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A review by thelexingtonbookie
The Cassandra by Sharma Shields
1.0
This eARC was provided through NetGalley from Henry Holt & Company in exchange for an honest review.
I hate it when I have to DNF a book, but even more so because this novel is from NetGalley, and a publisher approved me to read it. It feels like I let them down, but at the same time, it's about honesty in the review, is it not? Which is why I always explain my reasoning behind a DNF'd book.
In The Cassandra, the main character, Mildred, seems to be a pleasant girl looking for adventure- anything to take her from the monotony of caring for her heartbroken, ailing mother. Mildred is also a psychic whose visions mostly come during sleep, and are usually acted out while unconsciously asleep. The premise of the novel seemed interesting to me, the cover grabbed my attention, and I knew from it's description that there would be historical WWII context as Mildred applied to be a secretary at the Handford Research Center, which lead the development of the atomic bombs.
I got about 20% into the book, struggling with the obscure writing technique that made the character's voice difficult to understand in my head. She was gullible, smart, determined, afraid... so many emotions and just all over the place. I got frustrated with this, which furthered my disconnection to the story and it's main character. Trying to hang in there, I kept hoping for something to pique my interest the plot, but I kept feeling like I was getting whiplash from all the jumping around.
Therefore, I decided to not finish The Cassandra.
(This review will be posted on my blog (www.thelexingtonbookie.com) at a later date.)
I hate it when I have to DNF a book, but even more so because this novel is from NetGalley, and a publisher approved me to read it. It feels like I let them down, but at the same time, it's about honesty in the review, is it not? Which is why I always explain my reasoning behind a DNF'd book.
In The Cassandra, the main character, Mildred, seems to be a pleasant girl looking for adventure- anything to take her from the monotony of caring for her heartbroken, ailing mother. Mildred is also a psychic whose visions mostly come during sleep, and are usually acted out while unconsciously asleep. The premise of the novel seemed interesting to me, the cover grabbed my attention, and I knew from it's description that there would be historical WWII context as Mildred applied to be a secretary at the Handford Research Center, which lead the development of the atomic bombs.
I got about 20% into the book, struggling with the obscure writing technique that made the character's voice difficult to understand in my head. She was gullible, smart, determined, afraid... so many emotions and just all over the place. I got frustrated with this, which furthered my disconnection to the story and it's main character. Trying to hang in there, I kept hoping for something to pique my interest the plot, but I kept feeling like I was getting whiplash from all the jumping around.
Therefore, I decided to not finish The Cassandra.
(This review will be posted on my blog (www.thelexingtonbookie.com) at a later date.)