#go josefa

[ic-napology]

Murat, styling himself since 1795. I am all in for that💖

Napoleonic daily soap, episode 5: 12 Vendémiaire

Scene: The Tuileries. Evening, torch lights. People running to and fro, soldiers gathering in the courtyard, scared members of the Convention barricading themselves.

Cut to Barras’ improvised war room. A table with a map of Paris. Barras walks up and down behind it, talking to some generals gathered in front of him, among them Brune and Napoleon.

Barras:

„I do not need to tell you, gentlemen, that the situation is dire. I mean, we’re having a real crisis here, with people wanting to kill us. Again. Royalists this time. And as I do not know the first thing about military stuff, I have called for you, so that you can take care…“

Napoleon [cuts him off]:

„Why, of course you would have. And it’s a good thing you did. [walks briskly up to the table and leans over the map, the other generals follow suite, completely ignoring Barras] So, let’s see. The obvious keypoints we have to protect are [points at the map] here, here and here.“

Brune [annoyed]:

„Possibly. But what makes you think you are giving the orders here? Don’t you think you should ask our opinion first?“

Napoleon [astonished]:

„Why? I mean, is there something I overlooked, do you not agree with me?“

Brune:

„No, you’re quite right, it’s just that…“

Napoleon:

„Well, excellent. Listen, Brune, you take a couple of men and position yourself here. The other gentlemen occupy the rest of the positions I have pointed out. [turns around to Barras] And as I am the only artilleryman here, I’ll take care of the canons. We’ll position them right at the entrance of the Tuileries, in order to give those insurgents a proper welcome.“

Barras [awkwardly]

„Well, about those canons… that might be a problem.“

Napoleon:

„What problem?“

Barras:

„We don’t have any.“

Napoleon:

„No canon? But I’m an artillery general. Why did you even call for me then?“

Barras:

„Well, I thought…“

Napoleon [annoyed]:

„I really do not like it when people waste my time. Or when an employer does not even provide the proper tools for the job. I am not used to bringing my own stuff to work, that’s highly annoying. But I can see that you are in deep shit indeed, so I will let it go. Where’s the next artillery depot?“

Barras:

„There are some canons in Sablons, I am told. But I’m afraid the royalists know that, too. They’re probably already on their way to get them. And as they do outnumber us, I doubt you will find somebody dumb… I mean: courageous enough to try and get those canons to Paris before them.“

CUT to new scene: Tuileries courtyard. Darkness, a fire burning. Several cavalrymen holding in the saddle, happily chatting with each other and with some foot soldiers nearby.

Murat [on a horse, proudly tugging at his pelisse, to a soldier]

„So, how do you like it?“

Soldier:

„I do not think it’s in accordance with army regulations for cavalry uniforms.“

Murat [grinning]

Of course it’s not. It has style, unlike our army regulations. Plus, it’s my favourite colour. You have to see it in daylight.

Another cavalryman:

„I have. It’s an eyesore.“

Murat:

„Correction. It would be an eyesore on you. On me, it’s the most fetching piece of clothing one can imagine, and I dare say the ladies will pay much attention to it.“

[Napoleon’s voice from off-screen]

„Hey, you there. On the horse!“

Soldier:

„I think he means you, Murat.“

Murat:

„Impossible. If he meant me, he would have said: Hey, you there, that most handsome and dashing one on the horse! [turns around, beams at Napoleon] What can I do for you, mon général?“

Napoleon [stops to regard him]:

„I do not think your uniform is quite in accordance with army regulations.“

Murat:

„That’s quite possible, sir. We’re cavalry.“

Napoleon:

„Whatever. I have an errand for you. Do you know where Sablons is? I need somebody to go there and pick up some canon for me.“

Murat:

„Sounds easy enough. Where’s the catch?“

Napoleon:

„You have to be back before daylight, and there’s a royalist mob on the way likely to attack you. Do you think you can do it?“

Murat [sits tall in the saddle, with dramatic flourish]:

„How can you even ask me that, general? Do not doubt me, I am Joachim Murat! Here we are, I and my men, to your service, ready to give our blood for the fatherland and its republic, ready to bring those canons here before rose-fingerend Eos awakens the day, or to die trying! Let all impertinent royalists of France stand in my way, let an army of ten thousand waylay us, it will not keep me from doing my sacred duty!“

Napoleon [stares at him open-mouthed, but without a word, as realization sets in]

„You are Gascon.“

Murat [beams, proudly]

„I sure am. [the smile vanishes, he leans down from his horse to Napoleon, in a serious tone] But I will still get you those canons, sir.“

Napoleon [nods]

„Be quick.“

[wisteriasymphony]

Hiya! I’m a bit new to your blog, but I’ve seen a lot about “Claude,” and I’d love to know more about that! Is he from an AU of yours or just an OC?

You know, I could draw a lot of parallels for canon (or pre-canon, in quantic Claude's case) characters to try and set a baseline.

But maybe it's better to just forgo all of that. Claudia isn't truly an "anti-Marinette" (whose main story got published almost over a year before the Paris Special, funnily enough), nor is she an "alternate Lila", or even extremely related to the 'quantic kids' version of Claude Haprele.

She's just.... Claudia.

..full name Claudia Guadalupe Maria Josefa Lopez Cardoso Perreault. I have talked a bit about her starting concept and how she's grown from there, but to sum it up nicely, I was interested in how a much more pessimistic, apathetic character would function in the mlb world.

What if you were too bogged down by your own misery to even bother wanting to 'solve' your problems with an akuma?

What if your first instinct upon recieving a miraculous was to try and put yourself in danger?

In a world where feeling positively is survival and feeling negatively gets people hurt.... what if you feel nothing at all?

Claudia was meant to answer this by having a swarm of akumas that essentially functioned more as a mundane pest problem than anything else. She would just go about her day, largely unrelated to the bigger machinations of Paris, because that was not and never would be her issue,

.....until, uhm. well.

