#may i recommend her | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

nellasbookplanet · 1 year

Text

Book recs: many worlds, portal fantasy edition

A typical portal fantasy follows a human from our world who steps through a portal into a magical land (think of narnia). But there are many fun variations of this trope! Sometimes it's the magical people who come to our world; sometimes we get to follow people who have returned from their adventures and are seeking for new meaning; sometimes our world isn't involved at all. As might be assumed, most portal fantasies are fantasy stories, but some lean more toward magical realism, others toward sci-fi. It's a fun spectrum!

I'm separating portal fantasies from alternate timelines/parallel worlds type stories (which will get their own rec post soon-ish). I also generally do not include stories where the character travels to fairyland/land of the dead/etc as those feel like a genre of their own to me, but the lines between them sometimes blur and this is, obviously, a subjective list.

(Titles marked with * are my personal favorites)

Other book rec posts:

Really cool fantasy worldbuilding, really cool sci-fi worldbuilding, dark sapphic romances, mermaid books, vampire books

For more detailed info on the books, continue under the cut.

The Magicians (Magicians trilogy) by Lev Grossman*

You may not have heard of this book, but you have probably heard of the scyfy series of the same name that crashed and burned a few years ago. This is the book it’s based on (pros: it doesn’t end in the same way; cons: it doesn’t feature the juggernaut ship of the show in any major way). For the uninitiated: features what is essentially a (secret) magic university for tormented geniuses. When he finds magic isn't enough to grant him happiness, main character Quentin goes digging into the truth surrounding his favorite childhood books searching for meaning, and finds out that the magical other world they describe might not be so fictional after all.

Stray (Touchstone trilogy) by Andrea K. Höst*

Young adult told through diary entries. Including this as a portal fantasy is a bit of a stretch, but essentially: Cassandra unkowingly walks through a wormhole and lands herself on another planet, where she has to survive on her own until she is rescued. Soon she finds herself embroiled in a war between creatures from dreamlike other dimensions and the people who saved her. Skirts the line between scifi and fantasy (it has psychic space ninjas!), but generally feels mostly like sci-fi. Absolutely fantastic worldbuilding.

In Other Lands by Sarah Rees Brennan*

Young adult. Kids who can walk between our world and a magical one get recruited into a magical school that trains them either to be fighters or sort-of diplomats. Our lead decides that fighting is stupid and that he’s going to peacefully solve every conflict ever, all while being the most delightfully obnoxious little brat possible and getting incolved in the most bisexual love triangle imaginable. Very good, funny, and heart-felt coming of age story.

NPCs (Spells, Swords, & Stealth series) by Drew Hayes*

This one only counts as a portal fantasy on a technicality and on the fact that I love it and this is my list. Follows a group of DnD players whose characters immediately die, forcing them to make new characters, and, parallel to their adventures, a group of NPCs from the fantasy world who find themselves forced to take the place of a party of recently deceased adventurers. The two parties do cross path on occasion, but there aren't actually any portals involved as all characters (mostly) stay in their respective world. A fun and light-hearted adventure that turns a lot of the expected tropes of the genre and of character archetypes on their heads.

The Time of the Dark (The Darwath series) by Barbara Hambly

1982 classic. Medieval history student Gil and biker Rudy are complete strangers, but when they get mixed up with a wizard from another world the two must work together to survive and get back home. Fairly traditional fantasy with its fair share of issues, but! It has cool swordswomen, creepy lovecraftian monsters and also mammoths!

The Twelve Kingdoms by Fuyumi Ono*

Young adult, light novel. Yoko Nakajima is a regular high school student, or at least she was one until a strange man showed up in her school, swore allegiance to her and whisked her away to another world. As the two get separated, Yoko is stuck on her own in a strange world, hunted by humans and demons alike as she travels in search of a way home. Absolute high point of isekai literature, with an incredible main character and really cool and unique worldbuilding (also available as an anime, however I have yet to watch it and can't speak to its quality just yet).

Peter Darling by Austin Chant*

Novella. An older Peter Pan returns to Neverland after years spent in our world, only to find that everything is different. Before he knows it, he finds himself working with his lifelong enemy, Captain Hook. Very gay and very trans, with interesting takes on toxic masculinity. Made my heart ache in the best of ways.

A Curse so Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer

Young adult. A retelling of beauty and the beast, where 'beauty' is a girl brought in from our world to a fantastical one and the narrative focuses a lot on what actually happens to the kingdom when the royal family suddenly disappears, and whether it’s even possible to fall in love with someone you know is deliberately trying to seduce you to break a curse. This is part one of a trilogy, however I'm only really recommending the first book as the second did not work for me at all.

