#knox s consumer

[capnkerfufflez]

I contain multitudes, so i made a uquiz for some of my quintessential sonas for fun

i dont really expect people to take it, but man i love an excuse to draw some of my boys i don't give much love to brief descriptions and the result descriptions under the cut

here's the link outside of just embed btw : https://uquiz.com/hkfS0R

in image order and i marked the number and color of the background above we have :

1 [red] E : non-fandom sona I use to vent mostly - "Conceptual Chaos Junkyard" / "CC Junkyard" so he's mostly negative traits of myself turned up to 11. He's the overly emotional and sentimental and over-reactive side of the duo between him and G.

"[[ oh baby girl, I'm so sorry for you, get some help ]] Everything you've ever done blows back up into your face, you don't know what you're doing wrong?! Or well, you've figured out a few things wrong with you, but you can't figure out how to fix those things about yourself…"

2 [red/orange] Knox S. Consumer : kinda a minecraft sona? - "What's Minecraft is Yourcraft" / "Yourcraft" He's in general a minesona, at least when I first made him. In Yourcraft he is the sona/character version of an oc that's a minecraft youtuber/streamer and who is very distinctly not me, so Knox falls into an odd character category where's he's both my sona and an oc's sona. He's an old grouchy wizard type, but breaks character often to help friends

"[[ you may think im stretching on this one, but i assure there's more obscure ]] You know so much yet so little. The type of guy that can recite so many video game lore details and fun facts across all subjects, but will fail to realize that they really did mean it calling it "cream cheese," it is actually a cheese. You are very smart though, with your intelligence only rivaled by your stubbornness."

3 [red/pink] Dong : pokemon not a big surprise, but he's a pokesona of sorts. He's a Mareep that's specifically paired with my friend's Wooloo "Ding," he's somewhere between a pokemon in the anime and pokemon mystery dungeon in terms of personification, he's very bitey.

[[ haha dong ]] Lil gremlin guy. You're the typa bitch to fucking taunt people bigger than you and when they get pissy you go 'oh im just a lil guy a lil birthday boy.' All talk no bite. well, maybe a lil bite, like consensually or deserved.. BUT the point is you take no responsibly of the misdeeds you may or may not do !

4 [orange] Bibbly : double life / life series Bibbly is the character I made soulmate's with my friend cause we were watching other people make sona's and pairs with their friends too. Bibbly is based off of a drawing I did based on a more literal interpretation of one of my minecraft skins (specifically my 453 skin), "Bibbly" coming from "Biblically accurate." Personality wise he varies a lot cause in conception and most practice he is an utter coward, very reliant on my friend's character, though in other interpretations I make him a lot more jaded and no-bull shit but also those are usually what is supposed to be later in his development and/or away from my friend's character

[[ telephone game of sonas ]] You are a recursion of self analyzation. You try to map out your intricacies only to have your theories on yourself become rules. And once you've realized its a set habit of thinking. You know trouble and you avoid it the best you can.

5 [muddy yellow] Clart : minecraft sona ? - "What's Minecraft is Yourcraft" / "Yourcraft" Similar case as Knox, where Clart is my sona and the sona of one of my oc's who isn't me, but for Clart he and the oc, they align closer with who I am so it's not quite as weird a case. Clart is very easy going and cares a lot, he isn't particularly notably in Yourcraft as he's not really someone who develops more a character that help's the other characters develop

[[ straight up gooping ]] You just want a break, things to be nice and easy and do menial tasks and be with your friends. You give all you can, not because you feel you need to, you just want to and you can. You know pain and cruelty, you choose to be kind.

6 [yellow] [453>- / 453 / The cooler Casey : a general sona He's a more stylized, exaggerated version of myself and usually a lot more malicious for the fun of it. In his "lore" he is a shapeshifting sand.. thing, it depends on the specific backstory I'm going with. He is generally very energetic and bitey and evil for the sake of it cause man villains are fun when they are having fun and he is having a blast

[[ creature !! ]] You are the coolest sexiest mother fucker out here! or you sure pretend to think so. A whole fucking jaw breaker flipping between god-complex and inferiority-complex, who knows what's at it's core (probably inferiority). You love to be an edge case, probably the type of guy to make a fan character concept that's over done but do it with a twist. No fear of ocs coming off like a mary sues just cause YOU know how cool and really clever they are really even if they give a bad first impression.

7 [lime/green] Casey : general sona / how i draw myself This is just me, like, just how I draw myself, it's as general and genuine as I can manage which my not really be all that accurate maybe but oh well

[[ oh fuck u are just like me frfr ! or like at least closest approximation ]] You are only human. You love your friends more than the world and you try to be worth all you're given. You have some self esteem and self image issues, but maybe if you shove your ocs full of enough of your issues you'll solve some.

8 [green?] Caddle : general sona / fursona / the one i use for sexual stuff Caddle is a cow-adject shapeshifter. He is the sona I use the most when it's anything sexual, usually paired with my partner's fursona, but he's supposed to have other buddies too that I never really draw. I've got complicated feeling on sexual stuff and myself in relation to it, so he gets those feelings dumped into his character too. But aside from that he is a fun character especially to draw cause inconsistency is baked in and I love him dearly, he is very lazily chill with a big heart, he's also a rodeo clown even though i dont draw a full on clown get up for him much

[[ honka honka we got certified clown ova here ]] You are silly, a goofball even, one may even argue a jokester. You may present all goofs, gafs and dick jokes, -and by all means you do genuinely loving goofing gaffing and dicking- but you are a person with complicated wants and thoughts and feelings. Wants and thoughts and feelings you hold close to yourself, you do not know how to voice, so more often than not, you don't.

9 [bluish green] Gilon Kurt : lesser sona Gilon is a sona that I made just on a whim off of a twist on my name with "fluffle" being a the name for a group of rabbits, he's "Capn Kerfluffle." And then I made him a rival to my main fursona in their story and he gained a personality outside of me as they so often do

[[ rage rage murder rage !!!! ]] You have worked so hard for what you have and yet it is never enough. There is always something else to achieve more to earn, people clawing for what you have. You can have no peace nor solace, relax? chilling? never heard of her!! There are experiences to be had!! People to meet!! Friends to continuing loving!!! And you'll fight for it all, fight until you die!!

10 [cyan] Yeode : minecraft sona [real] Yeode my beloved, she is my darling rock-based robot made to search villagers that learns to live for herself kinda. A lot of her kindness and softness and story comes from backstory for just me playing minecraft ig who is a lot less kind in practice.

[[ yippee !!! ^.^ ]] You are a people pleaser to your core! You are born and molded by your attachments and use to others. Even in their absence you still live on for them in part.

11 [saturated blue] G : non-fandom sona I use to vent mostly - "Conceptual Chaos Junkyard" / "CC Junkyard" similar situation to E of mostly negative traits, but the other side of it for the most part. she is full of anger and malice at being stuck with little control over her situation and takes it out on E

[[ oh sweetheart, no ]] You think yourself a "bad bitch" a "girl boss" even. Emotions are not your strong suit. You have a hard time managing your own feelings, let alone dealing with other people's. You may not always be right, but you work hard to try to be.

12 [less saturated dark blue] D. Base : minecraft sona, specifically in magic mods / heavily modded minecraft he came about from when i was testing a modded server with my friends there was something that would crash my game if i entered specific chunks, and in those 'dead' chunks was my silk worms so i made dBase as a character for the friend server and he is supposed to be that glitched silkworm i got in testing, uuh end then that server slowly broke too, so i like to think it was somehow also his fault; while i did get to play on the server i got really into a few magic mods, mainly mana and artifice so he is not only gitchy but a magic man

[[ grub ]] You think of yourself highly, not perfect, but damn good. You've worked your ass off for the skills you've obtained and are happy to show off when they are even slightly relevant. Your "fuck it we ball" attitude somehow works out for you most of the time, though some collateral damage to others.

13 [light blue] Clerk James : fursona / used to be mascot character to note if you see other art of him there is a stark difference between the silly goofy Clerk that's my sona and the asshole angsty backstory version of him before he got so very concussed; current Clerk is very sweet and very dumb, he's the "capn" of a pirate themed ferry though also goes on some genuine treasure seeking adventures pg pirate style

[[ consider it the post-drownings one, don't worry ]] A mix of poor memory, self-doubt, and self-hatred that results in a potent blend of guilt for things you aren't really sure you deserve to hate yourself over, being it maybe not or fault or maybe never really happened. Aside from that you're upbeat and a bit stupid in a silly lil guy way. You're just a lil guy!

14 [purple] Cassio Inerta : homestuck / trollsona - "retroll" he is baby, very sweet and well meaning but oh so very problem avoidant and low empathy mostly from being sheltered; in retroll he is canonically in-universe a self insert of myself watching the plot go down and has a made up boyfriend given to him who loves Cassio by virtue that is what the boyfriend was made for, but kinda just puts up with Cassio, a projection of how i felt and feared in some previous relationships

[[ explicitly cannon self insert huh ]] You are a suckerrr for romance. You want and want and want so badly and you feel and in every instance you are given a taste it feels unreal. it feels unearned. It feels disingenuous. But you need it so bad. You don't know shit about anything, so terrified to fail you're terrified to try. But little by little you keep trying.

