#I feel like I just may start a series of posts called 'Murdered By Russia' at this point

[justacynicalromantic]

Ukrainian painter, professor, public figure Oleksandr Murashko (1875 - 1919) with his wife Marguerite Murashko, nee Kruger:

Oleksandr was a student of another prominent Ukrainian painter - Illia Repin.

Murashko has been called "the most important Ukrainian artist of the turn of the century". His painting "Carousel" won the gold medal at the Munich Exposition in 1909, and he exhibited in Venice, Rome, Amsterdam, Berlin, Cologne, and Düsseldorf.

From 1909 to 1912, Murashko taught at the Kyiv Art School. In 1913, he opened his own studio in the Ginsburg skyscraper, where many young Jewish artists were trained, including Mark Epstein. He had a great influence on Kazimir Malevich.

He founded the Association of Kyiv Artists in 1916 and the following year co-founded the Ukrainian State Academy of Arts.

Oleksandr Murashko was murdered by the agents of the All-Russian Extraordinary Commission secret police, more commonly known as Cheka (ЧК), in 1919, when he was taking a stroll with his wife.

Not long before his death, his hands full with organising the socially important activities, with teaching and working at the Art Rada, Murashko wrote:

"I haven't really been making any new artwork for the last two years. All of me is immersed in organizing the artistic life of Ukraine. This issue is posed so acutely and is so complicated that I cannot possibly, in any good conscience, avoid it. But I have firm hope that, having given my all to my people, I will be able to return to quiet work..."

Some of Murashko's artwork.

The famous "Carousel":

"Burial Of A Kish Otaman":

"Winter" and "Girl in A Red Hat":

"Near The Cafe":

"Rural Family":

[fulcrumahsokaamidala]

Saturday Spectacular #20

Happy Saturday!!! So this is me thanking awesome fanfic writers for their amazing work and all the time they put into their fics. ♥️ I want to recommend spectacular fanfic stories I read this week! ♥️ They are posted in the order I read them. All posts will be tagged #saturday spectacular fic rec

Airplanes, Coffee and Deadlines by @hope-for-olicity | Arrow | Completed

Summary: Felicity begins working at a national newspaper where she has always dreamed of working. On her first day, she meets a very interesting photojournalist. The two will eventually work together but sparks fly immediately.

It Will Be Fun. Trust Me. by @stephswims | Arrow | One-shot

Summary: Felicity doesn’t agree with Oliver’s plans for a relaxing vacation. How will she ever get him to see her perspective?

Just Follow Me. I Know the Area. by @stephswims | Arrow | One-shot

Summary: Rewrite of the infamous 3x01 date.

Now? Now you listen to me? by @stephswims | Arrow | One-shot

Summary: It’s moving day for our favorite Queens.

I Know You Didn’t Ask For This by @stephswims | Arrow | One-shot

Summary: Set in season 2.

I Might Just Kiss You by @stephswims | Arrow | One-shot

Summary: Set in season 2.

Yes, I'm Aware. Your Point? by @stephswims | Arrow |  One-shot

Summary: Established Olicity.

No, And That's Final. by @stephswims | Arrow | One-shot

Summary: Established Olicity. Shopping for a present for Thea. Sort of.

Can You Stay? by @stephswims | Arrow | One-shot

Summary: Set in Season 2 after the Russia debacle.

There Is A Certain Taste To It by @stephswims | Arrow | One-shot

Summary: Established Olicity.

Listen. I Can't Explain It. You'll Have To Trust Me. by @stephswims | Arrow | One-shot

Summary: Set in season 2. Day 10 of Fictober. Felicity has a feeling.

It's Not Always Like This by @stephswims | Arrow | One-shot

Summary: Another Season 2 ficlet.

What If I Don't See It? by @stephswims | Arrow | One-shot

Summary: Set in Season 4.

I Never Knew It Could Be This Way by @stephswims | Arrow | One-shot

Summary: Takes place in season 1.

I Can't Come Back. by @stephswims | Arrow | One-shot

Summary: Set in Season 1 before Felicity finds out Oliver is the vigilante, or can be a completely separate AU.

That's What I'm Talking About by @stephswims | Arrow | One-shot

Summary: Established Olicity builds a sunroom.

Listen. No, Really Listen. by @stephswims | Arrow | One-shot

Summary: The conversation that should have happened in Season 4 to prevent Season 5 stupidity.

There Is Just Something About Him by @stephswims | Arrow | One-shot

Summary: AU.

Secrets? I Love Secrets. by @stephswims | Arrow | One-shot

Summary: Season 2.

I Wrote Your Name in My Heart by @alanna-the-lionheart | Arrow | Completed

Summary: One cold night in December, a group of men kidnap Oliver right in front of Felicity. They leave behind no ransom or demands, no hints to his fate, and no clues to follow. As the new year starts, the team begins to lose hope that they will ever be able to save the Green Arrow; all except Felicity, because Felicity just got Oliver back, and she’ll be damned if she’s going to lose him again. Her hope pays off in the end…but when they finally find Oliver, they find a broken man they barely recognize. Felicity vows to do whatever it takes to make the man she loves whole again. Started off as a future fic but is now technically alternate canon/AU (takes places starting in early December 2016).

The Legacy of a Queen by @inlovewithimpossibillity​ | Arrow | WIP

Summary: Series of one-shots from a future AU where Oliver and Felicity are able to raise their children after they defeat the Ninth Circle and Oliver hangs up the hood

Lucas’ Adventures by CSM | Arrow | WIP

Summary: Post 2x07. One late night in the foundry Oliver finds an abandoned baby, who he later finds out is his biological son, the only thing is the baby seems to think Felicity is his mother, which is impossible. Or is it? aka, Mia Smoak gets tired of her baby brother and sends him to 2013 where their unsuspecting parents find him. Companion piece to Impeccable Genetics.My contribution for the Olicity Summer Sizzle

Three Little Words by @realityisoverrated-fic | Arrow | One-shot

Summary: Oliver Queen loves easily and fully. When he loves someone, those three little words come easily. For Tommy, love has always been something used against him. To Tommy, those three little words are dangerous.

There Are Two Sides to Every Story by @oneofthosecrazygirls-fics | Arrow | WIP

Summary: Susan Williams and Bethany Snow are two of Starling City’s most prominent journalists…but their styles are very different. This is a series of articles written by these two journalists from the time of the sinking of the Queen’s Gambit to the present day.**set in the What Should’ve Been ‘verse**

Ride or Die by @someonesaidcake | Arrow | WIP

Summary: They say that life is a series of events that we can neither predict nor control… And then there is him. He’s a bit of an enigma. ~*~*~*~Young CEO Felicity Smoak is just trying to make her mark on the world, yes she’s a little high strung and stressed, but it was what is was… until he came along. With eyes a girl could lose herself in and shoulder-tapping hair made for hanging on to Oliver Queen was reckless and carefree. Also, he rode a bike. He was everything she wasn’t and he was a sucker for those sinful red lips and everything that came with them.*main story complete, now snapshots*

missing the bullet by @alexiablackbriar13 | Arrow | One-shot

Summary: After Oliver and Mia's cage match wins in Russia, Mia ends up getting shot when Oliver tackles the man aiming at her rather than jumping in front of the bullet. (A sort of alternate spec for 8x05)

by your side by ppperaltiagooo | Brooklyn Nine-Nine | WIP

Summary: in which jake is sent undercover again and amy finds out she is pregnant while he’s gone.

Queen vs Queen by @muslimsmoak​ | Arrow | WIP

Summary: Felicity Mignonette Renaldi Smoak has been handling being a princess pretty well so far. After all, she did only find out at the ripe young age of 15. Now, she is 21 and ready to take the throne of Genovia after being under the tutelage of her aunt. But there’s only one thing in her way, wait, actually two. Two things in her way: Oliver Queen, the hot young bachelor she danced with the night of her homecoming ball, who neglected to mention that he’s after her crown alongside his uncle Malcolm Merlyn, and the fact that she has to marry within 30 days if she wants to be Queen. Ray Palmer, Duke of Keystone is sweet, sensitive, intelligent and kind and seems like the perfect choice. But marrying and falling in love are two different things.

Silent Killers by @oliversmuse​ | Arrow | Completed

Summary: Oliver Queen and Felicity Smoak have been married for three years and work CSI for the FBI. This story will follow their relationship and the cases they encounter.

Passion Killer by @oliversmuse​ | Arrow | Completed

A Shot in the Dark by @oliversmuse​ | Arrow | Completed

Summary: Part of the Silent Killer's series. Oliver and Felicity try to solve the case of a mother that was shot in her car on the way to work.

If I Can't Have You by @oliversmuse​ | Arrow | Completed

Summary: Oliver and Felicity are called to a murder suicide. As they work together they try to unravel why a wife would kill her husband and then herself and where the couples marriage took a wrong turn. Part of the "Silent Killers" series.

Kerosene and Desire by @smoaking-greenarrow | Arrow | Completed

Summary: An Olicity Notebook AU with a darker twist.

Alpha by @oliversmuse | Arrow | WIP

Summary: Oliver Queen was a powerful vampire that was captured by a group experimenting on hybrids. Turned into a hybrid that is half vampire and half wolf he is strong, fast and deadly. While in captivity he meets Dr. Felicity Smoak a hermatologist who is called in to monitor his feedings. All Oliver wants is to be free, away from the experiments and being in a cage, and strangely he feels he can trust Dr. Smoak. There is also an unspoken attraction between them that is forbidden. Can he convince her to set him free or will her attraction to him tempt her to keep him close?

Leaves of Change by @hope-for-olicity​ | Arrow | WIP

Summary: Felicity Smoak returns to her small hometown of Silver Lake just in time for the Harvest Fest, she came home to get grounding and figure out what she wants to do next the last thing she expected was that she’d want to stay.

The Donor by @spaztronautwriter​ | Arrow | Completed

Summary: Felicity Smoak has always dreamed of being a mother and she isn't going to let a little thing like men stop her from making that dream come true. Having a baby by herself might just be biting off a little more than she can chew, but one way or the other it's about to change her whole life.

Like Real People Do by more0rLessJess | Arrow | WIP

Summary: Felicity Smoak has had a rough couple of years and all she wants to do is move on with her life and start her own tech company. After an incident at Queen Consolidated, she quit and accepted a job working as a technical analyst and computer expert at the Starling City Police Department, where she’s stuck for at least another year thanks to the non-compete clause she signed in her Queen Consolidated contract. But as much as she’d rather be in the tech world, she does love being able to help others. Plus she gets to do that with the help of a certain Detective, who she may or may not be attracted too. Oliver Queen just finished five years in the Army Special Forces and is only working as an SCPD Detective because his best friend and fellow soldier, John Diggle, said it would be good for him to help pull his life together after years of hardships in the military. Oliver expected to hate the job, but what he never expected was meeting the IT girl with a heart of gold and her own demons to deal with. Captain Quentin Lance just wants a functioning police department.

And My Arms Will Be (Just Like Walls Around You) by  imfallingforyoureyes102 | Arrow | One-shot

Summary: But then lightning hits again, thunder fracturing the silence, and the Oliver that Thea sees is ten thousand miles away from the Oliver she knows.  God, when she’d said he needed to let someone in she knew she was right.   His face is pale white - his mouth drawn into a tight, pained line - and the way Oliver clutches the doorknob like a lifeline is enough to draw a panicked breath from Thea’s small frame.  (Or, while Thea hides out in the kitchen during a party at the Queen Mansion, a thunderstorm hits and it's Oliver who's stumbling in through the doors on the verge of a panic attack. Thea's all too scared and all too shocked and it's only a certain blonde that comes tumbling in after him who is able to pull the shattered pieces of Oliver Queen back together).

Artemis by @laxit21 | Arrow | WIP

Summary: When the Queen’s Gambit sank, two people were stranded on Lian Yu. Five years later, four came back.

Daughter of the Demon by @laxit21 | Arrow | WIP

Summary: What if in 1988 while traveling through Las Vegas Ra’s al Ghul bumps into a nice waitress named Donna Smoak and they have one-night stand together? A little bundle of joy named Felicity Smoak is the result. In 2014, the Demon Head becomes aware of his youngest daughter’s existence.

The Ravager by @laxit21 | Arrow | WIP

Summary: Slade Wilson’s plan for revenge against Oliver took time, money and no shortage of lives to pull together. His plan didn’t anticipate Felicity Smoak. How will his plan change now that his lost-lost daughter is working with the very man he’s trying to destroy?

Felicity of Themiscyra by @laxit21 | Arrow | WIP

Summary: Years ago, Donna Smoak left the island of Themiscyra and her sister Queen Hippolyta behind to live in man’s world. She never told Felicity the truth about where she came from. As a result of the Undertaking, Felicity discovers some of her Amazonian abilities and makes an interesting new friend: Diana Prince.

The Daughter That Was Left by @laxit21 | Arrow | WIP

Summary: Before the Gambit, Oliver Queen met QC intern Felicity Smoak. When he boarded the Gambit, he left something behind. Now, five long years later someone is waiting for him.

I Scream But No Sound Comes out by @laxit21 | Arrow | WIP

Summary: When Oliver returns from Lian Yu after five years, he comes back different. What happened there damaged more than just his body. How will his friends and family deal with this new Oliver?

How Not to Peel an Orange by imfallingforyoureyes102 | Arrow | Completed

Summary: “Oliver Queen, you give me back my orange!” 

Felicity jams her finger into his chest with a small grumble. 

“Yow! Hey, Edward Scissorhands,” Oliver growls, grabbing onto Felicity’s hand, his own hand absolutely engulfing hers. “Watch the claws.” 

