Allison Ann’s Comments (group member since Oct 19, 2014)

Allison Ann’s comments from the Nothing But Reading Challenges group.

I read Gone Girl and Dark Places recently and I didn't particularly like either one, so I'm not in for Sharp Objects. I am completely Gillian Flynn-ed out at the moment. And for me it definitely is her characters, they are horrid with absolutely no redeeming features that I can find. The only person I have liked was a teenage hooker with one scene in Dark Places. :D

I read this today and I have many thoughts about it so I'm hoping someone will come discuss it with me. I can't say I liked the book, there was just too much hatred and anger and horrible people for it to be a good experience for me, but it did make me think. For now I'll just start with the questions.

Chapter 1
1. Here we are introduced to the Lawson family, which Terry, the Uncle, seems to be the patriarch of the family. He is also a police sergeant and works over his niece and nephew, Maggie and Jimmy. What do you think about Uncle Sergeant Terry? What obstacles might you see Maggie, and other woman on the force, up against when dealing with Terry and all his clones in trying to apprehend the Atlanta Shooter - or whoever shot and killed Don Wesley?

Uncle Sergeant Terry is horrid. My father was the best person I have ever known, I feel nothing but sadness for people who don't have someone they can look up to growing up. Being a woman in a male oriented world is still tough, in the 70s it was unbelievable. A macho job like the police department would have been so hard, I admire those women that toughed it out. I'm sure the women will be frozen out of the search for the killer. The old (white) boys club will do their best to take care of things without "interlopers."

2. The story very much has a time and place feel to it - 1974 Atlanta, racial tensions, women's inequality in the work force and the home. I was surprised by some of this, being born in 1976. Anyone older have any comments on remembering times like these? What about the younger folk, what is it like to read about such a recent part of American history with already so many changes since before you were born? Anything to compare and contrast?

I was born in 1970, but I was raised in Northern Ontario in the middle of the bush. The women were just as capable as the men and everyone had to work hard just to survive. The division of the sexes came a bit later when things weren't as harsh, plus even if they didn't work outside the home they had to chop wood for heat and cooking, haul water - chopping through the ice in winter, drag kids to the outhouse, fish, hunt, trap, preserve food. An 8 hour shift as a cop probably would have been like a vacation to my mom. :)

3. By the end of the chapter we already get the feeling the story being told is bogus - Maggie knows her brother's gun was not fired. It is early, but any speculation on what is going on?

He's lying about something and it's probably being covered up by his cop buddies.

Chapter 2
4. Here we are introduced to Kate Murphy, sounds like a new recruit to the Atlanta PD. At the end of the chapter she puts on her badge - with a Phoenix ascending from the ashes. Resergens - Latin for rising again. Want to speculate on any symbolism here?

I didn't even catch this when I was reading. Quite honestly, the nastiness and violence in the first half of the book really irritated me and I wasn't taking everything in. It's a personal rebirth for her though, from pampered wife to street cop?

Chapter 3
5. Fox is stalking Kate, why? Who do you think he is? And what might Kate's dirty little secret be?

He's got to be another cop. Don't know what her secret is though.

Chapter 4
6)Everyone is drinking alcohol, before work? WTF. Yes, some things have changed. But anyway, did you get the idea that Terry and his clones (his peers) have been grooming Jimmy from the time he was young - advice, football games, a close knit extended family dynamic within the police force? Any thoughts on the perpetuation of values, how they are protected and passed on through generations, and how that might hinder or help the police force?

I think they were grooming him, but to get "away" and be a football star. Joining the force was just their way to protect him when his athletic career was destroyed. Nepotism is still rampant in certain careers like policing, so I can only imagine how prevalent it was in the 70s.

Chapters 5-11
7. Do you find it ironic that by trying to make changes Mayor Maynard is still perpetuating the problem where people are appointed without being qualified?

Big changes usually effect small changes. Politicians talk a good game and then do nothing when given the opportunity.

8. What do you make of Kate’s family situation. It sounds like they’re not against her being a cop per say but aren’t really supportive of her either.

I think her family is a LOT more supportive than most families would be. Still think they'd prefer her doing something less outrageous.

9. Why do you think Fox thought that Kate was a liar, charlatan and didn’t belong? She just started on the job? Was his evidence from before she became a cop? Maybe something to do with what he feels is a woman’s place in the world.

I think Fox is killing people he doesn't think deserve to be cops, that's why I think he is one or at least an ex-cop. Women don't belong on the job.

10. Do you think there’s more to Jimmy’s story than he froze or is it just a lesson in pride and judgements?

I think there has to be more to the story. I think they were doing something they shouldn't be doing when Don was shot.

11. Do you think Fox could have something to do with Patrick? It sounds like they were both in the war.

I didn't pick up on this at all. That would definitely be interesting. Maybe Patrick told Fox something about Kate that he thinks she deserves to be punished for?

