#in the labyrinth of drakes

[thebloggingfox]

The Memoirs of Lady Trent are an incredible book series that are criminally underrated.

Dragon/period drama but set in a fantasy world with a lot of science and architecture alongside some incredible variety of dragons. Also pirates, politics and a surprising amount of lgbt shit for a period esq style.

I need more people to know about them.

[b-plot-butch]

“did you just ask for my hand in marriage?” MOMENT OF ALL TIME. ROMANCE BEGAN HERE.

[elliepassmore]

Within the Sanctuary of Wings review

5/5 stars Recommended if you like: adventure, light academia, dragons, epistolary narrative

A Natural History of Dragons review

The Tropic of Serpents review

Voyage of the Basilisk review

In the Labyrinth of Drakes review

So...I still enjoyed this book, but I'm not totally sure how I feel about the big discovery made in this one. I do think it's a little odd and abrupt, but I can also see how the groundwork was laid in prior books.

This book opens 6 years (I think) after Labyrinth with Suhail giving a talk on Draconean linguistics and translation. The 'Cataract Stone' Isabella found in Mouleen provided a bilingual transcription that Suhail and other linguists were able to use to begin cracking the code of the Draconean language. Since the discovery of the stone and the bigger discovery of the mostly intact ruins in the Labyrinth of Drakes, there has been a huge boom of all things Draconean in Scirling society. For those familiar with the Victorian era, this tracks very closely with the Egyptian boom that occurred and, obviously, the Cataract Stone here is analogous to the Rosetta Stone in our world--Draconean art has always been described in a way analogous to Egyptian art, so I thought this was very nice continuity.

Toward the end of the first chapter, a Yelangese rebel and mountain climber, Mr. Thu, approaches Isabella to tell her about a dead dragon he found in the Mrtyahaima mountain range (i.e., Himalayas). Due to her past with Yelang, she's obviously wary, but it involves dragons, so obviously she, Tom, Suhail, and Andrew take off for Mrtyahaima. Caeligers are much more prominent now and there's even an event called the Aerial War that's occurring concurrently in the world. Thus, traveling to a remote and treacherous mountain range is a bit easier than when Isabella and Tom did it in book 1. Of course, getting to the mountain range is one thing, getting around once there is another.

Suhail's archaeological and linguistic work plays an important role in this book, but Isabella's theory of reproductive lability comes back in a big way as well. I liked seeing the convergence of some of these ideas, and I did appreciate that language was a bigger aspect in this one than in some of the other books (while I did study anthropology and find it fascinating, linguistics is my passion).

It's hard to talk too much about this book without giving away some very big spoilers that have been building for the entire series. I will say though that Isabella spends much of this book separated from her loved ones, and that a lot of her scientific work is done via observation. While this is true of most of the series, we were treated to some of her hands-on work in Labyrinth, so really this is just her going back to her usual style of fieldwork. The discovery and actions she takes in this book are the reason she goes from Dame Trent to Lady Trent, and is essentially a household name in Scirling forevermore.

I will say, for all her grumbling about not being good at politics, Isabella is actually very smooth when it comes to political maneuvering in this book. First she has to convince the Scirling government to let her go to Vidwatha (India) and Tser-nga (I am guessing Nepal) on the word of a Mr. Thu who, in exchange, wants her to pledge support to the revolutionary movement in Yelang. Then she runs into political problems later on with another group she runs across, and then she finds a surprising, but completely Isabella, way of following through on her promise of supporting the Yelangese revolution.

When the whole group is together, I enjoy their interactions and the way they're all familiar enough with one another to essentially read each other's minds. As usual, Suhail and Tom both have academic interest in the same/similar things as Isabella, and so the three of them are excited at the prospect of new discoveries. I like that Andrew has essentially become a member of their little group despite not being an academic. He's able to provide support in interesting ways.

Overall, a good and surprising ending to the series that combines the work Isabella and Tom have been doing for 5 books with Suhail's work. I'm definitely excited to read the spinoff/sequel/companion and see how the discoveries here have impacted things down the line.

[checkoutmybookshelf]

This is a glorious, A+ mood, and one of the best ways to start a book.