Oh, I’ll show you claws Oliver,” Felicity retorts spitefully, yanking her hand out of his grasp and swatting his arm repeatedly. “Give me back my fracking orange!” 

(Or, after finishing a conversation with Laurel right outside the elevator bank, Oliver finds Felicity eyeing a small orange wearily. Laurel watches the amused banter that springboards back and forth between the two, and it isn't long before she sees exactly who Felicity Smoak is in Oliver Queen's life).

you got all my love to spend by @inlovewithimpossibillity​ | Arrow | One-shot

Summary: Lingering on an executive floor to talk to an executive assistant seems a little unprofessional to Oliver. And that opinion definitely has nothing to do with the way that Felicity is laughing along to whatever the delivery guy is saying. Nothing at all.[Set early-S2, Oliver's pig-headedness rears its head but Felicity is taking none of it, leaving Oliver searching for a way to make it up to His Girl Wednesday]

late night secret gatherings by @alexiablackbriar13​ | Arrow | One-shot

Summary: Post-8x04. Oliver catches Mia sneaking out of the apartment and follows her to find that she’s secretly meeting Connor in the bunker for stress relief in the form of training. What he witnesses between them is more than enough to cause his overprotective fatherly instincts to flare up.

Vows by Abbie | Arrow | WIP

Summary: After the Siege of Starling City by Slade Wilson, threats and pressures force Oliver and Felicity to take desperate measures to protect their secrets, their team—and their very lives.

In Another Life by @inlovewithimpossibillity​ | Arrow | One-shot

Summary: This world has his head spinning and he’s constantly alert for whatever it might throw at him next. He’s trying to stay vigilant in case another figure from his past appears or something else throws him for a loop. He never, in a million years, would have expected what comes out of Dinah’s mouth next, however.“That was Rene, he said that Zoe needs to get some homework done so could you collect Mia? You’re so out of it anyway that you might as well take the rest of the day off.”[8x06 spec AU within which Oliver's alternate reality brings him face to face with a figure he never expected to see again]

Let me know if you want to be tagged!

@hope-for-olicity @emdee8907 @malafle @laxit21 @icannotbelieveiamhere

[kdtheghostwriter]

SNK #107 Recap

Not a prediction. A spoiler.

I’m going to get the criticism portion of this post out of the way first. This is mostly gonna be writer’s mumbo-jumbo until we get to the cut, so if you want to know my thoughts on THAT panel, click the link now. Everyone else...shall we?

It’s easy to tell when and how much editors are involved in a certain update. Turns out, they like exposition even less than some of you all do. Makes sense; exposition is quite hard, but in so many ways I felt like this chapter was what 91 should have been.

It’s a reset. A needed one. I’m telling you now as a scribe myself - after running for our lives for a full volume, we need a moment to stop, save the game, check our inventory, etc. I’m glad Isayama at least gave us one more chapter before launching into the next (and likely final) story arc.

Reiner should have opened the chapter. I say that purely based on how these last few chapters have been structured. Every shot is framed like a movie still. The movie buff in me is incredibly pleased by this, but the movie reviewer in me isn’t far behind, either.

A big problem with Suicide Squad - besides, well, everything - is that there isn’t any natural flow. The editing is terrible. I won’t call 107 terrible in that regard, but it is very sloppy. Reiner should start this chapter, because if we’re only going to Marley long enough to see Reiner check the plumbing, we should get it out of the way, and then cut to the kids, because he asked for them.

-Reiner wakes up, Porco offers booze, Reiner asks for Gabi and Falco -Gabi murks the guard, escapes with Falco from prison -Cut to Big Boss Eren, who is also in prison

It’s just basic sequencing. I get that 106 ended with Eren, so you’d like to see 107 start with him, but cold opens are a thing, and they don’t take that long. I actually start most of my own stories this way.

Paradis Island has three options presented to them that give them the best chance of being not-dead. Given that one of those options includes the End of the World, I can’t say they chose the worst option necessarily but, damn did they come close. It’s a really bad idea.

I’ll stop here and keep all the serious talk under the cut. It gets personal and some of you might not agree with what’s said, but I feel I need to say it, so I’ll give you the option of stopping here. I like this chapter overall, even if I didn’t like everything that happened.

Stray Thoughts

-Eren is still totally not cool for going AWOL and killing everyone in Liberio but...just what did Paradis plan to do as Zeke’s term wound down? How were they going to get to him?

-Keep your eye on Gabi. She’s going to have a heap of development shortly and it will be very satisfying.

-Armin is sulking in a dungeon; Eren is fuming in a cell; Mikasa is crying on a grave.

-Kiyomi greeting Mikasa with comments on how “healthy” she looked gave me major Get Out vibes. I don’t think she’s evil, but I doubt she’s genuine.

-Sadly, not even Zeke and Levi’s hike into the Forest of Big Ass Trees was enough to distract me from how very screwed everything is; but, it was still very cute.

Part of what makes fiction difficult is the reaction. We project so many things onto whatever it is we’ve consumed; that’s what we’re supposed to do, after all. But the author is, usually, an autonomous human being that creates of their own volition which always leads to feelings of some sort. Hurt feelings, happy feelings, outraged feelings.

I say that to say this: it’s okay to stop.

I say this earnestly as a friend and with zero snark. The best you can hope for from this story now is a bittersweet ending. It will not be happy. Not in the classic storytelling sense. I don’t like seeing people in any fandom struggle through a piece of work that clearly makes them uncomfortable. I like, even less, people hate-read something or feel like, they’re near the end so they might as well. Not so!

Historia’s fate is very distressing. Her complacency with this awful idea just because the Survey Corps couldn’t be assed to come up with one goddamn plan is upsetting to put it lightly. No one is happy and the story presents it that way. Which is good because-

I think I should get this one off my chest. I feel like it’s warranted, as well, since SnK joins the X-Men as the other most famous racism allegory. The discourse I’ve seen floating in the tag, while not incorrect, is overlooking a key undertone in this series (which wouldn’t be a first for this site ayy).

In Ferguson, MO and Baltimore, MD: two young, unarmed African-Americans were betrayed by the people sworn to protect them. In one case, a man died in police custody after egregious abuse. In the other, a teenager was murdered by an officer in broad daylight. Both cities burned for days on end.

And then I see people talk about how we should change the way we dress and talk and how we should be civil and I laugh and laugh. Because literally the only thing we want to know is: How many more of our people have to DIE before we can be seen as human?

The answer in Real Life and Fake Life is: I DON’T KNOW.

Fuck.

Any followers of mine have no doubt seen my comparisons of this story to Metal Gear Solid. (I don’t just write about SnK, it’s just what everyone reads.) It feels weird because a) Hideo Kojima is a much better writer than Hajime Isayama and b) the stories themselves are very different. However...

How could I not?

You see, Jack was the world’s finest soldier, but his mentor defected to Russia and nearly plunged the world into nuclear war, leaving Jack as the only one who could stop her.

Only NOT. Joy was undercover and was compromised, but sacrificed herself and died in infamy to protect Uncle Sam from taking the heat for a horrific war crime (because our record is squeaky clean as we all know).

This breaks Jack and he spends the next four decades trying to fulfill The Boss’ Will, not realizing that his unending anger and unchecked PTSD has warped this ideal to suit his need for blood and violence.

Kojima-san has a relatively hopeful view of the human condition despite the suffering that occurs throughout his series. Metal Gear Solid ends with two lives converging on one another as they reach their apex. Jack finally gets revenge on his oldest enemy and dies alone on the grave of his mentor. His son, David, walks away from the battle and lives a quiet life with his otaku husband and their adopted daughter.

Kojima’s message is clear: you aren’t where you’re from. The theme comes up often. As Logan bleeds out in his daughter Laura’s arms, he tells her not to be the weapon they made her. Going by the recent updates, it seems that SnK is just a tad more cynical. And that’s fine.

I saw Ant-Man and the Wasp recently. Compared to the sheer density of Avengers 3, this was a light and airy jaunt. It had a happy ending. A very happy ending. And I did not like it. The movie was fine, but the resolution to the conflict (no spoilers) was so rushed and involved a deus ex moment that would make Steven Moffat blush. I don’t need a happy ending (I’ll still take one), I need a satisfying one. Now, what does that mean?

The best chance Shingeki no Kyojin has at a happy(ish) ending is for Reiner Braun (Solid Snake) to infiltrate Paradis (Outer Heaven), track down Eren Jaeger (Big Boss) and beat the shit out of him until he wakes from his living nightmare and says, “This is a terrible idea! Why didn’t anyone tell me?” wherein everyone responds, “We DID!!!”

I feel like only half of that is going to happen. Eren’s mind is fractured and the world continues with it’s awful machinations. And whenever I feel I should even half-heartedly dispute the idea that everyone sucks forever, I remember that the “Land of the Free” is currently holding toddlers in cages and...welp. I got nothing.

Then, I think about my younger siblings and my goddaughter and how I love them all so much - more than I love myself. I just want them to find a happy life somehow, someway in this crazy world and I know I can’t give up, because they’re watching.

That’s why I still write my stories the way I do. I may be emotionally busted, but I still believe in the message, and just need someone to take the baton. The message, in almost every story I write, is that you need your fucking friends, because finding another human being (or multiple!) that can stand your presence for more than thirty seconds at a time is a gift that must be treasured.

Chances are slim of this happening in the world of SnK, and that may not be the worst thing. A satisfying end for me is one that makes sense.The gymnastics required to get to an ending where one of the main characters doesn’t die a horrible, cursed death would be worse than the gymnastics that got us here to begin with. No two writers work the same.

The official mood for the latter part of this series is EMA facing the ocean in Ch 90. Eren asks if they’ll have to kill everyone on the other side of the water and his two mates each have an expression that says, “Shit, man, we thought maybe we’d build sand castles instead.”

[anongoingsoliloquy]

Hey babes! Well, my resolutions have already gone down the drain, seeing as my resolution was to stick to a posting schedule and I missed two days. But I’m here now! That counts for something right?? Today I want to give you a list of books that I think are perfect to read in the winter. These books are the ones you want to get cozy with and binge on a snow day. Preferably with lots of blankets and a hot chocolate. Let’s get started!

1.       Murder on the Orient Express – Agatha Christie

As you may know, I love Agatha Christie books with all my heart! Her novels are perfect for any time of year, but Murder on the Orient Express is especially suited for winter. The novel takes place on a train – the Orient Express – that becomes stranded on a mountain rail because of an avalanche. They are completely snowed in, which keeps the tension palpable because there is a murder among the passengers. It is up to Hercule Poirot, the famous Belgian detective, to solve the case!

2.       Magpie Murders – Anthony Horowitz

I promise they won’t all be mysteries. But who doesn’t like a whodunit on a snow day? Magpie Murders is the ultimate homage to the classic whodunit. Anthony Horowitz crafts two separate stories that tie into each other in surprising and clever ways. Taking a new approach to a timeless outline, Horowitz’s novel is a breath of fresh air in the genre. I don’t want to give a synopsis to this book because I think it’s better to go in blind with this one. I went in with next to no knowledge of what the book was about, and I was so surprised with what was presented, and I think that’s what made me love it all the more. It is a chunky book, but don’t worry! You will fly through it!

3.       The Magnus Chase Series – Rick Riordan

OMG guys, I loved this series! I loved it so much more than the Percy Jackson books, which I know are fighting words, but I can’t help it! Everything about the Magnus Chase series was just so…right, ya know? It had such a diverse cast of characters, and the scenes were beautifully set, and they were hilarious! I can’t say enough good things about these books! The novels follow the adventures of our main character, Magnus Chase, who finds out he is the son of a Norse god, and must start on an adventure to stop Ragnarok! I have a review/discussion on the first two Magnus Chase books here.

4.       The Beast is an Animal – Peternelle van Arsdale

I know I put The Beast is an Animal on my Halloween reading recs list because it’s scary, but it is a wonderful winter read as well. Many of the big plot points in the book happen in the winter, and the snow has various effects on the story. I think reading it in the winter will add to the atmosphere of the novel. I have a full review for The Best is an Animal if you want to check it out!

5.       Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – J.K Rowling

I don’t think I really need to give any kind of synopsis for this one! Deathly Hallows is the final installment of the Harry Potter series, and I don’t know why it’s perfect for winter time, it just is! I have no rational explanation for this one, you just have to trust me.

6.       Alex and Eliza – Melissa de la Cruz

This novel is such a lighthearted historical fiction! It’s set in the winter, but it’s a really cozy book. Not one of groundbreaking substance but a fluffy novel to read while drinking your hot cocoa. This novel follows the early days of the relationship between Alexander Hamilton and Eliza Schuyler.

7.       Haunted – Barbara Haworth-Attard

Haunted is about a girl who lives on ‘the mountain’ with her grandmother, and on her way into town one day, she discovers human bones. This is a murder mystery/ghost story set in a post-world war I Ontario. This book also does a really good job of portraying a character with special needs. Because of the prejudices of the times, the towns people do become suspicious of this character, thinking he is the murderer but that never changes the reader’s opinion of him. He is shown to be a sweet, loving boy.

8.       The Clockwork Dynasty – Daniel H. Wilson

The Clockwork Dynasty is a dual perspective novel, set in present day Oregon and Imperial Russia. It follows our main characters June and Peter as they discover and rediscover (respectively) the secret race of beings called the Automats. The Automats, like Peter, are meant to live and die by their word; the word that encapsulates the essence of their being. But as we see with Peter, as the mechanical beings become more and more human, they must continually search for meaning in the ever-changing world. This was a wonderful novel! It was so touching and really questions what make a human, human. I would also recommend the audiobook, which is read by David Giuntoli and Claire Coffee who played Nick Burkhart and Adalind Schade on Grimm! They did a great job, and David Giuntoli’s voice is like butter. So, maybe give it a shot!  