12. Do you think Fox is the one who shot Don?

Yup. I think there is only one shooter.

Finished 2 - 20 pt. books today. One is apparently an old BotM, so I'm going to see if I can get some extra points for that. Is answering the questions enough participation if I can't get anyone to come back and talk to me about it?

Read a chunk of Eragon today also, so hopefully people are still discussing that one. It's very juvenile so far, but better than I hoped. My tastes seem to be so 180 from the norm here, I feel like I'm always complaining about the BRs. I swear, there are lots of books I like, it just seems like no one else is ever reading them. :D

Books between 100 and 160 pages (100 pages or 25,000 words is the minimum) = 10 points
Books between 161 pages and 450 pages = 20 points
Books between 451 and 600 pages = 50 points
Books between 601 and 750 pages = 70 points
Books between 751 and 900 pages = 90 points
Books over 901 pages = 100 points


My shelf: TTIII


Current Reads:


The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America
by Erik Larson




Books Read:


Cop Town by Karin Slaughter - 02/01/15 - 416 pages - 20 pts.
The Love Letter by Cathleen Schine - 02/01/15 - 257 pages - 20 pts.
Origins by Kristen Middleton - 02/02/15 - 238 pages - 20 pts.
Turbulence by John J. Nance - 02/05/15 - 464 pages - 50 pts.
Buddy Read link - Tatiana and Alexander - 30 pts.
Buddy Read link - Garden Spells - 30 pts.
Eragon by Christopher Paolini - 02/06/15 - 754 pages - 90 pts.
Buddy Read link - 30 pts.
Silent Pool by Patricia Wentworth - 02/06/15 - 279 pages - 20 pts.
Undercurrents by Ridley Pearson - 02/07/15 - 435 pages - 20 pts.
You Never Can Tell by George Bernard Shaw - 02/07/15 - 172 pages - 20 pts.
The Promise by Danielle Steel - 02/08/15 - 288 pages - 20 pts.
Highland Bride by Hannah Howell - 02/08/15 - 352 pages - 20 pts.
The Troop by Nick Cutter - 02/09/15 - 358 pages - 20 pts.
Reckless Nights in Rome by C.C. MacKenzie - 02/09/15 - 238 pages - 20 pts.
Haunted on Bourbon Street by Deanna Chase - 02/09/15 - 262 pages - 20 pts.
Aunt Dimity: Snowbound by Nancy Atherton - 02/10/15 - 272 pages - 20 pts.
The Accidental Demon Slayer by Angie Fox - 02/10/15 - 292 pages - 20 pts.
If Tomorrow Comes by Sidney Sheldon - 02/11/15 - 416 pages - 20 pts.
Vanishing Acts by Jodi Picoult - 02/12/15 - 418 pages - 20 pts.
The Collector by Nora Roberts - 02/13/15 - 483 pages - 50 pts.
The Year of Fog by Michelle Richmond - 02/13/15 - 369 pages - 20 pts.
Heart Trouble by Sharon Mayne - 02/14/15 - 220 pages - 20 pts.
Circling the Midnight Sun by James Raffan - 02/14/15 - 453 pages - 50 pts.
A Siege of Bitterns: A Birder Murder Mystery by Steve Burrows - 02/15/15 - 352 pages - 20 pts.
When the Bough Breaks by Jonathan Kellerman - 02/16/15 - 432 pages - 20 pts.
Room with a Clue by Kate Kingsbury - 02/16/15 - 204 pages - 20 pts.
Knight Sinister by Adam Hall - 02/17/15 - 281 pages - 20 pts.
The Beach by Alex Garland - 02/18/15 - 448 pages - 20 pts.
Angels Flight by Michael Connelly - 02/19/15 - 453 pages - 50 pts.
Shooting at Loons by Margaret Maron - 02/20/15 - 241 pages - 20 pts.
Up Jumps the Devil by Margaret Maron - 02/20/15 - 288 pages - 20 pts.
The Next to Die by Kevin O'Brien - 02/21/15 - 432 pages - 20 pts.
The Sixth Commandment by Lawrence Sanders - 02/22/15 - 350 pages - 20 pts.
Tenth Commandment by Lawrence Sanders - 02/22/15 - 385 pages - 20 pts.
Eighth Commandment by Lawrence Sanders - 02/23/15 - 285 pages - 20 pts.
The Seventh Commandment by Lawrence Sanders - 02/24/15 - 351 pages - 20 pts.
The Rag Nymph by Catherine Cookson - 02/26/15 - 409 pages - 20 pts.
Only Time Will Tell by Jeffrey Archer - 02/26/15 - 400 pages - 20 pts.
Endless Summer by Angela Wells - 02/27/15 - 190 pages - 20 pts.
Suddenly a Bride by Ruth Ann Nordin - 02/27/15 - 244 pages - 20 pts.
The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion - 02/28/15 - 227 pages - 20 pts.
The Return of Rafe MacKade by Nora Roberts - 03/01/15 - 251 pages - 20 pts.
The Pride of Jared MacKade by Nora Roberts - 03/01/15 - 249 pages - 20 pts.
If Cooks Could Kill by Joanne Pence - 03/02/15 - 307 pages - 20 pts.
The Man Who Cried by Catherine Cookson - 03/03/15 - 317 pages - 20 pts.
Lost Lake by Sarah Addison Allen - 03/04/15 - 296 pages - 20 pts.
Untraceable by S.R. Johannes - 03/05/15 - 312 pages - 20 pts.
The Rosary Murders by William X. Kienzle - 03/06/15 - 274 pages - 20 pts.
The Apple Orchard by Susan Wiggs - 03/06/15 - 432 pages - 20 pts.
Uncommon Clay by Margaret Maron - 03/07/15 - 304 pages - 20 pts.
Through Violet Eyes by Stephen Woodworth - 03/07/15 - 333 pages - 20 pts.
Nemesis by Agatha Christie - 03/08/15 - 271 pages - 20 pts.
Zoo by James Patterson - 03/08/15 - 395 pages - 20 pts.