....So turns out she contrasts Adrien in a lot of interesting ways!

So, of course, I started to think about how they would work paired up together.

...A LOT.

whoops. Now, this is barely scratching the surface of Claudia as a character, I could get into her miraculous and how that works, the way tweos handles (or, really, gets around having to handle) its lovesquare (which I think would also be valuable for explaining claudia through her relationship with Adrien), and I could even talk about the changes to Adrien as a character! But I'll save those for other asks. :P

[louisupdates]

[Translated from Spanish]

'Louis, brother, you're already Mexican', Louis Tomlinson concluded his world tour in Mexico

COVERAGE. The British singer closed his world tour 'Faith In The Future' after 97 concerts in 39 countries, ending with three performances in Mexico and his renowned festival 'The Away From Home Festival'.

REGINA ORTIZ IN MÉRIDA

British singer Louis Tomlinson closed his Faith In The Future world tour with a flourish after 97 concerts in 39 countries, ending with three performances in Mexico and his renowned festival The Away From Home Festival.

On June 1, Tomlinson, known for his success "Just Hold On", performed at Curve 4 of the Autodrome Hermanos Rodríguez, becoming the first male soloist to offer a show in that venue, with a capacity of more than 70,000 spectators. The concert was broadcast live through the VEEPS platform, allowing its fans around the world to enjoy the show. In addition, the profits from the entrance fee were donated to the War Child UK organization.

Subsequently, the singer continued his tour in the city of Querétaro, where he offered a more intimate concert for 4,500 people at the Josefa Ortiz de Domínguez Auditorium.

Finally, Louis closed his world tour with a magnificent show at the VFG Arena in Guadalajara. The concert ended in a memorable way when a lucky fan took the stage to take a picture with the singer.

To conclude his time in Mexico, Tomlinson held his famous festival The Away From Home Festival in a warm sunset in the city of Mérida. The event was held at the Hacienda Susulá and was attended by artists such as Rodrigo Leal, Reverend & The Makers, Kevin Kaarl, DMA's, Dylan, Gibby and with an incredible closure, Louis Tomlinson.

Fans demonstrated their euphoria after Louis' departure and chanted the song "The Greatest". The singer also performed "Drag me down", "Night changes" and "Where do broken hearts go", songs from his old band, One Direction. Tomlinson expressed a deep gratitude to his fans for everything they have created.

It is worth mentioning that the relationship between Louis Tomlinson and his Mexican fanatics is undeniably special, as evidenced by the fact that the flag of Mexico has been the only one that the singer has raised during his career as a soloist, on three different occasions.

With this tour, it marks the end of the Faith in the Future World Tour and the beginning of its festival season, in which Tomlinson will participate in more than 15 events throughout the summer. Despite his career, this moment represents a milestone in his career and augurs a bright future.

[miracles-and-butterflies]

In relation to my last post, here is the promised AU: Second Lives.

The kids, minus Antonio, are reincarnated after having died young in their first lives.

Isabela (new name: Nadia Vanessa Parilla) - born in 1998

Dolores (new name: Beatriz Margarita Antonia Aguilar) - born in 1998

Luisa (new name: Maura Herrera) - born in 2000

Camilo (new name: Carlos León Banderas) - born in 2004

Mirabel (new name: Teresita Josefa Aceves-Sarto) - born in 2005

(They maintain the same birth date and month).

You do not need to use their second life names - most to them don’t, unless it’s official documents and such. (For example, Isabela still predominantly introduces herself as Isabela/Isa or Bela, rather than Nadia). The only one who really adapts to a new name is Mirabel because it’s just a variant of her previous middle name. This is just in case you wanted to know and so the story didn’t surprise you too much when it starts.

Same rules for reincarnation as previously (because consistency), so they can’t go back to Colombia. None of them live there.

Though they are all still Colombian - they were all born elsewhere, for one reason or another.

[sunsolii]

So I had an idea where I take a painting and make a poster based on a design trend I recently discovered. This idea gave way to me creating three posters to whom I like to call the "Big Three" of the community: @joachimnapoleon @josefavomjaaga and @maggiec70 who go out of there way and share information about the people they focus on to us, not only through Tumblr but through the books they've published as well. If it weren't for them, I don't think a lot us could get such fascinating information about these men. That is why I'm dedicating these designs to you:

Sarah-

Josefa-

and Margaret-

I know this is out of nowhere but I am truly grateful for what you guys do! The quote I used for Murat is from Sarah's collection of quotes from those who knew Murat. Josefa, I also want to thank you for providing me the quote for Soult, I'm grateful for your help! Enough of me talking and I do hope you guys like the posters!

[tiny-librarian]

Apart from the Astors, there were at least 6 sets of honeymooners in first class. Daniel Warner Marvin, aged nineteen, son of the owner of the Biograph Cinema Company, was returning to America with his bride, Mary Farquarson, aged eighteen. Lucien P. Smith, aged twenty-four, of Huntington, West Virginia, had recently married eighteen-year-old Mary Eloise Hughes: she bore his posthumous son in December 1912. Victor de Satode Penasco y Castellana, aged eighteen, from Madrid, was going to America with his new wife Maria Josefa Perez de Soto y Valleja, aged seventeen. John P. Snyder, aged twenty-three from Minneapolis, was returning from his European honeymoon with Nelle Stevenson, aged twenty-two. Dickinson Bishop, heir to the Rounf Oak Stove Company, had married in November 1911, and embarked at Cherbourg with his wife Helen after a tour of Mediterranean Europe and Egypt. One newly married couple were both verging on the age of fifty: Dr Henry (or Hyman) Frauenthal, with a high-domed baldness and fulsome black beard, had married in France, as recently as 26 March, Clara Heinsheimer from Cincinnati.

