Rated YA-MA discussion
Historical Fiction
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The Diviners by Libba Bray (Group Read January 2016)
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Stacia (the 2010 club), groupaholic, YA-MA founder
(last edited Jan 17, 2014 11:33AM)
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Comments 1 through 14 are for the Gemma Doyle trilogy before Diviners was added to the topicThese are more of a fantasy bent historical fiction. I enjoyed the trilogy, but I know it's not for everyone. The first book takes a bit to get into, but books 2 and 3 were interesting as we learned more about the alternate realm that separates the living and the dead. The way that book 3 was wrapped up had me sort of laughing, but I know some others were not as taken with it as I was!
I just finished reading A Great and Terrible Beauty tonight. I enjoyed it! Yes, it did take me a bit to get into, but it was interesting. What did you think about how Bray wrote the friendships between the four girls? From reading some reviews here, it seems like a lot of people felt that the shallow friendships weren't believable, but I really related to that. I feel like everyone has probably had at least one friendship based on convenience... I thought it was fairly realistic. I'm waiting for someone to return Rebel Angels to the library :)
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Stacia (the 2010 club), groupaholic, YA-MA founder
(last edited Sep 11, 2011 11:00PM)
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AGATB took a while for me to get into as well because of the India to boarding school transition. I wasn't sure where the author was trying to take us at first. Given the time period, I felt the relationships were very realistic. Girls were groomed to find their husbands, and having a prestigious position and reputation could potentially be everything in a young girl's life. A big part of that era for society girls was about going through a "season" or "coming out" and trying to land a man. If they didn't manage to hook someone, they might be stuck in a job of service, which was seen as undesirable. Pretty much, you were screwed and most likely would become an old maid if you didn't find an eligible husband by a certain age.
I could give a similar argument for other series, such as The Luxe. Shallow characters do not always equate to a shallow story. Often, as the layers begin to peel away, you start to see to the core of people, and why they act the way they do.
I would also agree that it's not uncommon for people to have had a friendship or relationship at some point in their life built on convenience. This still happens today. If you're not popular, life can be tough as a teen. It's all about who you know...
As for characters in Gemma Doyle...
Kartik is one of the more intriguing characters in YA. I liked how there was a guarded part of him that made us want to know more.
I haven't read Rebel Angels yet, but I did like Kartik. I just wished that we got to see more of him. I just kept waiting for more.I also thought that the relationships were realistic. I'd say a good majority of my relationships in High school were built on Shallowness. I was shy so I was good to befriend without outshining them.
Ditto on Kartik. I'm hoping that we learn more about the Rakshana in the second book. Maybe they'll tell us how he ended up tracking Gemma. Probably the connection with the school. How did Kartik's brother end up connected with Gemma's mother? Maybe we'll get some answers...
It's been a while since I've read the trilogy, but I think a lot of the questions were answered if I recall correctly.Wendy, when I read Mine Till Midnight, my first thought when meeting Cam was, "oh boy...I think I might be getting a grown-up version of Kartik." Although, now that I think about it, chances are that Kev from book 2 was probably more like Kartik than Cam was. Cam was almost too forward.
Yeah, I definitely think Kev was more like Kartik. Cam had a sense of... almost whimsy about him. He was more flashy.
I read this series awhile back and mostly I remember now is not being happy with the end. I used to follow the author's livejournal, but because (view spoiler) I was never able to be 100% with the series. I loved the first two though and I thought the worldbuilding and mythos she created was a lot of fun.Oh, and I would have never thought of the Cam-Kartik comparison, but it's interesting.
I read A Great and Terrible Beauty some years ago. While I thought it was really well written and the four girls were brilliantly drawn, the story just didn't interest me enough to make me want to read on. It's a shame, because it's a really original idea. I tried again recently, but no go.
I loved this series! Beautifully written, my biggest issues was Libba made everythign exciting and I couldn't stop turning the pages at the build up then the actual fights alwasy were so quick!Kartik was awsome ;)
I enjoyed this series but it was hard for me to get through. As I was reading it I really liked it but I could put it down and not come back for a few days and so that was the hardest part for me. I liked the characters and the storyline the writing just didn't hook me.
I agree that the books aren't really ones that put you on the hook. It was one of my first YA historical series, so I didn't have much to compare it to, and I liked it at the time. Since then, I've read other historicals that I've liked quite a bit more, but Libba Bray is an awesome person in general from some of her blog and internet article posts, so I'd be likely to try more by her in the future.
I still wish there would be a fourth book in the series, but that's not going to happen.