Allison's November Total = 910 pts.
Allison's December Total = 1040 pts.
Allison's January Total = 1030 pts.
Allison's February Total = 1060 pts.
Allison's March Total = 240 pts.
Allison's Total = 4040 + 240 = 4280 pts.


Last edited 03/08/15

I'm at work today and my TV there is fuzzy and staticky. I'm willing to put up with it for hockey and the Winter Olympics, but not for football so no Superbowl for me. :D I will sell a lot of potato chips and pop though. And get a book or two finished I hope.

Awesome job on the Scavenger Hunt everyone, thanks for the update Angel.

Isn't it funny how the same book affects people so differently. You liked the parts I didn't and didn't like the parts I enjoyed. Yet same book. :D

❀Tea❀ wrote: "Just let me know if any book in last week was BR. I wasn't checking those"

I should get BR points for Tatiana and Alexander, everything else looks good to me.

I've got about 20 pages left but I'm going to post my last book for the Scavenger Hunt and then go to bed and read my last few pages. Looooooooong day!

Killer Cults: Murderous Messiahs and Their Fanatical Followers - DAVID - page 61 - "The thirty-three year old self-styled Messiah, christened Vernon Howell but since 1991 calling himself David Koresh..."

Nighty-night all. I'll try and do better this last week or so of the challenge.

Lisa - (Aussie Girl) wrote: "Part 2, Chapter 27

Finally something major happens..."

That one surprised me too.

(view spoiler)[I quite like how the author described the war scenes. Often I skim through those sorts of descriptions as they get too dry or alternately too hysterical. She hits a really nice middle ground with just enough emotion. (hide spoiler)]

Finished The Long Road Home. It has MOUNTAINS for the Scavenger Hunt - page 249 - "... and the woman she would become when she reached the other side of the mountains life had put before her."

Tomorrow is our fish derby so I will be gone from 7 a.m. to 9-10 p.m. If we have until midnight local time to read, then I will probably get one more book done tomorrow. Otherwise, that's it for me.

I also finally added BR points for Tatiana and Alexander as I think my conversations have been sufficient enough by this point.

Finished Leather, Lace and Rock-n-Roll
Scavenger Hunt - BRIDGE - Loc. 232 - "Rachel pinched the bridge of her nose."

I'm halfway through our get to know you challenge. Don't know if I'll finish before Tower Teams is over, but it is fun.

39/39

Rachel
Karoke Party!
B - Bones to Ashes by Kathy Reichs - 01/17/15
A - After: The Shock by Scott Nicholson - 01/08/15
U - Undercurrents by Ridley Pearson - 02/07/15
H - Highland Bride by Hannah Howell - 02/08/15
A - Answered Prayers by Danielle Steel - 01/09/15
U - Up Jumps the Devil by Margaret Maron - 02/20/15
S - Sands Of Time by Sidney Sheldon - 01/05/15

Allison
Meal time:
S - Safe Harbour by Danielle Steel - 01/06/15
C - Commitment Hour by James Alan Gardner - 01/09/15
U - Untraceable by S.R. Johannes - 03/05/15
R - Reckless Nights in Rome by C.C. MacKenzie - 02/09/15
V - Vanishing Acts by Jodi Picoult - 02/12/15
Y - You're Not Safe by Mary Burton - 01/15/15

