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punknicodiangelo · 6 months

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Lore dump for Ariel Brown!

His mom is a Jewish American nurse who works for the army, and his dad is Apollo. Ariel is transmasc and uses he/him pronouns, along with being asexual and gay. He has the standard ADHD and dyslexia of demigods, as well as autism and a dysautonomic disorder. Ariel tries his best to be helpful and feels horrible when he can't be for whatever reason. He loves fiercely and though he's not a great fighter he's very protective. Ariel's main weapon is a cane sword that has plot relevance. His special interest is in the Disney Renaissance.

Ariel is Nico's love interest (he was half created out of spite ngl) and has found siblinghood with Lacy, Meg, and Rachel. He's also best friends with Malcolm and Clovis! Here's him in Lemon Maker

Ariel arrived at Camp Half-Blood just a little bit after Nico, by a matter of hours. They near instantly became best friends while in the Hermes cabin

Ariel didn't stay in the Hermes cabin long and was claimed in the infirmary after a training accident. Ariel loves his siblings very much and wishes he could do everything for them

Ariel was devastated when Nico ran away. He spent every break from school at camp, and Malcolm helped with his worry quite a bit, which led to Ariel developing a crush on him between Labyrinth and the Last Olympian that doesn't go anywhere

When Nico gets captured by the giants , Ariel has a lot of dreams about it, and got a prophecy to save Nico. He was by Nico's side for most of House of Hades, including the Cupid scene, though Ariel didn't hear what Nico had to say due to passing out after trying to attack Cupid. I think this is the moment Nico realizes he likes Ariel

Ariel goes with Nico, Reyna, and Hedge in Blood of Olympus. After the battle with Gaea, Ariel has to spend almost all his time in the infirmary, but Nico often comes to visit often, which helps Ariel to realize his feelings

The infirmary on the Argo was Ariel's de facto room since he specializes in healing. He's a good archer and plays several stringed instruments, but with his disability and mom's job he's always lent towards the healing aspects of his father's powers

Ariel is scared to tell Nico how he feels because all of Apollo's lovers seem to turn into plants and Nico's surrounded by Demeter's children (Persephone, Lex, and I imagine he's friendly with the rest too). Lacy manages to convince Ariel to tell Nico, though, which he does at the beginning of ToA

Speaking of ToA, they're the Trials of Ariel Brown now. Nico lives with the Jacksons, and Ariel finds Meg McCaffrey on his way to see Nico and takes her back to camp, where Apollo, still a god, is visting Rachel. Ariel yells at him a bit for being a bad dad, so he has Ariel go save the oracles. He also goes to the Underworld along with Nico and Will in TSaTS

Nico and Ariel call each other moth and butterfly respectively, and Ariel learns Italian to talk to Nico when he's stressed

@jasontoddssuper @honeysgalaxy @insomniac-jay @theautisticcentre

#pjo #my si #ariel brown #nico di angelo #niciel #cabin 7

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minthe-lover · 1 year

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Disappointed with Lore Olympus? Want actual struggling women finding a better situation and a support network? Want healthy, slow-paced romances? Want immortal scary people who stay scary even once the human protagonist gets to know them better? Want fat, mixed race, autistic-coded main characters who are actually relevant to the plot? Want a femme fatale who isn't shamed for using her sexuality? Want a political thriller that doesn't take from the romance? Want a romance that doesn't take from the political thriller? Want climactic final battles? Want the bad guys to meet their just demise without the struggling MC to suddenly grow to the size of a building and vomit bees on them? Want the main characters to not have a creepy age gap? Don't want all the hypocrisy and lack of continuity of LO? Want some satisfying conclusions for everyone?

Meg Corbyn, by Anne Bishop is the series for you!

(sorry for the whole paragraph and i don't even know if you take reading recs I just thought it was the kind of book you might like given what your critics of LO are)

hukahfe nah nah I'm happy to take reading recs... I have a problem were I get really picky with books to the point I don't read anything.. unless their recommended to me. so thank you fro the recommendation!

I am currently got a few books lined up to read but I'll add that one to the list!.. hopefully it's at my local library-

#lo critical #anti lo

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hexalianrebel-blackfeathers · 1 year

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Picture Book

Panda's Notes: Very late happy birthday to @ssnicker-doodless! This is technically in an AU that splices the characters from Hades into the version of Olympus/Underworld from Lore Olympus, but we can just call it a modern AU if you want. >w<

Zagreus had been up in the attic for the better part of the morning. Most members of the house had rightly assumed that he was looking for something, but at this point, they figured the teen was just screwing around again.

But they were wrong, obviously!

Zagreus had rummaged through box after box; shelf after shelf. The attic was shockingly organized, another mark of his father’s uptight past. …More uptight past. But apparently, that meant it didn’t need any labels. Father Hades was sooo great at remembering things, it seemed. Zagreus wondered why he hadn’t inherited any of those good traits as he flipped through another old book to try and decipher this shelf’s pattern.

