#levana my beloved

[thelovelymachinery]

Imagine being so iconic and loved that your death actually changes Tobias Archernar. For the better!!! Like woah.

[likcthestar]

❛  i’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t distract me.  ❜

Cress squeaks, clearly terrified, but this is important. There are boxes upon boxes of firepox vaccines on the ship, and that is almost certainly what these people— this gang?— was after. She dreads to think if they knew they could make as much as they want, if they just grabbed her instead. Luckily no one seems to know just who it is on the ship that they’re looking for.

She hopes whoever this is that she’s allied with isn’t after her, either.

“I’m sorry, but there’s a cord over there, and if you just shoot it, the whole thing will fall and knock into them, and it’ll really make your life much—“ Easier. Cress stumbles back as the box they’re standing next to splinters. More bullets. She almost misses the fire of Levana.

[caliburn-the-sword]

i promise i am absolutely not the smartest whatsoever but i'll take the compliment because i like being called smart LOL. thank you <3

i reread little snow white because i wanted to fact check something but now that's led me down a rabbit hole. so here are either my corrections or predictions:

i mentioned that ryu was "the deer" that gets killed in winter's place. this is false. it was actually a boar in the fairy tale

the rampion crew (minus kai and cress because they're MIA) + wolf's mum are winter's equivalent of the 7 dwarfs. that was not a disneyified thing like i thought it was (only the silly names were disney)

the evil queen tries to kill snow white twice after the huntsman before making an attempt with the apple. i'm trying to decide whether those will all be winter's delusions in terms of the suffocating lace and poisonous comb or if some equivalent of those will be actual murder attempts levana makes. for those two i'm leaning towards delusions but the apple will DEFO be a real murder attempt obvi like it's literally on the front cover

cinder mentally tortured sybil to the point of her death using the lunar gift. part of me wonders if she's going to make levana hallucinate dancing in red hot shoes in the climax. that would be so brutal and i would LOVE that kind of thing. but perhaps it might be too dark considering levana already has trauma from fire. we'll see about that

i drafted this a few days ago. it was initially gonna be part of a reactions post but it was getting long and grimm brothers' little snow white deserved its own post. i think one of these predictions has already been proven wrong by what i read

[signedbybriar]

Kai after tricking Levana into relocating the wedding to Luna

[skadventuretime]

oh i see a cinderella retelling, that’s cute. ponytail RIGHTS iko my beloved. the k in kai stands for kpop. hm when will we get slipper payoff -- O H NO PUT IT BACK PUT IT everyone SHUT UP scarlet is my wife. he likES TOMATOES clenches fist. ANGRY WOMEN ANGRY WOMEN wolfletwolfletwolfletwolfletwolfetwolfle-- GRANDMEREEEEEEEEE she's mine o Hn O let scarlet keep the shotgun do it you won't. WOLFLETWOLFLETWOLFET. oh....oh no space rapunZEL YOUR HONOR SHE IS BABY. tech genius baby? hacker child??? THE SLUT IS HERE HAHAHA I HOPE YOU GET WRECKED EMOTIONALLY. f...fake married one bed (my god there was only one bed) WHERE IS MY WIFE MY BOY IS YEARNING (waaAAAAAIT for mE, i'm cOoOoOmiIIIIN) jacin bekiemccaeleigh clay. SHE'S MY ALPHA thorne voice 'that all sounds very dire' / 'you shouldn't tell someone you love them unless you mean it' haha that won't come back to hurt me (i have no ring for your finger, i have no banquet table to layYYYY) phantom of the opera levana??? hey that's uhh fucked up! :) evret my beloved WINTER MY DARLING (it's a sAAAAD s o O  N g) bodyguard princess bodygUARD PRINCESS "hey trouble" i am gnawing on the bars of my enclosure slaps blorbo this one can fit so much fierce yearning "and suddenly hades was only a man with a taste of nectar upon his lips" jacinterjacinterjacinter WOLFETWOLFLETWOLFLET wait put them back SLUT HACKER REUNION he's got it so bad hehe THE JUXTAPOSITION OF KAI'S WEDDING AND EVRET'S IN THIS ESSAY I WILL (whatcha gonna do when the chips are down, nOOOOOW THAT THE CHIPS ARE DOWN??) j̶̮̩̙̜͑̈́̐̏̋͗̅̅͂͋͝à̴̭̻̦͚̖̝͍̼̔̇̎̆͑̏̀͒́͑̎̾̄͝c̵̯̘̜͚̘̘͉̱̃͐̃i̶̢̢̧̤̔̊̏̆̌̾̏̈̍̌̋n̶̘̝̭̻͔̞͕̭̠͍͉̮̺̤̬̍͋̍̒̌̌͘̚t̶̨̘̺̘͚͕̹̯͒̋́e̵̡̨̡̧̡̧̻̹̫̙̳̪͇̿̈́̄͋̾̓͆̽r̴̈́̍͂̋́͝��̜̱̖̣͍̈́̈̄͊͛̚͝w̵͓̠̳̗̳̰͙̹̜͕͒͋̍̇̐͗͜o̴͍̿̓̀͛̾̍̐̉l̷̛̹̤̰͗̓̂́͌̐̄̓͆͑̇ͅf̵̹̦͈̩̘̙̀͋͗͆̀͒͆͜͝l̴̜̍͛̋̿͆̿̾͛͊͗̋̽̚͝͝ë̸̛̛̜̠̞̩͓̭͎̯̘̖͕̤́̑̇̊́̈́͋͗̄̀̐͜t̴̨̠̙̘̞̙̯̯̗̤̮̒̍͌̾̒̄͗͐̿̿̒͝j̵̛̣̾͌͊̉̅͋̅̍͆̉̑͝a̴͙̋c̷̡̰̺̱̺̗͕̯͐i̴̢͉̼̗̼̪̤̽̀͂͗̇͜͝͝N̶͇̫̟̽̈̀͌̄̅̄́̃̄͑͝͝T̵̼̗̬͕͖̬̳̘̟̻̜̱͖́̆͆̀̈́͑̒͗̽̀͝E̵̻̪͊̏̿̂̀͝R̵̫̜͎̀̽͐̎͒͗̌̈́̚͠͠W̸̖̠̫͈͇͚͇͓͕̹̼̺̗̊̍̎̉̔̃̃̑̑̊͜Ơ̷̧̡͇͚̝͈̣͖̞̦̠̿̒̇̐̚͜͝L̶̢͖̣͑͑̓͂͐F̶̖͇̱̋̿͑͐̆L̸̢̢͈̯̀̅̿̔̄̀̾̄͆̒̄̏̑͘̚Ë̷̢͕̞̲̙́͊̅͜T̷̡̛͍̥̟̼͕̀̐̈̈́̔̚͝ ̶̢̹̞̞̜͇̮̠̺̗̈́͜͠ͅJ̷̢̛͍̳̰͖̹̺͓͖̣̯͍̫͗̓̓́̀̈́̾̀͝ ̵̜̘͍̗̱͓̦̿̑̊̈́͋̌̎̌A̶̦̳͉͔̩̜͖͍̱̲̤͗̈̾̓̒̏̈́̈́̃͗́̉̚̚͝C̶̨̨̡͚͎͖̗̥̅̌͋̍̽̏̎͐͠ ̶̢̛͖̘̭͇̳̰́̅̒̿̃̏̇͛̐̅̕͠Ï̸͙̘͇̩̣̼̋́͊̒͒̈̿̆̓̆͜͝ͅN̵͔̗̤̝̦͙̽̃̈́̌̽̇̐̓́̓̃ ̸̡̗͖̲̮̹̎̈̐́̂̓͑̈̔̚Ṱ̵̡̨̡̡̨̛̲̫̻͔̝̗͚͐̈́̓̾̂̊̎͊́̓͗͋̚E̷̡̢̯̣̖̝͓͍̫̮̥͙͗̽̅͋͘͠ͅR̴̯̲̠̯͇̩̣̬͜͝ ̵͔̩̦͍͚̺̒̄̏͛̆͂͌́W̴̭͕͋͌̋͊͂̈́͘Ǫ̶̰͖̲͓̪̭͚̹͇͕̪̠̻͖͌̍͌͛̏̋̀̋̆̈́͊̚͝L̵̤͚̟̞͖̠̳̇͂̅̈́̉̀̓̊͛͘͝ ̸̨̲̹̫̩̠̏͑̉̾̆͠F̵̡̢̡̟͔̯̘̰̝̻̙̓͊͊̈́̽̓̔̾͒̾̆͝͝ͅȨ̴̠͓̜̬̬͙̭̱̥̹͗̑̂̈͂̓̑͛͗̾̓͛̚͘͠Ļ̸̮͍͙̝̰̔͒͂̈́̇͂͘͝E̶̡̛̺̝͙͉̹̱͚͚̪̭̦̗̒̑̂̿̂̓͜͜Ţ̴̨̮̥̼͍̺̗͚̫̖̭̩͚̔̅̎̉͌̿̓͊͠͝ ̵̗͓̺͓̗̜̰̝̲̱̱͓̥̓̾̍̈́̋͑Ę̴̨̧̨̛̟̲̼̟́͂̄͒̆̑͜N̴͉͇̪̗̣͚͂E̴̛͉̣̾̈́̽͝T̵͉̩͍̺̠͇̺̓̿̈͆̓̌͊̚͠Ȑ̴͇̠͊͆̿̋̋̈̚͝Ř̸͚͇̲̾̾̑́̓̍̍͑̒̆̆͝J̷̈́̋͐͐̓̈́̿͛͆̕͜C̴͕̣̙̫͍͇̳̪͉̖̳̞̘̤͂ͅV̶̛̟̠̻͕̺̊̑̎̋̓̑́̀̓̋͝͝Č̷̼̮͍͖̱̈́͒̄̓̑̿̒̏͠H̷̟̟̖̰̞͇̽̃̀̏̋̓̊̿͑̎͘J̴̢̨̧̜͈̣̩̙͔̲̹̩̳̱̰̀̿̇̓̓̎̉̾̈́̌̚͝͝Ě̷̡͙̹̱̠̺̭̮̳̯̭̄́̚Ǒ̸͎̮͙͍̤̽̒̾͆̂̽̀̎͑̾̕͘͝K̴̢̭̲͈̠̖͚͚͖̪͓͓̮͆͜ͅÖ̴̩̜̤̮̯̳́̍̓͘͜͝ͅF̴̨̯͂̇̀̒Ķ̶̨̨̦̭̟͔͕͈̳̮̗͖̲͛̂̾͗̒̀̉͗͐͊̿̽̒͝ͅS̵̛̯͇̉̇́̀̑̊͂͒͑̐̉̾̒Ẹ̶̬̮̐G̴̛͌̂͗͝��̡̥̗͚̫͕̟̭͐̈́̕̚Ḱ̷̛̠̬̠̫͔̱D̶͚̬̖̖͇̞̯́̈́̓̈̇̃͜͜͝͝F̸̡͈͎͓̜͕̮̬̣̹̗̺̮͋͋̆̏̾̀̕͝Ĝ̵̨̛̬̳̤͓̥̦̳̻͍̝̪̪̈̽͑̈́̂̋͗̆̕̚͝

