#If it's you that reached the limit or maybe it's just Aston Martin that only goes backwards

[ferrari-desmosedici-wwe-fc]

Being a fan of Ferrari boys and Alonso means living in agony

[oddsnendsfanfics]

Unraveling in the Sheets

Genre: Fan Fiction

Pairing: Henry Cavill/OFC

Warnings: Language, Sexual Content, NSFW

Rating: M

Length: Short Story

Disclaimer: a strict work of fiction, I own nothing except the original characters and the plot line. In no way am I affiliated to any of it.

A/N: Spoiler Alert, there is smut. Be warned. It's there.

Also, I am no longer doing tags on posts. Since my list exceeds the tag limit. Please feel free to join the chat in place of the tag list.

Henry Cavill Master List

“How did you do it though?” Gliding the car into a free parking space, Henry glanced at Nell in the passenger's seat.

“How did I do what?” Eyeing him curiously, she tried to hide her gloating smile. She could be a terrible winner, even if she wasn't the winner, she had came ahead of Henry.

“You know what I mean, Nelly.”

He looked so silly, his new mustache curling when he laughed or smiled. Nell had to admit, if any man could wear the 'stache Henry did it well.

“Oh, you mean how did I suddenly leave your ass behind and finish nearly 50 positions ahead?” She laughed, crinkling her nose. “I told you, I've been working hard for this. Besides, you're too big. You move slower than I do. It's that simple. Maybe next year, you will finish ahead of me.”

“You're impossible.” Unbuckling his seat belt, Henry hurried to get out of the car and around to the other side, before Nell could open her own door. Nearly there, he frowned when she opened the door, stepping out of the Aston Martin. “You were supposed to let me open that.”

“I am supposed to do a lot of things that I do not.” Nell grabbed her hand bag. “I'll let you open the door, next time. You big dork.”

Henry was always the gentleman, even when Nell would rather rip his eyes out than speak to him in a civil manner. Not that she ever felt the former much, but on the rare occasion. Sometimes that's how things went for ex-lovers. The mid May air was growing cool, leaving a few goosebumps on Nell's exposed arms. She had expected to be back before now, which is why she'd left her sweater in the hotel.

“Well, happy late birthday. It was nice having dinner with your family. I've missed them.”

“They've missed you, too. I could tell that dad was happy you came along. He hasn't talked that much during a dinner since the last time you came over.” Henry smiled fondly. "I'm glad that you came, Nelly." Hands in his pockets, Henry sauntered along beside Nell. Approaching the main entrance, he held the door allowing her to enter. 

When he'd invited her for the weekend, he wasn't confident that she would come. Wrapped up in work, Nell didn't take too much time away from Dublin these days.

"It was a nice break from work." Tucking a piece of hair behind her ear, Nell bit her bottom lip. "I know that you are busy, but do you have a few minutes to talk?"

"I always have time to talk with you." Scanning the hotel lobby, Henry tried to find a spot for them to sit and chat privately. "Should we have a seat at the bar?"

"We could, but I would really like to change. Do you mind coming up with me? We can just talk in the room. It's probably more comfortable anyway."

"Is this about the wild boy?"

"Isn't it always?" 

Laughing, Henry pushed the call button for the elevator. Their son was truly something else. One day he would surely take over the world; Henry could see that coming from the day he was born.  To say Ivan was Henry's pride and joy would be a massive understatement. He lived for their son. This weekend having Ivan, and Nell, in Jersey had been fantastic. A short glimpse of what life could have been. The ding of the elevator brought Henry back from his brief fantasy.

He and Nell had split up several years ago, there wasn't much chance she would feel the same as he did. Lost in the thoughts of happy little family. Allowing Nell to step onto the elevator first, Henry stood silently with his hands clasped in front of him.

“So, Ivan has been doing well in school?” He may as well get this under way.

“Define doing well,” Nell snickered. “I get a call nearly every day from his teacher. The woman is impossible, but knowing our son, he isn't making it easy for her.”

“I was like that in school. Right up until the day I left.” Henry shrugged. The elevator gently bumping to a stop, he stepped forward to hold the door for Nell.

Muttering a thank you, Nell dug for her key card, leading the way down the hall. She loved this hotel, it was the only one she stayed in, if she could help it, while visiting the Island. A great view of the water on one side, the other dazzling with a fantastic look out into the city. The first time she'd ever been to Jersey, she had stayed in the hotel and fell in love with the charm. There were days when that felt like a life time ago.

Opening the door, Nell paused to allow Henry in. “Have a seat. Anywhere you'd like. Sorry it's kind of a mess. I'm going to change.”

The hotel room was anything but a mess, minus the few sketch books that Nell had dropped on the bed. Always working. Henry took a seat on the edge of the king sized bed, casually glancing at the colour coded notes and designs that Nell had in one of the open sketch books. Costumes. A few notes detailed leather armor and Viking era clothing. She'd done well for herself, since he'd met her. The same shy costume apprentice hiding out on set of The Tudors, was now helping drive forward the details of Vikings.

In the bathroom, Nell pulled off her dress. The fabric had became clingy after a while and she needed to be more relaxed. Running shorts and a tshirt would do the trick. Sighing at her reflection, she bit her bottom lip glancing down at her top. The worn coral Nike tshirt was her favourite, it was showing the love and wear in a few spots. Perhaps she should have picked something less frumpy? She was a busy, single mom she didn't have to look the part. Ah fuck, who cared. Henry certainly wouldn't.

He was here to discuss their son, not flirt with her until she gave in to that smile. Or got lost in his eyes, those gorgeous blue eyes – the left with the flecks of brown. His charm alone was enough to make anyone weak in the knees. Damn it, she needed to get over it. He had moved on. She needed to do the same.

Blowing out a breath, Nell reached for the door, pausing when she heard Henry talking. His tone told her that he was speaking to Ivan. Quietly slipping out of the bathroom, she smiled.

“Hold on, just a sec.” He pushed the screen of his phone, allowing the speaker to connect. “Alright, wild boy. Say goodnight to your mum.”

“Mum, momma, mum.” Ivan's voice filled the room. “I love you.”

“I love you, too, Ivan. Are you being a good boy?”

“Uh huh. I love you. Good night.”

“Good night, wild boy. I love you.”

“Night dad.”

“Good night, I love you. I'm going to be back soon, you go to bed and I will see you first thing in the morning.”

“Okay. Oh, dad, can Kal sleep in my room tonight?” Ivan was fond of the large black and white American Akita. Henry laughed.

“Of course he can. You and Kal go to bed, now.”

“Okay, bye.” A little too quickly, Ivan hung up the phone. Henry laughed at the eagerness, he would talk to his mother when he got back to the house. Making sure that Ivan and his dog had gone to bed as they were told, with no fuss.

"Can you believe he is growing this fast? My god where has that time gone?" Henry rubbed his hands against his face. His mustache and subtle stubble scratching his palms. 

"Time is a cruel mistress." Rubbing her hands on her shorts, Nell stood. "Drink? I have a bottle of Johnnie Walker." 

"Of course you do." Smirking, Henry shifted on the side of the bed. “I had a look at some of these designs, by the way. They're magnificent. My god, Nell, you are so talented.”

“You're saying that to be nice,”

Shaking his head, Henry accepted the glass, resting it on his knee. “No, I am saying it because its true. You are one of the most talented costumers that I had ever met. Are you enjoying the job?”

“I love it.” Nell smiled, leaning against the large wooden desk in the corner. “The work is great, the people are amazing, and Ivan is really enjoying it. I'm glad we went.”

“Good, that's good. He talks about it, a lot. He really seems to love being there. I'm glad. Once things settle, I am going to try and come visit. I kind of miss it, Dublin.”

“You should.” She smiled fighting the urge to scoff and roll her eyes. Henry was always busy. He'd make it to Dublin, when Hell froze over. “So, how is work coming on this new character.”

“I can't say much, but I can say that I will be happy when I can shave.” He rubbed the mustache expertly. “It's not as bad as some of the beards that I've had to grow, but it's not my favourite look.”

“You look good with a beard. I know you hate them, but you do.”

Leaning forward to set his glass on the bedside table, Henry licked the whiskey off of his lips. “I'm glad to have that compliment.”

“Sure.” Nell nodded, tipping her glass to finish the drink. “Another?”

“Uh, I'm good.” Henry motioned to his glass. Rubbing his hands across his jeans, he furrowed his brow. “I've been thinking, since I am fairly busy the next few months, what if I keep Ivan for a few extra days? Once you leave, I will take him back to London with me, until I have to go.”

Shifting on the bed, her face warm from the second glass of whiskey, Nell sniffled and cleared her throat. “What about school?”

“What about it? He isn't going to miss much, is he? They're nearly finished up and I don't know how long it will be, until I see him. Possibly not until Christmas.”

All he wanted was to spend a little time with his son, was that so hard? His next move would have to be calculated, Nell had been known to stat arguments over less. If Henry wanted to avoid a shouting match, he would have to go about this carefully. Reaching for his glass, he downed the remaining contents in one large gulp. Sighing.

“I want to hang out with him a little. It wouldn't be more than three days extra. Then you get some time alone, as well. Nell, I know that you need a bit of a break. You work so hard and take care of Ivan, please.”

“If you want to, then I suppose I can't really say no. What kind of mother would I be, if I didn't let you see him?”

“Don't say things like that, please.” Henry reached out, his hand taking hers. Gently stroking the back of her hand with his thumb. “You are a wonderful mum. You know that.”

“Sometimes, I feel like I could do better. I really do.” Nell shrugged, allowing Henry to continue holding her hand.

“All parents feel that way, I am sure. I know that I feel like that, all the time. I guess it's natural, always wanting to do better, to be better, for our children.”

There he went again. There were times when Nell could not stand to be near him, other times she wanted to be as close as possible. Damn it. Watching him talk about Ivan and the few extras days they would be together, Henry's eyes lit up. His smile broad and the enthusiasm in his voice was one that dictated proud father. Nell nodded, only because she felt it was appropriate to the conversation.

Henry continued to chatter about how he wanted to take Ivan to a new exhibit at the Natural History Museum, in London. Leave it to the father and son, finding a day at the museum to be high on the list of fun. Nell sighed, continuing to half listen, half gaze at Henry in awe. One thing she loved – well love could be a strong word – adored? Enjoyed? About Henry was how much he loved Ivan.

Mid sentence about some Sir David Attenborough documentary that he'd watched with Ivan; Nell couldn't help it any longer. Leaning in, without warning, she grabbed Henry's face turning it to her and kissing him. Lips connecting, she stopped and jumped back as if hit by an electric shock.

Clearing his throat, Henry rubbed the back of his neck, but not pulling back. “I didn't know that the National Geographic was that exciting.”

“I'm sorry.” Hiding her face in her hands, Nell shook her head. Oh that had been a mistake. She had absolutely no right. None. Henry was crazy, if he didn't get up right now and walk out. If he was angry, then she deserved that.

Blushing, Nell shook her head. “Henry, I shouldn't have.”

“I'm certainly not going to complain.” He shrugged, leaning in his arm sliding around her shoulder. Nell glanced up, getting the nerves to look at him. Oh she had fucked up. “Next time, I would like some warning though.”

“Warning? Next time?”

“Hmm, yes. Kind of like this, close your eyes.” Henry instructed pulling her closer and kissing her. Nell sighed her body melting against him. She loved the way his lips felt on hers. Soft, with a slight force.

Straddling his waist, her arms wrapped around his neck, Nell's fingers laced together. Her lips leaving his, tracing along his jaw, nearing the sweet spot below his ear. A slight nip and he was an unraveling mess. Henry nuzzled his face into her hair, she smelled amazing. Comforting and warm. A groan erupted from deep in his throat, as predicted she had gone straight for that spot.

“Nell, Nell,” Henry cleared his throat, holding her at arm's length, “Janelle, stop.” Looking for any sort of sign that she truly felt that this wasn't a good idea, he sucked in a breath. “Are you sure about this? Because if we continue, I won't stop until...”

“I am.” She nodded firmly, “I don't want you to stop. I don't want to stop. Oh god, Henry. Please.”

“I need to know that you truly, absolutely want to do this.”

“If you don't stop talking and bend me over, I am going to kick you out and do this myself. Please, stop talking. If I didn't want this, I wouldn't have started it.”

A deep rumbling laugh followed, Henry rolled his eyes. God, she was something else. Who was he to deny a gorgeous woman what she wanted? Would this come back to haunt him? Probably. Did he care? Not much. Come morning they would once again go their separate ways, but that didn't matter right now. Right now, he could pretend that he had everything he wanted. And what he wanted was her.

Pulling her to him, Henry kissed her hard. Nell moaned, the force of the kiss was nearly dizzying. Arms around his neck, she rubbed her body against his, trying to grasp the friction that was created when she started to grind herself against his thighs.

“Henry,”

“Hold on, you need patience.” He brushed a bit of hair out of her face, “all in good time.”

Nell squealed when he stood, her legs desperately scrambling to hold onto him. In a futile attempt she huffed, when he let her go, standing in front of him pouting. Unbuttoning his shirt, Henry smirked giving her a heated stare. “Well, are you going to get on the bed or make me do all the work? Shorts off.”

Sliding the mesh shorts down her ass and along her legs, Nell made a bit of a show letting them pool at her feet. Stepping out, as slowly as possible, while lifting the old tshirt from her body. Allowing it to go where it would, as she dropped it. Sitting back on the bed, she could feel her heart in her throat and her stomach where her heart should be.

“Lie back.” Henry instructed, kneeling at the edge of the bed. Arms around her thighs, guiding her to him, he studied her for a moment. She was trembling as his fingers slid across her thighs, positioning her in just the right way.

“Oh god, Hen-Henry.” Nell's mouth was suddenly dry and her voice hoarse. His hot breath between her legs was tormenting her, in unimaginable ways. In anticipation she bucked her hips forward, trying to clench her thighs. Holding her knees with his shoulders, Henry chuckled.

“Eager.”

“Please.”

“You are...” He lingered, kissing the inside of her leg. “Gorgeous. Look at you.” He brushed his thumb against her. Nell whimpered trying to push further. “Hold on, hold on.”

“Why are you teasing me?”

“Because I want to enjoy the view, for a moment.” He shrugged, her legs lifting gently. A hand on her lower abdomen, as if holding her in place, he used the other to gently tease and trace along her calf. Without warning, his lips attached to the most sensitive part of her body with his mustache adding an extra sensation, Nell bucked her hips hard, shoving his face further between her thighs.

Nell's head was swimming, it had been a while since she'd felt this good from such an act. Sure, she'd had the odd date here and there, semi-serious relationships, but nobody could do this the way Henry could. He was a fucking magician, she was certain of it. Humming against her mound, Henry couldn't hide the laughter in his eyes, when she began to squirm and wiggle against his face. She was desperate and he was going to prolong this as much as he could.

Sucking her clit, his tongue generously lapping at her, he thoroughly enjoyed the show. Pushing his head as far down as she could, Nell was nearly in tears each time he leaned in, his mustache tickling in just the right way. Oh god, she gasped trying hard to find release. Henry was cunning, backing off at the right moments.

“Henry,” She whined, threading her fingers through his hair. “Don't tease me, I really need you to finish.”

“Stop being so impatient.” He was teasingly stern. Pushing her hands away, he locked his fingers with hers, holding them at her side. Lifting his head, he smirked, kissing up her body ending with another dizzying kiss. Nell sucked on his tongue, freeing her hands from his, she tugged him closer, pulling at fistfuls of hair.

Cleaning herself from his tongue and lips, she sighed. “I'm going to need more than that.”

“You're sure?” Henry paused, holding his weight on his forearms, resting above her. His jeans still on, he could feel the strain against the denim.

“Jeans, off.” She demanded, sitting up to watch. Shivering against the slight chill, her breasts on display giving him the perfect view of her erect nipples. Nell blushed under his gaze. She was not the tight, toned, and perky body she once was. She wasn't out of shape, by any means, but compared to Henry...

