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A Night in the Lonesome October
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"A Night in the Lonesome October" Daily Read 2021
All the good stuff!Chapters and pages
Page counts for each chapter, and links to each day's notes from 2019.
(view spoiler)
Cover art by James Warhola
High resolution image: https://www.full-wallpaper.com/art/Gl...
Dedication
If you want to know which authors the book is dedicated to, here's the list. You can also choose not to look at it, to keep the suspense, they will surely come up in the discussion on certain days!
(view spoiler)
Treasure Hunt!Cover art
High resolution image: https://www.full-wallpaper.com/art/Gl...
Cover art with numbered characters
The Characters
Can you guess who the characters on the cover are? What or who was the inspiration for each character? Only talk about characters who have been mentioned in the story so far!
The library gods smiled on me and this came available today. So, I'll be reading along. Not sure I can promise to read only one chapter per day/night.
Anna wrote: "[...Trying to find the ebook?If you can't find it on Amazon, ..."
Amazon has it for kindle for $7.19. It came out in April of this year.
Ed, you really should try to read it one chapter per day! I know it's hard, but it's also very rewarding, I feel :)And thanks for the Kindle info! I see there's a horrible new cover :S
<- Don't read the blurb, it's so spoilery!!!
I read it last year and I am doing it again. I just finished 2nd October (I'm in Australia if it is still the 1st where you are!) I love Snuff .
I would seriously question anyone who doesn't love Snuff!
This is my second time reading it and I love Snuff too! And I can’t believe how much of it I’ve forgotten over the past year!
Finished chapter 2 and Jim's notes from previous years. What I strikes me this time that i didn't recall or notice before was Graymalk's reason for telling Snuff about Nightwind. "Perhaps because I am a cat and it amuses me to be arbitrary and do you a good turn."
Having been a cat owner for many years I find arbitrary to be an accurate description of cat's behavior. Arbitrary is defined as based on random choice or personal whim, rather than any reason or system. Cats do things just because they want to. It does not matter if it makes sense or not.
Snuff and the cat are hilarious. You guys are making me want to read this again...
I'm still holding strong and haven't opened the book, but the chattier this thread gets, the harder it will be!
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Join. Us.
Not this year :( Unless next week's new releases jump start my eye-reading, which would be amazing! I have two eye-books I've already started months ago that I should finish, as well as a couple I should've already read, so any eye-reading enthusiasm I can muster should go towards starting/finishing one of those.
I'm reading this again this year, and I'm looking forward to actually be able to read the discussion as it's happening. Last year was my first read, and as I live on the West Coast of the US and read the book at night, I never had a chance to look at the thread between the time I read the chapter and the time spoilers for the next chapter might be posted.
Thank you Anna for setting up the thread and the clear spoiler-free information.I've read the first two days now. AMG - I'm also a fan of books narrated by animals. It allows for so many fun leaps of perspective to fill in the gaps.
Prologue - I loved the polite exchange between the two watchdogs snarling at each other."
"Oh. I don't think he's supposed to be doing that."
"May I see your teeth?"
"Yes. Here. May I see yours?"
"Of course."
"Perhaps it's all right."
Jim's notes are indeed quite thorough. I wasn't aware of the Edgar Allen Poe poem whence comes the title of the book. Nor the tapeworm theory with Rasputin, so I'm sure there will be more references I'd miss out on otherwise.
I already told several friends about this book and its interesting premise. Looking forward to more being revealed in the coming month!
Melissa, tell them to join the fun! Maybe libraries will have the ebook now that it's back on the US market? Yes! I checked Hoopla and it's there! YAY! (For those who have Hoopla.) And on Scribd! Gotta update the starting post again :)Kaa, yay for being able to read the discussion without fear of spoilers!
Also, I'm kind of sad/sorry I didn't ask anyone if they planned to read it this year. Thank you to everyone who asked and/or said they were reading, I wouldn't have started this thread if people hadn't asked! I thought about it in August and decided I wouldn't make a big deal about it this year, and I shouldn't have assumed there was no interest!Since I'm not reading I won't be pushing anyone into guessing anything, I don't remember when exactly everything is revealed. If anyone who is reading for the not-first time wants to take over that part, please do!
