2025 & 2026 Reading Challenge discussion

This thread is to discuss The Many Daughters of Afong Moy by Jamie Ford.

Pages: 384.

Length: 1 Month (January).

Participants: Rebecca, Shari, Lisa.

Everyone reads at their own pace during a Buddy Read. Because participants can be at different parts of the book at different times, it is extremely important to mark spoilers so that the book is not ruined for someone who is not as far along as others!!!

Mark spoilers by placing {spoiler} before the text and {/spoiler} after the text but use the < and > instead of the { and }.


Happy Buddy Reading!

Hello, hello :)
I'll be part of two buddy reads this month, and have both books on hold on Libby.
This will become available in about 4 weeks, cd., so I guess mid-January is when I'll be getting around to it :)

Do you have a specific timeline as to when you'll start?
Looking forward to reading this book with you both :)

I think, but I’m not sure, that I’ll start this one around the first. It’s as soon as I finish the book I’m reading now, which is nonfiction, so it’s reading slower.

New to Buddy Read concept and have been wanting to try this book. Please add me to the list of participants. I want to use Buddy Reads and other challenge threads to force me to branch out in my reading.

Welcome to this buddy read, Melissa. Looking forward to seeing your thoughts throughout.

I just wanted to share the poem for Annabel Lee in case anyone was interested in reading the whole thing.

I find it really interesting that this was one of the poems that Jamie Ford decided to insert here, along with "A dream Within a Dream"

I kinda fell asleep whilst listening to the audio book last night, so woops, guess I'm not doing that anymore :D I'm currently back on chapter 7.

So far, I am really enjoying the writing style and the story.

I'm new to buddy reads, but I'm interested in reading this book and exchanging ideas about it. So, does messaging you constitute joining? I have the book but I haven't started it. I'll probably get to it this weekend...

Robin wrote: "I'm new to buddy reads, but I'm interested in reading this book and exchanging ideas about it. So, does messaging you constitute joining? I have the book but I haven't started it. I'll probably get..."

Hi Robin,
If you want to "officially" add your list to the participants list, you can express your interest in joining here.
There you can read a bit more about the how-to's of suggesting and joining buddy reads, and so on.

But since the thread is already up you can just join the discussion here as you wish :) Just please, please remember to mark spoilers.

Welcome! :)

Hoping to pick this up from my library tonight.

I'm starting it today. I had planned to start before now but got distracted by some ofter books. :-)

lol I know the feeling, Rebecca

Finished the book and thoroughly enjoyed it. Loved the Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by the same author. This book reminded me of The Time Traveler’s Wife. I do have some questions about the ending. Will wait to see what others think.

I have this here in audio and in print but am busy finishing up a couple of other books first.

I'm starting this later this evening. I did get it from the library last week, but finished up some other books I was already reading.

May I jump in? Love Jamie Ford and this is on my TBR list. I can pick it up at the library today--it's in!--and start reading.

Thanks!

Michelle E wrote: "May I jump in? Love Jamie Ford and this is on my TBR list. I can pick it up at the library today--it's in!--and start reading.

Thanks!"

Ofcourse, Michelle! Welcome :)

I finished it last week, and intrigued to see what other people think of it so far :)

Darn! Another library patron snapped up the book before I was able to get there. I guess I will not be joining you after all. :( In any case, Happy Reading!!

I'm only through chapter two, and I guess I went in blind because I was surprised that this has such a strong speculative/magical realism feel to it. I don't remember there being anything like that in the description. I just wanted to pop in and comment that. Nothing on the plot or details yet other than to say that I'm enjoying the writing.

Also, I didn’t realize Afong Moy was a real, historical person until I saw a reference to her in Babel (which is my other current read). I’ve spent part of my afternoon falling down a research hole, looking her up.

I finished Act 1 today, and I was so confused (view spoiler)[ by the medicated vision (hide spoiler)] in chapter ten. (view spoiler)[ I guess that was the point as Dorothy seems rather confused and unsettled by it as well. (hide spoiler)]

Also, while I'm still talking about Dorothy's timeline, (view spoiler)[ can we all agree that she needs to break up with Louis? I don't care if they have a child together. That is one toxic relationship for her. (hide spoiler)]

I enjoyed visiting Faye's timeline as second time in chapter nine, and it sent me back into the research hole as I found the mentions of the goddess Meng Po to be quite interesting and intriguing. Faye's timeline is one I really want to get back to as I (view spoiler)[ find the whole soldier and picture to be quite intriguing. It's a mystery I want to see unraveled. (hide spoiler)]

Other than that, I find Afong's timeline to also be interesting too. Has anyone read The Ghost Bride? I was thinking about reading it to see if I could find out more about the customs surrounding Afong's marriage.

Okay. I think that's all my thoughts for now. I still am unclear on the other timelines, but hoping to figure them out as I go. Now, to get back to the book.

I've read through chapter 13, and Afong and Greta's chapters were super heavy. (view spoiler)[ I felt personally devastated with how Carter treated Greta and how that ended her new relationship with Sam. I was so happy for her (hide spoiler)]

I also have rarely hated a character as much as (view spoiler)[ I hated the man who raped Afong. I felt kind of vindicated when she stabbed him at the end of her most recent perspective chapter (hide spoiler)]

This book is definitely provoking strong emotions in me!!

I finished over the weekend. I liked it, but I didn't love it. I liked some of the authors previous books better. I was a little surprised how the book jumped around between the different POVs. I liked Greta's story the best.

Rebecca - I have not read The Ghost Bride, but it's on my TBR list. Maybe a future buddy read??

I am almost done with Act 2. It’s taking me longer than I thought it would because the chapters feel so long (because everything is sad). I could definitely read The Ghost Bride as a buddy read in March or April.

I finished! I loved most of the book, but I'm not positive the hopeful note at the end really melded well with the rest of the book. I'm still going to have to think about that before I decide.