I HATE starting books and not finish reading them. Absolutely HATE. It feels like such a waste of time…getting to know characters, immersing myself in story lines, etc. just to put the book down without finishing? Ugh.

I once wrote an entire post on abandoning books and I must admit…my thoughts on this have most definitely changed over time. Now I just stop reading as soon as I realize that I’m not EXCITED to pick up the book. Reading is my favorite hobby and as soon as it doesn’t feel fun, I’m OUT. Books should never feel like a chore and as an adult there is no required pleasure reading (professional reading, yes…but never pleasure reading).

Here are 2 books that I recently started reading and gave up before ever finding out what happened in the end.

Book #1 That I Started Reading and Didn’t Finish:

Goodreads Synopsis of Destination Wedding {Diksha Basu}:

Tina Das wants to belong, but she just isn’t sure where. India or America? Brooklyn or Bombay? Manhattan or Delhi? Or start from scratch in London–she still has fond memories of her one-night stand with Rocco Gallagher, the handsome Australian, as they traipsed through Covent Garden and Seven Dials, but he never called back so maybe it’s time to let that dream go, and focus on finding the next big story for her streaming network instead.

She’s hoping she’ll find it at her cousin’s lavish, weeklong Delhi wedding, and has taken her best friend Marianne Laing along for the ride to Delhi’s poshest country club, Colebrookes. Marianne has always had international tastes, in life and in love, yet can’t help but think of sweet, steady, khaki-clad Tom back home in New York.

Also in attendance are Tina’s divorced parents: her mother, Radha, who’s bringing her American “boyfriend,” David, to the wedding, and her father, Neel, who’s using the visit to India to explore the idea of dating again, only to discover it and he have both changed completely in the decades he’s been away.

Infused with warmth, charm, and wicked humor, Destination Wedding grapples with the challenges of work, love, and finding the people who make a place feel like home.

My Review of Destination Wedding {Diksha Basu}:

It PAINS me to write this review. I was SO EXCITED to read this book! I first mentioned it waaaaaaaay back in 2019 as one of the books that I couldn’t wait to read in 2020. I then mentioned it again when I was discussing my trip to the most amazing bookstore I’ve ever visited! That awesome store didn’t have Destination Wedding in stock (I asked!) but they did have THIS BOOK by the same author which I bought and ended up loving! A few months ago, my library FINALLY was able to locate a copy of Destination Wedding for me and I was READY. I was so prepared to love it!

I didn’t love it.

I was so BORED. It wasn’t a horrible book it was just…boring. I so badly wanted to feel SOMETHING while reading but the further I got into the book, the more bored I became. I stuck it out waaaaaay longer than I should have but I just so desperately wanted to love it. It became more and more clear that this was not the book for me when I continued to be completely disconnected from the characters and didn’t care what ended up happening in any of the storylines.

It literally PAINED me to put this book down after waiting YEARS to read it. Ugh.

Bottom Line:

Hands down my most disappointing book of 2021 thus far.

Aaaaaaaaand Book #2 That I Started Reading and Didn’t Finish:

Goodreads Synopsis of Are We There Yet {Kathleen West}:

Alice Sullivan feels like she’s finally found her groove in middle age, but it only takes one moment for her perfectly curated life to unravel. On the same day she learns her daughter is struggling in second grade, a call from her son’s school accusing him of bullying throws Alice into a tailspin.

When it comes to light that the incident is part of a new behavior pattern for her son, one complete with fake social media profiles with a lot of questionable content, Alice’s social standing is quickly eroded to one of “those moms” who can’t control her kids. Soon she’s facing the very judgement she was all too happy to dole out when she thought no one was looking (or when she thought her house wasn’t made of glass).

Then her mother unloads a family secret she’s kept for more than thirty years, and Alice’s entire perception of herself is shattered.

As her son’s new reputation polarizes her friendships and her family buzzes with the ramification of her mother’s choices, Alice realizes that she’s been too focused on measuring her success and happiness by everyone else’s standards. Now, with all her shortcomings laid bare, she’ll have to figure out to whom to turn for help and decide who she really wants to be.

My Review of Are We There Yet {Kathleen West}:

The writing was good! The depressing family drama…was not. Reading books about other people’s drama can be done in a way that the reader can find interesting. The way this book played out wasn’t interesting, it was…depressing. As a mother, reading about another mother’s struggles wasn’t interesting…it just made me feel sad.

I DO think there is probably a really wonderful and important life lesson within these pages but unfortunately I just didn’t care enough to stick around and find out.

Bottom Line:

I closed the cover and found myself YEARNING for a really wonderful book to read next. And BOY DID I FIND ONE! Review for that book will be posted here on Friday…one of the best books I’ve read all year! Stay tuned…

Have you read either of these books? What did you think? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!

Xo,

Jenny

Clearly these books weren’t for me…but you might love them! Click the images below to order the books through my Amazon affiliate links. When you order through these links, I receive a tiny commission. Thank you for your support, Xo

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The ultimate list of my top book suggestions can be found HERE

The 12 best books I read in 2020 can be found HERE