I hope I’m putting this in the right place.@Ann, this is my first time reading this book.
I’m enjoying the perspective of Snuff and I think the interaction between him and his cat counterpoint is pretty amusing and on point.
Curious about what’s in the circle.
This is my first time reading the book. I'm trying to read day-by-day, though I'm tempted to go further.It is nice enough so far. I guess that "Jack" is "the ripper", or his ghost, but it is only a guess. I enjoy the discussions between the animals, but I'm annoyed by the conversation between the two dogs where it is hard to figure out which one is speaking each line. Some introductory sentence about which one spoke first would help.
How excellent that we have first time readers who showed up without anyone luring them in! ^_^ Welcome to the Lonesome October club, I hope you enjoy your stay :)
*whispers* If you build it, they will come.
Ellen, I also loved the, "because I'm a cat and it amuses me to be arbitrary" line. Cats are the ultimate Chaotic Neutral characters.
The line, "There should not be debts between our folk." intrigues me. Folk, as in otherworldly beings. I wonder where Snuff was summoned from? I'm trying to think of mythological dogs - Cerberus, hounds from different Celtic or Welsh myths, some sort of hellhound I'm guessing. Ha, I also think of Lirael's Disreputable Dog.
After many years of watching this happen in various groups I think I might finally do it this year. Sucked me in (also on hoopla)
My first thought with Snuff was Hound of the Baskerville for some reason
Ah. Yes, Rachel I think you're probably right. Tis a crime I haven't read it yet. I should make time to fit that one in this month as well.
Woohoo Rachel! :DMelissa, you almost made me choke on my coffee :P
Ed wrote: "This is my first time reading the book. I'm trying to read day-by-day, though I'm tempted to go further.It is nice enough so far. I guess that "Jack" is "the ripper", or his ghost, but it is only..."
Ed if you haven't already check out Jim's notes from the 2019 group read. Anna has the links posted in message #2 under chapters and pages. I've been rereading along with my daily chapter. they are pretty interesting.
I think you all have such interesting insights. For me, it feels very juvenile for now. Still, a fun October read. So far, a dog, a cat, a snake, an owl and a bat. I have to keep flipping back and forth to keep them all straight.
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October 3I also like the lighter tone provided by Snuff's perspective, removed from the gruesome goings-on.
Curious as to what this competition entails.
The ingredients appear to include mandrake root, gathered at he place of "a killing by somebody else." But the grave digging and the hunting hints at human body parts, perhaps, a la Frankenstein?
Actually, scrap that. New theory!
Turns out, the competition is actually for the best amateur West End musical production - they live in Soho, after all! The grave bones are for percussion, the "hunt" was head-hunting for talent, and obviously the Mandrake is the lead singer.
I hope it is a musical!
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Especially the animal choreography!I've got my costume on already!
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Well, you can see my costume in my profile pic.
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And the silken sad uncertain rustling of each purple curtain(Yes, my cape is made from old curtains. Deal with it.)
Will thrill thee — fill thee with fantastic terrors never felt before....
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Snuff's Theme: "I'm a Good Dog."
Graymaulk: "I'm Just Curious."
(each animal can get and "I'm Just..."Theme
Things Theme: "Up Your Hound" (This of course demands a kickline and chorus.)
*I apologize for my over-active imagination, kind of.*
Melanie wrote: "Theme Song: "Are You and Opener or a Closer" (will get several reprises) ..."A.B.C.
Always be closing!
Snuff and Graymalk both get yowling parts in the chorus, Nightwind and Needle are in charge of lighting. Quicklime is quite put out that it has to double as a prop or wardrobe accessory, but Rastov insists that the Ouroboros belt is just the thing to put them over the top for the production design award.
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I'm not sure if I'm awake or still dreaming. I had super weird dreams last night, this fits right in! :DWhat the heck, I'll just tell you. There was some kind of machine where you'd put in a picture, and it'd animate it and show it on a large screen. I wanted to show a giraffe, but I didn't notice that someone had left a picture of a snake in the machine. So when I added the giraffe, it combined the two, and there was a giant screen showing a snake with a giraffe head slithering in an upright position, sort of on its tail. And when I say giraffe head, that includes the neck, combined with all of the snake except the head. I woke up laughing aloud :D
Please go back to planning Lonesome October the Musical :)
I really want to see this musical.
