Why I DNF The Beholder, The Meaning of Birds and 5 other books

I’m looking at my “Review to Write” list and noticing it’s gotten pretty out of hand, its fine I’ll catch up. It’s one of my main focuses for the month.

Today I plan to lower the count by 7. Yes that’s right I’m going to talk about 7 books I chose to DNF already this year. Keep reading to see which books I didn’t finish and why.

ARC Review: Enchantée by Gita Trelease – #Gifted

Enchantée by Gita Trelease
Genre: Fantasy | Young Adult
Length: 480 pages
Published on 21st February 2019 by Macmillan Childrens Books
Purchase: Amazon | TBD | Hive
Gita Trelease: Website | Twitter | Goodreads
Received for free from publisher in exchange for an honest review

Synopsis: Paris in 1789 is a labyrinth of twisted streets, filled with beggars, thieves, revolutionaries—and magicians…

When smallpox kills her parents, Camille Durbonne must find a way to provide for her frail, naive sister while managing her volatile brother. Relying on petty magic—la magie ordinaire—Camille painstakingly transforms scraps of metal into money to buy the food and medicine they need. But when the coins won’t hold their shape and her brother disappears with the family’s savings, Camille must pursue a richer, more dangerous mark: the glittering court of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette.

With dark magic forbidden by her mother, Camille transforms herself into the ‘Baroness de la Fontaine’ and is swept up into life at the Palace of Versailles, where aristocrats both fear and hunger for la magie. There, she gambles at cards, desperate to have enough to keep herself and her sister safe. Yet the longer she stays at court, the more difficult it becomes to reconcile her resentment of the nobles with the enchantments of Versailles. And when she returns to Paris, Camille meets a handsome young balloonist—who dares her to hope that love and liberty may both be possible.

But la magie has its costs. And when Camille loses control of her secrets, the game she’s playing turns deadly. Then revolution erupts, and she must choose—love or loyalty, democracy or aristocracy, freedom or magic—before Paris burns…

ARC Review: Forsaken Genesis by M.J. Marinescu

Forsaken Genesis by M.J. Marinescu
Series: Deluge Prophecies #1
Genre: Cyberpunk | Young Adult
Length: 353 pages
Published on 29th September 2018 by Tellwell
Purchase: Amazon | TBD
M.J. Marinescu: Website | Twitter | Goodreads
eCopy recieved in exchange for an honest review

Synopsis:The world has changed in more ways than one. Most humans live in the safety of the hive cities, massive industrial complexes walled off to the outside world. Yet, the dangers of the wilds are no longer limited to the outskirts. Rumours abound of strange things in the night. Sightings of subhumans and citizens being abducted, whisked off by men in vans or worse. The Department of Control keeps a close eye on the citizens of Avalon but who are they protecting?

Melissa thought the world outside the facility would be safe. Free from the pain and the incessant tests of the men in white coats but what she finds is a world unknown. Fleeting memories call to her like a siren song pleading for her to remember. Can she figure out her strange dreams and the shadowed figure who hounds her in her sleep? She must discover who she is and come to terms with the truth that may have been kept from her for good reason if she hopes to survive in this strange new world.

Graphic Novel Mini Reviews: Mae, Vol 1 by Gene Ha and Ghost Stories by Whit Taylor

Mae, Volume 1 by Gene Ha
Series: Mae #1-6
Genre: Fantasy | Graphic Novel
Length: 136 pages
Published on 7th February 2017 by Dark Horse Books
Purchase: Amazon | TBD
Gene Ha: Website | Twitter | Goodreads
Review copy received from publishers via NetGalley

Synopsis:
When she was just a girl, Abbie discovered a portal to fantasy world and for the last couple of years has been having great adventures there: defeating horrible monsters, power-mad scientists, and evil nobles. But by the time she turned twenty-one it all came apart and she decided to return home. Her sister, Mae, has had no idea what happened to Abbie after all this time. Her tales are too hard to believe–that is, until the monsters and other terrible creatures start to cross over to our world…Collects the first six issues of the fantastical all-ages series, in the 6″ x 9″ format!

Review: Ten by Gretchen McNeil

Ten by Gretchen McNeil
Series: N/A
Genre: Mystery | Horror | Young Adult
Length: 320 pages
Published on 17th September 2013 by Balzer and Bray
Purchase: Amazon | B&N | TBD
Gretchen McNeil: Website | Twitter | Goodreads
Copy won from a giveaway

Synopsis:
From Possess author Gretchen McNeil comes this teen horror novel inspired by Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None. Perfect for fans of Christopher Pike’s Chain Letter and Lois Duncan’s I Know What You Did Last Summer, Ten will keep readers on the edge of their seats until the very last page!

It was supposed to be the weekend of their lives—an exclusive house party on Henry Island. Best friends Meg and Minnie are looking forward to two days of boys, booze, and fun-filled luxury. But what starts out as fun turns twisted after the discovery of a DVD with a sinister message: Vengeance is mine. And things only get worse from there.

With a storm raging outside, the teens are cut off from the outside world . . . so when a mysterious killer begins picking them off one by one, there’s no escape. As the deaths become more violent and the teens turn on one another, can Meg find the killer before more people die? Or is the killer closer to her than she could ever imagine?