....and why is it stuck there?
I've mentioned before that I don't write reviews for books I don't finish. I have a deep, personal aversion to it. (And I'm totally cool with it if you write DNF reviews, I'm just saying I can't do it). The primary reason is that so many times I've gone back to my DNFs and then enjoyed them. But that is not always the case.
So, I am not going to break my no DNF review rule, but I will give reasons why I am stuck on some of these books.
Here's the easy one: TIME - I just have too many books I want to read, not enough time to read them all when I want (another vacation where I can lounge around reading would be lovely). The only thing stopping me from reading these is that I do need to sleep and eat sometime.
You might then say, well why don't you read them before you get anything new? To that I must reply - You see the "aholic" in my nickname? I come by that one honestly. I am a book junkie. Not amassing huge TBR lists is impossible. There's always something new I want to read.
Heart of Steel by Meljean Brook
Briarpatch by Tim Pratt
Retribution Falls by Chris Wooding
Zoo City by Lauren Beukes
Red-Headed Stepchild by Jaye Wells
The Sweet Scent of Blood by Suzanne McLeod
Armed & Magical by Lisa Shearin
Shaedes of Grey by Amanda Bonilla
Control Point by Myke Cole
PERSONAL REASONS The next category is a little tougher to gauge. It's the one where the themes hit just a little too close to home for me. As many of you know, my father passed away last year, so some subjects have been too hard to read. I like dark books, but there is dark, then there is DARK.
Liesl and Po by Lauren Oliver - I got this one a couple of days before my dad's funeral, and the book starts 3 days after the MC's father dies. I haven't been able to read it yet. I'm sure that it will be something I'll like eventually, and I will try it again soon.
Who Fears Death by Nnedi Okorafor - another one that starts soon after a father's death. This one just hits you with a lot of heavy, dark moments. I got to the part with the ritual female circumcision and I needed to stop.
Southern Gods by John Horner - this one is more of a horror read, so quite a bit darker than my usual. I know I'll get back into it. There's a lot of intriguing stuff here.
I'll call this next one I'M JUST STUCK.
New Atlantis: Musicians Battle for the Survival of New Orleans by John Swenson - this is one of my few non-fiction reads. There is a reason why I don't pick up many of them. However, this one caught my eye because of the idea of artists being key to the rebuilding effort. And I think that is where the problem is. I'm already on-board with the idea and I want to see more of how it is happening. The argument for why this is the case isn't necessary for me.
Embassytown by China Mieville - I've never read Mieville before this book. I know he is much loved. The beginning of this book is killing me. There is so much technical detail and weird math and the wonder of visiting alien planets is not here at all. I should be into this book. I actually skipped ahead to see what happens later, and there is some cool stuff going on. I'm just finding it a challenge to get there.
A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin - All right, this book is a brick. Seriously, I look at it, and at my other piles of books and think that I can finish 4 of them in the time it would take to read this one. I do intend to read it, I just haven't gotten to it yet.
I need to do this. I just put a bunch of "notes" in the review boxes at GR. But the thing is, I want the notes for myself. They aren't reviews because I sampled or otherwise didn't finish. But I have nowhere to keep them. I wish Amz had something in the manage Kindle so that I could put my notes there. I guess I could do this sort of thing on my blog rather than GR.
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