#Griffin Flaherty

[haleandwellmet]

Continuing on my quest try more book cover illustration by doing my own take on a cover for Widdershins 🌀

[dandelion-roots]

[ID: a digital sketch in two panels. in the first griffin fixes a blushing whyborne's suit collar and says, there you go. in the second, griffin is kissing his husband's cheek. End ID]

[a-pepper-honey]

Nobody:

Absolutely nobody:

Whyborne in Griffin’s shadowsight:

[wildmadumb]

But do have a conversation later, please.

[mushabon]

WIP - my two favorite Lovecraftian goobers from Jordan L. Hawk's "Widdershins." Its about time I got around to doing a lil something for those books seeing as I've only read the series like 4 times... going on 5...

[twinstakes]

Minnesota Twins Recap vs the Detroit Tigers - April 19th, 2024

The Minnesota Twins may be starting a Tortured Blow-It Department soon if this losing streak doesn’t end soon. They’ve lost 4 straight after losing the finale in Detroit then getting swept by Baltimore with the last game ending in a walkoff home run. We do know they will never stop battling and we think they’ve established a good clubhouse culture & they expect to have a great season in…

[cspasfan15]

TDA Orlando Predictions

Mini female

Top 20: navy Forrest, Elizabeth pugach, Amaya Rodriguez, Ella venerio, mila simunic, tinsley Wallace, Lainey Hess, Elliana macioce, Harper schwalb, Emma semtak, Reese braga, Marley Evans

Top 10: remi hilson, Antonia demartinis, Mikaela florez, leighton white, Amelia burres, lyric Simmons, Zoe ynguanzo

Top 3: Avery Altobelli, Sylvie win Szyndlar, Aliya yen, sienna dipietro

Mini Male

Top 3: jay ramos-Rivera, Rory Ross, Hudson Matthew’s, Isaiah santos

Junior Female

Top 20: Kendall brown, cydnee Abbott, Reagan Hess, Bianca rebellto, Elsie sandall, lily hackney, Estelle newsom, Leilani lawlor, Sara von rotz, Regan gerena

Top 10: olivia rose toneguzzo, madeleine shen, keringtyn spencer, ruby Arnold,Samantha geller, Berkeley scifres, Isabella zhong, Camila giraldo

Top 3: Helena olaerts, Anita Rodriguez, amabella tarrago, bristyn scifres

Junior male

Top 3: Gabriel gebara, Dylan Custodio, Josh Lundy, neo del corral

Teen Female

Top 20: ava d’ambrosio, miyah lagrant, Bella Rey d’armas, Jaya campagna Terrell, lekha rajkumar, savy luechtefeld, balbina cueva toussaint, joli du quenne, Brooklyn ladia, Stella eberts, Lilly Barajas

Top 10: desa jankes, Leila winker, braylynn grizzaffi, Hudson benayon, Hayley marshall, elie rabin

Top 3: Kylee casares, Bella rose Penrose, gracyn French, Giselle gandarilla

Teen Male

Top 20: Odin Baldwin, Nolan brinker, jack mckenzie, Holden griffin, nick d’ambrosio, Jayden hui, iain Cooke, jack Moore brown, Zolan laird

Top 10: Ryan Newman, Duane Ferguson, Sasha chernous, Anthony labritz, cam Williams, Angelo Durante, Jonathan archer

Top 3: Kylan wright, Blake metcalf, Kaden brown, garret sawyer

Senior female

Top 20: Elyse wingertsahn, Brooklyn law, Isabella bolivar Lopez, Ava Carroll, victoria reith, Gillian Gordon, Ellen grace olansen, sammi Chung

Top 10: preslie rosamond, sienna morris, Catherine Clayton, Savannah manning, Angel dimartino Palladio, Arianna quant, Lexi Blanchard, Ashley choy,

Top 3: Tatiana hagee, Sophie Garcia, dyllan Blackburn, sierra drayton

Senior male

Top 20: Patricio hoyo, Damian caraballo, Jayden lau, tyreke holt, Seth hendley, Anthony dessables, Alejandro Ruiz, Darius Goodson, Keaton Evans, Devon barner

