#John Clayborn

[sarah-maclean-completist]

72 Shelton Street A Rogue By Any Other Name A Scot in the Dark Adelaide Frampton Alec Stuart, Duke of Warnick Allendale House Aloysius Kingscote, Marquess of Eversley Benedick Hartwell Bombshell Brazen and the Beast Brook's Businesses Caleb Calhoun Coleford House Daring and the Duke Devon Culm Duncan West Eben James Eleven Scandals to Start to Win a Duke's Heart Ewan Felicity Faircloth Georgiana Pearson Grace Condry Greek Mythology Heartbreaker Hell's Belles Henrietta Sedley Henry Carrington, Duke of Clayborn Heroes Heroines Homes Jacqueline Mosby James Talbott Jane Whitacre Jasper Arlesey, Earl Harlow Juliana Fiori Lady Calpurnia (Callie) Hartwell Lady Isabel Townsend Lillian Hargrove Locations Lord Gabriel St. John, Marquess of Ralston Lord Nicholas St. John Love By Numbers MacLeaniverse Wiki Madame Hebert Madame Hebert's Main Page Malcolm Bevingstoke, Duke of Haven Mara Lowe Mariana Hartwell Michael Lawler, Marquess of Bourne Minerva House Nastasia Kritikos Never Judge a Lady By Her Cover Nine Rules to Break When Romancing a Rake No Good Duke Goes Unpunished Number Two, Wesley Street One Good Earl Deserves a Lover Penelope Marbury Philippa Marbury Punch Ralston House Rules of Scoundrels Saviour Whittington Scandal & Scoundrel Seraphina Talbot Sesily Talbot Simon Pearson, Duke of Leighton Somerset House Sophie Talbot Ten Ways to Be Adored When Landing a Lord The Bareknuckle Bastards The Day of the Duchess The Dog and the Dove The Duke of Christmas Present The Fallen Angel The Place The Rogue Not Taken The Singing Sparrow Theatre Royal Timeline Trevescan House Wicked and the Wallflower William Harrow, Duke of Lamont Worthington House

[bigdreamsandwildthings]

February Wrap-Up

Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries (Heather Fawcett) ★★★★★

Over My Dead Body (Sweeney Boo) ★★★★

The Serpent and the Wings of Night (Carissa Broadbent) ★★★★★

The Sun Down Motel (Simone St. James) (audio) ★★★

Georgie All Along (Kate Clayborn) ★★★★

The Villa (Rachel Hawkins) (audio) ★★★1/2

Chain of Thorns (Cassandra Clare) ★★★★

What Lies Between Us (John Marrs) (audio) ★★★★

In the Weeds (B.K. Borison) ★★★★

Not too shabby for being away for half the month! Find me over on Goodreads to share reviews.

[familyvideostevie]

📚 or 🎧 to sit in the sun and read or listen to musicsend this and a little bit about your taste to get a personalized book or song recommendation.

I'm more of a sci-fi girlie but I love reading romance too. Given if it's not a YA :)

okay!! i've been sitting on this to get you a good list. here are a few of my faves! i've tried to give you a mix of stuff so apologies if you've read any of this before :)

SCI-FI:

The Locked Tomb series by Tamsyn Muir: Three books so far, starting with Gideon the Ninth. I think this series is like, the the future of sci-fi (it really edges into fantasy but I think it's both!!!)? It's based in space necromancy but is also about politics, family, war, and sacrifice -- it's written in perhaps the most clever/confusing style. Really innovative and mind-blowing, in my opinion.

Emily St. John Mandel: Her stuff is pretty solidly literary fiction but it's sci-fi literary fiction. Station Eleven is one of my favorite books and I also loved The Glass Hotel and Sea of Tranquility.

Jeff VanderMeer: Jeff is my HOMIE. Probably one of my fave contemporary scifi writers, his books are all about the environment and biology and how humanity and nature interact. They are also pretty brutal and creepy, but I've loved everything I've read. Start with The Southern Reach trilogy, which begins with Annihilation.

ROMANCE:

Just a note here that I read mostly traditionally published romance. There is a lot of good romance that is independently published or published by small presses -- they take some digging to find and are often only available as ebooks from ebook retailers but worth looking for if you have specific tropes you love.

