You'll love this one...!! A book club & more discussion

You are not limited to the two chosen books. You may read any book within the theme “Forest Setting” if you prefer.

In order to receive a badge you must:
1. have read the book before or during August 2026.

2. discussed it in this thread. Discussion must be more than "I read the book and I liked it". Discussion requires something more substantial and analytical of what you read. Please elaborate on your thoughts on at least 5 of the following topics:
- Setting
- Characters
- Writing style
- Genre
- How the book made you feel
- Which parts stood out
- Did you/will you read more by the author
- Anything else related to the book you find worth mentioning

This can be done in one post after finishing the book, but preferably in a few posts while reading. Please refer to our group spoiler policy for further information.

3. Report that you have read AND discussed the book in the reporting thread (include a brief summary of what you thought of the book).

General Rules:
1. Please mark your spoilers with the spoiler tags along with mentioning what stage of the book you are at so other's don't get a nasty shock. Chapter numbers/titles are generally best as they are the same across all formats and editions. See our spoiler policy
2. The book may be combined with the Year Long Challenge, Topplers, and Monthly Challenges.

Happy reading!

I am planning to read Open Season and Where the Forest Meets the Stars this month. I don't know how much of the books actually take place in the forest, so I'll be back to discuss later if they end up fitting the theme.

I plan to read The Moonshiner's Daughter for this theme. I will start it when I'm finished my current kindle read.

That one looks good, Janice. I'll be interested to see what you think of it.

I started The Moonshiner's Daughter last night and read the first two chapters. These chapters follow Jessie from the time she was 4 when she witnessed her month's death to the time she's 16, the horror, the need for answers, the anger at not getting any. So far, it's a good start.

Chapter 5 - The Moonshiner's Daughter

(view spoiler)[ I don't necessarily need a likeable character. I'm not really liking Jessie. Her choices seem to be a bit off.

Tension has ramped up with Earnest (the father), Merritt (the brother), and Jessie being run off the road and down an embankment resulting in Merritt breaking his arm. You know that alchohol is going to be a problem for Merrit. At 14, he's already developing a taste for it. (hide spoiler)]

I'm starting Open Season and I expect that it will fit the monthly theme. I'll pop back in once I get a little way into it.

There seems to be a switch in tone in my book, or maybe it's me. The story in the beginning was making me feel a bit anxious, but I didn't feel any of that last night. Hopefully, it will continue to improve.

Kristie wrote: "I'm starting Open Season and I expect that it will fit the monthly theme. I'll pop back in once I get a little way into it."

I have always been drawn to CJ Box's titles, but have yet to read one of his books. I'll be interesting in your comments on this book.

Janice wrote: "Kristie wrote: "I'm starting Open Season and I expect that it will fit the monthly theme. I'll pop back in once I get a little way into it."

I have always been drawn to CJ Box's titl..."

This is my first by this author too. I'm really curious about his writing. Seems like it'll be right up my alley.

I'm 20% into my book, Open Season (through ch 6), and it's interesting so far. It seems like it will mostly be set in the forest. Right now (view spoiler)[ they have to ride horses to get where they are going through the woods and one guy packed so much stuff on his horse that he can't follow the other guys directly. (hide spoiler)]

The book is interested, but it was written 25 years ago, so the writing is different than more current books. I have a thought about (view spoiler)[ why the guy went to the game wardens house to die and it involves the animal that was in his cooler. (hide spoiler)] Of course, I'm not sure about my theory or who would have done it yet, which is good.

I made it to 40% tonight. Of course I don't know how it will end, but it feels like it's going to be a fairly straightforward story so far.