#the tarleton twins

[peggy-elise]

Fred Crane and George Reeves as Brent and Stuart Tarleton in Gone With The Wind 1939 🍂

[gwtwadoring]

🎞️ Gone With The Wind 🎞️

Scarlett O'Hara entertaining the Tarleton twins with her charm.

[thecasualbookreviewer]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Something fabulous, Alexis Hall

Summary:

Valentine Lyton, the Duke of Malvern, has twin problems: literally.

It was always his father's hope that Valentine would marry Miss Arabella Tarleton. But, unfortunately, too many novels at an impressionable age have caused her to grow up... romantic. So romantic that a marriage of convenience will not do and after Valentine's proposal she feels into the night determined never to set eyes on him again.

Aradella's twin brother, Mr. Bonaventure "Bonny" Tarleton, has also grown up... romantic. And fully expects Valentine to ride out after Arabella and prove to her that he's not the cold-hearted cad he seems to be.

Despite copious misgivings, Valentine finds himself on a pell-mell chase to Dover with Bonny by his side. Bonny is unreasonable, overdramatic, annoying, and... beautiful? And being with him makes Valentine question everything he thought he knew. About himself. About love. Even about which Tarleton he should be pursuing.

Review:

This book was an absolute delight.

I loved the fast and exciting pace of their chase for Arabella, and all the twist and turns the story took them on, the comedy in it made me laugh out loud most of the time, and the slow building romance was just chefs kiss.

I really enjoyed the slow development of Valentine, and how the pace of the story moved along with it, the love scenes, as well as the sex scenes were so tender and melted my heart. And of course, the angst and conflict in it was absolute beautiful.

I loved all the characters we got to meet and their journeys; it was an easy read and what little daily time I could dedicate to it I had an absolutely great time.

[whimsicaldragonette]

ARC Review: Something Spectacular by Alexis Hall

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Publication Date: April 11, 2023

Synopsis:

From the USA Today bestselling author of Boyfriend Material comes a riotous Regency romp full of art, expensive hats, and a love that is nothing short of spectacular. Peggy Delancey’s not at all ready to move on from her former flame, Arabella Tarleton. But Belle has her own plans for a love match, and she needs Peggy’s help to make those plans a reality. Still hung up on her feelings and unable to deny Belle what she wants, Peggy reluctantly agrees to help her woo the famous and flamboyant opera singer Orfeo. She certainly doesn’t expect to find common ground with a celebrated soprano, but when Peggy and Orfeo meet, a whole new flame is ignited that she can’t ignore. Peggy finds an immediate kinship with Orfeo, a castrato who’s just as nonconforming as she is—and just as affected by their instant connection. They’ve never been able to find their place in the world, but as the pair walks the line between friendship, flirtation, and something more, they may just find their place with each other.

My Rating: ★★★★★

*My Review and Favorite Quotes below the cut.

My Review:

There's something magical about Alexis Hall's writing. His books are hilarious and witty and full of unexpectedly profound truths about life and love and everything in between, and always wonderfully, unapologetically queer. I always find myself highlighting dozens upon dozens of passages and then agonizing over which to choose for my 'favorite quotes' section of my review blog posts. Again and again his writing has me collapsing with laughter and then startled into profound revelations when my guard is down. This book is hilarious and tender and incisive with biting social commentary. Every character is ridiculous and dramatic and I love them all. In this book we have Peggy, who is genderfluid - not only a woman nor only a man - and is often quite cross and contrary about it, and about how the world wants to box her in no matter how vehemently she protests. And then we have Orfeo, an agender castrati opera singer who is also neither man nor woman, simply beautiful. And though some of that was forced upon them, they would be neither man nor woman either way. Being nonbinary myself, I really appreciated seeing them struggle with and ultimately joyfully accept themselves and each other as they are. Their love story is at times stunningly gorgeous and at times hilarious, and it was a joy to watch them discovering deeper truths about themselves and one another. It was wonderful to see Valentine and Bonny and Belle and Sir Horley again, for they bring the sheer ridiculousness energy they brought in Something Fabulous. I do feel the Sir Horley marriage thread got dropped abruptly, but I'm hoping that's just because there will be a third book focusing on him in the future. I hope we get more of Belle, too, as her ending was also a little abrupt and I found her realization that she is aromantic, after a lifetime diet of nothing but romantic books and daydreams, very interesting, especially when contrasted with her twin Bonny, who is romantic to his core. I would like to see Bonny realizing that Belle, though his twin, is also her own person and they do not have to share everything and his dreams do not need to be her dreams. I really liked the addition of the Duke and Duchess of Marshalsea, and I hope we see more of them in future books as well. The final scene, involving four participants, struck me as one of the more profound sex scenes I've encountered. It was so unusual, and had so much love and care and trust in it, and such a striking lack of awkwardness, that I found it quite moving. And that's coming from someone who doesn't normally enjoy sex scenes. It's the kind of scene that's incredibly difficult to write well, and it's executed beautifully. Just four people who love and trust one another unconditionally, finding joy and even further closeness together. In case it wasn't already clear, I adored Something Spectacular. I adored Something Fabulous as well, but I may adore this even more. I will now commence hoping for further sequels. *Thanks to NetGalley and Montlake for providing an early copy for review.

