#Southern Vampire Mysteries spoilers

[the-smut-analyst]

A defence of the Good Guy / Bad Boy love triangle

It is no secret that mainstream YA & NA fantasy gravitates towards an angsty love triangle. But is this trope's popularity due to vapid teenage vanity... or something far deeper?

Warning: in this post, I will be referencing: True Blood/The Southern Vampire Mysteries, Legendborn, A Court of Thorns and Roses, The Shadow and Bone Trilogy, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The Hunger Games, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, and The Vampire Diaries. Some minor spoilers, mostly relating to the romance side of things, may be involved.

I have stumbled across a bunch of articles lately analysing why love triangles are popular in YA and NA fiction - and all of them, in my opinion, missed the entire point.

Firstly, they focus entirely on the "love interests", while wilfully ignoring the fact that the romance element is often a subset of these stories, rather than the main focus (more on that later).

Secondly, these articles often attribute the appeal of the love triangle to "teenage vanity". They either directly state or imply that young women are drawn to the idea of "provoking" two men into a fight for their affection.

Look, I get it.

Or at least I get how a middle-aged man tap-tap-tapping away on his computer might draw that conclusion. Especially if the crux of his knowledge regarding female-centred fantasy rests on blog posts ripping apart Twilight.

But regardless, the fact remains that labelling YA love triangles as a conceited sexual fantasy is a gross over-simplification. Why? Because romance is rarely the point of the story. Instead, the love triangle is a vehicle through which the author complements and elevates the standard Hero's Journey plot beats.

To demonstrate this argument, I will go through each of the critical plot beats in the Hero's Journey. For each beat, I will demonstrate (with examples) how dual love interests can underscore the character development of the protagonist and highlight her emotional struggles during each stage.

The outline for this analysis will be as follows:

Introduction of the Female Protagonist / Refusal of the Call

Meet the Good Guy / Meeting the Mentor

Meet the Bad Boy / Tests, Allies, and Enemies

Death of Innocence / The Ordeal in the Abyss

Heartbreak / "Death" of the Mentor

Grief for Lost Innocence / Refusal of the Return

Self-Discovery / The Road Back Home

Female Protagonist Accepts Her New Self / Master of Two Worlds

For reference, here is a rough outline of the major plot beats in the Hero's Journey:

Alright. Time to rip apart some assumptions.

Let's go!

Introduction of the Female Protagonist

Refusal of the Call

Mainstream fantasy love triangles almost always centre a female protagonist hence why people love to hate on them. The introduction of this protagonist generally follows your fairly standard Hero's Journey opening.

We meet the protagonist, usually a teenager or young woman, going about their "everyday life" in the ordinary world.

But then the Call to Adventure comes - sometimes referred to as the Inciting incident. For Feyre (ACOTAR), this moment is when she kills a wolf who turns out to be Fae. Or for Katniss (HG), her sister's name is drawn, prompting her to offer herself as a tribute instead.

The Call to Adventure or Inciting Incident marks a point of no return - even though the protagonist might not realise it at the time. It is the moment when life as they know it ends. Afterwards, nothing will ever be the same, including the protagonist.

The following beat is usually the Refusal of the Call, where the protagonist resists any change coming their way. Buffy (BTVS), for example, wants to continue her life as a regular teenage girl instead of being burdened by the duties of being the Slayer. Similarly, Sabrina (TCAOS) is hesitant to participate in the dark baptism, scared of its implications for her ties to the mortal world.

But for the plot to move forward, something or someone needs to prompt the protagonist to leave the "ordinary" world behind - and in turn, take those first few tentative steps into the "special" world (unknown).

Enter...

Meeting the Good Guy

Meeting the Mentor

The Mentor doesn't always have to be an Obi-Wan-style character who teaches the protagonist everything they know about lightsabers. In its simplest form, the Mentor archetype is a guide. Someone who takes the protagonist by the hand, either literally or metaphorically, and leads them from the ordinary world into the special one.

This transition is known as Crossing the Threshold and it is the beat that marks the shift from Act I to Act II.

Now, there is a good reason why the Meeting the Mentor plot beat often serves as a precursor to Crossing the Threshold. And no, it isn't because the protagonist is incapable of doing anything by themselves.

Instead, the Mentor character is often employed to explain how this new world works to both the protagonist and the reader alike.

Through the protagonist interacting with a "guide", the rules and systems of the new world can be revealed through dialogue and action, rather than excessive exposition and info-dumping.

And this is where the "good guy" as a Mentor character stand-in comes into play. His arrival serves the dual purpose of propelling the protagonist into the Crossing the Threshold beat and guiding her once she does.

For example, Sookie's budding romance with Bill is what introduces her (and us) to the Charlene Harris's world of vampires in True Blood. Or, in Tamlin's case, he takes his role in "helping" Feyre to cross the threshold quite literally and abducts her, forcing her to leave the human world behind in place of the world of Fae.

Now, there are quite a few exceptions to this good guy/mentor rule and they generally occur when the good guy is a childhood friend or sweetheart. Examples include Harvey (TCAOS), Gale (HG), and Malyen (SAB).

When this happens, the good guy often provides the protagonist with a much-needed link to her previous life and/or the ordinary world. He takes on more of a "grounding" role, rather than a guiding one.

But regardless, what these good guys have in common is a fairly standard set of traits. They are protective, have a strong moral compass, and are incredibly loyal to the protagonist.

Furthermore, they are almost always the protagonist's "first love". They offer her the emotional support she needs in order to move forward by making her feel less alone in the world.

Regardless of whether the good guy is a childhood friend or a mentor-like character, his relationship with the protagonist usually marks a time of both innocence and self-discovery. He is a source of love and companionship while the protagonist takes those first few tentative steps into the unknown.

Meeting the Bad Boy

Tests, Allies, and Enemies

The Hero's Journey is, at its essence, a Bildungsroman-like story. Or at least it is in the YA/NA genres. It is a coming-of-age tale, with Crossing the Threshold being a symbol for leaving the child behind in order to discover the adult that awaits.

What follows is a collection of plot beats known as Tests, Allies, and Enemies. This stage of the story is often fraught with missteps and small triumphs, good times and bad times - much the same as adolescence.

And this is where the bad boy comes in.

Sometimes the bad boy manifests as an enemy who the protagonist must face in some kind of test like Spike to Buffy. Other times, he presents as a Temptation beat, like the Darkling does to Alina (SAB), trying to lure the protagonist away from their path.

But regardless of how he makes his entrance, the initial purpose of the bad boy is almost always to bring the protagonist face-to-face with the dangers of this new world.

For example, through Eric, Sookie realises that not all vampires are polite and restrained like Bill. Similarly, Feyre's first encounters with Rhysand show her an even darker side to the Fae.

Even bad boys who are not outright evil still tend to behave in a way that the protagonist finds confronting, like Peeta (HG), whose ruthlessly practical survival tactics disturb the very moral Katniss.

In this sense, the bad boy fashions himself into a symbol of the harsh realities of adulthood. Much as a child might find their first encounter with the cruelty of the world shocking, the protagonist is shocked and appalled by the bad boy.

We're not in Kansas anymore, Dorothy.

However, it is important to note that the bad boy is usually just one component of the beats involved in the Tests, Allies, and Enemies section. Again, this ties in with my argument that these stories are a Hero's Journey first - with the love triangle simply underscoring that fact.

The friendships that Buffy forms with Willow and Xander are shown to be her two most enduring relationships, while her love interests come and go. In Legendborn, Bree's quest to learn the truth about her mother's death has nothing to do with romance at all. And Sabrina's rivalry-to-friendship arc with Prudence gets significant screen time across multiple episodes and seasons.

During the Tests, Allies, and Enemies stage, the protagonist is usually starting to come into her own. She faces challenges, forms friendships, and encounters enemies. And yes, with love triangles there's usually some lust and romance thrown in there, too.

But the main focus of this stage is that the protagonist is starting to learn who she is. She is becoming more and more powerful with each setback and triumph.

The Death of Innocence

The Ordeal in the Abyss

The Ordeal into the Abyss, also known as The Belly of the Whale, is a plot beat where the protagonist encounters their greatest test thus far.

Rather than this beat being the climax of the story, The Ordeal is generally a challenge that the protagonist must face before the final confrontation or battle - and they must do so alone. It sees them hitting rock bottom and coming face-to-face with their greatest fear, whatever that may be.

This plot beat is a transformative one. It forever changes the protagonist and readies them for the final battle ahead. It is a death of innocence. The moment when the "girl" becomes the "woman", so to speak.

And in this sense, The Ordeal in the Abyss comes with loss and gain in equal measure. Yes, the protagonist is stronger for the experience, but not without cost.

To get to this point, she has been to hell and back. Sometimes literally (cough, cough. Sabrina). The protagonist is now well acquainted with the darkness of this new world but, in order to survive it, she has to absorb some of that darkness into herself.

If you gaze into the abyss, the abyss gazes into you.

The aftermath of The Ordeal usually sees the protagonist having conflicting feelings over what she has discovered about herself.

On the one hand, she might relish her newfound power and strength. But on the other hand, she may also be afraid of who she had to become in order to emerge triumphant.

Heartbreak

"Death" of the Mentor

The Death of the Mentor isn't always a literal death, but rather, it is a plot beat that forces the protagonist to stand on their own two feet.

By losing the mentor, the protagonist's safety net is ripped out from underneath them. It places them in a "sink or swim" situation that is critical to their growth as a character.

This is why the relationship with the good guy must either falter or end at some point, even if only temporarily. Their breakup serves as a stand-in for the Death of the Mentor plot beat.

Because despite romance featuring heavily in these stories, there is still an inherent idea within them that there are certain steps in a woman's coming-of-age that she must take alone.

The cause of this breakup is almost always due to the transformation that the protagonist underwent during The Ordeal. The good guy no longer understands her, even though he may want to.

For example, Feyre's experience Under the Mountain sees her outgrow her coddled life with Tamlin. Similarly, when Katniss returns to 12, Gale can't fully comprehend what she went through, nor the role she is being forced to play as a result.

Grief for Lost Innocence

Refusal of the Return

The combination of The Ordeal and the Death of the Mentor take their emotional toll on the protagonist. She mourns for the girl she once was, the loss of her first love, and the ordinary world that is now a stranger to her.

What follows is a low point called The Refusal of the Return. Sometimes this beat sees the protagonist running away from her problems, as Buffy does when she flees Sunnydale after killing Angel.

Other times, The Refusal of the Return is a period of rebellion. Grief manifests itself into rage and the protagonist leans more heavily into that darker side of themselves that they discovered during The Ordeal. Like when Elena turns off her humanity following the loss of her brother.

It is usually during this stage that the bad boy begins to take on a more prominent role. (Welcome back to the plot, bad boys!)

At some point, either during this beat or perhaps earlier, we see a different side to the bad boy. Most often, this occurs when the bad boy shows the protagonist some kind of vulnerability, leading her to second guess her first impression.

In the Darkling's case, Alina recognises his profound loneliness. Sookie witnesses Eric's grief at the loss of his maker, Godric. And Rhysand confides in Feyre about the horrors he endured at the hands of Amarantha.

However, seeing this "other" side isn't just a plot device to justify the protagonist's developing feelings for the bad boy. But rather, it serves as a mechanism through which the protagonist's assumptions and beliefs are thrown into question. Not just about the bad boy, but about the world in general.

Disrupting the protagonist's foundations is essential to nearly all emotionally-driven storytelling. Through shattering the her beliefs - whether it be in a system or person - the narrative is propelled forward as the protagonist is then forced into come to her own conclusions.

And this - THIS! - is where the "good guy / bad boy dynamic" becomes so much more than just a blatant over-simplification of male archetypes pandering to female sexual fantasy.

The dichotomy of "good" and "bad" expands here to represent larger choices that the protagonist has to make. Comfort or danger? Honour or Power? Altruism or ambition?

Furthermore, the protagonist's conflicting feelings about the two love interests underscores the very real push-and-pull we all feel during adolescence. Where we crave the adventure and independence of adulthood while simultaneously mourning the safety and protection of childhood.

And this is why the good guy / bad boy love triangle can be such a great plot device. It's not only fun to read (when done well) but it makes sense that the protagonist might find herself drawn to someone whose darkness matches her own.

Who the bad boy is - and what he has done - creates a safe space for the protagonist to explore this darker side of herself. To rebel. To fall apart. To be selfish for once, instead of selfless.

At a time when others in the protagonist's life, like the good guy or her friends, my judge or simply not understand her, the bad boy offers a reprieve. But whether this reprieve positively or negatively influences the protagonist tends to vary from story to story.

Sometimes he is the one who encourages her Refusal of the Return, as the Darkling does for Alina. Other times, the bad boy helps the protagonist in returning to her path, rather than luring her away from it, by offering her his understanding.

Peeta gets what Katniss is going through in a way Gale never can because he went through it, too. Similarly, Stefan can't provide Elena with the reassurance she needs after becoming a vampire because he has never come to terms with his own loss of humanity - therefore, enter Damon.

Self-Discovery

The Road Back Home

The Road Back Home sees the protagonist emerging from her Refusal of the Return. It is when she embarks on the journey to fully reconcile the girl she once was with the woman she has become. To do this, she needs to confront her trauma from The Ordeal and forgive herself for whatever darkness it might have awakened.

This is usually a gradual process that takes place over many chapters or episodes. In many ways, it is a mirror to the Crossing the Threshold beat. Except this time around, the protagonist is looking inwards not outward - instead of discovering the new world, she is discovering herself.

During this time, the bad boy's relationship with the protagonist is often explored more deeply. Being loved by the bad boy - darkness and all - is usually a precursor to the protagonist beginning to accept this darker side of herself, too.

But a distinction needs to be made here between "accept" and "embrace". The former does not necessitate the latter, and whether or not the bad boy gets his own redemption arc usually serves as the distinction between the two.

In the Darkling's case, he certainly helps Alina to come into her power, but ultimately, Alina rejects the path that he is trying to lead her down. The Darkling might have helped her to accept her darkness, but she does not fully embrace it the way he does.

Other times, when the bad boy gets his own redemption arc, we see a precursor to self-love through their relationship. Because in pursuing her feelings for the bad boy, the protagonist has to reconcile the fact that people are nuanced, and no one is entirely good nor evil. In forgiving the bad boy for his past wrongdoings, the protagonist sees that it is possible to forgive herself, too. Damon and Elena's arc (in the TV adaptation) is a good example of this.

But regardless of where things may or may not go with the bad boy, the next plot beat has nothing to do with romance at all. Now, the protagonist is ready for the final battle.

The Female Protagonist Accepts Herself

Master of Two Worlds

Everything the protagonist has been through has been leading her to this moment. Her triumphs, her defeats. Her discoveries and lessons. Her friends and mentors and lovers.

She's faced evil, maybe even embraced a little of it, and come out stronger and better for the experience. She has finished mourning the child she once was and accepted the woman she has become.

Now she is ready, as a master of both worlds, to face whatever comes next. And we, as readers, now get to enjoy the final battle!

Basically, the protagonist is a certified badass now - and she's going to win.

Now, where the romance goes during or after this plot beat is very, very varied. Sometimes, the protagonist stays with the bad boy, like Feyre does with Rhysand. Other times, the relationship is temporary, like Eric and Sookie. Or, in the case of Buffy, neither the good guy nor the bad boy remains in the picture. In fact, a very deliberate choice was made with her story to avoid an "end-game" romantic pairing.

And the reason why the romance is pretty damn varied is because, well, it doesn't really matter. The romance is the cherry on top of the story, not the whole damn cake.

Conclusion

I understand that love triangles might not be everyone's cup of tea - and that's okay. But to paint the entire trope under the broad strokes of teenage vanity and wish fulfilment is to do it a disservice.

Because for the most part, it isn't just some vapid romance. A lot of the most popular stories within the genre are actually complex YA fantasies in and of their own right, driven by your standard emotionally-driven, coming of age beats. They just happen to feature a female protagonist who falls in love.

Okay, maybe in this example she falls in love a few times. But so what? Getting your heart broken and mended again is a part of growing up, so why shouldn't it have a place in YA/NA fiction?

If young men are allowed to froth over some guy getting bitten by radioactive a spider and getting superpowers, then we can have two sexy vampires pining over the same girl.

#true blood #sookie stackhouse #southern vampire mysteries #love triangle #literature tropes #tv tropes #fantasy #fantasy romance #fantasy books #the vampire diaries #elena gilbert #buffy summers #buffy the vampire slayer #the hunger games #katniss everdeen #acotar #feyre x rhysand #feyre x tamlin #feyre #legendborn #bree matthews #shadow and bone #alina starkov #hero's journey #heroine's journey #the smut analyst #writing tips #romance plot #character building

[lucem-stellarum]

Summit spoilers below the cut. Excuse my southern, but holy fucking hell Y'all. I cannot wait to see the theorizing after that ending!

There's so much to unpack here this is shaping up to be an amazing arc. These aren't all my thoughts, it's gonna take some time to organize everything. But here's the first pass.

