#but I love well written bodice rippers

[rhaenyra-the-gracious]

What crazy rabbit hole have I just fallen into? 👀

I didn’t know what I subjected myself to when I clicked on a book on Goodreads because it kept suggesting to me, no matter what I did. I haven’t even heard about Nina Pennacchi’s name before, and Lemonade didn’t ring a bell either. Yet I inhaled the book in less than a week (it was more than 1000 pages on my Kindle), I re-read certain parts, and somehow managed to translate Captain Swing with AI (I hate AI but I was desperate) into a readable copy. There are still too many inconsistencies to be easy to read, but beggars can’t be choosers.

But what magic has she done with Slave For Revenge? Thank god it’s already translated, and let me tell you, I am hooked. They said it’s a sexual fantasy first and foremost, so I didn’t expect this good writing.

Sigh. I’ve always had a soft spot for violent and badass heroes, and so far Nina Pennacchi has done the greatest job with them. I just drink up everything she has written.

I’ve always loved romantic writers who push their boundaries, but never have seen this great work with this dedication and quality.

I just love it.

(She’s written the Slave books by the penname Ann Owen.)

[mallach]

adore honkai & the many delightful tramps comprising its cast however it is popular enough i have to block so, so many tags to see anything that doesn't pop a blood vessel

[qqueenofhades]

I bought your 'Empire' the other day (which I am excited about; I haven't started it yet), but somehow completely missed that you had written historical fiction, and about the Plantagenets, my favourite historical dynasty, so I'll be jumping on that.

I was wondering if you had recommendations for historical fiction set during the Plantagenet reign? I've tried Sharon Kay Penman and unfortunately didn't get on with her writing, which is a shame as I've heard good things about her series. I know Philippa Gregory has several novels set during that time period, but her books seem to be verging on bodice rippers, which isn't what I'm looking for. Was just curious if you had any suggestions for well-researched fiction set during the Plantagenet reign.

This ask has been sitting in my inbox for several days (my apologies) largely because I was trying to think of a more helpful answer for you. Medieval historical fiction is VERY hit and miss for me, not least because it is often written by people who, uh, are not historians and thus have Certain Ideas (TM) about what the medieval period is like. Or they want to use various aesthetics, or they want to make some (usually questionable) point about how women were treated in the past, or they just go whole-hog on total nonsense. As an example of all of these things at once, let us all stare in horror at this recently-released book description together:

(The book is called the Stone Witch of Florence, by the way. I took one look at this and ran screaming. WHY.)

A stone witch?? So she channels the power of gemstones like a modern-day Instagram healing crystals influencer??? BUT ZOMGZ WITCHCRAFT. In the middle of the Black Death. "Unorthodox cures" you say. But they also need holy relics for protection, and I totally trust the author to understand about medieval hagiography/cult of the saints. Totally. We definitely won't get some half-baked comparison between Sekrit Women Magical Gems Which Really Work and Dark Ages Church Superstition Holy Relics Which Are A Fraud, or.... something??? And our nobly mistreated protagonist will super definitely be a real physician if she gets these and never ever accused of witchcraft (which LET US ALL SAY IT TOGETHER IS AN EARLY MODERN THING!!!!) Because medieval medicine was just a bunch of gemstone vibes anyway! Makes total sense!

...my head hurts.

Anyway, while not all examples are this egregious, the point is: I love historical fiction, but I almost always can't read it when it's set in the medieval era. I read Sharon Kay Penman a while ago and enjoyed her stuff at the time, though I have assorted gripes with it on a stylistic/historical level. While Philippa Gregory does have real academic credentials, she likewise has gone totally down the bodice-ripper alternate-history crackpot theory Secret Women Magic version of things, which is... fine if that's your jam, but just like you, it is not mine. I thus have to read fiction which is set in other periods or which I know less about or where at least I am more capable of turning off my brain and accepting things for the sake of the story. So as you see, I unfortunately don't have many useful suggestions for you in this field, since the kind of medieval historical fiction that I like to recommend is, say, The Name of the Rose. Which is terrific and written for someone of a professional medievalist's level of knowledge, but is not exactly everyone's cup of tea when they just want something fun and easy to understand.

I am, of course, happy to give other book recommendations if you'd like to broaden your request, and I'll do my best to think -- but yes! As I said, I wish I could be more helpful here. I shall persist.

(Also, of course: thanks for buying EMPIRE! I do hope you enjoy.)

[cosmerelists]

Cosmere Characters: What's Your Favorite Romance Book to Read/Listen To?

As requested by @cosmereplay :)

To be honest, I'm not sure if I'm quite doing what cosmereplay was envisioning, but this is what I got! :) This is in honor of Ardent Ellista, whom we see reading An Accountability of Virtue, which seems to be a courtly love-triangle epic romance tale. So what type of romance books do other Cosmere characters enjoy?

1. Vivenna

Vivenna: My favorite romance growing up was All the Colors of the Heart, about a princess betrothed from birth to this prince. And although she was scared, she was determined to make the best of it. Vivenna: Then it turned out he was very evil so she killed him and took over his kingdom and married his super hot, non-evil sister. Vivenna: As a young girl, I read that book over and over and over again... Susebron: H-Ha, it's so nice to meet your family, Siri...

2. Siri

Siri: Well, I always liked Dusk, about a girl who had to choose between the love of a frightening but alluring Returned who had to steal breath to live and a wolf man. Vivenna: Ugh, so unrealistic though. Why would a Returned who was thousands of years old want to hang out with a teenage girl anyway? Vasher: Sometimes she just insists on tagging along and won't stop. Vivenna: HEY

3. Adolin

Adolin: Look, An Accountability of Virtue is popular for a reason. Adolin: It has everything! Balls! Fancy clothing! Pining! Adolin: And of course, a happy ending. Adolin: Personally, I think I'm quite the Sterling. Shallan: You are. Adolin: Yessssss.

5. Moash

Moash: I like pretty much anything that's lovers to enemies. Leshwi: ... Leshwi: You mean enemies to lovers? Moash: Don't be ridiculous.

6. Painter

Painter: I like a good gothic romance. Painter: Two twisted people, scorned by society, finding a dark and bitter love in each other... Painter: Always ends tragically... Painter: That's the good stuff for a dark soul like mine. Yumi: Really? Because the book on your nightstand is... Painter: I'M HOLDING MAID CAFE LOVE FOR A FRIEND

7. Raboniel

Raboniel: The Fused have a tale about two of our kind who were soulmates. Raboniel: But they could never find a way to be together. Raboniel: One would be reborn while the other still remained on Braize. Raboniel: The one would escape only for the other to be killed within their very sight. Navani: .... Navani: And that's your, uh, favorite romance? Raboniel: All of our stories are like that.

8. Dieno

Dieno: Silly and poorly written it may be, but it's Fifty Lengths of Chain for me. Jasnah: ...Is that really a romance, though? The cover art is just...shackles. Dieno: Romance comes in many forms.

9. Steris

Steris: Well, as embarrassing as this may be to admit... I have always been a big fan of bodice-rippers. Wax: ... Wax: So, uh, we never negotiated about role-play, but... Steris: I'LL GET MY SPECIALLY DESIGNED RIPPABLE BODICE

10. Dalinar

Dalinar: My favorite romance is of course the story of me and Navani. Navani: Awww! Dalinar: But my second favorite romance is the explicit self-insert fanfiction I wrote about myself and Nohadon. Navani: ... Navani: You just learned to write. Dalinar: The world needed to know.

[miss-bushido]

our bodies are oh so close and tight

written for @steddiesmuttyseptember week three, using the prompt 'rough' Title from the song 'Paradise by the Dashboard Light' by Meatloaf

Also inspired by this tweet from @_cydonic: “young, bratty Steve who always calls for his father's car when he's working so that Mr Harrington's long-time, trusted driver Eddie can fuck him nasty in the back of the rolls 🥰”

Rating: E

“Going somewhere, Steven?” his Mother asks as he walks past her in the living room, adjusting the sleeves of his navy blue blazer. She doesn’t look up from her latest bodice-ripper romance book, so he knows he can be vague in his response.

