OnlineBookClub.org

briellejee wrote: ↑05 Jun 2019, 11:12

BuzzingQuill wrote: ↑05 Jun 2019, 06:01

briellejee wrote: ↑03 Jun 2019, 22:55 Yes, I do share the same sentiments about Cynthia's character. Not just her though, but I do feel these things with the rest. Flawed characters are only good when they are well-written. I mean do the flaws contribute to the depth of her character? I don't think so. It just makes her shallow.

I agree, the other characters lacked depth a well. I think Sky had the potential to be a great character and I did enjoy Glenn's character at surface value despite lacking much depth

On another topic, I just agreed to someone that compared to everyone, Glenn seems to be the only one likable and fit well to the story. I had a good first impression with Sky but then he keeps on changing like, I don't even know what he is supposed to be. Ugh. It was frustrating.

I was thinking my favorite characters were the computer nerds, Tim and Garth. At least they had fun and got something accomplished!

WOW! Seems like we all felt the same about Cynthia! From the very beginning when she allowed a stranger to manipulate her into lunch and then going to his apartment! I mean really?? Her character was very shallow. I hated the way she treated Dan. She was an attention seeker, in my opinion.

I think one is a flawed character which I like too it makes them more realistic and one is immature. For me, Cynthia is written as an immature and uneducated teen and not like a grown woman. I was so annoyed with the sheer stupidity of her decisions. Okay so sure she cheated I don't judge but for her to need a man to think and educated her about unprotected sex made me so angry.

There was nothing to be liked in her character as her behavior was exactly the opposite of what was expected from a woman who is the Head of the security of the senator. Being trained in martial arts and also using weapons she should have been a head strong female. But I found her to be lacking common sense too.

I agree with you. I don't care for Cynthia's character. I am confused as to why a woman would allow a man to basically take over her life after literally just meeting him. She allows him to to push her into the restaurant, allows him to keep her there under the pretense that his hired help has her car. Why would you allow a complete stranger to have control of your life, your vehicle? It makes no sense to me at all. To top it off she gives him so much trust that she is sleeping with him within hours of meeting and madly in love by the next day. I too am confused how this book made BOTM especially with all the grammar issues.

I completely agree with you. I really didn't like Cynthia. I love flawed or complex characters in books. I can "dislike" a character but still love them in an appreciative way. I did not appreciate Cynthia. With this character, I was often baffled or frustrated by her actions or reactions. On the one hand, the author seemed to want to create a strong, independent female lead. However, Cynthia often comes across as invalid or incompetent, which negates the image the author is trying to create. I found the scene with the Sky and the contraceptives rather bizarre. What highly intelligent (she was supposed to be a chief investigator!) woman has no knowledge of contraceptives? I really disliked how Cynthia tried to convince herself that she was justified to cheat on Dan. I thought Cynthia was condescending and cruel to Dan when she convinced him that their intimate relationship of years was nothing more than a glorified friendship. Her character felt rushed and incomplete to me.

Jo689 wrote: ↑05 Jun 2019, 10:20 Well Cynthia is definitely flawed. I feel like she has somewhat has a cunning nature to her side, and will cheat/take advantage of others to get her way. But on the other hand, she seems very brilliant. I liked the little love triangle scenario that she had between Sky and Dan. Was interesting.

Hmm nice point on the love triangle aspect, I'm typically quite over the love triangle scenario as it is a bit cliche and overused, but by having the main relationship that is Cynthia and Sky to have been birthed out of the morally questionable act of cheating was interesting, even though I didn't care for the way Mercer portrayed the cheating as somewhat justifiable.

I truly thought that she was written as if she were still in high school instead of a woman who has earned a job entailing such responsibility.