Titanic Lives - Richard Davenport-Hines

[igetthedisneybox]

Encanto middle name headcanons?

I'll just go ahead and type everyone's full names.

Alma Avila Cadenza

Pedro Hernando Madrigal

Julieta Adelaida Madrigal

Josefa "Pepa" Nieves Madrigal

Bruno Buenaventura Madrigal

Isabela Fabiana Madrigal

Dolores Carmen Madrigal

Luisa Valeria Madrigal

Camilo Erik Madrigal

Mirabel Valentína Madrigal

Antonio Ariel Madrigal

Miranda Ileana Madrigal

Amelia Alma Madrigal

Sofía Sara Madrigal

Princesa Florinda Madrigal

Fuega Maria Madrigal

Mariana Bonita Madrigal

Leta Macaria Madrigal

Andrés Amor Madrigal

Carlos Darío Madrigal

Avila Reina Madrigal

Amada Rafaela Madrigal

Tomás Sol Madrigal

Rómulo Luna Madrigal

Zoe Carina Madrigal

Hugo Diego Madrigal

José Roberto Madrigal

Héctor Gregorio Madrigal

Óscar Horacio Madrigal

Beatriz Estefanía Madrigal

Lidia Rosa Madrigal

May or may not change a few of these later.

EDIT: Added Dolores and Mariano's new twins, Avila and Amada.

[bastardtrait]

not...the outcome anyone was hoping to hear i'm afraid.

transcript:

Chapel of Santelmo in the Village

ABRAHAM: (quietly humming a hymn) ANGELO: Abraham. You had something for me.

ABRAHAM: Yes…Sr. Graciela. You grace my chapel once more.

ABRAHAM: (sigh) I fear I don't have good news for you. ANGELO: Don't say that. No. No. You didn't say anything before I came. ABRAHAM: Yes. So you could pay me for my trip to Xelaju on your behalf. That's how this works. ANGELO: That's fucking bullshit! It's bullshit!

ABRAHAM: Do you expect me to make miracles? No man is higher than the Lord. ANGELO: Stop your fucking asinine bullshit about god and tell me what you found. ILLA: (low, antagonistic growl) ABRAHAM: (sigh) Very well. I found a family named Graciela in Xelaju--Quetzaltenango. They are Dominican. Their Josefa…is a very old woman.

ANGELO: (harsh sigh) So what, I just keep going out into that fucking jungle and bring you back shit to pay for you--fumbling around? ABRAHAM, aside: Honestly, Sr. Graciela, I would humour that, but I've come to an end with your investigation. Your mother left Guatemala two years ago. She married a European. She's gone.

ABRAHAM: Now you know damn well I'm not about to get involved with Interpol. So. I'm afraid this is where our involvement ends, Sr. Graciela. It has been…interesting. ANGELO: Eu--Europe?! Where. Where did she go, Abraham? (wince) Where did she go! ABRAHAM: A question for a different man. Obviously she had no desire to be found, least of all by the son she abandoned. (sniff) Goodbye, Angelo.

[impetuous-impulse]

Ruthless Representatives, Unjust Executions (3/3): Jourdan on the Death List

This is an addendum to the previous two parts of the series, which is in response to @josefavomjaaga's original post about Soult's account on Saint-Just condemning execution an artillery captain. In that post, Josefa also mentions that Soult talks about a proscription list Saint-Just had drawn up in case the French suffered defeat at Fleurus, including the commander-in-chief Jourdan and Soult himself.

I am suspicious of Soult's claim that Saint-Just had a death list he would enact in the event that Fleurus went badly, much less one with Soult's name on it. I doubt Saint-Just even acknowledged that Soult was a political threat, though the only evidence I have of this is the dearth of Soult in vol 2 of. the Œuvres completes of Saint-Just. Soult's name does not show up once, not even for promotion or praise; only that of his commander Lefebvre does. Soult's anecdote, however, led me to look into Saint-Just's correspondence with Jourdan, the other named member of this proscription list, and examine the veracity of Soult's statement regarding Jourdan. All translation errors are my own.

I think official correspondence, where one is required to be formal, rarely proves the emity between two parties unless they were spectacular rivals. That said, one would think the cordial tone Saint-Just uses when writing to Jourdan, then commanding the Army of the Moselle, would make Jourdan's inclusion in the proscription list dubious. Here is a letter of 8 priarial an II/27 May 1794, where Saint-Just broaches the idea of besieging Charleroi:

The representative of the people of the Army of the Nord to General Jourdan, commander-in-chief of the army of the Moselle. I received your various dispatches. I pray that you continue to regulate your movements with this [Saint-Just's] army; we are still following the river Sambre, today our camp occupies the Tombe. We will try to seize Charles-le-Roi; you will take, without doubt, Dinant; then a corps of the army, which we will form at Maubeuge, will march on Mons, and another on Brussels. I embrace my dear colleagues [representatives] Gillet and Duquesnoy. (p. 418)

It is impossible to deny that Saint-Just is domineering in this letter, daring to order Jourdan to do this and that when he has no military experience to justify it. Some writers, like Colonel Phipps in his series The Armies of the First Republic..., have interpreted this kind of civilian "meddling" as Saint-Just setting Jourdan up to fail. If so, the lengths Saint-Just goes to do so is odd. In Saint-Just's Œuvres, in a post-script to the letter to the Committee of Public Safety in Paris (pp. 419-420), Saint-Just mentions that he is writing to Jourdan every other day. He may have known nothing of soldiering, but being so hands-on with his correspondence implies he is rather anxious for Jourdan's success instead. (This is not to say he did not clash with Jourdan as Saint-Just tried to command him on military matters.)

Furthermore, Jourdan had survived as a commander of the Nord without death or disgrace. The Committee had already had a chance to behead him when they drew up a dimissal and arrest warrant for him. Instead, they ended up letting him go with a pension, indicating they still had trust in him.

