David Estes Fans and YA Book Lovers Unite! discussion

Buddy Read for start today, Thursday September 12!

This buddy read is open to everyone who would like to join in!! There are no set chapters per day, we just read at our own paces and start each post with how far along you are, i.e., Chapter #, %, using spoilers where needed. Have fun!

I'm about 8% in. Even though I've read this several times before, I got sucked in right away again. (view spoiler)[ My best friend has a Belgian Shepherd - Malinois which she shows. Princess Zena won best in her breed. They're magnificent dogs! I went to the show last year so this is my first read realizing what breed Mina is which makes this read even better!

Ellie is such a brat and is annoying me already. I guess I can understand why with her Dad being killed, but still.

And Alex...! I can't even imagine living with a monster in her head and having no sense of smell whatsoever. (hide spoiler)]

I got it from the library but haven't started yet

I kinda sorta started yesterday (I know, I know CHEATER!) lol! So I'm 60% in already :) (view spoiler)[ It's a decent concept and read so far, although I'd say I was much more interested early on before she met Tom, but he's growing on me and has the potential to be a very complex character. Alex is ok too. Ellie is definitely the most well developed and already she's growing as a character. Alex was sort of flatlining there for a while after she met Tom, but she was just forced to ditch him, which I'm really hoping will help move things along. She just got to the town, Risk I think it's called, so things could get very interesting! (hide spoiler)]

SNORT, SNORT! Seriously you made me snort laugh with that comment lol!

Hehe I was laughing as I wrote it too :)

Okay I'm at 34% right now, but I will catch up to you David before I go to bed later, so I can read your comment! lol

(view spoiler)[ This book is addicting, I'm loving it already, and I can't turn the pages fast enough. I feel really bad for Ellie, although she is a huge pain in the butt lol! (hide spoiler)]

Speedy!!

Yup, I am! You be the turtle and I'll be the hare, but in the end you will win! lol

Ha! I'm not sure it really works that way, unless of course we're swimming :P

In the story the Tortoise and the Hare it does :) I spend my time lollygagging around and slow and steady wins the race! hehe

You guys are fast readers!

I don't get to start till tonight glad I can see spoilers on my tablet and also glad your liking it so far.

Caitlin wrote: "You guys are fast readers!"

Jenny is a speed reader and David always starts exactly one day early! ;-) Hahahaaaa! Just take your time. I'll be reading slower than normal because I don't have much time to read this week.

Yup, no worries, there are times I am way behind, too. I think I was the last to finish on Light! lol

David (view spoiler)[ I was thinking the same thing, although that last scene where she had to cut it open *shudders* You know, these are the kind of things that make me not even want to survive an apocalypse. I just want to die when the meteor strikes, or when the EMP pulse hits--whatever it is! lol
Ellie is such a little brat, but I can be understanding of it I guess. I feel really bad for the kid! (hide spoiler)]

Okay, I got a little farther than David, I'm at 63% and something major just happened. (view spoiler)[ WHERE DID TOM GO??? I wonder if Ellie, Tom and Alex will meet up again before the novel is over. And that scene with the wolves was a bit creepy! (hide spoiler)]

I'm liking it so far but I just feel kinda like (spoilers) let's get on with what the electric shock thing was. I'm at the part where Ellie caught up to Alex, and Ellie had gone thru her stuff and asked what the bags of dirt were for. but to me it feels like hurry it up already meet a new character or have something happen something other then a grumpy kid and a walk thru the woods.

20% in. (view spoiler)[Ugh. That scene of the two teens chowing down on the older lady was like something out of the Gone series... Creepy, icky, blech... (hide spoiler)]

Karen wrote: "20% in. [spoilers removed]"

Ha!! Yeah I cringed reading that part!!

Cindee wrote: "I'm liking it so far but I just feel kinda like (spoilers) let's get on with what the electric shock thing was. I'm at the part where Ellie caught up to Alex, and Ellie had gone thru her stuff and..."

