#reading-wrap up

[roseunspindle]

What I Read in October 2024

Continuing my absurd isekai/harem obsession (why do I like these?) Well, we have a love confession in like, volume one. It's kinda fun. ^_^

A start to a cute seeimg shojo with some psychic elements. (I do wish they hadn't altered people's names from the japanese...)

I love it. Prefer it to the anime. (Why is Cain so adorable?)

The end of this book just... wouldn't have happened if Aja hadn't been so dead set on being a "i am superior and knowing" bitch.

I love Tifana so much.

I liked this one a lot less. Elf girl's parents and brother were kinda the worst.

My mom couldn't remember this book when I was saying that Tuck Everlasting was written by the same author. So I had to dig it out so she could reread it (and nautrally I did too.) ^_^

These stories were awesome! Really loved Ghost Camera but all of them were so good.

Continuing my American Girl "I can finally buy and read these books" we have Meet Addy. I'd never read this one. Poo Addy and her family.

A fun ride.

I was really bad (fun new tooth problem) so I opted to reread this series.

This had an interesting premise but was a let down. It felt like a neat, gripping story was just...waiting to happen but kept not.

I finished Moby Dick! (Via Whale Weekly!) Woo. That ending though...emotionally unwell I must say.

Finally got my hands on volume 4 and 5

Also Heaven Official's Blessing Volume 5 (says I'm at the 30 images limit)

[crescentfool]

reunion 🌸

[royalarchivist]

Over 6 years ago, Technoblade and Etoiles played together on United UHC. Although they never got to meet each other on the QSMP, it's nice to see that they already had some nice banter and a fun dynamic developing during the brief time they knew each other. Here are some highlights from the video where they played together!

Subscribe to Technoblade! Technoblade's United UHC video

[ Part 1 || Part 2 || Subtitle Transcript ↓ ]

-

Technoblade: Bonjour, mis amis! (Hello, my friends!) Oh god, we already have a zombie on us. No! It's targeting me 'cuz I have subs!

Etoiles: Excellent teammates.

Technoblade: Do trees spawn in these worlds?

Etoiles: [Laughing at a screenshot of Technoblade saying "deforestation has gotten pretty bad"]

Technoblade: It's gotten pretty bad, man. What is this?

Etoiles: B-bonjour.

Technoblade: Stop speakin' Chinese.

Etoiles: You're the best Skywars player, dude. That's why.

Technoblade: That doesn't mean much.

Technoblade: Oh my god, I found diamonds!

Etoiles: Oh, whoa.

Technoblade: Subscribe to Technoblade! I'm suddenly a UHC god.

Etoiles: Oh, I got diamonds too! :D

Technoblade: ...Wow, way to ruin my moment. Wow. Can I just have this one moment?

Etoiles: Yeah.

Technoblade: Does everything- does everything need to be a competition? First diamonds I've ever mined in Minecraft.

Etoiles: Let's redo it, Techno. Let's say I don't have diamonds. I don't have diamonds, you have-

Teammate: I found diamonds!

Technoblade: Oh my god.

Technoblade: I have seven diamonds! And I'm not saying that to one-up you, but- I mean I am, but I mean I'm- I'm also tellin' the truth.

Teammate: Nobody knows which one of you guys is the mole.

Technoblade: Yeah, that's gonna be very awkward.

Etoiles: Maybe Technoblade is already-

Technoblade: I'm right behind you.

Etoiles: Technoblade is already saying to his friend-

Technoblade: I'm already in the Mole chat, plannin' your death.

Etoiles: Like, I'm kind of scared of Technoblade, actually.

Technoblade: I'm not even good, why would you be scared of me?

Etoiles: Because you're the King of Bedwars.

Technoblade: Alright, ok, ok, so here's how it works- I get paid per episode, right? So I'm not gonna betray you on Episode 2.

Etoiles: [Laughs]

Technoblade: Now let me enchant.

Etoiles: I'm so bad at hearing sound because when I'm hearing lava-

Technoblade: Nah, it's 'cuz the sounds are in French, isn't it?

