Rosemary and Rue Read-Along Week No.3

This Read-Along of Rosemary and Rue was arranged by Lisa at Over the Effing Rainbow. This book has been sitting on my TBR pile forever, and I figured now was a good time to read it along with other people! I enjoyed the last Read-Along I participated in which was for Full Fathom Five. The questions will be posted on Saturday, but I’ll be posting my responses on Sunday. If you’re interested in joining this Read-Along, visit the SF/F Read-Along group for more information and to join the discussion.

And oh, yes, there will be blood… er… spoilers…

Week 1: Saturday 9th January, Chapters 1-6, hosted by Over the Effing Rainbow
Week 2: Saturday 16th January, Chapters 7-14, hosted by Lynn at Lynn’s Books
Week 3: Saturday 23rd January, Chapters 15-20, hosted by Anya at On Starships and Dragonwings
Week 4: Saturday 30th January, Chapters 21-End, hosted by Over the Effing Rainbow

1. We finally get to meet Lily in person! What do you think? Does she live up to the buildup in the first part of the book? We also meet Julie for the first time. Does it surprise you that Toby seems to have more friends than she lets on?

I liked Lily. She definitely lived up to what I’d expect an undine to be, and it was nice to finally meet her. I didn’t much care for the “Japanese” accent that was used (remember, I’m listening to the audio), but it takes me a little while to adjust to Kowal’s accents and inflections for certain characters like Lily, Tybalt, and Dare. I guess if these aren’t accents you’re naturally good at mimicking like some people are, it takes me a while to believe it. I’m okay with her Tybalt now. Her Dare sounds more natural. Her Lily will have to grow on me, but most people who do “Asian accents” do because not many people are that great at them anyway, and it makes me cringe a little because it can make the character feel like a caricature a bit. I tried very hard to not feel like that about Lily, and I think I mostly did. The one thing I didn’t much care for is Lily, despite knowing how stubborn Toby is, sent her out with Julie and Ross, thinking Toby wouldn’t leave because she’d care about their safety. And that’s not all on Lily, though, because Toby hasn’t told anyone about the bond between her and Evening. I’m sure Lily wouldn’t have sent Julie and Ross into certain danger had she at least known that much because she would have known how serious the situation really was.

2. Tybalt to the rescue! Do you buy his excuse for why he chose to save Toby’s life? Ulterior motives much?

Of course I don’t. You know I’ve only been screaming it’s TRUE LOVE for the last three weeks now because I’m such a gross sap. However, I figured he’d have the convenience excuse of being able to say, “Well, I made a promise…” as I thought when answering last week questions and mentioned that would probably come up. It’s okay, Tybalt. You can be all the mean kitty you want to be, but I see you. I see you for what you are.

3. Toby gets together with Devin in this section. Their relationship is a bit fraught, what do you think? Is it good she is relying on Devin or do you think it is unhealthy?

Let me tell you something from experience, as someone who loves and hates passionately. It’s probably not good that she’s relying on him so much, but relationships like that are complex even without magic involved. It’s hard to pull away from something that intense, and even when you haven’t been with that person for a while, you still just kind of come together like a supernova, even if you haven’t seen each other in AGES, and it just explodes for all the wrong and right reasons. More importantly, in relationships like this is maintaining a sense of self. You can’t let it consume you, and it’s so easy to let it do just that. You have to be able to pull away even if it hurts the hell out of you or else you’re going to lose more than you bargained for. You HAVE to see it for what it is–both the perceived good and the bad. At first, I was worried that Toby was about to fall over that line, but now, I see she knows. She knows something is not right, she knows they’re not right (but everyone gives into temptation now and then), and she knows she can’t get lost in that. Their relationship reminds me of the song Do it Again by Robyn and Röyksopp: “Don’t care what they say, it hurts so good/ I don’t wanna stop, I know I should/We should not be friends/ We’ll just do it again/If you stay around, we’ll just do it again.”

4. That freaking doppleganger! Did you suspect Gillian was fake? Do you think Toby should try to get to know Gillian now that she is older?

Yes, only because at the beginning of the book Toby seemed so adamant that neither her ex or her child had any interest in her, and it was weird for this kid to show up all bubbly. Not that maybe her daughter wouldn’t have been interested in seeing her eventually, but after 14 years, no kid is showing up at their estranged mom’s house all sunshine and bubbles. Then, her answers to Toby’s questions and behaviors made it even weirder. But as a mom, I SO understand Toby wanting to believe what she saw at first. I think Toby should have a relationship with her child. I hope she gets to have a relationship with her child. But ultimately, that’s not going to be her decision. It’s going to be up to her child. She can extend the love as she has, but it’s up to her daughter whether she accepts it or not. Again, this is something I can tell from experience as someone who is just now starting to have a real relationship with my own mother as an adult.

5. Finally, we only have a few chapters left, any idea how everything is going to shake out? Ideas on who is behind it all yet?

Honestly, I haven’t been trying to shift through this too deeply, and here’s why. I just wanted to enjoy this just for the enjoyment of it. I read and review so many books with such a critical slant that sometimes I feel like I ruin the experience of a book just being fun. I’m notorious for being the one who connects most of the dots in the story because I’m always analyzing, looking at this critically. I remember mundane things in books that might not mean anything to anyone else and connect it to things characters do or say and form theories. That’s just me. I’m a thinker. I said I wouldn’t do that here. I said I wouldn’t overthink this. I mean, of course I’m going to have ideas, but I’m not doing my usual over analyzing. I’m going to ride this out to the blissful end. 🙂

“You nearly froze to death out there, you haven’t been fed since the fall of Rome, and I’m evil. How about you let me get to the kitchen without breaking my neck?”

The cats seemed unimpressed by this offer and complained all the way into the kitchen, stopping only after their bowl was full of mashed-up artificial fish.

Snarling, it turned toward Dare. I had to give the girl this much: she might have been an arrogant little brat, but she looked into the face of death and was sincerely unimpressed.

Those first few years had been nothing short of chaos, filled with power plays and tiny battles that never quite escalated into war.

Rosemary and Rue Read-Along Week No.1
Rosemary and Rue Read-Along Week No.2