15 [magenta] Carcumber : a sona based off of my friend's previously-main sona's species so my friend's main sona and mascot character was a "lavamander" though the species had other character with other elements such as ice and sound waves and species had name trope of two favorite foods combined; Carcumber's name was Carrot + Cucumber but my friend changed main sonas and has since renamed most to just a single food name hence the opening statement for the quiz, i dont remember if he had an element associated, if he did i think it was "cart" or "car" or "money" or something stupid like that, and his is a used car salesman, similar energy and pathetic-ness of spamton

[[ oh man do i gotta change his name now that's that not the naming scheme? ]] You are passionate about everything you do! Cause if you aren't you don't do them! You exaggerate yourself to the point the mask becometh you.

god ya that's a lot of em and i have more sona's than just that, but most fall similar to others or i dont use enough to care

if you read it all thanks so much i love u :D

[vicciouxs]

tag game: bold the facts pt. V ! ☆

tagged by: @wldestluv-rs thank u sm nene 😭⚘

rules: tag people and name a character you want to know more about! If you want to let the person you tagged decide who to showcase, then don’t name a character and they can pick somebody. easy! the person who is tagged will then bold the remarks below which apply to their character &, if they want to, include a picture with their reply!

found the other parts: genji, knox, zephyra & pandora

[ PERSONAL]

$ Financial: wealthy / moderate / poor / in poverty

✚ Medical: fit / moderate / sickly / disabled / disadvantaged / non applicable

✪ Class or Caste: upper / middle / working / unsure / other

✔ Education: qualified / unqualified / studying / other )

✖ Criminal Record: yes, for major crimes / yes, for minor crimes / no / has committed crimes, but not caught yet / yes, but charges were dismissed

[ TRAITS + TENDENCIES ]

♦ extroverted / introverted / in between

♦ disorganized / organized / in between

♦ close minded / open-minded / in between

♦ calm / anxious / in between

♦ disagreeable / agreeable ( he's a cinnamon roll ) / in between

♦ cautious / reckless / in between

♦ patient ( he has more patient than years in the earth ) / impatient / in between

♦ outspoken / reserved / in between

♦ leader / follower / in between

♦ empathetic ( he knows suffering and pain, so when someone suffers it feels like their heart will break ) / vicious bastard / in between

♦ optimistic ( I was more pessimistic before ) / pessimistic / in between

♦ traditional / modern / in between

♦ hard-working ( everything he has is due to his effort, it is even a little difficult for him to trust others ) / lazy / in between

♦ cultured / uncultured / in between / unknown

♦ loyal / disloyal / unknown

♦ faithful / unfaithful / unknown

[ BELIEFS ]

★ Faith: monotheist / polytheist / atheist ( his relationship with god is complex ) / agnostic

☆ Belief in Ghosts or Spirits: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care

✮ Belief in an Afterlife: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care

✯ Belief in Reincarnation: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care

❃ Belief in Aliens: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care

✧ Religious: orthodox / liberal / in between / not religious

❀ Philosophical: yes ( a little bit ) / no

[ ABILITIES ]

☠ Combat Skills: excellent ( has military training ) / good / moderate / poor / none

≡ Literacy Skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none

✍ Artistic Skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none

✂ Technical Skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none

[ HABITS ]

☕ Drinking Alcohol: never / special occasions / sometimes / frequently / Alcoholic

☁ Smoking: tried it / trying to quit / quit / never / rarely / sometimes / frequently / Chain-smoker

✿ Recreational Drugs: never / special occasions / sometimes / frequently / addict / quit ( he used to consume more before due to his trauma and military training, but he managed to go to rehab and leave it as it wasn't fully hooked either )

✌ Medicinal Drugs: never / no longer needs medication / some medication needed / frequently / to excess

☻ Unhealthy Food: never / special occasions / sometimes / frequently / binge eater

$ Splurge Spending: never / sometimes ( in music and records ) / frequently / shopaholic

♣ Gambling: never / rarely / sometimes / frequently / compulsive gambler

[ FAMILY ]

◒ Children: had a child or children / has no children / wants children ( wants to adopt )

◑ Relationship with Family: close with sibling(s) / not close with sibling(s) / has no siblings / sibling(s) is deceased

◔ Affiliation: orphaned / adopted ( he has been in many foster homes and even a reform school ) / disowned / raised by birth parents / not applicable 

[ SEXUALITY & ROMANTIC INCLINATION ]

❤ Sexuality: heterosexual / homosexual / bisexual / asexual / pansexual

❥ Sex: sex repulsed / sex neutral / sex favorable / naive and clueless

♥ Romance: romance repulsed / romance neutral / romance favorable / naive and clueless / romance suspicious

❣ Sexually: adventurous / experienced / naive / inexperienced / curious / not applicable

⚧ Potential Sexual Partners: male / female / agender / other / none / all

⚧ Potential Romantic Partners: male / female / agender / other / none / all

[dxsole]

✧･ﾟ    𝐃𝐀𝐒𝐇 𝐆𝐀𝐌𝐄  | GET TO KNOW THE MUN

NAME:  See Below.

NICKNAME: Dex

FACECLAIM: Stela Cole!

PRONOUNS: She/Her

HEIGHT: 5'6

BIRTHDAY: May 6

AESTHETIC: Mun aesthetic? I’m gonna do this in the style of those ask memes that just are screaming random things: BLUSH PINK, FAUX FUR, CRINKLY CANDY WRAPPERS, GOLD TONES, DOO-WOP JAMS ON VINYL, CRACKED OPEN GEODES AND AGATE SLICES, UNEXPLAINED BRUISES, TINTED LIP BALM, STRETCHING LIKE A CAT IN THE MORNINGS, DRIED PAINT IN THE FINGERNAILS, THE SCENT OF WILDFLOWERS, COFFEE TABLE BOOKS STACKED HIGH, HANDBAKED BREAD.

LAST SONG YOU LISTENED TO: This Christmas by Donny Hathaway

FAVORITE MUSE(S) YOU’VE WRITTEN: Real talk, you guys know I love Didi but Lawrence, Lázaro, Kidd, and Beatrix are close seconds...they are SO much fun to write and so easy for me! (Also I picked Lawrence to focus on for the following bc I cannot shut up about Larry Boy)

GET TO KNOW THE MUSE | Lawrence Valdis

★  ⸻     WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO MAKE THIS MUSE?: I have always loved Charlies Angels (the 2000 movie and its sequel, although I do love the original show as well!) and I adored Eric Knox and his reveal and his vibe and ugh...and then when Birds of Prey came out, watching Roman Sionis do his thing just brought back that sort of style of character into the forefront of my mind. I wanted to make a villain oc that had his own niche m.o. and this sort of flamboyant narcissism about him. He’s a peacock strutting around, pecking out eyes as he sees fit. I should also mention the film Kiss The Girls as another big inspiration for Lawrence, a lot of his mannerisms and motives based off the pathology of the Casanova killer— the obsession, the stalking, the entitlement, the seamless transition between seemingly mild-mannered person to nefarious killer. 

★  ⸻     WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE ASPECTS OF YOUR CURRENT MUSE?: He's such a dickhead. I love his tantrums and the internal struggle he always has between keeping composed and rigidly in control of himself and letting himself loose and be taken over by this fiery, all-consuming anger he has within him. 

★  ⸻     WHO’S YOUR CURRENT FC: Sam Rockwell, both as Eric Knox in Charlies Angels and Justin Hammer in the Iron Man franchise.

★  ⸻     WHAT’S YOUR BIGGEST INSPIRATION WHEN IT COMES TO WRITING?: I just write things that I think are fun or funny, mainly tropes from other films and shows that personally made me go :D or :O. For Lawrence specifically, I have to admit that I’m almost always sort of ready to write Lawrence. He’s one of the few muses on my roster that I can write easily at any time, like he flows incredibly well and I think it mainly has to do with the fact that writing him is like dissecting him a little, like a little profiler writing his crimes and guessing what will come next. (If that makes sense!)

★  ⸻     FAVORITE TYPES OF THREADS?: Overall, I enjoy domestic stories and funny threads; everyday stories and silly adventures with friends or meet cutes! I like all that, and a lot of times I can even incorporate frightening or crime based plots to it because I feel like....even scary, bad people or supernatural monsters have silly moments. (In my verses they do at least! I’m always clowning on them!!!) Like nothing makes me :3 quicker than idiots being idiots, lovers being cute, killers fucking up and being stupid as all hell, stoic characters tripping and falling flat on their face, etc. etc. 

TAGGED BY: @alxnetxgether​ // thankies~!!!!

TAGGING: @bruisedconscience​, @americanzealot​, @notquiteahitman​, @genrcsavvy​, and anyone else who wants to do this~!

[govindhtech]

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The device can function to its fullest capacity since improved hardware performance completely supports intelligent productivity. With a new, improved cooling system that includes an 11% bigger vapor chamber and a twin fan with an unequal blade spacing design, the Galaxy Book4 Ultra reduces heat and fan noise. Because of its improved power efficiency, your device can last longer between charges. Moreover, users of the Galaxy Book4 Ultra can rapidly add 55 percent more battery life in just 30 minutes with the 140W adaptor, which is 1.4 times larger than its predecessor.