Etoiles: [Laughs] I'm gonna kill you, bro.

Technoblade: No!

Etoiles: [Laughs] I'm gonna kill you.

[vaguely-concerned]

on the one hand I think inner demons could stand to have a bit more romanced rook specific content, but on the other hand the underlying in-built implication that 'yours is the one true voice of comfort and safety in my inner world' is a sentiment and intimacy so way beyond the romantic or the platonic or any secret third thing you could care to name that it makes me lose my entire poor little mind a bit. it's so big and fundamental — near-existential — that in that exact moment at least the distinctions kind of seem irrelevant.

all the people lucanis' mind conjures up along the way are relationships he has that are unavoidably mixed and fraught in some ways even when they're also full of love (they are fraught BECAUSE they're full of love) — the good in them inseparable from things that hurt him at the same time. (it's about: the basic disorganized attachment patterns this poor guy is dragging around with him. careful with those, they're dellamorte heirlooms. what you love also inevitably hurts you and you won't be allowed to have one without the other, you have to surrender parts of your soul to hold on to what little you have left: this is the story up until now.) and the idea that rook isn't that to him — that beneath the fear of wanting them when romanced (which is more its own separate thing because within this psychology, actively wanting something and not just clinging on for dear life to even a meager status quo lest you lose it is in itself dangerous bordering on catastrophic), this is a relationship where there isn't resentment, or guilt, or shame, or dread, or rage, or self-hate, or any of the other emotions that keep him paralyzed, unable to move this way or that. no debts, nothing owed of yourself and your soul's substance except what you can freely and safely and happily give. love and freedom don't coexist — but, I mean, you're almost starting to make me think........... unless...👀👀👀. the unconditional and undramatic 'you are here and I am here with you, you can be exactly how you are right now with me and it's safe for us both even though you're afraid it won't be, I'm not going anywhere' acceptance rook shows him here that he returns to them in the big romance scene, when it's rook who needs it. the way he's just. standing there in the center of it all, like a child desperately helplessly waiting to be found, hiding in the place he hopes you'll know to look first. (rook does know. it's one of the first things they say in there.)

in short the most important room in his little mind palace for the romance is the very first room — the one where rook isn't. where, in fact, rook cannot be, because they disprove the entire structure of the place with their existence and presence in his life. with everyone else he's putting words in their mouths about what they think of him, and rook is the one who actually gets to come in to speak their own words to him — and have him listen. ('he'll listen to you, he always listens to you', 'your voice is a comfort'.) of course rook isn't present anywhere else in there — at the risk of stating the obvious to a tedious degree, they aren't one of the locks, they're bringing the key. in the very finest 'the messenger and the message' sort of way.

[adhdandcomics]

you ever fuck a menial task up so monumentally that you have to sit there for a moment wondering how you graduated college, or, more accurately, how you’re even smart enough to be alive

[wiihtigo]

isnt fatherhood wonderful

[literatureaesthetic]

june '24 favs:

a storm of swords ; george r r martin — third book in the 'a song of ice and fire' series, and it may just be my fav instalment yet. i was left utterly speechless over the plot twists in here. one of the best examples of modern fantasy.

the lost daughter ; elena ferrante — it's elena ferrante, of course it's on this list. an intimate character study of leda, a divorcee who suddenly finds herself with zero responsibilities after her daughters move away. a poignant, visceral look into motherhood (girlies with mummy issues, tread with caution😭)

giovanni's room ; james baldwin — the iconic gay, parisian classic. this was my first baldwin, and it's definitely not going to be my last. i haven't been this enthralled by the writing in a classic since 'the picture of dorian gray'. beautiful, gut-wrenching, a must-read for anyone into the classics!!

