FYA Book Club of Charm City discussion

Chaos of Stars buddy read starts TODAY! You know you want in!

so far... I really want to punch Isadora. She just seems like any bratty teen, but she is meeting people now so she might get less annoying. OMG his eyes!! Also, are the over descriptions of decorating necessary?

See, I was going to say the over-description of his eyes was possibly unnecessary ;-) i just skim past all the decorating descriptions. And most descriptions. (Which gets me in trouble with my writing, cuz my editors are like, "Where are your descriptions and sensory details?")

At first Isadora didn't bother me. I wanted to read the book because Isadora was in such a unique and horrible situation. Her family's attitudes toward their human children would be hard to grow up with. But it's annoying me that she's gotten away, and still she only thinks about what her mother will think about everything she does.

I want to skip the descriptions, but then I always feel like something important in going to be mixed in and I'll miss it. There did seem to be far less pointless descriptions of both decor and eyes in this section.

Isadora is much better with other people involved. I think she might be fighting the Ry thing a little too hard. I mean, I know she's eventually going to give in but I wish she would just do it already.

I also appreciate the thickening of the plot. It's become more than just her trying to convince herself not to like Ry. Hope the delivery driver is ok. Hope they don't leave us hanging there.

So Isadora is okay. It still annoys me how much she is defined by her mother. But, yes, the other people help.

So I have mixed feelings about Ry. On the one hand, clearly I want the romance to progress in a traditional and satisfying manner. On the other hand, the part of me that sometimes reads stuff about gender construction kind of likes seeing a heroine who wants something from life other than finding a man. Of course, I suspect that Isadora is going to learn that she really needs and wants romantic love to make her life complete, so that will defeat that argument. And on both feet, I'm finding the same problem I had with Paranormalcy by the same author. Basically, the heroine has had a completely sheltered life where she has hardly any friends and definitely no boys. And then she falls in love with the first boy she meets. This, to me, is not a super-appealing construct.

But, you know, still cute boy and romance and all that...

Things start getting good and i accidentally read an extra chapter. Shoot. Ry, you cocky punk,....you're starting to grow on me. Plot twists that aren't even a little surprising.

Isadora is letting people in and starting to figure out that maybe she was wrong about her parents, she just needed someone to explain it in the right way. Thats good. I like the change. The "nobody loves me" thing was wearing on me.

Really looking forward to the conclusion. That extra chapter...dang.

It's okay. I always skim ahead. I like to know the endings of books before I get there.

I feel a little like the Isadora turnaround in emotionality was kind of sudden? Like, she has one conversation with her brother, and suddenly she loves her parents again. But, yes, probably good and natural development.

So I finished. I think I liked it 3.5 stars overall. Isadora was kind of irritating, and in general I thought it could have been developed more. I thought it was going to be the first in a series, but judging by the ending, I'm not so sure.

It was kind of anticlimactic for my tastes. But hey, everyone lived happily ever after... I just wish everything hadn't been so obvious. That the trip to Egypt had taken a little more effort ("Here, take my plane" was way too convenient). The way she swung emotionally back and forth drove me insane. In the end I give it a "Meh." Not the worse thing I've read, but far from the best.

I am late to the party but I just read it. At first I could not get into it but I finally did. It was an ok book. I liked the characters by the end. I would read a second book if they had one. I love the tie in with mythology and the gods.

I really would love to find someone to read this with, again as a re-read or for the first time, I have read it and loved it.