Cindy’s Comments (group member since Jul 25, 2016)

Cindy’s comments from the Read, Post, Repeat... group.

It seems to me that Ben and James BOTH played a part in 'saving' Shelby... do you think that one's input was greater than the other's? And if you had to eliminate one of them, which would it be? And could Shelby have found her way back to her self with JUST that character help?

So I have a confession to make. Well 2 confessions actually, but baby steps, you know? Here's the first confession... I've never joined/participated in/or even CONSIDERED being part of a book club. I want to read what I want and then move on to the next book, no discussion necessary. Which brings us to the 2nd confession. I read fast. Like... really fast. Nothing ever takes me longer than a day or 2, 3 at the most, to get through. I finished this book, Faithful by Alice Hoffman, in a day. Before you get all judge-y on me, please know that my husband is self-sufficient, my children are grown and housework is not a priority. Now I know not everyone can spend as much time reading as I do, or would even WANT to, but for book club purposes I'm going to just pretend I'm spending the month of March working my way through 'Faithful' right along with you. ;) So what do you think? Are you as caught up in it as I was/am?

I'll start by saying that I'm enjoying this book, though I think calling it 'dark' might be a bit of a stretch. The characters feel believable to me, flawed, yes, but real. And I'm definitely not getting any sense of 'oh yeah, this one HAS to be the bad guy'. Of course if I'd succumbed and read the last page first I'd know EXACTLY where the author was heading, now wouldn't I? The setting seems to play into the suspense, too. Knowing that the 'freeze-up' and all its isolation is just around the corner gives a kind of... ominous feeling, don't you think?

This one's a mystery; they're calling it a dark and suspenseful noir thriller, set in the Yukon. It's won all kinds of awards and is available on OVERDRIVE in e-book format so let's spend February reading about someplace even colder than where we are.... Now, I have a confession to make. I do this... thing when I read. I do it no matter what genre I'm reading, but I suspect the temptation will be even greater with a mystery. I read the last page first. I know, it's crazy. I guess it just keeps me from being totally shocked by the ending. This time I'm determined not to succumb to the temptation. I'll let you know next week how that's going.

So which of the books main characters did you find LEAST believable? For me it was Millie. Whether accurate or not, I tend to picture someone with Down's Syndrome as being trusting and guileless. It's difficult for me to imagine her being sly enough to say she loves Jack but hates 'Jorj Koony', let alone faking insomnia to gather and hoard sleeping pills. What do you think?

Whether we LIKED the book isn't 'supposed' to be a big part - or ANY part, for that matter - of the Book Club process. That being said... I didn't really like this book. I didn't HATE it, but it just seemed to drag on and on. I mean, I guess the premise was good, but I was definitely disappointed in the execution of the plot. And I don't know what it says about me, but the bad guy just didn't seem.... bad enough. What about you? Did you think Jack's character was fully developed? And what about Grace? Did her character seem believable to you?

Recommending books feels kind of... presumptuous, doesn't it? I mean yeah, I can say I think you'll enjoy 'Size 12 is Not Fat' and 'Rocky Ride', but seriously, what the heck do I know?!? I'm just someone who spends waaaay to much time with her nose in a book (or in my case, a kindle). And frankly, the fact that one of my requirements is that I don't want to have to 'think too hard' when I'm reading doesn't sound like much of an endorsement, even to me. Despite this, I can predict with utmost confidence that you are going to LOVE 'The Unsung Hero'. In fact, I predict that by the end of this book you're gonna be a full-fledged, card-carrying member of the Suzanne Brockmann fan club! Let me know what you think....

As we meet again, folks, for our final discussion of 'Rocky Ride' I find myself referring back to my good friend Google's list of Book Club questions. Consider the ending... Did you expect it or were you surprised? Was it manipulative? Was it forced? Was it neatly wrapped up--- too neatly maybe? Or was the story unresolved, ending on an ambiguous note? I , for one, totally expected the 'happily ever after' so I wasn't surprised by the ending, and felt like the story flowed to it's natural conclusion. With this genre, I feel like the 'happily ever after' is usually a given, and except for those stories that take the same characters through several books to their conclusion (think cliffhangers and '50 Shades of Grey' or 'Twilight') we usually get that HEA by the last page. There are exceptions, of course, where a main character is killed off or the ending is disappointing, but these are rare, and inevitably leave me feeling.... cheated. It's like the author and I have an agreement. He or she can take the long way to get there, but in the end I better be smiling. How about you? Did Rocky Ride's ending meet your expectations? Would you change it if you could? And if so, how?

