Happy Tuesday, y’all! This week, Jana over at That Artsy Reader Girl is asking us to share some books we’ve stopped reading. If we can, share our reasons without spoiling the book. I decided to share the books I DNFed in 2024.
To help me make this list, I used the tag on Goodreads that I created for my DNF. Why? That way, I know I’ve tried the book. If I come across it later, I think I may enjoy it. Also, just because I’ve stopped reading a book doesn’t mean that I won’t give it a try at a later date. It just means that I won’t be reading it any further now. I also leave a comment on the Goodreads page stating how much of the book I’ve read and why I’ve stopped reading it.
Now let’s look at the books I DNFed in 2024!
Twenty-Seven Minutes by Ashley Tate
- Genre: Thriller, Mystery
- Release Date: January 2024
- Amount Read: 19%
- Why Stopped: Struggled to stay focused on the story
The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
- Genre: Historical Fiction
- Release Date: November 2001
- Amount Read: 66 pages
- Why Stopped: Struggled to connect and stay connected with the characters.
The Sleeping Car Porter by Suzette Mayr
- Genre: Historical Fiction, LGBTQ
- Release Date: September 2022
- Amount Read: 25%
- Why Stopped: Was bored! Nothing was happening other than the MC complaining about how much they hated their job.
All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
- Genre: Historical Fiction
- Release Date: May 2014
- Amount Read: 9%
- Why Stopped: Bored, story too slow
The Crow Valley Karaoke Championships by Ali Bryan
- Genre: Contemporary
- Release Date: July 2023
- Amount Read: 46%
- Why Stopped: I gave this book two tries but struggled to connect and stay connected. That said, I could see this book adapted into a small TV series.
Moonfleet by John Meade Falkner
- Genre: Classics, Adventure
- Release Date: 1898
- Amount Read: First Chapter
- Why Stopped: I struggled with the language and the flow of the story
Counting Down with You by Tashie Bhuiyan
- Genre: YA, Romance, Contemporary
- Release Date: May 2021
- Amount Read: 6%
- Why Stopped: Struggled to connect with the characters
In a Holidaze by Christina Lauren
- Genre: Romance, Christmas
- Release Date: October 2020
- Amount Read: 8%
- Why Stopped: The main character was too whiny for me. Was she in her 20s or a teenager?
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark
- Genre: Historical Fiction
- Release Date: January 1961
- Amount Read: 32%
- Why Stopped: There was too much skipping around in time to keep the story straight. Better to watch the movie.
The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray
- Genre: Historical Fiction
- Release Date: June 2021
- Amount Read: 12%
- Why Stopped: Struggled to stay connected
Lovely War by Julie Berry
- Genre: Historical Fiction
- Release Date: March 2019
- Amount Read: 7%
- Why Stopped: Struggled to connect with the story
Bait and Witch by Angela M. Sanders
- Genre: Cozy Mystery
- Release Date: December 2020
- Amount Read: 40 pages
- Why Stopped: Set the book down, and don’t want to return.
The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center
- Genre: Romance
- Release Date: June 2024
- Amount Read: 26%
- Why Stopped: The main characters were insufferable
The Cookbook Club by Beth Harbison
- Genre: Contemporary
- Release Date: October 2020
- Amount Read: 9%
- Why Stopped: The only character we were with spent most of the time whining about their life.
Funny Story by Emily Henry
- Genre: Romance
- Release Date: April 2024
- Amount Read: 6%
- Why Stopped: The whining was too much for me to handle.
Petals and Poison by Jess Dylan
- Genre: Cozy Mystery
- Release Date: November 2021
- Amount Read: 146 pages
- Why Stopped: Didn’t care what happened next.
That’s the 16 books I DNFed in 2024. Did you DNF any books last year? Have you read any of these books, and think I should try them again?
Are you looking for some more books to read? Check out my other bookish lists, book reviews, and monthly reading wrap-ups.
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I vote move on! I’ve never regretted a dnf!
I’m not familiar with any of these. I rarely DNF unless it’s nonfiction.
I agree with Carol. If you’ve DNF’d a book, move on. Once I’ve started a book I have to finish it. Even if it’s a struggle. Here’s my list for this week: https://damppebbles.com/2025/03/25/toptentuesday-25th-march-2025/
I like how you were able to figure out why you stopped reading. I should do that!
I have the same policy about DNF books. Some of them have later gone on to be among my favourite reads!
I keep looking at In A Holidaze, but I’m not sure. Definitely something to think about – I’m not sure that I need to read about that sort of character!
Have a great week!
Sounds like you have a healthy relationship with your reading lists and books. I loved The Secret Life of Bees and have often wondered if a reread was in order but what stops me is the idea that that book may have been a NOW book. Not a classic. A book that worked THEN but not now.
I’ve only read Miss Jean Brodie from your list Very sensible to DNF and move on if you ‘re not enjoying. I’m not a huge fan of Emily Henry and I thought I was the only one so I’m quite relieved to see one of her books on your list!
I have not tried any of these. Have a good week.
All good reasons not to continue with a book. Life is to short to spend it reading books you don’t enjoy. I have a couple of these. Hopefully, they will be winners for me. Thanks for sharing.
https://thebookconnectionccm.blogspot.com/2025/03/top-ten-tuesday-top-ten-books-i-did-not.html
The kareoke sone sounds interesting from the title!
The book hops all over the town, and I think could be a great show. But I just couldn’t stay in the story.
Pam
Funny story turned out to be one of my favorite reads of 2024, but I can definitely understand that the whining was pretty bad in the beginning – I do think it gets so much better though 🙂
I do this with historical fiction a lot too! I have to be interested to start and then stay interested 😐 thanks for checking out my post!
Funny Story is on my wishlist. I haven’t read any of these.
Interesting about Funny Story and The Rom-Comers, both books I have on my TBR!