Supernatural Fiction Readers discussion
Buddy reads?
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Werner
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Mar 04, 2018 11:52AM
In one of my other Goodreads groups, they do something that might be a good idea for this group as well: they use the term "buddy reads" for what are in effect informal mini common reads, member-initiated, and open to anyone in the group who wants to take part. These usually have more than just two participants; they aren't featured at the top of the group page and there are no whole-group notifications or changes of shelf status for the book involved, but the discussions are carried on using a dedicated thread on the discussion board for each one, rather than by personal message. So, I've created this thread for any proposals along this line that any members of this group might wish to suggest, from time to time!
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I always check buddy read suggestions, and sometimes post for one. I love them!
Latasha wrote: "I always check buddy read suggestions, and sometimes post for one. I love them!"In that case, I'm glad we have this thread now!
It’s a great way to find new authors & books you’ll love.
Agreed! Of course, I've got close to 400 books on my to-read shelf as it is. But, hey, there's always room for a few more.... :-)
Latasha wrote: "I think I have 800 something"Okay, now I don't feel quite as daunted by my total. :-)
I'm going to read or listen to The Boarded Window and The Minister's Black Veil if anyone wants to join me. I love, love, love some Ambrose Bierce! and Hawthorne, too but I prefer his short stories. I'm listening here:https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/t...
#19
https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/t...
#4
I've read "the Minister's Black Veil," and can give it my personal recommendation as an excellent example of Hawthorne's short fiction! (I wouldn't characterize it as supernaturally-themed, though.)
I listened to it this morning. I loved it very much.
Since you liked that story, Latasha, I'd also recommend "Young Goodman Brown" as the best of Hawthorne's supernatural short stories. ("Feathertop" is good, too, but it has a different and more humorous tone.) You've probably already read it, but Mosses from an Old Manse is a great selection of his short fiction, as well as some nonfiction essays.
I actually don’t have a collection of Hawthorne! I know it’s shocking! I’m sure I’ve read that one but I’ll read it again.
Latasha wrote: "I actually don’t have a collection of Hawthorne! I know it’s shocking! I’m sure I’ve read that one but I’ll read it again."Most public libraries will have a Hawthorne collection or two, so fans can have access without actually owning one. So I'm not too severely shocked. :-) (To tell the truth, I don't believe I own any collection of his short fiction, either!)
Many of his books are available as free e-books as well.
I would like to have one of my own. I will one day.
I’m going to read Breath, Eyes, Memory by Edwidge Danticat for Halloween. I’m not sure if it’ll be full on voodoo but I’ll see. If anyone wants to join in reading it with me you’d be very welcome!
Kit wrote: "I’m going to read Breath, Eyes, Memory by Edwidge Danticat for Halloween. I’m not sure if it’ll be full on voodoo but I’ll see. If anyone wants to join in reading it with me you’d be very welcome!"How's your Halloween read going? I read this book close to twenty years ago. I don't remember there being a ton of voodoo in it, but I could be wrong.
Deb: you are absolutely right so far. The only supernatural stuff I’ve got hint of so far can be chalked up to trauma. Still got about half of out to go though.
Ok, I finished Eyes, Breath, Memory. 0 supernatural in it. Just thought I’d clear that up in case anyone in this group thought about it looking for supernatural stuff.
Kit wrote: "Ok, I finished Eyes, Breath, Memory. 0 supernatural in it. Just thought I’d clear that up in case anyone in this group thought about it looking for supernatural stuff."Did you end up liking the book, Kit?
Firstly thanks to Werner who directed me to this thread. Would any of you be interested in a read of my novel, 'The Haunting At Ambleside' Jack O'Neil. A ghost story one Goodreads member commented, 'genuinely managed to creep me out (which is a feat, most horror does not) - reading it in the evenings, I found things clicking on around the house were starting to make me jump!' I would absolutely love some direct feedback to improve my next story and get some discussion going about the nature of ghosts as explored in the book. Free on Kindle Unlimited for those that have it.
In the month of January, would any of you folks be interested in a buddy read of The Hacienda by Isabel Canas? It comes highly recommended by our fellow group member Vavita, who's read it (and who may join in our discussion, if a buddy read happens!); and my interest is piqued for reading it. (We wouldn't have to start exactly on Jan. 1; unlike group reads that are usually tied to calendar months, buddy reads scheduling can be more flexible.)
