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I mange to get to about 11% and (once again) realised I wasn’t connecting at all to the characters. I’m definitely more of a character reader. Don’t get me wrong, I really really love my plots, but badly written characters spoil the vibe for me and is the main cause of me dnfing a book.
Plus, there was a lot of information being shoved at the reader in the tiny part that I read and that’s another reason to not carry on reading. I like having information but not that much in such a little timespan.
I was so so excited for this book because the premise of it sounded so fascinating. Modern Labyrinth, reality TV show, super cool, right? I did, however, completely forget about this book for a while. That wasn’t the reason I didn’t finish it, though.
I did really really like how they blended the modernity with the mythology. It was a cool idea, just not well thought out re characters. But just like the previous dnf, it was the characters that annoyed me to no end. I managed to get to a whole 30% before I realised that even though I liked reading it, I wasn’t enjoying it.
There’s also some instalove and I’m not much of a fan of that. I do think instaloves can be written well, but I didn’t feel like this for this romance. Ariadne also seemed to be a ‘not like other girls’ girl and I’m not so interested in that. And I know I didn’t read much of Theseus, but I really felt like he was boring, as was Ariadne for me.
There was also the problem of them trying to blend the modernity with the mythology just too much. Like swapping the iconic the face that launched a thousand ships line for a wink that will launch a million GIFs. I think it was by the …his emptiness stowed away like he’s closing a pop-up window on his browser that I knew I had to leave before I went into another reading slump.
I really like Christine Riccio as a booktuber – even though she can definitely be a bit ‘much’ at times (but then again I’m also very ‘much’ at times so ). I haven’t read Again, But Better – her first book – but I heard that didn’t receive high praise. And now after trying to read Better Together, I know I won’t want to read Again, But Better.
It was just all around bad. From characters who definitely should’ve spent more time in the drafts to a plot that most definitely should’ve also been worked on more. The twins, Siri and Jamie, were two very boring and annoying characters. I didn’t get this far, but other reviewers mentioned that they’re named after the Lannister twins… and I’m guessing you know them. So, yeah, that was interesting to read.
Siri has this awful ‘habit’ (is it that or is it just bad writing?) where, instead of swearing, she’ll say the weirdest things. Like ‘excrement’ instead of the ‘s’ word, ‘underworld’ and not ‘hell’ and it’s like… you could just have the characters say they don’t like to swear and have them not swear on page, it’s totally fine. You don’t have to have this super weird thing of making it a ‘quirky’ characteristic – when it totally isn’t! This kept happening so often in her chapters and it really just put me off so much. There’s literally this line that reads “Are you intercoursing kidding me?” And I honestly never want to read that again be because it’s just so wrong.
Apparently Jamie is meant to be funny because she’s a stand-up comedian? I did not see it in the slightest. And I’ve watched some stand-up comedy and obviously every comedian won’t be every person’s cup of tea. From the little bit I read of Jamie’s set, I definitely wouldn’t be a fan.
I didn’t get so far into the book to get much of the but I know I would’ve (maybe) liked it because I do love the comps (Freaky Friday meets The Parent Trap). Like cool, cool, great. Just not with these characters.
I stopped reading before 20% – which is usually my standard ‘if I’m not interested by this point, I put it down’ percentage. This looked interesting from the synopsis and it sadly went down from there.
Honestly, I just wasn’t interested in anything that went in the little bit that I read. Not in the characters, the tiny bit of starting plot I got, not even the premise of thieves could get me interested. Like I can’t even tell you anything about the characters because I couldn’t get myself into wanting to know more about them.
I do get upset when I realise I’m not interested in a book but then again sometimes you don’t click with a book. But also I’m glad that I realise when I’m truly not into a book and leave before I have to force myself to finish it.
I was annoyed with this book because it did that thing!! Where the synopsis LOOKs really super good and then it falls along the way and I’m left trying to think if I’m bad at picking books or if the books are bad at picking me.
I could barely connect to ANY of the characters. I found them so unlikeable and there were so many problematic elements, which was a big reason why I didn’t like them. I can deal (and probably even like) unlikeable characters, but this was on another level. Like even when I decided to dnf and skipped ahead a bit (to see if there’s something that would interest me), there was nothing.