9.       Macbeth – Shakespeare

Political intrigue, a murder most foul, and witches…what’s not to love? Set against the snowy backdrop of the Scottish moors, Macbeth is on of Shakespeare’s finest plays... in my humble opinion. I feel like a always have to put a disclaimer with my Shakespeare recs, but please do not write Shakespeare’s plays off because you think they’re boring or the language is too hard! if you go into it with that mindset you won’t enjoy the play. Just let yourself enjoy the story, and resign yourself with the fact that you might have to google a few things. Trust me they’re really good stories! i have a post about the witches in you want to check it out. 

10.   Great Expectations – Charles Dickens

Last but certainly not least, Great Expectations! Great Expectations is a chunky book, but don’t let its size scare you away! It is fantastic! It’s fundamentally a story about life. It begins when our main character, Pip, is six years old, when he first meets the convict. I don’t want to tell you the convicts real name because spoilers! The novel follows Pip throughout his life, from meeting the eccentric Miss Havisham, falling in love with the indifferent and cold Estella, and coming into money and great expectations. We see the rise and fall of Pip as a person, ending the novel around the time that Pip is thirty. Not only is this story filled with some of the best characters, but Dickens has this amazing ability to bring 19th century London to life. London is almost its own character. It is a living, breathing thing and it is so beautifully portrayed.

And that’s it! As always, let me know if you try any of these books out and feel free to leave your own recommendations!  

[aion-rsa]

I Care a Lot: Peter Dinklage is the Scariest Gangster We’ve Seen in Years

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

This article contains I Care a Lot spoilers.

J Blakeson’s I Care a Lot is one of very few films where everyone in it is a villain. In the lead role, Rosamund Pike ushers in a new amoral high mark as conservator con artist Marla Grayson. Peter Dinklage meanwhile mines the standard Hollywood heavy role for an unexpected haul of gangster gravitas. And with his turn as Roman Lunyov, the former black sheep of the Lannister family in Game of Thrones joins the likes of Robert De Niro, Marlon Brando, Wesley Snipes, and Humphrey Bogart as memorable cinema crime bosses.

However, this isn’t Dinklage’s first turn in a mob movie. He got his button in Find Me Guilty (2006). The film was based on the true story of Lucchese crime family soldier Jackie DiNorscio, played by Vin Diesel, and the longest mafia trial in American history. The movie was co-written and directed by Sidney Lumet, who not only helmed such crime classics as Dog Day Afternoon and Q&A, but was one of the original Dead End kids when the proto-gangster social drama was still on Broadway. Dinklage didn’t play a mobster in Find Me Guilty. He played a lawyer.  

Dinklage’s Lunyov Family isn’t strictly going up against law enforcement in I Care a Lot. Rather Pike’s Marla Grayson and her partner in crime (and life), Fran (Eiza González), are court-appointed guardians from hell, and they represent a rival outfit. They are also operating a lucrative racket.

This guardianship gang war could be seen as similar to the scenarios which happened when Italian, Jewish, and Irish mobs moved in on the Harlem and Chicago numbers games in the 1920s and ’30s. Or how Michael Corleone’s first order of business as head of family in The Godfather was to take over the casinos in Las Vegas. Like Don Vito Corleone before her, Marla’s also got judges, such as the sympathetic Judge Lomax (Isiah Whitlock Jr.), in her pocket. Eldercare racketeering dominance is also comparable to the prohibition fights of The St. Valentine’s Day Massacre, and the body count is just as high. The take is just as sweet.

Edward G. Robinson set the standard for cinematic mob rule as “Rico” Bandello in Little Caesar (1931). Dinklage’s Roman Lunyov, by contrast, is more of a Czar. He heads a family in the Russian mafia and purports himself like a descendant of the Romanov dynasty. But he’s got Cossack in him. It’s in his DNA and cascading down his chin like the tail of a cavalry horse.

On Game of Thrones, Dinklage’s Tyrion Lannister was part of an insidious dynasty whose roots intertwined with every twig of the ruling class. The modern Russian mob, on screen and off, can boast even more branches.

Netflix’s World’s Most Wanted dedicated an episode to Semion Mogilevich, the reputed head of the Russian mob (aka Bratva). While Moglievich is allegedly tied to arms dealing, international trading scams, and countless murders, the cops in the documentary series compare him to the Keyser Söze character from The Usual Suspects. He’s a respected, low-key businessman who likes to smoke. He lives in a mansion next to the head of the Communist Party in Russia. His activities aren’t merely state-sanctioned, they are apparently encouraged.

Dinklage’s Roman is all these things, even as his identity is actually more elaborately guarded than Söze’s, and his tastes run toward elitist’s treats.

But then Russian mobsters are always ruthless on screen. These are the guys who killed Denzel Washington’s seemingly indestructible narco cop Alonzo Harris in Training Day (2001). You never prepare for that. When the “Three Wise Men” who always have your back tell you to skip town, you know you’re dealing with folks in a rough trade. On Netflix’s Orange Is the New Black, Galina “Red” Reznikova (Kate Mulgrew) would rather go to jail for keeping bodies on ice than say she was keeping them fresh for the Russian mafia in Queens.

Dinklage’s big bad leans into this mythic image of Russian mobsters, with Roman appearing cut from the same cloth as the New Jersey-based operators who could make even Tony Soprano take pause in The Sopranos. Albeit if Dinklage’s character ever actually visited the tough guys in the Garden State, he would probably need to rethink his man-bun. After all, Tony Soprano couldn’t even get away with shorts.

When James Cagney had fist fights in his early films, he was always matched with a bruiser twice his size because the studios thought no one in the audience would accept him being remotely challenged otherwise. Dinklage also doesn’t display a traditionally imposing physical presence. But he is no lightweight. His own thugs cower at the very thought of a cross word. In the Lunyov family, it’s best to bring a gun to a food fight.

Roman’s personal attorney almost wets his briefs when he screws up. That’s because Roman is as unpredictable as Cagney’s Cody Jarrett, the gang leader in White Heat, Cagney’s most psychopathic role. Dinklage’s introduction as Roman shows him asking how many mules died on the last drug run. He calculates them coldly, as part of business, with the sociopathology of a Chief Executive Officer. But his biggest similarity can be found in oedipal complexities. Like Cody Jarrett, Roman Lunyov loves his mother.

We don’t know much about Jennifer Peterson, the nice old lady played by Dianne Wiest. She’s got money, a nice house, no living relatives, and a doctor who will exaggerate dementia symptoms in court for a stock payoff.  On the surface Peterson seems to be a competent business woman who retired after a successful career. Now under the less than sensitive care at the Berkshire Oaks Senior Living facility, we realize her chosen field was career criminal. After all, any of these sweet old ladies could have had criminally scandalous youths.

When Marla finally asks her ward who she is, all Jennifer has to say is “I’m the worst mistake you’ll ever make.” We learn she has more than one son in the Russian mob. She could be a post-Glasnostic Ma Barker from the Prohibition era. Barker’s fictional approximation in White Heat, Ma Jarrett (Margaret De Wolfe Wycherly) tells her son she can take care of herself. And while Jennifer may have been declared legally unable to do just that in I Care a Lot, she is quite adept at a choke hold, eschewing the standard garrote assassination for her own elbow.

Marla doesn’t romanticize her mother, calling her a psychopath and offering her up as the collateral damage of closing costs. Her single-minded opportunism is more sociopathic than Pike’s Amy Dunne in David Fincher’s adaptation of Gone Girl. She employs a cutthroat logic that’s in the same territories as bad-mannered comedies, but with the ruthlessness of the shark in Jaws.

Roman’s black-on-black dress code ensembles, by contrast, broadcast a desire for stylish power games. Marla is not interested in gangster chic; she prefers classy monochromatic suits so brightly focused they attract moths like flames. Her crew is all business as usual. Dr. Amos (Alicia Witt) is the fixer. She picks the “cherries,” elderly cash cows who can be milked in the retirement home. Sam Rice (Damian Young) is the monster at the center of the center. Everyone’s got a soulless nature except Eiza González’s Fran, who is also the only one to see the wisdom of getting the fuck out of there.

Dinklage is fearsome in one of the scariest screen gangsters in recent years. This guy can dispatch troublesome community angels easier than a creamy éclair pastry–and he loves those treats. He even takes a last loving bite of a chocolate-covered, custard-filled house specialty before he tosses it onto the cold concrete of an underground parking garage.

When he ends negotiations with Marla, his only caveat is to make it look “organic.” Georgia Lyman, who is only credited as “the Assassin,” is I Care a Lot’s Luca Brasi, sharing duties with a few “heavies.” The film’s Fredo is Alexi Ignatyev, played by Nicholas Logan as if he’s always waiting for another shoe to drop. Even Ms. Peterson laughs and calls him an idiot. She laughs a lot, and it’s not just the steady drugs she’s being forcibly and legally dosed with, it’s the glee of power.

Roman’s power lies in his legal team, and the Lunyov family’s Tom Hagen is Dean Ericson (Chris Messina). One thing you have to admit with the Russian mob is they do appreciate innovation and sophistication. Ericson can’t help but be impressed by Marla’s scam. His lowball offer of $150,000 is an insult, but an understandable one. His veiled threats are as subtle as his suits are ostentatious.

Marla doesn’t seem to appreciate the power the Lunyov family wields, but she does appreciate the irony.

“If you can’t convince a woman to do what you want,” she says, appraising the fine print under the mouthpiece’s exploratory offer, “then you call her a bitch and threaten to kill her.” Marla pays it forward by calling the Lunyov matriarch far worse and threatening extreme discomfort, which she promises will last until the day she dies. As restrained as her venom may be, Marla is a proud femme fatale. Though also a stereotypical “ice queen” villainess, and heartless materialist. We’re almost sorry to feel bad for Marla when she is tied to a chair during last minute negotiations.

Director Blakeson, who made the science fiction action movie The 5th Wave and the noir thriller The Disappearance of Alice Creed, sets up I Care a Lot like a horror movie.

“There’s no such thing as good people,” Marla Grayson says at the start of the film. The opening is exquisitely unsettling as Jennifer is guided through a process of enforced institutionalization, followed by her house being emptied, painted, placed on the market, and sold. The plot thickens as keys are traced to a safety deposit box containing millions of dollars’ worth of diamonds, which officially don’t exist. Most gangster films aren’t driven by this kind of mystery, but Roman is a new kind of gangster. Though cheap, dead drug-mules are an unnecessary expense, the Lunyov family want to make a difference in the world.

Blakeson wanted to highlight all-too true stories of elder abuse and the perils of court-appointed conservators which could even bring The #FreeBritney movement calling. But he captures the allure of the anti-hero and the all-American dream of a corner on the market. Roman Lunyov has one final thing in common with Michael Corleone, and many of the traditional gangsters: He wants to earn money legitimately. This is not to be confused with wanting to go legit.

Those of us who root for the “bad guys” will find a wealth of insidious characters, and a very original caper, at the heart of I Care a Lot. Peter Dinklage’s Roman Lunyev may go against type, with his eastern bloc nobility stunted by the limits of black comedy. But as a movie mob boss, he is Street Regal.

I Care a Lot can be streamed on Netflix.

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The post I Care a Lot: Peter Dinklage is the Scariest Gangster We’ve Seen in Years appeared first on Den of Geek.

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[hope-for-olicity]

Fabulous Olicity Fanfic Friday - July 21st, 2017

Happy Friday! So this is my attempt to both thank awesome fanfic writers for their amazing work and offer my recommendations to anyone who is interested. Here are the fantastic fanfic stories I read this week! They are posted in the order I read them. Oh and I'm wicked behind in my reading!! So if I tagged your post #can't wait to read and you don't see here, I will still read - I'm just REALLY behind.

