Keli’s Comments (group member since Jun 23, 2016)

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

Skipping: Read a book where the page numbers add to 20 (i.e. 345 pages = 3+4+5 = 12)

S - Sweet Bean Paste - 19/08/25
T - Monstrous Lies -Narrator Tor Thom - 23/08/25
O - The Orchard - 19/08/25
P - The Largesse of the Sea Maiden - Narrator Will Patton - 24/08/25

Skipping: Read a book first published on the 29th of a month

H - Weyward by Emilia Hart - 14/07/25
A - The Fact of a Body: A Murder and a Memoir by Alexandria Marzano-Lesnevich - 06/08/25
L - The Woman in Cabin 10 series Lo Blacklock - 24/07/25
T - The Sword of Kaigen - 04/08/35

My fave reads this TT were: People of the Book, The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida and Nettle & Bone. Those three got 5 stars from me. Maali Almeida was the biggest surprise. I didn’t think I was going to like it. The characters were mostly unlikeable, the imagery was crazy, like psychedelic on acid crazy and it was all centred around the 1980 Sri Lankan civil war where thousands were disappeared. Despite all that and because of it, the booked worked. It was incredibly engaging, the horror was real and constant but was also removed because of the state the characters were in, and it ended up being a bit of a mystery. I highly recommend.
My losers were few. I had a few 2 star reads, bu only one 1 star: The Woman in Cabin 10 was atrocious. Pants from start to finish. I didn’t like a single character that had any dialogue except the cabin crew. Everyone else was stupid, terrible or pointless.

My surprise read was Yellowface. I hated that schlock that was Babel. So I didn’t hold out much hope for this, but it was gripping from first to last. I can’t say I “enjoyed” it but that was kind of the point. Kuang did it well.

Yes, Game Night is doing Turf Wars. It’s a Risk style game where territory is captured. The reading focus is slightly different to most challenges. It is about page count, so a book with 198 pages is better than a 620 page book. And regardless of the edition read it is the default book page that counts. There are some Battles task that provide different multipliers to increase points, but they are always pretty appealing. They often utilise the list on GR.

Link here to info & signup
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Put my last book on. Not as good as I hoped, but not bad. With the Old Breed was a solid three stars. Thank you captains for your hard work. It was a lot of minis and lot of books. Thank 3Ps for being an awesome are wonderfully chatty team. I hope to play with y’all in the future. Now off to bed. I’ve got just one eye open as I type this.

Thanks again, captains for popping my book in a spot without much info from me. Yet again, I was going to go back to it after sleeping. I was so tired and I just wanted to make sure I popped Nettle and Bone on the SS. I finished it early in the afternoon, but forgot to do it.
Anyway, will have With the Old Breed and my Gabon book which I completely forgot about starting. So I will get two more. And that will be me.

I’ll have my Palau book done by the 16th. In reality it will be that and Nettle and Bone.

Get well soon, Fiona!

I’ll have a STEAK book done today with The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life

I see you already applied my Cotton Crossing. Did you want me to see if it fits any other tasks? I quickly put them on at my lunch at work and then forget to go back. 🤦‍♀️

KayLynn wrote: "Keli wrote: "Finally finished The Sword of Kaigen. I didn’t hate it in the end. Can’t say I’ll be carrying on though, but a solid 3 star read."

Is it part of a series??"

Technically, no, but it’s a Theonite story and there are three others. Plus, the way it ended, I don’t doubt it will be the last.

I am yet again not getting notifications. Been 5 days now. It’s so annoying.

Keli from 3P participation

Day 1 - https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Day 2 - https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Day 5 - https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Finally finished The Sword of Kaigen. I didn’t hate it in the end. Can’t say I’ll be carrying on though, but a solid 3 star read.

Got my Palau book back finally!

How does spell it out options work for non-fiction? Is it about the main people in the book? Or only author and title?

Day 5 DQs (Chapters 17 to 21)

17. This section is deeply emotional and heart-wrenching, filled with death and suffering. The only thing that makes it bittersweet rather than purely tragic is that Mamoru finds peace and happiness in his final moments. I thought his death scene was beautifully written. Do you like how the author blends the sadness with these moments of beauty? Or would you have preferred a different approach to his death?

I didn’t mind his death. It was okay. But I find all the unspoken but thought in the mind explanation insanely annoying. Mamoru did it and I could forgive him he was only a teen, but his mother annoyed me.