First of all, the Inversion was 2 years ago, and Sunshine is still trapped in the basement. That's just Rude, Mr Redacted.

Second, Alexis isn't the old friend who invited Porter back. It wasn't Sam, and it Definitely wasn't Vincent. So that pretty much leaves us with... William. I'm actually glad he left Treasure out of this, but then what the hell was all that gaslighting Vincent and Sam for? Between him "handling" Alexis, manipulating Sweetheart and the Shaw Pack, and "staging" the fight with Vincent at the end I'm thinking he's very good at this sort of cloak and dagger bullshit. It makes sense why William would want him back in town to help the clan, because Vincent isn't as good at that sort of snide subtlety. So, the bit with Treasure was to distract Vincent and Sam during the lead-up, but from what? What was he up to while they were prepping for the Summit?

Speaking of William, he's completely left Vincent to the metaphorical wolves (I will not apologize for my puns). Not even a friendly, "I trust you can handle this," just radio silence. I had my own theory about that here, but it's still a dick move.

We finally get to meet Alexis?! I'm torn between calling her a bitch (derogatory) and a bitch (affectionate). Ngl, she has very much "step on me" energy and I love that we get such a strong female character. She wanted someone so badly and did everything she could to keep them in her life, and because of that lost it all (just like Blake. Do we have another set of character parallels? 👀) I feel awful for Darlin having to face her alone, but she does show how much of a coward she is for waiting until Sam is away to start needling at them. I wonder what the exact wording of William's invocation was to her, since she clearly still cares about Sam? I feel like I need to brush up on fairy litigation to deal with all that mess.

The House of Baus (spelling?) trying to drive a wedge between the Shaws and the Solaires? I mean, it's a fair tactic, trying to cast doubts on the Shaw-Solaire relationship to try and make a vacuum where they can swoop in and steal such a powerful ally for their own disguised as "friendly" advice. It wasn't what I was expecting after Vincent's glowing praise, though. They kinda have a point about William, but he's been King for... how long, now? I might need to expand on their specific criticism later. Also, is Lovely not the first pretty face that got Vincent to spill the magical beans to lol? Boi has a bit of a reputation, apparently. Also also, are we taking bets yet on whether or not Quinn is going to make himself a problem again? Not just his friends, but himself?

The Bennetts! Like, it couldn't have happened to a nicer King, but damn it had to happen on Vincent's watch? It's murder mystery time! We've already got a great cast of potential suspects. I don't have a final guess yet, I'll have to write it all out and go over the details and motives Detective Poirot-style. But I wonder... was William expecting something like this? How did Porter know about the Bennett connection to Close Knit? If it was William who tipped Porter off, was that why he invited the Shaw Pack? As a way of setting a scene where "Vampire justice" could be served regarding the Inversion without waiting on the slow wheels of the department while at least paying lip service to making sure it's legitimate with a side dish of "revenge: it's personal"? Why the hell would vampires align themselves with a predominantly human comprised demon-hating cult group anyway? If anyone could potentially remember what the Sovereigns were actually like aside from demons, immortal vampires are also on that list.

#redacted asmr #redacted monarchal summit #redacted solaire clan #redacted shaw pack #spoilers

[staydandy]

Midnight, Texas (2017) - Whump List

List by StayDandy Synopsis : On the run from his past, young psychic Manfred Bernardo is told by the ghost of his grandmother to seek out refuge in Midnight, Texas. There, he will find a community that can help him. Full of diverse characters — including a vampire, a witch, a fallen angel, a half-demon and a werecreature — Midnight faces numerous threats from the outside world as it welcomes the newcomer. (Wiki)

Whumpee : "Manny" Manfred Bernardo played by François Arnaud

Country : 🇺🇸 America Genres : Drama, Fantasy, Mystery, Supernatural

Notes : This is a Partial List - I didn't list every bit of whump, just what caught my attention the most • Based on the book series of the same name by Charlaine Harris, who also wrote "The Southern Vampire Mysteries", the novels which were adapted into the True Blood television series. • The episode list is formatted season-episode : 00-00

Episodes on List : 4 Total Episodes : 19 Total Seasons : 2

*Spoilers below*

01-02 : Manfred has a rough psychic reading of a drowned women, passes out ... scratched by a were-tiger

01-08 : Stuck in the middle of nowhere when his RV breaks down

01-09 : (at end) Dies during a black magic ritual

01-10 : Gathers several evil spirits into himself to power up for a fight

#whump #whump list #American whump #America #Midnight Texas #Manfred Bernardo #Francois Arnaud #passes out #faints #collapses #dies #overexertion

[skarsgard-daydreams]

In the first six books, Eric has...

Killed another vampire to protect Sookie

Sucked poison out of her

Picked glass splinters out of her arm

Covered her with his body during a mass shooting and got shot

Attended a human orgy because she asked him to

Licked her tears away

Carried her to safety after she'd been staked and held her hand while it was pulled out

Drove her home after she had a fight with her boyfriend

Pointed out the toxic aspects of her relationship with Bill

Told off a guy for talking about Sookie’s tits

Fought off a pack of Weres and humans who were attacking Sookie after he’d been shot twice (Bill was there too I guess)

Paid to have her driveway fixed

Told Bill that Sookie belonged to herself

Tackled a werewolf in front of an entire pack because she insulted Sookie

Questioned why she was used to people treating her like she was worthless

Called her his lover

Offered to remain without his memories and basically marry her

Jumped in front of a bullet meant for her

Paid her $50,000 for hiding him when he had amnesia

Bought her a brand new coat because hers needed to be burned

Expressed concern that he didn’t pay her enough (or that possibly other people were taking advantage of her generosity)

Danced with Sookie when Fangtasia was empty

Got his skull smashed in by a rock while doing her a favor

Rushed to Merlotte’s to save her from a vampire who was going to kill her

Came to visit her in the hospital to provide “moral support” and offered to lick the blood off her

Called out Bill for trying to isolate Sookie

Forced Bill to admit the truth to her directly because he didn’t want to be the one to say the words that would cause her pain

Gave her space when she wanted to deal with her emotions by herself

Tracked her down after she was kidnapped by Weres

Paused to shield Sookie with his body and give her a smooch in the middle of a battle

#we were robbed #quotes #Eric Northman #Sookie Stackhouse #Southern Vampire Mysteries #Southern Vampire Mysteries spoilers #True Blood spoilers #Eric x Sookie #Sooric

[bisexualmultifandommess]

Me about to rewatch True Blood for Sookie x Eric knowing full well that they aren’t endgame and they decided to ruin the relationship and pair Sookie with some random guy:

This will forever be my villain origin story I hated that.

Sookie and Eric were perfect and they would’ve been better than showing Sookie with some random guy at the end and pairing Eric with N*ra for a bit in the show (I despise that character lmao)

I would’ve preferred if Eric turned her into a Vampire that would’ve been awesome. If they ever did a reboot (probably best they don’t though lmao the cast for this was perfect) I’d love Eric and Sookie to be canon endgame I don’t care about book canon lol

#true blood #southern vampire mysteries #svm #true blood memes #memes #southern vampire mysteries memes #true blood spoilers #sookie stackhouse #eric northman #sooric #eric x sookie #sookie x eric #anti nora gainesborough #I hate her #because I find her annoying #and I hate her and eric together #sookie x eric is the true otp #pairing her with some random guy is such a shit ending for her #I’m just going to pretend that after that ending she went home to eric #and they live together and are married #it’s canon now because I said so

[thegayhimbo]

True Blood Season 1 Review, Part 2 of 2 (Spoilers Ahead)

Apologies for this coming a few days later. It’s been a busy week, and I’m only starting to discover how time-consuming these reviews can be. I’m also currently in the middle of re-watching season 2 (and you can check out my ongoing thoughts about that season as I post about it). For later reviews of the True Blood seasons, I may just give general thoughts on what I liked and didn’t like. The only exceptions will be if I want to do a separate character/story analysis from a particular season.

In any case, let’s get cracking. 

To start off, I will be honest that, even as someone who identifies as gay and seeks out LGBT+ representation in media, the “vampires as a metaphor for oppressed minorities” message never worked for me (at least not in the way the show presents it). For one thing, I found the metaphor redundant and unnecessary when you already had minority characters like Lafayette and Tara (both of whom are black and part of the LGBT+ community) who could represent themselves without becoming vampires. There’s also the fact that both of them had to struggle with relatable real life issues (racism, sexism, homophobia, socioeconomic status, etc) than affected them on a daily basis. Scenes like Lafayette’s AIDS Burger speech for instance did more to convey the homophobic bullshit Lafayette constantly deals with, and I wish the show had expanded more on those moments.

The other part is I don’t think the metaphor was as clever or well-thought out as the writers wanted it to be because of the way they set up vampire society. If anything, the show accidentally undermines its message about tolerance based on how vampires act/behave on the show and what they do to humans. 

One thing that always irritated me (especially in season 1) is how the writers consistently downplayed when humans had valid reasons to be wary of vampires that wasn’t just rooted in bigotry: Over the course of the show (and even in the books) we find out many vampires have kidnapped, raped, tortured, drained, and killed humans in the past, or else turned them into vampires without their consent. We see this in season 1 with Malcom’s nest, Bill’s trial, and the murders/abductions vampires perpetrate against humans. Nan Flannigan (the spokesperson for the AVL) mentions at one point that vampires usually kill humans, and must consistently cover it up and lie about it on TV because she knows it makes vampires look unsympathetic. There’s also the entitled and bigoted attitude vampires have towards humans where they see them as either food, pets, slaves, or disposable commodities. What’s worse is vampires like Malcom, Diane, and The Magister (who’s a high ranking official in the vampire government) have comment on this:

From “Mine” (1x03):

Diane: Not everyone wants to dress up and play human.

Malcolm: Not everybody thinks it was such a great idea. And not everybody intends to tow the party line. Honey, if we can't kill people, what's the point of being a vampire?

From “I Don’t Wanna Know” (1x10):

Magister: Humans exist to serve us. That is their only value.

Some might say that you can’t judge the actions of a few vampires and equate that with all vampires. However, the problem is this isn’t just a case of a few vampires. Vampire culture and society in the books and the show are based solidly on seeing humans as either inferior beings, food, or subservient slaves who only exist to serve vampires. This attitude is deeply engrained, and has been for thousands of years. It constantly affects the way they relate to and interact with humans, and as I pointed out earlier, vampires have a history of kidnapping and killing humans that goes back centuries.

Humans have only known about vampires for 2 years as of season 1 (they came out of the coffin in 2006, and the show starts in 2009) whereas vampires have committed atrocities against humans for THOUSANDS of years, and have arguably acted as the oppressors in those situations. They have advantages that humans don’t (glamouring, superspeed, super strength, ability to drain, etc.) that make them dangerous, and they have chosen to keep some of those abilities from humans because it’s convenient for them to do so. And since many vampires can’t or won’t control themselves (or else make justifications for why it’s okay to treat humans the way they do), that is a BIG PROBLEM for humans who get caught in their crosshairs.

Likewise, as we find out in the later seasons, the vampire government is depicted as corrupt and self-serving (to say nothing of how humans are procured for the monarchs/chancellors, or the barbaric justice system they have), and their entire mainstreaming agenda is more interested in pretending to be civilized for humans (and encouraging vampires not to get caught feeding on humans) rather than actually trying to get vampires to change for the better. It’s also mentioned in season 4 (by Bill of all people) that vampires have a history of infiltrating human organizations (like the Catholic Church) to carry out their agendas. All of this was depicted over the course of the show.

Please note I am NOT saying that humans are guiltless in the way they’ve treated vampires. If anything, season 1 was pretty clear about showing how bigoted humans could be towards vampires. We had drainers like Amy Burley and the Rattarays who targeted vampires for their blood because of it’s magical abilities. Likewise, we were also shown hate crimes towards vampires (the rednecks who burn down Malcom’s nest) and organizations like The Fellowship of the Sun who were heavily anti-vampire. 

But the thing is the show clearly frames such bigotry in a negative light. The message that both the books and the show emphasize is that humans must learn to be tolerant of vampires. Characters like Jason, Tara, and Arlene are expected to grow and become more open-minded about vampires, no matter what kind of reprehensible crimes vampires commit. 

This isn’t necessarily a bad thing..............except that the show perpetrates a double-standard regarding how vampires treat humans vs how humans are expected to treat vampires.

It would be one thing if the books and the show took the position that vampire’s treatment of humans is bigotry that needs to change. Instead, the books and show frame it as "that's just the way they are, and it’s their nature, so deal with it." I cannot begin to describe how many times I’ve heard this excuse from fans whenever the vampires do something morally reprehensible. The problem is that completely undermines the message of tolerance that the books and the show constantly emphasize. You can't be tolerant of someone who sees you as food, who intends to harm you, and who views you as subservient to them. It also doesn't work to claim that humans must treat vampires as equals but it's okay for vampires to still indulge their bigoted attitude towards humans and treat them as inferiors, or that it’s okay for vampires to torture/rape/drain/kill/abduct humans because “that’s just who they are.” 

And please spare me the rape and abuse apologies, or the excuses of “you can’t apply human morality to vampires” or “there are different rules” or whatnot. I’ve heard them before, I don’t agree with them, and as stated, I think they undermine any message of tolerance and learning to co-exist peacefully with others who are different from you. There is a BIG DIFFERENCE in my eyes between a vampire who needs to feed on a human for survival, and a vampire who tortures/rapes/inflicts pain on a human out of sadistic pleasure or just because they can. There is nothing relatable or sympathetic about a character who perpetrates that kind of evil on someone else, and I’m done seeing people trying to make justifications for why it is. 

In any case, this is just my take on how the “vampires as a metaphor for oppressed minorities.” I don’t know if I’ll get blowback for this (I suspect that I will), but I wanted to clarify on the reasons I had problems with how the vampires are portrayed and how that contradicts the message of tolerance and peaceful co-existence that both the books and the show claim to endorse. 

#true blood #true blood spoilers #tgh opinions #vampires #the southern vampire mysteries #lgbt+ representation #true blood analysis #lafayette reynolds #tara thornton #true blood season 1 #jorge alonso de san diego #diane hardwicke #liam mcknight #malcom beaumarchais

[superpixie42]

ooooooh idea!

Okay someone who isn't me needs to make this a thing please:

Southern Vampire Mystery Series (the True Blood Books) but with Inuyasha characters

Concept outline below the cut because it's filled with spoilers for the Sookie Series

Okay it's been a hot minute since I read the books so..bare with me

Follow the basic plot of the books up until they get fucking weird and it's clear Charlaine Harris was just doing it for the money (aka book 9) 

Actually fuck it book 7 cut off might be better

so basically...Demons "come out" and Kagome realizes she can't hear demon thoughts, falls in love, solves some mysteries between sexytimes. ALSO HOW MUCH FUN WOULD THAT AMNESIA BOOK 4 PLOT BE

Kagome as Sookie, outcast telepath who loves her brother Souta (Jason) and lives with her Gramps (RIP sorry dude)

Inuyasha as Eric, from a strong old as fuck family line, runs a club for demons and humans which feels very on theme for him.

Sango as Pam because I love them both

Miroku as Sam Merlotte because OF COURSE that flirty sonofabitch runs a bar where he only employs cute girls (Ayame, Yuri, Eri) and one sassy gay cook 

the one place where we can follow the tv show is here , Lafayette, that beautiful man, doesn't have to die and I just decided it's Jinenji BECAUSE I CAN

Koga as Bill, a Naraku (regional king) lackey who is sent to get Kagome on their side but falls for her in the process. Is an ass.

Okay hear me out, Shippo as son of the leader of the Kitsune who are in this case the werewolves. Inuyasha is jealous of Kagome's affection for the kid and her close ties to their pack because of it. Removes yet another "romantic" subplot and gives Inuyasha and Kagome a little more depth to play with

Kikyou as Amelia because the witches are now priestesses ... all the shifters and vamps and stuff will just be their demon counterparts, dont even have to change the Were-Panther-Divas

hmmmm Quinn, Quinn, Quinn.... I just don't see Hojo as a wereTiger but, fuck it, why not. WERETIGER HOJO.

Anyways. 

Yes.

 I love those books (the early ones anyway) and was thinking I should reread them since they got unboxed when I pulled out my winter coat but since InuKag take up 90% of my brain this is what my brain fixated on while I was making dinner tonight. BUT I am terrible at multi-chapter stuff and this is, clearly, too much for a one shot. 

/ramble

#sookie stackhouse #eric x sookie #inukag au option #will i ever do anything with this? doubtful #so seriously if someone else wants to run with it PLEASE DO #or if you know if a story thats already done it send it my way #also yes THE BOOKS not the tv show #i was not a fan #how do you have that many beautiful naked people and still not make a show good?