The importance of data security and privacy has increased along with the intelligence and connectivity of gadgets. For this reason, Samsung is strengthening security protocols at the chipset level for the Galaxy Book series for the first time, building on the heritage of security it has created via numerous Samsung Galaxy devices with Samsung Knox. A new standalone Samsung Knox security chip, added to the multi-layered security initiatives already in place with Intel and Microsoft, safeguards key system data independently in all three models.

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For a whole PC experience, having cutting-edge audio is equally as critical as having excellent pictures. Rich bass and upper octaves are delivered by AKG Quad speakers with Dolby Atmos for clean, clear sound. With the help of bi-directional AI noise cancellation and studio-caliber dual microphones, you can record clear video conversations even in busy outdoor settings. Realistic sounds with lower latency are made possible by LE Audio, an improved Bluetooth audio standard, when used with Galaxy Buds Pro, enhancing the immersiveness of activities like gaming.

With Auto Switch, you can effortlessly connect your Buds to a variety of devices, including your PC, TV, tablet, and smartphone, so you can experience hands-free device listening. The Galaxy Book4 series’ larger touchpad and several connectors, including a new HDMI 2.1 port, are further features intended to improve use. Powerful opportunities are opened when on the go thanks to the compact and lightweight design that houses all these functions.

Users of the Galaxy Book4 series can enjoy even greater increased productivity and creativity when paired with Galaxy smartphones and tablets. With Samsung Studio, a new video production tool accessible on all Samsung Galaxy devices, you can continue editing videos taken with your phone or tablet in greater detail on your PC.

It is designed to let everyone be a creative. With AI-enabled optimization for picture-perfect results, Photo Remaster is now accessible on Samsung Gallery for PC, allowing you to rapidly edit photographs and automatically remove undesired shadows and reflections. With Second Scree, you may increase your productivity by using your tablet as a Book4 display. It offers multiple modes, including Duplicate, Extension, and now Rotation.

Read more on Govindhtech.com

[batmanisagatewaydrug]

a year or so ago I was lucky enough to attend s talk by Dr. Emily Knox, a brilliant researcher and author with degree in both library science and religious studies, and she had this theory that both leftists and the right in America have this baked in reverence for books that's a holdover of ye olden days when very few Europeans could read and most people primarily interacted with the written word in a religious context, as a means of learning about the Christian God and means of salvation.

the subject of Knox's talk was mainly how, on the right, this deep belief in the innate power of the written word is a large part of what drives efforts to have books removed or banned from public libraries, as if good "normal" white children are going to instantly become polyamorous atheist antifa supersoldiers if they're exposed to degenerate filth like And Tango Makes Three.

meanwhile on the left we're broadly ideologically opposed to book banning but still have this weird reverence for something that is, ultimately, a mass produced consumer good. which is why you get people developing beef with books that don't pass the vibe check re: being intellectually and morally improving literature and acting like it's a societal ill that women on tiktok are ready dorky erotica. sure, you're not saying out loud that these books should be banned, because you know it sounds fashy, but if you're arguing that they'll have a deleterious effect on women too dumb to know better then the subtext is still pretty readily apparent.

can I be so real with you. can I be honest. totally aside from the moral panic about women on booktok being """porn addicts""" because they're reading erotica, I think it's so fucking goofy when people act as if there needs to be some kind of societal reckoning with how tiktok books "aren't very good." like, okay? they're commercial products mass produced for entertainment. tiktok didn't invent that; you're going to have to take it up with pulp magazines and dime novels and comic books. you guys would throw up if you found out about Fanny Hill.

[aishavass]

"The worldwide Ventilator Consumables market research has many advantages for businesses, including

[ninja-knox-ur-sox-off]

-pats you on the head before giving you a tub of your favorite ice cream-

Have a nice day

-disappears in a puff of smoke-

as;kdnf;ln;aiomfwef

[spiced-wine-fic]

People you��d like to know better asks 

Tagged by the lovely @lesbianhaleth. Thank you so much 🤗

Three ships: (Silmarillion) Fëanor/Fingolfin, Glorfindel/Ecthelion and Beleg/Túrin

First ever ship: It would have been Fëanor/Fingolfin back ina dawna time. (To quote Gaspode) (80’s)

Last song: I was in the gym and listening to Heart Radio 80’s because I’m an old bag and it was Terence Trent d’Arby ‘Sign Your Name’. (Which I love).

Last film: Disney + has got all the Alien’s films up now, so I started watching Alien last night. (rewatch). 

Currently reading: The Vintner’s Luck, Elizabeth Knox. (Wonderful and beautifully written story about a vintner in 19th century France who becomes a friend, then lover of a fallen angel) and also a noblewoman who knows his secret).

Currently watching: Well, apart from Alien, nothing. 

Currently consuming: A fic by @naryaflame and also by @thegentlestmaenad. Not at the same time of course, but they’re both bookmarked.

Currently craving: A holiday in Wales :)  I have family there. And I found a place right slap bang next to an old church with a holy well. And yes, I’ll definitely be in that churchyard in the dusk for the atmosphere and fic ideas :)

Tagging…I know a few people pretty well and have known them for years, but tagging @polutrope, @maedhros-with-both-hands @greenlavanders @g-m-kaye @elvenmoans @cuarthol @elennalore @awesome-bluehair-universe @thegentlestmaenad @z-h-i-e @thenookienostradamus @nocompromise-noregrets @moni-the-honey

[ninja-muse]

2021 TBR - Mid-Year Update

Okay, so the number of crossouts on my original list is vaguely ridiculous and I’m still adding stuff, so here’s a new one!

As usual, there are too many good books coming out and I need to read them all right now. What’s on your list for the year? Do we share any? Have I added any to your list? (All titles are adult unless stated otherwise.)

First Light - Casey Berger - January 1 (space opera)

Padoskoks - Joseph Bruchac - January 7 (mystery)

The Ruthless Lady’s Guide to Wizardry - C.M. Waggoner - January 12 (fantasy)

The Ratline - Phillip Sands - February 2 (history)

The Absolute Book - Elizabeth Knox - February 9 (fantasy)

A Dark and Hollow Star - Ashley Shuttleworth - February 23 (YA fantasy)

Accidentally Engaged - Farah Heron - March 2 (contemporary romance)

A Fatal Thing Happened On the Way to the Forum - Emma Southon - March 9 (history)

Birds of Paradise - Oliver K. Langmead - March 16 (contemporary fantasy)

Raft of Stars - Andrew J. Graff - March 23 (historical fiction)

Nöthin’ But a Good Time - Richard Bienstock and Tom Beaujour - March 30 (music history)

A Little Devil in America - Hanif Abdurraqib - March 30 (sociology)

What Abigail Did That Summer - Ben Aaronovitch - March 18 (contemporary fantasy)

The Fall of Koli - M.R. Carey - March 23 (post-apocalypse)

Wild Women and the Blues - Denny S. Bryce - March 30 (historical fiction)

The Helm of Midnight - Marina Lostetter - April 13 (fantasy)

The Last Watch - J.S. Dewes - April 20 (space opera) DNF

Between Perfect and Real - Ray Stoeve - April 27 (YA contemporary)

When You Get the Chance - Tom Ryan and Robin Stevenson - May 4 (YA contemporary)

African Europeans - Olivette Otele - May 4 (history)

Angel of the Overpass - Seanan McGuire - May 11 (fantasy)

The Hellion’s Waltz - Olivia Waite - May 11 (historical romance)

A Master of Djinn - P. Djèlí Clark - May 11 (alternate history/fantasy)

Son of the Storm - Suyi Davies Okungbowa - May 11 (fantasy)

The Album of Dr. Moreau - Daryl Gregory - May 18 (science fiction)

Pumpkin - Julie Murphy - May 25 (YA contemporary)

Hani and Ishu’s Guide to Fake Dating - Adiba Jaigirdar - May 25 (YA contemporary)

The Kingdoms - Natasha Pulley - May 25 (alternate history)

The Lights of Prague - Nicole Jarvis - May 25 (historical fantasy)

How to Find a Princess - Alyssa Cole - May 25 (contemporary romance)

The Ship of Stolen Words - Fran Wilde - June 1 (middle grade fantasy)

One Last Stop - Casey McQuiston - June 1 (romance)

An Unlikely Spy - Rebecca Starford - June 1 (historical fiction)

Dead Dead Girls - Nekesa Afia - June 1 (historical mystery)

The Library of the Dead - T. L. Huchu - June 1 (contemporary fantasy) DNF

The Witness for the Dead - Katherine Addison - June 22 (fantasy)

This Poison Heart - Kalynn Bayron - July 6 (YA fantasy)

Lake Crescent - J. J. Dupuis - July 6 (mystery)

Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead - Emily Austin - July 6 (contemporary)

Appleseed - Matt Bell - July 13 (literary fiction) DNF

A Radical Act of Free Magic - H.G. Parry - July 20 (historical fantasy)

She Who Became the Sun - Shelley Parker-Chan - July 20 (historical fantasy)

The Middle Ages: a Graphic History - Eleanor Janega - July 23 (graphic non-fiction) decided against it

Small Favors - Erin A. Craig - July 27 (YA fantasy)

Summer Fun - Jeanne Thornton - July 27 (contemporary)

The Rocky Road to Ruin - Meri Allen - July 27 (cozy mystery)

Clark and Division - Naomi Hirahara - August 3 (historical mystery)

Sisters in Arms - Kaia Alderson - August 3 (historical fiction)

The Bookseller’s Secret - Michelle Gable - August 17 (historical) DNF

My Heart is a Chainsaw - Stephen Graham Jones - August 31 (horror)

The History of Magic - Chris Gosden - August 31 (history)

No Gods, No Monsters - Cadwell Turnbull - September 7 (contemporary fantasy)

Matrix - Lauren Groff - September 7 (historical fiction)

The All-Consuming World - Cassandra Khaw - September 7 (space opera) DNF

When Sorrows Come - Seanan McGuire - September 14 (contemporary fantasy)

Fuzz - Mary Roach - September 14 (science)

The Escapement - Lavie Tidhar - September 21 (fantasy?)

