Jay’s Comments (group member since Feb 06, 2017)

Jay’s comments from the Get Captured in Words! group.

I apologise for my absence! This month has been crazy, with my neighbourhood having to evacuate due to flood warnings, and me starting up some online Accounting and Financial Management classes (just trying to get the last few credits for my diploma). It has been busy that's for sure! But I've read up to page 252 which is about halfway. Let's discuss!

**SPOILER WARNING: MAKE SURE YOU'VE READ UP TO THE END OF CHAPTER 5 (WHICH IS PAGE 252 IN MY EDITION).**

A LOT has happened since we've last discussed! Holland is back in the picture, which I am quite happy about even if we don't know his agenda yet. I'm really fascinated with his story and how he is replenishing White London and in the process (I believe) reviving Black London. This magic that is giving him power, do you think it is to be trusted?

I'm happy to say that I have been enjoying Lila's character a bit more since the beginning. She hasn't had one of those moments where she randomly murders a person without knowing who they are, or even taking the time to care about it after, so that's good. I'm actually hoping her and Kell end up together, and the point we are at in the book right now it is very intense. We just ended with Kell running out of Calla's shop after discovering that Delilah Bard is back in London.


I'm also still very interested in learning more about Alucard. What did he do that's made Kell and Rhy so nervous about him?

The Essen Tasch should be very exciting! I'm hoping the magical battles won't disappoint. So now Lila wants to participate, and we know that Kell will be participating under a disguise. Do you think they will end up having to battle each other? I mean, it's not like it is to the death so I don't think it would be too big of a deal...

I still enjoy the segments with Kell the most, how about you guys?


Share your thoughts!

I'm going to try and read this book a bit faster now, although my classes seem to be taking up a lot of time.

P.S. I'm not sure what editions you guys have, but does your copy seem to have a very bendy cover? The first book didn't for me, but for some reason this one bends open way too much :/ Not a big deal, but it's such a beautiful book and I reaaaallly didn't want it to bend!

Cynthia wrote: "Hello everyone! My name is Cynthia and I am 20 years old. I live in Missouri and I attend Evangel University where I major in psychology and minor in Youth Ministry. I do have a BookTube channel th..."
Glad to have you here Cynthia! :D

**SPOILERS**
MAKE SURE YOU'VE FINISHED CHAPTER TWO AND ABOUT TO READ "THREE: THE COURTSHIP"

The beginning confused me quite a bit. For awhile I thought I was still reading the Introduction, when in fact, William Goldman is making himself a character within the story. He has developed a fake author of The Princess Bride known as S. Morgenstern, and Goldman himself is meant to create an abridgement version, or a "good parts" version, of the original novel in order to show his son how great the novel is without boring him with the slow parts. This abridgement includes commentary by Goldman.
Like I said, this confused me at first. My only experience with The Princess Bride is watching the movie, and so far the book is quite different.
At first I was a little disappointed, as I found Goldmans character to be very bitter and not likeable (I mean really, a huge part of the beginning is him ogling over a woman in a bikini even though he's married). But after I realised that this is not William Goldman himself but only a character, and obviously he is meant to be portrayed in this way.

Once we got to the actual start of the story, I began to enjoy the book 10x more. The writing is beautiful. I absolutely love the way that Buttercup confessed her love for Westley, and how Westley responded. IT WAS SO CUTE. I was surprised on how different this is from the movie, but I'm very excited to read these differences.

Chapter two was very short, but it gave us enough to hate the prince. Poor orangutan :(

After realising what William Goldman is doing with this book (adding this whole separate story-line with a man making an abridgement to the very novel we are reading) I'm beginning to realise how genius it is.


What are your thoughts so far?

Dimitris wrote: "I didn't expect the second book to start with 50 pages of Lila and no mention of Kell (in my mind, they're not co-protagonists, hehe, he's the main hero).

I liked her bravery, both in a Darker Sha..."

This is a little embarrassing... but I forgot how the chapters work for these books, so I only read up to chapter ONE part THREE (thinking it was the end of chapter two). I just read to the end of the ACTUAL chapter two and will update my thoughts above with much of what I'm writing now. This is why I had only made comments about the scene where Lila takes over the Copper Thief because that was the only part I had read up to! Haha my bad!

After reading more, especially the scene where Lila kills the dude after stealing his coin purse, I have to agree with you on Lila seeming to be a little too ruthless. In fact, it seems a bit forced at times with her dialogue and thoughts. it seems like she is trying to act too cool. I also agree with the fact that she is in Red London now and doesn't necessarily have to fight to survive like she did in Grey London.