He sighed and set it down. This entire bookshelf was all stuff about wars. Not what he’d been asked to find.

He moved to the next one, already hearing the groan inside his head as he noticed how much thicker these books were. His inner monologue shut up when he lifted one; despite their width, the books were light. The pages weren’t made of paper, and—oh!

“Finally…” He sighed with a smile. This was the photo album shelf. Now he just had to find the picture…

Um…

Well, even if Zagreus had remembered which photo his father wanted from the album shelf, he’d long since forgotten after he’d started looking through each one.

White covered albums seemed to be from Olympus; all of Zagreus’ favorite cousins had baby pictures, birthdays, even more recent events.

Green albums were filled with photos of Mother and the mortal realm. Persephone’s favorite plants and gardens; sneaky photos of Athens taken over decades. Human lives were so short… Zagreus wondered if they’d even live long enough to have cameras.

Purple albums were all of Nyx and her children. There were so many… Exactly how sentimental was Mother Nyx? Then again, Zagreus was learning a lot more about his family lately.

Red albums—It was a red one! That’s why he was up here. Gods, that took forever. Zagreus thumbed over the spines—there were only two this time, oddly enough—and grabbed the first one excitedly. He sat down against the shelf, and as he opened the album, he felt a knot forming in his chest.

These were his albums. Dozens of pictures of Zagreus as a baby. In his mothers’ arms, Father’s, Nyx. Him meeting Than and Hypnos, posed next to Megaera too. Zagreus wiped his eyes with the heel of his hand, laughing softly to himself as he kept flipping.

“Zagreus?” He flinched as the attic door opened, and Thanatos leaned in to look around. “You’ve been up here for hours; your father is looking for you.”

“I told you he probably ran off to play with Cerberus or something.” Megaera’s voice crept into the room as Thanatos pushed the door open.

“I am here, actually.” Zagreus called, waving a hand in case they truly couldn’t see him. “Appreciate the confidence though, Meg.”

She chuckled, and both of them approached him. Thanatos crouched beside him, peering over his shoulder. “Did you find what your father wanted?”

“Can’t be this…” Megaera murmured, a hand on her chin as she glanced the photos too. “Can it?”

“I don’t know, honestly.” Zagreus shrugged. “He told me to find a red photo album. Didn’t specify which one. I might bring down both just to see.”

“I don’t remember any of these...” Thanatos said softly, flipping a couple of pages himself and chuckling.

“Wait!” Zagreus grabbed his wrist, laughter already lining his voice. “Look!”

His eyes had fallen on a photo featuring the three of them climbing all over Cerberus. They all looked so tiny; Meg’s wing was barely the size of her shoulder; they were still in diapers, even!

Zagreus laughed, pulling the book closer to try and inspect the photo better in the low light. “You two are so cute here! By Gods, you’re both even smiling!”

They certainly weren’t smiling now though, and Zagreus could feel tension growing in the air around them. He cringed a bit as Megaera glared down at the book, his laughter turning into an awkward chuckle as he started to close it.

“Okay, well, I should probably take these to Fa—”

“Ah.” A flinch rocked Zagreus’ entire body as the pommel of Thanatos’ scythe pressed into the page, the weight of his ire pressing Zagreus’ knee to the floor. “Sorry, but uh…”

“Yeah…No offense to you or the family, Zag, but we’re destroying that picture.” Meg sighed as if she were just suggesting what to eat for lunch. Her practice whip cracked hard through the dusty air right after.

“Hey, hey! Easy!” Zagreus yelped, scrambling to his feet while yanking the book to his chest. “If you destroy this book, Father will kill us; mostly me!”

“Not the book; just that picture.” She stalked forward, gripping the whip between her hands and cracking it against itself.

Thanatos placed a hand on her shoulder, stepping in front of her. “What she means to say is, well… Actually, I can’t think of an alternative. But let’s calm down a little. Just hand over the book. It’s one picture; we’ll take responsibility.”

“Like he’d notice anyway.” Meg huffed.

Zagreus, for his part, was certainly not short on integrity. “I—Look, I do get it, you two. But if the picture’s in here, someone must like it. …And I do too.”

Than’s face fell. Good cop was off the table. Zagreus knew what came next. Dammit, he wasn’t good at this yet. He called to the shield Father had given him. Aegis; that was its name. Maybe he could swap the book in there instead.

“Go for the throat.” Thanatos growled, and Meg just smirked.

Zagreus squeaked, the threat alone putting him off balance. What actually put him over was Than’s scythe hooking under his ankle and ripping it out from under him. Megaera lunged, and her hand pressed his collarbones to speed up his hard fall against the floor.

“Let go of the book, Zag.” She practically purred, one hand clutching the edge of the book as she sat on his waist. “One. Chance.” She gripped his chin, staring into his mismatched eyes with a smug, domineering fondness.

