The DNF Report #12 – June through August 2022 (5 books)

Posted August 27, 2022 by Lisa Mandina in Review, The DNF Report / 8 Comments


Since the last one of these, back in May, I think I’ve had some pretty good luck with books! And even then, I had 3 in June, and the other 2 in this post are from this month.

It’s a Widow Thing by Karen Booth

I received this book for free from 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.

The DNF Report #12 – June through August 2022 (5 books)It's a Widow Thing by Karen Booth
Series: Never Too Late #3
on May 23, 2022
Genres: Adult Contemporary Romance
Pages: 218
Source: Rachel's Random Resources
Format: E-galley
My Rating: DNF
Goodreads

He’s on the fast-track to serious, and she’s hitting the brakes.
When cosmetics entrepreneur Sabrina Kelly waited until she was thirty-eight to marry, she never thought she’d be widowed by forty. Now, two years later, she’s ready for a dip in the dating pool. And Michael, the merciless flirt who lives down the hall, seems like a fun way to get wet. He has “player” written all over him, but Sabrina’s not looking for a love connection. Her heart can’t take more than a fling.
Wall Street mogul Michael Wright has ignored his mom’s pressure to marry for years. But it’s not until he has a health scare that he finally takes stock of his life. If he’s going to settle down, only one woman comes to mind… his gorgeous, whip-smart neighbor, Sabrina. Their chemistry is off the charts. The banter? So. Hot. But while he’s working overtime to woo her, she’s holding back. Can two people running at different speeds get to happily-ever-after together?

My thoughts:

I signed up to review this one through Rachel’s Random Resources, but it just didn’t work for me. I don’t remember much, but I know I gave up on it really quickly. It just wasn’t grabbing me and I moved on to something I did enjoy. That’s all I can say!

Scotsman in the Stacks by Alana Oxford

I received this book for free from 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.

The DNF Report #12 – June through August 2022 (5 books)Scotsman in the Stacks by Alana Oxford
Published by ‎8N Publishing on June 14, 2022
Genres: Adult Contemporary Romance
Pages: 336
Source: Rachel's Random Resources
Format: E-galley
My Rating: DNF
Goodreads

Paige wants two things: to land a full time librarian job and find the man of her dreams. On the cusp of thirty, she finds herself suddenly single and working part-time in a Michigan library. A handsome patron with a delicious accent appears at the reference desk, inadvertently sparking an idea that might help her land the promotion she so desperately needs. But that's not the only thing he sparks.
James is in town from Glasgow, Scotland, on a summer artist residency. Luckily, the trip got him away from the pressure he feels to take over his uncle's river tour business. He only wanted to clear his head and make his art in peace, but he wasn't counting on finding an attractive librarian to fill his days.
With only eight weeks before James goes home to Scotland, Paige knows she should protect her heart. After all, she already wasted years with her commitment phobe ex. But the more she gets to know James, the less she can stick to her plan to just be friends. Is she just wasting her time again, or can they bridge the ocean between them to find a happily ever after of their own?
"Fresh and charming - a heart-warming must read romance." - Sandy Barker, author of A Sunrise Over Bali.
"Scotsman in the Stacks is a delightfully sweet, cosy romance for book lovers." - Kiley Dunbar, author of The Borrow a Bookshop Holiday

My thoughts:

I wanted to like this one so bad! I mean a main character who is a librarian. A hot Scottish guy. But I had issues from the very beginning. I didn’t like the way she treated her boyfriend at the beginning. She also says that she doesn’t understand what her best friend’s husband does, and sorry, but that’s not something a librarian would say. We were getting constant reminders about how she was a librarian too, which was annoying. Add in how it was all third person, not my favorite, and I just couldn’t finish it.

The Promise of Lost Things by Helene Dunbar

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

The DNF Report #12 – June through August 2022 (5 books)The Promise of Lost Things by Helene Dunbar
Published by Sourcebooks Fire on July 5, 2022
Genres: YA Paranormal
Pages: 279
Source: the publisher
Format: ARC
My Rating: DNF
Goodreads

Three characters with their own agendas converge in a town filled with mediums, where most residents make their living speaking to the dead...and there's no such thing as resting in peace.
Russ Griffin has always wanted to be a fantastic medium. Growing up in the town of St. Hilaire, where most residents make their living by speaking to the dead, means there's a lot of competition, and he's always held his own. But Russ knows the town he loves is corrupt, and he's determined to save it before the sinister ruling body, The Guild, ruins all he's ever wanted.
Willow Rodgers is St. Hilaire royalty. An orphan, raised by The Guild, she's powerful and mysterious. But she has secrets that might change everyone's fate. She's done with St. Hilaire, done with helping desperate customers who think mediums work for them. She wants to end the cycle for good and rid the town of ghosts, even if that means destroying the only home she's ever known.
Asher Mullen lost his sister, and his parents can't get over her death. They sought answers in St. Hilaire and were left brokenhearted. Now they want to expose St. Hilaire as a fraud. Asher is tasked with infiltrating the town, and he does that by getting to know Russ. The only problem is, he might be falling for him, which will make betraying Russ that much harder.
Russ, Willow, and Asher all have their own agendas for St. Hilaire, but one thing's for certain, no one will be resting in peace.