I've read the first book and will probably eventually finish the series. Maybe now that I have more time this year since I've sworn off reading challenges for the first few months! :) I enjoyed the twist of fantasy in the book and am glad to hear that the later ones explore it more, which I think will be more fun.
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Stacia (the 2010 club), groupaholic, YA-MA founder
(last edited Jan 17, 2014 11:33AM)
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Prior discussion before this comment is for Gemma Doyle, but the topic will be shifting over to Bray's newer series The Diviners.
I LOVED The Diviners! It was the kind of book that I looked forward to picking up each time. The era felt very authentic (Libba clearly does her homework), the villain was super creapy, the main character was full of pluck, and the cast was diverse. I loved that the book brought up race and GLBT issues as well - adding to the authenticity of the time period.
Loved this book also. Listened to it in audiobook. The little song was soon creepy and added so much to the story also!
Just picked up
from the library, and would love to do a buddy read if any other Diviner's fans are interested. :)
The group read for January is now open. If you need to talk about any major plot points (minor story details don't need to be tagged), please use this code to put your text inside of a spoiler tag and make a note of whereabouts in the book you're talking about so people know if they've read far enough to be able to click on the tag :
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Stacia (the 2010 club), groupaholic, YA-MA founder
(last edited Jan 01, 2016 10:41AM)
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And don't ask me why I axed out the Gemma Doyle trilogy on this topic. I'm guessing that the topic was headed for deletion due to the series being old and I probably added the author's new series to the topic instead of deleting the topic altogether. I don't know where my head was at there.
I'm about 100 pages into the Diviners. The undercurrent of creepy/occult is present from the get go but I'm loving the character development and the hints of where the story will be going. My favorite character is actually part of the supporting cast (or at least, he seems to be a more minor character at the moment)-Evie's Uncle Will. I have a feeling he might play a more major role as things progress though.
I probably won't start until next week. Is this a mystery? I don't remember what this was supposed to be about, other than it takes places in the 1920s.
I read this book back over the summer and read the sequel back in September, so I want be rereading for the group read, but I highly enjoyed this book and I can't wait to see how others like it. There is something for everyone: mystery, romance, history, a bit of horror/suspense. Its pretty awesome.
Stacia (the 2010 club) wrote: "I probably won't start until next week. Is this a mystery? I don't remember what this was supposed to be about, other than it takes places in the 1920s."Stacia there is a mystery/suspense element, as well as a paranormal element. Its mostly about a girl with psychic powers helping to solve a murder case.
I read The Diviners last year, and am getting ready to read the sequel in the next few weeks. So ignore me as I silently lurk in these discussions getting back up to speed. (*whistles innocently*).What I *can* say is that I feel like Libba's got a great sense of time period, and manages a diverse cast fairly well. And I'll be honest - that villain really CREEPED ME OUT.
I'm anxious to here what ya'll are thinking as you read! :)
Just started the book earlier today! Really enjoying it so far and I can't wait to further it discuss it with you all! I'm new to the group :)
Glad you're joining us, Romina!Gremlin wrote: "I read The Diviners last year, and am getting ready to read the sequel in the next few weeks. So ignore me as I silently lurk in these discussions getting back up to speed. (*whistle..."
With her other series, this author did a great job showing things about the Victorian time period that you wouldn't normally notice, so this must be one of her writing talents. That, and she probably does her research.
I'm reading this on my nook app on my phone and according to it, this book has 516 pages and I'm 252 pages in. My thoughts so far:1. The first 150 pages or so were a little bit of a struggle for me. Some of it was just that in general, I'm a wuss and occult/paranormal stuff really creeps me out. But also because we see what I consider to be a lot of 'day in the life' type passages and I was sort of like hurry up and get to the thing already.
2. Having said that, once I got past that point, the book really picks up and I'm so intrigued!!!!
3. I really enjoy the character development. All the characters are interesting and we get to know them a little bit more at a time which means we get to enjoy unpeeling the layers.
4. Super creepy villain. I'm not going to lie-I skim through his passages. It's just too creepy.
5. Evie's story line is my favorite by far, partly because it's in her story line that we get to explore the history and reasoning around the bad guy but also because I find her character most compelling.
If you think the villain is creepy when you read the book, he is extra creepy if you listen to the audio because the "Naughty John" ditty is actually put to a tune and it gets stuck in your head so you can take the creepy villain with you out of the book.
