2026 Reading Challenge discussion

This thread is to discuss The Kingdoms by Natasha Pulley.

Pages: 448 pages

Length: 1 month (June)

Participants: Odette, Lorraine

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 }.

Here are some questions to help get the conversation started! Feel free to look up discussion questions specific to this book or come up with your own. Just make sure any questions that contain spoilers are under spoiler tags.
Discussion questions are not required but may be a fun way to talk about the book and get to know each other!

Prior to starting:
What prompted you to join this buddy read?
Have you read this author before? What do you think of their other books?

Mid-read:
What character or ideas do you relate to the most and why?
Do you have any favorite quotes or scenes?

After reading:
What was enjoyable or not-so-enjoyable about this book?
Did this book change your perception about anything, either within the book (character development) or in real life?

Hello Lorraine
I will be starting this book in a week or so, after I finish The Nights Are Quiet in Tehran.
I am looking forward to reading The Kingdoms, I recently read The Watchmaker of Filigree Street by the same author, which was really good. Now I am motivated to read another book by the same author.

Hello Odette. I just borrowed the book, so I’ll be ready whenever you are. I’ve also read The Watchmaker of Filigree Street, but I only gave it 3 stars and never picked up another book by her afterward. However, I’ve read some very good reviews of The Kingdoms, so this feels like a good opportunity to give her another try.
I’ll be reading the book in English since it hasn’t been translated into French yet. I just hope I won’t have too much trouble with what the summary calls “illegal English” — unless they simply mean that it was illegal to speak English in the colony… We’ll see!

Hello Lorraine
I may be able to start this one, once I get started on my other read, that is if it is not too complex.
No idea what I am letting myself into, as I think the author's books are a bit different from each other.
It must be more difficult to read in English when it is not your usual language. I will have to look out for the '"illegal English".

Hello Odette. I will be starting this book today or tomorrow.