You'll love this one...!! A book club & more discussion

After you have read your chosen book(s) for this month's group theme read, please report in the thread below. Please state what book you read (and link it), that you discussed it (and where), and briefly summarise what you thought of the book and/or link to your review if you have written one.

If you read more than one book which fits the theme, please report all your reads in the same post rather than in separate posts.

In order to receive a badge you must:
1. have completed the book(s) before or during November 2015.
2. discussed it in the relevant thread. Discussion must be more than "I read the book and I liked it". Discussion requires something more substantial and analytical of what you read, for example, thoughts, opinions, impact it had on you, what was your favourite part, was it what you expected it to be like etc. You may also like to review the book and post a link to the review in that thread.
3. Report that you have read AND discussed the book in the reporting thread below, along with a brief summary of what you thought.

I just finished reading You. I commented about it in the unconventional character thread and linked my short review. The narrator (and unconventional character) in this book is a stalker and you are in his head throughout the book. It was a bit disorienting in the beginning, trying to get used to his way of thinking. Once you become accustomed to the narration, the book is interesting and creepy. It wasn't what I expected, basically due to the writing style, but it kept me interested. my review

Kristie wrote: "I just finished reading You. I commented about it in the unconventional character thread and linked my short review. The narrator (and unconventional character) in this book is a st..."

My daughter was listening to this book for a while, but I see that she did not finish it yet. She said it was really creepy being in his head, but fascinating too! I am not sure why she stopped. I will have to ask her.

We read You over in the Books Stephen King Recommends group and many of us had the same problem s you Kristie at the beginning. It ended up driving me crazy! They were all pretty messed up characters.

Cherie - My daughter just picked it up too. I warned her that it is creepy (which she loves) and that there is lots of sex / sex thoughts in it.

Sarah - They were! I didn't love any of the characters, but somehow I still liked the book.

I was another one who didn't finish the book. I didn't like being in his head. Ick!

Kristie wrote: "I just finished reading You. I commented about it in the unconventional character thread and linked my short review. The narrator (and unconventional character) in this book is a st..."

It was incredibly creepy, but I did not feel sympathetic to him at all though I have seen that LOTS of others did.

Terri wrote: "It was incredibly creepy, but I did not feel sympathetic to him at all though I have seen that LOTS of others did..."

He was an incredibly unreliable narrator. He told the story according to his warped perception. That he was able to draw the readers into being sympathetic just shows how successful his manipulation was.

Janice wrote: "I was another one who didn't finish the book. I didn't like being in his head. Ick!"

It took me a while to get used to it. I almost put it down a few times in the beginning.

Terri wrote: "He was an incredibly unreliable narrator. He told the story according to his warped perception. That he was able to draw the readers into being sympathetic just shows how successful his manipulation was."

I know! A lot of people commented that they were rooting for him. I did not want him to succeed! I felt bad for him a few times though, because he was just so messed up. He really needed professional help. I definitely felt worse for her, even though she wasn't very likable.

Janice wrote: "He was an incredibly unreliable narrator. He told the story according to his warped perception. That he was able to draw the readers into being sympathetic just shows how successful his manipulation was."

That was talent on the author's part. She did a great job drawing the audience in to such a bizarre thought process.

Kristie wrote: "I definitely felt worse for her, even though she wasn't very likable..."

That's my point. Was she all that unlikable, or did he distort things and paint her that way? I don't know because I quit reading the story. Maybe she was unlikable, but people like him misinterpret things to fit their own fantasies.

You the book discussion.

Janice - I asked Amy about why she D-N-F and she said it was just too creepy being in his head and then : don't read unless you don't care about finishing or if you are still reading the book... (view spoiler)[he kidnapped the girl's neighbor (hide spoiler)]. She said she just could not go on.

I felt much the same way as Amy. I think she got further than I did.

I finished The Rosie Project and discussed it in the discussion thread.

I enjoyed this book and gave it 3 stars - it had me laughing out loud many times. It was well written; the characters were developed adequately and the dialogue flowed well. I particularly enjoyed Don's character - I see many of my friends and colleagues (and myself) in his little quirks. It was fun, quick and relaxing to read - too funny for an airplane-read but perfect for the beach.

Could you please add a couple sentences in your post Joan on what you thought of the book.

Sam F: I finished The Rosie Project and discussed it in the discussion thread as well. I just loved it. It provided some much needed laugh out loud moments as I read it. The book helped me to understand how the character thinks, and how he views certain social situations that were difficult for him. It was nice to experience an unusual perspective about basic social interactions. A light/easy read that was thoroughly enjoyable!

I just finished Maids of Misfortune by M. Louisa Locke and discussed it in the 'unconventional characters' thread.
It is a cozy mystery set in 19th century San Francisco. I really loved it (5 stars).

Sarah wrote: "Could you please add a couple sentences in your post Joan on what you thought of the book."

