#ISN'T NELLIE SO ADORABLE

[fazcinatingblog]

AFLW round 2 footy tips

"we've got badges and we're ready" round

tigs vs crows (shut up i know this game has already happened)

suns vs weagles

port vs lions

chloe vs cats

dogs vs hawks

pies vs freo

norf vs carlton

bombers vs saints

giants vs demons

[6ix9inewiturmom]

She Ours- Christopher and Matthew Sturniolo

Summary: you’re at an LA party and both chris and matt find you attractive…

Warnings: SUMT, THREESOME(not the weird kind ya freaks), P in V, Unprotected (please don’t reproduce), Dom!Matt!Chris, Sub!Reader, Squirting, Oral (M and F Receiving), PARIS (iykyk)

A/N: THIS IS BASED OFF OF P POWER BY GUNNA FT DRAKE 😫😫 ENJOY

My friend Lina was one of the biggest party girls I knew, every weekend was some party she heard about through the grapevine, which typically because I don't get out much she insisted on dragging me out of my house.

“This party better be worth it” I snap walking down the staircase of my shared house with Lina. She let me borrow her outfit: A skintight black dress that barely covered my ass, her adorable red bottom heels, and my jewelry.

“Girl you have the possibility of getting LAID tonight, let's not complain,” she stops to gasp “Maybe if you get laid you'll stop being so bitchy” she jokes.

“Lina you realize you're like the female version of a player right?” I laugh as we walk out of the house together.

As she fastens her seatbelt and starts reversing the car out of the driveway, she responds with a gentle smile, "No, I'm not. I love everyone."

“That's the problem” I chuckle.

Driving on the highway we had our hype music blasting through the speakers of the car, Lina breaks the silence, “When is the last time you actually had a dick?”

I about choked on air when I heard her invasive question, we were best friends so TMI didn't exist in our relationship considering we've known each other since we were 2 years old in daycare, but I was more or less caught off guard. “um I’d have to say probably since I went off the rails and impulsively joined Tinder and had that horrible hookup with that guy. Um shit, what's his name? OH YES TYLER” I laughed reminiscing the times.

“BITCH” she jokingly yells stomping on the brakes at the red light sending my whole body jerking forward. “That was 2 years ago” she whispers

“Yeah but like that man was weird as fuck, so I just thought maybe a guy who wanted to fuck would just pop out of the blue somewhere I don't know, you're a lot better at this than I am” I shrug getting almost embarrassed.

“oh my god, bitch this isn't the 80s you need to catch a dick” We both laugh at her commentary “But let's not catch STDs” her voice trails off as i try to contain my laughter.

After a lengthy journey, we finally reached the venue. As we pull into the parking lot, we are greeted by the sound of vibrant and lively music reverberating through the air. As we stepped out of the car and made our way inside, we were immediately engulfed by the dim, flashing lights and vibrant colors illuminating the area, accompanied by the pulsating beats of loud music that reverberated through the space.

“BITCH I LOVE THIS SONG” Lina yells over the loud music and dragging me to the lit up squared boxes where the song Maneater by Nelly Furtato is playing.

My hips move around to the song, not a care in the world who sees me but alas I nervously look around and see two pairs of crystal blue eyes practically drooling over me. One with slightly longer hair than the other and the other with a tatted arm but they both look the same.

“Y/N” Lina yells over the loud music “YOUR LOOKING A LITTLE TOO HARD” she continues

“Those guys over there keep looking at me” I lower my tone a little trying not to make a scene “They’re kinda cute” I softly smile carefully taking my bottom lip between my teeth and watching them talk amongst each other.

“BOTH?” Lina's eyes widen

“I mean why not?” I shrug my shoulders laughing

“They look like brothers which I mean is kinda attractive” Lina Replies “Just not that weird threesome Shit I'm talking about that trip to Paris if you know what I mean” she smirks shimming her shoulders

“Oh shit” my eyes widen “fuck they're coming over here, WHAT DO I DO LINA”

“Just act normal and if shit gets weird to remember to text me ‘Lemon Jelly Belly’ and ill find a way to get you out of there” Lina smiles as she walks over to the bar to flirt with the bartender

My nerves were heightened to the max watching the boys walk towards me, one of them had this coxky aura about himself and the other seemed nervous but still confident.

“Hello beautiful” the longer-haired one walks towards me coming behind me.

The one with the tatted arm comes in front of me, his smile turns into a smirk as I find my bottom lip in my teeth again.

“I'm Matt, and this is Chris” Matt said smirking down at me.

“We just couldn't help ourselves when we saw the way your hips moved and danced to the music,” Chris says whispering in my ear smirking.

“Thanks for asking my name, I’m Y/N” I snap jokingly

“That's such a pretty name,” Matt says placing his hand on my face and caressing my cheek

My hips started moving to the song softly as Matts's hands made their way to my hips as Chris’ was planted on my ass.

“Can I?” Chris asks as he moved the hair on my neck and became closer to my neck.

“Mhm,” i mumble

“Use your words, sweetheart, Can he?” Matt smirks down at me.

“Y-Yes” i stutter.

“Good girl” Matt’s smirk remains on his face as Chris kisses my neck and immediately finds that sweet spot on my neck sending chills down my spine.

“Why don't we do this In a little less crowded area hm?” Chris suggests

“I don't mind” I softly giggle

“Chris, how are we doing this? We gonna flip a coin to see who gets her first or what?” I could tell Matt was a little antsy and irritated by his brother's greediness.

“She ours,” Chris tells his brother.

Matt’s smirk became more apparent as soon as Chris said those words. Chris grabs my hand as and he guides me up a set of stairs and Matts hands remains on my ass. My eyes meet Linas and to say the least I've never seen her more proud of me. Her eyes are wide and her smile is wider. She's holding up her thumbs nodding her head in approval.

the room was dark, but very warm and had lots of room, the bed had silk sheets, and a lot of posters. “Do you guys know whose room this is anyway?” I nervously chuckle out.

“Happens to be my room” Matt speaks with a laugh

Chris comes behind me moving my hair to kiss that sweet spot on my neck again this time leaving dark purple marks on my neck. Matts's gaze softens as his eyes darken with lust watching how my body reacts to Chris’ mouth against my neck. Matt comes closer to me looking at my eyes first then my lips and sending me a soft but seductive smile before he presses his lips against mine. A soft moan escaped my lips causing him to pull back and smirk.

“Fuck I wanna rip this dress off of you,” Chris says with a husk in his voice practically groaning.

Matt presses the pad of his thumb against my lip running it across my bottom lip. “I just wanna put this pretty mouth to good use” he smirks.

Before Matt could do anything Chris picked me up and threw me on the bed looking in Matt's direction with a smirk.

“Sorry ma I really couldn't help myself” he softly chuckles positioning himself between my legs and rubbing softly up and down “May I?” Chris questions while playing with the bottom of my dress

“Be my guest” I smile looking down at his blue eyes glaring down at my clothed pussy with a small wet patch from my neediness of getting dicked down.

Chris moves my dress up to my mid-thighs and slides my underwear to the side diving right in like it was his last meal on planet earth. Matt on the other hand was too impatient and hard to wait, he removed his belt and his pants and kneeled on the bed beside me stroking his throbbing hard cock beside my face and rubbing his tip along my bottom lip teasing my mouth, finally he grips my jaw signaling to open wider as he slides his cock in my mouth thrusting ever so slightly, watching me please him and get pleasured by his brother.

Chris’ tongue laps around my clit, as my moans r muffled by Matts's cock being shoved so far down my throat.

“Fuck” Matt groans “Prettiests of mouths do the sluttiests of things” he praises as he wipes the tears that started forming in my eyes from the overstimulation.

“You're clenching around my tongue ma, you close?” Chris sadistically chuckles around my pussy.

“Mhm,” I muffle out around Matts's cock desperately in need to release built-up tension.

“Why don't you be a good girl and cum for Chris yeah?” Matt coos as he's thrusting his hips in my throat while having my hair in a makeshift ponytail.

My legs tremble and shake around Chris’ head signaling to him how close I am. “That's it baby” Matt's voice becomes husked.