“You are gorgeous.” Henry complimented, his jeans on the floor, boxers being pushed down to join them. Stepping out of his pants, he stood at the side of the bed, in all his glory.

Nell licked her lips, reaching out to take him in her hand. Hissing under her touch, Henry involuntarily bucked his hips forward into her hand. Rubbing the head, Nell intently watched Henry while she leaned in taking him fully in her mouth.

“Fuck, Nelly.”

“Hmm,” She hummed, sliding her head back along his length. Hand wrapped around him, stroking in place of her mouth. Bobbing her head back down, she swirled her tongue around the base. He nearly choked her the first time she'd ever gone down on him. Oh how long ago that felt.

Dragging her tongue against his length, she felt her core tighten, with each moan Henry gave. His slight salty taste mixed with the aftertaste of the Johnnie Walker, Nell inhaled deeply through her nose, hollowing her cheeks around him. Gripping the back of her head, Henry tried to not force her too hard, as he began to guide her movement.

Happy to go along with what he needed to feel good, Nell allowed him control over her guidance. Her finger nails grazing the back of his thighs, she mentally checked the small victory when he threw his hips forward at the sensation of her wrapped around him and her nails on his skin.

“Good girl,” Henry mumbled, his head lulling back, his chest rising rapidly. “Keep it up, just like that. Oh shit,”

Nell's chest swelled a little, she could still make him feel good, even after all of this time apart. That was not something she would take lightly, even if this shouldn't be happening. Oh fuck, who cared? They were two consenting adults. Henry's legs quivered, his hands unsteady stroking the back of her head.

“Nell,”

“Hmm?” She glanced up at him. His face soft and his jaw slack, she could feel him tightening. The perfect time to stop her actions. “Not yet,” She smirked, wiping her hand across her chin, drool gone. “Fair is fair.”

“Jesus,” Henry grumbled. He had been so fucking close, the knot in the pit of his stomach clenched Slowing his breathing, he took a moment to think of anything else. Laundry? Running? How much longer until he had to renew his passport?

“Henry?”

“Yeah?” He snapped his head to look at Nell.

“Are we going to stand here all night, or...” She shrugged, a devious smirk on her face. Laying back on the bed, she curled her finger beckoning him to her.

“You're still sure about this?” Henry asked. His eyes on her, waiting to see if she had any hint of doubt or hesitation.

“I don't have a condom, but I'm clean. It's not like I'm getting pregnant, so....” If she were to get pregnant, there was going to be on hell of a hefty lawsuit against that surgeon.

“You're sure? I know that I'm...but I don't have.”

“if you don't want to, then I understand.”

“I do, though, but...”

Nell shook her head. “No buts. If you want me, then I'm yours.”

“Fuck, you're making this hard.”

Giggling, Nell glance down. “I think we're beyond things being hard.”

His body betraying him, Henry cleared his throat, she certainly had a point. Fuck it. What did they have to lose? Unless this, some how, came back to bite them. No, no he had to stop that. Give in, enjoy what was happening. It had been too long since he'd been able to watch her in such bliss. Bliss that he was responsible for.

“You're sure?”

Nell nodded siting up, opening her arms, “Come here.”

On the edge of the bed, Henry sighed, his large frame leaning into her. Nell held him for a moment, stroking his hair, the feel of his warmth against her sent shivers through her spine. Pushing him back on the bed, she bit her bottom lip, waiting for the go ahead. Henry gave her a slight nod, adjusting himself on the bed to get comfortable. Straddling his hips, Nell lifted herself to slowly take him.

Sheathing him inch by inch, Nell groaned at the fullness. This was her favourite part, taking him to the end, feeling him stretch her. Rocking her hips forward, she countered the motion sliding them back in the same tantalizing pace. Henry held her hips, pushing his up to meet her. Nell squeaked and giggled. She loved the way he hit all the right spots.

“You can touch me, don't be shy.” Nell winked, lifting her arms and crossing them above her head, allowing him a full view of her breasts. “Go on.” She encouraged.

His large hands cupping her breasts, Henry softly rolled her hardening nipples between his fingers, giving on a slight flick when she moved herself up on his length. Close to letting him slide out, she moved back down, her ass grinding against him.

The way her body moved against his was mesmerizing. Massaging her supple skin, from her breasts down her sides, one hand settling on her ass and the other on her hip. Henry loved the shape, even if she had changed a little since having Ivan. God she was stunning.

Hastening her pace, Nell rocked back and forth, up and down. Henry closed his eyes feeling every bit of movement, each clench. Taking in the sounds of her breathing, mixed with his, her small moans not going unnoticed.

“Henry,” She whispered, biting her bottom lip, leaning forward to touch her lips against his. “Please,”

Without having to be asked twice, he moved swiftly, turning them over to pin her beneath him. Nell sighed and stretched her arms over her head, the pull of her muscles caused another shiver. Her head now against the pillow, she reached, tracing the lines of his face with her fingertip.

“I don't know that I can be as slow as you were.” Henry nipped her finger. Holding back on his desire to pound her into the bed.

“Then don't.” Nell batted her eye lashes at him.

Somehow that was all he needed, that tiny bit of permission. Picking up the pace, Henry grunted. Nell moaned drawing her knees upward, allowing him an even better vantage to this position. As if the pent up emotions from the last few years, hours, minutes had been released the couple were lost in the sensation of skin on skin. The feeling of sparks and electricity coursing through them. Connecting them.

“Fuck, Janelle.” Henry hissed, his arm locked into position on either side of her head, keeping him from tumbling on top of her.

“Henry,” She squealed splaying her hands against his chest, tugging at the soft hairs. “Oh god. Please, don't stop. My god, oh fuck.”

“You are fucking amazing. Fuck, look at you.” Kissing her roughly, he sighed, steadying his pace. His hips slapping hers, Nell shook slightly her soft sobs of pleasure were enough to send him to an end.

Shaking with pleasure, Nell gasped trying to bring herself down from the high. Henry moaned, his head back and chest heaving. It had been a while since he had felt that good. Nell laid with her legs hooked around his thighs, no desire to move. Collapsing with his head on her chest, Henry allowed his body to rest. Sweaty and sticky, they laid tangled together. Neither one wanting to break the feeling.

Dosing in and out, Nell was the first to move. Her body growing heavy with Henry still on top of her. She needed to move, before seizing up. Pushing his head to the side, she giggled and kissed the tip of her nose when he lazily looked up.

“I need to pee,”

“Hmph.” Henry nodded, slowly rolling over. Allowing her to escape. Laying flat on the bed, while she scurried off to the bathroom, Henry pushed himself up off of the bed. He should be getting back to his parents, back to Ivan.

All thoughts of moving were squashed, when Nell came back, climbing in beside him. Her clothes still on the floor. Her body was comforting against his. “Hi,” she whispered, sliding in under his arm.

“Nell?” Henry laid with his arm around her shoulder.

“Huh?” Nell grunted, her face buried in his chest.

“I should head back.”

“If you want to. You can stay, I don't mind.” Nell yawned. Her eyes closing.

“Okay, but only for a little while.” Henry agreed, closing his eyes. In a few minutes, he would get up, shower, and head back.

With a start, Henry woke, a loud banging noise rattling him. Looking around the dark room, he squinted to find the source of the noise. Hearing someone whispering at a distance, Henry laid in bed, listening. Against him, Nell stirred, but didn't wake. Someone in the hall was talking, no doubt they had been the source of the banging. He had fell asleep, Nell wrapped against him.

Looking at his watch, Henry frowned. 4am. If he left right now, he could be back before anybody woke. If he left now, he risked Kal barking and waking the house. If he waited, he would risk walking in and having to explain himself to one or more person. Of course he could tell them that he'd ran into some old friends, had some drinks and stayed on a sofa somewhere. Too drunk to drive.

Shifting in bed, Nell sighed, her arm around his waist she snuggled in closer. She was content, who was Henry to try and disturb her sleep? He would wait an hour or two, before he made his departure. So what if he waltzed in, being faced by one of his brothers, or even his mother. He was an adult, if he wanted to stay out all night enjoying the company of a fantastic woman, then he would do just that.

Kissing the top of Nell's head, Henry smiled, sinking down further into the covers, closing his eyes.

Tag List Chat

[anjanettexcordonia]

Living Proof AU

Prologue: Heartbreak Hotel 

Book: The Royal Romance A/U

Masterlist

Rating/Triggers: Mature (18+); NSFW; some language; some suggestive content; infidelity 

Synopsis: Liam is the powerful, smooth, move heaven and earth for your happiness type of man. Drake is the brooding, mysterious, sweep you off your feet type of man. Opposites but best friends. Two sides of the same coin. 

What happens when two opposites fall in love with the same woman? 

Pairings: MC x Drake; MC x Liam; Drake x OC

Word count: 964 (+/-)

Song Inspiration: lie to me (feat. Ali Gatie) Tate McRae

A/N: Please excuse any grammatical errors. 

Disclaimer: Some characters & some scenes belong to Pixelberry. 

Tags: If you would like to be added or removed please let me know. 

PermaTags:  @yourmajesty09​ @gkittylove99​ @kingliam2019​ @texaskitten30​

Liam was the golden boy. The prince. Everyone loves him. Everyone cares about his happiness. He had it all. He lives in a god damn palace for crying out loud. A hair never out of place, custom designed Italian suits and every super car known to man, that was Prince Liam. Women batted their eyelashes and threw themselves at his Italian wingtips daily but Liam never looked at them twice. Growing up in the palace with torturous lessons and absentee parents would have hardened even the softest of hearts, but not Liam. Liam was kind and down to the Earth. He was trusting and hopeful. He was a double whammy. He could give you the world but also make you feel like you’re the only one in his world. 

Drake was the best friend. Professional best friend as the press liked to call him. He grew up alongside Liam but without the dripping opulence and the Aston Martins. His hair was disbelieved, denim button ups and manure caked boots were the limits to his fashion sense. He had faced the pointed fingers and the sneers from others at court. He was the hated commoner. The commoner who drank too much whiskey and rode on Liam’s shirt tails. Women didn’t throw themselves at him. Not the women he knew. He had a commoner education, the misplaced American. The misunderstood American. He was broody and angry never for any reason in particular, it was just who he was. He kept himself isolated from most people other than his close circle of friends. That’s the thing about Drake, he was a mystery. He would take a bullet for you and make you believe it was his fault. 

With Liam, the world was mine. With Drake, my feet never touched the ground.

Liam was a chance meeting. Serendipitous meet cute. We spent a night exploring New York City and falling in love. I fell fast and hard. I flew to a foreign country on the side of the world for a “maybe”. The landing was a soft fall from the heavens into the arms of a Cordonian God. 

Drake was a chance meeting too. He was with Liam that night in New York. It wasn’t serendipitous. He greeted me with annoyance and misunderstanding. I was a crown chaser like all the other women before me. We bonded over time. He was there when Liam wasn’t. I fell slow. Before I realized I was falling, I had already fell. It was too late. 

But they are best friends. Best friends since childhood. Bonded through their mutual experiences in their families. They were bonded over deaths of parents and attacks on their lives. Drake gave his future and life up to protect Liam. They were brothers, not by blood but by eternal friendship. A bond that could bend but never break. 

And then there is me. The lowly American. The girl that stole the princes’ heart. The girl with the shady past. The crown-chaser, the American harlot, the girl whose quick wit took his country by storm. The girl that the Prince offered that country too. The girl that watched her Prince become her King with another woman on his arm. The girl that fell into the arms of his best friend. That was the day my heart was torn in half.

And here we are. I am Queen of Cordonia. Married to my Cordonian God, the love of my life, King Liam. We share two beautiful children together. I am no longer the crown chaser with the shady past. We have a happy marriage and a happy life. I made a choice five years ago. I made a choice to leave the other half of my heart behind with the mysterious brooding best friend, the man now known as Uncle Drake. I made a choice not to destroy my life and Drake’s. But the pull remained between us. 

I couldn’t bear to break Liam’s heart, breaking Drake’s heart was the only solution. It was easier to watch him become a husband to someone else and father someone else’s children than it was to watch Liam ask someone else to marry him. Drake met Lindsay not long after Liam and I married. They married a year later. The smile on Liam’s face when Drake asked him to be his best man  made my heart store. 

Drake and Liam bonded over the birth of our daughter Ellie. And then again over Drake’s first child Jackson. The secrets between me and Drake had become buried so deep we nearly forgot it ever happened. 

                                                    Until now. 

Drake’s heavy breathing next to me makes me shudder and feel the shame I deserve to feel. The betrayal of my husband and his wife nestling deep within me. I shift in the bed of the hotel suite. Drake’s hotel suite. I reach for my dress from the night before from the crumpled heap beside the bed. The moonlight shining through the curtains is my only light as I frantically search for my belongings. 

I reached the door, Drake sat up from the bed as flung I the door open. My eyes widen at the sight before me. Liam sat on the floor. His back against the wall across from the hotel door. His blue eyes meet my brown eyes. Fear, panic, self loathing flash across my face answering every question Liam has. He slowly rose to his feet while I stood frozen in place. Drake reached the door behind me. 

The tears welled in Liam’s eyes. None of us spoke a single word. “Liam.. I…” I finally hear myself speak words. Liam shook his head letting a single run down his cheek. “Don’t Riley.” Liam bolted down the hallway as fast as his feet would carry him. 

[chasingpegasus]

Thoughts about mercedes shenanigans as of yesterday?

I only know that there's a controversy around their DRS wing and Max touched the car..

If Max gets penalized it will be ridiculous. I am actually surprised that there's a rule that you can't "inspect" a car. What does that mean? Seb's been inspecting cars in a very open manner for years. And everyone found it cute. Unless touching is the limit, all of a sudden.

When it comes to the DRS, if Mercedes broke the rules, they should be penalized, same as Aston Martin were when they didn't have the fuel (though in their case they did not do it on purpose because that would be stupid). In my opinion Mercedes are desperate to gain advantage every way possible. To me the DAS system was the sign that they started reaching for risky solutions (and they couldn't even rely on secret solutions anymore because maybe they ran out of possibilities for their car).

I don't like Toto, but it's highly subjective. Let's say, he wasn't very nice toward Mattia since 2019. Tried to humiliate him and turn Mattia's own team against him. So, I don't mind people lashing out at him, but usually it's all blown out of proportion. When you read his actual quotes, they are not exactly controversial. I hate when Mattia gets misquoted, and I wouldn't want to do it the same to other people (the difference is that Toto knows what he is doing, Mattia often says what he is advised to say and sometimes just states facts, which apparently is not correct when the facts are negative toward your own team).

I am curious to see how all those investigations will end.

But most of all, I just want Charles and Carlos to survive the start today and finish in good positions for tomorrow. That's all I care about.

[gamergirlss234]

Game Review : CSR Racing 2

INTRODUCTION

- As you know, the CSR racing game was invented on 11 June 2012, but the features of the game was not as good as the new one which is CSR 2. The CSR 2 had been invented on 30 June 2016. Which is a lot of features have been ugraded to recruit their cars more advance. Actually, the features between the two games are exactly the same but what can I explore in CSR 2, it has been improved a lot by detailing their graphics and it almost looks like a real car. So basically, playing CSR 2 is a lot more interesting and fun better than CSR 1.

-On the other hand, by setting a new standard in graphics for car games, CSR2 delivers hyper-real drag racing to the palm of your hand. This game is a celebration of cars in your pocket! Racing games have never been so real. CSR2 gives a lot of opportunities to let the players customize their cars, drag race against players around the world, and take over the city on our own, isn't that fantastic >>

-Futhermore, CSR2 has been upgraded into the best of the best. Thus, CSR2 you will also compete in races against live players across the world with your custom-built supercars, including LaFerrari, Koenigsegg One: 1, and many more. To be more precise in customizing your cars, you must tune and customize your rides for maximum speed and dominate the competition in global crew events. Indulge your passion for owning the latest and greatest cars on the planet. Unfortunately, other car games can’t compete. This is such an incredible chance to get real. You can also ultimately race games for free and start your collection and get to race.