I read a lot of the popular traditionally published romance authors (hello Emily Henry I love you) but here are some other romances I've liked in recent years:

contemporary romance:

Every Summer After by Carley Fortune Georgie, All Along by Kate Clayborn Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld Nora Goes Off Script by Annabel Monaghan

historical romance:

My favorite historical authors are Lisa Kleypas and Sarah MacLean. Lisa's Wallflower series is really great and Sarah's Bareknuckle Bastards series is my favorite (the first two books, anyway). Other authors to check out are Tessa Dare, Beverly Jenkins, and Olivia Waite. There is so much out there!

join the celebration!

[perspicaciouslynameless]

Books I Read in 2023

Overall statistics by genre

This was a pretty sparse reading year, so I seem to have stuck to my staples.

Ratings and page count over time

I guess I didn't read enough to truly piss me off, so pretty favourable ratings across the board :)

Content

The two main surprises here are that books with main characters of colour outnumbered those without this year, as well as how many books turned out to be set in "Canada + America" (though that might have been interpreted a little generously in some cases).

Gantt Chart

The longest time spent on a book this time around would be Emma, which was due to a deliberately slow pace set by my book club.

Overall thoughts

This year's favourites include:

Nona the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir - this might be my favourite of the series so far! I especially loved the John chapters, they developed him further into such a delicious character. Every other element of this comes in at a close second.

Winging it by Ashlyn Kane and Morgan James - this has to be the most surprising of the lot - I picked it up randomly and did not expect it to press as many of my buttons as it did, and the same holds for the third book in the series as well.

The King of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner - I loved this entire series, but this was definitely my absolute favourite of them, with The Queen of Attolia as second favourite.

Mammoths at the Gates by Nghi Vo - this series continues to reign supreme.

I am a little disappointed, not because this list isn't as long as in years past, but because it's shorter because I've been less interested in reading. I had like a two-and-a-half month gap after mid-August, and only read more at the end of the year because I more or less forced myself to. Hopefully I will find more motivation in the coming year.

Full list of books read

The Kaiju Preservation Society, by John Scalzi

The Stand-Up Groomsman, by Jackie Lau

Winging It, by Ashlyn Kane and Morgan James

The Winging It Holiday Special, by Ashlyn Kane and Morgan James

Scoring Position, by Ashlyn Kane and Morgan James

Kiss Her Once for Me, by Alison Cochrun

A Dash of Salt and Pepper, by Kosoko Jackson

Nona the Ninth, by Tamsyn Muir

The Rock Star's Guide to Getting Your Man, by Ashlyn Kane

Georgie, All Along, by Kate Clayborn

Behind the Scenes, by Karelia Stetz-Waters

Unrivaled, by Ashlyn Kane and Morgan James

Hell Bent, by Leigh Bardugo

Weave the Dark, Weave the Light, by Anna Zabo

The Brightest Star in Paris, by Diana Biller

The Love Connection, by Denise Williams

The Missed Connection, by Denise Williams

The Sweetest Connection, by Denise Williams

The Thief, by Megan Whalen Turner

The Queen of Attolia, by Megan Whalen Turner

The King of Attolia, by Megan Whalen Turner

A Conspiracy of Kings, by Megan Whalen Turner

Thick as Thieves, by Megan Whalen Turner

Return of the Thief, by Megan Whalen Turner

Moira's Pen, by Megan Whalen Turner

The Marquis Who Mustn't, by Courtney Milan

Emma, by Jane Austen

Iris Kelly Doesn't Date, by Ashley Herring Blake

Proper Scoundrels, by Allie Therin

The Darkness Outside Us, by Eliot Schrefer

Mammoths at the Gates, by Nghi Vo

The Three-Body Problem, by Cixin Liu

[wahwealth]

John Wayne | Muriel Evans | King Of The Pecos (1936) | Western Full Move

King of the Pecos is a 1936 American Western film directed by Joseph Kane and starring John Wayne and Muriel Evans. Cast John Wayne as John Clayborn Muriel Evans as Belle Jackson Cy Kendall as Alexander Stiles Jack Clifford as Henchman Ash Arthur Aylesworth as Hank Mathews Herbert Heywood as Josh Billings J. Frank Glendon as Lawyer Brewster Edward Hearn as Eli Jackson John Beck as Mr. Clayborn Mary MacLaren as Mrs. Clayborn Bradley Metcalfe as Little John Yakima Canutt as Henchman P Never Miss An Upload, Join the channel. https://www.youtube.com/@nrpsmovieclassics

[netmassimo]

The novel "Pacific Edge" by Kim Stanley Robinson was published for the first time in 1990. It's the third book in the trilogy of the Three Californias. It won the John W. Campbell Memorial Award.