[punkeropercyjackson]

If your 'tboy swag/transmasc-coded character lineups' don't include any black men,then it dosen't count as trans male representation shnookums🩷Invest less in trying to make incest and grooming look like the ftm experience and more in including niggas in your content as something other than villains

[leviiackrman]

OC VIBE TAG;

I was tagged by @d-esmond @lilywatt @imogenkol @tommyarashikage @simonxriley + @carlosoliveiraa, thank you lovelies! I did 3 guys that I haven't thought about for a hot minute and my newest kid tehe

Rules: post your oc and then 4 random pictures (or more) with no explanation to convey your character's vibes

Tagging: @carrionsflower @risingsh0t @jacobseed @lasersinthejungle @unholymilf @florbelles @thedeadthree @shellibisshe @roofgeese @aezyrraesh @faerune @tekehu @jackiesarch @minthara @sergeiravenov @rosenfey @nokstella @queennymeria @heroofpenamstan @mistrias @viktorgf @solasan @bigbywlf @delzinrowe @fenharel @auricfog

[vinelark]

hello good morning i read the fic The Long Way Home by itsnatalie this week and finished it at 1am and had to stare through the ceiling processing for another full hour having emotions over tim and jason and a sentient labyrinth and the concept of choosing kindness when it would be so much easier to choose cruelty at every turn and NOW i am stumbling back here to recommend it to everyone who might want a tim & jason (& batfam) psychological horror longfic that will knock your socks off

testimonials once i was semi-coherent (mild spoilers):

[theredhoodedcryptid]

(MAJOR SPOILERS FOR GOTHAM KNIGHTS GAME, specifically the Labyrinth)

An analysis of the Labyrinth and the BatFam

(In other words this post is really long)

So, I was doing some research on the Labyrinth for my fic (Silent Hearts and Silent Knights) and I found something very interesting regarding each BatFam members experience from Gotham Knights.

I'm using Rubi's video compilation of characters as my reference, I played as Tim in my play through and it's exactly like this video's Tim so I'm going on the assumption that there are no other possible outcomes.

Here's my keynotes for those who don't want to watch the video.

(I would like to say that due to the fact it is a game, some things aren't concrete. Rubi just goes back and forth in certain areas to trigger stuff whereas I just went under things to continue on.)

Things that happen regardless of the character (I call this the Beginning Sequence):

Character wakes up and starts walking, making various little comments. (Anything notable will be put under said character)

Character runs into spikes on wall, dies and wakes up (If you duck under the spikes the character will not experience this)

(Female voice) “Inside of Gotham’s walls…”

(Male voice) ”Rule you one and all…”

Character enters the "Flame Room", a small puzzle requiring you find the right path out.

(Voice of the Court) “Give up, it would be.. So much easier”

Character immediately hits a dead end and turns around only to find a different path then before.

Character enters the "Rotating Spike Room", which is pretty self explanatory: three large spinning columns with an assortment of blades that the Character must find a way around.

Bruce's voice expresses disappointment in the Character. (I can't remember if at this point if it's same thing said for each Character, but the point is the same)

Character stumbles, clutching head as they approach the first room (This is something every character does entering a "Major Room" moving forward)

Now, this is where things get interesting because the order and experience is different.

Somethings I want to quickly point out that are the same for every character in this section, which is certain rooms I like to call predetermined sets (all have two passages, left and right, but from my understanding they lead to the same thing):

Table Room: room is a half circle table with three dead court members wearing suits, candles and scrolls on the table, it's covered with spiderwebs and blood appears to be on the floor, and two statues behind them. A moth is floating around one of the candles. Laughter starts when character enters the room

Phonograph Room: room has two green armchairs with a table in between them and a floor lamp behind the left chair, a red circular rug with the Court logo in gold is under all this. On the small side table is a phonograph that plays old distorted instrumental music. The music echoes and distorts even more as you walk away (I wasn't paying to close attention but I think the song is different for each character, or at least a different part of the same song is played.)

Computer Room: room is bathed in red light. Its a rather large computer/monitor set up, reminiscent to the set up in the Belfry and the tech hums, images of Court members with a red filter. A dead Alfred sits in a chair near the set up. After examining the body it disappears in a puff of smoke and ash.

Here is each character's experience:

Jason:

Jason need’s a moment once he stands up before letting go of the marble slab (they all wake up on), also mentions it smells but never can identify what it is.

After the beginning sequence he enters the Table Room.

After leaving the Table Room he had a weird vision of himself dropping from the void ceiling floating towards himself in the air choking, then floats back and then up into the void ceiling.

Enters the Phonograph Room, after leaving the room Bruce's voice says something rather mean to him (I can't remember anything Bruce said to each of them, but it wasn't nice. Ya know, the whole point of this place)

Enters the Computer Room. After leaving the room he has a vision of himself “teleporting” around, pointing his hand at his head, maybe a gun?  Disappears into smoke and ash when walked through.

Enters a room bathed in green, sees a Lazarus pit, sees himself in normal clothes rise out of it with a crowbar which he raises above his head and starts attacking Batman. Court Members actively encourage him to kill stating they are the same, Real Jason says they're not. Vision characters disappear but the pit stays.