[readerbookclub]

Once again, we’re back with a new book list! This is our first time using a theme, so fingers crossed that I did a good job 🤞

Since it’s October, I thought something spooky would be appropriate. So this list is full of books (mostly horror!) about a different monsters/creatures. Hope you like it and please don��t forget to use the link at the end to vote for your favourite!

@lilian-evans had a great idea that I should introduce each book and explain how it ties to the theme, so that’s what I did.

A scary creatures list would be incomplete without a book about vampires, so that’s where we’re going to start. This book is about a group of suburban mums slaying vampires. Quite an unusual premise, but definitely an intriguing one. It also doesn’t hurt that the main characters are part of a book club, as are we!

1.  The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires, by Grady Hendrix

Patricia Campbell had always planned for a big life, but after giving up her career as a nurse to marry an ambitious doctor and become a mother, Patricia's life has never felt smaller. The days are long, her kids are ungrateful, her husband is distant, and her to-do list is never really done. The one thing she has to look forward to is her book club, a group of Charleston mothers united only by their love for true-crime and suspenseful fiction. In these meetings, they're more likely to discuss the FBI's recent siege of Waco as much as the ups and downs of marriage and motherhood. But when an artistic and sensitive stranger moves into the neighborhood, the book club's meetings turn into speculation about the newcomer. Patricia is initially attracted to him, but when some local children go missing, she starts to suspect the newcomer is involved. She begins her own investigation, assuming that he's a Jeffrey Dahmer or Ted Bundy. What she uncovers is far more terrifying, and soon she--and her book club--are the only people standing between the monster they've invited into their homes and their unsuspecting community. 

***

Our next book has two creatures rolled into one! A woman sentenced to witchcraft comes back to haunt the town where she was killed. The book seems to be more ghosty than wtichy, but hey, who doesn’t love a good ghost story?!

2.  Hex, by Thomas Olde Heuvelt and translated by Nancy Forest-Flier

Whoever is born here, is doomed to stay 'til death. Whoever settles, never leaves. Welcome to Black Spring, the seemingly picturesque Hudson Valley town haunted by the Black Rock Witch, a 17th century woman whose eyes and mouth are sewn shut. Muzzled, she walks the streets and enters your homes at will. She stands next to your bed for nights on end. Everybody knows that her eyes may never be opened. The elders of Black Spring have virtually quarantined the town by using high-tech surveillance to prevent their curse from spreading. Frustrated with being kept in lockdown, the town's teenagers decide to break their strict regulations and go viral with the haunting, but in so doing send the town spiraling into the dark, medieval practices of the past.

***

Now for a real witch story! Although I was able to find some horror witch books, I decided to go with something a little different with this one. More of a fantasy than a horror book, this novel is a multi-generational story about a family of witches. 

3. A Secret History of Witches, by Louisa Morgan

After Grandmére Ursule gives her life to save her tribe, her magic seems to die with her. Even so, her family keeps the Old Faith, practicing the spells and rites that have been handed from mother to daughter for generations. Until one day, Ursule’s young granddaughter steps into the circle, and magic flows anew. From early 19th century Brittany to London during the Second World War, five generations of witches fight the battles of their time, deciding how far they are willing to go to protect their family, their heritage, and ultimately, all of our futures.

***

I’m not going to say too much about the next book so as to avoid spoilers, but there is a demon involved. From what I’ve gathered from reviews, this novel is told through quite an interesting perspective. And I think I’ll leave it at that...

4. Come Closer, by Sara Gran

If everything in Amanda's life is so perfect, then why the mood swings, the obscene thoughts, the urge to harm the people she loves? What are those tapping sounds in the walls? And who's that woman following her? The mystery behind what's happening to Amanda in Come Closer is so frightening that it "ought to carry a warning to...readers."

***

For our last book, I decided to go with a classic novel. I wanted a book about an infamous creature that almost everybody’s heard of. And so, I chose a novel that created one of the most iconic monsters in pop culture...

5. Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley

The story of Victor Frankenstein and the monstrous creature he created has held readers spellbound ever since it was published two centuries ago. On the surface, it is a novel of tense and steadily mounting horror; but on a more profound level, it offers searching illumination of the human condition in its portrayal of a scientist who oversteps the bounds of conscience, and of a monster brought to life in an alien world, ever more desperately attempting to escape the torture of his solitude. A novel of hallucinatory intensity, Frankenstein represents one of the most striking flowerings of the Romantic imagination.

***

Thank you so much for making it to the end of the list! 

Vote here: https://forms.gle/bGo5viNTCfn9qM2K8

Members List: @solitarystudies @endystudyblog @mybookishescapes @gordinmegan @sillyarcadeexpert  @appleinducedsleep @morphedphase @zorasmith @justmesoffie @meatofslaughtaredbeggar @unicornlurvvv @lilian-evans @mishousdiaries @macgilliluv @omgreading @bowieziggyfan @calebprior25 @sanatoriaa 

As always, if you’d like to be added to/removed from this list, please message me :)

#this took a lot of time guys #but was really fun and rewarding #i hope you like it #also sorry about the silly ghost design but Im not too good with that kind of thing #anyway #book club #booklr #book list #october book list #october #halloween #creatures #monsters #scary books #horror books #halloween books

[dovebuffy92]

https://fandomopolis.com/2020/08/17/lovecraft-country-season-1-episode-1-sundown-review/

During the 1950s, recent Black veteran Atticus Freeman (Jonathan Majors), his uncle George Freeman (Courtney B. Vance), and his childhood friend Letitia “Leti” Lewis (Jurnee Smollett) go on a road trip to “Ardham” Massachusetts. They are trying to find his missing father, Montrose Freeman (Michael K. Williams), and learn about his mother’s legacy.

Spoilers

Black Female creator Misha Green’s HBO Lovecraft Country Season 1 Episode 1 “Sundown” is directed by Yann Demange. The television show is based on the dark fantasy horror novel Lovecraft Country by Matt Ruff. I sadly have never read the book, but I might after watching this fantastic pilot. “Sundown” is prevalent because we are all waking up to dangerous world Black Americans have always lived in.

The first few minutes of “Sundown” establishes the tone and themes of Lovecraft Country. Atticus Freeman dreams that he is back in uniform in a battle. A red Asian woman floats down from a flying saucer to hug Atticus. After the hug, a giant Lovecraftian monster with tentacles attacks him. Jackie Robinson destroys the beast with his bat. The monster reassembles itself right before pouncing at them. Atticus wakes up at the back of a bouncing bus heading to his hometown of Chicago. A Black elderly woman tells him they are driving over another bridge named after a “dead slave owner.” The two celebrate leaving the Jim Crow South. The camera pans out, revealing the two are sitting in the back of the bus in the “Black area.” This sequence demonstrates how this television show will be exploring racism, science fiction, and horror.

Misha Green and Yann Demange express how racism is the real horror story before engaging with the supernatural aspect of this show. During the road trip, the trio takes breaks to check out restaurants or hotels that Uncle George can write about for his “Green Book.” For those who do not know, the “Green Book” is a travel guide full of safety tips for Blacks visiting the Jim Crow South. Uncle George, Atticus, and Leti stop at the restaurant called Aunt Lydia’s Diner to see if it’s friendly to Black customers.

The warning signs start the moment they drive into the town of Simmonsville. Atticus spots a fire station where the white Firemen stare at them and their German shepherd bark as they pass by. The music is spooky. The streets of the small town are empty, making everything appear ominous. When Uncle George finds the address, the restaurant is now replaced with the Simmonsville Dinette. Both Leti and Atticus are suspicious of the diner’s hospitality toward Blacks after only seeing White people walking around the street. Still, Uncle George thinks they should have lunch at the restaurant. The horror starts the minute the three Black travelers walk into the Simmonsville Dinette.

When Uncle George asks to be seated for lunch, the White server and the lone White customer stares at them. The three travelers sit down at a booth as the customer scurries off. You can feel the tension in the almost empty diner. The server gives them menus and silently takes their drink orders before running into the kitchen. Leti points out that the restaurant will not be making the guide. Atticus argues that they should leave since their so close to Leti’s brother Marvin’s house, but George refuses to go. He ignores all the warning signs because he correctly believes that they have every right to eat at the diner. While finding the bathroom, Leti overhears the White server speaking on the phone. He tells somebody he did not serve “them” because of what the caller did to the past owner Ms. Lydia. Ms. Lydia was killed for serving Black customers. Suspenseful music plays as Atticus and Uncle George read their menus, not realizing what’s going.

Atticus looks around. He sees that everything is painted white. He asks his Uncle George about why the White House is painted white. George explains that the slaves painted the White House white after the British burned it down in 1812. Atticus moves a floor tile away, revealing burned wood. “Black” is the color usually connected to evilness or sin. This series inverts the trope where “white” is now related to barbaric behavior like burning down the restaurant because the owner serves Black travelers. Sirens go off as Leti runs up, telling her two companions to get out. The three jump into the car. Leti drives off.  The fire truck and a black vehicle full of White men shooting guns chase their small car.

Our Black heroes speed through town running for their lives in the first authentic scene of horror in these dark fantasy horror series. Their car gets shot up. Atticus grabs his gun so he can shoot back. The veteran shoots enough to get both vehicles to back down, allowing them to escape briefly. The black truck finds them on the highway, but thankfully they are saved by a mysterious car that takes out the other vehicle out.

At the end of “Sundown,” the trio is stopped by Southern police officers who almost kill them for being Black after sunset in their territory. Just before they are lynched, Big pale creatures with lots of eyes and teeth (with vampire qualities) start attacking the White policemen. These beasts echo the ones we saw in Atticus’ dream. Usually, in horror films, it’s the Black characters who get killed first, but the small-minded racist cops are the ones who die. Atticus, Leti, and Uncle George escape the carnage without being eaten or changed. The three survivors end up in front of a large mansion where Atticus’s roots are from on his mother’s side.

I cannot wait for the second episode.

#lovecraft #lovecraft country #book adaptation #tv show #hbo #hbo lovecraft country #george freeman #atticus freeman #leti lewis #dark fantasy #dark fantasy horror #horror #blogger #black lives matter #racial equality #1950s #jim crow south #tv review #tv reviewer #jurnee smollett bell #jonathan majors #courtney b. vance

[naomimakesart]

Am I the only one feeling so dead? Like... they just straight up killed the show? WTF?

If I had to say I was feeling something dead might be an accurate term to use. 

The truth for me is that I have tolerated the show since season 4. I liked season 4 but didn’t feel like it was the same quality as s1-s3. After finding out about how many storylines were being cut, and then seeing the horror that was s5 butchering Sansa’s storyline, I recognized what was going to happen. 

I used to read the Southern Vampire Mysteries (though I got to like the 9th book and lost interest) but I really enjoyed those books for a while. And I also enjoyed the aspects of season 1-4 of True Blood, even though it wasn’t the greatest series adaptation, I could still appreciate that they attempted to follow the storyline of some of the novels for a time. Then everything just went OFF THE RAILS. Lilith?? BILLITH???? It was insane. I stopped watching because I just couldn’t stomach the plot anymore. 

The moment HBO/ D&D started making huge cuts to the storyline of ASOIAF, I saw the same thing that happened to True Blood start to unfold. HBO catered to a lot of the audience’s interests, like keeping Eric and Bill the only men that Sookie could be with because they were so popular with the audience (throwing Alcide in there occassionally) when (SPOILER ALERT) I’m pretty sure she marries Sam in the final novel?? Correct me if I’m wrong. I feel like I remember reading somewhere that Charlaine Harris even said that she had planned for Sookie to always marry Sam, and I’m pretty sure that didn’t happen in the end of the show. Needless to say, HBO took so many liberties with Charlaine’s IP before she finished her books. I wish George could have known the same thing would happen to his own series. When they started conceiving Game of Thrones, True Blood was one of HBO’s most popular series, and hadn’t even reached it’s 3rd season yet I believe, so no one knew how much of a train wreck it would be, and what that could mean for his own adaptation.  

So seeing this turn of events happen for the second time, I’ve tried to take things that happen in the show with a grain of salt and I always try to remind myself that there is definitely going to be more nuance in the books. Is this character painted in a good light in the show? That’s good, but George probably won’t make it so easy in the books. Is this character painted in a bad light in the show? That’s disheartening but I don’t think George will make it that easy in the books. At the end of the day, this is just something I have expected out of HBO. They start off strong and always have a terrible finish. Isn’t Big Little Lies only a standalone novel? They’re making a second season, trying to squeeze blood from stone because it made a lot of money and was pretty well received. 

There are many things that I’m still so unsatisfied with; mostly just that so many things were built up and then never mentioned again, or made to be a big deal but had underwhelming conclusions. I am going to talk about Dany’s arc because I feel like that is the main hangup many of us have with this season. While I did not enjoy any of this season (apart from maybe the visuals, some of the costumes, and Ramin’s Soundtrack + Jenny’s Song) it has helped me come to terms with Dany dying in the end of the book series, and I will explain why. I don’t think that Targaryen rule is the answer to breaking the wheel. I think she is a key component to breaking the wheel but I didn’t expect her to rule as queen. The problem that I have is I expected to have a bittersweet ending akin to Thorin Oakenshield dying after the Battle of Five Armies, after sacrificing so much to get back his home and his gold, losing both his nephews and heirs, and telling Bilbo “ If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.” Instead we get to see her spiral into this……thing, that was so out of character. And that was like adding insult to injury. I would a thousand times prefer an ending where she dies without losing sight of what’s important and losing herself in the process than to witness the bullshit we were just fed for the last 6 weeks. 

If you saw this coming, if this foreshadowing was very evident to you, then kudos. Every decision Dany has made up until now has been more nuanced to me than just her being “cruel and unstable”. For every act of brutality we see several more of her being compassionate or empathetic. Using her “brutality” as ammo against her was just so messy. Everyone in the show is brutal. Dany is the only one being held accountable though because there’s a double standard. I can’t even begin to say how angry I was that they justified this turn because “she’s a Targaryen”. I’m not even going to dignify that excuse. It was also probably the easiest and fastest way they could write themselves out of this situation because they wrote themselves into a corner years ago by cutting out several crucial storylines. For them to say we are culpable in building her up when she was written as mad from the beginning is equivalent to them pissing on our legs and telling us it’s rain. I don’t buy it. If this ending worked for you, congrats. However, I completely understand why the fans are outraged and why this season has been heralded as terrible and the finale was named the worst episode in the entire series. 

The last thing I want to say is that there is nothing that would ever make me stop loving Daenerys. As someone who has had similar struggles, suffered from similar abuses, I have always felt connected to her. The good, the bad and the ugly. Her capacity for empathy and for anger. If she’s a monster, then so am I. I definitely don’t believe that ASOIAF-Dany is going to be the same as GoT-Dany. I think HBO+ D&D felt like this arc would be darker and grim, and they were so worried about falling into a preconceived fantasy stereotype that they lost sight of the true story along the way. I also think they were more focused on hurting the audience to keep up with their reputation (Ned’s Death, the Red Wedding, marrying Sansa to Ramsay all of which have devastated many people) so they kind of fell into their own trope there, didn’t they? 

If we ever see the end of these books, I seriously hope it’s the bittersweet ending that George promised and not this nihilistic ending HBO gave to us. 

#game of thrones #anti got #daenerys targaryen #anti hbo #dhat-bhadan

[squidwithelbows]

hey there! if you make the list for wlw books, I would appreciate it. I'd just like to read some good ones that feature well written wlw and not just in the background

I’ve got you! I made a rec list of lgbt books a while back but I knew as I was writing it that not nearly enough were primarily about women.. So here’s a lgbt book rec list, wlw edition! Obvi, this list is FAR from complete but in case you’re like me and you’re struggling to find any books about wlw that you might actually like, I’ve got a few suggestions.

sci fi / fantasy:

Six of Crows and King of Scars (wlw and mlm) – I’ve recommended this before but I’ll keep doing it again and again until the day I die because SoC is my all time favorite YA novel. And the bi woman from SoC is a main character again in King of Scars!!

Not Your Sidekick (wlw, mlm, trans, ace) – A super fun super quick superhero book in which literally everyone is queer.

The Lesson (wlw and some bg mlm) – I actually got to read this one a little before its release but trust me it’s PHENOMENAL. It’s got aliens, it’s got social commentary, it’s got mystery, and it’s got wlw. In the meantime Cadwell also wrote Loneliness Is In Your Blood, which is a horror short story with a wlw protagonist.

Ice Massacre (wlw) – Creepy killer lesbian mermaids!

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet (wlw and nonbinary) – My friend Janelle described this one as the more inclusive Firefly of her dreams and I think that pretty much sums it up. There isn’t much of a driving plot, but it’s a fun time.

The Expanse series (wlw, mlm, nonbinary) – Full disclosure I watched the tv show of this one and only just started the books but it’s GOOD. It follows a really big cast of characters in a sort of first contact space political thriller in a very casually diverse future. 

Ash (wlw) – Gay Cinderella with creepy fairies!

