The DIS Book Club Discussion Group: Round 7 - Juliet

[SKWDW]

I have to agree about the twins. Janice got right under my skin early on in the novel. I also felt badly for Juliet. I don't understand why she allows her sister to treat her that way. What do you guys think?

I totally agree about Janice and Juliet's dishrag personality is troublesome. Juliet's "tail between my legs" description of her how she has been going through life was right on. I find myself wanting to lecture Juliet and tell her to get a backbone! Certainly as the "older" sister, I expected a stronger personality from Juliet.

On the positive side, Fortier's writing style is easy to read and her characterizations are vivid. It's easy for me to picture Juliet's "adventures" in Italy.

Does the literary device of "bouncing back to the 1300's story" (just when it's getting good in the present) interfere with the pace of the book for anyone else? I plod through the "old story" because I'm hoping it will be integral to the modern story that Fortier is telling. I suppose it is similar to other writers that jump from one plot line to another.

Since we're supposed to be done by now, can we chat about specifics in the book? Specifically, Juliet's planned rendevous with Romeo at the tower?

 

[SKWDW]

Anyone still reading? Anyone discussing?

Is it just this book or does the DIS Book Club Discussion Group not actually discuss the books?

 

[*NikkiBell*]

I think everyone is very busy with springtime activities and the holidays. The discussion has been a bit quiet. Everyone can go at their own pace though. Chime in with your thoughts!

I totally agree about Janice and Juliet's dishrag personality is troublesome. Juliet's "tail between my legs" description of her how she has been going through life was right on. I find myself wanting to lecture Juliet and tell her to get a backbone! Certainly as the "older" sister, I expected a stronger personality from Juliet.

On the positive side, Fortier's writing style is easy to read and her characterizations are vivid. It's easy for me to picture Juliet's "adventures" in Italy.

Does the literary device of "bouncing back to the 1300's story" (just when it's getting good in the present) interfere with the pace of the book for anyone else? I plod through the "old story" because I'm hoping it will be integral to the modern story that Fortier is telling. I suppose it is similar to other writers that jump from one plot line to another.

Since we're supposed to be done by now, can we chat about specifics in the book? Specifically, Juliet's planned rendevous with Romeo at the tower?

Yes, yes, yes - on all accounts! I really do not like how it bounces back and forth between the present and past. It drives me crazy. I rather they cut it out or divide the book into parts each focusing on one of the time periods. I feel like things with Julie are just getting good and then they end to go to the past.

 

[NitroStitch]

The bouncing back and forth between present and past bothered me a lot at the beginning, but less so after I got used to the pattern. Still, I did enjoy when the narrative stopped going back and forth.

I finally finished reading on Monday! Yay!

I agree that it's odd for Juliet to take so much from Janice, but their relationship is a little like the one my brother and I had when we were living at home. Juliet was often treated like a second class citizen by their aunt, so she grew up thinking of herself as "less than" and Janice grew up thinking she was better than Juliet and that she could get away with far more than Juliet. Since that was the way each girl was raised, and knew that as "normal" from such an early age, it would be hard for them to believe and behave differently later on. Theirs is a more extreme example, but I could relate somewhat to their relationship and why Juliet was such a doormat where Janice was concerned.

 

[NitroStitch]

Wow. Can I kill a book club thread or what?!

 

[*NikkiBell*]

lol This has been a quiet round.

 

[JenniBugInPink]

I'm sorry to have been so quiet (it's not my nature, LOL!). I'm swamped with work and am trying to avoid goofing off, as hard as that is for me...I have adult ADD (no kidding), so all it takes to get me off track is a nanosecond of distraction and I may stay off task for 2 hours. So, back to work I go, RIGHT NOW!

 

[*NikkiBell*]

I've been swamped too so don't stress! I actually put Juliet aside for now. I just couldn't get the feel for it. I know it picks up in the second half, but I'm going to try again during the summer. I am very excited to try a new hot book out called Discovery of Witches. Anyone read it yet?

 

[Aburns8]

I have had a hard couple of months. I have it on my nightstand to read, I just haven't found time. Sorry

 

[NitroStitch]

I've been swamped too so don't stress! I actually put Juliet aside for now. I just couldn't get the feel for it. I know it picks up in the second half, but I'm going to try again during the summer. I am very excited to try a new hot book out called Discovery of Witches. Anyone read it yet?

I've seen it on Ereader IQ but I haven't read a sample yet. Will have to check out the sample...

I know I had tons of reading delays myself this time. Life keeps interfering with Disney and with reading. Grrr.

 

[TIGGERmetoo]

I've been swamped too so don't stress! I actually put Juliet aside for now. I just couldn't get the feel for it. I know it picks up in the second half, but I'm going to try again during the summer. I am very excited to try a new hot book out called Discovery of Witches. Anyone read it yet?

Are you looking at A Discovery of Witches or The Discovery of Witches? I found both when I searched.

 

[rainydayplay]

I'm sorry I haven't been more active...I miss the Lit courses in college (BA in English with a Lit focus) because of all the discussion, but I read fast and I think I was about finished when we were scheduled to start reading. I've read several other books since then, and it's hard to NOT discuss certain things while waiting for everyone else to catch up.

I'd like to discuss the bit about meeting Romeo, too... In fact...there's a lot that could be discussed....


It's probably A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness. Here's the description from Amazon:

It all begins with a lost manuscript, a reluctant witch, and 1,500-year-old vampire. Dr. Diana Bishop has a really good reason for refusing to do magic: she is a direct descendant of the first woman executed in the Salem Witch Trials, and her parents cautioned her be discreet about her talents before they were murdered, presumably for having "too much power." So it is purely by accident that Diana unlocks an enchanted long-lost manuscript (a book that all manner of supernatural creatures believe to hold the story of all origins and the secret of immortality) at the Bodleian Library at Oxford, and finds herself in a race to prevent an interspecies war. A sparkling debut written by a historian and self-proclaimed oenophile, A Discovery of Witches is heady mix of history and magic, mythology and love (cue the aforementioned vampire!), making for a luxurious, intoxicating, one-sitting read. --Daphne Durham

From Publishers Weekly
In Harkness's lively debut, witches, vampires, and demons outnumber humans at Oxford's Bodleian Library, where witch and Yale historian Diana Bishop discovers an enchanted manuscript, attracting the attention of 1,500-year-old vampire Matthew Clairmont. The orphaned daughter of two powerful witches, Bishop prefers intellect, but relies on magic when her discovery of a palimpsest documenting the origin of supernatural species releases an assortment of undead who threaten, stalk, and harass her. Against all occult social propriety, Bishop turns for protection to tall, dark, bloodsucking man-about-town Clairmont. Their research raises questions of evolution and extinction among the living dead, and their romance awakens centuries-old enmities. Harkness imagines a crowded universe where normal and paranormal creatures observe a tenuous peace. "Magic is desire made real," Bishop says after both her desire and magical prowess exceed her expectations. Harkness brings this world to vibrant life and makes the most of the growing popularity of gothic adventure with an ending that keeps the Old Lodge door wide open. (Feb.)
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

I've been told to read The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown, too.

 

[*NikkiBell*]

Are you looking at A Discovery of Witches or The Discovery of Witches? I found both when I searched.

A Discovery of Witches! A co-worker friend of mine read it and said it's awesome!

http://www.amazon.com/Discovery-Witches-Novel-Deborah-Harkness/dp/0670022411

 

[TIGGERmetoo]

Thanks - I'll check out A Discovery of Witches.