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[RokofAges75]

I was going to do July though...  (Speaking of which, it's probably about time to start a poll for that, isn't it?  June is going by so fast!)

[mare]

Yes, if you want to do that, it's probably a good idea. We'll save A Thousand Splendid Suns for another month which I will do. I'll put it in a poll with other books, for the record though, it's a fantastic book and I think everyone should at least try it.

[cabybakes]

Sounds good on all fronts...not sure if I can do more than one, but Mare, if you are going to save ATSS I will be in, I actually have it on my nightstand!  I'll go check out the July poll...

[mare]

i'm almost ready to buy a new book, which Stephanie Plum novel should i try first? Can you read them out of order? Does it matter?

[cabybakes]

I'd start with One for the Money...gives you the foundation. Once you read that, you could go out of order.  I read them all in order, they are addictive, easy reads.   You will love Stephanie!

[mare]

Excellent! I will do that. Thanks Darby.

[cabybakes]

Welcome

One gives you the backstory and all of the history.  Janet Evanovich is really good at creating colorful characters.  The stories don't build on each other, but she introduces new characters in each book that may appear in future books...that is the only reason I would suggest reading in order. 

And FYI...She also has a "between the numbers" set to companion the Stephanie Plum Novels (Plum Spooky, Visions of Sugar Plums, etc) that I was not a fan of at all...

[cabybakes]

3 pages and nothing about the book!  Ha!

Now that I've read it shall we discuss?

[mare]

I would love that! lol

Which character was your favorite?

[cabybakes]

In the first switch from Part 1 to Part 2 I was irritated that they left Mariam because I liked her so much!  But then, after everything started going down with Laila I found myself really liking her toward the end of the second part.  I loved seeing them together.  I think Laila ended up being my favorite, Mariam was just so wounded and it sometimes got on my nerves after Laila came into her house.  I was really proud of Mariam's attitude in the end and how stoic she was when facing the BS laws of the Taliban and her impending death.  I liked that she was the hardcore biatch on the block in the jail lol.  I loved that Laila went back and honored her memory...

I also really liked Azizza...but she wasn't a main character...

How about you?

[mare]

I felt prety much the same way. I oved how he went back and forth between Miriam and Laila and how they eventually intertwined into each other's lives. I felt the same way you did from the switch to part two. I hated how mean Miriam was to Laila especially knowing she hated her husband anyway, but in the end, I loved the relationship the two of them had and i'm glad considering how sad this book was, it had a happy ending.

[cabybakes]

In many ways, Rasheed forced them together. I also liked how Laila bc Mariam's daughter in a sense and that she got to experience motherhood and grandmotherhoo d in a sense.

[mare]

Yup, I enjoyed that too. She was able to live through Laila and Azziza. I was glad they killed Rasheed. I was afriad he was going to end up killing one of them.

[cabybakes]

I wasn't shocked when Mariam killed him...but I was disappointed at how resigned she was to her fate, even if she was doing it to protect Laila.  I hoped she would have had a little more fight in her.  But, again, very stoic in death and probably faced that stronger than she had anything else in her life.

How do you think this book would have been different if it took place in the United States or someplace where women aren't so second class compared to men?

[mare]

Honestly, I don't think it would have had the same effect. Most likely Miriam would have never stayed with Rasheed in the first place. That's probably one of the most intriguing things about this book to me because he did such a good job of showing us the country and even the best by their standards would be considered horrible by ours. It made me realize how much we take things for granted over here.