#the book was okay but i didn't like the first two enough to get nona

[solarwreathe]

*cough cough* *hack* *wheeze* *clears throat* you got some wader?

the sketch: it’s the 8 guy on the left. walmart draco, or whatever they have in new zealand

[paradoxcase]

@turtletotem:

Pyrrha absolutely said G1deon's original name, which is proof that she remembers things from before the Resurrection. After all, the way John wiped their memories was through a physical change to their brains -- once Pyrrha died, she wouldn't be depending on a physical brain to hold her memories anymore, it's all just soul.

But why wouldn't Nona actually hear the name in that case? That's what doesn't make sense to me

@wellhappybirthdaytomeiguess:

I wonder, really, whether Pash realizes that Gideon/Kiriona is her cousin. And I hope we get the cousins together in Alecto. Gideon having a living relative that is very much like her in some ways could be interesting.

@eye-lantern:

I think this chapter does a lot to explain the aversion Pash has for the Body (fun how it used to mean Alecto the dead woman loved by Harrow and now means Gideon the... Oh), she sees the spitting image of her beloved hero and aunt, un rotting because of necromantic fuckery. Also I don't think she knows the reality of her conception so she may think her aunt had to bone Jod. Which, ew

I didn't really think about that, but it does make a lot of sense. Actually, I kind of wonder now when BOE realized who both of Gideon's parents were. I don't think anyone who was left alive at Canaan House after the end of Gideon the Ninth would have known that she was John's daughter. Pyrrha was there for that whole reveal, but she had never seen Gideon before, I guess except as a baby when she and/or G1deon pushed Wake out of the airlock. So I guess it must have been that Pyrrha recognized her as the John/Wake child she'd just heard about from John and the Lyctors, and told BOE about it then, or maybe after John got the body back? I don't know if it's actually been covered exactly how Pyrrha feels personally about the whole killing John plot. I can see why she might be for it, but she also seems kind of like she'd rather just hie off to somewhere with Palamedes and Camilla and Nona and not be involved in any of this stuff any longer

@wellhappybirthdaytomeiguess:

While integrated ok, the 8,000 line is actually an old tumblr meme (https://memearchives.tumblr.com/post/133103879052/hi-i-love-love-love-your-blog-it-always-cheers).

Oh, you know, I vaguely remember that whole thing, but I didn't realize it had become a meme

So I guess the question about that line then becomes: "why unjust bodies?" Number Seven does say some things about justice there, but I'm not sure what it means by that

so we have seen the things coming from the tower already...but not in this book...

Ok, looking back, it does look like Canaan House is consistently referred to as a tower (or a series of towers) in the first two books. So Ianthe and Gideon are "tower princes" because they went through the trial at Canaan House? And John is trying to do the same thing again, and create more Lyctors with another Lyctor trial there? Makes sense, I guess

So, I think the 'you called me for help and I am made a mockery' actually happened in this book...when Nona was 'copying' Judith to get Ianthe to stop asking her questions. Because it was after that that the heralds dropped...and Nona had likely accidently called Verun for help when she screamed in the language of the RBs.

Also, from earlier, before Nona and Cam leave the apartment to look for Pyrrha: “Can you help me?” Nona whispered. “Can you do anything? Do you know where Pyrrha is?” But it only lowed sadly, like a cow. “That’s all right,” whispered Nona. “Sorry for asking.” Then: “Don’t do anything weird, okay? I’m having enough trouble right now.”

Right! I completely forgot:

And:

I should have searched, since I do have text search here

[empty-pizza]

thoughts on nona the ninth epilogue and thoughts on the book and series overall

Some of you might not have checked the blog today and will just, come back to this post to find that I decided to read 2/3 of the book today and finish it. It was good but it wasn't just because it was good, I kinda just felt like finishing. I'm kind of exhausted and I'm not sure how much my lack of understanding of what's going down at the end comes down to the book being confusing, and how much is me having no more energy.

anyway

alecto breaking out

oh great we talking all shakespeare like now, this is really making it easy to follow (i am just very sleepy)

which fuckin child is who

okay so harrow is awake now (the fuck was all that going on with the tower then)

alright from alecto's attempt to kiss

i can understand why the lyctors would have called her a monster

okay so the ninth is the line of anastasia

so alecto is swearing herself to harrow

and gideon called her a slut

as it should be, i suppose

damn and she just

went and said hi to john

and stabbed him and he said good morning

man what the FUCK does any of this imply

i do not have the brain power to process any of these layers

like, what the fuck did john plan on, or want to happen

the river is DEAD? the fuck does that mean

what the fuck is any of this shit

give me answers

j;aijdgoiahdhuipfuoifhnoanononho;oi;oi;hasdi

asid;uihadso;fpihaj[POUIAHNDSO['IGH

gadzoinks

DOUIUHGIOWEOG

Anyway yeah I'd say this was the best book in the series so far. I generally enjoyed Nona's character more than the prior two protagonists. I enjoy when childish, whimsical, naive personalities are expressed realistically through prose. I also enjoyed gradually learning more about how Nona thinks and just what she is.