Another book where it looked good and then it wasn’t. I think I started liking it but it didn’t read like a middle grade book. I know it’s historical fiction but I feel like there should be a better balance. I did feel a little bit for Cap, but I guess not enough to keep me interested. Funnily enough, it wasn’t even the fact of the book being a historical fiction that put me off, just that I didn’t connect to the story/characters.
I was like more than a hundred pages inti the story when I realised I wasn’t interested anymore. Don’t you hate it when that happens? I liked it, but it didn’t feel quite like the middle grade fiction I’m used to. Freddie, the main character’s best friend, was funny and I could see myself carrying on with the book just for him.
Deon Meyer is an extremely famous South African author and when I saw that Fever was translated (its original title being Koors) I thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be funny if I got approved for the book, being a South African?’ Unfortunately, I didn’t think much further than that and I did get approved. Fever was also my first Meyer book.
Reason why I’m not finishing it:
I just didn’t enjoy it. I don’t know if something went awry in translation (So I skimmed the Afrikaans translation and it was more interesting in Afrikaans. There was something in the Afrikaans translation that made the story fly, which was obviously missing in the English translation). That and I didn’t enjoy the narration – Nico’s narration – it just felt flat, like he was reciting a monologue and didn’t like it. I really wanted to like the book, mostly because it’s by a South African author, but it just didn’t capture my attention. And it was also a thick book, and it’s difficult to get into a thick book if it doesn’t interest me.
Any thoughts I had while reading it:
There was a scene where they braaied except in the English translation they used the word ‘barbecue’ and I just laughed because obviously they just translated it and didn’t think of researching if it’s the correct word to use. No South African would use the word ‘barbecue’. I told a friend about it and she laughed too because it’s literally that – “What South African would use the word ‘barbecue?”
Reason why I chose the book:
It was mostly the title. It made me instantly think of Peter Pan and I just love Neverland, and the description sounded like it was good – because the main character could talk and heal animals, and that really intrigued me.
Reason why I’m not finishing it:
Nothing interesting happens or something that would make me want to read on instead of forcing myself to read on. I think I read until Chapter Nine and realised I should have stopped at Chapter Three. Also, there’s major discrimination and racism against the main character in the book, because she’s Romani. I did not like how the other characters treated the main character and how they flung insults at her. There were too many insults, most of them coming from kids her own age, which annoyed me and then a teacher also contributed to the discrimination, which resulted in my (metaphorical) closing of the book (as it was an e-book).
Any thoughts I had while reading the book:
Do the animals she talks to speak English or does she understand each and every single animal language? Does she speak to them in English or in their language?
It was mostly the title. It made me instantly think of Peter Pan and I just love Neverland, and the description sounded like it was good – because the main character could talk and heal animals, and that really intrigued me.
Reason why I’m not finishing it:
Nothing interesting happens or something that would make me want to read on instead of forcing myself to read on. I think I read until Chapter Nine and realised I should have stopped at Chapter Three. Also, there’s major discrimination and racism against the main character in the book, because she’s Romani. I did not like how the other characters treated the main character and how they flung insults at her. There were too many insults, most of them coming from kids her own age, which annoyed me and then a teacher also contributed to the discrimination, which resulted in my (metaphorical) closing of the book (as it was an e-book).
Any thoughts I had while reading the book:
Do the animals she talks to speak English or does she understand each and every single animal language? Does she speak to them in English or in their language?
Warning: homophobic slurs. I don’t know of any other because I didn’t read further.
I think I could’ve liked this book a lot, but I just ended up not being interested in it. And I got about 30% in and realised I wasn’t enjoying it.
I liked the premise – the post-apocalyptic plot, the characters have to travel. But that wasn’t enough to keep me reading.
I think I could’ve liked this book a lot, but I just ended up not being interested in it. And I got about 30% in and realised I wasn’t enjoying it.
I liked the premise – the post-apocalyptic plot, the characters have to travel. But that wasn’t enough to keep me reading.