Lexi’s Comments (group member since Jul 27, 2016)

Lexi’s comments from the Nothing But Reading Challenges group.

Stacie, your book is currently not being used in the mini so no rush if you finish it in Round 3. We will still get points for it.

Melanie, how are you doing with your mini challenge books? Do you need help?

Kim and Vikki, how are you doing on yours?

DQs Day 5

16.) Were there any surprises about the supporting characters? Did they get the endings you expected? That the characters deserved?
I liked that Theodora lived and was actually an adult but unsure how well she’ll do without her brother since she looks like a child. It was sad about the aunt and it’s why I think the book moved from religion to romance. If the religious aspect was forefront they would have made it to Greece. I also don’t really think adding a FF relationship to the dislikable character added much.

17.) Did the ultimate point and outcome of the tournament leave you satisfied? Or did the whole thing seem like a bizarre waste of everyone's time, money, and life (literally in some cases)?
Seemed to kind of fall apart in plot as the author wanted to aim for the ending and get there faster. It would have been better without the cartoonish antagonist added. It was a waste but that was also kind of the point but could have been written better.

18.) Luiza and Santangel's ending. Was it what you were hoping for? Satisfying? Remind you of how a different series ended the storyline for lead MCs (view spoiler). Would the ending of worked if the magical system had been more defined? I still don't have a handle on the parameters of Luiza's magic. Maybe there isn't any?
To be honest it annoyed me. There is very little consistency in the magic world building. So she can teleport once because of the magic stone but resurrect daily from turning to ash without any help. Ash is a chemical change and more than just fixing glass or fabric. Also why did the luck break if the ash part of the curse did not. That makes no sense.

19.) What did you end up rating the book? Would you recommend it to others?
This is one of those book which I went back and forth between two and three stars. I ended up with two because it would have been three for the lackluster romance without that ending.

Day 3 DQ's Chapter 24 - 33

9. We keep hearing how people smell. Luzia of orange blossoms, Perez of plums and amber. Why do you think the author keeps mentioning this? Do the smells mean more than just an odor?
I think some is for economic situations as Amber costs money but I think it’s also supposed to be sensuel since S keeps commenting on it. I kept finding it repetitive.

10. We are over halfway through the book. What has been your favorite part/scene/person/line so far?
I agree with others that nothing has stood out for me and the plot is expected so far. Also the romance element feels forced and utterly unnecessary as it takes over the second half of the story.

11. Valentina and Marius seem to be rekindling their marriage, finding love where there wasn't before. Why do you think the author is adding that part of the story when she could have left it out?
I have finished the book and it’s odd that she started to go down this route and then abandoned it. The ending annoyed me on multiple levels. I think to be more sympathetic but I wasn’t buying it.

11. Now we are over halfway and know more of Luzia, the competition and this world. Why do you think the publisher and possibly the author chose this cover over any other possibilities? If you could remake the cover, what would you want it to look like?
The cover probably didn’t want to be too religious to keep market appeal and the religious aspect is muted in the second half so not surprising that the romance got the cover. People in reviews seem to like it so it did its job. Someone commented on hell. First she refers to herself as having two religions. She is Jewish but only has bits and pieces due to secrecy and persecution. Her mother knew more it seems. Also some Jewish texts have a purgatory like place. There have been many beliefs over time and Zoroastrian influence. Zoroastrians are very interesting and influential on Christian thought as well. Go look them up. Either way she’s been attending mass her entire life, one would expect some version of hell to have slipped in.

DQ’s Day 1
1- Although Valentia feels shame in her actions to confront Luzia and her magic she still threatens her to use it at her dinner party. What were your thoughts and do you feel bad for Valentia and her desperation?
I've finished the book at this point and I never felt much if any sympathy for her. She’s is much better economically and is anemometer so is just abusing a position of power to better herself socially.

2-Valentia did not want Luzia to leave the house and gave her extra chores. Why do you think Valentia did not want Luzia to leave the house?
She’s showing she has control and to keep her from running away.

3-How did using music and song to make Luzia magic work make you feel or think of.
It is a rather traditional way of doing magic in these books. So far it is small magics and not that original.

4- Don Victor(De Paredes) shows up at Casa Ordobos to make sure Luzia has a room with and even hints at having her join him if not. Why do you think having Luzia in her own room benefits either of them?
For luzia it is a step upon comfort and privacy. It gives a place for her lessons and shows the household he has control.

I’ll add an extra token as well for D8

Sorry for formatting issues, I nominate
Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett

Tagged epistolary 32 times

A curmudgeonly professor journeys to a small town in the far north to study faerie folklore and discovers dark fae magic, friendship, and love in the start of a heartwarming and enchanting new fantasy series.

Cambridge professor Emily Wilde is good at many things: She is the foremost expert on the study of faeries. She is a genius scholar and a meticulous researcher who is writing the world's first encyclopaedia of faerie lore. But Emily Wilde is not good at people. She could never make small talk at a party--or even get invited to one. And she prefers the company of her books, her dog, and the Fair Folk.