The plot kept its momentum better than the second book, and followed through with a better climax than the first book. I've spoken about what I disliked about those aspects of the earlier books in prior posts. Here, the situation kept changing and developing enough that it didn't get too stale. Even without Nona driving most of the changes, it felt like she had an effect on the things around her.

I'm kind of hoping the next book begins right after we left off. We already did big timeskips twice in a row, and we haven't even answered everything that happened in the last one.

My brain is just muddled in so many questions about magic mechanics, character motivations, character history, et cetera et schmetera, that I don't even know how to put into words yet.

Part of my satisfaction here is that I think the pacing of reveals was really good in this book. It kept piling on more and more the closer it got to the end. But it really just slammed me with a bunch more questions by the ends. Reveals that raise more questions are great, and this is the right time for them considering it's the penultimate book in the series, but jeez, I am just brain strained right now. My brain has gone through one of those machines where you turn the crank and the dough goes through and comes out as spaghetti shaped. Except like, in reverse, because my brain is smoother now.

I think this has been an overall strong series, but it's somewhat unique in that the lore was the main thing I cared about. Or at least, I cared about it disproportionately to how much I usually do. That's not to say that there wasn't great character work here; I totally understand those who primarily love this series for the characters. I think I posted plenty about how interesting many of them are; hopefully that speaks for itself.

In general, it does tend to focus more on static characters. Not every character is like this, but a lot of them don't really change much (not during books), but instead only get tested at key moments to demonstrate their beliefs and conviction. Which is a totally fine approach, when the characters are interesting people, and you can instead drive things a bit more via learning more about them. When changes do occur, it's often offscreen entirely — just look at Corona and Gideon this book.

It kind of comes down to what drives you to read the next chapter. I almost always wanted to read more to learn about the lore. I often, but not always, was curious about where the plot would go next, how predicaments would be solved. And I was interested in how characters would grow or change... less than average, I'd say.

Though, the line between lore and learning more about who characters are was often blurred. I'm just not sure how much it will appeal to me personally once I already know everything about them. Maybe it'll work great on reread someday, maybe it won't.

I think I'd call this one a strong 8/10. Definitely gonna develop my thoughts on this more in the coming days but I really need to get to sleep soon.

I kind of wonder in what ways these stories will stick with me, when my experience was so lore driven. I feel like my opinion on book 2 has gone down slightly since I finished it, as the high of the reveals wore off and I felt kind of dissatisfied a few other aspects. I definitely liked the plot/characters in this book more, but I still just need to see how I settle on feeling about it all in retrospect. I mean the thing is, when you're that driven by lore, I prefer when it sticks the landing. If I don't personally like the answers in the final book I might lose a little love for the series as a whole.

Edit: To clarify this point a little, it's really that there's two kinds of reveals. There's the ones that are actual reveals, which tended to be really interesting. And there's the ones that mostly engaged me on the basis of "this tiny detail could be implying really insane things later." Some of which paid off, some of which still haven't. It's a fun feeling to engage with while reading, but for me it relies not just on the reveals paying off, but me being left with an overall feeling that engaging with the narrative in that way was worthwhile. If the series ends up not really caring about rewarding readers for paying attention that much (which I'm not saying will happen, it's just always a possibility) then that takes away a lot of my enjoyment retroactively.

Of course, it's also possible that if I did a reread, I'd end up appreciating the character work a lot more than the first read, and end up caring about the lore a lot less! This is just what I engaged with on this read and my present experience. I definitely can't say I understand everything about the characters, so there might even be whole layers to how they grow and change that I just didn't pick up on here.

Fun series and I really enjoyed liveblogging it! I hope you don't mind me kind of just, rushing through the final book today. Trust me, that was out of enjoyment primarily (also the library has kind of wanted these back for a while). I appreciate everyone who enjoyed my posts and commented things, and I'll definitely be sticking around and reading more comments as I try to make sense of all the shit I just read. I hope you enjoyed my first-timer thoughts.

[autumnalwalker]

Another week, another Empty Names character interview. As long as this is semi-technically a tag game, consider this an open tag to anyone reading.

For the fourth week, we return to the first character to show up the story. Lacuna.

Relationship Status: Single. I just figure that I've got to get to a point where I'm happy with myself before I can ask anyone else to be happy with me, you know? It'd just be selfish otherwise. I'm getting there though.