Rocky Ride... So is it just me, or does it seem hard to picture a person/character being able to get away with the 'shenanigans' Anna and Mitch find themselves in, ESPECIALLY in a small town??? Maybe that's the mark of a really good author.... she's able to make the impossible seem... plausible, logical even. How about you? Do you prefer realism in your fiction, or are you all about the melodrama?

So since I didn't hear any complaints I'm going to assume everyone enjoyed our first book. Now on to the second, Rocky Ride, by Vivian Arend. I've read it before, but it's been awhile so I'm reading it again. Do you ever do that? Read books a second, or even third time? I confess, I do. I read my favorites over and over again. Good thing I'm a fast reader, huh? Unlike Size 12 Is Not Fat, this book doesn't start out with dialogue, but the author doesn't waste much time on background, that's for sure ;). She jumped right in, didn't she? What do you think? Too much too soon?

Do you find yourself favoring books about particular settings? Or time frames, for that matter? I seem to prefer books set in current day. Even going back 20 years is enough to throw me off. Which is weird, I suppose, considering I'm more than a little familiar with life in the late 90's. ;) As to geography, I love books set in the south or in big cities, neither of which I have any first hand knowledge of. Who knows, maybe that's the appeal.... I think Size 12 Is Not Fat came out in 2005 - not THAT long ago - but while it didn't feel 'dated' to me, it didn't feel completely... 'current' either. And the New York City setting was a plus, but I would have loved a little more in-depth description of it. How about you? Do you have a preference? And if so, was that part of the Size 12 Is Not Fat experience good for you?

I LOVE to read. I mean seriously, if I had a nickel for every hour I’ve spent reading over the years I’d… well, let’s just say I’d have a whole lot of nickels! Oddly enough, though, I’ve had very limited experience with Book Clubs. Being a novice at this, I’ve had to refer to my good friend ‘Google’ for what sort of things we should talk about. As you might suspect, the list of topics is endless, so as we wander along this path together I’ve decided to just pick questions at random. So, here goes…. How did you experience the book? Were you drawn into the story immediately – or did it take a while? As for me, I was drawn in right from the start. Notice I didn’t say I liked it right from the start (even though I did). Apparently you’re not supposed to get into what you like or don’t like in Book Club discussions. Go figure…. Anyway, as I was saying, I was drawn in from the first page. For one thing, I like – oops, sorry! – books that start with some sort of dialogue. Just a sentence or two is all I need. I know it’s weird, but there you go. “Um, hello. Is anyone out there?” The girl in the dressing room next to mine has a voice like a chipmunk. “Hello?” See? It’s catchy, isn’t it? Also, vanity sizing, jeans shopping and discovering that you’re part of the larger customer section of the population. I felt Heather’s pain, you know? How about you? Were you in right away, or did it take you a while?

Size 12 Is Not Fat is written in the first person. You know, using I and we as the writer’s point of view, rather than he or she (as in the third person) or the more rarely used you (in the second person). According to the internet’s Grammar Girl, my go to source for all things ‘kosher’ in writing, the second person is most commonly used in technical writing, while the first and third are used more for fiction. Maybe growing up on 70’s and 80’s television, where I watched larger-than-life stories unfold from some sort of… ‘eye in the sky’, omniscient observer position – remember the Movie Of The Week and those epic Mini-series? – I was destined to gravitate towards the third person. Or maybe I just like the fact that sometimes – often times, even – I know things before the hero/heroine/storyteller does. What about you? Do you have a preference?

Let me start by saying that I like Meg Cabot's books. I mean seriously, what's not to like? The hero (or in this case, heroine) is just like you and me. Well, you know, like you and me if we used to be a pop star, but still, she's.... ordinary. I can relate to her. She loves to eat and could certainly stand to loose a few pounds, hates to exercise, and feels a little unappreciated at work. Sound familiar? How about you? Do you prefer a book with a heroine whose life seems 'real' or one that's too perfect for words?