[aroaessidhe]

2024 reads / storygraph

This Fatal Kiss

spooky whimsical YA fantasy romance

a water nymph bound to the river where she drowned desperately wants to become human again, by gaining a freely-given kiss from a mortal

a brooding boy from the local town who exorcises meddlesome spirits is constantly trying to get rid of her - but after he messes up an exorcism she blackmails him into playing matchmaker for her

….but he also has a crush on the boy she chooses (who has secrets of his own)

bisexual MCs, developing polyamorous relationship

[willowser]

you don't know how much comfort your dragon king bkg drabble has given me ever since you posted it!! i keep reading it i love it sm 🥹

as it turns out, the man bakugou is — a bit harder to handle.

he sleeps like a heathen; you once thought the dragon bakugou to be a bit lazy, with how often he tended to curl up in the fields of grass, warm under the sun, but now — it would seem his little human form needs significantly less rest.

almost up all hours of the day, and when he does finally lay down, he's everywhere. a mess of limbs: one thrown carelessly out to the side and the other bent at an angle you can't believe doesn't hurt his joints. his head stays tucked into you somehow, either buried in your neck or pressed against your ribs — or you'll wake to find him nose-to-nose with you. he still snores like a dragon, however.

you're also beginning to wonder if there is a bottom to the pit of his stomach. he ate much before, whole fields of things, but you expected that appetite to dwindle, at least a little, now that his stomach has decreased considerably in size. and in number ? you're not even sure how many stomachs a dragon has; that's not something that was mentioned in the fairytales.

it burns through him quickly, gives him more energy than he needs, and it doesn't ever seem to affect his weight much. already, he's huge and thick with muscle and eating as much as he does never dulls the severity of his cut abdomen. not that you're looking all that much.

— not that you have a choice not to, as he seems to have little-to-no understanding of —

the door to the bathhouse kicks open, with enough force that you already know who it is without ever turning to look. you try not to shriek when you see him, because he seems to like that in some evil, impish way.

you've been alone to wash so far, thankfully, as the inn you'd managed to find was small and far enough out from the nearest kingdom that the occupancy was low — enough for you and your little brute.

the man bakugou comes to stand in front of the bath, blinking and huffing against the steam. finding clothes for him was — nearly impossible, and so the trousers you'd found hanging on someone's line outside fit above his ankles, a bit too tight around his waist. instead of a shirt, you've wrapped him in a scratchy linen, swaddled him up like a baby to cover the small smattering of scales that decorate his body, almost like freckles from the sun, though they gleam just as bright and red as they ever have. no matter his form.

a horn has started to sprout, on the right side of his forehead, and you've done your best to cover that, too.

you have no idea how long this man thing will last. if it's permanent or if he even has control over it. the last thing you need is for him to switch back, somehow, while you're in the middle of feeding him, absolutely demolishing whatever tavern you're in and calling all of king todoroki's guards to attention.

bakugou grunts, almost sleepy, and tosses a fat, weighty sack onto the edge of the bath. it jingles a certain jingle that makes your heart stop.

"oh, allfather—" you move for the edge, awkwardly keeping one arm against your chest despite the fact that he's seen it all by now. when you peek inside and confirm your fears, you lob it back to him furiously, as if it were a steaming potato. "where do you keep getting this stuff?"

things have started to turn up, miraculously. shiny things — like coins and rings and gems. things he could not have simply found rolling around in the dirt.

"go put it back!" you hiss at him, and the tone of your voice makes his frown deepen. you never realized how pouty he was, when he was still a dragon.

you think he understands you, and you're pretty certain he just chooses not to listen; instead of doing what you've told him in the slightest, he simply dumps the coin-purse to the floor, and then lets his linen and stolen trousers cover it as he unceremoniously undresses.

the biggest issue that you would say the man bakugou poses is — his complete lack of understanding of personal space.

"bakugou!" your voice wavers, shocked again by his nakedness. as if you haven't seen it all by now. "no, you — get out!"

but he does the exact opposite, which is hop into the steaming water, ignoring the arm you hold out to keep him away as he saddles up beside you. skin against scales, pressing a nose into your hair to huff out his annoyance, to make it something you can feel.

if anyone were to walk in right now, they would — probably think the lie you'd told the innkeeper was true. that you are a simple traveler and this is your mute, over-sized husband.

regardless, you think this behavior isn't polite. especially in a public bathhouse.