Zagreus could feel his chest tighten, heat filling up his cheeks as a nervous smile pulled his lips. He crossed his arm across his chest, bracing the book against himself even as she hummed “patiently”.

“The throat it is, then.” She smirked, two of her fingers loosening off of his face to drag their nails up his neck. The squeaking giggles that welled up behind them only made him tense up more, and he was shocked to find that he couldn’t move his chin from her grip at all.

“Hmhmhm….” She sighed, those two fingers just…dragging slowly up and disappearing for a second just to do it again. “How slow do you want to do this?”

Zagreus bit his lip, but he realized she wasn’t asking him. Thanatos was standing over him, staring at his face for any apparent signs of weakness, probably. He rolled his eyes with a chuckle.

“He’s already late. We might have to be fast.” Without any other fanfare, he dropped to his knees, hands darting past Zagreus’ arms to dig into his sides. He leaned down to whisper against the side of his head. “Let’s see how he handles being torn apart~”

Megaera flinched a little when Zagreus screeched and tried to kick his legs. She reset her position, setting her weight just above his knees to curb his flailing.

“You guys!” Zagreus cried out, voice cracking around squeals and cackles as he tried to twist away from hands that…weren’t moving. Dammit.

True enough, Thanatos’ hands hadn’t moved an inch after gripping onto his flanks, except for a few errant pinches and maybe pressing the pads of his fingers in. He didn’t scratch or even twitch a finger unless his grip came a bit loose. Between him just…being there and Meg still teasing at his neck, Zagreus felt justified in his slight overreaction. His grip didn’t loosen, especially when he felt Meg try to pull the album.

“Tired already?” Thanatos asked with a smirk once Zagreus stopped moving. “Need a jump-start then?”

Oh. Wow, this was more serious than Zagreus thought.

Than’s fingers were moving all of a sudden, and Zagreus could feel every individual brush. They skittered and scrambled and squeezed fast up and down his sides and across his stomach. Right on cue, Zagreus was shrieking with laughter again, more or less doubled now that Thanatos was making an effort.

“See, you have plenty of energy in there!” Thanatos taunted, changing his tactic to rapid pokes around his belly. “Maybe you can use it to see reason!”

“I-I’m not trying t—” Zagreus’s voice pitched into a screechy cackle as Meg brought both hands up to skitter her nails across his neck. “Meg, please!!”

He was trying desperately to twist under Meg’s weight. Snorts starting to break up his laughter, and the heels of his sneakers scraped against the hardwood with his effort.

“When did you get so tough, Hades Kid?” Thanatos whispered fondly against the side of his head, one hand moving to the edge of the album. “Let go of the book.”

His voice was long gone, but he still managed to keep a grip that Thanatos wasn’t overpowering with one hand.

“We’re encroaching on this not being ‘fast’ anymore.” Meg chuckled.

“Want me to try the Lock Breaker?” Thanatos didn’t make the mistake of loosening his grip or stopping his fingers.

“Normally, I’d say I don’t want to go deaf, but this might be more important.”

“Fair enough.” Without giving Zagreus a moment to think, Thanatos moved his hand to scribble relentlessly around his bellybutton, nails dipping in and tracing the edge as fast as he could.

Meg may have exaggerated about going deaf, because Zagreus didn’t think he could get any louder than a minute ago. He actually wasn’t sure how long he’d been stuck here, but now was definitely the worst of it. Meg’s hands had moved to pin his waist, stopping him from twisting around at all as he was cackling himself hoarse.

He hadn’t even noticed when he lashed out to grab Than’s wrist, but in an instant the book was gone. Thanatos pushed off of his chest and stood up with the book over his head.

“Ha! Never fails!” He cheered, stepping back and flipping to the page.

“Than, wait!” Zagreus choked out, finding a second wind to struggle. Meg wrestled him easily, letting him flail a little, but stopping him before he could make any distance.

The sound of something tearing ripped silence through the room.

“Oops.” Thanatos chuckled, closing the book and setting it on the floor. Meg grinned as well, loosening her hold and standing up herself.

They exchanged a smug look before they noticed Zagreus sitting on the floor. He stared at the empty space in the book, heaving a choked sigh before closing it. “I’m glad you two are happy.” He hummed patiently, moving to stand up.

“Zag…” Thanatos cringed a bit, about to reach out to him.

“Are you three done making all that noise?”

The trio practically jumped out of their skin, looking up to see Hades in the doorway.

“A-Ah, sir…” Meg murmured warily, straightening awkwardly.

“We…Um, sorry.” Thanatos confessed, showing the handful of pieces from the torn photo.

Hades stared down at them, sighing and rolling his eyes before stepping aside. “You’re all late for your training. Out.”

“Yes sir.” Megaera and Thanatos nodded quickly and descended the stairs.

