#Stepback Reveal

[jeshaisabookworm]

Stepback Cover Reveal! 10/28/23 | Did You Guess It?

“I don’t need a hero. I was blessed with a large amount of common sense, which is of infinitely more use than a man.”― Karen Hawkins, The Seduction of Sara module:1facing:0; ?hw-remosaic: 0; ?touch: (-1.0, -1.0); ?modeInfo: ; ?sceneMode: Auto; ?cct_value: 0; ?AI_Scene: (-1, -1); ?aec_lux: 0.0; ?hist255: 0.0; ?hist252~255: 0.0; ?hist0~15: 0.0; ?module:1facing:0; ?hw-remosaic: 0; ?touch: (-1.0,…

[amatesura]

Milton Charles was the accomplished designer and artist behind the cover of Flowers in the Attic. Charles’s idea was to create a die-cut window that would show a single character on the front cover at first glance, and then would reveal a cast of characters behind the ‘house’ when the reader turned the page to what is sometimes called the ‘stepback’. The contrast in the cover between the stark, graphic, almost secessionist-style house – resplendent in foil – and the almost photo-realistic portrait of the family (illustrated by Gillian Hills) is both queasy and intriguing. It also cleverly evokes the narrative without being too explicit – had he shown the whole family in the attic on the cover in the first place, the magic would have been completely lost. The books that followed directly after Flowers employed Charles’s established template – stark imagery with foil and a die-cut revealing photo-realistic illustration of the book’s characters. (x)

[minato-division03]

What if... The leaders of each division suddenly swapped between teams? What would become of them?

When the regal, spoiled-rotten, city brat Queen Card heads to the beautiful, rural town in @toyama-division to become the temporary leader of Eco Boon. Let’s see kind of shenanigans will ensue.

A three-plus-hour train ride was more than enough time for her to wallow in her racing thoughts.

When was the last time she had gone this long without seeing her teammates?

She didn’t want to think about the answer to that particular question.

Anxiety was bubbling inside her, so much so that it was making her head spin— and not because of the team she was assigned to. On the contrary, she was quite curious about them. They didn’t leave a lasting impression on her the first time she saw them at the TV station a few days before, so maybe they’d prove her first impressions wrong.

They’d better.

But Reiaki-chan and Miku-chan… Were they going to be alright?

Will she be alright? Not being able to see or hear from them for more than just a few days… just the thought of it itched her.

For the past few days, she had taken all the necessary precautions and thoroughly walked them through her game plan, as well as several backup plans.

It didn’t matter who they were teamed with.

Whether that person was an ordinary citizen with no criminal background.

Or if that person was a spy.

She knew it the moment she saw him at the TV station that day.

It was merely a harmless television special event that Ichiro had roped her into participating.

There was no hiding it— not from her. The way that man walked, the strength in his hands when he took hers in his for a mere handshake, the way his eyes told a full story.

By the time the shuffle division teams were revealed, there truly was no backing out… for the chance that the spy himself would figure out that the smartest person in the world was onto him. It didn’t matter what he was serving as an agent for— some shady, obscure organization or perhaps even Chuhoku itself.

She smirked, hiding her internal fatigue.

Regardless, she had no intention of throwing away all the time and effort she put into her plans. It didn’t even matter if the chances of him catching on were slim to none.

Even if he wasn’t a spy specifically in league with Chuhoku, there was still that slim chance… a slim chance that bothered her to no end.

It wasn’t like she didn’t have faith in her teammates, either, but… she couldn’t help but think about everything that could go wrong. She wouldn’t be there to stop things before they go awry and she would be too far away to do anything about it before things go even worse.

That feeling of weakness that should never, ever see the light of day.

And strangely enough, none of her anxiety had shown. Her mask, as always, covered the top half of her face, hiding away any emotion from the world. She rested her arm against the window and rested her head against her knuckle with such poise, yet in such a manner that shouted ‘don’t you dare disturb me’. Queen Card lowered her gaze to the tablet on her lap, blueprints of different magic props filling her screen. She then took another look at the outfit she had worn that day— which was quite different from what she was used to. For starters, she was fully clothed and there was far less gold than she would have liked. It had taken a lot of convincing from her Minato teammates to tone down her usual attire. What she had on now was a result of a compromise.

She sighed and stared out the window. The scenery zoomed past her every second, the train moving at such a rapid speed, there really wasn’t much for her… to see.

Except for a whole lot of green.

She was going to the countryside. Perhaps this would be a nice stepback from the never-ending busy life in the city.

Ha! Yeah right, as much fun as she knew she was going to have, she was going to be incredibly exhausted by the end of it all.

She reached into the bag beside her and pulled out her phone. The divisions had all exchanged numbers a few days prior and she was now searching for the names of her new team members on her contacts.

‘I should arrive at the station in approximately five minutes. I shall see you both then.’

[atticsecrets1979]

taken me a while to put together this review despite reading the entire book in four hours. Whilst I'd been hoping for a biography for years on Virginia, this actually made me feel very conflicted upon having read it.

Whilst I'd like to present a balanced and fair review, as there are some good parts, I felt that as a long term fan dissapointed.

In regards to the actual biography, I feel your reaction to this book very dependent on how much you already know about Virginia from the fandoms and the now sadly gone complete vca website. I've personally spent many years on researching Virginia so there were no huge surprises for me and I feel that may be the case for a lot of the members in the group AtticSecrets who have contributed to keeping her legacy alive.

Personally I did love the family annecdotes and memories and the love that was so apparent that her niece Suzanne and her cousin Pat held for her. These anecdotes are fascinating to read and you honestly truly admire Virginia even more having read how much she overcame despite her disabilities.

The production of flowers in the attic is also fascinating to read but unfortunately short, I would have loved to have heard more from those involved in the process but unfortunately many of those are no longer with us who could provide that information. I know, myself included, we all wish to know who exactly were the models used for the iconic stepbacks or even what modelling agency was used?

I personally felt that there is much more research to be done and some was underused particularly the Boston archives material which was donated by Virginia s mother herself, however there may be a copyright issue to why only certain parts were used?

Again, this is why, though understandable that Neiderman was chosen to write this in a way, I feel it would have been better if an actual biographer had taken on this task. I feel more would have been uncovered and resources used for research. It would have also read less like an attempt at a novel and more like an actual biography. Again, it's a fine line from making the subject s story compelling and being completely dry and boring. But his lack of experience in the biography field made for a sometimes confusing, clunky and repetitive read and to get some information such as the true story of Fita and Virginia s accident, the reader was taken down a meandering path of prose.

Reading it, I felt like it was almost a movie pitch, Virginia being cast as Cathy trapped in the attic of her body, watched over and controlled by her domineering mother who fills the role of the grandmother, who s only escape is her imagination and her talent which finally sets her free.

Yes, this is a great analogy and very much true but having it repeated again and again with example s from Flowers in the Attic to show how this is the case felt like it was being spoon fed to the reader.

