Kerri’s Comments (group member since Sep 29, 2015)

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

Peeking in from the Draco Lizards. PNJ came and say hi, so I'm returning the favor! Have a great WOBBLE, Firebirds, and good luck. :)

Good morning, everyone! Hope everyone had a great weekend.

WOBBLE is almost here :D I'm getting pretty excited!

https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...

Here you are :)

Q: If it were possible, which book would you like to spend some time in?

That's a tough one... If I was looking for a world like our own with a little twist, probably Harry Potter. If I wanted something completely different, the world of the Dragonriders of Pern. That would be so incredible!

Q: What is you favorite classical book?

Either Jane Eyre or Hamlet. Jane Eyre if we're not counting plays.

Q: Which genre do you wish you read more of?

Non-fiction, definitely. Any suggestions?

Q: What new-to-you author are you dying to try next?

I've been wanting to give Brandon Sanderson a try for a very long time.

Q: What was your most surprising read/5 star find of the past year?

If we're talking 2016, it would be Ink and Bone. If we're talking 2015, I would have to say The Night Circus. In both cases, I went into it not knowing at all what to expect and came out completely enthralled.

Q: What was the first book you remember reading as a child?

I know this isn't the first book I read as a child, but the first one that stuck with me was All Creatures Great and Small. Love that book!

New question: Who is your favorite villain?

Ah! Your dress is absolutely gorgeous! You look fantastic :D

9 June 2016
Chapters 26-33

48. It doesn't seem like anything has changed between Jamie and his sister Jenny over the time that he's been away. What is your impression of Jenny?

I like Jenny a lot. She is so much like her brother and I love it! I think their interaction showed the family dynamic perfectly. It seems like it would be a cozy place for Claire to fit in now that she's apparently decided to stay.

49. Why do you think the rumour was spread that Randall had had his way with Jenny and fathered her first child?

I suspect it would have to do with what Jenny herself said... Randall couldn't very well threaten to rape her and then not follow through. That would make him appear weak to his men, in his own twisted mind. So he probably spread that rumor as far and as wide as he possibly could. And the Scots in this book seem to *love* a good bit of gossip, so I'm sure there was no issue in spreading it.

50. Jenny and Claire are left alone together. What did you think of their behaviour towards each other? I loved all the secret meanings behind well disguised questions. Have you had this meeting any family of a partner before?

I thought it was perfectly reasonable, given their circumstances. Jenny was being very polite, but siblings are always protective of each other, especially when it comes to significant others. She was just trying to judge whether Claire was worthy of her brother. I haven't had this kind of meeting, really. My in-laws were all very welcoming and sincere, with no hidden questions. But, of course, we met under totally different circumstances!

51. Do you think it's strange that Jenny is so accepting of Claire? She asks a lot of questions that you would expect a woman of this time to know and predicts the future regarding potatoes.

I don't think it's all that strange. The Scottish people of that time frame seem more open to ideas of prophecy and magic, so it's not all that surprising that Jenny just took Claire's predictions at face value.

52. We learn that both Jenny and Jamie feel responsible for Brian's death. Should they feel guilty? Do you think that either of them, or even both of them are responsible?

It's neither one of their faults, but I'm sure that doesn't stop them from feeling responsible. Even if Jamie had kept his mouth shut, I don't think that meeting with Randall would have ended well. The same goes for Jenny. And there's no way that all that actually led to him having a stroke. I'm sure he was already ill.

53. We find out in this section that Geilie told Jamie that Claire is barren. Do you think that she is unable to have children?

It certainly seems that way. We know she was having issues conceiving with Frank already. She and Jamie have sex basically every other paragraph and she's still not pregnant, sooooo.... all evidence is pointing to her being barren. I guess we shall see.

54. Do you think that Jamie is really okay with Claire not being able to have children? It surprises me because what I get from this time period is children show how "manly" you really are.

I think, given his present situation in life, he really is okay with not having any children. If his name every gets cleared and he's properly installed as Lord of Lallybroch, though, I think his attitude might change. It seems like he really enjoys children and, if his circumstances were better, I think he would be sad that he couldn't have any of his own.

55. What do you think has happened to Jamie?

Hopefully he's hidden himself somewhere to tend to his wounds until help arrives. I hope they can find him!

Samantha wrote: "Funny story about my dress - I actually bought it years ago when I first moved to California. I wanted to make it easier on my mom and grandma and thought I'd be getting married soon after I moved ..."

Your ring is beautiful! And I love the story of your dress :)

Judith wrote: "Ernest Hemingway and Charles Dickens, I've read a couple from each and HATED all of them."

I feel the exact same way, especially about Charles Dickens. I don't think I've ever actually gotten through an Ernest Hemingway book. Ugh...

