Review: Lailah by Nikki Kelly

14 October, 2014 Reviews 39 comments

I have two questions: what did I just read and why did I read it? If you’re wondering why I’ve been reduced to questioning my life choices, let me introduce you to Lailah.

So, Lailah (or Francesca? I’m not even sure what to call her) cannot die or age. She doesn’t know what she is or where she’s from. Basically, she has the worst identity crisis ever. Throw a dark vampire and a model-esque angel to her already complicated life and you get:

A) A story that has been told time and time again

B) A terrible love triangle

C) Another Bella Swan

D) All of the above

If you answered D, then congratulations! You are now a proud member of the “Can I Burn This Book Now or Later” Club.

This Lailah/Francesca/Cessie-for-short character is one of those that I want to eradicate from the YA world. I might be a little biased here because I made up my mind about her by page nineteen. Why page nineteen, you ask? Because this girl, whom I’m told has lived many lives has NO SENSE OF SURVIVAL. Actually, maybe that’s why she keeps dying. Fun fact: if you ever find yourself walking by the woods and you happen to come across an injured vampire, help him. Take him to your house (even though you live alone) and let him feed from you. That’s the Lailah way. Ignore the fact that you have a horrible scar from a previous vampire encounter. Don’t listen to that inner voice telling you that he’s evil and he’ll kill you if he gets the chance. No. Please go out of your way to practically put yourself in the most dangerous situation ever. Because that makes perfect sense, right? Honestly, I rolled my eyes so much at this character’s lack of common sense that it’ll take me weeks to stop doing that at 30 second intervals.

Terrible main character aside (I’m ignoring the love triangle on purpose because my sanity is more important than going down that road), the writing wasn’t any better. It didn’t flow at all because the transitions were awful. I was confused more times that I’m comfortable in admitting. Also, the author resorted to the most genetic characters I’ve read in a while. Lailah is plain, practical, and with no sense of style. Gabriel (the angel dude) looks like a model but he has a secret. Tuntuntunnnn. This makes me feel like I just read a retelling of a paranormal novel that I won’t mention by name but we all love to hate. Unfortunately, my complaints don’t stop there.

Now, I have to focus my attention on the setting. It was so dull that I almost cried. This is a huge shame because it takes place in a lot of great locations. I feel like the author didn’t explore the surroundings at all. Instead, she left me feeling like the story could’ve taken place anywhere. Don’t like Wales? Just think of a place and plant the terribly genetic characters there. It won’t make a difference.

If you read this and you’re still like “BUT SULKY VAMPIRES! AND HUNKY ANGELS! GIVE IT TO MEEEE” let me leave you with this: even my cat tried to eat it at one point. And I almost let him.

39 Responses to “Review: Lailah by Nikki Kelly”

  1. Kat C

    Ouch ! This book is one of those books based on a Wattpad story that I believe is still up on the website, so maybe I’ll look at that…I kind of assumed this would be good since it had so many fans.

      • Alyssa Susanna (The Eater of Books!)

        OMG no dude, for the longest time I thought I was the only one that hated this book. Literally all of the other blogger acquaintances that I really follow read and LOVED this one. Then Nikki (Fiction Freak) posted her review and it was a DNF so I was like PHEW. And now this review! In which someone else actually FINISHED – and really disliked – the book! So we’re not the weirdest black sheep out there… ;D

        Alyssa @ The Eater of Books!

        • Paola Carolina

          Hahahahaha! I was really nervous about this post because I kept reading positive reviews. I’m glad we can bound over our hatred for this novel >:)

  4. Kayla Beck

    If I had a cat, I would have let him eat it. I barely made a dent in the book before I realized that there was nothing to gain from me finishing it except anger. I read all of the Twilight books, so I refuse to waste any more of my life on books that terrible. (And yes, I think what I read of it was worse than Twilight.) I have a library patron who is obsessed with Wattpad, so I gave her my ARC to be inspiration or whatever.

  5. Kristen@My Friends Are Fiction

    This one didn’t work for me at all. I hated the Twilight feel. And that MC, ugh. I couldn’t like her no mater how hard I tried. The romance was horrible. I really don’t have much good to say about it. I continued reading it to the end so that’s something.

  8. Cait @ Notebook Sisters

    *quietly crosses off tbr* Okay, but no-okay. The thing that gets me is when someone has like ZERO common sense. I mean, sure those people exist…but not for very long, right?!! The “Lailah” way does not sound very interesting to read about. More like headdesk worthy. Dang, though. I was actually interested in this one (because of the freaky cover). xD

  9. Beth W

    Thanks for the warning! It sucks that, even with the apparent shallowness, this is apparently one in a series of books. :/

  11. Dragana

    I read a lot of negative reviews about this book but your was definitely the most entertaining.
    Also, poor cat – did he survive?

    • Paola Carolina

      Thank you :”) Haha, he’s fine! I’m sure he wanted to sacrifice himself for my sanity but he didn’t find it that entertaining (we have that in common).

  13. Irene

    This book’s author is probably unaware that “cessi” (which I guess has the same pronunciation as “Cessie”, i.e. “chessy”) is the Italian slang word for “toilets” and is mostly used to indicate that someone is ugly as hell.
    An ugly person will be a “cesso”. Two or more ugly people will be “cessi”.
    All in all, an interesting choice for a nickname derived from an Italian name.

