The Procrastinators Book Club discussion
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Year of the Reaper
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★Buddy/Group Read Retirement★
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Year of the Reaper (May 2022) Buddy Read Discussion - Jen K & Leslie
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You are welcome! I'm excited to get started.
Me too! I've never participated in buddy reads before!
Prologue- Chapter 5:Strong start so far. I admit that I definitely got confused with the shift from prologue to chapter 1 but then it made more sense. Poor Cas will need a long time to emotionally heal from his scars and the keep visitors won't be too helpful,
Who is Lena? Was she part of Jehan's entourage? She can't be the bow and arrow person because she seems like a love interest and (view spoiler) is not acceptable for a love interest.
Also the ghosts. Did Cas always have that gift? Seems really difficult to handle with so many dead of the plague.
Jen K wrote: "Prologue- Chapter 5:Strong start so far. I admit that I definitely got confused with the shift from prologue to chapter 1 but then it made more sense. Poor Cas will need a long time to emotionall..."
I just got caught up on the reading and i am so excited as well as confused!!!! WHO IS LENA?? and why can Cas see ghosts? Does anyone know apart from him about this ability of his? Also, I am really curious to know about what the King wants from him!
I wonder if the ghost thing is a byproduct of his actually surviving the plague? Probably a good thing that I'm doing two BRs right now or I would have struggled to stop. Excited to read more and figure out Lena!
Jen K wrote: "I wonder if the ghost thing is a byproduct of his actually surviving the plague? Probably a good thing that I'm doing two BRs right now or I would have struggled to stop. Excited to read more and..."
OOHHH interesting theory! especially since we don't know what happened to him in the past 3 years!
Chapter 6 - 10Ok so some things were really cleared up. Although we still don't know the full extent of things Cas went through in the past years, we got enough of a glimpse to know he's scarred, physically as well as emotionally.
And Lena is King's sister.... like wtf???????? I am still not sure she wasn't the one who tried killing the prince but I am also doubting Sorne so? Idk.
I am guessing Sorne is really going to turn evil especially bc I can see Lena and Cas getting involved and that is going to make her furious!
Cas is about to go investigate the house the assassin used to shoot the arrow so let's see what he finds out. I am really excited to continue the book!
I don't know about Sorne. She seems like an innocent victim but could certainly be hiding more. I would say that Abril also has some secrets and could be a possible assassin. What is she trying to hide from Lena?I'm glad that Cas found Lena. They seem a good fit and I'm also glad that he is able to focus on finding an assassin to give a productive task when life is crazy with the Queen and her people from Brisna. He seems to holding it together better than most and with ghosts. I adore how thoughtful his brother is, wearing him out destroying the statue.
Also Fado, how cruel was he to send the note? It is one thing to ignore or "lose" the ransom note but quite another to send such a reply. The hand thing was gruesome but so are Cas' scars.
Mod
I planned to only read the first day set of chapters but I got carried away so I'm finishing today's chapters too. It's really easy to read which I like, and I like the story and the setting, although I feel a little like it's disjointed.. nothing big or maybe even noticeable. Maybe I just need to know what is the BIG thing Cassia is going against because an assassin doesn't sound too big to me.
I like his relationship with his brother; the statue scene was great. I was just wondering about the ghost thing, like he saw one in the first chapter or whenever, before coming to his home and then nada which made me feel a bit meh. Seeing ghosts was making him more interesting to me, and not using that thing I felt like it was missing out on things.
Since we are sharing our suspects for the archer.. assuming Cas was right and it was a woman..and we don't really know what happened to Mari.. I'm going with her being the archer. And the reason I'm suspecting it may be just seeing something were there's nothing, but.. The archer was wearing something green, and in the tapestry Lena said Mari was the one in the green dress.
Excellent catch to on the green to link with Mari. It would so harsh though if her best friend tried to kill her baby. Maybe Abril's secret is Mari.Cas did also see the ghost of the cook's child. I would also love to see it play more of a role in the book soon or else it is a weird distraction.
It is a nice easy read which I also appreciate.
Mod
"All their lives, where Jehan went, Mari always followed."
To be honest, that bothered me for some reason.. Mari always was following her.. maybe it bothered her that she always had do go after her? *shrugs* I guess we'll find out sooner or later things about her.
Yeah, yeah.. I just see that I didn't fully write what I was thinking 😂 He saw the Cook's son and I was yes, finally some ghosts after a bunch of other things and after a few days of him being there. That was one of the bit disjointed things; ghosts in the beginning to make us intrigued, and then we move to other things putting them in the back seat, but it's good that he saw the boy because the author will use it.. and hopefully use it good.
Oh my goodness, you are right, that quote is totally sinister and Mari will be coming back at her. Maybe Mari is forcing Abril to spy for her which is why she is so miserable? Now all I want to do is read the rest of this book right now but work... I really hope that the ghosts play a key role and soon! Such a tease.
ETA: This really does make so much more sense. The prologue just didn't really feel necessary to the story. The queen and marriage could have been explained without the drama but if it is a clue to the later events....
