#this is me descending to madness because of 2 fictional characters | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

thefiery-phoenix · 1 year ago

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YANDERE BATBOYS WITH A READER WHO HAS FICTIONAL CRUSHES

Honestly I wouldn't put it past them to explode with rage and jealousy and act like clingy petty children to you

Dick Grayson: If there's one thing he feels proud of in life is the amount of love he has for you. He feels like no one else can love you like him and he knows you better than you know yourself. Thr first time he finds out that you really like a fictional character was when you both were having a movie night with the other Titans as a day for rest and relaxation since you guys need some chill in life. The movie you guys were watching was Rapunzel and you really liked the movie. You told Dick that you've wanted to grow your hair as long as Rapunzel when you were a kid and he pretended not to know about it but in fact he already did know about it since this sneaky son of a bish here already read your diary that mentioned it. He feels like there should be no secrets between the two of you since you're destined to be with each other and you're soulmates and one person. He knew you liked Rapunzel which was why he made the suggestion of watching it that day but what he wasn't prepared for was when you suddenly said "Damn Flynn be looking good" and he suddenly felt his heart skip a beat. What exactly did you mean by that comment? Garfield turned to you and spoke "Wait don't tell me you have a crush on him?"as he grinned in amusement as you shrugged your shoulders and replied "Believe it or not he was one of my childhood crushes" and Dick felt his hand twitch with irritation. ONE of your childhood crushes? So that clearly meant that there were more and he was determined to find out who the bloody hell were these pathetic sneaky pests who dared to steal the heart of his lovely angel when it was clearly reserved for him

"How about we watch something else?"said Dick as his eye twitched with irritation but you didn't want to change the movie so he ended up tolerating the damn movie for the next 2 hours for the sake of your happiness. But he swears to get rid of that bloody movie and make you forget about that damned Flynn Ryder because the only man you should be thinking about is him

Jason Todd: He doesn't become delusional and descend down the rabbit hole of madness and chasm of obsession right off the bat yet. There's still time for him to become delusional as hell and it all started when he first met you as Red Hood when he was patrolling the streets around Gotham. It was really late at night and you were coming back from the public library after doing some research for your Physics paper in college that would count for at least 50 percent of your grade. You really needed to work hard and up your game since your Physics professor was a hardass and had no chill in life whatsoever and you didn't want to flunk out of the class. You'd just gotten a headache after studying so much and you were looking forward to relaxing after you went home. You kept walking when suddenly you stopped in the middle of the road to rub your head for a few minutes and your eyes since your vision was starting to get blurred but that was a huge mistake on your part because a car was moving with a really high speed and the driver was honking at you to get out of the way. You'd have been literal roadkill had it not been for the Red Hood himself who pulled you out of harm's way. "W-whats going on?"you mumbled as he chuckled and replied "You're so tired you didn't even realize your life was in danger" and he offered to drop you off home since it was evident that you couldn't be trusted in such a condition. He made sure you were safe in your bed and felt bad when he saw you with no one else in your house. Was that why you weren't taking care of yourself properly and not sleeping early? Jason made sure you went to sleep and he wrote a note for you that said 'Take better care of yourself darling' and placed it near your bed table. The next morning when you woke up you saw the note and you smiled, it felt nice to have someone care for you

You were hoping to meet the Red Hood again the next day evening and sure enough you were lucky since you did end up meeting him. "I have a box of muffins with me that I made. Would you like some? You know, a way of saying a thank you from my side for saving me yesterday" and he was stunned. After all these years of protecting and looking after Gotham you were the first person who actually thanked him for his deeds. He felt happy since a really long time as he accepted it and thanked you for it. The next day you met Jason at the library but not as Red Hood, as regular Jason though and you both bonded over the books there. He offered to help you with some stories you were working on and he was like your second pair of eyes offering you constructive feedback of your works and he loved reading every line and word you've written

The two of you bonded over a period of time and you decided to have a movie night one day after your college's term finished. You invited Jason over and you already had snacks and drinks ready. Jason was just glad you didn't invite any of your pesky little friends over he despised them from the bottom of his heart. To him they were nothing but corrupt leeches who wanted to ruin you while he was protecting you from all the negative and bad things in the world. You didn't need to know all the dark stuff happening around you, and you can also thank him for the cancelation of your newspaper subscription. Who needs the news anyway, it's filled with utter nonsense and garbage these days anyway according to him

You both watched some movies and then this show called Supernatural popped up on your recommended list so you both decided to watch that. Jason actually liked Dean Winchester he thought he was cool and he could actually relate to his problems in a way. At first when you started gushing about Dean Winchester he didn't seem to mind. It was just a little fictional crush but when you told him that you had all the merchandise of his and you even had a freaking body pillow of Dean that's when things took another turn. Jason couldn't help but feel jealous and he knows it's silly being jealous of a fictional character but he can't help it. As selfish as he is, he wants you to think of him, the only man you'll ever need in your life. When Jason sees your body pillow of Dean Winchester his hand twitched with irritation and made a mental note to burn it to ash when you weren't noticing. He doesn't like it when you ignore him for your fictional characters, just pay him some attention as well and you're good to go but if you keep gushing about those fictional crushes of yours he might have to step in and when he does you'll have to say goodbye to your movie watching marathons

Tim Drake: I can imagine Tim actually vibing with you and your fictional characters that you're so fond of especially if they're anime characters. He really loves anime. You guys met online on Discord in an anime server when some random bozo was saying stuff like how Eren Yeager sucked in season 4 but you had a different take to that opinion and when you put forth your opinion you revived some major hate and backlash from that person calling you a dumb person and a bunch of other nasty names that made you feel pissed off. Fortunately for you, someone came to your defense and that someone was none other than Tim Drake himself. He called him out for behaving like a douchebag and basically started an internet flame war with that person. Then you thanked him for sticking up for you and you both chatted with each other for a while at a private chat room till you had to get going but you felt happy that you'd gained a new online friend. You both chatted with each other for a few weeks and you were ecstatic when you'd learnt that he went to the same school as you, Gotham academy and you were determined to meet him so you arranged for the two of you to meet at the music room of Gotham Academy too which he'd agreed

Truth was, Tim already knew who you were right off the bat without your knowledge. There's a reason he's called a whiz with technology you know. He was just keeping his identity anonymous to humor you and wanted to see your reaction when the guy sitting right next to you during your Advanced Calculus class was your online friend. You waited for your online friend to show up and sure enough he did and it was none other than Tim himself. Your eyes widened with surprise and you spoke "Tim, I can't believe you're the one I was talking to this whole time, this is amazing" you smiled and he felt glad you saw this as a positive scenario. The two of you had your lunch together and started spending more time with each other in person. The thing about Tim is that when he falls in love with someone, he falls in love really fast and hard. He loves someone with a lot of intensity and passion, words nor numbers couldn't describe the feelings he felt for you. He was also someone who believed in love at first sight and when he found out that you were his online friend from Discord he was extremely thrilled and his joy knew no bounds. Of course he had to keep you a secret from his brothers since they'd tease him and they'd try to flirt with you and steal you away from him which is something he doesn't want happening at all

He's so used to being the replacement in his life but for once he wanted to be selfish and have you for himself. He was growing obsessive over you and his affection for you might be deemed as suffocating for other people but you failed to notice the red flags in his behavior like him being clingy to you when you talked to someone else and when you you him about the guy who flirted with you during your biology lecture he got suspended for the possession of drugs that Tim may or may not have planted in his locker and anonymously tipped off a teacher. He was just trying to keep you safe in this dark and cruel world, and he should know how bad the world is because he's Red Robin

Your exams were done and you'd decided to have an anime marathon with him and he invited you over to the Wayne manor. Of course Dick, Jason and Damian were cocky when you'd shown up and started flirting with you just to tease and rile up Tim because watching him getting riled up was the amusement of the century according to them. Tim's face grew red and he 'accidentally' spilled some water on Dick and Jason as he stepped on Damian's foot and he dragged you inside to his room and shut the door. He could hear them snickering to themselves as Jason howled "Use protection" as he just rolled his eyes and you looked confused. "They're immature jerks, so should we get started?'' and you nodded as you watched animes like My hero academia, Haikyuu, Demon slayer, Bungou Stray dogs and many more. You wanted to watch Kakegurui as well but Tim didn't want you to taint your innocence and it was filled with some not so wholesome content according to him that wasn't suitable for your delicate eyes