- Therefore, about the greatest update that gives a lot of satisfaction for the audience which is their graphic features. CSR2 redefines what you thought possible in car racing games on your mobile device. They were using outstanding 3D rendering techniques, which is incredible, the game features the most beautiful and authentic supercars to date. I have been playing these games from CSR 1 to CSR2, and I do really love the changes that have been made all over the years. The csr2 racing game is really surprised me because it was really good and so detail until it really looks like a real car. The interesting part is, you can experience the greatest type of cars compare to the car in the first version. The car can be earned by winning the race and collect all the money from the race until we can afford to buy a new car and we also can upgrade the turbo, the grip, and Tyre. Based on my experience, in playing racing games, that one game that can get you to be real while playing it, is the CSR2 racing game, there are no racing games that don’t get any more real than this!

THE LATEST, GREATEST & HOTTEST CARS

-Moreover, you may also can collect the racing cars and supercars of your dreams to show them off in your huge warehouse garage .CSR2 features over 200 officially licensed vehicles from popular and renowned car manufacturers, including Ferrari, Porsche, Aston Martin, McLaren, Bugatti, Lamborghini, Pagani, and Koenigsegg. No other racing games can deliver the latest, fastest cars. I'm going to show you my entire garage that I have played before. I had bought a lot of cars and it is almost full in my garage and will going to open the second garage for my cars. Other than that, CSR2 lets you keep and buy a lot of cars that you wanted too, and the best part is there is no limit in owning as many of garage that you wanted to, isn't it interesting!!

This is my first garage so far:

I will summarize a few of the cars above for you guys:

TOYOTA 86

- If you wonder what cars that I have been collected over the month, the first car I drove from the start is the green one which is TOYOTA 86. Before that, this game has five levels of the car called a tier, so my first car for tier-one is TOYOTA 86, and this car is one of the fastest cars for my first tier. I rate this car 8/10 because it's good for tier 1 which is level one.

FERRARI 250 GTO

Next, is the most vintage car and I really love it!! It is called FERRARI 250 GTO. The best part about this vintage car is you will be going to win when it comes to long-distance but when it comes to short distance it will going to lose because it takes a lot of time for acceleration to the top speed, I used this car for my second tier.

MITSUBISHI LANCER EVOLUTION FINAL EDITION

- This car is for the tier 4. As can be seen, the car looks like an aggressive sporty car, and I also change the body kit at the front and the back car and yaw its hit different right!! This is the fastest car that I had played in this game. This car can really reach 300 km per hours for just 5 second!! I'm definitely rate this car 9/10!! This is so awesome.

HOW THE CSR2 GAME WORKS?

- Moreover, the cars available are split into tiers into the simple terms we called as level, there are five levels and you must beat crews to unlock each new tier, you can not only unlock the tiers but you also can get to unlock your favorite cars and the car that you interested too. The in-game currencies consist of two parts: dollars and gold. Dollars are relatively easy to obtain, by winning races and through special one-time deals where if you buy a certain vehicle the manufacturer supplies you with dollars for upgrades. Gold, however, is harder to earn and can only be obtained through leveling up, defeating bosses, every third daily battle. Both dollars and gold can also be bought with real money.

THE UNSATISFIED PART OF CSR2

- In other words, this game gives me joy and fun to play but still, there is something to be improved. From the first time I played this game, the matter that they have to improvise is the sound of the car's exhaust because all the cars have a really similar sound. Furthermore, this game has a really good and detailed graphic. I am sure it will rock this game more when we race. We have to spend 1 bar of fuel and from the start we play it, we just can carry 10 bars of fuel which means we just can have 10 races. To fill the bar of the fuel again, we have to wait for a few minutes for just 1 bar and that is what I think makes it annoying or maybe it will be boring to be waiting to play this game.

CONCLUSION

-Finally, CSR2 racing is just about winning the race and beat the crew and get an upgrade to buy a new car, a new garage and also do some changing on your car design or their body kit. Whenever I play this game, I feel the excitement is worth it. CSR2 racing game has a great graphic and the upgrade really makes the audience satisfied for their features and yeah. Indeed ,you also get to own your big garage and your dream car and collect it into your imagination garage. I don’t know but somehow this game has made me feel like a dream come true, again imagine owning the only car that you have been dreaming all the time even it is just a simulation but it had made a huge impact on me and the audience.

[meaningofmotorsport]

British Grand Prix Preview

With the weekend being set out rather differently this time around, my preview can now encompass the results of qualifying, which turned out to be a thrilling session, with many storylines as we go into a very different Saturday!

Mercedes needed to bounce back here, to stop the string of results for Red Bull, and in qualifying at least they did just that, as Hamilton used the upgrades to perfection, to start 1st for the sprint race! Despite the huge gap to Verstappen in FP1, the Mercedes in the hands of Lewis, had a pace advantage over Max it seems, as his first lap in Q3 was good enough to take 1st. Due to the different weekend layout, we have not really seen any race runs yet, so can’t determine who will do better in both races. I suspect it will be close, so the first lap will be as important as ever! Bottas was within 2 tenths of Hamilton, which is very strong for him, and puts him in prime position to pressure Max tomorrow. With where their two cars start, Mercedes have to be favourites to take the wins, especially with the home advantage behind Lewis!

It looked rather scary after FP1 for most of the field, as Verstappen was almost a second ahead of everyone else! However, he just couldn’t get the front tyres to work in qualifying, maybe as a result of the cooling conditions, so that mixed with the gains from their rivals, meant they didn’t quite have enough today, to snatch the top spot! It isn’t all lost though, as Max should have two chances to gain a spot off the line, and with his aggressive style of racing, you wouldn’t put it past him to do just that! Perez did the 4th  fastest time in Q3, but the lap was deleted for track limits, so he ends up 5th which still isn’t that bad. If he can clear Leclerc in the sprint race, he will be back where he should be for the main race, and can be a factor in helping his teammate! In fact, Perez could be one of the biggest beneficiaries of having two races this weekend, as long as he can pass the Ferrari!

Talking of Ferrari, they need to get one up on McLaren soon, as the triple header allowed the British team to retake that 3rd place in the constructors! Leclerc has set himself up well to do just that, starting 4th, ahead of both McLaren’s, although I am sure it won’t be easy to keep them behind. He did go well here last year, so if he can do another miracle with tyre saving, it could help the team hugely! Sadly, the one lap that Sainz didn’t quite put it all together on, was the most important lap, as he had been pretty much matching Charles’ pace all weekend. He only has Russell between him and the McLaren’s though, so it isn’t a disaster, and maybe he can use the two races to his advantage too!

Even though the team was founded by an Aussie, McLaren is considered to be British, with its base here just outside London. Plus, with an English driver, they are hoping to use all the home advantage they can to limit the losses to Ferrari, or even gain on them! It has been hard to determine where their race pace is at certain tracks compared to qualifying, as we have seen sometimes, they qualify badly, but then have blistering pace in the race, and then at Austria, it was kind of the opposite! I think they will stay about where they are at least, but could come under threat from Sainz behind!

I can’t believe how high up I can justifiably put Williams in this preview! That is because Russell had another incredible qualifying, showing he isn’t just good on a Saturday! Getting 8th on a tricky track like this, which requires everything from the car, shows how good both car and driver are becoming! The one thing that is hard to decide on, is whether the two race format will help or hinder him! On the one hand, it could give him two chances to make moves off the start, as he has said he will be aggressive, yet we have seen before that his opening laps can be a struggle, so it could also ruin his weekend. Let’s hope for the former, but either way, whatever happens, he is doing all he can to deserve a seat at Mercedes!

As usual Aston Martin and Alpine are sitting on the edge of the top ten, and will likely be using strategy to attempt to get some points from the weekend. They may even go bold in the sprint race, to try and get into the points for the main race! Aston Martin will be more likely to get points, as they usually race better than they qualify, whereas Alpine normally stay about where they start! Ocon was beaten again by Alonso, although he did look on better form this weekend, just couldn’t put it together in Q2.

Alpha Tauri are having a tough weekend, Gasly is normally a star over one lap, but was unable to reach the top 10, and in the competitive mid field, scoring points may be a tall ask for him! Tsunoda is having a really difficult time it seems, as his pace is well off where it should be! I just hope he gets the support he needs, rather than being another driver axed by the harsh Red Bull academy!

Alfa Romeo and Haas are unlikely to benefit from this new format, as they don’t even seem to have the pace to do something different and grab some points! We are seeing some improvements from Haas, especially in qualifying, as Mick gets nearer to that Q2 cut off time!

It felt very surreal to have qualifying on a Friday evening, and I am sure it will be the same today with the sprint race. That being said, it is good to try something new, and is at least refreshing, I am still not convinced about keeping it full time, but we could learn some things from this weekend, to improve the show moving into the future!

-M

Thank you very much for reading this article! To keep up to date with when they go out, and to see my reactions to races and other news, follow me on Twitter at: https://twitter.com/MeaningofMotor1

Also, if you want to support me, I have a Patreon Page at: https://www.patreon.com/meaningofmotorsport

[janelizziemarykittylydia-blog]

Shattered Glass Smiles, Chapter 3

Finally (finally) got around to posting this!! Due to vacation drama and a house without wifi, updating was a little difficult, but I’m back now and I’ll (hopefully) be posting more regularly! :D

Thank so much to all notes & comments! You guys are all absolutely amazing! <3 <3 <3

Synopsis:  In which the year is 1959, Feyre is engaged to Senator Tamlin Greene, and Rhysand is the head of a notorious mafia dynasty called the Night Court.

AO3

CHAPTER 1, CHAPTER 2

-3-

“Bulls, Bullshit, and a Dog Named Bryaxis”

I said the words—I accept, sitting in my dressing room, staring at my mirror.

I didn’t know what I’d expected. My experience with Rhysand Black, however limited, should have taught me not to expect anything: Rhysand was an unpredictable maelstrom, a sparking electrical wire; a fistful of clouds holding thunder.

But after I sealed my fate in a thick manila envelope (I accept, I accept, I accept), Rhysand only replied, “Tomorrow. Metropolitan Museum of Art, front entrance, nine am.”

And hung up.

I rung again—give me more details, what the hell—but he didn’t pick up. Likely he knew it was me, and he wanted to preserve his air of mystique.

Fucking Rhysand and his fucking dramatics.

The night Tamlin hit me, I didn’t go back to bed with him. I’d forgiven, but not forgotten: a cut marred my cheek from where it had hit the doorframe, and while last night might have been the first time Tam struck me, it was not the first time he left bruises on my body.

Tamlin loved me, and his temper was a volatile thing, not so much a product of true malignant intent as a short gunpowder fuse. But it was hard, sometimes, to remember his gentleness when all I could see when I looked in the mirror was a forget-me-not bruise on my cheekbone and a bandage near my eye.

I opened the window above my vanity and lit a cigarette, chain-smoking until dawn.

At seven in the morning, I came back to bed smelling like an ashtray. If Tamlin noticed, he didn’t say a word.

He kissed me goodbye as he left for work, whispering I love you in my ear.

“I love you, too,” I said, and wondered why the words, too, tasted of ash.

***

I’d never been to the Met. I grew up in Boston, and I’d been to museums there, though rarely, but despite my months in New York City, I had never traveled the handful of blocks to the museum.

Back in April, I would have been thrilled. Now I hoped to God Rhysand didn’t ask me to go inside, where portraits would hiss accusations.

I sat on the front steps in the pouring rain, inhaling exhaust and cigarette smoke, as an elegant Aston Martin pulled up to the curb.  Someone opened the door, and Rhysand stepped out, wearing a Cheshire-Cat grin.

It faded when he caught sight of me, in my too-loose clothes and my ratty hair, bandaged and bruised.

“You don’t have an umbrella,” he said. “You’re soaked.”

“Afraid I’m going to ruin your upholstery?”

Rhysand smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. His gaze fastened on my Band-Aid. “Get into a bar brawl last night?”

“Tumbled down the stairs.”

“And hit your cheek? Must have been some fall.”

“It was.” I turned my attention toward the road. “Where are we going? I’ assume we’re not actually entering the Met, unless you’re planning to case the place.”

“No,” he said. “I’m not going to steal a Rembrandt, though it’s something to shelve for a later date.”

“Christ,” I muttered.

Rhysand popped open the passenger door, sliding into the driver’s seat. “Get in.”

Part of me wanted to protest—wanted to fight back, and kick, and scream—but that part of me fell quiet, muted by the residual pain in my chest and cheek and chin.

I got in the car.

Rhysand gave me a weighted look as merged the car into the center lane, his lips twisting downward.

A pack of cigarettes sat on the center console, grabbing my attention. “Can I have one?” I asked, reaching for the box.

“No smoking in my car.”

“Why do you have a pack of Lucky Strikes in here, then?”

“Those aren’t my cigarettes; they’re my friend’s,” Rhysand clarified, taking a right. “Nobody smokes in my car.”

But my attention had snagged on another detail. “You have friends?”

“Ha, ha,” he said dryly. “Your witticisms never fail to charm me. But yes, I do have friends, and I don’t smoke.”

“Bullshit. Everybody smokes.”

“Not me.” A cabbie slammed their fist on the horn, and Rhysand flipped them off.

“Why not?” I knew I should be pressing the real question—where the hell were we going—but I couldn’t remember the last time I had met someone that abstained from nicotine, aside from the prissy girls in the ladies’ social groups Tamlin constantly egged me to join.

“Don’t like the smell,” he said, turning down an avenue lined with elegant brownstones and sodden pedestrians.

“I repeat: bullshit.”

He shrugged. “I’ll tell you the whole story sometime, if you want to hear it,” he said. “But not right now.”

“Next time?” I stared at him. “This is a one-shot deal.”

“Is it?” He slammed on the brakes as a little girl crossed the sidewalk, hop-scotching through pothole puddles, splashing her skirt. Her mother hurried after her, wet and scowling. “A heist takes more than one meeting to accomplish, you know.”

“A heist?”

“A coup. A caper, pilferage, act of flawless larceny.”

“Thanks for the Thesaurus. I was more concerned with the fact that I’m involved with a heist.”

“What did you think you’d be doing? You’re working with me, after all.”

“Candyass.”

“Such vulgar slang,” he mused, sounding completely unbothered. “What will prospective voters think?”

“Fuck you.”

“If that’s a proposition—”

My lips grew white. “It was not,” I said. “I would rather fuck a wall.”

“Sounds anatomically improbable,” Rhysand said, “but be my guest.”

I counted to ten silently in my head. When that didn’t work, I tried counting to fifty.

“I have a question,” Rhysand said, somewhere around thirty-three. “Yesterday, you refused to go anywhere that wasn’t a public setting in broad daylight with me. This morning, you didn’t care if you got into my car. Why?”

“We made a deal.”

“As you so eloquently put,” he drawled, “bullshit. We had a deal yesterday, too.”

“I still have a gun in  my pocket,” I reminded him. “And I still know how to shoot.”

“Again, you had a gun yesterday, too.”

“Enough.”

“I’m just—”

“Maybe,” I interrupted, “I was tired of not being able to trust anyone, alright?”

Rhysand’s mouth closed with an almost-audible snap, momentarily startled into silence.

I didn’t say anything else, jaw working.

“You can trust me, Feyre,” Rhys said at last, voice oddly hoarse. “I may be an ass, but we made a deal. I won’t hurt you. I swear on my sister’s grave.”

And it was that—that last bit—that snagged.

Sister’s grave.

I didn’t know Rhys had a sister.

Then again, I didn’t know much about Rhysand at all.

Biologically, Rhysand had to have a family, but it was difficult to picture this broken boy with the bloodstained hands with a mother that read him bedtime stories at night. Then again, more often than not mothers were not around to read bedtime stories. My own mother had been too busy hosting dinner parties and downing whole bottles of champagne, taking spoonfuls ladanum at night that had less to do with aching joints and more to do with a love for opiates that drowned away the world.