I don't mind the idea of Lila sharing a bit of the protagonists throne with Kell, however some of her views I don't agree with. I also didn't care for the anti-Christian speech, it wasn't needed at all especially in a fantasy novel. I also find her character so far to be filling a "ruthless assassin/thief who only cares about her own life" trope, and can only hope that her character will expand and become more realistic as the book continues.

I really enjoyed the second chapter with Kell and Rhy. I feel like they are becoming more fleshed out and real. And yesss Alucard seems awesome so far! Wow that's really interesting about Alucard's name spelt backwards.... VERY interesting. I'm excited to see if there is a relation to this theory! ;)

**SPOILERS**
Read two chapters then come back to discuss :)

Wow. Those first two chapters were pretty great. Lila is pretty damn ruthless, and it seems like she has been making a name for herself during the time in between the first book and this one. The entire scene with her singing the song, putting on the mask, and drugging the entire crew of the Copper Thief, was such a strong way to start the sequel.
However, later in the chapter I find some of her actions to be unnecessary and not exactly realistic. When she steals the dudes coin pursue, then kills him after, actually made me quite angry. She had no reasoning to kill him, in fact, it was a stupid move considering that she was alone and there was strong sailors all around her. I feel like this "badass assassin/thief who only cares for herself" trope is falling on Lila, and it feels forced. Similarly I found it a bit dumb in the first book when she brings up that she likes killing people (or something to that effect). I kind of pictured her more as this charismatic and fun thief type of character, not a blood-thirsty thief who tries too hard to be cool. I believe she is going to be a bigger part in this book, so all I can hope is that she will become more realistic and gain some more motives to her actions :)

I really liked chapter two! Finally we get to see more of Kell and Rhy! Although they seem to be at a bit of a depressing moment, it feels realistic to me. The civilians wariness around Kell is understandable in my opinion. Since Rhy is a bored royal who can no longer die by ordinary means, and who covets Kells ability to use magic, it makes sense to me that he is being a bit reckless. I understand the reasoning to him feeling useless.

The fight scene in the alley, when Kell almost lost control, do you think maybe there is a lingering bit of Ventari inside of him?



How did you like the the first two chapters?

Let's continue to read!

Dimitris wrote: "As travars! has already entered my vocabulary, I use it every morning as I leave my house to go to my Uni (unfortunately it still takes me an hour and a half to get there, hahaha!)

What a perfect..."

Ahahaha if only As travars would make it quicker to get to uni!

Yes after coming to the finale of this book, I too believe it was originally a stand alone. I'm very happy Schwab decided to continue with it!

I've started the sequel, only a chapter in but it's already a great start!

Peachy wrote: "OMG, yes, I am totally coveting Kell's bloody coat. HAHA.

I ABSOLUTELY LOVED THIS BOOK.
I can't wait to read the last book, and I know I'll be sad. I am totally absorbed by this series, I predic..."
Hahaha yeees Arnesian sounds beautiful! It would be so awesome if Schwab made some type of translator book with the entire language.

Saied wrote: "Glad you enjoyed the book! The entire series is absolutely phenomenal...and don't worry, you would not be disappointed in the following installments...the world and characters just get bigger and b..."

Yay this makes me excited!!!

*SPOILERS!* DO NOT READ THIS UNLESS YOU HAVE FINISHED THE ENTIRE BOOK.


How did you all enjoy the book?

Personally, I loved it! Those fight scenes near the end- no, the fight scenes in the entire book- are bloody awesome. I was actually quite surprised when Kell killed Holland. I wasn't expecting that at all, I guess I just assumed Holland was going to be a character in the books to follow as it still feels like we never knew much about him. I really wanted to see more of his character, so I was a little disappointed with that. Although who knows, maybe Holland will return from Black London in the sequel and is used as a vessel for some Vitari entity.... just a prediction.
My prediction of Holland killing off the rulers of White London and taking the throne for himself, sadly did not come true :(

I'm also interested in these little hints of romance between Lila and Rhy which I'm sure we will see more of in the next book. But this begs the question... is this going to result in a love triangle? I mean Kell and Lila have already kissed a few times and have shown interest in each other, now Rhy is going to be thrown into the mix as well? It's becoming quite rare to read a book with a romance that revolves around the growth between a TWO people. Anyway, I suppose we shall see. Who else is excited to read the sequel?