Girl of My Dreams multi-chapter by @tdgal1 and @c0bra5nak3 - Oliver Queen, CEO of Queen Consolidated, meets IT specialist Felicity Smoak.   Playboy turns boyfriend as he dates and falls in love with this amazing woman.  But everything is not perfect and the couple will find that they must face some obstacles together. http://archiveofourown.org/works/11066208/chapters/24677133

Taming the Monster multi-chapter by @wherethereissmoak - ARGUS hacker Felicity Smoak was on a mission in Russian when the extraction goes awry. The Omega is stranded for a while, but going into heat in a foreign country is not a great option. For quick extraction, Amanda Waller sends her to a man that did missions for ARGUS in China, but was now mysteriously part of Bratva - Oliver Queen. Back in Starling, the two realize that their one night in Russia may lead to something more. http://archiveofourown.org/works/11500356/chapters/25801341

Time for a Story multi-chapter by @smkkbert - This fic shows Olicity and their life as a (married) couple with family. Although Olicity (and their kids) are the protagonists, other characters of Arrow and Flash make appearances. - I really cannot tell you how much joy and happiness this story brings to my life DAILY. I'm almost caught up and will be at a loss waiting fro the next AMAZING chapter!! http://archiveofourown.org/works/3912157/chapters/8757172

Keep it Professional multi-chapter by @mogirl97 - Oliver is assigned to be Felicity's bodyguard - So sad that it's over! http://archiveofourown.org/works/9243455/chapters/20960405

Pieces of Always multi-chapter by @so-caffeinated and @dust2dust34 - Life continues after Forever is Composed of Nows. Ongoing non-linear collection of family moments for the Queens. http://archiveofourown.org/works/8220479/chapters/18840356

Perdition by @geneshaven - What Oliver was thinking on his way back the bunker after being tortured by Adrian Chase. https://geneshaven.tumblr.com/post/162997967764/perdition

The Love Thieves: Ludus multi-chapter by @truemyth - Section One is the most covert anti-terrorism group on the planet. Their ends are just, but their means are never simple. Just as Felicity is finding her balance as the organization’s newest operative, she is thrown off center again by the most bittersweet of demands.  To stop a series of terrorist gas attacks, Oliver and Felicity must pose as married assassins and infiltrate the domain of a depraved mastermind. After all, Section One demands more than life, liberty, and loyalty: sometimes it's  your heart on the line. http://archiveofourown.org/works/11508801/chapters/25824786

The Predator multi-chapter @supersillyanddorky06 - I feel like the reputation of this story means I probably don't need to say much. But if you aren't reading it - START NOW. This is an amazing story where Felicity is the daughter of a mob boss and Oliver belongs to another mob and there is tension, oh sweet tension. http://archiveofourown.org/works/5077885/chapters/21891689

Definitely Not Single by @laureningall - On the last leg of their long journey home from Lian Yu Oliver is alone with his thoughts.  Too bad others on the plane can’t keep their thoughts to themselves. http://archiveofourown.org/works/11232606

In Deed and Truth multi-chapter by @machawicket Oliver loves with his actions.  Felicity doesn't always understand this.  A 5 + 1 story. http://archiveofourown.org/works/8488108/chapters/19452523

Blondie by @gypsyfire1066 - Oliver makes a decision that will impact his and Felicity’s lives for the next decade, or more… http://archiveofourown.org/works/11238507

At Odds by @wetsuiton - Olicity Hiatus Fic-a-thon Prompt: At Odds http://archiveofourown.org/works/11084547/chapters/25129896

Some Fairtale Bliss: Hold That Thought multi-chapter by @callistawolf - Oliver and Felicity are all ready to skip a whole bunch of steps in rebuilding their relationship... until they get an unexpected visitor. http://archiveofourown.org/works/11113194/chapters/25135542

Olicity Hiatus Prompts multi-chapter by sidhe_faerie - Prompts Summer Vacation, Eye Contact and Taste http://archiveofourown.org/works/11196495/chapters/25002948

Forever at Odds: Comfort multi-chapter by @laurabelle2930 - Felicity and Oliver reach an agreement on when she'll be turned   http://archiveofourown.org/works/11251638/chapters/25752396

In Another Life (I Could be Your Man) multi-chapter by @angelicmisskitty - Their lives couldn't be more different - and yet Oliver can't take his eyes off the beautiful blonde woman that leaves the subway every morning at 7.43am. There is something about her that makes him look up every morning - something that also makes him aware he'll never be good enough for her, or that she'd even notice him. He had no idea how much his life would change the day he rushed over to help her...Olicity AU - no Lian Yu, no saving the city (at least not in the way we know from Arrow :D ) LOVE LOVE, LOVE! http://archiveofourown.org/works/8944795/chapters/20475253

To Make You Feel My Love multi-chapter by @smkkbert - One year after the Gambit went down, the incredible happens: Oliver is found alive and brought back to Starling City. All he wants is getting back to Felicity and Madeleine. Though Felicity welcomes him back with her arms wide open, Oliver struggles to find his place in the family. It seems like his place – at least in Mae’s heart – is already taken. And it doesn’t help that it’s his best friend Tommy who seems to have taken it. A MUST READ. Now completely and absolutely fabulous!! http://archiveofourown.org/works/10904208/chapters/24242493

You Had Me at Hello multi-chapter by @tdgal1 - Oliver Queen and Felicity Smoak met at a Gala and had an instant attraction but Smoak Technologies and Queen Consolidated have to work together.  Can they make that sexual chemistry work and still work together. http://archiveofourown.org/works/11075379

Blue Eyed Angel: Comfort multi-chapter by @tdgal1 - Oliver is upset when he finds out Felicity has plans that don't include him.  His next decision may not work out in his favor or does it? http://archiveofourown.org/works/11069859/chapters/25268676

Candid Oneshot by @dust2dust34 - Felicity is the assistant to world-famous actor Oliver Queen’s. http://dust2dust34.tumblr.com/post/124368937304/candid-shot-olicity-au-one-shot-t

At Odds by @bitchwhwifi - I wrote this as what could of have happened if Oliver and Felicity weren’t asked to come back to star city in 4x01. http://archiveofourown.org/works/11255859

When a Butterfly Spreads its Wings multi-chapter by @nodecaff4me -  After countless nights of nightmares and waking up in the middle of the night with panic attacks Felicity decides that it was time to start a new life away from Starling City and away from Oliver Queen. The job offer from Palmer Tech wanting her as one of the group heads of their newly built R&D division in Chicago just came at the right time. But would Felicity really be able to let go of her home and the people she left behind? Would this escape from her life really solve all her problems and change it for the better and how would Oliver cope with the certainty that he would never see her again? http://archiveofourown.org/works/7220806/chapters/16388704

I Did It All For Love by @releaseurinhibitions - When best friends re-unite after years apart, not everything goes as expected. For every wonderful come together entails bumps in the road. http://archiveofourown.org/works/11262009

Cabernet Sauvignon Blanc by @izzyface - Felicity is at Verdant the night Oliver has his encounter with The Count. http://archiveofourown.org/works/11256411

As Easy As Falling multi-chapter by @charlinert - Felicity has just received tragic news when she meets Oliver, I believe there is hope, highly recommend but you will cry but not every chapter! http://archiveofourown.org/works/8035363/chapters/22542341

One More Try by @wherethereissmoak - Oliver and Felicity are married and struggle with infertility. He is ready to give up, but Diggle encourages him to follow his wife's lead. http://archiveofourown.org/works/11542848

An After School Special by @geneshaven - Oliver and Felicity post island with William https://geneshaven.tumblr.com/post/163155759454/an-after-school-special

Felicity Smoak - Model, International Star and Murderer? multi-chapter by @tdgal1 - Oliver is called defended international Star Felicity Smoak when she is charged with murder - I can't express how excited I am about this! http://archiveofourown.org/works/10593339/chapters/23417862

When I'm With You - Barely Breathing multi-chapter by @sentence-fragments - ARROW AU - The prodigal son returns! After five years...away, because Felicity knows he wasn't on that island all the time, Oliver finally finds his way home. Her feelings for him are as strong as ever, but there's something about him that isn't quite right, and she can't seem to figure out what it is that he's hiding from her. (Part 3 of the 'When I'm WIth You'-Series) http://archiveofourown.org/works/4874542/chapters/11175277

Somethings are Meant to Be by @pimsiepim - sequel to His Girl Wednesday which you REALLY NEED in your life. Set after Oliver returns to Star City after being missing for 3 years, it is shaping up to be just as awesome as His Girl Wednesday http://archiveofourown.org/works/7693105/chapters/17526601

Thursday by @someonesaidcake - There is something about the girl next door that Oliver Queen is only now noticing... Felicity is moving to college just down the road from where Oliver is a senior. He suddenly becomes very protective of the girl next door.  Thursday night dinners might not ever be the same again. http://archiveofourown.org/works/10688658/chapters/23670255

A Day in the Life multi-chapter by @tdgal1 - Felicity Smoak is an MIT graduate and assistant to Oliver Queen.   Suddenly she is his pretend girlfriend and in the spotlight.  Oliver Queen needs a girlfriend to get rid of an obsessive former lover and to please his parents. Fluffy, funny, happiness! http://archiveofourown.org/works/9229205/chapters/20931281

Some Fairytale Bliss: Dancing in the Dark (You Between My Arms) by @callistawolf - Oliver and Felicity finally (FINALLY) get some relief... and a chance to really reconnect for the first time since their reunion and since Lian Yu. http://archiveofourown.org/works/11113194/chapters/25935021

Most Secrets Come With a Price: At Odds by @diggo26 - prompt for At Odds, Oliver takes Felicity to Queen Consolidated http://archiveofourown.org/works/11055969/chapters/25188759

Left to Fate multi-chapter by @missyriver - Oliver never forgot her or the time they spent together. Does he risk everything to find her? Will he try one last time before his life is changed forever? http://archiveofourown.org/works/11354388/chapters/25413282

Unexpected Roommates by @onceuponanolicity - When Felicity Smoak has a bad day, she really has a bad day. It all goes so wrong when she has to head to Central City for a conference. Getting to her hotel, she discovers her room was given to someone else, one Mayor Oliver Queen. Oliver is determined to keep the room, but he doesn't want to put Felicity out. It was her room after all. So, when he suggests they share, it seems like the perfect solution. Only Felicity doesn't quite feel the same way. For the Olicity Hiatus Fic A Thon. For the prompt At Odds. http://archiveofourown.org/works/11265129

Till Your Last Breath multi-chapter by @walker-oliciter - The countdown plastered to one's skin showed how much time the other's soulmate had left to live. For Felicity Smoak, that meant she had 3 months to find and warn her soulmate before he would die. When she met him though, she got more than what she signed herself up for. Especially when his secret identity was revealed to her... Soulmate, Bratva AU mixed with Olicity Fic-A-Thon Prompts. http://archiveofourown.org/works/11171919/chapters/24938952

Hold Me Tight (Tell Me You Miss Me) by @bokayjunkie - Oliver and Felicity are at a disconnection in their relationship. Thea wants to do something about it. http://archiveofourown.org/works/11261739

Blue Eyed Angel: Pride by @tdgal1 - The date - LOVED THIS CHAPTER!! http://archiveofourown.org/works/11069859/chapters/25973604

Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice by @entersomethingcleverhere - It’s a well-known fact among all fifth-grade boys that girls are the worst. http://entersomethingcleverhere.tumblr.com/post/152395986937/sugar-and-spice-and-everything-nice

That's What Little Girls Are Made Of by @entersomethingcleverhere - Oliver learns pretty quickly that he’s useless when it comes to his sister’s hair. So he enlists the help of someone who…you know, has some. http://entersomethingcleverhere.tumblr.com/post/162101373767/thats-what-little-girls-are-made-of

Forever at Odds: One More Time by @laurabelle2930 - Through flashbacks we meet a new character and Oliver remembers how he asked to have sex with his wife. http://archiveofourown.org/works/11251638/chapters/25943034

One More Time by @laurabelle2930 - Oliver and William have a conversation about a picture that William found while he and Rasia were cleaning out a couple of moving boxes. Oliver and his son have a meaningful conversation before an unexpected visitor arrives... Hint..hint the visitor might be Felicity... http://archiveofourown.org/works/11536191         

// @almondblossomme // @emmaamelia95 // @mel-loves-all // @oliverfel4 // @green-arrows-of-karamel // @coal000 // @miriam1779 // @memcjo// @captainolicitysbedroom // @tdgal1 // @spaztronautwriter // @lalawo1// @quiveringbunny // @quant-um-fizzx // @thebookjumper // @vaelisamaza // @myhauntedblacksoul // @lovelycssefan // @laurabelle2930 // @wrongshipper //

[harocat]

Fic Rec Post:

I’ve had several people ask for this, so here’s a post made up of my personal Victuuri fic recs. I’ll keep adding to this btw and reblog it whenever I add more because it is SUPER DUPER incomplete. 

Btw if I recommend one fic by an author, you can generally assume I rec their others. This is not always the case, but that’s what summaries and tags are for. I would definitely recommend checking out their other works though!! 

Non-au:

And the answer is… by nessiesaur (Yuuri Katsuki is adorable, but also one of the most mature people in their class. Yuuri Katsuki is in her study group, which definitely saved her ass on the midterm. Yuuri Katsuki is…wait, who is he!?)

#4ContsFigure by animaginaryquill (An instagram feed of shenanigans at the Four Continents Competition )

like a design by jinlian (At twenty-five years old, Yuuri Katsuki makes his first Olympic team. This comes with its own set of responsibilities and questions, and a three-time Olympian husband only might be prepared to handle them. ) 

An Intangible Force of Motion by doeinstinct (The new season is in full-swing, and Viktor is realizing just how much work it is to coach and compete, but the exhilaration is worth it. The pain in his leg is probably just from overworking. Probably. ) 

begin to be half of what you think of me by kevystel (In which Yuuri's self-image finally starts aligning with reality. ) 

your love is my turning page by cityboys (Victor and the hours he spends waiting, reflecting and figuring things out. ) 

sight of the sun by cityboys (Wherein their honeymoon brings Victor face-to-face with a lot of firsts in his life.) 

Now When Arrows Don't Penetrate, Cupid Grabs the Pistol by ken_ichijouji (dommific) ( Phichit Chulanont doesn't know how he ended up the skating world's wingman, but he ain't mad at it.) 

The Happiest I've Ever Been by rainingover (The press conference is due to start in less than twenty minutes and they’re definitely going to be late if they don’t leave right away, but it’s proving impossible for Victor to leave the hotel. Completely and irrefutably impossible. It’s all Yuuri’s fault, of course)

Water's Edge by Mhalachai (For years, Yuuri had heard people say Viktor’s skating was otherworldly. He never thought they were being literal.)

Undertow by Mhalachai (Viktor Nikiforov has spent his entire life pretending to be normal.It's never enough. This is the sequel to Water’s Edge) 

step into the golden dawn by Mayarene Rose (It’s still dark outside, only the first rays of sunlight beginning to peak out from behind the clouds. It’s a good thing to wake up to; a day just a few moments shy of being born. Or on what happens after.) 

Night is Young and the Music's High by opalish ("Best press conference ever," the Japanese Nationals silver medalist says when asked. “Ten out of ten, would medal again.” "I would die for Katsuki-kun," Minami declares, with terrifying sincerity.) 

Going for Gold by abarero (A series of character piece oneshots focusing on Yuuri Katsuki and his gold winning streak post-GPF.)