You had some favorite characters from different Fandoms and the character you were really fond of was Daisuke Kanbe from the anime Millionaire detective balance unlimited. Tim could get why you liked Daisuke a lot and he vibes with your choice too. He will however get a tad bit jealous that you're not paying attention to him and he'll do something or the other to interrupt your anime fest and make sure you pay attention to him. Other than that he's actually pretty chill with you crushing over animme characters but like every other possessive yandere dude he will have to curb it and make you forget about your anime crushes if it gets too out of hand. He doesn't want to lose you to some Pixelated non existant 2D picture on a screen

BONUS: Damian Wayne: Oh boy, I can say for sure he won't be too happy about this whole ordeal of you simping for non existant Pixelated fiends according to him when you have THE heir of the Wayne family and the Al Ghul heir himself. It's been a few months since he's kidnapped you and taken you for himself and he had to do it you know. The first time he met you was when you were about to climb a huge rock ready to dive in because a puppy was drowning. As much as he was touched with your love and concern for animals he couldn't let you just endanger your life like that which was why he had to step in and do something before you'd ended up getting hurt. Damian raced to where you were about to jump and pulled you back in time and before you could say a word he dove in and rescued the puppy. The poor puppy had a bleeding paw and you let a soft gasp of despair when you saw its bleeding paw

You really loved animals and that sight just broke your heart. "I have a feeling someone must have done this to the poor thing, why else would a puppy intentionally go to the middle of the river if it doesn't know how to swim?" you asked Damian as you snuggled the little thing against you, the puppy grateful for the warmth it was receiving from you. "Take care of it and yourself too, I hope you don't do something as reckless as that ever again" said Damian with a serious note but you looked at him indignantly and replied "The poor thing would have drowned had I been a second late. Besides I know how to swim" you grumped a bit and Damian found it to be endearing and the two of you exchanged numbers and parted ways after that exchange took place. That night he wasn't able to forget about you and he made sure to visit the same place next day to make sure you and the puppy were doing all right. He didn't even know why he was so concerned about someone he just met but seeing you do something as reckless as that made him want to protect you and just wrap you with his arms so you couldn't endanger yourself. What were you making him feel?

Sure enough the next day Damian saw you and the puppy and he was glad to see it doing okay. The both of you spent some time together and you liked spending time with him. Though he had a stoic expression most of the times you could tell deep down he cared for other people. He took you to a Cafe where you both ordered something and you went to see Titus his dog. Titus seemed to take a liking to you immediately and the puppy too. Titus kept wandering near your legs and Damian thought it was adorable when he tried to place his paws up on you as if he was asking you to lift him up like a child. The puppy was a bit shy around him but Titus didn't seem to mind

Soon it was time for you to go home and Damian didn't want you to leave. He wanted you to stay with him and with a heavy heart he had to bid farewell to you. However it didn't mean that his mind and heart rested though, Gotham was a dangerous place and in the little time he's known you he's already taken a liking to you which meant that he's appointed himself as your guardian and protector to keep you safe from this twisted world and so day by day he kept stalking you and kept an eye on you to make sure you were all right

Finally he reached a point where his obsession could no longer be contained and he needed you like a dying man needing air so he kidnapped you and took you for himself. Does he regret it? Not an inch because the way he sees it is that you both are destined to be together forever. He felt his heart break when he saw you crying your heart out, begging him to please take you back and even after he bought you your puppy for company you still avoided him like the Corona virus. However you just started opening up to him recently and that was something he felt immensely thankful for. You finally saw that he loved you with all his heart and he wouldn't harm you and besides you were tired of being alone all the time

Currently the two of you were watching some shows together and you decided to watch Austin and Ally after you'd insisted. You loved Austin and Ally since you were a kid it brought back so many memories and when you accidentally let the fact slip that Austin used to be your childhood crush Damian felt like someone had knocked the wind out of his chest. Just what EXACTLY did you see in that immature blonde haired Walmart Ken ripoff he didn't know but he needed to make sure you'd forget about this Austin fellow effective immediately. Damian doesn't care if he's being petty, he doesn't want your heart getting stolen by someone else. Your heart is reserved only for him and he'll have various tactics to make you forget about Austin. He'll either make sure you watch something else that's different or when you try to see Austin and Ally he'll just start bragging and boasting about how much better he is than him and pin point and nit pick EVERYTHING wrong with Austin. Like mentioned before no man can steal your heart as long as he's with you

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myinky-cloak · 9 months ago

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13 Books

What’s up readers?! How about a little show and tell? Answer these 13 questions, tag 13 lucky readers and if you’re feeling extra bookish add a shelfie! Let’s Go!

Not tagged by @softest-punk but I saw it on their page and decided to get involved.

1) The Last book I read:

Just finished Tana French’s “Broken Harbour”. I LOVE Tana French, particularly her Dublin Murder Squad series. I wasn’t very satisfied with the ending. It required too much suspended disbelief for me. Too many characters descending into madness at the same time very conveniently. But it was interesting to consider how many issues we cause for ourselves by attempting to be someone we think we should be.

2) A book I recommend:

Not to be basic Tumblr bitch but Neil Gaiman’s “The Ocean at The End of The Lane”. The way he can articulate the terrible things that happen in childhood, how we deal with them, how we carry the memories, and the effect they have on us for the rest of our lives left me shaken and breathless. ”You don’t pass or fail at being a person, dear.” I wish I didn’t need this reminder but I do, so thank you, Neil.

Plus, I find it fascinating to see the difference between people who can intimately relate to it and those for whom it is just a story.

3) A book that I couldn’t put down:

Stephen King “The Waste Lands” The third book of The Dark Tower series. A book series that started out so promising and ended with me throwing the final book against the wall in disgust and cursing Mr. King to high heavens. For all the issues the final books in the series had “The Waste Lands” was an absolute masterpiece. I remember reading it on a train to work and nearly missing my spot because I needed to find out what happens next.

4) A book I’ve read twice (or more):

One book?? Right. Stephen King’s “Salem’s Lot”. It absolutely terrified me when I read it as a teenager. I loved the feeling of small town America invaded by the supernatural which he writes so well. Plus, vampires! I have a habit of re-reading it every time I go home, don’t really know why. I probably should get around to reading it in English at some point.

Sometimes I re-read books by accident. I consume so much crime fiction that occasionally I will pick up a book from the library and happily read it with no recollection of the plot only to be told by GoodReads I’ve read it years ago.

5) A book on my TBR:

I am beginning to think this list was made by someone who isn’t a reader. One book? I guess it has to be R.F.Kuang “Babel”. I really want to read it. It's like The Secret History but in Oxford! I know I will enjoy it but I only have it on Kindle. I prefer reading long books in their physical form but the library copy is in hardback so it’s cumbersome to carry around. Thus it stays on my TBR.

First world problems of a bookworm.

6) A book I’ve put down:

Dan Brown “Angels and Demons”. I knew about his reputation when I picked it up, but I wanted something mindless to read and thought it would be fine. Reader, it wasn’t fine. Terrible, terrible writing. I couldn’t deal. Turns out I do have standards even for my trash reads.

7) A book on my wish list:

Stephanie Foo “What My Bones Know: A memoir of healing from complex trauma” I’ve read so many books on trauma and complex trauma both for my degree and for personal understanding. Surprising no one most of them are written by men. I’m very excited to read female perspective on it, plus she talks about generational trauma which is such an incredibly fascinating topic.

8) A favorite book from childhood:

Alexander Dumas “The Three Musketeers”. I was obsessed with this book. OBSESSED. I’ve read it so many times I could recite pages of it. It introduced me to my first problematic fictional crush Athos, starting my love affair with all the sad tortured blorbos which going strong till this day. I named my dog Count de la Fere after him. I wanted to be a musketeer so bad. Still kind of do.

9) A book you would give to a friend:

It does slightly depend on a friend but Amor Towles “A Gentleman in Moscow”. I was so blown away when I read it. I gave copies to my friends. I talked to everyone about it: friends, people on the internet, strangers in bookshops or on public transport (In London! Imagine the horror!) One of my friends refuses to read the last chapter till this day because she does not want the story to end. This is probably my proudest book gifting achievement.

10) A book of poetry or lyrics that you own

The OG problematic bae Lord Byron Selected Works. It’s a second hand school library's copy from 1950’s full of underlinings and scribbled notes. I love seeing evidence of other people engaging with writing and thinking about words.

Such a problematic person. Such a great poet.

11) A nonfiction book you own:

Cindy Crab “Things That Help: Healing our lives through Feminism, Anarchism, Punk & Adventure”. I found this book in the feminist bookshop in Brighton when things weren’t going so great for me for the umptheen time and it was like pouring healing salve on my soul. It’s not a book in a traditional sense but a collection of self-published zines collected into a little tome. It destroyed my very conservative idea of what a book is and how “professional” it should look that I did not realise I held until that moment. Most importantly, it reminded me there are other ways of being in the world that a conventional way of living.