[oberons-ghost]

@last-lorekeeper @aura-acolyte

I suppose you are simply more spiritual than I. Unsurprising, considering the circumstances. And Mare, I do not doubt your word - I know that if any falsehood is present, it is not knowingly.

I am very... agnostic, I believe is the word? I am a bit strict with whom I recognize as divine. One must meet all of the following:

-Confirmed to exist via multiple means

-A completely singularly unique being which has never been seen to die or reproduce

-Actually has something to be a god of and not merely very powerful, powers and abilities unattainable by mundane evolution or human influence

Your beloved Rayquaza certainly meets all three. I suppose if you are more generous in its definition, even my Levana could be thought of as god - volcarona were certainly treated with a great deal of reverence and proper care of them does involve a lot of ritual thinking.

The only etymologically similar phrase to Chien-Pao I can find in galarian is the 寶劍, or bǎojiàn, an ultimately mundane but renowned sword from the far east (west, from your perspective) which was one of several treasures purchased for king Felipe I, but it's not mentioned what happened to it. One would think it to be in some forgotten paldean royal vault, or in a museum or something.

My neighbor swears he has seen a Legendary Pokémon during his vacation. It was called "Sheen Pao" or something. I cannot believe grown adults still believe in these stories...

[forcedtoland]

jacin clay in "cress" (part 1/2)

so i'm rereading cress and i wrote down all the jacin moments + my thoughts because i kinda love him too much

this is part 1 of 2 !!! i'll post the 2nd part once i'm done with my reread and link it here

this is purely self-indulgent rambling... i don't have a point to make i just really want to talk about jacin. i feel like he gets less recognition than the rest of the rampion crew even though i personally thing he's an amazing character, and definitely one of my favorites in tlc

and i think it's really interesting to reread his interactions with the others while he's still in his "untrustworthy sarcastic asshole" phase, when you already know how he truly is as a person, and being able to see through that...

disclaimer:

this post might include spoilers for all of the lunar chronicles series, since i sometimes make links with moments from the other books!

it will also probably end up being long because i have the wonderful tendency to overanalyze everything

let's start with the moment cress tries to escape from sybil in her satellite. she runs into jacin who is, at the time, sybil's personal guard. up to that point in books, he's still described as the "blond lunar guard".

something cress notes about him is the sympathy in his eyes. she's unsure about how real it is, since she obviously can't trust him, but we know from the later books that he felt guilty for not being able to help her then.

i think it's just so interesting to see how quickly jacin changes the moment he's not in the presence of a thaumaturges? like his character development isn't a thing where he learns to be kind after he escapes his guard position, he really already is but hides it for obvious reasons.

and he can hide it, he's basically a pro at hiding his emotions and keeping his facial expressions neutral, which means he could have kept the cold act with cress, regardless of his real intentions. but he didn't ??

he knows cress is probably terrified so he allows himself to be expressive for even a second while sybil isn't here. he can't comfort her or help her but at least he can hint at her that he's not in this situation willingly either. it's not the best, but imagine how much worse it could have been for cress if she thought had he had murderous intent towards her.

