Beautiful Darkness Book Discussion:Week 7

Posted 14 December, 2010 by Danny in / 14 Comments

Welcome to the Beautiful Darkness Book Discussion!! Over the next six weeks we will be discussing Beautiful Darkness a few chapters at a time with posts and discussion questions by a variety of guest posters. Posts and discussion questions will go up on Tuesdays and recaps of the discussion question answers will go up on Sundays. For the complete schedule of chapters and dates click here.

Also, as we are the Bookworms and are physically incapable of not hosting a give-away for any major event on this blog, there’s a give-away going on in conjunction with the discussion! WOOT!! Find out all about that here as well.

And now a warning….while we will keep each week’s post spoiler free for those who have only read up to and including the chapters being discussed that week, if you haven’t read the book at all you will find spoilers about the sections of the book being discussed. SO…if you haven’t read the book at all…STOP. GET THE BOOK. READ IT. RETURN. Easy, peasy, extra cheesy, right, Cutie? And in conjunction with that, we do ask that all of you participating in the discussion please keep your responses spoiler free. We know this can be hard but please have a heart for those who are enjoying the read-along aspect of the discussion and do your best. We in turn will do our best to monitor the comments.

And finally….on with this week’s discussion written by AH from Goodreads!!!!

This week’s chapters:

6.17 The Arclight

What a revelation! Ethan finds out that his mother loved Macon Ravenwood! The comparison of his mother and Macon to his situation with Lena is striking.

Ethan is angered by this news and asks Marion who else knew about his mom and Macon. Marian doesn’t understand how Ethan knew about his mother and asks who told him. When Ethan tells Marian that she told him by giving him the Arclight, Marian understood that Ethan’s visions were about Macon and Lila.

Marian agrees to tell Ethan the truth. Ethan pictured in his mind his mom as Juliet and Macon as an Incubus Romeo. Macon was afraid to hurt Lila so he gave her the Arclight. Marian explains that Lila was looking for a way for Mortals and Casters to be together, but she did not find anything in her research.

Ethan cops an attitude and is furious:

“Fact. Not killing the love of your life doesn’t make you a hero.”

Amen to that!

Marian assures Ethan that his mom loved him and tells him how his mother and father met. She explains that his mother just didn’t love his father first.

Ethan’s mom followed Macon to Gatlin. Lila found a way to be in the Caster world and to be close to Macon. We get the back story about how Ethan’s mother became a keeper. Once again, Marian reaffirms her annoying non-interference policy.

6.17 Jump

A very vivid and creepy dream sequence…

Ethan dreams of himself and Lena in a boat, floating down a river. Lena is dressed in a white dress. She has a black parasol, black chucks, black hair, black nails, and black lips. A hand is dragging in the water and Lena is cold. Ethan tells Lena to sit up so she won’t fall in.

“Didn’t they tell you? I’ve already fallen.”

Lena was gone. Ethan could see her hair in the murky water.

“Jump or stay in the boat.”

Ethan feels helpless.

Ethan wakes up disoriented, drenched, and coughing as if he were drowning. He saw a light in the distance and realized that he was still having a vision while awake and standing at the sink. He sees Lena talking to John about going to the Great Barrier, a place where there is no Light or Dark, no naturals or Cataclysts, only magic in its purest form. Ethan watches John touch Lena and feels a bit of jealousy. Ridley with her trademark lollipop joins John and Lena.

Ethan, still not sure of what he has seen, realizes that Lena has run away. He thinks about the dream and is reminded of the water like glass and starts rummaging through shoe boxes. He finds the arclight and wonders why Marion gave it to him. The arclight turns a pale green then fades to black. Ethan wonders if the arclight is a compass that would lead him to Lena. He slips it into his pocket.

Ethan goes to see Gatlin’s resident Galileo, Liv. Liv explains to Ethan that Mortals and Casters do not see the same constellations. Ethan tells Liv that Lena, John, and Ridley ran away to the Great Barrier. Liv explains that the Great Barrier is one of the most ancient of Caster myths, a place of powerful old magic, long before there was Light or Dark, a sort of Nirvana.

Ethan quotes a line from the 17 moons song “Hearts will go and stars will follow.” Liv is surprised that Ethan knows a shadowing song. Liv tells Ethan that it is calling a Claiming Moon out of time that could change the whole order of things from every magnetic field to every magical one. This explains the shift in the Caster sky. Ethan realizes that he was wrong about Liv. She was not at all like Marian. She wanted to actively help Ethan.

“You know anyone else dumb enough to search for a mythical place where a rogue Supernatural is trying to call a Claiming Moon?”

6.18 Outer Doors

Liv uses her British accent to confuse the school secretary so that Ethan can break Link out of summer school. Link, relieved to be set free, goes along with the plan, no questions asked. Ethan shows them his secret weapon, the arclight. Link’s reaction is underwhelming:

“Dude, a ball, seriously?”

Liv explains that the arclight is a metaphysical prison for an Incubus. Link asks if it is like Incubus Kryptonite.

They need to enter the Caster tunnels but must find a way in other than the library. They remember the Tunnel of Love and go to the fairgrounds to search for the doorway. Ethan feels a buzz and the arclight changes color. They discover the door, but need a Caster key to get in. Link, with his lock picking skills manages to open the door and they enter the tunnels.

The descriptions of the tunnels are fantastic. They exist in different places and different times at the same time.

They come to a crossroads and are not certain which way to go but the arclight glows and guides them like a compass. They continue down a dark street. Lucille the cat has run off.