The Golden Compass (His Dark Materials trilogy) by Philip Pullman

Young adult/middle grade, fantasy but has a lot of sci-fi aspects as well. Already well-known and for good reason, the His Dark Materials trilogy starts as what seems a pretty typical fantasy with some cool unique aspects (everyone has a soul-bound animal only they can speak to as their best friend!), and soon veers into a truly one of a kind story. It has magical portals, it has strange worlds with equally strange inhuman creatures, it has physics, it has god murder, it has gay angels, it has tragedy, and it’s very much worth your time.

Every Heart a Doorway (Wayward Children series) by Seanan McGuire*

A tumblr favorite, the Wayward Children novellas feature a school open to children who have returned from adventures in other realms and now have trouble adapting back to regular life. Some installments are set in our world, others follow children as they have their otherworldly adventures. The main characters vary between books, but are generally pretty diverse with among others asexual, trans, intersexual and sapphic leads. Both funny and dark, it takes a closer look at the trauma many endure growing up different.

Otherside Picnic (Otherside Picnic series) by Iori Miyazawa

Sapphic light novel with a surreal and episodic horror vibe. Following the directions of an urban legend, university student Sorawo finds her way to a reality populated by horrifying creatures from ghost stories and modern urban legends (of which I'm sure you'll recognize many). Here she teams up with fellow explorer Toriko, both to both find out more about this strange world and to help Toriko find a missing loved one. Also available as a manga and (one season of) an anime.

Last Bus to Everland by Sophie Cameron

Young adult. Brody is dealing with a lot, but it all gets a little easier when he meets Nico, who shows him how to access Everland, a magical land where he feels less out of place. But when the doors to Everland start disappearing, Brody must choose which world is really home. I'd categorize this less as fantasy and more as coming of age with a fantasy slant. It's also very gay.

The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern

Surreal and fairy tale-esque, The Starless Sea is stories within a story, following graduate student Zachary as he finds a strange book which, in-between other tales, tells a story from his own childhood. Trying to find out how this came to be, Zachary gets involved with a pink-haired woman and a handsome man who are doing their utmost to protect a strange, otherworldly library available only through magical doors. It's a book hard to put in words, but which I once described as "romantic without being a romance while stile having a love story at it's core", and which can be summed up only as "an Experience". It's also quite gay!

The Memory Theater by Karin Tidbeck

Listen, there’s a whole bunch of Swedish portal fantasies I read growing up that I'm dying to include here, but I'm not because they’re not available in English. The Memory Theater however is available, and is very good. Two children who were stolen into an otherworldly realm that wants them dead fight return to earth, and are followed by one of their captors across universes. The story has the feel of a dark fairy tale, and their captors, while not fey, are very reminiscent of them.

The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow*

Historical young adult, more magical realism than fantasy. In the early 20th century, January is living under the care of her father's employer while he travels the world searching for valuables and secrets. But both her father and her caretaker are keeping something from her, something about her own family's history. When she one day stumbles upon a strange book, one that speaks of other worlds, she finally sets out to find the truth. However, there are those seeking to stop her and destroy the doors between worlds, no matter what.

The Hollow Places by T. Kingfisher*

Horror rather than fantasy. After having divorced, Kara moves to stay with her uncle and help him run his museum of curiosities, until one day she discovers a hole in the wall of his house. The hole leads to a strange bunker, and beyond that, a dark and dangerous world beyond her understanding. In the company of a friend, she goes to explore this world, but quickly comes to regret her decision to do so.

The Unspoken Name by A.K. Larkwood*

The sort of portal fantasy you get when all the worlds connected by portals are fantasy worlds, and none of them are ours. The portals themselves become simply a part of the worldbuilding that the characters use to travel between fascinating places, and it's all really cool. It follows Csorwe (lesbian orc assassin whom I love), who grew up in a cult, indoctrinated as a child sacrifice to a god. But on the day she was meant to die, she instead chose to follow a powerful wizard and train to become his loyal servant and sword. Aside from being an excellent fantasy, it's also a close look at the hard path of unlearning indoctrination and the search for love and validation where you'll never find it, and learning to live for yourself.

Odin's Child (the Raven Rings trilogy) by Siri Pettersen

Norwegian (vaguely Norse mythology inspired) young adult. Fifteen-year-old Hirka grew up thinking she simply lost her tail to a wolf attack, but one day she finds out she never had one: she's an Odin's child, a human, sent from another world and rumored to spread rot and ruin wherever she goes. To keep her secret safe, she goes on the run, but there are forces hunting for her, wanting to use her in their war. This reads mostly as a fairly typical epic fantasy, with the portal aspect not playing a major role until the second book.

