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redgoldsparks · 4 months

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December 2023 Reading and Reviews by Maia Kobabe

I post my reviews throughout the month on Storygraph and Goodreads, and do roundups here and on patreon. Reviews below the cut.

The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon

Despite how much promise there is in the premise of this novel I was ultimately fairly disappointed by it. I'll start with the positives: it's set in a diverse and creative fantasy world with multiple different countries and cultures. It has several queer characters, including one of the four POV characters. It has dragons, even though I think they were severely under-utilized. It is also far too long, and astonishingly, nearly every scene in the book felt rushed. I think it actually had too much plot; if I had been editing this book I would have suggested the author cut one of the POV characters and use the freed-up space to flesh out the queer love story, which was the emotional heart of the book. This book is marketed as adult fantasy, yet whenever a character is in serious danger they are nearly always rescued by a talking animal with super-speed abilities. Choices like this book made the book read younger than I expected. It also suffered, perhaps unfairly, due to the fact I read a book with a much smarter and more interesting use of dragons, human/dragon cultural tensions, and dragon politics earlier this year: Seraphina by Rachel Hartman, which I would recommend over Priory any day of the week.

Red Paint: The Ancestral Autobiography of a Coast Salish Punk by Sasha taqʷšəblu LaPointe

Sasha taqwšəblu LaPointe is a Coast Salish poet and punk who digs deep into the lineage of women in her family searching for connection, strength, and healing. While writing a Master's thesis, LaPointe opened the door to memories of a childhood sexual assault, precarious runaway teen years, and the intergenerational trauma that affected all of her family after the colonization of the Pacific Northwest. The memories that surfaced shattered her life. The path to picking up the pieces was slow, and involved traditional healing ceremonies, friendship, writing, music, and multiple journeys to places where her female ancestors once lived. I found this book very quick and easy to read despite the often heavy subject matter (it also includes a divorce and a miscarriage). Some passages are quite beautiful, but the author was an emotional mess for most of the time period she recounts and behaved in some questionable ways towards many of those around her. It ends on a hopeful note, and I would recommend it, especially to people with connections to the PNW area, while keeping the content warnings in mind.

Golden Fool by Robin Hobb read by Nick Taylor

I hardly even know how to talk about this book because I loved it so much. It's a rich, nuanced, painfully human follow up to the earlier Farseer trilogy. I am amazed at how deftly Hobb wove the narratives of her characters across three decades of their lives and counting. There's Fitz, the royal bastard and reluctant assassin, who we first met at age six. Now in his mid-thirties, he is finally exploring his magical talents, teaching, learning, and taking more and more misfit young people under his wing. There's Chade, who we first met at a mysterious and wise teacher- now he's a royal advisor, and his hunger for power and influence might yet take him down a very dark path. There's Kettricken, who as a teenage princess was engaged to a stranger, now grown into a powerful queen bent on changing her kingdom for the better. There's the Fool, whose multiple identities are threatening to collapse as more and more of his prophesies come true. And Burrich, Fitz's adopted father figure, who in his anger and grief disowns a son who reminds him too much of his past. All of these characters feel so deeply rooted in their own histories, traumas, choices; I care so deeply about their lives and see so clearly how the twists of fate led them to where they are now. This is seriously one of the best fantasy series I have ever read, and I highly recommend anyone who loves long form fantasy to go back and pick up book one, Assassin's Apprentice.

The Well by Jacob Wyatt and Choo

Lizzy lives with her grandfather on one of many small islands in an world plagued by mist and monsters. Her mother, father, and grandmother all died fighting against the leviathan that used to threaten the seas between the islands; Lizzy has heard the stories, but never knew any of them. Her daily concerns are with goats, the market where she sells their cheese and milk, and her crush on a girl who works the island ferry. Magic doesn't regularly touch her life, except when she foolishly steals three coins from a wishing well, and is then tasked with completing the three wishes that are bound to them. This story has much the feel of a fairy tale with it's orphaned protagonist, three wishes, three tasks, and characters who are often more archetype than fleshed out people. But it manages a sweetly emotional ending and simple but lively and effective illustrations.