Barbra:

After the beginning sequence enters the Phonograph Room.

After leaving the room sees herself (maybe wearing a court mask) randomly teleporting towards herself, tilting head creepily before disappearing.

Enters Computer Room.

After leaving the room Bruce's voice says mean things.

Next she enters a room where Bruce’s grave is open, bats fly out of it and his voice calls out that he needs Batgirl for help.

After exciting this room she see's Batman's body get dragged around a corner, but we never see who does it.

Bruce's voice says some more mean things.

She stumbles into Gordon’s old office, Gordon complains about Batgirl. There’s a recording of Gordon’s death on the table, Babs feels guilty for not being there.

Dick:

After the beginning sequence he enters the Phonograph Room.

After leaving this room he see’s himself just fall out of the void, like his parents. His vision body is very dead and disappears when walked through/by.

Immediately after there’s the broken Bat signal, GCPD officers crying out that the city is falling and wonder where Batman is.

He then enters the Table Room.

After leaving the room he see’s a vision of himself being creepy/ kinda teleporting around, like Babs.

Stumbles into the next room, see’s his dead parents at the circus. Interestingly when they disappear they leave behind Court masks (maybe this refers to Dick’s own hidden ties to the Court)

Tim:

Tim is the only one straight up fall after waking up and trying to stand up, he is also the only one to explicitly state that is smells like death.

After the beginning sequence he enters the Table Room.

First vision is also of him creepily teleporting around, but unlike Dick and Babs, his version walks past him then dissolves. D and B’s versions forced them to walk through their visions. T's forced itself through him.

He then Enters the Computer Room.

After leaving the room he has the same Bat-signal vision as Dick.

Vision of himself kinda twitching and glitching on the floor before becoming limp and disappearing.

Enters the next room where the Robin suit is an a locker covered in cobwebs and "Wanted: looking for new Robin" posters. Bruce's voice is stating that he wants a Robin that's anyone other then Tim.

(I think I forgot it in a couple places, but every character experiences Bruce saying mean things)

And lastly every Character after their last vision sees Bruce stumble around a corner and disappear before starting the leaving the labyrinth sequence, which is the same for all of them.

So, here's my interpretations for all this. Specifically with how the Court plays on each of their fears:

Babs: When she became too injured to be Batgirl and became Oracle. They play on her fears about how she couldn't be there, even though it's not her fault. Mainly focusing on her dad.

Dick: Falling, literally. Failing both his parents and Bruce.

Tim: His fears about what Bruce thinks of him, about his place as Robin and his place in the family.

Jason: Here's where it's really interesting, Jason is the only one to have only one extra "room/vision" aside from the base ones they all experience. The Court tries once to hurt him with the Pit, and Jason firmly says that he's not that anymore. The court no longer tries after that. The others try to fight anything said, but rather weakly and they half believe it. Not Jason, he firmly says no. It's like after his death his fears aren't something the Court can understand or replicate.

I think it's also interesting how Tim differs from the others in some of the basic interactions, which I've already stated.

Anyways, it's rather late the time I'm writing this, but I thought it was really interesting. The developers could have stuck with the same base with only minor changes for each character, but they went pretty far out. It's one of the things that makes me love this game.

[saturniiids]

Greek Mythology has been a major theme in Tim’s recent stories, mainly due to his relationship with Bernard and the cult of Dionysus. So when he sees the illusion of his father and fights him I was like “haha yeah that’s such a Greek mythology thing to do”… and then it dawned on me that yes it is…

So I want to link this thread with the myth of Zeus and Cronus. I’m not sure if it’s intentional but the themes just fit so well.

Essentially the myth is about a son repeating the mistakes of his father. In the myth Cronus’ father Uranus imprisons some of Gaia’s children leading Gaia to seek out Cronus’ help to get revenge. Cronus fought Uranus and won, taking the throne of the gods. But Cronus didn’t want a repeat of history so he decided to eat all of his children so they didn’t rise up against him. This upset Rhea, the children’s mother, who decided to hide her youngest son Zeus and not tell Cronus about him. When Zeus grew up he cut open Cronus to release his fully grown siblings from their fathers stomach and together they worked to take down Cronus and the other titans.

A common theme in TD:R is how Tim views himself and his place within his family. He notices parts of himself that are a bit too much like Bruce and thinks to change things and do them differently. This also ties in with Bruce’s current arc, involving Tim, where he talks about not wanting any of his children to be like him. In the most recent issue of TD:R we see Tim say how he wanted to be like Jack but implies that he doesn’t anymore. He takes ownership of the title Tim Drake and Robin over becoming either of his fathers. I think this can lead back to the themes of the myth.