“Yes, Mother. Just out to meet the guys.”

“Mmm, make sure you drive safely.” He can see her interest in the conversation is waning as her eyes keep moving over the words on the page. She even reaches for her glass of Chablis. It must be a very interesting passage.

“Eddie will make sure that I get there in one piece,” Steve answers. There is no response to that. His Mother sips her wine, and is now fully engrossed again in her story.

It’s just as well. He doesn’t think she’ll even wait up for him. She never does.

And he doesn’t know what time he’ll come back home. Not that the Harrington’s ever cared when their son came home. He tested it once: stayed out for three days, sleeping in a different girl’s bed every night. When he finally came home, they barely registered it.

This kind of parental neglect has been going on since Steve can remember. Their wealth let them spoil him with all the toys, experiences, cars and vacations a young man could want. There were a myriad of tutors, nannies, personal assistants as well. Their boy would never want for anything.

Except for affection and love from his parents. The Harrington’s did not give this to their only child readily, and on some level they must have felt guilty over it, because they let him do whatever he wanted. Steve was spoiled and willful and bratty, and no one was around to check him on this attitude.

Until the Harrington’s hired their chauffeur, that was.

Eddie Munson was like nothing and no one Steve had ever encountered before. He was in his mid-twenties, with dark hair and deep brown eyes. He had an air of something about him: a hint of danger that only Steve picked up on.

He also didn’t take any shit from The Brat, as he had christened Steve.

The first time he’d tested Eddie was about six months after he’d been hired, almost three months ago now. He’d walked over to the garage where the Harrington’s cars were kept, just as Eddie was finishing wiping down the interior of the Rolls, his tongue poking out in concentration as he moved the damp rag over the steering wheel.

“I want you to drive me somewhere,” Steve said by way of greeting, brushing a piece of imaginary lint off of his blazer.

Eddie moved out of the driver’s seat, rag in hand. His hair, usually kept hidden by his chauffeur’s cap, was loose and long, brushing the tops of his shoulders. The white tank top he wore showed all the tattoos he’d kept hidden under his chauffeur’s jacket, along with the strong arms he had. “I just finished detailing the car, so it’ll have to wait-”

Steve sighed heavily, as if this was the most inconvenient thing in the world. “I don’t care. I want you to drive me-”

“No,” Eddie said.

“No?” Steve repeated, hazel eyes wide. No one had ever told him ‘No’ before. “Who do you think-”

“I don’t know who you think you are,” Eddie cut him off, voice even with a hint of anger, “but I’m not the one.”

“I’m your boss’s son, is who I am,” Steve answered, eyebrows furrowed as he came closer to Eddie.

“You’re a brat, is what you are,” Eddie retorted.

Steve blinked dumbly, not sure what to do. This conversation was not going how he’d expected it to go. “What did you say?” he asked, moving so he was in Eddie’s personal space.

Eddie stayed where he was, which was also unexpected. So the two were almost chest to chest. “I said that you’re a brat.” He leaned in as he spoke. “Just because I drive you and your family around doesn’t mean you get to treat me like shit.”

Steve blinked again, but this time at the closeness of their faces. He could see a spray of freckles across Eddie’s cheeks, how pink his lips were, the hint of red in his cheeks from his anger. It made something stir in his gut, an unexpected feeling of arousal.

It wasn’t that Eddie was unattractive: he was actually pretty gorgeous to Steve’s mind. It wasn’t even that he was a guy: Steve had experimented with a few guys in the past. He just hadn’t ever expected to be attracted to someone who would speak to him like this. Like he wasn’t important. Like he wasn’t the spoiled and bratty son of the richest man in town.

“Get away,” Steve managed, pressing his hands on Eddie’s chest to shove him back. He managed to move the chauffeur about an inch before Eddie recovered and grabbed both of Steve’s wrists in his strong hands and pivoted so that he shoved Steve’s body up against the car. Eddie’s left thigh was between Steve’s legs, unaware that he was pressing against Steve’s crotch.

“Don’t ever do that again,” Eddie growled, tightening his grip on Steve’s right wrist. “Do you understand me, brat?”

Steve breathed heavily but didn’t answer. No one had ever been this rough with him before. And he found he kind of liked it. In response to Steve’s lack of one, Eddie pushed his body against Steve’s. The motion of him doing that produced delicious friction of Eddie’s thigh against his crotch that made Steve moan, closing his eyes at the feeling.

Eddie’s eyebrows raised at this development. “You like that, huh, brat?” He asked. When Steve didn’t immediately respond, Eddie moved his thigh again, feeling Steve’s erection clearly now. “You like it when someone corrects your behavior?” He was whispering in Steve’s ear now, his whole body pressed against him.

“Maybe…” Steve managed, his voice already sounding wrecked. He turned to look at Eddie, and felt a shiver run through him at the predatory look the chauffeur was giving him. “Maybe I do.”

“You want me to correct your behavior, huh?” Eddie asked. “Put my hands on you? Punish you?”

“Fuck,” Steve breathed, biting his lip at the imagery.

“First things first,” Eddie said, his left hand moving off of Steve’s right wrist, sliding down Steve’s body before he cupped Steve’s erection. He squeezed lightly, making Steve moan filthily, the sound echoing in the garage. “You don’t get to shove me around. Only I get to do that to you.”

“Yes,” Steve breathed, hips moving against Eddie’s hand. “Yes, God, I want that so much.”

“Good boy,” Eddie said, continuing to palm Steve through his pants. “Second thing: if you piss me off, if you keep acting bratty, I’m going to take it out of your ass.” As if to prove his point, Eddie moved them away from the car so he could give Steve a hard slap on the ass.

“Oh my God,” Steve shouted, his cock kicking in his pants. He’d never been spanked before, and didn’t know if it was because it was new or because it was Eddie doing it, or both, but he felt like he could come in his pants from just that by itself.

Eddie bit his lip at the display before him. He had his boss’s son in the palm of his hand, quite literally. He didn’t know Steve had it in him to be this pliable, this slutty. He found he really liked the power he had over him. “Third thing,” he said, his right hand moving in circles over Steve’s cheeks. “I’m the only one who gets to fuck you from now on. I’m the only one you’ll spread for. My pretty little whore.” He punctuated this by giving Steve’s earlobe a bite at the same time as he slipped his hand inside Steve’s pants, stroking his thick cock quickly. “Say it,” Eddie demanded, spanking Steve again as he stroked him.

“Only you,” Steve panted, head tilted forward, his right hand gripping the driver’s side mirror. He shoved his pants down with his left hand, his cock and Eddie’s hand wrapped around it springing free. The slick sounds of his precum sliding up and down his cock could be heard. “Only you get to fuck me,” he continued. “Eddie, fuck, I’m gonna come soon.”

“I can see,” Eddie breathed. He pushed his own pants down so his erection could be taken care of too. He wrapped his right hand around his cock and began stroking himself, getting off on getting Steve off. “Next time, I’m going to fuck you in the backseat, and you better not get cum all over the leather, or I’ll have to punish you.”

“Eddie!” Steve shouted as he came hard, gripping the mirror tightly as he bent forward. His cum dribbled over Eddie’s hands, some of it dripping onto the garage floor.

“God you’re so fucking hot,” Eddie groaned, forcing himself to stop stroking himself. He brought his hand up and licked all of Steve’s release into his mouth.

“I want more,” Steve pleaded. He looked up at Eddie, lust and longing written all over his face. “I want to be in the backseat with you now.”