The Barbed Coil by J.V. Jones

1997 classic. Tessa is a young woman with little going for her, until she stumbles upon a strange ring that transports her to a magical and dangerous other land. Here she meets Ravis, a mercenary who takes it upon himself to protect her, and discover her own special abilities, which she must use against an evil king whose mind has been corrupted and taken over by his crown, the Barbed Coil.

Skeen's Leap (Skeen trilogy) by Jo Clayton

1986 classic. While most portal stories are fantasy, this one has a distinct sci-fi flavour. Skeen is master thief wanted in a myriad solar systems, until her spaceship gets stolen and she's stranded on a backwater planet. Here she hears rumors of ruins leading to a strange other land. Hoping for treasure enough to get her off-planet, Skeen goes in search of this place, but finds herself stuck and unable to get back. This one has a unique, almost stream of consciousness prose that takes a while getting used to, but rewards you with a one of a kind experience.

Inkheart (Inkworld trilogy) by Cornelia Funke

German middle grade/young adult, in which the fantastical other worlds are those told of in books. Young Meggie's father has the ability to, when he reads, bring things and people out of the books, or put other people into said books. However, once having done so, he knows of no way to put anyone back where they belong. Now, years after he accidentally brought the terrible villain Capricorn and his henchmen out of their book, he and his daughter must evade them at all costs or be forced to bring further horrors out of the page and into the world.

Bonus AKA I haven't read these yet but they seem really cool

An Accident of Stars by Foz Meadows

A teenage girl accidentally follows a worldwalker from her world to a magical realm on the brink of civil war. I believe this on has both a major polyamorous relationship and ace/aro characters?

The Sleeping Dragon (Guardians of the Flame series) by Joel Rosenberg

1983 classic. A group of college dnd players find themselves transported to the magical realm they previously thought just a game.

The Wandering Inn by Pirateaba

Webnovel. After having been transported to a magical world, Erin decides to, rather than become a warrior or a mage, start running an inn.

Honorary mentions AKA these didn't really work for me but maybe you guys will like them: The Marked Girl by Lindsey Klingele, The Summer Tree by Guy Gavriel Kay, Child of a Hidden Sea by A.M. Dellamonica, Spellsinger by Alan Dean Foster, The Shattered Gates by Ginn Hale, The Awakening by Nora Roberts, Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor.

#extra bonus rec if you like critical role:#go read Things That Gods Despise by dawl_and_dapple #(and also maybe my fic The World's Between us)#i didnt includ neil gaimans coraline her bc i assumed most people know if it already #(and also i ran out of space)#but if you haven't heard of it consider this another rec lmao #anyway. i may be slightly obsessed with this genre #please recommend me more books (or fics!) if you know of any!!#nella talks books #book recs

128 notes · View notes

myreia · 2 months

Text

✦ D R A G O O N

Her lance burns bright, crackling with magic, and she plummets from the sky. Estinien and Aymeric were the first to notice her movements in combat, noting a physicality not often attributed to black mages. The years she spent in Coerthas were spent honing new techniques, following new pursuits, transforming into someone else. Though she will not admit it, the weapon is intrinsically caught up in her relationship with the Lord Commander, forever connected to her time in Ishgard. She came to the city an exiled mage and left a dragoon. —level 90 compendium

#ffxiv #ff14 #final fantasy 14 #gpose #gposers #ffxiv dragoon #drg #ffxiv gpose #lvl 90 compendium #myreia screenshots #aureia malathar #oc tag #so funny story i kind of power-levelled lnc/drg from 1 - 35 (ish? may have been 38 or 40 tbh i do not remember the number)#in one day because i apparently didn't have anything better to do (i should have been sleeping that's what i needed to do)#idk what compelled me to level via duty support of all things at 3:00am because the DPS queue would not pop #do not recommend doing that terrible awful decision #i played it so much in the hw patches and it and RDM were her primary jobs going into stormblood but didn't I didn't regularly afterwards #i haven't actually touched it in over a year once i got it to 90 :(#used to play it a ton in pvp but ditched it for AST lmao #queued

18 notes · View notes

the-busy-ghost · 2 days

Text

Me normally: Let people love what they love

Me, after a Test Match Special commentator expresses their belief that the new All Creatures Great and Small is somehow "better" than the 1978 version: This is pure insanity and TMS can no longer be trusted on anything, how can they even be trusted to know about cricket, do they have no TASTE