I didn’t reply. I just—looked at him. Sister’s grave, indeed.

“I’m taking you to a shooting range,” Rhys said, hands flexing on the wheel, easing away from treacherous waters that stung when pressed to our scars. “I’d like to know how accurate that aim of yours really is.”

***

The shooting range, as it turned out, was a private structure on the outskirts of an estate in upstate New York—an estate that belonged to Rhysand.

We drove through the Bronx, past crumbling tenements and clouds of sewage that hit too close to home, and into Westchester, driving north for about two hours.

Neither of us spoke. Raindrops slipped down the window, tires squealed on asphalt; chipmunks darted across the sidewalk.

Rhysand wound through a series of turns that led us onto smaller and smaller lanes, until he eased onto a tiny one-lane dirt road, following hand-painted signs. Stark, leafless maple trees wove a net above us, casting dappled shadows onto the seats.

The rain had stopped. The world was quiet.

“Where are we?” I asked.

“One of my homes,” he answered.

“Homes. Plural.”

“My line of work,” he said wryly, “is very lucrative.”

I rose a brow. “Crime does pay, apparently.”

“Not for petty criminals,” he allowed, “but for me, yes. Quite a bit.”

He turned a left, and I opened my mouth, about to speak, but found myself suddenly incapable of words.

I had never thought about Rhysand Black’s house before, but the connotation brought images of blood-stained doors and Anne Boleyn’s head on a pike to mind.

But this—

This was—

The trees parted, revealing a quaint sage-green farmhouse, shutters painted black, flower boxes overflowing with wilted yellow mums. A weathervane swayed on the shingled roof, and in the rolling hills stretching out behind the farmhouse, I caught glimpses of a white barn, chicken coop, and goat pen.

A dog sprawled out on the deck. It lifted its head when Rhysand yanked the key out of the ignition, putting the car into park.

“This can’t be your house,” I said.

“No?” He stepped out of the car, and the dog jumped to its feet, bolting over. It was enormous, big enough for a small child to ride, and shaggy. Rhysand grinned, kneeling on the ground to pet the beast.

“This is—domestic,” I sputtered. “You’re the head of a goddamned crime syndicate. This can’t be your house.”

“I don’t typically take business here,” he said dryly, kissing the top of the dog’s head.

I stared, quite certain I was hallucinating. Rhysand Black did not kiss dogs. He just—didn’t. That was something normal people did. Normal people, with souls and fully-functioning hearts.

“Why the hell am I here, then? Aren’t I business?”

Rhysand reached into his pocket, pulling out a dog treat (did he just walk around with little biscuits in his pocket? What kind of alternate universe had I stumbled into?). “Sit,” he told the dog solemnly.

The dog sat.

“Roll over.”

The dog rolled over.

“Good boy,” he crooned, allowing the dog to snap up the treat, woofing joyfully, tail batting Rhysand’s legs.

“Rhysand,” I said in a warning tone.

“Feyre,” he mimicked. He rubbed the dog’s belly.

“Where are we?”

“I told you,” he said. A gust of wind swept over the grass, tossing up the collar of his peacoat and tousling his hair, black strands falling over his forehead. His skin had gotten darker since I’d seen him last May, no longer an unnatural alabaster, but a deep, rich caramel. “We’re at one of my homes.”

I just looked at him, uncomprehending.

He got to his feet, brushing off trampled blades of grass. “This is where I grew up,” he said. “Before my father started my training.”

I blinked. For such a simple statement, my mind spun with the influx of information—Rhys had grown up in a place like this, a boy once, perhaps with a sister. And his father had trained him. For what? His current business?

Surely not.

Unless…

“Bryaxis, heel,” Rhysand said, whistling. The dog—Bryaxis—trotted to his feet, tongue lolling. I was beginning to reconsider my initial observation; I wasn’t even sure if the beast at Rhysand’s side could be qualified as a dog. It came up to Rhysand’s waist—Rhysand, who was almost six-foot-four, towering well over Tamlin. The creature was a blob of dark fur and claws and fangs, a jaw strong enough to bite a person’s hand right off.

“What the fuck kind of breed is that?” I said, staring at the monster.

“I don’t know,” Rhysand said, completely unbothered. “Bryaxis came from a litter of my father’s bitch. I don’t know what her heritage was, and I don’t remember the sire.”

I narrowed my eyes at Bryaxis. He narrowed his eyes back at me.

I’d never had a pet before, barring the stray cat with rabies that wandered around our neighborhood in Boston, coined Scrunch by my sister Elain. Still, I knelt on the ground, holding my hand out. Waiting.

Something like surprise flickered across Rhysand’s features. Bryaxis trotted over, sniffing cautiously, and I pet the top of his head. He rubbed up against me, fur surprisingly soft.

“He doesn’t usually like strangers,” Rhysand said, looking at me oddly.

“Of course he doesn’t,” I said. “I can only imagine what kind of riffraff you subject him to.”

He laughed, the sound sudden and startled, and I smiled—genuinely smiled, even if just a little, more at Bryaxis than anyone else, for the first time in… God, in weeks.

The smile pulled at the cut on the corner of my eye, and I winced, pressing my fingers to my forehead.

Rhysand stopped laughing.

I had the sudden, irrational urge to cry, and I didn’t know why.

“Can I see?” he said.

“What?”

“Your cheek,” he said. “Beneath the bandage.”

I rose my hand to the scabby skin, uncomprehending. “See it? Why?”

“To make sure you’re all right,” he said. “If it hurts when you smile, whatever it is, it should probably be cleaned.” He frowned. “You did clean it, right?”

This time I was the one that laughed, a horrible, rusty sound. “I cleaned it,” I said. “Put some whiskey on a cloth and slapped it on the cut. Don’t worry.” I got to my feet, pointedly ignoring how Rhysand stiffened. “Where’s this shooting range? Point the way.”

He didn’t move. “Feyre.”

“Point the way,” I repeated, this time with vitriol. “Let’s go.”

Rhysand looked like he might say something else, but at the last minute, he shut his mouth and nodded. Still, something lurked in his eyes—something raw.

I didn’t know why. It wasn’t as if he cared.

“Lead the way,” I said again, gesturing before me.

He did.

***

The hills around the farmhouse might have appeared smooth and unobtrusive, but they were not. I struggled in the squelching mud, heels sinking into the grass.

“Motherfucker,” I said, not for the first time.

“Language,” said Rhysand mildly, also not for the first time.

“Climb it, Tarzan,” I retorted, shoving ahead.

I reached the top of another hill, Bryaxis before us, sniffing the ground and occasionally wrenching a poor vole or mouse out of the thicket in his jaws, and stopped in my tracks.

“Here we are,” Rhysand said, barely an inch from my elbow.

I would have moved, but it was cold, and he was warm, and my coat was too thin.

The shooting range sprawled out before us, unofficial and makeshift but still clearly functional. A row of targets stretched out for about twenty feet, each pocketed with holes. A locked shed was shoved off to the side, presumably containing an array of weaponry.

Rhysand leaned against the trunk of a stark, massive ash tree, arms crossed. “After you, Feyre darling.”

“You know,” I said, pulling out my pistol, “I’ve been wondering. Why do you care about my aim’s accuracy?”

“For my business purposes, of course.”

“Right,” I said. “So I’ll need to know how to shoot for the job I’m assisting you with.”

“Correct.”

I clicked off the safety. “I will not shoot a living being, Rhysand.”

“If you’re as good of a shot as you claim, you should be able to aim for the kneecaps,” he pointed out.

I lifted my hands, steadying my stance, and shot.

A perfect hole appeared in the middle of the target. Rhysand straightened a bit.

“You saw me,” I said quietly. “On the floor of that cellar.” An ear-splitting pop, and another circle appeared in the target, no more than a centimeter from the first. “You watched that bitch give me the knife, and”—pop—“you watched their blood pool on the floor.”

Pop, pop, pop.

Funny, how it always came back to me here, fingers wrapped around a gun that I detested but carried out of  necessity and the scars that, unlike the cut on my cheek, would never fade.

Memories flickered in my peripheral vision, me at—

Fourteen, slapping cash down on the counter and getting a little pea-shooter in return,

Fourteen and a half, shooting Coca-Cola bottles in the backyard as Nesta watched from the porch, smoking and silent, Elain covering her ears inside,

Fifteen, when a man shoved me up against the wall on the way home from the club, and I pressed the gun to his belly and told him to go fuck himself,

Sixteen, when I hit all the Coca-Cola bottles on my first shot,

Nineteen, when Tamlin took me away, and I put the gun inside a box and threw away the key,

Nineteen and a half, when they grabbed me off the street,

Nineteen and a half again, when I smashed open the box that held my gun and pressed it to my chest, sobbing and weeping and damaged irreparably.

Pop, pop, pop.

I lowered my gun, chest heaving.

Holes peppered the target, each within the bull’s-eye.

“No more,” I said. “No more blood.”

Rhysand didn’t even look surprised. He flicked his gaze between me and the target, as if he’d expected all along that I could walk my talk, that I was made of sterner stuff than Tamlin or Lucien thought.

Slowly, he nodded.

“And,” I added, “I have more bullets left in here, so don’t even think about trying anything.”

“I thought we moved past that.”

I put on the safety and slid it into my pocket. “You can never be too careful.”

“I think the word you’re looking for is paranoia, Feyre darling.”

“Stop calling me that.”

“What? ‘Feyre’?”

“No.” I gritted my teeth. “Darling.”

Rhys smiled at me. “Why? Is it Tamlin’s pet name for you?” His tone turned mocking, and I bristled.

“No. Tam and I don’t have pet names.”

“How disappointing.”

I scowled at him. “Why do you even care about Tamlin, anyway? It’s not as if our relationship has anything to do with you.”

In a blink, the carefree, joking Rhysand vanished, replaced by a creature even more feral than Bryaxis curled up by his feet. “Doesn’t have anything to do with me,” he repeated, so lethal that I flinched.

“Yes,” I said. “You don’t care.”

Rhysand’s lip curled. “Don’t tell me what I do or do not care about, Feyre. As it just so happens, I don’t particularly enjoy finding you soaking wet on the steps of the Met, pale and bruised to hell.”

“Tamlin has nothing to do with my bruises.”

“Lovely little liar.”

Something inside of me broke in half, cracking with the echo of a broken twig. “I am not your pet project, Rhysand,” I snapped. “I don’t need your pity, and I sure as hell don’t want whatever your twisted definition of care is. I’ll work with you, because I made a deal, but my personal life is none of your concern.”

Rhysand’s face had gone blank, wiped clean. “Fine.”

“Fine.” I stomped back up the hill. “Let’s get out of here. I want to go home.”

He didn’t say a word, but started up the hill after me, Bryaxis loping alongside him. This time, the dog stayed far from my feet.

***

While we made our way through the hills, I paused atop a grassy knoll, Rhysand a few yards in front of me.

Far off, buried in heather and knee-high grass, I caught a hint of carved marble—a gravestone, nestled between the hills, with an angel mounted on top. All I could see from here were the wings.

I swear on my sister’s grave.

Perhaps in a different world Rhysand Black and I might have found common ground, shared in heartbreak and sisters that were no longer in our lives—either through death, or other reasons. Perhaps in a different world I would not know how to shoot, and I could close my eyes at night without hearing the woman scream.

But that was not this world, and I, at least, had too many sharp edges, broken and battered as I was. Anyone that touched me drew blood on their own skin, spilling a trail of poppies through the snow.

***

The second Rhysand and I reached the farmhouse, he started cursing, fluently and expansively.

I stepped around him, alarmed. Three cars were parked in what passed for a driveway: a low-slung cherry-red Cadillac convertible, a glossy black Ferrari, and a nondescript blue BMW.

“What the—” I started, just as a piercing shriek sliced through the air.

“CASSIAN ILLYRIA! GET BACK HERE!”

Rhysand lunged, slamming me to the ground. I had only a second to absorb the scent of jasmine and citrus and the warmth of his body, swearing, as—

As a man came bolting through the drive of the farmhouse, clinging onto the horns of a bucking, braying bull, screeching at the top of his lungs. Rhysand had pinned me down to avoid being flattened.

A few other people ran after the man—a blonde-haired woman that looked vaguely familiar and another nutmeg-skinned man—a petite woman sauntering behind them, laughing with a slender cigarette dangling from an ivory holder wedged between her fingers.

“HELP ME!” the man on the bull hollered.

The petite woman laughed even harder.

“What the hell,” I said, wheezing under Rhysand’s weight, just as the bull flung the man off its ass, directly into a dense thicket of trees.

The cow bolted off, and the thicket rustled, the man rising from the grass, leaves and twigs in his hair. He vomited into the bushes as the blonde-haired woman and nutmeg-skinned man hurried after him, shouting expletives.

“I’m fine,” the man said, before promptly pausing to vomit again.

Rhysand pushed himself off me, face in his hands.

“Feyre,” he said, voice muffled, “meet my family.”

Send me prompts! <3

[torentialtribute]

Sportsmail’s pundits and reporters make their new season predictions

The Premier League is finally back and it promises to be another exciting season at both ends of the table.

Manchester City has just deposed Liverpool in a cat and mouse title last season, but it could easily be a reversed role this time.

Then there is the fight for the other two Champions League spots with Arsenal Chelsea Tottenham and Manchester United fight it out.

At the bottom, such as Sheffield United, Norwich, Brighton Aston Villa and Newcastle are probably in aerial combat to prevent relegation.

The Sportsmail team made their choices for the coming season.

Manchester City won the Premier League last season – but can they defend the title?

JAMIE REDKNAPP

Champions – Liverpool

Rest of the top four – Man City, Tottenham, Chelsea

Relegated – ] Norwich, Sheffield United, Brighton

FA Cup – Chelsea

League Cup – Tottenham

Promoted – Fulham, West Brom, Leeds

Champions League – Man City

I expect another one tight two-horse race for this title, but this time I think Liverpool has a head start on Manchester City.

The reason for this is that Pep Guardiola has lost Vincent Kompany, while Jurgen Klopp has Virgil van Dijk, the best defender in the world. The 28-year-old is a leader at the back of Liverpool and can prove the difference.

Yet City fans will be happy to know that I support Guardiola to lead them to the glory in the Champions League – a competition that we know they want to win.

I then went to Tottenham and Chelsea to finish third and fourth respectively.

Virgil van Dijk becomes the colossus of Liverpool again at the back while fighting on different fronts

MARTIN KEOWN

[1945902] Champions – Liverpool

Rest of the top four – Man City, Tottenham, Chelsea

Relegated – Newcastle, Norwich, Sheffield United

FA Cup – Tottenham

League Cup – Man City

Promoted – Leeds, Cardiff, Fulham

Champions League – Man City

I went to Liverpool last year in my predictions and although they were not completely crossed could come, they will be stronger for the experience.

Manchester City will of course be strong, but Vincent Kompany's departure is a huge blow to them. When the run-up to the next season takes place, City has no sky-high influence.

There is pressure on City to finally win the Champions League after a shortage in Europe in each of the three Pep Guardiola campaigns.

Liverpool will be even more determined to win the title and I support them to get the job done.

Manchester City could miss the influence of Vincent Kompany both on and off the field miss

CHRIS SUTTON

[1945902] Champions – Man City

Rest of the top four – Liverpool, Tottenham, Arsenal

Downgraded – Sheffield United, Brighton, Aston Villa

FA Cup – Man City

League Cup – Manchester United

Promoted – Cardiff, Fulha m, West Brom

Champions Leag eu – Liverpool

Manchester City is ruthless. They've lost Vincent Kompany, but with their power in depth and consistency that they showed last season, it's hard to look beyond City.

So Liverpool may miss the title again, but I support them to win the second consecutive Champions League. Tottenham and Arsenal must then complete the top four.

Chelsea can struggle to be competitive, considering that they have lost Eden Hazard, have an embargo transfer above them and are working with a new boss in Frank Lampard.