Sticking with this theme throughout, there is no other possible narrative or point of view to make it seem more balanced - I personally related to Virginia due to her difficulties but could also relate to her mother, who had a child with disabilities and I think that point of view could have been explored slightly more - even a sentence or two to acknowledge the fact that even though she loved her daughter, it could be at times frustrating.

As I've said a biographer or even a dedicated fan or few would have been able to bring so much more to this biography. I totally believe this would have been a lot better and concise had they harnessed Jennifer Completevca  skills, research and expertise in all things vca. There's a reason it was for decades the vca Bible.. And her site is where most of the info "revealed" in this biography was initially found for decades.

I can understand fans frustration as we ve longed for this biography for many many years but unless you aren't aware of Virginia s personal life or the amount of material the fans had found out themselves and shared online, it doesn't give us much more info or actually provide the answers to questions we have. To those who don't know however, this book does contain a wealth of information that is good to have all in one concise place.

I feel that for the fandom however we were promised more than we actually got : For example, V C A s pseudonym - This was supposed to be a big reveal and apart from saying actually V C Andrews was her pseudonym which granted it was , again we all knew that , we also knew Adrienne Vale was another one thanks to complete vca but this isn't mentioned but I was under the impression from all the promotion we were finally going to be told of the one she used for the apparent many article she wrote for pulp fiction magazines etc ? Did I miss it somehow ? I did find it difficult to follow the narrative of the biography coherently as I ve said before.

For me, it felt like it had been written for the nostalgia crowd rather than the actual fandom , if I had read this not having been in the fandom so long, used the complete vca website as my Bible for years, done my own research, been there when Jessica Zinder went to the Boston archives and bought back all the info to us fans and the excitement that bought with this brand new info, if I had just picked up the book having read fita and maybe a few of the others way back in the day and seen this and thought " wow, I remember when, wonder what her life was like" I'd have been satisfied because despite only being eight chapters long there is a wealth of information. Sadly 99% of it , I'd seen before due to being in the fandom so long and knowing where this info originally came from. With the complete vca gone from the internet, there's nothing to confirm it was already online for years. So yes , a casual reader would have been intrigued and thrilled with this biography I'm sure. Even the brand new photos and letters, the majority had been seen before I think of the new photos there was possibly five I hadn't ( some wonderful, some mhm), the same with the letters.

As for the previously unreleased manuscript "The Obsessed" - I know this is apparently a rough draft , unfinished etc, so would not necessarily be like her published works and even Ann Patty did say some of Virginia s earlier stuff was different . However, to me reading it I couldn't shake the feeling and I could be completely wrong that this was more AN s style of writing VCA then Virginia herself. There's a certain tone and style that's different. Plus there's things I've noticed apparent in Virginia s work that she uses that are completely different in the GW ones . I know a lot of people were wondering if before publication that maybe this "new book" would be them trying to pass off AN work and of course I can't say for sure - I don't know, I'd like to think not but there's too much that's off. Not to mention , I don't know if you remember back in the day the short stories that came out regarding her artwork s apparently written by her - that's how it was spun back in the day , however it was totally obvious it wasn't her writing , anyway as time passed and I think it's really difficult to get these now (of course we have them in our files) it changed to "inspired by".

In regards to Ann Patty, it's interesting to see she wrote a particularly scathing review on this biography on good reads. To be honest after reading her memoirs I don't think she was very respectful to Virginia herself in that personally… But yes I would love to know Patty's full opinion - I was trying to recall the other night if she's even mentioned in this new biography and her input into being Virginia's editor would have been interesting, however due to the court case between her and the estate/GW, sadly we fans do not get this.

So, whilst I was personally dissapointed and hoping for more, I do feel there were some gems of info there and that as I've said before to have it all together in a book is great for my personal collection.

I do think a more thorough biography of Virginia is possible, her life story is after all incredible and I feel she was sold short a bit here with just eight chapters and repeated information

[mask131]

I actually changed my mind about American Horror Stories

So... you might remember me posting a very enthusiastic reaction to the first two episodes a few days ago. Well I deleted it cause I realized I posted much too fast X)

I fell for a very nasty trap - the trap of nostalgia. These episodes looked and felt so much like Murder House that I my opinion was clouded by a gleeful nostalgia. But just because it looks or feels like Murder House doesn’t mean it is as good as it or a worthy heir. But I only fully realized that upon rewatching Murder House - it was actually a very good decision of me to start my “AHS look-back” right after, because it made me realize the enormous flaws and how bad actually this beginning could be.

I also fell for another trap - taking the two episodes as a package. Seeing the two, one after another, made me project onto the second what was good in the first, and thus I did not immediately noticed what was wrong (well I actually noticed it but I didn’t fully process how bad it was).

So, with a stepback, some thinking and a comparison to just the first episodes of Murder House, here is my true opinion.

I do still love the first episode. More than episode 2. In fact episode 2 is the more flawed of the two, and dare I say a disaster. But episode 1 was cool.

I do love episode 1, again because it was a true return at the essence of Murder House. Not just all the throwbacks - throwbacks that actually make sense and reuse developped themes - but also a return to specific filming techniques and musical choices reminiscent of the first season, and a continuation in the same tones. 

I also deeply enjoyed the concept introduced in this first episode. A teenager that has a very strong (borderline extreme) love for sado-masochism and maybe other things, that is slowly possessed/influenced by the evil of the house (embodied by the rubber suit) and that drives her to become a killer. That’s neat, this is a perfect extension of the themes of Murder House. I especially loved how they slowly introduced the fact she actually liked very disturbing things - it genuinely surprised me as it was gradually revealed what her tastes were like, and they very well played with the concept of shame associated with this type of sexuality. I also truly liked the whole bullying of Scarlett - and by that I mean how they toyed with us by presenting the blond girl (whose name I forgot) first as an obvious bully, then we end up truly believing she is actually a good girl, then a switch again, it was nicely done (though the idea of secretely filming Scarlett and posting online makes me wonder if the story shouldn’t have taken place a few years prior since in 2021 something like that wouldn’t pass as easily). 

These things are strong points that carry the first episode. But the second episode is just a mess. Where should I begin?

# I don’t like the parents. I am sorry but they seem a bit too stereotyped sometimes, and while I did appreciate the throwback to previous couples, I ended up realizing they were just a carbon copy of the Harmons and the previous gay couple (can’t recall their family name, sorry :p).

When seeing how abrupt the change between the two episodes was, I thought at first “Oh, the second episode is going to be centered around the parents!”. I thought that after the first episode was about Scarlett with them in the background, the second would play a reverse card. But nope.

# The guy they hired suddenly becoming evil and killing so brutally his assistant... what was that? It truly shocked me when I saw it because of how out of nowhere it seemed. Okay, you have just one episode to tell a full story, but still! People aren’t just as disturbed they would kill someone like that and switch their entire persona on a flicker... But this is a common problem with later seasons of AHS that have an habit of turning characters into serial killers purely for shock value and with no real reasoning or character development behind (the ghosts of Camp Redwood in 1984 being a good example of that - we see genuinely good people suddenly turn into killers merely because they are ghosts? It makes no sense, in universe or out of it!). I also only ended up realizing that with this guy character, they tried to recreate a mix of Larry and Hayden, and it is... so bad.

