dnf review: tell the truth, shame the devil, by melina marchetta

Title: Tell the Truth, Shame the Devil

Author: Melina Marchetta

Genre: Mystery

Publication date: October 11, 2016

Bashir “Bish” Ortley is a London desk cop. Almost over it. Still not dealing with the death of his son years ago, as well as the break-up of his marriage. Across the channel, a summer bus tour, carrying a group of English teenagers is subject to a deadly bomb attack, killing four of the passengers and injuring a handful of others. Bish’s daughter is one of those on board.

The suspect is 17 year old Violette LeBrac whose grandfather was responsible for a bombing that claimed the lives of dozens of people fourteen years ago; and whose mother, Noor, has been serving a life sentence for the part she was supposed to have played in the attack. As Bish is dragged into the search for the missing Violette, he finds himself reluctantly working with Noor LeBrac and her younger brother, Jimmy Sarraf.

And the more he delves into the lives of the family he helped put away, the more Bish realizes that they may have got it wrong all those years ago, and that truth wears many colours. Especially when it comes to the teenagers on board the recent bus bombing. Including his daughter.

Tell the truth. Shame the devil. Bish can’t get Violette LeBrac’s words out of his head. But what he may get is some sort of peace with his own past as the worlds of those involved in two bombings, years apart, collide into the journey of his life. -Goodreads

DNF at page 144 

Melina Marchetta is one of my favorite authors; this is no secret. I read and adored all of her contemporary young adult novels and have her fantasy series next on my to-read list. But, for many reasons, I simply could not get invested in Tell the Truth, Shame the Devil. It pains me to have to set the book aside, it really does, but I just cannot force myself to continue. It was good at first, promising, and the synopsis quite intriguing, but my interest was unfortunately suspended for a bulk of the 144 pages I read, due to a multitude of reasons that I shall go into. 

DNF Review: Exquisite Captive, by Heather Demetrios

Title: Exquisite Captive (Dark Caravan Cycle #1)
Author: Heather Demetrios
Publication Date: October 7, 2014
Genre: Fantasy

Forced to obey her master.
Compelled to help her enemy.
Determined to free herself.

Nalia is a jinni of tremendous ancient power, the only survivor of a coup that killed nearly everyone she loved. Stuffed into a bottle and sold by a slave trader, she’s now in hiding on the dark caravan, the lucrative jinni slave trade between Arjinna and Earth, where jinn are forced to grant wishes and obey their human masters’ every command. She’d give almost anything to be free of the golden shackles that bind her to Malek, her handsome, cruel master, and his lavish Hollywood lifestyle.

Enter Raif, the enigmatic leader of Arjinna’s revolution and Nalia’s sworn enemy. He promises to free Nalia from her master so that she can return to her ravaged homeland and free her imprisoned brother—all for an unbearably high price. Battling a dark past and harboring a terrible secret, Nalia soon realizes her freedom may come at a price too terrible to pay: but how far is she willing to go for it?

Inspired by Arabian Nights, EXQUISITE CAPTIVE brings to life a deliciously seductive world where a wish can be a curse and shadows are sometimes safer than the light. -Goodreads

2 Stars

Thank you Balzer+Bray for sending me this copy in exchange for an honest review!

Oh, Lord. I hate to admit this, but I was relieved to call it quits after resentfully trudging through 162 pages of dryness. There were quite a bit of problems I had with this book--mostly personal issues as opposed to technical--and they all hindered my enjoyment of the novel tremendously. I was very much anticipating this book, and the issues I had with it coupled with the immense amount of hype it had been receiving resulted in a very disappointed girl.

Eyeshadow, Yawns, & IDGAFs: Review of The Body in the Woods

Title: The Body In the Woods
Author: April Henry
Publication Date: June 17, 2014
Genre: Mystery

In this new series told from multiple perspectives, teen members of a search and rescue team discover a dead body in the woods.

