#and a refreshing amount of love and kindness for a fantasy book

[londonhalcyon]

Now I’m reading The Priory of the Orange Tree, and uh…

Fellas, is it gay to place a rose under the pillow of the woman you’re sworn to protect, right before she has sex with her new husband, so that all night she smells the flower and thinks of you?

#what is WITH this book #there are so many feelings #and a refreshing amount of love and kindness for a fantasy book #i’m having a good time #the priory of the orange tree

[terapsina]

Reasons to watch Love Between Fairy and Devil.

A Chinese fantasy romantic drama with a dash of comedy in the beginning and a huge wallop of angst in the second half.

One, the romance.

(take careful note of this gesture, please, it will break your hearts in the future)

Okay, so this is honestly one of the best told love stories I've watched in recent memory. And that is honestly very impressive when you consider how very easy it is to mess up this kind of love story.

She's Xiao Lanhua (or 'Little Orchid Fairy'), bright and innocent and kind. And in the beginning more than a bit naive and foolish. A fairy who is looked down on because of her damaged immortal root, who bends under the pressure of the bullying she's always known from the other fairies. Lonely in her home of Arbiter Hall where she looks after the destiny books alone by herself because her shifu left to wander the mortal realms.

He's Dongfang Qingcang. The Moon Supreme, the leader of the Moon Tribe who has been imprisoned following the last war between his people and the Heavenly Realm 30'000 years ago. He's cold and unfeeling and quite literally heartless (this involves fantasy reasons and some pretty horrible childhood trauma that gets slowly unraveled through the story).

And in the beginning the only reason he doesn't kill her as soon as he's free is that there's an accidental curse that ties his life to hers. If she dies so does he. If she's cut, so is he. And whatever emotion she feels, he will feel too. Whatever order she gives, he must follow. And sometimes, under certain conditions, they switch bodies.

(the actors have great fun with it, warning of huge amounts of second-hand embarrassment in two out of 36 episodes, I nearly died, it was worth it)

He keeps her safe because he has no choice.

And the thing is that he doesn't actually ever try to seduce her. The normal formula of this kind of story is 'he lies, seduces her, then falls in love, but still breaks her heart, she forgives him' right? This show though? It plays with the formula, yeah, but it twists it in a very interesting (in my opinion) way.

There's a misunderstanding between them. And here's some of the comedy of the show. She thinks he's fallen in love with her and she's trying to gently let him down. Meanwhile he's not actually pretending that he's in love with her, he's just not telling her exactly why he can't let her out of his sight.

And the development in both their characters is incredibly detailed and intricate. They both grow immensely through the story. As Dongfang Qingcang first experiences emotions through her and then as his own emotions begin to wake up following that. As Xiao Lanhua starts out wanting to return to her normal life and then falls in love not only with him but also his land and his people.

They're very Hades and Persephone (minor kidnappings including). And very Romeo and Juliet (though more mature about it, she isn't actually willing to compromise her own morality just because she's fallen in love with him).

And their love story isn't at all rushed. It takes nearly three quarters of the story for them both to fall in love, it is gradual and believable and mutual. And then once they have fallen in love despite the fact that there are all kinds of very familiar angsty plots thrown at them, none of them get dragged out to annoying lengths and many of them get resolved in very refreshing ways.

(angst, there will be such big whallops of angst, my friends)

But the romance is not the ONLY thing this show has going for it. It is what changes the fate of all three realms, yes, but there are other relationships that deserve to be mentioned.

And other characters, because this is actually a pretty beautifully built ensemble show.

One character is Dongfang Qingcang's brother Xun Feng, the character that in a different show would be the malicious underhanded brother who wants to steal his brother's throne and cares only of power.

Here though, after an old secret is revealed and he finds out the truth behind the reason (a good one) he's hated his brother for thousands of years his wish to rebuild his relationship with his brother is genuine. And though there are things he does after that which could have been because of cruelty in a different show, here they are simply misguided.

(there are lots of awkward Dongfang Qingcang trying to show affection for the first time since childhood scenes, they're adorable, and hilarious)

Then there's the false friendship between Xiao Lanhua and Jie Li which slowly develops into a real one through the power of Xiao Lanhua being simply too stubborn and too good and too genuine for Jie Li to remain stone against.

(here portrayed scene of Jie Li flinching under horror that is Dongfang Qingcang doing his very best to make Xiao Lanhua as ugly and unattractive as possible)

Jie Li is an orphan of the Moon Tribe from Haishi City who has spent her entire life scrapping for survival by lying and cheating. Including by selling to Xiao Lanhua fake cures for her damaged immortal root.

Again, there are certain ways you'd expect her story to go. You'd be wrong.

And then the relationship between Dongfang Qingcang and his most loyal guard, the Black Dragon Shang Que.

(here shown the reaction to the miracle of his lord patting his brother on the shoulder).

Poor dragon needs to deal with a lot and deserves a raise. He's also just as dumb as the rest of them. And FYI falls in love with Jie Li.

And then of course is the very healthy way this show portrays unrequited love too.

There are two characters who this is shown through. One is fairy Dan Yin who is in love with the God of War Chang Heng and is introduced as a spoiled bully but very quickly is shown being capable of fairness and ultimately gets developed into a character that you want to see gaining happiness.

The other character is Chang Heng himself who is secretly in love with Xiao Lanhua (who actually does have a crush on him bourne from gratefulness and a little hero-worship at the start of the story), but he ultimately loses his chance through inaction and silence that he abandons too late. But I want to make clear that he is not an unlikable character. In a different show he would have been the other lead. Just... not in this one.

Anyway, the two characters experience unrequited affection and though both go through stages of denial and unwillingness to abandon hope, neither do either one of them ever turns into something despicable - and when the time where they must choose between selfishness that would hurt the ones they love, and selflessness that would save them comes around both do the right thing.

Which is something I found refreshing and a relief.

And this show has so many relationships that get fully developed and explored. Not simply between the main couple and those around them. But between the secondary characters themselves. Other than the relationships I've already mentioned, other ones that have their chance in the sun are Xiao Lanhua and Dan Yin, Dan Yin and Jie Li, Dongfang Qingcang and Chang Heng, Xun Feng and Xiao Lanhua. And more besides.

And then there's the villain of the story who is both monstrous and utterly unforgivable and yet also has a very sad story and motivations for what they do. I can't really say anything more though.

Basically I just really recommend this show to fans of fantasy and people with a weakness for a very compelling, well developed love story.

For those interested, the first five episodes are available to be watched free on the official streaming site here (at which point you can decide if it's worth subscribing for a single month to finish watching).

I think it's also going to be available on Netflix on September 18, 2022 update: September 9, 2022.

That's of course for the... official sites. There are of course other options available 🏴‍☠️.

P.S. I finished the entire show with all its 36 episodes in three days (despite it being my first time watching a live action Chinese TV series) am now going into withdrawal. Seriously, this show is SO GOOD, I PROMISE.

P.P.S. It's got a happy ending. I will not tell you anything other than that. But yes, it's got a happy ending.

#love between fairy and devil #xiao lanhua #xiao lan hua #dongfang qingcang #xun feng #jie li #shang que #dan yin #chang heng #terapsina rambles #can lan jue #苍兰诀 #tv rec #tv recs #otp: in thousands of identical orchids i will find you in an instant #terapsina's lbfad rambles #moon orchid

[snifferish]

Sneafie Book Review: "Where the Dark Stands Still" by A.B. Porenek

Alright gamers that's right I'm posting book reviews on my tumblr, BOO! Jumpscare! Anyways I'm a spoiler free kinda guy here we go.

This week I read Where the Dark Stands Still by A.B. Porenek, this is a Young Adult Fantasy novel that leans slightly into the gothic genre. It's got a lot of Polish Folklore, It's kind of a beauty and the beast retelling? The author and the marketing has compared it to Howl's Moving Castle, which is why I originally took interest in it.

Personally, I gave this a four star rating, but on the Sneaf'o'meter of precision I'd say 73%

Let's get into the good and the everything else.

First off, If you like fun prose and description, this is for you. The Author's range of being able to describe something so beautiful and then transition to something grotesque and everywhere in between is wonderful. This ability comes into play frequently with how she describes the house in the story (which is sentient).

The magic system in this??????? Spectacular, I loved the concept. I've seen things similar to it, but it was so simple yet meaningful (AHH!). Probably my favorite part.

Another really prominent point in the marketing is the amount of Polish Folklore. There's a few specific spirits and demons referenced that are apart of it. I'm no expert on Polish folklore that's for sure, so I can't say whether it was truthful, or what the Author directly took from it. However I can say it was refreshing, new and I learned things :)

Okay sooo... Welcome to a segment called, why not five stars? I hesitate to say something is "bad" about about this book because I think it's really just preference at this point.

The exposition was normally paced but around the exposition into rising action area I felt like It was stalled. Really the book was just giving vibes left and right which is totally cool to some people, but because some information was withheld to certain points I felt like I was missing a lot of the foundation for the conflict and by the time I understood the conflict I was just like ahh, okay.

The romance plot within the story is pretty big, and to me it felt, okay. Just okay. I'll admit I'm a stinky gay that holds heterosexual romances to high standards so maybe that's why I wasn't so into it??? Again! I was so excited, I was thinking yes, it's like Howl's Moving Castle! and I just didn't get that. However, a lot of people who read this and reviewed it did get those vibes, so... not sure. Also, I think pet names just aren't my thing.... It's not usually something I find appealing in romance storylines.

Ultimately, I still really enjoyed this book. This is Porenek's debut novel, and I think it's very promising! Her writing style is excellent and I imagine she can only get better.

Also, this doesn't effect my rating at all, but I am begging fantasy Authors of all kinds to considering adding pronunciation guides. There where times I had access to my computer and I could look it up, but even then I don't know if google is telling me the right way to say it.

if you've read this I'd love to know your thoughts and if youre going to read it, well same, basically, do tell.

#snifferish #booklr #bookblr #book review #book recommendations #sneafie book review

[rayne-the-neutrois-nerd]

heeyyyy

about those booktubers you mentioned that talk of a wide range of book types 👀 could you rec me some pretty please?

Yeah ofc!! I mean I should warn you is that they do mostly read fantasy, but they do have other favorites and genres they like, but fantasy is their favorite (...because fantasy is my favorite so ofc I follow the ones with similar tastes)

Daniel Greene- Talks about the scifi fantasy world as a whole, has a segment of videos called Fantasy News covering new fantasy stuff for all mediums, not just books. HUGE fan of The Wheel Of Time and tbh where I got a crap ton of my recs for fantasy series. He has tons of like, ranking videos and stuff just talking about the fantasy genre from newest to oldest to trad to indie and it's great. Also his bookshelf roasts are great.

A Clockwork Reader- One of the first I watched, is a big fan of like, soft fantasy? She used to say magical realism but then she and i learned that that is a latin american term and I forgot what the alternative for the name is for it, and google isn't helping. Her favorite book is The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern so, books like that, with that vibe. Should note is that for fantasy she does lean more towards ya but there is a good amount of adult in there. She loves classics and poetry as well and reads a good decent amount of nonfiction, especially if it's about intersectionality and feminism. I also like her voice, it's pretty soothing.

Unresolved Textual Tension- Technically a podcast, but they have youtube videos. I love these guys, they're so funny. I found them when they were tearing apart Lightlark and then other infamous books. But they do have plently of books they adore they talk about. AND THEIR OPINIONS ON STUFF DIFFER SOMETIMES!!! I love hearing them debate when one likes an element and the other doesn't. And even if the book is bad, they do still give compliments if they think something deserves it! And the opposite is the same too, if they don't like something in a book they love, they'll bring it up. They're really fair with their reviews. They inspiried me to pick up Temeraire and so far I'm liking it!

Holly Hearts Books- Okay to be fair I haven't checked in on her in a tad but from when I binged her stuff I loved how enthusiastic she is about fantasy. And she's not shy to admit if a book is technically bad even if she enjoyed it (because people can like bad things! Poorly written stuff can sometimes be fun and thats okay!). Or if it's a really well written book but just isn't her thing. She's another that also really loves to make sure she adds indie books into her collection instead of just trad stuff. (Or at least she was when I last watched. It's been a handful of months but eh)

Merphy Napier- Kind of like Daniel, but more focused on books. Occasionally she talks about other media but not super often. But she's also not fantasy-specfic and actually talks about a wide range of age ranges since she has kids and she sometimes talks about some good middle grade! It's just refreshing. Totally got me wanting to read Lies of Lock Lamura (Ugh fuck is that what it is??? Fuck...)

Elliot Brooks- Similar to Merphy but more just Adult Fantasy but does talk about some indie published stuff too. Haven't watched her in a tad but I do remember liking her takes.

Reads With Rachel- Okay we're getting into the handful of people who are more reviewers and are harsher?? with critques?? Rachel does have a ton of books that she's shared that she loves but she does offer good insight into bad books about WHY. And sometimes she reads bad books just to point out why they're harmful in a funny but respectful manner. Also if you wanna keep up to date with some shitty authors and who to stay away from and why, then her videos called Authors Behaving Badly are pretty good. She offers some good insight about a lot of things. Also VERY LOUDLY anti-book banning and censorship, to where she put some video evidence of her going to her like, town meetings about them and speaking out about it.

Crow Caller- Absolute ruthless longform videos about Why X Book Is Bad, but I feel they approach it more from "This is a learning experience, we can see what not to do by examining a work that doesn't get it right". Also funny. Mostly reviews like, christian-ish inspired book series because I think they're ex-catholic? Or thats just a topic she likes to dive into I dunno.

Tale Foundry- Okay this one is odd because it's more of a writing channel but they often use specific stories to showcase a trope, or technique, or magic system, etc etc. So I guess you can kinda use that as a reccommendation? I kinda do.

#sorry this took forever I had to keep stopping bc im at work

[ilikereadingactually]

The Imperial Radch Trilogy

hoooo boy, do my mismatched covers annoy me! so much that i ordered lightly used copies of each book with its other cover also, and will soon have a full set of each, because i am one of those people.

Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie

picking up a book that's as exquisitely written as this is like slipping into a warm bath. like i can just relax, because i'm in skilled hands. the amount of trust that precise, compelling prose can win from me in just a few pages is astonishing, and has rarely been misplaced.

and this is one that requires a little bit of trust! like many of my favorite speculative books, there's no soulless infodumping about the world here--background is given when it fits and serves the narrative, and otherwise you learn the world by experience. through the distinct and fascinating experience of Breq, in fact, who used to be the AI of a military spaceship with many ancillary bodies (human bodies that house its consciousness and crew the ship) and now exists as only one lone ancillary on a revenge mission. i love Breq's very specific and unusual perspective; i love jumping back and forth in time to see the past and the present and wonder how they're going to collide; i love weird space politics and religion and the exploration of emotion as a part of sentience. also!! i love many of the side characters!! Breq is really the focus, but everyone else who enters the story, even briefly, is clear and interesting, and some of them made me cry.

and i love the way gender is presented in this book SO MUCH. Breq comes from a society that doesn't distinguish gender, and uses "she" as the default pronoun, which i already love. and the book doesn't give many clear visual descriptions of anyone--so we're fully inside that perspective. Breq does take some notice of class, through accents and clothing, but just isn't at all concerned with markers of gender, and actively has difficulty identifying gender in other languages and cultures she encounters. i think this takes a lot of skill to write, and it's frankly baller to read.

also! i fucking love that the standard of not only beauty but high class and privilege in this society is dark skin!!!!!!!! dark is fashionable! dark is aristocratic!! i mean im never gonna be like "this fantasy imperialist classism is actually the good kind" because that's missing the whole point of the books, but it's so REFRESHING to visualize.

a line i really liked: AI to AI communication

"You still had your ancillaries," said Mercy of Kalr. "Yes." "I like my soldiers, but I miss having ancillaries." That reminded me. "They aren't doing maintenance as they should. The hinges on the airlock door were very sticky." "I'm sorry." "It doesn't matter now," I said, and it struck me that something similar might have delayed Anaander Mianaai's attempts to open the lock on her side. "But you'll want to have your officers get after them."

books 2 and 3 under the cut!