12) What are you currently reading:

Teo van den Broeke “The Closet”. It’s a memoir of a fashion journalist who tells of growing up, coming out and figuring out himself through clothes that were important to him. It’s written in an easy, conversational style. As someone whose wardrobe consists of jeans, leggings and t-shirts I find it so interesting to peek into fashionista’s world.

13) What are you planning on reading next?

Isabella Hammad “Enter Ghost”. It is a book set in Palestine about staging Hamlet and possibly also a queer love story. What more could you want from a book? Cannot wait to start this one!!

#books #bookworm #reading #nobody asked but I'll tell y'all anyway #13 books

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argumentativeessaysfornoone · 2 years ago

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Personal thoughts on this man

Uhh spoilers? I don't know.

Okay, okay, so first off let me be clear: I hate this man. And I have come to accept that I will never like him. Yes, I know he is fictional, and yes, I know that there are plenty of people who will cuss me out and curse my name in their sleep for stating that I hate this man, but there it is. I hate Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd. BUT! Just because I hate a character doesn't mean that my opinions are invalid or that your own feelings on him aren't. It's just... everytime I play the game I feel like my feelings need to be heard. Like I'm betraying myself for not at least saying it. So please, allow me to air my dirty laundry for a bit.

I feel like there are 2 sides to every person who has experienced Dimitri's story. You either fell in love with him, or you're like me and hated how his arc panned out. To put it plain and short, I feel that the game spends too much time on Dimitri for any of the game's other themes to make sense. And it especially hinders how the other 3 main protagonists- Edelgard, Claude and Byleth are perceived and written. I also feel that the game often contradicts Dimitri, but decides to sidestep over it in order to progress the story or have Dimitri move forward in his leading role.

I think what it all comes down to, is me wanting to bend the variables to have a story that I like. And to have a story that I feel is justly written. Because there are things about Dimitri's arc that I think are compelling, but ultimately they are brushed aside to adhere to Fire Emblem norms or archetypes. A common phrase I hear about Dimitri is how he is sort of a deconstruction of the typical Fire Emblem lord. (A quick run down of what a typical Fire Emblem lord is: A young, idyllic young man who values justice, life and honor. They also have a fondness for the color blue.) Dimitri fits this description to a T. His native house is called the Blue Lions, he's passionate about his training, eager to help others and he desires to lead his country to peace above all else.

But what makes him a deconstruction of the Fire Emblem lord is his dramatic change during the time skip. We go from a bright eyed teenager, to edge incarnate. Suddenly Dimitri can't stop talking to the ghosts that he keeps hallucinating, and he no longer seems to value the lives of his comrades or enemies. Because of how the cards are set in this story, we cannot change how the characters ineract in this story. My best example of this flaw is the character that you play as: Byleth.

Byleth is in many ways, a bad player insert for the world of Three Houses. They must fill a silent protagonist role, so they don't voice a lot of concerns that players might have during part 1. But, also in many ways, Byleth is an interesting person to play as in Three Houses' story. But it comes with a lot of pros and cons. Sometimes I feel that they are better utilized in different stories, because in Dimitri's Azure Moon path, they are what I consider, to be the worst version of themselves in the game. This is what I mean when I say that I find parts of Dimitri's arc to be compelling, but is ultimately hindered by variables that cannot change. Byleth is the biggest variable that I wish I could change.

Over the course of White Clouds (part 1) Byleth is great, because this part of the game has to stay the same for all 4 story paths. With Dimitri, Byleth is a great mentor for him, and they feel like they have a strong student and teacher bond. But that's just it, when the time comes for Dimitri to need actual real guidance, they do absolutely nothing. They don't try to step in and relate to what he's going through, they just kinda stand there and watch as their star pupill slowly descends into madness. It's agonizing.

They stay silent during cutscenes where Dimitri is verbally assaulting them and his comrades, and they don't try to go against any of his poorly conceived battle strategies. This is where it really sucks to have this be a videogame. Because there are tons of people, people like myself, who will just skip the cutscenes where Dimitri is being an asshole and miss his arc completely. I'm not saying that the writers shouldn't have made Dimitri so unbearable, because I get that the point of it all is to drive home how bad his depression and trauma has gotten. But I do think that there is a certain tolerance level with each player. I mean, I really have to credit Chris Hackney, the english voice actor for Dimitri for this. Because part of the reason why I find this part of the game to be so unbearable is due to how phenomenal his performance was. Great job!👍

My ultimate stance is that the game sacrifices too much of its time to Dimitri's arc for Edelgard, Claude, or even Rhea make sense. The route is so focused on one singular conflict, that it has to shut everything else out. And that, in my opinion is too much of a sacrifice. I haven't even detailed on how contradictory and stupid Dimitri's revenge plot is. His obsession with Edelgard is completely unfounded and his philosophy on mourning is too self damaging. He's just... an extreme hyperbole of a type of person that I cannot stand.

I think what the developers were trying to say about Dimitri and this ideal of revenge, avenging, mouring and loss, is beautiful, but misguided. I can point to several works in fiction that don't drive me up the wall nearly as much as Dimitri does. Here's one: Katara's mother complex in the Nickelodeon cartoon, Avatar the Last Airbender. Katara was consumed by hatred over the death of her mother, even going as far as to claim that she loved her mother more than her brother. In an episode in season 3, Katara hunts down her mother's killer to exact her revenge, but loses her nerves at the last moment, realizing that he wasn't worth it. In the end she lets out her anger and grief, feeling lighter and ready to move on. In a vacuum, Dimitri's entire arc is better expressed and explained in Katara's one episode, than the entirety of Azure Moon.

By now I think I have properly explained why I will never, EVER like Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd. But in the interest of positivity, I'll name the parts of Dimitri that I like. (There are very few.)

First of all, I like White Clouds Dimitri. He is charming, naive, and innocently fighting for his "justice." While there are still many moments of his facade slipping, he is still able to maintain this pristine princely image of himself. He's set up really well is what I mean. You can tell through small glimpses in his supports or moments in the main storyline where he's hiding something more, but he makes sure to put a lid on it. When I first played Three Houses, I picked the Blue Lions because I was curious about Dimitri. Knowing what I know now about him, I can't say that I wasn't disappointed, but the build up to the war phase is brilliantly done through the Blue Lions and Dimitri.

Dimitri's route is the only route in the game that has a specialized cutscene of Edelgard's reveal to being the Flame Emperor.

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It's extremely well done, and it really highlights just how much of himself he's kept at bay. This is the moment where Dimitri snaps, and everything turns red. As someone who has spent over hundreds of hours into this game, I can firmly say that Dimitri did Edelgard's reveal best.

The second thing that I like about Dimitri, is how he is shown after his arc. Once Dimitri realizes that killing people out of anger is wrong, he seems to go back to his teenage self, but this is not technically true. After his transformation he does seem more friendly, but I would say that he is more grounded. Instead of trying to fiegn happiness, he is more plain spoken and somber. It's there that you can see and understand the long standing affects of his trauma and depression. In his A supports with Flayn (supports that are only available when Dimitri goes back to being sane again,) he confesses that he hasn't been able to taste anything since he lost his family. This is a symptom of PTSD. Just the way that his depression and trauma is written through little easy to miss facts like this, is wonderful.

This version of Dimitri is honestly refreshing. He's not over acting his happiness like he did during part 1, and he's not on the other end of that spectrum being 100% rage consumed with ghost speech. This is a version of Dimitri that has been through the wringer. He's learned his mistake and is now finally moving forward. In a way, he draws many parallels to the version of himself that's shown in Three Hopes. In that game, he's shown to be quite pensive, but still a kind person at heart. Similar to how he acts in Three Houses after his transformation, he's not angry anymore. A bit delusional at times, but sane enough to know that what he's really feeling is pain over losing loved ones. The variables in Three Hopes are also different, which is probably why I found Dimitri to actually be somewhat enjoyable there.

Honestly, I wished that the version we see of Dimitri in Three Hopes was the one that greeted us after the time skip in Three Houses. He's still sullen and talking to the dead like they're really there, but it's watered down. And in the main story of Three Hopes he makes no mention of it (thank god.) Three Hopes has many problems that plague its story for all 3 routes, but as a whole, Dimitri is much more pleasant to be around in that game.

