Judith’s Comments (group member since Apr 15, 2015)

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

It happened a lot to me last year with either Wheel-a-thon or TT. I don't remember which one but I couldn't participate in most of the BOMs during the challenge because of the 6 month rule.

Brown cover is fine too! Thought I’d toss some other options out there in case someone needed an idea :)

DQ Day 5
Chapters 31-37

22. The band choose to land to search for Matrick and eventually find Matrick, Larkspur and a Witch Doctor. Did this surprise you?
Finding them and both alive? No, not surprised. It did happen much faster than I anticipated and the Witch Doctor was a fun bit of unexpectedness as well.

23. Larkspur in her fall has lost her memory and now goes by the name Sabitha. After her drug induced sleep she recounts her dreams to Clay of snippets from her past. Does this put her actions in a different light? When she recovers her memory do you think she will revert back to her how she was before the fall?
Most people don't just become who they are there are reasons for it but it does help us as readers develop some sympathy for her. I do hope she recovers her memories but maybe she'll remember the new experiences too so she'll be a little bit of old and new?

24. We meet Gregory and Dane during our visit to the Cannibals. What are your thoughts on how Gregory describes events to Dane?
I think everyone can use a Gregory in their life.

25. I’m loving the magic bag in this section. What meal would you have it magically produce?
Hmm. Childhood favorites my grandmothers use to make that just don't taste the same made by someone else. Honestly that hat would be my favorite gift of all time. Meals on demand with out all the cooking time and cleanup.

26. It seems there is a cure for Rot. How do you think this will effect Moog in the long term?
Maybe find away to easily distribute the cure to those who need it? It sounds like the cure isn't know outside of creatures who live in the Heartswyld.

If someone is planning to read Kings of the Wyld and is looking for where it might go Winners Tower moonstone is an option and Thundercats.

Moonstone is in the text a few times including page 292 “and a moonstone bust of some long forgotten . . .”

Heroes have named weapons like Lionel from Thundercats

Sammy wrote: "Eldarwen wrote: "Suzanne wrote: "I LOVED that Clay threw Kel overboard. I hated that guy and he for sure would have done everything he threatened and more."

Same!!"

You can put me on team plummet..."

Same. We should all be thanking Clay for taking out the trash.

DQ Day 4
Chapters 22-30

16. The Maxithon, now that was an adventure. Was this what you were expecting was going to happen? What did you make of the fight?
I figured it was going to be a set up with an impossible foe so that part was expected. But it certainly didn't end like I was expecting. It was a good read though!

17. We meet yet another one of the old bands - what did you make of Vanguard? They seem a little friendlier at least than Raff's band. Did you expect them to say no? Or would you have thought they'd team up with Saga?
I didn't expect them to join but I'm glad Saga finally caught a decent break and had some actual help from people.

18. Saga seems to have had a rather large amount of unfortunate bards. I can't help but wonder what they're going to lead Kit into, or do you think that maybe Kit will truly be the first ever bard of the band who will actually survive the adventure? Kit is supposedly unkillable after all, so maybe they're going to be lucky? What are your predictions on Kit's life expectancy as bard of Saga?
Well, he's sort of already dead so better than most faired I guess? I'm not sure how you kill a revenant.

19. Are you enjoying the writing style of the book? What about the story in general?
I'm finding the whole read to be a fun one and while there are some dark themes in the book, it's not a dark read. Which can make reading books in this genre a bit hard.

20. The Heartwyld beckons! We are going to get a closer glimpse at this mysterious forest. What are your expectations?
That it's going to try and eat all of them. I'm dying to see what Moog pulls out of his hat (literally)

21. Oh my word, someone went overboard! Over the forest! With the daeva no less. Makes me wonder if the band will be intact for much longer. Or could the daeva potentially not have killed Matrick, or intend to take him back to Lilith so she can kill her beloved husband herself? There was this one moment where it looked as though the daeva may let them be, seeing that they're on their way to rescue someone's daughter, so a noble feat in a world that seems to have kicked Larkspur all her life. Maybe? Yes? No? Am I alone in thinking something like this?
Matty isn't dead, somehow I think the whole band will make it to Castia. They all might not be alive by the end. But I think they'll all make it there!

DQ Day 3
Chapters 16-21


11. The fight with Raff's old band (who looked like clowns) that ended with snakes is one of the first times we see the almost full band working together. What did you think of this scene? Did you like the action or was it confusing?
The action was fine but I've read a lot of epic/high fantasy so fight scenes also have a bit of chaos to them. Otherwise it's not really a fight. It was weird though.

12. So the hoarder kobolds - I thought they were great! And the bird-like creatures pulling the carriage. Do you have a favorite creature you've seen so far, or one you'd like to see? Tell why.
I thought the spin on the kobolds was neat usually they are almost throw away minor monsters. The wyvern probably thought the color changing carriage birds were cool. But Tassel Farm Moose for the win.