Ancillary Sword by Ann Leckie

LOVE a second book in a series that delights me just as much as the first but in new and different ways!! Leckie's prose is still gorgeous, that's a given. but this book, as with many good speculative series, heightens the stakes and broadens the world. where the first book was a somewhat more intimate story about a few connected characters and the pursuit of a personal goal, the second book brings in more complex political intrigue, addresses more widespread injustices, and introduces an array of excellent new characters. the first book held on to its tension by moving back and forth in time; this book takes advantage of the wider spread and Breq's particular kind of perception to tell multiple stories happening simultaneously, through glimpses at what other characters are doing "offscreen." it's a fantastic tactic!!

it's also clearer in this book how unreliable Breq's narration is, specifically about her own state of being. she thinks of herself as not human, and so as less important--she doesn't take the time to narrate or even notice her own physical state or emotional needs until she's totally overwhelmed, at which point we start to get little flashes of what everyone around her sees: a person of incredible kindness and integrity and intelligence, beloved by those under her care. there's a specific kind of intimacy between characters in these books that fascinates me, i love every acts of service bitch in this bar.

a line i really liked: why is every book series i love actually about grief

"Citizen, I am in mourning." I had not had time to clean the white stripe off my face for the night. And she could not possibly have forgotten the reason for it. "But surely, Fleet Captain," she replied sweetly, "that's all for show." "It's always for show, Citizen. It is entirely possible to grieve with no outward sign. These things are meant to let others know about it."

Ancillary Mercy by Ann Leckie

wow. ok. so. i drafted the section on Ancillary Justice above after finishing just that book; wrote the section on Ancillary Sword after reading all three books and listening to the first two audiobooks; here i am to write about Ancillary Mercy after reading the series once and listening to all the audiobooks twice. so...my descent into obsession will be palpable.

i'm actually a little mad that i didn't have these books on my radar before, but i was deeply embedded in the children's lit world at the time they were coming out, and maybe would not have enjoyed them as much as i did. which is something i loved in this series--the persistent idea that people not only change over time, but that in each moment, all the choices you have made up to that moment have created you specifically, and if you had made different choices, you would be a different person. i'm not the person i was then, five years out of grad school, busting my ass for $10/hour in children's bookstores, reading mostly middle grade because middle grade reliably is not romantic and i did not yet know i was aroace. so, overall, i'm grateful these books have come to me now (thanks to my best friend, who sent me Ancillary Justice for my birthday and kept telling me i would love it).

but let me talk a little about this third book in particular. once again, the stakes are incrementally raised: threats that were at a little distance before finally arrive in a bigger way, or come back again after a tense reprieve; the question of who is a person, what a "person" even is, becomes both more muddied and more crucial than ever. through it all, Breq continues to move doggedly forward with stubborn compassion for everyone but herself, keeps throwing herself in front of danger, and makes a more enormous impact on the world around her than i ever expected. this book is like everything i ever loved about Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (the best Trek don't come at me) but with oodles more gender fuckery.

it's also the really beautiful culmination of my other favorite theme of these books: that you can't know what effects your choices will have, and maybe you'll never know, but the chain of those effects will go farther than you imagine. it's so wild, on a second and third read, to see both the ripples of ruthless and self-centered choices, and the ripples of choices that come from an ethic of care. Even inside a terrible, imperialist system doing terrible, imperialist things, a single compassionate person persistently doing what she feels is right can change the course of someone else's life, and in doing so change the course of the universe.

a line i really liked: everything happening here is a blessing

"Thank all the gods," said Sphene. "I was afraid you were going to suggest we sing that song about the thousand eggs." "A thousand eggs all nice and warm," I sang. "Crack, crack, crack, a little chick is born. Peep peep peep peep! Peep peep peep peep!" "Why, Fleet Captain," Translator Zeiat exclaimed, "that's a charming song! Why haven't I heard you sing it before now?" I took a breath. "Nine hundred ninety-nine eggs all nice and warm..." "Crack, crack, crack," Translator Zeiat joined me, her voice a bit breathy but otherwise quite pleasant, "a little chick is born. Peep peep peep peep! What fun! Are there more verses?" "Nine hundred and ninety-eight of them, Translator," I said. "We're not cousins anymore," said Sphene.

the combo deets

how i read them: i read the first as a physical book (thanks B <3), started the second as an ebook, happened to be at a bookstore and picked up the second and third, and so read them all physical in the end. also, highly rec the audiobooks!! i don't know how they'd go as a first read, but they're extremely fun as a reread. lots of great accents and really interesting tonal choices.

try these if you: dig hard SF and examinations of artificial intelligence and personhood, are weak for self-sacrificing main characters, want that sweet aspec rep, or fuck with gender! or, and this may sound weird, love people bonding with dragons in your fantasy books--there are a lot of relationships here that feel similar to me.

maybe not for you if: you really need to avoid depression/suicidality, drug addiction, or genocide in stories. none of these things are here in a degree that i found too difficult to handle, but i like an uncomfortable read, so ymmv.

i'm reading Provenance, the next book set in this universe, right now! so more Imperial Radch reviews to come.

#books and reading #bookblr #book recs #book reviews #imperial radch #ann leckie #ancillary justice #ancillary sword #ancillary mercy #queer science fiction

[bookshelfdreams]

Thoughts on ofmd, I've seen you talk about it a lot (I haven't gotten ar to watching it yet!) and he's wanted your opinion on it! Also hope you're having a nice day! 💖

OKAY well, that's complicated since you haven't seen it (do u need links?) but

hmmm

I think I want to talk about historical accuracy a bit. ofmd's complete refusal to adhere to the general aesthetic of modern vaguely historical/fantasy media is probably one of the most refreshing things about it, and something that immediately stood out to me.

This show isn't historically accurate, doesn't claim and doesn't want to be. Oluwande wears crocks; Stede reads the crew a book that won't be written for another 150 years or so; if you're stabbed through the stomach and it's on the left, you're fine because there's no important organs in there. This show uses every opportunity to say fuck reality, we do what we want, and it's so freeing?

Because. Look the thing is, every piece of media does this. Everything. Even things that claim to be historically accurate. Historical aesthetics, especially early modern or premodern look weird to us. It takes some getting used to, and the aesthetics being just a little "off" to your eyes don't make you more likely to watch something if you're undecided about it. Producers play it safe; I get it.

But the problem is that visual media usually doesn't own this inaccuracy the way ofmd does. Some even brag about accuracy when they're anything but, and it all leads to the general public having a completely wrong impression of what the past was like. It's a self-perpetuating cycle: Someone does something cool, everyone copies it, adds their own little twist, updates it to be pleasing to modern audience's eyes, unusual enough to be interesting but not so much to be jarring, cool but never weird, and before you know it, people actually think that all vikings looked like they were in a biker gang and had the same shitty undercut.

ofmd doesn't really fight this, it goes in the complete opposite direction. It uses the historic precedent as a backdrop to tell the story it wants to be and it doesn't really care about being truthful. Which is fine; we know so little about the actual historical figures, to tell any story at all requires massive amounts of interpretation. In a way, that is being more honest with the audience; ofmd doesn't pretend to tell the objective truth.

This is anything but extraordinary. But because it also refuses to adhere to the kinds of aesthetic (and I don't just mean visual, but also in terms of plot and characterization) that we have come to expect from the genre of vaguely historical/fantasy, it seems like it is uniquely unconcerned. It is not; it's just colourful and open minded, kind-hearted in a way these type of movies/tv shows usually are not, even when they are comedies (have you seen Norsemen? Take the Vikings aesthetic & make it a comedy, every time I think of this show I want to soak my brain in bleach). It's just that it refuses to be gory for gore's sake, bleak and miserable and pass this off as "just the way things are were!".

At it's core, I believe, ofmd is about decolonization. It's about breaking free from oppression, finding and being your authentic self. It's about finding community and healing in others, about being unapologetically weird and strange.

And you know what? I think that's way more truthful. In real life, we love and cherish each other, we accept each other's idiosyncrasies, we are friends with each other, even if we are a little weird. In real life, you don't need to be the coolest, most competent badass to get others to respect you. In real life, you will be loved for all the ways in which you are unusual, and in real life, being unusual isn't even that big of a deal.

Yeah, that's not what clothes looked like in 1717. Yeah, phrenology wasn't invented yet. Yeah, the historical Stede Bonnet was an asshole, and so was the historical Blackbeard. But in the end, does that really matter? ofmd doesn't pretend to tell the real events that happened; all it wants to be is a queer romcom with pirates.

There's something so lovely about stories that are unashamedly themselves, isn't there.

#thank you! i hope this was somewhat interesting for you #i tried to not be overly spoilery #anonymaus #message #our flag means death #thoughts

[ya-world-challenge]

Book Review: Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger (🇺🇸 United States)

[image 1: book cover: from far away a girl with black hair in a red-brown coat turns toward us, she is surrounded by running ghost-dogs; image 2: the Kunetai, or the Rio Grande, at sunset]

YA World Challenge read for 🇺🇸 United States

Elatsoe

Author: Darcie Little Badger

As I did with Canada, for US and other Anglo-colonized countries I'm reading a Native book.

When I first saw this cover small, I thought the character was caught in a snowstorm and that it must take place somewhere north. Nope! It's in Texas, and the snowstorm is actually ghost-dogs which is so much more awesome.

Review

Ellie (short for Elatsoe) is just a normal, everyday asexual Lipan Apache teen who can raise the dead. The technique is a family secret and she lives in the shadow of her 6x great grandmother's legendary powers. She resides in a normal, everyday contemporary United States where there are laws governing things like vampires and fairy ring transports, and scarecrows might eat you in Iowa. When Ellie's cousin Trevor dies in a car accident, he tells her he was murdered, and Ellie and her family and bestie Jake must investigate what happened.

This is a cozy mystery that is just so wholesome and a little quirky. You'd think throwing vampire people as an aside into an indigenous family's story would be kinda jumping the shark, but I like how the "melting pot" of America is reflected in the imported magic. And we get to view this from an indigenous perspective, like when Ellie mourns killing a Lipan monster that is probably the last of its kind.

But the mystery is the main focus of the story, and we get both amateur sleuthing and antics along with more serious reflections on both death and grief. Ellie's family is loving and supportive and wholly functional and that's refreshing to read. The characters are down-to-earth and funny. Also, she has a pet ghost-dog named Kirby!! [spoiler: the dog doesn't die, well, except for being already dead]

This was a fun and sweet read with just the right amount of seriousness and action.

★  ★  ★  ★  ★    5 stars

Other reps: #indigenous #asexual #vegetarian

Genres: #contemporary fantasy #paranormal #mystery #family

Read it at: Bookshop.org | Amazon.com

#book review #united states #ya world challenge #elatsoe #indigenous #asexual #vegetarian #contemporary fantasy #paranormal #mystery #family #north america #booklr #bookblr #reading

[paranoiddreams]

BTS meet cute: Min Yoongi

Min Yoongi x Fem!OC

Masterlist | Other members |

Warnings: mentions of anxiety, depression, and medication. Also includes mentions of drinking alcohol to self soothe. Other than that just pure fluff!

Word count: 2.5k

Listen to while reading!

An: Hello! Im back with another meet cute for my manz Yoongles. He gives me so much book store vibes so I had to write this. The song linked also reminds me of him a lot. I hope you enjoy this one and thank you for the likes on my last one!!! The next one is going to be Jimin 👀

-Ghøst

☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆

Sunlight pours onto my face, nearly blinding my unprotected eyes. The curtains I’d very clearly remembered closing last night had been thrown open by the woman standing next to them.

“Wake up beautiful!”

Ash’s voice is shockingly loud at this time, causing me to pull the covers over my head. But, of course they’d been yanked away from me.

“You need to get up and go out! Find some hot people to mingle with,” she says pulling me by my arm. My hair resembles a birds nest, and dried drool crusts at the side of my mouth. Id been in bed for a generous amount of time, the clock reading 10:57.

“Why are you screaming right now?” I ask my voice raspy from sleep.

“Are you hungover?”

Before I Can protest, she grabs my face with both of her hands and stretches my skin to open my droopy eye lids.

She is right, I am very much hungover. I hadn’t gone out to a club, or party last night. I wish I had because the sad truth is I had drank almost a whole bottle of red wine.

“You are,” she lets go of my face, and my fingers rub both of my temples “y/n, you need to get out! Go have fun without alcohol.”

The suggestion has me flopping back onto the bed with a groan.

Ash and I have been friends since freshman year of high school. She’d always been the rebellious teenage girl, while I was the straight A book worm. Now although, the roles have reversed.

Ash is a successful tattoo artist, and has been sober for three years now. Me on the other hand, I’m still in college deciding what to do with my life, and I drink until I black out almost every night.

“Ash, Im twenty-four years old. I can do what I want!”

She sighs and flops down next to me. Her hair mixes with mine spread out above our heads. She takes my hand, her hands slightly smaller in mine but always manage to make me feel safe.

“Y/n, i know you can do what you want. I just hate seeing you like this,” she props her head up on her palm to look at my face “I love you. So that’s why I need you to get out. Please?”

When Ash had said “go out” I assumed she meant a club or bar. But I’m kind of relived to see her car pull into an outside shopping mall. It’s sunset, golden sunlight peaking just behind the buildings. There’s a slight breeze that feels refreshing in the summer heat, and only a few people scatter the area.

“Ooh! They have a record store!” She points to a building called “Hope’s Records” and immediately rushes out of the car. I get out myself and see her opening the glass door of the shop.

I’m about to walk in, when the store next to it catches my attention instead. A large building with wide glass windows and fairy lights strung across the doors seems to call my name.

When I walk in rows of book shelves and tables fill the area. It smells like vanilla and that infamous “book smell” I love so dearly.

My love for books had never gone away in the years I’d gone through the hell of college. Books often act as my safe space. The wondrous world of fantasy and romance, or the horrifyingly bone chilling horror stories that books contain can transfer you into a completely different world. All from just words on pages.

I haven’t been to a book store in at least a year, usually preferring to order my books online even if I have to wait an amount of time. But now being back in one, I realize going to a book store isn’t just to get books, but for the comforting atmosphere as well.

“Hello, Welcome! Feel free to look around and discover new adventures!”

I immediately head to the fantasy section, in dire need to find a new distraction that doesn’t come in a glass bottle. Books of fairies, vampires, dystopian worlds, and monsters line the shelves. I sometimes wonder how many words are collectively in bookstores. Even this section alone is enough to drown me completely.

I take a book in my hands, the cover golden and words written in cursive. The classic trope of a strong warrior woman defeating an evil monster, while finding love through the process. I tuck it under my arm, and I can already feel how light my wallet is going to be after this trip.

Somehow in only ten minutes three more books end up in my arms, all different genres.

I make my way to the horror section with a basket now in my hands, and I rush to a book that catches my attention so fast I don’t notice the other person with me.

My hands grab the black cover, but another larger one collides with mine. The coldness of them jolts me back, and I come face to face with the person next to me.

“I-I’m sorry, I”

I cut off my own words to save myself from embarrassment. I haven’t been in contact with another person other than Ash in at least a month. Especially a person this… beautiful.

The man stands a few inches taller than me and has jet black hair. His eyes are deep brown, and skin pale white. A slight blush covers his cheeks, his lips the same color.

“No, it’s fine.” He says. His voice is deep yet calm, and it makes my stomach erupt in butterflies.

I don’t even catch myself staring into his eyes until the bell rings signaling another person has come in, snapping me out of my gaze. The man smirks and puts his hand out for me to shake.

“My name is Yoongi”

“I’m Y/n”

His smirk turns to a gummy smile, and I can’t help but smile myself. I looked at the book we both grabbed for and took it into my hands.

“Have you read it before?”

His voice startled me a little bit as I put the book into my basket. I shake my head no, and he grabs one for himself.

“Have you?” I ask him. A small smile appears on his lips.

“Many times,” he looks back into my eyes, “it’s probably one of my favorites. I’m just here to get a new copy. My original one is in pretty bad shape…”

I know the feeling myself all too well. There are many books that I’ve had since middle school that I still hold onto dearly. Some are literally hanging on by a thread, so getting a new copy is the smartest move.

“I have at least three copies of Little Women. I tend to destroy my favorite books from how much I read them.” He chuckles. His eyes creace into crescent moons when he does. I can already feel a warmth in my face at just the sound of his laugh.

“I love little women! I cry everytime…” I sheepishly admit.

“Don’t tell anyone I told you this but… I cry everytime i read it too…”

I giggle at his confession, covering my mouth with the back of my hand. My basket is long forgotten by now, the weight on my forearm from holding it the last thing on my mind. The more I paid attention, the more details I could spot on Yoongi’s face.

The cute dimples on his cheeks when he smiled, the way his arms crossed and fingers fiddled with the rings on them, or the way he would press his lips together when I’d say something particularly interesting.

