Pregnancy (Spoilers)

Use this forum to discuss the June 2019 Book of the month, "Cynthia and Dan: Cyber War" by Dorothy May Mercer.
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Prisallen
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Re: Pregnancy (Spoilers)

Post by Prisallen »

I didn't think it added anything or took anything away from the story. It was just there. It did make me feel a little bit sorry for her.
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Post by RachelRovere »

The way Cynthia handled the miscarriage actually made her a little more three dimensional to me while reading. Her character was all over the place in most ways. She's tech savvy and professional but uses shorthand while texting in an age of auto-correct? She's in love enough with her boyfriend to dedicate her license plate to him but cheats on him and lies to him about it without giving it much thought? The way she ignored the pregnancy and the miscarriage until they were thrown right in her face made a little more sense of her to me. She avoids problems wanting to seem strong and composed. When she finally had someone come to her (her bosses wife) who she felt she could safely express emotion to, she completely broke down and allowed herself to feel fully. It was one of the only emotional complexities I felt the book really delivered on.
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Post by elizablu »

The fact that Cynthia wanted to keep her pregnancy secret is something that I find very realistic. Because of her situation she was clearly scared and was not sure how others would react. I understand the disagreement with the way Cynthia continued drinking and her lifestyle after being pregnant, but I also think this is realistic and human. I’m not saying I agree but in the real-world people can be in denial about big life changes and will continue to act like nothing is happening. I do not think this storyline was necessary for the book though and the book would have probably been fine without this plot line.
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Post by OuKoyoo »

I felt that the pregnancy and miscarriage did nothing much to enrich the storyline. I believe the plot would be even better if the author completely ignored this section and maybe included more on the main theme of the story.
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Post by Wanja Hannah »

I think the fact that Cynthia kept her pregnancy a secret was due to her introvert nature. Maybe she may have wished to share but she didn't have friends.
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Post by Wanja Hannah »

I think the fact that Cynthia kept her pregnancy a secret was due to her introvert nature. Maybe she may have wished to share but she didn't have friends.
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Post by MsH2k »

heatherashley7 wrote: 02 Jun 2019, 15:58 I personally think it was Dan, this may sound far fetched but he did change her sheets so he had to see the letters. One of the letters mentioned the pregnancy and then he was in her bathroom and could have easily crushed the one prescription to mix it in with medicine. I think the author missed a golden opportunity to pin it on the villain in this book.
Wow. :shock2: You are on to something. I, too, thought Dan had to have seen the letters from Sky when he changed the sheets in her room, and he also saw the meds in the bathroom. I did not put it together that he could have caused the miscarriage. It makes total sense. The Dan character, along with several others, was spottily developed, but this fits in with his stalking her.
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Post by Bretagne »

I felt like this portion of the book was an easy grab to add drama without adding too much depth. It felt rushed, and I'm not entirely sure it was plausible. I think the body takes at least a week to develop the hormones required to register on a home pregnancy test after conception, and I'm not certain that the pregnancy plot line lasted this long from intercourse to miscarriage.

I appreciate that the author did try to humanize Cynthia a bit through this plot point, but I believe that it fell short.
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Post by Samantha Simoneau »

heatherashley7 wrote: 02 Jun 2019, 15:58 I personally think it was Dan, this may sound far fetched but he did change her sheets so he had to see the letters. One of the letters mentioned the pregnancy and then he was in her bathroom and could have easily crushed the one prescription to mix it in with medicine. I think the author missed a golden opportunity to pin it on the villain in this book.

The situation as a whole was very hard to read after already reading about the Plan B and the second prescription. This plot line was HORRIBLE in my opinion.
I have not read the whole book, but based on what I do know, it sounds like this certainly was a missed opportunity to really engender a more interesting plot. Thank you for your observation.
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Post by Samantha Simoneau »

It sounds to me like this pregnancy-related plotline was generally hard to believe and, therefore, not engaging, but that's just my opinion.
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Post by FREDFDK »

I think Cynthia's character after the pregnancy portrayed a growing character in the story. I understand her decision to keep the pregnancy a secret. But the author could connect her situation better with the story. I think it actually took from the story.
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Post by Juliet+1 »

I have mixed feelings. The pregnancy and miscarriage definitely brought out some complexities in Cynthia's character. These plot devices made her both more realistic and more sympathetic. On the other hand, this subplot didn't seem to fit well with the rest of the book. It felt a bit forced.
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Post by Jade1692 »

While it did work to make the Cynthia have more depth, I didn't feel like it enhanced or added to the story much more than that. Why even put it in, it could have gone a lot of different ways to fill those pages.
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Post by KojoGH »

Shelly Caetano wrote: 07 Jun 2019, 08:32 I thought this was a very peculiar subplot that took away from the story. What was even stranger to me was how Mike was the expert on the subject. I found it peculiar that a woman, who knew she was pregnant, experienced very painful abdominal cramps and vaginal bleeding and did not freak out but instead went to work. Overall, I think the author tried to use this subplot as a character development or growth tool. In my opinion, it did not quite hit the mark.
Yes exactly. Is very interesting that the woman who is pregnant with all the signs of pregnancy have no idea she was pregnant and carried on with her usual day activities. How can Mike be the expert in this development. Yes this subplot was supposed to develop Cynthia's character but I don't think the author hit the mark like you rightly said.
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Post by KojoGH »

Shelly Caetano wrote: 07 Jun 2019, 08:32 I thought this was a very peculiar subplot that took away from the story. What was even stranger to me was how Mike was the expert on the subject. I found it peculiar that a woman, who knew she was pregnant, experienced very painful abdominal cramps and vaginal bleeding and did not freak out but instead went to work. Overall, I think the author tried to use this subplot as a character development or growth tool. In my opinion, it did not quite hit the mark.
Yes exactly. Is very interesting that the woman who is pregnant with all the signs of pregnancy have no idea she was pregnant and carried on with her usual day activities. How can Mike be the expert in this development. Yes this subplot was supposed to develop Cynthia's character but I don't think the author hit the mark like you rightly said.
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