13. I think in the last half of this section we really start understanding what a big deal the Kings of Wyld really were. And we get to compare them to the Screaming Eagles. What do you think about the ethics and popularity of the new bands that kill captive monsters in arenas?
I don't think anything ever compares to the originals. The captive monsters almost seem like those hunting farms where you are able to 'hunt' exotic animals. Except maybe a little more fair because the arena animals have a slightly higher percent chance of eating at least on member of the band.

14. Lastleaf gave his (and the hordes') motivations for conquest. Do you think his reasons were valid, or is he just evil? Do you feel at all sorry for the monsters?
His anger is understandable but his choices still make him a not very nice person. I do feel sorry for the monsters who were just trying to live their lives and mind their own business. It's pretty much what the Europeans did to every native population they encountered.

15. We all picked our favorite character in day 1 questions. Has yours changed since then?
Clay is still my favorite and his humor meshes well with mine. But I'm fond of the whole band by this point.

Tricia wrote: "some questions :)

Is the mini challenge once per month or do we just accomplish it once over the 3 months?

How do you decide which challenge prompt to use each title for?

Will you be moving t..."

See my responses in bold below

Is the mini challenge once per month or do we just accomplish it once over the 3 months?
I don't want to reveal what may or may not becoming because I only know those things since I'm a mod and not just a regular ole captain. But I would say don't be surprised if something new pops up at some point.
That being said, this mini challenge ballooned to a lot of tasks so the mods decided to let the teams chip away at it for the full length of the challenge.
That may not always be the case if something else pops up. However, we (as mods) will make that very clear in the rules. And the other we (team captains) will post reminders, etc to make sure people know about deadlines for getting specific books done.

How do you decide which challenge prompt to use each title for?
Hmm. Well if a book works for a 'harder' task I tend to put it there. By harder I mean more specific task where a random book is less likely to fit. For example, let's say you read a book that takes place in Egypt. I would use it for the Winners Tower connecting it to Anubis instead of for a letter in the spell out. Because it's more likely a team member will read a book randomly that works for a letter we need than what could connect to Anubis.

Will you be moving titles around as we finish books?
Captains may move books around on the mini. This is likely to happen more later when there are fewer options and we are trying to get books to fit. There is no wrong spot to fit a book but also don't worry if one of the captains moves it. Honestly the captains are going to be playing book tetris throughout the challenge.

Or are they done once filled? For example, should I still be comparing books with the mods who have already been fulfilled and putting them as options in the spreadsheet? Or only worry about the spots that are still open?
I would only worry about open spots on the mini challenges. The exception being to mark a cover color on the spreadsheet and listing letters the book works for in spell outs. These are the easiest places for us to move books around so knowing the options is helpful if we are trying to get new books to fit down the road. But for the mod tower and winner tower, once those are done I don't see us messing with them at all. It's easier to juggle the spellings.

I read multiple books at a time and then tend to finish them all pretty close to the same time. Should I wait to finish them before adding them to the spreadsheet or do you like to know what's coming?
Whatever is easiest for you is fine with me. The only time I think it's a really good idea to let the team know you have a book that works for a task is if the task is very specific. We don't have any of those right now but sometimes there are tasks like "read a book with a bird and a cat on the cover". I think it's helpful for the team to know that task is covered. Sometimes the only reason people are reading the book is for the task, so it's good to know if someone's working on a book for a task in that instance. But we don't have tasks like that right now.
Hopefully that makes sense!

Jamie wrote: "Ok, I finished my first book, have it on my goodreads shelf and added to the tracking sheet, if I missed anything or messed up, let me know. So I can fix it and do it right next time. :)"

Everything was fine!

Michelle,

When you get a chance can you mark Death of a Maid as read with a date? It's still showing as being on your currently reading shelf. Likely GR being special.

Thank you!

It’s a great series!

Bobbi wrote: "Question: I won an ARC of The Deep Sky in the giveaways. The ARC does not have a working ISBN (I tried the one on the book and it doesn't pop up) but obviously (above) the book itse..."

ARCs are fine as long as they are on GRs

Brittany,

when you get a chance can you add Of Beasts and Beauty to your TT shelf?

Thank you!

DQ Day 2
Chapters 9 - 15

6. We meet the 3rd member of the band, the wizard Moog. What are your impressions of the wizard? Were you as surprised as Clay that he agreed to go right away?
That his life (at least recently) has been fueled by grief and loneliness. No, I wasn't surprised especially after it was revealed he had the rot. It's his last chance at a big adventure and his best friends are looking for help. Of course he's going! :)

7. That was some entrance to the palace, don't you think? What were your first impressions of Matrick? Were you surprised by the turn of events in chapter 11? Excited or worried when Moog announces that he had a plan?
The palace adventure was. . . interesting and quite entertaining. And it goes to show you never really know what's going on behind closed doors. Moog strikes me as that friend whose ideas either save the day or cause everything to explode in a spectacular way. So if you hang with him, make sure your affairs are in order first.