In general, while the first episode proposed itself as a play on the themes and characters of Murder House, the second episode was just “Murder House - the condensed version” with copies of the characters and the events thrown hastily together. I am so angry at myself for actually forgetting much of Murder House, because else I wouldn’t have been fooled into enjoying this episode more than it deserved.

# Ah yes, the therapist. Her death and presence as a ghost serves no purpose. She is a living prop with no real presence - merely used for the characters to express their feelings and make jokes about Ben Harmon. They maybe hoped her ghost would provide comedy, but it does not? Oh yes, and there’s the fact that she unfortunately plays the trope of “the black person dies first”. Murphy and Falchuck are aware of horror tropes and clichés, and it is a bit clumsy to recreate this disliked trope (even though one can also argue that if you go with a “blindcasting” you might end up having a first-killed character played by a black person if the person is a good actor in this role. But anyway).

# Of course, things are much too rushed in episode 2. Episode 1 took its sweet time, it had a form of slowness that allowed for theories to appear, for tension to form, for characters to develop... and then, all is rushed. People turn into expert serial killers in a few seconds ; the parents adapt to their ghost status in one scene ; of course Ruby’s introduction is completely lazy and she doesn’t even fit in the House mythology (why not have a character tied to something you actually teased or presented us?)... and of course the nonsensical ending. I had to rethink about it to fully process how stupid it is. I already felt it was ridiculous and forced upon watching it but... you have ghosts COOKING. You have ghosts USING PHONE. You have ghosts living a happy life as if they were some sort of family... AGAIN GHOSTS COOKING! Though to be fair there is a debate over whether ghosts can eat or not, but that’s another subject. But yeah, utterly stupid.

# But here is my BIGGEST problem with this double episode. Something I only realized upon thinking back about it. Something that ruined it for me. THE RUBBER MAN! You see, when I watched episode 1, I loved how they build up to the rubber man ghost. He killed the therapist after all (if I recall correctly) and once Scarlett gives in to the dark side he appears to her. There was this build up to the rubber man having a form of fascination or desire for Scarlett ; and all along I was asking myself “Who is behind the mask?”. After all it was THE big mystery and question of Murder House.

But... the Rubber Man literaly disappears from the second episode! There is no reveal as to who he is or why he did what he did? He is just replaced by Ruby out of nowhere! This is... THIS IS SO STUPID I am getting mad right now.

Gosh... Writing all that I am wondering - how could I possibly have fallen for this season?

Again... my nostalgia blinded me. Seeing something that looked better tricked me into believing it was better. But no, it is not better - it just looks and feels good, but it is just empty and wasted. Wasted because damn it the first episode had potential. A truly serious potential. 

Oh yes another thing I like was that we got to see other rooms of the house that were not explored in Murder House - the closet room notably (which appeared on the maps of the house that was used for shooting the season but was never seen on-screen, or if it was I forgot all about it). 

[tablo-my-whistle]

#hrreadathon Day 3 prompt: favorite historical romance series. My favorite historical romance series is The Highland Brides series by Lynsay Sands. After Julie Garwood, she was the other author that started my journey into historical romance. This series is what really got me into Highlander romances. . . . My favorite type of series is when it revolves around a family and everyone starts falling in love so then you can see past couples in the other books and not have to miss them too much after finishing their story. . . . Most people guessed the book in my last post but I’ll still reveal that the stepback was from Mine Till Midnight by Lisa Kleypas. I just so happen to stumble on this book while going through my big pile of historical romances. When I read the back of the book, I was like NO WAY IT’S CAM!! They showed some of his POV in Devil in Winter and I absolutely fell in love with him. I can’t wait to start it next so I can see his love story finally!! #minetillmidnight #lisakleypas #highlandbridesseries #lynsaysands #january #tbr #historical #highlander #romance #bookstagram #booklover #bibliophile #reading #bookworm #bookcommunity #books #ilovebooks #booksarelife #novel #booksofinstagram #instabook https://www.instagram.com/p/CKKdRtig8Wg/?igshid=16fbb8v4kz9hq

[luxurylives]

Day One – Winter | Winter Evening

Pairing: Aurora Emery x Duke Oakley

Book(s): Open Heart/Big Sky Country

Word Count: 2,046

Rating: T

Summary: After a brief encounter at Edenbrook, Aurora and Duke cross paths at a bar on a cold winter night in Boston.

Author’s Note: I wrote this for the Choices December Challenge (late submission). The idea came from a recent episode of The Young & the Restless—Billy (Jason Thompson) met Amanda (Mishael Morgan) at a bar and since then they’ve been seeing each other in secret. This takes place after Open Heart, Book 1 and after Big Sky Country, Book 2. Mohsenin is from Hollywood U. Pixelberry Studios owns the characters.

Tagging: @cora-nova @choicesdecemberchallenge​ @darley1101​ @choicesbyjade @lady-kato​ @silverofdreams​ @stillafictosexual @mfackenthal @brightpinkpeppercorn

Aurora Emery sat in the break room and poked her salad with her fork. The faint ticking of the clock echoed around her. 

“Only one more hour…” she said quietly. 

The past few days had been tiring, luckily her day off was just around the corner. After a few more bites, Aurora threw her salad away and left the break room. 

…Just tell me why…

Aurora froze and turned her head in the direction of the music playing nearby. Whoever was singing had a rich, soulful voice. 

…There’s still so much left to say…

Aurora continued down the hall as the music continued to play. 

…Please come back to me…

Once Aurora found the room, she gently pushed the door open to see who was inside. 

The man sitting up in bed had his laptop out and his phone next to him. Although he was wearing a hospital gown, it was no secret he spent his fair share of time in the gym. Aurora’s eyes traveled from the willful look in his chocolate brown eyes to the neatly trimmed beard, chiseled jaw, and the curves of his biceps under the sleeves. 

“Is someone there?”

Aurora started to back away but then realized how foolish that would be, so she pushed the door open and walked into the room.

“Hm, you aren’t Dr. Delarosa,” he said with a smile and lowered the lid to his computer. 

Aurora cleared her throat, maintaining a professional demeanor. “No, I’m not, I heard the music— “.

“I figured it was too loud, my apologies,” he said and lowered the volume. “My neighbor didn’t bring me any headphones, only my essentials for work”. 

“Just try to keep the music at a lower volume”. 

“Will do” he answered back. 

Aurora turned to leave but paused in the doorway, the man looked up once more and raised an eyebrow at her. “If you don’t mind me asking, who was that?” she asked. 

“Stepback Three, he just released a new single”.

Aurora shook her head as she tried to contain her smile. So he’s hot and listens to R&B….

“Hold on…are you taking over for Ines or…?”

Aurora snapped out of her thoughts, remembering she had somewhere to be and patients to check on. “No, I was just nearby…did you need anything?”

