#the confessions of frannie langton reaction

[podcastingjamaican]

IT'S NOT OVER FOR FRANNIE AND MARGUERITE

IT'S NOT OVER FOR FRANNIE AND MARGUERITE.

HERE ARE MY 5 REASONS WHY: (Skip to 4:25 for my theories :-) )

[bohemian-nights]

Is this a safe space to say that I don't care about Polin in S3? Colin is such a boring 1 dimensional character that easily gets overshadowed by Anthony and especially Benedict, and Penelope is just a whiny brat who just wants male validation and is jealous of Eloise. Also to act like she never said anything about the Brdgertons is a lie cause she had no problem talking about Daphne, had it not have been for her crush on Colin she would've gone on a jealous rant about his entire family. I know Polin is attractive to some people because of the representation of larger body types and the childhood friends to lovers trope but it's just boring. I can't name 1 intreseting thing about Colin other than he took a vacation and had psychedelic tea and Pen is not as progressive as she thinks she is she's just jealous and bitter. Also how is it that she's such an amazing writer that can communicate in so much detail but can't even communicate to Eloise when Eloise doesn't understand her perspective? She's quick to lash out at her as if Eloise is doing it on purpose, Eloise is not dumb and she has respect it's not like she insults women who want/desire love so there was no reason for Penelope to play victim.

This is totally a safe space because while I don't hate them I don’t particularly care for Polin either.

In the books it’s a bit better because Penelope isn’t as much of a snake), but she isn’t my fave by a long shot.

Penelope on the show is straight-up awful. She started pretty sympathetic, but then the Marina situation happened and that turned me completely off of her character. So by the time she had her falling out with Eloise(who did nothing wrong and has every right to be angry with her), I was already checked out.

Yes, she’s not very popular with the ton.* Yes not being seen sucks. Yes her mother is kind of mean to her and forces her to wear the most hideous outfits which is probably a turn-off for most men. Yes she wants Collin and he doesn’t want her and that sucks, but that’s no excuse for her actions.

Honestly, Penelope is half a step away from being a whole stalker and yet we are supposed to see ourselves in her or at least sympathize with her🫠

(I’m not going to get into her being bullied by Cressida since she’s nasty to everyone).

It’s kind of obvious though that Shonda sees herself in her which is why Penelope is promoted so much and given the angle she has been, but she’s a weirdo with insecurity issues.

To be honest, I thought she should’ve gotten a redemption arc before her season(she’s not unredeemable, she just needs to clean up her act), but it is what it is.

Now Collin both in the show and the books is incredibly dull to me. Yes, he has his traveling(and spoilers, his writing about his travels), but he’s just kind of there. He is just the third Bridgerton bro and while Luke Newton is attractive I feel nothing when I look at him playing Colin.

That cheesy promo they had the other day did nothing for me(well I did laugh, but I don’t think that’s the intended reaction). I don’t know what to say other than he’s just meh. To me, he’s not leading man material and I’m not seeing the chemistry with Penelope/her actress, but again it is what it is.

As far as representation goes, I’m not a plus-sized woman, but I know that it is important to see yourself and to want to see yourself represented on screen.

I think that’s the essence of Bridgerton/what it is trying to accomplish because let’s be honest period dramas are not very diverse. I think that Bridgerton has kind of changed that to a degree.

I don’t want to hype up the show too much cause it’s not perfect, but without this shows success I don’t think that films and shows like Tom Jones, Interview With the Vampire, The Confessions of Frannie Langton, Mr. Malcom’s List, The Buccaneers, and now The Davenports (which I’m excited for) would’ve been nesscary green-lit or the plot would’ve been changed to make it more diverse if not for Bridgerton.

I hate bringing this up, but I don’t even know if the dumbass showrunners of HOTD would’ve made the Velaryons Black if not for them looking at how successful Bridgerton is without understanding that the reason why it's successful is that they don't treat their Black characters like they leftovers. It’s about respect not just having people there to pat yourselves on the back and say look how progressive we are, but I digress.

