| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Alaundo |
Posted - 06 Jul 2007 : 17:34:45
Well met
This is a Book Club thread for The Howling Delve (Book 2 of The Dungeons series), by Jaleigh Johnson. Please discuss chapters 7 - 12 herein. |
| 5 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Rinonalyrna Fathomlin |
Posted - 18 Jul 2007 : 23:41:57
quote:
Originally posted by Jaleigh J.
I should probably clarify this to avoid confusion. Cesira saying that she knows much of Kall, is basically just her reiterating what Garavin said to Kall earlier: that all the diggers have been in Kall's position, with no home and no place to fit in. They're all a band of misfits in their own way. Cesira's speaking in general terms, she had no specific knowledge of Kall before the two met, other than what Garavin might have told her offstage. Hope that helps.
It does, thank you very much.
quote:
Lol, oh come on now, don't hold back, tell me how you really feel. ;)
Hah! Having read extensively now about all three "parents" mentioned (Balram, Varan and Dhairr) I can actually say that they are all scumbags in their own fashion. However, Balram is definitely the worst of the lot.
I love the character of Meisha. She's sympathetic, but also volatile. I'm about halfway through the book so far, and I still look forward to learning ever more about her, such as what motivated her to become a Harper. Speaking of which, it's always nice to see Harpers in novels. |
| Jaleigh J. |
Posted - 17 Jul 2007 : 04:34:55
quote:
Originally posted by Rinonalyrna Fathomlin
I'm interested to learn more about Cesira, however again I was puzzled at how she seemed to know Kall. I'm going to trust that there is much more to this story that shall be revealed later.
I should probably clarify this to avoid confusion. Cesira saying that she knows much of Kall, is basically just her reiterating what Garavin said to Kall earlier: that all the diggers have been in Kall's position, with no home and no place to fit in. They're all a band of misfits in their own way. Cesira's speaking in general terms, she had no specific knowledge of Kall before the two met, other than what Garavin might have told her offstage. Hope that helps.
quote:
On the subject of parents, I don't have much to say yet other than that I think Balram is at least close to being the lowest form of scum on earth.
Lol, oh come on now, don't hold back, tell me how you really feel. ;) |
| Rinonalyrna Fathomlin |
Posted - 17 Jul 2007 : 01:44:40
I've made my way into this section of the book, and I've enjoyed how Kall ended up throwing in his lot with the Delvers (and yes, I liked the dwarf character). I'm interested to learn more about Cesira, however again I was puzzled at how she seemed to know Kall. I'm going to trust that there is much more to this story that shall be revealed later.
On the subject of parents, I don't have much to say yet other than that I think Balram is at least close to being the lowest form of scum on earth. |
| Jaleigh J. |
Posted - 17 Jul 2007 : 01:14:08
quote:
Originally posted by KnightErrantJR
Sorry it took so long to finish the second section of the novel.
I'm playing catch-up too, after the weekend. :) I'm trying to get all my replies posted today, but if I missed something, just yell.
quote:
Most stories start at a given point and progress forward in "real time," and information about a character's past and the history of the story unfold as part of the third person narrative or as statements by the characters. While that structure works well and its tried and true, its very interesting to see another approach with a slight variation.
I'm glad that structure worked for you. The flashbacks and shifts in time (specifically those occurring in this set of chapters) are a lot to ask the reader to sort out in the middle of the action, but of all the ideas my editor and I tinkered with, this seemed to be the best way to begin Meisha's story arc. I'll be interested to see what you think as you progress from here.
quote:
I'm very interested to find out more about the Howling Delve, especially the dwarves that founded the place.
I'm excited for you to find out also. ;)
quote:
Interesting theme that I'm seeing in the book so far about parents.
The theme almost seems to be a collection of parents that aren't wholly evil or uncaring toward their children,
Exactly. I remember exchanging emails with Steven Schend while I was doing my research on Amn, and he made a lot of comparisons between the families in Amn and the Godfather movies. I think that must have stuck in my head, because I tried to portray the importance Amn places on family--the family business, family loyalty, family is the only unit that will ultimately care for you, etc--and I think that idea of the family being important but sort of twisted bled over into the other characters. Most are capable of love on some level, but there's also manipulation, cruelty and selfishness in abundance. Sorry, I got going there for a minute...I warned you guys I might ramble. ;)
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| KnightErrantJR |
Posted - 14 Jul 2007 : 04:27:21
Sorry it took so long to finish the second section of the novel. Starting a new gaming group, and I've been doing a lot of planning, organizing, and coordinating the last two days.
I really like the structure of the narrative. Most stories start at a given point and progress forward in "real time," and information about a character's past and the history of the story unfold as part of the third person narrative or as statements by the characters. While that structure works well and its tried and true, its very interesting to see another approach with a slight variation.
I'm very interested to find out more about the Howling Delve, especially the dwarves that founded the place.
I really liked how Jaleigh advanced the timeline and explained the (ahem) Sythillian war. It was too important of an event to not be mentioned, but not directly related to the story, so I think its inclusion was juggled really well.
Interesting theme that I'm seeing in the book so far about parents. Kall's father seems to care for him, but doesn't spend enough time with him while managing the family business, and he is willing to threaten the safety of his son to keep the Harpers out of his business. Balram seems to care about his son and his station in life, but he treats him in a horribly abusive manner. Meisha's father sold her for food, but her surrogate father, while capable of caring and compassion, is too selfish and obsessive to put his "children" above his work, to the point of absent mindedly putting them in danger.
The theme almost seems to be a collection of parents that aren't wholly evil or uncaring toward their children, in fact, all but Meisha's birth father seem capable of actually caring about their children. Yet each one has a horrible trait or string of traits that keeps them from fully accepting their roles as parents. Really interesting subtext to have running through the story.
At any event, looking forward to seeing how all of this ties together, and especially how Aazen grew up, and what all of this has to do with the Howling Delve.
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