The man looked around and shrugged. “No I’m okay for right now, thank you”. 

“Your welcome” Aurora replied and exited the room. 

Once she was back in the hallway, she smiled, hopefully, she would run into him again. 

  A few weeks later, Aurora found herself working the same shift as Bryce, Sienna, Elijah, and Jackie. When it was time to clock out, Aurora retreated to the locker room to gather her things so she could go home. 

“Has anyone decided where we’re going out to eat?”

Aurora briefly looked over her shoulder to see the group huddled together, all of them out of their uniform and changing their shoes. 

“I have a few surgeon buddies who want to tag along,” Bryce said. 

“Bryce I was hoping to keep this get together small…sometimes your other friends can be a bit much” Sienna chimed in. 

Aurora busied herself with her locker, desperately trying to get it open. The less she heard of their conversation the better. 

“I might have asked Phoebe to come…but seriously where should we go?” Elijah asked.

“Maybe Aurora has a suggestion?”

Aurora turned around to face the group, each person returned a friendly smile…except for Jackie who gave her a dismissive once-over. 

“We’re unsure about where to go eat, which sounds better: Chinese, Indian, or Italian?” Sienna asked.

Aurora breathed a sigh of relief as she finally opened her locker. “Beats me” she answered.

Jackie laughed and shook her head. “Figures”. 

“Excuse me?” Aurora turned towards Jackie as she slipped her coat on and wrapped her scarf. 

“I figured you wouldn’t have an opinion since you don’t get out much”. 

Sienna elbowed Jackie and shot her look while Elijah and Bryce awkwardly looked away. 

“I do get out” Aurora replied coldly. “I was at Donahue’s with everyone that one time”.

“Yeah, and I heard you were sitting at the bar alone looking through apartment listings”. 

Aurora rolled her eyes and proceeded to leave. “Whatever Jackie” she called over her shoulder. 

As she walked down the hallway towards the exit, Aurora began to think about what Jackie said. Okay, she was right, she didn’t get out as much as she wanted to. A small part of her wanted to be a part of the friend group that Sienna, Bryce, and Elijah formed with Casey Valentine. However, she kept her distance because of trust issues. Usually, her colleagues only befriended her so they could be on her aunt’s good side. To protect herself, she built a wall and put on a cold, aloof personality. Unfortunately, all that did was push people away. 

A cold gust of wind greeted her once she stepped outside and Aurora shivered as she began walking down the sidewalk. 

“You know what screw it…I will find something to do tonight” Aurora said and pulled out her phone. 

  “Come on, tell me what happened?”

Duke Oakley lowered his glass and raised an eyebrow at his friend. “Three words Garret, Attorney. Client. Privilege”.

Garret Redmond sighed and took a sip of his scotch. “Well, I find it interesting that Rhodes turns up dead and a few other things…”.

“Look, all I’m going to say is the hearing is on Friday,” Duke said.

“Hm, well hopefully, all of this crap blows over”.

Duke tapped his fingers on the side of his glass as he thought back to the text he received from Dorian Delacroix. 

“Anyway, what happened to you the other night?”

“I was in a car accident,” Duke said as he rubbed his shoulder. 

Garret raised an eyebrow at him as he took another drink. “What happened?”

“I hardly remember, I know I called a Dryve and then I saw some headlights” Duke shook his head and ran a hand through his hair. 

“Well, at least you’re okay”.

Duke shook his head and tossed back his whiskey. “True”.   

Garret pulled out his phone and to check the time and shortly put it away. “I have an early flight tomorrow, AgraCorp is looking into some property in Gracetown”.

“Thanks for the drinks man,” Duke said.

“No problem, but next time I’m in town we should hit up Fenway–Kenmore with Luca”. 

“Sure if you’re buying”.

Garret laughed and pointed at him as he exited the bar. “Ha! We’ll see about that”. 

  “Alright, here you are…The Rusty Mallard”. 

Aurora glanced out the window and took in the rustic appearance of the bar. “Thanks,” she said and stepped out of the car. 

While the snowflakes fell around her, Aurora took in her surroundings and noticed she was in Rivermont, one of Boston’s oldest neighborhoods. 

Once Aurora entered the bar, her eyes landed on an empty seat at the bar. As she walked towards the bar, she tripped and bumped into someone’s chair. “Oh, sorry,” she said quickly. 

“No worries”.

Aurora froze, it was the man from the hospital. “It’s you…the Stepback Three fan”.

The man flashed a pearly white grin as he briefly looked down at the table and back up at her. “Guilty,” he said. 

Aurora smiled and briefly looked away from him. The hue of the lights cast an alluring look on his face.

“What brings you here?”

Aurora looked over at the empty seat, which was now occupied. “Oh…I was just in the neighborhood” she said. 

“Care to join me?” The man gestured to the seat in front of him.

“Sure,” Aurora said as she took off her coat.

“Duke Oakley,” he said and extended a hand towards her. 

“Aurora Emery” Aurora shook his hand, his touch was soft, yet firm. 

“What are you drinking?”

“Water” Aurora answered as she settled into her seat. “On second thought, I’ll have a scotch neat”.

Duke shook his head as he collected the empty glasses on the table and walked over to the bar. Aurora bit her lip; the long sleeve shirt he had on revealed a v-shaped back and his pants outlined a firm butt and sculpted thighs. 

Within minutes, Duke returned with two drinks and set them down on the table. “Here you go”. 

“Thank you,” Aurora said and took the drink he slid towards her. 

“So did you just get off work?”

Aurora sipped her drink and then looked down at her scrubs. After work, she didn’t bother to go back to her Aunt’s place and change clothes. Instead, she went to the museum and to see Chris Winter’s new movie. “Sort of,” she said. 

“Busy day?”

“You can say that, if you don’t mind, what is it that you do?”

“I am a lawyer” Duke answered and took a sip of his drink. 

“I hope you aren’t due in court in the morning…”.

Duke chuckled as he shook his head. “No, but I have some time to spare”.

Aurora smiled as she looked down at her glass and ran her fingers along the brim. Somehow, she felt the intense heat of his gaze on her and she relished in the feeling of it.

“Do you live around here?”

“No, I live near the hospital, what about you?”

“I’m over in Benbrook” Duke replied as he lifted his glass and took a slow sip.

“That’s a nice area, it’s not too far from the public garden”.

“Have you been over that way?”

“I think so…my Aunt showed me around once”.

Duke shook his head and took another sip. “Well if you want, I know of some nice places to eat, catch a show…”. 

“Tempting…” Aurora took another sip as she tried to hide her smile. 

Duke grinned as he tapped his fingers on the table. “Doctor, what will it take for you to say yes?”

Aurora turned towards him, no longer hiding her smile. “I need direct evidence of what you are telling me, counselor”. 

Duke bit his lip, a playful smile formed at the edge of his lips. “Your honor— “. 

Bzzzz bzzzzzzz Bzzzz bzzzzzzz

Both of them turned away from each other to check their phones. 

