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The current intrigue involving Catherine has made the last handful of pages more interesting than the entire first half of the book. At least I can now feel the stakes involved in her gambit to become Queen, even though I already know the end result because... Well, history.

We'll see how long this interest will prevail.

Cassette tapes in cars? Pagers? Fax machines? World wide web?

How old is this book? Published in 1999. And ho boy does it show its age, because despite some advanced technologies, it did not anticipate the cellphone.

Another I didn't remember is how cringey Dan Brown's prose is in this book. "Pump her legs like an Olympic diver" (paraphrased) Yikes.

I should have seen that twist coming, except I didn't see that twist coming. And it was something I didn't expect I would be able to buy into until it happened.

I thought the ways the lives of the residents sort of connected together was well done, and made the story pretty engaging connecting all the dots.

Audiobook narrated by Kitty Bennet from the 2005 Pride and Prejudice film? Yes effing please.

Would have started sooner but had to wait for my audiobook time on Spotify to roll over. The original idea was to read it physically and then go audiobook when I need to go hands free but the narration so far has been so good I'm prolly just going to stick with it.

So the thing I've been waiting to happen finally happened at the 200 page mark, and while I get that that event was what inspired Gregory to write this book, it is still far far too many pages for what is essentially the plot's establishing spark. And honestly, the foundation of the inspiring event was not written well at all it feels.

Showing there was good reason to abridge this audiobook.

Finally got to the start of part 3 with the pipsqueak, whose tolerance for bedtime stories changes constantly.

So yes, there's way too much vermin activity in this book. Or at least, passages where the good guys don't even figure into the story. It makes it hard to care since the bad guys in these stories tend to be disposable. So a lot of their action feels pretty meaningless.

Sometimes all you want is that mindless piece of literature where you can turn off your brain and just enjoy the ride.

Rereading for the fun of it. Although I'm gobsmacked at the page count. My memory of this book remembered it as a fast ride so over 500+ pages was not expected.

I wasn't expecting to be so intrigued by the backstory of the characters I'm being introduced to so far in this book. It's making me excited to find out more about those I've yet to learn from.

The central mystery remains however, both surrounding the perpetrators and the victims, but I think that was intended.

I'm finally past the point where I dnf'd when I first read this and honestly, I completely understand why I dnf'd around where I did. And I understand why the only audiobook available of this is heavily abridged.

I'm bored.

In an attempt to illustrate why without major spoilers even though this is history, Henry VIII is still around 10. Much ado about nothing.

Some stuff has happened that has made the last few chapters pretty readable where the pages are moving by pretty quickly relatively speaking. Mostly some action to progress the plot.

Honestly, I'm not super invested in this story so far. The characters don't really interest me nor does the plot. Not because it's bad, it's just not hitting me in any feels. But it is readable.

Well the book's opening scene threw me for a loop. Mostly because I was expecting this book to be more literary in scope than a... mystery? Thriller? Honestly, even having downed 100 pages I'm not yet certain what genre to class this in for myself.

Nora's story has been intriguing so far and I'm curious to know what happens to her at the moment.

I dnf'd this book nearly a decade ago for reasons I can't remember. Probably boredom, but my present day may be colouring that impression. But for reasons that does not entirely belong to the book.

I'm nearly 100 pages in and I still haven't reached the part I dnf'd at though. So apparently I got further in than I had anticipated.

This has been an alright read so far. There's a couple of choices by the author in terms of writing style and substance that has been irritating or incongruous. I feel it overly relies on vaguarities and keeping readers in the dark on points known by its POV characters.

But overall I'm still reasonably entertained enough. It does feel undercooked in places so far.

Got a physical copy of this book from a little free library after adding this to my TBR for an unknown reason prior to. It is not my typical genre or the kind of book I gravitate towards.

It ticks off a Goodreads challenge too, so why not.

There is a theory I once heard that supposes if Fanny had made a particularly different choice, everyone would have lived happily ever after instead of what devolved in the coming pages.

Except, reading now the passages surrounding the motives of said choice proposed to her, I feel all would have been much more worse off in that case. Just based on what was said.

I suspect one of the reasons for my lacklustre rating of this book is due to how much of the story takes place in Sampetra, away from our heroes and Redwall.

I don't think I mind it as much as an adult than a teen. With that said, the amount of vermin drama all for some bad guy bound to die before the end does make the exercise tedious and kind of boring.

I wanted to do this book that has long haunted my TBR shelf with an audiobook, was positively thrilled there was an audiobook for this.

Only to realize, at only 8 hours for a 400+ page book, the audiobook was abridged. And so I'm back to having to read the book itself.

I hate Barbara. She is exactly the kind of person that keeps therapists employed for the kind of trauma they inflict.

The irony is that, while it is not explicitly stated, Barbara is likely part of what made Joan such a successful ASCAN as far as her cooperative and peaceful attitude as well as her cool cucumber outlook.

Something is unfolding in this last part that kept me up for an hour tossing and turning in my bed last night. Mostly because seeing a storm looming on the horizon left me anxious. And I couldn't help but worry about what is to come.

I know her story ends pretty well given the book, but there has to be empathy over the hard truths that is her family.

I've owned a physical copy of this book for so long without reading it due to a lack of patience for slow burns.

Here's to excising more of my physical TBR in 2026.

First, I am gobsmacked how early into the book the play within a novel incident is taking place.

It took me these pages to realize at this point, Fanny is not the main character. The gossip surrounding Fanny's family and their friends that Fanny is observing is the plot driver. Fanny is just the commonality and the lens we are viewing it through.

The synopsis of this book (oh look I've actually read a synopsis) made me think this book was more an exploration of nature verses nurture when it comes to knowledge and education.

And while that is an underlying theme, it is so so so much more than that. It explores religion, gender and the denials we hold on to to stay sane.

Opening with the crisis on Navigator was a brilliant move because it makes me care about what we are learning about the affected crew members in the flashbacks, knowing some of their fates.

Space is dangerous after all.

The fact no one in this family have died to this point in the book is astounding given what has happened... Without going to a hospital.

Confirmation bias of such beliefs if I ever saw one, though let's not discredit the mother's herbal knowledge. Still, its maddening.

This is the only complete Jane Austen novel I have yet to read, and one I have long procrastinated due to it being my most dreaded because Fanny Price as a concept has never impressed me.

So imagine my surprise as to how much I am enjoying the first three chapters in spite of Fanny, for its subtle commentary on class and classism.

Finally got to the end of book 1 with the pipsqueak.

I'm not minding the story so far. At least, I am finding it more enjoyable than when I first read this book. I wouldn't say it's my favourite or the strongest story in the series but it's better than it's rating suggests.

I still don't like that there are two Martin warriormice though.

Impulsed this from the library when I saw it on the shelves though I'm paying for it because it is pushing back a physical book I own from being read. But it is being lauded absolutely everywhere and I feel I can get behind a good in-my-feels book for Betweenmas.

Can confirm that Chapter 19: Dawn and Dusk made me cry on this rereading when it has never done so before. An example of how these books strike us differently at different stages in our life. Once, there was distance in my feelings for the chapter. Now, I feel it in my bones.

Someone once pointed out to me that the vast majority of sex scenes in single-entry romance-centred books tend to unfold in a very similar sequence, and ever since, I have not been able to unsee it.

So I appreciate that the spice in this one went about it differently.

Had this on a suspended hold on Libby for a spell, releasing it once I finished with A Yorkshire Christmas, and can dedicate the time needed to finish this before its due date.

Not exactly light or easy reading, but I think is an important one in this day and age.