*♥* Marla's Challenge Logs and Reads *♥* discussion

Dare to DNF
Dates: July 1, 2024 -June 30, 2025

This challenge is similar to "Gridlock" and based on the "Dare to DNF" we did as an experiment starting in January.

Goal: to get rid of books that are on our TBRs and we can't remember why we added them..

We all know we have books lying around on our shelves that we never get around to reading because we have no idea how or why they got there. And we all like to finish the books we start -- which makes us reluctant to start a book if we have no idea why we added it in the first place. So the books add up, and never get read.

Well, we're going to fix that. Because THIS challenge gives you permission to stop after one chapter.

How it works: you set up a "Dare to DNF" shelf in your GR shelves. Go through your TBR and find books (any number, but you should have at least 6) that you added but no longer remember why, or which don't capture your interest the way they once did. Add those books to your "dare" shelf.

For this challenge, we'll be using the "grid" view option for your shelf. Open the "Dare to DNF" shelf you created, scroll to the bottom, and make sure it's showing "40" in the "per page" dropdown. (This is to ensure that if you're using the "6" option and you have 36 or more books on your shelf , you have both a Column 6 and a Row 6 to choose from. If you have fewer, you can still set it to 40 and it will still work: you'll just have six columns and fewer than 6 rows. That's fine.) We also recommend choosing "Random" for the "sort" option, so you'll get different choices every week.

At the top, instead of "list" view, choose "grid" view. The screenshot below will show you where the "grid" and "list" buttons are, as well as a partial example of what "grid" view looks like.



Once a week, we'll post a two-digit number that is possible to get from rolling a pair of dice. In other words, you can have a 15 (a roll of 1 and 5), but you can't have an 88. There are 36 possible two-digit number combinations, so you will see a few combos twice over the course of a year, to get us to 52 weeks.

After the week's number is posted, go to your grid shelf. The numbers will correspond to a position in your grid. "1" is the leftmost column, "6" is the rightmost, and so on. 1 is the top row, etc.

You have several choices:

1) You can pick either the row OR the column that corresponds to EITHER of the numbers in the roll and choose any book from the row or column. Example: we roll a 15. You can choose any of these four options: Row 1, Row 5, Column 1, or Column 5, and read any book from the option you choose. (For those of you with just a few books, you may want to stick to the column option as we did in the pilot "Dare to DNF" challenge. As long as you have at least 6 books, that option will always work.)

OR 2) you can add the numbers together until you get a single digit, and go with that column or row (ex: 66: 6 + 6 = 12, but that is still two digits, so you add them together. 1 + 2 = 3, so you'd get column or row 3.).

OR 3) Let's say you add the numbers together and they don't get you to single digit that is 6 or lower. Example: 52 is rolled. 5+2 is 7. If you want to go with the "add together" option in lieu of the columns/rows option, you can either 1) count over 7 books from the top left, which will put you at the 1st book in row 2 [6 books in row 1 plus 1 book in row 2 to get 7) and that's your pick for the week, *or* if you have more than 36 books in your grid, you'll have a 7th row and you can pick from that. And so on.

OR 4) you can choose to treat it like Gridlock treats it, as though it targets a specific book. So if we roll a 15, you can choose that to mean ROW 1, COLUMN 5, and whatever book is in that spot is your pick for that week. Yes, we're also fine with reversing the order and going with COLUMN 1, ROW 5. Whatever gets a book into your hands!

That week, try to read ONE CHAPTER of the book you chose. That's it. One measly chapter.

If it captures your interest, you can either finish the book then, or put it back on a "real" shelf for later reading.

If it doesn't capture your interest in one chapter, off it goes -- Life is too short to be wasted on incompatible books!

Post your book and your outcome -- maybe the rest of us can get your bad book off our shelves too!

CHALLENGE RULES:
See this thread for more detailed rules for all CCC challenges.

♦ If you want to participate in this challenge, please sign up by posting a challenge template, which you can use to update your books as the challenge progresses.

♦ Unless otherwise noted, books must be at least 150 pages long. (See the link above for rules regarding graphic novels.)