I would be happy to join a buddy read of the Hacienda. Hill House meets Rebecca sounds interesting,
Jack wrote: "I would be happy to join a buddy read of the Hacienda. Hill House meets Rebecca sounds interesting,"That makes at least of two of us (with at least three joining in the discussion, assuming that Vavita will share her insights)! Is anyone else interested?
I will play it by ear. I can never tell what I want to read until the actual time I decide to crack it open!
Werner wrote: "That makes at least of two of us (with at least three joining in the discussion, assuming that Vavita will share her insights)!"Yes, I will join the discussion!
Kit wrote: "I will play it by ear. I can never tell what I want to read until the actual time I decide to crack it open!"We'll hope it works out for you to join us, Kit!
Vavita wrote: "Yes, I will join the discussion!
That's great, Vavita, glad to hear it!
Back in August (23-28) messages, a few of us kicked around the idea of doing a January buddy read of The Hacienda by Isabel Canas. Jack, are you still game to read this? Is anyone else interested in joining us?I own a copy of the book, so I'm prepared to start right away on Jan. 1 (in fact, that's my preference), if that suits the others who take part. Does that sound like a viable start date?
Werner wrote: "Back in August (23-28) messages, a few of us kicked around the idea of doing a January buddy read of The Hacienda by Isabel Canas. Jack, are you still game to read this? Is anyone else interested i..."I can give it a reread. It is a very good book.
The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas looks good, but it's nearly £10 on kindle.uk at the moment, so I'll have to pass.Ereader.iq tell me it's been £4.49 within the past six months though, so I've asked to be alerted when it comes down in price a bit (and then I'll look at your discussions 😊)
Jean, the fact honestly did not hit me, until I read your post just now, and was about to reply with a suggestion that you try interlibrary loan, that The Hacienda is a very recent book --published just this past May, in fact. :-( As such, it's not going to be easy to get by interlibrary loan; and as I've noted in some places before, in this group we try to pick common reads that are at least a bit older than that, so that members who can't afford to buy the book aren't excluded from taking part.Back in August, my main reason for proposing this book for a buddy read was to reduce the number of suggestions for the 2022 group read. If I hadn't been asleep at the switch (mea culpa!), I would have recognized at the outset that it wouldn't have been a good possibility for the 2022 poll in any case, and should have been dropped from the suggestions on that basis. My apologies!
The difficulty people would have, at the present time, of getting this book without buying it makes it just as problematic for a buddy read as for a group read! So, my suggestion would be to put that idea on the back burner, to be taken up (if at all) at a later time. (Or it could be a viable nominee for our 2023 group read, since by October of next year most libraries should no longer have any restrictions on lending it out.)
Not to worry thanks Werner - I do have peculiar problems anyway ...In the past I would have used interlibrary loan, but now can only read specialist Large Print books, or e-books (where I can enlarge the font). My choice for new-to-me books therefore, is to use the e-book loan facility in my local library.
I'm actually in 3 libraries spread throughout England, all of which are part of different consortiums, involving many libraries. So it's possible for me to do an advance search accessing many libraries before ever applying for interlibrary loan!
In this case though, the book is simply too new (and probably a relatively unknown US publisher here) to have been taken onto any English system as an e-book yet - but when the price is right I could buy it.
Bionic Jean wrote: "Not to worry thanks Werner - I do have peculiar problems anyway ..."Well, one way or another, I'd say there's a good chance we'll read it later! :-)
Is there another possibility for a buddy read since The Hacienda is off the table?
Deb wrote: "Is there another possibility for a buddy read since The Hacienda is off the table?"There are lots of possibilities out there! I won't plan to join in at this time myself, since I need to read two thick review books back to back (and just started the first one today). But others who'd like to join together in a buddy read can certainly get one going.
A supernatural book on my TBR is A Deadly Fortune by Stacie Murphy. If anyone else is interested in this book, it would be fun to buddy read it.
Late last year, we kicked around the idea of doing a January 2023 buddy read of
The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas. We gave up the idea because, at the time, the book was still new enough that it would likely have been hard to get by interlibrary loan. But now, a year later, that's no longer the case! So, would anyone be interested in a January 2024 buddy read of the Canas book? I'd be interested in joining in if anyone else wants to.