Eddie pulled Steve in for a kiss, his tongue sliding into Steve’s hot mouth. “You ever been fucked before, brat?”

“Once,” Steve breathed, gripping Eddie’s tank top as they kissed. “I think you’ll be better at it, though.”

Eddie smirked. “Damn right.” He slapped Steve’s bare ass again before he said, “Get in the backseat and bend over.”

Steve kissed his once more before he complied, opening the back door and sliding in so he was facing the passenger side door. He grabbed the edge of the leather seat, and arched his back, waiting for Eddie.

Eddie slid in after Steve, closing the door behind him. “Fuck, your ass looks so good.” He ran a hand over his cheeks, pleased to note the pink spots where he’d spanked Steve. “I have to have a taste.”

Steve cried out, gripping hard to the seat as Eddie spread his cheeks and began tonguing his asshole. No one had ever done this to him, and it was a revelation in pleasure. He felt the wetness of Eddie’s spit, his tongue working inside Steve, punching in and out of him. “Eddie!” he moaned. “God, fuck, it feels so good!”

“This is just the warm up,” Eddie murmured, almost losing himself in eating Steve out. “You taste so fucking delicious. Some day I’m going to eat you out all night.” He felt Steve’s hole clench around his tongue at this. “Sounds like you want that too, huh?”

“Want that, want you, want all of you. God, please, Eddie. Please fuck me!”

Eddie grinned, giving Steve one final lick before he straightened up. “Since you asked so nicely…” he murmured. He reached into his back pocket, pulling out the little tub of Vaseline he kept there. It helped keep his hands smooth and soft after he worked on the car. Eddie uncapped it and scooped out a generous amount on his right pointer and middle fingers.

“This’ll be cold,” he warned Steve as he rubbed the lubricant over his hole. He slid both fingers inside Steve slowly, adding lubricant and getting him adjusted quicker. He heard the little hiss of pain Steve made and removed his fingers as quickly as he could. “Are you okay?” he asked. “Do you want me to stop?”

“If you stop, I’ll shove you again,” was the answer. Steve turned his head from where it was currently pressed against the seat, giving Eddie a knowing grin.

Eddie grinned back, returning to the task at hand of getting Steve’s hole nice and lubed and stretched for him. “There’s that brattiness we talked about,” he said, adding more Vaseline to his fingers as he slipped a third one inside of Steve. He slowly fucked Steve on his fingers, feeling him clench each time. “Someone should fuck it out if you.”

“Is that gonna be you?” Steve asked, practically drooling all over the leather.

“Does my little brat want that? Maybe I want to hear you beg a little first,” Eddie said, pulling his fingers out. He rubbed some Vaseline along his cock, which was red and aching from being ignored for so long. “And loudly. I want to make sure I hear you.”

“Please fuck me, Eddie,” Steve begged, the desperation in his voice taking on a fever pitch. Part of him knew that begging was part of the roleplay they’d stumbled onto, but he also was desperate to feel the other man inside him. “Please, please, pleas- oh fuck, yes!”

On the last ‘please’, Eddie began to push inside Steve, groaning loudly at how tight and hot he was. He slid in slowly and then slid back slowly, almost pulling out. “Is it good? Is it okay?” he asked, his own voice ragged, his hands clutching desperately at Steve’s hips.

“Don’t stop!” Steve begged, pushing back.

It was all Eddie needed. He thrust back inside of Steve, setting a rough rhythm as he fucked him. “You’re so tight,” he breathed. “Such a tight little whore. Can’t get enough of me, can you?” He heard Steve gasp, felt him clench around him. “Say it,” he ordered, delivering a slap to Steve’s ass again.

“I can’t get enough!” Steve yelled, a desperation in his voice. He was leaking precum everywhere all over the seat. Eddie’s words about punishing him if he got cum all over the backseat reverberating through his head. “I want all of you. Only you, please. Please Eddie!” He didn’t know what he was begging for at this point, but that didn’t matter as long as Eddie didn’t stop fucking him.

Eddie felt a shudder run through him, his hips snapping hard against Steve’s as he kept fucking him. “I’m gonna cum in your tight hole,” he panted. “I’m gonna fill you up, make you mine.” He reached between Steve’s legs and began stroking his hard cock, trying to match the rhythm of each stroke to each thrust. “I’m gonna ruin you for anyone else.”

“Only want your cock, your hands, your mouth, oh fuck, Eddie! Eddie, I’m-!” Steve’s words cut off as he came hard while Eddie stroked him, thick ropes of cum spurting out of him.

Eddie gripped Steve’s hip tight with his other hand, the rhythm he’d built up beginning to falter. “Take all of it,” he groaned as he went over the edge, coming so hard inside Steve that he saw white. His whole body shuddered at his release. “God, Steve,” he gasped, trying to catch his breath. “You’re fucking incredible.”

“So are you,” Steve panted, trying to catch his breath. He liked the way his name sounded in Eddie’s mouth. “I want some more.”

Eddie groaned as he pulled out, licking his lips at the sight of his cum leaking out of Steve. “You’ll get some more, brat.” He pinched Steve’s cheek, grinning at the outraged yelp he gave. “First, I gotta clean the car up before this becomes an issue.”

Steve pushed himself up onto his knees, a dull ache in his backside. “So much for the detailing. I got cum all over…” he trailed off as he felt Eddie’s arm wrap around his waist.

“It lets me know I did a good job,” Eddie whispered in his ear, giving his earlobe a light bite. “And I lied: I hadn’t finished detailing the car.”

Steve turned his head to look at Eddie. “Why’d you lie?”

“Because you were being bratty like usual,” Eddie answered. “Are you mad that I lied?”

“No,” Steve said, fully turning to kiss Eddie on the mouth. “Especially not after this.” He deepened the kiss, placing his right hand on Eddie's face.

Eddie broke the kiss to ask, “Did you actually want me to drive you anywhere?”

“I did, but I think I can have a better evening if I stay here with you,” Steve said, giving Eddie’s lower lip a small bite.

“Brat,” Eddie replied, spanking Steve on the ass again, a grin on his face. “Go upstairs and get washed up. Once I clean the car, I’ll be up.”

“But don’t you want to shower with me?” Steve whined, kissing Eddie on the neck, the jaw, everywhere but his mouth. He gasped when Eddie gripped his hair and tilted his head back.

“Do what I say,” Eddie growled, licking a line up Steve’s neck. “I haven’t finished punishing you yet.”

Steve groaned with longing. “Okay,” he breathed, following Eddie out of the car after they both pulled their pants back up.

He was about to go upstairs when Eddie grabbed him by the blazer and pulled him in for a blistering kiss. His hands roamed everywhere on Steve, and when he pulled back, nuzzling their noses together, he started to say, “If it’s too weird or too much…”

“I guess I’ll wait to shower with you after all,” Steve quipped as he pulled out of Eddie’s grasp, a big grin on his face. As he walked upstairs to Eddie’s apartment he heard behind him: “That ass better be on display when I come up there.”

“Why don’t you make me?” Steve called back as he hurried up the stairs, already beginning to shed his clothes.

-

Now back in the present, Steve waits outside at the edge of the walkway. Soon enough, he sees a pair of headlights coming down the driveway, circling and pulling to a stop right in front of him.

Eddie, his Eddie, steps out from the driver’s seat and walks around to the other side, opening the right back passenger door for Steve. “Your chariot, my liege,” he jokes.

“Cute,” Steve replies, running his fingers across the waistband of Eddie’s pants. He is rewarded when Eddie bites his lip, trying to keep his composure. Steve slips his hand further down to palm him over his pants.

Eddie gasps loudly, glaring at Steve as he slides coolly into the car. “Brat,” he hisses. It is said with all the love and affection Steve has always craved.

And it solidifies his decision to tell Eddie he loves him tonight.

After a few spankings, of course.