I mean representation in terms of body type is not comparable to representation in terms of race, but it feels good when characters who look like you aren't shown in the worst light, when they are the main character, or when they have been given actual characterization and aren't made into a joke.

So I get why people love Penelope and Polin and understand why they are looking forward to their season, but personally, they just aren't my cup of tea.

That all being said, I’m still going to watch the season cause I love Bridgerton, I’m kind of hoping we’ll see Sophie this season

(Praying that she's Masali Baduza or just any Black actress 🙏🏽I’m not picky, as long as Sophie's actress is Black, you won’t see me complaining).

I’ll end this by saying that I’m a Benophie girl and while I’ve made peace with the fact that Polin got the lead instead(and I’m actually low-key glad they did), I don’t think this is going to blow my socks off, but I hope it gives the people who have been waiting for it everything they want.

[booksociety]

Book Society presents its May reading event! As chosen by the members, the theme is All Things Victorian and the optional book of the month is The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. Join us as we travel back to the 19th century by reading a book that either takes place during the Victorian era (1837-1901) or was written during this time period. This event is open to everyone, not just our members.

✧ how to participate:

optional: reblog this post; check out our network and members

read (or reread) either The Night Circus (fantasy, historical, romance; 391 pages) or a book of your choice that fits this month’s theme

share what book you’ve chosen, thoughts, reactions, and/or creations

use the tag #booksociety in your posts, and include “@booksociety’s All Things Victorian event: [insert book title here]” in the description of your creations

the event starts on 1 May and ends on 31 May

✧ reading recommendations (under the cut):

A Curious Beginning (Veronica Speedwell #1) by Deanna Raybourn (mystery, historical, romance; 339 pages)

A Great and Terrible Beauty (Gemma Doyle #1) by Libba Bray (young adult, fantasy, historical, romance; 403 pages)

Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood (adult, historical, mystery; 468 pages)

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Caroll (classic, children, fantasy; 96 pages)

A Shadow Bright and Burning (Kingdom on Fire #1) by Jessica Cluess (young adult, fantasy, historical; 416 pages)

A Spy in the House (The Agency #1) by Y.S. Lee (young adult, historical, mystery; 335 pages)

A Study in Scarlet by Arthur Conan Doyle (classic, crime; 123 pages)

A Study in Scarlet Women by Sherry Thomas (mystery, historical, retelling; 323 pages)

Bringing Down the Duke (A League of Extraordinary Women #1) by Evie Dunmore (adult, historical; 356 pages)

Carmilla by J. Sheridan Le Fanu (classic, horror; 108 pages)

Clockwork Angel (The Infernal Devices #1) by Cassandra Clare (young adult, paranormal, urban fantasy; 481 pages)

Dracula by Bram Stoker (classic, horror, fantasy; 488 pages)

Dearly, Departed (Gone With the Respiration #1) by Lia Habel (young adult, steampunk, horror; 470 pages)

Dread Nation (Dread Nation #1) by Justina Ireland (young adult, horror; 455 pages)

Etiquette & Espionage (Finishing School #1) by Gail Carriger

Fingersmith by Sarah Waters (adult, historical, lgbt, romance; 548 pages)

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë (classic, gothic, romance; 532 pages)

Kiss of Steel (London Steampunk #1) by Bec McMaster (adult, steampunk, romance, paranormal; 423 pages)

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott (classic; 449 pages)

Middlemarch by George Elliot (classic; 904 pages)

North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell (classic, romance; 521 pages)

Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens (classic; 608 pages)

Olivia Twist by Lorie Langdon (young adult, historical, retelling; 331 pages)

Once Upon a River by Diane Setterfield (adult, historical, fantasy, fabulism; 464 pages)

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See (adult, historical; 269 pages)

Something Strange and Deadly (Something Strange and Deadly #1) by Susan Dennard (young adult, steampunk, horror; 388 pages)

Stalking Jack the Ripper (Stalking Jack the Ripper #1) by Kerri Maniscalco (young adult, historical; 327 pages)