Sarah,
I edited my post - I did the first post trying to use the app on my stupidphone - never again!

@Joan, Thanks! We've all had issues with the app. I still use it but only for checking GR. I only ever make a post now through the actual website whether that's on my phone, kindle or laptop. I'm guessing it's more a case of stupid app rather than stupid phone :-)

Elsbeth wrote: "It is a cozy mystery set in 19th century San Francisco. I really loved it (5 stars). "

What did you like about it Elsbeth?

I've read both The Rosie Project and Puddle Jumping

Both were romances, both with a main character with Aspergers, both with humour, both I loved. However the books are totally different, strange that :)

I read My Name Is Mary Sutter and gave it 5*. I discussed it over in the buddy read thread.

I felt the author did a great job with her research and she presented a really wonderful, detail-rich, hist-fic story. I really grew to care for the MC who was a woman ahead of her time, a true pioneer. She worked hard to fight the social status at the time and risked so much to train in becoming a surgeon. I feel it is a pretty good peek into what the civil war must have felt like as well.

Lynn wrote: "I've read both The Rosie Project and Puddle Jumping

Both were romances, both with a main character with Aspergers, both with humour, both I loved. However the books..."

I call it serendipity!

I read The Bees and discussed it in the group read thread.

I really enjoyed it and gave it 4 stars. It was really well written, the author did a great job of bringing the world of the bees to life and I really liked the heroine. It also has to be one of the most unique books I have ever read. However, I felt that some of the descriptions were a bit heavy handed, certain scenes got repeated which caused my attention to wander from time to time and I wasn't the biggest fan of the ending which is why it lost a star.

I read Tipping the Velvet for this month's themed read. The main character fell in love with a dance hall male impersonator and followed her to London to be her dresser and lover. She later joined her in the act. I discussed the book in the buddy read for it.

I also read Tipping the Velvet for this month's theme read, and discussed it in the buddy read thread. I give the book four stars. We watch the main character go through some major changes in her life, but she is never "conventional" (except maybe as a child). I quite enjoyed the first third of the book, which is the story of her career on the music hall stage and her love affair with her singing and dancing partner. (They both dress as men.) The middle section was less fun, and as I came to end of that section, I realized I was not even sure I still liked the main character. The concluding section, though, shows the character finally "growing up" and finding herself and her place in the world. The book is very well written, and I enjoyed it.

I read My Name is Mary Sutter. I discussed it in the buddy read thread and here's a copy of my review:

3.5 stars

I thought this would be a book about a young woman attempting to become a surgeon during the civil war. That's why I chose to read it. And it was about that, partly. I really enjoyed those parts of the book. The author did a great job depicting the horrific circumstances of the war for both surgeons and wounded soldiers. Shocking! And to think there probably actually were women like Mary is just awesome.

However, there was another part of the book that diminished my enjoyment. It was almost as if the author learned so much about the war during her research that she decided to incorporate all those facts too. And it really slowed down the story to suddenly read about general this who took an x amount of men to that place on the 5th of September even though general y did not agree. There were just too many names, places and dates that felt like a boring history lesson and that were really not necessary for Mary's story. Don't get me wrong, I love actually learning something from a historical fiction book, just not when it's dry facts. I guess it just didn't work for me in this one.

I read Middlesex and discussed it in the thread. I enjoyed the story which was about an hermaphrodite, how he came to be, and his life growing up and coming to terms with who he is. The book was full of unconventional characters and lots of very unconventional activities going on. It would have made a great buddy read for me, as I would have loved discussing so much of what was going on at different times.

I read and posted about Broken for You in the unconventional character thread.

I liked this book so much that I gave it 5 stars. Despite some contrived plot events, this book has so much to recommend it. I underlined and starred many quotes and scenes. The copy I read was borrowed from my local library, but I plan to buy a copy for my personal library, and plan to give this book to one of my very good friends and also to one of my brothers as gifts (at Christmas time).

I read The Hangman's Daughter and discussed it in both the buddy read thread and the unconventional character thread. I wasn't expecting to discover an unconventional character but there were many in this book. I really liked this dark tale, in particular the herbal lore references and the references to the European Witch trials. I have the rest of the series on kindle so I look forward to finding out what direction it takes.

Sarah wrote: "I read The Hangman's Daughter and discussed it in both the buddy read thread and the unconventional character thread. I wasn't expecting to discover an unconventional character but t..."

Oh, good choice, Sarah. I've read 'The Hangman's Daughter' and have pondered considering the series. I understand the daughter becomes a more central figure in upcoming books - and I did like the trio of medieval crime fighters (dad, daughter, doctor). All three were pretty unconventional, especially for the time.

I read The Bees and discussed it in the group read thread and posted a link to my review there.