The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen by KJ Charles read by Martyn Swain

Set in England during the reign of King George the third, this historical romance delivered a satisfying amount of plot along with the spice. Gareth is the son of a Baronet, but grew up with none of the privilege of that position having been send away from home after the death of his mother during his childhood. He works as a law clerk in London with few connections, no friends, and nothing much to recommend him. He seeks companionship at a tavern that turns a blind eye on the illicit sexual activities of men in the upper rooms. There he meets Kent, a working class man from Romney Marsh, with whom Gareth sparks an intense and intimate connection. Then it falls apart. Gareth is sacked from his job. He fights with Kent. His father dies unexpectedly, and Gareth is summoned to a manor house he hasn't seen in years to take on the responsibilities of a title, including the care of a teenage half-sister and his father's mistress. And by chance, the house Gareth inherits is in Romney Marsh, home of many waterways, pastures, smugglers, and also Kent, his former lover. I enjoyed the dynamic between the two romantic leads, and the crime plot which entangled both of them. If you are interested in R-rated M/M romance with action adventure and danger, I'd definitely recommend this series and also KJ Charles' Will Darling series.

Subtle Blood by KJ Charles read by read by Cornell Collins

A very satisfying installment in the Will Darling adventures! If this is the final book, I am happy with where it's left the characters, but it does also leave the door open for more. If you enjoy spicy M/M romance with a hefty side of action/adventure, this is a great series. It kept me company through a week of holiday cleaning, cooking, and baking, and I think it's my favorite yet from the series.

Death Strikes: The Emperor of Atlantis by Dave Maass & Patrick Lay

This comic is grim, funny, gory, and darkly poetic. It's impossible to read it without an awareness of the history of the script, which is based on a suppressed opera written in 1943 two prisoners at the Terezín concentration camp in Czechoslovakia. The authors did not live to see their play performed. Maass and Lay have done an impressive job transferring a story meant for the stage into a comic. The stars of the show are the characters of Life and Death who narrative and frame the story of a paranoid dictator in the fictional nation of Atlantis and his reign of terror against his own citizens.

The Cliff by Manon Debaye

This was beautifully illustrated but too sad and violent for me to enjoy reading. It's the story of a dysfunctional middle school friendship between two unhappy girls who make a suicide pact. This story will really hit for some readers but it wasn't for me.

Walkaway by Cory Doctorow

I really enjoyed this book, even thought I think it's more interesting as a collection of ideas than as a novel. The characters in the first third felt somewhat flat, and the dialog is often delivered in hefty paragraphs with minimal dialog tags. But the story picks up in the second half and by the end I was reading it daily in big chunks. The concepts this book explores are what really shine, especially the idea of walking away from capitalist society and living in self-sustaining communities without formal governments or laws. This novel contains some future technology which we don't currently have today including 3D printers which can print food, clothing, and building pieces for vehicles and housing and also internet interfaces implanted into people's bodies which allow them global network access from anywhere almost all the time. The nation state of Canada also seems to have fallen before the start of this novel, as most of the characters end up walking away from the US into northern Canada to find these alternate communities. I liked seeing Doctorow play out the clash between on faction wanting to run a group house as a meritocracy versus another group committed to allowing all members to work as much or little as they want to or can, for example. The book does not shy away from showing the violent crack down of the existing governments on these alternate communities. There are major character deaths. But the other big theme of the book is exploring the digital scanning and uploading of human consciousnesses to the web allowed people to walk away from death.