Lastly, I believe that Dimitri works best as a villain. When he's an enemy commander, he's not someone who you should feel sympathy for. In all of the opposing routes from his, Dimitri is either shown to be a brutal killing machine that enjoys desecrating corpses and killing people, or in Crimson Flower (Edelgard's route) he's shown to be the kind of leader that relies on using others to win. Before you fight him, you're shown in the cutscene that he's betting on the Church of Serios to strike first, and that he plans to use them as a meat shield essentially. Dimitri's Crimson Flower depiction is the only time, other than playing his own personal route, where he's not completely bloodthirsty. People like to say that because he's not totally crazy here, that Edelgard is the reason for his extreme hatred and anger.

I would argue that while it's not shown through extreme hyperbole, Dimitri is still that same savage boar that he was in all of the other routes. He's held back, but it's a more realistic telling of his anger. Morose, passive agressive, and deceitful. Maybe even hopeless. He still loathes the Empire and by extension, Edelgard, we just don't see all of it because the story is not focused on him. Consider how compliant he was to some of Rhea's more dubious tactics and how in his final battle, planned to used the Church as bait. When you see all of the versions of Dimitri that are possible in the Three Houses Franchise, then it's up to you to decide whether or not his actions should be met with death.

I'm of course on the negative. I don't think going around all angry and murder-ey is a good enough excuse for your depression. And I'm alarmed that everyone in Dimitri's company just silently obeyed without question. Nobody stopped and pointed out that Dimitri is clearly not in a good state of mind to lead? Really? Any kind of appreciation I have for Dimitri is only available when I think of him as a man who died a foolish death. Dimitri witnessed his family killed in front of him when he was a young boy. He spent the rest of his adolescence in mourning and planning a way to get his revenge, all while feigning a pristine princely image. By the time he enrolls in the academy he's already let his demons control him, and when the time skip occurs we see those demons on full display. Now he's brutally killing and enjoying killing imperial soldiers. He doesn't care about anyone, and will use his friends as tools with no remorse. He claims that his work is just and that his deeds are for the greater good, but all it is is pointless aggression. (Really stupid aggression at that too...)

No part of that feels like he should be redeemed to me. I just feel like Dimitri's entire arc is better learned as a tragic tale. When he dies as a consequence to his actions there's almost a sense of relief, like a weight has been lifted. When the ending to his story is death, then you can better understand what went wrong, and what his mistakes bought him. Poetic justice in a sense. If he truly was just too kind a person to be king, and he let the pressure torture and nurse his grudge, then he should've let somebody else be king. There's like, a whole line of people who seek to reform not just the kingdom, but also Fodlan as a whole. Let them have the job. That's the moral I guess.

Well, there you have it. My feelings about the game, the character, and the story of Dimitri. I tried to avoid going into parts of his character (AKA analyzing his mental illness and philosophy,) because I've done that so many times in other writings that I have, that I just don't have the energy to tell you why I think it's incredibly flawed. It's strange to think about how long my relationship with this game has been, and how long my relationship has been with Dimitri has been as well.

I've never quite had a character make me feel this agitated, agitated enough to write feature length films on why I fucking hate him so much. Crazy huh? It's times like this where I have to remind myself that it's just a game. A game about anime teenagers killing themselves in a turn based rpg. Oh man, what am I doing? Okay, to wrap up, here's a quote from the Gronder fight during the time skip and you have Claude and Dimitri fight each other:

“Claude: Calm down, Dimitri! What does it achieve, us killing each other here? Dimitri: Move, Claude. I have no time to exchange words with you. Claude: It doesn't matter what I'm saying, does it? You aren't even listening. But I'm not gonna budge.”

"Kill every last one of them!"

#fire emblem #fire emblem three houses #three houses #essay #opinion #thought dump #I also did not grammar or spell check this #I'm also new to tumblr hi #dimitri critical #dimitri negative

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ismahanescorner · 2 years ago

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These Violent Delights | Book Review

Author: Chloe Gong

Series: These Violent Delights

Genre: YA Fantasy/Sci-Fi, Historical Fiction

Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books

Release Date: 17/11/2020

Rating: 2/5 🌟🌟

Synopsis:

The year is 1926, and Shanghai hums to the tune of debauchery.

A blood feud between two gangs runs the streets red, leaving the city helpless in the grip of chaos. At the heart of it all is eighteen-year-old Juliette Cai, a former flapper who has returned to assume her role as the proud heir of the Scarlet Gang—a network of criminals far above the law. Their only rivals in power are the White Flowers, who have fought the Scarlets for generations. And behind every move is their heir, Roma Montagov, Juliette’s first love…and first betrayal.

But when gangsters on both sides show signs of instability culminating in clawing their own throats out, the people start to whisper. Of a contagion, a madness. Of a monster in the shadows. As the deaths stack up, Juliette and Roma must set their guns—and grudges—aside and work together, for if they can’t stop this mayhem, then there will be no city left for either to rule.

Perfect for fans of The Last Magician and Descendant of the Crane, this heart-stopping debut is an imaginative Romeo and Juliet retelling set in 1920s Shanghai, with rival gangs and a monster in the depths of the Huangpu River.

Review:

Okay y’all! Strap in for a long-winded review, that’s mostly me ranting about how much I hate hype!!! So we all know the hype that surrounded this book around its release. I fell for it!! and all the pretty aesthetically pleasing edits and fanart. ffs I got the book; and the sequel, before I even finished the 1st!! 🥴😩

Anyways, I started this book back in March 2022 and it was going fine. I dropped it for another read around chapter 10/12, cuz it wasn’t gripping me like the girlies said it would. I picked it up again a few weeks later, and read up to chapter 16, then stopped again! That time around, I shelved as restart cuz I felt I wasn’t giving it all the attention it deserves so I can enjoy it fully like all the girlies did!!! Well, fast-forward to this weekend! I got the audio on Libby and I restarted it. Again, I liked the first few chapters, then got bored outta my mind once I hit the tens chapters! Literally, from chapter 13 to 28, I tried my hardest to actively listen and not to let my inner monologue take over! All I could think about was: “damn! this! this! was marvellous to y’all?” “I’m boooooredddd!!” “how am I gonna explain the 2 star I’ll rate this book?” Honestly, I’m so disappointed, because I didn’t hate this book (per se), I just feel fooled by the hype!

Now, onto the actual review! This book had sooo much potential! Unfortunately, the execution fell short! The setting, the characters, the plot, they are all very intriguing and make for a great mystery or a romantic suspense novel. However, this was marketed as a fantasy!! Why?? It offered a good commentary on capitalism and colonialism, but even those parts were neither cohesive, nor coherent, nor did they mesh-in well with the plot! Honestly, this novel woulda been much better if it was 150 pages shorter and didn’t rattle on and on all throughout the middle chapters. The first few chapters did averagely well setting up the plot and the last few also did averagely well as a closure; but those middle chapters just bored me outta my mind. Where was the editor?? So much of this book was unnecessary! Another thing I really didn’t like was the reveal in the epilogue! I had hope that maybe the sequel is gonna be different and I’ll actually enjoy it. However, that final reveal makes it very clear that book two is gonna be just like book one. The only difference will be Roma hating (rightfully holding a grudge against) Juliette! I’m just soooo disappointed! but since I own the sequel I’ll probably be reading it!

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zuko-kuko · 5 months ago

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Zuko TED Talk Ch #2: LGBT+ and Inclusivity.

Summary: in this post, I talk about inclusivity and why I think a break of LGBT+ might be needed in order to welcome other kinds of inclusiveness to Overwatch 2.

Disclaimer 1: This is part of a thread regarding the newest character Blizzard added to Overwatch, Juno. You can see Ch #1, where I just descend to madness without filter here.

Disclaimer 2: I’m so used to committing errors in my communication regarding this topic that I feel it’s necessary to emphasize that me, Zuko, is not really agile with words. But I’m trying to get better at it and also open my mind to other visions.

Therefore, I deeply apologize in if any of my ramble/ideas here is perceived as discriminatory or disrespectful, because nothing comes from bad faith. I read it over and over again trying to avoid giving the wrong message, but even tho I did check and rechecked, I could have worded or said something that IS WRONG or IS disrespectful from some point of view I didn’t considered. I’m ignorant in a lot of areas, so I’m open to learn and recheck the view I have of the world to fit new info. Any sort of feedback will always be welcome and will help me to become a better communicator and be more open-minded.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

I wouldn’t be surprised if Blizzard made her LGBT+ tho. Actually, I would be surprised if they didn’t.