Kevin Clayborne was elected to the city council of El Modena, a town in Orange County. A member of the Green Party, he finds himself on the opposite side of the New Federal mayor Alfredo Blair regarding the project to open up the last hill in the city still remaining in a completely natural state to possible commercial exploitation.

The situation for Kevin is made more complicated by the relationship he's trying to build with Ramona Alvarez, who has just ended a relationship with Alfredo. Kevin must juggle his personal and political situation in what is supposed to be a utopia of 2065 California.

[thebandcampdiaries]

Slow Burning Car has released a new album: “Vicarious Disclosures.”

Slow Burning Car is a rock band hailing from Los Angeles, California. The lineup consists of Troy Spiropoulos (Lead Vocals/Bass), Zak St. John (Drums/Backing Vocals), Kim Clayborne (Backing and Lead Vocal), Tommy Marcel (Guitar/Backing Vocals), and Aaron Kusterer (Guitar). Together, these accomplished musicians have released five albums over the years, and they’ve recently released “Vicarious Disclosures,” one of their most ambitious works to date.

The album contains ten songs, including the opener, “Shapeless Faceless,” which is a great introduction to the impactful sound and one-of-a-kind formula that people can expect from this release. The track kicks off with a huge guitar riff and a relentless drum ostinato, making for a really lively blend of roaring rock influences and melodic lines. The vocals are very diverse and dynamic, at times soft-spoken, at others intense and upfront. The singing complements the pace of the music perfectly, especially as the song slows down and the guitars acquire a clean, chorused sound. The track “Cyanide Planes” is another example of the band’s diverse sound. The introduction has an ethereal, nearly psychedelic quality to it before the band’s launch into a post-punk-inspired groove, with a thundering bass line and iconic guitar melodies. The song “Millionaire” offers another perspective. The track kicks off with a country-inspired segment, only to burst out into a super heavy alt-rock arrangement with tons of power and impact.

Overall, this album is incredibly diverse, and it has so much to offer, giving the audience a truly nuanced and multifaceted listening experience. This is a great calling card for the band and undoubtedly an amazing addition to their discography and growing musical legacy. If you’re new to the band’s music, you won’t be disappointed, and after diving into this album, you should go back and explore the group’s extensive back catalog as well!

This release is highly recommended to fans of artists as diverse as Velvet Revolver, Foo Fighters, The Beatles, Pavement, Dead Rituals, and many more.

Find out more and listen:

https://www.slowburningcar.com/

[stubobnumbers]

King Of The Pecos (1936)

Director: Joseph Kane Starring: John Wayne, Muriel Evans, and Cy Kendall.

Texas cattle baron Stiles killed John Clayborn's parents ten years earlier. Now a lawyer, Clayborn tries legally to break up Stiles' water monopoly and rustling operation. When that fails he must use force.

[infjtarot]