Zagreus remained there, unable to look his father in the eye. He held the album tight to his chest, and he felt himself shaking as heavy footsteps crossed the floor.

“I needed this one, actually.” Hades huffed, and Zagreus heard him pick up the other book. A hand touched his face, and Hades thumbed his cheek. “Tears are precious, boy. Don’t waste them on what doesn’t matter.”

“…It mattered enough to keep, didn’t it?”

That hand moved to pet his hair. “That wasn’t even the original.” His voice almost sounded pleased. “Bring that to my office. I’ll put in a new copy. Maybe you’ll see a few others.”

Zagreus blinked, staring after his father before chasing him down the stairs.

#hades game #zagreus #thanatos #megaera #tickling #a panda writes a thing #panda's friends

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randoimago · 5 months

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Hades for ask game

So freaking excited for Hades 2, ngl

Ask Game Here

3 male characters I love: Zagreus, Dionysus (those freaking thighs oof), Achilles

3 female characters I love: Artemis (I literally simp for her in the game. She gets all my nectar and I get nothing 🥰), Persephone (mommy sorry mommy sorry mommy--), Nyx (same thing as Persephone ngl)

3 romantic ships I love: Orpheus/Eurydice (the amount of nectar and time and love I spent to get them to sing together), Achilles/Patroclus (the amount of nectar and time and love I spent-), Zagreus/Thanatos/Meg (Hades 2 better have a poly as well is all I'm saying)

3 platonic dynamics I love: Zagreus/Minotaur (I really do love the convos and the mutual respect they have even with Theseus's bitch ass there), Skelly/Zagreus (the fact that it's the same voice actor still kills me every time, kind of like how I kill Skelly--),

3 favorite moments in canon:

Being tricked into thinking I had to fight Cerberus and feeling my heart break only for me to let out the biggest sigh (and then deal with the most annoying enemies in the game. They've killed me more then freaking Hades has)

First time hearing Orpheus sing and it's the same song Eurydice sang. The chills I got from his version and how unbelievably sad it sounded. I made a 3 part fic just because of this damn song and the different versions.

The record scratching and music completely stopping after stealing from Charon's shop. I just saw it and didn't even think about it. I barely saw that it said "Steal?" before I had already clicked it. It was just so fucking funny and I definitely let out an "Oh shit" and died to him the first time cause I was not ready.

3 favorite headcanons:

This is another series that I've done so many romantic headcanons for (and I ended up being swamped in requests too, fully expect that for Hades 2 as well)

Hypnos sharing his autograph book with Thanatos. He's just so proud and happy and saying things like, "Well, I got the Asterius's autograph" and Thanatos staying quiet even though he's definitely met Theseus and Asterius several times.

Persephone getting Hades and Zagreus a "Get Along" shirt. No way in hells would they wear it, but it would be such a funny thing for her to do and then she'd explain about the memes of the mortal world (which I can only imagine the memes of ancient greece)

Zagreus trying to teach Thanatos and Meg how to fish. Thanatos actually does a good job, but Meg gets frustrated a bit and scares off the fish (they all cheer when she does eventually catch one).

3 least favorite things about it:

Zeus is in it 😔 (yes I understand that Zeus would be in the game based on greek mythology, but anyone that's into greek mythology or knows a bit about it knows that Zeus is the literal worse).

Apollo isn't in it (I love sun daddy so much. I know he's going to be in Hades 2, but I really would've loved the interactions with Zagreus and choosing one sibling over the other. I just hope Hades 2 Apollo isn't like Lore Olympus Apollo)

I wish there was some more variations with the cast. Like I know there's different dps effects or you get more based on certain things, but I wish that it could have some aesthetic changes depending on which deity you have a boon from.

#Anonymous #behindtherando

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winns-stuff · 2 years

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LO RANT:

Alright, today I was going to do an appreciation post for Thanatos’ old design and personality, but when I went to go find some panels of him I came across a few things that irked the hell out of me. Y’all remember that one episode where Hades was showing Persephone around and she said that she was a fury and everything? Almost KISSING might I add. If you remember that I’m glad, and if you don’t it’s okay I’ve got pictures.

One thing I hate about Persephone’s character design and I mean hate with a passion of a thousand fucking suns is how the comic just completely makes her look like a damn innocent child. I can’t post the pictures with the text because I’m still a little fresh with it so I’ll actually have to do two rants.

Oh nevermind I figured it out. Go me! But anyways, look at the damn panel above the text. Persephone does not look like a damn adult in this panel at all, if I showed a random person that I’m sure they’d think she was fucking 15 year old or something! I have no idea why Rachel thought making her small as hell, big eyed, childish, AND emotional was even a good combination! Those are literally traits of a child, and before anyone even opens their mouths to say that “well adults can be like that too!” I KNOW, I’m aware of that but you at least can tell that they’re adults! You don’t even know with this panel.