Sadly, I can’t stop believing that it would not be about inclusivity anymore. I can’t feel that they care about inclusiveness since the LGBT+ community became a marketing strategy for most companies (and Juno herself already is a disgustingly efficient character in that field); and if they do actually care about inclusivity, they should also expand to other areas more than genre/sexual dissidences, like disabilities (blindness, muteness, deafness), skin conditions (vitiligo, acne, psoriasis) or recurrent mutations (harelip, Down Syndrome).

This is a Sci-Fi videogame universe. I’m pretty sure that they can make it work somehow. And create a hella cool character in the process.

A lot of people who suffer from these conditions struggle with self-confidence and self-esteem, and would be sweet and touching to see this being added to the roaster instead of another LGBT+ character. It would be fresh, and a really positive addition.

LGBT+ has been overexploited. Every time I see the collective being mentioned, I see how it becomes more and more polemical because it is everywhere. And drives me sad. Really sad, because it has become so exhausting that I can’t feel proud or happy to be part of the collective anymore.

I think that for people who are not used to these “new liberal communities”, it is perceived as something that is so violently invading every corner of their world, that it is being “imposed” on them (that I should emphasize, the fact I can see WHY people refuge in this argument doesn’t mean I share this mindset) which doesn’t lead to a good outcome because people don’t enjoy being controlled. Like, you won’t change their mind. Why pressure them to do so?

I know that is just a matter of tolerance and LGBT+ haters are just a bunch of sad and inflexible entitled people who want to control everything, but what I’m trying to say is that we can’t deny that LGBT is everywhere. And I genuinely feel that it needs a break.

I don’t mean it shouldn’t be added anymore, just that there are other things you could focus on instead of what a fictional character falls in love with or gets horny for.

Do you know how happy were Simmers when Maxis introduced vitiligo, body hair, health aid gadgets or birthmarks to The Sims 4? And we are talking about EA. EA BRO. EA is thirsty for money, but they hit it right in the nail.

At this point, if Blizzard said “Hey! You know what? She’s diabetic and we’ll add some voice lines referencing it” like asking Mercy or Baptiste, for example, I would hate her less (and it would be dope ngl).

I’ll keep waiting for her to apologize to Venture anyway. That’s all I’m asking for. Venture Nation deserves an apology.

You know what? I headcannon that Juno is diabetic.

SOME overwatch players are so porn addicted they can't see a female character for 2 seconds they'll start making porn of her and it's actually disgusting, I srsly hope they start therapy or sum

#zuko ted talks #zukotalks #juno overwatch #i hate juno #overwatch #venture overwatch #lgbtq community #maybe i should do my disclaimer a copy paste

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nothingtherefornow · 2 years ago

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Honestly, the fact that people to get so offended over the idea of Chloe and Lila being worse than Gabriel. Kind of makes me roll my eyes ar people screeching about the misogny of two teenage girls being called evil.

Both Chloe and Lila have both have been shown to knowingly willingly try to take advantage of the fact that Gabriel is an abuser to use for their benefits…

The reason I honestly agree with the assessment that they are both worse than Gabriel comes down to one simple thing. If you took away the miraculous from Gabriel, he probably wouldn’t have the guts to do literally any of the stuff that he does. All his confidence and all his power to do what he does come from the fact that he has that magical brooch.

Chloe and Lila have both been shown to not need a miraculous to want to do evil things to people. It is it so shocking to people the idea that teenage girls can be pretty awful coming from a girl who was frequently bullied by other teenage girls yeah teens can be awful to each other.

Portraying something in fiction doesn’t equate to condoning/normalizing behavior.

I adore this analysis of yours ^^ ! Thank you very much for sharing your thoughts :) Even if I'm a girl myself I was a little bothered that fans felt so ofended over the idea that Lila and Chloé could be worse than Gabriel. But for me it was kinda logic that they would be worse than him, because they are supposed to be the next Big baddies once Monarch is out of the picture. And Ladybug and Chat Noir became strong enough that the ml writters will have to put them against crazier villains in order to rise up the stakes

I had never thought of the kind of person Gabriel would be without the butterfly miraculous, but I think we had a glimpse of it in the episode Queen Wasp where he was ready to stop everything for Adrien's sake (and he even complimented Marinette, while in this season 5 she seems to be the second person he despises the most after Ladybug T_T). It is also the period when Gabriel had not yet developed the habit of controlling Adrien with his amok. Gabriel had not been totally corrupted by power yet in this episode, while for season 5 there is no doubt that he has descended into madness and took a liking to evil, but it was a slow descent into hell, he got worse every season, and his abusive, toxic and obsessive behavior also escalated.

Chloé and Lila on the other hand ... They're different. Of course there was a period when Chloé softened between season 2 and season 3, but the Derision episode will show us how bad she really was, and unfortunatelly became once again. This episode will also reveal how much Chloé has a very twisted and wicked view of how the world works.

And Lila is no better, if not worse. I still get goosebumps thinking back to this scene when she's cutting Marinette's face from a bunch of photos she took from a distance either by herself or by paying somoene to do it, declaring loud and clear "soon you'll have no one and nothing left Marinette". My only though after this scene was : PSYCHOPATH !

And I don't know if you've read the bible, but (SPOILER WARNING FOR THIS PARAGRAPH !) the fact that Lila can go as far as managing 3 false identities at the same time just to get attention and popularity is kinda messed up. Also her intelligence level must be as good as Felix's if she can pull something like that so easilly (also it probably helps her that most ml character are guillible dummies ^^')

And let's not forget that Chloé and Lila willingly got themselves akumatized at one point just because they were offended. They are willing to wreck havoc for the most pettiest reasons of all.

And also, while during season 5 Gabriel is mostly motivated by his madness and hunger for power and control, his original purpose was still intriguing and understandable, to bring a loved one back to life.

Lila and Chloé on the other hands, what do they want, what are their motivations ? Simple : destroying the life of another teenager girl who barely did anything to them. They are only motivated by petty jealousy and the desire to hurt.

Because yeah Chloé always enjoyed hurting Marinette more than anyone else even before she became jealous of her, and Lila seems to have developped an hate-obsession toward Marinette even more intense than the hate she feels for Ladybug, and for what ? Just because Marinette called Lila out for her lies twice or thrice and is currently Adrien's girlfriend ? The boy both Lila and Chloé covet llike he's a thing to possess ?

When there is no rationality behind someone's motives, only madness remains. And crazy antagonists who take pleasure in making others miserable can sometimes be even more terrifying than rich powerfull business man obsessed with power.

There's no denying anymore that both Lila and Chloé are not only bad persons, but also a little deranged in their head. So what happens when you give wicked teenagers more power than they already have ? They become worse, because if they can get away with hurting even more people because that's something they enjoy, what's really stopping them ?

What the fans seem to ignore is that even at 14 years old, people can be pretty messed up in real life. It's much rarer than adults doing evil around them that's for sure, but it happens. I even remember a real case where two young girls below 12 years old murdered a 2 years old kid and an old lady just "for fun". And there's many others example with boys, some can even start committing rape when they're just 14. So why is it that hard to beleive that 14 years old girls have the potential to be more evil than an adult man when they grow up ?

Also can we really talk about misoginy when the main hero character who must face those two crazy girls is also a girl herself ? And when said girl is the protagnoist while her boy partner is the deuteragonist ?

Miraculous Ladybug seems to focus much more on the performances of its female characters like Kagami, Alya, Alix and Zoé for example. And then the star characters of the New York and Shanghai specials were also female. The series has probably chosen two female characters as the future antagonists who will be "worse" than the previous one, because they are characters that we have known since season 1 as rivals of the heroine, and who also evolved alongside the season, but towards the path of evil. After all, when the good becomes better, the bad must become worse.

But I think the detail that might show that fans are wrong to howl mysoginia is that somehow, Gabriel is the one who gave Chloe and Lila opportunities to become even worse. His akumatizations and plans involving Chloe and Lila can be seen as a way of corrupting the two young girls, their viciousness is something Gabriel has always indirectly encouraged for his plans. So is it so surprising then that the student would manage to surpass the master ?

For those who have read the bible, I seem to remember that the synopsis of an episode mentioned Chloe and Lila as "the best minions and allies of Monarch" So if Chloé and Lila became worse than Gabriel, it's because Gabriel himself influenced them.