"bakugou," you try again, turning your face away as you speak to the wood-paneled wall. "i'm taking a bath, you have to wait your turn."

all you receive in response is another huff against your ear and a low rumble of disagreement from his chest.

he has yet to speak back, and has only used inhuman sounds as his points of conversation. the only word you've ever heard him utter is oi, which he does when he really thinks he needs your attention. you're starting to wonder if he's named you that in his head. oi.

curiously, you turn back to him and the movement has him pulling his face from your hair, just enough that he can look down at you, too. watch you, with the red-rippled sea in his eyes.

they're — amazing, you will admit. just as bright and detailed as they always have been. fit for a fairytale told by the fire, veiled by the soft-ash of his lashes. he watches you through them, half-lidded, and you wonder if it's something other than fatigue that has them so heavy.

"do you know what i'm saying?" you ask quietly, voice lacking the firm heat you want it to. instead it's heavy, too, weighted by something soft and unfamiliar and frightening. "can you even understand me?"

bakugou doesn't respond, not with a huff or a rumble or ever a purr, like the one he let out on the night he lay over you by the lake. you've only heard it sparingly since then, oftentimes in his sleep when his face is pressed into you.

you try not to frown at his silence, try not to let it disappoint you because it shouldn't; he's a dragon afterall, and you're not sure what it matters. the little horn protruding from his forehead catches your eye and you reach up to touch it gently, watching him blink away the water that drips from your wrist — and then he's turning into you again, too close.

beneath the water, you feel his hands skate up your bare thighs, wrap around your waist until your chest is pulled flush against his. you feel his huff, again, against the damp skin of your neck but it's slower, lighter. not laced with his frustration. some unknown thing you feel guilty for liking.

you drop your hand to his hair, rushing full force into all the damned things you've thought about doing but have been too afraid to. he's soft between your fingers, and you trace your nails lightly against his scalp until he groans quietly; a new noise, one you don't know how to translate.

your fingers stop when they brush upon little spines that have grown at the base of his skull, that have started to trail down the center of his back.

suddenly, tangled up in the bath with him, you wonder how much time you have left.

bakugou huffs again into your skin, a little fiercer this time, and it's because of his light jostling that you realize how rigid you've gone. you try to relax so that he will, too, though you must not do a convincing job, because a sharp nip comes to your earlobe.

"ow!" you squeal, but he doesn't let you go far, not even as you try to jerk away from him. in fact, the harder you try the more his teeth show: into your cheek and the point of your jaw and then dangerously low on your neck.

it's not until you finally freeze that he stops, huffing again, with a warmth that burns more than the steaming water.

and then, very quietly, he grumbles, "shitty wife," into your collarbone, just before biting you again.

[splootdoolies]

Nightcord at 25:00 headcanons!!

[hogoflight]

when Artemis and Apollo enter a heated (siblings being siblings) argument, they get loud enough and also get pissy enough one turns into a husky and starts screaming.

Artemis: -Apollo, I’m TELLING you, HE’S GOING TO BREAK YOUR HEART!

Apollo: WHAT WOULD YOU KNOW? TELL ME WHAT YOU KNOW ABOUT HIM. RIGHT NOW.

Artemis: AT LEAST I WON’T COME HOME WAILING ABOUT SOME GUY LIKE A. LIKE A UM. LOSER!!!

Apollo: WELL AT LEAST MOTHER LOVES ME MORE!!! LOSER!!!

Artemis, turning into a husky: AWWWOÖEÊĘOOÖÄAAAÆÆÄÂAAAOOOOŒŒÖOOOAAAAA

Apollo, turning into a husky in response: AAARRRRAARAÜUUUUÛUUOÖÖÀAAÁGHGHÀAA

[tippilo]

I usually don't post these on tumblr (the last three months are on insta) but most tomione authors are only on tumblr

Taggable authors: @allofthelights11 @ginnyruin @peppershark @desmathewu @thoronris @nerysdax

Taggable artists: @bis-art @garfunkelworld @avendell

I did my best to tag everybody I could, but I likely missed people (sorry! If your account name isn't like your username on ao3, I'm not going to hunt for you)

[demonslayedher]

I finished posting the unabashedly educational Sword Fic.