Favorite Quotes:

(Yes, there are far too many, I know. But Alexis Hall is one of my absolute favorite authors and I have already cut 75% of what I highlighted.)

“Letter for you, darling.” Glancing up from her book, Peggy’s mother gestured with a forkful of bacon, causing the bacon to fly off the fork and land in her husband’s teacup. “Oh, bother.” Mr. Delancey de-baconed his tea. “Thank you, pet. I always felt what tea was missing was more meat.”

---

“Oh my God.” Belle’s voice broke upon them as abruptly as if she’d dropped a piano on their heads from the floor above.

---

It was at this moment that Belle popped up like a shark beneath a shipwreck, seizing both Peggy and Sir Horley. “Come. We need to be at the front”

---

It was beautiful, but it was beautiful in the way that looking at the night was beautiful in winter, when it was at its blackest and coldest, and you felt as infinitesimal as the distant stars. It was beautiful as only the bloodiest sunsets and the most jagged mountains were beautiful. Terrible beauty, beauty that wanted to drive you to your knees and drink the tears from your eyes, the sort of beauty to rend skies and topple cathedrals, as impossible as the flame of Prometheus.

---

Peggy had not come out tonight seeking a glimpse of the numinous, but the numinous was staring right at her regardless.

----

“So…” Peggy lurched to her feet. “I’m not very—I”m feeling a bit…” She could taste blood at the back of her throat. Her breath was knives. Her pulse a stampede of wild horses. “I think I might…” Then the walls closed in, the ceiling rolled over like a dog wanting its tummy scratched, and the ground vomited itself into her face.

---

It was almost imperceptible—perhaps so imperceptible that Peggy was probably imagining it, but something about Orfeo had changed. They offered the same warmth, the same curious gaze, the same tantalising play of humility and theatricality. But it was as though they had gilded themselves, somehow. Until they were nothing but the gleam of reflected light.

---

She wondered if Orfeo would be like that, a lion and an eagle and a fiercely burning flame before they were finally just themselves, safe and spoiled in Peggy’s arms.

---

“Perhaps had things been otherwise,” Orfeo went on, “I would have been a farmer like my father. Married some sweet. peasant girl. Had children of my own. Never dreamed in music and lived for the gleam of a thousand candles.”

---

Someone who wasn’t her romance-oppositional best friend, an opera singer committed exclusively to their career, or a clergyman’s daughter with a fatal case of poetry.

---

And someday she was going to like somebody who didn’t see their life as a story they were telling instead of something they were living. Or, then again, maybe she wasn’t. Maybe dramatic beyond all reason was her type.

---

Because the soiree had been little more than a glimpse of this: the kind of beauty that did things to you. Hurt you and healed you and humbled you. Left you not quite the same.

---

Peggy tried to draw her knees up even more but was prevented by the limits of her own body and the physical laws of the universe. “It’s what they want.”