[forthegothicheroine]

Do you have any gothic novels that you can recommend off the top of your head? Especially to people who want to try their hand at the genre? I've hit a wall in my project and I need to get some fresh inspiration, but I don't know where to start and the book side of tumblr failed me the last time I tried asking them for recs

Hell yeah! I made some old posts for this a while back, but it's good to look at it again with my more recent taste! Let's see...

Classic Gothics

Dracula: The one, the only. Often imitated, never equalled.

Frankenstein: Short, sad and world changing! Can get a little slow at parts, but definitely worth it. (True story, my parents read this to me as a fetus to calm my kicking, so it's part of my personal mythology!)

The Case of Charles Dexter Ward: The most gothic of Lovecraft's work, and possibly my favorite. Novella length, usually found in collections.

The Picture of Dorian Gray: Sinister, sexy, philosophical, with a main character I want to punch in the face!

Carmilla: Another novella, about as lush and swooning as vampire stories get.

The Hound of the Baskervilles: A very readable gothic mystery.

Confessions of a Justified Sinner: This one isn't as action packed, but if you have big religious issues like me, it's incredibly haunting.

The Monk: Like the above, but sleazier and crazier!

Northanger Abbey: A gentle parody of early gothics, starring an adorable proto-goth girl.

The Italian: I'll be honest, I find Anne Radcliffe kind of a slog, but if you liked Northanger Abbey and want to read what Catherine Morland reads, this is probably the most accessible.

A Long Fatal Love Chase: This starts as campy and then takes a plunge into gut-wrenchingly intense. The book Jo March was always trying to write!

The Strange Case of Doctor Jekyll and Mr. Hyde: Another novella, and Stevenson is one of the best writers out there for excitement!

The Werewolf of Paris: Gothic monster as serial killer, still scary today.

Rebecca: The foundation of all gothic romance to come afterwards. A ghost story without a ghost, with an ending that's still debated as happy or sad!

Jane Eyre: The other foundation of all gothic romance to come afterwards. I bounced off the child abuse-heavy beginning a few times, but I'm very glad I finally read to the good stuff!

The Castle of Otranto: Considered the first gothic novel, a goofy b-movie in written form.

Modern-ish Gothics (post-1950 or so)

The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein: Fuck the haters, I love this book.

Mexican Gothic: Genuinely scary, genuinely romantic, genuinely creative. A favorite.

Blackwater: A southern gothic saga of a family in a flooded town, whose scion marries a woman who isn't quite human. A whirlwind ride!

A Bloodsmoor Romance: Another family saga, this one northern gothic, with sisters whose lives all go off the rails in different supernatural ways. Give this a try before writing Joyce Carol Oates off entirely!

The Silver Devil: A nasty, problematic bodice ripper where you'll cheer for the heroine to bring the hero down low!

Interview with the Vampire: To be honest again, I'm not super into Anne Rice, but this is a page-turner, and every vampire book that has come after it has had to respond to it in one way or another. Read the next two Vampire Chronicles books if you like it!

A Taste of Blood Wine: My own preferred sexy vampire romance!

The Bloody Chamber: The ultimate dark sexy fairy tale work, accept no substitutes.

Haunted Castles: Contains the brilliant novella Sardonicus, as well as some other campy gothic stories!

A Great and Terrible Beauty: Many millennials were introduced to the gothic genre via this, Fear Street Sagas, or A Series of Unfortunate Events. This is my favorite of the three, though the sequels are a bit of a letdown.

Gormenghast: This series is a throwback to the pseudo-medieval, Otranto-style gothic, but much better. Don't read Titus Alone.

[vergess]

Okay actually I would LOVE to hear your summary of what the Dresden Files like. actually is, as a series. Because every so often some guy will demand that I read it while insisting it's Superior Literature and the best fantasy series ever (unless maybe second to Lord of the Rings, but usually not even that)

They also like to insist that well of COURSE the main character is extra sexist and never improves but it's a FLAW, the AUTHOR knows it's wrong, therefore girls should LOVE reading his sexism. So like I was not buying this any degree to begin with, but I would love to know what's actually going on here

Bro, these books are Bad(tm). Do not fucking buy them. I cannot in good conscience suggest anyone read them, ever. But I especially, immensely cannot recommend purchasing them. This is "skulking around the library not making eye contact" material.

These are bodice rippers For Men(TM).

They're also, (and for obvious reasons they aren't advertised like this) High Camp Melodrama Fantasy Where Everyone Is Bisexual. But I repeat myself.

With that in mind, they are easily the best written urban fantasy fetish pornography I've ever seen outside AO3, and frankly better than most of that stuff too. It's just... you need to be aware going in that these are serialized porn mags. They happen to have exceptionally written combat and freakishly well considered fantasy elements, but they nonetheless use the same racial and sexual shorthands seen in the bulk of heteronormative, white gaze pornography.

Also, the main guy is an obnoxious asshole on purpose from second one and he does not ever let up on this, so if you don't immediately get along with his sense of humour walk away.

Now as for whatever dipshitted asshole is telling you they're superior literature.... mmmm.... no.

They're REALLY GOOD porn. I understand how really good porn is going to emotionally confuse the highly repressed (and oh BOY do these books appeal to the repressed) into a sort of pavlovian "this is the best thing ever" response.

But like, mmmmm no.

If you do elect to read these books, I suggest casting the main guy with a Black actor in your head. That change alone makes the immense amount of police presence and abuse more palatable.

OH THE COP SHIT

I FORGOT TO MENTION THE COP SHIT

Absolutely bonkers copaganda levels.

Also, the books were um.... progressive for 2005. They are not progressive for 2024. Let's put it like this; Supernatural (TV series) was a contemporaneous peer in the same genre. If you are damned set on subjecting yourself to one of these White Boy Monster Serials, pick this one at least it fucks.

Nevertheless, the writing is surprisingly charming, the Christian fantasy elements are genuinely competitive in a post-LOTR world, and the fetish shit is fucking immaculate.

I don't think Jim Butcher is aware he's written fetish porn, but whatever, he's REALLY good at it. I cannot recommend the sex scenes and the combat highly enough.

It's just unfortunate about the everything else.

Did I mention they're Christian fantasy elements? They are. They really really really aggressively are. These books are set in a Christian-centric universe and they do NOT let you forget that. There's like... so many Christian angels in this shit.

Anyway, if you choose to join me on this cursed journey (do not join me on this cursed journey), some other stuff to note:

Lots of underage and youth fetishism

Like, I cannot emphasize enough how hot and cool all The Youths think the Main Guy is and how aggressively the book lusts-and-guilts-in-turn over The Youths

So, so, SO much incest

Gay incest also

Mafia wedding guy is there, the guy from all the mafia wedding fics on wattpad, he's canonically the main guy's soulmate (no homo) (unless..?)

Main guy has too many soulmates btw, several are gay and some are blood relations, but most are muscular blonde women because he has a serious muscle fetish; fuckin gym gay behaviours

Undiagnosed bisexuality on the majority of the characters (I'm calling it; Jim Butcher thinks bisexuality is the normal POV and this is totally how Normal Guys talk about each other's dicks)

Exorbitant amounts of racism, some of which is "on purpose" and the most of which is horrifically unremarked upon; includes plenty of racial stereotypes. Nevertheless, the cast is diverse enough (outside the circle of main love interests) that these stereotypes can come up at all, so weigh that carefully

Special shoutout to the first major love interest, a Latina woman who dies spectacularly halfway through the series after having the main guy's secret baby

Extremely confusing relationship to psychosis as a mental illness

Melodrama that would make the desperate housewives sit back and stare

Fascinatingly good about homophobia actually, in that queerbaity 2005 way

*slaps the main guy like he's a car* You can fit so much dysphoria in this cis guy

In conclusion: I see why so many AMAB bisexuals of various genders who were part of the target demo latched the fuck on to this series so hard. I myself was fooled into believing these books were "for" Straight Men, and to be clear they are. But they're also Pulpy Gay Camp Bullshit that we the faggots of the world deserve to mutilate and recreate in our own image.

