Lisa - (Aussie Girl)’s Comments (group member since Sep 26, 2012)

Lisa - (Aussie Girl)’s comments from the Nothing But Reading Challenges group.

Silje wrote: "Lisa - (Aussie Girl) wrote: "Hi Silje, lovely to be on a team again with you.

What are the things to do in Bergen in April? We have a couple of days to get from Oslo to Bergen before getting on t..."

Thanks for the great ideas. 😊

Hi Silje, lovely to be on a team again with you.

What are the things to do in Bergen in April? We have a couple of days to get from Oslo to Bergen before getting on the ferry.

Sandworm has been sent to a sandy grave.

New monster is Jabberwock from the Literary Wheel.

Happy hunting.

Wow, Elisabeth, The Easybeats. Aussie Rock pioneers. Who doesn't love Friday on my Mind. When I was in high school we had INXS play right at the beginning of their career. Some great artists there, when we're in Norway next year there is a Blues festival in Trondheim which my husband is really looking forward to. He leans more to the Blues and Soul.

Karen ⊰✿ wrote: "Good morning all

So lovely to see you all - some new faces and some old friends!

I’m from Sydney, Australia where I run my own consulting business and I have two kids who are just this week turni..."

OMG.. That's another of my favourites.. even the Celine Dion version. About 10-15 years ago my husband surprised me with tickets to go see her which must have been love as he's not a fan! She can oversing at times but boy did she belt out that song. It was amazing.

Looks like a lot of us are on the same page with long hair 80's rock. 💕

Keely wrote: "Oh yeah, I also found 3 books with white covers on my TBR list (1 I'm not sure is white enough though), so my first book will probably be one of those and I have spare in case we struggle to find e..."

That's great. I had a look and I'm a bit light on white covers. A few of them looked white till I ran them through Tin Eye and they came up as grey.

Hi everyone,

Good to see familiar faces and some new ones. I'm from NSW in Australia, and spend my time between Sydney and our dairy farm in southern NSW. Mum of 3 and Nanna of 6 which keep me very busy.

I love Team Challenges and can get very enthusiastic about searching, pretty much will read anything to fit a task, and boy I've read some duds! But its all part of the fun.

Apart from my family and reading my other passion is travelling. Next year I've got trips to Norway and Japan planned which are both new destinations and can't wait.

I love ROCK and especially power ballads of the 80's and 90's much to my family's horror, LOL. The last show I went to was Queen featuring Adam Lambert pre covid which was amazing.

My favourite Rock songs are Sweet Child O Mine by Guns N Roses, Living on a Prayer, Bon Jovi, Gone Away, Offspring and favourite song of all time is Nothing Else Matters by Metallica. And guilty pleasure is Total Eclipse of the Heart by Bonnie Tyler. (My family won't let me live that one down!)

Here's my shelf - https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...

Let's play..

Hyde by Craig Russell

Edward Hyde has a strange gift-or a curse-he keeps secret from all but his physician. He experiences two realities, one real, the other a dreamworld state brought on by a neurological condition.

When murders in Victorian Edinburgh echo the ancient Celtic threefold death ritual, Captain Edward Hyde hunts for those responsible. In the process he becomes entangled in a web of Celticist occultism and dark scheming by powerful figures. The answers are there to be found, not just in the real world but in the sinister symbolism of Edward Hyde’s otherworld.

He must find the killer, or lose his mind.

A dark tale. One that inspires Hyde’s friend . . . Robert Louis Stevenson.

Sylar bites the dust.

New Monster is J R Ewing from Dallas.

Delta just got engaged! 💕

Natasha wrote: "Finished The Way of Kings. Randall Flagg is defeated."

That's great work Natasha! And no more 800+ monsters.

Plus you get the honour of spinning for a new monster.

LINKS FOR PARTICIPATION

DAY 1 https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
DAY 2 https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
DAY 3 DQ'S https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
DAY 3 https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

DQ'S DAY 3

10. As we move towards the end of the novel what do you think will happen? What are the untold secrets of Hartwood Hall?

Well, I never picked the switcheroo with the two woman. Or a FF relationship. That was a surprise. I really did think that Paul and Margaret did have a chance to stay together. Not sure I was really on board with her dumping him.. but I'm just an old romantic really, LOL.

11. Even though Paul has a reasonable excuse why he has keys to the Hall Margaret sometimes has the feeling he knows more than he is letting on. Is Paul too good to be true or is he hiding something.. and if he is will that impact their relationship?

He seemed a lovely young guy, I guessed whatever he was hiding wasn't very bad. It does make a change for the woman to use the reason.. It's not you, it's me. I suppose it was in keeping with the whole women taking back their power theme of the novel.

12. We finally find the truth of what happened the night Richard died. Margaret explains what her life was like, a life and emotions that many women of that era may have felt, shackled to the expectation of what women should be like, namely a possession of her husband with no life of her own. Even knowing all this does this excuse Margaret's behaviour on the night Richard died?
The author went to great pains in explaining Margaret's feelings of why she didn't go into the room. Really, Richard was a goner so even if she had given him the medicine it probably would have only prolonged his life a few days anyway.

13. Finally all the secrets are revealed and definitely not your standard Happily Ever After. It was really apparent to me that this was a novel penned recently, I'm sure a novel written even ten years ago wouldn't have ended the same way. Did the ending work for you, why/why not? What will you be rating The Secrets of Hartwood Hall?

