#children of the dust

[zigzagziggyyy]

The most beautiful movie still of Billy ever 🥰💛 I want a corby in my life 😭

[book--brackets]

Summaries under the cut

The Chronicles of Dragon by Craig Halloran

Nath is a special warrior. He is a man destined to be a dragon. In order to become a dragon, he must save the dragons. For countless years Nath has been on a quest to become a dragon, but his meddling with the other races tends to get in the way. The way of men is not the way of Nath Dragon his father has warned him. Yet, Nath, unable to control his fascination of the world men, elves, dwarves and even the despised orcs, tends to get caught up in their affairs. To earn his scales, there is a high road he must follow. With his close friend and ally, Brenwar the Dwarf, Nath, armed with a magic sword he calls Fang, travels to the Mountain of Doom, the Free City of Narnum and to Orcen Hold where nothing but trouble awaits. Will Nath Dragon, hero of the realm and protector of dragon kind choose the right path or wind up on a dark one?

The Chronicles of Egg by Geoff Rodkey

It’s tough to be thirteen, especially when somebody’s trying to kill you.

Not that Egg’s life was ever easy, growing up on sweaty, pirate-infested Deadweather Island with no company except an incompetent tutor and a pair of unusually violent siblings who hate his guts.

But when Egg’s father hustles their family off on a mysterious errand to fabulously wealthy Sunrise Island, then disappears with the siblings in a freak accident, Egg finds himself a long-term guest at the mansion of the glamorous Pembroke family and their beautiful, sharp-tongued daughter Millicent. Finally, life seems perfect.

Until someone tries to throw him off a cliff.

Suddenly, Egg’s running for his life in a bewildering world of cutthroat pirates, villainous businessmen, and strange Native legends. The only people who can help him sort out the mystery of why he’s been marked for death are Millicent and a one-handed, possibly deranged cabin boy.

The Time-Traveling Fashionista by Biance Turetsky

Louise Lambert has always dreamed of movie starlets and exquisite gowns and longs for the day when she can fill the closet of her normal suburban home with stylish treasures. But when she receives a mysterious invitation to a vintage fashion sale in the mail, her once painfully average life is magically transformed into a time-travel adventure.

Suddenly onboard a luxurious cruise ship a hundred years ago, Louise relishes the glamorous life of this opulent era and slips into a life of secrets, drama, and decadence. . . .

Chronicle of the Dark Star by Kevin Emerson

It is Earth year 2213—but, of course, there is no Earth anymore. Not since it was burned to a cinder by the sun, which has mysteriously begun the process of going supernova. The human race has fled to Mars, but this was only a temporary solution while we prepare for a second trip: a one-hundred-fifty-year journey to a distant star, our best guess at where we might find a new home.

Liam Saunders-Chang is one of the last humans left on Mars. The son of two scientists who have been racing against time to create technology vital to humanity’s survival, Liam, along with his friend Phoebe, will be on the very last starliner to depart before Mars, like Earth before it, is destroyed.

Or so he thinks. Because before this day is over, Liam and Phoebe will make a series of profound discoveries about the nature of time and space, and find out that the human race is just one of many in our universe locked in a desperate struggle for survival.

Cue for Treason by Geoffrey Trease

Fleeing from the evil Sir Philip Morton, Peter Brownrigg finds himself on the wrong side of the law. On the run to London he meets Kit and the two decide to stick together. But a chance discovery endangers their lives and soon Peter is deep in murderous plots, secrets and even treason.

Dragon Slayer's Academy by Kate McMullan

When a traveling minstrel foretells that he is to become a hero, Wiglaf sets out to fulfill his destiny: he signs up at the Dragon Slayers' Academy. But how can he ever hope to be a dragon slayer when he can't even stand the sight of blood?

Children of the Dust by Louise Lawrence

After a nuclear war devastates the earth, a small band of people struggles for survival in a new world where children are born with strange mutations.

Everyone thought, when the alarm bell rang, that it was just another fire practice. But the first bombs had fallen on Hamburg and Leningrad, the headmaster said, and a full-scale nuclear attack was imminent.

It's a real-life nightmare. Sarah and her family have to stay cooped up in the tightly-sealed kitchen for days on end, dreading the inevitable radioactive fall-out and the subsequent slow, torturous death, which seems almost preferable to surviving in a grey, dead world, choked by dust.

But then, from out of the dust and the ruins and the destruction, comes new life, a new future, and a whole brave new world.