Together, I believe we could fix them.

Oh right, the plot:

The Main Guy, Harry Dresden, is a private detective Wizard Cop (serial plot is investigation based) who may also be the chosen one destined to defeat some elder gods (long term plot), and along the way starts several major supernatural wars and at least 2 arms races.

[cyborgjack]

Ficbind complete for a Disco Elysium fanfic I was absolutely delighted to find, because it’s illustrated!

The Long View Down by Rin/kriegersan on AO3 was a well-written continuation of the game with the new perspective of the NPC no one wants to disappoint: Lieutenant Kim Kitsuragi. It reads like a noir book and I tried to keep it flimsy like noir often is, but I did use some of this bright orange handmade paper for a book of my own (I used it for a book I was sending to my friend that's in a completely different fandom—handmade paper is the gift that keeps giving and giving and giving...).

Couldn’t resist taking it to the toilet, where Harry belongs.

I’ve followed J. R. Doyle’s comics and illustration work since the early days of Knights Errant and absolutely love their style. It fits in so well with the dark storyline, and had the bonus of being black-and-white already so I could still print it successfully!

I went for a kind of old-fashioned way of including the illustrations—I added quotes from the text under the pictures, as I perceived them fitting into the story. I had an appendix of the illustrations and quotes at the end of the book.

I collaged the title page out of illustrations throughout the story. The summary lines are there, too, set up in the style of trashy paperback bodice-rippers. I’m pretty proud of this one, in spite of the flaws I see! I’m going to see if a friend wants to read it. I feel like a lot of Disco Elysium stories stand well on their own, with their mystery plots and otherworldly setting. I might be biased, though; I loved this game.

[marley-manson]

what are some of your favorite xena fics?

Thanks for asking! Fair warning, most of these are on old archives and can be hard to read, like, visually. I generally copypaste the fics, convert them to epubs, and read them on my kobo, but firefox reader view is also an excellent option for either laptop or mobile reading. Not sure if chrome has an equivalent.

I will warn for rape and specify the gender configurations (f/f, f/m, or m/f) when I can, because I know that matters to me when I'm choosing what I want to read, but for the fics I haven't read recently it's more of a crapshoot because I just don't remember well enough.

And if you just want my current top faves, I've starred those.

Xena/Gabrielle, fics I've read or re-read recently and remember fairly well:

Aftermath: The Tree of Life and The Hanging Gardens Conqueror AU - imo Gabrielle falls for Xena a little quickly considering how it starts lol, but it's well written, fun, solidly plotty, and the second is a pretty good mystery (though with a caveat for some racialized stereotypes.)

The Paradox of Dying Short glimpse into Gabrielle's state of mind in the later seasons.

*Storms of War A long, plotty, and quite dark exploration of Xena and her relationship with violence. Surprisingly well paced and engaging imo, considering how 600ish pages covers about a week of time. (mentions of m/f rape, past f/m rape)

As Long as Earth Endures Plotty, fun, entertaining OCs, violence and sex as themes (though not really intertwined lol) (mentions of past f/m and f/f rape iirc)

Been There, Done That Revisited Fun one shot set during the eponymous episode.

Confession An angstier take on Xena and Gabrielle's relationship.

Xena/Gabrielle, fics I've read years ago and enjoyed then, but I can't be 100% certain they hold up:

Infamia Conqueror AU, Gab is a gladiator, Xena is Empress of Rome. I actually have re-read about half of it lol but haven't finished it. It's a lot of fun, and the author has a way with words.

Pretium Silenti I plan to re-read this soon, it's another gladiator Gab/Empress of Rome fic, though more dark and serious, and very well written from what I recall. (m/f rape iirc)

Conqueror Series This is a hesitant rec lol because even in 2014 I thought it was very cheesy and tropey in that classic bodice ripper-y way, but like, I honestly had a lot of fun reading it. ymmv of course. (past m/f rape and csa, present f/f sex with a slave that isn't fully acknowledged as rape iirc, past f/f rape. Also warning for some racist tropes, about on par with what we see in the show as far as I recall.)

The Charioteer: In the City of Har and The Amazons of Dahomey I remember thinking these were extremely well written, but I haven't re-read them and I remember very little so I can't warn for any content.

Queen fun pwp

Appetite I remember loving the writing style. Post-finale.

Tarot Conqueror (well, warlord) fic. Fun premise, present day Gabrielle meets a younger, warlording Xena thanks to magic.

Other ships, recent reads:

*The Destiny Series Mostly gen, some het. Conqueror AU but in a very unique way. Focused on Caesar and Gabrielle after Xena has been killed, and it's an excellent depiction of like... everything I want from a good angsty darkfic. Eg the way it could've been hurt/comfort but the hurt character sucks and constantly self-sabotages and the comforter is way out of her depth and stops trying soon enough and they make each other even worse instead. Just about every choice made goes wrong. The world is a miserable, violent mess because three wonderfully, viscerally epic warlording women have been destroying it with their battling. Speaking of, I loooove how this author writes Xena, Callisto, and Najara.

Like the vibes are just immaculate to me <3 (f/m rape)

Payback is Hell Xena/Lao Ma, missing scene

*Equal To the Gods Xena/Gabrielle, Xena/Ares. I've read this twice now and it was an emotional rollercoaster each time, which is rare for me - like, I sobbed for basically the entire last third or so lol. And I'm not usually into poly fic, especially mixed gender, buuuut boy do I love a good trainwreck and this is a novel's worth of well-written, devastating trainwreck. And I do feel that ultimately it's very fair to both ships, despite the author being primarily a Xena/Ares shipper. If you buy into the premise that Xena does love Ares, all the characterization choices work great for me as well.

The Apology A missing scene set between Adventures in the Sin Trade and A Family Affair.

Other ships, old reads:

Among the Tigers and Approach of the Greeks Xena/Lao Ma

The Legacy of Lao Ma Xena/Lao Ma, The Debt from Lao Ma's pov

Aphrodite's Prayer Gabrielle/Aphrodite

The Joining Xena/Ares, I have actually re-read the first two relatively recently, and they're well-written and a good exploration of Xena's heroism versus Ares' job. Gabrielle and her arc gets a lot of focus in the second too. Don't remember the third well though, but I enjoyed it enough to bookmark it.

[twunny20fission]

Books of 2024

Here are the books I read in 2024, with some thoughts on each

“The World We Make” by N.K. Jemison. A sequel to a book I was looking forward to, but found a bit disappointing. This one was fine. It really made the first book shine by comparison. The series was supposed to be a trilogy, but the author didn’t want to do it anymore. So this one felt rushed.

“Sweet Tooth, Book One” by Jeff Lemire. Visually great and well-written. Didn’t blow me away, but felt worthwhile. I’d like to read the next in the series, but it’s harder to find.

“Pageboy” by Elliot Page. This is one of those memoirs where you think, “well, they definitely didn’t hire a ghost writer.” Page is not a skilled writer. The stories he lived through were enough to be good nonetheless.

“Moon Knight, Vol. 1: The Midnight Mission” by Jed McKay, et al. Pretty tame for such an interesting character.

“Moon Knight, Vol. 2: Too Tough to Die” by Jed McKay, et al. Meandering, with a rushed ending. Meh.

“Safe & Sound” by Mercury Stardust. How to take care of a lot of stuff around your house. It was inspiring and affirming. Not a lot of it was necessarily useful to me presently. But it was still good.

“Usagi Yojimbo, Vol 6: Circles” by Stan Sakai. I love everything about Usagi. This is a strong volume.