"I don't supposed you killed her?" that's my beloved sarcastic asshole – he means that as long as sybil's here he can't do anything, but him being so direct startles cress help ?? she must have been so confused because it's not what she expected him to say, and his sentence is ambiguous enough for you to not immediately understand what he's implying there.

when thorne gets captured (thank you captain for your sacrifice) we finally get to know our dear blond guard's name! jacin<3 (sorry thorne)

later, we have the fight between sybil and cinder. and i just think that jacin pretending to be controlled by cinder as an excuse to shoot sybil is still the best thing ever please i love him so much

his indecision before helping an injured sybil

the fact that cinder finds it really easy to control him just makes me sad because it's just one more reminder that he's literally trained himself to keep his mind blank

obviously, his main reason in helping cinder here is because he needs her alive since he thinks that she can help winter (since she's against levana), but MAN the scene where he pretends to be controlled to shoot sybil?? i need to mention it again because you can't tell me he didn't partially do it out of spite

he's such a quick thinker???? he notices that sybil was already struggling to control wolf and immediately acts, knowing that it could be enough to help them escape. "The guard held her gaze for one throbbing moment, before he hauled himself up and ran toward his mistress." — jacin hasn't done anything to warrant their trust, so all he can do is hope that cinder knows he doesn't want to hurt her and use this moment he gave them to get away

OK NOW JACIN'S IN he's with the rampion crew omg... sucks that we had to lose scarlet for this BUT listen at least i know it ends well so i'm allowed to say that...

from "Your friend's dying", to him not even protesting when cinder asks for his shirt to use as a bandage, to him giving her medical advice to help wolf... THE FACT THAT HE HAS A LOT OF MEDICAL KNOWLEDGE ISN'T LOST ON ME jacin clay you are going to be the universe's best doctor

also he doesn't even try to earn their trust because he knows they have no reason to trust him? so he just reasons with them in the most logical way possible about what they can do and hope they will take his advice. a very jacin thing to do.

“You serve the queen,” she said. “How can I trust you?". His lips twitched, like she’d made a joke, but his eyes were quick to harden again.

“I serve my princess. No one else.”

NO YOU DON'T GET IT I'M SCREAMING???#&÷ slamming my fist into the wall this line is everything YES it causes some bit of confusion but the way he says it not even trying to explain what he means sorry i just love winter and jacin so so much... have i ever mentioned they're my comfort ship

later he asks about wolf's injury :(( say what you want about his jerk attitude he DOES actually care, even when he doesn't know wolf

"Yeah, but I figured a formal introduction would be nice, now that we’re on the same side.”

“Is that what you’ve decided?”

HE'S SO ANNOYING I LOVE HIM

and then he introduces himself for the first time !!! JACIN CLAY what a legend (this is the most biased post i have ever written)

CHAPTER 25 AKA THE SCENE WITH CINDER AT THE SHOP. THEIR ENTIRE CONVERSATION SPECIFICALLY.

he's still limping :(( he never even once mentioned his injury...

so perhaps he's being unnecessarily rude to the shopkeeper BUT HEAR ME OUT mm had to give him a flaw otherwise he'd be too perfect

i actually have a lot of things to say about the whole talk about the shopkeeper's son who refused to become a lunar guard so i'll make a separate paragraph below

he can pronounce "fentanylten" without stuttering i just know he has all the medicine molecule names memorized that nerd

cinder asking him whether he wanted to become a guard and him answering “Naw. I always wanted to be a doctor.” THERE IT IS he wanted to be a doctor. oh my god. he wanted to be a doctor. but he was forced into becoming a lunar guard. did i mention that he wanted to be a doctor.

and in true jacin fashion he says it with as much sarcasm as he can so that, if we weren't in cinder's pov (who has a lie detector) we would just think he's just saying whatever

more discussions about becoming a lunar guard aka my heart hurts he really deserves better

"Who would Levana have murdered if you’d refused?” / “Doesn’t matter. They’re probably going to end up dead anyway.” someone teach this guy healthy coping strategies i'm begging you

the way he says he was chosen for his pretty face........ i know it's sadly true but it's really funny to me he really has the comedic timing down

second requirement for becoming a guard is where things get sadder: having a weak gift and learning how to keep your mind blank. the fact that he does it so much to the point that it's become a habit for him is just horrifying to think about. he tries to show that he's unaffected, that he's accepted it, but can we pause and look at the words he uses to describe himself as a guard?? "We're like puppets", "I would have been the same brainless mannequin that I usually am", "To them, I have about as much brains and willpower as a tree stump" this is painful

when cinder asks him to lie and he goes “Levana’s not so bad, once you get to know her.” PLEASE his humor is great actually

also him grinning after that and making cinder laugh i love that i love that so much !!! in general i love seeing the rampion crew progressively becoming friends but jacin's moments specifically make me really soft because he's just so used to staying emotionless...

the thing about him is that he always says these things in a very nonchalant way but you just know that it affects him a lot. he keeps his tone very neutral during the entire conversation, even when talking about horrific things... until he thinks about winter. when cinder mentions her lunar gift suppressing device, and he realizes there might be a way to prevent the side effects of not using your gift. that's the first moment jacin shows any emotion, and even cinder is caught off-guard. she notices how he just drastically changes and how he can't manage to hide it even after he recomposes himself. that's the only moment so far, besides him seeming sympathetic towards cress, in which you see his façade crack.

ok now i just want to talk about why (i think) he was so hostile about the shopkeeper's son & wolf fighting to avoid not being controlled by levana. this is very much me over-analyzing so i just hope i can make sense.

the woman basically explains that her son prefered dying over joining the lunar guard, even when it led to terrible consequences to his family. jacin says "I guess he must not have cared about you very much." meanwhile the woman describes it as an act of bravery, despite everything.

don't get me wrong I KNOW he was being incredibly insensitive, but jacin has basically been desensitized to everything ever so honestly i don't think we can expect anything else from him?? even if he was wrong to say that. he's not necessarily calling the son selfish though. in the context, lunars know that refusing to become a royal guard means your family getting killed. it's not a possibillity / a potential consequence but really a fact, a direct outcome.

the only reason jacin is able to accept his life as a guard is because he doesn't want anything bad to happen to his family & winter.

i mentioned it earlier but jacin seems to be really practical as a person, in the sense that he always tries to go for the logical route and looks at everything in a really realistic, blunt way. kinda cost - benefit way, if you want. he doesn't take chances if it could potentially risk the lives of his loved ones. it's probably just the only way he's found to "reason" with himself and accept all the terrible things he has to do as a guard. because at least it keeps them safe.

we also see more of this mentality when cinder defends wolf by saying "He’d rather fight, and lose, than become another one of her pawns. We all would." and jacin says that not everyone has that option. because in his case, he has way too much to lose. wolf mainly fought that hard because he was trying to help his loved one (scarlet), and cinder doesn't have as much to lose, so the situations are different.

also, although there are several lunars in the rampion crew, the only one who has lived as an actual citizen in luna, is jacin. winter did, too, but her circumstances are a bit different as a princess (and cinder doesn't know winter yet, here).

wolf being on earth (also being insanely physically strong) gives him a few options to escape, to fight. jacin doesn't have that. even his gift is weak. in luna, and especially when he's around thaumaturges, defying orders in any way would just be an immediate death sentence to him and everyone he cares about. especially when you consider that in his case, his dad (a royal guard) and winter (princess, the queen's step-daughter) are in levana's direct reach and you know levana is just waiting for an excuse to torment winter.

going with the rampion is already big enough of a risk, but there is always the "they controlled me" and "sybil glamoured me to take scarlet" safety net. still not a guarantee because luna isn't exactly forgiving. but still, definitely safer than manifesting defiance.

the ONLY moment i recall where jacin actually makes a huge gamble is in book 4, where he risks a lot to try to save winter. other than that, he's not willing to take chances when someone else's life is on the line.

obviously, when cinder says that, she doesn't know him or his real motives to know why he can't allow himself to defy orders. after all, she's still really confused as to why he's helping her in the first place. but i just think it's interesting to see how his mentality, as someone living directly under a tyranny, compares to the others', who kinda see things from the outside.

in his mind, he has no way out or any way to make his life better, so he tries to avoid making it worse even if it means sacrificing his well being. that's just the way things are for him. meanwhile, the woman's son's actions kinda go against everything that jacin has worked so hard for, and everything that is important to him.

again, this is all in the perspective of someone who hasn't exactly had the ideal conditions and opportunities to develop empathy. and yet he is empathetic, (sure, sometimes less than the average person) he just doesn't allow himself to express it properly.

soooooo uh that's about it for now.

i decided to cut this into 2 parts because i thought it was getting way too long. i'm about halfway through cress and i'm writing the 2nd part as i read it! i'll probably be done within a few days and post it & i'll add a link to this post when i do!

if you've reached this far, thank you so much for reading my incoherent rambling about jacin clay. no idea why you would do that, but thank you regardless!!

i'd love to hear people's thoughts on this, on him in general, anything really ! i just really needed an excuse to talk about tlc and jacin honestly.

part 2 is here

[everythinginbooks]

Book recommendations; Young Adult fantasy pt. 1/?