Angel
Claire likes to laugh at Miranda Hart and is terrified of being unable to breath.
H - Haunted on Bourbon Street by Deanna Chase - 02/09/15
A - Aunt Dimity: Snowbound by Nancy Atherton - 02/10/15
R - Room with a Clue by Kate Kingsbury - 02/16/15
T - A Taste For Death by P.D. James - 01/14/15

Rosina
Meal Time: Rosina's favorite meal is borscht.
Hmmmmmm...Researching what borscht is.
S - Standoff by Sandra Brown - 01/16/15
O - Out of Sight by T.J. MacGregor - 01/11/15
U - Uncommon Clay by Margaret Maron - 03/07/15
P - The Promise by Danielle Steel - 02/08/15

Tory
Karaoke Party!
L - Last Reveille by David Morrell - 01/05/15
A - The Accidental Demon Slayer by Angie Fox - 02/10/15
M - The Maze Runner by James Dashner - 01/13/15
B - The Body in the Ivy by Katherine Hall Page - 01/17/15
E - The Enemy by Lee Child - 01/27/15
R - The Rag Nymph by Catherine Cookson - 02/26/15
T - Tatiana and Alexander by Paullina Simons - 01/21/15

Joi
She is a college student that would love to own a cat.
C - A Cat By Any Other Name by Lydia Adamson - 01/11/15
A - Angels Flight by Michael Connelly - 02/19/15
T - Turbulence by John J. Nance - 02/05/15

Ashley
Meal Time: Ashley loves sushi and ice cream, but not together.
H - Heart Trouble by Sharon Mayne - 02/14/15
O - Only Son by Kevin O'Brien - 01/21/15
T - The Troop by Nick Cutter - 02/09/15
F - Father Found by Judith Arnold - 01/15/15
U - Undertow by Sydney Bauer - 03/09/15
D - Does Your Mother Know? by Maureen Jennings - 01/10/15
G - The Gate House by Nelson DeMille - 01/07/15
E - Eragon by Christopher Paolini - 02/06/15

Lisa - (Aussie Girl) wrote: "I finally started this today."

(view spoiler)[It is a lot of repetition, especially at the beginning and especially about their time in Lazaredo (which is quite possibly just cut and paste from the first book) but it gets more interesting as the book progresses and new stories are presented. (hide spoiler)]

The Enemy
Scavenger Hunt - TENNIS - page 278 - "One was decorated in shades of pale blue and had a sitting area and a bathroom the size of a tennis court."

Finished Blow Out and found LAMB for the Scavenger Hunt.

Scavenger Hunt - LAMB - page 157 - "I brought him a pita sandwich, roast lamb, his favorite."

And FISH in Demon Street Blues.

Scavenger Hunt - FISH - page 148 - "She flailed like a fish out of water, opening her mouth as if to speak."

Read this today. Needed a light and fluffy book to counteract all the nasty mean people I've been reading about lately. (view spoiler)[I liked the Waverly family quite a bit. The precociously adorable child isn't generally my favourite character, but Bay was lovely. And Evanelle was nothing short of perfect. The only thing that bothered me was the "blahblah family was known for blahblah". I've yet to meet an entire family who is great at sex or all marry older women or anything like that. It was a little too silly for my liking and I'm pretty sure this author used the exact same device in the other book I read by her. But otherwise, good book, nice romances and cute twists. (hide spoiler)]

I used to have an apple tree, got tired of the bears breaking off the branches and eating all the apples. (view spoiler)[I wonder if the bears would see their futures with that tree? (hide spoiler)]

If you feel like committing to 1000+ pages, try The Stand.

Found ANNA in Garden Spells.
Scavenger Hunt - ANNA - page 15 - "Anna lived in a cul-de-sac neighborhood just outside Orion College, and the only way to get to it was through the campus."

Ashley ♦Sugar & Spice♦ wrote: "Allison, I was scanning over people's challenges to look at book ideas. What did you think of The Maze Runner?? I'm reading The Scorch Trials now and am almost done. Also wondering what you thought of Kevin O'brien...I've been recommended that author by a couple friends. "

Hey Ashley. Quite honestly I didn't like The Maze Runner very much. Good story but not great storytelling. The movie was better and I rarely say that about any book. :) Kevin O'Brien, he was recommended to me too. I've only read one so far and it was one of his first novels. It was a good mystery, more cerebral than scary, and I think his later ones are supposed to be even better. I will definitely read more.

Finished The Whip.
Scavenger Hunt - FARMERS - page 27 - "She was slightly afraid of the farmer and his wife, and of Luke too; that was until she used the whip for the first time when the fear left her and defiance took its place."

The book I am reading right now I'm sure has "farmers" in it. I have to find the exact quote, but I'm pretty sure I won't be reading any other books about farmers. :)

BTW, we have to have 75% participation for the bonus points, which is 7 people participating and since I suspect Vinny won't be back to play we only have a 1 person wiggle room. Go team!