June 2016-Group Read #1-The Fireman by Joe Hill

[Jules]

I'm absolutely loving it so far (75% in). Hugely recommended, get it on hold ASAP ;-)

[Pixelina]

I started listening to it on audio now, just 4 hours in out of 22 but I love it. Kate Mulgrew is so good reading this.

I actually like to listen to it, it kinda frees up my eyes to imagine it all in my head. This one will be a film for sure, right?

[Daniel]

Pixelina wrote: "I started listening to it on audio now, just 4 hours in out of 22 but I love it. Kate Mulgrew is so good reading this.

I actually like to listen to it, it kinda frees up my eyes to imagine it all ..."

That's what I've heard. Sounds like there's already a director lined up.

[Josen]

Marc-Antoine wrote: "I'm 26% in, i'm taking my time with this one, enjoying it at a slow pace..."

Oh good.......I'm still at the beginning but everyone else seems to be almost finished. I have a lot of big books this month for different groups so it'll take me longer with this one. Although I'm totally into it so far.

[Jules]

You must read extremely fast Anastacia!

[Josen]

Anastacia wrote: "Just finished it, I'm in the minority since I didn't really like it. It kept me engaged, at least. I finished it in one day."

Wow! One day! Impressive! :)

[Josen]

I realize I'm only 100 pages in, but was nobody annoyed with Jakob? I am! Lol!

[[deleted user]]

Josen wrote: "I realize I'm only 100 pages in, but was nobody annoyed with Jakob? I am! Lol!"

Oh I'm sure everyone is either annoyed with or pities Jakob on some level. Poor man, that ego must be a terrible burden. Currently waiting to see what happens to such a character. *No spoilers please :)*

[Leah]

Jae wrote: "Josen wrote: "I realize I'm only 100 pages in, but was nobody annoyed with Jakob? I am! Lol!"

Oh I'm sure everyone is either annoyed with or pities Jakob on some level. Poor man, that ego must be ..."

When you get there, go back and read the exchange(s) between me and VanillaSky above. We have opinions.

[Kimberly]

Leah wrote: "Jae wrote: "Josen wrote: "I realize I'm only 100 pages in, but was nobody annoyed with Jakob? I am! Lol!"

Oh I'm sure everyone is either annoyed with or pities Jakob on some level. Poor man, that ..."

only 20% into it (had to take a break for a review), but I can't stand the man!

[Leah]

Word! I can't wait to see what you think when you can read my and VanillaSky's thoughts.

[Kimberly]

Leah wrote: "Word! I can't wait to see what you think when you can read my and VanillaSky's thoughts."

I'll make sure I go back to them! :)

[Andrew]

I really think Joe Hill has some talent. I really liked 20th. Century Ghosts and , but with and , he seems to believe the hype that he is the "new" , well, his dad. Even the author picture at back of The Fireman REALLY wants us to be reminded of that. Not yet grasshopper...

[Char]

Andrew wrote: "I really think Joe Hill has some talent. I really liked 20th. Century Ghosts and , but with and , he seems to b..."

I'm not sure about that. Whatever you think about the books is fine, but I think he has done a LOT to stop the comparisons with his father. I don't think people would compare them at all if they did NOT know he was SK's son.
I think Hill has his own, distinct, voice and style.

[Josen]

Leah wrote: "Jae wrote: "Josen wrote: "I realize I'm only 100 pages in, but was nobody annoyed with Jakob? I am! Lol!"

Oh I'm sure everyone is either annoyed with or pities Jakob on some level. Poor man, that ..."

Aaah.......Okay Leah I read the spoilers you guys wrote. (I didn't want to open them before because I hadn't started the book yet :) ) But I do agree with what both of you were saying about Jakob.

[Patrick]

Just got this book as a birthday present so will be starting it after I'm done reading the ritual

[Amanda]

I wish I could just ignore all of my real life responsibilities and focus on this book. I'm loving it so much. I'm at 45%.
I really like Harper. I too love musicals, although I prefer The Sound of Music to Mary Poppins if we're talking Julie Andrews :)
(view spoiler)[ I'm pretty sure Carol is going to turn out to be the one who attacked her dad, in order to gain control of the camp. (hide spoiler)]
And man oh man, do I want Jakob to get whats coming to him!

[Maxine Marsh]

Finished and loved! I think the characters Hill wrote were entirely believable, and the story is solid.

[Jenika]

Stacey wrote: "I listened to Locke & Key and Kate read one of the characters...she is wonderful to listen to."

Great Stacey, I'll look out for the Locke & Key audio. She IS wonderful to listen to, and so good at doing different voices.

