Why I Had to DNF You... [#1]

30 July 2015

Ever experienced signing up for a review post for a book tour, only to find out the book you requested wasn't what you expected it to be? A lot of times I get an email from the book tour organizers, and I see a cool looking book from their list, with a very intriguing synopsis. What else is there left to do? Join the tour!

And before you say anything, I know it's a terrible habit. There's a huge 70% chance that I would not enjoy a book by a new author or someone I'm not exactly familiar with, and I've experienced having to DNF a couple of books because of my massively wrong first impression, and have I learned my lesson? Nope! Definitely not!

I've been shammed! Many times, I tell you! And when will I learn? NEVER. I keep requesting books that end up in the DNF pile. But I'm not even going to blame the book entirely, because for some reason I've turned into a nitpicky reader and if I see something--just a teeny tiny bit--that does not fit well with me... BAM!


ONTO THE BOOKS!

*I received these books as review copies courtesy of the author/publisher. This does not affect my opinion or views regarding the book whatsoever.

Rule Breaker
by Harper Kincaid
Published by Samhain Publishing on March 3rd, 2015
Genres: New Adult, Erotic Romance, Contemporary
Format: eARC (104 pages)
Source: Publisher via Netgalley


Just one more can’t hurt…right? 

Re-belle-ious, free-spirited Lauren Renwick has decided it’s time to trade her wings for roots. That means no more bad boys, no more foolish choices. Yet when she’s stood up on New Year’s Eve, her resolution to stick to her Mama’s Rules for Dating weakens. Especially when she spots sex-in-leather-and-tattoos, Jackson Sullivan.

One look at Lauren, and Jackson is hell-bent on getting her on the back of his Harley and riding straight for his bed. Their night together is an erotic rush that has a new word popping up on his horizon—forever.

 Lauren tries to convince herself he’s just one last fling to get bad boys out of her system, yet she finds herself falling hard and fast for a man with a stalker ex and a meddling Irish family. Plus, he has zero chance of passing her uptight parents’ inspection.

 Jackson has Lauren’s back, but if she wants all of his heart, she’ll have to meet him halfway—by ditching rules that hold her prisoner, and learning to stand up for what she really wants.

Okay, so this sounded really sexy. I mean, it's the typical "Girl meets bad boy biker equals hot sex" romance read, and I'm a sucker for those, because I'm not even sure if it's obvious enough but I'm a romance junkie. I love basically anything romance, especially friends with benefits romances. It's my go to after a terrible book hangover and I'm rarely disappointed. I love the way two characters clash, but so perfect, they can't get enough of each other.

However, Rule Breaker is more of an "It's not you, it's me" case. Although there are a few stuff that I was able to tick off my sexy romance check list, there was just one detail that had me lift my pen off the pad. A day after their first super hot hookup, after meeting at Jackson's bar, [Jackson] suggests a trip to his cottage somewhere. Just the two of them, of course, for a crazy weekend of sexcapades. And of course, Lauren agrees, though after saying "But I barely know you" after she's had his dick in her more than twice. (Hah!)

I don't know about you, but despite how hot and steamy their hook up was at the very beginning, a spontaneous trip with a stranger does not sit well with me, because I can see where this is going already. Agreeing to a trip already proves that she trusts him too much, which pretty much warrants for an instalove story, and I'm definitely one of those who hates instalove romances. I honestly cannot fathom how instalove works, and why it's even a thing. But yeah, the moment the trip falls into action, I just had to drop this book and let it go, especially the moment she and Jackson exchange sob stories hours after the hook up. Nope. Not going further, no more.

Even though this was pretty short and just a hundred pages, I don't think my patience is enough to handle such read.


Wicked White
by Michelle A. Valentine
Published by Montlake Romance on June 23rd, 2015
Genres: New Adult, Contemporary, Romance, Music
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher via Netgalley


After his mother dies, rock star Ace White—lead singer of the red-hot band Wicked White—is done with the celebrity game. The phony people, the meaningless one-night stands: he doesn’t want any of it anymore. Quitting in the middle of a sold-out tour, Ace sets out to find some place—any place—where he can be alone.