18. Takeru seems almost devoid of emotion. Could this be a result of his upbringing, where emotional restraint was expected of him? Do you believe his character is redeemable at this point or has he reached a point of no return?

Honestly, I like him the most. Even though his attitude is messed up, he is the most honest of them all. Misaki is a liar and a fool. She willingly played the subservient good daughter, even though she had experienced something else, had an alternative. She knew what she was getting into and she chose it. But to make it worse she was unkind and a coward when it came to Robin. Takeru on the other hand hasn’t left Kaigen. He was born & raised in one area, he’s comparatively ignorant. He lives as he believes the world is. Misaki willingly fosters the patriarchy, even though she could work towards change.

19. At one point, Hiroshi realizes that he is now the heir and Misaki sees fear in his eyes. Do you think Misaki will help him cope with the pressure or will she fall back into a passive, dutiful role, becoming a distant mother again?

I like Hiroshi. He is a rather clever and observant child. I really hope his mom can be better and not so angry that her children feel like their father. I feel in the last chapter, Misaki has made some real headway on her self awareness. I’m starting to dislike her less and have more faith in her. It only took the destruction of her village and the death of her son to open her eyes.

20. What do you think happens after the imperial forces arrive? Do you agree with Tae-min’s prediction that the empire won’t actually help?

I ended up reading the rest of the book before I answered this question. So I will just say that what happened was exactly what I thought would happen from the government. I had very low expectations and the they met those.

It’s a favourite cheese of mine and, like all my favourite cheeses, hard to get in England. I’ve never even seen havarti or provolone in stores either. 😭

DQs Day 2
Chap 5 to 7

6. What do you think about the hierarchy of the villages and the Matsudos and Yukinos being the "rulers" of the mountain?

Honestly, I don’t think much about it. Is that weird? It’s a feudal system of sorts. I guess I just take it at face value.

7. We get to know the history of the relationship between the Matsudos and the Kotetsus. Do you think this relationship / the Kotetsu family will play an important role later on in the story? If so, how?

Yes, I think they will. The story the grandmother told was interesting. It was all about learning and blending and accepting a certain level of change. I think it wil be the blending of the families traditions and skills. How? I’m not sure.

8. In chapter 6, we find out that Misaki was a real badass in her past. Was there anything that stuck out to you when getting to know her backstory? Something interesting, shocking, odd?

I sort of mentioned this in day 1, but I’m surprised how Misaki could give up freedom to become a pathetic subservient vessel for childbearing. She doesn’t even get the joy of being a mother. It’s infuriating.

9. The conversation between Misaki and Mamoru was heartwarming. Do you think we will see both of them side by side as warriors by the end of the book?

Definitely. I hope so anyway. Cos her apologies and submission is 🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮 She will only be able to redeem herself in my eyes by kicking butt.

Mod
DQs Day 1
Ch 1 to 4

1.) Had you heard of this book before it was nominated for/was selected to be a BOM this month? Or read other books by the author? Any expectations going in?

Nope. Never heard of it or the author.

2.) How effective is the author at conveying the isolationist nature of Kaigen? And at the glimpses of what the rest of the world is really like? How do you think the Emperor has managed to do this so effectively?

It’s pretty obvious that they are the North Korea of this empire. But it’s weird that people like Misaki who have seen otherwise don’t attempt to affect change. Or, at the very least, talk about their experiences.

3.) Misaki is an interesting character with a lot of repressed or hidden depths I think. I like that one of the main characters in an epic fantasy is not a 20 something who just happens to master everything in 5 pages. What are you most curious about her at the moment. Also, shout out to her friends, who seem like real women-friends. Yay!

I love Setsko. I’m not so sure about Misaki. I would like to know how she could go from having opportunities and something close to equality and give it up for a life of subservient misery.

4.) Tekure (husband/father) has managed to make me hate him without even popping up on page yet. Go him. Do you think we'll get a scene where Misaki does her version of 'down with the patriarchy' before the end of the book?

I’m not an apologist for the crappy misogynist system of Kaigen, but how could I dislike Tekure more than someone like Misaki or her parents? Change has to start somewhere and who is more likely to be the one to do that? Setsko obviously, but it will be almost anyone before it is Tekure. So as much as I dislike the system, I can’t wholly dislike Tekure.

5.) What do you think of the magic system so far?

It took me a little to get into this book. Lots of terms, lots of characters and much of it similar sounding. But once I got used to them and the fun magic began (on the roof esp) I started to get into it.

How cool you were staying with the further winners! I hope you’ve had a great time.