The DNF Report #7: January – April of 2021

As is obvious, I might be a little behind this year for doing this post. However, I really only have 4 to share, so that is really only one a month. Three of the four are from blog tours and I just ended up not enjoying them enough to finish with as busy as my blog schedule is. The fourth book is one that an author reached out to me on Instagram and asked me to read.

Blood and Bone by Paula Dombrowiak:

I received this book for free from Rockstar Book Tours, Scribd, SYNC, the author in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Blood & Bone by Paula Dombrowiak
Published by SoCoRo Publishing Genres: Adult MC Romance, Adult Military Romance, Adult Retelling, Adult Rock Star Romance
Source: Rockstar Book Tours, Scribd, SYNC, the author
Format: Audiobook, E-galley
My Rating: DNF
Goodreads

Jack O’Donnell is a middle-aged rock star with a long history of bad decisions. When unimaginable circumstances bring Jack and journalist Erin Langford, together, the two embark on a journey through Jack’s past where he recounts the rise and fall of his band and the profound bond he shared with his former bandmate and collaborator.
Erin Langford is a seasoned journalist tasked with writing a piece on Jack O’Donnell for a popular music website. While she had preconceived notions about Jack’s rock star image and evasive nature, she learns there is far more to his story than just the headlines. As Jack reveals the heart-wrenching details of his past, the feature she thought she was going to write, turns into so much more.
Blood and Bone is an evocative story spanning from the early ‘90s to the present day which dives into the deep bonds between flawed people whose only outlet of self-expression was through their music.
One Interview
Two days.
Twenty-five years of Rock ‘n Roll.
Telling his story might just repair past relationships and ignite new ones.

My thoughts:

Third-person viewpoint in romance is rough for me. I have trouble getting into it a lot of times. I also am not really a fan of older man romances too much. A little bit older is okay, but too much and I get kind of creeped out. Could be because I prefer younger guys myself maybe.

Flying Duo by Zoe May:

I received this book for free from Physical ARC, Pitchlit PR, Rachel's Random Resources in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Flying Duo by Zoe May
on March 1, 2021
Genres: Adult Contemporary Romance
Source: Physical ARC, Pitchlit PR, Rachel's Random Resources
Format: E-galley
My Rating: DNF
Goodreads

London lawyer Rachel Watson has wound up in an Indian ashram with hippy heartthrob lover, Seb.
A high-achiever, Rachel has always lived life according to her Life List, ticking off goals along the way. But now that she's in India, Rachel is going with the flow, or at least trying to...
Rachel's visa is running out and it's time to decide whether her relationship with Seb is a holiday romance or built to last.
The pair embark on a trip to Nepal for an Everest base camp trek, but will their relationship survive this gruelling expedition or is it time to part ways?

My Thoughts:

So this was a part two in a series, but supposedly could be read as a standalone. I think maybe I could have gotten into it more if I’d read the book before. Without having read it, it seemed like they characters were being whiny or picky about things that I had no background on, so I wasn’t able to connect with them. I’ve liked other books by this author, so I may have to go back and start with the first one.

Falling Out of Hate With You (The Hate-Love Duet #1) by Lauren Rowe:

I received this book for free from Bookstore Employee Checkout, Candi Kane PR in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Falling Out of Hate with You by Lauren Rowe
Series: The Hate-Love Duet #1
Published by SoCoRo Publishing on April 15, 2021
Genres: Adult Retelling, Adult Rock Star Romance
Source: Bookstore Employee Checkout, Candi Kane PR
Format: Audiobook, E-galley
My Rating: DNF
Goodreads

I’ve tried to like Adrian Savage, the mercurial frontman for Fugitive Summer, while serving as his band’s opening act on tour. We’re stuck together for three months, after all. And I’m well aware I’m lucky to be here.
But it’s proved impossible. He’s far too rude and dismissive a guy to get along with. And way too good at getting under my skin. In fact, at this point, I think it’s fair to say I downright hate his guts.
Global thirst trap that he is, though, I’m finding it extremely difficult not to want to jump Savage’s bones, despite how much he infuriates me. I hate myself for it. But my body is going rogue on me. It doesn’t matter, though. I’m determined to resist him.
In fact, what I’ve decided is that, as long as I’m here and stuck with him, I’m not only going to give Savage the sound tongue lashing nobody else around here has the balls to deliver, I’m going to bring that bad boy to his knees.

My thoughts:

This one started slow for me. Probably because I just didn’t really like the characters that much. Sure, I get that he’s a cocky rock star, but I just didn’t care for him. I think Lauren Rowe is a hit or miss author for me. I’ve liked at least one other book by her, so I will probably give her another try in the future.

The Screw Ball (Indianapolis Lightning #3) by Samantha Lind:

I received this book for free from Wildfire Marketing PR in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

The Screw Ball by Samantha Lind
Series: Indianapolis Lightning #3
Published by Samantha Lind on April 29, 2021
Genres: Adult Sports Romance
Source: Wildfire Marketing PR
Format: E-galley
My Rating: DNF
Goodreads

Lucas
My dreams of making it to the big league had finally come true,But one wild night in a strip club which was clearly a mistakeLanded me squarely on the team’s bad boy list.
The PR manager is supposed to smooth it all over,Too bad all I wanted was to get in trouble with her.
I wasn’t really the playboy they thought I was, I just needed to find the right woman to set me straight. Now I just have to prove I’m not what she thought.
Carmen
I have the career I’ve always dreamed of,Even if I have to deal with players who can’t seem to keep out of the news. What’s more infuriating is the one player I want to hate the most I can’t stop thinking about. The one whose voice makes me want to drop my panties at his feet.
I know all about his playboy ways, But I also know the press can spin things to fit their narrative.
Is he really as innocent as he claims to be? Or will he throw a screw ball I never saw coming?

My thoughts:

This one started out okay. But I had some issues with the writing. A lot of times when they didn’t use contractions or the speech felt stilted. There was one thing that bugged me, and that was using the whole bit about when someone says a word with a “p” at the end, like “yep” or “nope” and the author points out that the character “popped” the p at the end. I get it, but this was done several times it seemed within the first third of the book. I’ve wanted to read this author for awhile now, and I’ve got a couple freebie e-books. But I’m not sure. I might give her books another try, if I have time.

Final Thoughts:

Four books for the first four months of the year, not bad! I do know I already had two for May though as I was getting this post ready. Now I have discovered that the DNF “reviews” show up on my Reviews by Rating page clear at the bottom. And instead of DNF it is just five empty stars. But I don’t give these zero stars, because I don’t think it’s fair to rate them if I didn’t finish them.