“Do you want to get some coffee? There’s this really good place my friend Tae works at.” Yoongi says motioning around the corner of the street.

A smile makes way onto my face almost too quickly for my liking, and I agree.

After paying for my books and sending a quick text to Ash about where I am going, the cool night air greets me as I walk side by side with Yoongi.

He tells me about his dog, Holly, and how he had never been an animal person until he got him. I, in return, tell him about my sassy black cat named Jude.

Speaking with him is strange to say the least. I feel a warmth in my chest whenever I make him laugh, and we never seem to have an awkward moment of silence. Either we’re talking about books, our pets, childhood memories, or how annoying our best friends can be, it all just seems so natural.

“So you’re telling me,” Yoongi puts his coffee down, laughing in the process “she put a tack on your chair?!”

My eyes wrinkle with a wide smile, the memories of that day in sophomore year flooding back to me.

“Yes! Ash put a fucking tack on my chair!” Yoongi silently laughs, his eyes almost closed.

“I swear my ass hurt for at least two days after that!”

Our faces are red from laughter, and my coffee is already long forgotten and empty. Yoongi had already thrown away his paper cup a while ago, and our bags of books we bought sit at our feet.

Multiple childhood memories had been shared in the short hour we had sat here. I have never felt more comfortable outside of my house without Ash or my mom. I’m not good at talking to people, but talking with Yoongi felt extremely natural.

I’m about to share another story about one of Ash and I’s high school adventures, when the front door bell chimes behind me.

“Oh what do we have here?”

“Speak of the devil…” I say already knowing who it is. My suspicions are proved correct when I see Ash’s very obviously smug face.

“I leave you unattended for an hour and you already have a date? Honestly I’m impressed!” She laughs.

My face turns red at her calling this a “date” but Yoongi only smiles in return, looking at my best friend.

“So you’re the famous Ash?”

“Why, yes I am!”

She’s holding two bags in her hand, one from the record store, and the other from a vintage clothing store she visits often.

“Thank you,Yoongi. You were right, the coffee was really good”

The cold night breeze ruffles his hair adorably, and his gummy smile makes an appearance once again.

“No, thank you for letting me take you.” He looks to his feet for a moment, a nervous tic I assume “and thank you for the conversation. I really like talking to you…”

I’m flustered at his statement, my face feeling hot, despite the night’s temperature. Now I’m the one looking at the ground, my own nervous tics showing themselves.

“I really like talking to you too”

We’re both smiling like blushing idiots, and Ash seems to notice this with a smirk.

“Let’s go, lover girl! We have a girls night ahead of us!” She yells from her car. Yoongi chuckles slightly at her whistles when he steps closer to me. A piece of paper, a napkin actually, slips into my hand.

“Call me” the napkin has his phone number sketched in it “you know… so you can tell me how that book is”

I pocket the napkin, my heart racing in my chest. I swear I can feel the organ hit my rib cage with the force it’s beating with

“I will” is all I can manage to say, walking to the car with a little more pep in my walk. I see him wave from the front of the coffee shop as we drive away, and a dreamy smile makes its way onto my face without me even noticing.

“See what happens when you listen to me! You get yourself a cute ass boyfriend!”

My bags are thrown onto the couch in my living room as soon as the front door opens.

“He is cute, huh?” I laugh, ignoring the ping of excitement in my chest at the mere mention of the word “boyfriend”. My hands are empty except for the book I’d grabbed, leading to me meeting the cute older boy we’re speaking of.

“Look at you! You look like you just had your first kiss! Awww my baby is so grown up!” Ash pinches my cheeks after dropping her bags along with mine and I push her away with a laugh.

“I feel like I just had my first kiss! I mean we didn’t even kiss, but my head feels light, and my chest is warm, and my mouth hurts from smiling, and-“

“Sounds like your diagnosis is… love! The symptoms all point to it…”

I groan into my hands, flopping onto the couch. I feel dizzy with a pinch of sadness from our little outing. Dizzy with the memory of that damn gummy smile, and sad that I had to leave that damn gummy smile.

Ash walks over to my hunched form on the couch, a paper bag in her hands. It reads “Jin’s classics”, the name of a vintage store in the same outside mall we’d just been to.

“I’m so glad I had the instinct to buy this for you…”

My head perks up with interest when I hear the crinkle of paper, and when I look I’m too stunned to speak. She pulls out a sun dress with lace lining the hem of the skirt and torso. The fabric is polka dotted and dark blue in color. It stops just above the knees and it’s truly beautiful.

“Next time you see lover boy,” she places the dress into my lap, “wear this. You’ll blow him away!”

My heat quickens at just the thought of impressing him, and I take the dress in my hands. It’s soft and comfortable enough to be casually worn while still looking elegant.

The whole night horror movies play while we talk about how dumb the main characters are for even getting themselves into the situations they do. But I can’t help but think of the cute boy I’d met today. The way he spoke and slipped the napkin into my hand had my skin heating up.

When Ash and I make our way to my balcony, glasses of chocolate milk in our hands, I wish on a shooting star that flies by. I wish that I could one day wear that dress and “blow away” Yoongi. It’s childish, but he makes me feel like that, even after meeting him for the first time. 

When Ash and I make our way to my balcony, glasses of chocolate milk in our hands, I wish on a shooting star that flies by. I wish that I could one day wear that dress and “blow away” Yoongi. It’s childish, but he makes me feel like that, even after meeting him for the first time.

And I’m glad I did wish on that star with all my might, because I wake up to a text message the next morning. It’s from Yoongi, and it’s crazy how the simple question starts me up so quickly.

“How does coffee sound this morning? I want to hear your thoughts on the book is all ;)”

☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆

#bts #bts jimn #bts taehyung #bts jin #bts jeon jungkook #bts hosoek #bts yoongi #bts namjoon #bts fic #bts x female reader #bts x reader #bts fanfic #bts imagines #bts one shot #bangtan #min yoongi #crack fic #bts suga #agust d #meet cute #bts senarios #bts series #mc is anxious lmao #bts meet cute

[larksbooks]

lark’s top 5 books of 2022!

ok! so! i read (drumroll, please...) 52 books in 2022, one for every week! (although, i didn’t exactly pace it so that i finished one every week, lol) and that’s NOT including the copious amounts of fanfiction i read, which probably would make it average out to a lot more. anyways. i wanted to share my top 5 :))) (even though i’m a couple days late shh)

1. The Lord of the Rings trilogy/The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien (1937-1955) 🦅✨🏹🏔️🧙🏻‍♂️

is this technically four books? yes! shh! i had been putting off reading these for ages because i never had the time to sit down and really give them justice. luckily, i found these phenomenal audiobooks which are on spotify! as someone who chiefly writes fantasy, it was definitely overdue for me to read lotr, since tolkien is THE master worldbuilder, lol. classics, and must-reads for sure.

2. The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune (2020) 🧚🌅🏝️🐈👹

speaking of fantasy! this book, in a word: whimsical. the tone & cadence of the writing is reminiscent of a lot of the stories i read as a kid, though certainly not lacking in complexity or emotional depth. the cast of characters is colorful and bright. you can’t help but grow fond of the well-meaning but stuffy caseworker linus baker as he gets to know the magical children of marsyas orphanage--including a wyvern, sprite, gnome, and the literal antichrist--and their mysterious, eccentric caretaker arthur parnassus, for whom he starts to develop feelings. this was such an enjoyable, refreshing read, and definitely one of the highlights of my year.

3. Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir (2021) 👽🔭👨🏻‍🚀🪐🚀

i don’t often cry because of fiction. really, i don’t. even E.T. didn’t make me cry. this book made me cry. and that’s saying something, given the subject matter. *clenches fist* it’s the enduring and selfless nature of humanity!! and our inherent goodness and curiosity!! even when we’re stranded in the middle of space with no idea why we’re there or what we’re supposed to be doing. ugh (/pos). i adore this book.

4. All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque (1929)

another classic! i read this ahead of the netflix movie adaptation which came out this year. this is one of the most powerful and impactful pieces of literature i’ve ever read. this book displays the horrors suffered by german soldiers in the first world war, and serves as an apt condemnation of warfare in general. the first-person perspective is poignant and intense, and it’s hard not to emerge from reading this book a pacifist.

5. If Not, Winter: Fragments of Sappho translated by Anne Carson (2002) 💖📝🌸💫💋

i was gifted this lovely, lovely book and it made me so happy. i have been wanting to read sappho for so long and i am so glad i finally got the chance in 2022! her poetry is just beautiful and reading her fragments are like reading the most devastating kind of blackout poetry. i’m not a huge fan of poetry myself, but sappho is definitely the exception.

#booklr #book recs #lotr #the house in the cerulean sea #project hail mary #aqotwf #sappho #posts of lark

[haruka-teno]

2023 Reading Wrap-Up

01. How many books did you read this year?

I read 72, with about 12 of those being graphic novels/manga/something fairly short, BUT I read easily 2,000 pages of fic (probably much more lol) so I figure that counts as like 5 or 6 books too!

02. Did you reread anything? What?

I think I did a full re-read of Saga? I didn't log it, but I think I did lol. If not I at least reread the equivalent of the last few volumes to refresh my memory. I reread all of Captive Prince and the short stories because that's an absolute must. I reread Dark Rise to prepare for Dark Heir. And then I also kind of "reconnected" with a book from college that I had previously thought lost to time. It's called Sum: Forty Tales from the Afterlives and I had never read the whole thing but my friends and I always remembered a couple of the stories we'd read from it 15 years ago. Sadly those stories we remembered were actually pretty much the only memorable ones.

03. What were your top five books of the year?

It's hard to narrow it down to just five because I would say there were at least 10 to 12 that I really loved, but if I had to make a list I would say:

1) The Secret History - a polarizing book to say the least but it was exactly my brand

2) Six of Crows - by far the best Grishaverse book and probably one of the best YA books of all time in general

3) The Fifth Season - the way that people's minds work is just incredible. Like I think to have written this is such an achievement

4) Dark Heir - this series should have been adult and I don't think I'll ever feel NOT robbed by that, but this so far exceeded book 1 that I can't be too mad. Had me losing my mind

5) A Power Unbound - Ross on top 🫡

04. Did you discover any new authors that you love this year?

Technically Leigh Bardugo was new to me this year lmao so obviously I plan to read basically all of her books going forward. And Mother Donna Tartt. We will as always continue being loyal to Freya Marske, CS Pacat, and Mona Awad as well.

05. What genre did you read the most of?

Fantasy, romance, and literary with LGBT and YA as overlapping subgenres. No one is surprised.

06. Was there anything you meant to read, but never got to?

lol.

07. What was your average Goodreads rating? Does it seem accurate?

I have no idea how to find this on goodreads but my average on storygraph is 3.74 which is probably accurate. I rarely give books 5 stars, but I give plenty of 3s and 4s. I kind of want to have a higher score next year though because it'll mean I'll have been more discerning with what I choose and finish.

08. Did you meet any of your reading goals? Which ones?

I did and I didn't haha. I wanted to get to 75 and that didn't happen, and I also went through multiple slumps where I read next to nothing. The number doesn't matter so much as consistency so I want to try to work on that more. Pushing myself to read more and scroll less.

09. Did you get into any new genres?

I guess kind of? I read some non-fiction and a weird amount of short story collections, but none of it really stood out as being more enjoyable to me than just... the typical fiction that I like to read. I do have a few more short story collections I want to read this year as well as maybe trying to do a bit more non-fiction but I'm not going to be that pressed if I mainly stick with novels.

10. What was your favorite new release of the year?

Unlike certain among us I liked Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo!! But the obvious answer is Dark Heir, followed closely by A Power Unbound.

11. What was your favorite book that has been out for a while, but you just now read?

Definitely The Secret History which has been out for like 30 years haha. To me this is the absolute peak and definition of "dark academia." Don't start calling some book """"dark academia"""" if some TSH shit isn't happening! But anyway, yeah, it's just so good: gorgeous prose, mostly vibes, characters who need to be studied extensively in a laboratory. I related too much to Richard Papen, it's actually sad!

12. Any books that disappointed you?

I genuinely hate to say this but the first book that came to mind as being disappointing while also not being actively disliked is Good Omens. I like the show a lot! And I know we like to jape and jest about British people. But my god, this was too British for me. It was so frustrating because the core idea is SO GOOD and so wildly imaginative, and at times it's really funny, and obviously Crowley and Aziraphale are the gems of it all, but so much of it WASN'T funny, like to the point of being aggressively UNfunny, even, and those sections would drag and drag. Way too little Crowley and Aziraphale, WAY too much of the little boy and his friends who I absolutely hated. I guess call me a rube or whatever but I vastly prefer the TV show 😔 Unrelated, but I was also wildly disappointed in the last Simon Snow book! I was also underwhelmed by Holly Black's The Stolen Heir and Tomie by Junji Ito.

13. What were your least favorite books of the year?

Grab a snack because I'm about to go off.

1) The Vegetarian by Han Kang - translated fiction is hit or miss with me. This is the year I realized I mostly do NOT fuck with Korean fiction, sadly. This book is touted as one of those kind of sad girl feminist novels but omggg from what I remember it was just really boring (I only finished because it was like 200 pages), repetitive, weird but not delightfully weird just like weird where the actions of the main character are nonsensical as is the behavior of the people around them, ZERO payoff at the end where one might feel a salient point had been made... If this is one of those "the girls that get it get it and the girls that don't don't" books then mark me down as not getting it

2) The Westing Game - genuinely why did I read this

3) Cursed Bunny - more translated Korean fiction, this time short stories. Again, just so gross at times but not Sayaka Murata gross, just like WHY?? gross. And when it wasn't gross it was boring and pointless!

4) Any Way the Wind Blows - I literally deserve financial compensation for completing this book. What the fuck was that ending? Why is Agatha tending goats after one of the worst lesbian romances ever put on paper. Why did Simon and Baz almost have sex 14 times and then stop all 14 times for the same reason and make virtually no progress with their relationship because of Simon's immaturity. Why was the Penelope plotline even happening. I'm kind of astounded by this one actually

5) My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness - this is an autobiographical manga and my reaction was all the worse because I thought this was going to be a total banger. It's a bestseller, I've been hearing about it for like 10 years, I've seen some relatable screencaps, it sounds perfect..... And then I read it and the writing itself kind of lost me/bored me at times, and it's actually not relatable in the slightest because the MC/author (I guess?) is sooo off-putting and the bulk of the book is about her visiting prostitutes. Color me naive but I thought this would be about like, meeting another woman and the tentative first steps taken with her, not GENUINELY diving into the sex industry, which I am absolutely repulsed by. Woof!

Honorable mention to A Strange and Stubborn Endurance for being Like That and having one of the most annoying protags I can remember in recent history.

14. What books do you want to finish before the year is over?

Well this ship has sailed and my goal was to finish all the books I had started so I could begin 2024 with a clean slate and it didn't happen 😔 But time is also an illusion.

15. Did you read any books that were nominated for or won awards this year (Booker, Women’s Prize, National Book Award, Pulitzer, Hugo, etc.)? What did you think of them?

None that I actively sought out. I believe The Fifth Season won the Hugo which is well-deserved but I don't know anything else off the top of my head.

16. What is the most over-hyped book you read this year?

Oh man, I can actually kind of go off on this one too lol. I read all of Heartstopper this year, and I'm sorry, it's just okay. I think if it had been on the shelves for me to read in like 2005 I would think more highly of it, both because I would have been reading it as a young teen and because then it might have been revolutionary for the time. In 2023 though it's far, far from the best piece of gay teen media (that would be Skam) and it's WILDLY overhyped. Legendborn by Tracy Deonn was so massively hyped up on booktok as being like THE BEST YA NOVEL EVER PUBLISHED and I'm kind of mystified, honestly. It was alright! And I could say even more but I'll leave off with Yellowface by R.F. Kuang. She constantly has her ass licked by basically everyone and I genuinely, genuinely don't get it. Yellowface is miles above Babel as far as enjoyability and I even thought it was quite funny at times, and got through it quickly, but this author writes flattttttt-ass characters and can't see past her own nose. Absolutely obsessed with the audience knowing how smart she is and hand-holding them to the very obvious points she's making. She's another one like Otessa Moshfegh where I kind of just hate read her stuff at this point lol.

