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May 2020
8:39am, 8 May 2020
45,151 posts
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McGoohan
Paper cut, Grep? 
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May 2020
8:56am, 8 May 2020
119,795 posts
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GregP
Here’s what I put on Goodreads:
I absolutely loved this. Part all-seven-Harry-Potter-books-in-300-pages, part The Jungle Book, and part something magical all of its own. Charming, wise and beautiful. Highly recommended.
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May 2020
9:25am, 8 May 2020
33,716 posts
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Night-owl
I think it's got to be one of the best book group books
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May 2020
9:26am, 8 May 2020
48,332 posts
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Diogenes
I’m going to have to read this, aren’t I?
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May 2020
5:13pm, 8 May 2020
4,888 posts
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The Scribbler
I’m loving that you’re enjoying this book, particularly as I picked it on a low day and chose a read that I knew I could deal with.
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May 2020
12:12pm, 11 May 2020
19,731 posts
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Columba
Finished it this morning. It was a relief. To have finished it. From which it may be concluded that I didn't much enjoy it.
The basic plot seems to have been taken straight from Harry Potter; family killed under mysterious circumstances by strange semi-magical person, all but the baby who survives and is then in constant danger of being found and killed in his turn. The reason for the murders is semi-explained towards the end of the book, not nearly as thoroughly and satisfactorily as in Harry Potter. Another thing not explained is Silas; I suppose he's a reformed vampire. Perhaps the author has deliberately left a few thing unexplained in the hope of producing a sequel or series of sequels.
The witch, and the Sleer, and the ghouls, and maybe the Indigo Man, all seemed a bit deus-ex-machina.
I quite liked some of the conversations Bod had with some of the ghosts.
In the final chapter the book suddenly tried to turn into a coming-of-age story.
A very minor point, that annoyed me in the first few pages: Bod, as a baby, is said to be able to come downstairs by sitting on each stair and bumping down to the next stair on his bottom, though he has not mastered going upstairs. Don't babies always learn to go upstairs (which is only an extension of crawling) well before they learn how to come down?
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May 2020
12:16pm, 11 May 2020
19,732 posts
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Columba
Read back. Oh dear! Mine seems to be the only dissenting voice. Put it down to grumpy-old-womanhood.
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May 2020
12:21pm, 11 May 2020
45,212 posts
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McGoohan
It's good to have differing opinions! The non-use of the v-word in re: Silas was one of the strengths of the book for me - showing, not telling.
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May 2020
12:32pm, 11 May 2020
48,443 posts
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Diogenes
Spoiler! Now I know he's a virgin!
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May 2020
4:54pm, 11 May 2020
19,737 posts
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Columba
Silas is also part of the Honour Guard, as is Miss Lupesco (reformed werewolf?) and this was never explained. Left for a sequel, perhaps.
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