'Immortal Longings' Book Club Readalong Day 2!

Amber and I are BACK this August for a fun new readalong! We're about to start our monthly discussion for our July Adult book (recommended by those 18+), Immortal Longings by Chloe Gong!

As a reminder, from now on, our monthly discussions will be both here on the OwlCrate blog AND on The Nest! Go check out Amber's discussion that will be full of fun extra content!

On each day we'll read a section of Immortal Longings, both on the blog and in The Nest's group, and then discuss in the comments our theories and predictions. This means there will be spoilers for each section! Beware! 

Just a reminder that this will be a SPOILER discussion for chapters 4-6 of Immortal Longings, so make sure you read or are finished this section before continuing.

I'm trying so hard not to read ahead for this readalong...

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Chapter Four: 

Anton is waiting for the games to begin while drinking at a bar where he's propositioned by a prostitute. He finishes his drink, bumps into another prostitute at the doorway and jumps into him, leaving the bar. 

He makes his way to the coliseum as players gather for the game. He thinks back to how August had used him before his exile and watches other players skirmish as the countdown finishes on his wristband. 

The guards drop eighty-eight identical beige bags on the ground and the players rush at them. Instead of joining them, Anton takes off his wristband and jumps into another player with a bag. He runs down an alleyway into a hair salon and he jumps into yet another individual who catches the bag, jumping over a counter. 

The player whose bag he has stolen is furious when he realizes he's been jumped. He's been eliminated and Anton is safely hiding behind the counter of the shop. Anton's wristband flashes. There are 86 players left. 

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Elsewhere in the city Calla watches the countdown pass on her wristband and pulls open the door to a weapons shop. She bribes the shopkeeper to let her in. She chooses a thin curved sword. At that moment another player makes their way into the shop and Calla guts him immediately. 

Calla leaves the shop through the backdoor. Another woman ambushes her at the end of the alley and Calla makes quick work of her. Her wristband reads 66. 

Chapter Five:

Calla goes back to her apartment where she lights up a cigarette while looking out over the city and watching the news. She's shocked to learn that she's been the most prolific player thus far. 

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Anton, too, is watching the news and pondering why the camera's don't pick up on the light flash of jumps. He listens to commentators talking about player 57. Passing by a shop he notices another player. He waits, leans his body against the wall, jumps into the other body and slits its throat before jumping back to safety. He wants to scare the palace and get noticed on the news. 

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August returns to the palace with a borrowed body and jumps back into his own. Leida, a guard and childhood friend comes into August's study to discuss the games and the body count. 

They identify the photographs they review from the day is that of a Sican which shouldn't have happened as they cannot obtain ID numbers in San-Er. Leida tells August that she will keep an eye on the situation as King Kasa comes to them. 

The King tells him that he will see him after the reels of the day have finished. August then turns back to Leida and asks if she's run through the names of the contestants. They notice one is obviously Anton using a different identity number. Galipei asks August if he feels they should take him out. August declines and all of a sudden feels an explosion rock the palace. They look out the window and note the inconvenience that will be to sort out and August closes the window. 

Chapter Six:

Calla stands at the sea thinking about the histories of San-Er and Sica. She turns into an alleyway, hanging around and waiting for players to wander across her path. It's the day of the Daqun, the day when players will start sending location pins to others. She pulls down her mask and feels a buzz on her wrist. There are two players close by. 

She jumps through a butcher's hatch and finds a player slicing another player's throat. She watches him lick the player's blood off his mouth. She draws her sword and the other player welcomes her as number 57. Calla wants to know how he knows her as he lunges for his knives. 

The other player goads Calla, almost flirting with her. She slashes at him with her sword and hits the other player. A flash of blinding light hits her eyes and she realizes the player has jumped. 

She sings to him to come out and feels a pressure on her arm. It's a new body and the player tells her goodbye. He jumps out the window and hits a net on the way down while two wristbands hit the ground. Calla realizes he's tried to eliminate her without violence, and would have if August hadn't guaranteed he'd keep her wristband on. 

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Pampi Magnes, a worker in the palace's surveillance room tracks players in the game and provides them their directional pings. 

Leidu comes in and demands to see the border. Various screens flicker to the wall around San and Pampi watches her look for something. Her co-worker tries to gossip with her, wondering what they're looking for. Pampi tells him that they're looking for Sicans. Her coworker scoffs. 

Leida slaps her hand on the surveillance door and tells everyone to get back to work. Pampi hunches over her screens and fetches the paper she's printed. In the handbag under her desk, her own wristband flashes the number 2 as it sits idle, waiting.

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Are you enjoying it? The dystopian vibes are ON POINT. 

 Questions:

1. 🎮 What would your game strategy be?

2. 👀Do you think Anton will derail August's plans?
   

3. 🔪❓Why do you think Anton didn't kill Calla?

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