Additionally, the myth could be considered as reflected through Bernard and Tim’s two families coming to assist him.

[knockbutimreading]

Read this.

[weaverofink]

AU where Tim's family is connected to the Court of Owls rather than Dick's, and Tim decides to go undercover as a member of the Court

alt version and explanation under the cut

(Disclaimer: I know the court of owls storyline happens in the n52 continuity, but for my own sake (as i don't really like tim's whole deal in it lol) this AU is using pre-n52 backstories and characterizations)

In this AU, Janet Drake was a member of the Court of Owls, unbeknownst to Jack and Tim. Bruce eventually finds this out, but chooses to keep it from Tim to protect him. Tim, of course, finds out that Bruce is keeping this from him, and, feeling betrayed both by Bruce and his own mother, decides to infiltrate the Court on his own. The court has been sending him cryptic invitations ever since Bruce announced his initiative to improve Gotham, looking for a way into both the Wayne family and WE. As a member of the Court, Tim is able to gather information to help stop them, but in order to maintain his cover, he is forced into many situations where he is forced to choose between compromising his morals or compromising his position in the Court.

[winter-wise]

A Natural History of Dragons is a great series because for the first several books it's "lady scientist wants to study dragons, must overcome a misogynistic society to do so" "here's a meaningful side plot about the importance of respecting local cultures while conducting scientific work" "interesting queer rep" "clever worldbuilding" "realistic romance with hot archaeologist"

and then in the last book it hits you with "yeti are dragons, actually. and they do ethical non-monogamy."

[elliepassmore]

In the Labyrinth of Drakes review

5/5 stars Recommended if you like: epistolary narrative, light academia, dragons, adventure

A Natural History of Dragons review

The Tropic of Serpents review

Voyage of the Basilisk review

I think this book and Voyage are my two favorites in the series. There's so much about dragons in these two books and we get such varied locations. I also like the characters we meet in these two, though I have to say, I miss having Natalie around.

This book opens with a bit of a surprise: Tom and Isabella are hired by the Scirling Army to do some naturalist work for them. Specifically, they want the two to breed dragons in Akhia. While that's clearly written in the synopsis, it's still a bit of a surprise that Isabella agreed to it since she hasn't had the best experience with the Scirling Army in the past, but while that tension is still there a little, she'll do anything to study dragons.

Akhia is a fantasy version of some Middle Eastern country, I'm not sure which, but the language used is definitely Arabic. Like in Bayembe, Akhia is a very hot and dry country, though Isabella describes it as much hotter and much drier than the former. As such, there's a lot of accommodations made for the heat both in architecture and in travel accommodations and schedules. The 'Labyrinth of Drakes' actually poses a risk because the oases within can be difficult to locate and during the wet season it sometimes flash floods.

The religion in Akhia is distinctly Muslim, and Tom and Isabella largely have to follow those rules. It's astonishing how far Isabella has come since A Natural History (or even Tropic). While she still chafes at some of the rules, and finds workarounds for others, by and large she follows the religious customs well and even remarks on some of their importance to the religion's followers. One thing she seems to particularly appreciate is the way religious customs make room for things like female physicians.

As usual, there's some political mischief going on and Isabella ends up smack in the center of it. One aspect of politics comes up fairly quickly when it's made obvious the sheikh does not like Isabella...but it turns out not to be for the usual reasons. I actually found the animosity to be kind of humorous. But Isabella and Tom also face much more serious peril, and things actually end up getting pretty dangerous for Isabella in particular, and I think this is the most risk (from humans) that she's been in yet.

I really liked getting to focus more on the dragons and their behaviors. Since the army hired Isabella and Tom for a breeding program, that's the focus of much of this book, but I still found the scientific details interesting. Isabella also raises questions of how desert drakes behave in the wild, and a need for replicating those situations as much as possible in order to ensure survival of the dragons as well as successful mating. Along with observing the dragons, we also get to see some smaller experiments that Isabella runs to test the possible environmental ranges for successful breeding. She utilizes a smaller, dragon-adjacent species (sort of like Sparklings), but the experiment ends up having a huge impact, and I really liked seeing the various aspects of it.

As mentioned, Isabella has grown a lot from book 1, and I found it interesting to compare her behavior in this book to that one. Her passion for dragons remains, and I liked seeing how she's continued to bring in more interdisciplinary work into her naturalism. I also liked seeing her scheme with Tom about how to do best by the dragons (and science) while still meeting the requirements put to them by the Scirling Army.

