October First Book in A Series BOTM - Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor

[Dr. Andy]

The dream chooses the dreamer, not the other way around—and Lazlo Strange, war orphan and junior librarian, has always feared that his dream chose poorly. Since he was five years old he’s been obsessed with the mythic lost city of Weep, but it would take someone bolder than he to cross half the world in search of it. Then a stunning opportunity presents itself, in the person of a hero called the Godslayer and a band of legendary warriors, and he has to seize his chance or lose his dream forever.

What happened in Weep two hundred years ago to cut it off from the rest of the world? What exactly did the Godslayer slay that went by the name of god? And what is the mysterious problem he now seeks help in solving?

The answers await in Weep, but so do more mysteries—including the blue-skinned goddess who appears in Lazlo’s dreams. How did he dream her before he knew she existed? And if all the gods are dead, why does she seem so real?

Welcome to Weep.

[C.P.]

I've been wanting to read this. I might check and see if I can get the audio. Steve West narrated it and I loved his narration in The Scorpio Races, so I really want to try something else he has done.

[C.P.]

I was able to get the audio of this yesterday, so I will try to get started with it today. Excited to give it a try.

[Dr. Andy]

If I can get to it, I'll reread this since I want to read book 2!

[Jennifer]

Ch 11 (end of part 1) - (view spoiler)[ I'm so glad Lazlo spoke up for himself! Now he can have a little adventure in his life. Too bad that Thyon will be joining him; I'm sure he will find another opportunity to take advantage of poor Lazlo. (hide spoiler)]

[Nicole]

End of Chapter 4 (view spoiler)[ I find it very interesting that Thyon's hair was cut and made into a necklace for the queen to wear and it started a trend....That is interesting and so weird. (hide spoiler)]

[Nicole]

End of Chapter 15 (view spoiler)[ All this stuff with Seraphim, demons, Ijji. It is getting confusing (hide spoiler)]

[Nicole]

End of Chapter 31 (view spoiler)[ I am not fond of a chapter switching so much going from Sarai to Sparrow......then we have Feral. It just needs to stick with one person per chapter (hide spoiler)]

[Nicole]

End of Chapter 61 (view spoiler)[ Not gonna like all this about moths reminds me of the light and moth thing going around Facebook (hide spoiler)]

[Jennifer]

Ch 22 (end of Part 2) - (view spoiler)[ Well, now they are all in the same town and I guess, about to face off against each other. I'm still trying to reconcile the Godslayer-the hero vs. Godslayer-the killer of children. I also wonder what will happen when Lazlo finds out about this dark side. Thyon didn't play much of a role in this section of the book, which seemed strange...I wonder what he will be up to in the coming part. (hide spoiler)]

[Dr. Andy]

Jennifer wrote: "Ch 11 (end of part 1) - [spoilers removed]"

(view spoiler)[I'm so glad he did too! Out of everyone, Lazlo deserved to go with the Tizarkane the most! (hide spoiler)]

[Dr. Andy]

Nicole wrote: "End of Chapter 31 [spoilers removed]"

I haven't had a problem with it

[Dr. Andy]

Jennifer wrote: "
Ch 22 (end of Part 2) - [spoilers removed]"

(view spoiler)[ It's definitely hard to balance the two roles he had in the tragedy. Clearly it has had adverse health effects for Eril Fane. There's been so much violence between godspawn and humans, I wonder if they'll be able to reconcile at all. (view spoiler)[ (hide spoiler)] (hide spoiler)]

[Dr. Andy]

I listened to the audiobook this time and I think it took away some of my enjoyment. I still absolutely love this story but I was as connected and I think it's because of listening to it/being kinda distracted by everything I have going on in my life. I can't wait to finally get into Muse of Nightmares!

[Dr. Andy]

Here's my thoughts about the characters
Lazlo: (view spoiler)[ Oh my sweet precious boy! Who is also a godspawn. I definitely saw the signs for it this time through, but it was still such a great reveal. I hope he doesn't cave to Minah's wishes. There has to be another way to save Sarai, maybe something to do with the white bird. (hide spoiler)]

Minah (view spoiler)[ I hated this bitch from the moment she walked on the page and I still hate her hateful guts. I wish she had fallen off the Citadel (hide spoiler)]

Sarai(view spoiler)[ She definitely had a more interesting internal struggle as the Muse of Nightmares. I liked seeing her come to the realization that she didn't want to harm the humans anymore and that she believed what Minah was doing was wrong. (hide spoiler)]

The godspawn (in general) (view spoiler)[ So the gods essenitally had a godspawn breeding program going on and then they dispersed their children throughout the world. I wonder if we'll see more of the godspawn appear next? What kinds of abilities will they have? Will they be more bitter like Minah or feel more like Lazlo or Sarai? (hide spoiler)]

[Jennifer]

Ch 39 (end of Part 3) - (view spoiler)[ Well, Sarai did try to warn Lazlo. Now he will begin to understand that the girl in his dreams is real, right? I wonder what will happen with Eril Fane - he seems really conflicted and I hope I am right about that. If he ends up just wanting to kill everyone, I will be disappointed in his character. (hide spoiler)]
Finished - WOW!! What an ending! (view spoiler)[ I really hate Minah! I'm wondering though, if they manage to get rid of her, will Sarai unravel again and vanish? Poor Lazlo and Sarai.