Hierophant. Weiser Waite Smith Tarot

A religious figure sits in his ceremonial vestments. He bestows the Pope’s blessing upon the unseen congregation: first three fingers up, last two fingers down. The crossed keys represent the keys to heaven. The Hierophant is given the number five, which is the number of completion. He is a five in perfect balance: all four elements—water, earth, air, fire—combined with the fifth, spirit. He calls us to be our higher selves, to find a perfect balance and lead others to their own. The Hierophant is another name for the Pope. Don’t worry, you don’t have to take up religion when you get this card. It is more about becoming a leader, thinking outside your own concerns, and doing what is best for a community. You know how some athletes, musicians, and celebrities get caught up with drugs or the law, and then, when their fans express disappointment, they say, “I never asked to be a role model”? This card is the opposite of that. The Hierophant asks us to be better. Not just better, but the most balanced, the most compassionate, the most enlightened version of ourselves. It sounds nice, right? Who doesn’t want to be his or her highest self? That’s what we think until it comes time to actually do it, which means we have to stop grumbling, find two socks that match, stop eating potato chips, and start devoting ourselves selflessly to a cause. You become your highest self by blending the four elements of the tarot deck—Cups (emotions), Wands (passion), Swords (intellect), and Coins (pragmatism)—with a sense of spirituality. You can substitute morality here if you like. You remove your own private concerns because there’s simply no room for them. It’s a bit like the detachment taught in Buddhism or the denial of the ego in Christianity. When we let the ego rule, we get stuck with the Devil, who is ten cards up at number fifteen. Here you put aside your own needs and work from a place of virtue. That’s how you become a leader. That does not mean you stop being a human being. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is an excellent example of the Hierophant. He knew that by becoming a visible, vocal figurehead of the civil rights movement he would be a target of the FBI, racist loonies, and hate organizations. And yet he continued to put himself in danger year after year because he was on a mission greater than himself. Dr. King’s writings still resonate, and they still inspire groups who are struggling for equal rights all over the world. His work transcended his human life. Complications arise, however, when the Hierophant becomes powerful, as many great leaders can attest. With power comes the temptation to abuse that power and to use it thoughtlessly. And so King succumbed from time to time, to affairs with other women and so on. That does not diminish his greatness—mostly because he did not allow that side of him to go wild. But certainly other religious and social leaders (insert any number of politicians or religious leaders caught sexting, embezzling, or getting violent here) were not so disciplined. When the Hierophant shows up, we need to question whether we need to step up as a leader in some way, whether we need to become active in a cause, whether we can be of service to something. It’s also about coming together as a group to create something larger than ourselves. Find a way in your work to be of service to a greater good and find it in you to unearth your higher self. Recommended material. Calvary, film directed by John Michael McDonagh A Call to Conscience: The Landmark Speeches of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., book edited by Clayborne Carson and Kris Shepard The Essential Rosa Luxemburg (Reform or Revolution and The Mass Strike), book by Rosa Luxemburg Jessa Crispin

[rockislandadultreads]

In Memoriam: Julie Garwood (1946-2023)

For the Roses by Julie Garwood

1879. In Blue Belle, Montana, everyone knew better than to mess with the Claybornes. The brothers had once been a mismatched gang of street urchins—until they found an abandoned baby girl in a New York city alley, named her Mary Rose, and headed west to raise her to be a lady. They became a family—held together by loyalty and love if not by blood—when suddenly they faced a crisis that threatened to tear them apart....

Trouble came to town with one Lord Harrison Stanford MacDonald. Armed with a swagger and six-shooter, he cut a striking figure—but it soon became apparent to Mary Rose that he was too much of a gentleman to make it in her rough-and-tumble town. She asked her brothers to teach him the basics of frontier survival, which he acquired with ease. And soon he possessed a deep and desperate love for Mary Rose. She returned his affection wholeheartedly... until MacDonald revealed a secret that challenged everything she believed about herself, her life, and her newfound love. Now her search for identity and meaning would begin, raising questions that could only be answered if she listened to the truth within her heart....

This is the first volume in “The Clayborne Brides” series. 

Heartbreaker by Julie Garwood 

“Bless me father, for I will sin. . . .” In the still shadows of the confessional, a madman tauntingly reveals his plan for a murder he is going to commit, pulling Father Thomas Madden into a twisted game by disclosing his next intended victim: Tom’s sister, Laurant. In a frantic race to protect her, Tom calls upon his best friend, elite FBI agent Nick Buchanan, to track the predator who is closing in on Laurant. Now, as an electrifying attraction grows between Laurant and Nick, so does the danger—and one false move will cost both of them everything that matters.

This is the first volume in the “Buchanan-Renard” series. 

Shadow Music by Julie Garwood

For Princess Gabrielle of St. Biel, Scotland is a land of stunning vistas, wild chieftains, treacherous glens, and steep shadows--skullduggery, betrayal, and now murder. Prized for her exquisite beauty, the daughter of one of England's most influential barons, Gabrielle is also a perfect bargaining chip for a king who needs peace in the Highlands: King John has arranged Gabrielle's marriage to a good and gentle laird. But this marriage will never take place.

For Gabrielle, everything changes in one last burst of freedom--when she and her guards come upon a scene of unimaginable cruelty. With one shot from her bow and arrow, Gabrielle takes a life, saves a life, and begins a war.

Within days, the Highlands are aflame with passions as a battle royal flares between enemies old and new. Having come to Scotland to be married, Gabrielle is instead entangled in Highland intrigue. For two sadistic noblemen, underestimating Gabrielle's bravery and prowess may prove fatal. But thanks to a secret Gabrielle possesses, Colm MacHugh, the most feared man in Scotland, finds a new cause for courage. Under his penetrating gaze, neither Gabrielle's body nor heart is safe.