Can't say I loved the ending. It was very on trend for the times now I guess. Females reclaiming their power, which is fine, but not what I was expecting. I suppose in some ways it was a non traditional HEA, the two women together with their kids and new family and Margaret getting to be the Mistress of her own fate. Poor old Paul out in the cold. I gave it 3 stars.

DQ'S DAY 3

10. As we move towards the end of the novel what do you think will happen? What are the untold secrets of Hartwood Hall?

11. Even though Paul has a reasonable excuse why he has keys to the Hall Margaret sometimes has the feeling he knows more than he is letting on. Is Paul too good to be true or is he hiding something.. and if he is will that impact their relationship?

12. We finally find the truth of what happened the night Richard died. Margaret explains what her life was like, a life and emotions that many women of that era may have felt, shackled to the expectation of what women should be like, namely a possession of her husband with no life of her own. Even knowing all this does this excuse Margaret's behaviour on the night Richard died?

13. Finally all the secrets are revealed and definitely not your standard Happily Ever After. It was really apparent to me that this was a novel penned recently, I'm sure a novel written even ten years ago wouldn't have ended the same way. Did the ending work for you, why/why not? What will you be rating The Secrets of Hartwood Hall?

DQ set 2: Vols Two & Three

6. Margaret and Paul, eh?! How do you feel about this pairing?

A healthy dose of lust on both sides. But from Margaret's point of view, it seems she is taking back her power with Paul. She had a loveless marriage where the power was all the husband's. With Paul, she is older, in a higher position and has had some experience, in Paul's own words he is a virgin. There is some element of risk I suppose on both sides but the forbidden love trope also probably adds to the excitement for them both.

7. Margaret's loss of hearing is intended to make everything even more atmospheric, with the added uncertainty of whether she is hearing accurately. Do you think this is done well? Is it necessary, with all the hidden relationships too?

I was pondering why Margaret has been given a sensory disability. Maybe to add to the atmosphere/mystery.. is she hearing things correctly, is sound distorted so what she hears isn't always correct. Adds to the drama I suppose.

8. We are suddenly plunged into a medical drama, with a minor measles outbreak! And a new sinister addition to the household: Miss Davis! Thoughts about her and her link to this whole melodrama?

When we find out that Mrs Wellings didn't send her I thought she must be a plant from some unknown person. She seems kindly enough, maybe a red herring to throw doubt on her. Perhaps she did hear about the job and didn't have references so this is the deceipt and that is the only mystery about it. We will see.

9. Susan's dead, RIP... and Margaret has rescued her stuff from her little blackmail box, with a few snippets of other compromising material too. Did you glean anything from those snippets? Did you want her to take the whole box?

Susan has probably been blackmailing everyone. When the author details how pitiful Susan's life has been I think she is wanting the reader to somehow feel empathy for what Susan has become. I didn't really buy it, I guess circumstances can make some people become hard and opportunistic but not everyone resorts to blackmail when times are tough.

Moderators of NBRC wrote: "Lisa - (Aussie Girl) wrote: "Is there a link where we can check we signed up properly.. (that's code for sticky beaking who has signed up so we can check out the opposition, LOL) ."

Here you are :..."

Thanks Goddesses of the Wheel.. or is that Muses of the Wheel. 😍

DQs Day 1
16&17 Sep: Vol One

1.) Some of the set up of this book reminds me of Rebecca and Jane Eyre with a dash of The Tennant of Wildfell Hall. Did you get those vibes and is that a good thing or a bad thing for you?

Very much a homage to the Victorian Gothic Novel. Definitely getting Bronte/Du Maurier vibes. And that's a good thing.

2.) What do you think is going on with the staff at Hartwood? Everyone seems to either be hiding out there or at least sitting on a pack of their own secrets. Do you think Susan will get her comeuppance?

It does seem that this is the place for people to "disappear", it's remote with an air of mystery so a perfect place if you don't want to be found. Surely it's being set up for Susan to get her comeuppance.. nobody likes a smug, blackmailing bully!

3.) Mrs Eversham. What do you think her business is that she keeps leaving for stretches of time? Do you think it's just her writing? Do you think her husband and daughter are actually dead?
Straight away I thought that someone is being hidden in the East Wing.. shades of the first Mrs Rochester there. It's probably too obvious that it's the daughter, maybe it's the husband who has become disabled or disfigured and Mrs E is not in London at all but looking after him there..

4.) Margaret. Do you like her? What do you think she's hiding? Do you think she actually killed Richard, if so for what reason?

No, I don't think she actually killed him, maybe didn't actively treat him that hastened his death. He seemed to be a controlling SOB, and there is definitely something more to their story yet to be revealed, I'm thinking.

5.) Are you enjoying the book so far? Guesses for what's really in the East Wing?

As mentioned it is an easy going read, nothing too challenging but enough of a puzzle to be enjoyable. East wing.. is the key to the mystery, I wonder when one of us will work it out?

Is there a link where we can check we signed up properly.. (that's code for sticky beaking who has signed up so we can check out the opposition, LOL) .

Keely wrote: "I finished one of my books today. I wanted to finish the other, but I had an interview that took longer than expected as they wanted me to shadow someone. The good news is that they offered me the ..."

Congratulations on the new job, Keely. Well done, hope it goes well. 😊

Glad to be able to join in. See message 8 .