#maia kobabe #reading #book reviews #reading reviews #queer books

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teddykaczynski · 2 months

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i just feel like i was the worst possible age i could have been from 2007-2013. i was in elementary school and then i got to middle school and the torture began? i shouldnt have been being tortured by an an emo 8th grade girl i should have been an emo teenager or a silicon valley web developer or a pnw coffeehouse openmic kombucha hipster

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vorpalfae · 10 months

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Need new mutuals so interact if you love these✨

• goth rock🖤𖤐

• nu metal 🤘🏻

• 90s grunge🪽

• skyrim& other elder scrolls games🏹

• alice madness returns🦷

• legend of zelda🗡️

• resident evil🩸

• silent hill🧟‍♂️

• animal crossing🍃

• buffy the vampire slayer ♱

• charmed🔮

• sabrina the teenage witch🧙🏻‍♀️

• oddities, figurines, trinkets🦴

• halloween, autumn, horror🎃

• twilight 🌲

• the 90's

• fairy goth style & aesthetics🧚🏻‍♀️🖤

• PNW, Gloomy Weather🌲🌀

• anime

• art/crochet🧶🖌️

• fantasy art & creatures

• the 90's 📼

• witchy things🍄

• glitter & the color purple💜

• pokémon & pokémon cards◓⃙

• swords, blades, fantasy weapons⚔️

• house of the dragon, game of thrones, lord of the rings🧝🏻‍♀️, the witcher

• comic books, cosplay🦸🏻‍♀️⚡️💥

#🔮

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himbopunk · 1 year

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Consider supporting me on ko-fi if you like this art/my ocs

back on the superhero bullshit, here’s my superhero oc, hal!! he’s the demigod son of the irish god/manifestation of the ocean, lir! he has a whole offscreen percy jackson style adventure as a teenager, but now hes just a watery superhero in the pnw. also he’s gay but hasn’t figured that out yet its fine

(also @cowboyvillainz ‘s guy in the first img!!)

#also alistaire is here!! it was a st paddys day pic but itll prolly be april by the time this posts lol #oc tag #super guys #dazed n confused #hal #superhero oc #friend ocs

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apas-95 · 10 months

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pnw teenager assuring you: we're gonna make it, come hella high water

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esteebarnes94 · 2 months

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So...I actually really want to introduce my TBE OCs now. Mainly for the purpose of being able to actually individually tag them (lol), but I digress. It's still a step up from not sharing them at all!

It's important to recognise that TBE is still very much a WIP. But, the general feel I'm going for is a sort of PNW gothic, supernatural mystery with some horror elements, found-family/friendship-themed series. It's about (mostly) teenagers and I've decided is set in the 1950s. Like I've said, it's still got a long way to go, but it's also come a while from where it started.

The whole "interact with them" thing basically means that you'll like or reblog, you'll maybe send in some asks if I reblog some of those ask prompt posts, and you'll generally just like them in some way that can be noticed. Obviously, this isn't some binding contract or whatever; you can not like them or like them whenever you want. I just wanted to get a feel for how many people seem interested, and how many people actually want to be "involved" in some way.

#“tbe” is my abbreviation for the story title placeholder #estee's posts #estee's ocs #tbe ocs #actually don't know what to tag lol.#my polls #polls #oc polls #ocs #original characters #my ocs #my characters #<- ok that should do it

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anghraine · 2 years

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Oh, before I forget, I did want to welcome my new followers, because I haven’t gotten so many non-bot followers at one time since ... probably 2015-6. Hi!

Stuff about me:

- My name is Elizabeth (really), and I’m fine with being called either Elizabeth or Anghraine (the latter doesn’t mean anything; I invented it as a teenager by combining the names of two of my favorite characters, Angharad Crewe and Moiraine Damodred).

- I got into participating in online fandom through the force of my rage over movie Faramir and movie Denethor in the early 2000s (...no, I’m still not over it), then stumbled into Austen/P&P fandom and was very active for about seven years, before burning out on the forum culture and jumping into Star Wars fandom (actually slightly more chill at the time). I’ve also been into other things, but those are the big three that I flit between.

- My main ships for the big three fandoms are Faramir/Éowyn, Faramir/Aragorn, and Andreth/Aegnor for Tolkien; Darcy/Elizabeth (#1 OTP in anything) and Fanny/Mary Crawford for Austen; and Jyn/Cassian for SW (though my strongest SW affection is for the Skywalkers).