Favourite Colour: Black's kind of a safe, comfort zone color for me. And it goes well with everything, especially when you've got just one vibrant color to pair with with it as an accent. ... Although... if I'm being honest, as much as I'm terrified of sounding like or reinforcing a bad stereotype, if I were braver I'd probably have more pink in my life. At least to try it out for a while and figure out if I really like it or if I'm just looking at it with longing as something I couldn't have before.

Favourite Food: Poutine. I know it's kind of gross, but I've got a bunch of nostalgia wrapped up with it. I had it this one time as a little kid on a family vacation with my parents and my aunt, loved it, and then went back home far enough south that I didn't encounter it again for years. So for the longest time it always felt like a big deal whenever I happened to come across it again. And yeah, I'm an adult now and could just make it anytime I want it, but it wouldn't be the same, you know?

Song stuck in their head: This is gonna sound weird, but, I swear I heard Bridgewood humming the Hamtaro theme song the other day. The old anime with the talking hamsters? I haven't been able to stop thinking about it since, but I'm kinda afraid he'll stab me or something if I ask him about it.

Last thing they searched on a BBS: That's like a predecessor to modern online forums, right? I haven't used one myself, but lately I've been going through some message boards nearly as antiquated to search for possible supernatural incidents we might be able to help with. Anything I find that looks likely I run by Road and Bridgewood so the two of them can make the call on if it's legit and actually needs our intervention.

Time: Time... for me to get a watch. Looks like that last test glyph fried my phone. Again.

Last Thing They Read: A simulation readout telling me that glyph only had a one percent chance of frying my phone.

Last Book They Enjoyed Reading: Nona The Ninth. Sure, that's not really how necromancy works for any of the major magic systems in this local cluster, but it's still a good story. A good series. And the characters are great even when they're kind of terrible or dumb, but it's a good, funny kind of dumb. Okay, that probably doesn't sound like much of an endorsement and I should probably say what it's actually about. It's just I... Sorry, no one needs to hear me ramble on about stuff. It's bad enough that I put Eris through that and she actually seems to tolerate it. Sorry that went on so long without saying anything of substance. Next question.

Favourite thing to cook/bake: Pizza from a box mix. It barely qualifies as baking, but it's easy enough for me to do without messing it up while also being involved enough that it forces me to take a break from whatever thing I've currently gotten myself into and think about something else for a while. And with a significant enough cook time it means I actually have to plan to set aside time to eat and not forget about it.

Favourite thing to do in their free time: Eh, I don't know. Reading, games, the occasional show. Basic nerd stuff, you know? I'm not that interesting or unique. Not that I have much time for any of it these days anyway, between work and bouts of obsessively researching for my... uh... side project. Oh, what kind of research? Just looking into how transmutation and transformation gets handled by various magic systems in this world cluster. Specifically for long term effects. Not for anything nefarious or mad sciency! Just a... personal interest.

Most niche dislike: I considered just sort of vaguely gesturing at myself, but that's not really niche these days, is it? Not really a good joke either. So, yeah, real answer time. Poor documentation, especially when the documentation or instructions are just flat out wrong. I don't think that one needs any elaboration.

Opinion on circuses: I think I prefer the more modern shows that are mostly acrobatics and theatrics over the traditional animal acts and carnie stuff. The classic aesthetic can be visually fun sometimes though, I guess.

Do they have any sense of direction: An embarrassingly bad one. It's one of several reasons I don't get out much. Not one of the biggest ones, but it's definitely a contributing factor. Especially since GPS doesn't really work in pocket dimensions.

GET TO KNOW A CHARACTER FROM MY WIP (A Tag Game)

Thank you for the tag, @cljordan-imperium.

I'll pass on the tag to: @fearofahumanplanet, @ryns-ramblings, and @tc-doherty. And the usual open tag.

The first character that came to mind for this was The Archivist, but our eponymous narrator is having a bad time right now, so I'll be grabbing someone from Empty Names instead. Ashan, you don't talk much; get over here.

Relationship Status: Single. I have never understood the driving need to pair up that most seem to experience.

Favourite Colour: White. Pearl white, if you wish for a more specific shade.

Favourite Food: While I try to keep my diet strictly healthy, I will admit to the occasional nostalgic indulgence with churros.

Song stuck in their head: Something Lacuna had playing the other day. She said she was not sure of the song's title, but it clearly said "Lisa Frank 420 / Modern Computing" on the screen. Odd. Both that she did not know the title and the sound of the music itself.

Last thing they searched on a BBS: What is a BBS?

Time: I suppose I ought to acquire a watch now that I am back on this world. Such preoccupation with precise measurements of a fluid concept here.

