So, I’ve read about forty-four books this year, and I have DNF’d nine of them. I used to feel really guilty about DNF’ing a book, mainly because I had already invested so much time getting thus far in it, and it felt like I wasted my time, unless I had finished the book––so, I used to force myself to finish books.
This year, I’m not doing that. I’m not going to waste my time reading a book I don’t like, and that is probably why I have DNF’d nine already. So, here I’m going to cover all of the books I haven’t finished this year, and why.
A Million Kisses In Your Lifetime by Monica Murphy

Oh my goodness, this book. I saw this book all over TikTok, and I was obviously hesitant to pick it up, since any popular book on TikTok is usually a book I hate. And this was a book I hated. I actually do usually enjoy the good girl/bad boy trope, but I’m honestly kind over the whole good, virginal, inexperienced girl trope. I only got about 20% into the book, but in that 20% all Crew talked about was how badly he wanted to corrupt Wren, how hard she made him, and how badly he wanted her to suck him off.
Sue me, but self care is not reading about douchebag rich kids, and their virginal love interests.
Brutal Prince by Sophie Lark

I actually covered why I stopped reading this book in my review of the entire Brutal Birthright series, but I stopped reading this book, mainly because I was bored. This book was sold to me as being the ultimate enemies-to-lovers––like the type of enemies-to-lovers where they actually want to kill each other, and I don’t really like enemies-to-lovers that much in the first place, which is probably I wasn’t all that impressed with this one. I also didn’t really love the writing style? This is something common I noticed after I read the entire series. Something about Sophie Lark’s writing just doesn’t really work for me.
Heavy Crown by Sophie Lark

This was the last book in the Brutal Birthright series, and I honestly thought that it was pretty lackluster; I was so excited to read about Sebastian, since there were little snippets of him that we got see throughout the previous books in the series, but when I got to his book I was very underwhelmed. I didn’t like the trope that was used, and I thought that Yelena as a heroine was just okay. Nothing about the writing was compelling or captivating, and I had read reviews that the end of this book was just action heavy, as a way to set up the spinoff series. Since I was not enjoying myself, and had no interest in reading the spinoff series, I stopped reading this.
The Pact by Max Monroe

I actually don’t really know how exactly I came across this book, but I saw it downloaded on my Kindle, and decided to read it, and boy was that a mistake. I honestly don’t even know how far I got into this book, but I can definitely say it wasn’t that far. This story follows Finn and Daisy––Daisy is not an American citizen accidentally forgets to renew her Visa, and is about to get shipped back to Canada, and as a way to stop that, Finn, a man she literally just met, offers to marry her. I don’t really know what happens after that, since I stopped reading. It actually was the unrealistic plot that made me stop reading this book––it was more actually the fact that Finn and Daisy hooked up 16% into the book.
I’m definitely more of a slow-burn gal, but even despite that, I hate it when the characters hook up really early on in the book. I feel like its ruins the tension and angst that could have been built up, and then the rest of the book is just filled with meaningless conflict. I tend to prefer books where there is more of a slower-paced build up, and less insta-love.
Felix by Lulu Moore

I got about 5% into this book. I think. That 5% was boring, and I was confused, so I stopped reading.
Things We Never Got Over by Lucy Score

This book also had people on their knees on TikTok, so I figured it was at least worth checking out. I usually enjoy small town romances, but this one just did not work for me. Naomi was an okay heroine, but she honestly felt a little bit like a Y/N to me. Nothing about her really stood out. And dear god, Knox was annoying. He was an asshole for no reason, and behaved more like a teenage boy, then a 40 year old adult. If I had to read another sentence about how hard she made him, I probably would rubbed peppers in my eyes. This was not good.
I actually got pretty far in this book, for it being a DNF; I think I made it about 40% in, but why in the name of god was this book like a 570 pages? Not only was it completely unnecessary, but it also turned me off from wanting to even attempt to finish this.
The author did say on her Goodreads, that there will be books for some of the side characters, so I might consider picking those up in the future. It’s probably highly unlikely though.
Just A Fling by Charity Ferrell

I talked about this book in my review of Blue Beech, and I still don’t have that much to say about it, I’m not going to lie. Both Hudson and Stella kind of irritated me, and I had no motivation to keep on reading, so I didn’t. For a book setting up a series, it was fine, but for a stand-alone romance, it wasn’t, and so I didn’t bother finishing.
Just Exes by Charity Ferrell

This was the third book in the series, and a book I genuinely could not get through. It follows Lauren and Gabe, and their second-chance romance––for a book that is about characters in their mid-twenties to early-thirties, these two genuinely behaved like teenagers. They played petty games to make each other jealous, and were just so immature, I felt like pulling my hair out. Ultimately, both Lauren and Gabe were so insufferable I just could not continue reading.
Straight Up by Charity Ferrell

I talked about this book in my Twisted Fox review, but this was just so bland? There was like zero angst or tension; Lincoln and Cassidy meet, they become friends, Lincoln doesn’t want to ruin their friendship by getting together, he can’t resist her, blah blah blah, they date. I didn’t even intend to DNF this book; I had put it down with the intention of coming back to it, and just never did?
I’m starting to notice a formula in Charity Ferrell’s work, and I really don’t like it.
I honestly try really hard not to DNF books, because I do believe that every book deserves a chance, but there’s honestly nothing worse than trying to force yourself to read a book you can’t stand. When I'm reading on Kindle Unlimited, I have no problem DNF'ing a book, since I haven't actually paid for the book, which is probably why all the books on this list are from KU.
Anyways, here's to hoping I have no more duds for the rest of the year!
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