Soulless (mlm, wlw, nonbinary) – A steampunk series about vampires, werewolves, and ghosts that’s just a lot of fun and has a whole bunch of queer characters. Seriously just assume everyone is bi, especially the protagonist. (Fair warning, she is in a relationship with a man but that doesn’t magically make her not bi)

Circe (wlw and mlm) – I’m gonna say up front that the mc does not end in a relationship with a woman even though there’s a perfect candidate right there, but the book is still very casually queer and bi as hell and honestly just really really good.

Strange the Dreamer (wlw and mlm) – On the list because my two favorite minor characters from the first book got the screen time they deserved in the sequel, and their friendship was the wlw/mlm solidarity I deserved!! The most prominent wlw character is only one of a large cast, but the plot unfolds beautifully and the moral dilemmas that the characters grapple with were WOW.

realistic and/or historical fic:

Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy (wlw, ace, bg mlm) – This one’s a sequel but the whole series is so fun and charming it’s totally worth it. Tbh I had never found a book that so perfectly encapsulates my absolute ideal life until this one. I can’t even begin to describe all the elements I loved about this book without massive spoilers but just pls pls pls read this series! 

Leah on the Offbeat (wlw and mlm) – Another sequel, to Simon vs the Homo Sapien Agenda, but this one focuses on bi ladies. I don’t typically go for realistic teen lit but Becky Albertalli manages to pull it off.

River of Teeth (wlw, mlm, nonbinary) – An alternate history western where feral hippos have taken over the Southern US and the government hires a team to clear them out. It’s a quick read, the cast is wonderfully diverse, and no one blinks an eye at the lgbt characters.

All Out: The No-Longer-Secret Stories of Queer Teens Through the Ages (wlw, mlm, trans, ace) – A short story anthology set in different time periods and cultures. Imo the cutest wlw story was The Dresser and the Chambermaid, it was a snarky period romance and I am a sucker for all those things.

The Haunting of Hill House (wlw) – The book is very different from the Netflix series, but you might be surprised that the book also has a lesbian character! I couldn’t believe no one had ever mentioned that to me, so consider this my way of paying it forward. One of the powerhouses of horror and furthermore the lesbian doesn’t die y’all!!

graphic novels:

The One Hundred Nights of Hero (wlw) – I LOVED THIS BOOK. It’s a series of stories in the style of the Arabian Nights told by a lesbian couple. They’re so consistently scathing of trash men, it’s really got a streak of dark comedy and mythology that I dig.

Monstress (wlw) – This comic is like art deco meets steampunk meets the Warriors series, but with eldritch gods and set in a matriarchal 1900’s Asia. There are women and wlw everywhere, and it’s unapologetically not European. Very dark, very cool.

The Adventure Zone (wlw, mlm, trans) – Complete as a podcast, ongoing as a series of graphic novels, I’m not being hyperbolic when I say that The Adventure Zone is one of my favorite stories EVER. It’s got a large cast of lgbt characters, secret societies, plot twists, and a constant theme of compassion in the face of hardship. It starts off as a pretty screwball comedy so you may doubt how hard I cried over several plot points later on, but trust me it sneaks up on you. So worth it.

Lumberjanes (wlw and trans) – This one’s got puzzles and monsters and mystery and camping, plus it’s by Noelle Stevenson, wlw queen! In her own words, “assume all characters in my comics are gay unless stated otherwise.”

On a Sunbeam (wlw and nonbinary) – Ngl, I bought this book after I saw the first few pages. The art is stunning. The plot itself is pretty simple and jumps around chronologically following two (literal) star-crossed lovers.

Spinning (wlw) – The same author also wrote a coming of age story about wlw and figure skating. You could say it’s… yuri on ice [laugh track]

Prince and the Dressmaker (wlw and nonbinary) – There’s a point in this book where you’re going to think things are gonna go badly, but they don’t!

Em Carroll’s comics (wlw) – Em Carroll has several books (all of which are BEAUTIFUL, srsly she’s one of my favorite comic writers) and though none of her published books focus on wlw she is a queer author and wrote Anu-Anulan & Yir’s Daughter, which is about wlw and just as gorgeous. Check her out if you love horror or if you love yourself.

#asks and answers #lgbt book recs #long post #also im completely serious #PLEASE add more recommendations if you have them #I am always looking for more #Anonymous

[childish-behavior]

Choices Ratings

Alright, I’m bored and I’ve been thinking about how my opinions on several choices books have changed so I’ve decided to do a rating for each book on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best). 

Take this as you will, but if you’re new to the choices fandom/looking for books just to play for diamonds, this is my personal guide. 

Also, if you’re new to the fandom, try to avoid searching tags of books to avoid spoilers. And don’t spend diamonds customizing your character in chapter one. Wait until you read the story and see if you like it before spending diamonds.

Written: May 23 - 24, 2019

Here’s a link to all the LIs in each book cause imma probably forget some: https://chihuahuawong.tumblr.com/post/183676365060/all-mainyour-characters-love-interests-from-each

Terms:

MC = Main Character

LI = Love Interest

Paywalled = have to pay (seemingly unnecessary) diamonds

Disclaimer: Most outfits/special scenes are paywalled, but if I think it’s kinda ridiculous I’ll point it out.

Also, most books include NSFW diamonds scenes with LIs, but if they’re notable I’ll specify. And obviously choices matter, but some books tend to have more filler choices that don’t do much.

The MC you get to customize is more often than not gender locked to a girl, which really makes no sense cause gender really isn’t that big of a thing in most of these books.

Across the Void (5.5/10)

You're the new captain of a luxury space liner, and it's your job to make sure your passengers cross the galaxy safely -- in the middle of a galactic civil war! This romantic space opera is like nothing you've experienced!

I had such high hopes for this book, but I was severely disappointed. I actually enjoyed it in the beginning but once I started thinking about the book and saw what other people pointed out, I kinda lost hope.

Pros:

Choices matter (crew points, allegiance points, spaceship quality points, passenger points) during the book.

Multiple playable characters 

Crazy space adventure

Clear objective

Very diverse LIs

Diverse in general

The writing wasn’t bad, the plot was kinda all over the place

Amazing art

You can get away with not buying outfits

Alien NSFW scenes are a different type of freaky

Cons:

Literally, MC does one thing and her siblings (when you’re not playing as them) do the dumbest shit and go behind MC’s back it’s fucking irritating 

The objective is clear, but subplots divert from it (with little to no correlation)

Explanation of the war/enemies was kinda vague? I don’t remember the reasoning behind it, but I do remember thinking the reasoning being kinda wack

Rushed at times

The ending was just...boom done. Very anti-climatic.

Speaking of the ending, there was a final ultimatum choice that basically overrode everything else that happened prior to it

Overwhelming amount of information at times

I was just...confused most of the time

Diamonds are a necessity (and I’m upset I spent the amount that I did on this book)

However, I think ATV was supposed to be a series, so the writing was probably set to give more explanation over an extended time instead of one book.

America’s Most Eligible (7/10)

2 Books, with a 3rd coming

Book 1: Battle it out in a reality TV show to determine who is most eligible! Create alliances, make enemies, even fall in love... the choice is up to you!

Book 2: New season, new showrunner... And plenty of chances for drama! Find fame and win hearts in the next season of America's Most Eligible. Head back to Miami for America's Most Eligible: All Stars! Will you return be triumphant, or will old enemies drag you down?

AME is more on the lighter side, but there’s still some drama to it. I was with it but it was kinda, eh to me just because I wasn’t that interested in the plot. But it wasn’t necessarily bad.

Pros:

Boy or Girl MC

Game of wits

Choices matter

Cute LI scenes

Plot twists

Fun & Juicy

A lot of LIs

It’s a reality show, so basically what you’d imagine being on a reality show to be

You don’t need to buy the outfits

Creative challenges 

Cons:

A lot of advantages/wins are paywalled

Wasn’t bad but I wasn’t that emotionally invested

Not really much for me to say about AME. I liked it but I also wasn’t that invested either.

Big Sky Country (9/10)

a sequel is scheduled to be released I believe

When your car breaks down in rural Montana, you're stranded on the roadside... until a certain cowboy comes riding up.

BSC isn’t a favorite of mine, but it wasn’t bad. It was actually pretty good. You just have to have a taste for country/western type plots.

Pros:

Relateable MC (sis knew nothing about the country and it showed, but she was also willing to learn)

Family drama

BSC could be the plot of a western movie

Interesting characters, even side characters were entertaining

Rivalries 

Save the day storyline

Good ole country fun

Equal male/female LIs

Honestly, this book was funny as shit at times

Outfit choices don’t have a significant outcome on the plot (I never bought an outfit)

Diamond choices mostly reserved for interacting with LIs, not altering the plot (from what I remember)

I never played any NSFW scenes but I’m assuming they’re good because let’s be honest, most choices NSFW scenes are juicy

Cons:

I mean, Southern hospitality is a thing and I understand returning favors, but there’s a big plot hole as to why MC cares so much about helping the ranch and the Oakley family

Bloodbound (10/10)

2 Books

Book 1: You're applying for a job with brilliant CEO billionaire Adrian Raines... but there's more to him than it seems. Urban fantasy meets romance in this sexy vampire thriller.

Book 2: New mysteries, old enemies, and a thrilling adventure that'll unearth the dark, alluring history of vampires. Book 2 is ongoing

Pros:

Vampires!!!

MC is funny and relatable as fuck, strong chaotic energy but I live for it

MC holds her own with the vampires (not a damsel in distress)

Sis really holds her own in bed too (threesome diamond scene)

The plot is juicy 

Slow burn plot/romance (from what I remember)

Diamond flashback scenes of how vampires shaped the present in the past, also provide a further explanation of the relationships between vampires

Iconic characters, each character is fully formed

Badass females!!! 

A natural progression of the plot

Things are well explained without information dumps

Action packed

Underlying political commentary

Realistic (as much as a vampire book can be) with feelings, consequences, etc.

I can’t think of any cons off the top of my head tbh.

The Crown & The Flame (9.9/10)

3 books

Book 1: Your enemies stole your kingdom, but now the time has come for you to raise an army, master magic, and reclaim your crown!

Book 2: Kenna and Dom are out to liberate the rest of The Five Kingdoms! Can Kenna form the alliances she needs to defeat her enemies once and for all? Meanwhile, Dom's powers are growing stronger, but will he be able to stay in control? Get ready for epic battles, new weapons... and dragons!

Book 3: The Iron Empire draws near. Kenna and Dom must choose their alliances wisely to halt the grim advance of a seemingly unstoppable foe. Can enemies work together, or will betray seal the fate of The Five Kingdoms?

THIS IS MY SHIT!!!! One of the original 3 choices books/series, and it hooked me onto the game. This one is going to be biased most likely cause TC&TF has such a special place in my heart.

Pros:

You play as 2 characters, Kenna and Dominic (with the option to play as side characters during certain scenes)

One of the 2 main characters, Kenna, takes no fucking shit from anyone and is such a badass warrior queen. Truly iconic.

The other character, Dominic, as the title suggests, has something to do with fire. I’m sure you can guess based on the medieval setting but just in case, I won’t spoil it.

Diverse characters and LIs

The plot is juicy as fuck, like dripping down your chin juicy

Amazing action scenes

YOU DON’T NEED DIAMONDS for plot and some character related choices (when playing as Kenna and Dom, you can make choices that gain points then later on, if you have enough points you can substitute those for diamonds) 

Basically, choices matter

Definitely would play again, and I have

All characters are iconic, unique, and autonomous 

Queen Kenna can get down in the battlefield AND the bedroom

So can Dominic

Animal companions

Truly iconic

Cons:

Diamonds are needed to get weapons and increase your army score as well as gain some useful allies and information

A Courtesan of Rome (8/10)

Make your debut as a courtesan in Ancient Rome and plot your vengeance against Julius Caesar for his conquest of your homeland.

I’ve vibed with this book since it was first released because of the:

Badass MC

Really steamy, NSFW scenes (including a threesome diamond scene)

Amazing writing

Historically accurate, but you still influence the story

Several POVs

Backstories on MC’s family

PLOT TWISTS

9/10 times, your choices make a difference, or at least it feels like they do (little to no filler plot points)

The outfits

Seriously, MC is iconic

Diamond outfits influence the story more, but not a significant amount

Relationships matter, as in you get a slightly different story based on how you interact with people

PETS (literally I have a dog and a monkey. for what? who knows)

MC has strong chaotic energy, sis did not come to play

LGBT major character (possibly)

Cons:

Lack of diverse LIs (for most of the book you only have 4 options for LIs, and only 1 is a female. as of chapter 18, more are introduced but they are still mostly male)

The female LI is paywalled

MC is impulsive, like dumb bitch impulsive

Xanthe hate, for what????

Um, slavery

Currently, ACOR is ongoing and I hope it doesn’t disappoint.

edit: Overall, a great book, but when you look at the specifics...it gets questionable

Desire and Decorum (9/10)

2 released books, 1 upcoming

Book 1: It's court or be courted when you learn you're one of the most eligible heiresses in England! Does true love await you at the grand Edgewater Estate?

Book 2: You've been locked into engagement with **********! Can you escape his clutches to be with your true love?

It was good writing, but society limited how much you could influence the story.

Pros: 

MC gets to be an heiress

Wonderful writing

Historically accurate

Juicy plot

Beautiful art

Engaging LIs

Seriously, the female LI is such a bad bitch

What you’d expect from this time period really

Best friend goals

I’m invested in the story, but it’s frustrating to play

You can get a horse and a pug

Sometimes (if you pay diamonds) you can say, fuck societal norms and fuck your love interest (sometimes in public too)

Cons:

Seriously, social norms at the time limit your success (you want to do one thing but bc of society and whatnot doing what you really want can negatively impact you)

Diamonds are needed to get the most out of the story (gain skill, romance LIs, best outfits, best social standing)

1/4 LIs is female

Side characters are kinda just...there at times

Except for the 2-3 side characters that influence the story way more than (I think) they should

The antagonist is kind of dumb? but not dumb? He’s made out to be smart but then he’s easily fooled by MC

The Elementalists (6/10)

Book 1: A College Student enrolled at an exclusive university finds themselves being targeted by a mysterious enemy while learning that they may be one of the most powerful Magick wielders on the planet.

Book 2: Now a sophomore at Penderghast, the College Student searches for answers about a missing girl and tries to figure out why their powers are glitching out. Meanwhile, an eccentric man offers his friendship.

It’s a fan favorite, but I just can’t get behind it. Book 2 is ongoing so I might change my mind.

Pros:

Boy or Girl MC

Magical adventure

Natural skill progression in magic

Interesting plot

Relateable MC

Plot twists

Funny moments

1 side character has a noticeable character development

Cute outfits

Animal companions

Equal male/female LIs (but another male LI is added in book2...but romancing him is weird to me so I kinda don’t count him)

Cons:

You can choose to be asexual/aromantic (as in you don’t pursue any LI), but a romance subplot is still kinda forced at times

MC’s friend group at times seem like an entourage/hype squad instead of actual people

Also, if you romance a certain LI, there are times where he doesn’t even acknowledge the relationship (from what I’ve seen)

You need diamonds to learn more spells and become a better magician 

One of the female LIs rarely appears in book 1 and is paywalled, but she gets more (and free) moments in book 2

Endless Summer (9.5/10)

3 books

Book 1: Adventure and romance await in the tropical paradise of La Huerta. Can you solve the island's mysteries?

Book 2: The adventure of a lifetime continues! Saving your friends will take you to the wildest reaches of La Huerta, where truly anything is possible...

Book 3: The world has been hurled backward in time by the strange power of La Huerta! To set things right, you'll embark on your greatest adventure yet.

Once again, MY SHIT!!!!

Pros:

Unique art style

Guy or girl MC

Several LIs (i think equal male and female too)

Very compelling story

Each book has unique twists while still adhering to the overarching plot

Easy to get emotionally attached, making the final choice even harder to make

BADASS MC

Compelling side characters

Choices matter!!! (relationship choices especially)

Clever puzzles (but you aren’t penalized for not solving them)

Would recommend replaying

Seriously, the side characters are dope as fuck

A fantasy type story, but it still has logical rules

Dope action scenes

NSFW scenes are >>>>

Cons:

Diamond garbage disposal (seriously, diamonds are a MUST)

The ending is an ultimatum of 3 choices, each with their own epilogues, and they’re just heartbreaking (not necessarily a con I guess)

The Freshman Series (7.5/10)

Ok, this is literally a series following the same characters through all 4 years of college, I’m too lazy to get all of those summaries, especially when there are multiple books for each year. Also, there are several side stories too.

Pros:

Get to see MC and the gang grow through the years

Relatable problems

There’s drama and it’s juicy

Very well written for a series that long

Amazing side characters

Diverse LIs

Amazing worldbuilding

A possible deep connection to characters

Badass females

Amazing character development for MC and their friends

Shit gets wild tbh 

PETS!!!