“Evvie Drake Starts Over” by Linda Holmes. A great time. I took a swing on a type of book I don’t normally pick up, and I’m extremely happy I did. It’s a romance novel, but not AT ALL a bodice-ripper. A modern, thoughtful, realistic novel about an adult woman falling in love. Super good.

“The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck” by Mark Manson. Nowhere near as good as I wanted it to be. Very bro-ey, and not particularly resonant.

“Ms. Marvel Vol 5: Super Famous” by G. Willow Wilson, et al. A very middle-of-the-road entry in Wilson’s Marvel volumes.

“Making It So: A Memoir” by Patrick Stewart. Outstanding. Exceeded every expectation, and my expectations were high. Even the less-than-flattering elements of his life were handled well.

“Ms. Marvel: The New Mutant” by Iman Vellani, et al. This book really hung its hat on “Iman Vellani got to write this one.” Which is great, but it wasn’t a spectacular book.

“An Immense World: How Animal Senses Reveal the Hidden Realms Around Us” by Ed Yong. Very disappointing. It could have been very cool, but it was not.

“poyums” by Len Pennie. I dislike 95% of all poetry I've ever experienced. This book is in the other 5%. Even when I didn’t understand it (either because it was in Scots, because it was poetry, or both) it was great.

“Ms. Marvel Vol 6: Civil War II” by G. Willow Wilson, et al. Good art, mediocre plots, pretty decent dialogue.

“Camp Damascus” by Chuck Tingle. I listened to the audiobook, but I’m counting it. This was engaging start to finish. The creepy parts were good, and the sense of fun that the author brings to things was apparent throughout.

“Mighty Nein Origins: Beauregard Lionett” by Mae Catt, et al. None of these Origins books were great standalone stories. This one was *pretty* good.

“Sourcery” by Terry Pratchett. Another great entry in what might at this point be my favorite book series. Like ever. After I reckoned with the fact that I’d never read another Douglas Adams book, I figured that part of my brain would go fallow. Thank goodness for Sir Terry, and thank goodness he was so prolific. This one was exciting and emotional.

“Three Novels,” by Samuel Beckett. I don’t get what he was trying to do here. Beckett’s plays work for me. Whatever this was did NOT. I tortured myself into finishing it, after a months-long break.

“Star Trek: Lower Decks #1” by Ryan North, et al. Really enjoyable. You have to come into the book with a knowledge of how Lower Decks works. Which I have, and it was great. Ryan North has never missed.

“Survival Street” by James Asmus, et al. As with any good satire, this was hard to “enjoy.” It was too sharp an implement, but it was very well-executed. The idea is that the S*same St*eet m*ppets are real, living, immigrant people. And when the tyrannical government takes over and de-funds PBS and basically all non-propaganda children’s TV, they go HAM.

“Fourth Wing” by Rebecca Yarros. Very glad I picked this one up. I get caught in the “do I really have bandwidth for a long book, or to start another series right now” of it all. But this one was worth it. But I wish it had been a little less infatuation-obsessed. The romance makes sense, and is even relevant to the plot. But the “oh, how could I ever have denied myself the exquisite pleasure of having this person’s skin under my fingertips” is just…blegh.

“The Adventure Zone, Vol. 6: The Suffering Game” by the McElroys, et al. The comics are not as good as the podcast. Part of that opinion might be nostalgia for the golden age of “about 10 years ago.” But it’s how I feel. This one fits in nicely with the others, which is to say it’s competently written and arted. There are one or two great bits per book, but overall it’s fine.

“Wyrd Sisters” by Terry Pratchett. I look back on every Discworld novel with a sense of it being the best one and not as good as at least one other one. My favorite is constantly in flux. This one stands out for its treatment of the magic of theater (and greater magick of headology) and its deeper insights into the witches.

“A Wizard of Earthsea” by Ursula Le Guin. I should have read this sooner. It pretty much holds up, though the style is clearly of a type that no one really uses anymore.

“Priestdaddy” by Patricia Lockwood. Bit of a disappointment. It was like reading a clever blog of an autobiography. I didn’t really hold together well. A lot of it was entertaining, but it wasn’t Great.

“Legends and Lattes” by Travis Baldree. Right up my alley. A very cozy, thoughtful story in a kind of hand-wavy fantasy world. Really enjoyed it.

“The Theory of Everything Else” by Dan Schreiber. Wasn’t exactly a narrative, wasn’t exactly just a list of facts & curiosities. It was okay. I feel like Schreiber is at his best in the audio format, in the company of other weirdos.

“Pyramids” by Terry Pratchett. Very cool expansion of Discworld. I’m hoping it is a foundation to something ahead, as I liked the characters and the new elements of the plane.

"Iron Flame" by Rebecca Yarros. A stellar second entry in the series. It was infuriating how engrossed I was for the last 150 or so pages especially. The spicy scenes still seem to be...too much. They stick out as an insanely different experience than the rest of the narrative. Look, I liked the book a lot. I had a hard time telling certain characters apart sometimes, and some of the narrative bits were too confusing until they weren't. This series is A Lot.

Metrics!

Total books: 31 Total (non-graphic novels and other picture-heavy books) pages: 6450 Total pages: 8403 Highest-rated: Making It So Lowest-rated: Three Novels Very Glad I Read It Award: poyums Honorable Mention: Evvie Drake Starts Over Glad It's Over Award: The World We Make Most disappointing: Three Novels

[attorneytrash]

I really really really love Such Terrible Tales, it's one of my favorite fanfictions of all time!! I was wondering how you write a "period piece" so well with all the terminology, dialog, and flow of the work feeling so reminiscent of 19th-20th century novels! (It still has its roots and humor in the modern era, but you get me.) Do you do a lot of research and editing before you publish a chapter or does it just flow naturally for you? Did you read a ton of Jane Austen and bodice rippers before penning the Jackdaw? Have you you plotted out Such Terrible Tales in full before writing or do you just fly by the seat of your pants (or do you do a mix of both)? Sorry if this is nosy, I'm just so curious and invested and I'm looking into writing fanfictions that captures a similar feeling myself ^q^

OH MY GOSH HIIIIIIII wait i've never gotten one of these before. this is so exciting. fair warning my advice will be terrible but you did ask

first off thank you I can't believe you think i write a good "period piece" (what is the period? we just don't know) because I feel like i'm so slapdash about it and it's all Vibes. ANYWAY I'M REALLY REALLY HAPPY YOU'RE ENJOYING THE FIC. TRULY

genuinely one of the reasons I started writing STT in the first place was because I was on a kick of reading stuff that takes place in that general era (again, what the actual era is remains unclear). A few people have pointed out the Jane Austen of it all, and I think when I was in the middle of reading an austen novel you can tell because of the language in those chapters. basically, I don't know if this is true of everyone, but I tend to lean into the style of whatever I'm reading at the time. I also think it helps, if you like audiobooks, to listen to audiobooks in the style you want to write in! Especially with older works, audiobook narrators are really good at getting the flow and cadence of the language across, and it helps get your mind flowing along and sort of "hooked in" to that style. or it does for me at least!

ALSO I do jot down a lot of notes, specifically little turns of phrase that I like! so for example, I wrote down to use the word "directly" meaning "right now" (as in, "I will read you the letter directly") and "presently" meaning "in a short time" (as in, "we're expecting his arrival presently"). Little things like moving words around too ("what have you there" rather than "what do you have there" etc) give it that sort of feel. if that makes sense. i just take a lot of notes

One tip I will give is that a little really goes a long way with old-timey language. I notice it less when listening to the audiobooks, but in older books the sentences are LOOOOOOOONG which is what makes them so hard to parse sometimes. And often in romance novels that take place in victorian or regency era they'll overdo the language to the point that it makes you roll your eyes (though I'm sure I've done that once or twice too)

ANYWAY I'M PRATTLING ON SORRY as for the plotting. I have a bare-bones skeleton that has all the larger plot twists in it, so I can make sure to foreshadow things. That being said, I think part of what's fun about a serial fic is coming up with things as you go while still having to stay true to what you've already written. One thing I will say is that it's EXTREMELY helpful to keep a couple cheat sheets: one is a timeline, which keeps track of all the events that happened in the past, when they happened, etc. The other is a list keeping track of what every character knows and when they find it out. It's saved me many times when I've forgotten who's aware of what secrets etc.