“It’s work…” Duke frowned as he looked at his screen. 

“I get it, go ahead,” Aurora said. 

Duke gave her an apologetic look before he stepped away to answer the call. Aurora used the opportunity to check the time, she didn’t want to stay too late, nor start something that would probably lead nowhere. 

  “Okay, so it’s this Friday?”. 

“Yes, the hearing is on Friday. Dorian, I want you to be there on time and make sure your wife is present". 

“I know the drill, this isn’t my first rodeo Oakley, but listen with how everything has played out…what are my chances here?”

“I’m certain this case will be dismissed; Judge Ortiz is presiding”.

“Ha! This may work out then! I meant to tell you that Mohsenin is safe, his phone cut out or something that night”. 

Duke sighed with relief and turned towards Aurora who stood up and put her coat on.

“Now the other problem you mentioned—”.

Duke quickly covered the phone and hurried back over to Aurora. “Hey, hold on, I’m almost done”.

“It’s getting late” Aurora said. 

“This will only take a minute, scout’s honor”.

Aurora gave him a friendly smile before heading towards the door. “Thanks for the drink, this court is adjourned”. 

Duke grinned as he watched her stride out of the bar. 

“Oakley?!”

“Yep, still here” Duke answered as he returned to his seat. 

  Once Aurora was outside, she paused and looked through the window. Duke sat at the table speaking to someone on the phone. Reluctantly, she turned away and walked down the sidewalk to hail an approaching taxi. 

Once she got inside and settled into the backseat the driver turned around to face her. “Where to Miss?”

“4943 Burke Street”.

“Ah, that’s near Edenbrook,” he said and proceeded in that direction. 

“Say, you wouldn’t happen to know of any interesting places in Benbrook, would you?”

“There’s a few, you need ideas for the weekend?”

Aurora smiled as she gazed out the window, the snow still falling over the city. “Yeah…I might bump into someone”. 

[aion-rsa]

Marissa Meyer Reflects on Her Iconic Lunar Chronicles Series

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New editions of The Lunar Chronicles has author Marissa Meyer looking back on inventive cosplay and forward to new fairy tale retellings.

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Upon glimpsing the dynamic covers for the new paperback editions of Marissa Meyer’s reimagined fairy tale series The Lunar Chronicles, one can’t help but notice there’s something familiar about them—especially the gorgeous stepbacks that feature Cinder in a ballgown and Cress staring wistfully in the opposite direction of the strapping Thorne, silhouetted by moonlight. They bring to mind… Sailor Moon.

Meyer laughs when this comparison is brought up, considering her background as a Sailor Moon fanfiction writer, but says that it was not intentional: “I think that’s just Tomer [Hanuka]’s style.” However, when her publisher Macmillan sent along the artist’s portfolio, she was certainly struck by Hanuka’s work.

“I think that’s one of the reasons why I was so drawn to him," says Meyer. "Because it does have a little bit of that Japanese/manga vibe to it, which I love. And coming from that fandom and that background, there’s definitely a lot of influence in the books. So, I think that it plays really well; the artwork very much complements the series in a great way.”

While The Lunar Chronicles concluded with its fourth and final novel, Winter, in 2015, fans have been able to spend more time in Meyer’s science fiction fairy tale universe with subsequent releases including the short fiction collection Stars Above and the graphic novel Wires and Nerve.

Now, a re-release of the original quartet with brand-new covers showcasing each of the key characters proves that the series is still relevant to readers today. To wit, part of the new covers process involved crowdsourcing favorite scenes from the active and enthusiastic fandom via Instagram. Meyer describes seeing the same scenes suggested over and over, which made their way into the new designs: Wolf spiriting Scarlet away from danger. Winter and Jacin in a romantic clinch in her menagerie.

read more: Marissa Meyer's Renegades Trilogy is Riveting Superhero Fiction

It’s quite the departure from the original covers, each of which featured one key element from its respective book: Cinder’s mechanical leg (in place of Cinderella’s glass slipper); Scarlet’s (or Little Red Riding Hood’s) cape; Cress’ Rapunzel-esque hair; and Winter’s plague-laced apple. While the series has long been celebrated for centering the stories of princesses of color—Cinder is Asian/Caucasian, while Winter is black—and for its representation of mental illness, now those women are actually on the covers in the (human and cyborg) flesh.

“They’re so beautiful and so vibrant,” Meyer says. “I love what [Tomer] does with colors, and so when you see all four of them together, it just stands out so much. I couldn’t be any happier with them.”

That said, this is not the first time that the series has been illustrated. In addition to the aforementioned Wires and Nerve, there is also The Lunar Chronicles Coloring Book. While most authors do not experience the opportunity to see their work adapted thusly, let alone three, Meyer says it feels “incredible,” though she hastens to add that there is a fourth lens: fan art!

“It’s unbelievable to think about these characters and this world that lived inside my head for so many years, and then to see other people putting their interpretation behind it,” she says. “And in a way that there’s such wonderful justice to it, and [that] really captures the same sorts of emotions that I was trying to put into my writing. It’s just like one giant compliment. There’s nothing quite like it!”

Recent years have seen more and more science fiction and fantasy authors talking candidly about their fanfiction backgrounds, including N.K. Jemisin (the Broken Earth series), Naomi Novik (Spinning Silver), Tamsyn Muir (Gideon the Ninth), Tochi Onyebuchi (Riot Baby), and Brooke Bolander (The Only Harmless Great Thing). But Meyer has always drawn a line connecting her professional work and her fanfic persona, Alicia Blade, as seen on her old website via the Wayback Machine. It’s no surprise, then, that Lunar Chronicles fan art and fanfiction began cropping up online not long after Cinder was published in 2012.

read more: Den of Geek Book Club Podcast Talks with Marissa Meyer

“That’s the fantasy,” Meyer says, “for there to be fanfic of your own work, because I know what love goes into creating fanfiction, and how fandoms can really rally around it.” And how must that feel for a former fanfiction writer? 

“It’s a little weird, honestly! But it’s wonderful, and I’m hugely honored to know there are so many people who have taken the characters and gone off and done their own things with them.”

Early on, Meyer had to decide whether she would actually read the stories on Fanfiction.net and the Archive of Our Own (AO3). Despite her burning curiosity, she considered that “if Naoko Takeuchi, the creator of Sailor Moon, regularly went on and read Sailor Moon fanfiction, I think that that might have changed what I was writing and what I was putting out there. And so early on I decided, ‘No, I want that to be for the fans; I don’t think I should be involved in that side of it.’ But knowing that it exists brings me much, much joy.”

Another way in which The Lunar Chronicles’ heroines have made their way into the world has been through cosplay, which Meyer describes as “one of my greatest pleasures” to see at conventions. One group costume that stands out in her memory is a quartet of women in ballgowns representing the albino wolf, peacock, and other animals in Winter’s menagerie on Luna: “It was this amalgamation of ballgowns and formalwear on Luna, but also the animals of the menagerie, and I just thought it was so clever.”

