I’m not attaching a rating to this one. There’s not really any stars to be found here. It was a DNF.I really dislike writing negative reviews. More so when I can’t even finish a book entirely. I did not enjoy writing this review at all, but I have to be honest. All of my reviews are. As a Shakespeare fanatic, I was fascinated and excited to read this one. I was drawn in by the cover and the premise. I’d hoped I could enjoy it. But the worst-case scenario happened and in the end, I put it down a little over halfway through with a cringe. Luckily, I haven’t had too many DNF reads yet this year because I try really hard to finish all the books I start. Sadly, this is on the short list of them. The thing is, I’d read a contemporary last year that had a premise somewhat similar. It involved time travel and Shakespeare and a character who loved acting in theater. I actually sat through that one. It wasn’t bad, and even found it a read that I’d recommend to contemporary fans perhaps. The characters were even likeable. Kissing Shakespeare had nothing in it to redeem itself though. It starts right from the beginning with the action and absolute no backstory on the main character so I instantly felt detached. There were numerous plot holes that left me with questions or frowning in confusion. If Stephen talked that way all the time (like Miranda oh so casually mentioned as if it were no big deal), why did no one notice his strangeness in classes before and not have any suspicions? Especially when he was the new kid? What even prompted him to travel to this year in the first place? Little things that just irked me. I’m just someone who really thrives on characterization and backstory. I didn’t get any development at all in these areas from the chunk I read from anything here. Shakespeare didn’t even come across as a main character--and the title is KISSING SHAKESPEARE. Tell me how this works?! Pixie is confused. What especially bothered me was the forceful tactic that was taken in trying to get her to seduce Shakespeare. And she goes right along with it, allowing herself to get bullied. Oh yes, that’s soooo romantic. And speaking of romance, I’d been led to believe from the blurb that it would be about Shakespeare--but instead the main focus is a budding romance between Miranda and Stephen, which I found ridiculous because of the way she’d been treated through out. Head, meet Desk. The dialogue became cheesy and predictable. This wasn’t working out at all the way I’d hoped. I’d love to travel back in time to meet the great and amazing Shakespeare. When I saw that premise, I thought it sounded fantastic, but by page two hundred, I had to put it down and forget it. DNFPlease note: My reviews are never meant to keep anyone from reading something they might be interested in reading. They’re just my own opinions. I was kindly provided a digital e-ARC from Delacorte through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you.
