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from the Nothing But Reading Challenges group.
Showing 221-240 of 423
Clockwork Droids (Moderate)1. 200 to 299
The Twins at St Clare's by Enid Blyton 19/12 4.5★
2. Set in France or a country that touches France (Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Monaco, Spain, and Andorra)
The Paris Cooking School by Sophie Beaumont 13/11 4★
3. MPG Steampunk
4. Fire or fireplace on cover
by Garth Nix 26/12 4★5. Title starts with a letter in POMPADOUR
The Paris Cooking School by Sophie Beaumont 13/11 4★
Karen ⊰✿ wrote: "42. Read book from the GR "Best of 2021" list"I'll be reading
which is on this list
Karen ⊰✿ wrote: "43. Read a book with a character who works in STEM career (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics)"I just entered
which fits this one
Jun 10, 2023 03:18PM
DQ postsDay1: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Day 2: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Day 3: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Day 4: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Day 5: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Day 6: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Jun 10, 2023 03:22AM
DQ Day 6: Chapters 24-epilogue23. Nisreen and Nahri have a very heated discussion after Nahri accidentilly killed a Geziri cleric. Nisreen believes that Nahri needs to be more thoughtful of her people and what she represents and wants to push her to become a bigger symbol to their tribe. Do you believe Nahri is too selfish or too close to "collaboration" with the Qahtanis and should have kept greater distance and shown more loyalty to her people?
Definitely selfish, she wouldn't even try, & ran away again when things didn't work out. Yes, she's too close to the Qahtanis.
24. Ali clearly showed some magical connection with water, even before the Marid possessed him, that might come from his mother's side of the family. What are your thoughts on this hidden ability?
I don't know. It's all a bit confusing & rather serendipitous.
25. What are your thoughts on the King's actions, e.g. exiling Ali. He seems to not want to order him killed, even though he knows the exile will bring about his death either way. Why could he not forgive Ali too and spin a tale in his favour like he did for Nahri?
Trying to keep secrets.
26. What an epilogue! Jamshid has a hidden identity, what do you think this means?
The story finally picked up here & became more interesting.
27. What a cliffhanger! Nisreen says Manizeh can do anything (even bringing Dara back), clearly meaning she's still alive. Do you think she is somewhere out there or was she maybe even referring to Nahri herself?
I'm wondering if she's referring to Nahri. There's been too many secrets kept but you can understand them not telling Nahri, she doesn't have any loyalty to anyone.
Bonus: Will you continue reading this series or do you think you'll stop with this trilogy now? I personally will go hunt down the next two books immediately
The ending was exciting & the best part of the book, almost encouraging me to read on. I'd like to know how the story progresses & ends but not enough to read any more of the books. Overall, I didn't enjoy it much because it's not well-written, Nahri is unlikable, & no one ever tells us what's going on. I found it a hard slog to get through, except for the last couple of chapters.
Jun 10, 2023 03:18AM
DQ Day 5: Chapters 19-2319. In this section there appears to be a love triangle developing. Was this what you expected. Where do you see this going?
Expected, yes. There's trouble ahead.
20. Dara lets Nahri know about the King’s marriage plans for her. He lets her know that they can’t be together. Are his reasons valid or should Nahri put up more of a fight?
His reasons are valid & her overreaction to his suggestions is typical & stupid. He isn't making decisions for her & it's about time she started thinking instead of reacting.
21. Ali and Nahri both have a hidden agenda and are using their “friendship” to achieve that. Do you think they are aware of each other’s objective?
With the way she is catechising him about everything Ali would be very stupid if he didn't realise. As for Nahri, I don't think she trusts anyone, but they do seem to have some common interests.
22. We learn that Ali has a separate agenda that the King is not aware of? Where do you see this heading?
Wild times ahead, no doubt.
Jun 10, 2023 02:51AM
DQ Day 4: Chapters 15-1814. Nahri meets the king of Daevabad for the first time but doesn't seem to have a lot of further interactions with him. What do you think the king's plan is truly? He offers her everything but doesn't ask for much in return - yes, he revealed to Ali that he wants to marry her to Muntadhir, but is that really all?
Definitely suspicious & any alliance will be to his benefit, not hers. He knows more about her mother's disappearance than he's saying.
15. Prince Ali, fabulous he.. Were you surprised at this further development in Ali's character? The extreme hatred he displays towards Nahri? For some reason, whenever I read the passages from his point of view, I feel he comes across more like a brat rather than a hate-filled person, yet that seems to be what he shows most often when Nahri is around. He now feels he is a murderer, which, granted, he now is. He also realises that his father has been testing and playing him, and will now use him to his own ends. Do you think the poor boy will finally start growing up?
His nose was put out of joint by Nahri's arrival, & he is quite young. He'll improve with time once he starts to think
16. What do you think will be the outcome of Dara's quest in the middle of the desert with a future king and a contingent of warriors, who may or may not be hell-bent on killing the Afshin? Are they going to find the ifrit before their journey comes to an end?
I don't hold out any hope of a positive resolution here. The ifrit are unlikely to be easy to catch.
17. Nahri's first patient! And what a patient that was! Did this first true test of her skills - towards someone she does not know or care about - live up to your expectations?
What a quitter! It's too hard for her so she just leaves. Pah!
