The DNF Report #17 – April 2023

Continuing this as a monthly post, even if I end up with none. This month I really only had one, although there is a possibility I kind of DNFed another audiobook.

Blood Debts by Terry J. Benton-Walker

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.

Blood Debts by Terry J. Benton-Walker
Series: Blood Debts #1
Published by Tor Teen on April 4, 2023
Genres: YA Fantasy, YA Magical Realism
Pages: 416
Source: the publisher
Format: ARC
My Rating: DNF
Goodreads

Thirty years ago, a young woman was murdered, a family was lynched, and New Orleans saw the greatest magical massacre in its history. In the days that followed, a throne was stolen from a queen.
On the anniversary of these brutal events, Clement and Cristina Trudeau—the sixteen-year-old twin heirs to the powerful, magical, dethroned family—are mourning their father and caring for their sick mother. Until, by chance, they discover their mother isn’t sick—she’s cursed. Cursed by someone on the very magic council their family used to rule. Someone who will come for them next.
Cristina, once a talented and dedicated practitioner of Generational magic, has given up magic for good. An ancient spell is what killed their father and she was the one who cast it. For Clement, magic is his lifeline. A distraction from his anger and pain. Even better than the random guys he hooks up with.
Cristina and Clement used to be each other’s most trusted confidant and friend, now they barely speak. But if they have any hope of discovering who is coming after their family, they’ll have to find a way to trust each other and their family's magic, all while solving the decades-old murder that sparked the still-rising tensions between the city’s magical and non-magical communities. And if they don't succeed, New Orleans may see another massacre. Or worse.
Terry J. Benton-Walker's contemporary fantasy debut, Blood Debts, with powerful magical families, intergenerational curses, and deadly drama in New Orleans.

My Thoughts:

So, I got started late on reading this. And while there was some interesting magical things as I got going, I had trouble keeping myself in the story. There were things that bothered me about how the characters behaved. And then as I kept thinking I wasn’t really getting into it, I did what I will often do when undecided, I went and checked out the reviews on Goodreads. When I saw a lot of DNFs already, and read through those and also the reviews of the people who did not like it, I saw a lot of the same reasons/issues I was having. With the book being 400 pages long, I decided that I had spent enough time and based on those who finished and gave low scores, I probably wouldn’t enjoy it any more if I gave it time. So it might be the book for you, as I did see several 5 star reviews, but it just wasn’t for me.