Aspiring singer Iris Easton’s life has never been easy. First, her mother walked out on her when she was a kid. Now she’s buried in debt, weeks after losing her beloved grandmother. When a mysterious and sexy new guy moves in next door, Iris can’t help but be drawn to his soulful gaze. She can tell there’s something from his past haunting him—something he’s not telling her.

Just as Ace starts falling for Iris, the media go on a worldwide hunt to find the missing rocker. Will true love conquer all, or will the truth be the very thing that tears the couple apart?

I wanted to like this. Rockstar runaway falls for the sweet girl next door, and as much as I love rockstar romances, this one was beyond ridiculous, which I noticed first hand in terms of the writing, which seemed as if I wasn't reading a New Adult Contemporary novel.

At one point, when Ace has moved into the trailer next door to Iris', after he ran away from the media following his foster mother's death, he rescues Iris from being harrassed and the line that popped out of his mouth?

"Touch her again and I'll annihilate you!"

Seriously? I swear, if I was the guy in question, I would have looked at him like "You're kidding, right?", because that was the lamest thing to say even as the knight in shining armor. Annihalate? I couldn't stop laughing for two minutes, no joke. Okay, maybe just a whole minute, but it was still darn funny. Not to mention the forced romance--it was just plain terrible--and the fact that the girl is a big fan of Opera music and sung to him once, all I could imagine was an episode of Glee. I dropped this book faster than any beat. (Hah!)


Falling Fast
by Tina Wainscott
Published by Loveswept on June 16th, 2015
Genres: New Adult, Romance, Contemporary
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher via Netgalley


Fans of Jasinda Wilder and Colleen Hoover will adore this emotional new small-town romance—a smoldering tale of first love and long-awaited redemption from USA Today bestselling author Tina Wainscott.

Raleigh West works in an auto shop day and night, trying to put his broken past out of mind. It’s been seven years since the fiery crash that landed his teenage sweetheart in the hospital . . . and him in jail. In an instant, he lost everything: his passion for racing, his hope of escaping his father’s shameful legacy, and the only girl he ever loved. Raleigh hasn’t seen her since that awful night. Never got a chance to apologize. And never forgave himself, either.

When brave, beautiful Mia Wentworth returns to the Florida coast for the first time in what seems like forever, it’s not to see Raleigh. Even so, the moment she arrives she can feel his presence like a gust of wind that gives her goose bumps. Opening her heart to him again seems impossible. But staying away? That might be harder still. Lucky for them both, Mia’s never been the kind of woman to take the easy way out.

So, the synopsis marketed Colleen Hoover and I was instantly grabbed by it, because Colleen Hoover is my queen. She is everything, and I don't care if you say her books aren't that good, because her novels are the holy grail of NA romance, to me, at least. And if you say Colleen Hoover, you have to freaking deliver.

I don't know what this author thought was an acceptable Colleen Hoover comparison. We've got Mia, the good girl and Raleigh, the resident bad boy, a forbidden teenage romance which ended up in a terrible car accident, which landed Mia in the hospital and the hero in jail. Fast forward to seven years, Mia and her parents are back for her grandmother's funeral, and Raleigh is trying to stay on the sidelines, away from her and her family to avoid further drama.

As much as I love second chance romances, Falling Fast just couldn't make me like it, let alone love it. It wasn't even the plot that got me wary. In fact, despite the simplicity of the plot, it was a very interesting one, but my main problem were how dumb and ridiculous the characters were.

Mia, apparently, is a cancer kid, and is pretty much wrapped in a protective shell by her family. Homeschooled, indoors, doctor appointments, chemotherapy, you name it all. The moment she met the Raleigh, they were instantly smitten by each other. But after the accident that caused the end of her teenage lovelife, she was once again forced into hospitalization and her parents overprotectiveness. Granted, she's a character with a sob story, but her actions and the way she could not stand up for herself or Raleigh against her parents just aggravated me so much, I wanted to slap some sense into her.