I am so bummed that I don't have time for the sequel at the moment! I am dying to know what happens. Will Thyon somehow play a role in solving the new problem of Minah? I expected him to be more important somehow - perhaps it happens in book 2. Will Lazlo find a way to fly them away from the town to spare Eril Fane and the village from Minah's wrath? Will they find the other godspawn that have been hidden away over the years? Will one of them have the ability to put Sarai back in a body? AHHHH, I need to read the sequel!! (hide spoiler)]

[Jennifer]

Andrea wrote: "Here's my thoughts about the characters
Lazlo: [spoilers removed]

Minah [spoilers removed]

Sarai[spoilers removed]

The godspawn (in general) [spoilers removed]"

Lazlo: (view spoiler)[ I agree, the signs were there to let us see what was going to happen, but the reveal was still so dramatic. And yes, the white bird has to be important! I have a theory that she is the secret keeper goddess. (hide spoiler)]

Minah: Yep, I hate her too! (view spoiler)[ There has to be a way for them to get rid of her but still keep Sarai's ghost. (hide spoiler)]

Sarai: (view spoiler)[ Honestly, I am shocked the author killed her. I thought for sure that the one that fell off the building was going to be Sparrow. It would have made everyone feel pretty guilty especially Ruby and Feral, but it might have also brought Minah and Sarai to some sort of compromise once they lost someone. Oh well, didn't happen that way. (hide spoiler)]

Godspawn - (view spoiler)[ Yes, it does raise some interesting questions - why did they need a breeding program? And where are all the other spawn? Also, if this group of gods was cold and harsh, are there gods that are nice out there? And if there are other gods in a different world/whatever, why didn't they come to Weep to retrieve the citadel when the stream of children stopped? Ah, so many questions! (hide spoiler)]

[Patty]

Anyone else still on this? Just started at lunch today!

[Patty]

Andrea wrote: "I listened to the audiobook this time and I think it took away some of my enjoyment. I still absolutely love this story but I was as connected and I think it's because of listening to it/being kind..."
Agreeing that audio is hard to keep focus on this one. But am trying my best to focus and not tune of some of the harder to imagine stuff.

[Patty]

Chapter 17...

Right now I feel most interested in Sarai and Sparrow. But am having a hard time keeping track of the plot. I guess I'm just supposed to learn about the characters right now.

Sarai's (view spoiler)[nightmare powers seem so cool... is there going to be some dream inception going on? (hide spoiler)]

And so far Lazlo (view spoiler)[is still just a smart helpful librarian right? Or is being a dreamer a power... Interesting they were mentioning how long it took for Sarai to find her powers.
(hide spoiler)]

[Patty]

70%...
(view spoiler)[I think my favorite part is Sarai visiting Lazlo's dreams... and how cute Lazlo is by wanting to make her feel welcome. Like her gift is "nightmares" and he is excited to see her hahaha!

I had some trouble understanding Weep and the reality/mystical/magical atmosphere. It was hard on audio to keep track of the history. I think I should have gotten the ebook to really enjoy it.

(hide spoiler)]

Ending:
(view spoiler)[
First of all, KNEW Lazlo was going to get some powers. I mean he can't be left out.

I thought the ending was interesting. I'm shocked Sarai has been killed... but there is a chance Lazlo could still save her ghost. Does that mean she will be a character in the next book? Can she come back to life? Or just be a ghost friend?

....Having to submit to Minya is going to be crazy though.
(hide spoiler)]

[Alaina]

Diving into this book for the third time :D I'm so excited since I'm listening to the audio this time instead of reading the physical!
Part 1: (view spoiler)[I love Lazlo so freaking much. I'm proud of him for sticking to his guns and finally speaking out. I am pumped to see where this adventure of his will take him (again)! (hide spoiler)]

[Alaina]

Part 2: (view spoiler)[The whole godspawn has been interesting to hear about. I wonder where Thyon is and I feel bad for Sarai. I don't really get nightmares but it would suck to constantly get them. I wonder why her body is starting to reject the medicine thing she takes before going to sleep. I also hate her sister - she seems like a twat. (hide spoiler)]

[Alaina]

Part 3: (view spoiler)[OH SHITTAKE MUSHROOMS - SHE'S ALIVE?? ALERT THE GOD DAMN MEDIA GUYS! (hide spoiler)]

[Alaina]

100%: (view spoiler)[...and oh my freaking god - I still can't believe any of this shit went down. I'm happy that Lazlo had some freaking powers though. I still hate Minah and wish she would've died and not Sarai! (hide spoiler)]