Lauri’s Comments (group member since Jan 23, 2016)

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

For Round 3, I’d like to claim the following books:

The Way Of The Traitor: A Samurai Mystery
Laura Joh Rowland
H - CLN Hirata, I - CFN Ichiro, N - CLN Nagai, R - ALN, S - CLN Sanyo, T - CLN Tokugawa, Y - CLN Yanagisawa

Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors
Sonali Dev
E - CFN Emma, H - CFN Harry, N - CFN Neel, R - CLN Raje, S - AFN, T - CFN Trisha, Y - CFN Yash

The Girls in the Stilt House
Kelly Mustian
R - CLN Rankin, S - CFN Sylvia, T - CFN Teensy

Completion Post!
Fire and Ice
Dana Stabenow
Finished 11/3/23
Page count: 304
Spellout letters:
L - CFN Liam
S - ALN



Could someone please mark this as completed on our spreadsheet for me? Thank you!

Completion Post!
Thrice the Brinded Cat Hath Mew'd
Alan Bradley
Finished 11/2/23
Page count: 331
Spellout letters:
A - AFN
L - CFN Louisa
O - CFN Ophelia



Could someone please mark this one as completed on our spreadsheet for me? Thank you!

Ashley wrote: "Lauri wrote: "Completion Post!
Paw and Order
Spencer Quinn
Finished 10/30/23
Page count: 320
Spellout letters:
L - CFN Lizette
P - title
S - AFN

[bookcover:Paw and..."

Added! Thank you!

Completion Post!
The Book of Candlelight
Ellery Adams
Finished 10/31/23
Page count: 294
Spellout letters:
A - ALN
L - CFN Lou
M - CFN Marie
P - CLN Pennington
S - CFN Sheldon
V - CLN Vega



Could someone please add this to our spreadsheet for me? Thank you!

Completion Post!
The Secrets of Hartwood Hall
Katie Lumsden
Finished 10/31/23
Page count: 339
RED cover!
Spellout letters:
L - ALN
M - CFN Margaret
P - CFN Paul
S - title



Could someone mark this as completed on our spreadsheet, please? Thank you!

Completion Post!
Paw and Order
Spencer Quinn
Finished 10/30/23
Page count: 320
Spellout letters:
L - CFN Lizette
P - title
S - AFN



Could someone please add this to our spreadsheet for me? Thank you!

Melissa wrote: "A few notes for you all!

Lauri, could you add The Secrets of Hartwood Hall to your shelf?

Daniel, your page count for Death du Jour does not match the book you linked.

Megan, your Man in Tokyo ..."

I add them to my shelf when I finish…

Completion Post!
Buttercream Bump Off
Jenn McKinlay
Finished 10/26/23
Page count: 240
Spellout Letters:
A - CFN Angie
O - CFN Olivia
M - ALN
P - CLN Puckett



Could someone please add this to our spreadsheet for me? Thank you!

Completion Post!
The Diva Cooks up a Storm
Krista Davis
Finished 10/23/23
Page count: 291
Spellout letters:
V - CLN Vanderhoosen
P - CFN Parker
M - CFN Madison



Could someone mark this as completed on our spreadsheet for me, please? Thank you!

I also have an A, M, O and P with Buttercream Bump Off!!

A - CFN Angie
O - CFN Olivia
M - ALN
P - CLN Puckett

Not seeing any of our locations yet, however.

I can cover an S or an L with The Secrets of Hartwood Hall! Also a very red cover…..
L for ALN

Okey dokey, I found another one! The Diva Cooks up a Storm byKrista Davis. It can cover V with CLN Vanderhoosen! And I’m almost done…

For Week 2 I will begin with claiming Thrice the Brinded Cat Hath Mew'd for an O (CFN Ophelia) and Fire and Ice for an S (author’s last name Stabenow). I have lots of others & some red covers, but they might not necessarily fit in…

Completion Post!
How to Sell a Haunted House
Grady Hendrix
Finished 10/20/23
Page count: 419
BOM: yes!
See msgs: 82, 113 & 170
I can’t to a link to save my own life!
Spellout letters:
H - title
L - Louise CFN



Could someone please add this to our spreadsheet for me? Thank you!

Day 3: Chapters 16-22

10. Pupkin is,,, alive??? Okay, no big surprise there to be honest, but we did finally get some interesting background info from Louise and Mark's childhood, even if that's not how Louise remembers it. Do you think she really doesn't remember, has simply forgotten, due to trauma or it just having happened way too long ago, or does she remember but chooses not to acknowledge it? Or maybe Mark misremembers himself and it didn't even happen (that way at least)? They were both still very young after all, Mark especially. Is it possible to remember something that happened when you were only two years old?
I do believe it! If Pupkin could make Louise do his bidding, he is truly evil. I have memories, but more like images of learning (from an older cousin) how to climb out of my crib at age 2. She later confirmed that it really did happen.