Time Hunters by Carl Ashmore

Becky is a typical thirteen year old girl. She likes Facebook, gossiping and plenty of sleep. So when she and her brother, Joe, are invited to stay with their 'loony' Uncle Percy at his stately home, she thinks it’ll be the worst summer ever. What she doesn't realise is that Bowen Hall is also home to a baby Triceratops, two Sabre-tooth tigers and the mythic hero, Will Scarlet...

'The Time Hunters' is a thrilling adventure that takes Becky, Joe, Uncle Percy and Will on a quest through time to find the legendary Golden Fleece.

The Clock is ticking....

The Guardian Herd by Jennifer Lynn Alvarez

Once every hundred years, a black foal is born, prophesized to either unite or destroy the five herds of flying horses that live in the land of Anok. He is fated to become the most powerful pegasus in all of Anok.

Star is this black foal.

Even though Star has malformed wings that make him unable to fly, the leaders of each herd will take no risks and want to execute Star before his first birthday. With the help of his friends, Star must escape the clutches of the powerful leaders, and his epic journey of self-discovery turns into a battle between good and evil that will keep readers eagerly turning the pages.

The Adventurer's Guild by Zack Loran Clarke and Nick Eliopulos

In one of the last cities standing after the world fell to monsters, best friends Zed Kagari and Brock Dunderfel have high hopes for the future. Zed desperately wishes to join the ranks of the Mages Guild, where his status as Freestone's only half elf might finally be an asset. Brock, the roguishly handsome son of merchants, is confident he'll be welcomed into the ranks of the Merchants Guild.

But just as it seems the boys' dreams have come true, their lives take a startling turn . . . and they find themselves members of the perilous Adventurers Guild.

Led by the fearsome Alabasel Frond, the guild acts as the last line of defense against the Dangers-hungry, unnatural beasts from otherworldly planes. And when the boys uncover a conspiracy that threatens all of Freestone, Zed, Brock, and their new allies-Liza, a fierce noble, and Jett, a brave dwarf-must prove their worth once and for all.

[littletroubledgrrrl]

[blorbosexterminator]

I don't know why but this has been bouncing round my head for a few hours and I need answers. Does Rafael exist in the Children of the dust universe??? And if so, does he ever meet the step children his father loves more than him? Please and thank you!

Excellent question. Here is a little bit of history. While I was writing Children, and the first season of season 5 was released, I decided to be democratic and ask readers whether they'd prefer Rafael to exist in that universe or not. Not surprisingly, the unanimous vote was Andrés-core (they didn't want him), so I didn't mention or allude to him in the main verse.

But between us, I always was fond more of the idea that he exists in that universe, mainly just because it makes everything funnier.

There is an old snippet I have somewhere in a forgotten document where Rafael does meet the twins and it's killing him because Rafael's entire worldview is that his father doesn't love him not because of any personal reason but because he's just not a father material, so he sees the twins and all of that tumbles down and his misery is very funny to me.

The bottomline answer is he exists and he doesn't depending on what we want!

(Except that if I do write the sequel and the sequel's sequel I'll have to bring Rafael into existence because I wouldn't want to make any major changes to the heist trajectory itself. Tatiana is Gabriel's piano tutor in that verse btw.)

[laurenillustrated]

Faith, trust, and pixie dust ✨

Peter Pan illustration! I took inspiration from the Disney version and 2003 live action, with some of my own ideas thrown in there as well :)

[leatherpearlslace]

Children of the Dust -  Jesika von Rabbit

[luthqrs]

"She's just a kid... what is she trying to prove here?" JENNIFER 'JJ' JAREAU in CRIMINAL MINDS 3x04 | 'Children of the Dark'

[somegrumpynerd]

Hc that the boys sometimes joke about one of them being Nightmare's favourite or discuss who it would be even after he tells them he doesn't have one. They think he's saying it in denial like a parent saying they don't have a favourite child, but really he refuses to let himself favour one of them over the others because he knows exactly how it feels to be not the favourite

[ohhhmio]

Saw a tiktok yesterday of someone making like children au of hazbin hotel characters. AND I THE FIRST BITCH I SAW WAS BRUTUS.

AND I CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH BUT MY GOD HES SO FINE.

I mean look at him.

LOOK. AT. HIM.

I WOULD FLIP FOR THIS MAN.

I mean, my god, i knew i was a whore but i didnt know it was to this extent.

HOLY CALAMARI—

Then, and I kid you not, these two appear on screen:

So naturally, I go haywire. Everything in me is buzzing, my head was vibrating, and hands were burning, baby.

Hoe-Lee-Shitaroos—

It would only make sense that I go on detective mode and check out who this bitch who made them is.

And I do.

And you know what I see?