In addition to fanfiction, Meyer is an alum of another online-centric writing community: National Novel Writing Month. Cinder and four subsequent books began as NaNoWriMo projects, but the life of an author has made it more difficult for Meyer to time drafting to every November. When asked if she might participate this year, she says, “I hope so! I haven’t been able to do it for the last couple of years; it never seems to line up with my deadlines anymore. [...] It’s a tradition for me, and one I would love to continue. I can’t say for sure if I’m doing it this year or not; but if I can make it work, then I definitely will.”

However, Meyer fans who are considering undertaking NaNoWriMo themselves will have to juggle a tempting distraction this November: Instant Karma, her contemporary romance novel with a magical twist, will be published November 3. Meyer describes the story, the first in a planned four-book series, as “about a girl who lives in a sunny, beachside town and one day inexplicably gets the power to exact instant karma on people. And she goes around punishing all of the snobs and the bullies and the people that she can’t stand. There’s one boy that she absolutely despises, but every time she tries to use this power on him, it ends up backfiring on her. It will be a love story and secrets will be revealed, etcetera etcetera.”

On her Alicia Blade website sometime before 2012, Meyer described herself as “beloved Sailor Moon fanfiction author and future romance novelist.” While each of the Lunar Chronicles books featured romance, there is something exciting about seeing her fulfill that description with her first romance novel. “It’s been a big change from my previous works,” she says, pointing out that “this is the first thing I’ve written that doesn’t have huge superpowers or futuristic technology. There are no fight scenes! Which is awesome. [...] It’s been really nice now writing something that still has romance, still has a theme of good versus evil and what is true justice, and all of these same sort of themes I like to play with, but in a much more subtle, quiet, sweet sort of way.”

But while she expands the Instant Karma world with contemporary happily ever afters, she won’t stay away from fairy tales for long. Meyer teased a new fairy tale retelling—and while she couldn’t say which story she’s adapting, she did share that it will be an epic fantasy what-if story...

“It is going to be fantasy—kinda my first ‘quest’ fantasy novel, which I’m super excited about because growing up, Tolkien and epic fantasy and Dungeons & Dragons—all of that was my jam. It was always weird to me that my first published book was science fiction, because I thought for sure I would write an epic quest story. So this is kinda my first [of] going back to my teenage roots a bit.” The book is tentatively scheduled for fall 2021, though that timing may be subject to change.

Even as she explores new genres and stories, Meyer will never forget the idea that first set her on this path. “I have so much love for this series,” she says, “and not just because it was my first series. I think for every author, the first one you get published is always going to feel really special. From the moment that I had this idea about writing about fairy tales in the future, and this cyborg Cinderella character, I was just so smitten with it, and I loved the idea of bringing all these characters together and throwing them on a spaceship and seeing if they could save the universe."

"That spoke to my heart and to my nerdiness on so many levels," she continues, "and I just had so much fun writing it. To see it now in the world, and see how readers have responded to it, and that there’s so much love and interest in the characters, it’s really been incredible. And of course I hope to have many more successful book series throughout my career, but I don’t know that there will ever be anything that’s quite the books-of-my-heart as The Lunar Chronicles have been.”

Close to a decade since Cinder was published, with a dedicated fandom returning to the books over and over, Meyer has one hope for the legacy of the series.

“Gosh, it’s so cheesy—I’m gonna say world peace,” she says. “That’s one of the things that I loved writing, was a world in which Earth and the countries of Earth have obtained world peace, and they have been at peace for over a century. I don’t know if it’s naïve, but I truly like to think that that is a potential future.”

The new, gorgeous paperback editions of The Lunar Chronicles will be available for purchase on February 4th. You can order them now via the official website.

As a former fanfiction writer herself, Natalie Zutter is mightily inspired to finish all of her WIPs. Talk fairy tale retellings with her on Twitter @nataliezutter.

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Feature Natalie Zutter

Feb 3, 2020

from Books https://ift.tt/36ZmNmg

[stoweboyd]

2019-01-10 Daybook

:::

Microsoft adds more mobile, scheduling capabilities to Teams for firstline workers | ZDNet | Mary Jo Foley reports on more firstline worker support in Microsoft Teams.

Microsoft is adding customizable mobile capabilities to Teams with capabilities such as location sharing, smart camera and the ability to record and share audio messages securely.

:::

Computer Models to Investors: Short Everything | Stephanie Wang looks into what the algos are predicting: they've flipped from long to shorting.

Funds that use such strategies likely went from holding net long positions, or betting that prices would rise, in four major asset classes—stocks, bonds, currencies and commodities—in the third quarter of 2017, to being short, or wagering against, everything but bonds by 2019. And even their embrace of bonds is bearish, signaling a flight to haven assets.

These are the findings from research by quantitative investment firm AlphaSimplex Group LLC, based on models that gauge the magnitude of price moves and perform like typical trend-following algorithms. Trend-followers generally try to ride markets when they move strongly in one direction.

“This is like the chaos bet,” said Kathryn Kaminski, chief research strategist and portfolio manager at AlphaSimplex, who added that the last time trend-followers reversed positions so dramatically was in 2007 and 2008. “Pretty much any way you run the models, you end up net short a lot of asset classes.”

AlphaSimplex, which has about $7.4 billion in assets and runs one of the largest trend-following programs, is also bearish across global markets.

Uh-oh. The #chaosbet has an ominous tone. How does a person on the sideline make that bet? Short term bonds?

:::

James Harden Is the Outlier of the NBA | Harden's a revolutionary: he's taken nearly twice as many stepback 3-pointers as any NBA team this season, and 86% of his 3s are unassisted, highest in the NBA. He's the most effective offensive player in the past 20 years. Harden has already taken more 3-pointers after seven or more dribbles than any NBA team in the last six years even though he’s only played 36 games. He has more shots after that many dribbles than the Sixers, Pelicans, Bulls, Nuggets, Clippers, Timberwolves and Knicks combined.

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Gene-edited, spicy tomatoes are the superfood scientists say we need | I want.

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Klaxoon - The Meeting Revolution - Join your Team | I should get a demo.

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WeWork rebrands to We Company, reveals details of SoftBank deal | Because of stock troubles, Softbank cut back its investment in WeWork.

Going forward, the company will no longer be called WeWork but rather The We Company. The new structure is part of Neumann’s heady ambition to push the company’s market and opportunity beyond commercial real estate. Rather than just renting desks, the company aims to encompass all aspects of people’s lives, in both physical and digital worlds, he says.

The We Company will be comprised of three main business units: WeWork, its main office business; WeLive, a fledgling residential unit; and WeGrow, a still evolving business that currently includes an elementary school and a coding academy. Although the company could not provide specifics, it says plans are in the works to build out its residential and education units this year. Also coming in 2019 are more acquisitions and new hires. The company aims to add 1,000 engineers.

Where is the hotel chain? Cohotels will be big. Oh, they mocked one up in 2009:

:::

How soon will climate change force you to move? | I picked Beacon NY to avoid climate change migration.