Chris groans around my clit as his tongue laps around it feeling my cervix spasm over the overstimulation and pleasure that he knows he's giving me. The pent-up knot in my abdomen snaps sending me in a wave of euphoria, my eyes roll back, and my legs shake. Matt trusts into my mouth a couple more times before finishing in my mouth, placing his hand on my throat to feel mg swallowing all of him.

“Such a good girl” matt coos at me with my lips still wrapped around his cock.

He gently pulls out and walks over to Chris who's smiling down at me wiping his mouth with his sleeve. The boys talk amongst each other talking about how they'll share me.

Matt walks over between my thighs biting his lip. “Sweetheart I don't have a condom,” he says almost nervously.

“I'm on the pill,” I smiled up at him as his eyes lit up at my response.

He brings his hand to my mouth “Spit” he demands and I obey.

He uses my spit to coat his dick as my eyes roam from Matt to Chris who moves to place himself behind me placing kisses on my neck.

Matt aligns himself at my entrance pushing slowly. “Oh fuck” I moan out as my back arches off of Chris and my hands grip his for support.

He pushes himself further, completely bottoming out letting a loud groan fall from his lips and his head throwing back “fuck baby, you feel so fucking good” he smiles devilishly as he watches my body react to His movements.

his thrusts become harder and rougher. “god damn” he groans out almost at a whimper. “fuck your pussy was fucking made for me” he looks down to watch himself thrust in and out of me as he notices a bulge in my stomach from him and he smirks and presses down.

“Fuck” I scream out.

Both Matt and Chris smirk and look up at each other “Someone likes that eh?” Chris whispers in my ear using his hand and pulling and twisting at my nipples.

Matt pressed harder on my stomach watching my face contort in pleasure. “Such a fucking whore” matt groans out.

“C-C-C-LOSE” I stammer out.

“I can feel you squeezing my dick so fucking good, let it out baby” he coos not switching up his pace or his movements one bit.

Chris’ hand snakes around my throat giving slight pressure to the sides making me see more than just stars. “Cum for Matt baby, come on you can do it ma” Chris praises in my ear.

A loud squeal escaped my lips as my orgasm hit me like a train and I squirted my juices all over Matt and his abdomen. “There she is” Matt lets a low chuckle out from him. “Hold on for a second sweetheart, you can take it”

His thrusts got sloppy as I became jello in Chris's arms, with one final thrust Matt painted my pink gummy walls white coating them with all of his cum.

“Fucking hell” matt breaths out.

“You did so good” Chris praises, “can you take one more ma?” he smirked up at matt.

My body was tired but alas I nodded with a tired smile. Matt moved to where Chris was but Chris had other ideas, he used my ankles to flip me up so my ass was in the air and my stomach lay flat on the mattress. Chris used his precum and spread it around his dick before aligning himself with my sensitive entrance and bottoming out quickly.

“Fuck chris” i moan out trying to move forward but Chris stopped me by placing his hands on my waist pinning me down to the mattress.

“Someone a little sensitive hm? Can't take me, can you?” he chuckled sadistically.

I bit my lip to muffle my own screams of pleasure. “I-I- I can take it-“I was cut off by Chris absolutely pounding into me like there was no tomorrow hitting spots I didn't know was even possible.

Skin slapping and moans were the only sounds bouncing off the walls. “I ain't gonna last long ma, you're clenching me so fucking good” he groans out forcing my head into the mattress.

“CLOSE” I scream out.

“Come on sweetheart, be the good girl you were for me and cum for Chris yeah?” Matt is positioning himself so he can brush some of the hair out of my face.

Matts's gentle words sent me over the edge and once again, I squirted all over Chris sending him into a state of euphoria and cumming on the spot inside of me filling me up with his seed.

I immediately collapse laying flat on the bed out of breath. Matt ran into his bathroom connected to his room and grabbed a warm cloth to clean up my legs as Chris whispered sweet nothings into my ear about how good I did for both of them.

“You doin’ okay love?” Matt says softly wiping my legs.

“Mhm,” I mumble out.

They chuckle as Matt throws a pair of sweatpants and an oversized shirt for me to put on. In my attempt to stand up, my legs gave out.

“Don't tell me you can't walk?” Chris chuckles

“Try to be in my position and see how you feel” I joke making them chuckle.

“Okay okay Chris enough taunting,” Matt says guiding the shirt over my head and helping me get changed.

Chris helped me get my pants on while talking to me about random stuff like 7/11 Bring Your Own Slurpee Day that he didn't know existed and Matt rolled his eyes.

“We just took her ability to walk and change herself i doubt she wants to hear about Slurpee day Chris” matt says carrying me bridal style to sit down on his bed.

Suddenly someone barges into the room obviously drunk. “Wait this isn't the bathroom” it was Lina who immediately saw me and started winking and throwing her thumbs up seeing me curled into bed and in someone elses clothes.

“Who the fuck are you? Get out!” Chris yells “Bathrooms downstairs” he gently closes the door.

“That was Lina…” I shyly say covering my face.

“Who?” they say in unison

“Lina my best friend since we were two, she's the reason I came” I laughed softly.

“yo…you think she heard anything,” Chris says bluntly scratching the back of his head.

“She's weird but not that weird. She's obviously drunk so she'll forget it by morning if she did anyway” I brush it off, and I pat the empty side of the bed for Chris to join Matt and me on the bed where I'm in the middle of both of them.

“You wanna watch anything? I'll let you pick?” Matt says handing me the remote and smiling.

“Wha- bro you never let me pick anything when I’M in your room” Chris whines.

“Shut up” matt laughs in response.

“Yall ever seen gossip girl?” I smirk at both of them

“Nope,” they both say popping the ‘P’

“YAY okay so we gonna watch it and if you have any questions feel free to ask” I smirk getting cozy and comfy in the silk sheets pressing play on the the TV.

“Why am I scared?” Chris says leaning over and whispering at me.

“Shut up and watch” I snap playfully.

HI LOVERS!! im so sorry for not posting this!! ive had writers block and i’ve been on vacation with my family visiting my home town and i haven’t really had time to write or do anything on this fic!! but i hope you guys enjoy it and i love you and thank you for your patience!!

XOXO,

Gabs 🩷

Sjendje

[mermaidsirennikita]

Hi, sorry if this has been asked before but, regardless of trope, your favourite historicals of all time???? I was gonna say top10 or something but I read and love literally every one of your recs so top100 would work just as well <3

First off, thank you so much, you're too kind. I don't know if I can give you my Top 100 just yet (though I wish I could lol) but I CAN give you a good cluster ;).

It's been a whiiiile since I've thought of this, and it changes, so I'm happy to answer! I'm going to have some repeats, because I'm true my heart and some authors just write a good few bangers.

My top... 28, I think? In no particular order.

Dreaming of You by Lisa Kleypas—Easy answer, I adore this book, it changed the way I look at romance and it's so, so definitive re: my taste. Beautifully written, angsty (and kinda funny too), made me realize one of my core couple dynamics is "somewhat crazy woman and stern man who just doesn't know what the FUCK she's doing and is totally thrown off by her shit".

Thief of Shadows by Elizabeth Hoyt—Another easy one, virgin hero (which I love) who's nonetheless quite stern, jaded older heroine (another thing I love—a jaded heroine), it has the Zorro masked man vibes, the high stakes, INSANELY good sex scenes that only Elizabeth Hoyt can write... And perfectly written angst that isn't magically resolved. Gorgeous gorgeous GORGEOUS.

Waking Up with the Duke by Lorraine Heath—Another angst machine, has a scene that never fails to make emotional, a crazy setup that turns out to be deeply emotional. Icy proper woman/secretly deeply pining rake. AINSLEY!!!!

Princess by Gaelen Foley—A recent favorite; supremely angsty, supremely sexy, supremely BONKERS. He feels unworthy, which, please, is crack to me. She's a literal princess, giggly and flirty and horny to the max. He's a good bit older, they've known each other for YEEEEARS (... literally all her life), he works for her father. It's very ILLICIT AFFAIRS. Everything I love.

The Duke's Perfect Wife by Jennifer Ashley—Every single one of the first four Mackenzie books is a bANGER and this is the best one for me. I love a second chance romance. I love a growly hero and a heroine who absolutely owns him. I love that they've both been around the block (and have had sex before, three times, as he reminds her). Hart needed a woman who could MANAGE him and match his freak, and Eleanor is that. She boops his nose and he growls! He does a striptease for her! Perfection, even better if you've read the first three books.