♦ For each book you read, please post a link to the title, and indicate the author and the date you finished reading it -- assuming you didn't kick it to the curb!! * If you don’t know how to post a link to the book title or author, see the instructions here: Add a link to book title or author.

Enjoy your reads!

Wow, I feel like I'm changing my life. I am a compulsive book finisher. But since I had a big birthday this year, and since my TBR is big enough for 20+ years and not going to get any better, I think I need to start DNFing. But since I LOVE challenges, I think this is a sign...and here I am.

Since I'm a newbie DNFer, I am going to try 26 books this year. Wow, this is going to be freeing. Books that I worried about reading because what if I didn't like them, I can add to this list.

Dare to DNF! 2024-25
Duration: 7/1/24 - 6/30/25
Progress: 11 of 26

❌ Deleted
🗑️ DNF after 1 Chapter:
🗑️ DNF after 10%:
🗑️ DNF after 40 pages:
🔪 DNF after 50%
📚 Read later
✔️ Read:
Updated: 8/20/25

Dare to DNF books

🗑️ 2. Week 2 - 7/8/24 -- 23 - Dreaming Anastasia by Joy Preble ~ DNF after 10% (11/13/24)
Week 4 - 7/22/24 -- 64 - Death's Angels by William King ~ kindled
✔️ 10. Week 6 - 8/5/24 -- 53 - Still Lives by Maria Hummel
Week 8 - 8/19/24 -- 43 - Ethan Justice: Origins by Simon Jenner ~ kindled
Week 10 - 9/2/24 -- 31 - When the Sea Is Rising Red by Cat Hellisen
✔️ 1. Week 12 - September 16, 2024 -- 16 - Vampires Rule by K.C. Blake (1/31/25) ~ kindled ★★★.5
Week 14 - September 30, 2024 -- 45 - An Abundance of Katherines by John Green
Week 16 - October 14, 2024 -- 22 - Southern Bound by Stuart Jaffe ~ kindled
Week 18 - October 28, 2024 -- 54 - Into the Abyss by James Snyder ~ kindled
✔️ 3. Week 20 - November 11, 2024 -- 25 - A Clue for the Puzzle Lady by Parnell Hall (1/11/25) ★★.5
Week 22 - November 25, 2024 -- 66 - Different by Alycia Linwood ~ kindled
✔️ 4. Week 24 - December 9, 2024 -- 56 - Teen Fury: Unleashed by Amanda Torrey (3/19/25) ~ nooked ★★.5
Week 26 - December 23, 2024 -- 65 - Blood and Justice by Rayven T. Hill ~ kindled
📚 5. Week 28 - January 3, 2025 -- 51 - Captured by Erica Stevens ~ kindled
✔️ 6. Week 30 - January 20, 2025 -- 36 - Sky Hunter by Chris Reher (2/5/25) ~ kindled ★★★.5
Week 32 - February 3, 2025 -- 14 - Sleepers by Megg Jensen - kindled
Week 34 - February 17, 2025 -- 26 - Shifty Magic by Judy Teel - nooked
Week 36 - March 3, 2025 -- 36 - Black Ice by Anne Stuart - library ebook
✔️ 7. Week 38 - March 17, 2025 -- 23 - Next to Love by Ellen Feldman (4/15/25) ~ ★★★.5
❌ 8. Week 40 - March 31, 2025 -- 64 - A Reliable Wife by Robert Goolrick - DELETED
✔️ 11. Week 42 - April 14, 2025 -- 53 - The Girls From Alcyone by Cary Caffrey ~ What Tomorrow May Bring
❌ 9. Week 44 - April 28, 2025 -- 43 - Break My Heart 1,000 Times by Daniel Waters - DELETED
Week 46 - May 12, 2025 -- 31 - MILA 2.0 by Debra Driza - own
Week 48 - May 26, 2025 -- 16 - Prison Nation by Jenni Merritt ~ What Tomorrow May Bring
Week 50 - June 9, 2025 -- 45 - All Joy and No Fun: The Paradox of Modern Parenthood by Jennifer Senior - own
Week 52 - June 23, 2025 --

DNF


2. Msg 268:
1st DNF ever!!! Dreaming Anastasia by Joy Preble

It wasn't terrible but I'm not into dreams and mystical realism. This was part of my Crazy Challenge Connection's Dare to DNF Challenge. I wasn't sure after 1 chapter, but decided to DNF after 10% (30 pages). The thing that clinched it was Anastasia's letter to her brother. It was difficult to read and there were a couple of words that I finally skipped because I couldn't decipher the font text. I noticed that there were at least 3 more letters in the book and I would rather not.