Some parts of the U.S. will be hardest hit economically, particularly the Southeast, but the whole country is beginning to see negative impacts. In the Albuquerque area, where the Mesku family moved, the risk of severe drought is increasing. In the Pacific Northwest, a region that is often cited as one of the places that will be less impacted by global warming, wildfires are incurring record costs and smoke is starting to impact local economies. In Seattle, where most people don’t have air conditioning, there was a record-breaking heat wave in 2017 and again in 2018. In Madison, Wisconsin, record rainfall, a problem that is also linked to climate change, caused widespread flooding in August 2018. In Maine, as the ocean warms and acidifies, fisheries and the lobster industry could collapse. In Canada, a heat wave in Quebec in July 2018 was linked to more than 90 deaths. San Francisco hit a record 106 degrees in September and then in November went through 13 days of dangerous air quality as smoke from the Camp Fire blew into the area. As many as 13,000 properties in the Bay Area are at risk of chronic flooding by 2045.

:::

Paola Antonelli on "Broken Nature: Design Takes on Human Survival"

#readlater

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Sleep glasses | Felix Gray | Counter the blue light in your screens.

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London's Big Event For Corporate Misfits, Troublemakers, And Rebels % | Corporate Rebels on tour!

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Big Tech's Trump problem - Axios | Mike Allen and Jim VandeHei say

Tech is the new politics.

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Introduce Agenda to Your Note-taking - Bicycle For Your Mind | Review of Agenda note tool

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How Robots Will Transform the C-Suite

read later

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Managing When the Future Is Unclear | Lisa Lai

read later

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Artificial Intelligence Was Supposed to Reduce Hiring Discrimination. It’s Already Backfiring. – Mother Jones

read later

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Expectations: The Root of your Employee Engagement Problem

read later

:::

Understanding Trends in Alternative Work Arrangements in the United States | Katz and Krueger walk back the assertaion they made about the gig economy back in 2016. Now thy think it was temporary, demonstrated by a tight labor market. As Steve Levine characterizes it,

Now the pair — Princeton University's Alan Krueger and Harvard's Lawrence Katz — say they were fooled by economic noise and that workers are pretty much the same as they've always been.

Their old paper was exceedingly influential, trickling down to how economists, human resources professionals, marketers and more viewed the workforce.

But in their new paper, published this week, Krueger and Katz say people were doing odd jobs back then because they needed the work, not as a signal of a new trend. Now that the labor market is tight, they are back at work.

Joe Brusuelas, chief economist at RSM, tells Axios that the pair's new paper is par for the course. "If you're not getting it wrong 20% of the time, you are not doing your job," he says.

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Scoring under Pressure | what we can learn from penalty kicks in soccer (football).

read later

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HQ 2.0: The Next-Generation Corporate Center

read later

:::

[ezichiny]

🔹#StepbackSaturday🔹Reveal Time! My book was When She Said I Do by Celeste Bradley. I haven’t read this one yet but I’ve read a few by the author in the past. The cover looked more modern to me than most of my other stepbacks. She looked like an advertisement for a Hallmark Movie. 🔺 the prompt came from @pinkcowlandreads so show her some love on her page. #stepbacksaturdayreveal #stepbacksaturday #bloggerchallenge #romancereader #historicalromance #bookstagram #readromance #readingisfun #saturdayfungames #bloggersofinstagram https://www.instagram.com/p/CHC1nORAGtc/?igshid=10a6fzwvenaa5

[kimberlysbookcorner]

When you find a treasure in a thrift store! This is my #stepback reveal from Saturday and I found the trade paperback on SUNDAY! What are the odds! 😆 definitely one of my favorite covers though! 💜 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . #book #books #bookstagram #booklover #bookworm #booknerd #igbooks #booksofinstagram #bookish #readersofinstagram #booksbooksbooks #bookaddict #bookobsessed #booklove #novels #kimmiesbookcorner #amreading #lovetoread #readingobsession #love #massmarket #massmarketpaperback #tradepaperback #kathleenwoodiwiss #foreverinyourembrace #stepbackreveal https://www.instagram.com/p/CFadmZjA0yv/?igshid=f4jfdhrpth2u

[whopickthisbook]

Happy #stepbacksaturday This is most definitely my favorite stepback from the books I’ve read this year!! It’s so beautiful!! The reveal is picture 2 but you already know what it is 😉 https://www.instagram.com/p/CDo-837gBSN/?igshid=1tknbq2jl65v2

[babamb]

As promised, here is my Stepback Sunday reveal, not two weeks later, but the very next day! Kudos to @somewherelostinbooks who slid in just under the wire and came up with the correct title! This was No Mistress of Mine from Laura Lee Guhrke . Thanks again for @pinkcowlandreads for creating such a fun Saturday event to have fun with! Blurb: After spending his youth as one of the wildest rakes in the ton, Lord Denys Somerton has devoted the past six years to putting his past behind him. He is determined to fulfill his duties, find a suitable wife, and start a family, but that plan changes when Lola Valentine—the red-haired temptress from his past—returns to London, sparking the same irresistible desires that almost ruined his life once before. Lola is a woman with no romantic illusions. She knew love would never be enough for a British lord and an American girl from the wrong side of the tracks. For Denys’s sake, she walked away from him and the glittering life he offered. But when an unexpected inheritance brings her back to London, Lola discovers the passion between them is as hot as ever. Can they vanquish it, or will it burn out of control again and destroy them both? #StepbackSaturday #StepbackSunday #StepbackSundayReveal #RomanceStaGram #Bookstagram #IGBooks #HistoricalRomance #BookWorm #BookBlogger #BookLover #Reader #LauraLeeGuhrke #AVONBooks https://www.instagram.com/p/B-mzaNOAPbd/?igshid=fxtn2hgd9vv9

[movieswithkevin27]

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

The second cinematic adventure set in this wondrous world of wizardry and magic, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is a stepback in the series. Retaining the sense of child-like wonder in a very Spielbergian sense, the film's great characters and effects are left in a "too-cute" plot loaded with too many deus ex machinas. As another entry into this marvelously imaginative world, however, The Chamber of Secrets packs the same level of tension, terror, and joyous fun that is fun in The Sorcerer's Stone, especially with its central mystery. The unfortunate part of this film is that, aside from a few new elements, nothing has really changed from the first entry aside from just making it longer and swapping out a few characters. It is building a world, but this is a very lateral move compared to the grand steps forward taken by better universes.

The changes from The Sorcerer's Stone are mostly character-driven, as the plot is pretty much the same. Starting off with Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) not getting letters, living with his abusive aunt and uncle, and then rushing off to Hogwarts with the Weasley family, the film feels very "same" at the onset. Unfortunately, this does not change much as the film builds up around a central mystery lurking in a secret area of Hogwarts, Hermione (Emma Watson) demonstrates that she is the best wizard of the bunch before being whisked away to let Harry be the hero, and they play Quidditich in a rigged match against Slytherin house. As a unit, they save the day and uncover the mystery with the new way in which Lord Voldemort has snuck his way back into Hogwarts to cause serious damage to the students and the school as a whole. Why this guy bothers himself with young wizards is beyond me when his beef should be with the older people, but I digress. This same plot hits many right notes, especially when establishing the mystery lying within the Chamber of Secrets and its slow, intoxicating build-up to the reveal. From the spider's lair to the messages written in blood, the film feels quite ominous as matched by the haunting voice following Harry around whispering "kill kill kill". At times, the film feels like a gothic horror film due to its reliance on atmosphere and a terrific sense of space within the school's excellent gothic-inspired design.