How exciting! That was one of my favorite parts of our wedding :D That and picking out "the dress".

Tati wrote: "I have to pick just one? Not fair! I'll go with Crooked Kingdom (Six of Crows, #2) by Leigh Bardugo"

Oh, I'm excited for that book, as well!

I already answered the first question ;)

Q: Of all the books you've read, what character have you related to the most?

I would have to say Turtle, the main character from The Westing Game. She was just as quirky and weird as I was at the time that I first read that book. It made me feel more comfortable in my own skin.

Q:What new release scheduled for this year are you most excited about?

Paper and Fire, which is the sequel to my answer to the first question, Ink and Bone. I can't wait!

Q: What is your favorite book-to-movie adaptations?

Hmm, probably The Hunger Games. I think they did a decent job and I wasn't as emotionally invested in the books as I was in other books that were adapted into movies.

Q:What book did you put down a few times (or struggle through the first part) to actually rate it a 5 by the time you got through with it?

I don't think there's one that I ended up rating a 5, but I did enjoy Catch-22 a lot more the second time I gave it a try. The first time I couldn't even finish the book.

Q: What is your favorite genre, and who is your favorite author from that genre? Feel free to give multiple authors.

My favorite genre would have to be fantasy. Favorite author in that genre? Probably George R.R. Martin,. He just built such a fantastic world! I will grudgingly say Robert Jordan, as well, because the world he built in the Wheel of Time series was amazing, but he let that go on for way too long. One day I will finish that series...

Q: What book/genre/author would you never read? Why?

I don't know if there is a genre I would straight up refuse to read. If anything, I would have to say romance. Like the Harlequin romance books. I like a little realism in my books and those just... don't do it for me.

New question: If it were possible, in which book would you want to spend some time?

I'm always down for a little Q&A :)

Q: What is your favorite book of 2016 so far?

A: Ink and Bone. Alternate history and a whole society that loves books as much as I do? It's fantastic!

Of all the books you've read, what character have you related to the most?

No big plans this weekend. The only thing I'm planning on doing is watching the Tony Awards.

Karen wrote: "Hi all! Team Harpy Eagle here!

I'm also working on Outlander (as a rogue though, I didn't get it from the library in time for the first few days of BOM questions, and never ended up jumping in th..."

I agree. It's almost like it's thrown in there for shock value! It is an interesting book, though. I definitely wouldn't choose to stay... I like having rights, lol.

Good morning, team, from the Midwest :)

June 7 DQ's
Chapter 24 & 25

37. During this section Jamie and his nephew Hamish have quite a few scenes. What do you think of their relationship? Any idea as to who his real father is?

I really liked the scenes with Jamie and Hamish. It showed a different side of Jaime. He's like the fun uncle, but you got the sense that he would make a good father one day. Also, I thought their conversation about sex was hilarious XD As for who may be Hamish's father, I'm gonna guess maybe Dougal? He doesn't seem to have an issue sleeping with married women... I don't know if he would be willing to cross his brother like that, though. I could see it being Colum's idea since he would obviously know that he can't perform and he needs an heir.

38. Jamie tells us the story about when he was 16 and the real reason he left Castle Leoch. The Duke of Sandringham was trying to - for lack of a better word - molest him and nearly succeeded! Did your idea of the Duke match the person he was when we met him? Did your feelings towards him change at all?

I have no real feelings towards the Duke as of yet. I expected to dislike him terribly since he tried to force himself on a young boy. I don't care for him, but I don't dislike him as much as I thought I would, if that makes sense. He's kind of... meh.

39. Laoghaire lies to Claire and sends her to Geilie's house knowing that the mob is headed there to arrest Geilie for being a witch. Do you think Claire will tell Jamie the truth about what Laoghaire did? How do you think Jamie will react?

I would rat her out the first chance I got, but I don't like people almost getting me killed. In the heat of the moment, I would throw her directly under the bus. I was just about to say that she did it naively and probably couldn't think of another way to get rid of Claire, but that still isn't an excuse! She knew Claire would, at best, be beaten and humiliated and, at worst, be freakin' killed! Lagohaire can go die in a fire. I hope Claire tells Jamie and I hope Jamie tells her, in no uncertain terms, how completely done he is with her. Ugh... now I'm all worked up...

40. Both Alec MacMahon and Ned Gowan come to Claire's aid. Do you think they only did this for Jamie's sake or do you think they both care about Claire and did not want to see her harmed?

I think they both care for Claire. Alec seems especially fond of her after she helped with his arthritis and helped birth that colt. Ned grew fond of her while they were on the road. Randomly, though, where did Ned go? I thought he was supposed to be defending her at trial in the morning? Or did they try and hurriedly do the dunk test so Ned wouldn't be able to interfere?