- I find DNI statements odd and futile, so I don’t have any, and instead block things that bother me. I don’t forbid minors from following me or interacting with me, but I am an adult in my 30s talking to other adults.

- I’m also autistic and have bipolar II, which I mention because hypomania+hyperfixation tends to result (for me) in periods of extremely high fannish energy and activity, but for better or worse, I’m not like this all the time.

- Other demographic stuff if you care: grey-ace lesbian (she/her or they/their are fine; I have no sense of gender but I’m AFAB and don’t care much about it), white US American in the PNW, 30s.

- In a shocking twist, I’m a grad student in literature. When not writing essays or meta and headcanon, I write fanfic (my AO3 page is here) and original fic (not available online, but I talk vaguely about it sometimes).

- I do have a tagging system, but some of the tags are unique to avoid main tags, to allow for blocking, or to make certain things easier to find, so feel free to ask if you want to know what my tag for something is or what one of my tags means.

#anghraine babbles #anghraine's blogkeeping #long post

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anintrovertsdiary · 1 year

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I never thought I could love a dog

But here I am spending thousands of dollars for Basil (he gets an alias too) to get his teeth cleaned. I voluntarily wipe his ass everyday because he can’t do it on his own, obviously.

I grew up being uncomfortable around dogs. You know how they say your dads side of the family is the weird side? Yeah his cousin or something had an obsession with wiener dogs and had four of them but didn’t really give them the care they needed so they were obese. My dads sister had 2 Pomeranians that would bark like crazy and shit in the house and I have a traumatic memory of stepping in it.

Ryan’s family had a dog, Marco (alias). He was a mutt that basically looked like a Pomeranian. Our first meeting was honestly painful to recall. I was awkward enough, let’s add a dog to the mix.

My parents never let me get any pets anyways besides fish. They said pets stink. I remember wanting a bunny so bad. It wasn’t until moments before the divorce that my dad agreed to let us get a dog. A Hail Mary attempt into us staying as a family of four and now five (it didn’t work btw).

So my mom found Basil at some mall adoption thing (which is now closed due to something unethical most likely)and now here I am with my mall dog. I somehow found my best friend and he was perfect to me. Even though he’s bit me once but it totally my fault for invading his personal space. Even though he drags me along on his leash because for some reason he cannot be trained not to pull. Even though his ears smell yeast-y because he has these floppy ears that prevent them from getting any airflow and being from the pnw, the rain makes it even worse. Even though he barks at all and every sudden sounds, movements, footsteps, which is tough when you lived in an apartment and you live right by the stairs where people stomp up and down all day on and where right above you lives two very cute but let’s me honest rat-like chihuahuas. Even after all of that, when he dies, I want to die.

He has these big brown eyes that when you look at them you can feel what he’s feeling. His favorite thing is rolling in the grass to scratch his back. He loves getting dirty and playing in mud. Sometimes he’ll just start rolling in the middle of the street. Doesn’t matter if there’s bird shit on it or not. It’s like if he was a human, his bedroom would look like a sloppy teenage boys room. He hates it when I force him to be clean. He groans when we wipe his paws every time he goes in and out.

I think what I love most about being a pet owner is experiencing true unconditional love.

#autobiography #original work #original writing #writing #memoir #short stories #stories #introvert #my dogs #i love dogs

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inbredlamb · 7 months

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#pnw #pnw photography #teen spirit #southern goth #americano #american teenager #photo dump #photografy #southern goth aesthetic #appalachian gothic #pinterest #photo not mine #southern style #southern gothic #grunge photography #trashy 2000s #2000s aesthetic #nostaligiacore #nostalgia

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grunge-flavored-flowers · 2 years

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Do you have any good advice on finding smaller artists to get into? I don't listen to nearly enough, and I'm not really sure where to start looking

Kind of!! I think it depends on the genre you want and the reason you want to find them.