Agreed! Although she'll meet a new character and then I still felt like things froze for a while. But now things are moving again!

Jenny wrote: "Okay, I got a little farther than David, I'm at 63% and something major just happened. [spoilers removed]"

I'm just past that bit. I'm definitely creeped out a bit but more interested now. (view spoiler)[ The Spared must have something in common, like do they all have life threatening illnesses? I love the dogs and how they love Alex! (hide spoiler)]

I read a bit further and wow my skin creeped at Blondie and the boyfriend, yikes! I can't decide whether I love being creeped out or not lol

Only at 13% here. I'm super intrigued thus far. I'm appreciating the 3rd person narrative for this. It seems like a good way to set up this kind of story.

I'm now at 84%, the second half of this book is much better than the first! Reading really fast now! (view spoiler)[ OMG, what were you saying about cults in a dystopian world David? hehe So true here! So I wonder what happens when the girls get to the "house" with the boy who "chooses" them? Are they under house arrest or what? This is so wrong! This part of the story is reminding me a little of Fire Country, David! I also keep thinking of the trilogy Birthmarked. (hide spoiler)]

I agree, Caitlin!

Cindee wrote: "I read a bit further and wow my skin creeped at Blondie and the boyfriend, yikes! I can't decide whether I love being creeped out or not lol"

I know!! So creepy and apparently the sequel gets even more so :)

Caitlin wrote: "You guys are fast readers!"

I'm a slow one (I'm reading two other books too). Just take your time, that's what the spoiler tags are for. :)
I'm really liking this book so far (I'm about 15% in). Although I'm not sure how I feel about Ellie...

Katelyn, I agree, I'm pretty sure if I was stuck on a mountain with Ellie I would... Eat her most likely. I'm just saying haha.

Hahaha!!!

Caitlin wrote: "Katelyn, I agree, I'm pretty sure if I was stuck on a mountain with Ellie I would... Eat her most likely. I'm just saying haha."

Right?! I was happy when she didn't follow at first but when she showed up right after I was thinking "great, a whiny mouth to feed...."

yeah not a huge fan of the bratty kid, not sure what her point to the story is maybe Ellie will be food later on for the zombies so Alex can run lol

I finished it! It was a solid 4 star read for me! (view spoiler)[ wow things got crazy at the end!! Still not sure what I think of Jess...and we still haven't found Tom and Ellie! (hide spoiler)]

I'm almost half way thru. (Spoilers) I like tom and Ellie is much better to deal with. I'm at the part where they are deciding to leave the rangers cabin. I'm thinking I wouldn't leave till spring. Fatten right up till then lol. I'm not sure its safer to leave then to stay. Whatever is out there will get you either way, might have a better chance fighting if you stay, make traps and stuff all around the cabin, go hunting etc. I don't know.....why is tom so eager to leave? Du du daaaa (that's my mystery music there) lol.

Cindee, to make spoiler tags:

Type

< spoiler > before your text,
and then at the end of your spoiler type < / spoiler >
With no spaces :)

It took me forever to figure out how to do the arrows < and > on my Nook tablet. I couldn't do spoilers for about 6 months if I was typing from my Nook. ;-) I was so happy to accidentally discover those dang arrows!

23% in (view spoiler)[Ellie has finally become less bratty! Yay!! (hide spoiler)]

Caitlin wrote: "Katelyn, I agree, I'm pretty sure if I was stuck on a mountain with Ellie I would... Eat her most likely. I'm just saying haha."

That was actually funny! Gruesome, but very funny! Hahahaaa...!

Jenny wrote: "I finished it! It was a solid 4 star read for me! [spoilers removed]"

Jenny, all your questions are answered in Shadows! ;-P

Cindee wrote: "I'm almost half way thru. (Spoilers) I like tom and Ellie is much better to deal with. I'm at the part where they are deciding to leave the rangers cabin. I'm thinking I wouldn't leave till spri..."