Meanwhile, Raleigh was pretty much broken over the accident he feels he caused, and although I did feel bad for him at times, he played the depressed loner card too much, it got really annoying. I understand he felt guilty, but with Mia's parents talking trash about him despite the fact that he was the one who watched over Mia's grandmother and spent time with her before she died, he never bothered to stand up for himself.

And let me not get started on Mia's parents--these two were the worst! They were controlling, abusive and incredibly inconsiderate. I hated them so much! I get the idea that it was intentional to have the parents be hateful people, but with the main character as someone with no sense at all, I just couldn't go on with the story.

Don't get me wrong, in terms of writing, it was really good, but if a character or more and I don't click at all, I'm not wasting time on a book that will just leave me frustrated and hanging in the end.


I feel bad whenever I have to DNF a book, but a blogger's gotta do what a blogger's gotta do. So many books, so little time, so why waste? 

If you still want to read the books, not a problem! You might even enjoy them since we all have different tastes. I'm just very nitpicky, it's not even healthy. 

Comments (39)

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At least he didn't say, "touch her again and I will destroy you!" God. Did he have a club with him? Lol.
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1 reply · active 493 weeks ago
I did this a lot with author requests which is why, for the most part, I don't take them anymore. I felt bad saying I would read and review and then the book just wasn't for me and I wouldn't post anything at all about it because I didn't want to leave a bad review saying I had to DNF it.

It does happen though and we really shouldn't feel bad about it. After all, every book isn't for everyone, We all have different tastes, which is why there are so many authors, genres, and books out there right?
My recent post Review: Slammed by Colleen Hoover
1 reply · active 493 weeks ago
It's hard when we get a book we can't finish. It's OK to say so. Sometimes I get a book from an author I consistently love, but the new release is not what's expected. It happens. I try to just move on quickly to something else. I love the covers for all these books you mentioned. Sorry to hear they didn't work for you.
My recent post Close to Heart (Healing Harts 3) by T.J. Kline #bookreview and #giveaway
1 reply · active 493 weeks ago
First off, I want to mention because u mentioned Colleen Hoover that I'm reading my first CH book this month and I'm so damn excited. I've heard such great things about her. What are your thoughts on her book Confess? Also I usually don't DNF books, like it's very rare for me to do that and that's why I thought it was so weird that I DNFED Paper Towns by John Green. I blame it on my reading attitude of that month though. Awesome post!
1 reply · active 493 weeks ago
Girl, when you gave me a break down of Wicked White I was seriously dying laughing. We kept joking about the "Annihilate You " quote, because he just sounded so damn immature. Now after seeing the quote for myself, I can't help but to think about a guy yelling at someone while throwing a pokemon card. Like BOW Take That! lol. Let's just say, it was better you than me :) Oh and I'm so disappointed that Rule Breaker was a DNF because I loved the cover and I really wanted to read it! But ew, you just met this guy and you're going away to his cottage . . . alone?? Is she trying to get killed or nah?
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1 reply · active 493 weeks ago
Sorry you had to DNF some books. :(
1 reply · active 493 weeks ago
Oh God, Tika has me laughing over here with her "throwing down a pokemon card" comment. All these sound good but I'm sure I'd end up rolling my eyes at them. Why would you go away with someone you barely met?? *shakes head* I'm sorry these didn't work out for it. Not sure if I'll read these but they did sound promising.
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1 reply · active 493 weeks ago
Bwahahaha!

Word of the day: Annihilate!