Top 10: chance Phelps, skai llorente, cynsear epting, joshuah Rivera, Mekhi Johnson, Hugo Silva, Kaden Golding, Tristan gerzon, Jesse flaherty

Top 3: Nicholas bustos, Jackson roloff hafenbreadl, Sam Evans

[mywingsareonwheels]

No, I'm *completely* normal about P Whyborne and Griffin Flaherty and Christine Putman and Iskander Barnett etc at the moment. I have no idea why anyone would think otherwise. ;-)

(I bought the whole Whyborne & Griffin series as an ebook bundle on Kobi. Incredibly good value. It is also ONE EBOOK so I need to read the whole lot so that then Partner can. Alas. Woe. Etc.. ;-))

(Anyway if you like ripping paranormal mystery adventures set in the late 19th century US, using some of Lovecraft's worldbuilding but with the kind of storylines and attitudes he'd hate (queer romance! some awesome characters of colour! moral nuance!), you'd probably like this. :-) )

(TBF Lovecraft probably *would* like the cat. :-D)

[sunriseverse]

Gay Victorian magic books?? 👀👀👀

okay so we are going to have to establish some things upfront. the gay victorian magic books are the only erotica i read and i read them for the plot. because the plot is fucking fascinating and is one of the most unique takes on magic and intriguing plots and victorian settings.

i am speaking, of course, of the whyborne and griffin series by jordan l hawk. i've only read the first................two and a half books.............(because i keep getting so fucking busy shhh don't look at how it's been like five years—) but like. okay. let us set the stage. you are percival endicott whyborne. your childhood friend and the man you kind of loved died, and you feel awful about it. you work at a museum, where you lead a quiet life and try and pretend you're not gay and a failure to your father's pride. and then you get caught up in the cult that killed the aforementioned man and an ex-pinkerton detective and also, magic, because that's real, actually, and things are way weirder than you could ever have imagined. also, you're gay again, but it's eighteen fucking something, so it's not like you're being loud about this.

here's the summary for the first novel on amazon:

Love is dangerous. Ever since the tragic death of the friend he adored, Percival Endicott Whyborne has ruthlessly suppressed any desire for another man. Instead, he spends his days studying dead languages at the museum where he works. So when handsome ex-Pinkerton Griffin Flaherty approaches him to translate a mysterious book, Whyborne wants to finish the job and get rid of the detective as quickly as possible. Griffin left the Pinkertons after the death of his partner. Now in business for himself, he must investigate the murder of a wealthy young man. His only clue: an encrypted book that once belonged to the victim. As the investigation draws them closer, Griffin’s rakish charm threatens to shatter Whyborne’s iron control. But when they uncover evidence of a powerful cult determined to rule the world, Whyborne must choose: to remain safely alone, or to risk everything for the man he loves.

the writing is really really good and the characters' interpersonal conflicts are written so well and engagingly and it's a rarely sober take on being a gay man in the nineteenth century, which as someone chronically incapable of not taking things in a realistic direction, is something i really appreciate. i have yet to finish the series (please someone pray for me i need it. i've got all the novels i just haven't fucking read them.) but i have it on good authority that the series is a happy ending. also there's monsters? the entire series is interconnected, it's truly a series and i cannot wait to finish them all and finally be able to understand where all the plot threads are leading.

the only drawbacks to the series in my opinion are 1. it's written first person pov (makes skipping over the sex scenes awkward if you, like me, aren't inclined to read them, because you inevitably catch part of them) and 2. the novels are kind of short.. otherwise i fully recommend them, if you're willing to not be too self-conscious. so yeah, that's the gay victorian novels, do with that what you will! (also the original novel covers are absolutely awful, i really prefer the amazon listing's covers, which while also obviously made on a budget, don't look like something made by a community college student for their first digital arts class on adobe photoshop.)

