DNF&Y is used to explain why I gave up on certain books, and what about them just didn't work for me. What I disliked about a book might be something you love, so it helps to share your thoughts even when they're negative! If you would like additional information, please click on the DNF&Y tab at the top. If you want to join, you can link up at the bottom!
The Light at the Bottom of the World (Light the Abyss, #1) by London Shah
Narrated by: Shiromi Arserio
Synopsis (via Goodreads): Hope had abandoned them to the wrath of all the waters.
At the end of the twenty-first century, the world has changed dramatically, but life continues one thousand feet below the ocean's surface. In Great Britain, sea creatures swim among the ruins of Big Ben and the Tower of London, and citizens waver between fear and hope; fear of what lurks in the abyss, and hope that humanity will soon discover a way to reclaim the Earth.
Meanwhile, sixteen-year-old Leyla McQueen has her own problems to deal with. Her father's been arrested, accused of taking advantage of victims of the Seasickness—a debilitating malaise that consumes people, often claiming their lives. But Leyla knows he's innocent, and all she's interested in is getting him back so that their lives can return to normal.
When she's picked to race in the action-packed London Submersible Marathon, Leyla gets the chance to secure his freedom; the Prime Minister promises the champion whatever their heart desires. The race takes an unexpected turn, though, and presents her with an opportunity she never wanted: Leyla must venture outside of London for the first time in her life, to find and rescue her father herself.
Now, she'll have to brave the unfathomable waters and defy a corrupt government determined to keep its secrets, all the while dealing with a secretive, hotheaded companion she never asked for in the first place. If she fails, or falls prey to her own fears, she risks capture—and her father might be lost forever.
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.
I really wanted to like The Light at the Bottom of the World, but ughhh. I thought it had an interesting premise and the cover was intriguing (plus I love books that take place underwater), but the main character was impossible to like. Additionally, the pacing was slow and the secondary characters were dull. I DNFd the audiobook after two(ish) hours, because I felt like the story hadn't really gone anywhere (although the author did go into GREAT detail about Leyla's daily life). I wanted to know more about what happened before, and how the world started living in the ocean's depths. It seems like that would be something that's really hard to pull off, so I would have appreciated more information regarding their living conditions, but the setting was skimmed over and only briefly explained.
We quickly learn that Leyla's father has been arrested and she doesn't know why. She's been making inquiries and keeps getting ignored, and I hated how little we actually knew about her and her family. I thought her grandfather sounded interesting, but his interactions were brief and not at all enlightening. However, I do feel like she should have moved in with him when her father was taken away, since she's still a child and shouldn't be trying to "make it" on her own.
Basically, Leyla was a terrible protagonist. She wasn't likable, her actions rarely made sense, and my breakfast had more personality than she did. She's 16 and thinks she can take care of herself, which is ridiculous. People are dying from some sort of sickness (something that has to do with a lack of sunlight, or was related to them no longer being aboveground), yet this girl thinks she has everything under control. There are literal robot terrorists hunting humans, buildings collapsing from the pressure they're constantly under (how they were still standing and functioning is a mystery to me), but she thinks she can do everything alone (or at least with her rich friends just giving her everything she needs). The book and the main character were both constantly stating how dangerous the world was, which made her carefree attitude all the more exasperating. She also contradicted herself all the time, and everything seemed to happen exactly how she wanted it to.
I think the pacing suffered from too many unnecessary details, and the story suffered from ridiculous characters who behaved unrealistically. I wanted to like this book - truly - but too much eye-rolling is bad for your health. (★★☆☆☆)
Two books I wish I had DNFd: The Toot Fairy & Cheesemaker Durdsden by Mark Huffman, Dawn Davidson (Illustrator)
To trade quarters for teeth for her fairy carreer!
But when plans for the future go horribly wrong
Here comes Poobums the Pungent to help her along!
Synopsis for Cheesemaker Durdsden (via Goodreads):
Cheesemaker Durdsden was bad at his tradeSo he packed up his bag and went searching for aid His new cheese was proved a delicious success But when asked how he made it, he had to confess...