Lol! I was thinking the same thing! Why leave at the worst possible time? Seemed a bit like a plot device to me...but at least it got the story moving again!

Karen wrote: "It took me forever to figure out how to do the arrows on my Nook tablet. I couldn't do spoilers for about 6 months if I was typing from my Nook. ;-) I was so happy to accidentally discover those..."

Ha!! It took her a while, but I'm glad she matured a little!

I'm going to read it, this one ends on a cliffhanger, and I want to know what happens!

I'm still a babe at this, ack! I'm sorry didn't mean to ruin it for others lol I thought I was so clever,
although it did seem a bit to easy to have spoilers removed with just brackets lol. one day I shall be mature too and make you all proud lol ;)

Lol, no problem, Cindee :) HTML is a lot easier than what people think!

Cindee wrote: "I'm still a babe at this, ack! I'm sorry didn't mean to ruin it for others lol I thought I was so clever,
although it did seem a bit to easy to have spoilers removed with just brackets lol. one d..."

Lol! It took me a year to figure it out and someone still had to explain it so don't feel bad! And I think most of us were ahead when you posted so you didn't spoil :)

So I should have gone to sleep HOURS ago but I've been laying in bed reading this darn book! At 39% into the book. It's been crazy! And with most chapters ending in a mini cliffhanger it's been challenging to stop. I'm forcing myself to go to bed now but I'm not even sure I'll be able to sleep now! Haha

David wrote: "Karen wrote: "Jenny wrote: "I finished it! It was a solid 4 star read for me! [spoilers removed]"

Jenny, all your questions are answered in Shadows! ;-P"

I've been reading a lot of negative re..."

I liked it. I remember it being very gruesome but after spending time with Michael Grant's books, my gruesome tolerance scale is much higher now. There were lots of characters and a year was a long time in between books as there are no reminders in Shadows. That's why I'm rereading Ashes and Shadows before reading Monsters.

Ah I see :) That IS a long time! I'm at 90% and planning to read the sequel. I'm having trouble being inspired lately, I think after finishing the Gone series my expectations have gone up lol! I've had a few books lately where I've enjoyed the beginning and the end, and been rather bored in the middle parts. This one has been a lot better than some of those ones. The last 10% have been really good and I had trouble putting it down last night at 1:30am lol! Hmmmm, let's see what the ending convinces me to do!

(view spoiler)[ the love triangle is really grating on me, but learning all the new stuff about the Changed, the Spared, about the dreaming and sleep patterns and the hospice stuff was really interesting and is what I've enjoyed about the latter parts of the book. But whyohwhyohwhy is she kissing all these guys without telling them about her "monster in her head"? Seems rather mean and disrespectful. She's pulling them in and then potentially breaking their hearts! Oh and the love triangle feels so much like the one in Delirium that I'm just waiting for the big cliffhanger where Tom shows up again... (hide spoiler)]

David (view spoiler)[I actually forgot about the love triangle. Book 2 has soooooo much going on that the love parts take a huge back seat! It was so much different than what I expected. Or what you're expecting. ;-) Very intense! (hide spoiler)]

I agree David, lots of boring parts in this book, but when its good its amazing! I haven't read the Gone series yet although its always in the back of my head to read it. I'm ready for something awesome, I've read a lot of so so books lately, although all the R&R books I have loved. I have Sentinel to read and Bitter kingdom with Jenny to read, hopefully those keep me happy for a bit. I think I'm half way thru Ashes and I'm like, OK I've been reading this book for days its seem, let's wrap it up. I love when a book makes you not want to put it down but you try to slow down cause you know you are going to miss the characters so badly.

I finished!! Omg what an ending! Convinced me to buy the second one :)

Cindee, I think you'll love the ending too, some fantastic twists!

Karen wrote: "David [spoilers removed]"

Good to know! That helps :)