I figured it was time to do another DNF post, and both of these hurt! I do want to say that a lot of readers love both books, so do keep that in mind as you’re reading my personal opinions. Both books were gifted to me by the publishers (Titan Books and Orbit Books), and I appreciate the review copies.
Startup Hell by Caitlin Rozakis
This was an especially sad DNF, because I really enjoyed the author’s last book. I gave Start up Hell a good shot and read to page 162 before giving up. This is a fantasy revolving around an entry level sales rep working for a tech start-up company, who finds herself in an odd situation after her boss summons a demon and the demon ends up getting stuck on our plane. Morgan must work with the demon—Luke—who is also in sales and is very attractive to boot. In order for Luke to return to his realm, he has to legitimately claim a soul.
There’s a lot more going on, but the first half of the story is so “sales jargon” heavy that I was bored to tears. Rozakis is trying to set the scene—this is a familiar, corporate world that many readers will recognize—but with the inclusion of supernatural creatures like demons. Had the corporate speak ended earlier in the story—really, it didn’t take me long to understand what the author was going for—I might have continued. As it was, I was forcing myself to pick up the book, so ultimately I decided to end my torment. The dialog was quite funny, which didn’t surprise me at all, but it wasn’t enough to keep the boredom away.
Hopeless Necromantic by Shiloh Briar
I so wanted to love this! I mean look at the adorable cover! This is a story about a necromancer, a trope I usually love, but honestly, I couldn’t even begin to tell you what this is about. Even the blurb on Goodreads doesn’t make much sense.
I believe Hopeless Necromantic was self published prior to being picked up by Orbit, and while I understand that’s not a reason to dislike it, many books in this category fail for me, simply because the editing by the traditional publisher doesn’t necessarily improve on the original. And along those lines, I think this didn’t work for me because the author started the story in the wrong place. I felt like I was dumped into a story that was already well off the ground, and I never found my footing. I was never charmed by the cute characters on the cover, and nothing in the 60 pages I read compelled me to keep reading.
Hmmm…too much “sales jargon” would probably bore me as well. As for Hopeless Necromantic, what you said about starting the story in the wrong place is interesting. I’ve never had that experience, but it must be potentially jarring.