Everyone in the book club finished this book and they all found it very enjoyable, although it does take a little bit of getting into at the beginning. Some book club members didn't like the hopping back and forward in time, but it was always very clear where you were in time and who you were listening to. This book is very dense with lots of information and little side stories and back stories, but while you're reading it you really don't feel that bombarded with information, this is a great skill for an author.
This book is full of magical realism like monsters in the lake, so you do need to be able to suspend your disbelief a little bit. Some book club members enjoyed this element more than others. We had a short discussion on the difference between magical realism and the different types of fantasy novel such as sword and sorcery, or urban fantasy as this is not an area that many of the book club members generally read from.
As we were reading the book some book club members felt that some parts of the story were not explained well enough, we just had to believe that something had happened, or just go along with the story. We felt that a little more explanation might have helped us with our belief in the reality of the story.
We enjoyed the small town feel of the book, it feels like Gilmore Girls or something similar in that everyone knows everyone else and also their genealogical background. There are lots of little rituals and traditions that go on in the town as well which felt comforting if a little odd at the same time.
With regards the title of the book we felt that the actual monster living in the lake was not monstrous at all, and in fact was loved by the citizens living in the town. That monster had an air of protectiveness towards the citizens rather than one of menace. However, when you look at some of the human characters in the book such as Ginger and Marmaduke you could see some truly monstrous creatures.
Some of our most favourite characters in the book were "The Buds". We loved their almost female relationship with each other, it's unusual to see a group of men so supportive within a novel, it's generally a group of women who serve that role within a book. Overall we did like a lot of the characters and felt that they were really well written to the point that they felt real. At the end of the book we wanted to find out more about some of the characters but we also felt sated with the ending, it felt quite right.
Overall we gave this book 6.5 out of 10.
This book is full of magical realism like monsters in the lake, so you do need to be able to suspend your disbelief a little bit. Some book club members enjoyed this element more than others. We had a short discussion on the difference between magical realism and the different types of fantasy novel such as sword and sorcery, or urban fantasy as this is not an area that many of the book club members generally read from.
As we were reading the book some book club members felt that some parts of the story were not explained well enough, we just had to believe that something had happened, or just go along with the story. We felt that a little more explanation might have helped us with our belief in the reality of the story.
We enjoyed the small town feel of the book, it feels like Gilmore Girls or something similar in that everyone knows everyone else and also their genealogical background. There are lots of little rituals and traditions that go on in the town as well which felt comforting if a little odd at the same time.
With regards the title of the book we felt that the actual monster living in the lake was not monstrous at all, and in fact was loved by the citizens living in the town. That monster had an air of protectiveness towards the citizens rather than one of menace. However, when you look at some of the human characters in the book such as Ginger and Marmaduke you could see some truly monstrous creatures.
Some of our most favourite characters in the book were "The Buds". We loved their almost female relationship with each other, it's unusual to see a group of men so supportive within a novel, it's generally a group of women who serve that role within a book. Overall we did like a lot of the characters and felt that they were really well written to the point that they felt real. At the end of the book we wanted to find out more about some of the characters but we also felt sated with the ending, it felt quite right.
Overall we gave this book 6.5 out of 10.
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