The film's changes from the first hit with a mixed bag of results. The most positive addition is Gilderoy Lockhart (Kenneth Branagh). Between the two films I have seen thus far, he is undoubtedly my favorite characters. He is such a fraud and coward, it is honestly hysterical to watch unfold with Branagh being a natural for the role as this self-absorbed heartthrob. The original casting of Hugh Grant would have also been brilliant, though Branagh did an excellent job with the role. The other positive change is Dobby, who is like the ALDI store brand Yoda. However, as a pain loving house-elf, Dobby is excellently funny even if he is a deeply tragic figure.

Where the film changes, however, it does have some negatives. With Snape (Alan Rickman) enjoying a far more scaled back role in this film, the film really lacks the zip and sinister bite of Rickman that the original had. It tries to recreate it with Lucius Malfoy (Jason Isaacs), but it never clicks. Isaacs is good, but he is no Rickman. The film lacks that sneakily ominous presence provided by him and Lucius winds up being nothing more than a rather conventional sinister presence in the film that is never really utilized here to its fullest. Additionally, the general lack of Emma Watson is really felt here with Radcliffe and Rupert Grint left on their own with Watson's Hermione petrified or turned into the cat for much of the film. In spite of her strength, the film annoyingly turns her into a joke or damsel in distress despite her talent as a wizard that far exceeds that of her male counterparts. Relying upon Harry's purity and Ron's awkward ginger nature to carry the film, it winds up feeling too sweet and buddy comedy-esque without ever really clicking the way it would with a strong female presence in the film. Had the film relied upon Watson as much as it did in the Philosopher’s Stone, this second entry would have felt more balanced. The other change that really holds this one back is more of an alteration. The first one’s childish touches coming in Quidditich or awarding the cup winner at the end of the year were fine and excusable, even if unbearable. Here, Columbus adds childish touches to the plot. With overt foreshadowing, random exposition to accompany that foreshadowing, and then explaining items that were previously explained to call back to that foreshadowing-based exposition, the Chamber of Secrets feels really spelled out. There is no mystery as to why the phoenix is able to heal Harry or why the sword appears. Instead, it feels very spoon-fed and, as a result, it largely misses the mark. The sense of wonder is still there, but some spark has been put out.

Taking what worked in the first one and adding on some new faces plus a truly wondrous flying car, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is a fine film with dated special effects in spots, but nothing egregious. Its actors are a year older and wiser, but the film really never feels that way. The first film appealed to children in the same way as this one, but this one felt dumbed down in comparison, which is a shame. It also lacks the presence of certain characters that really made the first one soar, even if the addition of Kenneth Branagh here is a truly inspired touch that gives the series its best character yet. Funny, packed with adventure, and smartly relying upon the children to be the hero, this second entry in the Harry Potter film series is a stepback, but its full-of-heart story and characters keep it from ever slipping too far towards mediocrity.

[junker-town]

Asia Durr is the pure scorer that the New York Liberty need

The pure scorer will be an easy choice for a top pick in the 2019 WNBA Draft.

Asia Durr was born on April 5, 1997. She was exactly 11 weeks old when the first WNBA game tipped on June 21, 1997, and is now 22, and the No. 2 overall pick in the 2019 WNBA Draft, heading to play for the New York Liberty.

“I’ve been dreaming about this since I was a kid,” Durr says now — a fact that, in her case, is obvious. Few prospects better exemplify the archetypal “student of the game”: the 5’10 guard’s style and efficiency are a product of intense, relentless study and practice. It’s a good thing the WNBA has existed Durr’s whole life, because she has no idea what she’d be doing without it.

“I was just talking to someone about this last week, and I really don’t even know,” she explains when asked what she’d want to pursue as a career if she didn’t play basketball. “I don’t know where I would be if I didn’t play.”

Growing up in the Atlanta suburb of Douglasville, Durr was consumed by basketball early on — the WNBA was on her mind starting when she was just five years old, she says now, but she mostly played against boys who better matched up with her on-court precociousness. “I want to be one of the best players in the world,” she told Bleacher Report last year, a mission spurred by watching the Atlanta Dream and particularly fellow Louisville alum Angel McCoughtry.

Ask Durr for her favorite WNBA player though, and you’ll get an answer that reveals the true extent of her basketball nerddom: WNBA point guard Ivory Latta. “She was my all-time favorite player growing up,” says Durr. “I wore number 12 because of her — I looked up to her. I was just so excited every time I got to see her play.” Like Durr, what set Latta apart was her finesse: brutal crossovers and slick footwork that allowed the 5’6 guard to drive to the basket and make space for deep threes.

watching asia durr film and would just like to share this absurd stepback with everybody pic.twitter.com/nhItxQCnJq

— jack (@jackhaveitall) April 1, 2019

The paradox of Durr, though, is that for all her appreciation and refinement of basketball’s flashier plays — and her status as a scorer above all else, averaging 21 points per game this season — she’s not particularly demonstrative on the court (beyond demonstrating how many different ways she can get the ball in the hoop).

“I think I don’t get enough credit for the way I can distribute the ball, and get it to my teammates,” Durr says, adding that her steadily improving assist/turnover ratio (currently it’s 1.81) is the stat she’s most proud of. “Obviously, it’s probably because I shoot the ball so much and that’s my role — but whenever I have to get the ball to my teammates because I have three people on me, I’m able to do that.”

Incredible play by Asia Durr here. She sees Jazmine Jones is open for a backdoor before Jaz does, so she hangs in the air long enough for Jaz to see it and make the cut. pic.twitter.com/FO4nfuSeOz

— Go Cards, Beat Purdue (@beatpurdue) March 31, 2019

Before she enters the league, Durr — as ever — has a plan to get even better: add weight, refine new skills, get ready to start once again from square one as a rookie. But the mission is the same: “I want to compete at the highest level,” she says. “I’m excited just to have another chance to play.”

Get to know Asia Durr

Pregame warmup song: Lil Baby ft. Meek Mill, “Time”

Favorite NBA player: I really love James Harden, how he can get his shot off literally without trying. It’s pretty crazy.

Most used app: Instagram or Apple Music. “I like this account called ‘Spiritual Inspiration’ — it gives inspirational quotes and stuff like that.”

Cats or dogs: Dogs. She has a toy poodle named Precious.

[jeshaisabookworm]

Stepback Saturday Reveal April 26, 2020 | Jesha is a Bookwor

http://dlvr.it/RVTjrR