Hurricane Lizards and Plastic Squid - Thor Hanson - September 28 (science)

Along the Saltwise Sea - Seanan McGuire - October 12 (portal fantasy)

The Cabinet - Un-Su Kim - October 12 (science fiction)

ExtraOrdinary - V.E. Schwab - October 12 (superhero graphic novel)

The Haunting Season - October 21 (ghost stories)

A Marvellous Light - Freya Marske - November 2 (historical fantasy)

Books and Libraries: Poems - Andrew Scrimgeour, ed. - November 2 (poetry)

The Undertakers - Nicole Glover - November 9 (historical fantasy)

The Sentence - Louise Erdrich - November 9 (contemporary fantasy?)

The Nobleman’s Guide to Scandal and Shipwrecks - Mackenzi Lee - November 16 (YA historical)

Elder Race - Adrian Tchaikovsky - November 16 (science fiction)

Rivers of London, Vol. 9 - Ben Aaronovitch - November 16 (graphic novel, urban fantasy)

A Snake Falls to Earth - Darcie Little Badger - November 23 (YA contemporary fantasy)

The Liar’s Knot - M.A. Carrick - December 7 (fantasy)

Spin Me Right Round - David Valdes - December 7 (YA time travel)

Tread of Angels - Rebecca Roanhorse - possibly? (historical fiction) no date

[fediscoun]

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[capnkerfufflez]

Enjoy some angsty minecraft oc art for your troubles

[tabloidtoc]

Life & Style, May 10

You can buy a brand new copy of this issue without the mailing label for your very own at my eBay store: https://www.ebay.com/str/bradentonbooks

Cover: Celeb Diet & Fitness Tips

Page 1: Photo Flash -- Tom Cruise is well known for doing his own stunts, but during a location shoot in Yorkshire, U.K. for Mission: Impossible 7, Tom's co-stars Hayley Atwell and Esai Morales proved they were no slouches either: all three actors wowed onlookers with their daredevil moves aboard a train that was in motion

Page 2: Contents

Page 4: The Top 10 Floral Looks -- follow these stars' style lead and celebrate the spring season in fresh prints -- Penelope Cruz, Lupita Nyong'o, Heidi Klum, Sofia Vergara, Kelsea Ballerini

Page 5: Cate Blanchett, Elle Fanning, Gabrielle Union, Kathryn Newton, Mindy Kaling

Page 6: There's no limit to what Angelina Jolie wouldn't do for her kids and instead of living abroad, she purchased a home for them in L.A. because she wanted it to be close to their dad Brad Pitt and now, Angie reveals she's had to give up her dream of directing because she had a change in her family situation that's not made it possible for her to direct for a few years and she needed to just do shorter jobs and be home more, so she went back to doing a few acting jobs -- Angie filed for divorce from Brad in 2016 and while they were declared legally single in 2019, the former couple have yet to settle on a permanent custody arrangement for kids Pax, Zahara, Shiloh, and twins Knox and Vivienne while at age 19, son Maddox Jolie-Pitt is able to make his own decisions about whom he lives with and Angelina is blowing through millions of dollars on lawyers and she isn't broke, but she can't exactly afford to stop working either and amid mounting legal bills, Angie's signed on to blockbusters like Maleficent: Mistress of Evil and Marvel's Eternals and while Angelina would rather work behind the scenes, it's too time-consuming and as an actress, she can make ends meet and be there for her kids

Page 8: Less than a month after giving birth to her third child, a baby girl named Mae, Hilary Duff is opening up about the pressure that comes with breastfeeding, saying all of the babies latch really great but she's just not a huge milk producer, so it's emotional for her and she has tons of anxiety, and then she's in her head, and then she doesn't feel like enough, and then the spiral continues from there -- she decided to share her postpartum struggle as a way to cope and to let other new mothers out there know that they're not alone in this

* Sarah Jessica Parker is trying to convince Hugh Grant to star in the upcoming Sex and the City reboot because it's unlikely Chris Noth will be returning as Mr. Big, so she needs a new leading man and Hugh's the perfect candidate -- Sarah Jessica finds him so charming and talented and she was blown away by Hugh's recent acting in The Undoing so she's desperate to have him on the show -- Sarah Jessica, who appeared alongside Hugh in 1996's Extreme Measures and 2009's Did You Hear About the Morgans?, absolutely loves the idea of working with Hugh again and he hasn't agreed to anything yet, but she's hoping he'll say yes

Page 12: The Week in Photos -- Bathing Beauties -- Sailor Brinkley-Cook and her rescue pup Chester, Rita Ora on the sand of Bondi Beach in an orange bikini, Kate Hudson celebrated the launch of Fabletics new active swim line by jumping in the pool

Page 13: Olivia Culpo in a green bikini, Vanessa Hudgens in a red-halter swimsuit

Page 14: James Corden dressed up as rapper Bad Bunny's arch rival Good Bunny for a sketch on The Late Late Show

Page 16: Stars Behaving Badly -- Derek Hough played makeup artist for Hayley Erbert, Total Bellas twins Nikki Bella and Brie Bella put Bachelor Nation's Jason Tartick and Matt James in headlocks at Wrestlemania, host T.J. James let his tongue do the talking on the NYC set of Good Morning America

Page 18: Say What?! Mark Wahlberg on trying to put on 30 pounds in six weeks for the movie Father Stu, Selena Gomez on her Only Murders in the Building co-stars Steve Martin and Martin Short, Margaret Josephs on five decades of wearing fake eyelashes, Jamie Dornan on his devotion to The Golden Girls

Page 20: Chris Hemsworth landed in hot water with Elsa Pataky after pics of him hanging out with Australian stunner Cheyenne Tozzi hit the internet -- Chris was photographed with the model at Zambi Wildlife Retreat in Wallacia while his wife was off shooting Interceptor in Sydney and it's definitely put Elsa on high alert and she had a lot of questions for Chris when they finally spoke and Chris said he had the kids with him and it was all very innocent -- the couple has often been at odds over their careers and while Chris and Elsa try to coordinate their schedules so that their children, daughter India and twin sons Sasha and Tristan, are always with one parent, Elsa was usually the one forced to put family before fame, but now that Elsa's been working more, she's not always home like she used to be, and this little incident was a huge wake-up call because she might trust Chris, but she isn't stupid: who would want their handsome husband running around with a blond bombshell?

Page 21: Real Housewives of Atlanta alum Claudia Jordan is alleging that Kanye West made a move on her while he was still with Kim Kardashian, saying he tried years ago when she and Nikki Chu were in the club and they shut the door and she had met him before and she hung out with Kim as well and because of Girl Code, she couldn't do it

* Jennifer Lopez isn't wasting any time getting back on the dating scene after splitting from Alex Rodriguez -- J. Lo can't help feeling that she squandered a good couple of years on A-Rod and she doesn't want another ring; she just wants to have fun

Page 22: Cover Story -- Stars' Summer Body Secrets Revealed -- discover the diet and fitness tricks these celebs swear by -- Gwen Stefani's shedding for the wedding, Julianne Hough skips the gym

Page 23: Kate Hudson's flat belly formula, total transformations: Adele, Rebel Wilson

Page 24: Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker engaged on her 42nd birthday -- after just four months of dating, Kourtney and Travis are ready to take the next step in their romance

Page 26: The Osbournes: Family in Crisis -- personal, professional and physical setbacks plague Ozzy Osbourne and Sharon Osbourne and their daughter Kelly Osbourne -- after a heated on-air argument over Piers Morgan's treatment of Meghan Markle, Sharon was accused of racism toward co-hosts behind the scenes -- Ozzy's health is always an issue and he's had to rehab from pneumonia, neck surgery and more over the past few years but he's stubborn and acts like he's still a young rock star -- while she's back in AA, Kelly was scared to admit she'd relapsed while her mom was dealing with her own scandal

