Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Should Have DNF’d

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme created by The Broke and the Bookish.

It has now been moved over to That Artsy Reader Girl.

I did want to follow the original theme for this week “Books I DNF’d Too Quickly” or at the very least I wanted to talk about books I have DNF’d. However, I just haven’t DNF’d that many books! So I decided to do this one, in which I will talk about books I probably REALLY should have DNF’d instead of suffering through.

These are in no particular order and I will link up my full review if I have one.

What Makes Me DNF A Book?

I rarely DNF books usually I’ll push through them but sometimes a book is so terrible I have to make an exception. The things I list in this post are also things that will make me rate a book lower or give it a bad review, since I don’t always DNF but you get the point.

So yes just to clarify I don’t always DNF EVERY book that has these elements in it but more than likely the book will receive a poor review from me even if I finish it.

Slow Pacing (With No Atmosphere)

I’m the kind of reader that likes a lot of fast pacing and action! However, when those things aren’t present the LEAST I need is some atmosphere or some very well written characters. With NO atmosphere or well written characters though a book with slow pacing is absolutely unbearable to me, I have a short attention span and very little patience.

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Unlikable, Under-Developed Characters

This is just a given right? Sometimes an unlikable character can work depending on how it’s done such as a morally grey character, an anti-hero, or an unreliable narrator. In those cases I can enjoy a character I love to hate but when there’s no rhyme or reason to it? No. Also no one likes a flat one-dimensional character, it’s boring and unrealistic.

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Cliched, “Focus of the Plot” Romances

I am not a big romance in books lover, I’m just not. This usually has to do with the fact that most YA romances are FILLED with tropes such as love triangles and insta-love. Which I hate. I also hate when there is a plot that sounds interesting and WOULD be interesting if the trope-filled romance didn’t completely overshadow it. Does the book’s synopsis promise a story filled with romance? Then that’s fine. Does the book promise action and thrills but instead delivers a story filled with romance? Then that’s where I get frustrated and angry.

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Poor World Building

If I’m reading a fantasy book with its own unique world I’m going to want to learn more about it, I want to be immersed! It’s hard to be immersed when I’m given zero information about the world I’m reading about! I just….like a complex fantasy/sci-fi world in my books it makes things so much more enjoyable and interesting.

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Plot Holes

Once again this is kind of a given but I hate when there are plot holes in my books. I don’t like reading through the story and having a bunch of inconsistencies or things that were brought up and then dropped never to be explained later.

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Dull Writing

Does anyone like dull writing, really though? I love fast-paced, addictive writing and lyrical/purple prose style writing.

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Predictability

This is probably one of my number one pet peeves! There is nothing worse to me than reading a book whose plot twists are predictable but especially when it’s a mystery/thriller that heavily relies on the twists to make it interesting. I read books to be entertained and guessing “whodunnit” at the beginning of the story is not entertaining.

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Tropes

Love triangles, Special Snowflakes, Mary-Sues, and Insta-love. I could go on but I won’t. I don’t like seeing the SAME thing over and over in every single YA book it’s not fun.

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Girl on Girl Hate

This is kind of a cliche and a trope in itself. Here’s a magical concept: girls can all be friends and not sit and hate each other and fight each other over boys. Amazing, right?

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Book Synopses That Lies!

No one likes liars! Don’t tell me a book is about pirates and then give me a historical fiction romance with NO pirates! You’d be surprised how many books have a synopsis that is misleading like this. Also just a side note: I hate synopses that spoil the books as well.

What are some things that make you DNF a book?

Do we have any book turn offs in common?

Let me know in the comments!

Discussion Post: DNF Reviews

I have quite a few thoughts on DNF reviews and I’ve seen a lot of other people’s opinions on them as well so I figured “Hey let’s see what everyone else thinks of DNF reviews!” So here we are. This is going to be a little short for a discussion post (I apologize!) but I really want to hear some opinions on it!

Most of you might already know but for those of you who don’t here’s a little explanation. A DNF Review is a review for a book that you Did Not Finish, pretty simple.

So what’s the positive side to writing a DNF Review?

 When a reviewer can’t finish a book they should be able to DNF it and write a quick review explaining why they did so. I feel that an opinion on why someone couldn’t finish the book is just as valid as their opinion of the book if they had finished.

If a book is that bad a reviewer should have every right to stop reading it, what’s the point of pushing onward and tormenting yourself right?

So on the positive side: some people find DNF reviews to be just as informative as normal book reviews.

So what’s the down side to writing a DNF Review?

Some people feel that you shouldn’t write DNF reviews because you didn’t actually finish the book and it feels unfair for you to rate it without reading the entire thing. I understand this side as well because it’s true with a DNF review that you didn’t finish the book and who’s to say it doesn’t get better at the end? Why judge a book by it’s first few chapters?

However, is it really fair to be mad at someone for writing a review for a book they didn’t finish because they weren’t enjoying it?

So on the negative side: some people don’t think DNF reviews are fair since you aren’t sharing an opinion on the entirety of the book.

My Opinion

I actually really like DNF reviews and I enjoy them just the same as normal book reviews. I personally don’t DNF many books (and I try not to) therefore I don’t write many DNF reviews. When I do though I feel that it’s perfectly acceptable to write a review for a DNF’d book and explain why I wasn’t enjoying it.

So say the book gets better at the end, I don’t really care. If it was so hard to push through half the book then honestly the ending wouldn’t be worth it for me.

I also really appreciate anyone who does write a DNF review because you’re taking the time to review a book you didn’t finish to tell us why you didn’t like it. People don’t have to write a review for reading half (or less) of a book, but they still do and I (as a reader and blogger) really do appreciate it!

So in my opinion, don’t force your way through a book if you don’t want to! DNF reviews are perfectly acceptable!

My DNF Reviews

“Pride and Prejudice and Zombies” by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith

The only reason I wanted to read this was because I wanted to go see the movie but honestly you couldn’t pay me to read through this. I have zero interest in reading the original “Pride and Prejudice” and this book was what I imagine the original was like with very little zombie action. All I wanted was all the badass zombie killing I was shown in the movie trailer!

“Once Upon A Dream” by Liz Braswell

Everything about this was….bad. The writing, the narrative style, the characters, and the plot were all unfathomably boring. There was nothing redeemable about this book.

Come Join The Discussion!

What is your opinion on DNF Reviews?

Do you believe in DNF-ing books?

Do you think it’s unfair to write a review for a book you didn’t finish?

Do you think it’s okay to write a review explaining why you couldn’t finish the book?

Do you appreciate bloggers who write DNF reviews?

Do you find DNF reviews just as informative as normal book reviews?