Use in a Sentence: Girl, I hope you don't get ANNIHILATED for these DNF's. Can't blame you though, I'd annihilate them too if these fell on my lap.
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1 reply · active 493 weeks ago
I liked Rule Breaker but I didn't love it. I haven't read the others you listed. But I do hate it when I have a DNF.
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1 reply · active 493 weeks ago
I hate when there are author comparisons in a book. I would be so hesitant with a CoHo comparison because I agree she is amazing. Sorry you had to DNF these!!
1 reply · active 492 weeks ago
I've DNFed so many books, so I feel your pain. It's more irritating for me than anything, because you've wasted time on a book that promises so much and delivers nothing. Completely agree, if you're going to market your book as being similar to Colleen Hoover, you'd better make sure it's incredible. So sorry you couldn't have enjoyed these more Blessie, but wonderfully honest reviews <3
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1 reply · active 492 weeks ago
Girl.. I completely hear you on the stack of DNF's I have. It's actually quite sad. I admit, I am a cover junkie. I see a pretty cover and.. ooh, I have to read that. Ha! I have started to hold back the longer that I blog, but it still catches me more often than I care to admit! I've been rather sheltered in my comfortable niche of urban fantasy lately, but New Adult sounds like a genre I could fall in love with. Pun intended. I hope, mixed in with these DNF's, are at least a few books that you enjoyed girl! (:
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1 reply · active 492 weeks ago
It is good to know when to put down a book. To many good books out there and not enough time and all that.
Things are looking pretty swanky around here, BTW. I am diggin' it.
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1 reply · active 492 weeks ago
Bwhaha the middle one. That is just too ridiculous. The quote.. so much no. And the Falling Fast one sounds really annoying. Because who is named "Raleigh"?! What even is that!? Other than a city in North Carolina? I mean, if anything I could see it as a girl's name, so I'd be really confused. And do the parents ALWAYS have to be miserable asshats? Why?

The first book... I hope it ended as a warning story with the main character dead in a strange cabin. Because there should be some kind of disclaimer: "Young women, DO NOT go to strange cabins with dudes you don't know". There was probably no cell reception either... side eye. I am also incredibly disturbed by her waist size- that isn't even human proportions. She has organs that could not possibly fit in there!

I'm out. This is why NA and I have a very hard time getting along ;)
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1 reply · active 492 weeks ago
Wicked White wasn't what I expected but I still liked it.
1 reply · active 492 weeks ago
I am always iffy about books that are marketed to be "as good as (insert author/successful book series)". I feel like if they don't deliver the goods, then I am left with a sour taste in my mouth and all I have to do is blame myself for choosing to request or read those books. I rarely DNF a book, but when I do, there has to be a really good reason, like I am bored and annoyed to death. I pity these three books :P
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1 reply · active 492 weeks ago
Yeah, I agree, if there is something that makes us not feel a book, we should definitely put it down. On my kindle, I have several hundred books I haven't had the chance to read yet, but I know I want to! So reading something just to make it to the last page doesn't work for me either. There are so many amazing books out there, and I want them all!!
I have been very good at not participating in blogtours for a while, and the reason is exactly what you mentioned at the beginning of your post, Blessie. The difference between the synopsis and the actual story can be so big it's like I read a book that isn't even the genre I expected.
Great post :)
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1 reply · active 492 weeks ago
It makes me sad you DNFed Wicked White :/ I have high expectations for that one! I completely understand when a book sounds so good and it turns out the synopsis is waaay better than the book could ever be.
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1 reply · active 492 weeks ago
I am someone who has to DNF books every now and again as well. I am someone who really dislikes Instalove but generally I simply tend to read through it and simply knock down the rating because in most cases there are enough things about the book that I do like. But I can see where you are coming from. The more you read, the more you come nitpicky and the harder it is to be completely and head over heels impressed!
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1 reply · active 492 weeks ago
I've actually never DNF'd a book! I don't do it, as a rule and practice, but I don't begrudge anyone their DNFs. I think there is a point when enough is enough!I liked Harper Kincaid's Brazen novel, Bind Me Before You Go! I'm sorry this one - and the rest of these - didn't work for you. But, great roundup, Blessie! :)

Alyssa @ The Eater of Books!

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