Alexis, Nick, and Ruby have very different backgrounds: Alexis has spent her life covering for her mom’s mental illness, Nick’s bravado hides his fear of not being good enough, and Ruby just wants to pursue her eccentric interests in a world that doesn’t understand her. When the three teens join Portland County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue, they are teamed up to search for a autistic man lost in the woods. What they find instead is a dead body. In a friendship that will be forged in danger, fear, and courage, the three team up to find the girl’s killer—before he can strike one of their own.

This first book in April Henry’s Point Last Seen YA mystery series is full of riveting suspense, putting readers in the middle of harrowing rescues and crime scene investigations. -Goodreads

DNF - 1 Star

Thank you Henry Holt for sending me an Advanced Readers Copy of this book, which did not affect my review in any way.

I don't know why this is labeled a "thriller" when it definitely was not a thrill to read.

City of Heavenly Fire & Other Rant-y Things

1 STAR FOR YOU.

DNF at page two-hundred or three-hundred and something

Once upon a time there was a twelve-year-old girl who loved reading. She read anything she could get her hands on - but unlike other girls her age, she refused to read Twilight. No, she was far too good for that. Instead, she devoured the Mortal Instruments series, which she believed was far more well-written, more complex than that worthless Twilight.

Fast forward two years later, and Summer is eagerly waiting for the next installment in the series, City of Lost Souls. The previous one wasn't as good as the others, but she believed that this would be the one. To kill the time, Summer browsed a website she recently discovered: Goodreads. Mind you, she did not make an account, but she did spend a considerable amount of time reading reviews of her Favorite Series of All Time.

Review: Cinderella's Dress, by Shonna Slayton

Title: Cinderella's Dress
Author: Shonna Slayton
Publication Date: June 3, 2014
Genre: Historical Fiction/Fantasy

Being seventeen during World War II is tough. Finding out you’re the next keeper of the real Cinderella’s dresses is even tougher.
Kate simply wants to create window displays at the department store where she's working, trying to help out with the war effort. But when long-lost relatives from Poland arrive with a steamer trunk they claim holds the Cinderella’s dresses, life gets complicated.
Now, with a father missing in action, her new sweetheart, Johnny, stuck in the middle of battle, and her great aunt losing her wits, Kate has to unravel the mystery before it’s too late.

After all, the descendants of the wicked stepsisters will stop at nothing to get what they think they deserve. -Goodreads

2 Stars

*Thank you Entangled Publishing for providing me a copy for review.*

DNF at 75%.

Slayton's Cinderella's Dress is a lovely example of amazing concept, bad execution.

Go on, read the synopsis yourself. It's trivial how a book with so much promise can be so lacking. You have historical fiction, which I love, fairy tale elements, which I adore, and a hint of feminism. What's not to love?

DNF Reviews: This Is What Happy Looks Like, The Queen's Choice, and The Long Way

If fate sent you an email, would you answer?

When teenage movie star Graham Larkin accidentally sends small town girl Ellie O'Neill an email about his pet pig, the two seventeen-year-olds strike up a witty and unforgettable correspondence, discussing everything under the sun, except for their names or backgrounds.
Then Graham finds out that Ellie's Maine hometown is the perfect location for his latest film, and he decides to take their relationship from online to in-person. But can a star as famous as Graham really start a relationship with an ordinary girl like Ellie? And why does Ellie want to avoid the media's spotlight at all costs? -Goodreads

2 Stars

If I were to summarize the main reason why I DNF'ed this in one word, it would be: immaturity.

Don't get me wrong; I'm a pretty immature/random person myself, but this isn't a case of the pot and the kettle. I'm talking about the shallow-ness of this book; it feels like pure fluff with no real point to it. It's not enjoyable fluff, either; nor can it be possibly categorized as "guilty pleasure". This book is pretty much the reason why I tend to stay away from contemporary fiction altogether. 

Review: Defy, by Sara B. Larson

A lush and gorgeously written debut, packed with action, intrigue, and a thrilling love triangle.