#Look it's fine that this show exists and people will watch it and like it and that's ok maybe it's just not for me #But that was like a statement purely designed to piss me off #There were lots of issues with the 1978 adaptation! I still vastly preferred the books any day!#And I actually initially had high hopes for the new one because they at least cast a Scot (albeit a Highlander not a Clydesider) as James #And the actors at least looked a little bit younger than Christopher Timothy and Robert Hardy #And thank god Helen actually sounds like she's a farmer's daughter and doesn't speak RP!#But from the half hour I've seen of it I've had to write off this new adaptation #For two major reasons #First of all there's Siegfried #Siegfried is one of the key central aspects of the vibe of the books and therefore key to any adaptation #Robert Hardy was too short and too old for the part but he lived and breathed the character #The twinkle in the eye bouncing off the walls and in and out of rooms followed by half a dozen dogs utterly full of life even when angry #But this new Siegfried is just sort of... Eeyore-esque; he comes into a room and you can see the flowers droop and the set turn grey #Siegfried was angry Siegfried was happy and the historical character he was based on was no stranger to melancholy #Since Donald Sinclair did commit suicide or rather self-euthanasia after Alf Wight and his own wife Audrey died #But this slow grumbly figure in the new adaptation is not Siegfried Farnon- the book character didn't grumble more often he exploded #And why did the adaptation give him a dead wife that's so weird? What could that possibly add to the source material?#And this brings me onto my second problem which is to do with women and age #Firstly I have no idea why they aged down Mrs Hall or at least made her look younger than a woman her age would have back then #But what really drove me mad was when Heriot goes out to see some old woman hill farmer in the episode I saw #And this woman is far too clean and young-looking and you can see that she's wearing 'natural' look make-up #And a perfect set of clothes that looked like they were straight out of the House of Bruar autumn collection catalogue #Say what you like about the 1978 adaptation but old women looked like old women regardless of whether or not they wore make-up #It may be that the better quality of television screens means that the 'natural look' shows up on screen more clearly than it would have #But natural look make-up was not really a thing in the 1930s and for old women Yorkshire hill farmers I doubt they'd have much on at all #They just don't seem to be capable of allowing people to look old and wrinkled and real or have bad teeth or unattractive clothes #And everything is far too tidy- everybody looks far too perfectly country and quaint #Anyway the moral of this story is of course that I always recommend reading the books because they're much better #than any tv adaptation; but if forced to choose at least the 1970s one felt real and yet didn't have to be grim either #Ok that's my rant over please do feel free to enjoy the show I just got annoyed because the opinion was expressed on TMS

8 notes · View notes

catttexsits · 1 month

Text

I have yet to understand people who don't love her music

#bansheeedit #coquette #I may be a doe #aesthetic #flopped #Rachel knight #this is me trying #listen to her #music recs #good music #music recommendation #on repeat #music #metal #coquette metal #pink aesthetic

10 notes · View notes

tornoleander · 11 months

Text

Best Friend Finally Watched Skybound first time lmao

Been waiting for this for 4 years

I have Some Notable quotes from her between all the: HUH! Wtf?!? and *uncomfortable noises*

“I can’t even meme about Misako’s love of history, I’m just uncomfortable”

“This dude I don’t like him”

“That episode was horrible 😀”- Post mechanic scene

“I did not expect it to be that bad”

“This season is a season”

“Why did they do that”

“Nadakhan’s seems like the type of guy to see a teenager alone and ask, is anyone going to take that? And not wait for an answer.”

“I have no words”

“I don’t like that”

“These wishes make no sense”

“Me when I say my plan out loud”

“ThAt’s A 1000 yEAr OLd deMON THinG and sHE’s 16”

“If he only took the shot before…. -_-”

#ninjago #ninjago skybound #ninjago jay #ninjago nadakhan #ninjago angst #oli’s skybound insanity #lego ninjago #skybound ninjago #Skybound #I am so sorry #She seemed very interested in the jay angst tho….#may have recommended Wytyaa #told her to stay away from Bbnb like it has rabies though #if Han sees this I showed her your art after we watched it and she also loved it #Also my revenge for that canary sketch should be done by tomorrow if not before #skybound slander

40 notes · View notes

whippetcrimes · 4 months

Text

The progression. First, run from pool. Then be very uncertain about it. Then, only partly unwilling swimming

#when i called her from the other side and had a squeaky toy she came very enthusiastically #definitely worth the hour drive i think #everyone was so nice! and she was big about stopping before it got too exhausting/unfun #and making sure misty was as comfortable as she could be #and not rushing her too quickly to the water. we walked around the pool a couple times first and checked out the toys and such #the instructor was so great about keeping it a positive experience even though misty was a bit unsure/unhappy at times #i would strongly recommend this place to anyone. such a good experience #next time we're going to work on being excited/motivated for a toy instead of treats...#going to have to find something extra special that floats and only bring it out for this #she likes to play but she's really not toy driven... may be difficult #the instructor thought maybe her flirt pole would work so tbd #whippet #misdemeanor #dogblr #petblr #swimming