So when she arrives in the hardscrabble village of Hrafnsvik, Emily has no intention of befriending the gruff townsfolk. Nor does she care to spend time with another new arrival: her dashing and insufferably handsome academic rival Wendell Bambleby, who manages to charm the townsfolk, get in the middle of Emily's research, and utterly confound and frustrate her.

But as Emily gets closer and closer to uncovering the secrets of the Hidden Ones--the most elusive of all faeries--lurking in the shadowy forest outside the town, she also finds herself on the trail of another mystery: Who is Wendell Bambleby, and what does he really want? To find the answer, she'll have to unlock the greatest mystery of all--her own heart.

Doing this from a phone in the field so slightly failing at following instructions but my usual one.

The Last Murder at the End of the World by Stuart Turton

From the bestselling author of The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle and The Devil and the Dark Water comes an inventive, high-concept murder mystery: an ingenious puzzle, an extraordinary backdrop, and an audacious solution.

Solve the murder to save what's left of the world.

Outside the island there is nothing: the world was destroyed by a fog that swept the planet, killing anyone it touched.

On the island: it is idyllic. One hundred and twenty-two villagers and three scientists, living in peaceful harmony. The villagers are content to fish, farm and feast, to obey their nightly curfew, to do what they're told by the scientists.

Until, to the horror of the islanders, one of their beloved scientists is found brutally stabbed to death. And then they learn that the murder has triggered a lowering of the security system around the island, the only thing that was keeping the fog at bay. If the murder isn't solved within 107 hours, the fog will smother the island—and everyone on it.

But the security system has also wiped everyone's memories of exactly what happened the night before, which means that someone on the island is a murderer—and they don't even know it.

And the clock is ticking.

I should be good. Day after tomorrow is a flight day.

I can read a #7 in a series if someone else wants a fantasy book and can take my spot for that one.

We also still need one more YA and a horror book.

Day 5 — ch 24-end

18. Jack and Lucy have an emotional discussion about dreams — and how giving up on dreams can be a relief as it’s one less thing to worry about. Do you think there’s any truth in this?
I think there is a difference between a dream and being delusional. Not necessarily in the context of adoption but for instance not everyone can grow up a be a professional athlete and there is a point that dream is just delusional. Otherwise there is some joy in being happy where you are especially if you are always looking forward.

19. We finally got to meet Angie and learn her side of the story! Were you surprised by what she had to say? If you were Lucy, do you think you would be able to forgive her after hearing her side?
Poor Angie. Deeply abused and then cancer. She read more like a caricature than a person though.

20. Lucy mentions that she and Jack are planning to start a nonprofit to send books to foster children, but just as she’s about to say the prospective name, she gets cut off. Why do you think the author chose to leave that out? What name do you think the author had in mind, if
I didn’t pay attention and I like sending books but with that much money how about something more structural.

21. In the end, even though the contest ended unlike how any of them predicted, everyone still got their wish. Since this book is all about wishing — is there anything you wish was different about the way the book ended, or are you happy with how it all wrapped up?

It read a bit too much like Charlie and the chocolate factory without all the weird fat and other shaming of children. It was expected in the giving of the island and the foster to adopt across state lines was too easy and fast. Happy ending but very neat and tidy. Except for the sister who wasn’t a real character anyway.

Day 2
6. Jack replied to Lucy's letter and Lucy decided to run away from home. What did you think of his letter and would you have done the same as Lucy?
I’m not sure I remember the letter that clearly. I’ve read further so I know what could go wrong does go wrong. I never tried to run away as a child so probably not.


7. We get more insights on Clock Island. Every 'hour' is its own section like for example a beach. Would you like to visit the island? Do you find the idea of it fascinating or could you not care less?

I liked the description of the island and the natural features but some parts seemed like a mini golf course.

8. Every part starts with a quote from Jack's book. Do you think these parts are important for the story? Just showing off Jack's work? Something else?
Sometimes this method in books is painful as the author isn’t a poet, science writer etc. But this wasn’t too bad. There are a huge number of the books so you expect them to be moralistic and formulaic so the bar wasn’t set very high. The children are compared to the contestants so I assume it was so the reader could feel more connected to that relationship.


9. It seems like there will be a deeper connection between Lucy and Hugo. Do you agree? And would you approve of it given that Hugo had first met her when she was still a child?

I’m ok as they barely met and didn’t have any sort of relationship that could be grooming. Also we have a limited cast and this book was going to shoehorn in a love interest no matter what. This type of book always does.

Welcome Emily

Tricia, you can have my #3 series spot as that was one I was potentially considering over ambitious as I have trouble focusing on really long high fantasy while working in the field. I’m not sure I’ll finish it in the next two weeks.

I just upped my number to 50 so I’ll be behind the line this month, but that would clear out up to 2019.

If someone wants to respin, I finished two of the monsters.

Would prefer to be backup if any else volunteers for D8 but volunteering for DQs.

Angie ☯ wrote: "Just to be sure, what does this task mean?

Book has an editor credited on GRs"

A book like this that has (editor) behind one of the authors on GRs.
African Short Stories: Twenty Short Stories from Across the Continent

Tricia wrote: "Can we start? I'm never clear due to the time changes."

All battle books can be started now.

Cordelia wrote: "Can someone add Annie Bot for me, thanks!"

Added it