything related to mythology and I was excited to read something new and different.
Sadly, because of how different it was from traditional retellings of mythology, I wasn’t too into it. However, I am not completely giving up on it. I’m almost completely sure I will give it a second chance and I’ll try to read it again. I’m just waiting a little bit and hopefully I’ll be able to appreciate the storyline it has.
Ariadne
This is the most recent one. I marked it as DNF just a couple of months ago and I feel really bad because I asked for this book and my sister gifted it to me for my birthday.
This book had the opposite effect that Lore had. The retelling of the greek myth was not interesting enough for me to keep reading. I’ve studied greek mythology for years now, so I have a broad knowledge of the myths.
With Ariadne, I already knew everything that was going on with the story. I know that’s why it is called a retelling, but I still expect the story to have a sort of spark. Something different that will make me feel like I’m not reading something I already know.
Because I already knew every single detail of the original greek myth, the novel was not exciting enough for me to feel like I was reading something new and innovative. Which is sad because I was really looking forward to it.
So that’s some of the books I’ve marked as DNF in the last couple of years! Which books have you not finished? Let me know in the comments!
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