It includes a detailed (but hopefully beginner-friendly) explanation of all the steps of making a Nichirin blade from a sunny mountain like Mt. Youkou, a touch of swordsmith and metalworker folk lore (including demons), meta about what must make Kimetsu no Yaiba's swordsmithing methods different from real life methods, some character exploration for Haganezuka and his polishing method, vocabulary and additional resources in the chapter notes, and hopefully, an endearing, silly POV character to learn this all through.

[theetwinkleboy]

just. came across this panel and got unexpectedly and wildly emotional about aizawa becoming a dad. because like. he cares about his students, he's shown time and time again that he'll push them and fight for them against villains and the media and he'll go to his last breath to protect them but like. they're hero students and he's their teacher and he's tough and strict because he has to be to keep them alive. but then like--

it's morning and he's doing her hair. he's got the hair ties with the little baubles on them and he's doing her hair and she's been through so much crap and aizawa's never shown being demonstrably affectionate or enthusiastic around her the way that izuku and mirio are but like. he's been her dependable quiet shadow every time she's shown up in the manga so far, and he doesn't have to be strict or tough with her because what she needs isn't someone to teach her how to save others, it's someone that she can trust to be there when she needs, someone she can trust to do her hair with little bauble hair ties in the morning.

[brandileigh2003]

November reading wrap-up

Total words: 1,592,567

Average: 53085/day, 3.3 hrs, 212 pgs

Total fics over 15k: 21

This was a great month fic wise, but rough personally at times. If authors see this, know that your words really do mean a lot and have brought some joy when I felt ill and down.

Without further ado---

-love finds a way by @littleoldrachel (60k) Jurassic Park exes to lovers

-Closer to Fine by krabapple (78k) 1st war divergent, mpreg

-oh, summer child by peachyybabe @lavenderhaze (20k) modern magical divergent, mpreg

-For My Impertinence by @synonomy : (91k) regency a/b/o

-To die, as lovers may by @moggetbright (11k) vampire Sirius and Hunter Remus

-Too Little Too Late by swings_and_roundabouts re-read. (13k) au mcd

-Babysitting For Dummies by Middleofamoment (37k) au raising teddy get together

-sequel: Proposing For Dummies by Middleofamoment (33k)

-I found you by de_sire @de-sire-blog (23k) divergent soulmates

-Lateral Thinking by Sadspatula (20k) au exploring mental illness

-Ullswater by eyra (31k) uni, they're musicians

-The Barista by ever3tt (44k) 80s au get together fic

-Love at First Bloom by viwrites @just--vi (21k) flower shop au

-back when we were dinosaurs by epicblueblanket @kaaaaaaarf (37k) au get together, both nerdy

-The Spy Who Loved Him by OptimisticDinosaur, @weightyghosts : (34k) spy au friends to lovers

-Exchange Program by krabapple @severedreamerfox (23k) post 1st war divergent

-The Bravest Person I Have Ever Known by Middleofamoment (17k) Hogwarts pining

-you don't have to be alone (when you're the place i wanna go) by quiethauntings @quiethauntings (37k) au ft lots of pining

-every christmas from now on by @mandarino-o (86k) fake dating

-Ocean of Fiction Blue by orphan_account (12k)

-A Good League Hence by eyra @eyra (14k) Christmas modern au

-the black dog by joey101 (51k) modern post break up

-Basingstoke Diaries series by Anonymous (160k) divergent look at wolfstar after Hogwarts to remus' death. Mcd. Check tags esp on small bones of courage. But you can read until there if you want to avoid the mcd

-maybe time running out is a gift by messrsrarchives @messrsrarchives (wip 21k) au mcd sickfic

-'tis the damn season by moonymoment @mayescapade fake dating (71k)

-here we are, again by dykesiriusblack @dykefever (61k) get back together

[freckles-and-books]

November wrap-up!

I’m still making my way through Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer on audio.