Also look at the panel below this text. The proportions are so wonky and off. It makes Persephone look so fucking child-like and just REALLY little. I know the same can be said for Meg, but at the same time we don’t know much about Meg and her age. We know that Persephone is supposed to be “an adult” and I just have no idea why Rachel wants her to resemble a child and wants her to be just so naive and impressionable. Hmm, maybe because she’s only 19 and barely even a an adult. Then she’s sheltered too so she could literally be taken advantage of at any given moment. Why did she do all of this? Why can’t Persephone be at least a little mature? She’s supposed to be smart! She’s supposed to be talented and everything, why does Rachel chose not to allow Persephone to truly grow up.

This is also bringing us to my next point. This isn’t the first time that Rachel drew Persephone with childlike features and a curvy body to sexualize. It’s just very uncomfortable to me. And also, I hate how this comic infantilizes her. I know that’s supposed to be the theme of this comic, “grow into your identity” or “prove them wrong” and such, and I would be fine with this if there was actually some development with that. We don’t see Persephone talk back to anyone who infantilizes her and calls her a child, we don’t see her get frustrated with being called that, we don’t see her want to dress herself or anything. We continuously see Persephone being fine with being treated like a child and be handed things. We don’t see her grow tired of it or her wanting to be independent she’s just fine with all of it. So we can’t even say she doesn’t want to be seen as a child because nothing in the comic even says that!

Anyways, this is the end of the first rant although I’m sure (if i’m not passionate about it) that the next rant will be shorter. Like I always say I’m completely and utterly biased so don’t take any of this as fact, and if you enjoy Lore Olympus this is not to shame you in any way, I’m just saying my thoughts and feelings. If you agree, then great! And if you don’t then that’s also great.

#lo critical #anti lo #anti lore olympus #lore olympus critical

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bookaddict24-7 · 1 year

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REVIEWS OF THE WEEK!

Books I’ve read so far in 2022!

Friend me on Goodreads here to follow my more up to date reading journey for the year!

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311. Princess in the Spotlight by Meg Cabot--⭐️⭐️⭐️

Re-read December 2022. I'm excited to be re-reading this even more now because I don't think I've ever gone past book 2! Mia continues to grow a bit as a character, even though the adults around her continue to be unaware of how everything is truly affecting her. I did like seeing a certain moment that redeemed her best friend because of her actions. Also, still a little weirded out by how Michael is 18 and she's 14. That's...yeah.

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312. The Lightcasters by Janelle McCurdy--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Another amazing MGLit fantasy title that I will be more than happy to recommend to my younger customers! I loved the adventure in this and how the story flowed so well that there were never any boring moments. There was always something happen and I couldn't get enough of it. I loved the concept and the fact that these kids have so much responsibility despite the hurdles they face. I think stories like this have so much potential because we only got to explore one small section of the world. I want to see what these characters accomplish in the future books (which I will absolutely be checking out when they come out!) The only thing that threw me off is that one of the characters is four and he didn't act like a four year old? I'm always commenting that kids are smarter than people think they are, but save for a few mispronounced words, this four year old sounded like a nine year old. That's the only thing that was a little jarring. I'd recommend this to readers who like road-trip style fantasies where the characters are forced to go on a journey; readers who enjoy stories where the fate of the world rests on the shoulders of the MC; and anyone who likes seeing MCs befriend and connect and magical beings/animals.

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313. Lore Olympus Vol. 2 by Rachel Smythe--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Sigh, this series is so good. I'm mad at myself for taking so long to finally start reading it. Listen, questionable decisions were made by certain characters in this volume, but Hades can still get it. Why is he drawn so....damn. Anyway, I agree with Smythe in their commentary near the end before the bonus story about how one particular chapter is their best work yet. That whole letter writing scene (not a spoiler) was gorgeous but also portrayed so much emotion. I sometimes just want to give Persephone the biggest hug.

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314. Lore Olympus Vol. 3 by Rachel Smythe--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I love this series so, so much. Even more-so after reading this volume. One can just tell when the chemistry can't be ignored. Whenever the two of them are on the same page, the attraction just jumps off the page. Pity for those outsiders who think they have any power or control when it comes to this budding romance. That conclusion made me smile the biggest smile even though everyone knows that they're endgame. But I especially love that in this one, one truth comes out and Persephone hears some absolutely solid advice. My heart aches just thinking about this series and I want to look up the series that the author has posted online.

