YA Buddy Readers' Corner ♥ discussion

Denizen Hardwick is an orphan, and his life is, well, normal. Sure, in storybooks orphans are rescued from drudgery when they discover they are a wizard or a warrior or a prophesied king. But this is real life—orphans are just kids without parents. At least that’s what Denizen thought. . . .

On a particularly dark night, the gates of Crosscaper Orphanage open to a car that almost growls with power. The car and the man in it retrieve Denizen with the promise of introducing him to a long-lost aunt. But on the ride into the city, they are attacked. Denizen soon learns that monsters can grow out of the shadows. And there is an ancient order of knights who keep them at bay. Denizen has a unique connection to these knights, but everything they tell him feels like a half-truth. If Denizen joins the order, is he fulfilling his destiny, or turning his back on everything his family did to keep him alive?

Up to Chapter 22- (view spoiler)[ I'll be honest once I'd gotten about a quarter of the way into the book I got a little confused. I'm finding this book okay but a little hard going. I don't know why but I can't seem to get into it. It's taken me ages just to get this far. Hopefully I can finish it in the next couple of days. (hide spoiler)]

Thanks for reading this with me, Elizabeth! I will check out your comment above when I get that far.

Chapter 11 (35%)
Very exciting so far! Full of mystery and intrigue. I really like the writing. Particularly amusing is the contrast between Denizen's thoughts and his words/actions.
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I really feel for Denizen. All his life he thinks that he has no family. Now he finds his aunt (or his aunt finds him), only to find she is cold and distant. He thinks he was better off before -- when he was independent -- now he feels vulnerable and has hope of a family and love. But is Vivian capable of love? I guess we'll have to wait to find out.

Simon's power of light is really exciting and described very vividly. I can really feel it. The metaphors are powerful:

"It had felt like the birth of sun in his chest, like a dragon of fire spreading its wings through him until the power had spilled from his eyes and mouth and hands, unable to be contained by such a fragile mortal body."

I wonder what "the Epithets," the "Art of Apetura," the "Starlight Caul," and the "Snare of Thoth" entail.

I'm worried about Simon. Is he just waiting it out in a cupboard? I hope he has some food and water.

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Elizabeth Emily wrote: "Up to Chapter 22- [spoilers removed]"
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Elizabeth Emily wrote: "I'll be honest once I'd gotten about a quarter of the way into the book I got a little confused. I'm finding this book okay but a little hard going. I don't know why but I can't seem to get into it. It's taken me ages just to get this far. Hopefully I can finish it in the next couple of days."

I got into it immediately. But I had to interrupt reading it to squeeze another buddy read in. I really liked the mysterious atmosphere and the weird and unusual beings coming in from the other side...

I also liked Denizen's character from the start. He's been dealt a nasty deck -- orphaned when he was two, sent to this dismal orphanage at the end of the world, with these uncaring adults as staff... But still, he is able to rise above it and convince himself he doesn't need anybody (except maybe his best friend Simon).

Then his whole reality gets dashed to the side: He has family. And he has powers. And there's this whole other world out there that is threatening the world he knows. And he can do something to protect the world he knows. He can become a Knight. Cool.
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I know I'm staring this late but need to do a few more buddy reads, so I'm starting this today :)

Chapter 10 / 26% (view spoiler)[ excellent so far, I love Grey and his bluntness I also hope to see more of his mate from the orphanage. The evil people at the start were creepy as hell so I hope we don't see more of them except that if we didn't it wouldn't be much of a story (view spoiler)[ (hide spoiler)] (hide spoiler)]

Chapter 15 / 42% (view spoiler)[ I love Denizen, but he's in such a horrible situation with his aunt. I really hope she can open up to him and not be as cold.

Grey still seems to be struggling to come to terms with everything new. (view spoiler)[ (hide spoiler)] (hide spoiler)]

Chapter 20 / 58% (view spoiler)[ This is definatley building to those creepy guys coming back! I'm getting a little scared. I'm glad we know more about Denizen's character who I've liked since the beginning (view spoiler)[ (hide spoiler)] (hide spoiler)]

Rebecca wrote: "Chapter 10 / 26% [spoilers removed]"
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Rebecca wrote: "excellent so far, I love Grey and his bluntness I also hope to see more of his mate from the orphanage. The evil people at the start were creepy as hell so I hope we don't see more of them except that if we didn't it wouldn't be much of a story"

I know! Grey is a fantastic character! His light-hearted humor is such a contrast to Denizen's cold unapproachable aunt.

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Rebecca wrote: "Chapter 10 / 26% [spoilers removed]"
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Oh, I realize you are probably talking about Denizen and not Grey?
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Rebecca wrote: "Chapter 20 / 58% [spoilers removed]"
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Rebecca wrote: "This is definatley building to those creepy guys coming back! I'm getting a little scared. I'm glad we know more about Denizen's character who I've liked since the beginning"

I found this part really exciting! And I also liked Denizen's character from the start.

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Chapter 16 (51%)
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Okay. Who do The Clockwork three have? Hopefully not Denizen!
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Chapter 25 (79%)
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Grey? Oh man. Not good. Now I am in shock.
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Chapter 28 (90%)
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Vivian is Denizen's mother? Okay. I did not see that coming. All this time I thought that Denizen's parents might be alive, but I thought that they had gone bad and were playing for the other team. This is unexpected.
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Finished.

This was a great read! The writing was fantastic. The characters were diverse and interesting. Denizen's thought process was tons of fun to follow, as well as his personal development. Unexpected twists and turns provided suspense and surprises!

I can totally recommend this book!

You are such a quick reader! I feel like I've been on with this book for ages!

Chapter 25 / 70% (view spoiler)[ I do think this last bit will go quick because I am not very determined to finish this tonight! I'm slightly terrified by these ticking people and not loving that I'm almost at the end of the book because it has been brilliant. (view spoiler)[ (hide spoiler)] (hide spoiler)]

Rebecca wrote: "You are such a quick reader! I feel like I've been on with this book for ages!"

Oh, no... I'm a slow reader usually, but I actually did read this one quite fast (fast for me) because I loved it. But I didn't read it as fast as it appears -- I made notes in my Kindle and just posted those last ones all at the same time when I got back to my computer. ;)

Finished! (view spoiler)[ I really was determined to finish this tonight. I didn't expect the surprise ending with Vivian either. The ending was excellent just like the whole book. I can't wait to read the other books in this series which I really hope are coming soon. (view spoiler)[ (hide spoiler)] (hide spoiler)]

Rebecca wrote: "Finished! [spoilers removed]"
So glad you liked it! I did too!

came out in April, but I don't have a review copy yet. (Dave Rudden, hint, hint). We should all buddy read it when it comes out.

@Elizabeth, you already read it didn't you? Did you like it?

Hi all!

I hope this isn't a massive breach of Goodreads etiquette or anything, but when I saw this group I wanted to pop in and say thanks for reading, and if you have any questions about the book I'd be delighted to answer them! If not, no worries at all, hope you're all well. :)

Best,

Dave