I liked that it made me think differently of bees (or just made me think of them at ALL!) and that it encouraged a lot of google searches about them... which is one of my indicators that it was a successful book for my tastes!

I finished The Rosie Project and discussed it in the group read thread.

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

I read (and commented) the The Rosie Project, and also The Rosie Effect

I finished The Rosie Project and recorded my comments in the appropriate discussion thread.

A very different and satisfying read.

I finished The Bees and commented on it in the group discussion thread.

Copied from discussion thread...

This is a really intriguing book! I'm at chapter 10 I'm listening to it - and glad I am - I love the narrator. I must confess I wasn't keen on reading it - not my usual cup of tea, but I am quite fascinated by the author's ability and imagination bringing these bees to life. I'm still trying to figure out what I think of the book!

I finished listening to the book - amazingly I enjoyed it - I will never look at a bee the same way again. I liked the engaging personalities and particularly Flora 717. I found it so interesting that they could sense each other's thoughts and feelings- pretty cool. Thanks for introducing me to a book I probably would not have chosen to read.

Please could people write a sentence or too on what they thought of the book if you haven't already done so. It means then that everyone can just look in the reporting thread at what people thought rather than having to trawl through the other threads.

I read Ancillary Mercy by Ann Leckie, which is the last book in the Imperial Radch trilogy. A very interesting (and unconventional :) set of characters, a lot of psychological insight and also humour in this space opera. I commented on it in the discussion thread.

My official read for Unconventional Character is The Bat. Introducing Harry Hole. He is a member of the Oslo Police force. He should have been fired for his constant drinking, but wasn't. He is sent to Sydney, Australia to help investigate a young girl's death. He falls in love and then falls off of the wagon, and then misses his plane home. He is a mess and the case goes on... I liked Jo Nesbo's writing style. I could not put the book down. I cannot say that I liked Harry a whole lot. I have The Redeemer on my shelf at home to give him a 2nd chance over Christmas, if I can get to it.

I read Rebel Queen in which the narrator Sita Bhosale is an unconventional character.
During a period when women were not allowed to go outside their homes,not eat in front of men, etc. she trains and becomes a guard to Rani Lakshibai.

Even the queen is unconventional, as she is the first lady to oppose the British Empire when they start invading India.

Sadly, The Rosie Project is still on a waitlist for overdrive/library for me, but I will check it eventually as it sounds interesting and people seem to have good things to say about that book.

As an alternative, I read Ancillary Mercy by Ann Leckie which contains many unconventional characters - primarily the protagonist, Breq - who is essentially the sentient remnant of a destroyed warship.
I discussed in the discussion thread and gushed all over the other person who read this book in November.

I read The Bees and discussed it in its thread. It started really good to me, but I found it slow and boring after the first 100 pages. Half way through I started skimming pages to see if there was something ahead that could engage me again, but unfortunately it wasn't. So I think I read 250 pages out of the 340 total. Sarah, it's up to you if this is enough for a badge or not. I rated it because I considered I read enough to do it (I generally don't rate books I abandoned), but badges are a different thing! I will understand if it's not enough.

My thoughts about the book: I enjoyed the author writing style. It was very descriptive, but this didn't bother me at all. The world was really well built. I could really see the hive and the thousand of bees in it. It's evident the author thoroughly researched about the bees, the hive and the life there, and I learned a lot along the book. What failed to me was the story. It was slow and boring. Even at the end some things finally make sense, it wasn't enough to me. At some point I stopped caring about Flora's story. I rated it 2 stars.

I'm reporting that I read The Bees, have posted a comment, and intend to continue to post comments as the discussion goes on.

I read A Discovery of Witches. I discussed it in the appropriate thread. I really did enjoy this book and despite its length it kept me engaged.

Who did you think was the unconventional character and why Amanda?

Amanda has answered this over in the unconventional characters thread. I'd missed it. Diana it is!

I read The Bees and posted comments in the discussion thread.

I read The Rosie Project and commented in the thread. I was unable to read to visualize Don as anything other than the character of Sheldon Cooper on Big Bang Theory. Favorite quote from the book “But why, why, why can't people just say what they mean?”

I just finished The Bees tonight. I have made several comments in the thread and have enjoyed reading others comments as well. I enjoyed the first part of the book the best. At some point, all the references to "scents" became a little tiresome to me. But, all in all, it was an enjoyable read and I am glad that I read it.

Sandra wrote: "I read The Bees and discussed it in its thread. It started really good to me, but I found it slow and boring after the first 100 pages. Half way through I started skimming pages to ..."

It doesn't matter that you didn't finish the book Sandra - you read a large portion of it but it just wasn't for you. Badges for the group reads are awarded for taking part in the discussions. Obviously, we want to know why you didn't like it (which you've done). In fact, it makes the discussions more interesting when there are a variety of views on the books. I think I've abandoned a couple group reads in the past too.