I don't think I could have read a better V.E. Schwab book to introduce me to her writing. This books entire concept is just so up my alley. Overall I loved reading this book and unfolding its magical plot filled with corrupt rulers, cross-dressing and swash-buckling thieves, and world travelling magicians with a sense of style (Yo I want Kell's coat). I enjoyed the characters and all the aspects that make them unique, however after some thought I realised that the characters never completely won over my heart. They are lacking a bit of depth. However, this is the first book so I'm hoping it will really deliver as the books continue!
I will be working on a video review soon!

What did you think?

ONWARDS TO 'A GATHERING OF SHADOWS'

Dimitris wrote: "I read the first 80 pages in one day and here I am :)

Kell is the best, I'm so eager to discover his story! I can't help but agreeing with you all. Never have I liked a character so much from the ..."

I also find it really awesome how she blends real life characters with fictional ones :) And I agree, I want to start A Gathering of Shadows directly after!

The covers of these books are so beautiful :O

Jay wrote: "Hi guys!
So sorry I haven't been able to put this up sooner, I've been so busy with getting my final projects done (so glad to be done college for now) as well as having company come over right aft..."

Almost finished the book now, and it's so great! I definitely want to start the sequel after!

These last few months have been crazy for me, I'm sure I'll have the discussions more organised next time!

WARNING SPOILERS!
Make sure you've read up to chapter nine, which is about page 210 for me, before reading on.

- Wow. The fight scene between Kell and Holland was completely awesome. I was expecting Kell to discover a way to break the silver seal on Holland, but as we discovered, he has a soul brand which is much more complicated. Holland makes for a pretty badass character, I'm excited to learn more about him. I'm going to predict now that eventually he will overthrow Astrid and Athos and take over White London for himself.

- I would like to be able to know the limitations of this magic system and what the characters can and cannot do. I also reaaaaally like the idea of this artefact from Black London and how it tempts the user and retaliates by getting angry.

-The scene where the man ends up piercing himself threw the stomach with the black sword is definitely inspired from the real life legends of the Muramasa blades, as these legends describe demon swords that control the wielder and can make them kill themselves or slaughter their very own family. I think this idea perfectly suits the eerie Black London artefact.

-By the end of chapter nine I actually found myself quite sad for Barron. I mean, I know he was never a main character or anything but he was a pretty nice guy.


Let me know your thoughts down below! If you came across a Vitari artefact, do you think you could withstand the temptation? Do you think you would find a place to hide it away so it wouldn't get into the wrong hands?

Once again, sorry about the sloppy discussions and slow reading speed, it's been a hectic month. I plan on speeding through the rest of this book though, and I'm thinking I'd like to start the second one right away.

Hi guys!
So sorry I haven't been able to put this up sooner, I've been so busy with getting my final projects done (so glad to be done college for now) as well as having company come over right after that. It's been very hectic. But in between the chaos I've had short moments where I've been able to read A Darker shade of Magic.

So far I'm really enjoying it! Kell is such an awesome character and I look forward to seeing the limits of his power/magic abilities. Just the entire concept of the book is something I love. I think it's realistic that Kell sneaks trinkets from each world, as I know I would be doing the same. Ialso find it very fascinating that Kell has been adopted by the royal family in Red London, and I'm extremely interested in learning more about his backstory.

The new character we're introduced to, Lila, is badass. I truly hope she gets her pirate ship one day because she would make an excellent pirate. It seems inevitable that she is going to come in contact with Kell soon, as she is attracted to the same odd tavern.

Anyway that is all my thoughts for now. I had to write this fast as I have company staying over and it's just so busy. I'll be heading on vacation in a few days and will get a lot of reading done then.

Let me know your thoughts down below! :)

Do you prefer a fresh pristine new novel without any blemishes, or a weathered and broken in book that has been well read?

I think there is definitely a charm to used novels. There's a story behind every wrinkle, coffee stain, scribbled note and dog ear. Not to mention there are countless out-of-print amazing books out there that can only be bought used now.

Then again, buying a brand new book, with pages that have never been read by anyone except for maybe the odd curious person in the book store, is also rewarding. For one, they look pretty. They look nice on a bookshelf. There's less of a worry that they are carrying some type of foreign bacteria that could melt the skin off your hands. Rest assured I've never found a book carrying a bacteria such as that, but hey, it's always a worry.

Personally, I'm mixed on this topic. I really like books to be aesthetically pleasing, and it feels nice to have a brand new book. I like to take care of my books and try not to bend or damage then, however if I do it's no big deal. But I also love used books because in a way they feel comforting that someone else has read the same adventure you have in your hands. Also the atmosphere in used book stores feels much more mysterious and magical then going to Chapters/Barnes & Noble.