Page 28: Prince William and Duchess Kate: Stepping Up for Queen Elizabeth -- as the queen grapples with tremendous loss, Prince William and Kate Middleton provide support -- a frail-looking Queen Elizabeth sat alone due to COVID-19 restrictions at the funeral of Prince Philip, whom she called her strength and stay and the loss has been even harder than she expected -- William and Kate are lightening the queen's load and they worked on the queen birthday to give her time to mourn

Page 30: John Travolta breaks his silence on losing Kelly Preston -- for the first time since Kelly's death, John opens up about his personal journey through grief

Page 36: Who Lives Here? Rihanna

Page 38: Beauty Beat -- spring's prettiest pastel polish -- embrace warm weather with a lacquered look the complements the season -- Jennifer Lopez

Page 40: Diva or Down-to-Earth? Alison Brie shopped for her own groceries at Gelson's in L.A. -- down-to-earth, Rachel Brosnahan's hairstylist went to work in between scenes of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel in NYC -- diva, Kylie Jenner kicked up her heels on a private plane -- diva

Page 42: Social Stars Posts of the Week -- Kerry Washington stopped and smelled the roses, Snoop Dogg and Blake Shelton, Melissa McCarthy and Jason Bateman looked straight out of the '80s in a scene from the latest movie Thunder Force, Nicole Scherzinger in a bikini in Hawaii

Page 44: Horoscope -- Taurus Adele turned 33 on May 5

* They're Not Together, But They Should Be -- Sagittarius Ashley Benson and Cancer Chace Crawford

Page 48: What I'm Into -- Mayim Bialik

[pernatius]

Lost in Space Part 11: Ch 2

Previous 

Summary: Finally, on Commander Knox’s spaceship, the trio finds themselves running out of time before the commander becomes an all too powerful Watcher.

Lost in Space on Tumblr

Lost in Space on ao3

Both grab the doorway. Like with Ashley, both Tauvoxes were fitted with gauntlets, but theirs are fingerless. Their sheer strength bends the walls and stretches them, breaking the glass part of it. We cover our eyes from the flying of sharp, translucent material. 

Shiitake grabbed Saamuki and me and shoved us down as the two of them thrust their claws at us. They ripped through the circular wall behind us, shattering the already cracking glass and tearing through the metal, and graze against Shiitakee’s arm. The cuts are minor, but he still cringes at the pain. It will take him seconds to heal, but I still am stricken at seeing his blood. 

Saamuki pushes the two minotaurs away from us with her powers. She lashes a blue ray of light at them. They skid across the floor, but not too far from us because both giants grab the floor before they can be forcibly thrown any further. It’s still enough distance to give us time to get out of that cramped, broken space. 

The leftover glass behind us continues to crack until it eventually shatters. Just in time yet again and yet again, it’s Shiitakee that protects us when he catches Khavas’ fist. The long, thick, and stringy vegetable tissues that make up his arms and legs expand a moment after the impact, nearly tearing apart. They contract back after when he stops sliding backward, but his body proceeds to shake from having to stop a mass triple his mass. 

Shiitakee is on one knee when he asks through his whimpering, “Any of you going to step in?”

Mikrovos comes up from behind the bigger Tauvox. His shadow engulfs the wilting mushroom. He’s about to turn Shiitakee into a pancake until Saamuki blasts him. She runs over to him with glowing blue fists when he falls with a hard thud. I get out my sword again and step over to help Shiitakee, but the Tauvox he’s engaging with points his free hand at me. The gauntlet stretches and clutches me, and when I’m lifted several feet in the air, he tightens his grip until I feel my ribs cracking. I scream, flail, and try to keep my sword from slipping out of my shaking hand. 

Even with my limited mobility, I try jerking my sword at my suffocating seal. It merely clinks rather than cutting me free. 

Saamuki punches Mikrovos across his face, but he follows it up with his own punch. She dodges that and even catches the next one, but she doesn’t get to counter his kick. The kick from the beefy alien flings the flail alien, causing her to come barreling back towards the elevator, but she readjusts herself so that her feet hit it instead of her back—the metal dents around her feet. 

Just like with Khavas, Mikrovos extends one of his gauntlets towards her. She tries blasting at it, but she’s too slow. Saamuki is grabbed too, but he swung her over us, across the room, and then let go when she passed us. 

Saamuki smashes through the roof, and I am sent falling back down. We crash into the floor. Someone screams as soon as we do. 

My body tried to relent. It screamed at me, but I forced it to get back up. Breathing became difficult. It is as if a Tauvox is sitting on me, pressing their mass onto my chest. Considering my chest has collapsed in on itself as I can see through blurry eyes that some pieces of ribs have pierced through my skin, of course, with my squirting blood, the feeling makes sense. Standing back up is met with slipping and falling back down face first. I still have my sword in my hand through my struggles, which I transform into a shield and get my blaster out. I try aiming it at Khavas because he’s currently engaged in a brawl with Shiitake. This is probably the first time I’ve ever seen him truly mad. Annoyed he’s been, but nothing even remotely close to this. He swings left and right, giving no time for Khavas to do anything but be his punching bag. With every swing, his fists crack, but they quickly reknit. The same is said for Khavas, but his nanites can’t process fast enough because of the downright brutal jabs. His chest is covered in bruises, a sizable second-degree burn, and his face is covered in his blood. He can’t stand anymore, and I think I can see pieces of rib have torn through his flesh as well. The Tauvox goes unconscious, hitting the floor; the out of breath victor tries cooling his smoking hands by shaking them about. Although his victory doesn’t last long. Mikrovos brings himself back into our senses, Shiitakee’s mainly, when he grabs the worn mushroom’s face. 

I crawl out of that crater and limp towards them. I shoot as well, but he blocks all but one. It digs into his flesh, dispersing a clump of fur on his cheek, and twists it until it comes out of him. Mikrovos huffs then while squeezing the now squirming Shiitakee. Something takes over me. Is this what Ojos was talking about? Heart racing, everything in the room blurs but him. I don’t feel the pain anymore. I didn’t even realize I dived away from his fist and smashed the shield into his stomach, cutting into it, but as soon as the collision occurs, Shiitakee’s head explodes in his grip. 

He drops the headless Shiitakee. Around Shiitakee’s twitching body is his blood gushing out of his neck and pooling underneath him. I turn back to the beast above me and look into his lifeless eyes. I shove my shield upwards. It smashes his face. His head juts back, and when he returns it forward, I see that his nose is bleeding, but I shove the shield again into his face. He growls and reforms both of his hands into blades. They are rammed towards my neck, but I shoot into his mouth, missing his spinal cord. It’s now his attention is focused on himself. Mikrovos presses down on the wound, covering the spurting blood. 

I’m crying, but I’m smiling. I’m too scared to mourn yet. “It’s because of you I’m standing before you. You’ve saved my life, my dear friend, too many times. Now I am going to save yours once and for all.” My shield’s fire soars onto me. It consumes me as I transform the broad piece of metal into a war hammer. The weapon, the biggest one I’ve ever had to create, has two faces on either side as big as the Tauvox’s face. Without this invigorating feeling, I wouldn’t be able to hold this monstrous weapon upright with just a single hand. I wouldn’t be able to hold it at all.

I ready myself, widening my stance and tightening my grip. The hole in Mikrovos’ neck must’ve been patched up because he returns his focus onto me and stretches both his gauntlets towards me. I outmaneuver some and strike the rest. Shoot, too, as I’m circling around and inching closer towards him. Mikrovos evades all of them. I knew he would, and I made such a seemingly pointless effort because it made it all that much easier to get onto one of his gauntlets and dash across the rippling armor. Upon noticing how close I am to him, he tries batting me off with his other hand. I slid under it and beat my hammer on his forehead. 

Another Tauvox lay knocked out. Both will get up soon, but I still head to the comrade I have left and begin to carry her away from the brutality. Upon my touch, she begins to wake up, but she’s groggy. 

“S-Shiitakee...Where is he?” Her eyes move around the room until she spots what’s left of the man in question. She tears up, but she can’t bring herself to cry. I place her head on my chest. We stand there in silence as my eyes linger on Shiitakee’s lifeless body. I still can’t bring myself to cry, but I can bring myself to bring our focus back to the bright room at the end of this hallway. Both of us drag our feet. 

The crystal is colossal and purple. Besides the size and color difference compared to the Tauvoxes’ spaceship, this crystal is covered in beating veins. They cover the room as well. What was once an energy source now looks to have become a parasite. Stepping inside the room validates that assumption because the two of us become weak. She’s slipping in and out of consciousness, her eyes flick from blue to its regular color, as streams of blue light emanating from her float towards the sickly rock, and now I’m having trouble keeping us both upright. When I get on my knees, she moves a trembling glowing blue hand towards me. I, in turn, grab it with a fiery one. 

Our unworldly powers blend into each other and surround us, creating a rainbow-colored bubble. Our energy comes back to us, but we find out we have our backs to Commander Knox as he slowly claps. I have my blaster ready to blow off his head, and she’s ready to blast him into deep space to choke on his failure, but he grabs the two of us before we can and throws us further into the room.