LOL on the musical planning. Finished chapter 4.
Calling a dog "a son of a bitch" is not an insult. It's truth.
Cheeter's master gathering mistletoe with a scythe. Did some reading up on mistletoe.
The mythologies surrounding it( mistletoe ) relate to the plant’s perceived magical properties, whether protecting against witchcraft and injury or as a general good omen. Gallic Druids believed mistletoe’s power was enhanced when found growing in oak trees but only if the plant didn’t touch the ground once cut, or else the magic would be lost.
This thread is why I love this group.
Liane wrote: "This thread is why I love this group."I second this statement.
They are still out gathering ingredients. I assume these are spices for the pumpkin pie. This is, after all, decorative gourd season. Back when this was written, you couldn't buy pre-mixed pumpkin pie spice mix.
Pumpkin pie and a production of Thriller, perhaps? Or Sweeney Todd? Are they trying to decide who will be the lead and the cast keeps growing?Agreed, the light hearted tone of Snuff really helps keep the story interesting and not gruesome. And this thread has made reading this chapter something I look forward to each morning.
October 4Gathering mistletoe - could it be for a Christmas musical? The bottled starlight is clearly for special effects. Trying to figure out what the Things roles are - perhaps prima donnas who are out to steal the show and have to be kept in check?
"My day will come."
"It's not today."
*shrug* Checks out.
October 5
The hunched man raiding graveyard for the Good Doctor...
Methinks some tap dancing practice may be in order.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ab7Ny...
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SciFi and Fantasy Book Club
Books mentioned in this topic
Winter Tide (other topics)The Canterville Ghost (other topics)
Lirael (other topics)
A Night in the Lonesome October (other topics)
A Night in the Lonesome October (other topics)
Authors mentioned in this topic
Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (other topics)Edgar Allan Poe (other topics)
Bram Stoker (other topics)
Arthur Conan Doyle (other topics)
H.P. Lovecraft (other topics)
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October 2021 Daily Read
Previous years: Daily Read 2019 / Daily Read 2020
Official discussions: First Impressions *no spoilers* / Final Thoughts *spoilers*
Do not look at the blurb of any other edition except the linked/default one, because they contain massive spoilers. If you've already read it, please don't spill the beans!
We will be reading one chapter per day, since there are 31 chapters, one for each day in October.
Please wait until Goodreads time rolls around to a particular day before posting about it. No spoiler tags needed. If you're rereading and want to speculate about something spoilery, please head on over to the spoiler thread!
How spoilers work in this thread: After it's October 1st in the Goodreads time zone, you can post open spoilers about the October 1st chapter. If it's already October 2nd in the GR time zone, and you haven't read the October 2nd chapter yet, don't read new posts that pop up. No spoiler tags needed, but never post about a chapter that's still in the future.
About reading the 2019/2020 threads: If you want to read the discussions from the older threads, you can safely start reading from the beginning. Stop when you get to September 30th if you haven't read the prologue yet. Please note: Do not open the spoiler tags in msg #3 of either thread! Instead look at msg #3 of this thread, the one you're in now :)
The system is the same as this year. Open spoilers allowed after midnight Goodreads time. So you can safely read all comments with the date October 1st once you've read chapter 1, and so on.
Jim's notes: The "Chapters and pages" section in message #2 of this thread lists how many pages each chapter is, and links to Jim's notes for that day from 2019. Jim has read this book several times, and he has excellent notes on each day's happenings. There are no spoilers for things to come, just what has happened up to that point. You should definitely read the notes after reading each day's chapter! The notes were posted the day after, so if you don't want spoilers, only read the notes post, because the very next one might already discuss the next day's chapter!
Trying to find the ebook?
If you can't find it on Amazon, check Apple Books (iBooks) or Kobo! Look for the first cover. The 2021 new Kindle edition (don't read the blurb, it's so spoilery!) with the second cover is on Hoopla, Scribd and Storytel:
Happy October! :)