What did Cynthia facing constant danger do for the book?

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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Re: What did Cynthia facing constant danger do for the book?

Post by Ferdinand_Otieno »

jessinikkip wrote: 21 Jun 2019, 00:54 Any good book is a series of ups and downs. The characters need to face danger and then enjoy a calm before facing danger again. A character who always faces danger, to me, is a poorly written character.
It felt like Cynthia recklessly put herself in dangerous situations only to somehow survive them , then place herself into the next one.
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Post by Ferdinand_Otieno »

Ferdinand_otieno wrote: 22 Jun 2019, 16:34
jessinikkip wrote: 21 Jun 2019, 00:54 Any good book is a series of ups and downs. The characters need to face danger and then enjoy a calm before facing danger again. A character who always faces danger, to me, is a poorly written character.
It felt like Cynthia recklessly put herself in dangerous situations only to somehow survive them , then place herself into the next one.
The book is filled with a constant up, rarely down because of Cynthia's decisions.
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Post by Brendan Donaghy »

jessinikkip wrote: 21 Jun 2019, 00:54 Any good book is a series of ups and downs. The characters need to face danger and then enjoy a calm before facing danger again. A character who always faces danger, to me, is a poorly written character.
I agree. Apart from anything else, it becomes monotonous after a while. Empathy fatigue sets in!
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Post by Diana Lowery »

I didn't like Cynthia either, and at first, when she went to Sky's apartment, I thought that maybe she was just a good judge of character. Later I rationalized that maybe because she was so trained in self-defense that she was over-confident in her ability to take care of herself. Later, I decided that she was just dumb.
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Post by Ferdinand_Otieno »

Brendan Donaghy wrote: 23 Jun 2019, 06:25
jessinikkip wrote: 21 Jun 2019, 00:54 Any good book is a series of ups and downs. The characters need to face danger and then enjoy a calm before facing danger again. A character who always faces danger, to me, is a poorly written character.
I agree. Apart from anything else, it becomes monotonous after a while. Empathy fatigue sets in!
Empathy fatigue, yes. It is a serious case that most readers suffer in more than one book in their course of their reading. For me, befor this book, it was the ASOIAF books by George R.R.Martin. after Ned Stark and the Red wedding, your kind of desensitised against death.... of any character.
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Post by Ferdinand_Otieno »

diana lowery wrote: 23 Jun 2019, 07:21 I didn't like Cynthia either, and at first, when she went to Sky's apartment, I thought that maybe she was just a good judge of character. Later I rationalized that maybe because she was so trained in self-defense that she was over-confident in her ability to take care of herself. Later, I decided that she was just dumb.
First, she cheated on her boyfriend by going. Second she kept placing herself in such situations with no thought towards her safety or the potential dangers.
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Post by Diana Lowery »

Ferdinand_otieno wrote: 23 Jun 2019, 11:21
diana lowery wrote: 23 Jun 2019, 07:21 I didn't like Cynthia either, and at first, when she went to Sky's apartment, I thought that maybe she was just a good judge of character. Later I rationalized that maybe because she was so trained in self-defense that she was over-confident in her ability to take care of herself. Later, I decided that she was just dumb.
First, she cheated on her boyfriend by going. Second she kept placing herself in such situations with no thought towards her safety or the potential dangers.
I am not sure if going to the apartment was cheating, but what happened afterward was cheating.
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Post by amandathebibliophile »

I didn’t read this book, but in general, if the characters are well developed and the writing is strong, I don’t mind a protagonist who is constantly facing danger!
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Post by Nisha Ward »

Ferdinand_otieno wrote: 23 Jun 2019, 10:42
Brendan Donaghy wrote: 23 Jun 2019, 06:25
jessinikkip wrote: 21 Jun 2019, 00:54 Any good book is a series of ups and downs. The characters need to face danger and then enjoy a calm before facing danger again. A character who always faces danger, to me, is a poorly written character.
I agree. Apart from anything else, it becomes monotonous after a while. Empathy fatigue sets in!
Empathy fatigue, yes. It is a serious case that most readers suffer in more than one book in their course of their reading. For me, befor this book, it was the ASOIAF books by George R.R.Martin. after Ned Stark and the Red wedding, your kind of desensitised against death.... of any character.
In a series, I agree, but in one book? Being in danger so much made it near impossible to finish without getting to a point where you're just tired of it.
"...while a book has got to be worthwhile from the point of view of the reader it's got to be worthwhile from the point of view of the writer as well." - Terry Pratchett on The Last Continent and his writing.
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Post by Nisha Ward »

diana lowery wrote: 23 Jun 2019, 12:48
Ferdinand_otieno wrote: 23 Jun 2019, 11:21
diana lowery wrote: 23 Jun 2019, 07:21 I didn't like Cynthia either, and at first, when she went to Sky's apartment, I thought that maybe she was just a good judge of character. Later I rationalized that maybe because she was so trained in self-defense that she was over-confident in her ability to take care of herself. Later, I decided that she was just dumb.
First, she cheated on her boyfriend by going. Second she kept placing herself in such situations with no thought towards her safety or the potential dangers.
I am not sure if going to the apartment was cheating, but what happened afterward was cheating.
Agreed. In the context of the book, her going to the apartment was in itself more of an "Might as well relax somewhere comfy while I wait for my car thing". It was the sex that was the cheating and I'm still not sure if I'm comfortable with how it happened in the first place.
"...while a book has got to be worthwhile from the point of view of the reader it's got to be worthwhile from the point of view of the writer as well." - Terry Pratchett on The Last Continent and his writing.
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Post by Melissa Breen »

I think it was a bit much, while it could have worked as a way to keep the reader on their toes, I don't think it was pulled off that way and just got a bit annoying
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Post by Ferdinand_Otieno »

Nisha Ward wrote: 23 Jun 2019, 19:19
Ferdinand_otieno wrote: 23 Jun 2019, 10:42
Brendan Donaghy wrote: 23 Jun 2019, 06:25
I agree. Apart from anything else, it becomes monotonous after a while. Empathy fatigue sets in!
Empathy fatigue, yes. It is a serious case that most readers suffer in more than one book in their course of their reading. For me, befor this book, it was the ASOIAF books by George R.R.Martin. after Ned Stark and the Red wedding, your kind of desensitised against death.... of any character.
In a series, I agree, but in one book? Being in danger so much made it near impossible to finish without getting to a point where you're just tired of it.
Hence the unique name Empathy fatigue.
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Post by Cundy »

Yes,it shows us positivity, gives us a thought to faced difficulty in our life and never lose hope.one day you will succeeded in our life.
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Post by Wambui-nj »

I think the author was trying to strike a balance between a strong character and normal human weakness. The conflict is amusing as you watch, such a smart character make silly and risky mistakes.
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Post by Ferdinand_Otieno »

Melissa Breen wrote: 23 Jun 2019, 19:26 I think it was a bit much, while it could have worked as a way to keep the reader on their toes, I don't think it was pulled off that way and just got a bit annoying
A lot of readers experiencesEmpathy fatigue. When you just get tired of routing for the protagonist and eant them dead, mainly because they keep putting themselves in dangerous situations.
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