We go tumbling, and as I do, I see he rips into particles. He teleports on top of me and presses down on my neck with his foot. Saamuki comes right behind him and blasts a blinding ray of light. That would’ve easily killed Cala, but Knox reaches out towards it. The blast doesn’t even scratch the metal arm. He grabs her face and throws her across the room. She goes right through the wall across from us and several others beyond it. 

Knox laughs at my pitiful attempts at trying to pry him off. I feel myself growing weaker again. “I didn’t get a good look at you the last time we saw each other, cousin. What an ugly sight you are.”

“Your people have gotten this far yet none have created a mirror.”

“A true shame, isn’t it? But I don’t need one when I know the beauty I carry, centuries worth of splicing and dicing our DNA with some of the most powerful civilizations.”

“Power, but the catch was your humanity.”

He grabs my collar and lifts me up. Then, slams me into the wall directly facing us. “Your people would do the same things I have done. In fact, they have done them—wars and slavery. Our histories have always been about atrocities. It should not be a surprise a semi-human would be at the forefront of the second intergalactic war, but we’ve always done it all for a reason.

“So, now I’m here asking why you are trying to stop me? Humans have made Earth a living hell, but they’ve also made it one of the best planets in the universe. I’ve caused destruction. Beyond these walls, thousands are dying as we speak, but sacrifices must be made to make the universe a better place.

“The Lords are merely puppets. They do not care for us, but I do. Do you really think it doesn’t hurt me knowing so many are dying out there?”

 I don’t respond. 

“This is the part where you explain yourself before I kill you.”

“How did you even know we would be here?”

“Instead, you bring out a question rather than an answer? Fine. Relieving you of your worries is the only mercy I can grant you.

“That idiot Syco, a child that kissed the ground I walked on, has been missing my calls, so of course I began to question. I wondered for some time if he finally moved on from his daddy issues. Thankfully my suspicions were proven to be right long before you entered my ship.” He snaps his fingers. S1Y jumps down from the roof with a familiar, limp shape over his shoulder. He throws Skeema’s pummeled body towards us. 

Skeema’s eyes are swollen shut, his legs are bent the wrong way, and he is covered in dried blood. He’s breathing, but barely. “I’m sorry,” he mumbled out. 

Another snap of his fingers and one of S1Y’s hands impales him. 

“Skeema!”

Because of the state that Virmus is in, he doesn’t relent when S1Y yanks his still-beating heart out. The robot squeezes it until it explodes. I cry out. 

“There are plenty of places to hide on this ship, but there’s only so much time before a rat becomes hungry. He survived far longer than I calculated. I’ll give him that.”

Once more my fire envelopes me. I punch the Virmus’ commander square in the face with such a force he lets go of me and crashes into his crystal. He lands back on the ground with a shaking body and looks up at me with the broadest, toothy grin I’ve ever seen from anyone. 

S1Y is about to engage me, but with the third snap of Knox’s fingers, the robot returns to being an audience member. Knox dusts himself off. 

“All of you messed up fucks only know how to care about yourselves! You make us pawns in your sick little game, but us pawns are people just like you. We have history. We have thoughts. We have feelings. All so meaningful, precious, but it takes you to be brought to your lowest for you to finally understand that, so that’s what I’m going to do. I’m going to cut off that stupid smile off your horrid face.”

“The outdated fighting against its perfect form?”

“More like it’s broken form.” In an instant, I’m in front of him with my longsword about to slice off his head. He stops me from doing so with just a single finger pressing against the blade. Again, not even a cut. He smirks as my eyes widen.

“I am God and in these few minutes you have left I will make you understand that.”

[the-roanoke-society]

i was working in the lab late one night...

when my eyes beheld an eerie sight...

welcome to the final post of horror aus for halloween 2020! i hope you all enjoyed the ride. i apologize for not having everything ready on halloween like i originally planned. remember that the inbox and dms are always open for questions, comments and concerns. if you missed them, here are parts one, two and three. all warnings still apply, so be forewarned.

i know things are scary right now. but to quote the infamous n. gaiman: fairy tales are more than true: not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten.

take it from me when i say that we outnumber the monsters of this world--and more importantly, take heart.

click below the cut if you, too, like doing the monster mash (no offense but it is kind of a graveyard smash...)

there’s bloodstains beneath the carpet - a ∆ au inspired by the super, co-starring technical officer drake and @agents-of-virtue​'s agent annabelle

it was a new start. for both drew and matthew. a new city, shining with opportunities and adventure. they had no shortage of hope--but maybe did have a little shortage of cash.

all the same, the knox-edwards boarding house wasn’t that bad. grimy and with a level of grunge akin to a garage band circa 1995, sure, but nothing unbearable.

but as drew was stuck in the hallway holding up their couch, matthew trying to figure out who needed to pivot and in what direction in order to not have furniture stuck in the doorway, he overheard it:

“what? another one? are you serious?”

two people were walking down the hallway, and they didn’t look to be much older than himself, or matthew. a man and woman, close together, as if they were conspiring.

“wait, drew, i think i got it, turn left a little bit--”

“as a heart attack. that makes it four people in three months. i’m telling you bekah, something fuckin’ weird in goin’ on here. people don’t just up and vanish from their own homes, and--oh!”

“drew! are you listening to me? turn it left!”

oh shit. oh shit. don’t act like you were obviously eavesdropping, maybe they didn’t notice...

“drew!”

“hi!”

welp. all right. be cool.

“uh--hello!” but he yelped when matthew unexpectedly let go of the couch, and it landed on the ground with a hard thud.

but drew was still processing what he heard. four people in three months? what did that mean?

mini soundtrack sampler includes: rockwell, ‘somebody’s watching me’ + absofacto, ‘dissolve’ + barns courtney, ‘99′

won’t you cut me down? - a second chances au inspired by seven in heaven

joan, normally, wasn’t so forward. at least, not a society-thrown event where multiple agencies were represented, and especially not when he knew lilith was around and not above reprimanding an agent in front of god and everyone else in the room.

but he’d had quite a bit to drink.

the evening was winding down.

and josie... josie was breathtaking.

he couldn’t help it.

“joan--joan!” she laughed as he turned her, taking her elbow and leading her down a hallway close to one of the larger coat closets. “what are you d--”

her voice cut off abruptly to the tune of joan’s mouth on hers, and the closing of a closet door.

joan didn’t stop to think about how this particular door wasn’t room he distinctly remembered. he was tipsy and enamored and his wife consumed his senses. he didn’t care.

but he did care a while later, after they’d made themselves presentable again and opened the door to a manor that was much, much quieter than he was expecting.

and josie felt it too.

it was an odd sensation, to feel that he’d stepped out of one place and into another entirely.

josie asked quietly, “where... where did everyone go?”

mini soundtrack sampler includes: jack white, ‘i’m shakin’‘ + konrad old money & sleep steady, ‘rage’ + k. flay, ‘blood in the cut’

my hands are growing colder - an inverse functions au inspired by eli

ginny knew erik wasn’t broken. she would rather have faced down a demon or some unholy thing sprung out of the gate than ever describe him like that.

but he was--unique.

beyond the understanding of most medical doctors, at least. even aly and caroline were struggling to treat his symptoms. it was like he’d become allergic to everything around him over the course of just a few days. his symptoms were sudden, severe, and left her nervous.

it wasn’t just allergies. she knew that. and if she had to seek help outside of the society, then so be it. all that mattered to her was seeing him brought back to health.

and late one night, during a despair-fueled search through some files in the archives that looked like they hadn’t been touched in years, she found a name: dr. isabella horn.

the fact that lacey, who’d been overseeing the roanoe medical wards for ages, hadn’t heard of her, should have been a warning.

but desperate times call for desperate measures.

the next day, they were on their way to a facility in the middle of the midwest--though ‘facility’ wasn’t quite the right word. it looked more like a mansion, with nothing but wheat fields all around as far as they eye could see. the horizon was only broken by the occasional oil derrick.

and they were surprised when they had to be buzzed through pressurized, completely sterile chambers to even get inside.

but there, right at the front of the welcoming committee, was a woman with dark eyes, and an easy smile.

“good afternoon! you must be ginny and erik, welcome. i’m dr. horn.”

but ginny didn’t trust her grin.

and that should have been the second warning.

mini soundtrack sampler includes: stevie wonder, ‘superstitious’ + the killers, ‘when you were young’ + the revivalists, ‘wish i knew you’

i saw your bones on the road - a pastel goth au inspired by the silence

meli would look back on it and realize with no small sense of irony how loud it was when it began.

the screaming, the terror. how she blasted her spotify on her furious drive to guiliana’s house in the blessedly quiet suburbs, eyes constantly searching the sky. she knew that the responsible thing to do would be to listen to the coverage on the radio, but honestly? she’d heard enough. she had more than half a brain, and she knew exactly what to do.

get her girlfriend and head--okay, maybe she didn’t know exactly what to do.

but giuliana was smart. they’d figure it out together.

the government didn’t know what they were, exactly. nobody did. meli only knew that they were calling them vesps.

it was a word that she mulled over frantically. linguistics was always a welcome distraction. she thought she’d heard it before, but all she could think of was the latin vespere. it roughly translated to ‘from the evening,’ or ‘from the night.’

from the dark.

perhaps that was an apt name.

the sunset had painted the sky in shades that were obnoxiously beautiful given the circumstances, and her jeep lurched in protest as she abruptly slammed the gear shift into park in the glow of guiliana’s porch lights.

in the distance, she could hear shrieking--but not that of human beings.

mini soundtrack sampler includes: mourning ritual, ‘bad moon rising’ + twenty one pilots, ‘ride’ + royal blood, ‘trouble’s coming’

waiting for the vultures - a time traveler’s husband au inspired by the houses october built

it had been dara’s idea.