17. Did any books surprise you with how good they were?

I think most of the books that I thought were good I had expected to be good, but two things come to mind. Early in the year I read a duology called Heated Rivalry and The Long Game and it's literally just highly sexual gay hockey fiction but it genuinely surprised me by how sweet it was and how much I loved the story. I actually bought physical copies even though they have horrible covers with Sexy Shirtless Guys on them lol. The other book is called A Touch of Jen which I was drawn to only because of the cover, I thought the description seemed kind of lame, and it doesn't have a very good goodreads rating either, but I loved reading it and thought it was hilarious.

18. How many books did you buy?

I couldn't even venture a guess to be honest. I have been much better of late about book buying (because now my money is going to dolls 😭), but I'd say during the year I probably accumulated at least 40.

19. Did you use your library?

Yes. I don't physically go into the library even though I'd like to, but in this house we do stan Libby, Hoopla, CloudLibrary etc.

20. What was your most anticipated release? Did it meet your expectations?

The usual suspects: Dark Heir and A Power Unbound, both of which met/exceeded expectations. I was begging for more Will/James, and it delivered, and I was hoping for more sexiness from Freya Marske as well as some good Edwin/Robin content and I was also very pleased with that :)

21. Did you participate in or watch any booklr, booktube, or book twitter drama?

I don't participate in drama but I definitely watch drama unfold, predominantly on tiktok. There were definitely plenty of stupid takes and notable events!

22. What’s the longest book you read?

Technically the longest page count was the complete Tomie comics at 742 pages but as far as regular books, it was Rule of Wolves by Leigh Bardugo at 608 pages.

23. What’s the fastest time it took you to read a book?

Technically I'm sure my shortest book was a volume of comics in like 20 minutes or whatever, but I'm going to say my record is reading Captive Prince, Prince's Gambit, Kings Rising, and the short story collection back to back over the course of about 3 or 4 days.

24. Did you DNF anything? Why?

I DNF'd one piece of nonfiction (Killers of the Flower Moon) and one novel (The Atlas Six) that I just wasn't in the mood to read when I started them but I'm going to give them both another chance at some point, or at least I'm planning to so far. There were definitely other books I sort-of started and then the library hold lapsed and they'll ostensibly be gotten to at some point, but I don't really count those as DNFs. The only notable DNF was this essay collection about horror movies from a queer perspective called It Came From the Closet. I was expecting this to be good even though I'm not a big fan of essay collections as a general rule, but omg....... Ahhhhhhhh!!!! Unsurprisingly Carmen Maria Machado's essay about Jennifer's Body was well-written (even if I personally love a lesbian Jennifer interpretation more than a bi one), but hers is the only one I really remember other than the Horrible One. I read about half of this book and a lot of the essays were just very mid (I know it's these people's real lives they were writing about! But yeah!) and almost all seemed only tangentially related to the specific horror movie they'd picked. There were also plenty of movies I'd never seen so even if there'd been appropriate context I wouldn't know it. The absolute last straw though was the essay that was supposedly about Hereditary. I could not tell you how the author connected all of this shit to Hereditary because AGAIN, none of the authors did a good job actually fitting their life within the context of the movies, but the story of his personal life was bad enough. He had married a girl I think while knowing he was gay? Which was definitely more acceptable historically than it is in like, a world where Hereditary exists?? I'm pretty sure this dude kissed a guy on his wedding day! and then proceeded to write about how he was secretly talking to men online SPECIFICALLY in the context of like fat fetish/weight gaining fetish communities, he himself was purposefully gaining weight because of this fetish and became enmeshed in online communities about it, I think was making fetish videos of himself and uploading them???? And then in the end he meets up with some guy he met online and I think we were supposed to think it was cute but I was 10000% on the wife's side, and as a fat woman and lesbian, I hope that guy kills himself. Anyway lol.

25. What reading goals do you have for next year?

I think my officially set goal is 75 books/25k pages. I'd like to meet that or exceed it. I very recently got into audiobooks after being a staunch hater (I still think they're very much a cheat code, and different from ACTUALLY reading!) so I think the goal is easily attainable, and my lowkeyyy goal is 100 books. My main goal though is to read every day and to not get into so many slumps: like just make reading a habit that I keep up with. More reading, less mindless scrolling and tiktok. And maybe DNFing more instead of forcing myself to finish a book I'm not liking just because it's short or I want "credit" for my time spent with it. Like reading more quality books. I'd also vaguely like to read some classics and more nonfiction.

#personal #text

[jessikahathaway]

Into Eternity - FINAL

So, oh my gosh this is actually happening???

I have been writing this story for three years and it honestly has gotten me through so much? I love these characters and to give them an ending has brought me so many emotions. Thank you to everyone who has read and has loved these characters as much as I have.

Now buckle up, for the finale.

Pairing: Jimin X Reader

Genre: Romance, Fantasy, Royalty!AU

Words: 8,877

Warnings: Attempted Suicide (it isn't graphic, but it's there so please be aware of that), Explicit Sexual Content, Pregnancy, Pregnant Sex, Unprotected Sex (She preggie, but y'all be careful), Creampie, Dirty Talk. Birthing Scene (Not terribly graphic but just be aware), the fluff we've all been waiting forrrrr! (If I forgot anything please do let me know!)

It had been a week since the fight with Morgana and your death.

Jimin hadn’t been coping well at all.

Taehyung entered the bedroom where they had set you after the fight. Father Jin redressed you and washed your hair, but other than that you hadn’t moved or breathed. Nothing to note that you were alive. Father Jin had resigned himself to his room and hadn’t come out. Jungkook was training for hours on end and Taehyung was too busy trying to keep Jimin alive to do much else.

Hoseok had sent for more guards and they arrived soon after. Although they weren’t allowed inside the palace. No one was to come near, Jimin would have them beheaded.

Taehyung saw the same sight he’d seen for the last week. Jimin, at your bedside, waiting.

“Sire,” Taehyung announced his entrance.

“Taehyung,” Jimin answered softly.

“I brought you something to drink and a bit of porridge, will you eat it?” He asked, looking down at the small mugs in his hands.

“Yes, I’ll eat,” Jimin answered.

Turning around Taehyung sighed as he saw the dark bags under his eyes. The look of exhaustion that filled his frame was overwhelmingly sad. Taehyung knew his friend, and he was a shadow of himself. As if he were slowly dying without you with him.

But Taehyung pressed on, a smile coming across his features.

“Here you are,” Taehyung said, setting the mugs in his hands.

Jimin ate slowly, methodically. As if it was a chore to be doing so.

Taehyung wondered if he tasted it, his eyes were so devoid. It was like he was a skeleton walking around. No joints or ligaments, just bones clacking together. The way he moved was awkward and ungraceful, nothing like the Prince he knew. One thing was for certain.

He missed you.

“Jimin, do you want to take a bath?” Taehyung asked, looking at his friend’s appearance.

“No,” he said quietly.

“It’ll take a few minutes, please,” Taehyung urged.

“I’d rather not right now,” Jimin almost whispered.

“It’s okay, perhaps later,” Taehyung gave in, knowing that it wouldn’t happen later either.

“Taehyung,” Jimin’s voice was stronger this time.

“Yes, sire?”

“Do you think she’s really dead?”

“I don’t-”

“Perhaps this is what they wanted for me. To suffer without her,” he said bitterly.

“Don’t think so lowly of your ancestor, he tried to do what he could for you both,” Taehyung admonished.

“Perhaps I should die as well, join my beloved where we can be free together,” Jimin said, laying his head down on the bed, and gazing at you with misty eyes.

“Jimin!” Taehyung yelled.

Jimin flinched but didn’t move.

“I don’t think this is what Y/N would’ve wanted for you. She wouldn’t want to watch you starve yourself. She would want you to lie here and wait for something that might not happen. She’d want you to go out and live your life. To go out and be happy. Jimin, please listen to me. The way you’re treating yourself isn’t anything like what Y/N would’ve wanted for you. She loved you so much, and wanted nothing but the best for you. So for you to disrespect her wishes like this... It makes me sad, Jimin, truly it does.”

“So you do think she’s dead,” Jimin whispered.

“Jimin,” Taehyung said.

“Get out,” Jimin demanded softly.

“Jimin listen.”

“Get out Taehyung!” Jimin screamed, standing up.

Taehyung didn’t waste anymore time, slamming the door before he left.

--

It was the day of your funeral...

Jimin had fought tooth and nail to make sure he never saw this day, but here it was. It had been two weeks since your death. And Father Jin said it was time to lay you to rest. Jimin had denied it at first, but now, there was an eerie calm that settle over the palace. Jimin was silent, save for the few words he spoke to Taehyung. But other than that, no words left the man.

“We are here today to lay to rest a soul who has touched all of us in many ways,” Father Jin began.

You were laying in your coffin, beautiful as the day Jimin first saw you. The maids had braided gorgeous ribbons in your hair, and graced your face with the smallest amount of makeup, enhancing that natural beauty you had. Jimin’s eyes were filled with tears as he looked at you. His beloved bride, going so soon. And it was his fault you were dead. Because he couldn’t protect you.

“Jimin,” Taehyung whispered, nudging his friend.

“I’m fine,” he whispered back, wiping his eyes gingerly.

“Lady Y/N was a tender soul. Someone who wanted nothing but to share love and happiness wherever she went. I had the pleasure of knowing her, and I will forever miss her and her laughter. She is with God now, and I will take comfort in knowing that. May God rest her soul.”

Father Jin stepped away from the casket, Namjoon taking his place.

“Lady Y/N was fearless, and bright. Always willing to lend a hand to those in need. I failed her a guard and I will forever be unworthy. But as I continue on with life I will live for her, I will live with her in mind so that no one will ever suffer the same fate. I will protect the Royal family for the rest of my days, and will forever ask for forgiveness that I wasn’t able to protect them this time. Lady Y/N, I am so sorry. May you grace us with your love and kindness, so that we may forgive ourselves as well. You will be missed, dearly,” Namjoon said.

The rest of the proceedings went on, yet Jimin felt numb.

You lay there before him, so close yet out of reach. His soul yearned to reach out for yours, longing to touch you, to hold you. To bring you into his embrace and care for you as you did for him. When it was finally his turn to save you, he failed...

“Y/N was a beautiful person,” Taehyung began.

“She was smart, funny and a true joy to be around. I remember the first time I met her. She was outspoken, yet, in the best way. She challenged all of us to be better. To think more, to be more. She challenged me to be the best version of myself, and all I can say, is that I will continue to be the best person I can be. I will remember her fondly, and I will always be grateful for what she has done for me and my friends. May God rest her soul,” he repeated.

Yoongi spoke next, saying little but it was enough. Although Jimin still felt as though something was wrong. Something was terribly wrong.

Soon, it was Jimin’s turn to speak.

He felt awkward as he went to the front to speak. He took a deep breath in and imagined you, holding his hand. The warmth that suffused him gave him the strength to speak.

“Y/N was... everything to me. Never have I loved like I loved her. She was beautiful, caring, sweet and... maddening. She challenged everything I knew about myself. Everything I ever thought I knew, and she changed me. Y/N changed me for the better. She made me believe that I could do anything, be anything. No matter what I thought about myself, she always believed in me. More than I did. Y/N was knowledgeable. She loved to read, I promised her a library. That way she could read without me getting in her way, I had a way of interrupting her at the most important part of the book she’d tell me...” Jimin laughed, tears coming down his cheeks. “I love her so much, even now I love her so dearly and so fiercely that this all feels wrong. To be burying her feels like a foreign concept to me that I cannot accept. I-I... don’t want this to be it.”

“Y/N, I love you. Please forgive me,” Jimin said, taking out a vial.

It was poison. Jimin had planned to end his life here. Perhaps that was what had felt so wrong the whole time. The fact that he knew he’d be ending his life in front of his friends brought him no comfort. He only felt guilt, but he couldn’t bear another day without you here. It wasn’t feasible to him. It was everything he could do to stand right now.

“Jimin no!”

“I love you, Y/N,” he whispered, bringing the vial to his lips.

“I love you too,” a soft voice answered.

Before Jimin could turn around, Namjoon and Jungkook tackled him to the ground, taking the vial from his hands.

“No!” Jimin fought back, thrashing around like a child.

“Sire please!” Jungkook said, reaching for the vial.

“Jimin?”

Everyone froze.

Jimin looked up to see you, his beloved bride, sitting up in your casket.

“Y/N?” he whispered. Unable to believe his eyes.

“Jimin? What’s going on?” you asked, looking around. From your standpoint, you felt like you’d been asleep for a very long time. As if you’d be put under a sleeping spell or something along those lines. But now, you felt better than ever, as if you were refreshed for the first time in a long while.

“Y/N...” Jimin said, looking at you in disbelief.

“Jimin, what am I doing in here?” you asked, placing your hands on the side of the coffin.

“My love,” Jimin said, standing up and coming to your side. You looked up and smiled, so glad to see him.

“Hi,” you said, placing your hand on his cheeks. He’d been crying, you could tell.

“Y/N,” he whimpered, wrapping you up in his arms and cradling you to his chest.

“Jimin?” you asked, trying to push him back so you could look at him. But he held you firm.

“My darling, I thought I lost you,” he said, tears falling down his cheeks so freely.

“I don’t understand, the last time I saw you I was... How am I here?” you asked, looking around.

“It doesn’t matter, my love, it doesn’t matter. What matters is that you’re here now,” he whispered, wrapping his arms around you.

“But Jimin,” you started.

“Shhh,” he shushed, tangling his fingers in your hair. “I love you, so much,” he said, tilting your head up.

“I love you too,” you said back, but before you could say much else his lips were on yours. Jimin wasted no time, pulling you from the coffin without much difficulty. Jimin had you in his arms and like hell he was ever going to let you go again.

Slowly he pulled away and let his head rest against yours.

“Can you stand?” he asked, placing your feet on the ground.

“I think so,” you answered. Carefully, you took a step, almost falling to the ground if it wasn’t for Jimin’s strong arms keeping you up.

“Maybe not just yet darling, let me carry you,” he said, sweeping you up into his arms.

“Jimin!” you gasped, hanging onto his neck, not wanting to fall.

“I’ve got you,” he said, starting to carry you back towards the palace. The rest of the men there did nothing but watch as Jimin carried you in his arms.

“I never thought that this marriage would work out,” Taehyung said softly, looking at the disappearing silhouette of you and Jimin.

“Well, never say never I guess,” Namjoon said back, crossing his arms.

“I’m glad it worked out, Jimin deserves to be happy,” Jungkook commented.

“They both deserve it,” Father Jin said, smiling.

--

Your coronation was creeping up on you.

You and Jimin both would be crowned King and Queen of Arcane Kingdom. The people would be yours to govern and yours to care for. They were now your responsibility and duty. It weighed heavily on you, the stress of being a Royal. But you didn’t let it show, because you had been given a second chance at life another try.

No one gets that lucky.

But you did. And you weren’t going to waste it.

After everything that had happened, you were still so glad that you were with Jimin. Able to call him yours. It made your heart sing knowing he was your partner in all of this, your husband and truest love.

A knocking at the door shook you from your thoughts.

“Lady Y/N,” Father Jin said from the other side of the door.

“You can come in Father,” you said, putting your hairbrush down as you turned to face the door.

“I’m here as you requested,” he said, holding his bible and other various things you’d requested.

“Wonderful, I need your help,” you said, moving towards the bed.

Father Jin looked at you with confusion.

“It’s been two months and I haven’t bled yet. I-I was hoping you could find out if I was with child?” You said softly.

Father Jin almost fainted on the spot.

“W-With child? My dearest Y/N are you sure?” He asked coming forward.

“I’ve been having symptoms, the nausea in the morning, wanting weird foods and of course not bleeding but, I just wanted to know. I know if I have the palace physician check and I am pregnant he’ll run and tell Jimin. I want to tell him myself, it’s our possible child,” you said.

Father Jin beamed at you, quickly getting his materials ready.

“It would by my absolute honor my Lady,” he said. You smiled.

He busied himself with usual questions and looking at your stomach.

Finally Father Jin smiled brightly at you.

Biting your lip hard you heard his answer.

“My dear Lady Y/N, congratulations. You’re with child,” he said. Tears burst from you quickly, unable to handle the emotion of the whole situation.

You had been so worried that perhaps Morgana killing you would ruin your chances at having a child with Jimin. And considering you two had been having plenty of intimate moments, it was starting to become a fear.

But now...

Now you’re pregnant. With Jimin’s child.

Everything you’ve ever wanted and more.

“Father Jin,” you cried, hanging onto him so tightly. He pet your head gingerly, making sure you were alright before pulling back.