My thoughts:

Another one that just didn’t grab me at all. I tried, but just could not find it to care about the characters or get into it. So once again I put it down and moved on to find something that would.

Lucy Checks In by Dee Ernst

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

The DNF Report #12 – June through August 2022 (5 books)Lucy Checks In by Dee Ernst
Published by St. Martin's Griffin on August 16, 2022
Genres: Adult Contemporary Romance, Womens Fiction
Pages: 288
Source: the publisher
Format: E-galley
My Rating: DNF
Goodreads

Dee Ernst's Lucy Checks In is a delightful work of romantic comedy about a disgraced hotel manager who travels to Rennes to rebuild a hotel and her own life in the process…
Lucia Giannetti needs a fresh start. Once the hotel manager of a glamorous NYC hotel and intimately involved with the hotel’s owner, Lucy had her entire future planned out. But when the owner disappears, taking millions of dollars with him, Lucy's life as she knows it falls apart.
Two years later, forty-nine years old and unemployed, Lucy takes a job in Rennes, France to manage the Hotel Paradis. She pictures fur quilts and extravagant chandeliers, but what she finds is wildly different. Lucy is now in charge of turning the run-down, but charming hotel into a bustling tourist attraction. Between painting rooms, building a website, and getting to know Bing, the irritatingly attractive artist, Lucy finds an unexpected home. But can she succeed in bringing the Hotel Paradis to its former glory?
Witty and heartfelt, Lucy Checks In is an inspiring and feel-good novel about reclaiming your life, finding love, and creating a home in places you never thought possible.

My thoughts:

So the cover made me think it was a little different than what the first descriptions described. But it’s possible I didn’t read them well because I just couldn’t seem to get into it. There was so much just about what repairs to the hotel needed to be done, and also it was hard to really like who I think the love interest was supposed to be from what little we got. So I gave up pretty quickly on this one. The publisher had given me the e-galley because I’d read the last book by this author and enjoyed it.

The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
The DNF Report #12 – June through August 2022 (5 books)The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi, Mattias Ripa, Blake Ferris, Anjali Singh
Published by Pantheon Books on October 30, 2007
Genres: Biography, Graphic Novel, Nonfiction
Pages: 344
Source: the library
Format: Paperback
My Rating: DNF
Goodreads

Here, in one volume: Marjane Satrapi's best-selling, internationally acclaimed graphic memoir.
Persepolis is the story of Satrapi's unforgettable childhood and coming of age within a large and loving family in Tehran during the Islamic Revolution; of the contradictions between private life and public life in a country plagued by political upheaval; of her high school years in Vienna facing the trials of adolescence far from her family; of her homecoming--both sweet and terrible; and, finally, of her self-imposed exile from her beloved homeland. It is the chronicle of a girlhood and adolescence at once outrageous and familiar, a young life entwined with the history of her country yet filled with the universal trials and joys of growing up.
Edgy, searingly observant, and candid, often heartbreaking but threaded throughout with raw humor and hard-earned wisdom--Persepolis is a stunning work from one of the most highly regarded, singularly talented graphic artists at work today.

My thoughts:

So, I’m not really a graphic novel reader. I just have trouble and am kind of slowed down by the pictures. But I thought this was one that I should give a try. And I did. And I get why it is considered to be such a good and important book. But I think I just didn’t want to finish it, as I said, me and graphic novels don’t go together really.

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8 responses to “The DNF Report #12 – June through August 2022 (5 books)

    • Lisa Mandina

      I know if I’d given it more time I might have gotten into it, but at a certain point I just have to call it and move on.

  1. Melanie B

    Some books you just can’t get into, no matter how hard you try. It always pains me when I dnf a book but sometimes it happens.

  2. I am honestly so impressed that you can just be like “this isn’t working, we’re done here”, I really wish I could be more like this! (I just spent a full week slogging through a book and just… why!?) Sad about the Helene Dunbar one, that one had looked good to me, boo. Glad you didn’t waste too much time on these!

    Shannon @ It Starts at Midnight recently posted: August 2022 Wrap-Up Round-Up
    • Lisa Mandina

      I just realize that sometimes a book isn’t for me, and that’s okay. There are so many different books and so many different people, that I’ll just move on to one that is for me. I’d never get things finished if I kept slogging through these days. It would probably mess up my love of reading. But that’s just me!

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