So you're looking for new YA fantasy books to read, or you want to begin reading YA fantasy and don't know where to start. Don't worry you're in good hands. Below are a few books (and series) that I greatly recommend, I hope these will intruige you!

As always check trigger warnings and goodreads for more information.

Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson (2019)

Following Elisabeth Scrivener, we are introduced to a magical world with sorcerers, demons and enchanted books. Elisabeth has known her entire life that sorcerers are evil, but when she is accused of releasing a dangerous grimoire, she must turn to the sorcerer Nathaniel Thorn to prove her innocence, and ends up entangled in a conspiracy of old.

This one is, in my opinion, a read to tackle when you want something fun and light hearted (although I did get emotional near the end). It's fast paced, the magic system isn't too complicated to understand, and the cover is absolutely gorgeous. The characters will forever have a special place in my heart, especially Nathaniel, who I related to all throughout the book.

The Circle by Mats Strandberg and Sara Elfgren (2011)

Taking a dive towards the gritty side of urban fantasy, this book is sure to keep you awake into the late hours. This book follows a group of Swedish teenagers with newly gained magical powers as they learn they are The Chosen Ones. They aren't what you would consider friends, and the animosity in the group is intense, but to save the world they have to put their differences aside and work together.

I admit, this book sounds cliché and tame in my little blurb, but it's diffucult to read from the start, with violence and darker themes being in focus in most of the book. I personally loved it due to how insane the plot gets and how the characters act like real people I've met. It also gives an insight to an aspect in Scandinavian teen culture, which by being of that area myself can admit is quite similar to my own experiences, though not quite as gory. The soft magic system is really interesting, and I absolutely adore the characters.

This book is succeeded by Fire (2012) and The Key (2013).

Trigger warnings include depictions of suicide, self-harm, eating disorders and pedophilia.

The Girl Who Fell Beneath The Sea by Axie Oh (2022)

Inspired by The Tale of Shim Cheong and Spirited Away, this book combines traditional with fantastical, leaving us with a wonderous outcome. When Mina offers herself up as the sea god's bride instead of her brother Joon's beloved, Shim Cheong, she is swept away to the spirit world, where she sets it in her sights to wake up the sea god so the storms that ravage the land may be stopped.

This book found me at a time where I really needed it, and now it's my turn to help it find someone else. The colour and love that shine from this book is something that I didn't know you could feel so clearly. All characters are extremely lovable, and the writing will make you emotional more than once. It reads like a ghibli movie, which makes me want to petition the studio to turn this masterpiece of a book into a masterpiece of a movie.

Cinder by Marissa Meyer (2012)

Inspired by Cinderella, this book follows the cyborg Cinder on a sci-fi retelling of the brothers Grimm fairy tale. When she becomes entangled with the handsome prince Kai (and an entire intergalactic political mess featuring the Lunar queen Levana), Cinder must find answers in her past to save the future.

I absolutely LOVE the Lunar Chronicles; the writing is easy to get lost in (I finished Cinder in three or four hours), the world building is incredibly intruiging and the characters were easy to love. Personally, I was motivated to finish even faster by Levana's chapters, because they honestly gave me the biggest ick I've ever experienced by a book villain. Good job Marissa Meyer, I salute you for being able to write a sympathetic villain that I absolutely detest.

This book is succeeded by Scarlett (2013), Cress (2014) and Winter (2015).

Those are the recomendations! I hope you may find a world you fall in love with through my recommendations. I find that fantasy is one of the most enjoyable genres of literature, and so I was compelled to make this list.

Happy reading!

-Cami

[desperatecheesecubes]

Decided to give y’all a currently reading and a recently read update!

Currently reading:

When we were Dragons: 17% first time read

Thoughts: 👁👄👁 If this keeps its momentum I could easily see it being a 5 star read

Sorcery of Thorns: 48% first time read

Thoughts: Honestly just such a fun time. People were not lying about the Howls Moving Castle (movie version) vibes. Elisabeth is such a fun character, and Nathanial and Silas are such great supporting characters for her chaos. Much love all around. Will almost certainly be picking up the sequel novella

The Wicked King: 58% reread

Thoughts: Honestly I just really want to get to Queen of Nothing because I haven’t reread it since it first came out lmao. Still such a fun time. Jude can get it 😏

Everyone in this Room Will Someday Be Dead: 40% Reread

Thoughts: I really need to look and see if I can’t find more books like this. There’s just something about a comedy with a protagonist with severe anxiety that hits so well with me. Emily Austen please hurry and write more books, beloved.

Recently read!

You’re Life Has Been Delayed: 3.5 stars first time read

Thoughts: I mean I read it in one day so it can’t be that bad. It did a lot of exploring of grief and having to adapt to very rapid change, which I loved. It also had an uncomfortable romance between the protagonist and the son of her former boyfriend who they went out of their way to say look just like each other….. like I kind of get it but no. And the former boyfriend is such a bland filler role lmao. Fleshing him out literally at all would have been a big help to the novel IMO

Fairest: 3 stars reread

Thoughts: I finished up my lunar chronicles reread with Fairest. I know a lot of people argue to read it after Cress but I think it hits harder once you know her fate in Winter and see all the things she did in Stars Above. This continues to be the hardest book in the series for me to read. But I had a greater appreciation for it now, just all of the ways that Levana could have been a great queen and wasn’t because of her isolation and how it led her to her own corruption. Really glad I went and reread the series. Truly great decision on my part.

Wires and Nerve: 3 stars first time read

Thoughts: so apparently I’ve been living under a rock because I dead ass didn’t know there were sequel comics???? Or the interactive adventure??? This was a fun time, though I wasn’t a fan of the art style. Really enjoying seeing what Cinders time as queen was like, and the fleshing out of some the more minor support characters. And of course Iko is a queen.

[just2bubbly]

Cursed Souls

Masterlist

TLC Ship Week 2021!

*written for tlcshipweek2021- kaider for the prompt 'Cursed'

@kaiderforever

Summary:

"Thorne, Do you think I'm cursed?"

"What?"

"Uh- like do you think I'm cursed? that Cinder- s-she is-"

"Is suffering because of you?"

"You really love Cinder."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

...

Grief can make your mind think distressed thoughts, Kai with a haywire mind turns to Thorne for help- feeling overwhelmed just moments after the rebellion as he waits to hear news of Cinder.

A snippet of Kai alone with his thoughts as he waits outside the OT following the brutal injury of Cinder in Winter.

Ship: Kaider

Words: 2.5k

Genre: Angst, Hurt-Comfort

Prompt: 'Cursed'

__

*Sort-of canon-divergence.

Kai's Perspective:

Saying that he was anxious would be an understatement of his (let's assume long) lifetime. Everything around him was intense. After making sure that the Earthens were in a secure place, Kai followed by Torin had hastily returned to the Throne room. He could not focus on anything after Iko had told him that Cinder had gone to face Levana- alone.