#miraculous ladybug #ml season 5 #ml season 5 spoilers #ml season 5 leaks #ml analysis #chloé bourgeois #lila rossi #gabriel agreste #Sorry I know this is a very long post ^^'#But there's always so much to tell when this topic comes up #especially when I must use good arguments

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where-theres-smoak-2 · 3 years ago

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Here’s the transcript of an interview LB did a couple of weeks ago. Be prepared to be annoyed at her not knowing wtf she’s taking about but pretending she does especially in the Darkling and the decision to make Alina half Shu sections:

https://www.penfaulkner.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Literature-on-Screen-Shadow-and-Bone-Transcript.pdf

So there were a few bits in this interview that I want to talk about. I am going to shock you here and say there were actually parts of this interview where I agree with what LB says and gave me the tiniest bit of hope. But before you get too worried its the parts where she is talking about season 2 and her involvement in the show and writing process. Here is what she said when asked what her involvement in season 2 is:

With season two, I've been able to be a little bit more involved in casting, costumes, production design, meeting with directors.

Then I think I am going to step back. I'm not going to be as involved in reading the scripts. I think at this point, we are going to be diverging quite a bit more, and it's all I can say. I really cannot say more than that. I'm about to be descended upon by Netflix assassins. For me, there has to be a moment of saying, “This doesn't belong to me anymore.” The books are mine, they will always be on the shelves, and this has its own life now.

She also said something similar a little later in the interview when talking about changes between the books and the show and how she got negative reactions to saying the show was like an expensive fanfiction:

Which to me is like, "Why are you so mad about fanfiction? It's amazing, first of all. Second, all adaptation is fan fiction. That's what it is. All adaptation is fan fiction." To me, this is the way adaptation should work, where you keep the core and you keep the heart, but you're allowed to play. Otherwise, you cannot ask, I think, a group of smart writers, talented directors, amazing actors to simply transcribe. I don't think that's exciting for anyone.

That funny thing about that second statement about tv adaptions basically being fanfiction is I said it myself in a post a while back. It does seem like LB is more open to changes from her book and it also looks like she is not going to be as involved with the writing process for season 2, we also have heard in other interviews that they are going to be diverting away from the books in the next season, whether that is a good or bad thing is yet to be seen but I do think it is a good thing that LB is taking a step back from the show, as she herself said the books are hers and they will always be there so the show should be the show and it should be allowed to have a life of its own. I've said before but I prefer it with tv adaptions if they don't follow the books because to me that's more exciting than if I know exactly what is coming next, I like to be surprised.

Something else I learned from this interview is this:

Eric Heisserer, he is our showrunner on Shadow and Bone season one and in season two he'll be co-show running with Daegan Fryklind who is one of the wonderful writers from season one.

So from a google search I found out that Daegan was the writer for episode 6 and episode 8. Again whether its a good or bad thing that she'll now be co-running the show with Eric I don't know but it is still an interesting bit of information and I'll take any info I can get on season 2.

However whilst I was feeling optimistic about everything LB was saying about season 2 and was actually kind of impressed at how she seemed to have let go a bit and was happier with the idea of changes from the books than she seemed in the past, but she then said this:

Petra: Following on from that, actually, somebody is asking, and I know you've said that the story is going to diverge from the books in future seasons, do you – Let's assume this is a spoiler too but I'm going to ask it anyways, and you can tell me to get lost. Do you want the shows and the books to end in the same place, the same way?

Leigh: Yes I do. [laughs] Yes, I do. Look, I wrote the books the way I wrote them for a reason, and that – I haven't seen any sense that that is going to change at all, but there are certain things that I know if we get to move forward will change because we'll want to see these characters continue in their adventures. Also because there's a finality to some things that happen in the books that then is sort of undone in later books, I'm really being abstruse here, but I guess my point is there are certain things that are essential to me that stay the same and certain things that I don't care. You learn which things and, fortunately, I've been on the same page with the writers from moment one.

Just no, please no, no, no. This I just don't understand ok. LB and the showrunners/writers must be aware of how unpopular the ending of her books were right? I mean I've seen an interview where LB herself says that she was aware that the ending was controversial amongst fans and that many of them were angry at the ending. You could put up a good argument that it was the thing people hated the most about her original trilogy, the ending. So why on earth would she or the showrunners want to keep that ending? Like any part of it? I mean she says there are some things she doesn't care if they are changed and others she thinks are essential they keep and unfortunately I feel like it most likely Alina losing her powers that she wants to keep and that for me was the worst part of the ending. To be honest it kind of makes me really wary about continuing with the show because I don't want to get invested in the show just to be really let down by the ending. Also if that many book readers didn't like the ending what do they think is going to happen when the tv viewers see that ending, its likely going to be game of thrones 2.0.

As you predicted some of the things she said about the darkling and Alina being half Shu did annoy me. I feel like with Alina being half shu she just sort of glossed over the question which the interviewer brought up the critique that she had wished that they had explored Alina's Shu heritage outside of just the racism she faces and dive deeper into that which LB just basically said they will be exploring more about what it means for Alina to be Shu and Ravkan in season 2. I will say I do hope that they do cover more of the other cultures particularly the Shu culture as we got to know a little about the fjerdan culture through Matthias but we know very little about the Shu culture.

As for the darkling I am not going to go too much into it because its not really anything new I'm just resigned to the fact that LB and I are always going to have different opinions on his character and not to sound too harsh but I don't really care what her opinion or views are anymore. One thing I will point out though is this little tidbit:

Leigh: Look, there's never been a problem creating sympathy for the Darkling. This is a very beloved character, sometimes to my great frustration.

I mean this is nothing us darklinas didn't already know but the next time an anti says that LB never had a problem with people liking the darkling/darklina show them this interview where she openly admits that she found it frustrating. I do kind of feel for her I guess it must be frustrating to write a villain that you meant for everyone to hate only for them to become the most loved/popular character in your series.

#darklina #the darkling #answered #anti leigh bardugo

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usergreenpixel · 3 years ago

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JACOBIN FICTION CONVENTION MEETING 11: A TALE OF TWO CITIES (1859)

1. The Introduction

Hey, Citizens! I’m finally back with a new review, fresh out of the oven! Please, make yourself comfortable and brace yourselves for a wild ride that is this novel because boy do we have a lot to discuss!

“A Tale of Two Cities” is a novel written by Charles Dickens in 1859. You know, THE Dickens. Of “Oliver Twist”, “David Copperfield” and “A Christmas Carol” fame.

To be quite honest with you, my dear Citizens, I actually read all three of the aforementioned books from cover to cover and I have to admit that Dickens isn’t really on my list of favorite authors so at first I was hesitant about reviewing the book we’re going to talk about today. Something about Dickens’s writing style just...doesn’t click with me. I think that’s the best way to put it.

However, while researching this particular novel, I found out that it’s actually pretty infamous in our community but considered a classic so, as usual, my curiosity was off the charts at that point.

It didn’t help that @maggiec70 from the neighboring Napoleonic community refers to this novel and The Scarlet Pimpernel as “known hazards” so I decided to proceed with the review regardless.

Let’s just say that I was in for an extremely bad time, but more on that later.

(@maggiec70, Now I regret not heeding your warning, Madame Lannes...)

The book is in public domain and I downloaded it via Project Gutenberg, as I usually do with anglophone books in public domain. So, if you’re curious or masochistic enough to check it out, you know where to find it.

So, with that out of the way, let’s begin our meeting, pick apart this book and find out if this is yet another pathetic piece of Anglophone smear campaign against our Revolution or if its reputation in our community is simply blown out of proportion.

2. The Summary

The novel is divided into three parts in total, all of which are connected with an overarching plot where personal conflicts and family history overlap with the Revolution and the Reign of Terror.

Do these conflicts manage to be engaging though? Let’s try to find out.

3. The Story

Unfortunately, the plot is really confusing to me so it took me a while to comprehend what’s going on and I needed a lot of willpower not to drop the book despite the insane amounts of filler and the fact that Dickens really takes his sweet ass time to set everything up.

Now, I know that setting things up is important and all, but diving into extensive details even for the minor characters, when a much better way to develop them would be to have the relevant info intertwined with the plot itself, is a bit of an overkill in my opinion.

(Spoiler alert!)

But, from what I did eventually manage to understand, the first book is about one Jarvis Lorry who, after receiving a message saying “Recalled to Life”, helps a young French ingenue called Lucie Manette reunite with her father, Dr. Alexandre Manette.

The second book begins with the trial and the acquittal of yet another major character, Charles Darnay, then we see how a romance blooms between him and Lucie and they end up marrying.

Finally, the third book is about Darnay recklessly going back to France (his country of birth) to rescue a loyal servant of his family, only to be imprisoned due to being an aristocrat. Of course...

The rest of the story is about Lucie, Dr. Manette, Mr. Lorry, a barrister called Sydney Carton and Miss Pross, Lucie’s governess, trying to rescue Charles.