I just got a book called The Only Good Indians, byStephen Graham Jones that I was considering for my next read. I also have a couple of Dean Kooning books on myTBR list. Any other suggestions?
Sorry spell check took over. Dean Koontz
Werner wrote: "Late last year, we kicked around the idea of doing a January 2023 buddy read of The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas. We gave up the idea..."Nightraine wrote: "I just got a book called The Only Good Indians, byStephen Graham Jones that I was considering for my next read. I also have a couple of Dean Kooning books on myTBR list. Any other suggestions?"
Ooh! The Hacienda looks intriguing! Count me in.
Nightraine wrote: "Any other suggestions?"Nightraine, check out this thread: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/... . Also, look over our group bookshelves, here: https://www.goodreads.com/group/books... .
Deb wrote: "Ooh! The Hacienda looks intriguing! Count me in."
Great, that will make two of us! For buddy reads, it's good to have at least three people; is anyone else interested?
Hi I'm Cynda. I like to stop by various groups of my GR friends so I can participate in various reads. Now I am interested in reading La Hacienda. I make three. I hope we will have others join in too. Looking forward to January. If/when the group decides on a Halloween read, I will join in if I can get access to a copy. Usually I can.
Cynda wrote: "Now I am interested in reading La Hacienda. I make three. I hope we will have others join in too. Looking forward to January. If/when the group decides on a Halloween read, I will join in if I can get access to a copy."Looking forward to reading the Canas book with you and Deb (and hopefully others too), Cynda! We'll tentatively plan to start around Jan. 1, though we can adjust that closer to the time if we need to.
Ever since 2011, we've done an annual group read in October (the month of Halloween), so that's become something of a group tradition. We typically start brainstorming about what to read in August, on this thread: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/... , and I get a poll up around the beginning of Sept. to actually vote on the nominees. Hope you can join in!
Hi Werner,Back in December when this was mooted before, I said I fancied it but it was too expensive on kindle (comment 31) ... well now it's even worse! (just a penny less than £12!) It's been on my e-reader list ever since then, so if it had come down at all in the meantime, I'd have been notified.
However I'm heartened that we're talking about January 2024, so perhaps there is still time for a special kindle deal 😊 But please don't count me in just yet.
Another group I'm a member of (who only rarely read US or UK books, and never mainstream ones) had Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia as a group read, and some members said that La Hacienda was equally good - and quite similar. It was also a runner-up in a further poll, just as it was here!
The October buddy read is probably out for me, though I may hang round the sidelines and enjoy the posts. But I'll just be starting to lead a chapter-a-day read then; (I have it a bit easier now as my current chapter-a-day read, in another group from that one, is coming to a close *phew*!)
Never say never though ...
Hi Cynda,It's good to see you here! Have you read Mexican Gothic? I know Werner has (great review Werner!) and Deb has an open profile, so I can see that she hasn't entered it, so probably hasn't (?) but I can't see your shelves, or follow you to find out 😥.
I've read What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher everyone, which could also perhaps be described as "fungal fiction", (a definition picked up from Werner's review 😁) I can recommend it!
All of our reads are voluntary, Jean, so no pressure! I totally understand about how responsibilities for group reads in one group can preclude joining in one in another; and I definitely agree that buying an expensive book just for a group read isn't the way to go (at least, for those of us who aren't independently wealthy!). And thanks for the "like" and kind words about my Mexican Gothic review. :-)
I am sorry. New obligations now mean that I will not be able to participate. These things happen. Maybe another time.
Cynda wrote: "I am sorry. New obligations now mean that I will not be able to participate. These things happen. Maybe another time."Thanks for letting us know, Cynda.
Werner wrote: "Nightraine wrote: "Any other suggestions?"Nightraine, check out this thread: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/... . Al..."
Maybe we can mention La Hacienda during our October read. Maybe some of those folks would be interested in a January event.
Supernatural Fiction Readers
Books mentioned in this topic
The Hacienda (other topics)Mexican Gothic (other topics)
What Moves the Dead (other topics)
La hacienda (other topics)
Mexican Gothic (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Isabel Cañas (other topics)Silvia Moreno-Garcia (other topics)
T. Kingfisher (other topics)
Isabel Cañas (other topics)
Isabel Cañas (other topics)
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