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315. The Feeling of Falling in Love by Mason Deaver--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

TW: Transphobic and Sexist commentary. Deaver does it again with their newest YA romance novel! While I still LOVED their first book the most, this one dealt with some important topics when it comes to identity, how we judge before we know someone, and how we can sometimes misinterpret a situation when we are surrounded by self-doubt and the belief that age is a factor when it comes to whether love can be felt or not. I loved the budding relationship between the MC and his roommate. I loved watching the judgmental MC learn that his words and actions have consequences, and that maybe communication would go a long way to better understanding both a situation and oneself. This one was a bit interesting reading it as an adult because I could see the MC's pain when he is visiting his family, but I could also see the situation from the mom's POV (except for one glaringly obvious situation where I think she failed as a parent). This helped round the story out a lot more because I think that if a reader were to re-read this book, they would notice the moments where that anger towards and characterization of certain characters could be something that is more nuanced than just initial interactions. That's all to say that I, again, enjoyed another Deaver novel and I can't wait for their next one!'

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316. We Are Not From Here by Jenny Torres Sanchez--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

TWs: R@pe, Death and descriptions of death and gore, Teen pregnancy, Bullying, Grief WE ARE NOT FROM HERE is an incredibly difficult book to read. It is unapologetic in its portrayal of trauma, the violent realities so many people and children face, and the brutal journey some have to take in order to escape even worse living situations. This book is truly not for the feint of heart and I'll be honest, I am very surprised it was YA (even though I think it is very important that it is a YA title). The only reason why I'm not giving this a full five stars is because of one character that frustrated me. I understand that they're just a child, but I just felt so much frustration because of their actions and lack thereof. One of the impactful things, however, is that this character helped showcase the patience and love of the other two characters. This character also showed us that while this book has many heavier and more adult-themed topics, it is a book for younger readers at its heart (the innocence, the naivety, and the wish to just go home.) If you're looking for a powerful book about the dangers of this kind of immigration story, then I think this should be added to your list. I cried, I laughed, and I hoped for the best for these poor kids who just wanted a safer, new life.

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317. Amari & the Great Game by B.B. Alston--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I loved the first book in this series and I was happy to finally pick this one up! While I enjoyed it slightly less than the first book, I still had a great experience following Amari and her best friend as she tried to solve a mystery that begins early on in the book. One of the things about this book is that it made me so mad for Amari. I was surprised to see that the word "racism" wasn't used in the tags because this book features it so heavily--especially with the comments alluding to her race, both in skin colour and the type of magician that she is (which was also a theme in the first book). This book is one of those books that is a fantastic adventure for younger kids, but also, an allegory for older readers. Amari is a powerful Black girl who faces some serious prejudices in a fantastical world--showcasing that even magic can't save you if you don't fit the "societal [racist] standards". Anyway, this series is awesome and I think anyone can read it. It's a great teaching resource as well as a great adventure for kids, and a great reminder for older readers!

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318. Uphill by Jemelle Hill--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

One of the greatest things I've done with my reading this year is introduce myself to memoirs and autobiographies. I love learning about different people that I would never learn about through any other means than a book. I love reading about experiences that others have had because it has helped me widen my understanding of how others see and experience the world. UPHILL by Jemele Hill was one of those books that will stand out for me long after 2022 is gone. Her memoir sits on a mental shelf starting to fill with powerful Black women who have succeeded despite the world being so strongly against their success, and her words of justice and her refusal to cater to others are now added to my growing sense of awareness. Hill is a woman who had an extremely complicated relationship with her mother, who also had a difficult experience with her own mother. Despite the poverty, her mother's drug addictions, and the racism that Hill faced, she came out on top. She pursued her dreams and broke the generational trauma that she was raised in. Her story is incredible and seeing her form connections and meet people who either helped build her up, or tried to knock her down, is inspiring. I especially loved seeing when her sassiness and no-nonsense behaviour slipped onto the pages. Let's just say that listening to her life story told in her own voice was a treat. I'm becoming more critical of memoirs and autobiographies, but this one was just such a fantastic and eye-opening read. Please be aware of the TWs since there is mention of r@pe, sexual assault, racism, victim blaming, and physical abuse.

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319. Jackal by Erin E. Adams--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

From the get-go, JACKAL made me incredibly uncomfortable. It wasn't like in a way where I couldn't read the book because it was deeply enthralling, but in how it handled certain situations and presented the realities of small towns that flirt with the concept of being a sundown town. The overt racism was palpable. The fact alone that it is Black girls that are going missing made this even more terrifying because of how much it mirrored missing cases that are happening around the world (especially when we look at how many BIPOC girls and women go missing and the police and media do absolute shit-all.) The paranormal aspect of this was, in my opinion, the most fictitious part of this story and helped with the uneasiness I felt while reading this book. The MC is treated in such a way that the gaslighting could have set fire to the whole town. I didn't know who the villain of the story was going to be, but I did know it would be someone I wasn't expecting. This book also touches on that "One of the good ones" theory because of how the image of the missing young girl who is mixed white and black is treated by the people of the town. There is even a moment where the white mother refuses to acknowledge that her mixed daughter shouldn't be grouped with the other missing Black girls because she isn't the daughter of drunks or drug addicts. That in itself shows the otherness that can happen when a child is mixed and one of the parents is white in an extremely white town. JACKAL was creepy and uncomfortable and deeply enthralling. There is this sense of dread that lingers on the pages and you just absolutely NEED to know what is happening to these poor young girls and why they're being taken. This book, however, is not for the feint of heart. Be aware of the trigger warnings.

