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A review by accidentalra
Neferura by Malayna Evans
2.0
This book was. . .fine.
Honestly, it was very nearly a DNF for me. I downloaded it ages ago and began reading right away, but the opening chapters were s-l-o-w and the first-person narrator did not draw me in. I thought, "Maybe I'm just not in the right place for this book right now," and set Neferura aside in favor of other titles, unknowingly initiating a cycle of slog through-utterly lose interest-vow to finish later that would continue for months. Finally, I powered through, but even then I had to give myself rewards for reaching certain milestones (e.g. "When I get to 33%, I'll take a break and read a novella from my TBR pile." or "When I finish Part 2, I'll go for a walk and listen to an audiobook for an hour.") Turns out, my initial disconnect with both the pacing and the characterization hardly improved through the rest of the novel.
Don't get me wrong—this book is not bad. It is incredibly well-researched, fairly well-plotted (even if not well-paced), and filled with intrigue. The eponymous main character grows from a naive and artless young lady who is easily manipulated to a canny woman who takes control of her destiny. I would have loved Neferura. . .if I ever felt a connection with her. Unfortunately, I did not.
In a nutshell: it's hard to read 300+ pages of a novel when you never really care about the protagonist.
[I received an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.]
Honestly, it was very nearly a DNF for me. I downloaded it ages ago and began reading right away, but the opening chapters were s-l-o-w and the first-person narrator did not draw me in. I thought, "Maybe I'm just not in the right place for this book right now," and set Neferura aside in favor of other titles, unknowingly initiating a cycle of slog through-utterly lose interest-vow to finish later that would continue for months. Finally, I powered through, but even then I had to give myself rewards for reaching certain milestones (e.g. "When I get to 33%, I'll take a break and read a novella from my TBR pile." or "When I finish Part 2, I'll go for a walk and listen to an audiobook for an hour.") Turns out, my initial disconnect with both the pacing and the characterization hardly improved through the rest of the novel.
Don't get me wrong—this book is not bad. It is incredibly well-researched, fairly well-plotted (even if not well-paced), and filled with intrigue. The eponymous main character grows from a naive and artless young lady who is easily manipulated to a canny woman who takes control of her destiny. I would have loved Neferura. . .if I ever felt a connection with her. Unfortunately, I did not.
In a nutshell: it's hard to read 300+ pages of a novel when you never really care about the protagonist.
[I received an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.]