You can create long lasting relationships

Very nice NSFW scenes

Diamonds aren’t needed, but they help

Other LGBT characters outside of MC

Cons:

MC is literally in the middle of everything, even when they shouldn’t be

Questionable decisions

Honestly, I can’t accurately rate this series because it is so long, but if you play The Freshman and love the story, just play through the whole series. I didn’t give it a higher score though bc I forgot a lot. I remember not liking it as much as Bloodbound or A Courtesan of Rome, etc. But again, this is my personal opinion.

The Haunting of Braidwood Manor (???/10)

Do you dare spend the night in Braidwood Manor?

Seriously, what the fuck??? I can’t even properly score this story because it’s just??? 

I can’t even make a proper list for this because it was just ???. There’s only a few characters, only one setting, and shit is just weird in that house. If you like horror/mystery/thriller then, by all means, be my guest and play this. But I honestly forgot this was even a book it’s just....not even bad just ???? what the fuck???

The Heist: Monaco (8.5/10)

Case the joint, assemble a crew, and make off with the score of a lifetime...

I-CON-IC

Pros: 

You get to be the criminal, the “bad guy” for once

Amazing characters

Action packed

Diverse LIs

CHOICES MATTER (especially relationships)

The crew? Iconic

You get to pick the characters you want in your crew too, and they influence your story

That being said, no matter who you pick (even if they’re the free option), they bring unique commentary to the group

The driving motivation for the MC is greed and pettiness, but it works 

Dope art scenes

Choices really do matter. The higher your heist score is at the end of the book, the more amazing your heist is

Cons:

MC is really just there

Seriously, not much would have changed without her

Diamonds are a must

Some characters are (perhaps unfairly) paywalled 

Hero (6/10)

1 book, 1 upcoming

Book 1: Take to the skies! Make friends, find love, and save your city in this action-packed adventure!

Pros:

You get to be a superhero!!!

Male or Female MC

Dope friends

Relateable moments 

You get to design your super suit and hideout

Iconic characters

MC does not magically perfect being a superhero or miraculously understanding everything once they discover their powers, it’s a learning process

A unique art style (similar to Endless Summer)

Diamonds aren’t a necessity, but they do help

Cons:

There really isn’t a female LI

Automatically forced to be the hero (which makes sense, given the title. but sometimes being a hero is boring)

Cliche superpowers (not necessarily a con)

Choices matter like 50% of the time, I just remember fight scenes being the only parts where my choices made a noticeable difference, but I could just be blanking

High School Story (7.5/10)

3 Books, 3 Spin-off books (High School Story: Class Act series)

I’m not posting these summaries either cause High School Story is basically a shorter, high school version of The Freshman Series. Also, the spin-off, High School Story: Class Act (returning for another book soon), follows a freshman through her first year of high school at the same school the original High School Story is set at (Berry High). High School Story is also a choices revived version of another pixelberry game by the same name.

High School Story

Pros:

Guy or Girl MC

Compelling side characters

Diverse characters and LIs

Feel good book

What I wish high school was like

Great friends, dope story

Diamonds aren’t needed, but there are a few diamond choices that really help

LGBT side relationship

Minor mention of real issues for high school students

Cons:

Unrealistic, high school is not that eventful, you’re not at the center of everything, and relationships are not that easy

Uncommon/unrealistic conflicts/situations 

Class Act

Pros:

Guy or girl MC

Relateable

Juicy drama (hehe)

Cool new characters

Original HSS character cameos

Diamonds aren’t needed 

Minor customization of one (1) major character

Real shit is discussed 

Cons:

Fewer LIs

1 female LI (but she’s my cinnamon apple)

1 semi-forced male love interest

Home for the Holidays (2/10)

Welcome to Winter Haven! Who will you kiss under the mistletoe... your workaholic boss, your high school sweetheart, or your childhood friend?

Oh my gosh, this book was dry. One of the male LIs was a dickhead most of the book too. 

SPOILER basically you go home for Christmas and participate in small town Christmas festivities while trying to also do unexpected Christmas work/convince your boss to have fun/publish a friend’s book END SPOILER

It was cute...or whatever, but dry. Definitely a diamond mining book. Interesting townsfolk though. I think it was not the best standalone book, but if it were a holiday side story like the Freshman Series did, it would’ve been way more investable.

It Lives Anthology (8.5/10)

2 books

It Lives In the Woods: The book focuses on a group of teenagers who have barely spoken to each other in a decade banding together in order to confront a terror from the past. (8/10)

It Lives Beneath: A College student helps their younger half-brother settle into their new life after their parents are brutally murdered. However, they soon find out that Pine Springs isn't as tranquil as it seems. (9/10)

Pros 

It Lives In the Woods:

Diverse characters

Boy or girl MC

Real genuine horror

Plot twists

Unique story

Choices matter

Several LIs 

LGBT side relationship

Animal companion!

It Lives Beneath:

The first book was unique, but the second one was REALLY unique as far as the story

A smaller group of friends, but still strong supporting characters and several LIs (male and female)

Plot twists!

Drama!

Horror!

Deception!

Cons (both):

Must spend diamonds practically every chance you get (outside of romancing LIs)

LoveHacks (6/10)

2 books

Book 1: New city, new job, new friends... Can you navigate the hilarious ups and downs of dating in the modern world?

Book 2: After quitting your job, you and your friends face new challenges in work, life, and ESPECIALLY love.

Ok, it wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t spectacular either.

Pros:

Feel good books

Dope side characters

2 POVs

Funny

Touches on some real issues (kind briefly)

Mostly realistic

Multiple LIs

Cons:

The whole driving factor of the first book is...morally ambiguous (it just seems wack to treat people like that for work to me), especially when it comes from a prick of a boss and his little henchman

Most Wanted (9/10)

Another one of the original 3 choices books. Currently only 1 book, but it may get a sequel just because of how popular it is.

The heat is on when a no-nonsense Texas Marshal and a Hollywood detective are thrown together to stop a deranged hitman. Can you catch the killer?

Play as Detective Dave Reyes and U.S. Marshal Sam Massey.

Investigate a mystery with twists you won't see coming.

Examine evidence at crime scenes.

Stop the killer before he can claim another victim!

Pros:

2 POVs

Your choices matter (you can earn points similar to TC&TF point system and substitute those for diamonds)

Diamonds aren’t a necessity

Crime/action book

Well written

You solve the case either way (I think), but it’s fun piecing clues together

Realistic relationship between the 2 main characters (I mean, you control most of it as well)

Cool side characters

Semi-Cons:

You can’t customize the main characters (which makes sense)

There’s barely romance (which also makes sense you’re trying to capture a killer there’s no time for frick-fracking)

Nightbound (7.7/10)

Bloodbound spin-off

Step into the world of the supernatural and encounter monsters, the fae, werewolves, you name it! But beware, nothing is as it seems...

Nightbound is still ongoing so I’ll probably edit this later.

Pros:

New Orleans!

Werewolves and other supernatural creatures (unlike Bloodbound that was just Vampires)

Guy or Girl MC

MC tries to make themselves useful...but it’s only their third day out here

Diverse characters

Mystery

Cute outfits

Iconic side characters

So far, only 3 confirmed LIs have been introduced (only 1 is female)

I haven’t had to spend that many diamonds so far (I don’t feel like I missed out because I didn’t)

Cons:

MC really doesn’t know what the fuck is going on but tries to act like they do

At times, they can hold their own but other times they do the dumbest shit

Just, a very inconsistent character, but this may be explained later on

Seriously, MC just learned about the supernatural and gets mad when Nik (their bodyguard) tries to protect them/doesn’t trust them alone

Open Heart (9.5/10)

You're the newest medical resident at Edenbrook Hospital, working under the brilliant and demanding Dr. Ethan Ramsey. Can you make the cut? (ongoing)

Once again, my shit. 

Pros:

Guy or Girl MC

Squad Goals (except for one snake)

Diverse side characters with their own backstories

Multiple male and female love interests

Bryce fucking Lahela is my the love of my fucking life

Females just, handling shit

PETS!

Diamonds aren’t needed for the best experience, but diamond scenes enhance the story

Juicy, juicy, juicy

Kind like if Grey’s Anatomy and House had a baby (idk if that’s true but it seems possible)

Not just all hospital stuff though

Cons:

You’re forced to hate another character (and your roommates agree) even though that character did nothing wrong or punishable

You really have to pay attention and just guess during medical diagnostics because the terminology and stuff is on point, but kinda useless unless you have a medical background

MC is iconic, but sometimes they’re too Lawful Good instead of Neutral/Chaotic Good (basically, MC can be annoyingly honest or limit themselves to benefit others instead of doing what they think is best and sticking to it)

Passport to Romance (2/10)

You just landed an opportunity to travel to Europe! Now's your chance to find love, meet new friends, and live life to the fullest!

I had such high hopes but...it’s still ongoing so maybe I’ll be able to bump it up?

Pros:

Travel

Cool job (minus the clout chasing)

Mostly cool friends

Cute outfits

The writing is good as far as not writing bland chapters, compelling dialogue, well-written scenes, but the plot itself irritates me

Cons:

Unrealistic

A lot of times, MC and the gang completely disregard security measures/public decency for clout (aka more fans)

One of the major characters is literally dry as fuck, and there’s some kind of sob story behind his characterization but it still doesn’t excuse his actions. It’s more of a cliche lame excuse instead of genuine reasoning (at least to me). I have no sympathy 

MC and the gang break a lot of boundaries and just...rules in general which doesn’t sit well with me. Just, respect the history of buildings, rules of being an athlete, etc.

The boss we work for is a bitch. She’s like the Walmart version of Cat Grant (from Supergirl). She’s rude for no reason (or no reason know to us so far).

You kind of need diamonds to get the best ratings and stuff on your blog...but I stopped spending my diamonds on this book early on so I wouldn’t know

Sometimes, the gang does stupid shit and when they encounter obvious consequences they get sad or whatever, like...what did you expect?

Perfect Match (8.5/10)

2 books

Book 1: A young man/woman believes that they meet their ideal partner through a dating service, but soon come to realize everything is not as it seems.

Book 2: Armed with the knowledge that ****************, you vow to bring them down once and for all. Meanwhile, a member of your team suffers from an identity crisis.

Pros:

Guy or Girl MC

Squad Goals

MC is just, relatable (dialogue/actions you don’t get control over are relatable) 

Some Black Mirror shit to be honest

Juicy, juicy, juicy

Side characters are pretty cool

Several LIs (3 male, 2 female)

Diverse characters

Choose animal lover if you want a dog to be in the story (you’ll see what I mean when you play)

Plot twists!

Really, shit’s crazy

Drama/Action/Romance all in one

NSFW scenes are legendary in the fandom (particularly, Damien’s)

Real world undertones as far as fighting The Man for the Greater Good (I’m telling you, Black Mirror stuff)

Cons:

Diamonds aren’t a necessity but you need to spend some too, you just kinda have to decide at that moment

Red Carpet Diaries (5/10)

2 books, 1 upcoming

Book 1: The series revolves around a young woman who recently moved to Los Angeles from Iowa to start her career as an actress.

Book 2: The same actress is exposed to the dark side of Hollywood where she must save her career and reputation from a self-centered agent and sinister movie mogul.

I liked RCD but as I’m reading through some stuff and remembering events I’m realizing that it has a lot to work on.

Pros:

A realistic path to fame (from what I can remember)

Cool major side characters, most of the time

Multiple LIs (from what I remember, 2 are female)

Referenced real-world events and had underlying commentary on people using the fame and influence to opress those “below” them (book 2)

Realistic Hollywood drama (I'm guessing I’m not famous)

Characters from another pixelberry game, Hollywood U, make appearances

Cons:

Unnecessary female rivalry

Your friends ignore you over some bullshit (petty!)

MC is kinda lame compared to other characters, which is understandable considering they came from Iowa, but still...undesirable

The path to fame was realistic, but the beginning of book 1 was kind of slow

You encounter several Hollywood jerks (which makes sense, but it’s still irritating)

MC is forced to quickly forgive people (except for one) like everything is fine and dandy when people were so quick to turn on her

Really MC gets so much shit for nothing, she was literally sabotaged over what

Literally MC’s friend group acts petty and immature at times and it’s up to her to fix their problems

Ride-or-Die: A Bad Boy Romance (5.5/10)

1 book, upcoming sequel

Logan isn't the type of boy you can bring home to Dad... Not when Dad's the detective tasked with taking down Logan's illegal street racing crew.

Another fan favorite that I just don’t like. I had high hopes but I was quickly disappointed.

Pros:

I love the rabbit hole plot (you know how you do one bad thing and it kind of sets you up for more problems)

Nice action

Juicy plot twists

Drama

Well written

Realistic family drama

Choices determine how other characters treat you

You can get by without spending a single diamond

The crew is pretty cool, and they get some nice characterization

Cons:

So fucking unrealistic. 

MC literally ****** and ***** her dad and best friend for people she does not know 

MC was such a dick to those who cared about her because she ******** which is understandable, but also just to the other extreme

You have to pay diamonds to learn how to drive, yet you’re in a gang of street racers where driving is a necessity. 

MC just...completely disregards school as well FOR PEOPLE SHE BARELY KNOWS

One of the most frustrating MCs I’ve ever played. 

She had the NERVE to be upset when people she DID NOT KNOW betrayed her (this bitch is Booboo the Fool)

Literally several times, she’s told she’s not cut out for the illegal, street racing shit (because she isn’t) yet she still stays

I feel like MC faced no real consequences for her actions 

Basically, the story is good (despite being cliches) and the surrounding characters are great the MC annoys the shit out of me. Like if I watched this as a show, without MC, I’d enjoy it

The Royal Romance (6.7/10)

3 books, 1 sequel/spin-off (The Royal Heir)

Book 1: A spin-off of Rules of Engagement, the story follows a woman whose life is completely turned around when she's selected to compete to be the bride of a prince from a foreign country.

Book 2: The same woman must clear her name of a political scandal that reaches to the highest levels of Cordonia Royalty.

Book 3: Now in a position of power, the woman must unite her new home against the leader of a terrorist group.

Kinda like a more modern Desire and Decorum (even though these books were published first). I liked it when I first played but now that I’m taking a critical eye to it....

Pros:

Squad Goals

Betrayal! 

Drama! 

Scandals!

Amazing side characters

Cute outfits

MC is badass at times

Animals!

I actually liked it, enjoyable to read but kinda boring to replay

You can get several pets

Cons:

Multiple LIs, but only 1 female

If you don’t romance the Prince the plot is kind of...off?? Idk it just makes the most sense if you romance the prince but there are no negative effects if you choose someone else

Kinda have to buy all the diamond outfits (especially in Book 2) to stay in favor with the press, the people of Cordonia, and the royal court 

MC is literally ripped from her home and family and her whole life becomes Cordonia. Like there’s never a moment of regret or talking to her family.

The conflict of book 2 could’ve been solved way easier than it was. they really dragged that out for drama but it was irritating when you found out what actually happened and why

MC is given..stuff at the end of book 2/beginning of book 3 but you rarely see her directly interacting with said gifts

Rule of Engagement (4.5/10)

3 books, 1 spin-off

Book 1: Your summer on a luxurious tour of Europe takes a wild turn when you learn you're in line for a multi-million dollar inheritance! There's only one catch... you need to get married by the end of the summer!

Book 2: In line to a multi-million dollar inheritance, your siblings and yourself struggle to complete your respective tasks by the end of the summer. Yours? Get married by the end of the summer.

Book 3: The end of the summer approaches, and it is your last chance for you and your siblings to complete the tasks given by your grandmother to get her multi-million inheritance. Will you be able to plan your perfect wedding, or will your aunt ruin it all?

ROE: Newlyweds (Spin-off): One year after your magical summer, you throw a housewarming party to reconnect with your family! Will you plan a reunion to remember?

Last of the 3 original choices series.

Pros:

4 regularly playable characters (I think around the 2nd or 3rd book you regularly play as a 5th character too)

Characterization for several characters

Juicy side characters

Adoptable animals

Loveable twins

You don’t have to spend diamonds (I wouldn’t)

Compelling antagonists

Cons:

No female LIs for the eldest sister

2/4 siblings are big fat LIARS, these same 2 siblings are also pretty annoying and treat people kinda poorly

The wedding/engagement for the oldest sister is rushed and realistically, a bad decision

A certain LI literally gives up his entire birthright to be with the eldest sister (which is sweet, and she’s not the only reason, but also irresponsible)

The driving factor of the plot just leads the 4 main characters to do some insincere stuff (if that makes sense)

Veil of Secrets (5/10)

1 book

A journalist investigates the disappearance of their best friend in the small town of Birchport but soon comes to realize that the inhabitants of the seemingly peaceful town have many dark secrets. All while facing off against a narcissistic patriarch, a corrupt police chief, and a revenge-driven psychopath who will stop at nothing to achieve their goal.