The Alienist (Dr. Laszlo Kreizler #1) by Caleb Carr (adult, historical, mystery crime; 498 pages)

The Confessions of Frannie Langton by Sara Collins (historical, mystery; 384 pages)

The Falconer (The Falconer #1) by Elizabeth May (young adult, fantasy, steampunk, romance; 378 pages)

The French Lieutenant’s Woman by John Fowles (classic, historical, romance; 470 pages)

The Ghost Bride by Yangsze Choo (fantasy, historical; 368 pages)

The Gilded Wolves (The Gilded Wolves #1) by Roshani Chokshi (young adult, fantasy; 388 pages)

The Girl with Ghost Eyes (The Daoshi Chronicles #1) by M.H. Boroson (historical, fantasy; 288 pages)

The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker (historical, fantasy; 486 pages)

The Long Song by Andrea Levy (adult, historical; 320 pages)

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson (classic, horror, mystery; 144 pages)

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde (classic, horror; 241 pages)

The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Brontë (classic, romance; 576 pages)

The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead (adult, historical; 306 pages)

Things in Jars by Jess Kidd (adult, historical, fantasy, fabulism; 373 pages)

Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë (classic, gothic, romance; 464 pages)

[a-little-slice-of-fandom]

friendly neighbourhood english australia here to tell you you’re awesome and i appreciate everything you do!! also i saw you’re a literature student, that’s so cool!! do you have a favourite genre of literature to study? xx

Hello love!!! Thank you so much for this sweet message! I appreciate you too ❤️❤️❤️

This is actually a really well timed question because I just got an unconditional offer for English at one of the top universities in the UK!

Favourite genre for me would probably be the gothic! It’s one of the most interesting for me personally as I love the horror elements that the gothic often has along with themes of power struggle, sexuality, class divide etc. I know a lot of people just think gothic novels are spooky castles and monsters but it’s actually a full of really deep and meaningful discussions about human life in general. The horror elements often take a backseat a lot of the time to more realistic struggles and I appreciate that, especially when they still hit home for a lot of people today. And I just love how none of it is ever done for shock value? Especially modern gothic novels like Fingersmith or Affinity by Sarah Waters or The Confessions of Frannie Langton by Sara Collins both deal with incredibly dark subject matter, but they do so in a way that’s both hard hitting and doesn’t feel like it’s introducing anything dark to just get a reaction from the audience. (Also Waters and Collins both write WLW gothic novels and I would highly recommend their works, but just look on good reads for trigger warnings as they are dark and do discuss heavy topics.)

[bookish-thinking]

Review: “The Confessions of Frannie Langton” by Sara Collins

Addressing the many aspects of injustices a Black woman, former plantation slave and now servant (barely any better off) has to face in 1820s London, this book uses a clever narrative technique: by having Frannie tell her story to her defense attorney, the frame narrative is written in the second person. Thus, the "you" could very well be you, the reader. And how do you decide in this question of guilt or innocence? Where do your prejudices take you? What do you think how much someone has to bear, actively or passively, before an act of violence is self-defense?

From growing up on a Jamaican plantation to her work with a deeply disturbing, very unethical scientist (an aspect of slavery and colonization not often focused on) and lastly her service in the household of the couple she allegedly murdered, Frannie has a lot of stories to tell. Interwoven are LGBT-themes, her status as a mulatto and what that means for her standing in both the white and the black community, and class in general. I think the cover shows it well, the clenched fists, the frustration that must come with so many layers of oppression working against you. It was well done, informative and captivating.

I only wished the frame narrative had been less of a frame and more of a net, connected to the stories from the past. Mainly to give them more context - how did they motivate the actions taken in the present - but also to maybe include them in the trial and see the English audience's reaction to what is ultimately a list of gruesome and cruel wrongdoing they are all committing more or less actively through their society of colonization, slavery and servitude.

[podcastingjamaican]

Frannie and Marguerite REACTION - The Confessions of Frannie Langton

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