YOU'RE NOT NOSY AT ALL and in fact I'm seriously thrilled to get an ask like this bc i could talk about writing for days. I hope your fic goes well and that you have fun with it ^^

[ghuleh-recs]

★ Ghost Fandom Fic Rec Tag ★

VERY annoyed about the anon hate I’m seeing in my favorite writers’ ask boxes lately. So! I thought I'd live up to my username. Let’s appreciate some amazing writers and rec some fucking fics.

Rules (re: loose guidelines)

Pick some fics from your AO3 bookmarks or your likes/reblobs here on tumblr, and post them with links and a blurb about it. Maybe a summary or just a reason you liked it. As many or as few as you feel like sharing. Then, as one does, tag your friends.

This is a ZERO pressure tagging situation—if you’re too busy or don’t feel like participating, no biggie at allll. Let’s just spread some love and positivity shall we?

I’ll go first (some slightly spoiler-y descriptions ahead):

[REC] and 1080P by @st-danger We've got some absolutely delicious vulnerable Dew x completely smitten Swiss right here. Long story short, they send a video of Dew in panties to Aether. These are scorchingly hot. Part of Saint’s Kinktober series—which you better subscribe to if you haven’t already.

This Swiss x Aeon stoned hand kink ficlet from @crimsonclergy actually set my brain on fire yesterday. So there’s that.

This fic from @riconas featuring insecure Dew knotting Aether. A little desperate, a little mean, a LOT sexy.

A Touch Too Much by @miasmaghoul Hey have you ever wondered what would happen if Dew went into heat during a ritual? And how he might react to Papa singing about daddies and caressing him during KTGG? Hmm? You ever wonder about that?

It would tear me apart, it would haunt me forever (so much you'd never get to know) by @littlemoon-beam oh boy this is some stunningly good Dew angst. This fic will hurt your feelings and then you’re gonna thank Moon for it. She really blasted into this fandom like the Kool-aid guy and we are honestly so hashtag blessed for it.

Now for some reader-insert if that’s more your style.

Misaimed Desire by @violet-lazer Whoops. You accidentally texted Secondo something saucy and he summons you to his office. Whatever will he do to you? Part of her excellent First Kisses: Papal Edition series. Terzo is next so y'all better subscribe.

Banchetto by @angellayercake This. This right here is the good shit. Terzo is wasting away, not handling life after the Ghost Project well at all. Primo and Secondo enlist your help seeing as you’ve got some serious cooking skills. This is gorgeously written with some god tier slow burn and eventual smut. It’s a WIP but the most recent chapter is super satisfying, don’t you worry.

The Cardinal's Bride by @ramblingoak If you’re not following along with this, you’re REALLY missing out. This is pure bodice-ripper GOLD. Some of the most satisfying slow burn I have EVER read. I reread the whole thing every time Oak drops a new chapter.

The Prince by @kissingghouls Vampire!Terzo x slayer!reader need I say more? I am loving the latest installment of Suck Club (you should really read them all). Terzo is pathetic and wears crop tops and it has me actually kicking my heels and giggling as I read.

One last thing:

Leave a comment on ao3, or reply/reblog (with tags) here on the hellsite anything you enjoyed that someone else recommended. I dare you. The author might even reply and you’ll feel oh so special.

I tag: @littlemoon-beam, @rightintheghoulies, @myghemicalghostmance, @angellayercake, @ramblingoak, @neekocalico, @kissingghouls, @stede-bonnets and anyone reading this that also enjoys fanfic. Yeah you. I’m so serious. Don't test me, boy.

(Feel free to tag me back because I have soooo many others but this already got way too long.)

[mermaidsirennikita]

I started historical romance with the older books, they are so good or at least for me they are and I have trouble finding HR from thsi years that are actually as good as the older ones, I feel like the older romance heroes are more memorable and bolder

Imo, there are definitely historical romance authors currently writing in the subgenre who are doing it UP--S.M. LaViolette, Sarah MacLean, Joanna Shupe, Adriana Herrera, Cat Sebastian, KJ Charles-- come to mind, but a lot of those authors have been writing for a good while. So they have a brand, they don't need "break through" (though they have to fight against current tradpub trends, which is a formidable issue).

But for newer historical authors, there are very few being picked up, and I think that historicals are basically being left to apologize for the issues that are pervasive in the entire romance genre and always have been. And I don't know why this is, exactly--is it because there is a surface-level "reckoning" with history in tradpub?

(I say surface level because the vast majority of top execs are cis white men, so like, MMM? Are we reckoning when by and large women and people of color and most likely a lot of queer people can't get through the door to C-Suite, or at least can't get through as easily?)

Is it because a lot of people think of "old school" romance as bodice rippers (which are invariably historicals)? Which isn't true, by the way--there are tons of old school contemporaries. I own a good chunk. The big PNR boom of yore when authors like Kresley Cole and JR Ward were killing the game happened in the late 90s/early 2000s and into the late 2000s. Those books are like... getting on up there lol.

Personally, I don't think Bridgerton did historicals any favors--I think it did the opposite. Imo, many people were just minding their own business, not at all interested in reading historical romance, and then got into Bridgerton and got into fandom (in which everything is hyperbolic) and read the JQ books, and... yeah. I personally don't love a Julia Quinn book by and large; she's just not my style, though I do enjoy The Viscount Who Loved Me and When He Was Wicked.

BUT! Though I won't pretend that her older books are the most problematic books out in historical romance land... Yeah. A lot of the Bridgerton books haven't aged super well, and they're not necessarily what I'd recommend as baby's first historicals. If you have zero context and suddenly read these 20 year old books, which were written by someone who was, imo, not trying to like... push a lot of envelopes? At the time? Who did just want to write a sort of fluffy books about very cishet, very white people in pretty conservative relationships without a lot of thought towards things like gender, class...

I mean, look. I'm not particularly outraged by those books. I don't think they handled sensitive shit very well a lot of the time. The Duke and I just... is actually a pretty fun book until you get to the assault. And it's not even the existence of the assault for me, but just like--how it was written, the minute choices made, etc. So that's what the new Bton fans read first. Then they see Anthony bitch about Kate not wanting to have sex with him on the wedding night, they read about Benedict ignoring Sophie's resistance and pushing her even when she explains why she won't be his mistress, they read about Sir Philip having sex with Marina while she lays there crying, it's just... It's not the most shocking shit I've read by any means, but if you are someone who's never read HR and people tell you "this is what the gold standard is", then yeah. I can see why you'd assume the subgenre is trash. I don't think you SHOULD lol. I don't think anyone should dismiss an entire subgenre off of one thing. But that's the internet and that's fandom and it becomes a cult mentality where people are posting out of context screenshots and getting 30K likes or whatever.

So then you don't read historical romance, and you say "Books Bad", and EVERYTHING that the romance genre has grappled with a is still grappling with as a whole suddenly seems a lot bigger in historicals. Misogyny? Present in every subgenre. Consent issues? Oh, you bet. Racism or a lack of representation? Every subgenre. Homophobia and a lack of queer rep? Every subgenre. "But the dukes" okay but the billionaires.

And that is not to dismiss what is wrong with many historicals. But I say this to say that when I read a lot of older historicals... For one thing lol, there are many of them that honestly do age pretty well or were pretty progressive at the time, which is just the case for pretty much any subgenre. Not everything is going to be super problematic. But for another, even the ones that are imperfect and do need to be critiqued tend to have a fearlessness and vibrancy in just like... the plots. The writing. Everything is BIGGER.