A Rogue by Any Other Name by Sarah MacLean—Another one I read early in my return to romance, and I adore it. Bourne is the most dickish hero MacLean has written (imo) and Penelope is such a a sweet heroine who nonetheless doesn't put up with it. He has to work so hard to earn her love, as he should. I adore the childhood friends to at odds vibe, another thing I'm sooo into.

Shadowheart by Laura Kinsale—A pretty dark historical? Allegreto is CRAZY, Elena manages him perfectly. I love a good kinky romance, and this one is so, so sexy? The femdom is perfect, but it's also beautifully written and has a lot of deep themes. The fact that he thinks he's going to hell and she's like "Whatever, I'll go there with you". It has both corruption and redemption vibes.

The Duke Gets Even by Joanna Shupe—One of the books I hyped to a ridiculous degree before it came out, and somehow it delivered on everything. Has a touch of kink (mostly through rough sex, biting, etc) but it's honestly so soft in many ways. Lockwood isn't a pushover or a cinnamon roll, but he does have so much heart and he falls so hard. Nellie being the resistant, rakish one delights me. It has a great world (we need more Gilded Age books). It's another one where everything isn't resolved PERFECTLY, and I love that bit of realism. Just a big sigh ROMANCE romance. "I'm keeping you, Eleanor" PLEEEEASE.

Something Spectacular by Alexis Hall—Definitely tonally an unconventional historical, but my God, I love it. It's so funny. It's one of the only nb/nb romances I've read, and I love that it's a historical. Definitely the only one that has a castrato soprano lead, and we should honestly have more because they FUCKED. Like. Read it up. Castrati FUUUUUUUUUCKED. It's really tender and it has one of my favorite climactic moments. A very unconventional ending that made me smile so hard.

What I Did for a Duke by Julie Anne Long. Just a classic, perfectly written age gap romance. This one doesn't reinvent the wheel, but it hits everything it needs to hit perfectly. Has a great mix of humor, emotion, and heat.

Seduce Me at Sunrise by Lisa Kleypas—While there are the classic Kleypas issues with depicting the Romani people and I do dock this book a little for that... Look. The romance aspects are perfect for me. I know that Kev is too angsty for some people, but I love angst and I love the childhood friend devotion and the feeling of unworthiness and Win being ridiculous horny and determined to have her own happiness. Has one of the greatest love confessions of all time. One of the best "the dam has broken and they are FUCKIN'" moments. Just GORGEOUS.

When the Duke Was Wicked by Lorraine Heath—Another one that gets me super emotional. I love the horrified realization Lovingdon has as he realizes that he's so attracted to Grace. The intense desire. The denial of his feelings soooo far into the book, even when it's painfully clear to everyone that he's madly in love with her. This book also is one of the best when it comes to dealing with the Dead Wife Question. Of course Lorraine pulls it off.

A Lady for a Duke by Alexis Hall—Another one that's so unique and great and has amazing trans representation (at least to me, as a cis person, I could be wrong). It has this AMAZINGLY romantic moment that I always find SO FUCKING SWOONY. A great mix of old school vibes and modern sensibilities.

Duke of Midnight by Elizabeth Hoyt—Truly bonkers. Maximus is my ultimate alpha hero; a dick, aggressive, super stern, super resistant to love. Artemis just isn't intimidated. There's a lot of angst in this book, and honestly? I find the fact that he is a dick and Hoyt isn't afraid of embracing that really admirable, from a writing perspective.

Between the Devil and Desire by Lorraine Heath—JACK DODGER I LOVE YOUR WORK. A perfect "rogue meets uptight lady" book (I hesitate to call Jack a rake because he pays for sex pretty much exclusively, but he's definitely roguish). There's a wonderful dynamic here, Olivia being in denial of her attraction.

A Kingdom of Dreams by Judith McNaught—A gorgeously written book! You can see the groundwork being laid for other historicals here. A fabulous setting. The way the romance becomes so vicious at points, in a frankly hilarious way. Royce dragging Jennifer to the altar like "I DON'T WANNA BE HERE ANYMORE THAN YOU DO" is amazing.

Devil in Winter by Lisa Kleypas. Classic, everyone loves this book (well... not everyone) but with good reason. It's so very good. The perfectly executed rake/virgin book, with iconic moments, iconic characters, iconic SPIELS. The moment when Sebastian staggers out of bed trembling after the first time they have sex lives rent-free in my brain.

Indigo by Beverly Jenkins. Just a fucking knockout of a book. Another "rake/practical virgin" book, backed by beautiful prose and impeccable historical research (nobody does it like Ms. Bev). There's so much seduction in this book. A great rooomance, but then it has a fun bonkers villain situation (I know some people don't like this... I do, I'm kind of a sucker for this type of controversial and perhaps dated villain). The ending makes me cry a lot.

Scandal's Bride by Stephanie Laurens—Kind of a new one for me, and it's here because it's so fucking bonkers. Constantly entertaining, Catriona is such a difficult heroine who... crosses the line a lot. Has a scene where Richard draws a sketch of her ass birthmark to be like "I WILL SHOW EVERYONE THIS TO PROVE THAT I HIT IT FROM THE BACK IF YOU DON'T MARRY ME". A delightfully fucking weird book and I loved every minute.

Hyacinth by S.M. LaViolette—The more I think about this book, the more I love it. One that I loved originally, and it rose in my regard over time. A scarred hero (who likes it rough). They're both switches. Hyacinth is neurodivergent and very much unconventional, and doesn't even think herself capable of love because of what society has told her she is. The climax of this book? Incredible.

Again the Magic by Lisa Kleypas. A gorgeously done book, so ambitious, has an iconically HORRID hero (in the best way), executes the rare feat of offering both an amazing primary romance and an absolutely fabulous, emotionally affecting secondary romance. It just hits so hard, dude. It's so good. It's probably Kleypas's BEST book in terms of general quality (though DoY will probably always be my favorite).

Lady Isabella's Scandalous Marriage by Jennifer Ashley—A great marriage in trouble book! That's also super horny! I love so much that though there was a big breaking point in Mac and Isabella's marriage, there were very normal issues beforehand that had less to do with horrible behavior or ridiculous tragedy, but... Like... Them just not being ready for marriage? Especially him. The passion was always there, but passion and great sex isn't enough for a good marriage, and I love that in this book they do have the passion and great sex but also have to build a stronger relationship on an emotional level.

Regarding the Duke by Grace Callaway—Another delightfully bonkers romance. I love that they've been married eight years and she thinks it's enough but learns that it ISN'T. He has to open to her emotionally. There's amnesia. There's VILLAINY. I also love that the hero in this one has to. not only become a better husband, but a better father? I haven't read a lot of historicals where the hero and heroine aren't just married, but have kids.

A Shore Thing by Joanna Lowell—Ummmm I read this very recently but it's been sticking in my heart? It's more lighthearted than a lot of the romances I've loved. But i just love this story of a hero and heroine going on a bicycle race lmao. I love how funny it is, and how the villain kind of... grows? I love that the hero is a rake and trans. I love that the heroine is a widow who decides to like, have good sex for the first time ever and go with it (and suddenly there are feelings). It's just really good.

Sweetest Scoundrel by Elizabeth Hoyt—Helloooooooo emotion. This is one of the best "healing from trauma" books I've ever read. Asa Makepeace is just a perfect rake who's secretly so deep and so gentle. The way he introduces Eve to sex is fucking gorgeous. His patience, his tenderness, his love of what SHE'S okay with it.

A Rose at Midnight by Lisa Kleypas Anne Stuart—This is what I'd call a dark historical. It's true enemies to lovers. The hero is a rat bastard for most of the book. The sex... is very dubcon for much of the book. But man. I think it's so bold, the writing is so good, the story is so different from what I've read in the genre. It just hit a lot of buttons for me. And it has a great secondary romance, something Stuart excels at. Ummm also the fact that the secondary romance is fueled by the secondary heroine wanting to save the primary heroine, her best friend? LOVE THAT.