8. After several descriptions sprinkled throughout the story thus far, we finally meet a druin. What do you think his plan is? Why does he really want the Council to stand down?
I agree that he wants his father's sword back. But as for standing down, I think he'd got some other plan in mind I just think we are missing some important information. Like maybe he needs those warriors for something else and doesn't want them 'wasted' on trying to break the siege?

9. Were you surprised at how Lillian arranged the funeral? What did you think of Clay's contribution? How successful would you rate Moog's plan?
This whole thing was kind of hilarious and I can only imagine their panic when they realized the plan to light the boat on fire. Well, the right people still think Matty is dead and they are all able to walk away so, 10/10?

10. Gabriel borrows Moog's crystal ball to check on his daughter. Were you surprised at what he saw? What did you think of the band's reaction?
I was a little surprised at what was shown but I knew it wouldn't be good. The band's reaction didn't surprise me, they know she's still alive so of course they are going to try and save her.

DQs Day 1
Ch 1 to CH 8

1.) What do you think of the premise of the book, like an aging rock band getting back together to go on tour but an adventuring band instead? Is the author pulling it off so far?
I think it's a great premise and one of the reasons I added to my tbr when Sammy recommended to me. I think he's pulling it off so far, I'm not going to dwell on it for analysis but as an inspiration to work from loosely, I think it's great!

2.) The rocks, may of hit me a bit in the feels. Did it affect your opinion of Gabe at all?
I felt it was a peak behind the curtain he doesn't often allow. Like others, I feel it helped make him a more real, relatable character instead of this goofy buffoon that gets his friends in trouble with his dumb ideas.

3.) How do you like the world building, is it being done effectively for you without major info dumping? Is it helping to set the stage for the story?
I think the world building is happening organically and not in a horrible info dump. I wish more authors would take the time to figure this out. There is still a lot to learn about the world and I have many questions which will hopefully be answered at some point.

4.) What did you think about the parade? Did anyone else enjoy Clay's reaction to the ladies being whistled at and be disappointed when the lady blew a kiss back instead of skewering the guy (like Clay expected to happen)?
When we were in Clay's head and he was like 'uh-oh' or whatever and was gob smacked and at her response, it made me like him even more. I'm with Cat on this one it was a bit disappointing the lady embraced it but I also think it means they are show pieces and not real adventurers who can swing a sword effectively.

5.) Do you have a favorite character so far?
Clay, he's hilarious. Love his family too. And I love he's totally cool with his wife making 5x what he does. For someone in his line of work, I don't think that's a common thing.


Bonus: Taking a poll for a very important question. On the Tassel Farm: Centaur or Moose?
I'm on Team Moose but I agree with Deanna that Centaur would be more interesting. I also agree with Clay though a moose could kill you just as easily as the centaur.
It's hard to appreciate just how big a moose is if you've never seen one in person.

DQs Day 1
Ch 1 to CH 8

1.) What do you think of the premise of the book, like an aging rock band getting back together to go on tour but an adventuring band instead? Is the author pulling it off so far?

2.) The rocks, may of hit me a bit in the feels. Did it affect your opinion of Gabe at all?

3.) How do you like the world building, is it being done effectively for you without major info dumping? Is it helping to set the stage for the story?

4.) What did you think about the parade? Did anyone else enjoy Clay's reaction to the ladies being whistled at and be disappointed when the lady blew a kiss back instead of skewering the guy (like Clay expected to happen)?

5.) Do you have a favorite character so far?


Bonus: Taking a poll for a very important question. On the Tassel Farm: Centaur or Moose?

Laura..devouring books like crumpets wrote: "first book done!!! was a 200 pager but i do love the six pack ranch boys!!!!

im trying to get a fair bit of reading in now as my family will be staying with me for a month from the 16th and it al..."

Yay! I saw in the spreadsheet 2 of you already have one book down. Which is a great way to start ;)

Note on the colors. I'd accept light for a bright.

So I'd accept this as bright pink:

Don't overthink the colors and if you aren't sure, post here in the thread.

Tricia wrote: "I'm so excited! I finished two of three books yesterday to be able to start some fresh today. What do we do now?

I'm guessing we have to tag the books we're reading with our TT shelf, right? Anyt..."

Yes, you tag/add the book to your TT shelf. Once you've read the book you can just add a read date to the spreadsheet.

If you really enjoyed the book (or even if you hated it and wanted to warn others!) you can post about it in the thread as a recommendation to the rest of the team.

I don't ask people to do completion posts because that can get a bit tedious and clog up the team thread. And if you've already put it in the tracking spreadsheet, there's no need to provide it twice.

That being said if
1) you aren't comfortable with spreadsheets
2) you have access issues (vacations, etc)
3) confused with how to enter things in the spreadsheet

people can certainly put the info in the thread and one of the captains can add it to the spreadsheet for them.

Bobbi wrote: "Quick clarification for our captains:

I know we may only use books started today on. I have a book that I only got 28/956 pages into. If I reread the 28 pages starting today and continuing from th..."

as long as you restart that's fine and if you haven't read any of it since Oct 2022 you're fine anyway since it's been longer than 6 months.