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Msg #517
8. A Reliable Wife by Robert Goolrick - DELETED 4/26/25 - 3.27 rating

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Msg #517
9. Break My Heart 1,000 Times by Daniel Waters - DELETED 4/26/25 - 3.41 GRs rating & not in library

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Keep Reading...


✔️ 1. Msg 253:
Vampires Rule by K.C. Blake is a keep reading for me after Chapt 1.

✔️ Msg 396:
Vampires Rule by K.C. Blake (1/31/25) ~ Rule #1 ~ ★★★.5
Jack Creed became a vampire on the night his parents were murdered by a werewolf. Cliffhanger ending. Interesting concept, but I found everyone annoying. Glad I read it, but not going to continue the series.

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✔️ 3. Msg 292
A Clue for the Puzzle Lady by Parnell Hall is a keep reading after Chapt 1

Read: 1/11/25
2.5 stars. Didn't really care for any of the characters or the supposed romance. Mystery was difficult to solve but not very interesting with misleading clues.
May keep series for reading challenges but otherwise not continuing series. I'm not a fan of cozy mystery or amateur detectives.
But a book added in 2013 is no longer on my TBR!

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✔️ 4. Msg 308
Teen Fury: Unleashed by Amanda Torrey is a keep reading after 10%

✔️ Msg #459
Teen Fury: Unleashed by Amanda Torrey (3/19/25) ~ Teen Fury #1 ~ ★★.5
Felicia Murphy is suddenly plagued by headaches, bouts of uncontrolled rage and two gorgeous guys who suddenly appeared in her life. The lusting after 2 hot guys got old. I'm not into love triangles and impulsive teenagers. I realize that Felicia had some drastic emotional things going on, but I was not a fan and I'm going to abandon the series.
But another book added in 2013 is off my TBR.

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📚 5. Msg 397
Captured by Erica Stevens is a keep reading after 10% (2 Chapters)

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✔️ 6. Msg 400
Sky Hunter by Chris Reher (2/5/25) ~ The Targon Tales #0 ~ ★★★.5
If Lt Nova Whiteside didn't come off as a bit too heroic and the story didn't have such dark moments, I would've rated it higher. I bought the next book in the series, so that's high praise for me.

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✔️ Msg #517
7. Next to Love by Ellen Feldman (4/15/25) ~ ★★★.5
Story of 3 female friends who fall in love but WWI changes their lives. It kind of touched on just about every subject and the POV changed between the ladies so it may have been too choppy. It's not a happy story, but war stories seldom are. My problem is I didn't really like any of the women.

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Msg #588
✔️ 10. Still Lives by Maria Hummel (5/5/25) ~ ★★★★
Artist Kim Lord is opening her new show at the struggling Rocque Museum with a gala. I'm not usually a fan of amateur sleuths, journalists or unlikable characters, but I really enjoyed the setting of the Los Angeles art world, backstage of an art museum and the gritty exhibit of famous violently murdered women.
I wish I had read this with my real life book club, because I think it would be interesting to hear their insights, though mysteries do not usually generate good discussions. Really should've read this sooner.

✔️ 11. The Girls From Alcyone by Cary Caffrey ~ What Tomorrow May Bring (5/11/25) ~ ★★★.5
Interesting story about genetically enhanced young girls being trained as assassins and warriors. Premise sounded familiar but I enjoyed the story even with the political and corporate intrigue. Good story that I should've read when I received the book.

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OTHERS:


Almost DNF ~ September 2024: Lol, Incidents Around the House would've been my first DNF. I was going to allow myself to not finish this audiobook. I find this book very creepy, but it's the repetitiveness and the little girl's unsettling and annoying voice that I can't take. I'm choosing to listen to the first 12 Chapters before I DNF. It's actually 79 pages into the book, so over my 60 pages. I think that's a very fair chance. And it turned around for me in that last chapter. I would've quit after Chapter 11, but Chapter 12 actually drew me in.