To find local/regional artists I google small music venues and check their Instagram to see who’s been playing and usually you can find one that primarily posts the genres you like. From there the bands promote each other on their instas. I do this for regions that typically produce artists I like so the PNW and DC get a lot of traffic from me and weirdly I have a little hub in Michigan and Jacksonville FL too. By the way if you like punk… go look up Jax Punx on tiktok they post from bridge shows where lots of small bands play.

Some of them are from just paying attention to peoples Instagram stories, like I find a lot from Tobi Vail like she posted Blake Babies and now I love them. So anybody who you think has good taste just watch em lol

You can also look into bands you like and see what other projects the members and their friends have. And don’t be afraid to check it out when they mention some teenagers playing in a garage or something they’ll often put out great sophomore albums if the first one was rough.

I find a lot on tiktok because once you find one, your fyp will find you more. And if you’re really committed check their comments to see what other musicians engage with them.

I also like to let playlist radio run when my more specific playlists are done playing. Sometimes a hidden gem will pop up, that’s how I got into Sludge metal and some of my more folksy stuff.

Last thing is when I listen to podcasts and read books, when an artist I like mentions an influence or a local band they vibe with I ALWAYS write it down to check out later. Dave Grohl and Mark Arm both do that a ton and I’ve found so many from them. Oh and Steve Turner. The mudhoney guys do a lot of small artist mentioning. Podcasts are really helpful even if they’re not by established musicians as those may be more current picks to look into

I hope that’s helpful!!! And let me know if you need help finding specifics I’m always down for a musical deep dive it’s kind of a hobby for me 🤷🏻‍♀️

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jerek · 2 years

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There's some huge racism in WoW's writing, I really hope this gets addressed later.

yeah and I think blizz is.... partially? aware? of some of it?

It's weird because for a lot of the fantasy races (trolls and tauren being the most flagrant) it's built into them the same way that WoW itself is built on a 20 y/o engine.

So you get these like, weird almost lampshade-y moves with the storyline, like a lot of what happened with the zandalari, like the whole highmountain tauren situation (zandalar forever plus like, appropriation but slightly more specific for the highmountain. i think pnw generally but cant say for sure)

Like... delete the loa and how much troll lore is left? At this point, for those fantasy races, all Blizz has really done is trip over their own feet trying to make them halfway respectful. Though TBH I'd like to see these cultures get represented as humans too.

And that's if they try. They don't always try.

And then there's the imperialism. The whole Alliance war campaign in BFA is just... cringeworthy sometimes. Characters will outright suggest things that in real life are unconscionable. In MoP, wrathion suggests that one faction just absorb the other like it's something to do. "Enormous casualties trying to take Thunder Bluff, but the rest of the Horde would have caved eventually."

Which is one thing, you know. That's a child thrust into the middle of a faction war making plans based off his own naivety. An almost equally naive teenager tells him off for expressing ideas like that (and while Anduin is right about some things, like not crushing your own citizens... babygirl he's still a royal.)

But even still, sometimes I think Warcraft writes actual war best when they're not really trying so hard. (see tumblr user swampgallows' thoughts on Christie Golden comparing Garrosh's rule to real-world fascism)

And when they are trying, when they're REALLY trying to send a message, they get so caught up in trying to look smart that they lose the plot and forget at least one of two things:

1. This is a fantasy game with sometimes comical stylization. "Me not that kind of orc" and all that. After the player dies, they do a walk of shame as a ghost back to their body. This is a Fantasy Game.

2. They're telling this to a bunch of humans, not an SAT grading machine that'll tell them how smart they are and how good their command of historical metaphors is. If it's not fun anymore, it's not fun anymore.

They've succeeded so far because a lot of people (white people especially) are politically unaware enough to either not notice how cringe this gets, or they're able to ignore it. But I think things like these are only going to become more and more uncomfortable to more of the fanbase as time goes on.

#i think i blew a circuit writing this but i hope this is an answer.