---

She didn’t bother calling for a carriage because having to call a carriage to take you to the other side of the same damn square was the sort of nonsense society inflicted on ladies. And she wasn’t—had never been—a lady, and she was through with letting people force her to pretend to be one.

---

He was fucking with her. Peggy was increasingly convinced he was fucking with her. This was going beyond butler and into obstructive.

---

“You’re not a coward, mio principe. Sometimes living, simply as we are, is the greatest act of courage there is.”

---

George bristled. “Are you ridiculing me Delancey? These are my feelings, in this sonnet. Do you know how difficult it is for a man like me to have feelings? I’m very athletic.”

---

In any case, Peggy liked the crocodile. For whatever reason, the taxidermist, perhaps not knowing very much about crocodiles, had positioned it on its hind legs, with its front claws extended before it and its long-snouted mouth open in an expression of mild exasperation. It was if it was saying “Oh, what the fuck now,” and it was exactly how Peggy wanted her visitors to be greeted.

---

Peggy wouldn’t have known to describe a piece of music as “fostering a vocal sensuality” if it stuck its tongue in her ear.

---

She could have told them that the world at large believed her made for certain things and that admitting she wanted them for herself felt like betrayal, triumph, and surrender all at once. She could have told them she thought that sometimes the only way to have a choice was to make it anyway.

---

And Peggy wasn’t sure what was worse: resenting a piece of art for not speaking to you or having to face up to the fact it was.

---

"All I want”—it was Valentine’s most tragic voice—“is to be a very rich, powerful, and well-dressed man who gets to sleep until a sensible hour of one or two in the afternoon, and bathe uninterrupted at length.” He flung his arms to the heavens. “Is that too much to ask?” As in answer, the sky darkened, and a few drops of rain plopped heavily down upon them. “No,” said Valentine. He subjected the weather to a ducal glare. “Stop it. Stop it at once.” Peggy patted him reassuringly on the arm. “We’re nearly there.” They were not nearly there. But she didn’t want to admit that to Valentine in case he burst into tears or threw himself from the vehicle.

---

She had always chosen to be the naysayer, the sensible one, the voice of reason when dragged into the latest round of Tarleton hijinks, but she had never once said no. Because, at the end of the day, a world full of adventures, romantic reversals, grand gestures, and happy endings was simply better than a world without.

---

“If we do get married,” said Orfeo dreamily, “I shall wear gold.” “And I’m going to wear”—Peggy gave it some thought—“clothes.” “And this is truly what you want?” “To wear clothes at my wedding? Definitely.”

[ravenofazarath2]

I just started reading Something Fabulous, and the energy of the two main characters feels like Sebastian and Ominis. Valentine is a Duke who is extremely sarcastic and doesn’t believe he can feel love. Tarleton is a poor(ish) man of “gentlemen persuasion” and a flirty romantic (he calls Valentine “my flower”). And, Tarleton has a twin sister who, in the prologue, becomes engaged to Valentine out of necessity. And the Tarleton twins were raised by their uncle.

[mediamonarchy]