This is the third volume in the “Highlands’ Lairds” series. 

Grace Under Fire by Julie Garwood

Grace Isabel MacKenna had a hundred things to do today. Killing someone wasn’t one of them. It was supposed to be a quick visit to Boston for the Buchanan anniversary party, then on to Scotland to collect an inheritance. She checks into the hotel and then decides to go for a brisk walk. But after getting lost she ends up with a wounded man stumbling into her arms, and then his shooter coming after them both. When she fires back in self-defense, she doesn’t expect him to drop dead. Thanks to the Buchanans dispatching Navy SEAL and now a lawyer Michael Buchanan to help her deal with the police, Isabel endures hours of interrogation and is finally free to go.

Isabel knows she should be grateful for Michael’s help, but since she’s harbored an extreme dislike for him for years, gratitude is difficult to muster. Michael has appointed himself her de facto guardian, and she’s stuck with him despite their constant bickering and sizzling attraction. Even when Isabel goes to Scotland to claim her inheritance, Michael follows her, but he isn’t the only thing she can’t shake. Mysterious threats against Isabel surface, and before they can deal with their growing feelings for each other, Michael and Isabel must first survive.

This is the 14th volume in the “Buchanan-Renard” series.

[frasier-crane-style]

-They're doing the exact same bitter old man revitalized by young ingenue subplot as TLJ. Funny, considering how that was thrown under the bus by TROS. I mean, there's minor differences, but it's variations on a theme. This is what makes people think there's an agenda behind these decisions, because you'd think the reception to TLJ would teach them that audiences don't want to see this dynamic, but here we go again. The flipside to "Put a chick in it, make her gay and lame" is "put an iconic hero in it, make him sad and pathetic."

-Pandery scene where the evil Voller microaggressions a black bellboy. Because, you know, we need to sell that he's an evil Nazi. You'd think a Nazi war criminal in hiding would not want to give away that he thinks Hitler was a super cool dude, but shows what I know.

-Do professors really retire in the middle of a semester? Because we have this teaching scene where Indy keeps telling his students "this is going to be on the final!", and then in the next scene he's retired. What, did he get MeToo'd offscreen?

-Indy's weirdly enthusiastic about Archimedes considering how much he hates the moon landing. Could this 'bitter old man' characterization at least be consistent? I have a hard time buying that someone with such a love for learning and knowledge as Indy wouldn't be tremendously excited by the Space Race. He thinks it's cool that Archimedes discovered all this stuff, but people discovering things in the present day is lame?

-Voller's men are weirdly trigger-happy, considering. They're going "no witnesses!" before they even lay eyes on Indy or Helena. It's just cartoonish. You'd think a bunch of Nazis infiltrating the US government would try to leave a small footprint.

(If you've watched Justified: City Primeval, Clayborne's actions seem familiar to the same actor's character of Clement Mansell, who is SUPPOSED to be a psychotic man-child. Again, detracts from the villains that this dumbass is the best they can field.)

-Mason, a proud black woman, is the token good teammate of the Neo-Nazis, which seems particularly contrived. Why doesn't she report to her boss that these mercenaries (or whoever they're supposed to be) are murdering everyone they come across? Why are these seemingly all-powerful Neo-Nazis allowing someone so opposed to their mission to come along--they don't think it'll be a liability? Well, I'm sure there'll be a satisfying explanation to all this.

-Indy gets lucky again, as the truck he's being kidnapped in is blocked by a parade, then backs into a cab, meaning the baddies have to escort him on foot. They also don't bother to handcuff him.

-We get all the ingredients for a huge action sequence here, with Indy riding a horse, Clayborne on a motorcycle, and a Pat Roach wannabe in a convertible, but the setpiece just doesn't take off. Indy rides into a subway tunnel and gets on a train. That's it. Indy's actions barely go beyond riding a horse in a straight line.

-Oh, Sallah shows up to... give Indy a ride to the airport. The movie unforgivably teases us with him wanting to go with Indy--come to think of it, wouldn't replacing 'Baz' with Sallah do some good here? Instead of Helena being the child we've never met of some dude we've never met, she could be Sallah's kid.