“Your timeline is correct, you are around two month pregnant,” he said, looking at your stomach with nothing but sheer adoration.

“I’ve been so worried,” you hiccuped.

“It’s alright Y/N, you are pregnant. And may the Lord bless you and your unborn child,” he said softly.

“Can you please keep this between us?” You asked.

“I won’t tell a soul,” he agreed.

“Thank you Father, truly, thank you so much.”

—

You were incredibly giddy for the rest of the week. Everyone had taken notice of your spunk and lively attitude. The stoic Yoongi even asked what had you all excited.

You just brushed it off, telling them you’d read a really good book or just ate something delicious. You wanted to tell Jimin so badly. But he was nowhere to be found no matter how hard you looked. The only time you were with him was when he crawled into bed with you early in the morning. Wrapping himself around you and keeping you close to him.

But he was always gone before you woke up.

You knew he was getting ready for the Royal coronation coming up soon, but it still made you a little sad. The distance.

However, you had planned it perfectly.

Jimin’s favorite lace night dress was wrapped around your body. A soft pink dressing gown over top. The man enjoyed unwrapping you like a present.

It was everything you could do not to just run to him in his study and proclaim your pregnancy to him then and there. But you oh so loved the look on his face when you gave him surprises.

Teasing little hints.

It was already late into the night, but you were determined to stay up and see your husband. It was moderately boring in your bedroom, alone, but it wouldn’t be lonely for long...

Just as you thought about going out on the balcony for some fresh air, you heard Jimin enter the room. You hadn’t seen him awake in a few days so you rushed over immediately to see him.

“Jimin!” You said, rushing to bring him into your arms.

Jimin smiled, looking exhausted, but happier now that he got to see you.

“Y/N, it’s late. What are you doing up?” He asked, kissing the top of your head with such tenderness it made your heart ache.

“Wanted to see you,” you mumbled, cheek pressed against his shoulder.

“Well, you’ve seen me. But I think it’s time for bed,” he said, removing his tunic and draping it along the chair of your vanity.

“Can we talk first? There is something important I have to tell you,” you said, taking his hand in yours.

“Is something wrong?” He asked, rubbing your knuckles with his thumb.

“Just sit down,” you said, moving him towards the bed. Jimin sat down heavily, looking up at you with a gentle smile.

“Alright my love, what did you want to discuss,” he said, rubbing his face.

He was utterly worn out, and you could see it on his face. But you knew what you were about to say would make it all worth it. It would be okay.

“Jimin, I want you to know something,” you swallowed hard. Trying to keep your emotions from becoming too much.

“Y/N? Are you okay?” He asked.

“Yes, I’m fine Jimin. But, I want you to know how much I love you. How much I adore waking up in the morning next to you. And how much I love being your wife,” you said, bringing your hand to his cheek softly.

“I love you too,” he said, a smile appearing on his weary features.

“Jimin, I-I...” you stammered, trying to find the words to get them out. Jimin frowned at your flustered attitude. Normally you could tell him anything, he wondered what had gotten you so worked up.

“Jimin,” you said, walking closer. His sparkling eyes looked up at you and you so hoped the babe in your stomach would inherit those beautiful eyes.

“Jimin I’m with child,” you said, bringing his hand to your stomach.

Jimin’s whole demeanor changed instantaneously.

“What?” He croaked, looking up into your eyes with so much hope.

“Father Jin confirmed it,” you said.

“Y-You’re really pregnant?” He asked, looking at your stomach with a multitude of emotions running across his face.

“Yes,” you said.

“Oh my God, Y/N,” he cried, bringing you into his arms. Big fat tears were rolling down his face, catching in your hair and dressing gown.

“It’s okay, Jimin it’s alright,” you said, holding him tightly.

“I’ve waited for so long to hear those words from you,” he whimpered.

“I was worried that... possibly I couldn’t after-you know. But, I-I know they’re healthy, I can feel it,” you said brightly.

“I know they are too, my love. You’ll care for them so well, they’re going to be so perfect. You’re perfect,” he said, bringing his lips to yours gently.

Smiling into the kiss you attempted to deepen it, longing for your husband's touch. But Jimin quickly pulled away.

“I’m so exhausted my love, would it be okay if I just held you tonight? Both of you?” He asked, looking down at your stomach with so much love it made your heart stammer.

“Of course, Jimin, that’s always okay,” you said.

You both went to bed, sharing innocent pecks and warm words of love for each other.

It was so perfect.

—

Being pregnant was rather grueling task, you’d found out.

There were the weird food cravings. The palace chefs could hardly keep up with you. Then the constant nausea that had plagued you and often made you miss out on certain meals. And the aching of your back and feet was another problem.

But the love you felt for the being inside of you right now, was more than you could’ve ever dreamed.

Although, there was another symptom of your pregnancy that had been particularly hard to handle.

You were ravenous for your husbands touch.

Except, he hadn’t really wanted to do anything like that with you for a while... the last time you two had been intimate was when you made this baby. And that was five months ago.

Now that you were coming into a different stage of your pregnancy, everything was getting harder. Clothing yourself, putting on shoes. It was all so taxing and you mainly wanted to rest.

Unless Jimin was there.

In which case you wanted him to ravish you until the morning came.

But, for some reason, he didn’t feel the same.

Of course he loved you, this wasn’t something you doubted. But he was very busy and you were already pregnant so what was the point in engaging in those kinds of activities if the end goal was achieved... right?

You knew Jimin loved you, he said it and showed it often. But you wished he would take you to bed and pleasure you. Let you have as much of his cum as you wanted. However, something was stopping him.

And you were determined to find out what.

Walking through the palace halls you found your husband admiring the gardens out in front of the castle. Jimin loved seeing the flowers blooming and flourishing with colors. Made him feel light inside.

You came up beside him and looked at the flowers with him. He smiled at you, wrapping his arm around your shoulders and bringing you close.

The two of you stood like that, in silence for a few moments before you decided to speak.

“Jimin,” you said, keeping your eyes trained outside.

“Yes my love?” He answered, looking at you with pure joy.

“You seem distant lately,” you said, wrapping your arm around his waist.

“Have I? I thought we’d been spending quite a lot of time together... although if you’re feeling neglected I can see if I have more time to spare-”

“I-uh... I’ve noticed that we haven’t been... intimate since we conceived and I was just wondering, if you simply weren’t attracted to me being like this? Or if it’s because we’re already pregnant so there’s no need to try anymore or, um, something else maybe?”

Jimin’s face looked mortified as he tried to gather his scrambled mind and unprepared thoughts.

“Y/N, love no! Of course not! I absolutely adore being intimate with you! And not attracted to you? I-I can’t hardly control myself when I’m around you. Pregnant and swollen with my child,” he said, almost growling out the last part.

“Then why Jimin? Why haven’t you been touching me? Letting me touch you! What’s going on?” You asked, wondering what was causing the distance between your husband and you.

“T-the palace physician warned me about being with you like that, I don’t want to hurt you or the baby,” he said softly.

“But it’s not dangerous-Father Jin was encouraging me to, well as much as he would encourage someone to be intimate...” you said. “He said we should be... with one another as much as we can. It’s good for us to relieve the stress and I’ll never complain about you showing your love to me and my love for you.”

“But, what if I go too hard? What if I, I don’t know, make the baby come early? Or what if-”

“Jimin, my love, these are a lot of what ifs. Not a lot of what will... Nothing will happen to me or the child. That I can promise you,” you said, holding your distended stomach with affection. “You’d never hurt us.”

The young King looked so torn. Like he truly didn’t know what to do.

“I’m just... I’m worried about you,” he said softly, resting his forehead against yours.

“I’m tough,” you said, squeezing his hand gently.

“I know, God I know how strong you are. More than fit to be the Queen of this Kingdom, my wife, my equal... But, carrying a child is no small feat,” he said, brushing your hair off your face.

“It isn’t but I’m not doing it alone,” you said, wrapping your arms around his neck. “You’ve been with me every step of the way. We had rocky beginnings, but look at where we are now. Look at how much we’ve overcome and how much we will overcome in the future. It’s incredible, Jimin. You are the ruler that destroyed the witch Morgana,” you said.

“Actually, you’re the one who dealt the killing blow on that one, I just get all the credit cause I’m the King. Unfair if you ask me,” Jimin laughed lightly.

“What I’m saying is, you’re so brave, stubborn and wickedly smart. Surely you can think of a way in which we can be intimate and it not harm me or the babe?” You said, biting your lip.

“Don’t do that, I’ve been having dreams about your sweet mouth,” he groaned.

“Mmm, have you? Perhaps I should give it to you then, hmm?” You teased.

Jimin was a rather dominant person, but you’d discovered that sometimes he likes to be pushed around in bed. Told what to do and to be praised. It wasn’t something you’d been entirely good at to start, but, with a little practice you’d gotten the hang of it.

“My love,” he croaked.

“Jimin, I know you. I know how careful and gentle you can be. I’ll tell you if anything hurts or if I’m uncomfortable. But please, please take me to bed,” you begged.

Finally, it seemed you broke through. Because soon, you were being practically dragged down the hallway. Jimin’s grip on your wrist was tight, but not enough to hurt. You smirked as he hauled you into the bedroom, shutting the door firmly behind the two of you.

“God, look at you,” he murmured, coming forward to place his hands on your swollen belly. “So beautiful, so perfect carrying my child.”

“All yours,” you agreed, humming as his lips touched your neck.

“And I’m yours,” he said softly.

“Take this off,” you pleaded, tugging at his shirt with disdain. Giving you a coy grin, he pulled the shirt off and threw it on the floor. You ran your hands over his beautiful body, teasingly pinching his nipple, causing him to flinch.

“Little sprite, I’ll teach you to tease me,” he growled. Wetness pooled between your legs. Jimin came forward, finally connecting your lips.

Kissing Jimin was something you’d never tire of. You were certain. The way his plush lips moved over yours with reckless abandon make you squirm. His mouth captured your own, pulling you into a romantic embrace as the pair of you shared your breath.

“Jimin,” you whispered as he pulled away.

“What is it my love? What do you desire?” He asked, moving his lips along your jawline.

“Whatever you’ll give me, I want it all,” you pleaded.

“My my, so greedy. What a greedy Queen I have,” he tutted. You whined at his tone, wanting nothing more for the clothes between you to be removed.

“I just want you, only you,” you pleaded.

“You have me my love, all of me,” he said, kissing you softly. You wrapped your arms around his neck, cradling his head. You felt the back of your bed against your knees, forcing you to sit down while Jimin kissed you with such ferocity it made your poor core clench tightly around nothing.

“And you have all of me in return,” you smiled. Jimin pushed you onto your back, making you stare at the ceiling. Your heart was hammering so hard in your chest, you could feel it in your throat.

“I-Is it okay if I pleasure you? With my mouth?” He asked, looking at you beneath his long lashes. You smiled and brushed his hair from his face gently, but this was not without difficulty, you swollen tummy proving to be an obstacle.

“Mmm, that does sound nice. But, you have had me wait five months for you. I’m slightly tempted to skip the foreplay and go right for the main event,” you mused, watching as Jimin’s eyes inflated slightly. You smiled at his obvious desire for you, before you sat up and undid the ties at the front of your gown. Jimin watched as your chest relaxed, breasts bigger than they were before you’d gotten pregnant.

“I-If you’re wet enough,” he said, licking his lips.

“Why don’t you check?” You said, peeling your dress from your shoulders and easing the fabric down. Jimin moved so you could wiggle out of the offending material and lay naked on the bed. He was astounded and slightly concerned that you hadn’t been wearing any undergarments underneath.

“Oh my beautiful wife, how lucky am I to have someone like you...” he trailed off, gazing at your center with wanton desire.

“I’m just as lucky, if not more so,” you smiled, tugging on his ashy locks, earning you a warning grunt in response.

“A husband who neglects his wife for months on end? Surely you jest with me,” he chuckled sadly.

“You are more than attentive. Sometimes smothering, but never neglectful. Jimin listening to the palace physician isn’t wrong. He just happens to think he knows everything while Father Jin has had actual experience with pregnancy and birth. By the way, he will be delivering our child, not that ridiculous palace physician. I’d rather not have him near me when I’m giving birth,” you huffed, pouting slightly.

“Oh? I see, who else did you want there while you deliver? I know I should’ve asked this but-”

“You, Father Jin to deliver and Jungkook as well as Taehyung. Yoongi and Namjoon, and... Hoseok,” you said pondering for a moment.

“Those are all men, Y/N,” Jimin reminded, pouting from above you.

“And? Hoseok is our Godfather for the child, I believe he should be there. Jungkook is good in a crisis and also has knowledge of pregnancy and birth from his mother. Taehyung is such a dear friend, I certainly want him there. Yoongi is always calm and collected, and Namjoon would just feel left out if I didn’t include him!”

“You missed one,” he frowned.

“Of course I want you there silly. It’s your fault I’m like this, so you’re going to be there for the whole thing, no stepping out and no leaving me, understood?” You asked, raising a brow at him. Jimin just nodded.

“It’s not just my fault you’re like this, I don’t ever recall you saying no,” he snarked.

“I’m also not saying no now, if we could get back on track?” You asked, bringing his hand to your throbbing center. Jimin seemed to get the message as he rubbed his fingers along your slit, collecting your slick between the pads of his fingers and your skin.

“My love, so ready for me,” he murmured, coming in closer to kiss your neck. You let out a sigh of pleasure, running your hands down his back, scratching along the skin gently, causing goosebumps to rise in your wake. He groaned as you gripped his ass in your palms, causing him to rut forward like a pup in heat. You smirked at his enthusiasm, squeezing once more before he whined against your skin.

“Oh!” You gasped as he entered one finger inside your tight heat. A soft groan came from his cherry red lips, causing you to clamp down on the digit inside of you. Jimin moved his finger gently, stretching your hole out carefully. Everything he did, he did with purpose. It made your heart stammer in your chest as you could feel another finger slipping in next to the first one.

“So tight,” he growled, pumping in and out of you with a delicious tempo that had your hips grinding down against his hand. “You’re soaking the bed my darling.”

“I-I can’t help it, you feel too good,” you moaned.

“Mm, you sure I can’t have a taste? Just a little bit wouldn’t hurt,” he whispered against the shell of your ear. You wanted so badly to encourage his devilish mouth, but you gripped his wrist and forced him to stop moving those dangerous fingers inside of you.

He looked worried for a moment. But you smoothed your thumb over his brow.

“I can’t wait any more, please don’t make me wait,” you whined, humping against his fingers. “Give it to me, please. Fill me up.”

Jimin’s eyes turned dark as he pulled his hand away from your center. Watching with rapt attention you saw him take his sticky digits and put them in his mouth, sucking lewdly on your arousal. Jimin made a show of it. Licking and sucking on his fingers, trying to get every last drop of your essence off of his fingers. He was also proving that he could pleasure you with his mouth if you’d only let him.

“You want my cock? Want it so bad huh? My beautiful Queen, you want it? Huh? Tell me why I should give it to you?” He said, eyes glazing over as you presented yourself on all fours for him.

“Because, I’ve been so good for you. I’m carrying your baby, so pregnant and full, but not full enough. I need more, more of your cum Jimin. Want more of it leaking from me, please, remind me how you got me pregnant. Please, won’t you give me your cock? Your cum? Please, I want it so badly,” you pleaded.

Jimin’s eyes darkened further. He knew you were good at begging, it was one of his favorite things to teach you, because you learned so quickly what he liked. And he would never be able to deny such an earnest request.

“If that’s what you want my love, then you’ll have it. Have me,” he agreed, moving off the bed to push his pants and underwear to the ground before coming back to the bed. You felt his presence behind you, smoothing over your back gently. “Is this position okay? Or do you need something different?” He asked, kissing your shoulder.

“This is okay, I’m comfortable,” you encouraged. “Now, fuck me.”

Jimin needed no further words as he sank into you slowly for the first time in months. The pair of you breathed out heavy sighs as you finally felt the fullness you’d been craving for weeks. Jimin choked on a moan when you flexed your walls around him, making him buck into you a little harsher than expected.

“Sorry! I haven’t-Since we haven’t been doing anything I haven’t even pleasured myself, I haven’t had the time, you feel so good around me, fuck,” he moaned out, gripping your hips firmly.

“It’s okay, I won’t last long. I’ve missed you so much,” you moaned, your fists tightening in the bed sheets beneath you.