Scandalous Desires by Elizabeth Hoyt—Sorry dude, Mickey and Silence are just for Me. He's a ridiculous rake. She's a Quaker widow. There's that element of like "I'VE GOT YOU MY PRETTY". I actually love the baby in this book, and that can be a hard sell for me. (Several of these books include kids lol, but man, it's just this thing where you need to get it right.) It has one of my bad boy/good girl books.

The Earl Takes All by Lorraine Heath—Lol sorry, Gorilla Twins is a banger all the way. It's fucking insane. It's super romantic. It has one of the best "angst horizons" I've ever read. It does that Lorraine Heat Thing where you're like how THE FUCK is this gonna work. And then it does! It's just everything, for me. Edward Alcott, you beautiful idiot.

[persephoniesgtden]

MMU Modern Headcanon: Music Tastes

Ok so

DAISY WELLS

Daisy is as casual as a music fan as they come. Her music taste is basic and she listens to whatever songs are popular right now. The only artist she is a dedicated fan of is Marina and the Diamonds, who she is OBSESSED with. Her favourite song is "Are you satisfied?" mainly because she finds it very relatable. Other artists she likes are ABBA, Beyoncé, Nelly Furtado, Chappel Roan and Taylor Swift.

HAZEL WONG

Hazel on the other hand, is a very dedicated music fan. As an introvert, she spends a lot of her alone time discovering new music, esp when she is writing up cases or decoding cryptic messages. Most of the music she listens to comes from the 80s and 90s: The Smiths, The Cure, The Smashing Pumpkins, Foo Fighters, The Cranberries, Cocteau Twins, Lush, Asha Puthli, Bjork, Sinead O'Conner ect. She also listens to more modern artists like Hozier, Mitski, Lana Del Ray, Ethel Cain and Phoebe Bridgers. Her music taste can be described as whimsical and her favorite genres include jangle pop, art pop and alt rock.

KITTY FREEBODY Kitty Freebody is a huge Swifty. She has multiple cardigans, vinyls, CDs and T-shirts and has been to the eras tour. She loves collecting bracelets with other fans. Her favorite era is red. She also likes Charli XCX, Blackpink, aeysha erotica, Oasis, Britney Spears, Sza and Doja Cat.

ALEXANDER ARCADY

Alexander is fascinated by the 60s and 70s, thus most of his music taste comes from those decades. He enjoys the technical side of music, and is very well red on the history of rock. His favourite artists are The Beatles, Oueen, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Aerosmith, The Doors, The Who and The Ramones. According to him, "The Wall" is Pink Floyds favourite album, and he will talk your ear off about that albums lore. He also enjoys some more contempary artists, most notably Gorillaz, Nirvana, Tears for Fears, System of a Down and Queens of The Stone Age. He also occasionally listens to some hyperfeminine early 2010s bubblegum pop, like pre-witteness Katy Perry, Nikki Minaj, Kesha and Carly Rae Jempson.

GEORGE MUKHERJEE

On face value, George doesn't seem like a metal fan, but to those who know him it is very obvious. His all time favorite band is Rammstein, his favourite album being Herzeleid and because of them, he is now learning German. Other artists he enjoys are Iron Maiden, Moterhead, System of a Down, Propagaandi, Dead Kennedys and Misfits. He also listens to Hip Hop, like Kendrick Lamarr, Eminem and The Notorious B.I.G.

BEANIE MARTINEAU

Like Daisy, she isn't too particular about music. Beanie is a casual fan of K-Pop, her favourite groups being Red Velvet, BTS, Twice, 2NE1 and Blackpink. Outside of that, she enjoys Franz Ferdinand, The Killers, Arctic Monkeys and Sir Chloe.

LAVINIA TEMPLE

Lavinia, like George, is a die hard metal fan. She adores bands such as Slipknot, Cannibal Corpse, System of a Down, Black Flag, Kittie, Jack off Jill, Linkin Park, Korn and Dead Kennedys. She also listens to industrial bands, like Nine Inch Nails, Kraftwerk and Ministry.

AMINIA EL MAGHRABI

Though Aminia listens to a lot of music, she doesn't have a particular favorite artist. She has a very diverse taste who share one characteristic of being "cool girl" music. She enjoys AESPA, Lady Gaga, Chappel Roan, Charli XCX, Doja Cat, Megan Thee Stallion, Donna Summer and Rhianna. She also likes some non female artists, such as Queen, Maneskin and Eminem.

[roseygurl]

spencer reid + music

super random spencer + music headcanons

he goes to second-hand stores to buy most of his CDs and records. some of them are gifts from friends, though!

surprisingly, his music taste is pretty broad. he'll listen to anything if he thinks it's good

obviously, so so so many classical records (bach, debussy, vivaldi, tchaikovsky, mozart, etc!)

he listens to classical music mainly when he's reading, writing, cooking, and cleaning

he has huge stacks or records, CDs, mixtapes in his apartment that he's collected over time

and he owns a vintage turntable, of course!!

there's also a lot of gloomy 90s music in his collection

elliott smith, radiohead, jeff buckley, the smiths (of course)

he'll listen to "waltz #2" by elliott smith multiple times in a row when he's sad

really, really loves bob dylan and johnny cash

knows all the lyrics to "knockin on heaven's door." it's his go-to karaoke song!

he has one "wham!" christmas album that he always starts listening to in late november. hotch gave it to him when he was cleaning out his own record collection

a ton of one-of-a-kind vintage jazz records that he's collected over the years. rossi has lended him a bunch of those

he only recently started downloading songs on his ipod (penelope had to help him)

he has a dorky set of sony headphones that he absolutely adores

he takes them with him everywhere so he can listen to his fav albums and audiobooks on the metro :)

listens to so so so many audiobooks

every year he has to listen to all his edgar allen poe audiobooks before october ends!

when he was 14, his roommate in college lended him a nirvana "nevermind" CD, and he never ended up giving it back. it changed his life a little bit

he still listens to it from time to time. his favorite track is "on a plain"

spencer isn't usually one to listen to pop or radio music, but he definitely doesn't hate it

if he's a few drinks in, he'll end up dancing to nelly furtado at the club with jj and emily. it’s a huge guilty pleasure of his, for sure

loves artists like nas, dr. dre, 2pac, and biggie, all because of morgan ofc

spencer and penelope will rock out to hair metal and nu metal together if it plays on the radio!!! it's a fun time for both of them

all in all, i believe he's a man of variety!

[zoobus]

I apologize in advance because I'm taking a tag way too seriously and this isn't even YA novel navalgazing, this is literally about a series written for 3rd graders.

I'm realizing "fucked up that the moral of this story was" is a minor trigger for me. It drives me insane in a way obviously unequal to whatever the original context is. But this is my blog so.

The American Girl series was not a moral-driven set of stories! They weren't Animorphs or anything but they were absolutely a kid's introduction to the intrinsic unfairness of life and a solid chunk of the stories ended with the """"moral"""" of the main character left to uncomfortably ponder why something so clearly not right could be allowed to continue before they clunkily skipped to the next story like the previous didn't happen.

I used to own several sets and I skimmed through a few before selling them some years back. The sudden harsh reality of whatever historical ills going on were part of the appeal! It was fucked up and scary and that's why they were good (to an elementary schooler to be clear, these aren't good books)

Like the "moral" of Nellie's story was that it was fucked up to be a child factory worker. It was fucked up that her response to "oh your hair is so pretty, you should grow it longer" was to recount the time she witnessed one of her elementary age coworker get scalped by one of the child labor machines. It was fucked up that she's 8 with PTSD. Of course Nellie got a happy end but like... abused little puppies getting cleaned up and spoiled is a popular media trope. It's not a lesson. Even though it works out for her, you're still left with the knowledge that the girl who's hair was ripped off her skull and untold number of fingerless kids were not adopted by Samantha's rich grandpa.

