Preeti’s Comments (group member since Sep 26, 2021)

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

Karen ⊰✿ wrote: "Did make me wonder though.... It has been over 10 years since I read these... were there ever mentions of people running away before the reaping or taking their own life during the games rather than participating?"

I don't think there was any mention in the Hunger Games but it does happen in Ballad (the running, that is) and I believe that the consequences of the event served to deter tributes in future games from trying anything similar.

I recently rewatched the entire original series and have just started on TNG.
Chris Pine is all kinds of awesome but my vote goes to Wiliam Shatner.

The June BOTMs are up in case anybody is thinking of volunteering for DQs (No pressure, only if you want to!)

Starling House by Alix E Harrow - June 2024 Adult BOM (starts 2 Jun)

The Wishing Game by Meg Shaffer - June 2024 Theme BOM - GAMES (starts 16 Jun)

I read the Hunger Games series for the first time in 2011 and read all 3 books in quick succession. These were amongst the very first dystopian novels I ever read and I had not heard of this genre before that. Since then I have read the entire series numerous times and each time I find myself holding my breath at the same places and cheering or mourning for characters the same way the first time they were introduced to me in the books.

Katniss is a character I found most heartbreaking. When I think of how young she was when she had to take over running her family and keeping her mother and sister supplied with food and shelter, I can understand why she became the person she was. I think that the loss of her father affected her deeply and she chose to keep everybody far away so as not to have to deal with that kind of loss ever again. I don't think that she was in love with Gale, more that he was somebody she had allowed herself to get close to and so was a safe place for her.
I must say I definitely preferred the book Katniss to the movie one. I felt that in the book we got a more nuanced character whereas in the movie, she seemed to rotate between precisely 3 emotions, lost, weepy and angry. While I think Jennifer Lawrence is an excellent actress, I think a lot of Katniss's personality got lost during the adaptation.

Yay! Excellent timing, I started reading the book yesterday.

Yay! I got picked for DQs Day 2 for Salt & Broom. I just started reading it so the timing is perfect.

Laura wrote: "Preeti wrote: "Book: The Hunger Games (The Hunger Games #1) by Suzanne Collins
Date Read: May 21
Page Count: 387


Weapon:
Arrow on the cover

Shelter:
Katniss..."

Not yet... I will add them today. Got caught up with some family stuff.

Definitely the Night Manager!

Book: The Hunger Games (The Hunger Games #1) by Suzanne Collins
Date Read: May 21
Page Count: 387


Weapon:
Arrow on the cover

Shelter:
Katniss and Peeta have to find places to shelter and hide from the other tributes and from the elements of the games.

Food:
Pg. 55: Eggs, ham, piles of fried potatoes.

Defense:
Every district has a garrison of Peacekeepers who control the district through a combination of military and law enforcement roles.

Speaking of Mulan, have you by any chance read The Magnolia Sword: A Ballad of Mulan? I read it a while back and was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it.

Claire wrote: "Hi Preeti, my rant is not about retellings. Because I love retellings. There are indeed some really bad ones out there, but also some of my favourite books are retellings.
My issue is with the pub..."

Hi. Sorry, It looks like the last part of my message didn't go through.

I totally agree. I have seen way too many books advertised using other books to pull you in when there is no connection at all in some of them. I wonder why the publishing industry doesn't realise that this method can backfire quite easily and end up with their books only getting negative feedback.
This isn't only with Fantasy/Romantasy books. I have read many books that were influenced by And Then There Were None. Some have been good but many only have the isolated, island setting or that all the characters die in common with the original which irks me immensely.
One of the books I am reading at present has been advertised as "And Then There Were None meets I Know What You Did Last Summer". So far, I find the book quite awful, the plot and the characters are nowhere as good as either of the references. The writing is clunky, the narration (I am listening to the audiobook) is quite bad. I would much rather the author had written something original and not tried to borrow elements from these two.

Claire wrote: "Also, is anyone else tired of the "retelling" marketing with fantasy/romantasy books?
Because the book I just finished is marketed as a Little Red Riding Hood retelling, but to me it needs more tha..."

I have read a lot of retellings and some have been very good, a lot quite awful, with the most tenuous links between the plot and the source material. I continue to read them however because the few good ones I have read made up for the rest.

My vote goes to Jenson Ackles.

Laura wrote: "I think my favorite Georgette Heyer is Sylvester or The Wicked Uncle."

Thanks. Added to my TBR!

MelanieJoy wrote: "Thanks Preeti! I'll put this one on my list! She never disappoints, I'm constantly enjoying her writing. Even the romance novels are really good; often the romance part is in the background, and th..."

Thanks for the recommendation, Melanie! That book sounds like something I will enjoy reading. I have added it to my list.

Laura, I have updated my two completed books and added the food details. I hope what I have added is enough. Also, thanks for catching the shelter part for Roses are Red. I missed it somehow.

MelanieJoy wrote: "Preeti wrote: "Book: The Unfinished Clue by Georgette Heyer
Date Read: May 18


Preeti I love Georgette Heyer! What did you think of this one?"

After putting off reading her books for years because of the romance genre, I was pleasantly surprised to find I rather enjoy Georgette Heyer's books. My cousin adored her books and would constantly recommend them to me. When I finally got around to reading my first one, I found it very well-written and loved her characters. That was The Grand Sophy, btw.
I came across this one in the library of the resort I was staying at. That was when I learnt that GH had also written several mysteries. Having read this one, I have put all her other mystery-thrillers on my TBR.
I enjoyed it tremendously, the characters were well fleshed out, the plot had me hooked from the beginning, and for a change, I couldn't guess who the baddie was until the end. All in all, an excellent book. The blatant anti-semitism and classism which were sadly rampant in many of the books of the time were the only downers.
I am surprised that this was never adapted into a film!

✅ Karl Urban

Laura wrote: "Preeti wrote: "Food:
Lots of food mentioned in the book."

We need specific foods mentioned in the book in order to use a book for that category. Although for this book, Rose petals are edible. And..."

No problem. I will update it in a little while. I will also check my other books to see if they need editing as well.

Book: Roses Are Red by Miranda Rijks
Date Read: May 19
Page Count: 286


Weapon:
Cassie gives Lydia a can of pepper spray to defend herself and this comes in handy later in the book. There are also other items used as weapons including a kitchen knife and a knitting needle.

Shelter:
Red on the cover

Food:
Pg. 240: I open the doors to the big pantry unit and take out my jar of granola, the same breakfast cereal that I eat every morning: a mixture of oats and dried berries that I make myself. After tipping a decent portion into my bowl, I open the fridge and take out some milk and mixed berries. I make myself a mug of mint tea and sit at the table…

Defense:
Lydia is attacked but manages to defend herself using a can of pepper spray and a knitting needle.