I was asked to review these books for a blog tour and declined, yet they somehow ended up in my mailbox anyways. I knew they wouldn't be books that I would enjoy, but I also feel like I need to tell you how terrible they were so you don't unknowingly buy them for your children.
Cheesemaker Durdsden was just gross. Clearly this author likes to write about topics most people would avoid, and for good reason. This book actually made me sick to my stomach. The main character makes bad cheese, leaves to learn how to make better cheese, comes back and somehow makes cheese that everyone loves. We have no idea where he went or what he did, only that he ran into something that's the secret ingredient for his new recipe. IT'S SO DISGUSTING. I think it was supposed to be funny, but I honestly expected the townspeople to spear him with a pitchfork for pulling that nonsense (Durdsden, not the something). I was actually really disappointed by their lack of a reaction.
Surprisingly, they were weirdly okay with how Durdsden made his cheese. I know it's a children's book, but it still has to make sense. The author also went into great detail about how his new cheese was made - excuse me while I vomit - and it was just too much. The illustrations just added another layer of repulsiveness to the book. (★★☆☆☆)
The Toot Fairy was VERY INAPPROPRIATE. A skeevy old fairy opens children's pants and puts money inside. That is not okay. It's not funny, and it's definitely not something that should be done or joked about in a children's book. Kids should not expect a creepy man to come by and give them money for farting (ugh, I hate that word), especially since someone REACHES INTO THEIR PANTS TO DO IT. Even the illustration shows the child with a VERY weird look on their face (see below).
The story itself was also uninteresting. A lot of the rhymes felt forced which affected the story's flow. I honestly hate that I read this one with my kids, but they thought the title was hilarious (kids, right?) I'm just relieved that they were disinterested and didn't notice when I skipped several pages of the book (read them to myself, just not aloud). (★☆☆☆☆)
*this post has been backdated
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Hello! Welcome to the next stop on blog tour for The Light at the Bottom of the World, hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. I am happy to share this lovely spotlight post with you, and want to thank you for stopping by. Don't forget to enter the giveaway at the bottom!
Title: THE LIGHT AT THE BOTTOM OF THE WORLD (The Light at the Bottom of the World #1) Author: London Shah Pub. Date: October 29, 2019 Publisher: Freeform Formats: Hardcover, eBook, Audiobook Pages: 320 Find it:Goodreads, Amazon, Kindle, Audible, B&N, iBooks, Kobo, TBD
Hope had abandoned them to the wrath of all the waters.
At the end of the twenty-first century, the world has changed dramatically, but life continues one thousand feet below the ocean's surface. In Great Britain, sea creatures swim among the ruins of Big Ben and the Tower of London, and citizens waver between fear and hope; fear of what lurks in the abyss, and hope that humanity will soon discover a way to reclaim the Earth.
Meanwhile, sixteen-year-old Leyla McQueen has her own problems to deal with. Her father's been arrested, accused of taking advantage of victims of the Seasickness-a debilitating malaise that consumes people, often claiming their lives. But Leyla knows he's innocent, and all she's interested in is getting him back so that their lives can return to normal.
When she's picked to race in the action-packed London Submersible Marathon, Leyla gets the chance to secure his freedom; the Prime Minister promises the champion whatever their heart desires. The race takes an unexpected turn, though, and presents her with an opportunity she never wanted: Leyla must venture outside of London for the first time in her life, to find and rescue her father herself.
Now, she'll have to brave the unfathomable waters and defy a corrupt government determined to keep its secrets, all the while dealing with a secretive, hotheaded companion she never asked for in the first place. If she fails, or falls prey to her own fears, she risks capture–and her father might be lost forever.
About London:
London Shah is a British-born Muslim of Pashtun ethnicity. She has lived in Britain's capital for most of her life, via England's beautiful North. When she's not busy re-imagining the past, plotting an alternate present or dreaming up a surreal future, she's most likely drinking copious amounts of tea, eating all the sweets and cakes, strolling through Richmond Park or along the Thames, getting lost on an evening in the city's older, darker alleyways—preferably just after it's rained—listening to punk rock, or losing herself in a fab SFF book or film. If she could have only one super power, it would be to breathe underwater of course!