https://mediamonarchy.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/20240711_MorningMonarchy.mp3 Download MP3 Beating a dead racehorse, saying goodbye to the say hey kid and blaming Epstein’s victims + this day in history w/tribal cannabis and our song of the day by The Supertights on your #MorningMonarchy for July 11, 2024. Notes/Links: Tarleton Ranch opponents take to the street https://www.taosnews.com/news/local-news/tarleton-ranch-opponents-take-to-the-street/article_11ecf033-112e-5089-8a11-1267f16c0c90.html Protests sparked by development proposal on 331 acres north of Taos https://www.krqe.com/news/new-mexico/protests-sparked-by-development-proposed-for-331-acres-north-of-taos/amp/ How milk became the new culture war dividing America; Gwyneth Paltrow and MAGA Republicans unite over an unlikely issue – milk –should Americans be drinking it ‘raw’ or is pasteurisation best? https://archive.is/2024.06.23-102745/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2024/06/22/milk-unpasteurised-safe-gwyneth-paltrow/ Columbiana County Humane Society in Ohio can’t take anymore animals https://www.wkbn.com/news/local-news/lisbon-news/local-county-humane-society-cant-take-anymore-animals/ McDonald’s cuts breakfast hours in Australia in response to bird flu egg shortage https://news.sky.com/story/mcdonalds-cuts-breakfast-hours-in-australia-in-response-to-bird-flu-egg-shortage-13163301 1/200 chance of death in context of new bird flu injection – 5 times higher than placebo according to clinical trial https://jessicar.substack.com/p/1200-chance-of-death-in-context-of Cambridge swans with plenty of attitude stubbornly block traffic https://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/news/cambridge-news/cambridge-swans-plenty-attitude-stubbornly-29477487 Denver Zoo uses ‘bloodsicles’ to cool animals down amid summer heat https://kdvr.com/news/local/denver-zoo-uses-bloodsicles-to-cool-animals-down-amid-summer-heat/ Three animals euthanized after sustaining injuries during Calgary Stampede rodeo; Monday incident during rodeo “highly unusual and unfortunate,” officials said without elaborating https://calgaryherald.com/news/local-news/three-animals-euthanized-injured-calgary-stampede-rodeo Video: Calgary Stampede euthanizes two chuckwagon horses and a steer after they suffered race injuries (Audio) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5avsi2K8w8 Percy Faith – “Californ-i-ay” (Inst. // Vinyl // Audio) https://www.discogs.com/release/5236786-Percy-Faith-American-Serenade // https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1KmNcxWFkjU Violence Mars Chicago’s 4th Of July Weekend: 104 Shot, 19 Fatalities Reported » LOTT Wire https://lottwire.com/violence-mars-chicagos-4th-of-july-weekend-104-shot-19-fatalities-reported/ Autopsies Link 73.9% of Post-Jab Deaths to the Shot https://dailynewsfromaolf.substack.com/p/autopsies-link-739-of-post-jab-deaths ‘You were the jewel in our hearts’: Mum’s tribute to twin girl, 10, who died suddenly https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/you-were-jewel-hearts-mums-33157579 Western Pennsylvania trans girl killed, dismembered at 14 https://epgn.com/2024/07/05/western-pennsylvania-trans-girl-killed-dismembered/ Springfield community mourns loss of Glendale High School basketball standout dead suddenly at 17 probably https://www.ky3.com/2024/07/03/springfield-community-mourns-loss-glendale-high-school-basketball-standout/ Minnesota Vikings rookie Khyree Jackson (24) and 2 former Maryland high school teammates killed in 3-car crash https://www.cnn.com/2024/07/06/sport/minnesota-vikings-khyree-jackson-killed-spt-intl/index.html 24-year-old woman’s heartbreaking words before she suddenly died on Qantas flight: “I will come back.” https://vt.co/world-news/24-year-old-womans-heartbreaking-words-before-she-suddenly-died-on-qantas-flight Cyclist dies 25 in crash during Tour of Austria https://news.sky.com/story/cyclist-andre-drege-dies-in-crash-during-tour-of-austria-13174314 Internet Cafe Death: Young man’s death goes unnoticed for 30 hours in China internet cafe https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/china...

[notfye]

happy summer time for me to nurse my crush on the tarleton twins again

[blogynews]

Unveiling "Gone with the Wind": A Breathtaking Glimpse into the Enigmatic Protagonist's World

Scarlett O’Hara possessed a charm that often overshadowed her lack of conventional beauty, as exemplified by the mesmerizing effect she had on the Tarleton twins. This opening line of “Gone with the Wind” reveals the complexity of Scarlett’s character and her ability to captivate men with her charm, regardless of her physical appearance. The name “Scarlett O’Hara” holds symbolism and depth.…

[blogynewz]

Unveiling "Gone with the Wind": A Breathtaking Glimpse into the Enigmatic Protagonist's World

Scarlett O’Hara possessed a charm that often overshadowed her lack of conventional beauty, as exemplified by the mesmerizing effect she had on the Tarleton twins. This opening line of “Gone with the Wind” reveals the complexity of Scarlett’s character and her ability to captivate men with her charm, regardless of her physical appearance. The name “Scarlett O’Hara” holds symbolism and depth.…