-A movie also puts a fine point on Sallah's family being proud Egyptian immigrants, which is definitely A Choice when John Rhys-Davies is, uh, not so Egyptian. I realize he's grandfathered in here, but you don't have to point a neon sign at it.

-Weirdly unnecessary flashback to deaged Indy meeting with Baz and a young Helena, reiterating a bunch of plot points that have already been made clear. This movie is over two hours long, we couldn't have lost this scene? I guess it's to make us care about Helena, the woman who just left her old, loving godfather Indy for dead as a distraction. Which is the kind of thing villains do in The Walking Dead. I guess they're trying to give her flaws so she doesn't come across as a Mary Sue, but they shot past 'rascally' and landed on 'sociopath.'

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny

Might as well give this a shot. I'll liveblog at half an hour intervals, starting with the opening.

-It's not all bad, but it's pretty clear the magic is gone. Deaged Indy always lands somewhere between a Tintin character and that bit in Skyfall where Daniel Craig's head was pasted onto a stuntman's body. It doesn't help that the director tries to cover for the CGI by drowning the sequence in murky darkness.

-There's also a bad start-and-stop quality to the action that keeps it from ever seeming to kick into high gear. There'll be a brief burst of action, then Indy sneaks around for a bit, brief burst of action, EXPOSITION DUMP, Indy sneaking around a bit. So it doesn't feel like things are escalating, more like you're playing MGS and you manage to hide for thirty seconds so the alert is canceled and you go back to just wandering around. There's even a part where the guards pull an alarm and it only sounds in one part of the train--Indy's able to just mosey along through another boxcar. What's the point of that alarm? To tell everyone in a ten-foot radius that there's trouble?

-Credit, they actually come up with some good set-ups in this... Indy hotwires a car that is immediately boarded by Nazi higher-ups who think he's their driver and Indy is about to be hung when an Allied bomb lands in the middle of the room to take things from bad to worse (missed opportunity: he should've been standing on the stool when the bomb hits, taking out the floor, so he goes from out of the frying pan into the fire instead of from being strangled to being strangled). The problem is the pay-offs just aren't there. Indy doesn't come up with a clever way out of his problems, he just gets lucky. Hell, I'd settle for a decent quip like "No ticket!"

-Indy gets lucky so many times in this, to the point where you might think it's a superpower a la Longshot. Let's count 'em off.

The bomb kills all the Nazis who are hanging him.

The beam that he's being hung from breaks.

An AA gun on the train is hit by a bomb and goes haywire, taking out all the Nazis pursuing Indy.

Voller is knocked off the train by a signal post thing when he has Indy dead to rights.

A bomb knocks out the train track, crashing the treasure train in a way that leaves all the artifacts intact.

Indy does nothing to affect the outcome of any of these, he just has plot armor an inch thick.

-I know the opening of an Indy movie is a bit early for the supernatural to kick in, but there's a weird bit where the Nazis are after the Lance of Longinus, but it's both powerless and a fake. These are our antagonists? Indy could've stayed home and it would've changed nothing.

-And you have to compare this to the opening of Last Crusade, which was real people on a real set doing real stuff, as opposed to this, which is a CGI effect on a soundstage, not doing anything as memorable or original as River Phoenix did.

Speaking of good set-ups, you're saying this is a train full of looted historical treasures... why not have every train car have some crazy artifact inside it that complicates things? Like Indy runs through a boxcar and it's full of Greek statues and he has to avoid getting crushed by them and he knocks one over to squash a Nazi and one falls over and it breaks through the wall and he uses that in some way? Wouldn't that be tons of fun?

But this is just anemic 'running from the top of one boxcar to another boxcar' stuff. All the advances in special effects technology since Last Crusade came out and yet there's way less spectacle. Even the train derailing at the end is an anticlimax.

[cephalowrites-blog]

“Mrs. Holmes!” His foot firmly in the door, John Clayborne pushes his way inside the apartment. “You don’t know how long I’ve been waiting to finally speak to you in private.”

“I’m— I’m sorry, but I’ve already told you. I don’t need your services.” Her hand twitches, longing for the comfort of her scythe. If she could summon it, if she could just find the strength, she could get him out of her apartment. But it doesn’t answer her call. She knows it won’t. “I think you should leave.”

“Leave?” He tilts his head, a smile playing on his lips. “But we have so much to talk about! Especially where Caden is concerned.”