Kai was praying to anyone who would listen- he prayed for Cinder's safety. Everything around him had been so rushed in the last few days- he had been high on adrenaline since the time he had helped Cress stick to the plan, coming back for crowning Levana as the Empress, to the sudden outburst of Lunars, the rebellion, him being captured and later escaping.

Kai was not sure how he remained on his own two feet walking through the pale halls of Artemisia Palace.

"Kaito, she shall be fine", Torin assured.

Kai was not going to buy it- how could Cinder be fine with a tyrant like Levana, who was likely trying to kill her?

He yelled at his own mind for letting Cinder go alone to confront Levana.

All of a sudden the sound of gunshots was heard, followed by a cry of pain making Kai look in horror at his advisor. He hoped it was anyone but Cinder. His heart was pumping loudly- at some inhuman speed and the rush of adrenaline forced him to walk faster than humanly possible. As the elegant and large doors of the throne room became visible, memories- horrors of incidents that would likely haunt him for the rest of his days flooded in Kai's mind.

Now was not the time to be sentimental- it was the time to be brave and help Cinder... if she was in a position to be helped.

The sight that was before his eyes stopped him in his tracks. Kai was dumbstruck at the sight of so much blood pooling in the throne room- the red a stark contrast to the pale marble floor and the real condition of the usually-disguised face of Levana- the face behind the glamour was enough to make him go stiff and be rooted to the spot.

However, Torin shook him out of his reverie to point out things- people. No, not just any people, his newly made friends.

He exhaled sharply when he saw Thorne, Scarlet and Wolf alive. He could not say the same when his eyes fell on Cress and Cinder. A sob escaped his shaking lips as Kai ordered Torin to call for doctors.

As he ran towards her with a thumping heart, he hoped he would not collapse at the sight of Cinder's misery.

A pool of dark red blood had surrounded her, her bosom had a knife- it did not take much to conclude that Levana had stabbed Cinder. His cheeks were damp with moisture as he huddled next to her- not sure what to do. Cinder coughed blood, her face gone pale because of the loss of so much blood. She could not cry but the worried lines along her forehead full with beads of sweat as she nibbled on her lower lip to think of anything but the wound- to avoid screaming with agony were enough to speak about her misery.

"Cinder," he cried through trembling lips.

"Kai, help Cress first. I won't-" she said through irregular words. Even in death, Cinder thought about saving others above herself.

"Shh, she is going to be fine. You're going to be fine." He said with questionable certainty. He had never known any person who had been stabbed to know how fine the after-effects were. Yet he refused to lose hope.

"Kai," she said smiling a bit sarcastically. As if both of them knew that they were lying to each other- to console, to convince.

"Don't speak I'm here- help is coming. Try to breathe. You're going to be fine." He said trying to assure him more than her.

"No- listen, Kai, look at me I might not have enough-" she hacked blood mid-sentence. Her stuttering words were cut short due to her current state. However, Kai very well knew what she was to say.

"All my ears to you, Cinder." He smiled at her, the same cheeky smile he had shown her at the garage, where they had met for the first time.

"Don't mourn for me Kai," she said. "-And I know I will not make it. My time as the revolutionary is over. I was not meant to be Queen or Princess. I trust you to do what you can for everyone," she muttered through ragged breaths, stopping from time to time to inhale sharply.

Kai would mourn for her death even if she prohibited it, even if it was forbidden. His throat ached as he tried to form sentences, probably not the last one she would hear.

"Cinder you are going to live through it. You will live long enough to rule yourself and do what you can for Luna." He said as his voice threatened to quiver, to cry out loud. He knew she was slipping away from him, as her glazed eyes rolled at the back of her head, eyes that would spontaneously shake looking at the ceiling. He would not lose her- hadn't he suffered enough grief to last a lifetime?

She closed her eyes and as calm resided over her features, Kai thought he had lost her. He could not hold it anymore, he cried not giving a damn- the Emperor of EC was crying for his beloved who was in his lap. Dying.

"No, Kai. I am a lowly mechanic. The Emperor should not cry for someone like me- Be h-happy Kai," she said with her eyes closed. It felt like she could bear to gaze into his eyes.

Kai begged for a miracle. How he wished that he would wake up and all this would just be a bad dream. He hoped that Cinder would live to see that she was never just a lowly mechanic. How she was always more than someone to him!

She cleared her mouth to say something instead a sharp breath was inhaled. Her lips now red with her own blood.

"You were the happy ending to my tragic life, Kai. I hope you remember that," She murmured.

He did not know if it was her or fragments of his own imagination speaking to him. He watched over as the others raised her and lay her across a stretcher. She was taken out to someplace where Kai followed blindly. They argued over something with Torin in the corner as he kept losing his mind- little by little.

He wanted to tell her, wanted to say them till she believed it.

"His ending without her would no longer be happy."

Still, he could not mutter any words as he choked on his own sobs. he was not brave enough to think that Cinder was dying inside. His haywire mind failing to register the happenings around him.

Torin appeared beside him and held him tight, unknowingly muttering soothing words- not knowing how to comfort the grieving Emperor. He stood outside white doors while Cinder lay inside, he cried his heart out on Torin's shoulder having had no clue if she was alive or not. He refused to listen to anything, he refused to talk- to ask about her state.

His mind played back the whole scenario over and over trying to make sense of his messed-up present.

Selene had been a mystery to him, she was a lost princess born out of his imagination, Torin used to describe it as a lost cause once. When he gave up on her, Cinder walked into his life. When the matter was revealed, he had hope. Selene and Cinder- just different names had been his hope for a long time, his ray of hope was struggling indoors. She was far away from him, from the world. He clutched on tightly to Torin trying to make sense of his falling apart life.

"T-Torin, is she a-a- okay?" he inquired.

"She will be."

"You think so?"

"Yes, Kai. She is a strong woman."

He remained silent for a long time- staring at the doors that would not allow him to enter. Trying to avoid thinking about the 'what-ifs'.

He did not move from his position for the entire day, keeping himself rooted to the seat before the door, with Torin beside him.

"You killed her, Kai. You are responsible for her fate... if not for you she would have never been drawn into this mess-"

"-She would not be dying right now"

"How selfish of you to use her for your own gain!?"

"She was just a poor girl aching to be loved- and look what you did!"

"You cursed her"

"'She is dead because of YOU"

He opened his eyes- panting for breath. All the voices sounded like Levana... she was dead right? He had never bothered to check if she was alive or dead, as he was in the haste due to Cinder's state- could she have survived?

Realizing he was just hyperventilating, it was a nightmare- nothing about it should trouble Kai into thinking that the tyrannical Queen was alive. He might have dozed off, sitting in the medical chamber of the palace, he thought trying to make his mind stray away from the loud thoughts of his mind.

'Was he cursed?'

Kai did not have many people in his life that he would have claimed to love, but the ones he did were either dead or dying.

'He had loved his parents, hadn't he? And where were they now?', He thought bitterly.

They hadn't even be buried like royals ought to, their goods burnt down to prevent the spreading of the disease to Kai or others. Their bodies were cremated in an incinerator as a precaution. Kai could not even be near them, being asked to see the whole ordeal from far away for his own safety. He had lost both of them to Leutomosis.

He loved Cinder and there she was a few metres away from him, perhaps already gone on another journey beyond life.

Maybe he was a cursed person, otherwise, why would all his loved ones die? Was he not capable of love? Could he not love anyone without having to lose them? And the ones he loved would all wither and die, while he watched them from far away?

Or was she the cursed one?

The girl who could not be loved, the one who would have a near-death experience, every time someone tried loving her. Cinder and Kai- were they two cursed souls?