Let there be light, let there be light, let me be right by mooridayo (plane rides and train trips, from one country to the next, Yuuri and Victor watch the skies and track the growth of their relationship.) 

an ever-fixed mark by katsukifatale  (Yuuri is absolutely gorgeous. Viktor could write poems about the soft pink that paints his cheeks and nose. He could pen lyrics about the slope of Yuuri’s smile and the way he bites his lip to try to keep the laughter inside. The sparkle in Yuuri’s eyes would be enough to give hope to even the most lovelorn soul. The warmth of Yuuri’s body pressed against his and the bubbling heat of the feelings he induces in Viktor would be more than enough protection from even the harshest of Russian winters.Yuuri laughs again and ducks his head, embarrassed, and Viktor covers his mouth with his hand because he thinks he may have said some of that out loud. Oops.) 

20 Days (of you and me) by totaldislocation ( The start of Yuuri and Victor’s life together in St. Petersburg isn’t what either of them was expecting but, in a way, it’s perfect )

he’s my sun, he makes me shine like diamonds by wingchestr ( Viktor and Yuuri move to St. Petersburg and can’t keep their hands off each other. )

when you can’t lift that weight (I will) by karasunotsubasa ( "Yuuri, I always thought I would end up alone,” he says and Yuuri feels a little bit like crying, too. )

AU or Canon Divergence:

My Hero, Yuuri by Abarero (At the age of 23, Yuuri Katsuki is certain he's just a dime-a-dozen hero that will never make a difference. Little does he know that the moment his path crosses with legendary hero, Victor Nikiforov, both of their lives will begin to change for the better.) [WIP]

Victor Effing Nikiforov by shysweetthing (AU in which Yuuri still doesn’t remember the banquet, somehow doesn’t blow Japanese Nationals, runs into Victor at the World Championships, and has absolutely no idea why his idol is suddenly friendly and incredibly handsy. )

Like a Fairytale by lucycamui (In which Prince Victor gets swept off his feet at a royal banquet and will go to any length to find his 'Cinderella' Yuuri. And Phichit is the fairy godmother who has no idea what he's doing ) 

all the world's a stage by braveten (Everyone has a guilty pleasure.For Yuuri, it just happens to be romance movies starring famous heartthrob Victor Nikiforov.)

how the mighty fall (in love) by braveten (Every Victor Nikiforov fan has three things in common. 1. They have unrealistic expectations for romance. 2. They mark their calendars with the dates of his newest book releases and the premieres of his latest movie adaptations. 3. They either passionately hate or love his greatest rival, a mysterious author whose pseudonym is only two letters: “KY.” )

To Boldly Go by xylophones  (“Yuuri!” Viktor calls. “I’ve come to rescue you!”

Yuuri stares at him blankly. He gestures to the various unconscious space pirates with his recently discharged phaser. “Oh, Captain,” he deadpans. “Save me.” 

Or: A year in the life of badass science officer Yuuri Katsuki, Captain Viktor “Team Mom” Nikiforov, and simultaneously the best crew and worst crew in Starfleet history.)

This is now a series: Zero Gravity 'verse

a great desire to love by lily_winterwood (For some strange, inexplicable, fantastic reason, Yuuri Katsuki and Viktor Nikiforov are trading places. Kimi no Na wa AU.) 

Of Dahlias and Deadlines by ingthing  (All Victor wants is to get dahlias for Khloe and Brad's wedding in under 24 hours. Hope comes in the form of the little family florist in his neighborhood and the quiet smiles of one Katsuki Yuuri.) [WIP]

 Open At The Touch by kiaronna (Maybe Nishigori got ahold of a lock of Viktor's hair, and some Polyjuice potion. Maybe it's all an elaborate prank. With this as his only reasonable explanation, he steps forward, snags Viktor by his robes and tugs him in. "Nishigori," he says in Japanese, "this prank isn't funny. Your English is better than when I left, though.") 

Love in Exile by martymuses (Once a well know ballet dancer in St. Petersburg, Victor Nikiforov finds himself exiled to Sakhalin Island as a political convict in 1881. As a man sentenced to katorga he will never return to European Russia or his life on the stage. Known as the "Edge of the World," his life on Sakhalin could not be further from the life he once knew. Strange circumstances lead his path to cross that of a young Japanese man, one of the very few still living on the island. Katsuki Yuuri leads a life of exile of a different kind, one that is largely self-imposed. Drawn to each other, despite their differences, something slowly begins to grow between them. When a narrowly avoided tragedy leaves them stranded together for a long, cold Sakhalin winter, they are challenged to face what their relationship really means, and what future it could possibly have.) 

azure by ADreamingSongbird (Yuuri visits his boyfriend, admires some breathtaking scenery, and witnesses Durmstrang Institute's world-renowned star Quidditch player fall off his own broom, not necessarily in that order. (That last one may or may not be his fault, depending on who one asks.) 

The Rules For Lovers by ADreamingSongbird (Prince Yuuri Katsuki has a duty to his country, above all else (his desires, his dreams, and his happiness included), and he knows this alliance will help to ensure the safety of his people. That’s the only reason he accepts Prince Nikiforov’s hand in marriage. The pleasant surprise, of course, is the part where they fall in love along the way. The unpleasant one, well…That’s a long story.)

cancel your reservations by renaissance ( Yuuri is a college student conducting private fencing lessons for a handsome, rich, and mysterious student. Viktor is not learning to fence because he does medieval reenactments. )

The League of the Green Carnation by Abarero (There was one golden rule to being a Time Scientist: do not bring home anything that was a fixed point in history. This meant most artifacts, extinct animals and the like were permissible. Historical figures? Not so much.

But what about an author? Namely, Yuuri’s favorite author, who was murdered in 1887. Could he be saved? Well. Yuuri was sure as hell about to find out.)

Drag Your Soul to Shore by Linneakou (Just before Katsuki Yuuri advances to his first-ever Grand Prix Final, the skating world is sent reeling when a stranger destroys resident champion Viktor Nikiforov’s life in more ways than one, resulting in him being banned from competing and gaining the hatred of everyone he knows. After a chance encounter in Sochi in which Yuuri saves his life, Viktor follows Yuuri back home to Hasetsu as the spring snows fall. But when Viktor is plagued by strange happenings and unnaturally bad luck, Yuuri quickly realizes that something supernatural is responsible for everything that has happened. The question is, can Yuuri save Viktor again, and more permanently this time?) 

All Things Beautiful by StammiViktor (The voice is like bells, sharp and clear yet somehow infinitely soft. Warmth caresses Yuuri’s face and a shudder wracks his frozen frame.“You’re okay now. You’re safe.”(In the glacial waters near the North Pole, two worlds collide.)

On Your Every Word by StammiViktor (It starts, as most things do, with an extravagant banquet."Dance with me?"He’s holding out his hand. It’s an offering, an invitation, and a dare all in one.The onlookers part and a blinding smile graces the dancer’s lips.“Of course, Your Highness.”(A Royalty AU, with a twist))

The Elusive Vermilion Rose by Abarero (As the revolution builds in Larussia, a masked vigilante appears to whisk those destined for execution to safety. Not about to have his plans ruined, the king gives his two sons an offer they can’t refuse: discover this masked man’s identity if you wish to be heir to the throne.The youngest prince knows this is his only chance at the throne, while the older prince, Victor, finds himself caught in the middle; as his curiosity about the elusive Eros dances ever closer to affection.Meanwhile Yuuri Katsuki, a tailor from the neighboring country of Yamato, has been traveling back and forth more than usual... clearly because of the nobility clamoring to have the emperor’s own tailor make their clothes. And Yuuri and his three friends definitely don’t have anything to do with the so-called masked vigilantes in the Society of the Vermilion Rose. Nope, not at all.)

You can also check my fic rec tag for short fics I’ve reblogged! 

[magicalmelonball]

The Unpopular Opinion: Nazis vs People Perceived as Nazis

Note: I've decided to continue my rant series, but the titles will be changed now. They will be called "The Unpopular Opinion" series. Just so you know.

READ BEFORE CONTINUING:

Please note that I do not condone the behavior of anyone that describes themselves as a nazi, white supremacist, etc. If you continue reading and think that I do so, then you're just an idiot that can't read, and I'm not at all sorry for saying that. You're just as bad as the Nazis you go after.

Congratulations, Liberals and Anti-Fa, you played yourself.

We already know what happened last weekend. A Nazi dumbass ran over people in an effort to harm them and ended up killing a woman in the process. I'm pretty sure we can all agree that this person is a pimple on the face of America that needs to be popped. He can rot in jail for all I care. I wouldn't shed a tear for this man if he got the death penalty either, to be honest.

However, because of this tragic event, people are using it as an excuse to go after anyone they disagree with.

"B-b-b-but Ginny, the people we disagree with are ACTUAL NAZIS! How can you say that?!"

Of course, the idiots at the protest (that was once peaceful until anti-fa did show up, btw) are Nazis, no doubt. But what about everyone else? 

Are they? 

Are they real, actual Nazis? 

Let's take a look over the past year, shall we?

We started off slandering anyone that wanted to vote for Trump as a "deplorable," thanks to Hillary Clinton. You know, the same woman that said that Robert Byrd was a hero of hers. 

https://twitter.com/StockMonsterUSA/status/896798087393427456 

Then news post after news post came out to slander what Trump said about illegal aliens, spinning it as if he said he was going to deport all Mexican, illegal or not. So it became okay, thanks to the media and ignorant folk, to call anyone that remotely agreed with Trump in any way as some sort of racist, white supremacists, and/or a Nazi.

If you DARED to share an opinion that doesn't fit the radical left (or the alt-left as I like to call them) then you were labeled. Slandered. They took anything a person said and twisted it in the worse way possible to make themselves look right. A good example I have is tweets sent to me on Twitter just yesterday:

https://twitter.com/mahoumelonball/status/897521956861423616

vs

https://twitter.com/jampackedballs/status/897523028464152576

Note what I actually fucking said and what this idiot tried to spin it as me saying. This is a VERY COMMON practice for Liberals. Either they twist your words, or they start attacking your character, your appearance, etc etc. (Or, fuck, both depending on the idiot you're talking to.) Noted director of Frozen and Tangled, Lino DiSalvo, retweeted the call by a radical group to identify anyone they thought was at the protest. Retweeted pictures to use to identify. I called him out like so:

https://twitter.com/mahoumelonball/status/897143630007349248

To which he decided to twist what I said:

https://twitter.com/LinoD/status/897218339482808321

I replied my argument, saying the using doxxing to go after people they don't like will not just hurt the person you're going after, but could hurt their family, friends, or loved ones that may not even be involved with that bullshit.

He still as yet to respond, especially after THIS came out today:

https://twitter.com/Independent/status/897538573326483457

Title: "Charlottesville: Arkansas man trolled on social media after being wrongly identified among white nationalists"

Someone that wasn't even there was falsely identified as being there. He had to flee his home. He's been attacked relentlessly and called horrible names.

HE WASN'T THERE.

As of this post, Lino has still not acknowledged the response or the news articled that proved me right. I've determined he's just another ignorant asshole that refuses to believe he was wrong. Just like anyone else that seems to think it's okay to attack people with violence as long as they THINK the people they're attacking is a Nazi.

ANYWAY...

Let's move on to everyone saying that this is Trump's fault.

I'm sorry, are you mentally challenged? (I would say retarded, but I'm pretty sure I'm already going to get hate for this alone. Don't need the overly sensitive coming over and crying about "THAT'S OFFENSIVE TO PEOPLE I'M SPEAKING FOR.")

Are you going off the article after article claiming that he's racist without ever actually showing proof that he is? Or are you going off that one illegal immigrant comment again that was twisted into the worse way it can be? Surely you can't be talking about the Democrats that got money from Klan members or the KKK secs that approved of them. And in no way are you referring to where he called David Duke a bigot and racist?

Or are you just blindingly following whatever MSM tells you to believe without taking in context or looking up things in the past yourself?

HMMMM.

If this is Trump's fault, then it's Obama's fault that the BLM member killed 5 cops in Texas during a BLM rally. It's then also Obama's fault that three black adults kidnapped a white kid and tortured him because of Trump. It's also Obama's fault that his administration pushed this divide between white and black people even harder in the early 2010s. (No, wait, that's not sarcasm. That's actually fucking true.)

Welcome to this new world order. Where people are so overly sensitive that someone they don't agree with speaks and they scream and cry for a safe space. Where people try to claim you can't be racist against white people because they never knew of oppression (because white people can't be poor and treated like shit either, amirite?). Where people tear down statues and burn paintings because they were either about white people or just a part of history they don't like instead of going down the sane route and having a community meeting about it and speaking and debating like ACTUAL FUCKING ADULTS!

Ahem... I digress...

What we're seeing now is Main Stream Media spinning things to not only try to start a war with Russia, but pushing for this potential fire keg of a new Civil War. We're seeing people that refuse to look up information or even bother to read the other side because "muh feelings." No one wants to admit they're wrong on both sides, to be honest, but what a world we live in when the media spins Anti-Fa as some sort of heroic group that attacked students at Berkely with broken bottles and U-Lock bike locks.

Because they were all racists?

Right?

Because the media said so.

....Right?

"The most effective way to destroy people is to deny and obliterate their own understanding of their history." "In a time of universal deceit - telling the truth is a revolutionary act." "Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past." "Political language. . . is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind." "Every generation imagines itself to be more intelligent than the one that went before it, and wiser than the one that comes after it."

