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Sleep Like Death Readalong: Day 3!

Isla

Beautiful photo by @blurringpages

Hey fairies!

Happy Wednesday, I hope you’ve been having a good week so far!

Are you ready to journey back into Sleep Like Death by Kalynn Bayron?Β 

Before we start reading, we have our secret giveaway! What’s that? Oh, just a chance to get your next FairyLoot for freeΒ as a reward for reading! It doesn’t really get better than that! This is only announced here as we would love one of you, who has joined us on this readalong journey to win! If you would like to enter, all you need to do is follow these steps!

1. Take a photo of our edition ofΒ Sleep Like Death

2. Include the hashtag #WishFairy

3. Do all of this by the end of August 30th

4. Mention down below in your comment that you have entered and include your Instagram handle (also super important!)

Good luck!

Today we are reading fromΒ Chapter 10 to the end of Chapter 13! Let’s go!


Please be warned, the following section will include spoilers for Sleep Like Death by Kalynn Bayron from chapters 10 – 13. Please only read on if you have finished reading this section!

Eve is woken by Nova calling her name. Nova tries to get them to leave but Eve is trying to find Mekhi. Nova explains that the castle had stepped on him as it left. They find parts of Mekhi. Both are feeling guilty about what has become of him.Β 

Eve buries Mekhi under the snow before riding back to Queen’s bridge. Eve is furious at her mother and Huntress for letting her believe that one day she’d be able to defeat the Knight if she was strong enough, if she trained enough.

The Queen has finally admitted to Eve and Huntress that she made a deal with the Knight many years ago! Queen Sanaa and herself had been happier than ever but were unable to have a child. The Queen had wanted a child desperately so thought about going to the Knight and in time Sanaa had agreed.Β 

Nova had appeared to the Queen one evening. She would be granted her wish but the Knight wanted payment, which he refused to reveal until after she had agreed. After refusing, the Queen had stumbled upon a seeing stone which showed her happy with Sanaa and a baby…

The Queen ends up agreeing to his terms after being tortured by seeing the happy images every day… I think this was definitely a setup by the Knight!Β 

The terms end up being that the Queen has to kill Eve by midnight on her seventeenth birthday!! The Queen had hoped to find a way out of it but had been unable to.Β 

Nova brings up a possible plan that they could try to best the Knight. A plan the Queen had come up with five years ago. The Queen asks Nova why he would help them when he has been loyal to the Knight all these years. Nova reveals that the Knight is his father!Β  OMG!

Everyone wants to know why Nova is suddenly so concerned for them after seeing all of the horrible twisted things the Knight has done for many years. He won’t say but he wants to be redeemed…

They plan to fake Eve’s death, hoping that once the Knight believes that the Queen has fulfilled her end of the bargain, he’d leave them alone… someone else’s beating heart will have to take Eve’s place!Β 

Huntress, Nova and the Queen begin the planning but leave Eve out as the less she knows the better. Eve has to leave to find Sir Gregory and inform him of Mekhi’s death. Eve tells him that he was killed while tracking a wolf. Poor Sir Gregory is absolutely heartbroken at the news.

Two weeks later it is finally Eve’s birthday. Eve has a heavy feeling about what is about to happen. Everyone around her is celebrating her birthday and has no idea what is about to happen.Β 

Eve doesn’t fully understand what she will need to do in order to convince the Knight. Nova tells her that she can never see her mother again!Β 

Huntress is angry at Eve and she cannot figure out why…Β  To distract Eve from her feeling of panic, Nova decides to dance with her! Omg how cute!

Finally the celebration is over and it is only Eve, Huntress and the Queen left. The Queen tells Eve how much she loves her and that she is the best thing to have ever happened to her. I love their bond, I hope they see each other again!Β 

Huntress is to take Eve to a safe place. They are riding for hours before eventually stopping. Huntress pulls out a small wooden box and explains that the Knight will need a heart as proof of death. Huntress has refused to get a heart through her connections saying it’ll never fool the Knight.Β 

Huntress reveals that she has been in love with Eve’s mother. She’d been by the Queen’s side to comfort her when Queen Sanaa was turned into a nightingale and blames Eve for the reason why the Queen hasn’t noticed her affection for her… wow I did not see this coming, did anyone else?Β 

Huntress goes on to spew that they have no need to trick the Knight as it will be Eve’s heart in the box!! Huntress tries to kill Eve and does get a couple of stabs in… just as Eve thinks she will die there, Nova swoops in and saves her. Nova ends up killing Huntress!

Eve manages to survive and wakes up in an unfamiliar house. When he introduces himself as Claude Kingfisher, she recognises him as the man with seven sons.Β As there are many rumours about his family, Claude wants to tell Eve the truth of the story. Claude and his wife had made a deal with the Knight to have as many children as they could… His wife goes on to have seven sons but ends up dying from the strain along with three sons. Oh goshhh I feel so sad for him.Β 

Claude introduces his sons, Claude Junior, Hunter, Chance and Grumpy and Maggie the dog who’s as large as a wolf! How cute!Β 

NovaΒ  shows up and it turns out he and Claude know each other as it had been Nova to broker the deal. Nova tells Eve that he used Huntress’s heart to trick the Knight. There is some tension between Claude and Nova, honestly understandable I think given what happened to Claude’s wife.Β 

Despite what had happened, Claude believes that Nova is worthy of forgiveness, but he disagrees. He goes on to explain to Eve that he had been loyal until he saw the deal that brought Eve into existence, how he was used and the pain the Knight wanted to inflict on the Queen.