Now, all of this would’ve made for an exciting story. I’ll admit that much. However, the confusion caused by an excessive amount of filler and flashbacks, the fact that anglophone propaganda is off the charts and my personal dislike for the author’s writing style made it an absolute nightmare to get through the entire book without dying of boredom or just dropping it entirely.

Moving on before I descend into ranting madness.

4. The Characters

Thanks Supreme Being, actual historical figures don’t show up in the text so I won’t have to rip an ok to the author in that regard.

But let’s talk about some of the major characters, shall we?

First of all, I kinda like Dr. Manette as a character. He starts out as a broken shell of a man after his long imprisonment in La Bastille and, realistically, the trauma lingers throughout the course of the novel instead of magically going away the second he is reunited with his daughter. That said, this reunion and quality time spent together do help the doctor improve significantly and he doesn’t let trauma stand in his way when it comes to doing what he believes is right, which is admirable. All in all, quite a decently written character.

Unfortunately, the same can’t be said about his daughter, Lucie Manette. She is pretty much your standard issue Victorian ingenue and she doesn’t have that much agency so she is a flat and overly perfect character in my book and I doubt modern readers will find her interesting.

Charles Darnay also seems typical on the surface. A righteous (if reckless) hero, in love with the Ingenue, you get the idea. It’s not until further into the story that things get truly interesting.

(Spoiler alert!)

In reality, Charles is a member of the notoriously corrupt and rotten Evrémonde family, nobles from France. It turns out that he changed his name and escaped to England to distance himself from that horrible legacy, which is very much understandable, but still dooms him just by association with that lineage. I wish this backstory would’ve been more developed when it comes to inner conflicts and such, but I’m glad that we got something beyond Young Hot Righteous Knight in Shining Armor ™️.

(Spoiler alert!)

Sydney Carton, the cynical barrister who resembles Charles, is probably one of the earliest examples of a troubled antihero. He is a cynic and an alcoholic and seems like a jerk, but he is in love with Lucie and is ready to do anything for her. In the end, he trades places with Charles and is executed so that Lucie and her daughter don’t lose Charles. I really like the fact that Sydney isn’t the jealous rival one would expect to see.

Then there are the villains, Monsieur and Madame Defarge.

They first appear as owner of a wine shop who took in Dr. Manette before the latter reunited with his daughter. However, as the story progresses, we find out that Madame Defarge is on a quest to wipe out the entire Evrémonde family, just as they had wiped out hers. In fact, she is so blinded by this revenge that she is more than willing to kill Charles, Lucie Manette and the couple’s young daughter, just for that vengeance.

Her husband, however, is less obsessed with vengeance and draws the line when it comes to killing children. Doesn’t stop him from assisting his wife everywhere else though.

In fact, in the book these two are shown rallying people up for the storming of La Bastille and become the representations of the author’s view on revolutionaries - bloodthirsty monsters who will stop at nothing to achieve their goals.

But, credit where it’s due, Madame Defarge’s revenge crusade is an understandable and a realistic motive, which makes her quite a decent villain. I also like the fact that her backstory isn’t treated as an excuse for her actions. Props for that.

The Revolution is also represented in some minor characters, like The Vengeance (Madame Defarge’s second-in-command and just as brutal as her boss), whose name is a reference to the trend of adopting new, Republican names.

Not all people did that, mind you, but, thanks to Citizen @frevandrest who shared the information with me, it wasn’t uncommon for people to change the names. I don’t know if anyone had “Vengeance” as a Republican name though...

One minor character who really gets to shine is Miss Pross. She loves Lucie Manette like a mother would and goes full Mama Bear on Madame Defarge for trying to kill Lucie Manette and her daughter, also named Lucie. In the process, although permanently deafened by the gunshot(is that even possible?), she shoots Madame Defarge. Let me repeat that. A GOVERNESS SHOOTS A BLOODTHIRSTY REVOLUTIONARY! I really like that, to be very honest. Don’t mess with protective parents!

I do like Mr. Lorry’s outwardly stoic demeanor, beneath which he hides a more caring side. Sadly, he doesn’t get much development.

As for Jerry Cruncher... Although technically he is on the side of the good guys, I don’t give a shit about him. Let me tell you why.

(Leans in and whispers)

I don’t care about domestic abusers and this motherfucker beats his wife. No joke. So fuck him.

Anyway, let’s move on.

5. The Setting.

Once again, too much filler. Descriptions are best used in moderation, like a tiny pinch of salt to make your cooking better. This, however, is the equivalent of dumping a full cup of salt into your dish. Good luck getting through that.

6. The Writing

Like I said, I don’t really like the way Dickens writes and this made reading a bit hard for me. There are also some old English words and grammar that I didn’t quite understand at first, both because my mother tongue is Russian and because it’s not quite contemporary but, for the most part, everything is at least comprehensible.

7. The Conclusion

All in all, while it lacks outright English nationalism, this book is still a boring smear campaign against Frev so I can’t recommend it to you, Citizens. Please, heed my warning, skip it and find something more fun to read.

Sure, the novel does have some characters with potential that I personally liked, but it’s far from enough to make up for the propaganda, the lack of proper development for a lot of characters, the incredibly long fillers and the plot that’s more stretched out (in terms of the time the author takes to get to the actual story) than chewing gum.

With that, let us conclude the eleventh meeting of the Jacobin Fiction Convention. Stay safe and stay tuned for more updates on the next review!

Until next time.

Love,

- Citizen Green Pixel

#french revolution #frev #history #frev art #jacobin fiction convention #review #book review #a tale of two cities #charles dickens #frev literature #french history #frev propaganda

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therefugeofbooks · 3 years ago

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July felt like an eternity! I made good use of the time, though, and finished a book with 600 pages! I haven't been reading big books so I'm glad I didn't dfn it. Overall, July was a mix of lightheaded reads and some dark ones.

Talking about all the books I read in July under the cut!

Hide and Seeker by Daka Hermon

Spooky! I liked the concept of the story, and the execution was pretty good. I can't get tired of kids saving the day and fighting the monsters and their fears. I was pleasantly surprised by all the turns the story takes and the end as well.

Read if you want: middle-grade horror, kids saving the day, a harmless play turned dark.

The Misadventures of an Amateur Naturalist by Ceinwen Langley (x)

I didn't like the first part of the book because of the pacing and lack of the magic and romance I was hoping for, but the second part is great! See my complete review of this book here.

Lady Killer Vol. 2 by Joëlle Jones and Laura Allred (x)

It's super fun! I loved the thriller and dangers that came with Josie's new situation and was shocked at the end! I'm even more curious to see where the story will head now.

Catherine House by Elisabeth Thomas

I loved the gothic atmosphere of the story, the seclusion, the cult things, the mysterious deaths. The dark academia vibes are on point! Nevertheless, I didn't feel hooked up in the mystery, and I didn't particularly care for the main character.

The Queer Principles of Kit Webb by Cat Sebastian

Oh, this was lovely! I loved the romance, the characters, and their backgrounds, and all the action of it. I liked the plot twists and the ending was really sweet.

Read if you want: adult mlm romance, historical fiction, planned thefts.

The Chosen and the Beautiful by Nghi Vo

It's been a long time since I read The Great Gatsby, so I vaguely recall what happened to compare with this book. Anyway, I liked that the protagonist is a Vietnamese girl and all her inner conflicts. The magic and its repercussions on the world were interesting, but I was not that interested in the story. Apart from Jordan, I thought the characters were annoying and didn't care for their conflicts. Also, the magic is sl fascinating but in was not a major focus.

Prince Lestat and the Realms of Atlantis by Anne Rice (x) (x)

So, I think I disliked it less than Prince Lestat because many things happen in this book. But I'm baffled by the new additions to the vampire lore. The consequences to the vampire as individuals are interesting, at least. I'm glad Lestat and Louis had a moment, in the beginning, to talk things through and are on good terms again.

Sasaki and Miyano Vol. 2 and Vol. 3 by Shou Harusono

The romance is super fluffy and lighthearted, and I needed something between some heavy reading. Super excited to read the next volume!

Read if you want: fluffy bl manga, school romance.

Crota by Owl Goingback

Scary! I haven't read a lot of horror about monsters but this one was super cool. It deals with indigenous legends and the cave hunting part was suffocating and scary! Just not a big fan of a disabled child getting cured at the end of the book, the kid is not the main character but it kind of put me off in the end.

Read if you want: horror with monsters, police procedure, indigenous legends.

As I Descended by Robin Talley (x)

This was pretty dark! The arc of corruption and madness was pretty well-done, and the characters made me want to read more and more. I read it for Disability Pride Month as the main character is disabled. I was glad that her arc isn't only about her disability while also mentioning her difficulties and people's prejudice.