-George Orwell

[pink-earmuffs]

MULTI ARC REVIEW POST (QUEUED POST) OF JENNY & THE ALIENS - ARC via Netgalley READ: 6/5/17; RELEASE: 8/1/17 2/5 "Ten years after Earth sent messages out into deep space, there has been an answer. Music from distant planet Pud 5 has reached the world’s radios. Are aliens about to invade? No one knows, and almost-eighteen-year-old Derek doesn’t really care, because at a wild end-of-the-world party, Jennifer Novak invited him to play beer pong, and things, well, progressed from there. Derek is in love. Deeply, hopelessly in love. He wants it all — marriage, kids, growing old on a beach in Costa Rica. For him, Jenny is the One. But Jenny has other plans, which may or may not include Derek. So Derek will try anything to win her — even soliciting advice from an alien who shows up in his hometown. This alien may just be the answer to Derek’s problem, but is Derek prepared to risk starting an intergalactic war to get his girl? Just how far is he willing to travel to discover the mysteries of the universe — and the enigma of love?" I received an advance copy of this via Netgalley and Candlewick Press in exchange for an honest review. I wanted to like this. The cover seemed fun and I've always been interested in "alien" portrayals in fiction going back to when I was a teen but unfortunately I just couldn't get into this one. I don't know if it was Derek or Jenny or the both of them or maybe I missed something but this book just didn't work for me. ------------------------------------------ READY TO RUN - ARC Via Netgalley READ: 6/12-13/17; RELEASE: 8/22/17 3/5 "The Bachelor meets The Runaway Bride in this addictive romance novel about a reality TV producer falling for her would-be star: a Montana heartthrob who wants nothing to do with the show. Jordan Carpenter thinks she’s finally found the perfect candidate for Jilted, a new dating show about runaway grooms: firefighter Luke Elliott, a known player who’s left not one but three brides at the altar. The only problem? Luke refuses to answer Jordan’s emails or return her calls. Which is how she ends up on a flight to Montana to recruit him in person. It’s not Manhattan, but at least the locals in Lucky Hollow seem friendly . . . except for Luke, who’s more intense—and way hotter—than the slick womanizer Jordan expected. Eager to put the past behind him, Luke has zero intention of following this gorgeous, fast-talking city girl back to New York. But before he can send her packing, Jordan’s everywhere: at his favorite bar, the county fair, even his exes’ book club. Annoyingly, everyone in Lucky Hollow seems to like her—and deep down, she’s starting to grow on him too. But the more he fights her constant pestering, the more Luke finds himself wishing that Jordan would kick off her high heels and make herself comfortable in his arms." I received an advance copy of this via Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group - Loveswept in exchange for an honest review. Ever since I started reading Colleen Hoover novels a while ago I sort of started slowly gravitating towards romance novels. Lauren Layne's premise intrigued me from the summary. This was a genuinely fun book. Luke's left 3 women at the alter and Jordan decides she's gotta have him on Jilted (it's like a reverse Bachelor). Naturally, Luke wants no part in whatever Jordan seems to set her sights on (him being on the show for one). But, honestly, the characters left me wanting something more and Jordan didn't sit well with me. Fun premise, good read, unlike-able characters. ------------------------------------------ REINCARNATION BLUES - ARC Via Netgalley READ: 6/21-22/17; RELEASE: 8/22/17 4/5 "First we live. Then we die. And then . . . we get another try?  Ten thousand tries, to be exact. Ten thousand lives to “get it right.” Answer all the Big Questions. Achieve Wisdom. And Become One with Everything. Milo has had 9,995 chances so far and has just five more lives to earn a place in the cosmic soul. If he doesn’t make the cut, oblivion awaits. But all Milo really wants is to fall forever into the arms of Death. Or Suzie, as he calls her. More than just Milo’s lover throughout his countless layovers in the Afterlife, Suzie is literally his reason for living—as he dives into one new existence after another, praying for the day he’ll never have to leave her side again." I received an advance copy of this via Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine in exchange for an honest review. Oh, wow. I don't really know where to start with this one. I thought Poore took a really interesting concept (and one that may have been done a bit as of late) and turned it on its head and created something really gorgeous and unique. The premise is simple enough. A boy has only 5 lifetimes left (out of 9,995) to get close to the perfection the universe wants him to have but at the same time we're treated to the tale of Milo and Death (or, Suzie). I think in every lifetime Milo goes through he learns something and gains something via knowledge in exchange for the time he has with Suzie. I'm not going to spoil the ending but this book was wonderful, non linear, and interesting in a way that made me want to reread this multiple times to see if the experience was different each time. ------------------------------------------ RISING TIDE: DARK INNOCENCE- ARC via Netgalley READ: 6/22-23/17; RELEASE: 2014 "Could Maura's life get any worse? ...turns out it most certainly can.Isolated and sheltered by her lonely mother, Maura's never been able to make friends. She seems to drive her classmates away—except for the odd times they pay enough attention to torture her—but she doesn’t understand why. Maura considers herself to be a freak of nature, with her unusually pale skin and an aversion to the sun that renders her violently nauseous. Her belief is only worsened by the fact that almost everyone around her keeps their distance. Even her own father deserted her before she was born, leaving Maura alone with her emotionally distant mother, Caelyn. Even though Maura is desperate for answers about her unknown parent, Caelyn remains heartbroken and her daughter can’t bring herself to reopen her mother’s wounds. Or is there a more sinister reason Caelyn refuses to utter a word about her long-lost love?When a cruel prank nearly claims Maura’s life, one of her classmates, Ron, rushes to her rescue. Darkly handsome & mysteriously accepting, Ron doesn’t seem to want to stay away, but Maura is reluctant to get too close, since her mother has announced she’s moving the two of them to Vancouver…nearly 3,000 miles away from their hometown of Indiana, Pennsylvania. If life wasn’t already challenging enough, Maura begins to experience bizarre, physical changes her mother seems hell bent on ignoring, compelling Maura to fear for her own life. Vicious nightmares, blood cravings, failing health and the heart-shattering loss of Ron—as well as the discovery of a tangled web of her own mother's lies—become obstacles in Maura's desperate quest for the unfathomable truth she was never prepared to uncover." I received an advance copy of this via Netgalley and Xpresso Book Tours in exchange for an honest review. I wanted to like this but I didn't. I thought some of the change up to the vampire mythology was good, kudos for that inventiveness, but overall I just couldn't bring myself to finish which is a shame. ------------------------------------------ ROYALLY ROMANOV - ARC via Netgalley READ: 6/27-28/17; RELEASE: 7/17/17 3.8/5 "In this charming modern day retelling of the 1956 classic Anastasia, a museum curator falls for a mysterious man who may or may not be a long lost heir to Russia’s imperial Romanov dynasty.Finley Abbot is organizing the most prestigious art exhibit of her career at the Louvre museum—a retrospective of art from the House of Romanov. But the sudden appearance of Maxim Romanov threatens to turn her into the biggest laughingstock of the art world. When she finds herself falling in love, she realizes there’s even more at stake than her career. How can she trust a man with her whole world when he can’t remember a thing about his past?After suffering a violent blow to the head, Maxim’s only clue to his identity is a notebook containing carefully researched documentation in his own handwriting indicating that he is the sole surviving descendant of the Grand Duchess Anastasia, previously thought dead in the murder of her family during Russia’s Bolshevik revolution. His struggle to put the mysterious pieces of his past back together leads him to Finley. At first, she’s convinced Maxim is nothing but a con artist. But there’s something undeniably captivating about the beautiful, brooding man who claims to be searching for his identity—something Finley can’t quite bring herself to resist. When he reveals a secret about one of the imperial Fabergé eggs in the collection, she accepts he may actually be telling the truth. But as soon as Finley and Maxim act on their feelings for one another, Maxim is confronted with evidence that calls into question everything he’s begun to believe about himself." I received an advance copy of this via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I thought this was cute. It's a typical chick lit book with an interesting what if backstory because of Anastasia and all of the hidden references. For what it is some parts were asked to suspend disbelief and if you can do that the story between the two leads - Maxim and Finley - pays off. ------------------------------------------ JUMPER (COMPLETE SERIES 5 Books) - Paperback Editons READ: 6/1-30/17 There's four (5 if you count the movie tie in) novels in this series but I'm only listing the summary to book 1. "Steven Gould's SF classic, Jumper.Davy can teleport. He first discovers his talent during a savage beating delivered by his abusive father, when Davy jumps instantaneously to the safest place he knows, his small-town public library. As his mother did so many years before, Davy vows never to go home again. Instead, he sets off, young and inexperienced, for New York City. Davy gradually learns to use and control his powers, first for sheer survival in an environment more violent and complex than he ever imagined. But mere survival is not enough for Davy. He wants to know if his mother disappeared so completely from his life because she, too, could Jump. And as he searches for a trace of anyone else with powers like his own, he learns to use his abilities for more than escape and theft. A young man with nothing to lose, and the ability to go anyplace he wants, can help a lot of people. But he can also make a lot of trouble, and sooner or later trouble is going to come looking for him. The one way Davy can think of to locate others who can Jump is to make himself visible to them, but if he does, the police will surely find him too." Alright, straight up, I have a secret love for the film version but the entire series of books are dark and vastly superior to the film we got. The film is fun but the book is drastically different and dare I say much more grounded than the movie version and the dark tone continues throughout the novels but it does have its light moments. I've always enjoyed these novels and Millie is continually my favorite well written and realistic character in the series (even though things change for her over time). Gould created a unique world in 1992. I just wish there were more of it on screen and more that stuck to the novel!universe.

[thefudge]

Hi :) I was wondering which are your book OTPs.

so you mean my literary otps?

get. ready.

1. SO. since you started me down this path, there is a little known book by barbara pym called excellent women, about this spinster-in-the-making young woman (called mildred) in england’s 1950s who becomes friends with her downstairs neighbors and develops an innocent crush on the husband of the family. now, that’s not the otp. oh, no. see, the neighbors have this anthropologist friend that is this haughty impatient dude who sneers at everything and seems perennially vexed (he’s not really proud, he’s just super particular and doesn’t have patience for artifice and good manners). IN COMES our protagonist who just doesn’t really know what to do with him. they just sort of accidentally spend time together and they have this amazing dynamic that i’ve looked for in other otps but haven’t found since. basically it’s this fascinating ease they have with each other and this natural grouchiness they share; he doesn’t treat her as a “woman” per se, but as a human being, whom he questions and challenges. he doesn’t put her on a pedestal and he doesn’t really love her for any special quality, it’s so fucking charming and effortless. there is this JEWEL of a scene where he awkwardly invites her over for dinner, and mildred thinks he’s your average asshole bachelor trying to get a free meal out of her (basically, having her over to cook for him) so she rejects him. she eventually does come over and when she acts surprised she doesn’t need to cook for him, he’s SO outraged like “wtf cook for me??? no thank u??? that’s not why you’re here grl”. it is PERFECT. i may be super subjective, tho, but these two owned me and still do. oh also, the dude’s name is EVERARD. it truly is perfect. so yeah, mildred/everard 5ever. 

2. elizabeth/darcy is a given, but i will like to say that from austen’s plethora of delightful ships, my angst-sucker-punch will forever be fanny price/henry crawford from mansfield park. yeah yeah, fanny ends up with dreaded cousin edmund for…sigh, good reasons i guess. like, it’s probably just my weird hang-up and perhaps austen thought this ship was too much “reformed rake” for her taste but maaan, when this tiny ship sailed, it sailed (i’m also always a sucker for playa dude plays himself with feelings)

3. here i go with my obscure shit again, but this novel from amelie nothomb. it can be translated as “the sparrow’s diary”, and it’s such a weird otp, because this dude is hired to assassinate a whole family, from what i remember, and he goes through with it, but he discovers the diary of the teenage girl and keeps it for some reason. and he falls for her, post-death. it’s messed up and amazing. and i won’t spoil the ending, but whoa. yeah, so assassin/sparrow. my jam. 

4. eliza doolittle/henry higgins. grouchy marrieds seems to be a theme. i love how unsentimental this ship is, when you get down to it.

5. beatrice/benedick from much ado about nothing. def see a pattern here.

6. phaedra/hippolytus. yes, the original mother/stepson ship yall. euripides was my guy. also, here’s a delightful pic from one of the stage adaptations

6. eve/the literal devil in paradise lost. the original sinful otp. i remember milton writing about lucifer pining over eve and her coolness. the BEST. 

7. robin/cormoran strike from the cormoran strike series by jk rowling. THESE TWO, lord oh mighty, you know, i do have harry potter ships aplenty, but rowling never ever managed to kill me with feels UNTIL ROBIN AND CORMORAN. fuck me. they are the exact mixture of banter/tough-love i adore so much. and what should be obvious from this entire list is that i love it when the gents treat the ladies like fully formed, complex human beings.

8. amy/nick from gone girl. one day i will wrote a whole “post” on my theory that gillian flynn actually wrote the truest romance ever with these two. yes, also great commentary on the patriarchy and the capitalist twist on marriage etc. BUT deep down, this is a story of two people who come to really, finally see each other for the first time. and what they find is that, paradoxically, they match really fucking well. U HEARD IT HERE FIRST FOLKS. nick doesn’t just stay with her at the end because he’s “trapped”. it’s a larger metaphor for me. he’s trapped because no one will ever know his soul like amy, and vice versa. it’s only after you’ve shat on each other forever that you can come out of it remade. FIGHT ME. (my second secret theory about gone girl it’s that wuthering heights with reversed genders and a sordid, amazing HEA for cathy(nick)/heathcliff(amy).

9. iago/othello - i would argue iago’s deep loathing was desire, mixed with a desperate need to subjugate othello.

10. onegin/tatiana. yall. YALL. if you have never read “evgheni oneghin” by pushkin, remedy this mistake immediately. it’s a tragicomic lyrical novel about a young dandy who is doomed to ignore love when it is presented to him. but it’s also great, trope-wise. basically, he meets this young woman, tatiana, whom he finds pretty but simple and too romantic. she falls for him and tells him earnestly she wants to be together. this takes place circa early 19th century in russia. he rejects her. skip to 10 years later, she’s married to some important dude, he’s still embittered asshole, but he meets her again and falls for her. the roles are reversed, however.  BOOM. weep on that. 