Didn't she say, 'You were the happy ending to my tragic life.' and hadn't he thought, 'His ending without her would no longer be happy'?

Did she think he was responsible for her tragic life- her death? Hadn't she been an outcast for a major part of her life thanks to Kai, who failed to realize the sorrow of the cyborgs living in his own nation?

Were they just going to be each other's broken, sorrowful endings?

Not able to cope with his overwhelming thoughts, he looked around for Torin, only to find him nowhere.

He gawked at Thorne, who sat adjoining him and asked, "Thorne, Do you think I'm cursed?"

Thorne was confused, to say the least, maybe he was being too vague so he briefed, "Uh- like do you think I'm cursed? that Cinder- s-she is-"

"Is suffering because of you?" he provided, as Kai failed to continue. He nodded slightly, confirming that he was thinking the same thing.

Much to his surprise, Thorne smiled, not the flirty smile that usually did but a genuine smiled that reached his eyes and said, "You really love Cinder."

Taken aback by his remark he asked, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"You are so alike, I can only imagine if the roles were reversed she would be here thinking the same thing."

"You think so?"

"I know so"

"What makes you so confident?"

"You had no idea how tensed Cinder was when you decided to marry Levana to prevent the wolf-hybrid soldiers from doing more damage. She never said it but she thought that she was responsible for all the mess created in your life."

"Okay," he replied, not knowing what else to say.

"Kai, what makes you think you are cursed anyways?"

"It's just- you know, all the people that I have cared about are dead and I do care about Cinder and she is inside fighting to stay alive- I just think I'm cursed, not capable of loving people," he explained.

Kai, would not admit it but saying it aloud made it seem foolish. Thorne would likely laugh at him for feeling he was 'cursed'- like was he even thinking through before popping the question to Thorne.

"Really Kai, sometimes I wonder the future of your country if you happen to be sentimental- how did we get two so feeble-minded monarchs to look after us?!" He asked, dramatically- can always rely on Thorne to disguise his sorrow with charm.

Kai rolled his eyes thinking to himself, 'why did he bother in the first place?' and looked away.

A sigh escaped him and he stated, "You are not cursed, Kai."

Now Thorne did have his attention, it might have been the first sincere thing he said after Cress was taken in OT. Kai realized how he was not the only one waiting for some news outside the medical chamber, not the only one who was afraid.

"You care about your advisor, umm what's his name?"

"Torin," Kai provided.

"Yeah Torin- you care about him, probably look up to him as well and he is neither dead nor trying hard to stay alive. You care about your people and I don't think all of them are dead right now, now are they?"

"No, they are not," he said even though it was a rhetorical question.

"I'm just afraid," he admitted after a long time to which Thorne honestly replied, "Me as well."

He looked at Thorne, trying to understand his grief- if Cress did not make it, Thorne would not be able to live with the guilt- knowing very well that he was responsible for her loss, that if not for him stabbing her in the stomach she would be alive.

"They would make it, right?" he asked, terrified of what Thorne would say.

He did not reply just pressed his lips in a thin line and looked before him. None of them was capable enough to answer it. So, Kai looked ahead as well and prayed because that's what all he could do. Pray.

"Kai stop thinking about bullshit things like being cursed."

Kai nodded, pointing out that he was listening and likely not going to think about how he might be cursed.

He thought before saying it aloud, rolling the words over and over before finally saying them.

"You are really a nice guy, Thorne. No wonder Cress really likes you."

__

A/N: I had promised I had come up with angst, and see here I am- keeping my promise to you guys.

I know I have knocked a lot of medical facts, I know she should be unconscious within seconds but I just choose to overlook it for my plot. I wanted some deep farewell/ goodbye shit before Cinder becomes unconscious (builds up the angst you know).

I wanted to this idea for a long time now, Cinder's almost-death through Kai's POV. This fic was likely going to have a different ending than one the it has now- I was just going to live the ending in grey area but I had to change it to keep up with the prompt 'Cursed' for ship week. Don't blame me writing angst, I am just writing ship week prompts- and apparently all of them happen to be angst!

Tell me what's on your mind after reading it!

Votes and comments are always appreciated.

Thanks for reading!

Taglist: @cinderswrench @gingerale2017 @linhcinder686 @shellyseashell @ladyvesuvia @shelbylmkaider @levanariddlebackup @cindersassasin @kaider-is-my-otp (Tell me if you wanna be added/removed)

[outofthefires]

Finding The Answers – Solo by Cinder

❝𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘭𝘸𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘢 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘤𝘭𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳

𝘦𝘯𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘵. ❞

‘There has been much controversy regarding the 126th Annual Peace Festival due to the Emperor’s illness, but Prince Kaito has told the press that the festival will continue as scheduled. And that he hopes it might bring some joy in this otherwise tragic time.’ The anchor paused and then hesitating, even with the prompter in front of him. His face softened; his stiff voice had a warble when he finished with ‘Long live our Emperor.’

We were used to seeing the Net screens playing on a loop, however those were ads. Letting people know about the next upgrade they must have, for their ports, their droids, their net screens or which hover company to use, or for those who could afford it, which hovers to buy.

But since Prince Kaito’s press conference, with the news that our beloved Emperor Rikan, had fallen ill to the plague that was sweeping the world and spreading like wild fire. It was all anyone was talking about. The Prince’s voice echoed in the streets, from homes and even from Port screens on shared hovers. Questions were being asked, assumptions being made to the point, that people had somewhat stopped thinking about the fact that the Luna Queen #Levana's head Thaumaturge #SybilMira was still residing in the Palace at the top of the hill. And now that I thought of it, our Emperor had fallen ill so soon after she had arrived with her entourage. That was interesting was it not? Why were they still here? Were they not frightened of taking such a deadly illness back to Luna to their people?

‘Cinder?’ #Iko’s voice drew me out of my thoughts, which were slowly becoming puerile. Why were these thoughts even in my mind? There were people more in the know who were paid to think of such things.

#Iko rolled out from the back of the booth, as I finished the testing of the two Escort-droids I had to have ready for collection in the next ten minutes. I turned around to face her as she stood with a tray of parts that she had been pulling out from some of the boxes.

‘You have not used these in the last two months.’ She rolled to a stop beside me, and I set the tools in my hands down. Lifting a few of the parts to glance over them.

“That is because these parts are spares for the Gard- droid 4.1. The latest models are 6.4, and there isn’t much call for these parts with the changes the manufacturers have made in the newer garden androids. However, it’s always good to keep a few of the older parts in stock, just in case someone brings an older model to us.”

Her head moved from side to side, she was looking at the two Escort droids with a pining sound coming from her. I knew it, more than anything on this world #Iko wanted to look pretty. She didn’t care that she was in full working order, she didn’t care that her body was in better shape ( thanks to all the tinkering I did with her. ) All she wanted was to be a 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙡 𝙜𝙞𝙧𝙡 as she put it. Her hand moved to the hair of one of the droids, and once again #Iko made that sound before she rolled back into the booth.

“Why are you asking?” I called out after her and went back to work.

‘I am looking for parts I can sell, or trade for your foot.’ #Iko had been working hard in the background to find a new foot for me. I had out grown mine about five years ago, however my step mother #LihnAdri had refused to buy me a new one. It was the reason behind a lot of the pain I had been suffering for years now, and the fact that I walked with a limp in my step too.

“Iko, we can’t take things from the booth and sell them off!” keeping my voice down. It wasn’t like #Adri ever came to the market; however, it would be just my luck that she would show up at a time when #Iko and I were talking. Or worse still ZhangWei ( the Net screen dealer on the Right of our booth), or Chen Jun ( the Silk Merchant, to the left of our booth), would over hear and relay the information back to her.

