[Marginalia] Horror | Between Two Fires by Christopher Buehlman

[u/Joinedformyhubs]

Hello r/bookclubbers!

This post is a place for you to put your marginalia as we read Between Two Fires By Christopher Buehlman. Scribbles, comments, glosses (annotations), critiques, doodles, illuminations, or links to related material are all welcome here. Any thought, big or little, belongs.

Marginalia are simply your observations—they don’t need to be insightful, polished, or deep. If something makes you pause, react, or wonder, it fits here.

📖 Reading Ahead & Spoilers
Feel free to read ahead and post comments on later chapters, just be sure to:

• Say which chapter or general location your comment is from first
• Use spoiler tags so you don’t give anything away to readers who aren’t there yet

✍️ How to Write a Marginalia Comment

You might:

• Start with a general location (early in chapter 4, midway through chapter 1, end of chapter 2, etc.)
• Write your observations or reactions
• Copy a favorite or striking quote
• Scribble down light bulb moments
• Share your predictions or questions
• Link to an interesting side topic (articles, history, interviews, concepts, etc.)

📌 Note: Spoilers from other books should always be under spoiler tags 

Link to the schedule

[u/sarcasticseaturtle]

(First time doing a Marginalia comment so please let me know if I’ve missed the mark.)

Thoughts on Part I
Chapter 1- I was very anxious the girl was going to get raped. It seems especially sensitive considering the Cornell case. I have great hopes for Thomas and the girl as characters.

Chapters 2-7: Thinking I need to pass this on to my son and DIL. Enjoying the story and am immersed in this world.

Chapter 8- Felt that something was hinky with the castle right from the start. It seemed too good to be true. I didn’t enjoy this chapter.

Bottom line: I like my monsters as mythical creatures or dinosaurs or aliens. I don’t like humans monsters.

[u/___effigy___ → u/sarcasticseaturtle]

I enjoyed the castle/feast/tournament section. It reminded of The Masque of the Red Death.

[u/againstallodds24]

First timer here! 😊

Part Two

The Virgin Mary scene really creeped me out, especially the part with the woodcarver and his wife dying. He spent his life carving these beautiful religious figures, presumably out of faith and devotion, and then a statue of the Virgin Mary becomes something so horrifying. There’s something especially cruel about that.

💡 It feels like God is almost completely absent throughout the book while people suffer in some truly awful ways. The prologue suggests this when we learn that God has turned away from humanity. But at times, it’s hard to tell if God is any better than the evil forces causing all this suffering, or if he’s simply indifferent to it.

Question: is the author suggesting that faith is difficult when God seems so absent, or is he questioning whether God is really as loving and merciful as people believe?

Quote:“Maybe God would be more generous if you swore less.” “God starves babies sometimes, and they don't swear at all.”