[blogynewsz]

Unveiling "Gone with the Wind": A Breathtaking Glimpse into the Enigmatic Protagonist's World

Scarlett O’Hara possessed a charm that often overshadowed her lack of conventional beauty, as exemplified by the mesmerizing effect she had on the Tarleton twins. This opening line of “Gone with the Wind” reveals the complexity of Scarlett’s character and her ability to captivate men with her charm, regardless of her physical appearance. The name “Scarlett O’Hara” holds symbolism and depth.…

[haveyoureadthisqueerbook]

Something Fabulous by Alexis Hall received 144 votes total. 7.6% of respondents answered YES, they have read it. 92.4% of respondents answered NO, they have not read it.

From the acclaimed author of Boyfriend Material comes a delightfully witty romance featuring a reserved duke who’s betrothed to one twin and hopelessly enamoured of the other. Valentine Layton, the Duke of Malvern, has twin problems: literally. It was always his father’s hope that Valentine would marry Miss Arabella Tarleton. But, unfortunately, too many novels at an impressionable age have caused her to grow up…romantic. So romantic that a marriage of convenience will not do and after Valentine’s proposal she flees into the night determined never to set eyes on him again. Arabella’s twin brother, Mr. Bonaventure “Bonny” Tarleton, has also grown up…romantic. And fully expects Valentine to ride out after Arabella and prove to her that he’s not the cold-hearted cad he seems to be. Despite copious misgivings, Valentine finds himself on a pell-mell chase to Dover with Bonny by his side. Bonny is unreasonable, overdramatic, annoying, and…beautiful? And being with him makes Valentine question everything he thought he knew. About himself. About love. Even about which Tarleton he should be pursuing.

[profiterole-reads]

Something Fabulous by Alexis Hall

Something Fabulous by Alexis Hall (Boyfriend Material) was absolutely hilarious. The Duke of Malvern is supposed to marry Miss Arabella Tarleton, but she is not interested, unlike her twin brother Bonny.

Basically every sentence of this novel was funny. What an incredible feat! I can't wait to read more Alexis Hall books.

The Duke is demisexual. There's major m/m, some f/nb and some f/f.

[rockislandadultreads]

Romance Tropes: & There was only One Bed

How to Find a Princess by Alyssa Cole

Makeda Hicks has lost her job and her girlfriend in one fell swoop. The last thing she’s in the mood for is to rehash the story of her grandmother’s infamous summer fling with a runaway prince from Ibarania, or the investigator from the World Federation of Monarchies tasked with searching for Ibarania’s missing heir. Yet when Beznaria Chetchevaliere crashes into her life, the sleek and sexy investigator exudes exactly the kind of chaos that organized and efficient Makeda finds irresistible, even if Bez is determined to drag her into a world of royal duty Makeda wants nothing to do with. When a threat to her grandmother’s livelihood pushes Makeda to agree to return to Ibarania, Bez takes her on a transatlantic adventure with a crew of lovable weirdos, a fake marriage, and one-bed hijinks on the high seas. When they finally make it to Ibarania, they realize there’s more at stake than just cash and crown, and Makeda must learn what it means to fight for what she desires and not what she feels bound to by duty.

The Ex Talk by Rachel Lynn Solomon

Shay Goldstein has been a producer at her Seattle public radio station for nearly a decade, and she can't imagine working anywhere else. But lately it's been a constant clash between her and her newest colleague, Dominic Yun, who's fresh off a journalism master's program and convinced he knows everything about public radio. When the struggling station needs a new concept, Shay proposes a show that her boss green-lights with excitement. On The Ex Talk, two exes will deliver relationship advice live, on air. Their boss decides Shay and Dominic are the perfect co-hosts, given how much they already despise each other. Neither loves the idea of lying to listeners, but it's this or unemployment. Their audience gets invested fast, and it's not long before The Ex Talk becomes a must-listen in Seattle and climbs podcast charts. As the show gets bigger, so does their deception, especially when Shay and Dominic start to fall for each other. In an industry that values truth, getting caught could mean the end of more than just their careers.