He also explains that The Knight had honed his torturing skills on Nova… how he didn’t have a choice in the matter. He then leaves Eve with those thoughts and a shard of the mirror that she can use to contact him.Β 


Wow, today’s reading had so many twists and turns! The ending section had me on the edge of my seat. I feel so sorry for Nova, he’s obviously been through a lot. I also cannot believe Huntress tried to kill Eve, did we see that coming?

Do we really think the Knight was fooled by Eve’s β€˜death’?

Do we have any theories as to what is going to happen in tomorrow’s reading session?

I can’t wait to hear more of your thoughts tomorrow!

Love,
Isla

Conversation

24 Comments

Comment

  • lulu.james2712

    it’s such a cute book but also heartbreakingly sad eve who is the female main character is such a badass character and has been training all her life to kill the Knight who everyone fears he’s a monster of everyone’s nightmares he reminds me of rumplestilskin he grants people’s wishes but in wicked way and she believes she can kill him with the help of nova and the huntress little does she no she is to be betrayed so she has to go into hiding then we meet Claude and his 7 children who has his own sad tale about how the knight cheated him everyone has there own sad story I think there meant to be like the 7 dwarves as the youngest is called grumpy. Nova omg nova I want to dislike him but I just can’t help liking him I feel so sorry for him and love his character and the enemies to lovers slow burn is magical I’m going in with competition my handle is @relax_with_a_good_book

  • Lisa Spanu (@lisashelves)

    I kinda expected the Huntress to try that, since the original hunter in the story also tries to kill Snow White
    1. Do we really think the Knight was fooled by Eve’s β€˜death’?
    I think he will initially, but will also discover they tried to fool him
    2. Do we have any theories as to what is going to happen in tomorrow’s reading session?
    I’m not sure, but I do believe she’ll recover first and then will come up with a plan together with Nova to try and defeat the Knight

    Entered via @lisashelves πŸ™‚

    • Isla

      I think I thought it might happen but as Huntress had watched her grow up, I had hoped I would be wrong! πŸ₯²

  • Seeri

    These chpaters felt the most like a snow white retelling with a lot of familiar elements while still also keeping the story fresh and interesting. The deal Queen and Knight made is truly horrendous, I mean getting a child, a daughter, just in exchange for that? I can’t even think about the pain.

    I really hope Knight is at least for a while fooled by Eve’s death so we all get a second to breathe. These last chapters have all been so full of action that at least i need the second :Dd

    // entered the giveaway @lyrasbookdiary

    • Isla

      I love that there is a twist on the familiar tale! Honestly me too, it’s been incredibly action packed but also such fun to read! πŸ˜†

  • Tiffany Salangsang

    So much drama! I did not see Huntress’ betrayal coming – makes me to mad & sad for Eve. I don’t think the Knight will be fooled – he wasn’t in past when others tried to fool him. No theories, just enjoying the ride. I’m most interested in seeing Nova’s development – so tortured and torned. Will he ultimately not have a choice but to follow his evil father? Will he fall for Eve?

    • Isla

      I agree, I’ve been so interested to watch Nova’s journey!

  • Taylor

    All I can think is: what is going on with Mekhi’s father?? What is he going to go do??

  • Paige

    I was not expecting Nova to be the Knight’s son, but it makes what he’s been through even worse. Even though Nova still has some things he’s hiding I still feel so bad for him. You can tell he regrets helping the Knight and wants to make up for it.
    As for Huntress, I kind of could tell she was in love with the Queen. I thought she seemed to touch the Queen a lot and the way she spoke to her sometimes gave me the impression she was trying to get her attention. I didn’t expect her to blame Eve for the Queen not noticing her affection. Although thinking back the Huntress has said some rude/nasty things to Eve which was probably her true feelings for Eve leaking through. Also, I would not have been surprised if Huntress had admitted that she was happy when Sanaa turned into a nightingale.
    I think at the moment the Knight has been fooled by Eve’s ‘death’ but I don’t think it will last long. I think he’s going to find out (possibly while Nova and Eve are speaking through the shard of mirror) and immediately go after the Queen.

    • Isla

      I feel so bad for Nova as well, it’s a very complex situation but I hope he gets a happy ending or at least some forgiveness πŸ₯Ή

  • ladymeg

    I also cannot believe Huntress tried to kill Eve, did we see that coming?
    NOPE. I thought something bad was going to happen because of how drunk she was getting but I thought maybe there would be some kind of magical solution like she would still have to lose her heart but could survive without it.

