Literally Dead Book Club discussion

Monstrilio is written in 4 acts, each named after the character whose perspective we are reading from.

This discussion is for Joseph. In my hardcover edition, this section runs up to page 244.

What did you learn in this section?
Have you preferred one of the perspectives over the others?
What do you think is to come in this final part?

Joseph is another character that drew me in because I wanted his perspective and although he didn’t create this creature he certainly wanted him in his life once he knew of its existence. I think he was as much of a lovingly father as possible even with someone who wasn’t truly his son anymore. I liked his relationships with his ex wife and new partner. I felt for him too.

Its hard to pick 1 favorite perspective since each is connected to a progression in the story.

…If I had to pick one I guess it would be Lena because we appreciate how much she cares for her found family and the reason why she disagree’s with amputating M’s limb; also the reason why she goes with it despite her misgivings. We also got to see what M was like before he became aware of his caregivers’ expectations and began to suppress himself more.

I think the remainder of the book is going to show Peter and Joseph breaking up. Peter will realize that his assumption that marriage would fix the existing distance between them won’t work.
M might start pulling away from everyone else’s expectations and try being more independent.
I honestly do don’t know what Magos’ or Lena’s ending will be. I’m not sure Magos will see or appreciate M as his own person before the story ends.

I learned in this section that Joseph goes to New York, falls in love and gets engaged to his new fiancee Peter (after divorcing Magos). Joseph is grappling with his love for Peter. M's exsistence is a key piece of discord in Joseph's life. Magos is now a prominent performing artist in Berlin. Berlin is where she currently lives with M. Lena is working in New York. Lucia did die ands that was sad. The analogy of the crumbling pillar and the house falling into desrepair further soldified my thoughts on in our in Lena's chapter.

I like each perspective distinctly. Every character has many layers that get revealed little by little. I would have liked to viewed Mago's performance art from her perspective. Delve into her inner workings and how she really feels about M growing up.

I think the last section will delve in M's own worries and fears. Peter and Joseph were on rocky ground with their relationship and I am interested to see how it works out.

I fall more in love with this book through every perspective. I love the character development each new POV brings. Joseph's section detailed his new life with a new partner and his long distance relationship with M. I liked that we learned more about his family and his relationships with Uncle and Peter. I loved Uncle's relationship with M; so far he is the only one in the book who unbiasedly understands M and his nature.

I'm excited to see the story through M's eyes. I'm equally afraid something bad is going to happen to him. So far I think this book will come in at a solid 4-star.

Wow! This section was a big info dump but in the best way. It’s so interesting to see how things evolved and devolved in the last few years in these lives.

I knew M was gonna do something awful and I knew Magos really couldn’t separate Santiago and M. He was always going to be a monster but Magos helped accelerate it with how she talked about/around him.

M is only going to do something worse now that he has a taste for human blood. Peter will find out. I honestly think M is going to hurt either Joseph or Peter.

I am really loving this book.

I wasn't expecting such a large time jump and I was feeling a bit disoriented at the beginning of this section. I don't think I can pick a favourite section I like learning about all of the different characters and how they react to the situations. I'm really liking the book so far and interested to see what happens next.

It just keeps getting better. The time skip was so unexpected I audibly gasped and had to reread the first few pages a couple times. I think my favourite perspective so far is Lena's, but I honestly enjoyed all of them and it is so interesting following the various stages of Monstrilio's life through all these different people with their distinct perceptions and worldview.

So far my favorite perspective has been either Magos or Joesphs. A lot went on in Magos section and I appreciate the love Joesph has for M, although he took a while to warm up to him.

It seems like Ms mental health is deteriorating, so I wonder if the section will end with the end of M, but I have no idea.

I don't have a lot to say other than, I love this book.