‘Why not? Adri is always telling us how she would sell me off for parts.’ #Iko’s voice chimed and I 𝙨𝙝𝙝 her. Sitting back down on the small metal stool on the path before the stall. I closed off the covers to the droids main data boards.

“Because we just cannot okay. I have been taking on a lot of small jobs on the side, and if I keep it up. We will have what we need to leave soon.” I told her. Since my birthday #Iko and #Peony had been speaking about leaving, and the planning of our escape had gone into overdrive . The two of them wanted away from New Beijing and the Eastern Commonwealth too. And not to mention the fact that all three of us wanted to get away from #Adri and #Pearl.

‘I am not sure how long the trader will keep that foot I found for you. We need to pay him soon.’ I nod, biting my lips as I thought about it. #Iko had struck up a deal, if I would help the trader with some of his broken droids that nobody had been able to fix for him, he would knock the price he was asking for down. And I knew #Iko was right. If we were going to run away from here, I needed to have a foot that I could at least run with.

There were some jobs I knew I had to do before we could leave, for one I was the only one who could make the univs we needed to travel and transport, we needed a way out of here without being caught.

“I know, I know. I will make it happen one way or another.” Rubbing my forehead, I stood seeing out the side of my vision that we were about to have some company. “For now, this topic is over.” I hushed #Iko, smiling at the middle-aged man who owned the two Escort droids.

“Nǐ hǎo” ( Hello ), “You are just in time, I have your two androids ready to go.” Giving the man a small smile.

I went about explaining in layman’s terms what the problems had been and explaining what he had to do to avoid the same issues again. However, in my mind. I was trying to work out how I could find transport for my sisters and me for our great adventure.

[bookloveravenue]

The Lunar Chronicles series: Wires and Nerve Volume 2: Gone Rogue by Marissa Meyer 

January 30, 2018

Iko – an audacious android and best friend to the Lunar Queen Cinder – has been tasked with hunting down Alpha Lysander Steele, the leader of a rogue band of bioengineered wolf-soldiers who threaten to undo the tenuous peace agreement between Earth and Luna. Unless Cinder can reverse the mutations that were forced on them years before, Steele and his soldiers plan to satisfy their monstrous appetites with a massacre of the innocent people of Earth. And to show he’s serious, Steele is taking hostages.

Cinder and Kai, Scarlet and Wolf, Cress and Thorne, and Winter and Jacin all feature in this epic new battle. But it is Iko who must face her deepest fears when she uncovers the truth about her own unusual programming. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34930815-gone-rogue?ac=1&from_search=true

********

My Review: 5/5 Stars

I loved the Lunar Chronicles and when Marissa Meyer announced a graphic novel spin-off featuring Iko, I was beyond excited!! Wires and Nerve Volume 1, was awesome! Action packed and we had back all our favorite characters. The series even started where it left off. Check out what the characters are currently doing and that just because the war has ended and Levana is gone, doesn't mean peace comes that easily. Gone Rogue, continues with Iko's mission of finding and stopping the rogue wolves. With the help of Kinney and the rest of the gang, they bring down the Alpha wolf once and for all.

One of the greatest parts of this book was the character development of Kinney. Kinney never understood how everyone could see Iko beyond being an android. He finally stops being hard headed and really looks at Iko and those who love her. With some crazy action packed moments and twists, Kinney sees past the fact that she is an android and that she has more human in her than anyone.

We also get a little bit more of the origin of Iko and how she was first brought and created by Garan's (Cinder's adopted father). And more reunions with the gang. Finally, a proper Cinder and Kai reunion that was so typically awkward and them that is was of course perfect and swoon worthy. The book does a good job of showing how just because you stopped the bad guy doesn't mean all is well. There are problems on Luna, problems on Earth, the rogue wolves. A hero's day is never done. But the ending is worth it and we see where our beloved characters are headed before we get to the final story in Stars Above.

Though this seems like the official end to the Lunar Chronicles, part of me hopes it isn't. There are just too many great characters and the universe Marissa Meyer created is just too brilliant to leave it at that. I'd be happy with more graphic novels if that's all that comes. But I guess we'll have to wait and see.

[shellyseashell]

Levana and Sybil being the morally corrupt hot villain couple my beloved <3

does sybil x levana have a ship name? syvana? levil? syvana sounds better so we’ll stick with that one ANYWAYS it’s tlc femslash february and we need to take a moment and admire the absolute (and high key sapphic) devotion miss sybil mira had for levana bc it was beyond compare. even levana knew sybil was the only one truly devoted to her, not just bc she was the one sitting on the throne, but bc sybil saw her as someone so powerful and cunning and a much more better fit for queen than channary. and levana recognized how talented sybil herself was and how they both shared the same ambitious spirit. and also sybil is hot who wouldn’t make her their head thaumaturge <3

lmao ik this doesn’t follow todays prompt at all but i desperately needed to talk about this (tho i am imagining a modern au where levana is sexy boss lady and sybil is her ever present and ever loyal assistant but that’s it lmao)

[waxingmepoetic]

Book # 12 Wires and Nerve Written By: Marissa Meyer  Art By: Doug Holgate

Star Rating (out of five): ★★★★★

Summary: In her first graphic novel, #1 New York Times and USA Today bestseller Marissa Meyer follows Iko, the beloved android from the Lunar Chronicles, on a dangerous and romantic new adventure -- with a little help from Cinder and the Lunar team. In her first graphic novel, bestselling author Marissa Meyer extends the world of the Lunar Chronicles with a brand-new, action-packed story about Iko, the android with a heart of (mechanized) gold. When rogue packs of wolf-hybrid soldiers threaten the tenuous peace alliance between Earth and Luna, Iko takes it upon herself to hunt down the soldiers' leader. She is soon working with a handsome royal guard who forces her to question everything she knows about love, loyalty, and her own humanity. With appearances by Cinder and the rest of the Rampion crew, this is a must-have for fans of the bestselling series.

Story Review: Holy bad-ass android, Batman. Meyer. Is. Back. This story takes place after Winter, and before the epilogue in Stars Above. However, I wouldn’t suggest reading Wires and Nerve first as there is going to be a second installment (Thank you Jesus- it’s set to release in 2018). I love the story- it’s so great to dive back into the world of the Lunar Chronicles and see Iko be a little bad-ass. 

The bad guy in this story (the leader of the hybrid soldiers) rides far more of a  gray line than Levana did. He believes his reason for hating Cinder is completely sound- even though he’s misinformed about the reason why she is bringing all of the hybrids back to Luna in the first place. 

As the hybrid soldiers have been experimented on and altered genetically against their will by the Lunar government, their distrust of it is completely understandable. These men were torn from their families when they were children, and they were turned into monsters to solidify their tyrant queen’s power.

There is also an aspect of coming to terms with the fact that things on Luna are changing at a rapid rate. So rapid in fact that the soldiers are no longer needed on Earth... and no longer needed on Luna. It’s a difficult thing to conceptualize when a long standing military tradition is gutted, and those involved have been so irrevocably ruined by said tradition that they have nearly no hope to integrate back into normal society. 

It’s blatant social commentary with a psychological twist, and it’s excellently executed.

I have always loved the stakes in the Lunar Chronicles. They’re heavy and highly political. Questions of morality and decrying oppression ring out so often that you sometimes forget that this story is a melting pot of fairy-tales. I know I do on occasion. 

The idea of what it means to be human comes into question as well in Iko’s tumultuous relationship with Kinney that boarders on something that feels a lot like racism. You see this come up a lot in films like I Robot, Alien, Ex Machina, and TV series like Ghost in the Shell. When done properly, this theme works very well, and provides a philosophical lens to what it really means to be human.