Her heart leaps into her throat, almost completely blocking her airway. She curls her hand into a fist, but still her scythe does not answer. “What do you want with Caden? His debts are clear. He has no need of your financial services, Mr. Clayborne.”

“Oh, that he doesn’t. I’ll give you that.”

He takes a step towards her. Out of habit, out of a growing fear in her gut, Ianthe matches it with one step back. The air in the room is heavier now, threatening her lungs. She has to find a way to escape; one that does not involved violence with a well-respected lawyer. 

She bumps into the couch and reaches behind her, to support herself. “Then what do you want?”

“You, Mrs. Holmes! You are the one that cheated Death, that brought back a lover from beyond the grave, and you… you are living with him!” He laughs the last sentence, raising his hands to cup his cheeks. His fingers scratch at his beard. “You’ve found a way to best Death, and I need to know how.”

If his presence wasn’t making her sick, then his last words surely push her over the edge. He knows. Somehow, someway, he knows about what she’s done. Not even the police have realized that a dead man walks in New York City; they seem oblivious to the fact a murder victim is alive and well. So how can he know? How could a stranger ever discover her secret? 

Her heart beats louder now, muffling her own thoughts.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Oh! Oh, of course. Of course, you don’t… you don’t want anyone to know! I understand that. Otherwise, everyone would be knocking on your door, demanding that you give them the secrets of life and death.” He moves forward again, effectively pinning her to the couch. “But I need to know. I need to know more than any of them, Ianthe. I need to know how you did it.”

“No, you don’t.”

His eyes flash, lips curling just slightly. “I do. More than you know. More than she knows. What. Did. You. Do.”

“Why? Let’s… Let’s just say, hypothetically, that I do know what you’re talking about.” Good. Good, Ianthe, keep talking, keep breathing. Just wait until Caden gets home, and then you don’t have to worry about your scythe or defending yourself. Not against a mortal. “Let’s say my husband did die, and that he’s back to life and living as though nothing has happened. Why do you think you deserve that knowledge?”

If anything, the question makes him step back. He scratches at his chin once again. “We’ve all lost someone, Ianthe. We’ve all lost someone very dear to them. Death is… inevitable. From the moment we are born, we die. But we don’t have to. We can stop it. I just need to know how you did it, and I… I will finally be able to bring my little girl home.”

“Oh my fuck.” She leans back, threatening to fall, to roll over the back of the couch. “Oh my Jesus fuckin’ Christ.”

“My daughter deserved better, Ianthe. She deserved to live. If your husband got that second chance, shouldn’t she?” He reaches forward, to grab her arms, and pulls her closer. “Shouldn’t she!”

But Ianthe isn’t listening anymore. She can’t. A child’s death, a need to stop Death not just as the entity she is, but as a concept. John Clayborne isn’t just any grieving father. He’s…

“You’re a Dove.”

[i-r-readcomics]

Champions

Volume: 1 #13

The Doom That Went On Forever!

Writers: Bill Mantlo

Pencils: John Byrne

Inks: Bob Layton

Covers: Dave Cockrum

Featuring: The Champions (Angel (Warren Worthington III), Black Widow (Natalia Romanova) , Ghost Rider (Johnathon Blaze), Hercules, Iceman (Bobby Drake), Darkstar), Black Goliath, Reggie Clayborne, The Stranger, Stilt-Man, Kamo-Tharn

Marvel

[floralseokjin]

Seeing as you have incredible writing skills and creativity, do you have any favourite book recommendations?

I’ve had the first ask sitting in my ask box for a few weeks and I compiled a list in my notes up and then forgot about it 😅 so thank you to the second anon for reminding me just now!

Below are a collection of all my 4-5 star book recs! The books which are asterisked are 5⭐️ and the ones I absolutely recommend! But if you’re curious about everything I read (good and bad) along with my reviews then add/follow me on goodreads!