Something Fabulous by Alexis Hall

Valentine Layton, the Duke of Malvern, has twin problems: literally. It was always his father’s hope that Valentine would marry Miss Arabella Tarleton. But, unfortunately, too many novels at an impressionable age have caused her to grow up…romantic. So romantic that a marriage of convenience will not do and after Valentine’s proposal she flees into the night determined never to set eyes on him again. Arabella’s twin brother, Mr. Bonaventure “Bonny” Tarleton, has also grown up…romantic. And fully expects Valentine to ride out after Arabella and prove to her that he’s not the cold-hearted cad he seems to be. Despite copious misgivings, Valentine finds himself on a pell-mell chase to Dover with Bonny by his side. Bonny is unreasonable, overdramatic, annoying, and…beautiful? And being with him makes Valentine question everything he thought he knew. About himself. About love. Even about which Tarleton he should be pursuing.

The Worst Best Man by Mia Sosa

A wedding planner left at the altar. Yeah, the irony isn’t lost on Carolina Santos, either. But despite that embarrassing blip from her past, Lina’s managed to make other people’s dreams come true as a top-tier wedding coordinator in DC. After impressing an influential guest, she’s offered an opportunity that could change her life. There’s just one hitch… she has to collaborate with the best (make that worst) man from her own failed nuptials. Tired of living in his older brother’s shadow, marketing expert Max Hartley is determined to make his mark with a coveted hotel client looking to expand its brand. Then he learns he’ll be working with his brother’s whip-smart, stunning —absolutely off-limits — ex-fiancée. And she loathes him. If they can survive the next few weeks and nail their presentation without killing each other, they’ll both come out ahead. Except Max has been public enemy number one ever since he encouraged his brother to jilt the bride, and Lina’s ready to dish out a little payback of her own. But even the best laid plans can go awry, and soon Lina and Max discover animosity may not be the only emotion creating sparks between them. Still, this star-crossed couple can never be more than temporary playmates because Lina isn’t interested in falling in love and Max refuses to play runner-up to his brother ever again...

[akvles]

Scarlett O’Hara was not beautiful, but men seldom realised it when caught by her charm as the Tarleton twins were.

Vivien Leigh in Gone With the Wind (1939)

[whimsicaldragonette]

ARC Review: Something Fabulous by Alexis Hall

Preorder

Add to Goodreads

Publishing Date: January 25, 2022

Synopsis:

From the acclaimed author of Boyfriend Material comes a delightfully witty romance featuring a reserved duke who’s betrothed to one twin and hopelessly enamoured of the other. Valentine Layton, the Duke of Malvern, has twin problems: literally. It was always his father’s hope that Valentine would marry Miss Arabella Tarleton. But, unfortunately, too many novels at an impressionable age have caused her to grow up…romantic. So romantic that a marriage of convenience will not do and after Valentine’s proposal she flees into the night determined never to set eyes on him again. Arabella’s twin brother, Mr. Bonaventure “Bonny” Tarleton, has also grown up…romantic. And fully expects Valentine to ride out after Arabella and prove to her that he’s not the cold-hearted cad he seems to be. Despite copious misgivings, Valentine finds himself on a pell-mell chase to Dover with Bonny by his side. Bonny is unreasonable, overdramatic, annoying, and…beautiful? And being with him makes Valentine question everything he thought he knew. About himself. About love. Even about which Tarleton he should be pursuing.

My Review:

★★★★★

This book was absolutely a delight and I LOVED it. I knew after reading Boyfriend Material that this was going to be good, especially since it's a queer regency and I love queer regencies. But it surpassed my every expectation.

Was it over the top? Yes. Was it absolutely hilarious? Also yes. I highlighted no less than 58 passages as I was reading. Was it also surprisingly sweet? Also yes.

Valentine was exceedingly grumpy and tended toward the opposite of introspection, though he did eventually realize that he was demisexual and also gay. Bonny did not delude himself as to his sexuality but tended rather strongly toward the dramatic. Really he and his sister made quite the pair and were rather a trial for staid, determinedly practical Valentine.