I'm rarely comfortable saying there's one specific point that a story is objectively going for and you're a fool if you don't see it, but I do think the American Girl series was intentional in showcasing period-specific suffering might have looked like in a way a little kid could conceptualize. And it worked! For example:

Molly, the WW2 American Girl (AG). Her family takes in a little Bri'ish girl and Molly's soooo excited wow imagine having a fancy English girl in your own house. She is irritated when the 9yo lass is very quiet and not into being her doll. After weeks of molly snipping at her, British girl goes off like sorry I'm not fucking prancing around you dumb bitch but I'm not here as a foreign exchange student, I'm here because my house got bombed and my friends and family are probably fucking dead

Samantha, the Victorian AG. We already know Nellie who, as explained before, had a very different life than the wealthy Samantha. But Samantha also had a black nanny she adored up until she disappears without warning. After a lot of snooping, she uncovers that nanny had a baby! So of course she sneaks out at night to find the little man for herself🤫

Her mischievous giggling starts to get more nervous as she gets closer to nanny's address. It's getting dirtier and shittier and there's only black people around and they're openly gawking but not approaching. People live here? Nanny lives here? With a baby? She eventually finds her and the baby who is cute but Samantha is left at the end like. Hm. So. I guess my life is not universal? Much to think about. There's no happy resolution to this. Nanny never returns, segregation continues.

Last one, Addy, the escaped slave (apparently a controversial opinion, but I liked Addy). The other stories take a bit to get to wham aspect, but with her? Right from the start we have Overseer catch Addy slacking while picking cotton. She's just not debugging fast enough. This grown adult man, so infuriated an eight year old child isn't picking cotton tobacco fast enough, forces her to eat one of the fat, green worms she missed. They describe Addy holding back tears, the worm bursting in her mouth, the bitter taste, the humiliation. I feel like this was the first time I like...*got* slavery. You learn about it in school, sure, but owning people, beating people, it sounded bad but unconnected to anything I knew. Like maybe it's because at the time of reading, I too was a daydreamy 8yo black girl, making it hit a little too close. How could anyone do that and feel justified? Or feel nothing at all? An adult made a little kid eat a bug and it didn't hurt his conscious? This guy probably goes to church and doesn't even remember this. He doesn't think he needs forgiveness. This is nothing to him. This is normal. He died thinking he did nothing wrong, probably. Those were my thoughts then. Very good.

These aren't morals. Of course you shouldn't expect a refugee to perform for their host family. Of course you shouldn't make a child eat a worm. Child labor is bad. Didactic American Girl was not.

[pastelfates]

Talk about some of your favorite experiences on this website if you feel comfortable doing so! I'm meaning favorite threads, partners, muse experiences, etc. You've gone through a lot of hardship across multiple blogs yet you never give up and you keep doing what you love so I figured it'd be nice to talk about the positive stuff that helps you to keep going despite all the trouble.

◌・❀➵ Okie so this is gonna be long post so everyone grab a drink n some snacks! I just wanna start with that if it wasn't for my mutuals I have no idea where I'd be, ya'll have been with me through so much and some of the hardest times of my life and I can't thank everyone who has stayed enough.

◌・❀➵ FAVORITE THREADS/INTERACTIONS

➵ @morifactory ➵ Eddie and Serina meeting! Also the Riba and Serina and Riba ikea thread/ All our Carbon and Serina threads hav a place in my heart. And Talia w the blond bois! Also so far Kiki and Esmee has my heart. And ya know our first scarvi ocs and our stardew ocs. Me and Lena hav a lot of connected ocs

➵ I'm gonna count this as a thread bc it was a thread of asks but Mana once had multiple sections of the bee movie sent to her and it was absolutely hilarious. Committed to the bit with the url /frankiebeestan at that time.

➵ @constellationcrowned / @malusrecord ➵ LISTEN I care so much for Nellie, Mell, and Sunny's lil friendship (i hav a half typed starter for them in drafts shh), and Mana and Kariom's friendship is very special to me bc sobs Mana feels v comfy around him which means a lot bc she rarely fills comfy around ppl.

➵ @ervaurem ➵ Listen the family stuff with Law and the sisters is my weakness. It's been since 2021 that the fam has existed and I heccin cri. The treasure hunt thread has my heart,,

➵ This one is fairly recent but with @riftdancer, @ofstarsandskies, and @mathcs the whole Jude is evil arc has been so much fun so far!

➵ This was more so on discord but the relations have made their way to tungle but @pyonpyonpyon, @forgottenluck, @talesofourworlds, @mathcs, and @broadswordandpistol the sad boi drinking hours,, it was so cursed and sad at the same time, and it was such a highlight to me.

➵ @strebcr ➵ Can I say all of them? Just Streber and Mana have had so many good threads! Mana loves her new frog and just aaa

➵ @maligncntchain ➵ again with just recent threads but the two were cute and just silly gremlin uses the power of treats to not be immediately under the control of pecharunt was v funny to me

➵ @archivisim ➵ Sobs special place for the lil series of thread/asks we had just recently. Their similarities really just came through and they are hopefully gonna be more comfortable around each other!!

➵ @hxroic-wxlls ➵ cris it was like forever ago but the thread with Sunny and Luigi was so wholesome and I want you to know Sunny thinks Luigi is v cool. Also Mana and Simon has a v somft relationship i adore. the lil drill necklace he gave her for her birthday is one of her prized possessions.

➵ I know I posted a lot of newer stuff so I'm gonna bring up a thread from like ages ago?? 2018-2019 to be exact, the days I wrote non-seriously. I had a thread with two people over a skit in a game and it was just peak. Also that blog is still around (not deleted) so anytime I wish I can see the silly threads that bring me so much joy.

➵ Again on older threads, and while this one isn't on tumblr it is canon to Mana history. She has unapologetically set a bakery on fire with no remorse. That event also had like the first actual set appearance of REGRET and her lil maze which honestly makes me v happy bc REGRET is one of my all time favorite ocs. And Symonne's maze was there too, really care for that Ivar and Sync interaction in the rpg horror house w the fake Jude and stuff

➵ FAVORITE PARTNERS / People I adore seeing on dash

@ad-simul , @archivisim, @broadswordandpistol, @opscurus / @cpirits , @canidgrit, @castelias-comeups, @constellationcrowned / @malusrecord, @electricea, @ervaurem, @forgottenluck, @historias-multorum , @hxroic-wxlls, @kaizokugaris, @lightfallls , @maligncntchain , @morifactory , @nobuverse, @ofstarsandskies, @pinklocksoflove, @riftdancer, @talesofourworlds / @outofthisgxlaxy, @soulsbetrayed,

➵ I love seeing you all on dash, your threads are all peak and I just wanna say tysm for being moots with me and allowing me the opportunity to be a part of the stories you unfold for your characters. I am forever thankful to you all for everything and to the all of you have stayed with me despite how awful things have gotten, thank you for never giving up on me and seeing something in me when even I wasn't able to. You all are the reason I'm still here, continuing this hobby I love to my core. I hope I can be around for many more years to come and that I will continue to have you all by my side.

[withahappyrefrain]

Venus and Jake are very much a one cat, one dog family. I get the vibe from Venus that she loves all animals, but she just vibes with cats better and Jake is so dog coded. Definitely one to get a pure bred golden retriever or bring home a stray. No in between.

So when he tells Venus "I'm ready for a new addition to our family."

Which of course screws with Venus a bit because she just got used to the idea of being known, and now he just expects her to say 'yes' to having a child???

"I was looking at some dog shelters-"

She definitely has to be the strong one while he's planning a jail break. "Jake, I'm sorry, but we can't take them all."

"V, we can just buy a house on a piece of land, it'll be the dream. They can roam free. Look at their faces..."

And all she sees is his eyes and pure white smile next to a chihuahua that's vibrating into the next dimension. "Don't do that."

"Got you to cave once. I can wear you down again. And I've got some adorable friends this time."

And when he finally does take one to a room so that way they can play with them for a bit, he definitely tells the dog "go to your mama." And venus will never admit to the way it made her feel.

Not a thot, but a th❤(gh)t

I love this th♥️ght!

Venus loves all animals, but is drawn to cats due to how independent and selective they are. She and Jake adopt another kitty and name them Pastrami. Pastrami and Rugelach instantly bond.

Jake grew up on a ranch, so he loves any and all animals. I see him and Bob bonding over that (I headcanon that Bob grew up on a farm in the Midwest).

Oh God, he would ask it that way.

"Jake, that's a huge commitment and we just got married, don't you think we need some time to settle?" Venus asks, trying not to lose her shit.