8 notes · View notes

longagoitwastuesday · 3 months

Note

So so indebted to u for posting those lovely illustrations from Cyrano <333 & even more so for yr tags!! I'm completely in love w yr analysis, please feel free to ramble as long as u wish! Browsing through yr Cyrano de Bergerac tag has given me glimpses of so many adaptations & translations I'd never heard of before! I'll be watching the Solès version next, which I have only discovered today through u ^_^ As for translations, have u read many/all of them? I've only encountered the Renauld & Burgess translations in the wild, & I was curious to hear yr translation thoughts that they might guide my decision on which one I buy first (not necessarily Renauld or Burgess ofc). Have a splendid day & sorry for the likespam! 💙

Sorry for the delay. Don't mind the likespam, I'm glad you enjoyed my tags about Cyrano, and that they could contribute a bit to a further appreciation of the play. I loved it a lot, I got obsessed with it for months. It's always nice to know other people deeply love too that which is loved haha I hope you enjoy the Solès version, it may well be my favourite one!

About translations, I'm touched you're asking me, but I don't really know whether mine is the best opinion to ask. I have read... four or five English translations iirc, the ones I could find online, and I do (and especially did, back when I was reading them) have a lot of opinions about them. However, nor English nor French are my first languages (they are third and fourth respectively, so not even close). I just read and compare translations because that's one of my favourite things to do.

The fact is that no translation is perfect, of course. I barely remember Renauld's, but I think it was quite literal; that's good for understanding the basics of the text, concepts and characters, but form is subject, and there's always something that escapes too literal translations. Thomas and Guillemard's if I recall correctly is similar to Hooker's in cadence. It had some beautiful fragments, some I preferred over Hooker's, but overall I think to recall I liked Hooker's more. If memory serves, Hooker's was the most traditionally poetic and beautiful in my opinion. Burgess' is a whole different thing, with its perks and drawbacks.

Something noticeable in the other translations is that they are too... "epic". They do well the poetic, sorrowful, grief stricken, crushed by regrets aspects of Cyrano and the play in general, but they fall quite short in the funny and even pathetic aspects, and that too is key in Cyrano, both character and play. Given the characteristics of both languages, following the cadence of the French too literally, with those long verses, makes an English version sound far too solemn at times when the French text isn't. Thus Burgess changes the very cadence of the text, adapting it more to the English language. This translation is the one that best sets the different moods in the play, and as I said before form is subject, and that too is key: after all, the poetic aspect of Cyrano is as much true as his angry facet and his goofy one. If Cyrano isn't funny he isn't Cyrano, just as he wouldn't be Cyrano without his devotion to Roxane or his insecurities; Cyrano is who he is precisely because he has all these facets, because one side covers the other, because one trait is born from another, because one facet is used as weapon to protect the others, like a game of mirrors and smoke. We see them at different points through the play, often converging. Burgess' enhances that. He plays with the language itself in form and musicality, with words and absences, with truths masking other truths, with things stated but untold, much like Cyrano does. And the stage directions, poetic and with literary value in their own right in a way that reminded me of Valle Inclán and Oscar Wilde, interact with the text at times in an almost metatextual dimension that enhances that bond Cyrano has with words, giving them a sort of liminal air and strengthening that constant in the play: that words both conceal and unveil Cyrano, that in words he hides and words give him away.

But not all is good, at all. Unlike Hooker, Burgess reads to me as not entirely understanding every facet of the characters, and as if he didn't even like the play all that much, as if he had a bit of a disdainful attitude towards it, and found it too mushy. Which I can understand, but then why do you translate it? In my opinion the Burgess' translation does well bending English to transmit the different moods the French text does, and does pretty well understanding the more solemn, cool, funny, angry, poetic aspects of Cyrano, but less so his devotion, vulnerability, insecurities and his pathetism. It doesn't seem to get Roxane at all, how similar she is to Cyrano, nor why she has so many admirers. It does a very poor job at understanding Christian and his value, and writes him off as stupid imo. While I enjoyed the language aspect of the Burgess translation, I remember being quite angry at certain points reading it because of what it did to the characters and some changes he introduces. I think he did something very questionable with Le Bret and Castel-Jaloux, and I remember being incensed because of Roxane at times (for instance, she doesn't go to Arras in his version, which is a key scene to show just how much fire Roxane has, and that establishes several parallels with Cyrano, in attitude and words, but even in act since she does a bit what Cyrano later does with the nuns in the last act), and being very angry at several choices about Christian too. While not explicitly stated, I think the McAvoy production and the musical both follow this translation, because they too introduce these changes, and they make Christian as a character, and to an extent the entire play, not make sense.