“oh it’ll be fun! think about it, italy and the states celebrate halloween with way, way different aesthetics. think of this as getting a sampler of how america does it,” she said, sitting in silvano’s lap, charm volume as far up as it would go.

and he agreed. “all right--okay. a grand adventure across the country hitting as many haunted houses as we can.”

“geez, try not to sound too excited.”

he murmured into her shoulder, “i’m mostly excited to spend time with you. but if a road trip through october is what you want, then that’s exactly what we’ll do.”

he was rewarded with kisses peppered all over his face and a very excited dara dragging him excitedly to best buy to pick up a camcorder. “what? of course we need a camera! if we record everything then it’s like--i don’t know. like it’s ours. we can go back to it whenever want, and we can show all our friends the cool places we saw when we get home!”

dara hadn’t known then.

she didn’t know it would start with one lone figure in a clown costume standing in front of the rv like he was going to charge at it. she didn’t know that they would end up surrounded, followed. abducted.

it had been dara’s idea.

and she would never forgive herself.

mini soundtrack sampler includes: van halen, ‘runnin’ with the devil’ + the 1975, ‘if you’re too shy (let me know)’ + afi, ‘miss murder’

[romancereadingdiva]

Top Reads of 2020!

Here are my top reads of 2020! These are the 5 👑 books that I read this year and would want with me if I somehow ended up on a deserted island! This year I wanted to keep my top reads to only one book per author unless it was a series, so I decided to have honorable mentions if an author wrote more than one book this year and I loved them all. 

In no particular order my top reads are the following:

👑 The Brayshaw series by Meagan Brandy. This series has strong heroines, alpha heroes and twisty storylines that had me riveted to the pages!

Start with book 1, Boys of Brayshaw High: https://www.meaganbrandy.com/bobh

👑 The Brilliance Trilogy by Lisa Renee Jones. I just love Lisa Renee Jones books! She knows how to write romantic suspense that keeps me engaged, and this one had music which made it perfect. 

Start with book 1, A Reckless Note: https://www.lisareneejones.com/brilliance-trilogy.html

👑 The next books in The Devils’s Due series by Eva Charles. I read the first 2 books in the series, Depraved and Delivered, last year, and they were on Top reads of 2019 list. I continued to love this series this year with Bound and Decadent about 2 different couples in The Devil’s Due universe. 

Info on The Devil’s Due books: https://evacharles.com/devils-due

👑 The Redemption by Nikki Sloane. This is Macalister’s story from the Filthy Rich Americans trilogy that was on my Top Reads of 2019. His redemption was incredible, and I loved his heroine. 

Filthy Rich Americans info: https://www.nikkisloane.com/filthy-rich-americans

▪️Honorable Mention: The Pool Boy. I loved and enjoyed this younger man/older woman romance so much!

Info on The Pool Boy, part of The Nashville Neighborhood series: https://www.nikkisloane.com/the-nashville-neighborhood

👑 In Fury Lies Mischief by Amo Jones. I am in love with this Midnight Mayhem series, and if I could live in this world then I would! The first book, In Peace Lies Havoc, was on my Top Reads of 2019 list. It continued with In Fury Lies Mischief, because Fury + Mischief = Magic! 

Info on the Midnight Mayhem series: https://www.amojonesbooks.com/midnight-mayhem

▪️Honorable mentions: all the other Amo Jones books I read this year which are: The Elite Kings Club series, Crowned Duology and Sicko. Her writing is just brilliant, & I highly recommend her.

Info on The Elite Kings Club series: https://www.amojonesbooks.com/the-elite-king-s-club

Info on the Crowned Duology: https://www.amojonesbooks.com/crowned-trilogy

Info on her standalone Sicko: https://www.amojonesbooks.com/flip-trick

👑 Lilac by BB Reid. This rock star reverse harem was all consuming. 

Info on Lilac: https://www.bbreid.com/lilac

▪️Honorable mention: the last book in her When Rivals Play series, The Prince and the Pawn. It was bittersweet because it ended, but it was a profoundly beautiful read. 

Info on The Prince and the Pawn: https://www.bbreid.com/the-prince-and-the-pawn

👑 Dear Ava by Ilsa Madden-Mills. Ava and Knox went through a lot in this book, especially Ava, and they have a piece a heart forever! 

Info on Dear Ava: https://www.ilsamaddenmills.com/books

▪️Honorable Mentions: I Promise You and The Renege Pact. I promise you will love I Promise You like I did if you read it! The Renege Pact was golden!

Info for I Promise You: https://www.ilsamaddenmills.com/books

Info for The Revenge Pact: https://www.ilsamaddenmills.com/

👑 Bury Me With Lies by SM Soto. This is the second part of the Twin Lies Duet; they first part, Kiss Me With Lies, was on my Top Reads of 2019 list. This conclusion was a beautifully written story of intense suspense and messy love that when combined took me on a rollercoaster ride of emotions that I remembered all year. 

Info on Bury Me With Lies: https://authorsmsoto.com/books/

▪️Honorable Mention: Chasing the Moon. This was a second chance romance of star crossed lovers that made me emotional throughout the story. 

Info on Chasing the Moon: https://authorsmsoto.com/

👑 Truly by Carmel Rhodes. Truly was truly remarkable and phenomenal! A new to me author this year, and I am so happy I found her! I

Info on Truly: https://carmelrhodes.com/

👑 Dark Legacy Complete Series by Tate James and Jaymin Eve. This was a twisty, suspense series with an intense romance between Riley (aka Butterfly) and Beck that I just loved. 

Info on the Dark Legacy Series: https://www.tatejamesauthor.com/dark-legacy

👑 Stroke of Midnight by K Webster. This was a filthy but delicious romance, and I can’t wait for book two which releases at the end of January!

Info on Stroke of Midnight: https://www.authorkwebster.com/product/stroke-of-midnight/

👑 Riot House by Callie Hart. A new to me author this year, and I am so happy I found her too! Bless Wren’s black heart, he had a plan for Elodie, but what happens when he falls for her? An amazing book is what happens, and the cover is stunning!

Info on Riot House: http://calliehart.com/index.php/book/riot-house/

👑 I Dare You by Lylah James. This is the second part of a duet; book one, Do You Dare?, was on my Top Reads of 2019 list. This book broke my heart and eventually put it back together, and I loved Maddox and Lila so much.

Info on I Dare You: https://authorlylahjames.com/truth-and-dare-duet/i-dare-you/

👑 The Reed Rivers Trilogy by Lauren Rowe: Bad Liar, Beautiful Liar and Beloved Liar. These books gave me life; I loved them so much! I had been waiting for Reed’s story, and it did not disappoint!

Info The Reed Rivers Trilogy: http://www.laurenrowebooks.com/reed-rivers-trilogy

▪️Honorable Mention: Smitten. I was smitten with this book from the first page to the last!

Info on Smitten: http://www.laurenrowebooks.com/smitten

👑 The Glass Heart Academy series by Lindsey Iler: Glass Heart Savage and Glass Heart Broken. This suspense/mystery mixed with an intense romance made for an unforgettable reading experience.

Info on The Glass Heart Savage: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/49268705-glass-heart-savage

👑 The Sainthood Trilogy by Siobhan Davis. This is another new to me author this year and I had been wanting to read her books. When the opportunity to read these as ARCs arrived, I took it! I am so ecstatic I did! A fierce heroine falling for four guys while trying to stop a bad guy was riveting to read. 

Info on The Sainthood Trilogy: http://siobhandavis.co.uk/the-sainthood-boys-of-lowell-high-series/the-sainthood-series-the-sainthood-boys-of-lowell-high-1-3/

👑 Not My Hero by Michelle Heard. This is not a hot and steamy romance; this is two broken souls finding each other, healing and slowly falling in love. It’s difficult to read because of the pain they each suffered, but it was beautiful and worth it. 

Info on Not My Hero: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/48578538-not-my-hero

👑 Midnight Sun by Stephenie Meyer. My list would not be complete without Edward on it! I had a few issues with this book, but it did not overshadow how much my love grew for Edward while reading.

Info on Midnight Sun: https://stepheniemeyer.com/midnight-sun-2020/

👑 How the Hitman Stole Christmas by Sam Mariano. I love her unconventional love stories, and this one was no different! Jasper kidnaps Autumn after stopping to help her on the side of the road, because he wants to bring a girlfriend home for Christmas. Fun times and romance ensues!