The same goes for Manchester United – there's just too much turbulence in Old Trafford.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer & # 39; s Manchester United has strengthened, but it can be a difficult season

PETER CROUCH

Champions – Manchester City

Rest of the top four – Liverpool, Tottenham, Chelsea

Relegated – Brighton, Sheffield United, Aston Villa

FA Cup – Tottenham

League Cup – Leicester

Promoted – West Brom, Leeds and Derby

Champions League – Juventus

How Liverpool spent last season at Manchester City was remarkable. I hope the title race is another fantastic shootout between two teams that I enjoy watching.

They are both so much better than the rest. If City fails, the Klopp team benefits. However, I don't think City will falter.

The only thing I can see stumbling is if they pursue the Champions League, the competition that Pep Guardiola wants more than anything.

The Manchester City side of Pep Guardiola can stumble at home if they focus on winning in Europe

IAN LADYMAN

[1945902] Champions – Manchester City

Rest of the top four – Liverpool, Arsenal, Tottenham

Relegated – Newcastle, Norwich, Sheffield United

FA Cup – Liverpool

League Cup – Manchester City

[1 9459020] Promoted – Leeds, Fulham, Cardiff

Champions League – Liverpool

It's a tough job this season to choose the champions, so close the top two last time. What is less difficult to say is that City and Liverpool will be streets for the rest again.

I see no real improvement from Chelsea, Tottenham and certainly not from Manchester United. Maybe Arsenal will find another level to compete with Tottenham again, but the real fight is at the top.

I chose City to win it just because of math. Can Liverpool really collect 97 points again? I would say that is unlikely.

That means City must be considerably worse than last season to give up their title and I just can't see that happen.

Others on this page have reported the loss of Vincent Kompany in City, but injuries limited his influence during the last two years of his team at Etihad and Pep Guardiola won the League both times.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will once again be the key to delivering the goals for Arsenal

RIATH AL-SAMARRAI

[1945902] Champions – Manchester City

Rest of the top four – Liverpool, Tottenham, Manchester United

Relegated – Brighton, Burnley, Sheffield United

FA Cup – Tottenham

League Cup – Liverpool Liverpool

]

Promoted – Leeds, Fulham, West Brom

Champions League – [1 9459010] Manchester City

[1 9459002] Not much change in the top four, although I feel like Manchester United to take the last place. Chelsea has lost their best player at a time when their hands are equal and Arsenal squadron is not that much, so I would expect United to capitalize.

Impressed by the affairs in Norwich and Aston Villa, which may make them safe, assuming they have not changed too quickly. Half-chic Manchester City impresses Europe.

They continue to strengthen and will pay off in the Champions League.

It remains to be seen how Paul Pogba gets along after failing to leave Male United

CRAIG HOPE

[1945902] Champions – Manchester City

[1945902] Rest of the top four – Liverpool, Spurs , Manchester United

Relegated – Sheffield United, Norwich, Brighton

FA Cup – Liverpool

League Cup – Manchester City

Promoted – Cardiff, Fulham, West Brom

Champi us League – Liverpool

[194959002] Liverpool, I fear, will struggle to replicate their brilliant form of competition from last season, but will be successful in the cups, given their ability to reach the big opportunity.

Defending their European crown could become the priority as the season progresses, especially if City is too strong in the competition. I expect they will at least reach the last four of the Champions League.

As for the others, you cannot see Spurs, United, Chelsea or Arsenal approaching the top two.

None of them have bought enough this summer to bridge the gap and it will be a case of United, Chelsea and Arsenal who are scraping it for fourth place as it becomes tradition.

Jurgen Klopp & # 39; s Liverpool may have difficulty replicating last season's Premier League form

SAMI MUGGLES

Champions – Liverpool

Rest of the top four – Man City, Tottenham, Chelsea

Relegated – Norwich, Newcastle, Sheffield United

FA Cup – Man City

League Cup – Tottenham

Promoted – We st Brom, Fulham, Brentford

Champions League – Barcelona

Li pool has not been significantly strengthened, but the return of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, in combination with the desperation of Manchester City to win the Champions League, Jurgen Klopp could just give the extra few points they need to drag Pep Guardiola & # 39; s champions to the post.

Arsenal will insist hard on a top-four place in a summer of substantial investment – but expects the Champions League qualifications to remain the same. Elsewhere, traces back to put an end to their trophy drought.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is finally back to Liverpool and can make the difference

MATT BARLOW

Champions – Man City

Rest of the top four – Liverpool, Spurs, Arsenal

Degraded – Norwich, Brighton, Sheffield United

FA Cup – Spurs

League Cup – Man City

Promoted – Cardiff, Leeds, West Brom

Champions League – Man City

It's hard to end the domination by Man City. An important part of Guardiola & # 39; s genius is the ability to motivate and inspire his team to develop a relentless appetite for trophies year after year.

They were strengthened while Liverpool was hit harder than most by summer football, with the Champions League final, AFCON & Copa America.

Expecting Spurs to benefit from an established house, Arsenal has room for improvement because they score goals and cannot get much worse at the back.

Difficult task for Lampard at Chelsea without signings and no Eden Hazard and further recruitment needed at Man United before they have the balance in the team to be back where they belong.

Harry Kane and Allele celebrate during the Tottenham competition in Everton last season

DOMINIC KING

Champions – Manchester City

Rest of the top four – Liverpool, Tottenham, Chelsea

[1945902] Relegated – ] Sheffield United, Norwich City, Brighton

FA Cup – Manchester City

League Cup – Leicester

Promoted – Fulham, Leeds, Middlesbrough

Champions League – Lever pool

It's not a surprising choice to choose Manchester City as title winners, but they just have too much power in the depth. They may have lost Vincent Kompany, but that is compensated by Kevin's return from Bruyne.

Jurgen Klopp expects Liverpool to start slowly and if City can lay daylight between itself and the pursuers by Christmas, they will not be caught. Liverpool finds compensation in the Champions League

The record of Jurgen Klopp in the competition is remarkable and what they did in the semi-final with Barcelona last year will scare off the opponents who come to Anfield.

Meanwhile, a word about Leicester: Brendan Rodgers will have his team on the hunt for the top six. Manchester United and Arsenal are vulnerable and Leicester looks best to capitalize. They are set for an excellent campaign.

Brendan Rodgers and his Leicester have the potential to break in the top six this season

ADRIAN KAJUMBA

[1945902] Champions – Manchester City

[1945902] Rest of the top four – Liverpool, Tottenham, Arsenal

Downgraded – Brighton, Sheffield United, Norwich

FA Cup – Manchester City

]] League Cup – Manchester City

Promoted – Fulham, Le eds, Cardiff

Champions League – Barcelona

Manchester City are all good. Very good And too good for the rest.

Liverpool had their best Premier League season ever, their fair share of fortune en route, and it was still not enough last season. Now City is even better.

Rodri's arrival gives them a much-needed alternative and long-term replacement for Fernandinho, while Angelino's return means they also have adequate back cover.

Taking Tottenham from Tanguy Ndombele alone, along with no unrest in the stadium, should give them a chance to push Liverpool all the way. The fourth place is up for grabs – a fight between Chelsea, which will be a happier camp under Frank Lampard, Arsenal and Manchester United.

Tanguy Ndombele could be one of the signing sessions of the season for Tottenham

CHRIS WHEELER

[1945902] Champions – Man City

Rest of the top four – Tottenham, Liverpool, Man United

Relegated – Sheffield United, Norwich, Brighton

FA Cup – Liverpool

League Cup – ] Man City

Promoted – Leeds, West Brom, Cardiff

Champions League – Juventus

After them In the dual title race of the season, it is difficult to see the rest of the Premier League close the gaping gap between Manchester City and Liverpool.

The challenge for City was to keep the title for the first time. After that has been done under so much pressure from Liverpool, there is no reason that the side of Pep Guardiola can no longer do that.

Liverpool, on the other hand, may struggle to replicate their excellent season with the UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup already added to a busy list of matches.

Tottenham expects to take on a bigger challenge this year as they settle in a new stadium. Manchester United remains something of an unknown amount under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, but there are enough positive signals to suggest that they can claim a place in the top four.

Source link

[easytravelpw-blog]

Full text write on https://easy-travel.pw/the-top-things-to-do-in-undiscovered-northamptonshire-england/england/

The Top Things to Do in Undiscovered Northamptonshire, England

01 of 06

Britain’s Best Surprise

Loop Images/Andrew Baskott/Getty Images

Northamptonshire, about an hour and a half straight up the M1 from Central London, has got to be one of the UK's most unfairly overlooked and underrated regions for visitors. And yet it has all the attractions that vacationers and holiday-makers arrive in Britain to visit. The county is host to numerous historic homes, notable hotels, charming market towns and gardens, the epicenter of British motorsport, and even the childhood home and final resting place of Princess Diana.

So why don't more people know about and visit Northamptonshire? Recently, a group representing local attractions, businesses and boosters asked the same question and decided to change all that with a colorful and stylish campaign — Northamptonshire: Britain's Best Surprise.

The campaign shows the region off as a great destination target, whether for UK touring or weekend breaks from London or the cities of the Midlands and the North of England. If you are racing up the motorway to visit Diana's grave, then battling rush hour traffic back on the M1, you are missing the opportunity for a great short break. Here's why.

Continue to 2 of 6 below.

02 of 06

Visit Historic Homes and Castles

Photo courtesy of Holdenby House

At under 100 miles from London, Northamptonshire was just far enough away for politically ambitious aristocrats of the Tudor and Elizabethan times to stay out of sight and out of mind, yet close enough to reach the court in a few days of hard riding if summoned.

As a result, in addition to a few older castles — including Rockingham, originally built by William the Conqueror, more than 900 years ago — Northamptonshire has a wealth of Medieval, Tudor and Elizabethan stately homes that you can visit. In fact, the county claims more stately homes than any county in Britain. These are just a few:

Holdenby House: Pictured above, this lovely country house, surrounded by wonderful gardens, is just a shadow of its former self (or about one quarter actually). Built as a grand country estate by an Elizabethan courtier, it was turned over to the crown as a palace for King James and the ill-fated Charles I. Charles was imprisoned there during the Civil War and then arrested by Parliamentary forces. The archways he walked through heading for his final, bloody fate, are still standing. Check out the music room, where rare and unusual instruments have been collected from all over the world by the current occupants of the house. And make time to stay for a falconry demonstration. If you can imagine Holdenby draped in rotting vegetation, you might just remember it from the 2011 BBC production of Great Expectations with Gillian Anderson as Miss Haversham. It was the stand-in for her house.

Althorp: Keen Royal watchers already know that this was the late Princess Diana's childhood home. But maybe you never knew that it has been in the same family for more than 500 years, has a spectacular collection of paintings (including a whole room of Joshua Reynolds portraits, another of Lely paintings of court mistresses and the only known life portrait of the tragic Lady Jane Grey) or that you can hire it for weddings and posh events.

Deene Park: This once grand, originally Medieval, house was having a facelift under scaffolding in April 2017 – so a bit hard to judge. But a highlight is the room devoted to the notorious 7th Earl of Cardigan who led the infamous charge of the light brigade during the Battle of Balaclava (described in one account as “the greatest old woman in the army”). The room includes a portrait of his ravishingly beautiful (and scandalous) second wife and a glass case holding half of Ronald, the horse Cardigan rode into battle. Some years ago it was discovered that the taxidermed Ronald was becoming a bit moth eaten so now only half of him remains.

Burghley House: A house full of many of its original treasures and works of art, built by William Cecil, Lord High Treasurer to Queen Elizabeth I and still considered one of the greatest Elizabethan houses in Britain.

Boughton House: Begun in 1528 by the ancestors of the current owners, the Buccleuch family, the house morphed from a modest Tudor manor to a French style palace, sometimes called “The English Versailles”. Among its treasures are paintings by El Greco, Van Dyke and Gainsborough as well as 150 acres of gardens and landscapes..

Apethorp Palace: A palace that once belonged to Queen Elizabeth I, and was a favorite of Jacobean and Stuart kings, was at risk of total collapse when purchased for the nation by English Heritage. Now, through a remarkable 80-year arrangement between English Heritage and the current owners, the house is being completely restored. It's open to the public by guided tours only, 50 days a year.

Do keep in mind that most of the stately homes in Northamptonshire are still private family homes, with limited public openings. Check their websites to find out the dates of opening and the conditions of entry.

  Continue to 3 of 6 below.

03 of 06

Explore Charming Gardens

VisitBritain/David Sellman / Getty Images

Most of the stately homes mentioned above have gardens that can usually be visited even when the houses are not open to the public. And there are some great ones — from a restored Elizabethan kitchen garden at Holdenby House to a landscape by the legendary Lancelot Capability Brown at Burghley. 

There are 35 acres of gardens, open every day, year-round, set in the 10,000 acre Castle Ashby estate. And the county is laced with country parks, woodlands, arboretums and wetland reserves.

But by far the most impressive garden is also one of the smallest. At ten acres, plus another 5-acre bluebell wood and a wildflower meadow, Coton Manor Garden is an attraction that punches well above its weight.

Created in 1925 by the grandparents of the current owners, the garden is still managed by a small family team, assisted by students and volunteers. It's colorful herbaceous borders, water gardens, walled gardens full of roses and several more garden “rooms” are arranged around a small, private 17th century manor house. They hold more than 1,000 varieties of plants, many of them rare and hard to find elsewhere. You can buy plants in the nursery, attend a gardening school, have lunch or tea in the cafe and visit with the “wildlife”. They include a pond full of wildfowl, a pair of elegant flamingos who have been resident for more than 40 years, some very cute kune kune pigs and several English longhorn cows.

The garden is open several days a week between April and September and every day during bluebell season (end of April to mid May). A visit throughout the season is bound to be rewarded with ever changing, colorful displays.

Continue to 4 of 6 below.

04 of 06

Feed Your Need for Speed

Rhapsode/Getty Images

If you've ever sat in front of one of those motor racing arcade games, enjoying the VROOM VROOM sound effects while imagining yourself speeding around the Grand Prix course in Monte Carlo, you are going to love Northamptonshire, the super-revved up motorsport capital of Britain.

Five of the world's Formula 1 teams — Mercedes, Force India, Williams, Renault (formerly Lotus) and Red Bull — are based in an area that has become known as Formula 1 Valley, covering Northamptonshire and adjacent bits of Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire. The county claims the creation of 80 percent of the world's Formula 1 cars and engines.

And Silverstone, the Northamptonshire home of the F1 British Grand Prix, is the place where you can get behind the wheel and experience those G-forces for yourself.

When it's not hosting the Grand Prix or classic car races, Silverstone offers a variety of driving experiences, ranging from a “hot ride”, as a passenger in a race-prepared sports car with a professional driver (£45 in 2017 ) to the Silverstone Challenge — an all day driving experience in eight different kinds of racing cars (£995 in 2017). The variations in between include going round the track in a Silverstone single-seater and short training sessions followed by your own chance to drive at speed on the famous track.

We tried out a hot ride in an Aston Martin driven by professional racing and stunt driver Sam Maher-Loughnan. Fitted out with a fireproof hood and a racing helmet, each of us climbed in beside Sam for the ride of our lives, three times around the track at about 130mph. Whether you enjoy it will depend on whether you like speed, whether the idea of going sideways gives you butterflies and how well you can tolerate the extra G-forces of going round corners without breaking. It's definitely an adrenaline rush.

Not into Formula 1? You could head for Rockingham Motor Speedway, which claims to be Europe's fastest banked oval racing circuit, where experiences you can book include super cars, drift driving and NASCAR-style training. Or how about a deafening day out at Santa Pod Raceway, home of the European Drag Racing Championships. On scheduled public track days there, you can take your own car or motorcycle out on the quarter-mile drag strip to test out its full-throttle performance.

  Continue to 5 of 6 below.

05 of 06

Fulfill Your Shoe Fetish Fantasy

Anna Clopet/Getty Images

Northamptonshire was once the center of shoemaking for most of the British Empire. It's still a center for high quality, custom made men's shoes, several major work shoe brands and, perhaps the most iconic English shoe brand, Dr. Martens.