Charlene wrote: "Kate Mulgrew also narrated NOS4A2 and she did an exceptional job."

Thanks Charlene - I've now finished The Fireman and I've started the audiobook of NOS4A2 straight away. Am really enjoying it :)

Thanks everyone for the awesome book choice this month and great discussion. I enjoyed The Fireman very much - a very satisfying read. It was my first Joe Hill and I now plan to read all his others!

[Kirstie]

Just finished it and overwhelmed with feelings. Definitely loved it to pieces not sure if it is my favorite Joe Hill book but now may be my favorite apocalypse book.

[VanillaSky]

I finished the book yesterday, and while I enjoyed it most of the time, there yet were enough disappointments. When I wanted a fiery tale of survival, I was getting a blah-blah-blah of banality instead. Or when I was interested in the Dragonscale and in a way of controlling fire, I was drowned in the flood of the politics of Camp Wyndham.
All in all, I liked it and gave the book 4☢.

Leah , I agree with you about Jacob, the change was too radical.

[Kimberly]

27% and still loving it!!

[Ctgt]

VanillaSky wrote: "I finished the book yesterday, and while I enjoyed it most of the time, there yet were enough disappointments. When I wanted a fiery tale of survival, I was getting a blah-blah-blah of banality ins..."

I agree with your overall thoughts on the book, good not great. But I have different thoughts on Jacob,
(view spoiler)[ Comes off as strong but presents this strength through dominance and control, once things go sideways(and things always go sideways) the facade cracks to show very little underneath in the way of true strength. Then the anger, hate and rage appear. The role reversal in their relationship was part of the book I really enjoyed. (hide spoiler)]

[Robert]

Kelly wrote: "Wow, I had no idea this is Stephen King's son!"

The first time you see an author photo, there's absolutely no mistaking it! He is most definitely a chip off the old block appearance-wise. :-)

[Robert]

Charlene wrote: "Happy anniversary, Robert!!"

Thanks, Charlene! It was a fantastic trip. I'm still working my way through the discussion here, because while I did finish the book on the trip, wifi was pretty spotty, and I didn't much feel like spending time on electronics anyway, so I didn't keep up with the discussion.

[Robert]

Charlene wrote: "I'm not sure about that. Whatever you think about the books is fine, but I think he has done a LOT to stop the comparisons with his father. I don't think people would compare them at all if they did NOT know he was SK's son."

The whole reason he chose to write under that name is to distance himself from his dad. I was fortunate to be able to see him in person a few years ago at WHC in Austin, and he said early on he even resisted providing an author photo, because he knew that would be a dead giveaway. He said his lack of talent early on was his best disguise. :-) He is a really interesting guy, and I would love to get the chance to meet him again. Sadly the tour for The Fireman came nowhere near me...

[Robert]

OK, not sure I can sum up my feelings on the book here since I jumped on the discussion after I finished, but I loved it. It sounds like most people loved Harper, and I did to, and found her transformation totally believable, but my favorite character was Allie. (view spoiler)[She was so strong, and yet so fragile because so much of it was a front to cover her grief. To have gone through that much at an age that's difficult to get through under the best of circumstances is amazing. (hide spoiler)] And I agree with Ctgt's take on Jakob - I found it totally believable!

I did find the ending to be a bit of a stretch, but I'm fine with that, because it was satisfying. (view spoiler)[It wasn't totally a "happy" ending, but it was the best you could hope for under the circumstances. (hide spoiler)]. It was nice to be in on a group read again, even if from a distance, since I sort of went in a hole to read. :-) Hopefully I can find breaks in my schedule and get back on track again.

[Jules]

Just finished. A few pacing issues aside, I thought it was a truly spectacular novel. Going to think on things a few days before I write a review :-)

[Patrick]

Just going to start The Fireman now

[Krissy]

I just finished it and it screams old school Stephen King. I found it amazing. The characters grab you and enfold you into there lives from page one. I envy those still reading it.

[Char]

Robert wrote: "OK, not sure I can sum up my feelings on the book here since I jumped on the discussion after I finished, but I loved it. It sounds like most people loved Harper, and I did to, and found her transf..."

I'm glad that you enjoyed it, Robert and I'm glad you you were able to join us this month. :)

[Josen]

VanillaSky wrote: "I finished the book yesterday, and while I enjoyed it most of the time, there yet were enough disappointments. When I wanted a fiery tale of survival, I was getting a blah-blah-blah of banality ins..."

I'm just getting into the "politics" part of it and I was hoping it doesn't drag on. I didn't want to see the book go in that direction.