18. Any predictions on who Nahri's father might be? I have to admit, I thought it was the king himself. But would he really want to marry his daughter to his son? Hm. What do you think?
Well, if she's purebred, I've no idea.
Jun 09, 2023 06:09PM
DQ Day 3: Chapters 10-149. As he walks through the Daeva Quarters, Ali is shot by a toy arrow, let loose by one of the children playing about. Rashid suggests to Ali that he should punish the boy by taking him to be raised in the Citadel, which Ali refuses. What do you think this says about Ali, and about others in the city’s upper echelon?
That he uses his brain.
10. Nahri and Dara have a moment, but are interrupted. Do you like this partnership, romantically or otherwise? Is it doomed, or meant to be?
The ubiquitous love triangle ahead - boring. I'd say it's doomed, but either way it'll be a rocky road
11. We learn about the terrible conditions in the shafit orphanage and the difficult lives all the shafit are forced into. Even though he immediately refuses to help, how do you think this will influence him in the future?
He'll help in the end but there's not much he can do about it at the moment. Life is difficult for many people & one needs power to make lasting change.
12. As Dara and Nahri cross the last illusion shielding Daevabad, Nahri has an odd reaction and ends up flat on her back on the deck of the ferry, with Dara rudely refusing anyone’s assistance. Do you think this was caused by something related to what Nahri is, or something else?
Something she is.
13. Muntadhir takes Ali to a secret room filled with dead Nahids. Do you think this room will be a turning point for Ali? Do you think Dara will discover this and his relic, and what do you think will follow if he does?
Has to be or there's no point in going there. I'm sure Dara will & may find it enlightening.
Jun 09, 2023 06:01PM
DQ Day 2: Chapters 5-95. So many groups! We had a couple of chapters in this part that described some of the tribes in Daevabad and elsewhere - the Daeva/Djinn, Ifrit, Simurgh, Zahhak and I'm sure I haven't listed them all. Where on the confusion scale are you - with 1 being totally confused and 10 being "I've got this". And are you ok with your level at this point in the book?
A bit confused by them all but I don't care enough to work out who did what to whom when.
6. Somewhat related to this - we learn that Suleiman curbed magical abilities because the daeva harmed humanity. I learned (thanks Google) that in the non-book world Suleiman the Magnificent was the longest-reigning Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1520 to 1566 - he ruled over at least 25 million people. Did you know anything about Suleiman and what do you think of his inclusion in the book?
Suleiman I've heard of, he crops up now & again in fiction & non.
7. We now know Dara was a slave for many years and was forced to do some things that haunt him. How does this make you feel about his character?
I empathise. Given his longevity, his slavery is even worse.
8. Ali's father was portrayed as brutal when we first met him at the execution, and then later he seemed like a pretty good ruler as he listened to and judged people's problems. What do you think - good king or bad king?
Just a king with his own agendum. He doesn't sound like a tyrant or dictator but kings use people, especially during times of conflict.
Jun 09, 2023 05:55PM
DQ Day 1: Ch 1-51. This book begins in 18th century Cairo, with France and Turkey fighting over Egypt. I have never encountered this conflict in fiction before. Have you? Were you familiar with it before you started reading?
I don't think so but it's vaguely familiar
2. Nahri has several mysterious powers, including healing, the ability to sense illness in others, and the ability to understand and speak every language she hears. Which of her powers would you like for yourself?
I'd like the healing & the language.
3. What do you think of the world building so far? Do you find it confusing, or do you feel like you’re along for the ride?
A bit confusing so far.
4. So far we’ve met 3 significant players in this book: Nahri, Ali, and Dara. Do you have a favorite character so far, or one who intrigues you the most?
Dara
CompletedSomething Old, Something New
1-30/6/23
Difficult: 9+ books
16/9
Read something old (Perhaps a classic or a book you've owned for a while and haven't read or an old favorite you'd like to read again)
Buttons and Bones by Monica Ferris 7/6 3★ - on MtTBR for years
Shakespeare's Landlord by Charlaine Harris 9/6 3.5★ - on MtTBR for years
Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont by Elizabeth Taylor 11/6 5★
Read something new (Published this year or a book you just purchased)
Salonika Burning by Gail Jones 12/6 3★
Read Something borrowed (from friend or library)
Undead and Unappreciated by MaryJanice Davidson 1/6 3★
Chasing Fire by Nora Roberts 4/6 3★
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling 4/6 3.5★
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling 6/6 2★
Barrenjoey Road by Neil Mercer,Ruby Jones 8/6 3.5★
The City of Brass by S.A. Chakraborty 10/6 2★
Book Lovers by Emily Henry 12/6 2.5★
Read Something blue (has a blue cover or has blue in the title)
Life as We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer 2/6 3★
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling 5/6 3★
Read something with luck in the title or has a good luck charm mentioned (since I doubt we'll find one that has something to do with a sixpence for your shoe)
Vengeance in Death by J.D. Robb 3/6 3★ - shamrock charms play a major role
Read books which have the words bride, wedding, groom, marriage, etc in the title or have a wedding that takes place in the book.
Undead and Unwed by MaryJanice Davidson 1/6 3.5★
You and Me on Vacation by Emily Henry 7/6 3★
