Welcome, dreamers, to the first day of our book club read-along for OwlCrate's November book, Dreams Lie Beneath!
Just a reminder that this will be a SPOILER discussion for Chapters 1-6 of Dreams Lie Beneath, so make sure you read are finished this section before continuing.
Discussion questions are listed below, and anyone who participates in the comments will be entered to win a free OwlCrate box! Don't forget, you can also post about the readalong on Instagram with the hashtag #OCDreamsLieBeneath for another chance to win!
The story begins...
Chapter 1:
Clementine is often called to Marazine’s mansion to draw or read to her from old books, and seems to be the only person in the town of Hereswith that doesn’t fear her. The mansion is kept completely dark, blinds drawn, during the day. After finishing the day’s charcoal drawing, Clementine departs, but when the two of them pass a mirror in Marazine’s hall her true identity is exposed, and it certainly isn’t simply an old woman.
Chapter 2:
Returning home, Clementine greets Imonie in the kitchen. She tells Imonie that she thinks Marazine is a troll. Imonie gets Clementine to bring her fevered father a cup of tea. Too sick to do it himself, her father asks her to go record one of the town’s children’s recent nightmares. This is the first time it will be up to Clementine to do it herself. Her father implores her to be careful and only use his divining spell if absolutely necessary. He insist he will be well enough by the time the new moon rises to help her. Clementine gathers the things she needs for the recording and promises to be back before nightfall.
Chapter 3:
Clementine arrives at Spruce Fielding’s cabin to record his youngest daughter, Elle’s, nightmare, which occurred after the five sisters played a game of Seven Wraiths, a card game from the mountains in which the loser has a nightmare the next time they sleep. Elle refuses to speak of it so Clem performs a divination in order to see the girl’s nightmare. In it a heavy-footed knight is methodically chasing her down, dragging the tip of his sword in the street. Clem is jolted out of the dream and shakily records it in her father’s book. She has a bad feeling, and bids the Fielding’s farewell.
Chapter 4:
While making her way home it is brought to Clem’s attention that two magicians have come to town and are asking for her father. None of the townsfolk will reveal where he is, and refuse them hospitality, shuttering up before the new moon. One of the townsfolk deceive the two boys, and sends them up to Marazine’s manor. Clem follows and convinces them to come home with her, and they can stay the night safely in their home.
Clem and her father are convinced they have come to challenge them for the right to be the one’s who protect Hereswith from nightmares. Although her father is terribly ill, he asks Clem to glamour him so he appears healthy, wanting to not present any weakness. As she does so she notices a flicker in the glamour and sees her father as what she imagines he looked like before she was born. Together, they head downstairs to meet the new magicians.
Chapter 5:
The magicians are Lennox and Phelan Vesper, sons of the Countess of Amarys. They sit down to dinner, and when asked outright exactly why they are in Hereswith, Lennox challenges Clementine’s father for the position of warden of the town. They agree to meet in the market green in an hour for the challenge of the new moon.
Chapter 6:
They meet the brothers in town and wait for the clock to strike nine before commencing the challenge. Clementine feels rain and knows which nightmare they are experiencing - it will soon turn to a flood. Her father attempts to create a boat for them, but his magic is too weak, so it is up to Clementine. Once on board it is up to them to find the key to the nightmare, something that will break it. They paddle through tangles of lily pads and snakes, and when Clementine thinks she sees the key she dives into the water, only to get stuck and twisted in the lily pads. Trying not to panic, she uses her knife to cut her way to the surface, emerging with a gasp. She climbs into the boat, but it turns out to be the boat of Phelan, not her father’s. She uses her magic to punch a hole in the bottom of the boat and jumps onto a nearby rooftop, stranding Phelan. She rejoins her father and again finds the key, seeing that Lennox is also attempting to grab it. She uses her magic to give herself gills and dives, but Lennox gets there first, stopping the nightmare and losing Clementine and her father the town.
Questions:
- What do you think Marazine's role in the story is going to be?
- What do you think the significance of Elle's dream is?
- Why do you think Clementine saw a flicker of what appeared to be her father when he was younger when she glamoured him?
- What do you think will happen now that Lennox won the right to be the to be warden of Hereswith? Why do you think Lennox wants to be warden?
- Did you enjoy the first section of the book?
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