155. (March 2026) The Doloriad by Missouri Williams — The Tabletop Roleplayers' Book Club

The Doloraid - Question 7 - Gaming

kcaryths — Mon, 06 Apr 2026 20:22:59 +0000

Are there any potential gaming uses for this story or book? The world, the characters, or the plot.

The Doloriad - Question 2 - Power in a Dying World

kcaryths — Mon, 06 Apr 2026 20:12:52 +0000

The Matriarch maintains complete power in a world that appears to have competely died. Does this book have anything to say about power and authority, or how and why it is maintained, even in situations where what is being ruled over seemingly is in its end stages of existence? What about when that power begins to crumble as the book goes on?

The Doloriad - Question 1 - General Thoughts

kcaryths — Mon, 06 Apr 2026 20:07:39 +0000

Curious what people thought of this book in general. It seems like the kind of book that can have a variety of opinions on it. Were you aware of this book before reading it and if so, did it meet expectations? Did you enjoy the reading experience? If not, did it evoke other emotions?

The Doloriad - Question 4 - The Aquinas Show

kcaryths — Mon, 06 Apr 2026 20:16:44 +0000

The author seemingly has a reason for this show's existence throughout the story. At times it seemed hard (for me anyways) to separate out when the show and the rest of the story were distinct. What was the purpose of this aspect of the story? the absurdist aspects of it seemed to be a litte bit at odds with the bleak nature of the rest of the story. Was this intentional and if so, why?

The Doloriad - Question 6 - The Prose

kcaryths — Mon, 06 Apr 2026 20:21:58 +0000

I found the prose very difficult to get through at times, particularly in how the narrative perspective would shift seemingly out of nowhere. I had to look up a number of words and sentences would string together in long rambing trails at times. Did you enjoy this as a reader? Why do you think Wiliams did this as the author?

The Doloraid - Question 5 - Eden bookended

kcaryths — Mon, 06 Apr 2026 20:20:06 +0000

One aspect of this story that struck me was the concept of a single mating pair being tasked with populating the earth, similar to the biblical myth of Adam and Eve, and with some of the same questions that possibly arise about what that might have looked like, and whether others may have existed in the story, but were never explicitly shown. Perhaps this was an overreading on my part, but did these themes come across to anyone else, or perhaps other literary references that or stylistic choices that I may have missed? I feel like I am not smart enough to catch a lot of what the author may have been trying to do in this book in this regards. Interested to hear what others think.

The Doloriad - Question 3 - A Protagonist?

kcaryths — Mon, 06 Apr 2026 20:14:39 +0000

Though the book is named after Dolores, can we claim that she is the central character? Could we call her a protagonist or something else? Or would it be a different character, or perhaps no specific character? Did you like this aspect as the reader?