Name of story: Curtain Call
1) When you were asked to pick a story for the challenge, what made you choose this one and why didn't you read it before this point?
It's kind of funny because the only reason I stayed away from this story initially is because Julie told me it was something I most likely wouldn't want to read or enjoy. I assumed it was a romance and that's why I stayed away. Julie wasn't talking about romance though, she was talking about the cancer storyline. If I had known that, chances are I would have read along while she was updating it. I chose this story because I have heard nothing but great things about it and wanted to challenge myself to read a 'romance' even though it turned out to not really be a romance at all. LOL
2) What actually was the biggest challenge for you when it came to reading the story?
I generally am not a fan of a girl lead in my BSB fanfics, especially when a story is told through their eyes. I knew that would be rough when I saw that.
3) When reading, did you feel like it was something you really were looking forward to or more a homework assignment? Did that change once you got into it?
I was definitely looking forward to it. I never viewed it as a homework assignment. I got myself into a routine of reading first thing in the morning. It made me look forward to getting up at 5 lol
4) What was your favorite part of the story?
By far my favorite scenes were the ones that all the boys were involved. I have a few favorites:
The one where Nick tells Kevin he has cancer on the boat. It's funny because that's the only chapter I read as Julie was actually writing it, and it still stands out in my mind as a great one after reading the entire story.
Another one I loved was when he told the guys he was dying. I thought that was an incredibly touching and sad chapter and was one of the few that made me choke up.
There was also a nice simple scene somewhere in the middle with just Nick and Cary that I thought flowed so well. I don't remember it really now, but I do remember mentioning it to Julie at the time so I'm sure she knows what I'm talking about. Anyway, it was a perfect example of how even the smallest of scenes can be entertaining when extremely well written.
My favorite scene was Nick's POV of his death at the end. It was poignant and beautiful and just written perfectly.
5) Who was your favorite character and why?
My favorite character in this one would have to be Nick. I really hope Julie reconsiders her ability to write as Nick because she does it so well. I loved his thoughts as he was going through this entire story. I wanted to slap him the first half when he kept on putting off telling the guys about the cancer but the second half, you couldn't help but feel for him and all the emotions he was going through. I was so grateful that half the story was told through his point of view because honestly, I don't think I would have loved it as much. I would have really loved it if the entire thing was told through his eyes.
6) What about your least favorite character and why?
Julie will not be surprised by this answer but I'm sure everyone else will be, although it's me, so probably not that surprised lol
Cary by far was my least favorite character. I really loved her at the beginning of the story. She was strong and nowhere near a Mary Sue and she never was throughout this entire journey. My main problem with her was her relevance for most of the story after Nick goes into remission. I guess I just had a hard time caring about what happened to her and why we were supposed to care about what happened to her since this was mainly about Nick and what he was going through. I felt like she was interrupting the flow for me more so than adding to the story telling although I completely understood her being a nurse and being able to explain what was happening. I do get that and it was clever to have her be from a medical background. I just think from that remission point on, whenever things were told in her POV I had a really hard time getting through the chapters. Having her there in the story but as just another person there, I probably wouldn't have minded her so much. But there in lied the challenge part for me. It also helped with the emotion because I didn't get nearly as choked up when she was telling the story as when Nick was.
To be fair, Julie did create a really well rounded character in Cary. I never pictured some generic movie star to match who she was which is what usually ends up happening for me when it comes to these female leads (Thanks to people who use banners with those people on them lol) Her wishy washy ness and need to be loved were perfectly displayed throughout the story and I didn't dislike knowing more about her or reading about her, just didn't understand why I needed to see things from her POV.
7) If there was a sequel to this story, would be you interested in reading it?
I don't really think there would be any reason to have a sequel to this story. It ended perfectly.
8) Were you happy with the ending? Did it end the way you predicted it would?
I think this was a perfect ending and yes it did end how I thought it would, although like I told Julie I was kind of hoping for a My Sister's Keeper ending where Nick stayed in remission and the second half was about Cary dying lol
9) Overall, if you had to take away something from the story, what do you think the lesson learned was?
Life is short! Never take anything for granted. Tell the people who you love that you do love them and freeze your sperm and eggs! lol
10) Give us one final review that you feel sums up your experience reading this, maybe why you gave the kind of feedback you did or if you would have perhaps picked a different story from this one.
What do I say about this story besides how incredibly well written and thought out it was? The research and time Julie took to make this believable shows in every single chapter. Her characters were so well thought out and strong from the small roles like Cary's dad and best friend to the technical players like Dr. Submarine and Dr. Shnaz! They each had their own voice and were all vital to telling this incredibly sad story. She managed to mix her dialogue and descriptions perfectly to allow the story to flow really well from one chapter to the next. The imagery she used to describe things also really impressed me. She also put small doses of humor in there to help break up the tension. Never over the top but just enough. One other thing that I thought she did really well was her ability to make the sections where she described what was happening during the concerts or whenever a song was being performed not boring. The descriptions of action while they were going seemed just right.
It did seem a little long to me at times, not for lack of a great flow but just getting from point A (the remission) to point B (the final diagnosis.) It almost read like two different stories. A part one and part two. You know when you see a great movie and then you feel like it ends and you let out a sigh about what a great movie it was and then the screen fades to black and you're just about to walk out and then suddenly there is another scene and you're like "Oh, there's more?" lol The second half kind of read like that to me for about 15 or so chapters until Nick got his final diagnosis but again I think it's only because of my feelings about Cary. LOL
I can definitely understand why people raved about this story. It was great and I really hope Julie realizes how truly talented she is when it comes to writing. I was just in awe more so than anything else.
When I gave feedback it was kind of a mix between thoughts concerning the story and reactions to the story with an occasional question and slap of Nick or Cary lol
11) For the readers who did this last year and this year, which did you prefer, reading each other's stories or reading someone other than who was reading yours?
I really enjoyed doing it the way we did it this year. I felt like it was easier to communicate with each other and it seemed like almost everyone seemed to enjoy it.
12) Any final comments or suggestions for next year to make this work even better?
I'm open for ideas
13) Any final comments for the author?
Just that she did a stupendous job! What a great writer she is. And she made me really hungry while I was reading it lol and made me want a teacup pig!