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320. What We Saw by Mary Downing Hahn--⭐️⭐️.5

I don't really much to say about this one. It was surprisingly short and not at all what I was expecting. First of all, with a cover like that, I never thought that this would be more of a middle grade book (considering how old the characters are). I think this book could have used more fleshing out of the story--I think it could have been more compelling if we got to learn more about certain characters and had more time to grow attached to the characters that betrayed the MC and her best friend. I think some aspects were a little random and some of the choices made were really dumb (even though I know I always have to remind myself that these are children.) I did like the ending and how realistic it was for it to end the way it did. These characters are so young and are just learning who they are and who they might become. Of the whole book, I think that was the most realistic approach to these characters. If you want a quick thriller and if you're looking for a thriller for the younger readers in your life (no younger than 12 because some of the topics explored), then I think this one might catch their attention.

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Happy readings!

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labjegyzet · 2 years

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Az Eisner-díj nyertes Rachel Smythe: Mit jelent a Lore Olympus 2. évadának fináléja Hádész és Perszephoné számára?

A Webtoon slágerének alkotója a sorozat jövőjéről és a Jim Henson Studios adaptációjáról is mesélt az io9-nek.

A Lore Olympus webtoon második évada éppen most fejeződött be, a harmadik pedig hamarosan érkezik. 2018-as indulása óta a Lore Olympus – Hádész és Perszephoné mítoszának újramesélése – elkötelezett rajongótáborra tett szert (ez a legolvasottabb sorozat a platformon), egyik legkelendőbb képregénnyé és kereskedelmi gépezetté vált, és a Wattpad Webtoon Studios és a Jim Henson Company egy animációs sorozatra is készül belőle.

Az idei San Diego Comic-Con-on az io9 újságírója, Sabina Graves beszélgetett az új-zélandi Smythe-szel az elnyert Eisner-díjról, arról, hogyan reagált Lore Olympus növekvő népszerűségére, hogyan épített fel egy vegyes csapatot a heti epizódok megjelentetésére és mit jelent a második évad fináléja Hádész és Perszephoné számára, miközben a sorozat a harmadik évad felé tart.

Rachel Smythe a történet születéséről elmondta, hogy érdekes és jó gondolatnak tartotta, hogy új kontextusba helyezzük ezeket a hagyományokat és történettípusokat, és modern szemüvegen keresztül nézzük őket.

A kedvenc mítosza már gyerekkorában is Hádész és Perszephoné története volt, de a kedvenc szereplője a mostani képregényben Héra. „Nyilvánvalóan az ókori világban, különösen ezekben a történetekben, ahol nem nagyon szeretik a nőket, nagyon is tudatában volt annak, hogy a patriarchátus valóságos,” mondta a karakterről Rachel, és megemlítette Stephen Fry-t, aki szerint Hérát gyakran használták „minden rossz” példájaként. „Nyilvánvalóan nem tökéletes a történetekben, de úgy érzem, [a legtöbb] újramesélésben Héra volt a „rosszfiú”. Én viszont úgy voltam vele, hogy olyan könnyű őt szimpatikus karakternek megalkotni. Zeuszt gyakran nagyon jó karakterként állítják be. Szerintem pedig nem az. De Héra egyszer lehet jó – még akkor is, ha csak egy kicsit.”

(Kép: https://lore-olympus.fandom.com)

Hádész és Perszephoné újragondolásának ötlete régóta foglalkoztatta, de bevallása szerint ez nem volt könnyű, különösen teljes munkaidős állás mellett. „Amikor elértem a 30-as éveimet, már több önfegyelmem volt, hogy átlendüljek a nehéz időszakokon. A vizuális fejlesztés során sok múlt azon, hogy olyan dolgokat válasszak, amelyek élvezetesek, mert ha képregényt vagy webképregényt csinál az ember, akkor nagyon hosszú ideig fog tartani. Tehát olyan dolgokat kell választanom, amelyek számomra menőnek tűnnek és amelyeket szeretek, és nem olyan dolgokat, amikkel éppen csak megvagyok elégedve.”

Meglepő, de eredetileg fekete-fehér képregényt tervezett, de milyen jól tette, hogy meggondolta magát!

