February 2021 book of the month club

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rubysmama

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It’s kind of funny, I have a Little Free Library and someone donated this very book today. I don’t get a lot of donations so kind funny “Then She Was Gone” showed up today.
So now you have 2 copies?
 
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rubysmama

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I've just started Part 2, and though could be reading much faster, am pacing myself so I don't finish too soon. Really enjoying trying to figure out what's going to happen next.
 
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rubysmama

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Finished last night. Not sure what I was expecting when I started reading, but it certainly wasn't what it turned out to be. Wish I'd written down my thoughts as I was reading, as I'm afraid I'll have forgotten things by discussion time.
 

pearl99

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Finished last night. Not sure what I was expecting when I started reading, but it certainly wasn't what it turned out to be. Wish I'd written down my thoughts as I was reading, as I'm afraid I'll have forgotten things by discussion time.
Me too. I may flip quickly back through right before discussion and write some things down. Me dodgy memory too.
 
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rubysmama

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Six more days and we'll finally be able to discuss the book. So those who've finished already, try to not forget everything you've read. And those who haven't started reading yet, it's probably time to start thinking about it. :read:

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Mamanyt1953

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Sooooooooo...we gonna get questions? Questions are good...help me organize my thoughts...
 

Mia6

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Here's one

Out of 5 stars how would you rate it?
 

Mia6

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Here are some questions for those who are ready to begin discussing the book. We were trying to get away from that, make it more casual, but feel free to discuss anyway you would like.

Then She Was Gone is a thriller.

Which aspect chilled you the most?

The book centers on Laurel, the mother of Ellie who has gone missing. Do you think this was a wise focus to take with the book?

The book has plenty of moments which pull on your heart strings. Which elements did you find most poignant?

Which was your favourite character and why?

Do you think Laurel should have twigged what was going on earlier in the book? To the reader the unraveling of the plot happens a lot faster than it does for her.

Each character's story wraps up nicely by the end, but do you think they got what they deserved? Would you have liked to see any of the character's storylines end differently?


How do you feel about characters who are drawn to or become embroiled in relationships with unhinged characters?

Poppy is a 'unique' character. Did you like or loathe her? How did she make you feel?

Where do you think Poppy's 'weirdness' stems from?


There's a sense of all is not lost and of future hope by the end of the novel. Did you find your feelings between this and Ellie's demise conflicted?


Below are questions we came up with ourselves

Generic questions we post every month

1. How would you rate the book on a scale of 1 to 5 *****?

2. Who was your favourite character?

3. Did you have to force yourself to get through the book or were you unable to put it down?

4. Did you learn anything you didn't know before?

5. Did you find the characters believable?

6. Is there any part of the book you would change?

7. Were there any points of view you felt the author had that you disagreed with?
 
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gilmargl

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I'm still suffering from Rebecca and this book didn't help me to start worrying about something new. I really don't feel like discussing "And then she was gone" in any detail. There was too much wrong with it.

But I know people like this kind of book and I respect their feelings. I'll write my comments as a spoiler. Only read them if you didn't feel happy with the story and perhaps want to know why I found it so unsatisfactory.



Although I read this book very quickly – I got stuck halfway through and had to force myself to finish it. I gave it 3 stars but, looking back, I don’t think it deserved them.

Not sure whether this was a fairy tale, horror story, thriller, Sc-Fi or fantasy.

It was hardly convincing for the following reasons:

Clearly an incompetent police investigation: no house-to-house enquiries in the area of Ellie’s disappearance. If there was it should have at least been questioned by the parents; no mention of any proper questioning of contacts (incl. Noelle and Hannah) and no-one bothered looking into Ellie’s diary at the time.

I was often unsure about when this was taking place. Although it was modern day, forensic medicine was non-existent and there were wild animals in English woods! The largest wild animal is perhaps a deer Even a herd of deer is hardly likely to cause similar damage to a car driving backwards and forwards over a body! (Forensic medicine failed again?)

Little Poppy was most unconvincing (“Rosemary’s Baby”). A disturbed (even intelligent child) would not take an instant liking to anybody – certainly not to a not-very self-assured Floyd.