[pretensesoup]

Queer fiction, day 2/30

Since I mentioned it yesterday, let's talk about Widdershins, which is book one of the Whyborne and Griffin books. There are eleven in total, but they're in a series such that you kind of have to read in order, so I'm going to talk about them as a group.

I only have these as ebooks right now, so I'm gonna hotlink to goodreads for the cover. Hopefully that works.

Okay, so the plot. Let's start by saying these do have a plot. Set in a very gothic town called Widdershins, in Massachusetts (just down the road from Arkham, it seems). As places go, it's very Night Vale--people keep to themselves and don't make eye contact if they're out after dark; the city's museum was designed by a man who slowly went mad during the work; everyone worships at a church called First Esoteric, which has some rather non-standard ritual practices.

The books are set around 1900. At the outset, we meet Dr. Percival Endicott Whyborne (he goes by Whyborne, which makes sense). He's highly educated, a philologist (someone who studies the history of languages). He speaks something like thirteen languages himself, and is also interested in cryptography, so it makes sense that when a private eye named Griffin Flaherty is referred to the museum with an occult, encyphered book, Whyborne is the person who's asked to help him. Together, they investigate a secret brotherhood and also fall in love.

I love a bunch of things about these books: the side characters are excellent; the sense of place (for a place that doesn't exist!) is extremely strong, and it's a funny, creepy place; the way the main characters get a chance to grow, both personally and in their relationship across all the books (unusual to find a series with so many entries in this genre); the explicit ways that Hawk deals with and subverts the ideas of "other" in Lovecraftian fiction.

Key quote: "Although the public areas of the museum were designed to give the appearance of a neat and orderly progression through history, the rest of the building exemplified chaos. Storerooms burrowed deep into the earth, while various wings sprawled off in every direction. The library was a literal labyrinth, and shortly after I'd first been hired, I'd found myself obliged to cross the flat roof of one of the wings as the most direct route from one department to another. Even though the museum was less than forty years old, there were rumors of lost storerooms and offices, and I did not doubt the possibility."

These books have a lot of sex in them, so be forewarned. When I read the first book, I found the use of euphemism in these a little grating to the inner ear ("my length" and suchlike), but over the course of the books I came to appreciate the voice. Then I read all the books and turned into a tiny eldrich creature myself.

10/10 for them.

[evenaturtleduck]

Current Things

Tagged by @101octopodes! Thanks! This is fun!

3 ships: Harriet Vane and Lord Peter Wimsey, Sherlock Holmes and John Watson, and Percival Endicott Whyborne and Griffin Flaherty (see Currently Reading 😅). 

Last song: It Is What It Is by Jenna Raine–it's on one of Oldest Child's playlists--I get most of my new music that way these days.

Currently reading: Deosil by Jordan L. Hawk. It's the last Whyborne and Griffin book and I'm all 😭 about this fact. Ten novels, a novella, and several short stories was clearly not enough for me.

Last movie: Middle and Youngest decided we needed to watch the Mario movie, and I'm so mad at how much fun it was. 

(Unless you count showing the Sunday school kids my old favorite Veggie Tales video Josh and the Big Wall this morning with hot chocolate for their last weekend of break before school starts back up. I still have most of it memorized 😅 I don't watch a lot of movies on my own apparently)

Currently watching: Nothing right now. 

Currently craving: I bought Fritos to go with the leftover chili in the fridge that look really good right now (especially now that someone else–probably Spouse–has already opened the bag).

Currently consuming: About to sit down with green tea with toasted rice and a cranberry orange muffin. Oldest and I made them this afternoon because they're trying to get me to read their favorite webcomic because it has characters they think I would like, and they're right, I do like those weird little guys, but I'm not really into webcomic pacing so I don't keep up with it (everything gets from point A to, like, point Q so abruptly it doesn't feel real). So whenever we bake, I'll read it while things are in the oven so that I can tell them how far I got into the story and they can screech gleefully about it. 