Pros: 

Juicy story

Plot twits

Drama

Equal male and female LIs (but one of the female LIs isn’t really romanceable until the end of the book)

Dark secrets

Cons:

Cliche small town with dark secrets setting

The whole “invite my best friend who I haven’t talked to in years” thing is unrealistic. even if best friends don’t talk every day or live close, they talk regularly. Like wtf, you don’t just get invited to someone’s wedding because you knew them in college people grow and change and drift apart

It honestly wasn’t bad writing it was just kind, eh the whole time. It really didn’t stick out to me.

Wishful Thinking (6.5/10)

1 book

You're an aspiring reporter, struggling to get ahead... until a shocking turn of events changes your life! (ongoing)

At first, I didn’t like it but it’s growing on me.

Pros:

Interesting story

Unique twists

Choices matter

Pets but on crack

MC is kind of iconic when she faces antagonists and puts them in their place

A nice plot so far

I haven’t spent any diamonds and I don’t really feel like I’m missing much

Cons:

Pixelberry took characters that are usually in the background and made them main characters (basically reused character art) which isn’t a bad thing, but it’s kinda weird to see after you’ve played as any choices books as I have. It also seems kinda unfair that Wishful Thinking didn’t get that many unique characters when most other books did 

That being said, the side characters are kinda dry

Only 1 female LI, and she’s not as easy to romance as the male LI

Once again, another unnecessary female rivalry  

Seriously, some characters are just rude for no reason (at least we don’t know at this point)

So that concludes my ratings. I tried to be unbiased and rate the books based on what they actually did and didn’t have but of course, some of my bias is still there. But this is only my personal opinion and I’m sure other choices fans have some different opinions so I’d take what I said with a grain of salt. 

#choices #choices stories you play #pixelberry #playchoices #choices books #choices ratings

[ayearofpike]

The Blind Mirror

Tom Doherty Associates, 2003 390 pages, 30 chapters ISBN 0-812-53882-X LOC: PS3566.I486 B55 2003 OCLC: 51553156 Released May 1, 2003 (per B&N)

The dead woman on the beach is in the exact spot where David Lennon’s girlfriend broke up with him two months ago, before he left on business to New York. He is positive he wouldn’t have killed her, but it’s disconcerting that he doesn’t remember anything about that night. But as the events unravel, and as he learns more about who she was and where she came from, he starts to remember things he shouldn’t. Things only she could have known, that she never told him.

Pike is back, after a long absence! I know, it’s only been a couple of days for us here at A Year of Pike, but it’s important to remember the context that this book emerged into. The Blind Mirror’s mass-market paperback appeared nearly five years after the end of the Simon & Schuster years, when we were maybe starting to despair of ever seeing Pike again — or maybe even had forgotten about him as a contemporary writer. A lot can happen in five years to change your audience: personally, I graduated college, spent a year working overseas, got married, found a job that I thought would become my career, lost that job, and started working at another one better suited to my skill set (spoiler: that one also didn’t last, but it was less my fault).

So it was probably smart of Pike to take a little step away from his roots. It was maybe also necessary, given the shift in the YA market and what was expected of authors. No longer can you crank out sloppy half-hearted low-stakes stories every three months, not with the Harry Potter renaissance in full swing. He’d try his hand at a series aimed at younger readers about a magical child entering her birthright world in order to save it (we’ll get there), but first he’s finally given us one of those titles promised in The Listeners so many years ago.

And whoa, this one is a doozy. Talk about a tonal shift from Spooksville: sex, murder, profanity, Satanism, drugs, lesbians, statutory rape, illegal organ harvesting. Gone are the cutesy demons and teenybopper romantic tension that I’ve spent the last month powering through, replaced with some heavy shit. This is clearly something that Pike’s wanted to do for a while, and obviously it was going to have to come under Tor because there was no way his old YA contract would have let him go this dark. 

I do wonder a couple of things, though, about the creation of The Blind Mirror: 

How similar is this book to his original vision? Like, there are huge excerpts of another novel throughout, a vampire book for which David has been hired to paint the cover art. But the novel-within-the-novel smacks more of Pike as we know him than The Blind Mirror proper. If he was writing this in 1994, as indicated by the marketing copy in his last adult novel, it seems like maybe the excerpts are what he was writing at the time, which would jibe with his love for Sita and his reluctance to let her go.

Why did it take so long for this thing to come out? Why now? I can only speculate, absent any direct confirmation from the man himself. Maybe he’s addressed this in his Facebook posts, but I don’t have the time or patience right now to research it. However, one thing gives me pause: the dedication, “For Abir.” He has often mentioned Abir as a partner in his recent posts, someone who was a fan but has also been a devoted love and still is today. My educated guess is that he met this person and it turned into a real relationship, which helped him recenter and start working again after what might have been the end of a career. After all, writers don’t just stop having ideas and compulsions, but the market’s shift and subsequent dismissal of the genre that Pike was used to working in might have soured him on trying to be heard — until Abir, anyway.

So enough metatext — let’s get into the summary. David wakes up on a plane returning to southern California from a two-month visit to New York. He’s been looking for some commercial cover work, and has scored a contract with a publisher for their hot new book, The Last Vampire Vampire of the Heart. His neighbor on the plane is a chatty sort, a man who boasts of his abilities at organ transplants and who is coming into LA for a conference (he’s based out of Miami). Why does this dude matter, you ask? Wait for it! (Pike has at least gotten better at not leaving Chekhov’s gun unfired with his long layoff.)

David drives back home, to Spooksville Lompoc, a little nowheresville that is hard to get out of and so people generally don’t. But he doesn’t go home right away — some compulsion drives him back to the beach where he and his girlfriend ended, under mysterious circumstances. This is where he finds the body, and ends up talking with the sheriff about it. But for some reason, he’s less than straightforward with a legal authority whom David has known for his entire life. He feels that he’s being accused of murder even though he didn’t do anything, but because of that he keeps some details about his ex and her history to himself. Now for sure, he doesn’t know all of it ... we learn as we go that she hasn’t actually told him too much about herself. But why wouldn’t you, a white adult male who is truly innocent of any wrongdoing, tell the police everything you knew? Suspicious.

He goes to get a bite to eat and runs into a girl from high school. Julie Stevens was the hot cheerleader who never had time for anybody but herself, but now all of a sudden she is interested in getting to know David better. She’s just had a bad breakup and lost her job, and maybe David is a rebound, but he’s surprisingly OK with that, interested even, never mind that Julie has always been a stuck-up jerk with her head up her own ass. So they set up a date and then David ends up at the church, where the reverend has long been a kind of father figure and advisor to him. In fact, seven years ago he rescued the reverend’s young daughter from drowning, and he’s the one person David talked to about going to New York before he left. They talk for a minute, he chats a bit with the town drug dealer (whose name, no shit, is Herb) who is mowing the lawn for some reason, and then David finally goes home to check his messages.

There are three: his mom, Julie — and his ex. She’s feeling guilty about the breakup and wants to try to reconcile. David has mixed feelings: she broke his heart, but he’s still in love with her. But he doesn’t have a way to call her back, so he settles in with the vampire book to try to figure out what he’s going to paint. It’s an unusual story, about a vampire created by an alchemist who is no longer happy or satisfied feeding as she has for twenty-five thousand years, but before he can get too far in Julie shows up for their date. Pretty normal, as far as grown-up dates go: a movie, dinner, tequila shots, and hours and hours of fucking. Which, again, surprise considering she’s never previously given David the time of day (and his friend seems to think that Julie is a lesbian), but rebounds I guess.

David wakes up to a horrible headache, an empty bed, and a ringing phone. It’s Sienna, calling from the airport in her hometown, which is ... uhm ... New York. She wants to know if she should come back to California, and David says yes. Then there’s a knock on his door, and it’s the sheriff, who needs David to go down to the station to talk to an FBI agent. It seems that the dead body has been killed in a way that indicates ritual sacrifice, and that requires federal intervention. The agent is likewise suspicious of David’s story, not least because he can’t seem to remember how or when she left the beach, considering they drove there together and he left alone. He asks if David has ever heard of an organization called LESS, and it doesn’t ring a bell, but he’s willing to play the message from his ex on his answering machine for the cops, so they can hear that she’s called him and isn’t dead and rotting on the beach.

Only the message is gone. His machine has somehow come unplugged, which erases the memory automatically. So now the sheriff wants him to go along to the ex’s house in Santa Barbara, so he can try to find some physical DNA evidence that might tie the body to the girl who lived in this house. On the way, they talk about old friends of David’s, a couple who killed themselves in high school — the girl’s face was ruined in a fire and she was so proud of her looks, and once she was gone the boy shot himself in the mouth. This has never sat right with David, because he could never picture these friends wanting to end their lives. But the sheriff is pretty inflexible, although he does recall a car leaving the area where the boy’s body was found in a parking lot. They find some hairs, and David passes out in the bathroom, where he was first intimate with the girl, which still smells like her hair. Post-traumatic stress, right? Maybe. 

Back in Lompoc, David finds himself wandering his old haunts and thinking about his friends. He winds up at the boy’s old house, where he learns from his mom that the boy was seeing somebody new between when the girl died and when he shot himself. Further wanderings take him to the cemetery, where he runs into the girl he once saved, dressed up like a slutty Goth and attempting to provoke David into making a move on her despite being fifteen years old. He goes home and reads more of the book, where the vampire learns that all her ancient vampire friends are starting to feel the same thing, and maybe they are returning to human. Then he has to stop because his best friend has gotten him an appointment with a hypnotist, which he is hoping will help him remember that which has been blocked about the end of his relationship.

The hypnotist gets David down deep pretty fast, and David is confused by what he’s saying. He seems to be remembering more than one perspective, or more than two people coming to the spot on the beach. But just before he gets to the point where he stopped remembering, at a point where his ex painfully pinched his butt, his cell phone rings — the ex again, always calling at the most inopportune moments. He takes a while to shake off the effects of being hypnotized, and then goes back home to read a little more. It turns out that our vampire hero is pregnant, has been for the last twenty-five thousand years, and the baby is resuming its growth just as the time never passed now that she’s returning to human. He starts painting like a man possessed, and then takes a break before his next date with Julie to go walk on the beach again ... where he spots the reverend’s daughter riding the drug dealer on the exact spot where the body was found. Gross.

Julie takes him to a play about identical twins, one of whom has murdered the other in order to get her heart transplanted, and then they drink more tequila and have more sex, this time in the house where his ex used to live because Julie feels it is what he needs to get over her. Then he falls asleep and dreams that he and Julie are in Las Vegas, playing blackjack with a dealer whose name is the same as the vampire and then buying illegal drugs and having a threesome with her. It seems so real, but there’s no way. When he wakes up, he’s back at his house and Julie is eating Special K even though David doesn’t remember buying it. There’s a knock at the door, and it’s the sheriff and the FBI agent, here to arrest David for the murder of someone he’s never heard of. It seems that the hairs they found at his ex’s place match the corpse’s hair, and that plus his inconsistency makes him a prime suspect in having killed his girlfriend. Only he can prove he didn’t, because there’s a message on the machine! Or not! It’s suddenly blank again, despite his specific intent to save the messages! What the fuck?

So David gets locked up. The FBI agent has more questions, and gives up some more information. It seems that David’s ex is not the only one who’s been ritualistically killed in the last little while, and his partner has disappeared in the investigation. The sheriff comes in later, trying to get David to face the reality of the situation, but David knows what he heard. He dreams about a race that his dead friend ran, and realizes in hindsight that the guy maybe wasn’t as amazing and brilliant as David always thought. Then the minister comes to visit and encourages David to get a lawyer. He knows a guy who is brilliant and willing to do the pretrial as a favor. He also reminds David that nobody is perfect: the minister himself beat his ex-wife before seeing the devil in what he was doing and redirecting himself. He dreams again, about a road trip he took with his ex and a palm reader who was confused and discouraged by their life lines. The lawyer shows up and thinks he can get the charge thrown out on lack of evidence. Then David’s best friend brings him the manuscript so he can keep working, and he reads about how the vampire finds the alchemist’s sister, who wants the baby and holds her hostage, but the vampire goes back to her training and kills everyone in the compound just weeks before she’s due. It’s not really clear yet how this ties together, but be patient and I’ll try.

They go to the hearing, where David’s lawyer demonstrates how the police have no concrete evidence tying his client to the dead woman on the beach, regardless of the connection between her and the hairs they found in her house. The district attorney mentions that there are traces of bloody footprints on David’s carpet, which is new but not enough to hold him, so he goes free. There’s a small party at his best friend’s house, at which Julie apologizes for not being able to back up his assertion of the ex’s message and slips up in her facts when he asks how her job search is going. He does a little bit of research and finds out that not only has she not applied for these jobs she claimed to be after, but she quit the job that she lost, unceremoniously and without notice. So um. Why is this girl lying to him now? And what does it have to do with the girl who was lying to him before?

For some reason, David still thinks this has some connection to his dead high school friends. He goes to the girl’s dad’s house, who mentions that the older sister is married to some rich surgeon out in Miami. This strikes a chord, and he remembers that the doctor on the plane gave him a business card. His company? LESS — Life Extension Service Systems. See, I told you to wait for it. So now David has to go track down the FBI agent and learn a little bit more. As it happens, they’ve been tracking some kind of illicit organ trade, linked to a journalist who discovered a trend of rich people getting new livers and hearts when they shouldn’t have been anywhere near the top of the list and was suddenly and brutally murdered. The FBI agent and his partner were chasing the trail of the one who’d been on the case before them when his partner disappeared, and so now this guy is on the case kind of against the wishes of management, who no doubt doesn’t want to lose more agents to an unsolvable issue. But they do know about a cruise ship with no itinerary, one that the good doctor and his wife partly own. Suspicious! It seems like this ritualistic killing and disembowelment might be done to disguise the harvesting of organs for this operation. Although that doesn’t explain the FBI agent’s encounter with a creepy young girl at the site of a previous killing, one who marked him with a bloody heart that was maybe removed from the body. Is there more than meets the eye to these killings, or is it just as it appears?

After a quick encounter with Herb the drug dealer, who says he’s skipping town and not to tell anybody but to do the same, David goes home to sleep, only stopping to kick the preacher’s daughter out of his bed. He awakens to the sound of fire engines — not at his house, but close. It’s the FBI agent’s motel, of course, and there’s no hope for him. He encounters his best friend’s husband at the site and gives him the money Herb intended for them to get the fuck out of Lompoc. Then he drives himself straight to LAX and gets a last-minute plane to New York. After all, he still has a cover to paint.

The art director at the publishing house is more than happy to share the author’s address with David — after all, she’d expressed interest in meeting the cover artist for her novel. He ends up at a mansion where the last name on the mailbox is the name of the dead girl on the beach, which David is increasingly having to accept is the real name of his ex because otherwise there are too many coincidences. He rings the bell and meets his ex’s mother, who confirms that she wrote the book and intended it to get into David’s hands, and asks that he forgive her lies because she was dying of leukemia and wanted one last year of real life without people feeling sorry for her. She invites David for dinner and to stay the night, in his ex’s old bed, but he wakes up in the middle of the night and lets himself out because it’s too freaky — and not helped by the mom having loud sex with the young black butler who answered the door.

Next he flies to Miami, and it’s not hard to find the cruise ship in dock. He sneaks aboard posing as a food delivery porter and then pokes around the ship until he finds a weird new age recovery spa. Down there in an isolation tank is his dead friend’s sister, who invites David to join her for breakfast. As they eat (him bacon and eggs, her Special K just like his new girl), she confirms part of the FBI agent’s story: they do transplant organs illegally on the ship, using it so that the organs can come from third-world countries and never have to enter the US — they can helicopter it from the Caribbean island directly to the ship. David confronts her about the ritual killing, but she insists that they’re not intentionally murdering people to harvest their organs. Then she turns it back on him, reminding him of his crush on the dead friend and how it hurt the boy, and how that might have ultimately led to both their deaths. How does she know so much about this, if she and her sister weren’t close? Did she have a hand in it? What the shit is happening?

David doesn’t get answers to any of these questions. His cell phone rings, and it’s his ex, somehow, calling from his house and asking if he can be home by midnight. He does have time to finish the novel on the plane, and learns of the vampire’s ultimate fate, killing herself so that her soul will be able to block the alchemist’s from fighting off the new one that will be generated when her baby is born, because that was his plan — to cheat death by taking on new bodies. He thinks again of his dream about Vegas with Juile, and how the dealer had the same name as this vampire character. More than a coincidence? He has time to take a quick detour to Vegas, where he learns that indeed there is a sexy blackjack dealer who once had a threesome with the girls he has pictures of in his wallet. How could David have possibly known this? How could he have seen it?

When he gets home, a note on the door directs him to the beach. And who should be on the beach but Julie Stevens, carrying a boombox with a CD that contains every recorded message David has gotten from his ex in the last week. She reveals that yes, she and the ex were lovers, and now Julie wants to help him remember what else happened that night. As she’s massaging him, he has some memories, some views of the night of the breakup that he could only have had if he was looking at it from his ex’s perspective. Like when she pinched his butt, she was injecting him with a vial of ketamine. The confusion causes him to black out, and when he comes to he’s shackled and on the floor of his ex’s bathroom. And guess who’s there? That’s right, the good doctor.