Jake just nods like it's no big deal, "I get that. But I was looking at some dog shelters-"

Venus doesn't listen to the rest of his sentence because she's just thinking oh thank God he's talking about animals.

More cuteness underneath

"We are starting with one dog Jake. Our townhouse isn't big enough-"

"We can just buy a house," Jake shrugs as he continues to pet the German Shepard who has made their home into Jake's lap.

"You seriously want to buy a house just to have more dogs?"

"Not just more dogs. Eventually," Jake's cheeks begin to turn red, "Kids too."

Venus is doing everything not to appear flustered, "Slow down cowboy. Let's focus on a dog today."

They find this pitbull terrier mix. She had puppies before, and now that her pups have been adopted, the shelter wants her to find her forever home. Her name is Nellie and Jake is already thinking of what Jewish food they can rename her.

"That means she'll be good with other dogs and kids," Jake points out.

They take Nellie/Bagel (Jake's idea) into the playroom. Bagel is very curious about Jake (it's his Golden Retriever energy), whereas Venus is more calm and gives Bagel some space so they don't get overwhelmed.

"Alright Bagel, go to your mama!" Jake points to Venus and all of a sudden, she feels her stomach fluttering and a warm feeling washing over her.

Bagel's eyes perk up and she immediately goes over to Venus, who stretches out an open hand to let her sniff.

They take Bagel home that day.

Six months later, Jake comes home carrying a little black Labrador puppy.

"Jacob Seresin, why do you have a dog?!" Venus asks. Bagel's tail is wagging as she waits at Jake's feet.

"They were running along the highway and I knew a big storm was coming! I couldn't just leave them out there!" Venus can't even get mad because the dog is super cute and Jake's actions are secretly making her melt.

They do take the dog to the shelter but no one comes first the sweet little thing. And after seeing Bagel take such good care of them, Jake and Venus really have no choice but to adopt Lox.

[desertdollranch]

Hello! I found Samatha’s Doll today at a thrift store. She’s wearing a cloth bonnet though and I don’t see any versions like this mentioned in the Wiki but she has a Pleasant Company sticker on her so I know she’s legitimate. Other than the bonnet, everything else is the same down to her little nutcracker. Any insight on this? Thanks! :)

Ooooh, good find! So I looked into this, and I found no evidence of Samantha's doll Clara ever including a bonnet. Since she isn't illustrated wearing one in Samantha's Surprise, that makes sense. What I did find out is that there were many, many variations in Clara, almost to the point that no two of them look exactly alike. But that seems to be pretty common for clothes and accessories introduced in the early Pleasant Company days, as they figured out what works best in manufacturing and selling. Even Samantha herself was constantly being revised in the first few years after her release. What I think happened with yours is that her previous owner must have borrowed a bonnet from another doll and put it on Clara. I'm sure it's adorable.

And before anyone else shows up in the notes to ask this question, I am certain you're not mistaking Nellie's doll Lydia (who does have a bonnet) for Samantha's Nutcracker doll, since Lydia was released long after the Pleasant Company days and wouldn't have that sticker on her.

[setagaya-division]

Yorii's Thoughts on Hamamatsu Division

Nellie Yukimura

"This guy... I think he's a... what do you call... a publisher? Yeah, I think that's it. He writes for his own newspaper or something. Bleh, boring stuff, in my opinion. Who reads newspapers anymore? If you want some news, just go onto the Internet and type in 'news' in the search engine! You'll find out everything that's going on in the world. Easy as, 1, 2, 3!"

Eden Yamamura

"Eden, or 'Ember' as he calls himself. Yeah, I know him, unfortunately. We're both employed by the same record label, but... I can't count the number of times he's been chewed out by either his producers or the head of our label. The music he makes... it's interesting, but it's so... 'bleh!' Like dude, you've got a lot of talent. So why are your topics so mundane and unoriginal? You need to take a page out of my book. Mix it up a little, or at least stop singing about stuff nobody cares about!"

"Besides that, I also don't like how close this guy is getting to my big brother, Elliot! Newsflash pal: my bro's already got someone he likes, and it isn't you! So back off!"

Kaede Iwasawa

"Ugh, Mr. Zombie. This guy is even more of a bore than Eden! Why? Because, while his music is a hell of a lot better than Eden's, his personality and his way of doing things are so boring! He's got an amazing singing voice! Not better than mine obviously, but still good! Plus, all the music he makes, he produces and releases himself! Not many musicians these days can do that. But get this: this guy has no ambition! He claims that he sings not for crowds or adoration, but to 'express' himself. He doesn't even accept money for his songs!"

"You can express yourself and still get paid for it, pal! I understand you're an 'independent musician' and all, but you are totally wasting your potential! I'm sorry, but its the truth!"

Trickstar

"Ugh, my siblings can say what they want, but this team is totally boring, with a capital 'B'! I mean, you've got a boring writer who writes newspapers, you've got a boring musician who sings about boring stuff, and you've got another musician who's a complete bore because he doesn't want the money or fame that comes with being a singer. ...Which is boring! Ugh, if we face this guys, I don't even know if it'll be worth the time. The battle may be just like them: boring!"

[spaceorphan18]

The Office 9-12

Yay!! The Office questions!! :D

Most disliked character(s)? Why?

Overall, or concentrated? I do not like Gabe. At all. For any reason. (Zach Woods is a delight, and I adore him, it is most definitely not his fault.) Oh, also I've never found Todd Packer funny.

But, For the later half of the series, the last two seasons, Andy became intolerable, and gave me a headache.

Most disliked arc? Why?

Anything to do with Erin and Andy. It just... sucked up so much time, never felt like it paid off, and made each of them dumber. I just did not like it. And it dragged on for four seasons...

Is there an unpopular character you like that the fandom doesn’t? Why?

I don't think Nellie was that bad once she joined the cast. But I can see why people didn't like her.

Is there an unpopular arc that you like that the fandom doesn’t? Why?

I'm not sure what is and isn't popular these days. Maybe the Pam goes to Pratt storyline? I did like how it ended, because I felt like it was true to life and her character.

Also the Jim/Pam Season 9 stuff -- I think it added some tension that was much needed for them at that point.

[peixesbling]

hello! hope you're doing well. <3 guess who's back! (it's 🚀💥 anon, teehee)

sooo.. i've been having some huge gender struggles lately. and i'm not too sure what to do about it. would you mind giving me some feminine names based off of my source (Rocket from PHIGHTING!)? preferably fem and/or neu leaning! either in vibes, definition, or just whatever you feel fits! i don't mind noun names.

and maybe using a few of them in sentences with she/her and they/them pronouns if it isn't too much trouble... ok thank you!! BD

-🚀💥

Yes, )( ere you are 🚀💥

Harley

EX ; Look at Harley, she looks so nice today!

Quinn

EX ; I just went to quinn's, they had so many games!

Scarlett

EX ; I made Scarlett, a gift I hope she likes it, i worked really hard just for them to hate it.

Maia

EX ; I really like Maia's outfit ! She has an adorable shirt!

Juniper

EX ; Juniper has the coolest car and honestly they deserve it!

 Roxanna/e

EX ; Did you know that Roxanna also goes by Roxanne? She doesn't mind what you call them though.

Sage

EX ; Sage is so good at growing plants! I could never be like her..

Juno

EX ; Juno makes the cutest shirts!! They must work really hard!!

Ida

EX ; Ida is always so beautiful!! How does she do it ?

Kira

EX ; She does makeup the best! Oh btw their name is Kira!

Nellie

EX ; Nellie is so good with animals , does she raise them?

Gaia

EX ; Look at Gaia's hair it fits them so well!

Everest

EX ; Everest can climb so well!! She looks so cool while doing it always!!

Athena

EX ; Athena is so good at archery !! How does she do it,, they're so cool!!

Melody

EX ; Melody has the most awesome googles !! Do you know where she got it from?

If you need more you can request more but )(ere you are!! Enjoy!!!

[thesinglesjukebox]

TATE MCRAE - "GREEDY"

Not an Ariana Grande cover, but the enunciation isn't much better...