    Do we really think the Knight was fooled by Eve’s β€˜death’?
    I wonder if he really needed her death or if he just needed her mother’s pain…I don’t think he was fooled though.

    Do we have any theories as to what is going to happen in tomorrow’s reading session?
    Nope this book is keeping me guessing!

  • Jennifer Birt – Sisk

    Super pumped for this read along! I entered the giveaway… @jen_bookdragon 🫢🏼

  • ladymeg

    I keep forgetting to enter the giveaways but if I do it will be as @sonata_ix

  • Marie-Anne S

    Oh wow I didn’t see that coming neither. I did have suspicions about Huntress, her behaviour was weird and suspicious. What a great part with so many revelations ! I’m sad for Mr Kingfisher, he and his sons seems so nice and welcoming. I’m finally having some snow white vibes and I like how Kalynn Bayron twisted the fairytale to match her view. So original and clever. So, as in the fairytale, I’m guessing the Knight was fooled by her death but will discover she’s still alive and maybe send some beasts or people to kill her, maybe it’ll involve some poisonous apple (can’t pass this one XD), either way I’m dying to know. I’m entering the giveaway and my Instagram handle is @masenechal thank you, I’m loving this readalongs <3

  • Rachel

    I suspected the Huntress might like the Queen but did not see her trying to kill Eve – that was a shock! I don’t think the knight is fooled or if he is it won’t be for long. Loved how there were more references to the snow white story in these chapters. Hopefully Eve can come up with a plan with the Kingfisher’s!

    • Christina Pittman

      Oh, me too! When Huntress pulled out the little wooden box, I was like OMG! Just like in the fairy tale I remember! But that was also the point wherein I began to feel a bit fearful, as Huntress was so quiet in her actions too.

  • Morgan Blake

    Omg there were so many revelations in this section!! I loved this retellings version of the 7 dwarves, especially Grumpy. I knew something was off about Huntress but couldn’t figure out what! My IG is @reds.reading

  • Christina Pittman

    I totally saw the foreshadowing with Huntress being in love with Queen Regina. She’s so emotional about all of it, and honestly, I could sense it in the way she treated Eve, even from the start. Multiple times, Eve stated how Huntress treats her like she’s her mother and honestly, Eve was right. Huntress WAS acting that way. Now, what causes a woman to act maternally toward a child they also don’t seem to show any compassion or love toward? (I never once noticed Huntress acting loving toward Eve, despite her maternal actions.)
    They’re compensating for something in relation to the child’s actual parent. THIS is what tipped me off to Huntress being in love with Queen Regina. Everything else up until this point only served to cement it.

    I made an Instagram post<3 @alinaaniki

  • Jessica Clement

    I also cannot believe Huntress tried to kill Eve, did we see that coming?
    Nope, sure did not. I knew she was into Eve’s mom but I had no idea the lengths she was willing to go. I thought she saw herself as mother figure to Eve and would have sacrificed herself before doing that. The Knight seemed fooled. Giving him Huntresses’ heart definitely helped. The audacity of Huntress’ plan though, to just lie about murdering her daughter and comfort the Queen by saying she’s alive and safe. It’s just terrible and Huntress may think that she loved the Queen but clearly did not.

    The actual deal was so bad and I don’t understand how after that Queen Sanaa went to him to make her own deal. This original deal made it so that deal was even more illogical. I don’t understand why she would have done that after knowing about this Eve deal. Perhaps I misunderstood the timeline and she found out after – I’m going to have to go back and check that because it really bothered me.

    I entered the giveaway, my Instagram handle is @prettybooksjess

  • ruth matthews

    Definitely in my fairytale retelling era so loving it so far 😍

    Entered the giveaway @read.with.rue

  • Dennis Hoenel

    I love the reference to the 7 dwarves but it’s so tragic that there are only four left… and Claude’s backstory of his wife is sad as well :,(
    The book is darker than I expected at the beginning, but I love it! It’s exciting to read but still really cosy ^-^
    I have also entered and my instagram handle is @fairylouisa06

  • Kara Lee

    I really enjoyed this book!! Just entered the giveaway on my new bookstagramπŸ₯° @mysticbooksandmae

  • holly

    I didn’t know the Huntress would try to kill Eve, but I thought she would somehow betray her. I’m 50/50 on the Knight being fooled. Surely his magic would tell him, but did he have to be fooled? Nova made a deal with the Knight as well. Was it to save Eve? Even if it were, the Knight would know the deal with Queen Regina wasn’t fulfilled.
    The next readalong section will see Eve bonding with the Kingfisher family. (I think Grumpy is going to love her and her magic.) I think the shard Nova left behind with Eve somehow reveals the unfulfilled deal to the Knight.
    I will be posting on my Insta soon @my.book.voyages

  • wandering.bookishtales._

    i really enjoyed the book, although it was predictable in some parts. however, it also had a lot of surprising twists and turns. And all that drama – that’s what I’m here for! And then there was the thing with Nova? Simply mindblowing!
    I would love to take part in the giveaway at the last minute. My Instagram is wandering.bookishtales._

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