I've been dying to read this book for years and I finally, finally started reading it June of this year.
And then DNF-ed it two days later.
What a disappointment!
Everything was just flat. The characters felt soulless and the plot was nothing new. Now, you know me, the plot I could have dealt with because while it wasn't terribly original or imaginative and the world building wasn't as deep as I'd like, I'm a character girl at heart. All of those things could have been fine if the characters were great.
But they weren't. The main character was mildly irritating and completely uninteresting. She didn't stand out to me in any way and I didn't connect with her. Her love interest was boring and very young. The villain was definitely interesting and had the potential to really grab my heart, but with everything else lacking so much I couldn't stomach the frustration of falling for the bad guy.
Even with all that said, I still feel myself wanting to give it another try because I so want this book to be more than it is. It has so much potential! Unfortunately, it all falls flat. Try Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo instead.
Library book
Rating: DNF at page 167 of 311
_________________________________
Shades of Milk and Honey by Mary Robinette Kowal
I started this as a book club read with Ruby, but we both gave up on it about a third of the way through. Why? Pretty much because of the characters.
I could also say the wishy washy magic system and the total Jane Austen rip-off vibe (not homage, unoriginal RIPOFF) were major reasons I DNF-ed, but we all know if I had liked the characters I would have put up with all that (even though, yeah, it really was a lot of bad to put up with).
But I could not get over that main character. Whenever she came on the page all I could think was, "What a bitch!" She was snooty and mean to pretty much everyone around her and I couldn't help but think she deserved to be alone.
Until I met her love interest, and then I thought the two of them deserved one another, because he's just as bad as her. He's also an artist, and I always have a hard time swooning for artists.
Try Sorcery and Cecelia by Patricia Wrede and Carolyn Stevermer to get your regency magic fix instead.
Library
Rating: DNF on page 106 of 304