“Oh shit,” he growled, bucking into you again, building a steady rhythm that had your chest jolting almost painfully. Your core was soaking, and Jimin wasn’t letting up. He was fucking into you so hard some of your arousal was falling down your thighs.

“Jimin, harder,” you pleaded, head falling into the mattress. Your husband didn’t have to be told twice as he started rutting into your wet heat with vigor.

“I’ve been thinking about this everyday since you told me you were pregnant,” he snarled, pulling all the way out just to force himself back in once more. You cried out when his fingers found your clit, causing you to grind back against him. The air rushed from his lungs as he watched you practically use him for your own pleasure.

“Everyday? Then why didn’t you do anything?” You whined, bouncing back against him harshly. Jimin swallowed hard as he tried to stave off his looming orgasm.

“Because the physician... I was worried I’d hurt you or the baby, like I said earlier. But now that I know this is safe, don’t expect to be able to walk for a while,” he warned, pulling on your sensitive nipples gingerly. You cried out into the mattress when milk started to leak down Jimin’s hand. He watched as the pearly white substance soaked the sheets beneath you like your arousal had earlier.

“Fuck! Jimin, keep going please!” You begged when he got distracted by your chest practically flooding the bed.

“Have you not been expressing the milk? Doesn’t it hurt?” He asked.

“Yes, it aches so much during the day and I’m so sensitive when I try to sleep. Sometimes I wake up and my nightdress is soaked from milk,” you whined, trying to reach for him so he would keep pounding into you.

“Mm, since I didn’t get to have a taste of your pussy... Maybe you’ll let me have something else instead,” he teased, licking the milk off of his hands and groaning when it hit his tastebuds.

“More, please more!” You begged. Jimin noticed your frantic bouncing and eased you into a spooning position. He was still throbbing inside of you, but you could feel his head come to your shoulder, placing soft kisses against it.

“Let me drink from you, it must hurt my darling. So full and heavy with milk for our child, but they can share, surely?” He teased, kissing the side of your breast while giving shallow thrusts to your womanhood.

“You can have it, whatever you want as long as you keep fucking me. Please, Jimin, I’m so close,” you whimpered. Sensing your urgency Jimin started his brutal pace back up. You cried out in bliss when his mouth met your sensitive nipple. Jimin gently suckled at your chest, causing more milk to enter his mouth.

He groaned at the flavor and gave a few sharp ruts into your clenching pussy. You were besides yourself with pleasure, almost in tears at all the stimulation.

Jimin wasn’t doing much better. Five months without even masturbating was proving to be his end far too quickly.

“Y/N, I’m going to cum. Are you close?” He asked, reaching down to push at your clit gently.

“Yes! Right there, pleasepleaseplease! Jimin,” you cried. Your walls tightened beyond belief, causing Jimin to freeze in his thrusting. He watched your face as you fell apart for him, causing him to reach his end as well. A cry of your name on his lips as ropes of hot cum painted your walls milky white. Jimin shuddered in overstimulation as you continued to clench yourself around his spent cock.

The pair of you lay there, clutching each other in the afterglow as you tried to catch your breath. Jimin decided to move first, pulling his still twitching length from your abused center. You watched as he stood on wobbly legs and came back with a towel to clean you up with. A soft smile took over your features as you spread your legs easily for him.

After he was satisfied, you opened your arms for him. Jimin moved forward without hesitation, wrapping your exhausted body with his own. He kissed the top of your head, then around your jaw and finally a firm kiss was placed on your lips.

“I love you so much my darling,” he smiled, resting his head on the pillow.

“I love you too, we both do.”

—

You’d never thought that giving birth would be a pleasant experience.

But never in your entire life did you imagine it would hurt this much.

The contractions had started early in the morning. Making you wake Jimin with a frantic push.

“My love what is it?” He asked, sitting up in the bed with a bewildered look on his face.

“Get Father Jin right now,” you demanded, leaning forward to hold your severely swollen stomach. Jimin was out of bed and quickly called the guards to get the Priest from his room as fast as possible.

They yelled back their confirmation before they hurried off. You felt the distinct cramping from your groin and moaned low in pain. Jimin came back over to you, looking at you with worry etched onto his features.

“Do you want anything? Anyone? I’ll call for whatever you need,” he said, taking your shaking hands in his.

“Good morning,” you whispered, giving him a weak smile.

“Good morning,” he smiled back, kissing your knuckles gently.

Soon you were in a different room entirely, getting settled into the blankets and all the people close to you had been summoned.

Jungkook and Taehyung had gotten there first, both excited and ready for the proceedings.

“Lady Y/N! It’s really happening? Oh my gosh! I’m so excited for you,” Jungkook said, coming over to place a gentle kiss on your hand out of respect.

“Thank you Jungkook, how is training the new recruits going?” You asked, trying to distract yourself from the pain.

“Oh that’s all boring! We don’t want to hear about that!” Taehyung said, coming next to you and also kissing your hand.

“Maybe she does my Lord,” Jungkook sneered. You knew the two of them had always had a friendly competition going on. But, right now you shushed them and told them to go sit down.

Hoseok and Namjoon were next, coming in shortly after Taehyung and Jungkook.

“My lady,” Namjoon said, taking to his knee in front of you.

“There’s no need for that right now, Namjoon. How are you? We haven’t had tea in a while, and I fear if this babe comes now we might not for a long while yet,” you teased and Namjoon just smiled as he stood up.

“We can sneak some tea in soon my Lady, leave the child with the King to see how he fares,” he smirked. Jimin was pouting. You knew it without even looking at him.

“I might have to do that,” you smiled. Hoseok came over quickly after, kissing your hand a few times before looking at you with excitement.

“Is there anything you want? Anything you need? I know you’re not supposed to eat anything right now but maybe some water?” He asked.

“It’s so sweet of you to offer, but right now I’m just tired and a little cranky,” you laughed, trying to keep yourself in good spirits.

Hoseok seemed to understand, giving your hand a soft squeeze before walking over to talk with Namjoon and Jungkook.

“Where’s Yoongi? And Father Jin?” You asked, looking around.

“We’re here!” Father Jin said, a bright smile on his face as he escorted a grumpy looking Yoongi through the doorway.

“Yeah, here,” Yoongi said, yawning and scowling at the older man.

“I’m sorry to wake you,” you whispered, reaching out for the stoic man. His resolve quickly melted as he came by and pressed a gentle kiss to the back of your hand.

“I’m sure you’d rather be sleeping now too, but I’m fine. Are you alright?” He asked, looking at you with an intensity you always forgot he possessed.

“Yes, just some contractions right now. My water hasn’t broken yet,” you said. Yoongi nodded and looked at Jimin with a soft smile.

“How are you faring, feeling okay?” He asked, looking at the father to be with kind eyes.

“Nervous, but happy,” he confirmed, taking your hand in his.

“Wonderful,” he yawned, going to sit down and hopefully doze off while you were still in the early stages.

Father Jin gathered everyone up and they all listened attentively to whatever he had to say. The day progressed and your water hadn’t broken yet, but the men all stayed, asking if there was anything you needed, holding your hand if you felt a particularly rough contraction.

But most importantly, Jimin was right by your side the whole time.

When your water did finally break, it was like hell also had broken loose.

It was later, probably afternoon when you felt it happen.

Father Jin was suddenly on his feet demanding towels and hot water for you, as well as some herbs that would help numb the pain as much as they could. Jimin looked panic stricken when you clutched onto his hand.

“It’s okay,” he said softly, brushing your hair away from your face.

“I’m scared,” you whispered, another wave of pain crashing through you without remorse.

“I’m scared too,” he confessed. “But I know you can do it. You’re already the perfect wife, now you’re going to be the perfect mother... Our child is almost here,” he said, kissing your cheek.

“Jungkook, Lord Taehyung each of you grab a leg and hold them please,” Father Jin said as he sat in front of you. Both men looked shocked at the idea, but you and Jimin both nodded, giving them permission.

Jungkook gently placed his hands on your calf and pushed your leg back holding it in position for you. Taehyung did the same, each of them keeping their eyes respectful.

“Why do we have to hold her legs?” Taehyung asked, looking at Jungkook.

“Gives her more leverage and relieves some of the pressure on her back,” Jungkook answered.

“The only problem is it can close off the birthing canal at an awkward angle, but for now this is the best position to give her a break,” Father Jin said.

When you started pushing, you felt your lower back ache with how much strain you were under. Jimin could only watch as you cried out in pain when Father Jin urged you to keep going.

Everyone in the room was tense with worry.

Your health had always been fragile, even after coming back from the dead you still fell sick easily and had trouble with your lungs. But Father Jin was focused on the baby, while Jimin was focused on you.

“I never expected it to hurt this much,” Namjoon whispered, watching on in horror as his Queen and dear friend struggled to keep conscious through the pain.

“I think I’m going to be sick,” you wailed. Hoseok was quick to grab a bucket that was formerly filled with water and held it as you threw up. Jimin smoothed his hands down your back, trying to keep himself from crying. Jungkook and Taehyung had given you a break with your legs so you could turn as you emptied your stomach.

“Y/N,” Jimin murmured, kissing your shoulder gently.

“Sit back straight, Y/N, you need to keep pushing,” Father Jin said. You were delirious with pain and exhaustion. You needed something to keep you grounded. The one thing you knew would always keep you grounded.

“My love, talk to me, just keep talking to me,” you pleaded, voice hoarse with how much you’d been crying.

“Y/N, it’s alright,” Jimin soothed, kissing your sweaty forehead with worry. “They’re almost here, we’re so close to meeting our baby. We’re so close to being a family.”

“Alright your Majesty another big push on the count of three, one... two... three!” Father Jin said, you pushed hard and felt nothing but sheer agony as the child started crowning.

“I can see the head!” Hoseok said, standing behind Father Jin, now hanging onto Yoongi tightly.

“Oh my God,” you cried, head falling back on the pillows.

“Keep pushing Y/N!” Father Jin said, preparing a cloth.

“I can’t, I really can’t, I’ll die if I keep going please,” you stammered. Taehyung and Jungkook shared an anxious look. Namjoon looked at you with fear written all over his features.

“My love, look at me,” Jimin said softly, bringing your eyes to his.

“It hurts, I can’t... Please don’t make me, ah!” You cried out as you felt another contraction.

“Y/N you need to push! Hard as you can,” Father Jin said, looking at your situation.

“Keep going Lady Y/N,” Jungkook said, looking up to your weary face. He’d seen several women give birth in his village, his mother being a midwife. But, to see someone he cared about going through this was difficult.

“You’ll be alright, you will. But if you stop pushing you’re putting you and the baby in danger,” Father Jin warned.

“How much longer?” You cried, giving another hard push.

“You’re so close,” Yoongi said, watching you with concern.

“You’re doing great!” Taehyung chirped, watching on in amazement.

He couldn’t wait to have his own family...

“The head is almost out, come on Y/N, keep going,” Father Jin said.

“Jimin,” you whimpered, clutching his hand as you gave the hardest push yet.

“I love you so much, keep going Y/N, I love you,” he whispered into your ear. You pushed again and finally, finally there was some relief.

“Oh my God!” Hoseok yelped, gripping onto Yoongi’s arm so tight he was certain that he was going to break his limb.

“You’re going to rip my arm off! Father Jin is a little busy right now!” Yoongi growled.

“Can you give me one more push? Just one more,” Jimin asked, kissing your shoulder. Looking at him with tears in your eyes you nodded, giving another strong push before soft cries filled the room.

“It’s a boy!”

“A prince!”

“Congratulations your majesties!”

You slumped back onto the bed, breathing heavily when a small bundle was placed on your chest. Looking down you saw your son, wiped off haphazardly and clutching your nightdress tightly.

“Oh Y/N,” Jimin whispered, placing a gentle kiss on your lips.

“He’s so handsome!” Hoseok cooed, looking on at you and Jimin both. Father Jin had you push a few more times to deliver the afterbirth, but nothing was as intense as giving birth to your son.

“Ji...min...” you breathed, eyes growing heavy.

“Can she rest Father?” Taehyung asked, looking at the little prince attached to his mother with tear filled eyes.

“Not yet, Y/N, stay awake,” Father Jin warned.

“Why...?” You asked, slowly taking in deep breaths.

“I need to check you and the baby over, and he needs to feed,” Father Jin said softly, cleaning you up still. Your eyes were still heavy, but you heard your baby crying softly on your chest.

Instinctively you shushed him, bringing him to your chest so he could latch on. After a little struggle, he was feeding eagerly. You brushed his hair gently, watching with sleepy eyes as he ate his fill.

Father Jin came over, congratulating you on a wonderful delivery. He did tell you everything you needed to do for the coming days, encouraging you to stay in bed and keep the baby close to form a relationship. He also told Jimin to take the baby and have time as well.

“It’s important that you two stay together for this coming week, I’ll make sure that the advisors and everyone just leaves you alone unless it is absolutely life or death,” Father Jin said, looking at your babe with a tenderness that made your heart swell.

“What’s the baby’s name? Hmm? What do we call our new prince?” Namjoon asked, raising a brow.

“Jihoon?” You asked, looking at Jimin for confirmation.

“It’s perfect,” Jimin agreed, giving you a kiss on the forehead.

“Prince Jihoon, I’ll let the advisors and everyone know,” Taehyung said, running into the hall.

“Lord Taehyung! Just hang on a second!” Namjoon yelled, chasing after the excited noble.

“We’d better go and make sure they don’t get into any trouble,” Yoongi said to Jungkook, patting his shoulder before guiding the younger male out the door.

“As much as I’d love to spend time with my Godchild, I have to make sure that my brother and friends don’t cause a scene,” Hoseok said. He came up and gave your hand a gentle kiss. “Congratulations Lady Y/N, I’m truly happy for you.”

With that he left the room, followed shortly by Father Jin.

You and Jimin were alone with your baby, the soft sound of his gurgles filling the room. Jimin looked down at you, eyes watery as he kissed your child’s head. You brushed the tears away from his face, even though exhaustion was flooding your aching body, you wanted to make sure he was okay too. He had also been through a lot today.

“I love you,” you said, watching as more tears fell from his eyes.

“I love you too, both of you... So much,” he whimpered. “That was the most beautiful and heartbreaking thing I’ve ever had to experience.”

“Heartbreaking?” You wondered out loud.

“To see you in so much pain, and there was nothing I could do about it,” he said, looking at your child, hands shaking.

“It’s alright, I’m okay now,” you said, holding his hand in your clammy one. Jimin pressed a delicate kiss to your wrist, looking up at you with so much love and adoration.

“I’m sorry you hurt so much, if I could take your pain I would,” he said, brushing your hair back.

“Doesn’t hurt anymore,” you mumbled, eyes closing slowly. “Just tired now...”

“Sleep my love, we’ll be here when you wake up.”

And they were.

And they always would be.

Forever.

#Ficswithluv #Jessika Hathaway #BTS #BTS smut #Jimin X Reader #Jimin fanfic #Jimin smut #Park Jimin smut #Park Jimin fanfiction #BTS royalty AU #BTS fantasy #Yoongi #Jin #Seokjin #Suga #V #Taehyung #Jungkook #JK #RM #Namjoon #Hoseok #Jhope #Hobi #BTS fanfiction #BTS fanfic #bts

[thoughtfulfangirling]

Sorcery of Thorns

by Margaret Rogerson

I’d say the roots of my reading lie in the fantasy genre, but most of my new reads in the last six months to a year have been trying new things. It felt refreshing and good to dive back into fantasy therefore.

To be honest, one reason I’d moved away was because I had gotten a little burnt out on the common tropes. So it was a real delight to make my way through this story, with the naive but insightful, 6′3 protagonist Elisabeth. She’s not the first of her kind for me, the woman who feels so physical and tall, but it’s been such a long time since I’ve had a woman akin to Lanen Kaelar or Keladry of Mindelin or Harry Crew. It felt so good to have her be the tank to the lanky sorcerer love interest who happens to stand several inches shorter.

A weird comparison given there are really very few lasting similarities, but this felt a bit like reading a very old favorite of mine by Sherwood Smith, Crown Duel. Only in this version, the books don’t wait to end the story for the love interests getting to work together. They get time to breathe and even recognize their feelings without diving into anything. I enjoyed that space so, so much to be honest.