He explains the whole scope of his operation: basically, rich white people have more right to live than poor brown people, and so he has taken to harvesting organs from Africa and south Asia and transplanting them into paying customers on his ship. However, there’s a problem: you might have a new liver or a new kidney or a new heart, but you’re still in the same old body. So they start thinking about what they can do, and land on the phenomenon of out-of-body experiences that have been reported from the use of ketamine as an anesthetic. Maybe you know it as a street drug, the doctor says: Special K. Yeah, the fucking cereal was a hint. Anyway, he and his partners started experimenting with it and realized that with the proper dose, they COULD leave their bodies and go into someone else’s — for a very limited time; they’d get snapped back pretty quickly into their own. Too much sense memory. But what if they took the appropriate dose, got into the other body ... and then murdered their old one?

(Disclosure: I have never seen Get Out.)

So yeah, the ex has entered David’s body, and it’s only a matter of time before her feelings and memories take over. What proof of this does the old doctor have? Well, brace yourself: the first body takeovers happened right here in Lompoc, ten years ago. David’s dear friend and crush was horribly burned in an accident and didn’t want to live in her body anymore, but she did have a bitch sister whose body she wouldn’t mind taking. From there it was a small manner to get her boyfriend into the body of the rich surgeon she was scheduled to marry. And guess what? The boy never forgave David for his crush, for his attempts to get more from the girl than she would give a non-boyfriend. His whole life has been a lie.

So nothing to do but wait for the change. What can help that along? Associations with the soul taking over ... you know, like having sex in the first place you had sex with her or reading a novel that she wrote or sleeping in her childhood bed. What else can speed it up? Starvation and imprisonment. Yeah, David’s gotta stay locked up in the bathroom until he turns into his ex. But David is surprisingly resilient, and two weeks later he’s still trying to escape. He remembers that his ex wore a lot of bobby pins in her hair, and some scraping and picking reveals a couple stuck up under the tub skirt. He fiddles with his shackles for an hour and eventually pops the lock, but the house is locked up too, so he has to break a window. 

And sure enough, Julie races back to him, pointing a gun and telling him to knock off the shit or she’ll kill him. But David calls her bluff, because there’s no way she’d go through all of this just to murder her girlfriend. Lucky (?) for them, the minister’s daughter shows up right at that moment, insisting that her father needs to see David. Julie tries to resist, and in response the daughter grabs a shard of the broken glass and SLITS HER FUCKING THROAT. Like, no remorse, no thinking twice about it, just straight murders a dude. Still, even though this chick is pretty grotesque, she’s taking David to the preacher, who has been the rock in his life and who will surely get him out of this predicament, right?

Welllll...

Remember how the reverend saw a demon, that night so long ago when he was beating his wife? It turns out that the demon took over his body in that moment, and from then on they’ve been best buddies. That was the impetus for his drowning daughter, in fact: get another demon over to this side. And now the good doctor, the clinic, the ship, the whole operation? It’s his. He controls and manipulates the whole thing, throwing in the ritualistic killing just for shits and giggles, because it appeals to Satan. The medical and scientific backing? Smoke and mirrors — the demon actually controls it all. So David’s got another soul in his body, and is going to change pretty soon, and is going to owe his eternal presence to the forces of darkness, and there’s nothing he can do about it, right?

Well, he could maybe kill himself, like the hero of the story. Isn’t that why his ex wrote the thing? To give him a clue and point out how he could save himself and his own soul? The demon laughs — there’s too much weak-willed terminally ill ex in there for him to actually be able to pull it off. As if to prove it, he suddenly roars in David’s face, jarring him, taking him aback, causing him to gasp and exhale, such that the force shoves his soul out and away.

And the ex is now in there alone. Left to think about what she has done and what the price will be.

And that is the end of The Blind Mirror. There’s a lot of story here, a lot of information, and I actually really enjoyed it. I didn’t remember it at all — again, this is one where the strong spine and clean cover indicates maybe I only read it once. Pike has said he likes it a lot, but it wasn’t well-received, and I can believe that I might have gone through it and been disappointed in the ending. Is this the first time a hero meets a tragic end in a Pike book? No, but it’s the first time we get zero redemption from it. Like, when Herb Trasker died he left photographic evidence of his killer. Josie Goodwin had time to kill off her megalomaniac attacker and save her other target before she died. But here, David is gone and his body and soul are pretty much fucked.

Still, this was a solid book. Really nice to get to the twisting and crossed threads of information that make a solid horror or suspense novel, and it shows what Pike is capable of at his best. The ending is still a little bit rushed for my taste, but I have to admit that he doesn’t leave threads hanging even as he races through David’s revelation and transformation in the last 40 pages of the book. Maybe taking some time to work on his craft and really refine this story will be indicative of the Pike we get over the next fifteen years. I sure hope so.

[originalsdaily]

THE ORIGINALS SEASON 5 - ALL THE FACTS AS OF PREMIER DAY 18TH APRIL 2018 - All ship information, TVD character cameos, new characters, flashbacks, how the show will end and other tidbits (also 'accidental’ spoilers the writers didn’t want us to see)

DISCLAIMER: 

These are compilation of spoilers issued by the writers and cast themselves through social media, SDCC and text/video interviews, also IMDB listings. Please don’t read if you don’t wish to have spoilers for the upcoming season. The ‘accidental spoilers’ for the season are going to be posted under a cut, so those who want the official spoilers and wish to stay away from the other ones can do so.

Below is a summary of everything we know so far about season five. I’ve sourced where possible, though for some things there is no available source, (such as Danielle Russells instagram live video which isn’t available in it’s entirety, though I watched live and wrote down what she said as it was airing, and a photograph from Carina Mackenzie’s instagram of a draft of 502 which was not screenshotted.)  At the time of posting, all tweets are active, though tweets can be removed at any point. This is up to date at time of posting, I’ve scoured and added everything I could find. If I’ve missed something out, please link me and I will add on.

For SDCC 2017 facts, I’ve simply put “SDCC” as the source. Here are links to watch the SDCC panel  - (xx)      

A compilation of like 97% of the bts photos are here (x)

General Season Info

The Originals season five premiers Wednesday, April 18th at 9:00 p.m and this season is the final season of the show (x) (x) The show was originally due to premier on the 20th April, but got moved from Friday to Wednesday. The show has now been on every single weeknight. (x)

The Tagline of the season is “Family, Always and Forever” (x)

Joseph Morgan, Daniel Gillies and Charles Michael Davis will be directing again. Joseph is to direct episode 3 “Ne Me Quitte Pas,”  Charles to direct episode 6 “What, Will, I, Have, Left” and Daniel is to direct episode 10 (SDCC) (x)(x)(x)(x)

Episode titles are as follows (followed by director, writer(s) and synopsis where possible) (x):

5x01 ‘Where You Left Your Heart’ - Directed by Lance Anderson, written by  Marguerite MacIntyre (x)(x) 

“Desperate to see her father Klaus after seven years, Hope resorts to drastic measures to bring her father back to New Orleans. Hayley attempts to minimize the fallout from Hope's actions, but not before news of what she's done ripples through the city. Meanwhile, Freya's guilt over not being able to reunite her family gets in the way of her happiness with Keelin, while Rebekah struggles with her inability to fully commit to Marcel. Finally, struggling without Elijah by his side, Klaus' murderous rampage throughout Europe leads to an unexpected encounter with Caroline Forbes.”

5x02 ‘One Wrong Turn On Bourbon’ - Written by Carina Mackenzie (x)(x)

“When a mysterious disappearance brings Klaus back to New Orleans, Hope looks forward to the prospect of seeing her father again. However, when the dark magic that had been keeping them apart begins to manifest in dangerous ways across the city, Vincent turns to Ivy for guidance about what it may mean. Elsewhere, Marcel returns to New Orleans amidst increased tensions between the supernatural factions, while Freya makes a decision about her future with Keelin. Finally, Roman's surprise visit to the Mikaelson compound forces Hope to reveal some dark truths about her family. Josh also appears.”

5x03 'Ne Me Quitte Pas’ (Do not leave me) - Directed by Joseph Morgan (x)(x)

“In the immediate aftermath of having his memory erased by Marcel, Elijah awakens to find himself in the middle of nowhere and without a clue as to who he is. Unable to control his instinctive vampire ways, Elijah encounters Antoinette, a beautiful and free-spirited vampire, who helps him navigate his new life. However, a run-in with Klaus threatens to destroy the peace he's finally found.”

5x04 'Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea’

5x05 'Don’t It Just Break Your Heart’ 

5x06 ‘What, Will, I, Have, Left” - Written by Marguerite MacIntyre, Directed by Charles Michael Davis (x)

5x07 ‘God’s Gonna Trouble The Water’ - Written by Bianca Sams & Julie Plec (x)(x)

5x08 ‘The Kindness Of Strangers’ - Written by Carina Mackenzie (x)(x)

5x09 ‘We Have Not Long To Live’

5x10  ‘There In The Disappearing Light’ - Written by Jeffery Lieber & Eva McKenna, Directed by Daniel Gillies (x)(x)

5x11 ‘Till The Day I Die’

5x12 ‘The Tale Of Two Wolves’ - Written by Carina Mackenzie (x)

5x13 ‘When the Saints Go Marching In” - Written by Jeffery Lieber & Julie Plec    (x)(x)

On returning special guests:

Nate Buzolic, Claire Holt, Danielle Campbell and Sebastian Roche are all also returning for their roles as Kol, Rebekah, Davina and Mikael respectively. (x)(x)(x) 

Julie said there’s a chance Cami, Finn or Jackson will appear this season. Soon after posting this, Leah Pipes was on set for one of the final episodes (x) (x)

On the Mikaelson Family:

There are “several” Hope/Elijah scenes and “a few” Rebekah/Hope scenes (Danielle’s insta live) 

"This season is about the Mikaelsons trying to find a way to bring the family back together" (x)

Danielle Russell said Hope was 15 (in her insta live) and that eight years have passed, which was originally said during SDCC by Julie also. However, Julie has stated seven years elsewhere (x) (There seems to now be a general consensus 7 years has passed)

Hayley, Klaus and Hope are ‘a family’ (Danielle’s insta live)

More sister bonding for Freya and Rebekah will be in the show. (x) 

Klaus’ true ship of the season is the family (x) 

We can tell that a lot has changed, but as the siblings have been alive for 1000 years, it’s almost like a blink of an eye for them. (x)

Hope and Klaus have a strained relationship, despite Hayley and Freya trying very hard to keep them all close. Klaus ignored Hope over the years and Hope isn’t thrilled about it. (x) (x)

Nobody at school knows Hope is a Mikaelson. (x)

Riley describes Freya’s first love as her family.  (x) 

Hayley has found happiness with her new boyfriend Declan (x)

Freya is experiencing peace for the first time in her life though struggling to put herself first, she’s in love and happy, though working to bring her family back together and has also been very active in Hope’s life, working as her mentor and support system, which causes conflict with Klaus. It has also been stated that she is in her late 30′s / early 40′s but has physically aged slowly (SDCC)(x)(x)(x) 

During the time jump, Klaus has gone on a murder spree (SDCC)

Hayley and Hope have a typical chaotic mother/daughter relationship and there  will be ‘many’ scenes with the two of them together. During the time jump Hayley has helped Hope with school projects, focused on her personal life, and also tried to overcome her heartbreak to be strong for Hope. (SDCC) (x) (x)

Marcel will reflect on his past and how he’s managed the quarter. (x) 

We see why Rebekah makes the same mistakes over and over, going deep into who she is. (x) 

Klaus hasn’t been in touch in five years (x)

Klaus visits Elijah in Manosque, France and converses with him, though Elijah has no clue who he is (x)

There’s a Freya/Elijah moment in which there’s tears of happiness (x)

Hayley is not in every episode this season. Elijah will also not be in at least one episode. However, Klaus is in all. (x) (x) 

We get an episode that is Elijah from start to finish. We get to see where Elijah left off in the s4 finale, and what he’s been doing in the seven years that’s passed. Julie has said she had “Being able to write a narrative for Elijah that allowed him to live an entirely different life and imagining what that life would look like was a lot of fun,”  (x) (x)

Hope is aware of the kind of man her father is and what he’s done, and is annoyed he's trying to hide it from her (x)

On new characters:

Minor characters cast for the season include Nicholas Alexander as “Henry Benoit”,  Alexis Louder as “Lisina”, Katie Cook as “Poppy”, Malone Thomas as “Colette”, Jamie Thomas King as  “August Muller”, Kyle Jackson as “Lookie Loo”, Jason Burkey as “David”, Shiva Kalaiselvan as “Ivy”,  Bella Samman &  Allison Gobuzzi as “Josie & Lizzie Saltzman”  (x)(x)(x)(x)(x)(x)

Several love interests have been cast for main characters. Jaime Murray has been cast as Elijah’s new love interest Antoinette - “a beautiful, “old-school” vampire who meets Elijah shortly after he loses his memories. Her flirtatious, free-spirited nature masks dark secrets about her painful past” - who will appear in episode 3. Torrance Coombs has been cast as Declan - a flirty Irish chef completely ignorant to the supernatural until Hayley introduces him to it - and he’s to be Hayley’s new love interest. He’s been described as her ‘friend with benefits’ and Hayley has been described as ‘the woman he loves’ Jedediah Goodacre has been cast as Roman - “ a charming vampire who takes an interest in Hope after a “mysterious incident” occurs at her school” - Hope’s love interest. Another love interest for Hope includes Landon, portrayed by  Aria Shahghasemi  -   “a thoughtful, compassionate and self-aware kid from the wrong side of the tracks who catches Hope’s attention when she witnesses him being bullied by his affluent classmates,” & “desperate to escape his broken home and the small southern town in which it stands. Despite being human, Landon apparently has a shady past, and investigating it could lead him into the dangerous world of the supernatural.” - who will appear in the penultimate episode  (x) (x) (x) (x) (SDCC)

A character named Margot is set to appear, described as “a “calculating” vampire, whose glory days trace all the way back to 1920s Europe. She recently moved to New Orleans, and she has an “almost zealous devotion to her family.”  (x) It’s highly likely that ‘Margot’ has been renamed to ‘Greta Sienna’ and will be played by Nadine Lewington as the character descriptions are identical (x)(x)

On TVD character appearances 

Candice King is set to appear in 4 episodes,  501, 506, 512 & 513, reprising her role from The Vampire Diaries as Caroline Forbes-Salvatore, Headmistress of the school Hope attends - it was also confirmed she recorded audio for a fifth episode. Matt Davis will reprise his TVD role as Alaric Saltzman in episode 512. Demetrius Bridges will also reprise his TVD role as “Dorian Williams” 501 at least (x)(x)(x)(x)(x)(x)(x)

Stefan Salvatore mentions are possible. And due to a bts photograph of stand ins that have hair unmistakably like that of Stefan, it’s almost certain he will appear along with his brother Damon. (x) (x) (Though in an interview, Paul has said he likely wont cameo, which means that the stand in’s may simply be filmed from the back to represent the Salvatore’s, though their faces and voices wont be appearing) 

Regarding Flashbacks:

Summer Fontana will return as Hope in flashbacks  as we see her struggle with her magic as she grows older. (x) (x) ( Also confirmed by Danielle Russell in her insta live when she said she met Summer on set) 

There’ll be a flashback to 1x22 show how Hope got her name (x) (further evidenced by this photo of Phoebe on set wearing her 1x22 post-birth costume)

On the final episode:

In the finale there’ll be a bench scene between Elijah and Klaus similar to the one in the first episode (x)

When asked about the finale, Joseph said “The family doesn’t all sail off together into the sunset. There is hope there, there is definitely some sort of peace for everyone. It’s very emotional.”  (x)

One of Julie’s regrets is that there was never a full scene on why Elijah believed Klaus had dropped the family into the ocean, though it is touched upon in the finale.  (x)

Julie says there’s no character who had their ending planned from day one (x)

The show probably won’t get a happy ending and it’s possible that the final words of the show may end up being the iconic “always and forever” (SDCC) (x) (Danielle said in her insta live that she believes the finale ties a lot of things together)

On Vincent:

It’s confirmed Vincent will be given a love interest and has just been carrying on with ‘business as usual’ in New Orleans, he’s been maintaining the stability of the city. He’s comfortable but vigilant. (SDCC) (x) 

He is managing the quarter, restoring peace and calm (with a little help from Freya) (x)

On Hope / Roman

Roman and Hope is described as “Complicated but really interesting” (Danielle’s insta live)

Roman appears to be the only person who knows Hope is a Mikaelson, it’s unknown if he’s always been aware or is new to the fact.  (x)

On  Freya / Keelin

Freya and Keelin have a love that runs deep but they’ll hit hurdles along the way (x)

