Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by the lovely people at
The Broke and the Bookish. This week's topic is -
Ten Books I Almost Put Down But Didn't
I very rarely put down books without finishing them, the number of books I've DNF'd in the last twenty years is around four! What I have a habit of doing is reading a book, not liking it, putting it down to read a book I do like and then going back to the book I wasn't enjoying and finishing it. Most of the time I end up loving the book in question but every now & then I really wish I could DNF without feeling overcome with guilt.
Outlander - Diana Gabaldon
I nearly out this down a dozen times, the first time I read it I was not in the mood for a long book but I'd borrowed it from the library so felt obligated to finish and return. Years later my mama and I read the books together, I loved Outlander and the rest of the series - we raced through them all!
Across the Universe - Beth Revis
I read Across the Universe the year in March 2011, I struggled but I gave it five stars in the end. Rather oddly, even though I own the other two books in the series I still haven't read them and I feel no desperate need to do so.
Stormdancer - Jay Kristoff
Nothing to say but it was the best decision ever not to put this down. Note to self, read book two now!
Vampire Academy - Richelle Mead
I'd heard both good and bad about this series and I really wasn't interested in reading yet another teen vampire story but a friend in the States sent me a copy, insisting I read it. So I did... It nearly got to join a select few on my DNF list but something stopped me. I've obviously read all of them now, and the Bloodlines series so this turned out to be a good thing!
The Historian - Elizabeth Kostova
I struggled to get into The Historian and did actually put it down for a month but went back to it and I ended up loving it!
A Great and Terrible Beauty - Libba Bray
This was one of those books you borrow from the library and you're not quite sure what it's about. I read this in 2008 and at the time nobody I knew was reading YA (except for sparkly vampires) but I ended up loving this and bought my own copy.
The Host - Stephenie Meyer
I have nothing against people who liked The Host but it took me four attempts to read/finish and it was
this close to joining the DNF list. I'm glad I finally finished it but I can't say I really enjoyed it.
Shadow of Night - Deborah Harkness
I loved A Discovery of Witches, adored it! I think I went into SoN with too many expectations and so I really found it difficult to keep reading. I did though and finished it, eventually. I'm looking forward to The Book of Life this summer but I've not got my hopes up this time.
Divergent - Veronica Roth
I read Divergent in 2011 and I can't remember why I picked it up but I do remember thinking that it didn't sound like my cup of tea. It's another one I put down for a couple of weeks and went back to, eventually giving it five stars (which would probably be four stars if I read it now) and being desperate to read Insurgent. I obviously wasn't that desperate as I read Insurgent last month, exactly three years after Divergent and only because I bought Allegiant for my Kindle for $4/£3.
Seraphina - Rachel Hartman
This was a classic case of cover love! And 'stories about dragons' love! Started reading it and there was something that I can't put my finger on but it was really off-putting to me. I ended up leaving it at my sister's house for a while and then starting it again. It was like reading a different book and I loved it!