Tom is a nice addition, as always, and provides a more level, but still passionate, head to Isabella's sometimes more reckless nature. That being said, he's just as incensed by the army's treatment of the dragons as Isabella is, and he's actually the one who comes up with a way to continue their research even when it becomes clear the army has no desire to. I enjoyed seeing the two of them come together once more and really enjoy their friendship and working relationship.

Suhail is back in this one as well! We parted with him prior to the ending of the previous book as his father died and he was called home by his family. Well, now we get to see him conducting his familial duty. There's some tension because he considers Isabella and Tom his friends and so he wants to interact with them and talk, but his duty won't allow him to...but no one here really follows the rules all the way, so we get some good interactions with them, especially toward the end of the book after Isabella and him come up with a certain 'work around' (I definitely saw this coming in Voyage and was pleased with how it played out). He hasn't been able to do much archaeology work, but Isabella was able to get a drawing of the inscription from Mouleen for him, and that lights his passion on fire again.

Actually, one of the big discoveries in this book is related to archaeology. Isabella may not have any big passion for Draconean culture, but she does have a knack for stumbling upon their ruins. The three of them + Isabella's brother, Andrew, stumble on a massive discovery that helps propel Suhail to fame and, to a lesser extent, Isabella and Tom as well. Like in Voyage, I enjoyed Suhail's translation and archaeological work.

Andrew is also back in this book, and for a much longer time. He's a soldier now and got himself stationed in Akhia when he learned his sister would be going there. He provides some good comedic relief while also adding a less-enthusiastic head to some of Isabella and Tom's plans. That being said, while Andrew might not be as passionate about dragons nor as academic, he is still more than eager to tag along on their adventures, and is equally as giddy about the big discovery at the end of the book as Suhail, Isabella, and Tom.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and think this one and Voyage tie as my favorite. I liked getting to see Akhia and digging deeper into the scientific details of dragons. I also appreciated getting to learn more about Draconean archaeology and linguistics.

[checkoutmybookshelf]

You Have My Attention: The Lady Trent Memoir First Lines

New Bookshelf to check out, and trying to do something a little artsy with this picture! The adorable little dragon figure in front was hand painted for me by my partner, and he was inspired by General Chu from the Temeraire books. But what we're focusing on now is how Marie Brennan catches her readers. For these books, because the prefaces are just that good and kind of meta, I will give you the first lines of the prefaces and the first chapters. If you want to know more about the series than first lines, I talk about the series in this post.

"Not a day goes by that the post does not bring me at least one letter from a young person (or sometimes one not so young) who wishes to follow in my footsteps as a dragon naturalist."

-- "Preface," A Natural History of Dragons

"When I was seven, I found a sparkling lying dead on a bench at the edge of the woods which formed the back boundary of our garden, that the groundskeeper had not yet cleared away."

-- "One," A Natural History of Dragons

"Public opinion is a fickle thing. Nowadays I am hailed from one end of Scirland to the other as a testament to the intelligence and derring-do of our race; indeed, if I am not the most famous Scirling woman in the world, I daresay I give Her Majesty the Queen a good fight."

-- "Preface," The Tropic of Serpents

"Not long before I embarked on my journey to Eriga, I girded my loins and set out for a destination I conisdered much more dangerous: Falchester."

-- "One," The Tropic of Serpents

"Depending upon yout temperament, you may be either pleased or puzzled to see that I have chosen to include my time upon the Basilisk in my memoirs."

-- "Preface," Voyage of the Basilisk

"At no point did I form the conscious intention of founding an ad hoc univeristy in my sitting room."

-- "One," Voyage of the Basilisk

"I suspect a percentage of my readership will see the title of this volume and experct the entireity of what is contined herein to be devoted to a certain discovery that took place in the Labyrinth of Drakes."

-- "Preface," In the Labyrinth of Drakes

"There is very little pleasure in being snubbed over a task for which one is well qualified. There is, however, quite a bit of pleasure in watching the ones who did the snubbing later eat their own words."

-- "One," In the Labyrinth of Drakes

"Writing the final volume of one's memoirs is a very peculiar experience."

-- "Preface," Within the Sanctuary of Wings

"Members of the peerage, I need hardly tell you, are not always well behaved."

-- "One," Within the Sanctuary of Wings

[myth0nerd]

The eighth chapter of Wrath of the Labyrinth has been posted! It’s entitled “A Floral Grave,” I hope you enjoy!!

the link is in my bio!

[three-bunnies-in-a-trenchcoat]

I've never been so incredibly frustrated that this world isn't real