Alysa’s Comments (group member since Jun 27, 2015)

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

Skipping:
Task: Read a book where a character gets into shape
Direction: East (Even Number of pages)

S: Simon Fayter and the Eyes of Stone 176p
K: Beggars and Choosers by Nancy Kress 316p
I: Iris, character in System Collapse 248p
P : Lie With Me, by Philippe Besson 160p

Skipping:
Task: Read a book where MCs are best friends
Direction: East (Even Number of pages)

H : Hades, character in Cobweb Forest 378p
E : Einar, character in The Golden Wolf 432p
L : Locklands 544p
P : Zac Payne character in Rented Heart 222p

I finished my last book! Thought maybe I could squeeze in another, but no.
Off to update the spreadsheet now.

DQs Day 6, Chapters 32 - end

24. Chapter 32, though! How did you feel about the heart-to-heart on the parapet? Did it fill you with fluttery lovey feelings, or did it fall flat? Are you loving “Vioden” (Xadlet?)??

I do like them together! But Xaden was right that Violet using the parapet as a prop to force a hard conversation was stupid dangerous! I mean, I'm sure she could have found another way. But the author really wanted to get that parapet in there, lol.

25. Xaden has Violet join his special group for the War Games, and we find out about all the secrets that EVERYONE has been keeping from her. Do you think she overreacted to these revelations or is her reaction warranted? How do you feel about Dain’s betrayal? Surprised (hint hint - NO)?

Her reaction is totally warranted and understandable. Regardless of whether or not Violet would believe in their cause as it was explained to her, finding out that you've been kept in the dark about something important is never a good feeling. I appreciated the way this whole thing was written, that she is open-minded and still loves Xaden, while still having her feelings of betrayal and mistrust validated and ongoing.
Dain.. ugh. Terrible kind of violation. A worse sort of betrayal than what Xaden did by keeping operational secrets, IMO.


26. Anyone crying yet? I know I was losing it through a lot of the last 15% of the book. What are your thoughts on the major losses we see during this battle? Any thoughts on the battle itself (or the enemy themselves)?

No tears, and I didn't find the battle-scene writing particularly effective. But it was certainly quite sad when Liam died.

27. That CLIFF-HANGER of an ending had me stunned! What did you think of the sudden appearance of (view spoiler)? Was it too much, or just enough?

I would not have seen it coming except for there was a previous DQ where someone planted the seed in my head that Brennan might not be dead! So it was less of a twist that it would have been otherwise. (Thanks a lot, Fallyn Nichole ! ;D)
I… dunno. On the one hand it kind of makes sense and I look forward to finding out what happened to Brennan during all the time when Violet believed him dead. But on the other hand, it cheapens death in the story when death might not be real.

28. What are your overall thoughts on this book? Will you read the next one?

I will probably read the next one! I'm not salivating over it, but I'll get to it eventually. I think it helped that I listed to the audio; I think I would have been more annoyed by the writing if I'd been reading the text.
BONUS!
On a scale of 1 to 100, how much to you hate Dain?

Dain.. ugh. Nobody is all good or all bad, but at the moment I hate him 100.

I finished Fourth Wing yesterday.
No idea where to put it... I hope it's helpful somewhere!

DQs Day 5, Chapters 26 - 31

19. I'm so confused by the logistics of this world! Firstly there's the comment that 6 hours in flight left them all super-stiff, but surely they've been putting the hours in in flight fight practice? And then the sudden realisation that actually it's TOTES fine to put a saddle or harness on to secure them in flight, as if that wouldn't be the very first thing you'd do the first time the dragons decided to plummet and every rider loses their seat!Anyway, that rant is mostly to say: how are you enjoying the world-building now we are further into the story?

Mostly I'm still like "World-building? What world-building?" I enjoyed the humor of the scene where there's suddenly a saddle for Violet, but in the larger scheme it was really dumb. Enjoyment of this book, while real, does require a lot of handwaving.

20. We discover that riders of mated dragons can now talk in each others minds... What do you think this adds (or detracts) to the story, characters, world?
UGH. I've said before that I dislike when mind reading is portrayed as romantic in some way. But especially since the book has already established that it is NOT. At this point it seems like an attempt by the author to just get ALL THE TROPES in. Maybe it was a bet.

21. Lightning! Who'd've guessed that Violet would end up with a super rare, super powerful signet?! What do you think the lightning says about her character?

That she's so special even her signet is special! Seriously, that is all it says. Violet can go on about how it means she's a weapon and she's going to cause a lot of death blah blah blah, but it's all just convenient for….

22. There's some destructive sex, followed by a decision that it can never happen again. What do you think about the different approaches that Violet and Xaden have towards their attraction to each other?