I do kind of feel like there's a pressure on the current historical romanced space to make it like. Small scale. Not controversial. Contemporary but in ball gowns. Nothing offensive, but also nothing that seems intimidating to read--like these LaViolette books I've read that are super gothic (and indie pubbed lol) or these Gaelen Foley books where there's like a rebellion and a sea voyage and a swordfight and a kidnapping and relationship drama all in one book. That's too big, so let's put them in a ballroom, or let's have a plot where they recite second wave feminist treatise that are about and for white women, basically.

And it's a snake eating its own tail issue, because for all that a vocal online set may critique a subgenre for being Too Much, they won't read the books that are Too Little. And the people who aren't online go "that looks boring" and move on. A contemporary romance can exist with a small plot because it's supposed to be somewhat reflective of our lives, in a romanticized form. A historical becomes knockoff Jane Austen if it does that, and I don't think the audience for that is as big as tradpub thought, maybe?

So the subgenre conforms, and then people don't buy it, because some of them just dismiss these tamer books as bodice rippers because they think all historicals are. And some of them just aren't interested because they think it'll be boring.

So anyway, this was way too long a response, but that's some of why I think we are where we are with sort of milquetoast historicals. And there are authors doing the shit still, but I think it's harder for NEW people to do the shit.

In tradpub. That is.

[hauntedwizardmoment]

PLEASE talk more about the clones' various genres and the points of friction and overlap with that, I'm so here for this (I famously can't hear the words "Shakespearean tragedy" without going absolutely nuts, so seeing that for j3.....ough)

!!! YAY there's SO much drama here

so like. with jace and j2, because jace is in a horror movie vs. j2 who is in a bodice ripper. jace is constantly saying creepy ominous shit about how porter doesnt really care about j2 and like, vaguely implying that porter's gonna kill him the same way he killed jace. and j2 is like. not heeding these warnings at all. j2 is able to put jace in the category of a bodice ripper heroine's well-meaning yet extremely wrong friend who is telling her to NOT follow her heart and instead settle for safety and comfort. and to jace, j2's unwavering, almost naive love of porter makes him read as the ditzy cheerleader who dies first in a slasher.

and j2 and j3 have a similar level of conflict bc j3 is like rosencrantz from rosencrantz and guildenstern are dead. he's a bit character who's become aware that he's a bit character and is trying to eke out any semblance of joy and meaning with his small role in life. and j2 is ophelia, and he can't save j2 from his tragic fate, he can't save anyone, not even himself. meanwhile to j2 (bodice ripper) j3 is literally a side character who's like, technically important, but come on. he's not worried about j3, why would he bother? j3 is like the legislative assembly in all of those romance novels about royalty. taxation rates? public infrastructure? foreign policy??? who fucking cares about all of that. porter got j2 flowers, thats whats REALLy important.

and jace and j3 are like. theyre both genre-aware. they both know how terrible things are. but jace is surviving the horror movie (or at least dying last) and j3's suffering and death is a foregone conclusion that gets ramped over on the way to the main storyline. and j3 is somehow both thankful he doesnt have that spotlight on him but also eternally vying for it and trying to prove himself worthy of it.

j4 and jace are in SEVERE conflict because j4 is like "you know the torment nexus wouldnt exist if it wasnt for you, right? you realize it's your fault we're all stuck like this?" because she's the audience in the horror movie thats like "why the fuck did you idiots go into the woods where the serial killer's cabin is??" and jace is like "yes but i'm winning the torment nexus, or if i don't win, at least all of you lose" which j4 views as so insanely petty and cruel that she honestly doesnt even want to waste her breath on it

but i think the worst conflict is j4 and j2 because j4 is like. j2. you do not need or want a booktok boyfriend. you DO NOT. that is BAD. porter is BAD. and j2 is like "you dont get him like i do" and is convinced j4 is just jealous or bitter that she can't get porter's attention like he can. j2 was written by a lonely, angry man whose wish fulfillment fantasy is that a guy like j2 might be charmed by him and date him (porter).

lastly j3 and j4... i cant even look directly at this. j4 sees how lovely and important j3 is when even the text itself doesnt. j3 is the only one able to break the fourth wall and see j4. despite everything, they found each other. oh god theyre in love...

[moodymisty]

I remember you talking about this a while ago and I wanted to add my opinion on it. I think the reason why people tag x reader fanfictions as “dubcon” despite it being very obviously a noncon plot is actually because you, the reader, are metatextually consenting to it by reading the fic. So even if you in the written work are totally against this being done to you, you in real life clicked on the “oh no stop that I don’t want that~” fic with the intent to read about how blorbo of the week dicks you down criminal style.

And you could say that I’m assuming that most dubcon/noncon x reader fanfiction is centered around the reader being the victim. But from my experience that’s a pretty accurate assumption, in all my time on the internet I’ve only found one fic where the reader was the perpetrator. So I think that’s because these types of fanfiction are more thought exercises than anything else, because in this fandom the average hot guy is someone like Evilman Killperson who’s an evil man that loves killing people. And there’s really no way to depict having consensual sex with him unless the reader is also morally corrupt and/or an asshat, and most people don’t enjoy self insert fiction where they’re depicted as kind of a loser.

So a fic where Evilman Killperson takes an interest in poor innocent you and decides to forcefully devil’s tango about it is, in-universe, non consensual. But in real life you fully agreed to read about it because Evilman’s boobs are the size of your pillow and you find that super hot, which would make it dubcon. It’s essentially desiring someone but not wanting to be complicit in their grimdark actions.

Like, the Emperor is a fascist imperialist whose biggest hobby is eugenics, he’s a horrible dad, terrible friend, and an awful ruler. Having consensual sex with him implies that you’re fully okay with all of these things. … but non consensual sex?? Well that’s an entirely different story, if he steals you away to forcibly romance you then you can enjoy his soft hair, sexy bod, and striking gold eyes without feeling any guilt about it! Which again, makes it metatextually dubcon. Like do you see what I mean?

bold of you to assume i'm using the dubcon/noncon tag to justify my simping, it's just my kink to get bodyslammed.

/joking it is interesting how the whole 'getting kidnapped/torn away is used in so many mediums by women to allow them to enjoy things without a sense of guilt. it's existed in bodice ripper novels for years, classic pirate steals a housewife type stuff.

[wishing-stones]

would they ever try to write something? some short stories, poems, love letters… hell, maybe even a book? maybe even something more silly just to pass the time?

Killer is garbage at words and doesn't even do his own written debriefing. He usually pays someone else off to write it. Dust has scraps of poetry hanging around, but he hates them all. He doesn't have any patience for it and is hyper-critical of his own work Axe writes okay, but nothing creative. He might be your love letter guy. Sometimes he does other's mission reports, but that's about it. Cross winds up doing the bulk of Killer's debriefings and mission reports. He's good at practical stuff, but... not so great at creative writing. He'll definitely leave love letters though. Baggs is skilled at writing because he has to be. Most of what he does is observations, hypotheses, theses, and other such clinical documentation. He has a couple essays he's written hanging around, as well as lessons and speeches, since he does occasionally hold lectures at Hotland University. He dabbles a little in creative writing, but no one ever gets to see it. (it's horrible human bodice-ripper-level romance, and it will never see the light of day, which I recall being mentioned by his creator jokingly(?) but I'm stealing it in absolute seriousness) Nightmare is your author. He writes enough to have his own system of bureaucracy regarding missions, debriefings, the works. On his spare time, he is a rather gifted poet and does write some prose every now and again. There's a couple books written by him floating around the castle, although if he hasn't told you, you'd never know, because he uses a different pen name every single time. He also writes love letters because he is a massive tryhard showboater romantic who enjoys that sort of thing.