For instance, once such change is that Christian is afraid that Roxane will be cultured (McAvoy's version has that infamous "shit"/"fuck" that I detest), when in the original French it's literally the opposite. He is not afraid she will be cultured, he is afraid she won't, because he does love and appreciate and admires those aspects of her, as he appreciates and admires them in Cyrano. That's key! Just as Cyrano longs to have what Christian has, Christian wants the same! That words escape him doesn't mean he doesn't understand or appreciate them. The dynamics make no sense without this aspect, and Burgess (and the productions that directly or indirectly follow him) constantly erases this core trait of Christian.

Another key moment of Christian Burgess butchers is the scene in Arras in which Christian discovers the truth. Burgess writes their discussion masterfully in form, it's both funny and poignant, but it falls short in concept: when Cyrano tells him the whole discussion about who does Roxane love and what will happen, what they'll do, is academic because they're both going to die, Christian states that dying is his role now. This destroys entirely the thing with Christian wanting Roxane to have the right to know, and the freedom to choose, or to refuse them both. As much as Cyrano proclaims his love for truth and not mincing words even in the face of authority, Cyrano is constantly drunk on lies and mirages, masks and metaphors. It's Christian who wants it all to end, the one who wants real things, the one who wants to risk his own happiness for the chance of his friend's, as well as for the woman he loves to stop living in a lie. That is a very interesting aspect of Christian, and another aspect in which he is written as both paralleling and contrasting Cyrano. It's interesting from a moral perspective and how that works with the characters, but it's also interesting from a conceptual point of view, both in text and metatextually: what they hold most dear, what they most want, what most fulfills them, what they most fear, their different approaches to life, but also metatextually another instance of that tears/blood motif and its ramifications constant through the whole text. Erasing that climatic decision and making him just simply suicidal erases those aspects of Christian and his place in the Christian/Cyrano/Roxane dynamic, all for plain superficial angst, that perhaps hits more in the moment, but holds less meaning.

Being more literal, and more solemn, Hooker's translation (or any of the others, but Hooker's seems to love the characters and understand them) doesn't make these conceptual mistakes. Now, would I not recommend reading Burgess' translation? I can't also say that. I had a lot of fun reading it, despite the occasional anger and indignation haha Would I recommend buying it? I recommend you give an eye to it first, if you're tempted and can initially only buy one.

You can read Burgess' translation entirely in archive.com. You can also find online the complete translations of Renauld, Hooker and Thomas and Guillemard. I also found a fifth one, iirc, but I can't recall it right now (I could give a look). You could read them before choosing, or read your favourite scenes and fragments in the different translations, and choose the one in which you like them better. That's often what I do.

Edit: I've checked to make sure and Roxane does appear in Arras in the translation. It's in the introduction in which it is stated that she doesn't appear in the production for which the translation was made. The conceptualisation of Roxane I criticise and that in my opinion is constant through the text does stay, though.

#I have a lot of opinions about translations in general tbh but this is not a semi clear case like in Crime and Punishment #in which there's one detail that a translation must do for me to recommend it (it used to be the one but now in English several do it)#I wouldn't recommend Burgess as a first approach to the play‚ but having already read the play and knowing the text and characters #and how Burgess may modify it‚ then I wouldn't not recommend it because it is the best in form in many aspects #And while he fails in direct concept‚so to speak‚ form is particularly important in this play and in conveying concept and characterisatio #So idk personal taste is it I guess? Again I am not an English or French native #I vehemently recommend reading the play in French if you can and haven't done so already #Even best if you want a translation to read the translation alongside the French text #to see how the translation bends the play in form and subject #Anyway... Sorry for the long delay and the too long reply. I always end up talking too much #Oh by the way I think I saw you talk about the blood/tears motif in the act IV in some tags? It's not just act IV #The tears/soul motif is repeated through the entire text linked to Cyrano and is opposed to the body of Christian #That's why the culmination in the last act and the tears in the fourth hit so much #Like the constant of Cyrano being linked to the moon and the darkness while Roxane is the sun and the light #And also I would argue the 'pearled perfection of her smile' is not an unidentifiable trait or intangible #It's poetic and metaphoric but it's a description of her teeth. Small‚ straight‚ white. Perfect teeth. That wasn't so common back then #It's quite common in classic literature to find poetic references of good teeth spoken of in these terms #Anyway...#I hope you'll find some use in this that would make the insufferable wall of text worth some of the time at least #After all time spent is a little death. I would have hated to kill a fragment of you for nothing haha #Cyrano de Bergerac #Did I tag asks? I usually delete them after a while so I think I didn't? I never recall #I talk too much #That will suffice #Hmmm it's useless in any case. I think I've talked for over twenty tags before tagging that #A wall of text and somehow I ramble in the tags nonetheless ugh #I will reread this in a bit to see if it's coherent enough. The little screen of the phone always makes me lose track of things when I writ

9 notes · View notes

softquietsteadylove · 10 months

Note

Hi, it's me (i'm the problem, it's me). Here's a prompt for a new au that I think you can do it justice 💃 Thena is the best onmyoji/jujutsu sorceress in the family and Gilgamesh is the giant entity that serves her, between them there's a connection that runs deeper than the contract that binds them together ✨✨💖 pls i wanna see them being badass and then some soft moments 👉👈

"Uh, so..." Kingo started and then stopped again. He had never been paired with this particular sorcerer for a mission before, but he knew who she was.