41. Claire is tortured, beaten, stripped naked, and whipped because of the mob mentality. How do you think this is going to affect her in the future? Do you think this will change who she is as a person? What relationship will she have with Colum and Dougal from here going forward?

I think it will make her a much more cautious person. She sees now that, even if her actions are innocent (i.e. trying to help that sick baby), the people around there aren't going to take her word for it. Superstitions were a big deal back then and mob mentality took over quickly. As for the MacKenzies, I think she's effectively done with them.

42. Geilie hands herself to the mob by admitting to be a witch so Claire and Jamie can run free. Why do you think she did this? Was it only because she knew she wouldn't be let go anyway?

I think she did it because she realized she was pretty much doomed, anyways, and she wanted to be able to help Claire in her last moments. I think she saw Claire's smallpox mark, realized the truth about her, and decided to help her out of solidarity. Besides, what did she really have to live for anymore? After all that, even if they found her innocent, there would be no future for her in that time.

43. Were you surprised to find out that Geilie was just like Claire? That she had traveled back in time and made a life for herself there? I really wanted to learn more about her and her life. I was sad when she died.

I was very surprised! I always thought Geilie was a tad bit different from the other women, but I had just assumed it was because she was a "witch". She seemed more progressive than the other women. Now that makes sense. I'm not sure I'm all that sad about her death... she was kind of a terrible person... but it sucks that she had to go out like that.

44. The moment of truth - Claire finally tells Jamie who she is and where she came from. Jamie believes her because they have nothing but honesty between them. How do you think you would react if you were Jamie?

I would think she was absolutely crazy, but I'd probably still protect her. Jamie obviously really loves her and I think he would protect her even if he thought she was mad. He said he would burn with her if she was a witch, after all.

45. When they get to the hill where the rock formation is Claire can feel the buzz and even begins to travel through time until Jamie calls her name and she stops. Why do you think she can control it? It doesn't work when Jamie walks through it. Why? Do you have any idea why Claire can go but not Jamie?

I got more of a sense that Jamie pulled her away from the rock and that's what stopped the time travelling. I don't know if Claire can actually control it that well. I think the rock prefers women, like Claire mentioned. Who knows why...

46. Claire and Jamie say goodbye and he leaves her on the hill so she can go through the portal and return home to Frank. She seems to talk herself around in circles trying to make the decision to go or stay. Finally she runs back to Jamie and stays with him. Do you think she made the right decision? Where do you think they will go from here?

That is really hard to say. I guess she made the right decision for her. I mean, to be honest, it doesn't seem like she even really loves Frank. They have nothing in common, she's barely thought about him in the last four or five months, and she seems much happier with Jamie than she did with Frank. On the other hand, she's completely leaving Frank to first worry himself to the point of insanity and then to have to mourn her when she's not even dead. I know she loves Jamie, but that's pretty selfish of her. I dunno... I guess it's the right decision for her. I guess they'll go off to Jamie's home.

47. What would you have done?

First, I wouldn't be remarried because I love my husband and just couldn't betray him like that. I would have gone back in a heartbeat.

@Erin - I loved the articles he did for EW. The man is funny and sharp!

@Chris - That sounds like a really nice day :) I miss that kind of weather! I can do hot, but I severely dislike being cold, lol.

Hi Rachel and Amy!

I just got back from a bookish event. Stephen King came into Dayton and did a talk at a theater downtown. He's promoting the last book in the Mr. Mercedes trilogy. Everyone who attended got a copy of the book and a few of those copies happened to be signed. Well, I went with my best friend and she got a signed copy! But, because she's awesome and she knows how much I enjoy Stephen King, she gave it to me :D That book is getting a special spot on the bookshelf!

The Genre Minx wrote: "Kerri wrote: "The Genre Minx wrote: "Kerri wrote: "I'm totally in for a Name of the Wind buddy read if we decide to do it! I've been wanting to read that book for awhile.

Currently, I'm doing the ..."

Not a problem! And a buddy read, as far as I understand, is when a group decides to read a book together and discuss it periodically. If it's informal, they kind of make up their own schedule of how many pages they want to read per day and what topics they wish to discuss. I haven't done one yet, myself, but it seems like it would be fun!

Amy wrote: "Kerri wrote: "I'm totally in for a Name of the Wind buddy read if we decide to do it! I've been wanting to read that book for awhile.

Currently, I'm doing the Outlander BOM and finish..."

I am enjoying it! There is one part, so far, that kind of threw me off. If you look at the reviews for it on Goodreads, you'll probably be able to figure out what I'm talking about. I am enjoying it for what it is, though... a historical fiction with a heavy dose of romance.