review, standish, deathly hollows

[erastes]

Another lovely website review!


I find it interesting that there's a release date when she was still no-where near finished on 19th December. So we'll end up with the same ghost writer as before then. Yes, I firmly believe that part of HBP was written by committee. To me, that's the only reason for such drastic disregard for canon and changes in characterisation.

I have no good preconceptions about this book. Don't get annoyed with me. If people are entitled to be all squeeful about the anticipation, I'm allowed to be mildly blah about it. The strange thing is that this will be the first HP Book that I will not be reading with happiness. HBP destroyed that. This one, I warn you now, will be read for spork value only from day one. I don't think it will be good, I don't think the plotholes that she's created will be addressed and there will be so many cliches that I shall despair.

I've just read (and yes, it's been up for ages but I hadn't seen it) that she answered a question regarding secret keepers on her website. Basically the gist of it was this: That when a secret keeper dies (Dumbledore being the only one we know who's died) the secret dies with them. MEANING that Grimmauld Place will remain secret. Anyone that DD had given the secret to would know the secret, but they would not be able to pass the secret on. Anyone not the secret keeper might know the secret - eg a lot of people know the secret of Grimmauld Place. But they cannot divulge it - only the SK can. And once they die - no-one new can ever know it.

Problems:

1. How then, did Dumbledore, Minerva, Hagrid know where Godrics Hollow was? Peter wouldn't have told them.

2. by JKR's own logic, Bella knew where Grimmauld Place was before the spell but she lost track of it afterwards?

3. Why was Moody so worried that anyone would follow them to Grimmauld Place?

It hurts my brain.

Comments

*headdesk*

[lilian-cho.livejournal.com]

So true on #1.

Re: *headdesk*

[erastes.livejournal.com]

glad it's not just me being confused.

[alankria.livejournal.com]

I didn't even read HBP. I stopped caring about the characters by the end of Book 5, and couldn't be bothered to read on. I will probably keep an eye on whatever sporkage floats around about Book 7, though, just for entertainment value, but I definitely won't be reading the brick.

[erastes.livejournal.com]

There will be sporkage here!

*G* But yes, I agree. After Lucius got locked up and didn't escape even though less able men were able to - I sort of lost the will to live...

[alankria.livejournal.com]

Luscious Lucius got locked up? *emo tear*

[malfoys-win.livejournal.com]

So I allow them to think...

[semioticwarrior.livejournal.com]

I wouldn't be surprised if HBP were written by committee or by other than JKR. It was so obnoxious in so many places, I cursed myself daily for having been so impatient as to buy the paperback. Last one or not, #7 will be either borrowed, libraried, bought used, or, if utter desperation strikes, I'll wait for the paperback.

[erastes.livejournal.com]

I think I got mine from Tesco's and it was pretty cheap, but I have to say, I've only read it twice, and I read all the others tons of times.

It'll be on line within hours.*G*

[reddwarfer.livejournal.com]

I love you. I read all the first five books twenty times each. I read HBP once. That tells you everything. If it's anything like HBP, it'll be more about chest-monsters and getting into some one's pants, than the story she so painstakingly built. She was never a first-class writer. Yeah, maybe I'm a bit pretentious and what not, but I spent four years earning a degree in English Literature. So, I can look at these books with a critical eye and say they had their issues. However, they were enjoyable enough to override those issues until HBP, and that almost killed my love of its fandom, along with other issues, and I have pretty much dropped out of fandom except for being friends with people that demand my participation.

[erastes.livejournal.com]

ARGH! I had completely forgotten about the chest monster...

*scarred for life*

Fandom won't die, obviously, but I think a lot of the more discerning people (not all,) have already found other toys to play with.

[mroctober.livejournal.com]

How are you orchestrating all these wonderful reviews (feel like the Joker in the original Batman movie). I mean, who is sending out the copies?

[erastes.livejournal.com]

hee hee - I am bribing them with my body!

No, seriously. I targetted every single website review site I could find and I sent all those who requested a copy the final galley proof via pdf.