… the sex. Sex lightning! Lightning sex! Fireworks! ROTFL. The sex was hot… literally! Okay, haha, I'll stop now.
Their differing approaches were a tad stereotypical but also fit their characters as built so far. They're both in denial about the fact that they have clearly already fallen in love, but especially Xaden. He's so far up his own ass about it, since he's largely already treating Violet as a girlfriend.

23. Finally - is it just me, or is Dain starting to redeem himself? I feel like I'm seeing signs of improvement in him....

Maybe? Too soon to say for sure.

Dawn wrote: "On a bit of a reading roll this month :) still on track to finish the last 2 books I'm in.

Looks like we just have two more towers to build- woohoo!"

I will also finish the 2 books I am currently reading! Not sure if I will be able to add anything else but we'll see! I have a very long plane trip this weekend 😁

Came to say I just read my 126 page book.
That's also about a musician / music analysis, but it will work for a spell-out if need be too.

Or, hold in case it fits something in the next spin :)

DQs Day 4, Chapters 21 - 25

14. Do you think there is a reason the Cadets are not being told the truth of what is going on with the battles at the Battle Brief? Is it actually for classified reasons or is there something more sinister going on?

Probably both! Classified, plus more complicated and/or sinister than one might think.


15. What do you think about the mentioning of the fact that the Dragons and Gryphons use to work together to protect the lands? Could this be foreshadowing of an alliance to come?

I think it's probably just a colorful aside. I'd love to be proven wrong on that though!


16. We finally have a bit of progress in the possible romance between Violet and Xaden. Do you think they have actual chemistry or their attraction is just due to the bond of their dragons?

Actual chemistry, for sure, and it works pretty well for me. I do like this dragon-tinged version of the "-X- made them do it" trope though!

17. We keep getting random tidbits about Violet's deceased brother Brennan. Do you think there is a possibility he's still alive?

Didn't even occur to me, but no, I don't think he's still alive.

18. With the revelations we've been given about what went on with the Marked Ones and the various battles that are raging on currently, do you think that the Kingdom of Navarre is actually the protector of this world as we've been lead to believe or are they the villains?

Now that would be a very interesting twist if Navarre are the villains!. Again, I don't think that will be a thing, but I don't mind being proven wrong.

Bonus: Anyone else wishing a Dragon would just go scorched earth on Dain already?

Haha, yes, kind of.

DQs Day 3, Chapters 14 - 20

10. So we are half way through the book. Thoughts and feelings? Loving it? Hating it? Ambivalent?

I'm enjoying it. It's no great literary work by any stretch but it's an arguably above average YA fantasy novel.

11. Jeremiah gets killed pretty quickly as his signet shows. Do you agree that power can't be allowed?

It's always nice when books acknowledge that mind-reading is actually pretty terrible! That said, killing people over something they can't control is also terrible. At least it is of a piece with the book's previously pointed out obsession with killing promising young people. Maybe with time, people with the mind-reading signet would be able to turn it on and off at will, direct it, whatever? It would still be hard to trust someone with that power, but no one should be killed over it.

11. What's the deal with Andarna? Why do you think 2 dragons have bonded with Violet?

Because Violet is Just That Special. No, really, that seems like the only reason.
I have read ahead a bit and could come up with some more explanations when it comes to Andarna, but not without possible spoilers.



12. If you coul choose a Signet what would it be? https://www.julesbuono.com/fourth-win…

Out of all the ones listed there, breathing underwater sounds the best! Think about all the sights one could see underwater without having to worry about air, and just never having to fear drowning!

13. Were you surprised about Amber's betrayal? How about when Xanden completely believed Violet but Dain didn't?

I wasn't surprised by Amber's betrayal, or by Xaden believing Violet about it. I was a little surprised that Dain didn't believe it at all. Even considering how rule-abiding he's made out to be, it stands to reason that he would understand that other people aren't as rigid. Especially with how cutthroat these people are about trying to get a dragon bond.

Lexi wrote: "Why is this marked as an Adult book? I don't mind YA, but this is a very YA theme and the obsession with Xander is very YA. I know it has cursing and discussions of sex but really, YA books have th..."

LOL, I didn't check the BOM categories at all and had assumed this was a YA one. I agree, Lexi, this book is super YA. If I'd been expecting otherwise, I would be way less forgiving of the thin world building.

ETA: it's tagged as YA on the first page of tags, but not MPG.

Jenny wrote: "I had to look up Toothless. I have never read the books not seen the movie. So. Should I?"

The books are VERRRRRRRYYYYYY different from the movies.
Both are fun in their own ways, but I actually prefer the movie versions of the dragons. In the books, the dragons can talk, and it's... kind of dumb. If you like children's books it's worth a shot to check out.

DQs Day 2, Chapters 7 - 13

6. This section starts with two scenes with each of the male love/lust interests. The comparison of them continues very clearly. Do you like Xaden or Dain better or neither?