When it comes down to it, there is the very realistic and suffocating matter of price. Used books are cheaper.


Your thoughts?

Dimitris wrote: "Jay wrote: "Let's discuss our thoughts together!"

What can I possibly write after such a perfect review?... Other than I'm so happy I'm in this Group and we buddy-read this and we'll hopefully con..."

Thanks for your kind comments Dimitris! We are definitely going to continue to read more! :) For now I think it's safe to buddy-read like a book a month in this group, but later on as I gather people's insight then we might read more then one a month.

I suppose since I do study writing, I probably let a lot of things bother me in books that most likely wouldn't annoy others. Hahaha so sometimes my opinions can be a bit harsh! For what it's worth though, even if I didn't enjoy this book as much as others I can still see the appeal and I respect the author for writing what she did. I just wish it was written a bit differently ;)

I also agree with your thoughts on the numerous 'resurrections' at the end. I found it awfully convenient that nobody truly died. Also the fact that the father just seems to get away at the end sort of bothered me. I don't really feel like it was even necessary for him to show up at Caraval and 'kill' Dante and what not.

Yeeees I was definitely expecting more of a circus atmosphere as well! Caraval is constantly being compared to The Night Circus, and like you I felt more of a Caribbean Colony feel to it. Nothing gave the impression that this was a circus, it was more so a magical scavenger hunt. I didn't feel connection with any of the characters either, and that's something I really need to have in a book in order to fully enjoy it.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts! ^_^

On a side note; These next two years I'm going to be focusing a lot on my writing and eventually plan on sharing some things on my channel. Not really sure the best way to go about this though. At some point I would like to look for some beta readers to help critique and give their opinions on my writing.

Okay so it took a bit longer for me to read this book as I'm currently hurtling towards my end term exams at a frightening speed. But I finally finished it.

Let's discuss our thoughts together!
I'm going to write up an official review in the next few days, as well as a video review, both of which I'll post the links to once I have them up.

I truly wanted to be swept away by Caraval. I really did.
My overall opinion is that this book had a fantastic idea yet failed to match it with its writing. While I still enjoyed reading it, I also came across many annoyances and an abundance of bad YA tropes.

The metaphors, color description, and comparisons felt like they were trying way too hard to be abstract and poetic, when actually they just don't make any sense. It wasn't like the cute imaginative way Anne of Green Gables would describe things. It's like a bunch of colors and descriptive words were tossed into a bowl and picked out at random. I understand some may think it sounds beautiful and whimsical, and that's fine, but for me it just felt amateur and forced.

“He tasted like midnight and wind, and shades of rich brown and light blue.”

"It came in shades of Hemlock Green- the color of poison and terror." (Please Google Hemlock Green. It does not remind me of poison or terror in anyway, in fact it looks more like a calming color.)

“It smelled like the middle of the night”


“Something acidic and moldy and burnt bubbled up through Scarlett’s throat - the taste of death.”

Another thing, it is incredibly melodramatic. Like middle-school/high-school dramatic. I've never seen the word "No!" be yelled by the main character so many times in a book. This over-dramatic writing comes with the romance as well, with Scarlett getting all excited over the smallest of physical contact (hell, sometimes she would freak out even when there was no physical contact). The romance feels like it leads this book and pushes the magic and plot away. The worst of it is that the romance can pretty much be summed up by the time when Scarlett was under magical influence and blurted out:

“I think he’s the most attractive person I’ve ever seen.” Is that really all you got to say about him? That's the reason you love him?

We are constantly being reminded that Scarlett loves her sister by phrases like: “I just want to find my sister and get home in time for my wedding” or “my greatest desire is to find my sister”. These are repeated SO many times. Yet the problem is that we never even got to see much of a bond between these two sisters. It's important for the reader to feel that bond since the MAIN driving force of the protagonist is to find her sister (even though she is told this is just a game, and she could have simply enjoyed Caraval instead.). Scarlett constantly makes several decisions that contradict this driving motivation to find her sister. Not that I blame her, but since these lines about saving her sister are repeated so often, it seems odd that she makes such contradicting actions.

Scarlett in my opinion was very unlikable. Her character is practically based around worry. Oh and being naive and dramatic. That's basically what she has going for her, and at times it got really annoying. I would have liked to see more character progression other then her finally speaking back to her father.

I also felt the world building to be rather underwhelming, with much left to be imagined. Actually near the beginning of the book I was very hopeful for some good world building, with mention of the Conquered Isles and I believe even an empire of some sort. But none of that goes anywhere. Caraval itself sounds like a beautiful and weird place. Sort of Alice in Wonderland mixed with Venice. While I liked the rose carousel, Castillo, and general magical essence of the place, I just still had a hard time forming an image of anything due to how the author skips over a lot of things without giving description. Unless they are colors.