Thena, eldest daughter of a very renowned jujutsu sorceress clan. They had cursed energy that was so pure and so concentrated it was called Cosmic energy to some--glowed gold and everything. But aside from her weapons expertise, not a lot was known about her.

"Yes?"

Kingo shifted on his feet. "Do you think it's a special grade, like the rumours say? Or just a level 2 causing trouble?"

"Hm," she let out plainly, and it almost sounded like a chuckle. "I believe even a level 2 is enough to spook the people living in this area. If there is, in fact, a special grade apparition in the area, then I'm certain you and I can handle it."

Kingo nodded; it was a very concise way to wrap things up. So, not the chatty type. He pulled his hands out of his pockets, pulling his own cursed energy into his fingertips.

Thena pulled out the hilt of a sword from the sleeve of her dress. But it took no effort at all for her to create a blade of pure golden light. "Ready."

Kingo raised his hand, pointing his 'finger guns' into the air where he expected the cursed spirit to appear. He just wanted to get this mission done so he could go home.

They waited.

"Where is it?" he voiced aloud, mostly to fill the tense silence.

"Indeed," she agreed, her sword shifting shape from a long blade to a knife she could hold closer to her body. "I believed a level 2 would be eager for a kill."

"Maybe it is a special grade," he murmured as they started backing up. Ajak's deep blue veil was still cast over the area to keep anyone from poking around. "Let's regroup."

"What is it?"

Kingo looked over at his temporary partner. She was whispering over her shoulder--talking to herself? "Uh, T?"

"Something isn't right," she looked back at Kingo, as if she hadn't been talking to some imaginary devil on her shoulder. "I can't sense anything at all."

Now that she said it, she had a point. There was no cursed energy lingering in the air. Even the most basic curses would leave some impression on the area. But this was suspiciously quiet.

"I don't like it either."

Kingo frowned; she was whispering to herself again. He thought her and her whole family were supposed to be super cool jujutsu sorcerers, not nut jobs!

"Kingo!"

He had quick reflexes--he prided himself on them. But he wasn't even fully turned around when the blade of a spear extended past him. He fell forward, cursed energy spilling out from behind him. Oh yeah, this was totally a special grade apparition.

Thena pulled the spear back to herself and changed the shape of it again, her fingers running along the blade of her sword. "It's eaten a lot of people."

"Yuck," Kingo muttered, regarded the writhing mass of cursed energy, a swirling ball of curses with evidence of their once physical bodies still in it. It moved fast though.

Kingo took shots at it as it moved, but it was like a rat king, scurrying around quickly in a completely disgusting way. It scuttle around, avoiding his shots of cursed energy expertly. Even those that hit, only shot off small sections of the main body. He aimed at the small little 'rats' scurrying off the main body as they split off. "Ew, ew, ew!--this is by far the grossest spirit I've ever fought."

"I am inclined to agree." She was a woman of few words, huh?

Kingo ducked and rolled as the ratking spirit shot a few more extremities at them. He took a few more shots in return, but this was getting nowhere fast. He looked at his partner, who was more close range combat than he was. "Thena!"

She turned, barely catching the wave of rats behind her. It loomed over her, but the shadow cast over her wasn't from that.

Kingo skittered back as a massive shadow rose from within Thena's. A cursed apparition like he had never seen before appeared, looming over her and using a single hand to keep the enemy curse at bay. "What the-"

"Gilgamesh!"

The massive spirit materialised more, becoming that of a man, with dark eyes. He had regular hands, but in the same golden glow of Thena's energy, a massive bear paw appeared around his hand. And that was what held the curse at bay.

The curse could use cursed energy? Kingo ran closer, "what the hell is that?!"

"How dare..." the monstrous spirit growled as he held the curses around them at bay. He threw them back, still glowing with cursed energy within his control. "How dare you hurt Thena!"

Kingo ducked as the spirit threw the limb of the cursed spirit and by extension the main body. He looked at Thena, "uh, you brought backup, I see."

She looked at him briefly. "This is Gilgamesh."

That was not the explanation Kingo would have expected to get. But he nodded at the apparition towering over Thena's shoulder, who nodded at him in return. "Uh, hey."