Anna wrote: "If you think the villain is creepy when you read the book, he is extra creepy if you listen to the audio because the "Naughty John" ditty is actually put to a tune and it gets stuck in your head so..."OH HELL NO. *shudder*
I'm about 30% of the book and I am loving it! I really enjoy Evie's story so far and am looking forward to see how that develops. I also like that each of the characters seem to have something odd or mysterious in their past and makes me anxious to uncover what it is.The villain.. Super creepy! Glad I don't have the audio version!!
I heard that the audio was one of YALSAs 2012 top picks. I'm totally going to go get this from the library!!!
I enjoyed The Diviners. The beginning of the book was a little slow paced but once I hit a little after 50% I had a hard time putting it down. Jericho, Theta, and Henry were my favorite characters.
I'm at the point (a little more than halfway through) where Jericho's and Henry's backstories have been hinted at but no more information has been given and I'm like I NEED TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THESE GUYS STAT.
Haha I'm feeling the same way about Jericho.. I fee like I know some things but I need to know more, what? Why? How?!I'm also looking forward to seeing more about Theta and Henry. I'm about 60% of the way now.. Will most likely finish it today or tomorrow!
Ok, I just finished the book.As for what I said before of wanting to know more about Jericho, I regret it now. I did not like his story and past at all, just wasnt my taste.
About the "villain"and how that story ended, I wasnt a big fan either..it left me a bit dissapointed. However ,the ending of the book as a whole was quite nice.
I will take a break, a month or so, before I read the next one but I am looking forward to it, specially wanting to know more about some things(dont look at spoiler if you havent finished the book)(view spoiler)
I do hope they explain more about that in the next book!
Just found out about Jericho. I have to say it was a surprise-what he is and his backstory. (view spoiler). However, while it wasn't what I thought it would be, he's still a super compelling character. I'm in the last 70 pages or so-it will be interesting to see how it ends.
Brandi wrote: "Just found out about Jericho. I have to say it was a surprise-what he is and his backstory. [spoilers removed]. However, while it wasn't what I thought it would be, he's still a super compelling ch..."About Jericho and his whole backstory :
(view spoiler)
Brandi wrote: "Oh I totally agree that it seems out of nowhere which makes me wonder if [spoilers removed]"I have wanted to know what he has to do with everything as well! It seems like we only saw that one interaction between them leaving a lot unanswered.
Brandi wrote: "Done! I kinda thought maybe Will [spoilers removed]"
I never even thought of that possibility either! I was pleasantly surprised with discovering that in the ending!
The book as a whole and most of the characters have left me wanting to know more about their connections and curious about how everything plays out!
Hi guys, I'm gonna do my best to get to this in the next week or so!
Romina wrote: "The book as a whole and most of the characters have left me wanting to know more about their connections and curious about how everything plays out!"Agreed! I loved the characters and the depth of the world building in this book. It was one of those stories that I was consciously enjoying as I was reading it. The only disappointment I found was (view spoiler)
Grem, the ending actually kind of explained some more things for me like (view spoiler). But yeah, it also left realizing on no uncertain terms that they were far from done with the bad stuff. Also, Isaiah kind of freaks me out a little bit.
I'm a little late to the party (just starting the book now). I am a few chapters in, so I looked at my reading progress and it's only 15%! So then I looked at the # of pages...this book is long. That of course is a downfall to reading digitally instead with old fashioned paper.This is an out of genre read for me, but I picked it up because I really want to finished the New, New, New challenge. I love that it has a paranormal element. That is a pleasant surprise for me. It's creepy but not too scary. Yet?
Melanie wrote: "I'm a little late to the party (just starting the book now). I am a few chapters in, so I looked at my reading progress and it's only 15%! So then I looked at the # of pages...this book is long. Th..."I agree about reading digitally. I enjoy reading e-books, but to me they almost seem like they are 2 to 3 times longer than physical copies.
I liked the paranormal element of the story as well. I do have to say, though, that I was kind of disappointed in the scary element. I didn't really find it scary. I don't think it was the lack of setting or description at all, just didn't really feel the creepiness of it. I still enjoyed the book none the less.
It was a longer book than I normally read too and I'll be honest and say that around 150 pages or so, I think it hits kind of a lull and gets a little draggy but that doesn't last very long and then it gets really interesting. REALLY INTERESTING. This isn't my genre at all -not historical fiction and I am a complete scardy-cat wuss around creepy/paranormal stuff and I still ended up appreciating and enjoying the heck out of the story and characters. I think the plot is well done and the characters are nuanced-and I liked how we found out their stories in layers and stages.
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Books mentioned in this topic
Lair of Dreams (other topics)The Diviners (other topics)
The Diviners (other topics)
Lair of Dreams (other topics)
The Diviners (other topics)
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*not connected to the above series* The Diviners (1920's)