They realize that they are in Savannah, Georgia in Forsyth Park which was quite far from Gatlin. Ethan knows where to go since he only knows one person in Savannah.

6.18 Through the Looking Glass

Ethan is looking for Aunt Caroline’s house. They wander around aimlessly, looking for a yellow house. When Liv and Link express their impatience, Ethan announces that he has found the house because Lena’s Aunt Del is standing outside as if she was expecting them. Aunt Del is looking for Lena. Aunt Caroline tells them that someone broke into the house and ransacked the attic. Ethan asks what was in the attic and is told that some of Lila’s old papers were there.

Before Lila died, she stored a few boxes at Caroline’s house. They ask Aunt Del to help figure out what was taken séance style. They watch images of Lena, John and Ridley emptying boxes, searching for something. They watch a ghostly Lila hide a journal. They find a letter from Lila to Macon warning him that he is in danger and that Abraham is still alive. The letter was dated one month before Lila’s death. In the journal there is a family tree with some names crossed out.

As Ethan was looking through the journal, a piece of vellum falls out. It was covered with strange cloud shaped ovals. Ethan placed it back into the journal but ripped out the last page.

Ethan lies down to think and has another vision. This time, he sees Lena and John lying down on the ceiling talking about their powers. John tells Lena that he is going to get her to the Barrier. Ethan feels like he is losing Lena.

Ethan feels like he has known Liv forever. She cuddles up in bed with him. Liv tells Ethan that he will figure things out because he has an excellent keeper.

Discussion Question:

What do you think is the significance of the arclight?

Thank you, so much, AH, for a great review of this week’s chapters and a great question! Leave your answer in a comment below and remember that each answer to this week’s discussion question is an entry into the Beautiful Darkness Book Discussion contest!

The following two tabs change content below.
Obsessive Reader by Night - Scientist at Day! You can also find me on goodreads. I'd love to get to know you so, don't be shy and say Hello!

Tags: , , ,

Divider

14 Responses to “Beautiful Darkness Book Discussion:Week 7”

  1. This is a hard question only because I have already read the book, so I know the significance. I think at this point in the novel, I was more confused than anything. I was having a hard time picturing what it would look like and how it would work. It is such an abstract idea, however, very intriguing. I know that is kind of vague, but I don't want to give it away for those who do not know yet.
    My recent post HUGE Giveaway!

    Reply »

  2. Darkfallen

    I am in the same boat as Britt on this one but my first reaction when I read this was that it had to do with Abraham. That maybe Lila was giving him the tools he would need to save Lena and defeat Abraham. I know at this point we don't know a whole Lon about Abraham but I think we can all agree he is evil. When the archlight started showing Ethan the way to go I often wonder if that too was his mom guiding him. I don't want to give anything away either so I'm gonna leave it at that.

    Reply »

  3. Greta is Erikasbuddy

    Most awesome review AH!!! HAHAS! OH those Brits and their accent!! Us lame-o Americans get ever so confused by their tongue!! LOLZ!! Loves it!!! PLus, it was an adult and we all know how slow in the head they are when dealing with a genius English child.

    Do you feel it's odd how much self-esteem Liv has? She's European!! I thought they were all supposed to be mopey and hate how much self-esteem us American kids have. (I've been watching too much news). Ethan should offer her a piece of gum to make her feel even more special (again… Craig Ferguson says we're too obsessed with gum… so she needs some)

    At this point in the story I actually thought that the Arclight was a "set up". I kind of figured that this would be Abraham's SUN and not his KRYPTONITE and would power his evil deeds.

    Reply »

  4. Darkfallen

    Thanx for the giveaway! On another note I had a hard time with this question too but I thankfully remembered some of my initial response. I have to say I finished this book about a month ago but participating in this discussion is making them call to me. I just might have to grab them off my shelf and start all over again. 🙂

    Reply »

  5. AHfromGoodreads

    I actually pictured the archlight as a beautiful hand blown glass ball. Since it seemed to work as a compass or beacon, I choose to believe that it was just that – a navigational device.

    Funny, I didn't even think of Abraham when I read this part.

    Reply »

  6. Greta is Erikasbuddy

    I thought of it as a bobble from one og my great-grandma's old perfume bottles.
    I guess I thought of Abraham cuz they keep dropping hints about him.

    Reply »

  7. I thought that too, sort of… I can't really word mine. But it seemed fragile, yet strong(ish). Like if you dropped it it wouldn't break, but if you threw it, it would. I also saw it with a faint glow all the time and it seemed like it would change temperatures (was this in the novel and I am not remembering it? am I just thinking that I thought that part up all by myself – the temp. I mean)
    My recent post HUGE Giveaway!

    Reply »

  8. Well, I could not stop reading and finished the book a while ago, but thinking back I do remember thinking the arclight would help Ethan trap someone…all kinds of names ran through my head: John Breed, Lena (maybe she would go all crazy and he would trap her until she calmed down…hey it crossed my mind lol….but she is not an incubus so not for her…) and of course Abraham. I also thought it was acting as some sort of compass, guiding him to Lena.

    I pictured it as a perfectly round, very shiny, smooth, glassy like marble thing. (hee hee)
    My recent post Robert Pattinsons Water for Elephants Trailer in HD!

    Reply »

  9. Haha that is really funny. There were sometimes when *I* wanted to trap Lena! She definitely deserved a good containment until she calmed down and retrieved her mind (because she obviously lost it). Hopefully she is slightly (or very) less annoying in Book III. I loved her in Beautiful Creatures, but she was hard to deal with in this one.

    Reply »

Leave a Reply

CommentLuv badge