Last Thing They Read: A tome out of Bridgewood's private library whose name I fear I lack the mouthparts to pronounce, even with a translation charm on my person.

Last Book They Enjoyed Reading: "Melisandre's Musings on Multiversal Magic Mechanics." An interesting and useful text if one does not mind sifting through meandering personal anecdotes to decipher the author's theories on spellcraft.

Favourite thing to cook/bake: The aforementioned churros. They do not have that dish on Orthon, and teaching my teacher how to make them the way I had seen my real mother do on a number of occasions was an adventure in and of itself.

Favourite thing to do in their free time: Meditation in less-touched natural areas. The density of urbanization on this world still gets to me at times now that I am back.

Most niche dislike: Slugs. Silly I know, but somehow early in my training they just kept showing up in unexpected places at unexpected times with unexpected size. I do not care for their presence.

Opinion on circuses: I went to one once as a child and found it wonderful, but now that I know more about them they mostly make me sad.

Do they have any sense of direction: Alas, it is not as acute a sense as it had been on Orthon. The lack of ambient background magic here outside of isolated pockets is disorienting. Funny to think I did not even possess that sense as a child when now I feel its lack like the loss of an eye. Or perhaps the loss of my nose might be more accurate.

[seventhstar]

End of Year Reading Tag, which I am doing because I feel like it. You know how people will say "consider yourself tagged if you see this?" @why-the-heck-not I am taking you up on your offer.

did you reach your reading goal for the year (if you had one)?

I did! Actually I met my goal multiple times. I started with a goal of 50, hit it well before 2021 was over, and raised it a couple more times. My final goal was 85, and I ended up reading 88 books!

what are your top 3 books you read this year?

Oof, that is a hard question, because I already put out my top ten list this year and even with counting series I read as one book, I struggled hard to cut it down to ten. I'll give it a shot...

Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir The Jasmine Throne by Tasha Suri When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain by Nghi Vo

what’s a book that you didn’t expect to enjoy quite so much going in?

Hmm. Mexican Gothic, by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, for the simple reason that I don't usually read horror. I picked this up on a whim and enjoyed it a lot, to the point where I'm going to try to be more open-minded about horror as a genre in the future.

were there any books that didn’t live up to your expectations?

My biggest disappointments this year were Jade Fire Gold by June CL Tan and Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas. These were both YA novels--actually, a lot of books I didn't like this year were YA, which makes me think I need to read fewer YA novels--that didn't work for me and overall didn't live up to the massive hype surrounding them.

did you reread any old faves? If so, which one was your favourite?

I reread shockingly few books this year! But I would have to go with Hogfather by Terry Pratchett, which I reread every December, and which is one of my favorite books ever. It is full of moments that have lingered in my brain since I read them, like smoke in a candle if you smother it by putting on a lid.

did you dnf any books?

Three! The Duke's Wager by Edith Layton, because both the love interests were loathsome and I did not like either of them enough to continue; Daring and the Duke, because I didn't like the first couple chapters; and Freed by E.L. James, because after reading the first five 50sog books, my friends finally convinced me to love myself and stop.

did you read any books outside your usual preferred genre(s)?

This year actually marked my return to my preferred genres, fantasy and science fiction. Though I did read a lot more adult SF/F compared to YA. I did read more contemporary romances, which was a change--I usually only read historical romances and usually only ones set in regency England.

what was your predominant format this year?

43/88 books I read were e-books, the remaining 45 were physical. I read a lot of library books in the first half of the year and then switched to e-books once I was traveling.

what’s the longest book you read this year?

Probably the fan translation of Heaven Official's Blessing, which is fiendishly long.

what are your top 3 anticipated 2022 releases?

Okay, I'm going to cheat and do three new releases and three sequels to books I've already read.

New releases: Daughter of the Moon Goddess by Sue Lynn Tan A Taste of Gold and Iron by Alexandra Rowland The Way Spring Arrives and Other Stories edited by Yu Chen and Regina Kanyu Wang

Sequels: Nona the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir Into the Riverlands by Nghi Vo The Oleander Sword by Tasha Suri

what books from your tbr did you not get to this year, but are excited to read in 2022?

Well, I'd like to finish the two series I started in 2022 that I didn't finish. So Act Your Age, Eve Brown by Talia Hibbert and The Hellion's Waltz by Olivia Waite.

In addition: The Lady or the Lion by Aamna Qureshi (Pakistani-inspired fantasy!!!) The Councillor by E.J. Beaton (I bought two copies of this one and didn't get around to it!!!) The Charm Offensive by Alison Cochrun (I wanted to read it but couldn't bring myself to buy it, but then it went on sale recently so now I have it!)