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Please use this topic to discuss your overall opinion of the October 2015 book of the month. If you have not already, please add your rating for Free Fish Friday using the book's page on Bookshelves.


How did you like the book? What do you like most? What do you like least? Would you recommend the book for others to read? Why or why not?

-- October 2nd, 2015, 9:40 pm --

As you gathered from my review, I loved the book.

As the author of "Free Fish Friday," I would like to thank the members known as Gali and Bookowlie for reviewing and recommending the novel as October's Book of the Month. It's an honor.

Any prospective reader can review two full chapters on Amazon before investing more time and $2.99 on the book. It is available for free to Amazon Prime members or from the Kindle Lending Library.

I readily acknowledge that this book is different. The characters are portrayed In an absolutely human light - there is a hero and a villain in each of us, a savant and a stooge, a lover and a hater. I will visit the forum over the coming month to appreciate praise, learn from criticism, and comment when directly asked to do so.

The recently published sequel, "Barracuda," is moving extremely well - indicating that many readers have enjoyed "Free Fish Friday." Hopefully, you will be among them.

You're most welcome. I actually recommended the book for BOTM based on Gali's wonderful review. I just finished the first chapter and am loving it so far. I will be back to join in the discussion when I finish reading. What a creative tidbit of what how The Rusty Hook got its name!

You are welcome indeed. I enjoyed your book immensely.

@"bookowlie", thank you and I am glad you love it so far.

Well, I read a little more and realized my initial statement about how The Rusty Hook is not completely true. Although the couple didn't come up with the name, the connection between the Hooks and the establishment name is still very inventive!

Picked up the book yesterday based on gali's review. I must admit that this is not the sort of book that I would have picked up myself. Just finished reading the first chapter though and it made me smile. Will continue reading and give my full comments later.

Lee Stone wrote:As the author of "Free Fish Friday," I would like to thank the members known as Gali and Bookowlie for reviewing and recommending the novel as October's Book of the Month. It's an honor.

Any prospective reader can review two full chapters on Amazon before investing more time and $2.99 on the book. It is available for free to Amazon Prime members or from the Kindle Lending Library.

I readily acknowledge that this book is different. The characters are portrayed In an absolutely human light - there is a hero and a villain in each of us, a savant and a stooge, a lover and a hater. I will visit the forum over the coming month to appreciate praise, learn from criticism, and comment when directly asked to do so.

The recently published sequel, "Barracuda," is moving extremely well - indicating that many readers have enjoyed "Free Fish Friday." Hopefully, you will be among them.

Thank you, I've just downloaded the sample

-- 05 Oct 2015, 15:49 --

I've read the sample, and while the writing is very good and the characters seem interesting, I didn't like it very much, I'm sorry.

The narrative was confusing - because it was first person narrative, I was never sure who was talking. It felt like it was changing viewpoint, but I wasn't being told.

It also felt like it was skipping backwards and forwards in time - at one point the main character was just taking a job in the motel, then suddenly he's been there for months!!!!

Not for me, I'm afraid.

Margaret 2584 wrote:

Lee Stone wrote:As the author of "Free Fish Friday," I would like to thank the members known as Gali and Bookowlie for reviewing and recommending the novel as October's Book of the Month. It's an honor.

Any prospective reader can review two full chapters on Amazon before investing more time and $2.99 on the book. It is available for free to Amazon Prime members or from the Kindle Lending Library.

I readily acknowledge that this book is different. The characters are portrayed In an absolutely human light - there is a hero and a villain in each of us, a savant and a stooge, a lover and a hater. I will visit the forum over the coming month to appreciate praise, learn from criticism, and comment when directly asked to do so.

The recently published sequel, "Barracuda," is moving extremely well - indicating that many readers have enjoyed "Free Fish Friday." Hopefully, you will be among them.

Thank you, I've just downloaded the sample

-- 05 Oct 2015, 15:49 --

I've read the sample, and while the writing is very good and the characters seem interesting, I didn't like it very much, I'm sorry.

The narrative was confusing - because it was first person narrative, I was never sure who was talking. It felt like it was changing viewpoint, but I wasn't being told.

It also felt like it was skipping backwards and forwards in time - at one point the main character was just taking a job in the motel, then suddenly he's been there for months!!!!

Not for me, I'm afraid.

I don't think you can judge a book by a few pages sample. I enjoyed the book and didn't find it confusing at all.

Margaret 2584, I am very surprised you didn't like the sample, although every reader has their own tastes in writing style. I didn't find the beginning confusing at all and am loving the book so far. I have a good picture in my head of the setting and character.

bookowlie wrote:Margaret 2584, I am very surprised you didn't like the sample, although every reader has their own tastes in writing style. I find't find the beginning confusing at all and am loving the book so far. I have a good picture in my head of the setting and character.

Goodness! No need to be defensive or protective, Gali and Owlie. A couple hundred copies of the sequel have been downloaded in the last few weeks alone. Acceptance is not the issue. It's tearing it apart that will be fun. It's controversial material!

One thing I have discovered from being in a in-person book club is how people can have such different reactions to the same book! Sometimes the group will be split down the middle with half hating a book and half loving it. Other times most members will love a book and there will be a few that feel "meh" about it. As you mentioned, the analysis is the fun part. Even when other members have an opposite opinion than me, I always find their comments interesting.

My in-person group read The Goldfinch last year, which won the Pulitzer Prize. Half of the group didn't like the book for various, detailed reasons. Of course, there was still the other half which loved it and pointed out all the subtle things that made them love it.

bookowlie wrote:One thing I have discovered from being in a in-person book club is how people can have such different reactions to the same book! Sometimes the group will be split down the middle with half hating a book and half loving it. Other times most members will love a book and there will be a few that feel "meh" about it. As you mentioned, the analysis is the fun part. Even when other members have an opposite opinion than me, I always find their comments interesting.

My in-person group read The Goldfinch last year, which won the Pulitzer Prize. Half of the group didn't like the book for various, detailed reasons. Of course, there was still the other half which loved it and pointed out all the subtle things that made them love it.

You are right and I agree. They have read the whole book though...

It's our diversity that makes people so interesting. There are certain triggers that will cause some readers to turn off a Kindle in a second. For some it might be gay characters or references. For others, adultery. For still others, profanity. "Free Fish Friday" fingers every trigger! It's a regular shooting gallery.

gali wrote:

bookowlie wrote:One thing I have discovered from being in a in-person book club is how people can have such different reactions to the same book! Sometimes the group will be split down the middle with half hating a book and half loving it. Other times most members will love a book and there will be a few that feel "meh" about it. As you mentioned, the analysis is the fun part. Even when other members have an opposite opinion than me, I always find their comments interesting.

My in-person group read The Goldfinch last year, which won the Pulitzer Prize. Half of the group didn't like the book for various, detailed reasons. Of course, there was still the other half which loved it and pointed out all the subtle things that made them love it.

You are right and I agree. They have read the whole book though...

Gali, I agree that it seems unfair for a reader to post their negative views just from reading a short snippet of the book.