11. lestat/louis/claudia for my anne rice fans. what a trash fam.

12. alice munro has a short story called “passion” which forever owns my soul. in it, this young, kind of naive girl goes on a drive with her boyfriend’s brother and well, it’s the best thing ever. the saddest, too. basically, those two. 

13. clara kalliam/ vincen coe. okay, yall, you may have no idea who these folks are but hooo boy, did they ruin me. so daniel abraham has this fantasy series called the dagger and the coin. basically, clara is part of the upper class society and is married to a baron. vincen is her husband’s servant. he is several years younger. their bond can never be. enter lots of angst and yearning and hot chemistry. what’s hilarious/painful about this ship is that clara is a lot like catelyn stark and vincen is a lot like jon snow, soooo if you ever thought that would be an interesting pairing, you’re welcome (i should say, they’re hardly the main focus/main ship of the series but they do play an important part and they’re my bbies)

14. there’s this book by yukio mishima called “spring snow”, it’s part of a bigger trilogy of his on love. but anyway, the two lovers in that book are sooo fucking intense i die every time. he wants to hate her, but ends up worshipping her. she’s engaged to a prince, ofc. it’s hopeless. the aaaangst. (in later novels, there’s a great queer subtext involving reincarnation and two male friends, but! those two crazy kids).i had to look up their names again, but they’re called kiyoaki & satoko.

15. dunya/svidrigailov - sooooo. these two are from crime and punishment, by dostoyevsky. basically, it’s a petyr/sansa ship that goes there. there’s a scene where she threatens him with a gun and it’s the hottest thing ever. he’s kiiind of obsessed with her but she’s also drawn to him. it’s weird and tragic and hopeless, in the end, but sooo good.

16. pretextat/nina - another amelie nothomb novel, this one called “hygiene de l’assassin”. so, you have this author dude who is scum of the earth. erudite and refined but absolute piece of fucking shit. enter girl who read all his work and wants to interview him. she thinks she’s uncovered the fact that he murdered someone in his past. pretextat falls in love with her in the course of one conversation. at one point i remember there’s a scene where she spits on him. it’s the fucking best. 

i think i’ve got many more, but just to give you a taste of my diverse literary menagerie lol. (jane/rochester should probs be there too but i decided to go with lesser known, more personal choices).

[dbarber98]

Media Scrapbook Analytic response

Many people mistake feminism to be this horrible thing that only benefits women, but that may be because they don’t fully understand what feminism is. Beginning this class, I was one of those people who thought feminism only benefits women and if you’re a feminist, then you hate men (my previous opinion). There’s many components to understanding feminism which are: language and communication, gender and inequality, embodiment beauty and the viewer, work inequality and neoliberalism, sexual violence, human rights and global activism, and the history of women’s activism. Language and Communication: The first thing we discussed at the start of this class was language and communication, and how the things we say can affect or offend people. We learned about marked and unmarked words and people. Marked words or people would be men, which means men are the dominant or first thought of gender in most situations. This leaves women to be the unmarked or secondary person, meaning just as it sounds, women come second to men. Language and communication could also relate to the sexist things that men say to women and see absolutely no problem with what they said. I feel like, the sexist language doesn’t hit a person confidence until they’re in their teens or older. In this meme I re-blogged below (http://huffingtonpost.tumblr.com/post/91092715387/when-did-doing-something-like-a-girl-become-an ), things were said like “show me what it looks like to run like a girl”, the adults playfully jogged and the younger children ran as fast as they could. The things we say are important, but the way we say things are more important. The phrase “like a girl” was turned into a sexist joke by men, implying that women are ultimately weaker than men in all aspects. Gender and Inequality: This topic also aligns with language and communication. I say this because another thing I re-blogged ( http://br-o-ken-poetry.tumblr.com/post/150239613298/things-boys-have-said-to-me-in-online-games-you ) was a blog post from a “girl gamer”. She said one comment she received online was “you must be ugly to be a girl who games”. This comment is sexist and I feel like it also relates to gender inequality and the idea that women can’t do the things men can. There were also other comments that would be considered harassment. Another comment said, “don’t tell me what I can and can’t say stupid feminist princess don’t come online if you don’t want to be treated this way” I feel like this needs to stop, not only with men because there are also women who speaks like this and feels it nothing wrong with what they’re saying. Embodiment, Beauty, and the viewer: As young ladies and women, we are always told what we can and cannot wear because certain things distract the boys around us. An example of this would be a personal experience I previously had. In elementary, middle and high school I was always told what to wear to school, as if my appearance had anything to do with my education. The schools always gave the students a dress code. Of course, the dress code was supposed to be for both genders, but it was strongly enforced on the female students. The counselors would often say “you can’t wear…. Because it’s a distraction” or “you shoulder can’t be exposed, it might distract the boys”. I feel like things like this shuts down a woman’s confidence later in life and she feels as if she can’t wear certain clothes. For example, in a series of memes I re-blogged (https://dbarber98.tumblr.com/post/159777458070/sister-darkness-carol-rossetti-brazilian-artist ) it shows a cartoon picture of women and it says what she doesn’t like about herself or her clothes. Then, at the bottom of the picture there is an encouraging message telling the woman she can do exactly what she thinks she can’t. I feel like sometimes; all a woman need is a little beauty reassurance. Work, Inequality and Neoliberalism: For many years (and still today) women aren’t seen as equal to men. Women who work the same jobs as men, make about 78% of what a man makes. As seen in a post I re-blogged (https://dbarber98.tumblr.com/post/160066229315/prochoiceamerica-today-is-equal-pay-day-the ), the wage gap seems to get worse for women of color. Not only is it gender inequality, it’s also racial inequality. In an in-class activity, we learned that we must negotiate our salary. I can relate to this in a previous personal experience. In this previous experience, one of my co-workers and I were discussing how much we got paid by the hour, and it turns out I was making more money than he was, even though we were working the same exact position. I suggested he negotiated and got the pay raise he deserved. Sexual Violence: Sexual violence is any type of sexual forced act. Such as, sexual assault, rape and sexual slurs (sexual harassment). If it’s not welcomed, then it’s not ok. In a post below ( https://dbarber98.tumblr.com/post/160066647420/no-means-no-even-if-the-act-isnt-sex ) entitled “no means no, even if it’s not sex”. The quote simply explains that if a woman says no in any type of “sexual environment” then the person should immediately back off. Otherwise, it’s considered rape, molestation, or sexual harassment/violence. Sexual violence isn’t something that should be taken likely but as we learned in class, a lot of women don’t share their stories they’ll either get covered up by someone with higher power, no one will believe them, or the women would be treated like it’s their fault. Human Rights and Global Activism: Everyone has human rights as written in the constitution, but not everyone has the guts to stand up and become an activist. An activist is someone who fights for something they strongly believe in makes a difference. In Chechyna, Russia, 100 gay men were abducted and put into one of the first LGBT concentration camps since the holocaust. ( https://dbarber98.tumblr.com/post/160066774625/wetheurban-how-to-help-tortured-gay-men-in ) These men were beaten, tortured, electrocuted and forced to sit on bottles. There is currently a petition online to help these men gain their human rights back at https://www.change.org/p/russia-prosecutor-general-investigate-mass-murder-and-torture-of-lgbt-people-in-chechnya?platform=hootsuite . History of Women’s Activism in the U.S and Struggling solidarities: Mary Ann Shadd (1823-1893) was the first black female publisher in the United States, and the first female publisher in Canada. She was a devoted abolitionist. She was also a journalist, teacher, and lawyer. From 1853, she ran an anti-slavery newspaper called The Provincial Freeman, which made her the first female African-American newspaper editor in North America. ( https://dbarber98.tumblr.com/post/160068221800/celebratingamazingwomen-mary-ann-shadd ) In conclusion, this class has taught me what it truly means to be a feminist. Beginning this class, I was one of those people who thought feminism only benefits women and if you’re a feminist, then you hate men (my previous opinion). Now, I understand that there’s many components to understanding feminism which are: language and communication, gender and inequality, embodiment beauty and the viewer, work inequality and neoliberalism, sexual violence, human rights and global activism, and the history of women’s activism.

[thewebofslime]

There’s been a lot of words written about this whole affair, but very little clarity has been achieved. I hope to provide some clarity with this post, where I put together information I’ve found on the internet to demonstrate that the DNC hack (if there even was a hack) was not the source of the Wikileaks DNC dump. First, we need to look at the timeline. “Late April, 2016” – DNC IT staff notice unusual network activity and notify Executives. Within 24 hours Crowdstrike, a security firm that investigates and remediates hacks, is called in and installs software to detect the source of the leaks. June 12, 2016 – Julian Assange announces that Wikileaks is planning to release leaks of Hillary’s emails. June 14, 2016 – The Washington Post breaks the story that the DNC was hacked. They claimed that the hackers “stole opposition research on Trump”. June 15, 2016 – Crowdstrike released their report on the hack. They claim that “two separate Russian intelligence-affiliated adversaries [were] present in the DNC network in May 2016”. There are solid reasons to doubt their claims. (More on that in this post.) That same day a WordPress blog run by someone using the moniker “Guccifer2.0” claimed that he had hacked the DNC and released documents “proving” the hack. (The quotes will be explained later.) He claims he gave the files to Wikileaks. He also published some, as “proof” of his hack, in his blog post. Since its creation, his blog has only published Democrat Party documents that he likely had access to through his IT work and ongoing consulting work. Normally a hacker doesn’t focus exclusively on one target to “prove” his hacking skills. Again that same day, both The Smoking Gun and Gawker receive emails from Guccifer2.0 including the Trump opposition research document. Gawker reveals that the opposition research document was created by Warren Flood on December 19, 2015. (That name will become important later in this post.) June 16, 2016 – Ft.com reports that “The DNC and the report’s purported author, a Democratic strategist named Warren Flood, are currently verifying whether or not the leaked file is real”. June 23, 2016 – Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai publishes an article raising questions about Guccifer2.0’s native language based on his chat sessions with him. Guccifer2.0 claims to be Romanian, but his Romanian is unusual to say the least. His use of English reveals that he’s probably not Russian either. June 29, 2016 – ThreatConnect challenges Guccifer2.0’s claims to have hacked the DNC. They point out that “All of the documents released in Guccifer 2.0’s first two dumps had file creation dates after the Washington Post article was published based on their metadata” and “All of the .xlsx and .xls files appear to be created hours before the Guccifer 2.0 WordPress Blog was posted publicly”. Clearly there is something suspicious going on with the documents that he released. July 22, 2016 – Wikileaks releases the first series of a bunch of documents from the DNC. The emails extend from 2015 through May 25, 2016. (This date is crucial in understanding what happened.) September 12, 2016 – Well respected security researcher, Jeffrey Carr, cautions that the rapidly congealing Russian hacking story may not be accurate. He quotes the Washington Post to justify his position: “The intelligence community has high confidence that Russian intelligence services hacked the Democratic National Committee but does not have the same level of confidence that Russia then leaked stolen committee emails to the anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks, several administration officials said.” (Highlighting is mine.) Carr also points out that there is “zero evidence” that Fancy Bear and Cozy Bear (the two hacking groups that Crowdstrike links directly to Russian intelligence agencies) are linked to the Russian government. (Carr has written a series of useful articles about the DNC hack demonstrating how careful analysis and logical thinking can deconstruct a faulty narrative.) October 19, 2016 – Hillary claims, during the third debate, that the Russians hacked the DNC and released the emails. November 3, 2016 – Julian Assange publicly states that the Wikileaks DNC document dump did not come from Russians but from DNC insiders. December 11, 2016 – A British diplomat, Craig Murray, states that the Wikileaks DNC document dump did not come from Russia but from DNC insiders and that he met the insiders. December 15, 2016 – Sam Biddle publishes an article in Intercept entitled Here’s The Public Evidence Russia Hacked The DNC – It’s Not Enough. Guccifer2.0 is not a hacker, but a DNC insider named Warren Flood Someone named Adam Carter has been researching Guccifer2.0 since the story broke. He has uncovered conclusive proof that Guccifer2.0 is not Russian, is not a hacker and IS a Democrat insider. Another researcher named tvot2 has additional information about Guccifer2.0 that concludes the case against him. “Within two days of the Russians and CrowdStrike being brought into the picture (mentioned a day earlier in the DNC announcement,) guccifer2.wordpress.com appeared out of nowhere claiming she/he wasn’t Russian, and directly mentioning CrowdStrike as having gotten it wrong.” Julian Assange and Craig Murray have both refuted claims from Guccifer2.0 that he was their source for the leaked emails. The date that the Wikileaks emails stopped (May 25, 2016) is at least a month after Crowdstrike was called in. Are we to believe that by May 25 the hackers still had access to the network despite Crowdstrike being there for a full month? It’ s much more likely that an insider with access simply handed them over to Wikileaks. As an IT specialist, Warren Flood had access to every document on the DNC servers. He didn’t need to hack them. He could simply copy them. Obvious alterations to the released documents demonstrate that Guccifer2.0 wanted people to believe the documents were released by a Russian Guccifer2.0’s use of language indicates that he is probably a native English speaker trying to masquerade as a Romanian and conceal his native language roots Guccifer2.0’s claimed method of hacking the DNC, NGP-VAN, was proven “impossible” by ThreatConnect. The metadata in the documents Guccifer2.0 proves that Warren Block created them. As you can see, the document was created by Warren Flood just 30 minutes before being modified to appear that it was created by a Russian and on the same day that the documents were published by Guccifer2.0. Created by Warren Flood on 15th of June at 13:38 Modified by Феликс Эдмундович on 15th of June at 14:08 The modified by name is Felix Dzerzhinsky. Dzerzhinsky was a Polish/Russian Bolshevik who died in 1926. He was the founder and first director of the Russian Secret Police. He obviously could not have edited a document created in 2016. Who is Warren Flood? His LinkedIn profile says he works for Bright Blue Data LLC but previously worked for Obama For America, the DNC and the White House – Executive Office of the President. His blog profile says he worked in the 2008 and 2012 Obama campaigns as a data analytics person and worked in the White House as VP Biden’s Technology Director. His about page on BrightBlueData.com says: What started as a single volunteer hour for Barack Obama’s presidential campaign in 2007, quickly grew into a series of dream jobs for me, including: National Regional Data Director for Obama for America in 2008, Information Systems & Technology Director for Vice President Biden’s office at the White House, National Targeting Generalist for the Democratic National Committee in 2010, and Analytics Strategic Projects Director for Obama for America in 2012. So why would Warren Flood, a DNC and Obama insider, create a persona and claim to have hacked the DNC? Study the timeline. In April, 2016, the DNC knew that they had been hacked. Crowdstrike would have identified any documents that could be confirmed to have been stolen by the hackers. On June 12, Assange announces that he is preparing to release emails exposing Hillary Clinton. Three days later Crowdstrike announces “the Russians did it” and Guccifer2.0 claims he did it, leaving breadcrumbs strewn all over the documents suggesting that he’s Russian. One of the documents released was authored by Warren Flood in 2015, but no one looks at the metadata in the other documents. They assume that Guccifer2.0 is telling the truth and further assume that he’s aligned with the Russians. The narrative is underway. The media will carry it forward, completely convinced that the Russians did it. Who benefits from that narrative? Hillary Clinton and the Democrats. By blaming the Russians, the discussion of the content of the documents on Wikileaks is subsumed in the outrage of the Russians “hacking our elections”. A convenient excuse for losing then appears after the shocking results of the election, and the left, feeling that the election was “stolen” from them, justifies violence and outrage, protests and #resistance against the duly elected President of the United States. So we come to March, 2017. The Russian story is still front and center, and the truth of what happened is buried. Will it ever come to light? In my opinion, the DNC hired Flood to create a persona that could be used to point at the Russians. They also convinced Crowdstrike to write its report in such a way as to confirm that the Russians were involved. The FBI has never asked to examine their servers, because they didn’t want an alternate narrative getting out. UPDATE: Thanks to reader Fofoa for pointing out my date error in the next to last paragraph. (I wrote March 2016 instead of March 2017.) It now appears that Julian Assange has all but admitted that Seth Rich, the DNC staffer who was murdered in Washington, D.C. on July 10, 2016, was at least one source of the emails that Wikileaks posted. Hat tip to @matthewpellis for the info. Since Wikileaks released the emails on July 22, that raises the question of how someone might have known that Rich had leaked them. Did Crowdstrike tip off the DNC? Reading the article, he seems like an unlikely source. He was considering joining the Hillary campaign. The leakers were more likely to be altruistic Bernie supporters angry about how he was treated by the DNC. Second UPDATE: A new file metadata analysis seems to be pretty conclusive proof that the DNC files were stolen by an insider and not by hackers.