Contemporary romance

The Flat Share (Beth O’leary)

The Road Trip* (Beth O’leary)

The No-Show (Beth O’leary)

The Roommate (Rosie Danan)

One Percent of You (Michelle Gross)

All Rhodes Lead Here (Mariana Zapata)

Shipped (Angie Hockman)

The Layover (Lacie Waldon)

Rootbound (Tarah Dewitt)

Funny Feelings* (Tarah Dewitt)

The Co-op* (Tarah Dewitt)

Reluctantly Yours (Erin Hawkins)

For Love or Honey* (Staci Hart)

The Charm Offensive (Alison Cochrun)

Beginner’s Luck (Kate Clayborn)

The Soulmate Equation (Christina Lauren)

In a Holidaze* (Christina Lauren)

Something Wilder* (Christina Lauren)

Holiday Romance (Catherine Walsh)

Beach Read* (Emily Henry)

You and Me on Vacation* (Emily Henry)

Book Lovers* (Emily Henry)

The Kiss Quotient series (Helen Hoang)

In a Jam (Kate Canterbary)

Get a Life, Chloe Brown (Talia Hibbert)

Flawless (Elsie Silver)

Fantasy

Wolf Children* (Mamoru Hosoda)

Fantasy romance

Under the Oak Tree* (Kim Suji)

The Winter King (C L Wilson)

The Ex Hex* (Erin Sterling)

The Kiss Curse (Erin Sterling)

Paranormal romance

The Dead Romantics* (Ashley Poston)

Monster romance

The Mead Mishaps series (Kimberly Lemming)

The Dragon’s Bride (Katee Robert)

Girls Weekend series* (C M Nascosta)

Morning Glory Milking Farm (C M Nascosta)

Moon Blooded Breeding Clinic (C M Nascosta)

Run, Run Rabbit (C M Nascosta)

Titan (Jillian Graves)

Ice Planet Barbarians series (Ruby Dixon)

Historical romance

The Vawdrey Brothers series* (Alice Coldbreath)

The Brides of Karadok series* (Alice Coldbreath)

Dark romance

The Mindf*ck series (S T Abby)

Literary romance

Don’t You Forget About Me (Mhairi McFarlane)

Normal People (Sally Rooney)

Beautiful World, Where Are You (Sally Rooney)

The Switch (Beth O’Leary) 

Literary fiction

Lemon (Kwon Yeo-sun)

Thriller

Sharp Objects (Gillian Flynn)

Pretty Girls (Karin Slaughter)

The Housemaid (Freida McFadden)

Dasiy Darker (Alice Feeney)

The Guest List (Lucy Foley)

The One (John Marrs)

Manga

Yona of the Dawn* (Mizuho Kusanagi)

My Boss has XL Size

Manhwa

Under the Oak Tree*

Devil Number 4

The Lady and Her Butler

A Business Proposal

Positively Yours

What’s Wrong With Secretary Kim?

I Confessed to the Boss!

Moonrise by the Cliff*

Talk To Me

The Tainted Half

Mokrin

[samueldelany]

Released this spring: What is Cyberfunk? It is a vision of the future with an Afrocentric flavor. It is the Singularity without the Eurocentric foundation. It's Bladerunner with sunlight, Neuromancer with melanin, cybernetics with rhythm.

Nineteen amazing Black Speculative Fiction authors have come together to share their visions on the pages of this book. Prepare to be mesmerized by their stories.

Featuring stories by Eugen Bacon, Zig Zag Clayborne, Gerald L. Coleman, Ashleigh Davenport, Milton J. Davis, Minister Faust, Donovan Hall, John Jennings, Ronald Jones, Nicole Givens Kurtz, Kyoko M, Carole McDonnell, Violette Meier, T.C. Morgan, Balogun Ojetade, Hannibal Tabu, Jarla Tangh, Napoleon Wells, and K. Ceres Wright.

[netmassimo]

Il romanzo "La costa del Pacifico" ("Pacific Edge") di Kim Stanley Robinson è stato pubblicato per la prima volta nel 1990. È il terzo libro della trilogia delle tre Californie. Ha vinto il John W. Campbell Memorial Award. In Italia è stato pubblicato da Mondadori nel. n. 48 di "Urania Jumbo" nella traduzione di Francesca Noto.

Kevin Clayborne è stato eletto nel consiglio comunale di El Modena, una cittadina di Orange County. Esponente del partito verde, si trova sul fronte opposto rispetto al sindaco neo-federalista Alfredo Blair, riguardo al progetto di aprire a un possibile sfruttamento commerciale l'ultima collina della città ancora rimasta allo stato completamente naturale.

La situazione per Kevin è resa più complicata dal rapporto che sta cercando di costruire con Ramona Alvarez, che ha appena terminato una relazione con Alfredo. Kevin deve destreggiarsi tra la sua situazione personale e quella politica in quella che dovrebbe essere un'utopia della California del 2065.