Hmmm… Xaden seems to be falling into the hot-enemy-to-eventual-lover trope. It's kind of toxic, but also appealing depending how it ends up proceeding. Meanwhile, Dain is being a controlling sh*tbag. So at this point I would say neither, but that may change.

7. Violet uses alternative methods to survive the fighting challenges. Do you think that counts as cheating or using the resources available? Do you think she is aware that she only has this information because she comes from a privileged background and her sister count sneak in it? Do you think one of the professors should have noticed after 5 rounds?

Given that the world as built seems to waffle wildly between Anything-Goes and Rigid-Rules, I think her methods count as using the resources available. I don't think she's consciously aware of her privileged background playing a role, though she does understand that her Scribe tendencies are helping and that no one else has that.

8. The obstacle course is straight out of American Ninja warrior (and other similar TV shows) including ending with the giant ramp. Did you enjoy this section and how Violet figured out working with her height limitations? Have they told us how tall she is? (Though in real life, the shortest person to make it up the wall has only been 5’1” – I just Googled it).

I enjoyed it! I like this gamified sort of stuff in YA novels.

9. Finally, we meet the dragons. Was it all you were hoping for? Did anyone guess the black one when it was first introduced in this section? (Also, I am not taking the fall seriously at the end of my section since we still have 2/3 of the book to go).

The introduction of the dragons was very effective. It was fairly obvious what would happen with "the black one" but still pretty nicely done.

Bonus: If you could have a dragon from any book or movie, which one would you want?

Why, movie-version Toothless, of course!

I've got a 126 page book I can read pretty quickly this weekend, if it's needed!

Cat wrote: "@Alysa re Q3 and the pointless deaths - added to which it seems ridiculous that they allow killings across the different wings - at the end of the day you want the whole dragon force to be coherent..."

Yes! And it's sadly so common across YA books, because it's such an easy trope to rely upon for drama.

Weird. The link to my (audio) edition of "Fourth Wing" in the tracking spreadsheet points to the right place, but when you hover over it, it looks like it points to "Animal Farm" ! So odd.

DQs Day 1, Chapters 1 - 6

1. As someone who grew up with the Pern books, I love diving back into a world with dragons and dragon riders. And this one has extra bonus Gryphons, apparently!
Do you have any first impressions of the main characters (Violet, Dain, Rhiannon, Xader) and the world building? Do you want to know more?

I tend to like dragon/dragon rider books too, though I haven't read the Pern books past the 1st (which I didn't like). I've read ahead a bit but will try to answer DQs as if I hadn't, lol. I like this so far, especially Violet and the whole idea and set-up of the academy, but I definitely need to know more. The worldbuilding and other characters are all feeling a little thin.

2. What do you think of Violet’s mother and sister? Any idea about why her mother chose to order her to the Rider Quadrant instead of the Scribe Quadrant?

I like her sister, who seems very understanding and supportive. Her mother is seeming like a cold and distant piece of work, but I think we'll come to know more about why she's like this. I would understand why she would ALWAYS have pushed Violet towards the Rider Quadrant, but I don't understand why she would let Violet prep to be a Scribe for all this time and then suddenly change her mind. I'm not convinced that that's what really went down, and I hope that in thinking there's more to it, I'm not giving the book too much credit. Guess I'll find out!

3. The brutality of the selection process and the casual acceptance of murder is something else. What do you think the purpose of it is? (If there is one beyond societal norms.) Would you have given your boot to a stranger?

It's clearly designed to show how seriously their society takes the concepts of strength and weakness (however those things get defined), and to show Violet's emotional reactions to losing potential friends and associates. But I tend to find it very short-sighted in books and movies that feature the ultimately pointless deaths of so many promising young people just because they're not "the best" (whatever that even means), often on their first try at something, because this is such a stupid way for a society to function. I mean srsly, there would be no one left and society would collapse. It's dumb. Just save the failed aspiring riders and put them in a different role!
ETA: And no, I would not give my boot to a stranger. That's ridiculous.

4. So this is a world at war, but at the battle briefings at least, they don’t seem to know why the outer provinces are currently attacking the borders. Any ideas about why this is happening?

Not particularly. I wonder if it will have something to do with Violet being forced into the Rider Quadrant? If her mother knows something secret?

5. Do you think that Violet will survive and get chosen by a dragon? If so, any predictions on what kind?

She'll obviously survive, and quite obviously get chosen by some sort of interesting dragon that marks her as "different" because that's just the kind of book this is. I don't mind that at all! I'm just saying :)

I wonder if Fourth Wing (the BOM) would fit for a Potter task?

Deanna wrote: "Alysa wrote: "Re message 851 -- do we still need Calliope? And if so, would my described book work?"

We're good for the muse challenge. If you want to note it on the spreadsheet, we can use it if ..."

Well the thing is I might only read it now if it's needed for TT. Otherwise I may choose something else and read it another time.
I will think about it 🙂

Re message 851 -- do we still need Calliope? And if so, would my described book work?