Chapter 11-15After today's reading, my doubts have significantlly shfted to Mari ngl and I totally believe Jehan is in on it because she didn't really want to marry the king whatsoever....
Also my heart breaks for Ventillas and Kemen :((
Plus what's up with Abril?? Where has she disappeared off to? It seems really suspicious!
I'm not sure that Jehan helped when her baby's life was at stake but I do believe that she is helping to cover for the person. Maybe someone that she owes like Mari. Poor Ventillas, he really is the best and I hope he is also able to heal with Cas back.
Chapter 16-20Poor Abril~~
I am almost sure now that Mari is the one behind the black veil unless the author decides to spring a new suspense upon us. Lady Rondilla may be involved as well although I am not sure how?
Also, that fourth lynx seemed a little suspicious. Has someone been trying to sabotage their journey?
I was doing so well staying on track with the schedule but I thought I would read just a little bit more and just one more chapter and then I kind of finished the book last night. Sorry! It was just so good and I needed to know what happened next!! Poor Abril indeed and Lady Rondilla is nasty.
OH DAMN! 🤓🤓 I know that feeling!!!!!! I am probably going to finish it tomorrow then as well 😆😆
Enjoy!!! It is hard to put down until the end!
Mod
Yes! Definitely give yourself enough time to finish if you decide to do so. There are lots of good buddy reads going on. I'm sad to miss a couple due to timing. Also slightly sad to waste one on the Spanish Love Deception.
Mod
Yep.. we wasted time on Spanish Love Deception.. it really was a deceltion 😂
Mod
Chapter 11-13
After the part about Mari being a good archer, and then getting infected and left... yeah, I'm still suspecting her.
“Did you know Lord Amador’s greatgreat-grandfather died in a rice barrel?”
Cas only looked at her.
“It’s true,” she insisted. “His middle son hit him on the head during an argument and then buried him under the rice until he suffocated.”
“I . . . How do you know this?”
“It was in a book I read.” Lena gave the rice one last poke before returning the scoop to its hook. “I wonder how long it would have taken.”
Omg 😂 this random bit of info.. and how she's still interested in it. Love it.
Damn, Hellin is wearing a green dress too.. and she threw the old broken lock away..
Okay, we are back.. there's a mystery woman that is our archer.
Kira wrote: "I finished it!https://www.goodreads.com/review/show..."
@Kira, great review. I had the same favorite scene. I really loved their relationship as brothers.
@Mira, yes, Lena is a fabulous heroine.
So I am caught up to yesterday's reading and because this got really good mid-way, I will likely finish it tonight. I am really enjoying Cas and Lena's characters, their dynamic and how well they work together. And I kinda like Bittor too - I hope he gets his lady Esti. But Mari.... so far she is truly evil, but I'm very curious to find out her story on what happened after the hospital. The world-building is good enough that I can see it playing out in front of me. I am expecting to see Cas' ability to see ghosts play an important part of how this story ends up. I shall see...
This was a good choice for a book. I too am sad to miss a few of the other buddy reads (especially Heartless which I was hoping to read likely next month and A Wrinkle In Time which is a long-time favorite book of mine), but after hearing a couple of you I guess I didn't really "miss" The Spanish Love Deception....
message 28:
by
mina, Group/Buddy Reads Procrastinator
(last edited May 07, 2022 01:04PM)
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rated it 4 stars
Mod
I just finished chapter 26 and OMG the TWIST. I got so comfortable with this book not expecting much, and boom 🤯 Things just got more interesting.
Chapter 27.. Oh no, he was left to relive his captivity days, and even though Lena returned it feels like a betrayal.. and I'm guilty, but I'm like yeeees, be angry at her 😅 she left you...
Finished it.. And I have to say, even though I enjoyed it, I find that it was lacking something. It needed more. I feel like one book is too little to tell a fantasy story, especially since this book gave me more serious fantasy vibes, there should've been more exploration of every story line we had that was woven into this story. Jehan's rage and revenge was understandable and a good story line, however I felt that it wasn't more deeply explored as it should've been.
edit: Oh, and the ghosts thing.. I'm disappointed that hasn't been explored and used more.
I agree with your assessment, @Mina. I finished the book late last night. That twist was something else- I think my jaw dropped at that point. I usually can see the twists coming, but not that one. It raised the book up in my view at that point. But yes, the Jehan character could have been explored more than it was. All in all, it was a very good book and interesting tale. I even enjoyed how Makiia Lucier explained how the story got started.
Mod
But definitely will give her other books a shot.
There wasn't much fantasy to the book. More could have been done with the ghosts. I appreciated the twist and also would like to read more from her.
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Each day we will be reading by chapters or page numbers. Page numbers are an approximation based on the hardcover or paperback that is the default on Goodreads. The suggested Buddy Read discussion schedule is as follows:
Week of 05/01
1 May: Prologue- Ch 5
Week of 05/02
2 May: Ch 6-10
3 May: Ch 11-15
4 May: Ch 16-20
5 May: Ch 21-25
6 May: Ch 26-31
7 May: Ch 32-end
PARTICIPANTS
~ Jen K
~ Leslie
~ Kira