Info on How the Hitman Stole Christmas: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/55967138-how-the-hitman-stole-christmas

👑 A Guy Walk Into My Bar by Lauren Blakely. This author’s first M/M romance made me smile, laugh, swoon and touched my heart. 

Info on A Guy Walks Into My Bar: https://laurenblakely.com/aguywalksintomybar/

👑 The Billionaire’s Fake Fiancee by Annika Martin. I laughed out loud at this author’s rom-com about a fake relationship between a grumpy billionaire and his optimistic hairdresser that was steamy and swoony too! 

Info on The Billionaire’s Fake Fiancee: https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/55583284-the-billionaire-s-fake-fianc-e

👑 Crowne Point series books two, three and four by Mary Catherine Gebhard: Stolen Soulmate, Forbidden Fate, Destroyed Destiny. This author ripped out my heart, made me sob while holding on to the Kleenex box then eventually put my heart back in my chest. Story and Gray burrowed into my heart and will never leave.

Info on Crowne Point series: https://marygebhard.com/collections/crowne-point

👑 Royal Elite Series by Rina Kent. Elsa and Aiden (Deviant King, Steel Princess and Twisted Kingdom) captivated me from the beginning, and the couples which are friends or relatives of Elsa and Aiden that came after them did as well. I binged these books and love them with my whole heart. 

Info on Royal Elite Series: https://www.rinakent.com/royal-elite-series

▪️Honorable Mention: Royal Elite Epilogue. An epilogue for all the couples of the Royal Elite Series.

Info on Royal Elite Epilogue: https://www.rinakent.com/royal-elite-series

▪️Honorable Mention #2: Kingdom Duet. This Aiden’s father’s story. He was alpha, demanding, possessive, and I loved him. His heroine was sassy, strong and perfect for him. 

Info on the Kingdom Duet: https://www.rinakent.com/kingdom-duet

Thanks for sharing your time with me, and I hope you find and read amazing romance books from my Top Reads of 2020 list! 

[maxrev]

For ME relationship week by @cactuarkitty

Day 1 - first impressions

Less Than Stellar

Studying the dossiers of each crew member, Knox paused on one of them - Staff Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko, marine detail. What specifically caught his eye was where the LT was born. Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. 

So, he was a fellow Canadian.

He better not expect to share stories of 'you don't sound very Canadian' with him. Fellow soldiers expected them to talk a certain way, to be polite and considerate, which most thought Canadians were down to their core. 

Those things didn't exist in Knox's vocabulary...or lifestyle. He preferred to be left alone unless it was regarding missions or standard day-to-day affairs like rotations and personnel changes. 

Stashing his rucksack away and leaving the crew quarters, Knox began a self-tour of the ship. Anderson had planned on accompanying him, pointing out key elements of the ship's design, but had been called away at the last minute before they took flight. Something to do with the Council. 

He could certainly find his way around the ship on his own without his CO's guidance. Would have been nice, though, to find out if Anderson could impart exactly what this deployment was going to entail. In the end, he was very good at being patient. 

As he walked the ship, deck by deck, he heard talk stop abruptly when he passed other crew members having conversations. Knox knew well what others thought of him. He was the Butcher of Torfan after all, even earning a medal, the Star of Terra, for his heroism during the mission. 

A medal for getting nearly his whole squad killed while trying to save a colony - is what most thought. No one knew what it had been like. The only thing anyone remembered was he'd killed his fellow soldiers. 

He's a cold, ruthless, calculating son of a bitch. If he had a chit for every time he’d heard it said to his face or whispered as he walked by, he could rival Cerberus in funds. Long ago, before he’d even joined the Alliance, he’d learned not to let the opinion of others bother him or sway him from completing a mission. He knew he was the Alliance’s rabid dog; he’d heard those words more than once as well. 

They big brass came to him when they wanted something done without bloodying their own hands or sending in their precious golden boys. And golden boy made him think of Alenko. The perfect definition if Knox had ever seen one with exemplary commendations from past COs, the consideration of fellow soldiers and adherence to Alliance standards. All of this despite being a biotic. 

Something Knox knew all too well about. He’d experienced it himself but unlike the LT, who always seemed to play it safe, Knox used what he'd learned in the Reds to get the job done. Just barely crossing the line so as to not get kicked out of the military. Though, if he did, it didn't truly matter. He'd survive no matter what; he had before. Being in three Alliance just meant a higher, and steadier, paycheck. 

What intrigued him about the biotic was the mention of BaAT in the dossier. Alenko hadn’t graduated, which wasn’t a surprise, considering his age. He would have been there when the school was shut down. But...what more did the biotic know? 

The news reports had been vague. And since joining the Alliance, not a biotic among them hadn’t heard or speculated as to what happened and knew it was all hush-hush, as there was nothing to be found anywhere - other than the school had existed and had eventually shut down. Rather abruptly. 

He pushed his thoughts away for now. 

Besides the initial meet and greet of the immediate crew when he'd come on board, he’d not had a chance to talk to any of them at length. It was a part of the job he distinctly didn’t care for. Yet, he knew it was to his advantage to know the strengths and weaknesses they had. So, to that end, he’d seek them out, one by one, to learn any details he could beyond what he found in their dossiers. After that, he’d leave them the hell alone unless they sought him out specifically for anything required of him to take care of. Socialization was not something he sought out or cared for.

Avoiding the crew quarters unless it was down time was going to be an issue on this small of a ship. Had to be somewhere dark and quiet he could find time to himself. He'd find out soon enough. 

After a couple of hours touring every level, his stomach growled, a reminder he hadn’t eaten in awhile. While his biotics were useful in battle, he found it annoying having to recharge his energy so regularly. Constantly consuming calories when he could be doing something so much more productive. 

With a newly stocked ship, he hoped it meant the provisions would be decent, at least until they’d been underway awhile. Bracing himself to encounter a full mess, he headed there.

Taking the elevator up from his last stop in the docking bay, Knox stepped off to hear several voices coming from behind the wall where the mess was located. Nearing dinner time for the morning shift, those soldiers would all be ready for chow and then downtime before sleeping. Not usually following the hours he was assigned, he required less sleep than most. After eating, he planned on grabbing a book and making his way to the starboard lounge. Provided Anderson didn’t need him. 

Not having heard from him the whole time he was walking the ship, Knox surmised he was still speaking with the Council. 

He walked around the wall to find Alenko and Jenkins in a spirited conversation. The LT’s words were a bit short towards the young Marine who was a bit overzealous in Knox’s opinion.

Apparently, Alenko shared his views. 

“Don’t be wishing for action so soon, Jenkins. It’ll come in time and won't be what you expected. The battlefield isn't glamorous. Learn to relax and enjoy your downtime.” 

Jenkins deflated like a kicked puppy, taking his tray and going to sit next to some fellow soldiers who laughed at the exchange lightheartedly.

Approaching the line for food,  Knox grabbed a tray and followed behind the LT. Might as well start his getting-to-know-them routine now. 

“La recrue apprendra assez tôt, n'est-ce pas?” Knox inquired quietly as he grabbed some chow. 

The dark-haired man started, glancing over at him with a surprised look. After several awkward seconds, he responded with a hesitant “Oui.” 

He then turned and found a table to sit and eat. Knox felt ill at ease after the encounter, not something he was familiar with at all. At least, not since a young kid in the Reds. Feeling as if he’d somehow been chastised without the biotic ever saying a word, Knox took his own tray and sat down in an unoccupied corner. 

Eating slowly, prolonging the time in the mess in order to hopefully find a few quiet minutes to himself, Knox heard the soft but unmistakable sound of boot steps coming his way. Despite not looking up, he could tell when they stopped next to his table. Frustrated at someone already  wanting to bother him, he looked up...into the dark brown eyes of the LT. 

Thick black brows furrowed in the beginnings of a frown, Knox waited for him to speak, not about to start a conversation himself after the earlier fiasco. He waited. 

Clearly nervous, the LT rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, looked away, looked back again. Knox's impatience level was rising rapidly.  If Alenko didn’t spit out what was bothering him soon, he was getting up and leaving. Good relations be damned. 

Apparently, his impatience level was already tapped out as he barked, “Spit it out, Lieutenant.” 

The biotic winced, “S-sorry....,” he took a breath, steadied himself, “Sorry about earlier, sir. I...um...I don’t speak French very well. Took me several seconds to realize you were speaking to me and then I had to try and sort it out. Figured all of it out while I was eating.” 

Knox had momentarily forgotten the province of Vancouver was more English speaking than Toronto, where he’d grown up.

Now he felt like a jackass. Something else he wasn't well acquainted with.

Standing up and grabbing his tray, he paused to look at the LT. A blush had bloomed across his cheeks in embarrassment. Disgusted, Knox hoped he was better on the battlefield than this. He might have to leave him behind, seasoned soldier or not. Maybe Jenkins would be a better fit, even with too much enthusiasm and no experience. 

“My mistake. Won’t happen again.” Nodding to the biotic, Knox took care of his tray and left the mess. 

He didn’t see Alenko standing there awkwardly, thinking he’d already pissed off his new XO before they'd even left dry dock. 

“La recrue apprendra assez tôt, n'est-ce pas?” = The recruit will learn soon enough, won’t he?