[5.00]

Jacob Sujin Kuppermann: Largely indistinguishable from the fake pop songs on The Idol. [3]

Leah Isobel: Tate McRae is 20 - old enough to embrace sexuality, young enough that she's still exploring its effects. "greedy" indicates both, its chorus driven by the novelty of being able to see yourself as a desirable object and by the fractured emotions attendant to that realization. She might embody the latter a little too well; her mushmouthed, cotton-candy voice throws off sparks on the chorus but dissolves into nothing when the verses send her into her lower register. What lingers isn't bravado or pleasure, but anxiety: when she hums "baby, please believe me," it's like it's directed inward. Please, say it right. Please, deliver what's desired in this moment. Please, let me get what I'm not sure that I want. I am very, very happy that I'm no longer 20. [5]

Ian Mathers: I was the only blurber here to love McRae and Khalid's "Working" (a song that has only grown in my estimation since), and that was entirely down to the subtlety, generosity, and maturity of its message and emotional range. I haaaaated the next time we covered McRae and my entire blurb was about disliking her singing style. Doing an A/B comparison between that song and this one I do think whatever was bugging me (which I still don't like!) is either less pronounced here or works better in "Greedy." But as opposed to something like "Working" there's nothing particularly distinctive or compelling to this one for me, indicating that at least right now she's more than capable of excelling on good material but maybe not so much of elevating average material. Wouldn't touch that dial though. [6]

Katherine St Asaph: The most memorable thing about "Greedy" is how hilariously mismatched the Darrin's Dance Grooves choreo is to the vibe of the song. (2023 songs the choreography would actually fit: "Padam Padam"; "Padam Padam"; maybe others.) [5]

Michael Hong: Sometimes, "you broke me first" comes on the radio and I just feel so bad for her -- she sounds so small, so miniscule, I just want to hold her. I like the zamboni of its music video, a really fun "I'm Canadian" statement, but the nasal quality of her voice does nothing for me here. [4]

Aaron Bergstrom: Real commitment to the hockey theme here, singing the whole song with her mouthguard still in like that. [2]

Nortey Dowuona: Stop being greedy/give to the needy. Tate sounds so confident on this record she can't be bothered to give the Gus Johnson lookalike in this song an actual name. Her voice is still cutesy and pinched, constantly pushed into the upper range of her nasally soprano, but once it's layered and compressed to stamp the hook into the brain, it becomes lighter and seethes, disgusted by the unappealing attention he tries to ensnare her. It's probably the embarrassing experience of Jasper Harris or Ryan Tedder, or the lived experience of Tate or Amy Allen, who has written "Graveyard", "Adore You" and "Without Me", all vivid songs with tight hooks which stamp on your brain just as this does. But I can't tell if I love or just like this song, it really depends on the day. So now it's a - [6]

Brad Shoup: We have Nelly Furtado ft. Timbaland at home! [4]

Joshua Minsoo Kim: Tate McRae's garbled singing is gerbil-coded. It's partly the AutoTune, partly because it's squeaky and small. Like, whenever the chorus comes in, I get the overwhelming sense that the songwriters tried to mask her limited vocal range. At least it's pitiable. [2]

Wayne Weizhen Zhang: Looks like Tate McRae inherited the Ariana-Grande mumble-mouth gene for making a chorus sound pretty and unintelligible in one breathe. The lyrical conceit of "Greedy" makes little sense, but that matters little when the song is mostly a vehicle for Tate McRae to show off her dance skills and theater kid emotions. [6]

Taylor Alatorre: The basic structure of "greedy," with its neatly divided "he said" verses and "she said" chorus, makes it hard for me to see it as something other than the "Jerk Store" of pop songs. Unless we're really meant to believe that Tate McRae is saying things like "I'll put you through hell" in a public setting, a scene that would be laughed out of the writers' room of even the corniest teen drama. I do admire, though, the kind of obstinate creative logic that leads a singer to emulate Timbaland not merely or even primarily in his production style, but also in his underratedly weird stop-start way of delivering lyrics. Shock Value III when? [4]

Hannah Jocelyn: I've been rooting for Tate McRae despite all the reasons I shouldn't - she sounds like one of the mice from Cinderella, she brings little new to pop music, and yet she has her place as Olivia Rodrigo's bratty younger sister the way Rodrigo was initially pitched as one to Taylor Swift. I actually love how whiny she is - I find that more relatable than people who actually strive for relatability, and I don't even mean that condescendingly. She's kooky enough to have an entire alter ego named Tatiana, where she moves from Eilish and Rodrigo to Spears and Furtado. She's not as distinctive as any of them, but muscular production from Ryan Tedder (!) gives the illusion she holds her own. I've heard people say she sounds scared instead of assertive, and while I hear that, it adds palpable stakes to the song, however intentionally. But I also liked the last darker-and-edgier artist reboot no one else did, so what do I know? [7]

Scott Mildenhall: The vocal distortion is elevated by its sparkle, but compounded by McRae's mumbles, which obscure any attitude she intends to project. "In your face" is a stance to take; not a place to hide your syllables. [6]

Will Adams: Such an interesting approach to vowels. I await our next pop star who fully sounds like Homestar Runner. [4]

Harlan Talib Ockey: Tate McRae has somehow had a drastically different personality on every single of hers I have heard. Part of this may be down to her voice, which is pretty texturally unusual (underneath the bananies and avocadies) and possibly too oily to have a full-belt setting. "Greedy" is where she seems to have found the formula that works; McRae really suits this "Promiscuous" update where she can use a little more of her head voice. [7]

Oliver Maier: Greedy for what, bananies and avocadies? Lol. Apologies to miss McRae. The song is quite good. [6]

Kayla Beardslee: I'm a little surprised this song blew up, because I've listened to it several times and still cannot make out half the lyrics in the chorus ("I would want myself, the reason bleeblee"??). But we're starved for new pop stars right now, so any fresh hit that gets people talking about pop girl potential is a net positive. [5]

Jackie Powell: It takes around 5 seconds for "Greedy" to send me back in time. The beat drops after the steel drum-sounding intro and the unknown voice shouting "Whoop," a classic ad-lib in the pop/ R&B crossover space. Nelly Furtado or rather her influence has somehow returned around 17 years later in 2023. That "Promiscuous" sounding beat sticks out immediately and Ryan Tedder knew that it would. It was amusing to see in the liner notes that "Promiscuous" was given a sample credit, almost a preventative measure. Gasp, there can't be another Gen Zer taking rhythmic elements from the 2000s without giving proper credit. "Greedy" is a smash and has the potential to launch McRae to greater heights. (I'll still remember "She's All I Wanna Be", which was far superior.) An underrated part of the production is that rhythmic steel drum-sounding intro which finds its way throughout the entire song. McRae imitates the part's rhythm when she confidently vocalizes the different vowels in "Uh-uh, uh-uh-uh, uh-uh". While McRae's vocal tone is reminiscent of Camilla Cabello or Melanie Martinez, she's a much more expressive performer. There's an assurance that's way beyond her years in how she's able to communicate the story she's trying to tell. There's something empowering about a song with a killer beat all about how men can be creepy and aren't entitled to the allure of the women around them. She's 20 years old and singing about this! Speaking of her age and maturity, McRae has been deemed Gen Z's Brittney Spears, or the heir apparent to Spears. There's something incredibly unsettling about that. The similarities are apparent: both are trained dancers, both appeared on children's television (McRae voiced a LaLaLoopsy doll) both have huskiness attached to their vocal ranges and both have a command of their sexuality, which makes them both such captivating live performers. So what's unsettling about that? McRae is making her climb to the top with tools that Spears didn't have. Spears didn't have the prior credibility that McRae has. Placing third on So You Think You Can Dance and her self written and performed song "One Day" add much more to the McRae story than we ever had about Spears during the days of "Oops, I did it again." McRae won't have to deal with critics claiming she doesn't have talent. The evidence of her talent is all over the internet. During her live performances, she finds a way to maintain that credibility as well. She doesn't lip-sync but rather picks her spots with a backing track. She makes sure she has a moment to really dance full force to the music she just sang by adding an outro. These are tactics that Brittney Spears and her team either didn't think of or weren't really possible in the early 2000s. If we are transporting back to 2000s pop, I hope we also don't transport back to 2000s celebrity culture, a truly *dark* time in music. [8]

[Read, comment and vote on The Singles Jukebox ]

[mermaidsirennikita]

Do you have any recs where it’s the opposite of the bad boy good girl trope? Black cat X golden retriever I think it’s called?