I enjoyed very much the world building — the love Elisabeth has of the living books in the library she was raised on while knowing they created using the souls of unwilling persons, a practice since long banned, the cost the sorcerer’s must pay for the ability to practice magic, and the fascinating merging of demon and fae to create necessary but horrifying pacts with creatures from another world who can appear human but do not act as such. Also incredibly refreshing was that while—almost weirdly given what I’m about to say—patriarchy was invoked in the first quarter of the book to create a real atmosphere of threat for Elisabeth, the actual influential side characters throughout the book really are not male dominated. Consistently throughout the book, when we are introduced to a person in a position of power, it’s a woman. The percentages perhaps still skew male, but far from overwhelmingly. And they are introduced without the characters’ surprise or confusion or with any awkwardness. 

I loved the character building. It does rely a fair amount in the ‘coming of age’ concepts given this is YA and Elisabeth lived a very sheltered life, but that the story doesn’t drag on at length to get Elisabeth to a place to accept that there are shades of good in evil and everything and the world doesn’t work the way she was told. She’s adaptable and intuitive and it was so refreshing to have a character who didn’t have to be blind to the twists of plot for the sake of narrative convenience. That Nathaniel, the secondary protagonist, gets a full arc. That the climax of the story can build and for a long and pivotal moment, all that matters is the relationship between him and the tertiary main character — one in which Elisabeth has no bearing or weight on. It isn’t nor has to be All About Her every step and that the other characters get true moments to shine in ways that is not about the primary protagonist. That shit is my jam!

I am sure this is a story I will revisit.

Quick spoiler under the cut for the very end!

As Silas stepped into the circle to save the world, it really was my hope that the sacrifice would be a real/permanent sacrifice. Up until now, despite the truth of his actual affection for Nathaniel and Elisabeth, his behaviors are all calculated to his benefit. He is aware only Nathaniel knows his name and that he can only ever return if he lives and, in fact, bears children. He was being entirely honest in my opinion when he told Elisabeth that he stepped in the way of that sword without being commanded to for his own selfish reason given only Nathaniel can bring him back and keep him there. 

Any sacrifice undone lessens the weight of the sacrifice in storytelling, which is why I am of the idea that they should be used carefully, and undone even more carefully. It could have been a real point of contention for me if they just brought him back after he was freed and made a true sacrifice.

That being said, I do recognize that the story is YA, and if he had to be brought back, I think Rogerson did it in the best possible way — one that recognized the growth and the transformative experience of his actions. For a demon-like creature which (in my opinion) heavily invokes the fae, it is no small thing for their name—their nature—to change.

#TF Reads #books #I really did have a lot of fun reading this one #I could have done with somehow incorporating Katrien more into the events #but as it stands this book did better than many others in creating that relationship and making it so important #and that she got brought in as part of the resolution and hte life Elisabeth wants to have is beautiful so many props for that #Sorcery of Thorns #Margaret Rogerson #la de da #2022 reads

[ariel-seagull-wings]

TOP 12 CINDERELLA PORTRAYALS

@superkingofpriderock​ @metropolitan-mutant-of-ark​ @lachica50​ @sunlit-music​ @princesssarisa​ @mademoiselle-princesse​ @amalthea9​ @captain-dad​ @astrangechoiceoffavourites​ @theancientvaleofsoulmaking​ @anne-white-star​ @littlewomenchannel​ @lieutenant-hel-odinsdottir​ @filmcityworld1​ 

Rodopis. Ye Xan. Cenerentola. Cendrillon. Aschenputtel.  Aschenbrödel. Zolushka. Cenicienta. Gata Borralheira. Cinderella. The heroine has several names around the world, but all of them experience the same tale: young ladies who are opressed and marginalized by father and stepfamily, but, thanks to their kindness and bravery, receive assistance to rise from the ashes more strong and beautifull, learning to love themselves and eventually finding the love of a prince that will make them happy. The tale is very old, its first writen version dating back to Ancient Egypt, and has been told, retold, writen and rewriten in several different versions, and has been adapted into a variety of media like cartoons, films, radio shows, and comics from around the Globe, wich possibilated anyone to choose their favorite versions. And today, i will share with my favorite portrayal of one of the most iconic fairy tale heroines of all time.

12º Daphne Zuniga in Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child (1995)

This animated fairy tale anthology series produced by HBO camed with the twist of transporting well known european versions of fairy tales to different cultures, like China, Cuba and the Caribbean. In this episode, they adapted Cinderella by setting the story in a Kingdom that had culture and population inspired by Mexico, making it one of the first portrayals of the character as a mexican, wich turns it a very significative work. Cinderella herself could show a bit more range of emotions, because in this portrayal she is at her most passive, her voice is always very sweet and low and she rarely her smile facial expression, but the character design and how she interacts with the colorfull and creative world and characters in the episode still makes it wort checking it out.

11º Aylin Tezel in Sechs auf einen Streich (2011)

Grimm’s Finest Fairy Tales (Sechs auf einen Streich in Germany and Holland) is a live action TV Movie anthology series from Germany made between 2008 and 2019. In 2011, they released their adaptation of Cinderella (Grimm’s Aschenputtel) staring german-turkish actress Aylin Tezel. Tezel brings a sense of playfullness to the role, as well as a sense of altruism in helping the servants in her Stepmother’s house and a wild free spirit that she fights to keep despite the opressive rulling of her Stepmother over her life. She is basically borrowing some elements of the humanity that other actresses before her brought to the role, while making this version of the character her own, wich is not easy feet, and deserves all the praises in the world.

10º Mitsuko Horie/Lara Cody in Grimm’s Fairy Tale Classics (1989)

Another fairy tale anthology series, this time made as a japanese anime that, despite the title, didn’t necessarily limited itself to the tales written by the Grimm Brothers. But in the case of this Cinderella episode, the Grimm’s version is the one they choosed to adapt, excluding the gory element of the sisters cutting their feet. This encarnation of Cinderella is probably the one with the most highlighted innocence, wich could both bring people to love and help her, but also be turned against her by the villains. The moment where this is most explicit is when after returning from the ball, she casually comments with the birds about the tree that gaved her the ball gown to wear, without knowing that the Stepmother is listening, and later her Stepmother not only locks her in the attic, but calls a woodcutter to cut down the tree, leaving poor Cinderella to suffer in deep guilt. It’s not often that a Cinderella adaptation explores the character’s innocence having negative consequences for her, and that is what makes this portrayal of one the most refreshing.

09º Maria Kawamura in Cinderella Monogatari (1996)

The Story of Cinderella (Cinderella Monogatari) is an Italian-Japanese anime television series of 26 episodes, wich were later edited into a two part feature lenght movie. This Cinderella is the 16 year old daughter of a rich Duke who dreams of someday going to live in a castle, having her own horse and many friends. But those dreams start to become remote for her when her father has to make a long travel and her Stepmother and Stepsisters reveal their true faces: Cinderella is taken out of her room, turned into their servant, often receiving hard tasks in short spans of time, and several times is exposed to situations of danger and harm by her Stepmother, like when she is unfairly framed for stealing grapes from the royal vines. Her situation is one of the most vulnerable, and troughout the series we get nervous to see if she will keep being a hopefull teenager, or if the hardships will crush her spirit despite the support that she has from her friends.

08º Ilene Woods in Disney’s Cinderella (1950)

Going from a teenager who has just recently started to experience adversity, to a grown adult who has experienced adversity since childhood. Having lost both of her parents as a child, it becamed more easy for Lady Tremaine to lock Cinderella away from the world and educate her to be an apparently perfect servant who does every domestic shore well, fast and without any sign of complaints. But, when she is alone with her animal friends, is the moment that Cinderella voices her fealings of fear, longing, anger, sadness and tiredness, dreaming of someday becoming free. She also gives them food and handmade clothes, showing how thankfull she is for their friendship, and this inspires the animals, as well as the Fairy Godmother who sees everything, to want to help her. And in her night out at the ball, she shows a natural grace and sweetness that charms people like the Prince to instantly fall in love with her. Basically, an inspirational role model.

07º Gemma Craven in The Slipper and The Rose (1976)

An intersting bridge between Disney’s Cinderella and Cinderella Monogatari. Like Disney’s Cinderella, she is a grown adult orphaned of both parents. Like Cinderella Monogatari, since her father died when she is an adult, her entrapment into servitude is more recent, wich makes clear that she has difficulty with domestic shores and also gives her a more intense will to rebel, to the point that this is one of the few portrayals of Cinderella that says “I hate you” in her Stepmother’s face. And the rebeliousness is well mixed with a very romantic personality that specially shines after she falls in love with the Prince, who is also an idealistic rebel that matches perfectly well with our relatable heroine.

06º Drew Barrymore as Danielle de Barbarac in Ever After: A Cinderella Story (1998)

In american cinema during the 90s, it was growing in popularity the fantasy heroine who was a warrior rebel and an intelectual bookworm. Capitaling in this fenomenon, Ever After: A Cinderella Story, was made, eschewing the magical elements in favour of Pseudo-Historical Fiction retelling.

The story begins when The Brothers Grimm are invited to the home of a French noblewoman who tells them how much she enjoyed their story of Cinderella, but that they got some details wrong. She then proceeds to tell them this story: Danielle de Barbarac  is the beloved only child of the widowed Auguste de Barbarac and his late wife, Nicole de Lancret. When she is eight years old, he remarries the Baroness Rodmilla de Ghent (Anjelica Huston), and brings her home along with her two daughters, spoiled and cruel Marguerite and gentle but weak-willed Jacqueline. Shortly thereafter, he dies, leaving Danielle to the care of her stepmother, who already resents the love that he displays to his daughter (especially as he calls for her over his wife in his final moments), and the estate's three devoted servants - the housemaids, Paulette and Louise, and the retainer, Louise's husband Maurice. The movie skips ahead ten years, to when Danielle is eighteen. Their estate has fallen onto hard times and things keep "disappearing," to the anger of the Baroness. Danielle has, of course, become a virtual house slave to the family, but takes comfort in the familial love she shares with the servants and the kindness she receives from Jacqueline. One morning, she is gathering apples in the estate's orchard when she spies someone stealing the horse of her late father. Enraged, she chucks apples at him, ultimately causing him to fall. It turns out to be the Crown Prince of France, running away from a father who wants to marry him off. To buy her silence, he gives her a great amount of gold. Danielle and the Prince meet again when Danielle, disguised as a courtier and using her mother's name, goes to the castle to rescue Maurice, whom the Baroness had sold into slavery to pay off some of her debt. The Prince is intrigued by "Nicole's" beliefs and courage, and asks to meet her again. A courtship ensues, in which Danielle keeps trying to tell Henry that she is really not a countess and the Baroness gets increasingly suspicious of Danielle's odd appearances and disappearances. The King and Queen, desperate to marry their son off, are delighted that he has found a girl... but are keen to meet her, something Danielle wishes to avoid. Meanwhile, Leonardo da Vinci, who has been invited to court, befriends both Danielle and Henry and everything seems to be going along well, save for Danielle's growing anxiety about maintaining the masquerade.

Barrymore’s Danielle channels the idealism and dreaminess of the Cinderella character trough her love of books, specially Thomas Moore’s Utopia, and also expands the rebeliousness brought by her predecessours by being writen as skillfull in swordfight, making her able to save herself and the ones she loves in more than one ocasion, wich was a very new take. At least for american audiences in the 90s, anyway, but we will get there later...

05º Brandy Norwood in Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella (1997)

When i was kid i watched mainly three film versions of Cinderella: the 1950 Disney animated film, Ever After: A Cinderella Story, and this TV Movie production of the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical released by the Disney Channel. It was one the first examples of a diverse, colorblind period fairy tale production i remember seeing, and it was an important mark for me ever since.

As played by pop singer and actress Brandy Norwood, this encarnation of Cinderella is a courteous, gentle young woman who is nevertheless unafraid to speak her mind, ocasionally making snarky comments as a way to cope with her stepfamily’s abuse. But she is still shown to need some boosting in confidence by her Fairy Godmother, who teaches Cinderella to see the valour and beauty in herself, and never stoping asking for the impossible.

04º  Lesley Ann Warren in Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella (1965)

Whereas Brandy Norwood’s Cinderella would more easily find a way to confront others who mistreated her and become a confident person, Lesley Ann Warren’s Cinderella was a more shy and frightened person, who had to take a more slow path into becoming confident and take her chance of happiness. Because of that, the viewer has the more intense feeling that when she goes to the ball in the beautifull magic gown, she is a more glamorous and happy person, different from the meek and sad lady who usually hides around the fireplace. This was Warren’s first starring role, and we must commend her for portraying two faces of the same character in her debut as a leading lady.

03º Jennifer Beals in Fairy Tale Theater (1985)

The most simple, straightforward adaptation of Charles Perrault’s Cinderella ever made, and the simplicity is its greatest strenght. That strenght is personified in Jennifer Beals’s performance as the title character. This Cinderella is the quintessential no nonsense girl next door, who even tough finding herself in a situation of unimpowerment, always refuses to accept the absurd injustice of her exploitation as a servant, speaking her mind clearly to her stepfamily. This make all the more satisfatory when she receives the visit of her Fairy Godmother, and is reward with the deserved rich and happy life that she was loosing hope of ever receiving.

02º Libuše Šafránková in Three Wishes for Cinderella (1973)

This czech film is one of the first cinematic portrayals of Cinderella as a wild, adventurous, free spirited trickster character, who with the help of three wish granting magic nuts, can go outside and woo her beloved Prince. She enjoys horse riding, trowing snow balls, and hunting, as well as wearing pretty dresses to dance at balls. A highlight is when she cleverly hides her face with a veil to avoid being recognized by her stepfamily, and teases the Prince with riddles about who she is. You can see that she oppened the door for portrayals like Barrymore’s and Tenzel’s.

And my number one is the version that opened the door for her and many others...

01º Leslie Caron in The Glass Slipper (1955)

In this ballet-movie, french-american ballerina and actress Leslie Caron portrays Ella, a girl who not only is abused by her stepfamily, but also ostracized by the people in her village due to constantly apearing covered in ashes and not being traditionally beautifull with her short hair and big teeth. Because of that, Ella grows into a lonely, awkward and agressive person, whose only refuge is the prophecy of a fortune teller who told that someday she would live in the beautifull Palace of the Duke, and the daydreams in wich she imagine herself as a gracious ballerina. One day, Ella meets two people: Mrs Toquet, an old lady who everyone calls crazy, and a young man who presents himself as son of the Palace’s Cook, but is secretly the Duke’s son, Prince Charles. Those two are the first people who treat Ella with kindness, and because of that, she slowly blooms into a more merry person, who learns to love herself and accept the love of others.

This adaptation is very influential, being one of the first where the heroine’s birth name is Ella (wich would be later used in Ella Enchanted and Disney’s Cinderella 2015), one of the first that makes the supernatural elements more subtle (paving the way for Ever After’s complet schewing of them), one of the first that portrays a more angry and rebellious Cinderella (paving the way for Three Wishes for Cinderella, The Slipper and The Rose, Fairy Tale Theater, Ever After and Aylin Tezel’s 2011 Cinderella) and one of the first to make her meet and fall in love with the Prince before the ball, without knowing his true identity (paving the way for Three Wishes for Cinderella, Ever After , Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella 1997 production and Aylin Tezel’s 2011 Cinderella). 

And because of how awkward and agressive Ella acts in her everyday life, her ballet daydreams and the transformation in the mysteryous “belle of the ball” feels more radical, like two different faces of the same coin, thanks to Leslie Caron’s full of range performance. For being the version that brought the raw humanity to Cinderella, influencing several portrayals ever since, is the reason that Leslie Caron is my number one favorite portrayal of Cinderella.

Honorable Mentions: Kim Crosby in Into the Woods (1987), The Triplets (1998).