EBSIENSG2OZGWJSY2HSG2BSW

Absolute Heaven.

Holy lord god of host—

10/10. Would smash if he didn't literally eat me alive.

You thought you were a whore? Well, THINK AGAIN YOU COCK-GURGLING SON OF A BITCH.

Ughhhhh.

I... am so angry this isn't cannon.

Fuck.

Follow her.

FOLLOW HER NOW.

[itsxroxannex]

They're waiting someone to come in this alleyway for trouble--

Killer belongs to RahafWabas Dust belongs to Ask-DustTale Horror belongs to Sour-Apple-Studios

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𝓑𝓲𝓵𝓵𝔂 𝓲𝓷 𝓒𝓱𝓲𝓵𝓭𝓻𝓮𝓷 𝓸𝓯 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓓𝓾𝓼𝓽 𝓪𝓼 𝓒𝓸𝓻𝓫𝔂 ❤️

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Hello, can I submit some suggestions for best childhood books? So far I've got:

The Children of Green Knowe by Lucy M Boston

Switchers (trilogy) by Kate Thompson

Troy by Adele Geras

Book of the Crow (series) by Catherine Fisher

Children of the Dust by Louise Lawrence

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

The Deptford Mice (series) by Robin Jarvis

(also The Whitby Witches and Tales From the Wyrd Museum series by Robin Jarvis)

Gideon the Cutpurse by Linda Buckley-Archer

Bunnicula (series) by Deborah and James Howe

Thanks for running this! And I hope I did this right. ❤️

Added them all! You did it all right, and Book of the Crow is actually under The Clockwork Crow, which is how it's listed on Goodreads

[littletroubledgrrrl]

[blorbosexterminator]

My non-active WIPs have been dry lately and my active ones most snippets from would be too spoiler-y but I finally decided on those two! (One is NSFW and from Children to make up for their saddening loss in the Blockbuster haha)

Happy Berlermo Day!

"What I want?" Andrés had quipped back. Sergio prepared himself for another speech of his, of glorious ends and adventures to come, beauty and fire and freedom.

The same old mantra Sergio knew by heart. And which he was sick to his stomach of, the delusions and the lies. He wanted to stop him before he started, but what came instead was a solemn sincerity Sergio was disarmed to receive from his brother.

"I want to die in his arms."

He wanted no part in this game of theirs. "You can go back to him-"

Wish for honesty and pay the price. Sergio looked away. Maybe a time in the past, Sergio would have done all there is possible to do to get this confession out of his brother. Now, he wanted nothing to do with it.

Andrés smiled. "I won't."

Then why tell me this, he wanted to shout, to scream. Andrés wouldn't have answered. And Sergio had preferred focusing on the guilt plays and the games they inherited from their childhood, on any hidden malice or ulterior motives. On anything other than the truth his brother was admitting to him, the truth he knew and ignored.

***

[NSFW]

"Either you pick up the pace or I'll flip you," Martin hisses.

"I'm telling a story, don't be rude."

"Multitask, Andrés, Multitask!"

Andrés sighs, then starts adding more rolls to the movement of his hips. "And then-then the officer starts talking to me, which, mind you, is trouble because I had already given the signal to Marco, but he won't stop. Somehow-"

"Did he-god, yes, just like that- did he have a crush on you or something of the sort?"

"Didn't cross my mind at the moment, ludicrously enough, of course. I thought he was onto something, until—" contained laughter starts coloring his voice "—he starts talking about coffee. Just all types of coffee-"

Martin flips them, and underneath him, Andrés arches his neck, waves of laughter intoxicating his moans.

"I warned you."

He tuts. "So impatient."

"What did Marcus do?" Martin manages between thrusts.

"The poor guy-oh- obviously had no idea the officer would still be in at this moment. So, in a rush of pure heroism, of course, I grab the officer's face and just start kissing him, with my palms placed strategically to cover his eyes."

"Strategically," Martin repeats, as he laughs. "I can't believe you. Cheater!"

"It was disgusting, you can't imagine, Martin. Nothing ever tasted more cop-y than this cop. Cheap cigarettes, bad coffee. I'd have never gone to coffee with him after this."

Martin stops abruptly, barely containing a grin. "I beg your pardon? What if he'd tasted like fucking-

Andrés rolls them over, straddling him once again. "You stopped. Fair is fair."

"You just told me-"

A knock cuts them off. A rather insistent one that he dreads more than anything.

"What do you want?" He shouts at the door.

"Can I come in?" Elena shouts back.

"NO!" They both scream in union.

"It's an emergency."

"Speak where you are."

"One of the monks just collapsed. I think he had a heart attack. Come out!"

