| Week Three |
Welcome to the Read Along of Rosemary and Rue by Seanan McGuire, organised by Lisa at Over the Effing Rainbow.
Welcome to the third post in the Rosemary and Rue Read Along! This is proving to be such an absorbing read and, with so little to go, I can’t wait to get to the end! This week is hosted by Anya at On Starships and Dragonwings who has some wonderful questions for us to get stuck into. Here’s how the schedule looks:
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
There will be spoilers!
| Week Three Rating |
| The Questions |
| 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?
Lily is such an otherworldly and ethereal character, strange yet obviously a loving and compassionate character. Her Knowe was effectively destroyed during Toby’s fishcident and her people cast out, yet she still cares for Toby, heals her and tries to protect her as much as possible. She seems somewhat disconnected from the real world so whether letting Toby leave with so little protection was sensible still remains unseen… but maybe she trusted that Toby and Julie could hold their own (but perhaps not Ross!) and perhaps she knew Tybalt wouldn’t be far. I certainly can’t see her meaning Toby any harm, she seems too mothering for that.
I thought more of Toby’s friends would come out of the woodwork at some point, especially after Mitch made mention of a fair few, so it was more a matter of time than surprise when Julie turned up. At this stage Toby is definitely holding back from her past and keeping everyone at an arms length. Everyone but Devin that is. But maybe she considers him the only person who she couldn’t really let down. Whether Julie will remain a friend is up for debate!
| 2. |
Tybalt to the rescue! Do you buy his excuse for why he chose to save Toby’s life? Ulterior motives much?
Oh Tybalt! Good show old man. I think perhaps he believes some of his own excuse for saving Toby’s life… but I don’t think it’s the whole truth! He clearly cares for Toby a lot more than he lets on.. or perhaps even more than he believes himself. And of course he would be there for Julie too – I don’t think he would let any friend of hers die easily (maybe he just didn’t approve of Ross!).
| 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?
I think any relationship with Devin, whether you’re hopping into bed with him or doing (legitimately illegitimate) business, is unhealthy! He’s definitely not a trustworthy character even if he believes his intentions to be good ones… which I sincerely doubt! He seems obsessed with and possessive of Toby which cannot possibly end well. Toby has a whole heap of trustworthy friends to rely upon, she just doesn’t want to get them hurt and doesn’t trust herself to be able to protect them. With Devin she doesn’t have to worry about him – he can most definitely look after himself. I can’t see it ending well though.
| 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?
Hah! No, I definitely thought it was Gillian until it all got a bit strange… I absolutely loved that scene with the doppelganger though, it was so funny (and slightly terrifying)!
Toby clearly needs to work through her own issues before she considers getting to know Gillian. If she won’t even see her friends what hope will she have with her daughter? I think, once she’s worked through her problems and stopped hating on herself so much, she should tell Gillian the truth. Not only will it give Toby a chance to get something of her family back but, even if it doesn’t, it will certainly bring Gillian some closure as to why she disappeared all those years ago. Although… she might just think her mother is a fruitcake… but maybe that’s explanation enough.
| 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?
Absolutely no idea! I think at this stage anything could happen and anyone could be implicated, save Toby herself. I’m excited to find out though and I’m sure, despite trusting so few people, it will come as something of a surprise!
Stay tuned for the next instalment of this Read Along on 30th January
Books by Proxy 
Ohh, some good points here. Toby definitely seems in denial about how many friends she has! And yeah, perhaps she’s hooked up with Devin because he’s the one character that she doesn’t mind letting down – or maybe she just thinks he’s not going to be hurt by anything she does. He comes across a little over possessive doesn’t he – I think he’s a bit obsessed by Toby because she’s the elusive ‘one that got away’. It will be interesting to see how that develops but I don’t have a good feeling about it in one respect.
Tybalt – again, showed up in the nick of time. Although, poor Ross! Is it just me or when we picked up again and Toby was recovering didn’t she say she thought she could hear Tybalt’s voice – that made me wonder – maybe he had a hand in helping her recover – if not, then he’s definitely on her mind!
I definitely didn’t suspect the Dopple – what a neat twist!
And, yeah, absolutely no ideas whatsoever – all my crazy jumping about like a maniac accusing everyone has come to a dramatic halt – I’m out of ideas and just need to read on!
Lynn 😀
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Definitely ‘the one that got away’ – men! Always want what they can’t have 😛 Although… Toby has just handed herself over on a plate.
Poor Ross.. I wish I’d cared a little more about him. When he screamed at the Redcap I laughed. I’m sure there must be a manly way to scream but I couldn’t imagine it…
And you’re right! She definitely heard or saw Tybalt when she was pulled from the pond! Maybe he had more of a hand in it than is apparent… Oooh it’s all so exciting!
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I think Toby finds it easier to ‘trust’ Devin because she sees he is clearly getting something he wants out of it and that makes it more of a trade, albeit one wrapped up prettily in kisses and sweet nothings. With her true trustworthy friends, I think she still (maybe always) has trouble seeing what they get out of it, so it’s hard for her to be fully committed.
You’re right – that Doppleganger scene did hold some humor. I liked how she burst out in her bloodied bathrobe to defend the use of her kitchen!
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Definitely – she seems to consider her own friendship as being worthless… or perhaps even a burden on other people. With Devin it’s much simpler for her… even if it seems incredibly messy and complicated to everyone else.
Haha, I loved that moment so much!! I love the humour in this book.
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You mentioned something I forgot I wanted to touch on. I loved that Lily still cared for even though Toby’s own problems ravished Lily’s Knowe and she’s just now starting to get it altogether again. It seems like Lily kind of doesn’t know what to do either with her life rebuilding much in the same way as Toby. I really do hope that Gillian and Toby are able to have a relationship, but that’s going to take two people and Toby has already made it known she wants to be in her life. I do agree that she needs to get it together, but it’s still going to take two in those situations. She can’t make Gilly want her, no matter how much she wants Gilly to understand. I think they’ll come together, but even if it takes a while, I hope that Toby gets herself in good enough shape to at least protect her daughter and ex even from afar. Because even if there’s nothing there with her ex, he’s still the father of her child.
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Lily does seem a little lost but perhaps that’s her otherworldly vibes.. she definitely seems like a great figure for Toby to have in her life though.
You’re definitely right. Things are very complicated where her daughter is concerned but whether Gilly accepts her or not, she won’t get anything out of it – acceptance or rejection – if she doesn’t try. But that seems to be a major issue for Toby anyway, especially where friendships are concerned!
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That’s true. I seemed to think I remember she said she’d been trying and they hadn’t been responsive. Maybe I misheard or maybe she had but the Gillian might not know. The father might be keeping that from her.
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Oh I think you’re right! Maybe she just wants to give them space before she tries again (and wait until her life isn’t so crazy!)
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