[Jules]

It really does really read like George Orwell's Animal Farm in places. But personally I found the political aspects to be really engaging. Humans and their behaviours are always so fascinating - seeing a well meaning microcosm descending into fascism does make you ask some difficult questions about us as a species.

[Andrew]

When is the name of the group going to be officially changed to The Joe Hill fan club ?

[Char]

Andrew wrote: "When is the name of the group going to be officially changed to The Joe Hill fan club ?"

Everyone has a right to their opinion and should feel free to express it here. The name of our group will not be changing, so our 11,700 + members need not worry, Hill fans or not.

[Kimberly]

I was up until nearly 4am finishing it last night...... ;)

[Amanda]

Well I just finished on my lunch break. Loved it so much.
(view spoiler)[I was hoping against hope for a happy ending on the island but I knew it would be too good to be true. Still, the ending only broke my heart a little. Losing John was hard but at least the rest of them made it. And I loved the tiny hidden bit at the end. (hide spoiler)]
I really feel like Joe Hill gets better with every book. I loved how long this one was, 700+ pages and I still didn't want it to end. Sign me up for the Joe Hill fan club ;)

[Mary]

Finished it, and enjoyed it, but it wasn't his best. Still, a good read and hard to put down!

[K.N.]

I really loved a number of characters(view spoiler)[, John was probably my favorite, but I loved Allie and Nick and Renee as well, (hide spoiler)] but the story plotting and twists felt too familiar. This is the first time I found myself really comparing the author to his dad, but it was really hard not to. Definitely not my favorite, but I'll still be checking out his future novels.

[Leah]

I finished! But I am on vacation and only have my cell so I can't comment since I can't see the spoilers. *boo* Can't wait to discuss the end. Great book though, super fun.

[Josen]

I think for me when comparing Hill to his dad (now remember this is my first Hill book), I feel like Hill gets to the point. Sometimes with King, as much as I like him, I feel like he puts so much detail sometimes that I phase out. But this book I've been in it the whole time and not once have I gotten bored with it.

[Aden]

I am disheartened by how often I check to see how much is left and wonder what else they could possibly do. This one is dragging for me big time.

[Rob]

I finished this last night, absolutely loved it. Keeps moving and surprising all the time.

Does anyone think that Joe came up with this whole story just so he could (view spoiler)[get that "An old flame" line in? (hide spoiler)]

[Rob]

Aden wrote: "I am disheartened by how often I check to see how much is left and wonder what else they could possibly do. This one is dragging for me big time." That's really odd, I thought the pace was kept up all the way through. just when things seemed to be settling some new development started up.

[Aden]

John wrote: "Aden wrote: "I am disheartened by how often I check to see how much is left and wonder what else they could possibly do. This one is dragging for me big time."

I know what you mean. I took a break..."

I would hate to think that my favorite genre was loosing its luster. but, you may be right. While the disease itself is a fun one the story is largely like all the others.
I do feel like the author used the (view spoiler)[sudden appearance of magic halfway through (hide spoiler)] as a crutch to try to spice things up for the second half of the book.

[Aden]

Rob wrote: "I finished this last night, absolutely loved it. Keeps moving and surprising all the time.

Does anyone think that Joe came up with this whole story just so he could [spoilers removed]"

Yes...yes I do.

[Wayne's]

About 3/4 of the way through and struggling. Odd because I have loved all his other novels. This one seems trite. maybe it is the overdone nature of apocalyptic fiction. I just stopped caring about the characters, all too predictable. Hoping the ending has something original.

[Patrick]

Just finished The Fireman and as Joe Hill's late agent said it's a damn good book

[Kelly]

Leah wrote: "Kelly wrote: "Just finished on a rainy day. Few books leave me feeling like I've been through an emotional roller coaster. This is one of those rare books that left me feeling like I just got dumpe..."

Oh boy. Did I include spoilers? I was trying to be careful but this is my first time joining in a group discussion. Sorry for any spoilers!

[Leah]

Josen wrote: "I think for me when comparing Hill to his dad (now remember this is my first Hill book), I feel like Hill gets to the point. Sometimes with King, as much as I like him, I feel like he puts so much ..."

Agreed. Listening to End of Watch right now and the amount of crazy exposition is making me nuts. Tone it down Uncle Steve! I noticed that Hill definitely takes a technique or two from dear old dad, especially foreshadowing (e.g., "She would talk to him after the mission, but she didn't know that then that would never happen"), but he is of course his own talent and no more derivative than anyone influenced by King.