It is also telling that, when difficulties occurred during the Siege of Charleroi, Saint-Just did not threaten Jourdan with arrest immediately. Once again, I reference Fischer's study of Jourdan during the Revolution. Fischer recounts that the revolutionary army suffered a defeat in 16 June 1794 during an Austrian army counterattack, because Lefebvre had run out of ammunition, pulled back, and Jourdan was forced to retreat (pp. 208-211). The revolutionary army suffered an estimated 3,000 to 4,000 casualties. To quote Fischer on what happened next:

Jacobin General; Jean Baptiste Jourdan and the French Revolution; 1792 - 1799. (Volumes I and II).

Jourdan's meeting with St. Just that night could not have been terribly pleasant. Although he promised the Committee that the army would take its revenge, a defeat was a defeat. Typically St. Just wanted to resume the offensive the very next day. Jourdan wished to rest the army for a few days, allowing them to replenish their provisions and ammunition. He also wished to attack elsewhere, because he was not happy with the tactical problems involved in besieging Charleroi. While he was ready to renew the offensive immediately as St. Just desired, he wrote that they "could do so more advantageously at another point." He promised to confer with St. Just and the other representatives to decide what to do. But St. Just and his colleagues were determined to continue to attack in the Charleroi sector. They granted Jourdan twenty-four hours to rest the army, and then the offensive was to recommence. (pp. 211-212)

Saint-Just, though portrayed by soldiers as guillotine-happy, did not "blow up" and condemn anyone for this seemingly random defeat. In this passage, Saint-Just does try to command Jourdan to do his bidding, but he is also capable of compromises. Lefevbre, partially responsible for the defeat, also seems to receive no consequential punishment. If Saint-Just wanted to accuse reluctant generals for cowardice and scapegoat someone for this setback, who better than Lefevbre and his chief-of-staff Soult, whose men somehow ran out of ammunition? As it stands, neither of their careers were affected by this incident.

In addition, at what points were officers more likely to be thrown in the brig or mount the scaffold? If the representatives wanted manpower, then we should note that officers were not universally condemned after a campaign when they could be substituted, nor were all the arrested universally executed. Even if they were dismissed, they could later gain employment. I think because the exceptions made more of an impression, the circulation of the executed officers' fates among the army exaggerated the (undeniable) injustice of the revolutionary military system.

In the end, after the success of Charleroi, Saint-Just gave credit to officers where it was due. While rumours swirled about Saint-Just condemning artillery captain Méras to death and threatening arrests of officers, he praised various officers, including Marescot of the artillery, in glowing terms to the Committee of Public Safety. As the Œuvres present:

On the 28th of last month, the army marched, one hour from the beginning, to meet the enemy; the enemy, at the same time, was marching on us. We met. The fog was thick; the fighting was terrible until three o'clock in the afternoon. The left, commanded by the brave General Kléber, worked wonders; general of brigade Duhesme distinguished himself there.The center fought the same way. General Dubois charged at the head of the cavalry, took five hundred prisoners, took seven pieces of cannon, and massacred seven to eight hundred men. The vanguard, commanded by General Lefebvre, had equal success and showed the same courage. A battalion of grenadiers charged the enemy cavalry three times and caused great carnage. Our gunners charged as hussars, and took back their cannons, which had been taken from them during the fog. […]  On the 30th, the siege of Charleroi was retaken with more determination than ever. The engineer officer Marescot did himself much honor by the activity with which he carried out the work. Artillery burned the city to ashes. […]  Jourdan must send you the honorable articles by which you will see that the pride of the house of Austria has come under the yoke. The prisoner garrison is three thousand men. We found fifty pieces of cannon. The place is in powder and is nothing more than a post. [...] (pp. 440-441)

As Saint-Just lauded figures he allegedly attacked, such as Marescot, and "defeated" generals such as Lefebvre, I am not particularly inclined to believe that Saint-Just was utterly ruthless. Still, a more balanced assessment of Saint-Just and Jourdan's relationship is in order. Let me close this post by quoting Fischer, who has studied this matter more in-depth:

Jourdan claimed in his memoirs that he once again felt as if he were fighting with a guillotine suspended over his head; one failure would cause the blade to fall. Undoubtedly he felt interfered with; he wrote no letters to the Committee after Fleurus praising St. Just's aid as he had after Wattignies praising Carnot's. St. Just's feelings towards Jourdan are more difficult to penetrate. At no point did he actually complain about Jourdan's generalship, indicating that perhaps their disagreements had not disturbed him as much as they had disturbed Jourdan. [...] Furthermore, St. Just was on excellent terms with Rene Gillet. It is unlikely that he would have been so friendly with such a close colleague of Jourdan if he had Jourdan marked for death. Even so it is hard to predict what would have occurred had he been defeated. St. Just might not have shown compassion for a general who had disagreed with him repeatedly, and who had compounded his sin by losing a battle. (pp. 218-219)

I hope that this series has been enjoyable to all who read it. A huge thank you to everyone who has read and supported this series, and as usual, feel free to add comments or additional information!

[simsinfinitylt]

Josefa Carrillo

My submission for @lonvely Bachelorette Challenge!

Young Adult, She/Her, Bisexual

Aspiration: Outdoor Enthusiast

Traits: Ambitious, Horse Lover, Slob

Her friends call her Josie

Daughter of a Salvadorean mother and a Spanish father

She speaks English, Spanish and Catalán

Loves Bowling, she likes to go play at least once a week

Her and her family own a Horse Rescue Ranch, right now they have 4 horses up for adoption

They also own 2 dogs and 1 cat

Private download

[immanuelillustrative]

"What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray?

And if he should find it, assuredly, I say to you, he rejoices more over that sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray.