[preserving-ferretbrain]

The Best Post-Soviet Noir Superhero Comic Ever!

by Alasdair Czyrnyj

Monday, 19 April 2010 

Alasdair gushes about The Winter Men.~

I don't believe in superheroes. Let's get that straight right from the start. I have no problem conceptualizing a costumed vigilante or a human with supernatural powers; such things have been a staple of popular culture for generations now, and to reject them out of hand nowadays is absurd. My problem starts once you take those characters and imagine them as figures of omnipotence, as people who are always in command, always know the score, and always win in the end, and expect your audience to take them seriously.

I suppose this problem largely stems from the fact that the first superhero comic I seriously read was

Watchmen

. Say what you will about it, but to me it remains the best example of what happens when you take pulp archetypes, characters traditionally in command of their environments, and place them in the intractable, fractal-edged mess that is the real world. Existential despair is the mildest outcome; mass murder is not outside the realm of possibility. It's the reason why the two big mainstream comic universes are these weird places that have superficial similarities to our own, but swarming with Nazi scientists, psychotic CEOs, aliens, and alternate universes. It gives the superheroes something to fight that can be defeated and doesn't leave the bad taste of moral unease afterward.

Of course, rejecting the standard interpretation of superheroes has been old hat for nigh-on two decades. Of course, stories that go against the grain have their own particular problems. Most of the time, these stories just amp up the sex and ultraviolence while leaving various core aspects of superherodom (superheroes are beholden to nothing and no one, you can solve the world with your fists) unquestioned. (Case in point:

The Boys

.) There are a few good examinations, of course; from what I've heard of it, Alan Moore's run on

Miracleman

is a pretty good depiction of the superhero as a figure of terror and of the uncomfortable compromises that would be required to "save" the world, and Kurt Busiek's

Astro City

manages to rearrange and rethink well-worn tropes to create some genuinely moving stories.

Sometimes, though, reshuffling is not enough. To truly rethink the concept of the superhero, you need to leave the American heartland of superheroes altogether and travel somewhere else. To a place which has very different ideas about power and its limits. To a place that would interpret all-powerful humans far differently than European or American society would, and would have the technology and competence to enforce its interpretations.

To travel, in other words, to Russia.

This is the premise of

The Winter Men

, the barely-released critically acclaimed Wildstorm miniseries by Brett Lewis and artist Jean Paul Leon. It had one hell of a publication history; it first appeared way back in August 2005 advertising an eight-issue run, only to finally finish on its sixth issue in February 2009. It's a damned shame that this series received such shoddy treatment from Wildstorm, especially since

The Winter Men

is one of the best superhero series out there.

The story is set in Russia in late 2001, near the end of the twilight period between the collapse of the Russian banking industry in 1998 and the emergence of Putin's "sovereign democracy." In the opening pages, we are introduced to Kris Kalenov, our guide to this world, as is roused from the snowbank where he spent sleeping off the previous night's boozy activities. A former spetznaz, now a militiaman by title and poet by aspiration, his actual day job consists of managing disputes at the behest of Moscow's mayor between the various interests (business, foreign, domestic, civil, and otherwise) that inhabit the city. An encounter with an old army buddy lands him a dead-end case about an abducted girl who had just received a liver transplant from an unknown source. In short order, hints are dropped that other factors are interested in the fate of that little girl, and her connection to the recent seismic shifts in the balance of criminal power in Moscow. Veiled references are made to something called "winter," a word Kalenov is intimately familiar with and which the CIA (ostensibly in Moscow to assist the Russian authorities with the upheavals in the underworld) is nosing around in, despite their pig-ignorance of Russia in general. At the same time, old friends of Kalenov, ex-spetznaz buddies who also have a connection with "winter," begin to reappear in Kalenov's life too fast to be chalked up to mere coincidence. While Kalenov finds the girl in first few issues, it only serves to further deepen the mystery in Moscow, as well as ask questions about what, exactly, became of the Soviet superhero program, in particular one hero known only as The Hammer of the Revolution, a Captain America-type figure that disappeared decades ago under unclear circumstances.

I won't go any farther into the plot, simply because there's a lot of it to unpack and theorize about. Instead, I will withhold most spoilers and briefly explain what makes this comic great.

First of all,

The Winter Men

may be the Russianest comic I have ever read. The care to detail is obvious even in the basic technical details. Lewis' dialogue, by some minor miracle, manages to beautifully capture the odd cadences and subtle elaboration of Russian-translated English without drifting into Boris Badenov-type kludges or, God help us, Jonathan Safran Foer-type literary schmaltz. I don't know enough to judge whether all the slang is correct or not, but it reads far better that the efforts of most writers.

Additionally, the violence in the comic has a appropriate understatement. While modern American comics love their visceral blood and mutilation,

The Winter Men

takes a more restrained approach, with the occasional high-octane gun battle counterbalanced by the dull brutishness of two drunk friends brawling, or by simply implying violence between panels. While it may seem like a dodge, it actually fits in very well with the milieu. After all, in a society like post-communist Russia, where violence is often the easiest way to do things (or, more likely, the only method anyone has any patience for), pain and death are dealt out so often that the mind (and the comic) just tunes it out and relativizes it into utilitarian indifference.

The real achievement, however, is in Lewis' depiction of Russian society. As someone who spent most of his undergraduate career plowing through 20th century Russo-Soviet history, the one thing that has grown to irritate me more than anything is the way most Westerners think Russian society works. The implicit assumption is that Russian society is a pyramid, with a tsar/gensek/president at the top, a hierarchy supporting him, all of which oppresses a servile population, with all of society neatly divided into rulers and victims. The truth, one which Lewis faithfully portrays and weaves into the greater tapestry of the series, is that Russia is a series of networks, of people organized into cabals to defend certain interests (be they organized crime, soft drink distribution, city government, or what have you), all forever fighting and securing their own power bases, forever living in fear that someone more powerful will come after them. This is nothing new, of course; you can find something similar while reading Gogol, and that model pretty much sums up the state of the Soviet Union after Stalin died. In the end, much of the series, consists of Kalenov learning to read and navigate the various circles of official and unofficial Russian power, to understand the ultimate purpose of the upheavals.

Of course, some people like some networks better than others. There is a sort of dull nostalgia running through the book for the Soviet Union, though it is more wistful than motivational. Everyone knows the USSR will never come back, but there is a sort of vague sadness among the characters for that weird socialist empire, a sense of "it was not good, but it was ours, and now it's gone." Even Kalenov himself, never a socialist, comes across as a man who, unlike his army friends, never found himself a role he could play in the Yeltsinite world to replace his previous role as a spetznaz.

This finally brings us down to the big question: what about the Soviet superheroes? What about them? The answer which slowly emerges from snatches of conversation and the occasion infodump, is the height of irony and a slap in the face to most other so-called "realistic" superhero comics. In the Soviet Union of

The Winter Men

, superheroes were

irrelevant

. The great majority of them appeared as military projects in the later stages of the Soviet Union, consisting of either men flying around in big, clunky Iron Man suits (in a neat little nod to DC comics' continuity, the suits bear a close resemblance to the Rockets Red suits that serve as fodder for the JLA to smack around) or people with genetically modified organs. While some old propaganda early in the comic shows Soviet supermen tearing their way through the American hordes, their actual purpose is to counter the super-people being developed by another faction of the Soviet military-industrial complex, while those supermen that do serve in combat tend to die ingloriously. And the end of the day, despite being the only country on the planet with superpeople, there is little difference between the fictional Russia and the real one. Even the plot of the comic only deals with the metahuman aspect fleetingly for most of its run.

I won't say much about the ending save that it will almost certainly bring back memories of

Watchmen

. However, Lewis cleverly riffs on Moore's work rather than lifting it wholesale, with the end result feeling like a bizarre version of

Watchmen

set decades after the original where everyone save one very particular character is gone, and the battle is between a meticulous autocrat that dwells in a realm of pure decision and a child of the original heroes, fighting for reasons he doesn't bother to consciously understand. At the end of the day, there's no real closure, but as Kalenov himself says, "this is a Russian story."

The Winter Men

is not a flawless diamond. The noir storytelling does tend to get a little too convoluted for its own good, with revelations losing their impact because you don't recognize a certain background character from a previous book. The publishing history really hurts the narrative, with the third and final installments clearly reading like Lewis had to cram too much in at the last minute in order to tell his story.

Still, Lewis can be forgiven his compromises. There is much to love in

The Winter Men

, from the bombastic wordplay, to the clever composition of the panels, to the characters that breathe their native land, to superheroes that are as alien to us as the East is from the West. And to one, little line, near the end of the book, whispered by one dying man to another, that may be the only fitting epitaph to the Soviet experience any writer has come up with yet.

Read it. Now.Themes:

Sci-fi / Fantasy

,

Comics

~

bookmark this with - facebook - delicious - digg - stumbleupon - reddit

~Comments (

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)

Arthur B

at 09:40 on 2010-04-19Is there a trade paperback compilation of this? I can't abide buying individual issues of comics.

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Alasdair Czyrnyj

at 17:03 on 2010-04-19Yep, it finally came out at the beginning of this year.

Here you go.

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Alasdair Czyrnyj

at 17:18 on 2010-04-24Oh, and fun fact: about a day after this was posted, I got an email message from Brett Lewis, the creator of

The Winter Men

asking to friend me on Facebook.

And, yes, I know that this is the year 2010, when stuff like this doesn't mean any sort of deeper connection has been made. But one the other hand...

BRETT LEWIS READ MY REVIEW! AND HE LIKED IT! AND IT'S MY BIRTHDAY! YAAAAAY!!!!!

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http://fightsandtights.blogspot.com/

at 01:44 on 2010-04-25Great review, Alasdair, I'll definitely have to check this out. Jena Paul Leon is a big selling point for me; he did some awesome work on the Black Widow: Deadly Origin mini that was recently released by Marvel, and he really seems to portray Soviet-era Russia quite well. Certainly adding this to my wishlist...

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Wardog

at 11:32 on 2010-04-25Belated birthday grats :) YAAAAAY!

I have to admit, when authors inadvertantly stumble across my reviews I always over-think and second guess myself into a pit of angst.

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Alasdair Czyrnyj

at 17:10 on 2010-04-26

I have to admit, when authors inadvertantly stumble across my reviews I always over-think and second guess myself into a pit of angst.

I usually prefer to dive into that pit of angst before I start writing, when I read all the other reviews other people have written and wonder how the hell I can match the insights of all those clever and smart people whoe are better than me in every way and

isuckisuckisuck

.

Then I write the whole thing in a three-hour frenzy a week later.