Her debut novel, THE LIGHT AT THE BOTTOM OF THE WORLD, a YA sci-fi, is out now. You can read more about it here.
My Weekly Pull is something I do every Wednesday (when the stars align in my favor) to show which comics I had pulled for me that week! If you're into comics, or you're looking to start, please join me! If you decide to do your own post, there's a link-up at the bottom. I would love to stop by and check it out!
Miles Morales Spider-Man #10 by Saladin Ahmed, Javi Garron, Mahmud Asrar
Gwenpool Strikes Back #2 by Leah Williams, David Baldeon, Terry Dodson
Moon Knight Annual #1 by Cullen Bunn, Ibrahim Moustafa, Pasqual Ferry
Canto #4 by David M. Booher, Drew Zucker
After the last issue of Miles Morales Spider-Man, I'm curious what the author has in store for Miles. Ahmed really put the youngSpider-Man through hell -- physically and mentally -- and I'm sure the experience will leave scars. It's also unresolved, so it's entirely possible for it to pop back up again without warning. I really love the family dynamics in this one!
I'm giving Gwenpool another shot even though I really didn't like the first issue. I try to remain open-minded, because I know it's hard to set something up in a single issue. We'll see how this one goes!
That Daredevil cover is freaky, but also hard to look away from... Moon Knight! It's been ages since the last series ended, so I am pumped for this annual issue. Canto is interesting and not at all what I was expecting, although I have stopped reading it with my son. He needs to be a little older before he can really comprehend all the Hard Questions this series poses.
Jacob's comics for the week!
Hit-Girl #8 by Daniel Way, Goran Parlov Kick-Ass #17 by Steve Niles, Marcelo Frusin, Andre Lima Araujo Absolute Carnage Symbiote of Vengeance #1 by Ed Brisson, Juan Frigeri, Philip Tan Absolute Carnage vs. Deadpool #2 by Frank Tieri, Marcelo Ferreira, Rob Liefeld Amazing Spider-Man #29 by Nick Spencer, Francesco Manna, Ryan Ottley Punisher Kill Krew #2 by Gerry Duggan, Juan Ferreyra Venom #18 by Donny Cates, Iban Coello, Kyle Hotz
Can't Wait Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Tressa at Wishful Endings, that highlights upcoming releases that we're anticipating and excited to read. It's a spinoff of the feature Waiting on Wednesday that was hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.
The Light at the Bottom of the World
by London Shah
Expected publication: October 29th 2019
Synopsis (via Goodreads): Hope had abandoned them to the wrath of all the waters.
At the end of the twenty-first century, the world has changed dramatically, but life continues one thousand feet below the ocean's surface. In Great Britain, sea creatures swim among the ruins of Big Ben and the Tower of London, and citizens waver between fear and hope; fear of what lurks in the abyss, and hope that humanity will soon discover a way to reclaim the Earth.
Meanwhile, sixteen-year-old Leyla McQueen has her own problems to deal with. Her father's been arrested, accused of taking advantage of victims of the Seasickness-a debilitating malaise that consumes people, often claiming their lives. But Leyla knows he's innocent, and all she's interested in is getting him back so that their lives can return to normal.
When she's picked to race in the action-packed London Submersible Marathon, Leyla gets the chance to secure his freedom; the Prime Minister promises the champion whatever their heart desires. The race takes an unexpected turn, though, and presents her with an opportunity she never wanted: Leyla must venture outside of London for the first time in her life, to find and rescue her father herself.
Now, she'll have to brave the unfathomable waters and defy a corrupt government determined to keep its secrets, all the while dealing with a secretive, hotheaded companion she never asked for in the first place. If she fails, or falls prey to her own fears, she risks capture-and her father might be lost forever.
I love the concept for this book! Life at the bottom of the ocean? How did they get there? Why are it's depths still unexplored? I've always been fascinated by what lives at the bottom of the ocean, and how deep it truly goes. What's really down there? I cannot wait to read this book!
*Share your My Weekly Pull post! Please leave the direct link to your My Weekly Pull post and not just your blog's URL. Thank you for participating and happy reading!