"What?" "Who?"

"Alexander."

"The others will deal with it," Martin hisses, "we're busy."

"Can't you come drive him to the hospital? What if he dies, Martin!"

He groans loudly enough to make her realize just exactly how much of a bother she is. Then repeats just in case she hasn't heard him. Andrés is laughing, already getting up, thinking he's some sort of responsible parent.

"Let me finish first!" He half whispers, half hisses.

Andrés grins, shaking his head. "Help yourself, maybe next time you'll appreciate my stories more."

Martín slumps back into the bed. "Not my fault that we don't have enough time to both speak and fuck. Hm."

"Are you coming out?!!" Elena shouts, with another series of knocks.

Martín screams at her to shut up, then turns to Andrés with a raised eyebrow see?

[savage-kult-of-gorthaur]

SPOILED FOR SOME OF THE BEST DUST JACKET COVER ART IN FANTASY HISTORY.

PIC(S) INFO: Spotlight on 1962 dust jacket cover art for Swedish and Finnish editions of the "The Hobbit." The same artwork was later used for the 1973 and 2012 editions of the beloved fantasy/children's book written by J.R.R. Tolkien.

Artwork by Finnish-Swedish artist, Tove Jansson, most famous for her creation of internationally beloved children’s characters, the Moomins.

Resolution at 2056x2055 & 800x1138.

Sources: www.openculture.com/2021/09/tove-jansson-beloved-creator-of-the-moomins-illustrates-the-hobbit.html & X.

[pathologicalrunaway]

i saw that one tumblr post about how aviary cheapens the point of sky as a story (the civilisation is lost and all we know are only shadows of what was before; but aviary brings everyone back and we coexist now, instead of being two generations that were never supposed to meet) reposted on reddit a while ago and i have a couple of thoughts on this matter.

because one hand, i do agree that there was a bittersweetness in walking through a dead world that was lost. that aviary feels alive and the world is supposed to be dead. but i think a crucial aspect of this whole discourse (lore-wise) could lie in the first character aviary can be associated with. and this character — and their little village — do not really contradict the point of the game, but contribute to it

hopeful steward. they are, first things first, a child. like we are, as players. and children are often associated with hope for a better future, and this game is no exception. it's up to the children to bring light back, it's us and our connections that make sky a happy place. it's us that bring hope in the fact thay maybe, maybe not everything is over yet. that there's still something to admire, something to love, something to believe in.

steward is the one waiting in front of the village doors, they are the one showing us how to bring back the village, so it would make sense to assume that the village is their idea and, to an extent, their responsibility.

they are in charge of this silly little community like elders once were, but the elders fell. they made bad decisions that led to the world's destruction. this is mostly speculation, at least now, and we should wait for two embers to give us the whole picture, but it looks like the reason why aviary exists is because the world was on the verge of collapse and hopeful steward (and a couple more people) wanted — if not to prevent this — at least to try to save someone.

a second chance for the dying world.

they were hoping for a better future despite the inevitable doom. they had hope in the fact that, even in those dark times, the world would bounce back.

and their name says a lot about them. they wake up to see their home destroyed, their friends gone, the bells broken. the only thing alive is the child with a candle in front of them. but they don't succumb to despair, they keep faith, showing the newcomer around, explaining what happened.

they have no reason to believe that the kid that has just fallen fron the sky can restore light. they have no proof they are even able to do such things, that they are strong enough. they just hope.

and their hope pays back, eventually, after oh-so many losses. the world — and, most importantly, its people, — are saved. maybe not in the way any of them wanted but hey, life's tricky like that.

hopeful steward and their village refraim the point of the story, not destroy it. we spent years wandering in an empty kingdom haunted by the ghosts of what once were its people, not knowing what happened, or who they used to be, or if there was a way they could be happy again. and now we know that dark times don't last forever. trees grow back when people leave cities, animals return to where progress preciously exiled them from, and humanity bounces back. life is a cycle, and nothing just stays gone forever. good times come, eventually. with hope and friendship and love.

but it doesn't mean things are exactly the way they used to be, no. the realms are still destroyed. people look very different now. aviary village grows, but it's slow and painful and we are constantly reminded of how nothing is the same anymore (nesting guide looking wistfully at the picture, compassionate cellist and duets guide's dream coming true far too late). many go to the stars because this is an option now, and there is no guarantee the village's inhabitants will stay there forever, just like there was no guarantee back then that they would live there happily ever after.

and eden stayed the same. at the end of the day, all the loss and pain and mistakes of people there were before us is still here. it's just now we're stopping mourning the past and focus on the present instead