Even so, it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish."

- Jesus Christ, Matthew 18:12

Painting "The Sacrificial Lamb" by Josefa de Ayala, 1670-1684.

[josefavomjaaga]

Hello, dear Josefa ✨

I hope you are doing well!

While Flower and myself were talking about our favourite couples of the napoleonic era, our conversation found its way to the Soults which we would love to group with couples like the Davouts or the Mortiers but can't because of the cheating on our monsieur le maréchal Soult's part.

With that in mind, we wondered: Do we know how madame Soult reacted to the cheating? How did her behaviour change through the first days, weeks, months after finding out? Did it even change?

We are aware that we don't know any details of the actual conversation where the couple discussed this matter but we still wanted to ask!

Thank you for your time and effort! c:

We do not really know, I fear. We do not even know when and how exactly she learned about Soult's little secondary Spanish family. It is quite possible that it did not come completely unexpected anymore, as people in Paris had been gossipping about Soult's alleged infidelities ever since 1810, and in one of his 1811 letters Soult kind of had admitted to a marital misstep.

If I remember correctly, Soult finally was granted permission to leave Spain by mid-February 1813, and could leave at the beginning of March. On his way through Southern France he took the occasion to go see his old mother in Saint-Amans, whom he originally had wanted to visit four years earlier, on his way into Spain. I do not remember (I'm not even sure if it is clear) if Louise and the kids already met with him in Saint-Amans or if they waited for him in Paris but I suspect they went to Saint-Amans and from there back to the capital that Soult reached at the beginning of April. He soon had to leave again, this time with Napoleon to Germany, on the 1813 campaign, and on 12 April he already gave full powers in all matters to his wife so she could handle affairs during his absence.

Did she at this point already know about the full extent of these affairs? It's likely, but we do not have any real clue.

She must have known by late June 1813, however (interestingly, that's the same time when, many miles away, Maria de la Paz Baylèn and her little baby son leave Spain and enter France). We know that because Soult in his letter fom 23 June at least vaguely hints at how hurt Louise must have been by his confessions. He invites her to come to meet with him at Dresden with their children, despite the fact that [...]

you will not be lodged very well, but you will be with me, your sorrows will cease, your cheerfulness will return, and you will be certain that, despite everything that has happened, you have never ceased to be tenderly loved [...]

"Despite everything that has happened" clearly means that by that point, Louise is fully aware of the existence of Maria de la Paz and her baby. And she had taken it badly, as was to be expected. Obviously, she doubted Soult's love for her, and she may have considered taking further steps, or at least that's something Soult feared:

I'm not talking about the other feelings, for nothing could add to their strength other than the step you're taking right now.

(All emphasis by me)

And then he continues to implore her to come and sit down with him and talk it all over.

So, obviously lots of trouble in honeymoon land. From the looks of it, I'd say Louise did not so much react with fury, but rather turned sad and depressed - which probably hit Soult far more. Her fury she apparently kept in stock for one French emperor to be used when she heard that her husband was about to be sent back to Spain again. But that's a different story 😁.

Thank you for the question, and I hope this kind of suffices, as it seems to be all information there is. (All quotes from N. Gotteri, "Le Maréchal Soult", as usual.)

[mentaldiary-ah]

Women fighters, in fiction and in reality, have always fascinated me.

I grew up never getting tired of The Mummy Returns (2001) and its action-packed adventures. It features one of my most favorite cinematic moments: the fight scene between Nefertiri and Anck-su-namun, both tasked to be protectors in the kingdom of Egypt some 3,000 years ago. One may think they must be ahead of their time for training women for battle and assigning such tasks to them.

Fight scene from The Mummy Returns (2001)

There are many other scenes in the said film showing both women as their 1930s reincarnation, Evy (Nefertiri) and Meela (Anck-su-namun), fighting with and among men. Not once did Rick, Evy's husband, handed over guns to her to help them battle the enemies and save their son. Their kind of relationship was yet another reason why I have always loved that film.

Seeing The Mummy Returns again for the nth time, I figured these female characters have played a significant part in my upbringing. They showed me women can fight, too, when it was most needed. They didn't have to be the stereotypical damsels in distress waiting to be rescued because they can save themselves while saving others, as well. In retrospect, at such a young age I knew I wanted to be like them. I wasn't very much into the princess thingy, except for the Xena the Warrior Princess kind. In fact, I once dreamed of becoming like the Power Rangers with all their skills and stunts.

Through the years, I have been learning more about Filipinas who left their mark in our history. In an era of a patriarchal society where women were reinforced to be homemakers & deemed as the lesser sex, there were several of them who strayed against the conventions and took part in the never-ending fight for freedom.

Illustrations of Gabriela Silang (by Carlito Rovira) (top) and the first female general Agueda Kahabagan (from SCOUT Magazine) (bottom) during the Philippine Revolution

One of them was notorious for polishing her nails and putting on red lipstick before going to battle, because she believed she also fought for the freedom to be herself as a woman. Another one used to be a movie superstar until the war. She joined the guerrilla movement to avenge for her husband's murder, and in the process she saved an entire village from being killed by the colonizers.

The women of HUKBALAHAP (Hukbong Bayan Laban sa Hapon), clockwise from left:

Remedios Gomez-Paraiso AKA Kumander Liwayway and her red lipstick (art from Rejected Princesses); Carmen Rosales, movie star-turned guerilla fighter (from Flickr); Felipa Culala AKA Kumander Dayang-Dayang (art by Dos Garcia); and Simeona Punsalan-Tapang AKA Kumander Guerrero (art by @RoriComics on Twitter)

But the courage of Filipina women in history has been witnessed not only at home and in the battlefield. There were women who stood up for their right to receive formal education and their right to vote.