This is a little tough for me, I'll admit, because I tend to have an issue with golden retriever type heroes?

Buuuut I might have a few you enjoy:

The Intimacy Experiment by Rosie Danan. Contemporary. The hero is a hot rabbi, and the hero is a former porn star he enlists to help him teach people about intimacy? It's not my favorite (3ish/5) but I love Rosie's first book (the hero is a hot himbo in that one, but the heroine is not a bad girl at all) and you may like it. It's definitely hot.

The Duke Gets Even by Joanna Shupe. Historical. A big favorite of mine and probs one of the few books I wholeheartedly adore that comes close to this trope. The hero is Lockwood, who is not a golden retriever but is seen as upright and classy in Gilded Age NYC, whereas the heroine is Nellie, a slutty bad girl women's rights activist he has an ETL situation with. Lockwood IS lovely, and he is DOES respect women, and he IS much more emotionally in touch with his feelings than Nellie is with hers, but they are very bitchy to each other in the beginning, he gives as good as he gets, and he is very into rough sex. But it may scratch the itch due to her inability to admit she loves him while he's like "I WANNA KEEP YOU FOREVER AND EVER AND EVER AND EV-"

Wed to the Wild God by Ruby Dixon. Fantasy. So the heroine in this one isn't Bad, but she is caustic and jaded. Basically, as is the way in this series, a god from an alternate dimension ends up in her world, and she has to do a marriage of convenience for plot reasons before going back to his world. He is.... extremely hedonistic. Supernaturally so. He's super mellow, everyone wants to fuck him, there's a scene where he sits there in a bakery mildly eating cookies while she's like "omg everyone STOP TOUCHING HIM". She doesn't wanna admit she's falling in love even though they're fucking 24/7. It's great. Also! This book has pegging.

Kiss of a Demon King by Kresley Cole. Paranormal. I'll be straight up, Rydstrom is not a golden retriever, but he does WANT to be a good king, and Sabine is... a very bad girl. Basically, she seduces him so that she can (by behest of the villain) keep Rydstrom magically chained to her bed, in order to edge him until he agrees to marry her and impregnate her with his heir. He's literally known as Rydstrom the Good, but she drives him insane and pushes him into a dark place lol. One of my favorite IAD books. Dubcon abounds. So much edging. He gives as good as he gets. When people say they want real enemies to lovers, this is it lol.

Unclaimed by Courtney Milan. Historical. Hero is a golden boy who writes this public essay on why he's staying a virgin until he falls in love. Pisses some dude off, so that dude pays the heroine, a famous sex worker, to seduce the hero and ruin his good name. Very romantic.

The Rakess by Scarlett Peckham. Historical. The heroine is famous for her affairs and scandals, and is vacationing in this small town area while writing her memoirs. She meets the hero, a lovely single dad widower type, who is afraid of falling in love again because his wife died giving birth to their third child. Very much a good boy/bad girl book, emotional, and involves a butt plug that is not used on her.

Take A Hint, Dani Brown by Talia Hibbert. Contemporary. May work for you on this level; the hero is a lovely man who I think coaches kids and has anxiety. But also hot. The heroine if a flighty witchy jaded type. They go viral after he saves her in this incident, and people think they're a couple, and he asks her to go along with it in order to get positive attention for this charitable foundation thing he's doing. Very soft, but again, also hot.

Dark Needs at Night's Edge by Kresley Cole. Paranormal. I'm twisting this, but it's MY version of golden retriever/black cat so I can DO IT and also this is a fucking gorgeous book and another one of my favorite IADs. The hero is a vampire who was turned by his brothers against his will, and they didn't know he was actually in an order that was fighting to eradicate vamps (!). So he went insane for years and killed tons of people because trauma, and now the brothers have come back to detox him and chain him up in this New Orleans mansion. Where he starts seeing a sexy ghost. He thinks he's crazy, she's real, he can see her because fated mates, and she's this hot, vampy, former burlesque dancer who was killed by her lover so she thinks men are trash (fair). But here's the thing: he's a virgin. And because it's Kresley Cole rules, as a vampire his dick won't work until he meets his fated mate; so he's still a virgin, and initially stays that way because she's a ghost... and the devotion in this book.... the convos they have about sex because she's had a lot and he's had none at all....... the desire...... the way she treats him like a puppy during the first sex scene...... KING. SHIT.

[rhokisb]

Nelly Finds Love

So an IRL bestie of mine plays in my DnD campaign. She wanted to play a Dragonborn...in Dragonlance. Alright, bet Queen let's goooo.

So she's been playing her character for 7 sessions now and as per usual she's made him quite angsty. His name is Neltharion and he's got a bad boy with a dark past vibe like no other. He's currently running around with the heroes of Krynn, confusing literally everyone.

She likes making these angry characters and they generally stay quiet. Lately, her character (Neltharion) has made friends with the Assassin (Rodriggo) in the group and that's led to some humourous interactions which I adore, but I wanted a little more.

Enter a love interest, pre-written into the campaign. Her name is Laurana. She is an elf. She is SUPPOSED to be a love interest with a pre-existing campaign character. Those characters don't exist in my world so I could have:

A) Gotten rid of it

B) Kept the character minus the love interest bit

C) Have fun.

My motto is always have fun. So I wrote down my PCs names and rolled a dice.

Hehehehe. It landed on the Dragonborn. The angsty-ass Dragonborn who isn't a Draconian but still confuses and terrifies all who come across him. The Dragonborn whose main interaction with the party so far has been hiding a rotting fish in one of the member's packs (he also was the one who made BlipBlup his braided iron crown *sigh* my heart).

So they get to the city, have a lot of dialogue with the elves, and then BAM enter the gorgeous elven princess. Who immediately is taken with this strange creature gracing the halls of her father's nation. She's got diamonds braided into her hair. Her brown skin SPARKLES like it's been rubbed with gem dust (going for an Edward in the sunlight vibe here). Her eyes reflect shades of green, teal, and hints of amber. She is GORRRGEOUS.

And she is the first person to ever treat Neltharion with any sort of kindness. I even checked that, I asked his in-game friend (Aello), "How do you generally treat Neltharion? You've known him your whole life, is it a brotherly relationship? Are you friends? What's the deal between you two?" And Aello's player agreed that they would treat Neltharion kind of like a sibling (i.e. they're not "kind" to one another but would die for each other).

So I throw my poor bestie into this role-play scene where this elven princess is flirting with her 7-foot-tall Dragonborn and just being overtly caring and kind. Answering his questions, speaking quietly, lightly touching his arm, etc.

She could have refused it, kept going with her angst; but, she's BLUUUSHING, cannot handle her boy being romanced. Fully into it.

When the elven princess leaves, she looks right at the Rodriggo and says, "Nelly's in love."

She's never referred to her character as anything but his full name. Just the instant personality switch was amazing.

The princess later got captured and our Nelly boy (my heart forever) angrily roared in despair as he watched her disappear on the horizon on the back of a stinky Wyvern.

I can't wait to see how this plays out, I'm still reeling. It was a heavy RP session, only a couple minor combats, but it was so worth it.

[queers-gambit]

Cherry my darliing!! Once again, you've got me ugly sobbing over here!! Not so Heavenly Surprise nearly broke mee! 😭 But I couldnt get enough of it!! I saw that you might be toying around with a part 2? As always, take your time!!

Also, how are you feeling, my darling?

Love, hugs, and forehead kisses, my darling! 😘🖤

ah, my Nellie. you brighten my day, my sweet!

yeah, the part two isn't really rolling the way i want it so i'm taking a step back. i honestly might binge the series now to revamp my imagination, i'm bone-dry right now 😂

outside of mild writers block, i'm doing okay! got a check up in twoish weeks and there's the possibility of another surgery but i think i'm getting better - so maybe i won't need it? no idea, i'm just happy to be here!

oh, you sweet angel baby love of mine! you are too sweet and i simply adore our talks. i am sending good vibes your way! as many forehead kisses as you want and every drop of my love is yours 🖤