Freya is ‘so in love with’ Keelin - “Keelin definitely wants her to put herself first, and it’s just really hard for Freya. But I think you’ll start to see that transition a little bit, where she starts kind of considering, you know, ‘This is what’s best, and my family understands, and that doesn’t tear us apart.’ - Riley (x)

Keelin has been spending time with Doctors Without Borders, in the Middle East (currently in Lebanon) and is often away from New Orleans; Freya astral projects to her. They spend a lot of time apart, as Freya doesn’t want to leave the city till her family are reunited, this gets to Keelin. Keelin wants to spend the rest of her life with Freya, but wants to explore their relationship when Freya isn’t as connected to her family. Freya fears she’ll lose Keelin if she doesn’t join her in Lebanon. (x)

On Hayley / Elijah -

Elijah and Hayley will have a conversation about their past, future, regrets and dreams and their relationship this season is described as “equal love and pain” in regards to them, though Julie hopes the two will find peace in eternity together (x) (x) (SDCC) 

Hayley & Elijah will appear in Mystic Falls during the season (x)(x) 

On Marcel / Rebekah - 

Marcel and Rebekah have remained in New York over the time jump, Charles joked they were ‘catching broadway shows’ and couldn’t get tickets to see Hamilton (SDCC) 

They have a penthouse in New York, and they’re doing ‘pretty good’, coping well with the Mikaelson separation, though Rebekah does get upset and it sometimes causes tension. (x)

On Kol / Davina -

Kol and Davina are married in season 5, the wedding happened in the time jump. Nate described their relationship this season as  “The struggle that comes into play is now that he has this responsibility to his wife, he also has this struggle with his family. And I guess as he tries to separate from the family, his family tries to drag him back in. It becomes a bit of a struggle between wife and family.” (x)

On Klaus / Caroline -

Caroline and Klaus will have three scenes together in 501. She will be there to call Klaus out on his shit. Caroline also has at least one scene with Klaus in the season finale in New Orleans. (SDCC) (x)

Julie say’s that they don’t collide and get a happy ending - because she thinks their relationship is more mature than that.  In the same interview Joseph is satisfied with how the characters leave off, and he hopes the way it’s done will pay tribute to the fans and their devotion, but warns that not everyone will be happy. (x)

According to Candice, Julie has always had a ‘clear idea’ of what she wanted from Klaus and Caroline together, and the final season of The Originals gives life to that. (x)

Misc info:

The Hollow will remain a prominent enemy in the season, but there’ll be another big bad to contend with.  “The Big Bad this year is launched from an ideology more so than one singular person’s nefarious desire, It’s an ideology that was spawned almost a century ago, a movement that has been simmering and stewing over that century. It does have a personal connection to the Mikaelson family, but it also has a thematic resonance that is very timely.”   (x)

Every year, Josh, Freya, Vincent and Hayley prep for Mardi Gras together  (x)

Julie promises a ‘sliver’ of hope for Klaus and Cami fans (x)

Don’t expect a friendship between Caroline’s twins and Hope, it seems that the age gap isn’t workable for the three witches to become friends. (x) (x)

New Orleans has been at peace without Klaus (x) (x)

The werewolves still have their upgraded power, as Hayley and Jackson kept their vows until he died, and the werewolves will be included more this season (x)(x) 

Caroline and Freya don’t have scenes together (x) 

Caroline will also have a scene with Josh in 501 (SDCC)

Julie scripted a wolf!Klaus scene but it was cut (x)

UNDER THE CUT ARE THE ‘ACCIDENTAL SPOILERS’ FROM THE WRITERS ROOM. DO NOT READ IF YOU DO NOT WISH TO BE SPOILED BEYOND WHAT THE WRITERS HAVE OFFICIALLY CLEARED

These are the ‘accidental spoilers’ - spoilers that were leaked by the writers unintentionally and the photograph which revealed them was quickly deleted. These have been put under the cut so those who do not wish to view them do not have to.

This was posted by the new showrunner Jeff Lieber, the storyboard is from episode 507 - it was promptly deleted

As the image is hard to read, I’ll decode it down here;

Hayley dies in 5x06, she burns to death. Klaus tries to save her but is unable to as someone stops him. Elijah watches her death.

Elijah’s memory returns.

Someone (possibly Margot due to the last letter of the name being ‘T’ and she is the only character with a name ending in ‘T’) knows Hope could be the ‘Ruin or Salvation’ of New Orleans.

Margot is killed to protect Hope (Which furthers the theory that she knows Hope could ruin NOLA and may have tried to stop her)  

Vincent is on the outs with Klaus and Freya

Keelin is pregnant - judging by the comment “Freya/Keelin resolution” it could be assumed that Freya is unhappy about the situation

Marcel and Davina reunite, and Elijah is going to help Davina with a problem.

There’s a flashback in 507 -which is presumably the 1x22 flashback that Julie has all but confirmed is where Hope’s name is decided upon  (due to the nature of the flashback and the episode in which it takes place in, one can assume that Klaus is telling Hope how she got her name in an attempt to comfort her) (also see this post here explaining how people came to the conclusion that the flashback is set in 1x22)

Hope goes missing and is searched for by Klaus and Caroline

Hayley’s funeral is in 5x07, Klaus speaks at her funeral. On the board there are several points questioning the kind of funeral Hayley will have, a second line typical of new orleans, or a crescent ceremony in the bayou -judging by info from fans who watched filming in Conyers (from videos that have now been deleted) - there was a second line funeral parade filmed meaning Hayley probably doesn’t get a Crescent ceremony.

Hope is angered by Hayley’s ‘calm funeral’ and is to make a ‘big move’ at the end of the episode.

#the originals #toedit #original groupies #the vampire diaries #to #tos5

[skarsgard-daydreams]

The way we were robbed so utterly of Eric and Sookie going to an orgy together...

Alan Ball, I have a bone to pick with you.

#eric northman #sookie Stackhouse #living dead in dallas #quotes #Southern Vampire Mysteries #Southern Vampire Mysteries spoilers #Eric x Sookie #Sooric

[rewolfaekilerom]

this week in reading.

//NOTE: This was originally posted on Wordpress on 04.11.2021//

I read a few things this week, and I thought I’d group them all together in this post because they’ve collectively helped me come to a realization about my reading preferences.

Let me preface this by saying that I’ve never really given much thought to the genres of books I like to read. Or, rather, I never really knew how to put into words what I like about the books I like. I can say “oh, I like mystery” or “I really enjoy some fantasy stuff,” but there wasn’t a unifying element or genre. Or so I thought.

I feel a bit like I’m confessing something, but after re-reading the first 8 books of Charlaine Harris’s Southern Vampire Mysteries (Sookie Stackhouse, True Blood, whatever) and then reading Daphne Du Maurier’s Jamaica Inn for the first time, along with Lucy Foley’s The Guest List and the first few pages of Alix Harrow’s The Once and Future Witches, I’m ready to say that my preferred genre is gothic.

My all-time favorite novelist is Barbara Michaels. I’ve been reading her books since I was probably too young to be reading them–maybe 9 or 10? I remember reading one of her books in the backseat of the car during a family trip to Vermont, which must have been around that time. Her novels are often categorized as “romance novels,” but I think it’s actually Romance (with a capital R, as in the early 18C literary movement, not a Harlequin romance). Other sources will say they’re gothic or supernatural suspenses. I agree with that, and maybe one day I’ll write about why I love those books so much. For now, though, it’s enough to say that I love them.

So, Du Maurier is a new favorite of mine. Rebecca was one of the first books I read for fun after finishing the PhD, and it was the first book that I felt free to read without also dissecting. I loved it so much, so I’ve had her other books on my “to read” list for a while.

The thing I love the most about Rebecca–and, I guess, about all gothic novels, really–is the atmosphere. That’s something Barbara Michaels gets right, too, but the focus right now is Rebecca. This is a book that’s saturated with atmosphere. The way Du Maurier describes spaces and the bodies that move through those spaces is sensuous, rich, and complex. As you read Rebecca, you feel like you can smell the rooms the narrator meanders through–it’s like Maxim’s aftershave and Rebecca’s perfume linger and lift off the page as you read. Your body feels clammy and compressed as you read the narrator’s thoughts as she navigates the literal and figurative maze of life at Manderley.

And then, bonus, you get a really good mystery.

I’m a sucker for a mystery. So, yeah, I like gothic novels, but I especially love gothic mysteries. It took me a PhD and 30 years of life to realize this fact, but that’s fine. No judgment here.

Back to Rebecca: it’s a rich story–rich in every sense of the word. Honestly, I don’t even know if “rich” is saying enough. It’s SATURATED with atmosphere. As I read that book, I feel like I am in Monte Carlo and Manderley. I know the scenery, and the faces populating that scenery, better than I’ve known some apartments I’ve lived in or some people I spent hours with. It’s a visceral reading experience, and I love every second of it. You can reread Rebecca. That means a lot.

Another thing about this book? We are all the narrator. I don’t care who you are or how badass you are. The narrator’s insecurities and struggles and worries and anxieties are something you’ve felt at some point in your life. It’s relatable in a way that is almost disorienting and repugnant. You identify with the narrator, but you also come to hate her and her insecurities and her naiveté. I think that says more about the reader than it does about anything else, but what do I know? In any case, that’s a story where jealousy and insecurity–things that are intrinsically tied to power–are the veils around which hides a deeper narrative about how our identities form and how one’s ability to consolidate one’s own identity is itself an act of power that can be denied.

I’m constantly puzzled if I think Maxim and the narrator’s story is a romance. The Netflix adaptation says it is, and sometimes I think it is. Well, maybe not in the “in love” sense of the word “romance” but in the “loving” sense of the word. I guess it doesn’t matter, but it’s something I think about while reading. “Romance” and “love” can be a lot of different things, and that’s a book where lust looks like love, but kindness and companionship also looks like love.

All this is to say that I love Rebecca and I had high hopes for Jamaica Inn, which in a lot of ways lived up to but also didn’t live up to those expectations. It’s good, don’t get me wrong. I read it in two days and mostly enjoyed it. But what Jamaica Inn doesn’t have–and what most other gothic novels get right, for me–is a terror, an insidiousness, a series of threats to the heroine that are subtle and suggestive. This book doesn’t play with your head like you might expect a gothic novel to do; it lays its cards on the table and then slaps you in the face with danger.

Rebecca is a compelling read because you don’t really know what’s wrong at Manderley for most of the book; you just know something is wrong and you want to figure out what it is, so you keep reading. With Jamaica Inn, you know what’s wrong–you know that Mary’s uncle is a brute and violent and menacing. It doesn’t matter that he’s a smuggler or a murderer or a wrecker (spoiler: he’s all of those things) because he proves early on that he’s a monster. And by the time you get something compelling–for instance, the fact that the uncle isn’t acting alone, or rather that he’s not in charge of the smuggling operation–you’re 70% through the book.

So, yes, to correct myself: there is an unknown threat, and that’s the vicar. He’s the “true” bad guy, but honestly, they’re all bad guys in some way or another. The danger he presents is real because he’s a wolf in sheep’s clothing–as his illustration not-so-subtly points out–but again, it slaps you in the face. And by the novel’s early twentieth-century, ableist approach to characterization, his physical difference–the very fact that he is albino–serves to mark his difference. We know there’s something different about him because he looks different. It’s a tale as old as time. It’s not a good tale, and it’s not a tale that we’d want to see written now, but it’s important to acknowledge that the trope of physical difference/disability standing in for some questionable moral quality (or even innate evilness) was and is common in literature across the globe. So any adept reader will know from the moment that the narrator makes the vicar’s albinism apparent that there’s something up with him. Reading the scenes with the vicar made me long for a story that would do something different. I’d hoped his albinism was a red herring–that it was simply a facet of his character that indicated nothing about his moral standing or views of the world. But alas, my hopes were dashed and Du Maurier rubbed my nose in my own optimism. Maybe I’m taking it a bit personally.

Shifting gears slightly but not too much, the romance plot is endearing, but you can see where it’s going from the second Jem steps onto the page–he’s the good brother who’s pure at heart, and we know this because he’s so much younger than Mary’s uncle, was often the victim of his elder brothers’ bullying, spent more time with his mother, and is engaged in less morally questionable illegal activity. He can be forgiven while the uncle cannot; he’s worthy of love while the uncle is not; he will come out alright while the uncle will not. We get a few pages where we question his nobleness, but that skepticism is quickly dashed from our minds as someone else steps in to be another bad guy. I like that, but it also left me feeling grounded throughout the reading experience. I had two feet on the ground and knew exactly where I was going while reading Jamaica Inn. I don’t feel that way while reading Rebecca or many other gothic novels, and I like that.

And again, the pacing is frustrating. I’m not talking about the pages and pages of describing moors or landscape. I studied 19C lit; I’m comfortable with that. I might even say I enjoy it. In fact, there’s a lot about this novel that feels like something like, say, Lillie Devereux Blake’s Fettered for Life. It’s a good book, but the interesting parts sometimes get buried in storylines that aren’t as compelling. What I’m talking about is the fact that 70% of the novel is the same threat and then the interesting threat–the stuff that might get a reader invested and destabilized–takes up the last 20-30%. The climax of the novel felt hurried, and the denouement was like downhill skiing rather than a winding, twisty ride through a not-so-lazy river. (That metaphor got away from me.) This book needed a heavy-handed editor.

Which ties in with my experience reading Foley’s The Guest List. Apparently this and The Hunting Party are essentially the same story with different locales. Or maybe a better way of putting this is that both of these books show Foley adopting the same premise with more or less successful results. The Guest List got better ratings than The Hunting Party on Goodreads, so I followed my novel-reading-and-reviewing overlords. In any case, though, it suffers from the same issue with organization, if we’re going to put it in first-year-composition terms. But where Jamaica Inn manages to keep you invested in its characters for 100% of the novel even though the stuff that is psychologically compelling (even if it wasn’t exactly what I’d hoped for) takes up maybe 30-40% of the book, The Guest List truly does contain its climax and denouement within the last 5% of the book. If the climax and denouement of Jamaica Inn felt like downhill skiing, those parts of The Guest List felt like riding a rocket straight into Earth–there was no suspense, no delayed gratification. The book spent the majority of its pages vaguely creating and then completing its unlikeable characters’ backstories before then murdering its most unlikeable character and identifying the potential suspects for the murder all in the span of, like, 10 pages.

Murder. Chapter for suspect 1. Chapter for suspect 2. Chapter for suspect 3. Chapter for suspect 4 . . . Back to murder and . . . REVEAL.

The thing about this is that it’s taking something that Agatha Christie did right and making it obnoxious and tedious. Christie and countless others have played with the same type of story structure: revealing that someone has not died but not saying who, presenting a cast of characters who all have something to hide, showing the murder but obscuring the murderer, revealing that all of the characters were connected in some former life and thus have a reason to kill, refusing to reveal the murderer until the last possible second. Together, these can be incredibly successful at building suspense and keeping the reader on their toes. But The Guest List takes those techniques for building suspense–especially jumping in time and between narrators in order to give all sides of a situation while still masterfully leaving the reader in the dark, so to speak (which is also arguably a facet of gothic lit), in order to keep the reader invested–and turns it into something that manages to make you less invested.

I’m not going to rehash the plot, so check it out on Goodreads. My novel-reading-and-reviewing overlords have done it better than I ever could. But the thing I want to emphasize is that despite (1) knowing that a murder has happened and (2) recognizing early on that nearly every character is sketchy and hiding something, I never really cared all that much to find out who was murdered or why. It just . . . didn’t concern me. I was more invested in making sure all of the female characters escape with minimal harm done to them by a gaggle of, frankly, lecherous men.

To put it bluntly, I’m tired of mystery novels that attempt to create suspense by putting their female characters in danger of sexually aggressive men. It’s lazy, and so is using self-harm to prove that a character is going through something.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s an interesting premise and the description of the scenery is gorgeous. Foley gets those things so right. I could dwell in the detailed and atmospheric descriptions of this secluded island for days. In fact, I wish there was more of that–maybe with less of the lecherous-man-lechery and self-harm. Swap those things and we’d be on our way to something that’d make me want to read again.

In case you haven’t noticed, I judge a book by how willing I am to read it again. I LOVE rereading books, so it’s a compliment when I want to do so.

So, where does this bring us in my week of reading? Jamaica Inn was good but not as good as Rebecca. The Guest List is a story about characters who are so utterly unlikeable you end up wanting the boat to abandon them on that island.

And then there’s Harris’s series. I’ve read most of them before–probably as a teenager? I thought I’d read all of them, but Wikipedia tells me there’s 13 books rather than 8. It looks like I stopped reading when I started college, which makes sense in some way. Say what you will about this series (I enjoy it), but from a technical standpoint–that is, from the standpoint of pacing and organization and world-building–this series does a lot of things right. I’ll write on it in the future, maybe, but I’ll just say that I think this is a surprising example of a series that takes gothic and supernatural tropes and wields them to their fullest potential. I like that.

So, I guess that means I have like 5 books to read now. That’s a pretty awesome surprise, if you ask me.

xoxo, you know.