Top photo: a painting of The Women of Malolos (art by Rafael del Casal); bottom photo: U.S. First Lady Florence Harding w/ Filipina suffragette delegation, 1922 (From US-Philippines Society)

There were women who saved people's lives by caring for the injured and the sick and feeding the hungry.

Clockwise from left: Melchora Aquino AKA Tandang Sora (from Wikipedia); Josefa Llanes-Escoda (from Bayaning Filipino on Blogger); Maria Orosa (from Orosa Family); and Dr. Fe del Mundo (from National Academy of Science and Technology)

There were women who continue to fight for justice and for their right to be heard, not just as victims but survivors of a violent, tragic past.

Top photo: the Malaya Lolas of Candaba, Pampanga; bottom photo: the lolas of Lila Pilipina. Both are groups of “comfort women,” survivors of military sexual violence during the Japanese Occupation. (From Facebook)

There were women who prove themselves worthy to be recognized by the world for their talents, abilities, and dedication in their respective fields.

Hidilyn Diaz, the first Filipino Olympic gold medalist; and Maria Ressa, the first Filipino Nobel Laureate (From Esquire Philippines)

There were women leaders who empowered their countrymen towards a better quality of life.

Campaign images of Senator Risa Hontiveros and former Senator Leila de Lima for the 2022 National Elections (From Facebook)

Atty. Leni Robredo, former Vice President of the Philippines (From Esquire Philippines)

And before I forget, I was raised and surrounded by strong women who all the while face their own share of battles in life.

We as women are fighters, and we should never let anyone tell us otherwise.

Meanwhile, I believe I have arrived at a full circle. I may haven't reached my dream of becoming a Power Ranger but who would have thought that as an adult, I would portray a woman fighter myself?

Happy Women's Month!

[whimsicaldragonette]

ARC Review: A Million to One by Adiba Jaigirdar

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Publication Date: December 13, 2022

Synopsis:

Adiba Jaigirdar, author of one of Time's Best YA books of all time, gives Titanic an Ocean’s 8 makeover in a heist for a treasure aboard the infamous ship that sank in the Atlantic many years ago. A thief. An artist. A acrobat. An actress. While Josefa, Emilie, Hinnah, and Violet seemingly don’t have anything in common, they’re united in one goal: stealing the Rubaiyat, a jewel-encrusted book aboard the RMS Titanic that just might be the golden ticket to solving their problems. But careless mistakes, old grudges, and new romance threaten to jeopardize everything they’ve worked for and put them in incredible danger when tragedy strikes. While the odds of pulling off the heist are slim, the odds of survival are even slimmer . . . Perfect for fans of Stalking Jack the Ripper and Girl in the Blue Coat, this high-seas heist from the author of The Henna Wars is an immersive story that makes readers forget one important detail— the ship sinks.

My Rating: ★★★★

*My Review below the cut.

My Review:

I was SO excited for this one. I really enjoyed Adiba Jaigirdar's other books, and 'sapphic heist on the Titanic' ticks like, ALL the boxes for me.

And for the most part, it lived up to expectations.

The plot progressed smoothly without any hiccups and without stalling, which I appreciated.

The heist itself was a bit underwhelming, and they gave up on the initial objective pretty quickly, making the whole endeavor seem a bit pointless. However, it was written quite well and it kept my interest and had the appropriate amount of things kept back from the reader and reveals and such.

The part after the heist was actually more intense and kept my interest more. At first I didn't pay much attention to the dates and times at the beginning of each chapter, but towards the end the chapters got shorter and the timestamps sped up until it became a pretty intense countdown. Equally intense was the fact that the reader knows first that the Titanic is sinking (not a spoiler - we all knew it going in but we didn't KNOW know it. Or at least I didn't) and the tension builds quickly as we watch the girls separate and each have to discover that fact on their own.

I was confused about which character was which at first, but as the story progressed they each got more time to shine and I grew to appreciate each of them. Violet and Hinnah were maybe not as well-developed as Josefa and Emilie, but I still appreciated getting their POVs.

I liked the romance, and I also liked that it was very mild and was very much not the focus of the book. It was there in the small things if you looked for it, but it didn't overpower the heist storyline.

The ending was a bit of a shock as I didn't know to look up content warnings on the author's website, but upon reflection I feel like it was fitting and more realistic than the ending I was expecting. The final epilogue-like section took away some of the drama and tension of the ending and I'm not sure how I feel about it. On the one had I like it and it feels necessary, but on the other hand it leaves everything feeling a bit anti-climactic.

Some of my issues with the story could have stemmed from the fact that I listened to a 'digital voice galley' which is not the actual audiobook and is not read by a real person. So it is necessarily a bit robotic and it can make it hard to differentiate between characters. In the actual audiobook, I imagine they will have the four main characters either read by different people or read by a skilled voice actor who can give each girl her own 'voice.'

Overall I enjoyed this a lot and I would recommend it to readers who enjoy historical novels and heists and sapphic characters. I would however caution that it does not reach the intricacy or depth of heist novels like Six of Crows (not many do - perhaps it's not the best benchmark by which to judge this genre).

*Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Audio for providing a digital voice galley to review.

[pridepages]

Served Cold: A Million to One

I just finished A Million to One by Adiba Jaigirdar. I have thoughts...

Here there be spoilers!

Considering the myriad of possible stories the backdrop presents, it’s astonishing to me that there haven’t been more notable narratives set on the doomed ship Titanic. Naturally, I was excited and intrigued to hear about Adiba Jaigirdar’s newest YA novel A Million to One, which was pitched to me as Ocean’s 8 meets Titanic. A girl gang setting out for a heist on the high seas? The highest of stakes as their con is forced to become a race for survival? Sapphic romance along the way? Sold. But at its heart, Million is more than a heist story: it’s a cautionary tale about the dangers of vengeance.