Having nearly all the side characters be queer made this over-the-top story even more delightful, and made for plenty of comical 'of course they are' moments of realization for Valentine. I am here for unapologetically queer regency romance characters. Really there aren't enough of them.

Do you like Regency romance? Do you like queer romance? If yes, then do yourself a favor and read this. You'll thank me, once the hysterical laughter has subsided and you can breathe again. In case you need further enticement, Alexis Hall has described it as "Dude, Where's My Curricle," which is both hilarious and accurate.

*Thanks to NetGalley and Montlake for providing an e-arc for review.

Favorite Quotes:

"You need to go away this instant and put your head in a bucket of water." Tarleton did not, in fact, go away that instant and put his head in a bucket of water.

---

Thankfully, Valentine had slept where he had fallen and still in his clothes-- thus sparing them both an intimacy they were not prepared for.

---

He positively pitied the poor woman who was going to have to spend her life with the lightning storm of wayward impulses given human form that was Bonaventure Tarleton.

---

"What is happening, please? I did not invite an assessment of my kneeling."

---

Not to be outdone by physical expressions of dismay, Tarleton flung both his hands in the air, like a diminutive Prometheus defying the gods.

---

Having apparently taken his fill of the bitter draft that was Valentine, he cast himself upon a nearby chair and flung an arm across his face. "What is wrong with you?" This felt unwarranted. And somewhat hypocritical, coming from a man who clearly had many, many things wrong with him.

---

There was a long silence. They Tarleton stood up, but only in order that he might further misuse the furniture by violently reoccupying it.

---

"I'm hoping a madcap chase across the country will bring you together." "It is doing literally the opposite."

---

Growling with all the gravitas of a lapdog, Tarleton tugged again at Valentine's coat. "I may be but little, but I am fierce."

---

Oh God, what did that mean? And why was Valentine suddenly too warm and too... looked at? Even though Tarleton wasn't actually looking at him.

---

"Well," returned Tarleton, with a noticeable lack of gratitude, "thank you for destroying my dreams." "I was under the impression I was saving you from an unpleasant reading experience."

---

Behind him came the chaotic rustling of a chaotic person getting dressed chaotically.

---

"A Stable? Anything? Tarleton, we could die." "This is England. If people died of rain, there'd be nobody left."

---

"Of course it will hold me. I'm tied to a chair. You've tied a duke to a chair. I hope you're pleased with yourselves."

---

Valentine's eyes were beginning to ache from the demands of expressing so much scepticism.

---

Silence descended like the guillotine.

---

Peggy shrugged. "Hero. Heroine. In an ideal world, one would be both."

---

While Valentine was a duke and, therefore, did not whine, he was nevertheless aware that his tone was not as unwhineful as it could have been.

---

For someone with all the poise and patience of a sparkler, Bonny was moving with astonishing care.

---

"No," said Valentine slowly, and with a vague sense of dread that perhaps he was going to be peculiar even by the standards of people who were peculiar. "I have never felt that sort of inclination towards anyone, man or woman."

---

Bonny just sparkled enigmatically. "Follow me." "That's not an explanation," Valentine pointed out. "That's a direction."

---

And for a little while, he was nothing but horizon.

---

"It is now the nineteenth century, and we respect women and treat them as equals in areas not pertaining to politics, property, warfare, finances, or the law."

---

Things had gone astray. That much had been obvious for quite some time. But Valentine was starting to realise that astray was not so much a binary state as a spectrum of disaster upon which they had not yet ceased progressing.

---

A huge yawn attacked Valentine out of nowhere.

---

"For someone who reads as much as you do, your sense of the heroic is oddly banal." "Sometimes the truest heroism is."

[papermoonloveslucy]

GEORGE REEVES

January 5, 1914

George Reeves was born George Keefer Brewer in Woolstock, Iowa. He is best known for his role as Superman in the television program “Adventures of Superman” (1952-58). His birth date is often listed as April 5, 1914, but that was born only five months after his parents' wedding and it was not until adulthood that he learned the truth. To further confuse matters, his mother made a mistake when having the urn containing his ashes inscribed and it reads January 6 instead of January 5.