Noelle had so little money but could pay for semen from a young, highly intelligent man. Really? The cousins from Ireland were rather superficial characters. And the story with the poor hamsters – was that necessary!

So, it could have been a Fairy Tale: but only if the wicked witch used a magic wand instead of artificial insemination. Floyd (wicked wolf or loving grandmother?) changed his feathers far too easily from a scruffy mathematician to a man of this world and would only be convincing in a fairy story. Happy ending: Ellie is reincarnated in Poppy! (Perhaps she has just woken up, like the Sleeping Beauty). All the baddies are dead – what else can you want?

Thriller? It certainly didn't thrill me! :lol:

Horror Story: if things were a bit more realistic and the uncertainties cleared up, perhaps it could be classified as “horror”. I was almost hoping that something other than artificial insemination would have taken place – if Ellie and Floyd had met it could have turned into a horror story or psychological thriller. As it was it is rather mild. The true horror: the dead hamsters!

So, was it Science-Fiction or Fantasy? Perhaps it is, because logic and truth seem to be entirely absent.

It could be classified as a family drama, a mother moving on after losing her daughter. I am old enough to have met numerous mothers who have lost a child. As opposed to losing a partner, a “replacement” has never been found for any of the dead children – just an empty hole for the rest of the parent’s life.

Sorry!
 

pearl99

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Here are some questions for those who are ready to begin discussing the book. We were trying to get away from that, make it more casual, but feel free to discuss anyway you would like.

Then She Was Gone is a thriller.

Which aspect chilled you the most?

The book centers on Laurel, the mother of Ellie who has gone missing. Do you think this was a wise focus to take with the book?

The book has plenty of moments which pull on your heart strings. Which elements did you find most poignant?

Which was your favourite character and why?

Do you think Laurel should have twigged what was going on earlier in the book? To the reader the unraveling of the plot happens a lot faster than it does for her.

Each character's story wraps up nicely by the end, but do you think they got what they deserved? Would you have liked to see any of the character's storylines end differently?


How do you feel about characters who are drawn to or become embroiled in relationships with unhinged characters?

Poppy is a 'unique' character. Did you like or loathe her? How did she make you feel?

Where do you think Poppy's 'weirdness' stems from?


There's a sense of all is not lost and of future hope by the end of the novel. Did you find your feelings between this and Ellie's demise conflicted?


Below are questions we came up with ourselves

Generic questions we post every month

1. How would you rate the book on a scale of 1 to 5 *****?

2. Who was your favourite character?

3. Did you have to force yourself to get through the book or were you unable to put it down?

4. Did you learn anything you didn't know before?

5. Did you find the characters believable?

6. Is there any part of the book you would change?

7. Were there any points of view you felt the author had that you disagreed with?
I'd rate it 2 stars, I didn't enjoy it much but I kept reading and when things started to get revealed I raced to the end, to see how it ended. I wouldn't say I had a favorite character, maybe Laurel's husband. The book was creepy to me, I love mysteries but it didn't sit well.
I felt from Floyd's entrance that he was somehow involved, that the chance meeting was contrived. And from the way he was with Noelle, he didn't seem like the same guy when involved with Laurel. Then felt Noelle was involved, so I wasn't totally suprised with the end.
Floyd's relationship with Poppy was strange, which Laurel starts figuring out. But glad she stayed around to figure the whole truth out. I can't see Floyd staying with Noelle that long.
I thought the same about the forensics- no one read Ellie's diary? They ould have found the "bunny boiler" statement. Not Laurel or the police? If they thought she was a runaway they still would have combed her room for clues to where she may have gone. And when her bones were found- they didn't show more clues?
I think Floyd killing himself was fine with me! After keeping this secret. And Noelle not on the face of the earth any more was okay with me.
I was reading summaries to jog my memory about some things, and saw that the author had written a different ending and her editor convinced her to change it- the first ending the author wrote was a bit happier and I'd have preferred that, with covid and politics having been what they've been the past year :);)!
But not sorry I read the book, I like a mystery even if not the best IMO.
 
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