Tagging (no pressure! just for fun if you want!): @aurorawest , @lowkeyed1 , @seamu5 , and @ossified-hypothesis

[haleandwellmet]

whyborne & griffin

e saul

[twins2994]

Twins Edge Tigers 5-3!

Tigers 3 Twins 5 W-Alcala (2-3) L-Vest (1-2) SV-Duran (13)

The Minnesota Twins returned home after a long road trip. They got a much-needed off day before squaring off with the Tigers this week. The Twins started the scoring in the third as Kyle Farmer and Manny Margot singled. Royce Lewis delivered a two-out double to left, which plated a pair and put the Twins up by two after three frames. The Tigers started to figure out Simeon Woods Richardson in the fifth when Justyn-Henry Malloy smacked a change-up out to left for a solo homer. Akil Baddoo followed with an infield single and reached third on a bad pickoff throw from Simeon Woods Richardson. Ryan Kreidler then belted a slider out to left for a two-run homer to put Detroit up 3-2. The Twins would respond in the bottom of the fifth when Manny Margot knocked a Tarik Skubal change-up out to left-center for a solo homer. This tied the game at three after five innings of play. The Twins used their speed in the seventh as Byron Buxton led-off with a ground-rule double to right. He reached third on a wild pitch and Ryan Jeffers hit a slow roller to second to plate a run. Griffin Jax put up a zero in the eighth and Carlos Correa added an insurance run in the bottom of the eighth. He blasted a Beau Brieske slider out to left for a solo homer to put the Twins up by two heading into the ninth. Jhoan Duran had a 1-2-3 ninth and the Twins took the series opener from the Tigers tonight.

-Final Thoughts- Simeon Woods Richardson was sailing along until the end of his outing. He went 5 2/3 inning sand allwoed three runs on four hits with two walks and four strikeouts. Jorge Alcala retired all four men he faced, Griffin Jax had a scoreless eighth, and Jhoan Duran had a perfect ninth for the save. Manny Margot led the way with two hits and two runs tonight. The Twins hit 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position and left six men on base. Royce Lewis left the game with a groin injury after his double. Game 2 will be tomorrow night as Jack Flaherty faces David Festa.

-Chris Kreibich-

[wildmadumb]

I read the first tome of Widdershins, by Jordan L. Hawk. Closeted philologist meets spirited detective. Explosions, burglary, kidnapping and invocation of the Great Old Ones ensue.

Unexpected gems of situational comedy?

[haveyoureadthisqueerbook]

Widdershins by Jordan L Hawk received 205 votes total. 16.6% of respondents answered YES, they have read it. 83.4% of respondents answered NO, they have not read it.

A reclusive scholar. A private detective. And a book of spells that could destroy the world. Love is dangerous. Ever since the tragic death of the friend he adored, Percival Endicott Whyborne has ruthlessly suppressed any desire for another man. Instead, he spends his days studying dead languages at the museum where he works. So when handsome ex-Pinkerton Griffin Flaherty approaches him to translate a mysterious book, Whyborne wants to finish the job and get rid of the detective as quickly as possible. Griffin left the Pinkertons after the death of his partner. Now in business for himself, he must investigate the murder of a wealthy young man. His only clue: an encrypted book that once belonged to the victim. As the investigation draws them closer, Griffin's rakish charm threatens to shatter Whyborne's iron control. But when they uncover evidence of a powerful cult determined to rule the world, Whyborne must choose: to remain safely alone, or to risk everything for the man he loves. Widdershins is the first novel in the Whyborne & Griffin series, where magic, mystery, and m/m romance collide with Victorian era America. Buy it today and join the adventure.

PLEASE read this series. It's eleven books long, which I know will feel like a huge commitment to some people, but it's so totally worth it. By the end (and I just finished the final book so this is fresh in my mind), you'll feel like the characters are good friends, and you'll be so sad to let them go. The world is super fun and very Lovecraftian.

[thisblogwasmadeforlurkin]

are there any folks who use dreamwidth who would be interested in joining a Whyborne & Griffin and/or general Jordan L Hawk book comm?

Been rereading W&G and I’m thinking of making one...