Reeves began acting and singing in high school and continued performing on stage as a student at Pasadena Junior College. 

Reeves's film career took off in 1939 when he was cast as Stuart Tarleton (incorrectly listed in the film's credits as Brent Tarleton), one of Scarlett O'Hara's suitors (with Fred Crane, above left) in Gone with the Wind. Reeves dyed his hair red to portray one of the Tarleton twins. Lucille Ball read for the role of Scarlet O’Hara, one of hundreds of Hollywood starlets that vied for the role. References to the novel and iconic film can be found throughout her sitcoms.  Had she gotten the part, she would have been in the film with her future “I Love Lucy” actors Olin Howland, Irving Bacon, Alberto Morin, Shep Houghton, Ralph Brooks, and Hans Moebus. Sam McDaniel, brother of Mammy portrayer Hattie McDaniel, would be the first and only person of color to speak on “I Love Lucy” as the Porter in “The Great Train Robbery” (ILL S5;E5). Lucille Ball would one day own the back lot where the movie was filmed! 

Although Gone With the Wind was his first credited role in a feature film, a Warner Brothers short film titled Ride, Cowboy, Ride and the feature Espionage Agent were actually released three months earlier. 

While studying acting at the Pasadena Playhouse in 1940, Reeves married Ellanora Needles, granddaughter of circus magnate John Robinson. They had no children and divorced 10 years later.

Before his television fame as Superman, Reeves enlisted in the US Army and  appeared on Broadway in Winged Victory��(1943) by Moss Hart (center).  The cast featured actual service members, including Sergeant George Reeves (above, behind Phyllis Avery).  He also appeared in the film version. 

Reeves made his television debut on September 29, 1949 in an episode (now lost) of the suspense anthology series “The Clock.”  Three weeks later he appeared in a second episode. 

His first episode of “Adventures of Superman” was “Superman on Earth” aired on September 19, 1952. Ross Elliott, who played Ricky Ricardo’s Press Agent on “I Love Lucy”, was cast as Jor-El, Superman’s father, but was replaced by Robert Rockwell, famous for playing Mr. Boynton on “Our Miss Brooks”.  Strangely, Elliott still receives screen credit. This first “Superman” also features Dani Sue Nolan, who was the wife of “I Love Lucy” director William Asher. Ironically, Asher did not direct the episode of “I Love Lucy” starring Reeves, which was staged by James V. Kern. 

Reeves appeared in all 104 episodes over 6 seasons of the ABC TV series. 

Initially shot and aired in black and white, the series (like “The Lucy Show”) was filmed in color starting with season 3. The first 26 episodes were filmed in 1951, the same year “I Love Lucy” started airing, but did not appear on television until 1952, when Kellogg's Cereals agreed to sponsor the show. Reeves was 44 years old during the filming of the sixth and final season, making him the oldest actor to have ever played Clark Kent / Superman in live-action. Although the Superman costume was padded to make it appear that Reeves had greater bulk, he did most of his own stunts.  The first season of the series was shot on the 40 Acres back lot that was part of RKO / Desilu Studios. 

On November 15, 1956, Reeves filmed the now-iconic “I Love Lucy” episode “Lucy and Superman” (ILL S6;E13), which premiered on January 14, 1957.  The episode was colorized on May 17, 2015. 

Keith Thibodeaux (Little Ricky) has said that this was his favorite episode of the series. He later talked about meeting Reeves...

Reeves is never mentioned by name in the dialogue or in the original credits. Lucie Arnaz later theorized that this was in order not to destroy the illusion that Superman was real to the many children who watched the show. In syndication, an announcer end credit was added for Reeve. The logic about the absent billing, however, is odd since Reeves was always credited on his own show. 

The final episode of the series was also Reeves’ final screen appearance. “All That Glitters” was also directed by Reeves, as were the previous two episodes. 

His death on June 16, 1959, from a gunshot remains a controversial subject; the official finding was suicide, but some believe that he was murdered or the victim of an accidental shooting. He was 45 years old.