Buddy Reads recruitment thread

[Oleksandr]

Rebecca, Kate, if you are both ok with starting Legends & Lattes about June 15th?

[Kateblue]

I will put it on the calendar

[Rebecca]

Me too!

Also, I head this is called "slice of life fantasy" - should be fun!

[Oleksandr]

Great! Remind me closer to the date to setup a buddy read

[Allan]

Rebecca wrote: "Anyone interested in doing a buddy read of Siren Queen by Nghi Vo later this month or early April?"

@Rebecca: Did you ever get this read? I've got it on hold at the library, but it's 6 weeks out. I'll jump in when it's available.

[Rebecca]

Hey, yes I already did, I loved it!

[Kateblue]

I have it on my Kindle all ready to go. In the meantime, I am reading the Frankenstein series by Dean Koontz

[George]

I am about 1/2 way through The Poppy War (R.F. Kuang). Anyone interested in reading or re-reading it? It is pretty darn good so far.

[Oleksandr]

George wrote: "I am about 1/2 way through The Poppy War (R.F. Kuang). Anyone interested in reading or re-reading it? It is pretty darn good so far."

I thought it too depressing with the replaying of the Nanjing massacre

[Kateblue]

I have to say, George, that I liked it until about the halfway point, also . . . but . . .

[George]

Well! Color me curious! I shall plunge onwards.

[George]

Finished it this morning. I enjoyed it, but don't really understand two things. First, two people I trust saw Rin as an anti-hero. Flawed? Yes. But anti-hero. No, she simply never did anything to harm any of the other protagonists in the story. Second, what happened at the halfway point? The Nanjing analog passage was about 5/6 of the way through the story and honestly didn't seem to have much bearing on Rin's trajectory. Now I want to see the 2009 John Rabe film!

[George]

Infinity Gate is up next. I saw the film adaption of 'The Girl with All the Gifts' so I am rolling into this one next.

[Kateblue]

George wrote: "Second, what happened at the halfway point?."

If this is directed at me, I don't know if it was exactly at the halfway point where I became disappointed. I just know I liked the part when she was at school, and thereafter, I thought it went downhill until, by the end, I was really glad it was over.

what is the the 2009 John Rabe film??

[George]

Hi Kate, Yes kind of. You and my daughter both mentioned the "halfway point" as an inflection in the narrative. I agree, there is definitely an alteration in the narrative when the war starts. It did not feel abrupt to me as the plot definitely gave you a sense of 'War is Coming...real soon now."

John Rabe was a German national who lived in Nanjing in 1937. He negotiated a 'safe zone' with the Japanese which saved an estimated 250,000 Chinese civilians from the massacre. After the war, he was persecuted due to his association with the Nazi party. Several films were made about him, the most recent being the 2009 movie. I watched the trailer - it looks like a kind of "Schindler's List" feature with a different, but similar setting.

[Stephen]

I also felt the horrors of war stuff sat uncomfortably with the earlier part of the book.

[Kateblue]

Stephen wrote: "I also felt the horrors of war stuff sat uncomfortably with the earlier part of the book."

Perfect description of my feeling. Also, not encouraged to continue with series

[Rebecca]

Shall we start up a BR thread for A Drop of Corruption for this month?

[Oleksandr]

Rebecca wrote: "Shall we start up a BR thread for A Drop of Corruption for this month?"

Yes, I guess I already made a thread for it

P.S. Here it is https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

[Rebecca]

Thank you!!