DNF December Review Blitz — Day 1: I’m sharing my thoughts on some book series that I have marked as incomplete as I have never finished the first novel in the series. Find out why these weren’t for me:
Synopsis for Nevernight (from Goodreads):
In a land where three suns almost never set, a fledgling killer joins a school of assassins, seeking vengeance against the powers who destroyed her family.
Daughter of an executed traitor, Mia Corvere is barely able to escape her father’s failed rebellion with her life. Alone and friendless, she hides in a city built from the bones of a dead god, hunted by the Senate and her father’s former comrades. But her gift for speaking with the shadows leads her to the door of a retired killer, and a future she never imagined.
Now, a sixteen year old Mia is apprenticed to the deadliest flock of assassins in the entire Republic — the Red Church. Treachery and trials await her with the Church’s halls, and to fail is to die. But if she survives to initiation, Mia will be inducted among the chosen of the Lady of Blessed Murder, and one step closer to the only thing she desires.
Series: Nevernight Chronicles
Author: Jay Kristoff
# of Books: 3 (Full Reading Order Here)
Book Order: Chronological
Complete?: Yes
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Action, Dark
Heat Rating: warm **suggestive content**
Point of View: Third Person, Single
Publication Dates: August 2016 – September 2019
Source & Format: Public Library–Audiobook
Disclaimer: I stopped reading Nevernight at 44% (middle of Chapter 16). Find out why below…
Why I Picked it Up / My Expectations:
I’ve read Jay Kristoff’s Immuniae Series and I follow him on twitter so I like his sense of humour. But I was curious to see what type of novels he writes on his own and this one seems to be a very popular choice amongst my Goodreads friends. My library only had the audiobooks and I needed a new audio series so I put myself on the holds list and waited for my turn.
What I Liked:
–The Narration Style–
I enjoyed the delivery of the narration. The style of narration is something I might not have fully appreciated if I didn’t listen to the audiobook. The sarcasm and dry, witty lines are great when heard audibly because that tone is easily conveyed.
I could see how that wouldn’t be for everyone though as it is a rather dark approach…but you are reading about a school of assassin teens so I think it comes with the territory.
What I Didn’t Like:
–The Pacing–
The pacing here just didn’t work for me. I definitely forgot about the murder mystery part because there were so many other tangents happening. I just found myself getting bored and so my mind would wander away.
And the flipping between Mia’s past and present was just too hard to keep track of with the audio version.
My Audiobook Experience:
Perhaps the audiobook was a mistake. The shear length of it was daunting for me (books over 15 hours never work out for me) but I listen to audiobooks at 1.5X the speed so it wouldn’t take me the full amount of time.
However: I’m a very visual person so trying to remember people’s names in an audiobook can be a challenge. Once we finally got to the academy, I struggled to keep all the characters straight. I also couldn’t keep the timelines straight. The constant shuffle from the past to present had me missing things and I didn’t always catch the shifts.
Will I Finish It?
I don’t think so. I couldn’t really bring myself to care about Mia (I think it is a casualty of the third person narration because she is talked about and not the one directly talking to the reader). And the shear length has turned me off. However, if this was a TV series I’d totally invest my time in watching it.
My Rating: DNF
Nevernight DNF | Godsgrave N/A | Darkdawn N/A
I think if you are a reader who has the patience for longer novels, this is a great choice. It’s a cool concept but I don’t think its execution will work for everyone.
Read if You Like: dark YA, assassins, witty narration
Avoid if You: dislike super long books
- Red Rising by Pierce Brown (Red Rising Saga #1)
- The Cruel Prince by Holly Black (The Folk of the Air Series #1)
- Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo (Six of Crows Series #1)
- His Fair Assassin by Robin LaFevers (His Fair Assassin Series #1)
Have you read this? Should I return to this series? Leave a comment!
So I haven’t started the series yet it’s on my to be read list though, but I know that sometimes audible can sometimes turn me off from reading a book. sometimes they don’t pick the best narrator and when I start listening I immediately get turned off and no longer want to read a book so I have to sometimes sample the books audio and if I don’t like the way the narrator delivers then I will stick to reading the book physically because if I stuck with the mortal instruments book Series on audible I would never have completed it. I’m glad i chose to read it instead. so yeah sometimes audible can be a bit tricky. I’ll be wondering like how the heck did they think this reading was good especially the ones that show no emotion the narrator is super dry and u can’t visualize anything.
I actually really liked the narrator’s voice so that wasn’t my issue. The tone is supposed to be dry and sarcastic which was apparent in the narration style. It really came down to the shear size of the book.
I’m a huge Mortal Instruments fan but I don’t think I could listen to the audio either because of the number of pages. It’s a lot of jumping around because of multiple POVs which can be hard to follow when you stop and start an audiobook in the middle of the chapter.