Alexa Hollen is a fighter. Forced to disguise herself as a boy and serve in the king's army, Alex uses her quick wit and fierce sword-fighting skills to earn a spot on the elite prince's guard. But when a powerful sorcerer sneaks into the palace in the dead of night, even Alex, who is virtually unbeatable, can't prevent him from abducting her, her fellow guard and friend Rylan, and Prince Damian, taking them through the treacherous wilds of the jungle and deep into enemy territory.

The longer Alex is held captive with both Rylan and the prince, the more she realizes that she is not the only one who has been keeping dangerous secrets. And suddenly, after her own secret is revealed, Alex finds herself confronted with two men vying for her heart: the safe and steady Rylan, who has always cared for her, and the dark, intriguing Damian. With hidden foes lurking around every corner, is Alex strong enough to save herself and the kingdom she's sworn to protect?

1 Star

*Thank you Scholastic for sending me this copy via Netgalley.*

Blergh. DNF at 85%.

Books I Regret DNF'ing

There are some books that I am glad I did not finish, but others, I painfully regret not finishing them. I feel like I didn't give some of these a fair chance, and even though they had promising storylines, I still ended up giving up on them. Here I some books I wish I had finished:

Etiquette & Espionage
Author: Gail Carriger
Genre: YA steampunk
I've read the synopsis for the upcoming second book, and it really sounds interesting. I remember reading this back in March, and I didn't have a good reason for not finishing this. Maybe I'll try this again one day!

Shades of Earth

Author: Beth Revis

Genre: YA sci-fi

I enjoyed reading the first two books of the Across the Universe series, and I'm not quite sure why I didn't finish this last installment. I feel like I'm a disgrace to this series since I consider myself a fan of it. 

Through the Ever Night
Author: Veronica Rossi
Genre: Sci-fi/dystopia
I gave up on this second book of the Under the Never Sky series due to the fact that the author didn't explain things very well in the first book, so I was a bit confused at the beginning of this one. Based on my friends' reviews, it seems that the author actually explained everything, and it started to make sense. Plus, most of my GR friends gave this book 4 or 5 stars.

What are some books you guys wish you didn't DNF, and you feel like you didn't give it a fair chance?

Review: Shades of Earth, by Beth Revis

Amy and Elder have finally left the oppressive walls of the spaceship Godspeed behind. They're ready to start life afresh--to build a home--on Centauri-Earth, the planet that Amy has traveled 25 trillion miles across the universe to experience.

But this new Earth isn't the paradise Amy had been hoping for. There are giant pterodactyl-like birds, purple flowers with mind-numbing toxins, and mysterious, unexplained ruins that hold more secrets than their stone walls first let on. The biggest secret of all? Godspeed's former passengers aren't alone on this planet. And if they're going to stay, they'll have to fight.

Amy and Elder must race to discover who--or what--else is out there if they are to have any hope of saving their struggling colony and building a future together. They will have to look inward to the very core of what makes them human on this, their most harrowing journey yet. Because if the colony collapses? Then everything they have sacrificed--friends, family, life on Earth--will have been for nothing.

FUELED BY LIES.
RULED BY CHAOS.
ALMOST HOME.

My Rating: 2/5 stars

DNF (Did Not Finish)

I'm not even gonna bother to write a full and thorough review. Either I am just not in the mood for this book, or this book is actually as bad as I believe it to be, but either way, I'll probably attempt to finish this when I have absolutely no books to read and I have nothing better to do.

Although I was crazy about the first one and second book, this book did not satisfy me. It draaaaaaaged to the point of utmost boredom, and I was making excuses just so I would not read this book. I mean, when I would rather do my homework than read this book, that's a pretty bad sign in and of itself.

Amy was really annoying in this. I disliked her very much. But I liked Elder, who seemed to be the only one that actually had a brain.

Summary: NO ME GUSTA.