The tale brings together four heroines, each of whom has a past of pain, loss, and (often) rage. Violet has fled a broken home in her native Croatia, leaving behind a little brother she’s desperate to rescue. Hinnah was cast off by her traditional Indian family after a misunderstanding left her in a compromising position. Emilie, a biracial Haitian-French girl, was raised by her single, white father until he died and left her alone and unprotected in a world hostile to a black woman trying to survive on her own. Josefa was born to privilege, but she chose to trust her own skills and instincts to make her own way...only to be betrayed by the only friend she had left in the world. The four find themselves living in the same boardinghouse in Ireland until one day, Josefa approaches each of the others with a plan: sneak aboard the Titanic to steal a precious treasure that is en route to New York.

Josefa presents the con to her friends as if it’s just about fabulous riches that could set them up for life. What Josefa neglects to mention is that this particular mark was chosen with purpose: the treasure’s guard is the same friend who sold Josefa out years before. Josefa hasn’t come up with this plan to become fabulously wealthy--that’s just an added bonus--this is about setting up her betrayer to take the fall.

They say that revenge is a dish best served cold. And it doesn’t get colder than the middle of the North Atlantic, surrounded by icebergs, as an unsinkable ship and 1,500 souls sail toward a watery grave.

One of the both most realistic and most frustrating aspects of A Million to One is the sequence related to the sinking. The trouble is that the reader knows what’s coming. The reader’s fascination is going to be at least half in the events related to the sinking itself. But that’s not where Jaigirdar chooses to spend most of the time. The novel is 58 chapters long and the ship doesn’t strike the iceberg until the very end of chapter 42. From there, it’s a speedrun to the end that barely covers the wider events of the sinking, choosing to focus closely on the experiences of the four heroines as each meets her respective fate. 

For readers who picked up the book for a Titanic story, this may come as a disappointment. Familiar figures are barely alluded to, most are never seen, and the horrors of the sinking are given glancing mentions as each girl races by, plotting her next move. There’s very little about the ship or its famous passengers...but that may be exactly Jaigirdar’s point. 

Firstly, it’s realistic for a couple of reasons. After all, the ship sank very quickly. In the grand scheme of the voyage, it was shockingly quick: approximately 2 hours and 40 minutes from strike to disappearance. So it’s natural that these scenes are experienced in real, even sped-up time for the characters racing against the clock. Furthermore, it’s also fair to acknowledge that these girls would have been considered nobodies. Most of the famous figures of the Titanic were first-class or officers. There really is no reason that any of our heroines would have encountered any of them or had time to observe them with the waters rising.

Secondly, I think that Jaigirdar wants us to take away a story of love and loss that doesn’t glamorize or revel in horror. We’ve all seen James Cameron’s iconic film--possibly many times--and if we need a tear-jerker, we can always go see it again (let’s face it: Kate and Leo are timeless). A Million to One, on the other hand, is about these four girls. They would have been considered nobodies and nothings. But through each of their lives and their transformative experiences in the face of tragedy, we have something to learn.

The lion’s share of this novel takes place in the few days aboard the ship as the girls plan, and execute, small steps of the heist. Along the way, we see a character study as each of these girls must come to grips with her past. 

Josefa, the engine of the story, is fueled by her determination for revenge. Not so much that she’s stone cold, after all: she has a vulnerability and a passion for Emilie that tends to get her into trouble. “Josefa had wanted to approach Emilie, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. She'd been too afraid...Emilie was an artist and artists were observant. If she got too close to Josefa, would Emilie see some of the cracks in her armor? Would she see all the insecurities that Josefa liked to pretend didn't exist?” But the fact isn’t that they are aboard the Titanic because Josefa is greedy or cocky and wants to prove she can pull off this heist (although she certainly is and wants all of these things). Fundamentally, they are there because Josefa cannot get over the fact that a boy who had an unrequited crush got the drop on her and sold her out. 

Josefa assumed that she and her traitor, August, “had been through too much together to let something as silly as feelings stand in the way” before she fell into his trap. Instead of learning from this experience and becoming the bigger person herself, moving on from this incident and putting as much distance between herself and August as possible, Josefa puts herself and all three of her unwitting friends directly in harm’s way. She does so knowing that “she had to focus on the task at hand. Feelings only ever got in the way.” Nevertheless, trapping them all out at sea on what is almost certainly a doomed mission is only the beginning of her rash actions. At one point, to impress Emilie, Josefa makes a foolish mistake that gets them all identified as thieves long before they can make their move for their prize. It was an entirely avoidable error that may cost them everything, but Josefa “couldn’t say she regretted it.” No wonder, after all is found out, an enraged Violet declares “Well, I think we all know what it’s like to be betrayed by a friend now.”

Emilie and Hinnah, more sensitive souls, aren’t powered by a need to revenge themselves upon the world for their pain and their loss. But they are still suffering, desperate to find love to fill the emptiness that has plagued them since they lost their respective families. 

For Emilie, that love comes in the form of an unexpected romance with Josefa that inspires her to take risks and become a person she never would have predicted. “Emilie could see the appeal of...a kind of life she had never known or envisioned before. And she thought maybe it was because of Josefa, because it would mean being by her side, experiencing the thrill of it all.” For Hinnah, she has been constantly seeking some kind of replacement family: first with one performing troupe, then with an Irish circus, finally, unexpectedly, finding one in this girl gang. “But here, on the brink of death, holding on for dear life, Hinnah knew that there were at least three people who loved her. Not for the person they wanted her to be, but for the person who she was...she had spent too much time living life the way others had wanted her to. Listening to her parents’ whims and trying to live up to their expectations... ashamed of all the ways she didn’t fit in. Josefa, Violet, and Emilie had given her something like the freedom she sought, the feeling of belonging she always craved--even if it was only for a few days.” 

