Elli’s Comments (group member since Jan 08, 2022)

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

25th month in Novel Kingdom (Jan 2024)

06 Jan
• Time to hunt some Goblins!
- Elli used Lvl 9 Staff Nibelheim with AP 11.
- 23 Goblins killed.
- 23 XP, 23 Goblin Bones killed.
• A Drop Bear appeared!
- Elli used Lvl 9 Staff Nibelheim with AP 11. Drop Bear HP: 4
- Drop Bear slashed at Elli. Elli HP: 16
- Elli smacks back with Lvl 6 Sword Cheng Ying. Drop Bear K.O.
- Reward: 1 XP, 1 Drop Bear Meat

11 Jan
• Hunting Brown Bats today!
- Elli used Lvl 9 Staff Nibelheim with AP 11. Brown Bat HP: 4
- Elli got hit. HP: 13
- Killing blow to the Brown Bat!
- Reward: 1 XP, 1 Bat Wing

• Elli used Lvl 9 Staff Nibelheim on 2nd Brown Bat. Brown Bat HP: 4
- Brown Bat retaliated. Elli HP: 10
- Killing blow to the Brown Bat!
- Reward: 1 XP, 1 Bat Wing

• One more!
- Elli used Lvl 9 Staff Nibelheim on 3rd Brown Bat. Brown Bat HP: 4
- Brown Bat retaliated. Elli HP: 7
- Killing blow to the Brown Bat!
- Reward: 1 XP, 1 Bat Wing

19 Jan
★ Puppy!
- One puppy task completed

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24th month in Novel Kingdom (Dec 2023)

23 Dec
★ Staff Nibelheim Levelled up tp 9~

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23rd month in Novel Kingdom (Nov 2023)

30 Nov
★ Spring Cleaning
last book found - Completed



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22nd month in Novel Kingdom (Oct 2023)

06 Oct
★ Spring Cleaning
3rd book found

10 Oct
★ Puppy!
- One puppy task completed

27 Oct
★ Spring Cleaning
4th book found

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M wrote: "I am just wondering if anyone else has read any of The Bridgertons series by Julia Quinn. Did you like it?"

Romance isn't my favorite genre but I find the beginning of The Duke and I refreshing. Plot-wise, I find it a pretty typical romance. Would recommend it if you are looking for a gossipy type of light read. ;)

Sorry team.. Work has been hell these days so I had to remove some books that I've planned to read. I don't think I can finish them all in 4 days.

I'll make sure to finish my book that has "polka" in it :)

DQs Day 5

17. What did you think about how the "black market Serbian violin debacle" turned out? Do you think it hurt Ray in terms of the competition?
If there is a black market out there, it seemed like people do get their rare music instruments stolen pretty often. 😁 To be given a glimmer of hope and to get it dashed like that, there is definitely some negative effect on his state of mind.

18. Were you surpised at the outcome of the competition? I know I was rooting for him, but I instinctively assumed Mikhail would take first - perhaps solely for the plot. Do you think that was the case or did Mikhail genuinely win?
I think although Ray did his best but all the stress and hectic travelling did affect his performance.

19. When the missing papers are discovered in Ray's PopPops violin case, were you surprised at what they contained? Does the narrative they showcase further cement his family's provenance of the violin to you?
I'm glad the papers were found because the violin belongs to Ray and having the papers will keep unlawful people from getting their dirty hands on it via lawsuits.

20. It was (view spoiler)[Nicole (hide spoiler)]! What did you think of her reasons for committing the crime. Do you feel any sympathy for her?
Nope. I'm not sure that I am entirely happy that she is the culprit after all.

DQs Day 3

9. I don't know how I feel about the school basically milking Ray owning a Stradivarius and him having to do an interview without even getting asked to do so. I personally would have preferred to keep it private, at least for a while. What are your thoughts on the situation?
The school is being run like a business so from a business perspective, having someone with a Stradivarius isn't something that happens often so that makes a rare opportunity to milk it for all it is worth.

10. I can see where Ray's family is coming from wanting to sell the Stradivarius and divide the money, but they never showed any interest in the violin even though it had been in the family for a century, and Ray's grandmother gave Ray the fiddle for Christmas. He had to take care of everything surrounding it and his school/education himself, and he never even had much money to begin with. Would you be selling whatever in your life might turn out be worth this much money, and would you feel like your family was entitled to fair shares?
No way. Nobody showed any interest in that fiddle until it is proved to be worth a fortune anyway. If it happens to me, I wouldn't budge in selling it and split the sales.