The spirit looked at Thena, bending closer to her. Her hand came up to his cheek, her mouth hovering close to his as she whispered, "friend."

The one word was enough for her guardian spirit, who looked at Kingo again before redirecting his attention to the curse at hand. Kingo also turned back to their current problem. "I guess we'll have to do introductions later."

"Gil!" Thena barked, and the spirit over her shoulder grasped her by the waist before throwing her up in the air. Kingo didn't have time to be stunned before she was on top of the ratking spirit and had both her blades driven into it.

"Holy shit!"

Gilgamesh stormed over, still in the shape of a man but with golden glowing lines like elephant feet around his own. He impacted the ground as he ran at the monster, fists swinging. "Thena!"

What was this thing? Kingo took up the job of shooting at the extremities before they could scurry off and reform into another cursed spirit. "Keep it up you two!"

"Crush it!" Thena ordered from above, hacking and sawing with her blades of cursed energy.

Kingo wouldn't believe it was possible, but he watched as her guardian did just that, bringing his arms around the other being of cursed energy until it was no more. Kingo held up both his hands, shooting at anything that so much as moved. "There are too many!"

"Gil!"

He caught her first, because of course he would. Then he put a hand on her shoulder. He had his own supply of cursed energy, of course. Thena held out her palms, golden needles emerging from them. They all shot out at once, with no end in sight. However much cursed energy she had on her own, Gilgamesh obviously added to it exponentially.

Kingo ended up shielding his eyes by the time the massacre was over. He could understand why they called her the weapons expert; it was hard to create objects out of pure cursed energy. He walked over cautiously, "uh, good work...team?"

Gilgamesh leaned over Thena, pushing some hair away from her face and asking if she was okay even quieter than a whisper.

She smiled and nodded, leaning into his touch. He drifted even closer and she lifted onto her toes to tilt her head up and touch her lips to his cheek.

Kingo averted his eyes. He wasn't embarrassed per se, but he didn't think it was something he was supposed to witness.

"He was my guard."

He looked over, undeniably curious. "Wassat?"

Thena smiled at him, more relaxed now that the imminent danger was out of the way. Her hand remained cradled in the massive palm of her guardian. "He was my guard, once upon a time. When he died protecting me, I...I bound his spirit to mine."

Ohhhhh, he was a cursed apparition in the way a shrine guardian was bound to a temple. She had tied his soul to hers, tethered by their shared cursed energy to keep him with her. It was romantic, in a way (tragic, in another).

"Thena," the spirit rumbled, leaning over shoulder again and pressing his cheek to hers.

She smiled, nuzzling against him just as lovingly. "Gil."

She had a nickname for it?--him. Kingo put his hands back in his pockets as she gave her guardian angel another kiss before beginning the walk back to the edge of the veil. "Were you two...?"

Her smile turned a little sad as the veil began to fall away, revealing the rising sun. "Not in life, no."

But now, in death, it seemed their love was more unbound. There was something beautiful about that, even Kingo could see. He looked over at her massive shadow, where Gilgamesh was happy to float along behind her. Despite literally living in her shadow, they were holding hands.

Kingo chuckled, squinting as dawn reached them. He waved to Ajak, waiting for them. "Well, if I ever ask for a boost like you did today, I think I should get at least one per fight."

Thena just stared at him like he'd spit up a cursed spirit orb. But she laughed, even throwing her head back a little. Her hair caught the sun, practically glowing in its own way.

Gilgamesh smiled down at her, although he held up a hand to keep the sun from getting directly in her eyes. "Love your laugh."

"You're free to ask him," she even swiped a tear of laughter from her eye, "but it's not up to me if he agrees."

#Thenamesh AU #Thenamesh Jujutsu AU #highly recommend jujutsu kaisen for the animation #it's a little intense but damn beautiful #you may know it from some of the thirstiest tiktoks I have ever seen #and listen same #anyway #Gil was her bodyguard #a la Akaza from Demon Slayer if you dabble in that one too #he died protecting her and professed his love with his dying breath #he asked to stay close to her if there was indeed a god listening #but even better: the Goddess of War #Thena put her hand to his chest and said this contract in indefinite #their cursed energy is braided together #like an ourabouros there is no beginning or end #and Gil can socialise a little!#he likes Kingo #thinks he's funny #and he doesn't make Thena uncomfortable even better #Kingo gets pretty used to them #although he does sometimes tell Thena 'stop kissing your boyfriend and make him into a giant crab or something!'#they become a great team!#and Kingo thinks it's hilarious to watch people 'meet' Gilgamesh #I thought a lot about how to write this one #at one point Ikaris is taunting/flirting #Gil emerges like yOu SpEaK tO mY wIfE?!?!??

16 notes · View notes