I turned 60 this year and it's time to allow myself to quit reading books that I'm not enjoying. I almost started with an audiobook. This was a monthly book selection in the August 2024 BOTM Puzzle ~ Paranormal. I almost did it...I came so close. LOL.

So I joined Crazy Challenge Connection Dare to DNF Challenge & I've created a dnf shelf.

1.5 stars. Should've DNF'ed this book when I had the chance. It would have been a smarter move than finishing this book. Underwhelming end and I was totally irritated that I wasted so much time. I couldn't even speed up the playback because the high child's voice sounded grating sped up.

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3/4/25: UGH. I would've DNF'ed Creatures of Forever, but it was the last book in the series and I needed a #6 book for 2 reading challenges and this is short. So even though I'm tired of this series and Alisa and the writing, I'm going to finish it or at least skim it.

Jennifer: Ugh, I hate having a good reason to read a bad book, Marla!

3/9/25: I am so glad that I didn't DNF Creatures of Forever!!! It was a great ending to a mediocre series. So many clichés but it was captivating and tied together well.

Written at 20% after 2 chapters: UGH. I would've DNF'ed this book, but it was the last book in the series and I needed a #6 book for 2 reading challenges and this is short. So even though I'm tired of this series and Alisa and the writing, I'm going to finish it or at least skim it.

It took 30% into the book, p. 56 to engage me, much longer than I would have read if I hadn't decided against the DNF. But if you've gotten this far in the series, keep reading. Though since I wasn't a fan of this series, maybe if you are a fan, you won't like this book.

Lol, now I'm going to have even a tougher time to DNF books...

Barb: I struggle with the same thing. Other than for this challenge, I rarely DNF a book. When I do, my rule of thumb is generally 50 pages or three chapters - unless someone 'warns' me to give a book a bit longer, then I'll stick it out a little longer. Usually by then, I've got enough invested in the book to finish it no matter what *shrug*

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Dare to DNF! 2025-26
Duration: 7/1/25 - 6/30/26
2025-26 Progress:

❌ Deleted
🗑️ DNF after 1 Chapter:
🗑️ DNF after 10%:
🗑️ DNF after 40 pages:
🔪 DNF after 50%
📚 Read later
✔️ Read:
Updated:

Dare to DNF books

Week 2 - July 5— 46
The Blade of Shattered Hope by James Dashner

Week 4 - July 19— 23
For the Love of a Vampire by M. Leighton ~ kindled

Week 6 - August 2— 26
📚 Crimson Born by Amy Patrick ~ kindled

Week 8 - August 16— 31
Cloak and Dagger by Nenia Campbell ~ kindled

Week 10- August 30—
Week 12 - September 13—
Week 14 - September 27—
Week 16 — October 11—
Week 18 - October 25—
Week 20 — November 8—
Week 22 — November 22—
Week 24 — December 6 —
Week 26 — December 20—
Week 28 — January 3—
Week 30 — January 17—
Week 32 — January 31—
Week 34 — February 14—
Week 36 — February 28—
Week 38 — March 14—
Week 40 — March 28—
Week 42 —April 11 —
Week 44 —April 25 —
Week 46 — May 9 —
Week 48 — May 23 —
Week 50 — June 6 —
Week 52 — June 20 —

DNF or DELETE

Keep Reading...

OTHER NOTES

I just DNFed another book #2 all time DNF and I decided to join this challenge again, because I wanted to be able to share the news with someone who would care.

🔪 The Perfect Crimes of Marian Hayes by Cat Sebastian ~ London Highwaymen #2 ~ DNF after 75% - 8/21/25 (view spoiler)[

I enjoyed the first book, The Queer Principles of Kit Webb but I started reading the library ebook and couldn't bring myself to read it after a while, then I switched to the library audiobook. I have to force myself to listen to the audiobook to finish. But I remembered today that I don't have to finish this book. So I give up even though I only have 25% left. I don't like either scoundrel, I don't care about their romance - they deserve each other and I don't care if they can find a way to be together. Ba bye. (hide spoiler)]


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