DC Brown wrote: ↑05 Jun 2019, 21:37

briellejee wrote: ↑05 Jun 2019, 11:12

BuzzingQuill wrote: ↑05 Jun 2019, 06:01

I agree, the other characters lacked depth a well. I think Sky had the potential to be a great character and I did enjoy Glenn's character at surface value despite lacking much depth

On another topic, I just agreed to someone that compared to everyone, Glenn seems to be the only one likable and fit well to the story. I had a good first impression with Sky but then he keeps on changing like, I don't even know what he is supposed to be. Ugh. It was frustrating.

I was thinking my favorite characters were the computer nerds, Tim and Garth. At least they had fun and got something accomplished!

Tim and Garth developed masterfully and I loved them in the book.

I was totally turned off by Cynthia's character from the get-go, and may not finish this book. If I can't empathize or connect with the protagonist, I usually give up on a book. She's somewhere between a Mary Sue and a soap opera herione.

She acted much younger and more naive than the author portrayed her as being. As others have said, by 25 she would have known better than to go to Sky's apartment with him having just met him. And if she had any sense at all she would not have let him make her drink where she couldn't see it being made. Not knowing about Plan B is on the fence. That would (to me) depend on how she was raised, how open her family was about sexual intimacy and how experienced (or not) she was. The way she treated Dan was unforgivable and more the actions of a youth not wanting to get caught than of a woman being true to her heart. She should have told him. So..gullible, naive and immature.

I didn't likeCynthia's character by the end of the book. I had hoped to, but the more I read, the less I liked about her. What woman in her right mind is going to step out of her car to question someone, and then walk away, leaving her car unattended (and u-parked), in the middle of the road? Then just wander off with some guy she just saw on the street to have lunch? It seemed implausible, especially since this particular woman is supposed to be part of a spy network tracking terrorism(someone who should have it together pretty well).
Her cavalier attitude toward her romance and commitment to Dan was disappointing. The book is titled "Cynthia and Dan", not Cynthia and Sky.
In the end, she just registered as a more than flawed, and somewhat selfish and unfeeling character.

Julie Petitbon wrote: ↑04 Jun 2019, 19:43 I completely agree. She wasn't the most likable character. I hated the way she treated Dan. Very shady! I also didn't like how easily she was led by men. For example, who in their right mind would leave their car in the middle of the street and go have lunch with a strange (and pushy) man? And then go back to his apartment? For a woman that is supposed to be highly intelligent, she acts pretty foolish and puts herself in dangerous situations.

You've summarised it perfectly here! I didn't finish the book in the end because I just couldn't connect or empathise with Cynthia. I was completely put off of her character within the first few chapters after following a strange man and cheating on her boyfriend. Her behaviour didn't make sense to me, especially given her job and seeming intelligence. Perhaps if she had more redeeming qualities, I could have continued reading.

DC Brown wrote: ↑05 Jun 2019, 21:37

briellejee wrote: ↑05 Jun 2019, 11:12

BuzzingQuill wrote: ↑05 Jun 2019, 06:01

I agree, the other characters lacked depth a well. I think Sky had the potential to be a great character and I did enjoy Glenn's character at surface value despite lacking much depth

On another topic, I just agreed to someone that compared to everyone, Glenn seems to be the only one likable and fit well to the story. I had a good first impression with Sky but then he keeps on changing like, I don't even know what he is supposed to be. Ugh. It was frustrating.

I was thinking my favorite characters were the computer nerds, Tim and Garth. At least they had fun and got something accomplished!

Huh, now that you mentioned it, Tim and Garth are much more likable than SKy and Cynthia and Dan. Lol.

Cynthia was described as a great chief of security, investigator, and bodyguard. Unfortunately, I haven't seen any of the characteristics associated with a person in that line of work. She knows that because of her job, she could be targeted; nevertheless, she decides to leave her car and keys with a complete stranger, allows another person that she doesn't know to prepare her drinks, and has sex without protection. Her boyfriend easily puts a tracking device in her car which is never discovered even though Cynthia is a security officer for a government official, and she just takes for granted the information about Sky without digging deeper. She was not only shallow but also naive, volatile, and careless.