The Northampton Museum and Art Gallery tells the story of the history of shoes with the largest collection of shoes and shoe related objects in the world. It includes more than 15,000 shoes and 50,000 archival records, documentary footage and shoe related fine art. Visit to see shoes worn by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, Tom Thumb's boot and hundreds of years of shoes fashions

It's a wonderful rainy day outing for shoe lovers and fashionistas, but you'll have to plan your trip for 2018 to see this fabulous collection as the museum is currently undergoing a major expansion. Happily, it's just one of many in the county — ranging from small local history and industry museums to transport museums and several heritage railways. 

Continue to 6 of 6 below.

06 of 06

Stay in a Historic Luxury Accommodation

Richard Croft/CC BY-SA 2.0

Plan a romantic getaway to Northamptonshire at the Grade 1 Listed Rushton Hall, a historic manor that is now a fabulous luxury hotel and spa.

Begun in the early 15th century, the house has a complicated history of colorful owners and plots. It even has a priests hole where secret Catholics hid their family clergy during the reign of Henry VIII and Elizabeth I and later during the English Civil War.

The Tresham family, its first owners, were implicated in the Gunpowder Plot, now annually remembered in England on Bonfire Night. Charles Dickens was a frequent visitor and the hotel's amazing hall with its double hammerbeam ceiling may have been the model for Miss Haversham's house in Great Expectations. The Hope family, for whom the Hope Diamond is named, once owned the house and the fabulous jewel, now part of the British crown, was probably kept here.

You can no doubt find a member of staff to expound at length about the history of this enormous and beautifully kept house, but it's much easier to simply enjoy its large, luxurious rooms, its first class kitchen and its extensive, landscaped grounds. Guest rooms overlook a lake with an island where sheep pose as if placed by an artist. The hotel spa includes a small but well equipped gym and a beautiful 18 meter heated pool. 

Rooms in 2017 start at a reasonable £240 for two that includes dinner (a very accomplished three-course menu, easily worth £50 per person), bed and breakfast and full use of the spa.

As is common in the travel industry, the writer was provided with complimentary services for review purposes. While it has not influenced this review, TripSavvy.com believes in full disclosure of all potential conflicts of interest.

#travel #airlinetickets #airtickets #cheapairfare #planetickets #travelinsurance #travelquotes #travelblogger #traveller #travelling #travelocity #travelodge #vacation

[smoothshift]

Tesla Model X 1000 mile road-trip report via /r/cars

Tesla Model X 1000 mile road-trip report

I thought I’d write a review of a Tesla Model X for the sub from the perspective of a V8 loving petrolhead. There’s a lot of hate on here, and even more misinformation, so I thought I’d give the car a chance.

I’ve just spent 5 days with a P75D and done over 1000 miles. The car was a 2016 with Gen 1 Autonomous tech, 68,000 miles on the clock, and a 200 mile range battery.

My last big drive was in a 3.0D Range Rover Velar, and the road-trip car before that was a Merc C63 AMG V8 Bi-turbo. I’ve owned 15+ cars, many over 400bhp, and driven dozens more in Europe, UAE and the US.

The car was booked through Turo. This was for a road-trip from Vegas to San Diego and back, so some days I was doing around 350 miles. Other days I started in the city center of SD and then drove to attractions in and outside the city. I covered all kinds of roads, but the vast majority were freeway and city driving.

Originally I’d booked a BMW i8 to do the trip, but the car was apparently totaled two days before my booking, so the Model X was a last-minute alternative. I’m aware of how unreliable Turo bookings can be, so I had my eyes on a Tesla as a replacement in case of issues.

First the bad.

This car has a massive blind spot. Within 10 minutes of being in the car I was blasted with horn as I nearly wiped out some poor fucker in a SUV. It seems this blind spot exists when in Autopilot too, as it sometimes happened when the car was autonomously changing lanes.

There’s a wonderful driver’s display that shows the car in relation to the lanes, the cars, trucks, and bikes around it. But the icons of passing cars only appear once they are a car-length in front of the Tesla. With the blind spot issue, it would be super duper useful if this showed cars beside the Model X!

Anyway, I quickly came to respect the danger, and learned to not trust the mirrors or autopilot. Every lane change I looked over my shoulder for an extended period to scrutinize the space before moving over, or activating the autopilot lane change.

The second bad thing was the size. It is a big, wide car. In LV and SD this was not too much of an issue, but in the UK, where I’m from, we have tiny roads. I’m not sure it would fit.

As it was a Turo rental, I didn’t get to hook the Tesla up to the Tesla mobile app, so I’m sure it is much better when using this, but the key was confusing, dumb and frustrating. I soon gave up trying to open or close doors with it from afar.

You can open the "frunk" from the key or the screen, but you can’t close it.

Price. New, this car is apparently over $100k. That is a stupid amount of money. It did not feel like a $100k car. The Turo cost was the same as an i8, so that's what it's competing against!

My last criticism is other Tesla owners. At a supercharger bank on the edge of LA so many empty parked Teslas were just left taking up a supercharger way past full. You can see the green light as it is charging. Most were not green. Maybe it's just LA that’s full of assholes, as I didn’t experience this problem anywhere else.

Now the good.

This car is the future.

I say that without hyperbole or hype.

There’ve been a few moments in my life where I’ve seen the future. Playing Quake for the first time. Dialing up to the internet for the first time. Listening to my first mp3. Using WiFi. Putting on a VR headset. Using my first smartphone. Wireless charging. Seeing the Burj Khalifa.

These were all crystallizing moments. They all felt right. They all felt like a huge step forward, like the future had arrived and become real. This is the first time a car has done that for me. From a user experience, it is so far ahead of anything else I’ve ever driven before.

I’ve been in cars that redefined what I’d considered fast (Nobel M14). I’ve driven a Lotus Exige that realigned cornering physics. I’ve been in opulent luxury (Velar, S Class Limo, Aston Martin), and total, hilarious shit (2CV). But all these cars were a variation on a theme. They all did the same thing.

You put fuel in. It burns the fuel. You drive the car, until that fuel runs out. Repeat.

The Tesla changed that perspective.

Walk up to the door and it pops open automatically. If you’re approaching from the front, the door waits until you’ve passed by before fully opening. Pop the rear gullwing doors for a bit of theater, but also for a practical way to load the car.

When you get in, the car is on (is it ever really off?) Touch the brake and the driver’s door closes. The massive screen and clean, button-free interior greets you. From the screen you can shut all other doors and trunk.

The screen shows a familiar Google Maps satellite view with simple car controls along the bottom. Set your nav destination and it will calculate expected charge at arrival, and expected charge if you make a return trip. If the car needs charging, it will add Superchargers to the stops, with estimated charge and charge time displayed when you get there.

The car is ready to go as soon as you take it out of park. No key to turn or engine to start. The moment you hit the accelerator, the car moves smoothly and with plenty of torque. Mash the gas and you’re firmly shoved with a relentless insistence.

Everything is just easier driving this car. It does a lot for you. If it can be automated, it is. Lights. Wipers. Handbrake. All controls are intuitive and easy to find on the screen. I see criticisms on here about hunting around for controls on a giant iPad, but in reality all common car controls are always along the bottom and clearly visible for both driver and passenger. Use it and you will wonder why we still have dashboards covered in knobs and dials and buttons and stalks.

The nav is clear and clever. Not only does it show on the massive shared screen, it also shows further details, lane position, and a zoomed detailed view on the driver screen.

Then you get to a freeway and pull the autopilot stalk. Set a speed and the car does the rest. It is eerie. I’ve driven cars with radar cruise, and lane assist, but spend some time with the Tesla and you know it is much cleverer than that.

It anticipates issues and it doesn’t panic. For example, if a car pulls into your stopping gap in most radar cruise cars, they slam on the anchors until the stopping gap is acceptable. The Tesla just calmly backs off.

I could feel it anticipating a potential crash when one car darted in front of the car we were following. The brake tensed and it shifted the weight onto the front wheels, but once the situation was over it relaxed. No speed was scrubbed.

It gave passing bikes room if they were filtering.

It can be duped, but in a safe way. For example, on the way into a car park the car in front almost stopped while approaching a speed bump. The Tesla saw this as the car having an emergency moment, so highlighted it red, sounded the alarm and slowed the car. I wasn’t driving with autopilot engaged at the time.

It was a joy when we hit start stop traffic. It slowed to a stop and just got on with it when cars started flowing again.

If the lanes get confusing, or if it anticipates trouble that it can’t deal with, it disengages with an alarm with the expectation you’re paying attention. And it effectively enforces that attention. All I had to do was hang on to the wheel, but this forces you to take heed and not be complacent. It alerts if you don’t. And if it alerts too many times in a row, it bans you from using autopilot until you park up and leave the car!

If you spend any time using autopilot, you’d be a moron to trust it 100%. It has its limitations, yes, and there’s a long way to go before its Level 5, but that’s clearly within reach. A few more iterations and its there. And those iterations are likely software rather than hardware.

It is leagues ahead of anything else out there that I have driven.

Given this was a two year old car with Gen 1 autonomous tech, it was mightily impressive. It did 99% of the freeway driving for me on my road-trip, even in the pouring rain. It soon got to the point where I felt safer with it doing the driving. It makes you realise just how often you do dumb shit in a car that distracts you. Faffing with the radio, glancing at your phone, grabbing a drink, munching on a snack, chatting to the other half. All these things are now OK when you know the car is watching the road all around you.

But what about that range? Really, it was not a problem. Every night I parked the car at the hotel EV charging station (once next to a Hummer H2!) and by morning it was fully charged for my day’s activities.

As I said above, the nav works out the Supercharger stops for you if it needs it during a journey. Crucially it tells you how much charge you will need to continue your journey, and how long it will take. It is smart. It will split a long journey into two smaller supercharger stops. Our trip back to LV from SD had two stops. One ten minutes, one 40 mins. The 40 mins one was at lunchtime, so we grabbed some food.

Walking up to your car knowing it can do another 200 miles, and it has cost you nothing is an amazing feeling. For 20 years I’ve had to consider MPG and the ever rising cost of fuel. With a Tesla that worry disappears.

Also it coaches you during the journey to make sure you don’t use all your charge. If you keep nailing it from onramps (like I did), then it will recommend you stay below 75mph to maintain predicted arrival charge.

An electric motor is so much better than ICE. Safer, simpler, cleaner and quieter. Those last two points are critical. I live in a city and walk through car and bus fumes every day. It is nasty. And our environment isn’t all too happy about the shit we pump into the air. But a lot of that shit is sound. Noise pollution pisses me off. I can appreciate a nice engine noise, but let's be honest. Most ICE engines sound like shit. And then you have trucks, busses and dumb kids with shitty aftermarket mufflers making everyone’s lives hell.

The sooner vehicles can be quiet and clean the better.

There were other things I loved about the car. Black on black it looked mean. The huge windshield that reached way up into the roof was amazing. The clever little touches like the sun visors, were a delight. The sound system was awesome. And the car was holding together well. Two years old and 68k on the clock, and there wasn’t a rattle or a squeak. All 4 of my brand new BMWs couldn’t boast that.

Oh, and it had this feature.

The Model X is the benchmark for what cars should all be soon. It is clever, fast, clean, quiet, safe, practical and good looking. It is obvious with the way all manufacturers are trying to emulate Tesla that they have made waves.

I have put down a deposit for a Model 3 after this experience. Talking to the Turo host, he also has a Model 3 and had a Model S. The 3 is his favorite.

Consider me converted.

[hashtagblogfan]

Top 10 The Most Expensive Supercars In The World

The post Hashtag3r.Com - Psychology , Travel , Photography , Lifestyle , Health and Beauty Top 10 The Most Expensive Supercars In The World appeared first on Hashtag3r.Com.

Top 10 The Most Expensive Supercars In The World

  Who would not want to have an elegant and powerful supercar that turns their heads, huh? If you had all the money in the world, I bet you will buy some of the most mind-blowing vehicles so you can park them in your garage. Although it’s still a dream (at least for most of us), here is a list of the 10 most expensive supercars in the world on the market that will surely make you

  ZENVO ST1 | $ 1.2 million

Hailed by its Danish builders as a hypercar, the sleek design of the Zenvo ST1 is modeled on a supercar, but is made with the power and elements of a race car. With its turbocharged V8 engine of 6.8 liters, this beauty can take you from 0 to 100 km / h in 2,9 seconds with a maximum speed of 375 km / h. Only 15 units of the ST1 are built, so make sure you already have $ 1.2 million in hand to own this hypercar.

  FERRARI LAFERRARI | $ 1.3 million

The super hybrid LaFerrari debuted at the Geneva Motor Show in 2013. Since then, it has become one of the most sought-after cars with all 499 limited units sold even before its manufacture. The LaFerrari has a 6.3-liter V12 engine and a whopping 950 hp,making it one of the most powerful Ferrari ever created.

  PAGANI HUAYRA | $ 1.3 million

Named after Aymara Huayra Tata, the “god of the winds” of the Inca Empire, this Italian sports car can indeed “run like the wind”. With its 6.0-liter dual turbocharged engine, the Huayra can take you from 0 to 100 km in just 3.2 seconds with a top speed of 370 km / h. If the outside of the car is enough to make you want $ 1.3 million, wait to see its classic and luxurious interior.

  ASTON MARTIN ONE-77 | $ 1.8 million

With 77 units sold before cars are built, this hand-crafted aluminum beast is another supercar that you’ll want to roll into your garage. Like all vehicles on this list, this limited sports car had a mind-blowing speed that will take you to 335 km / h max, with its 7.3-liter, 750-horsepower V12 engine.

  KOENIGSEGG ONE: 1 | $ 2 million

Your adrenaline will start pumping once you experience the power of the Koenigsegg One: 1. It takes its name after the ratio 1: 1 of the weight of the car (1340 kg) and 1340 hp. With so much power, you can only imagine how it takes you from 0 to 400 km / h in less than 20 seconds. If a limited edition supercar is what you want, the Koenigsegg One: 1 is what you want to get. Manufacturers have only produced seven models of this unit.

  FERRARI F60 AMERICA | $ 3.2 million

Ferrari takes a place on the list of the most expensive cars in the world. Imagine a convertible version of the Ferrari F12, with 740 horsepower and a V12 engine that will bring you to a top speed of 320 km / h. Ferrari will only make 10 F60 America, so you will have more luck if you have one of these beauties.

  BUGATTI MANSORY VIVERE | $ 3.4 million

If you can afford $ 3.4 million for a supercar, you might consider buying the Bugatti Mansory Vivere – a special edition of the popular Bugatti Veyron. Although “slower” than its predecessor, this car will still take you from 0 to 97 km / h in 2,7 seconds with a maximum speed of 409 km / h.

  Lykan Hypersport | $ 3.4 million

If you’re not a fan of the No. 4 super car, the Hypersport Lykan is about the same price as the latter car for $ 3.4 million. Made by a Lebanese company, W Motors, this is the first supercar manufactured in the Middle Orient which can reach a maximum speed of 395 km / h. If this car seems familiar to you, well, you’ve probably seen its debut in the last episode of The Fast and the Furious.

If the flashy exterior is not enough for you, maybe the headlights of the car, encrusted with 420 diamonds of 15 carats, will be enough to make shine your car in limited edition.

  LAMBORGHINI VENENO | $ 4.5 million

With its breathtaking aerodynamic design, this Lambo looks like a Batman movie. With a 12-cylinder engine and a total of 750 hp, the Veneno can bring you to a top speed of 355 km / h. Even if it’s not the fastest on this list of the most expensive cars in the world,Veneno is certainly one of the most limited with only nine units produced.