11. Another family claiming ownership of the violin - it was bound to happen. On one hand I'm surprised they're suing Ray for the Stradivarius since I doubt they can prove the fiddle was stolen in any way, but on the other hand the odds clearly are against Ray. And now his family is suing him for the violin as well?! Who do you think is the rightful owner of the Stradivarius?
Ugly side of humans show when it comes to large amounts of money. Nobody else even bothered to use the old & mouldy fiddle in the attic until Ray cleaned it up and used it. Of course it belongs to Ray.

12. We've been introduced to a lot of different people (whose names I don't even all remember) and they all (most of them anyway) seem to have different reasons to possibly want to steal Ray's Stradivarius - greed, jealousy, racism,... it's all there. Do you have any more guesses of who's behind it all?
I pretty much lost count of the different people and their possible motives at this point already.

DQs Day 1

1. Can you even imagine losing a 10 million dollar anything?! Have you ever lost something and felt as Ray is portrayed in chapter 1...constantly retracing your steps over and over? What are your thoughts on other security precautions, if any, that should have been in place?
In most mystery books, the most unexpected person will be the perp. I guessed that Ray's girlfriend would be most sus at this point but we never know because it is only the beginning.

2. At this point in the book, when/where do you think the Stradivarius was taken?
It would most probably be right under Ray's nose all along but he didn't notice.

3. Money can be a keen motivator...the ransom note leads us to believe it's all about the money...do you think it's possible it's about something else?
It could be just a prank but that will really be disappointing.

4. It's eluded to that Ray is about to make history because of his race with the upcoming competition in Russia. His family sure doesn't seem to be proud or supportive. Should Ray be proud of this accomplishment or is putting the focus on race poor form by everyone concerned?
Music is universal so I feel Ray should be proud of his own achievements because he earned it through his own efforts. That isn't something everybody could achieve.

Tammie wrote: "I just noticed Day 3 of DQs for The Violin Conspiracy went up tonight.
@Vicki and @Elli...DQs do not have to be answered by tomorrow...you can finish them anytime within 1 month fr..."

Got that! I will attempt the DQs.

We could tap on Goodread's list to search for book settings.
Found these for Vienna, Austria.
https://www.goodreads.com/places/1007...

Got that. Thanks for confirming.
I'll just enjoy this one slowly.

Tammie wrote: "Kate, Jax and Elli…looking forward to reading with you!

Elli when I’m in a slump I go to what I love most. Doesn’t necessarily work for everyone though :).."

@Tammie: I've been re-reading Ilona Andrew's Kate Daniels series these days to fight off my slump but it worked too well that I only wanted to read their works for a period of time.

I'm trying to read humor books but with dark humor for a twist. Not sure if it can count for this challenge though.

Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened - it is tagged as a graphic novel & I can't find the word count on arbookfind.

Hello!

I read most genres but my favorite genres are Fantasy & Sci-Fi.

Here's my shelf.

I'm in abit of a reading slump these days so I can't commit more than 1 book per week. But who knows, I might end up reading more due to this challenge. This is my 2nd time participating in Wheels & it's one of the few challenges that I will keep participating every year. :)

21st month in Novel Kingdom (Sep 2023)

08 Sep
★ Rare Gems Completed!
One Rare Book found = +1 XP

18 Sep
• Time for some leveling up! Let's hunt Goblins. My staff, Nibelheim is good enough for 1 hit 1 kill now.
• Goblin killing spree starts... ... ... some time later...
- Killed 44 Goblins at 10 HP each.
- Obtained 44 XP & 44 Goblin Bones.
Elli has level up to 8!

21 Sep
★ The Easter Bilbys
One task completed

30 Sep
★ Kitchen
Spice Rack built

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20th month in Novel Kingdom (Aug 2023)

08 Aug
★ The Sandwich is always Greener on the Other Side
Completed! 12 XP earned!

12 Aug
★ Sir Zee's High Flying Adventure
Completed! 10 gold earned!

23 Aug
★ Lady Shanna and the Case of the Blueberries
Completed! 10 gold earned!

28 Aug
★ Sir Audrey Jane Break-in
Completed! 10 gold earned!

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19th month in Novel Kingdom (Jul 2023)

03 Jul
★ A Fairy Odd Path
Last Fairy Found - Completed

04 Jul
★ Spring Cleaning
2nd book found

23 Jul
★ The Sandwich is always Greener on the Other Side
Task B completed


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18th month in Novel Kingdom (Jun 2023)

01 Jun
★ Spring Cleaning
One book found

29 Jun
★ A Fairy Odd Path
Second Fairy Found


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17th month in Novel Kingdom (May 2023)

16 May
★ Lady Kelly's Missing Quests
Completed!

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16th month in Novel Kingdom (Apr 2023)




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