Violet is somewhere in the middle. On the one hand, she’s intuitive enough to read the people around her and know that Josefa is withholding information and likely compromised by emotion--be it overconfidence, attraction, or vengeance. On the other hand, Violet does allow her mistrust and her rage to blind her, both keeping her at a distance from her own teammates and even causing her to try to go rogue and almost get caught after Josefa’s deceit comes to light. Still, when caught in a battle between her worst and best self, in the end love always wins. When Josefa comes to Violet and sincerely apologizes, Violet “knew Josefa was being utterly sincere. And she couldn’t begrudge her that.” And when faced with the threat of death, Violet’s thoughts aren’t of recrimination against Josefa for bringing them all to this. Instead, they are for her little brother a world away: “I would tell him...sorry. I would tell him that I love him.” 

Infuriatingly, it is Josefa who had the most to learn over the course of this story and she is the one who pays the least. Her mistakes cost her friends everything...even, in the end, some of their lives. But Josefa gets to walk away. Arguably, she’s the one who will have to live with the pain, but is that any kind of justice for the girls who trusted her and who she betrayed, forcing them to pay the ultimate price? 

There’s another saying they have about revenge, one that A Million to One forces us to remember: when set on a course of revenge, dig two graves. One for your enemy...and one for yourself. Jaigirdar could have pulled off a miracle--the glories of fiction--and had all four ride into the sunset and live happily ever after. But she didn’t. Instead, she showed us that dwelling on pain of the past inevitably costs us possible futures. And that the fires of revenge inevitably leave us cold.

[noveltyreads]

A Million To One by Adiba Jaigirdar Book Review

ARC kindly provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

When someone mentioned the words "heist" and "the Titanic" in the same sentence, I just knew I had to read A Million to One.

I was immediately drawn to the premise. Having read this author's debut, The Henna Wars and having enjoying that, I was sure this book would be a delight. You should've seen me when I got the e-galley copy, I was over the moon and excited to start reading. 

Unfortunately, this seemed to be a case where the concept didn't match up with the execution. 

The book follows four girls, con artist and leader of the group, Josefa, circus performer, Hinnah, actress, Violet and aspiring artist, Emilie who board the Titanic to steal a rare and priceless book, The Rubaiyat from one of the First Class passengers. I was expecting a fast paced novel, high stakes and a slow romantic build up (since I knew there would be a sapphic pairing months before reading). But unfortunately, this book didn't live up to my expectations. 

For starters, I had a few issues connecting with the characters. With Josefa, from the very start she annoyed me for some reason, and the way she was trying to get the girls to join her on her heist for the Rubaiyat just irked me. If you're trying to get someone to join you on a dangerous mission, especially when two of the said people joining you, you've never really talked to before, please sell their part in the mission as more than just "we need you, I've seen the work you do, there is nobody else in the world who can do [blank] as well as you can!" I don't know... if I were those girls I think I would've refused straight away. It takes a lot of trust and loyalty to a person to literally put your life on the line for them and for them to do so, and so willingly for someone they could classify as a stranger didn't really make sense to me. Even though the backstories were revealed as to why they were willing to go on this heist, to me, it didn't seem justifiable enough, especially for some of the other characters.

 

I didn't mind Hinnah and Emilie's characters but I still didn't feel connected to them despite the elaborate backstories about their personal lives. Violet was probably the character I connected to the most and even that is a far stretch. She had a brother she left in Croatia who she was trying to help and support as much as she could and I could see that desperate love in every chapter in which she mentioned Marko. But that being said, there were a few parts to her character that I didn't understand. She seemed to be very prickly towards Emilie for no real reason and it seemed like a petty sort of hatred, kind of like the two girls were pitted against each other for no other reason than dramatic purpose. At one point I thought how cool it would be if Violet and Emilie ended up in a relationship together as an enemies-to-lovers/grumpy-sunshine couple, having to work together against all odds to steal the Rubaiyat. The drama would've made more sense then, but unfortunately no reasoning apart from an annoyance at having an amateur con artist to help execute the heist, was used to justify Violet's unfair treatment towards Emilie. 

Being a high stakes book featuring a heist, I would've expected the book to have been quite fast paced and action packed. The book however, followed a rhythm which looked something like 200 pages being on developing the characters and letting the reader in to their backstories and the last 74 pages being fast paced as the plot (and Titanic's unfortunate fate) played out which arguably was the most adrenaline filled part. I wished the high stakes and suspense of whether their plan would succeed or fail was continued throughout the entire book because by the time the book picked up the pacing, I just wasn't interested anymore. Because the start of the book fell so flat, I found I wasn't as emotionally invested in August's pursuit of the girls and the ultimate fate of their heist and their lives. When the ending occurred, while it was sad, I was so disinterested that the emotional aspects of the books didn't pack an emotional punch as much as I would've liked. 

Now onto the romance. I felt like it was rushed. The two girls wanted to get to know each other and they already had some feelings developed before the events of the book, but the romance felt incredibly surface level without a desired build up of chemistry or romantic tension which I hungered for. I must admit though, the epilogue was very cute and it actually was the best part by far of the entire book. 

The other aspect of note was that I never felt truly transported to the world of 1912 Ireland and the Titanic. The setting was never really prominent not when the girls were still living in their Irish boarding house nor when they were on the Titanic among more wealth than they have ever seen in their lives. Considering these girls came from poverty and from the poorer areas of Ireland, I would've expected more emphasis on the decadence of the Titanic to create this sort of fantasy-like dream of a ship, but that historical allure was barely there at all and I felt the remnants of a missed opportunity here. 

All in all, I really wanted to love this book, it was a hotly anticipated novel for me but it unfortunately fell flat a bit with the pacing, romance, characters and setting. I do see a lot of things other readers may like, after all, a book sometimes isn't for everyone. Sadly, that is the case with me and A Million to One.

ACTUAL RATING: 2 STARS