Oh and the villains. Scarlett's dad is abusive, and at the beginning that made me feel sympathy. But later on he is brought into the story as pretty much one of the main villains, with no motive to him at all. I mean he killed people at Caraval and was perceived to be incredibly ruthless for no reason whatsoever. His wife left him, yes, but other then that everything seems to be going just peachy for him in his life.

And the ending. I liked the unpredictable tension near the end, but the final conclusion just felt flat. It still makes no sense to me whatsoever why Tella set this whole game up, even if she new her sister would wish her back if she died. What was the point? Just to win a fortune and run away? And what if the wish didn't work? I mean, it was even said that only Caraval performers were able to be revived from death; the players still died. So how did she come back to life? Oh right, un-explainable magic.


I can see the appeal, and like I said, I reaaaally wanted to enjoy it. Sadly it just didn't work for me.

Now I don't mean to say that I hated this book, or it was absolutely horrible. Ovbiously I did enjoy some parts of it and that is the reason why I stayed up until 3:00 AM to finish reading it. The mystery and suspense kept me reading.

Also keep in mind that it's perfectly fine if you enjoyed this book and don't agree with my opinions. I don't want my opinion to change your mind either; if you enjoyed the book then that is great! I wish I enjoyed it more.

**SPOILERS** This is a discussion for those that have read chapters 13-18.

Wow, the tension is really picking up. So Tella wasn't fooling around with someone in her room last night, she was in fact being kidnapped. Or something. I'm finally starting to get more intrigued by this competition, especially with what is going on in those underground tunnels, and why- out of all people -Tella is the one chosen to be the main focus of the scavenger hunt. I'm also very curious as to how much of this is a game and how much isn't. Time to read on to Night Two of Caraval!

Things that still bug me (and most likely will throughout the entire book)
- The unnecessary metaphors that try to sound poetic yet don't make sense
- The unnecessary description of every color
- The one dimensional characters
P.S. my annoyances may be an unpopular opinion; but it is my opinion after all.

Dimitris wrote: "I loved those chapters too, I'm impressed with the author's abitily to convey this imaginary world to the reader so convincingly and effortlessly. Beautiful, original metaphors as well.

So it's t..."
Well errr- I believe Tella wouldn't let Scarlett in because she was in the middle of getting it on with some unknown person XD Well at least that's what Scarlett seems to think. However, it seemed like there was a lot of thudding going on in the room (I mean maybe they were just REALLY going at it), but maybe she was actually being held hostage? I'm not too sure. That's an interesting theory that perhaps the sister is in on this with Legend himself.
I believe I pronounce it Caravál? Idk I probably change how I say it each time haha.

Yes Julian is definitely turning out to be interesting, I think your right with thinking Julian and Scarlett's mother are somehow connected to Caraval. I was actually thinking perhaps Julian or this new Dante character could end up being Legend in disguise! I'm going to read a bunch this weekend and update with my thoughts :)

Christiana wrote: "So I'm flying through this and I'm losing track of the chapters. I'm probably just going to wait until I finish and we get to the end of the book to post all my thoughts. I've read 300 pages since ..."

Sure, you can definitely wait to the end to share your thoughts :) I've been holding back from reading a whole bunch because I'm not entirely sure if everyone has their copy of Caraval yet, because there's only a few people commenting on the actual chapter discussions. But I'm too tempted to read now, so I think I'm going to speed through it this weekend ^_^

Dimitris wrote: "My copy arrived and I read up to page 77 last night in one sitting. I'm loving it so far, great choice of book. Very rarely I read a book so fresh out of print, I think it was released only last mo..."

I had the same initial pleasant surprise, I was expecting it to take place in the real world. I'm glad it's more fantasy then I thought!

YES that's exactly it: the two main protagonists seem 100% 21st century.

I can definitely tell there is more to Julian, and I'm excited to see his character progression. Although I'm afraid it most likely is going to be some sort of love triangle. :(

The part where she was "drugged" bugged me as well. THIRTEEN DAYS?? For some reason I thought it was only three days and even that seemed like a lot, but you're right, it was THIRTEEN WHOLE DAYS. How did she survive without eating and drinking for that long?? And a drug that puts you out for that long seems extremely dangerous. That really just doesn't add up.

Still enjoying it, but it's good to talk about some of the inconsistencies and annoyances we come across ^_^