  KOENIGSEGG CCXR TREVITA | $ 4.8 million

  The Koenigsegg CCXR Trevita ranks first among the most expensive cars in the world, with a very high price of $ 4.8 million. This limited edition car has a horsepower of 1000 which can quickly take you from 0 to 100 km in less than three seconds. If you want to shine everything,this Koenigsegg supercar has an exterior designed to shine under the sun and its interior is a pre-impregnated carbon fiber body sprinkled with diamonds. Only three of these units were made and one would be owned by boxing champion, Floyd Mayweather Jr.

  Read Also On Hashtag3r.Com : 

More In : Lifestyle , Psychology , Travel , Photography , Health & Beauty , Celebrities

Women Body Language Men Should Know

Sleeping Well More Than 10 Hours Increases The Risk of Dying by 30%

The 10 Most Beautiful Beaches in Europe

The Most 15 Countries That Have Shrunk Over 50 Years

How to Manage 10 Major Negative Emotions

8 Things That Happy People Never Do

22 Photos Of The Largest Ship in The World

Funny Photoshop Manipulation of Birds With Human Arms

These 26 Pictures Confused Internet Users

6 Simple Habits Help You Fight Heartburn

8 Signs Indicate That You Eat Too Much Sugar

The Most 10 Amazing Health Benefits of Honey

Soft drinks reduce the chances of pregnancy and childbearing

10 Things You Should Never Tell Your Girlfriend

Here’s How Much To Save Everyday To Become a Millionaire

How to Organize Your Life ? 10 Habits of Organized People

The post Hashtag3r.Com - Psychology , Travel , Photography , Lifestyle , Health and Beauty Top 10 The Most Expensive Supercars In The World appeared first on Hashtag3r.Com.

source https://hashtag3r.com/most-expensive-supercars-in-the-world/

[robertkstone]

2018 Lamborghini Aventador S Roadster First Drive: One of a Kind

The 2018 Lamborghini Aventador S Roadster is the rolling, quad-espresso-swilling, audio-visual performance artist of the car world. Just look at it. It’s the only mid-engine V-12 convertible available. All those straight lines and sharp angles look like the latest stealth technology intended to evade enemy radar. Paradoxically, with its scissor doors, eye-searing pearlescent-yellow “Gallio Tenerife” paint, and its improbably low (3-feet, 9-inches), and impossibly wide (6-feet, 8-inches without mirrors) stance, nothing on the road turns more heads and elicits more mobile phone pics.

While driving from beachfront Santa Monica through the Malibu hills, onward to Camarillo and Point Mugu, I’m nearly certain I was Snapped, ‘grammed, Tweeted, and posted more in one afternoon than I will be in the rest of my lifetime. My 15 minutes of fame has been spent. Were you able to hear the Aventador’s celebrated 6.5-liter 48-valve 730-hp V-12 screaming up to its 8,500-rpm limiter, and spitting-fire, popping off staccato exhaust shots as it descends, you’d instinctually cover your children’s ears to protect them.

Multi-million dollar hypercars—such as the Aston Martin Vulcan, Bugatti Chiron, Lamborghini’s own Centenario, and McLaren Senna—are as likely to be seen as a Yeti at Point Dume. But the Aventador has a real possibility to shriek past you someday. In the seven years it’s been on sale, Lamborghini has sold 7,000 Aventadors worldwide (the silver one shown in these photos is the actual 7,000th example produced). Besides a handful of special editions in its timeline, you’ll find coupe and roadster versions of the LP 700-4, LP 750-4 SuperVeloce (a.k.a. “SV”), and the LP 740-4 S. Our driver today, the $460,247 2018 Aventador (LP 740-4) S Roadster, is the latest example of the mighty Lamborghini V-12 tradition.

The Experience

Lamborghini had removed the two-piece hardtop and secured it in the “frunk,” taking up practically all 4.9 cubic feet available. We’re told the latch system is easy to operate and each panel weighs about 13 pounds, but this is not a top-stowed road-trip car. The upshot is that getting into the Roaster is a snap; no need to fold one’s self in half while limbo-ing past the elevated door and under the waist-high roof. Simply raise the door and plop into the driver’s seat. You’ll immediately get a firm Italian hug from the highly bolstered bucket seat. With your backside practically at ground level, below the door sill, extricating one’s self is akin to swinging your legs onto the dock while getting out of a canoe.

Looking around the cockpit, the instrument cluster is a modern, high-res TFT screen with an animated high-tech look. The trans-tunnel-mounted starter button is ominously covered with a red safety toggle, as if to prevent an errant rocket launch. Flip it up, press the button, and in addition to a tech-swinging, animated gauge show, you’ll get an earful (and gutful) of 12 cylinders erupting to life. When you consider all those metal pieces, with a crankshaft twice as long as a V-6’s, four 12-lobe camshafts, 48 valves, and 12 connecting rods, oscillating, spinning, reciprocating, and whipping around, it really is remarkable how smoothly the enormous engine runs. There’s really nothing like a dry-sump V-12; for its history, personality, and linear power delivery. (Side note: the oil reservoir holds 3.4 gallons of the stuff.) We’re glad Lamborghini has, for now, remained committed and loyal to its V-12 and natural aspiration. It very well might be the last of its kind in this era of turbocharged downsizing. #SaveTheV12

Alright Already, Let’s Drive!

Once running, simply pulling an enormous paddle engages Lamborghini’s Independent Shifting Rod, or “ISR” (single-clutch automated-manual) transmission—there is no “D” button, yet D will appear in the gauge cluster. From the hotel driveway in Santa Monica, smoothly engaging the clutch and taming the engine’s 730-hp and 509 lb-ft of torque felt like a staggering task. It revved and grabbed, then on the first automated upshift to second gear, there was what felt like a half-second of no-man’s-land between gears. If the throttle was even partly pressed, there was that telltale, embarrassing fore/aft head toss of the single-clutch box. For drivetrain packaging reasons, Lamborghini cannot fit the now-industry standard double-clutch that’s found in the Huracan.

Although incremental improvements have been made to ISR, leaving the car to shift of its own accord in automatic Strada (street) drive mode still feels like giving a first lesson on a manual transmission. The other modes tended to tach-out and bang auto-upshifts. We quickly accessed the programmable (for powertrain, suspension, and steering) Ego drive mode. Around town, we selected Corsa powertrain (the most obnoxious exhaust setting with manual shifting), Strada suspension (softest), and Sport steering (most intuitive; more on this later). Manually shifting with a generous throttle-lift between gears is a smoother workaround. Incidentally, first gear is good for about 50 mph, and second gets you up to 80-ish, so we didn’t need to shift much in town.

Canyon Carving

Probing the Aventador S Roadster’s handling limits in the canyons inland of Malibu was frustrating at first; later revealing. Why? Traffic. It turns out people actually live, work, shop, and commute in Topanga. We believe we found the least committed BMW 3 Series driver in the Western Hemisphere, following at 25 mph in a 45-mph posted limit. Eventually, we found ourselves on the road “less traveled by,” and things got interesting. Four Aventador S Roadsters (ours the yellow one) took a conspicuous line, chasing a lead car – the demonstrably smaller, more nimble Huracán Performante. As the pace increased, that little Huracán became harder to pace. A typical lane width is 12 feet, about 10 feet in these canyons. The width of the Aventador is more than 7 feet, including mirrors. Think of it this way: less than the length of a legal pad of paper separated us from disaster, either with opposite traffic, Armco rails, or a dirt shoulder, or a cliff. Attention must be paid.

In an attempt to focus the Aventador S, we switched the Ego magnetorheological suspension setting to Corsa. That’s too harsh, plus the steering goes heavy for heavy’s sake. Sport was again the best setting for these roads with both compliance and control. Still, on a particularly tight, downhill hairpin, the car teeter-tottered; first lifting its left-front, then right-rear tire off the ground, which certainly got our attention.

To the steering itself: the Aventador S features both a variable ratio up front (10.0-18.0:1) as well as rear-steering out back. At speeds below 130 kph (81 mph), the rear wheels steer up to 3.0 degrees in opposition to the fronts; above that speed, up to 1.5 degrees in unison with the front. (This is the reason it has a relatively tidy 37.7-foot turning radius, about the same as an Alfa Romeo Giulia.)

There’s a way to do this sort of virtual wheelbase manipulation well, as has been demonstrated by Porsche, among others. Unlike the seamless Porsche four-wheel steer system, the Aventador S’ is noticeable, especially in Corsa, less so in Sport. Lamborghini claims that 0.005-seconds after the steering wheel is turned, the rear wheels react accordingly. While that theoretically seems plausible, in practice, there’s something that’s not quite right. There’s also a reluctance to return to center, requiring a concerted effort, which might have more to do with the front tires’ width. Either there’s more delay at the rear than claimed, or the variable ratio up front is too active – or maybe the combination of those plus the all-wheel-drive system varying front/rear bias is simply too much to control flawlessly. Whatever the case, the result is that the steering, and thus the car itself, isn’t intuitive in its handling responses. And that’s not a good thing on a narrow, consequential road.

Flat-out in Camarillo

Emerging from the hills, we found ourselves on a deserted farm road. Two miles of flat, straight highway proved an ideal place to finally stretch the Aventador’s legs. With its 255/30R20 front and 355/25R21 rear Pirelli P Zero tires, the combined contact patches add up to 48 inches of rubber on the road. That’s more than a 2016 Formula 1 race car. Corsa, Corsa, Corsa! were the apt settings when we flat-footed the throttle and grabbed upshifts at the 8,500-rpm limiter. In this situation, more engine torque is shuffled to the rear, up to 90 percent, in fact. The upshifts were quick, reported to take just 0.05 seconds, but they were brutal and violent as ever—apparently an Aventador tradition and part of the “performance” experience.

Considering all the bits in this mammoth motor, it’s truly remarkable how quickly and smoothly it revs, delivering what feels like limitless, linear acceleration. It was all I could do to keep grabbing gear after gear without hitting 8,500 rpm. There’s more a sense of horsepower than of torque, although 509 lb-ft at 5,500 rpm is not a trifling amount. Just after grabbing fifth gear, we reached 150 mph. Given enough asphalt, the S Roadster’s top speed is the same as the 110-pounds-lighter S Coupe’s drag-limited 217 mph. At about this time, we were thankful for the S Roadster’s revised aerodynamics that provide 130 percent more downforce with 50 percent better efficiency (downforce versus drag) compared to the original Aventador. We were also grateful for the standard 15.7- and 15.0-inch carbon-ceramic disc brakes.

Back to Earth

Reaching the coast again, we turned south onto Highway 1, using this appropriate location as the opportunity to press the dashboard button that lowers the rear window. We were shocked at how much more engine noise comes into the cabin – as well as the air blast that ensues. That little window has a big job and it does it well. After city, canyon, and farmland driving, somehow, the Aventador S Roadster felt most at home on Pacific Coast Highway.

In his First Drive of the Aventador S Coupe in Spain on the famed Ricardo Tormo circuit, Scott Evans praised it as a worthy track companion. And although this real-world drive didn’t afford us the chance to explore the Roadster’s true limits, I’m sure we’d agree. Yet, with the sound of the engine purring away through the gentle bends, and the Southern California sun making its way toward the blue horizon to our right, the Roadster, the road, and the setting were finally in perfect harmony.

Sure, you could rent a Mustang convertible, go for a drive down the coast, and come to the same conclusion. But, as one does when driving in a caravan of Lamborghinis, we pulled into the lot next to “The Rock” at Point Mugu. We drew a crowd—again. Locals, tourists, even those in our group were filling up the memory on mobile phones with photos. The Aventador S Roadster’s unabashed, unbridled, unapologetic all-encompassing over-the-top performance—in all senses of the word—and the reactions it produces, not just in its privileged passengers, but gob-smacked onlookers as well, is automotive art at its best. Want the best-performing Lamborghini? Get the Huracán Performante. Want the best performance art? That would be the Aventador S Roadster.

[meaningofmotorsport]

Bahrain Grand Prix Review

What a way to start the season! The first race of the year, has given us so many reasons to be excited about 2021, and reminded us of why we love F1, even if the FIA continue to be inconsistent in the policing of the rules!

Let’s get straight to the big talking point, which seems to have angered a lot of fans, the Turn 4 track limits situation. Firstly, I want to make it clear, that there is no reason to lay any blame on Mercedes. After talking to other teams and drivers, it appears that down the paddock, different teams interpreted what the FIA was saying in different ways, so it wasn’t Mercedes intentionally cheating! The problem is, that the FIA do not seem to have a hard and fast rule on track limits, it is fluid, and even when they do set out a plan, they don’t always stick to it.

From what I heard, track limits were not mentioned in the drivers briefing for the race, so some teams assumed the rules from qualifying carried over and some did not. Then during the race, it looks from the outside, that the FIA only started looking at Turn 4, after Red Bull told Max to start using it, because they realised Mercedes were. This kind of lack of awareness and communication, makes it look as though they are favouring teams when they are not. Just to clarify, I agree with the decision to tell Max to let Lewis through, as he went off track to help complete the manoeuvre, even if he was already ahead as he went out of bounds. The one that I question, is that Hamilton apparently went off track there 30 times, with only a warning, was this because he did not gain an advantage for most of them, or the FIA took too long to pick up on it? I hope it is the former, as this will not affect the racing, but if it is the latter, the FIA really need to get their act together, before we get a more farcical situation.

As I said, it is likely that Turn 4 did not determine the outcome of the race, and even if it did, Red Bull cannot claim they had a faultless race on their part. This is because, Mercedes showed today why they are champions, as they used aggressive strategy to put Red Bull under pressure, despite not having their car pace. This left Verstappen with a lot of work to do, and meant he had to do risky moves, like the one we saw, which cost him the race win. Admittedly I can’t see too much that Horner and the team could have done, apart from maybe saving the mediums for the end of the race, and pitting Max earlier for the last stop, as an almost 9 second gap to close up, is a lot to do, when you also have to pass the car.

The drive by Lewis was also incredible, holding off Verstappen for so long, making him use up tyres, until he was unable to pass him anymore. Best of all, it has set us up for a hopefully season long battle between those two teams, which could go right down to the wire. Their teammates may not be too far off either, as Bottas did not have a terrible race in terms of pace, he was just screwed by the long pitstop, without that he would have been within 10 seconds of the win, which whilst not being where he needs to be, is an improvement on before. Perez made up for a tough Saturday, with an inspired drive from the pitlane to P5, this shows that his race pace is up there with the leaders, so once he can get on top of the one lap pace, he could be able to help his teammate more often.

As expected, McLaren were there when it mattered, Lando started well, got past Leclerc and Gasly, and was off into the distance, grabbing a useful haul of points in P4. Daniel did not have his teammates pace, with tyre wear holding him back from pushing more, nevertheless, P7 is not bad for his first race with the team, I am sure he will only improve from there.

2020 was dismal for the Scuderia, their worst since 1980, and whilst they are not back where they need to be, 2021 has started off much stronger. The car seems to be better in all areas, and they could actually be the biggest threat to McLaren if they keep progressing like this. Leclerc got all he could from the car, as Sainz admitted he took it easy today, to make sure he finished and learnt from it. As they head home to Imola, can they keep this up?

If Alpha Tauri are disappointed with just 2 points, they should take it as a compliment, Gasly was where he needed to be for the race, however he made the smallest mistake, clipped Ricciardo and broke his front wing. Who knows what race pace he had, although I expect maybe not as good as McLaren’s? Tsunoda should come away from this weekend proud of his work, he got into Q2 yesterday, and fought back from a tough lap 1, overtaking many cars in the chaotic midfield, to score some points. The future looks very bright for him, if he can keep building from this.

Aston Martin may have been hurt the most with the regulation change, as Mercedes have the might to reclaim a lot of their lost performance. The car, which was third fastest last year, may now only be sixth or even seventh in the pecking order. Stroll was able to grab the last point today, but that was only as result of Alonso’s brake issues, and Ocon’s crash with Vettel, which pretty much summed up the 4 time champions weekend, as he careered into the back of the Frenchman. It could be a tough road ahead for them, until 2022 comes into view.