11. The second perspective adds a new layer, however it only got added halfway through the book. Were you surprised we got Mark's POV at all, and would you have preferred for it to be there from the beginning of the book? Also, has this last section changed your opinion on him in any way? He did save Louise from Pupkin after all....
Mark needed some redeeming qualities desperately! He was written as a total dweeb, greedy and self-indulgent. This is information I would have appreciated to have from the very beginning!

12. To me, the last chapter feels a bit like a fever dream, definitely like they were on drugs. I personally don't remember which MPGs the book has and don't want to check in case of 'spoilers' now, but do you think there's a possibility the house, our main characters, the puppets, the dolls, Pupkin, everything- isn't actually haunted and none of it is actually happening?? What if it's just a dream (which would be the worst ending ngl), mental problems like Louise wants to believe, or mold in the house that's effecting them like this plus possible drug use from Mark when he was away?
Addiction or recreational drug use would explain so much, really! I suppose it could be possible that it could be a fever dream or something… I don’t care much for horror, but do like Hendrix because of the implausibility of the situations. I really enjoyed My Best Friend's Exorcism!

13. I can't help but wonder how the book is gonna end... If Pupkin is indeed an evil puppet come to life I only see one way it can be destroyed - fire. Do you think they'll end up burning down the entire house (although Hill House (in the show at least) wouldn't let itself be burned down either, so who knows if that would work), or will the dolls and puppets take over? What do you predict will happen in the rest of the book?
I am hoping for Pupkin’s demise, of course. Besides burning, they could always chop him up and scatter the pieces…

Completion Post!
A Hard Day for a Hangover
Darynda Jones
Finished 10/20/23
Page count: 352
Spellout letters:
A - Auri CFN
E - Elaine CFN
H - title
L - Levi CFN
R - Ravinder CLN
Z - Zee CFN



Could someone please add this to our spreadsheet for me? Thank you!

Completion Post!
A Morbid Taste for Bones
Ellis Peters
Finished 10/20/23
Page count: 197
Spellout letters:
A - title
E - AFN
H - Heribert
P - ALN



Could someone please add this to our spreadsheet for me? Thank you!

Mod
DQs Set 2: Chapters 8 - 15

6. Were you expecting those wills? Why do you think both parents were so unfair on the kids?
Not even a little bit! I’m hoping the why will be made known to us. The only other reasoning would be mental illness!

7. Yikes! killer stuffed squirrels! The first violent haunting here, was it effective?
Very effective for me. I’m from Hawaii & we don’t have squirrels at all. I’ve always thought that they were just so cute! Now? Not so much…

8. Despite the various creepy things that Louise has experienced, she's refusing to let her aunt exorcise the house. Would you still be hanging onto rational reasons over accepting family help?
Nope! Excorcise away! It may not help, but it can’t hurt!

9. We've had more insight into the childhood of Mark and Louise. Does this change your opinion of either of them?
Is Louise evil, or perhaps possessed by Pupkin? Crazy? I can’t imagine trying to purposely kill a toddler and then conveniently forgetting the incident as an adult! (Did I mention I work at a psychiatric hospital??)

DQs Day 1 - Ch 1 to Ch 7

1.) What are your first impressions of the family and of Louise and Mark? How pivotal do you think their relationship (or lack thereof) will play in the story.
Aside: I plan to steal and use the phrase "Terminal Assholism" in future. Thank you Hendrix!

The dynamic is weird! It’s like Mark is the golden child even though he seems like a total fuck-up with no follow-through. It’s almost that Louise becomes childlike just by returning there.

2.) The book is organized into sections following the 5 stages of grief. Does this impact your expectations of the book at all?

I’m wondering how many others will actually die now…

3.) Okay. Life size dolls named after her children. Weird, creepy? Would you be excited to have them as part of your inheritance?

Both weird AND creepy! Totally NOT a doll fan, not even as a little girl… I think I would’ve run screaming from the house when I saw them! Why would their mom give Louise the damn “art” and Mark the house anyway? So unfair!

4.) Have you ever experienced a family post-death squabble/fight like the one Louise and Mark had in front of the junk clean out guys?

Totally! Both my family and my husband’s are totally evil and greedy! There’s nothing like a death in the family to bring that to the forefront. My motto is, “I had nothing yesterday, I have nothing today and will have nothing tomorrow.” It’s really up to the deceased to leave their worldly goods to whomsoever they choose. People shouldn’t expect to automatically inherit anything. I tell my only son that I promise to leave him all my nothing!

5.) Did anyone else google Fellowship of Christian Puppeteers? If so, were you surprised to find they were a real organization? Has anyone interacted with them before or a similar organization for other religious beliefs?

Sorry! No puppeteers for me! I won’t be googling them anytime soon!