I think that there is something in Kinney that wants Iko so much to be human, but pushes her away because of the fact that she isn’t. It feels like he’s trying his best not to fail a Turing Test. It’s hard to say if he will or not. This is entirely speculation, but I think that he may keep it in mind that she’s a robot, but he may care less and less about it as the series goes on. Beyond the fake skin, the metallic exoskeleton, and the wires, Iko has heart and nerve- just like everyone else.

Let’s just hope the world gets over itself enough to see it. 

Art Review: I don’t think I’m the first one to say this, but I feel like the art could have been done far differently. I don’t feel like it truly captures the mood of the plot. 

Meyer has created a very detailed and politically tumultuous world and I feel like the artwork needs to encapsulate that... which it doesn’t. Some of the drawings look like something you might see in a Peanuts comic in the Sunday paper. 

Personally, I really think they should have gone with an art style similar to Ghost in the Shell, or Fullmetal Alchemist as these art style allow you to follow detailed combat scenes closely so that you don’t get confused during the reading experience, and the level of detail fits the world more closely in my opinion.

[readingthroughreality]

Question from TLC: do you think Fairest and All Stars count as full extra books in this serie our should i skip them? What is your experience in them?

Ofcourse I read this message only after I left my home and therefore my books of TLC. But I will try and do my best to answer your question without the little help of browsing through my beloved books.

First of all, I loved both of these books, especially Stars Above/All Stars/…! But that’s not because of the way they contributed to the serie, but because of the stories that still needed to be told (I’ll try to explain).

Fairest, or better named in Dutch Levana, is all about Levana. You get to know her character better and you get an insight in the villain of the serie. That’s why I would recommend you to still read this book and to see it as a part of the serie.

On the contrary, Stars Above isn’t a must-read but I loved it for the contributions it made to the ending of the serie. Stars Above is filled with stories about all of the people I loved and about how they went on with living their lives after all the fighting. So yes, you can see it as a part of the serie, but the ending in Winter can be enough to keep you fantasizing about them all as well! (But if I may, I suggest to still read this book as it really filled my heart with happiness!)

I am sorry if my rambled answer isn’t a logic one… But for short: I like to think of these books as a part of the serie and I loved them as well.

[emeralds-books]

Book Review: Cress by Marissa Meyer

“Maybe there isn’t such a thing as fate. Maybe it’s just the opportunities we’re given, and what we do with them. I’m beginning to think that maybe great, epic romances don’t just happen. We have to make them ourselves.”

So I finished this book like 3 days ago, but I didn't feel ready for making my review. I was beyond excited and I didn't want to babble about it. So I waited and finally my brain is ready for this. And all that he says is: I FREAKING LOVE IT. Yup. The excitement didn't fade away. I'm madly, deeply and unconditionally in love with this book, with the whole series.

“Even in the future, there are damsels in distress”

In this third book in Marissa Meyer's bestselling Lunar Chronicles series, Cinder and Captain Thorne are fugitives on the run, now with Scarlet and Wolf in tow. Together, they're plotting to overthrow Queen Levana and prevent her army from invading Earth.

Their best hope lies with Cress, a girl trapped on a satellite since childhood who's only ever had her netscreens as company. All that screen time has made Cress an excellent hacker. Unfortunately, she's being forced to work for Queen Levana, and she's just received orders to track down Cinder and her handsome accomplice.

When a daring rescue of Cress goes awry, the group is splintered. Cress finally has her freedom, but it comes at a higher price than she'd ever expected. Meanwhile, Queen Levana will let nothing prevent her marriage to Emperor Kai, especially the cyborg mechanic. Cress, Scarlet, and Cinder may not have signed up to save the world, but they may be the only hope the world has.

“Wow, when you research, you really research, don't you?”

We saw pretty little of Cress back in the first book, all that we knew was that she used to be a spy for the queen and that she was trapped in a satellite. We knew nothing about her in Scarlet and finally we get to meet her in this one. She has been trapped in the satellite for almost 7 years and all that she knows about Earth she learned it online. She has never seen our planet and she is scared of lunars. Cress is really sweet and full of curiosity and joy, she always wants to see the good in everyone and the positive part of every situation. She is one of those people that you can't avoid liking and trying to protect. She also has this huge crush on Thorne and she was always blushing and a little bit distracted sometimes.

“Captain,” she murmured. “I think I’m in love with you.” An eyebrow shot up. She counted six beats of his heart before, suddenly, he laughed. “Don’t tell me it took you two whole days to realize that. I must be losing my touch.”

Thorne in the other hand, well he is Flynn Rider, he is arrogant, egocentric and truly charming. He would add handsome, intelligent, bold and much more, so let’s just say that he is pretty confident. But he is also a loyal friend and it doesn't matter how long it takes him he would always go back to them and he would make the best he can to protect his beloved. I love them both and I love them together. I won't say more about them or their relationship because that's spoilers, so you'll have to read the book. ;)

“You said yourself that the people of Luna need a revolutionary.” She lifted her chin, holding his gaze. “So I’m going to Luna, and I’m going to start a revolution.”

In the other side we can see that Cinder is sure about what she wants and what she knows she has to do. She really evolved since the last book and all that transition was really awesome. She is not the cliché character that once she discovers who she is knows exactly what to do and has all the skills for it. She was lost, she was confused and she first looked for answers, now that she has them she knows what to do and how, but she also has to practice and get a lot of bruises in the process. She is scared but she also knows that she can't do it all alone and that is refreshing. I'm a little bit tired of all those protagonists that think that they can do it all alone. So yep, she is still my hero.

“Have you given any thought to your wedding vows?” Kai snorted. “Delete anything that has to do with love, respect, or joy, and I’ll sign on the dotted line.”

Prince Kai, my favorite prince in the whole world. He grew up so much since the last book. Right now he has to face a wedding with Levana, and intergalactic war and also his feelings for Cinder, that let’s be honest, everything is pretty messed up. He knows that Levanna won’t stop at anything for getting have what she wants and he has to find a way to keep everyone safe. He is turning into an awesome leader, taking these difficult decisions cold minded, doing the whole research and trying to find Leanna’s blinds spot, he is making strategy, ruling a country and he is also a teen in love. He has this big charge in his shoulders and he is trying to do the best. Also he stopped in being confused about Cinder, now that he has analyzed the whole situation and has all the details of what really happened, he knows the truth about Cinder, and that leads him to take this wonderful decision, not just for Cinder, but for everyone.

“Not doing pictures these days?" Jacin muttered as they hurried through the shop. "How very Lunar of you." Cinder glared against the sudden, burning sunlight. "Very wanted criminal of me too.”

We also get to “meet” two more characters, that honestly I was expecting till the next book. Jacin and Winter, my new otp. Jacin is a really cold minded character, he analyzed everything and use the situation in his favor. We also know that he would do everything for Winter, even when that isn’t the best for the rest of the world. But that’s just a glimpse of him, I’m pretty sure that he is more complex than that. And of course Winter, we see something about her at the ending of the book, and I honestly don’t know what to think about her. she is weird but more brilliant than she wants the rest of the world to know. So I’m really intrigued.

I can't talk much about Scarlet and Wolf because of spoilers, but now both of them are facing awful things. I can guarantee you that Wolf is gonna break your heart and that Scarlet is gonna blow your mind. That’s all I’m gonna say.

The writing is improving, the characters are better and the plot twists are breathtaking.

These books just grow better and better each time and I can't wait to see what's going to happen in Winter.

Totally love it.

5 amazingly awesomazing freakintastic stars!