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weshipyourride · 7 months

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Team S&M CX and Clara Honsinger Renew With Bikeflights

With the 2023-2024 cyclocross season just getting underway, we’re pleased to welcome back Team S&M CX and Clara Honsinger to our roster of Bikeflights-sponsored teams and ambassadors.

“This season marks our seventh as a complete cyclocross team dedicated to the long-term development of Pacific North West (PNW) women in this sport,” said Brenna Wrye-Simpson, Team Manager. “In that time, we have been through several chapters and have proudly stayed the course, attracting more women to the program, standing by those we’ve already rostered, and standing by cyclocross as the purest form of racing in cycling.”

Team roster

Eight women will comprise this ‘cross season’s Team S&M CX squad, which is co-managed by Wrye-Simpson and former pro racer Erik Tonkin.

Annie Davis-Usher (Portland, OR) (elite)

Rachel Geiter (Walla Walla, WA) (elite)

Allison Halpin (Bend, OR) (elite)

Clara Honsinger (Portland, OR) (elite)

Jenna Lingwood (Portland, OR) (elite)

Sophie Russenberger (Bend, OR) (elite)

Madeline Stover (Portland, OR) (under 23)

Brenna Wrye-Simpson (Portland, OR) (elite)

Wrye-Simpson also serves as the team’s mechanic while Tonkin doubles as the squad’s coach.

Honsinger returns to her roots

Wrye-Simpson is especially excited that three-time US Cyclocross National Champion Clara Honsinger has returned to the team.

“To me, it only feels right to have Clara back. Our initial three-season chapter from 2017 to 2020 was one of steady progress for all of us, but most obviously hers, as she steadily studied the game and consistently landed more domestic podiums,” said Wrye-Simpson, who noted Honsinger’s first under 23 title won in 2018, her first World Cup podium in Iowa City earned in 2019, and her elite national title claimed in 2019. All were achieved while repping Team S&M CX’s distinctive orange & blue kits.

Honsinger went on to race the rest of the 2019-2020 season in Europe before returning in February of 2020, after the world championships, just as rumblings of the new COVID virus were beginning to circulate. She then moved on to join the Cannondale-CyclocrossWorld.com team.

Perhaps Honsinger’s best finish to date has been a fourth place finish at the 2021 UCI Cyclocross World Championships.

“Her accomplishments speak volumes, and her growth as an athlete and worldly human are wonderful to behold,” said Wrye-Simpson of the team’s biggest stars to date.

Honsinger fondly recalled, “I remember when I first asked Erik if I could join [Team] S&M. I was a freshman in college, and he had generously offered to give me a ride in the old Kona van to Ninkrossi. I wonder what he was thinking when I posed the question – a teenager with a bike racing obsession was a pretty great unknown. But I was certain that S&M was the place for me.”

The then up-and-coming young rider had been following Team S&M CX for a while, watching local icons like Beth Ann Orton and Megan Chinburg travel to races across the country and reading old race reports of how Rhonda Mazza had placed second at Nationals in toe-clips and running shoes. She re-watched Transitions 2 to find the scene where Tonkin’s Belgian fan club sings praises about his beard.

“This team seemed to carry a passion for racing and an easy-going character that I wanted to be surrounded by,” said Honsinger.

More recently, Honsinger raced on the road for Team EF Education-TIBCO-SVB. But as uncertainty swirled around some of the European and US teams this past summer, Honsinger pondered what was next, and she felt compelled to follow her heart.

“The move was clear. S&M is grounded and driven. The idea of returning made me feel giddy with excitement and genuinely happy,” said Honsinger.

At Bikeflights, we’re looking forward to cheering on Clara Honsinger and all the rest of Team S&M CX throughout this season! Read the team’s full announcement from Team S&M CX.

Photos taken by Patrick Daly and Kieran Harden provided by Team S&M.

#bikeflights #bicycleshipping #bikeshipping #weshipyouride #shipthebestway #eventshipping #shipyourbike

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