I don't know if the publisher has sent out any hard copies to anyone.

[liebesdammerung.livejournal.com]

OH MY GOD EVERYONE KEEPS TALKING ABOUT THE RELEASE DATE AND THEY WON'T TELL ME WHAT IT ISSSS

Because I'm apparently too lazy to look it up myself. :D

It's my birthday ;-)

[lilian-cho.livejournal.com]

...


which is also Hemingway's birthday


...



which is July 21st X-D

[erastes.livejournal.com]

Yes! Lazy You!

And look - one of my NICE flist answered your question. I wouldn't have. I'd have spanked you. But you'd like that too much.

[ejab62.livejournal.com]

Just out of curiosity - all those 'Standish' reviews - how do they make you feel? I mean, (apart from the ones you just don't agree with, etc.) do they teach you something about your writing? Is any of them able to make you look at your writing with the eye of an outstander? Is there an educational one?

[erastes.livejournal.com]

Luckily I haven't had any bad one's yet. The only one I saw (on someone's LJ) that wasn't WOW was someone who said "I've just finished Standish , it was OK."

*G*

Yes, they are interesting, but so far the only thing I've learned is that different people find different things. e.g. one reviewer thought the sex was a "bit much" and another thought it was a bit bland!

This recent one from Reflection's Edge was interesting, the reviewer said that she would have liked more UST, as she thought that Ambrose and Rafe fell into bed a bit quick. I agree and I probably would have continued it, where I re-writing it, but it was just the way it happened then - Ambrose took over and became more fascinated by Rafe, and it was hard to continue to hate him once he met him and saw how much he loved his son. I'll have to wait for a less favourable reveiw before I can answer how that makes me feel.

[aigooism.livejournal.com]

I don't get the purpose of ghostwriters. As a writer myself, I'd rather freaking write the damn thing myself, you know?

And yeah... incontinuity sucks... They do boggle the minds.

[erastes.livejournal.com]

I have to agree. I'm sure that GW's do a great job, and in fact I know that at least one of my flisters do it, but I just couldn't do it myself. I'm far too arrogant and dog in the mangerish. I don't even like it if my boss takes my ideas as her own and gets the credit. It would keel me if someone like David Beckham was credited for his autobiography and I wasn't.

[lls-mutant.livejournal.com]

Here from gehayi's journal after her book 7 predictions. HBP by committee... hmmm. Sort of makes sense! I'm still clinging to "JKR's a great storyteller, but not so great a writer all the time. And she butchers her characterizations." :)

I had a few thoughts on your questions, though:

1.) Well, okay. This one I don't. For my WIP, I've invented something called Irving's Invisible Until the Inevitable Ink. The writer writes whatever down, and the words don't appear until the writer is dead. Therefore, James wrote down the location for several people, and once he was dead, the words appeared. I got the impression that once the SK told someone the secret, that person could tell anyone else. No, that doesn't make sense, or DD wouldn't have had to write the note. Maybe once the subject of the secret dies, the secret is no longer secret any more?

2.) Maybe Bella knew where it was, but didn't realize the OotP was making headquarters there? This one hurts my head too.

3.) THIS one I can answer! Even if the DE's couldn't get into 12 GP, if they realized that the Order was set up in a specific neighborhood or part of town, it would be easy to ambush them. That one I'm okay with.

Plus, I can see Moody not trusting a Fidelius charm anyway. :)

But I agree- it hurts the brain.

[erastes.livejournal.com]

Hello!

My predictions are going up now.

Yes, I tend to agree with you about Bella, she obviously knew where the house was, but would probably have just forgotten once the spell hit. And then was unable to tell anyone. But argh. my head.

[asphodeline.livejournal.com]

I have similar misgivings about book seven and, like you, mostly because of HBP. I shall read the book and be as excited as anyone to get it but I'm not expecting it to be a great literary work and I am certain I shall be shouting at it before many pages have been read!
I know this was has been on the drawing board for some time but it feels a bit rushed too. Maybe you've got a point about the committee.