#cinderella #fairy tales #genre fiction #fantasy #literature #folklore #pop culture #wallpaper

[ardeidae]

chain of iron ranting

honestly tbh i’ve kinda just been struggling over this book like . i love it but there are so many things that i cannot get over so...i thought i’d compile them in one post just to get my mind off them

positives

of the many, many character relationships, i found myself caring the most about jordelia (w/ some matthew) and grace w/ everyone (surprisingly). it’s pretty obvious why i care about jordelia—from all the domestic scenes to the almost absurd amount of miscommunication and heartbreak, i want to slap them both in the face and just get them to be happy. ofc, i understand why they aren’t, but i’m mad (and waiting for chain of thorns).

ofc, when we talk about jordelia, we have to mention matthew. i am literally praying that matthew and cordelia aren’t the final couple—which is funny, because pre-chain-of-iron i was rooting for fairstairs. but i’ve backed up on that decision. we saw real, genuine james in this book, and all the scenes with him and cordelia convinced me that jordelia (hopefully) is what we’ll get in the end. and besides, cordelia’s sorta said that she can’t love matthew in the way he wants her too, and i’m half-convinced matthew doesn’t actually love her in that way either—half-convinced, though. chain of thorns chould change my mind, i’m open to suggestions.

grace is slightly different. we got a look into just who she is, and i find myself...not liking, but understanding her better. the moments when she stops herself from using her power on christopher is one of my favorites (i’m still mad she pulled a one-eighty at the end though and pretend like it was nothing)

i love alastair in this book (...though i found myself not caring about him with thomas, which i found curious). we see more of the mature side of him, and he’s really one of the only characters who isn’t flat-out lying in this book, which is refreshing. i found his attitude towards his father interesting, and his little thing about the child not having a father was heartbreaking. loved him here.

negatives

now that i’ve got the stuff i liked out of the way...the negatives. i found myself—surprisingly—not too fond of jesse and lucie in this book. i understand lucie’s motivations—she both “loves” jesse and owes jesse for james’ life, even if jesse won’t hold her to that. but man, i don’t understand all the secrets. when lucie stood in front of cordelia, who was trying her damn hardest to not run a sword through lucie, all she could think about was jesse. jesse’s dead, and while she might have the power to save him, that isn’t a healthy relationship. they’re cute—i’ll give them that—but chain of gold didn’t give us a glimpse into how far she’s willing to go for jesse, and i don’t like this new development. she’s putting jesse over everyone—over cordelia, over her entire family. and i’m not happy about it. imo this is a fantasy—lucie getting to be the main hero of her story, only it’s not a story that can have a happy ending. at least, in my opinion.

speaking of that, i thought there were several things that were forced in this. it might be because i hate that cordelia ran off with matthew (though i understand why she did it), but i think the whole “james lucie will only listen to you” argument is stupid. we’ve never seen a case of this before—of lucie listening to james over her parents—and i feel like it was a plot device used only to make sure james didn’t run after cordelia and matthew.

i also found the whole “win a game, get a question” thing a bit peculiar. it’s rarely used as more than an exposition device, and we see it used once so that cordelia can find out why the merry thieves hate her brother (to my memory). i think i would have liked it better if we’d gotten more moments with this—after all, they play chess or some other game every night, and we could have gotten so many moments (i’m still mad that we never got the end of the scene where cordelia is like “if you wanna know who i had a crush on you gotta beat me at chess” like i want to see competitive james).

the...meh

there was stuff i wasn’t too excited about here either. the plot was decent—i didn’t expect the lilith twist—but something about the pacing felt old. too slow in some places, and too fast in others. also there’s more than one plot line here, and while the murder one was cool, the resurrection one felt a bit...messy. it kind of splits into two—what lucie’s doing, and what grace is doing, and lucie’s gets a lot more of the spotlight. not really a decision i liked—i find grace’s motivations and how far she’s willing to go more interesting, and i’ve already discussed why i didn’t really like lucie in this book.

i found anna and ariadne boring too. i’m not a person who cares about...steamy scenes that much, and steamy pretty much defines most of their relationship throughout the book. i would have liked it better if we spent more time on it, but this books juggles a lot—and i mean, a lot—of relationships, and it felt underdeveloped.

i also had some qualms about the dialogue. maybe it’s just me, but sometimes it took awkward jumps to reach certain conclusions (like there was a checklist for certain dialogues) and it didn’t feel natural. but that’s just me being picky.

...oh and i’m on the edge about alastair and thomas. the fact they spent their time together making out isn’t something i liked. i would rather have them talk, because that’s kind of what their relationship needs. i completely understand why alastair turned him down at the end, and while i pity thomas, i can’t say i disagree.

i also can’t understand why magnus and james spent so long in the spiral labyrinth. i read the short story at the end, and it kinda felt like a reason to just not have two trustable, actually sane adults to help. maybe i missed something (i was running on very little sleep by this point) but i didn’t get it.

...well that was me ranting. i don’t expect anyone to care, but i like writing things down. anyway (if anyone has finished this to the end, in which case, i’m thankful) have a wonderful day :)))

#chain of iron #chain of iron spoilers #ranting #opinions #jordelia #fairstairs #alastair #thomas #ariadne #anna #the last hours #grace #grace blackthorn #lucie #herondale #carstairs

[sailormoonsub]

So you've watched a lot of different shows through the patreon and kori donations

If it's not too time consuming I was wondering how you would summarize those shows in a sentence or two

Or maybe just do the most memorable ones?

Not a bad idea! Here’s a one-sentence summary and a one-sentence personal note on every show I’ve reviewed more than one episode of on this blog. TLDR I’ve pretty much enjoyed everything that appears on this blog, though for different reasons. Links to all my posts about these shows can be found here! 

This is turning out to be a rather long post so I’m going to throw the list under a Read More. 

ANIME

Sailor Moon: I feel compelled to list it here but, like, I think you know enough about Sailor Moon by now.

Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun: Group of high schoolers write and draw a romance manga while simultaneously living the most chaotic reversal of common romance tropes. SO happy this was recommended to me because I never would have picked it up on my own but it’s officially a new favorite!!!

The Case Files of Jeweler Richard: Gem expert and his assistant solve rock-related mysteries while engaging in homoromantic behavior. A lesser known franchise that I think deserves more love!

Snow White with the Red Hair: Herbologist in a medieval fantasy environment escapes her oppressive government and starts a new life in a neighboring kingdom where SHE makes decisions about her life. I’m not even that far into the series but I am OBSESSED with the premise and all the character dynamics are so genuine and honest in a way I can’t describe.

Penguindrum: Himari dies of Glamorous Victorian Illness but is resurrected by the Penguin God in exchange for a favor. I’ve enjoyed what I’ve seen so far, although it is Ikuhara so it’s often confusing and abstract and all the characters need therapy.

Madoka: Being a magical girl is bad actually due to the amount of sacrifice involved. Reviewing this one is so effortless because there’s SO much material to talk about and it has such a well-established presence in the mainstream pop cultural consciousness.

My Next Life as a Villainess: Girl is reincarnated as the villain in an otome game and rewrites the script by being nice. I’ve compared it to the Good Place which is one of my favorite shows, and I cannot get enough of these characters, especially, of course, our angel queen, Catarina.

Cardcaptor Sakura (and Clear Card): Sakura has to capture all the cards. I LOVE the low stakes, slow pace, sweet and friendly vibe of this show, which might frustrate some people, but for me it’s the very definition of a comfort anime.

Zenonzard: Speaking of cards; apparently a witch created a card game to get revenge on humanity and now it’s the future where everything is neon, there’s humanoid robots all over the place, and card games are a gladiatorial sport. The visuals are amazing, the world is fascinating, and overall I’m impressed with an anime that’s based on an app.

Princess Tutu: Duck turns into a ballerina and uses unconditional kindness to save everyone from sad feelings, while ALSO working against the author who is writing her fairytale. I can’t describe how much an impact this show left on me!! A Big Fave!!

Revolutionary Girl Utena: High schoolers with swords fight each other for a shot at finding something eternal. If you read this blog, you already know I had a delightful time with this series.

Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken!: Three girls use their skills to make a hand-drawn anime. I only reviewed the first two episodes, but I had watched it while it was airing. I love series that delve really deep into a niche subject, and this one tackles the animation process in a fun accessible way while ALSO having a wonderful trio of protagonists with wildly unique personalities.

Fruits Basket 2019: Professional Cinnamon Roll Tohru collects friends who can turn into the zodiac animals. From what I’ve seen, the characters and relationships are a huge strong point in this series. I want to give them all a hug. This fell by the wayside a little while ago but I would love to get back into it!

CARTOON

Gargoyles: They are gargoyles, who come to life at night. Never got into it as a kid, but certainly appreciate it now!

Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts: Girl from futuristic underground city arrives on the surface to find out that animals have taken over and have developed arts and culture. It’s so refreshing to see a post apocalyptic world that’s NOT a dystopia! It’s not earth as we know it, but it’s still bright and colorful and full of art.

LIVE ACTION

PGSM: I don’t think I need to list a summary, but WATCH PGSM OH MY GOD. Sailor Moon but with soap opera levels of drama, a killer soundtrack, an incredible cast, puppets, and a really cool reimagining of the Silver Millennium mythos.

Tokusatsu Gagaga: Office lady tries to hide her obsession with tokusatsu shows and makes friends who have similar interests. I fell fast and hard for Gagaga; if you’re a nerd who has tried to function in a non-nerd environment, you WILL relate to this 7-part series!!

Russian Doll: Natasha Lyonne relives the same day over and over and has to make connections in her life. First introduced to me when it won a Patreon vote, and even though it was different from my usual content, I was enraptured by the dark comedy and surreal vibe. Thursday, what a concept.

Good Omens: An angel and a demon low-key turn their backs on Satan and God in order to prevent a war between heaven and hell. I can’t even think of an adjective that’s good enough to describe how well this miniseries was translated from the book. Legendary casting, satisfying plot twists, hilarious commentary on religion.

Cutie Honey The Live: Robot girl fights off an organization that turns people into living weapons through various wacky schemes. Over-the-top in all senses of the phrase. I love a show that’s extremely silly, but takes itself seriously.

Gokushufudo: Former yakuza member becomes a househusband. Only just started this series but man, with a premise like that, how can you NOT fall in love.

#And this isn't even a list of my favorite shows that i HAVENT reviewed #i've been writing one sentence book reviews on goodreads and now i'm very into that method lol #from the ask box #Anonymous

[otterplusharchive]

rey! do you have any recs for kdramas? i have never watched any, but i like lovable characters and romance ? thank you in advance!

I DO IN FACT HAVE DRAMA RECS HII not all of these will be kdramas, but ill start with the kdramas ive watched and enjoyed and ill include all the warnings for them that i can remember off the top of my head and a brief synopsis for u!

kdramas-

1. weight lifting fairy kim bok joo

this was probably one of the first kdramas i saw people post about in like 2015 and i watched a little bit of it in 2016 but then only just got around to finishing it last year. the basic gist of it is its about a young sports college weight lifter, kim bok joo, centering around her navigating through her life and trying to figure out who she is and what she wants in life and what she wants to be. her romantic interest in the show is a swimmer and they have a sort of rivals to friends to lovers, he is SO in love with her and its adorable. i absolutely loved the side characters in this show theyre all so fun and kim bok joos best friends and weight lifting team are especially delightful. my main warning would be that this show addresses eating disorders and theres a lot of mention of both weight gain and weight loss, theres also a plot point early on where kim bok joo has a crush on her eventual love interests older brother but it gets resolved and the older brother literally goes "i didnt realize you had a crush on me and if i knew that i wouldnt have been so friendly with you, it would be completely innapropriate for us to be in a relationship". overall its a really sweet and emotional fun show but if you have issues with weight talk id skip this one

2. tale of the nine tailed

this one is really recent from last year and i didnt expect to be so hooked by it but boy howdy did i get attached to all the characters and the wild plot. it feels hard to explain the plot but basically a nine tailed fox named lee yeon is living in modern day seoul and is working for the underworld finding paranormal spirits/creatures/other rogue foxes that are causing havoc on the world, hes resigned himself to living this life while waiting for his girlfriend who died tragically 600 years ago to come back to life because he traded his status as a mountain god in order to ensure that her soul would one day be reincarnated. a plucky investigative journalist named nam ji ah figures out that hes not human and shenanagins ensue because she looks exactly like his dead girlfriend oooooo whatll happen. the plot beyond that gets really wild and its hard to explain and is easier to just watch. if u enjoy paranormal adventures this one is good. my one big complaint and issue with this is that the immortal mountain spirit meets his original girlfriend when shes a child and she continues to visit him off and on as she grows up which is Hm I Dont Like That! but thankfully the present time romance our female lead meets him when shes about 30 if im remembering right. also warnings for general fantasy violence, references to child abuse, animal death, and abandonment issues

3. extraordinary you

HUGE unreality warning for this. if you have issues with feeling unreal or have paranoia/delusions about not being a real person id avoid this one just because of its premise

ok i know i said tale of the nine tailed was a hard plot to explain but BOY extraordinary you is even HARDER to explain. because its so wild but so good. its about a girl who realizes that she is literally a side character in a comic book, and the story becomes her trying to change the story to save her character from dying but it becomes a lot more than that. the romance in this is literally tooth achingly sweet and the show itself is very pretty, i loved the side characters in this one and the show was engaging and interesting to watch it became really layered and meta. super reccomend this one honestly. my main issues/warnings that i can remember off the top of my head were just one character being the classic controlling boyfriend stereotype, bullying someone specifically for being poor, unreality like i mentioned before, and then at the very end there was this love interest for a side character who got reincarnated from a past piece of writing that they had been in and put in the comic but she was a student and he was the school cook which is weird but thankfully they like barely interact at all and theres no real romance he just like recognizes her and its barely a thing at the end of the show but its still weird

4. mystic pop up bar

big warning for suicide, sexual harrasment (which is framed as being bad and the guy whos harrassing the girl literally gets thrown off a roof)

i havent finished this one yet and thats mainly because im not emotionally ready because this one makes me soooo emotional. if you like found family this is a good one. its about a pop up bar run by a woman whos been tasked with solving the problems of a certain amount of people in order to atone for her crimes in the past before dying, shes able to enter the dreams of people and solve their issues using the information she gets in the dreams. paranormal shenanagins ensue, she acquires a son and a husband and it kills me its so fun and quirky and fun despite handling dark themes and peoples problems. also very sweet the found family murders me

5. kingdom (netflix original)

i literally am not going to be able to watch any other zombie media because kingdom and train to busan are the best pieces of zombie media ive ever seen. warnings for gore and violence and just general horror aspects.

i absolutely love this one its so thrilling and well done, i love the acting and the way that this show looks its absolutely gorgeous. a zombie plague breaks out in joseon period korea where the emperor has died and then was brought back to life by the queen and her father in a ploy to try and keep their family in political power, the crown prince must find answers. a lot more happens and its very dramatic and good i love the characters in this one

cdramas

1. the untamed. if you follow me and you havent watched the untamed im begging you to watch the untamed. literally one of the most beautiful stories ive experienced in my life i am not joking when i say i cried multiple times over it. the main characters are canonically gay in love and have a son together please watch the untamed. handles a lot of dark themes, heres a tw guide

2. the sleuth of the ming dynasty

this is another one i havent finished but its fun so far, very gay, found family, food, and solving murder mysteries during the ming dynasty

3. hikaru no go (also known as qi hun)

havent finished this one, there is some propaganda about hong kong in the first episode but as far as i know thats the only instance of something like that in the show

this ones about the game go and so far its very sweet and fun, local boy awakens a ghost who was a master of the game of go hundreds of years ago and eventually is persuaded to learn how to play go with the aid of the ghost. im really liking this one so far its very cute and i love the characters in it. if youve watched the untamed nie huaisangs actor ji li is in this one!

4. the legend of yunqian

this ones very short and on youtube, all the episodes are about 5 minutes long and its a lesbian time travel fantasy adventure with a happy ending! funny and cute

jdramas

1. cherry magic

please please please watch cherry magic. the premise sounds very much like a weird yaoi kind of thing but trust me on this. trust me. it is so heart warming and sweet and i was so emotional about it and the growth of the main character.

adachi gains the power to read peoples minds on his 30th birthday based off a urban legend that if youre a 30 year old virgin that youll become a wizard. after gaining this power he accidentally finds out that his extremely popular and handsome coworker has a crush on him, and shenanagins ensue along with adachi having blossoming feelings in return. this show was really refreshing in a lot of ways, adachi is a main character who like.. is unsure of himself and insecure in a very kind of realistic way, he closes himself off and is afraid to reach out to people and through the course of the show we see him slowly come out of his shell and realize that hes likeable and lovable and that people want to be around him and its so nice to see. my main complaint about this show is that i dont really like the background couple, but otherwise this is a very sweet and refreshing gay romance that has a happy ending!

some others that i myself havent seen but that ive seen people talk about a lot and that i want to watch eventually:

- the legend of fei (cdrama)

- the wolf (cdrama)

- gaurdian (cdrama, not the kdrama one called goblin)

- healer (kdrama, i did watch some of this one but it was in 2016 and i never finished it so i barely remember any of it but i do remember liking it)

- nobody knows (kdrama)

- its ok to not be ok (kdrama)

sorry this is so long but i hope youll be able to find a drama u enjoy!!

#long post