„A történetmesélésen kívül van egy olyan színskála, amelyet érzelmek közvetítésére használhatunk. Úgy érzem, ezt sokkal jobban meg tudom tenni ezekkel a formájú karakterekkel és a kedvenc színeimmel. Főleg azért, mert az alvilági környezet nagyon sötét és gyakran nagyon-nagyon mélykék. Azért terveztem így, hogy amikor Perszephoné lemegy az alvilágba, akkor kilógjon onnan, szinte vibráljon a színektől. Állítólag a fordítottja is működik. Az olümposzi háttereken öt pasztell színt használtam, így amikor Hádész ott van, látványosan kítűnik. Tehát ilyen módon egyfajta komplementernek szántam őket.”

(Fotó: Webtoon)

Az, hogy a Lore Olympus a Webtoonra került, a véletlennek volt köszönhető. „Úgy gondoltam, hogy ott a képregények megjelenési módja meglehetősen innovatív és nagyon letisztult. Tervezői héttérrel rendelkezem és úgy gondoltam: "Ez szép." Letisztult. Professzionálisan néz ki. Korábban volt egy képregényem, de nem tudtam, mit is kezdjek vele valójában. Olyan volt, mint egy próba, rajzoltam egy rendes/klasszikus képregényoldalt, és nem igazán tudtam mit kezdjek vele, de aztán azt gondoltam: „A következő képregényemmel kockáztatni fogok, és valóban olyan formátumban készítem, mint Webtoonon található képregények.”

Rachel Smythe képregénye mögött azonban nem csak az alkotó van, hanem egy egész stáb, mint például a szerkesztője, Bre Broswell vagy a segédművészek, Lisette Carrera, Jaki Haboon és Jaki King. „Az egyik dolog, amit igazán lenyűgözőnek találok, és kiváltságosnak érzem magam, az, hogy a Lore Olympus milyen rajongókat vonzott be. Mindig olyan emberekkel találkozom, akikkel szívesen dolgozom együtt és ez igazán boldoggá tesz.”

Aki a Webtoonon követi a képregényt, már olvashatta a 2. évad fináléját. A jövőről Rachel a következőket mondta: „Nagyon izgatott vagyok, hogy mi lesz, mert úgy érzem, ez a desszert. Megvolt a főételünk, megvolt a zöldségünk. Tehát készen állunk, készülünk a desszertre. Minden be van állítva, most már készen állunk a gőzölgő részhez. Igen, ez már a romantika, itt van.” Mivel a Lore Olympus egy hosszan épülő románc, ezért ki kellett találnia, hogyan tegye szórakoztatóvá. Bizonyos értelemben ez nehéz is volt, mert ez nem egy „összejönnek-nem jönnek össze” sztori spoilerekkel, hanem a világ legrégebbi történeteinek egyike. Mindenki tudja, hogy össze fognak jönni. „Legfőképp azon kell dolgozni, hogy azután is érdekessé tegyük a szereplőket, ha már egy párt alkotnak, mert úgy érzem, hogy néha a tévéműsorokban, ha összejön a főszereplő páros, utána már kicsit nyögvenyelőssé válik a sztori. Egyesek számára ekkor elvész a szikra, de én úgy érzem, hogy még mindig sok mókás dolgot kell együtt megoldaniuk. Nagyon régóta várok arra, hogy elérjem azt a pontot, ahol azt mondhatom: „No, most már együtt lehetnek. Ez jó. Minden kipipálva." Semmi sem áll az útjukban, és nagyon élveztem azt a romantikus részt megírni. Szóval igen. Szerintem nagyon szórakoztató lesz.”

A sorozat Perszephoné traumáján keresztül érzékeny témákat is feldolgoz, amire a rajongók meghatóan reagáltak. „Úgy érzem, hogy a [szexuális zaklatás] témája kapcsán gyakran, amikor megtörténik, senki sem beszél róla, mert nagyon nehéz megfogalmazni és megbeszélni még olyan emberekkel is, akiket szeretsz és akikkel törődsz,” mondta Smythe. „Így egyszerűen elzárod és évekig tárolod. És úgy érzem, sok ember van olyan helyzetben, ahol nincs támaszuk és nagyon elszigeteltek, így egyszerűen jó érzés olvasni róla. Szerintem az sokat jelent, hogy valaki látja, min megy keresztül Perszephoné, majd azt követően kivirágzik és igazán jó életet él. Meg kell mutatni a gyógyulási folyamatot. Szerintem ez segítség az embereknek. Legalább is nagyon remélem.”

A sorozat adaptációjáról nem sokat árult el, csak azt, hogy jól halad. „Ez az első alkalom, hogy benne vagyok egy műsor készítésében, és nem tudom, mi fog történni legközelebb, majd valaki küld nekem egy e-mailt, és aztán: „Hűha, hú, hú. Ez igazán izgalmas. Hurrá!" Szóval igen, nyilván nem árulhatok el sokat. Ez egy valódi közös munka, annak is a legjobb formája.”

A Lore Olympus minden szombaton megjelenik a Webtoonon; A harmadik évad augusztus 27-én indul.

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#Rachel Smythe #Lore Olympus #Eisner-díj #webtoon #képregény

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