Alfa Romeo may not have any points to their name yet, however with their pace, and where they finished overall, it might as well feel like it. They have jumped clear of Williams and Haas, and should be in with a chance of a good haul of points this year. Alpine have had a rough start to their time in F1, the car has pace at least, with Alonso reaching the top 10, and staying there until his brake issue. I don’t think they will be as strong as they were last year, although with Alonso anything is possible.

Williams never really featured in the race, apart from the odd battle with cars exiting the pits, their pace looked on the whole better, as Russell was not far off the midfield pack. I wonder if they now need to focus fully on next year, to try and boost up the field. Haas’ race was tougher than even we had expected, Mazepin once again this weekend lost the car and crashed, with Mick also spinning early on, before settling into a rhythm. Hopefully he has learnt a lot from today, doing a full race, and can be nearer the pack in the future, although it is unlikely.

Compared to the usual procession in Melbourne, this was a much more enjoyable way to start the campaign. When you look back at 2020, it was an incredible season, with many great races, and story lines, all it missed was a title fight at the front. Now, with everyone’s cards laid on the table, we might get just that, on top of action throughout the field. Is it too late to cancel the 2022 regulations?

-M

[itsiotrecords-blog]

http://ift.tt/2sDm9uz

What is a sedan? It’s a regular car by definition: Four-doors, front engine, a trunk… the most classic, basic iteration of your daily vehicle. The cars throughout this list fight against this definition; they want to be more, even if they are actually just sedans. Usually, a sedan isn’t a “pleasure” car, or a dream car. It’s a car made for going to the market, for cab drivers, for travelling with your family, or for picking up the kids from school. But what about performance ? There are a few sedans that really want to stand out from the rest. We’re talking about a true challenge for engineers and designers; it’s about turning an everyday car into a real sports car, a car that can provide that exciting sensation that we can usually only experience with other luxury cars. Here are 15 of the fastest four-door sedans on the market that are so much more than just a car to pick up the kids from school.

#1 2017 Audi S4 Sedan – Tech Friendly The new generation of Audi’s mid-size sedan was introduced at the 2016 Geneva International Motor Show. The main changes can be found in the interior, with the Audi Virtual Cockpit, a whole new dashboard system with only one screen for your GPS, rev counter, and everything else. The new S4 gets an all new 3.0 V6 turbocharged engine jointly developed with Porsche, giving the car 354hp and a 0-62mph time of 4.7 seconds, thanks to the all-wheel drive system. The old RS4, fitted with a 4.2L V8 with 450hp, had exactly the same performance. Even if the car is manufactured for great performance, it no longer has a dual-clutch transmission. The new S4 has an 8-speed automatic transmission provided by ZF. Like most German sedans, the top speed is electronically limited to 155mph. As the previous generations of S4, this one combines high performance with stealth, but with a great design.

#2 2017 Chevrolet SS – Cheap And Cheerful The Chevrolet SS is a very simple, but very cool car. It’s actually a Holden Commodore with a Chevy logo. It was created in order to replace the Pontiac G8. The only engine available is a 415hp 6.2L V8, with a 6-speed manual or an 8-Speed ZF automatic transmission. A new sequential automatic 6-speed will be available soon. There are no options available as the car is basically fully equipped, which is great, especially when you know the price, only $47 000. This car had the best HP/$ ratio out there! The engine is free of any turbocharger or compressor, so it sounds awesome every time. Nothing but the true, raw, beautiful American V8 note. This car has a mainstream design, but a vibrant soul. If rear-wheel-drive, a naturally aspirated engine and a manual transmission are the keys to  your driving pleasure, this Chevy SS is maybe the most attractive sedan out there.

#3 2017 Rolls Royce Ghost Black Badge – Dark Beauty Rolls-Royce’s Bespoke department can do some stuff that very few Bespoke teams can afford to do. The new range of ”Black Badge” cars is exactly the kind of high-end luxury car you expect from an already all-luxury lineup. This car is meant for self-made, independent, young people, because until these Black Badge models, a Royce wasn’t exactly a car for people under 50. On the BB Ghost, black is everywhere, even the Rolls-Royce emblem is black. Inside, there’s no more wood, but instead carbon fibre vinyl everywhere. The most interesting changes remain under the hood. The 6.6L turbocharged V12 gets a 40hp upgrade, which results in a whopping 610hp, while the 8-speed automatic transmission becomes quicker. Even if the top speed remains limited to 155mph (can’t the Bespoke department fix this?), the car gets 0.3 seconds faster from 0-62mph, with an impressive 4.6 seconds.

#4 2017 Aston Martin Rapide S – Singing Swan The Aston-Martin Rapide S is the result of an audacious but simple equation: The DB9 + 2-doors. And as you can see, the result is absolutely gorgeous. This is arguably the most beautiful sedan out there. The design is pure and definitely awesome. And it’s not only great to watch, it’s also great to drive. Yeah, to drive, that’s what makes the Rapide S so unique: it’s a luxury sedan you want to drive yourself, not like a Rolls-Royce Ghost or a Bentley Flying Spur. The car is fitted with the latest evolution of the legendary 6.0L naturally aspirated V12 engine, which means 560hp, and a whopping 203mph top speed. The old TouchTronic 6-speed transmission has been kicked out, and replaced by the new and popular ZF 8-speed automatic, with sequential mode. The 0-62 time has slightly improved, from 5.2 seconds to 4.4! And the sound, the pure, beautiful, intense and unique note of the N/A V12. This sound will turn any trip to your local market into a romantic journey. Unfortunately, the Rapide is going to be replaced in 2018 by a fully-electric variant in order to compete with the Tesla Model S. All of this reminds us about Aston Martin’s motto: Power, beauty, and soul.

#5 2017 Mercedes-AMG S65 L – Heavily Dynamic The new Mercedes S-Class was unveiled in 2014. This car is well-known for its stunning interior, with a gorgeous design and sleek finish. The car is fitted with a biturbo, 6.0L V12 engine, which produces a huge torque peak of 738lb-ft. For the record, it’s actually the engine Pagani uses in their Huayra. This is a very unique engine, with 3 valves per cylinder. The car also features a ”magic control” which ”reads” the road and erases any of the asphalt’s imperfections. It produce a whopping 630hp, which allow the heavy (2,250kg) vehicle to reach 62mph in only 4.3 seconds, which is 0.1 faster than the 585hp S63, even if this one has all-wheel drive and a short wheel base. Yes, the S65 L is only rear-wheel drive. The AMG is only available with a 7-speed automatic transmission. And, in a very unique fact for a German sedan, the car isn’t electronically limited to 155mph, which results in a top speed of 190 mph – in a great luxury car on your heated seat. The car is also fitted with carbon ceramic brakes, in order to make the 62-0 as quick as the 0-62. Even if the car’s capabilities are limited by permanent electronics aids, this car remains one of the best performance limos on the market.

#6 2017 VLF Destino – Back To Basics Remember the Fisker Karma, the 4-door hybrid sedan loved by some really famous people (we’re looking at you, Leo)? The Fisker Karma was a commercial failure, but Henri Fisker is back with a new brand and a new partner, Bob Lutz from G.M. With the brand renamed VLF, the Karma remains part of the lineup, but the new name of the car is the Destino, and the biggest change is, you guessed it, under the hood. No more straight-four 408hp. The new Destino is outfitted with the 6.2L V8 engine from the C7 Corvette. Is Fisker going backwards ? There is no more high tech solution for the engine, but the V8 outputs a whopping 647hp, which makes the Destino 241hp more powerful than the old Karma. This car started its life with a pretty complex hybrid powertrain system, and now Fisker decides to go back to basics with this V8 iteration of the Karma. Yay or nay?

#7 2017 BMW M760 Li xDrive – Autobahn Cruiser When Volkswagen bought Rolls-Royce in 1998, the development of new engines began. The engine of this M badge 7 Series is derived from the 6.6L V12 biturbo engine which is in the Rolls-Royce Dawn, Wraith and the Ghost we mentioned earlier. The engine is configured for 600hp. Like many other cars in this article, the M760Li is fitted with an 8-speed automatic transmission. This is the only M car with xDrive, but it’s for the best. It allows the 2,180kg limo to go to 62mph in only 3.9 seconds, for a top speed of 190mph. All of this in a luxury car, driving in total silence. Like the Mercedes S65 L, the car is only available with an extended wheelbase. Carbon ceramic brakes are optional, along with other fancy things yet to come.

#8 2017 Alfa Romeo Giulia QV – The Clover’s Comeback Since 2013, Alfa Romeo has been producing the 4C Coupe, a car built to compete with other lightweight sports cars. But Alfa is more ambitious, and wanted to steal the crown from companies like Mercedes and BMW. So here is the Alfa Romeo Giulia QV, that could eat M4s for lunch and C63s for diner. The heart of this beast is a 3.0L biturbo V6 engine from Maserati, co-engineered with Ferrari. It generates an output of 510hp. All of this with a manual or automatic transmission, and a carbon fibre drive shaft. All of this helps the car go up to 62mph in 3.9 seconds with a top speed of 191mph. The car has been lapping the famed Nürburgring track in only 7:39, which is the time of the last 911 Carrera S, and faster than both the M4 and C63s. The car can also be fitted with carbon ceramic brakes, and it sounds great, thanks to the active sport exhaust; it’s a nice tribute to Alfa Romeo’s golden age. This Giulia QV is definitely the true comeback of Alfa Romeo in the sports cars world.

#9 2017 BMW M3 Competition Package – The German Swiss Army Knife M3. One letter, one number, one legend. The BMW M3 is well-known for its versatility, you can pick up the kids, drive to the market, and smoke some supercars on your way home. This year, BMW wants to give the mid-size flagship car a subtile update. This model gets a 20 horsepower increase from the biturbo 3.0L straight 6 engine, which results in a great 450hp. The dual clutch transmission (DKG) is also improved, allowing the car to go to 62mph in only 3.8 seconds, or 3.9 with the regular 6-speed manual. The car also gets new rims, a new anti-roll bar, and all driving modes have been reconfigured. Unfortunately, the package doesn’t remove the speed limiter, so the car won’t go over 155mph. This Competition Package definitely fixed the original car’s lack of soul.

#10 2017 Cadillac CTS-V Sedan – The Patriot Nowadays Cadillac remains one of the world’s most famous Americans brands, but the CTS-V is probably not the car that comes to mind when you think of Cadillac. This American full-size sedan is really one of a kind. First, the design: you won’t see any other car with a design like this. Every single inch of this car is truly unique. And of course, the performance, because before being a 5-meter long sedan, the CTS-V is a true sports car. The vehicle is fitted with a 6.2L supercharged V8 engine from the last Z06, which still produces 649hp. And guess what. The transmission is an 8-Speed automatic with sequential mode – this is definitely the new standard. From front bumpers to the rear diffuser, carbon fibre is everywhere. The car weighs 1,850kg, and while this could seem heavy, for a full size sedan, it’s not. And the performance is great too, from 0 to 62 mph in 3.7 seconds. Don’t forget, the car is American, which means no top speed limit — which means 200 mph! The standard equipment is awesome: Brembo 6 piston discs, piloted magnetic suspension, locked anti-roll bar, all Alcantara/leather interior, premium audio, performance data recorder, and so much more. All this for only $85,595… If the American dream was a car, it would be this one.

#11 2017 Porsche Panamera Turbo – Gran Turismo For The Family You can find almost anything you want in Porsche’s lineup, from compact SUVs to GTs, but every single one is very well-conceived. The new Panamera is exactly that. The car is full of innovation. The first Panamera, launched in 2009, was a best seller, and this 2017 Panamera Turbo is here to replace it and keep the German manufacturer at the top of the industry. First, the car gives up on the 4.8L V8 engine, with a new 4.0L turbocharged V8 engine, which can produce 550hp. With the optional Sport Chrono Package, the car can go from 0 to 62mph in only 3.6 seconds! The 918-inspired headlights are part of the cosmetic update, but the best new detail remains the rear-wing,  and there are no words for it, so :

The dual-clutch transmission is now 8-speed. The Panamera now features all-wheel drive. An optional rear-wheel steering system is also available. Porsche’s goal with this car is to give the same amount of sensation to every passenger, doesn’t matter if you’re on the driver seat or in the trunk. A lot of fancy options are also available, like night vision assist, rear seat entertainment, and a sport exhaust system. All that just reminds us that a Porsche without any add-ons isn’t really a complete car, which is pretty sad. Hopefully that wing is standard!

#12 2017 Audi S8 Plus – The Lord Of The Rings Every major innovation has been introduced on this car, like the light aluminum frame, pneumatic suspension with variable height, or, more recently, the awesome Audi Matrix LED headlights, the world’s first laser headlights on a car. This S8 Plus is the only full-size performance sedan which can compete with the Porsche Panamera. The car is fitted with a 4.0L turbocharged V8 engine; the same engine can be found in every Audi RS but the RS3 and the TT-RS. The Quattro all-wheel drive transmission makes the car agile and surprisingly light to drive. The engine output generates 605hp, allowing the car to reach 62mph in only 3.5 seconds. The top speed is 190mph, but the car could easily go over 200. This true supercar performance in a stealth sedan. All the details that are usually in chrome are now matte black. The 21” rims are specific, and the carbon ceramic brakes remain optional. All of these features definitely make this car the automotive version of The Lord of the Rings.

#13 2017 Mercedes E63S 4-Matic – Supercar In Disguise This is the Mercedes-Benz mid-size sedan. It was a subtle, quiet car, but things changed when the performance department, AMG, turned the automobile into the new E63. Rear-wheel drive cars are expected from AMG, but for this model, all-wheel drive, “4Matic” transmission is the only option available. The engine is taken right out a Mercedes-AMG GTR, and pushed to 610hp. With the all-wheel drive, this results in an incredible 3.4 seconds from 0 to 62mph. The top speed is limited at 155mph, but it can be unleashed to a more extreme 186mph. Inside tech is everywhere, with huge screens for a GPS, speedometer, and everything else, like the Audi virtual cockpit. There are also some ambient lights with dozens of colors; combine this with the (optional) Burmester high-end sound system, and you get one of the most versatile cars out there. BMW is assumed to strike back with the next generation M5, but for now, this is Europe’s fastest sedan!

#14 2017 Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat – Hell On Wheels For Dodge, SRT stands for Street and Racing Technology. A Dodge with an SRT badge is always a fast car. But what about Hellcat? Both the SRT Charger and the Challenger got this new variety back in 2014. It brings a supercharger provided by AHA America to the already powerful 6.2L V8 engine. The result is the most powerful engine in America, with 717hp. Fun fact: the car needs to be started with a separate red key to unlock all the power. Guess what ? The gearbox is an 8-speed automatic with sequential manual transmission provided by ZF, which allows the Charger Hellcat to reach 62mph in… 3.4 seconds! The car features only rear-wheel drive, which means the smell of burning rubber is never far, but hopefully guys from SRT fitted the Hellcat with launch control! The best thing about this charger is the simple fact that this is a 204 mph, 717hp everyday car. And it’s actually cheap: $75 000 fully equipped. This is arguably the best HP/$ ratio out there.

#15 2017 Tesla Model S P100D – Greetings From The Future This is probably something you didn’t expect: the fastest sedan on the market is also the most environmentally-friendly! There is no gas engine in the Tesla Model S, and the fully-electric performance sedan features all-wheel drive. But there is much more. As you probably know, an electric engine doesn’t need to be revved up to get maximum speed. In this case, we’re talking about 602hp, right away, no turbo lag or anything. This allows the 2,000kg Tesla Model S to reach 62mph in 2.6 seconds. The car is electronically limited to 155mph. There is one electric engine on the front wheel axle, while the performance one is on the rear axle. When you open the hood, there is just another trunk. But the best (or the worst, your choice) is yet to come: the car is fully autonomous, with 8 cameras to keep the car aware of the surrounding environment, and allows it to drive 2 times safer than an average human. And, of course, the car can park itself. When you leave home, you can call the car with your phone and it can come to pick you up. This is the future, really.

Source: TheRichest