  14. health care

    Next, I install energetic grids in the room that protect me and my client from taking any unwanted energies home
    with them. You would be glad to read that massaging scalp with warm almond oil or olive oil also treats the
    problem of dry hair in effective way. In addition,
    you will also get to know the key behind having nutritionally balanced and tasty meals without the need of depriving yourself from
    eating your favorite foods.

  15. induction heater คือ

    If the car was in the Midwest, the same applies, but may be not as bad.
    Where there are too many trace elements in the alloys,
    they are melted separately, usually in an electric furnace, where the
    minor trace elements are removed from the molten metal,
    before pouring into ingots. Induction heating is among the unique techniques of directly heating an electric metal part by circulating
    electrical power instead of a torch or open flame.

  16. แมสเซ็นเจอร์ สมุทรปราการ

    We also offer SEO Services and online marketing at very affordable prices.
    Messenger bags are the ultimate in overall flexibility and comfort.
    The additional features of keeping records and planning your day to day meeting and event are the versatility of
    a good office communicator. LORD, if you sent not this
    man with the words of thy honor, allow me to perceive, and instruct me on what thou wouldst have me do.

  17. อินดักชั่น ฮีตเตอร์ คือ

    Wear loose-fitting, well-ventilated, thin clothing in light colors.

    Here, the most common processes are hardening and tempering of carbon and alloy steel parts to improve strength and wear characteristics.
    Some intumescents such as soft char producers emanate a light char, which are
    poor conductors of heat. The historical connection was
    strong, of course — we never, never, never forget how welcoming Cleveland was to us in the early days.

  18. แผ่นอะคริลิค ราคาเท่าไหร่

    In simple fact, some prints can wholly set the concept
    for the total space, making it possible for you to play with the coloration patterns in the pics to draw the whole room collectively.
    These are independent units that collectively form a solar panel.
    As to which of these materials wins when it comes to making a freestanding bath, well, that depends
    on what you want. Using the back of a paintbrush , scratch little dots or firefly shapes on the paper.

  19. คิ้วบัวฝ้าเพดาน

    They are commonly utilized to make up paints, varnishes and glue.
    The Japanese are highly sophisticated, when it comes to Fashion. A plain colored curtain can be transformed into a customized shower curtain by using iron-on paper
    and a printer. Upholstery layers, which are used to enclose the mattress’s core,
    the spring core, which is also the innerspring structure.

  20. คิ้วบัวโพลียูรีเทน ราคาถูก

    Using window treatments gives you a wider range of options and more length so you can hide an ugly
    or mismatched tub. Finally there is the foundation or platform which
    is commonly referred to as the box spring. For especially high ceilings the
    lighter material is much easier to work with and install, as opposed to lugging heavy wood trim up
    a ladder. The less density of EPS makes it an ideal choice for customizing
    various parts avoiding tooling and carving as they can be fabricated
    in any design or shape.

  21. ulthera

    Just keep in mind that this list is far from conclusive.
    If attempted on locations where the sagging is more pronounced, you will just be disappointed by the results no matter how many sessions you hold.
    The treatment is painless, and there appears to be no adverse
    events associated with LLLT. Let us be clear though that when we say non-surgical, we mean non-invasive.
    59a08f9652cdb7c5eee3879cebdac166

  22. coconut oil

    Before making use of any essential oil for the first time it’s always recommended
    to do a spot test on a small area of skin. It can even neutralize Alzheimer’s Disease, not curing it, unfortunately, but giving major
    relief from symptoms so you can still have
    a life. Now, that’s not what you hear, but it’s the
    absolute truth. Vinegar – sometimes made in a yeast culture, it depletes the stomach of acids and can also cause inflammation in your gut.
    59a08f9652cdb7c5eee3879cebdac166

  23. ขายเซรั่มปลูกคิ้ว

    What all efforts required on your part, just log onto the relevant website and retrieve
    desired information thereon. People who have
    black skin can certainly be efficiently handled.
    Male pattern baldness is a hereditary condition that most often affects men, but may affect women as well.
    All you need to do is, search for the best suitable serum either offline or online and use it on regular basis to have thicker, fuller and beautiful eyelashes.
    59a08f9652cdb7c5eee3879cebdac166

  24. ulthera

    It is using a a first of its kind technology as is being compared to
    a “skin lifting” treatment. Immediate improvement is possible after just one session,
    and over the weeks and months following, the skin continues to renew and lift.
    The results of a study carried out by Elm et al37 did not show a significant reduction in waist circumference
    after LLLT treatment (P_. We look in the mirror and year after year
    we see more wrinkles.
    59a08f9652cdb7c5eee3879cebdac166

  25. ขายเซรั่มปลูกคิ้ว

    As opposed to other lotions, lotions and supplementary tablets, Eye Secrets is incredible with its
    little transparent strips. Herbal growth enhancer products increase the blood flow and
    enable nutrients to go where they are needed.
    When seeking your artist look for others that have had the procedure done.
    You could start with a smaller dosage, gradually building it up overtime.
    59a08f9652cdb7c5eee3879cebdac166

  26. ulthera ยกกระชับหน้า

    The “old” Collagen will be replaced by new, fresh Collagen – but
    it is not Collagen that is inserted through a surgery or with a needle: it is Collagen that
    will be produced by your own body. This ultra sound skin procedure stands at the forefront
    of a new beginning in the aspect of natural and painless face lifts.
    Endoscopic browlifts are performed via small incisions in the hair-bearing scalp.

    This can lead to financial strain from medical bills as well as negative effects on home life
    balance.