Read if you want: spooky YA, queer retellings, Shakespeare retellings.

The Devotion of Suspect X by Keigo Higashino, tr. Alexander O. Smith

I'm not a big fan of police procedure, but this story is full of twists and turns that made me so curious about what would happen next! It's more of a mind game between the police and the killer than a thriller full of action, but it was an enjoyable read.

Read if you want: psychological thriller, police procedure.

Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows By Balli Kaur Jaswal

Super fun and thought-provoking! It deals with stories bringing a community together, women finding a space to share stories, and also a mystery in the middle of everything. One of my favorites of the month!

Read if you want: fun stories, book club books, contemporary fiction.

Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie (x) (x)

I took my time to read this book as it's a literary work, and it's very experimental. I liked the narration and the flow of the story. There're so many fascinating things about the story, the magic, the culture, India's history, and many others things. However, it's a long book. I was a bit tired at the end, but still, a great read.

Read if you want: literary and experimental fiction, magical realism.

The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris

The pacing of this thriller was slow, but I was interested in the diversity drama in Nella's work, so I was not bothered at first. But most of the main events happen right at the end, and the known villain does a "villain explaining their plan" that was a bit cartoonish. Also, the villain was only a part in the big scheme, and we don't get answers about this big thing happening. Still, there're some thought-provoking topics in this book, and the more "fantasy" aspect of it was super spooky.

Read if you want: slow-paced thrillers, psychological thrillers.

Ariel by Sylvia Plath (x)

I want to read more poetry, so I chose this one from the library. I enjoyed some poems and the images the writer created, but most of them fell flat for me.

Rereads:

Reborn! Vol 1 by Akira Amano, Frances E. Wall (translator)

Livros disponíveis em Português:

Links para os meus reviews no skook!

Baú de Sonhos Impossíveis de Filipe Bedendo (x)

De Repente Adolescente de vários autores (x) (x)

A Botija do Fantasma de Pablo Praxedes (x)

And feel free to talk to me about the books of this list :)

Read in: Feb | Mar | Apr | May | June |

☆Book Photography ☆ Storygraph ☆ Scribd ☆

#booklr #monthly wrap-up #mine: original posts #the refuge of books

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vanishingpod · 4 years ago

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On Sundays we’re going to be recommending some podcasts our team is loving currently, podcasts that got us into fiction podcasting, and podcasts that have been influential in creating our own show!

1) Victoriocity: Listen. This show frickin’ rocks. In this house we love detectives, we love the Victorian era, and we LOVE Clara Entwhistle. In an alternate London in 1887 (Even Greater London), an inspector and a journalist (aforementioned #Icon Clara Entwhistle), team up to solve mysteries. Come for the steampunk Victorian vibes, stay for the amazing jokes about Cyborg Queen Victoria and Basically-Undead Prince Albert that truly never stop being amazing. @victoriocity

2) Bleak Expectations: Not technically a “podcast,” as it aired on BBC radio and isn’t available on podcatchers, but needs to be mentioned because it’s one of our writers’ first introductions to fully-audio comedy and remains a particularly formative favorite to this day. A BBC radio sitcom, the show is an increasingly absurd take on the stories of Charles Dickens, and it’s some of the hardest we’ve ever laughed at anything. There’s a scene in season 3 where a character gets tortured via cheese-boarding, and the fallout from this event is maybe the funniest thing we’ve ever heard. Harry Biscuit’s obsession with swan-powered inventions is just *chef’s kiss*.

3) Wooden Overcoats: Gonna struggle to not just write sonnets to Antigone Funn right now because while she’s amazing, this entire show deserves credit. You know the deal: rival funeral homes, narrator that’s a mouse, Eric Chapman having a mysterious past. One of our characters shares a name with a character on this show and we know they will never live up to their namesake, and that’s ok. Beth Eyre is giving the voice acting performance of our generation and my 68-year-old dad agrees--he sent me a text about Antigone Funn three days ago asking when the new season was coming out. This show is funny, this show has heart, this show is paced beautifully, you will love everyone on this show! @woodenovercoats

4) Done Disappeared: This show doesn’t appear to have a huge following on Tumblr (yet) which is a shame because John David Booter has made me lose my shit on public transportation a humiliating amount of times. A very silly take on true crime podcasts (particularly filmmakers-turned-halfass-podcasts), the show dives headfirst into the absurd, the dark, and the satirical. At one point they do a montage of thinly veiled (but very loving) parodies other true crime podcasts with impressions that are astonishingly spot on. Also, they do fake ad breaks for Blue Apron, Casper Mattresses, etc, that descend into borderline-madness and are timed to absolute perfection.

#podcast recommendations #victoriocity #clara entwhistle #bleak expectations #wooden overcoats #antigone funn #done disappeared #favorite podcasts #audio drama

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kataracy · 4 years ago

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What's up with people just disliking Aang anyway? He's completely fine as a character, you don't have to like him and not everyone needs to know that you don't (though maybe you should try to understand him however as the protagonist). Also, criticism and nitpicking that could be easily construed as hate is not the same thing, hence the still very weird and redundant anti Aang posts that are being tossed around instead of posts like, "respectfully, this aspect could've been improved if this, this, and that happened instead." etc, etc. Hence "Aang stans" complaining about this occurence. How was Aang's treatment in fandom pre-resurgence? I find solace in that it definitely didn't feel as awful since not every person who took a minimum of one course in social sciences/women's history/"the west is just awful" had full, easy and free access to ATLA, but they do now and are making this fandom tragic to be apart of. Don't even get me started on Instagram and Twitter, which consists of irritating vibes everywhere. And for what reason other than us being trapped at homes during a pandemic? Don't you guys want to be healthy?

What's up with people just disliking Aang anyway?

So what had happened was from my recollection, what usually makes fandoms spiral out of control: shipping.

In this fandom, every resurgence, we get lovely new people with their inclusive art, personal cultural takes and honest improvements to the treatment and understanding of characters who otherwise weren’t prominent talking points at the time (for example: Toph being a cop. Everybody was too busy wondering who her 2 baby daddy’s were and why Toph was written as a absentee mom so, we half the new people get to debate that it makes no sense for her to grow up to be a cop while others of us who understand white passing can kind of see how the daughter of a prominent background and impressive fighting career and sticky fingers managed to quickly place herself as head of authority) like Ty Lee being an Air descendant or Sokka being hot. We were all kinda trying to make sense of Korra back then my g

But its tumblr yknow so we have conflict and the quickest conflict to join, the quickest way to interact if you aren’t skilled in long dissertations or gif making, is probably shipping? In my diagram that I made up while typing this I explain: Artists and writers need new fans to boost morale, it fuels the creative process creates amazing art, that art is seen by even more because its being shared around the fans, people form friendships, get inspired - the whole fandom gets nourished.

The problem is somebody starts liking how somebody look wit somebody else, they get mad that you don’t, somebody shouts ‘You silly new fans fighting about this new ship. I was here for Zu-‘ and really that’s where you should stop its going to be an actively bad time if you let it.

Aang for a long time was kind of safe? So, you could say it was his turn to get hate because maybe some fans see things in Aang they somehow disagree with and you can’t fault them for that. One problem is everything starts getting cross tagged bc now everyone wants to find people with the same opinions as them and have the same fun they see everyone having in a fandom and a lot of fans think yelling at each other every day is the fun part.

Aang is an easy target for a “hero wins trophy” debate but it falls short when you realize at no point was said girl treated as a trophy and if they see her as that, its not the shows fault? Some people don’t see the strength in knowledge, and I mean hey, its just fiction at the end of the day. There’s plenty of this same story told in different ways on other platforms to slap an element bending AU on.

Aang is a nonviolent character introduced as an innocent child and some people cannot see through such a perspective, especially for their hero (there’s also certain people who already had the experiences new fans are getting and don’t know how to be happy for the new demographic target). But Aang’s nonviolence is a constant struggle for him; Aang is a more subtle character when it comes to his redemption arc and a lot of viewers miss it, don’t care about or think its poorly executed.

Simply put idk don’t listen to me I’m just sayin fandoms cycle through character hate like seasons. I personally suggest you spread positivity about Aang, as its incredibly easy find. On twitter especially please remember that those are the same freaks that would yell over here, and we all ended up ignoring it, that’s why they’re twitters problem now. A more proactive approach I find, is to make fun of it- child have you seen their material? They call the boy abusive I mean you have to laugh, meanwhile artists are making Aang brown like baby we’ve progressed past the need

#Aang #ask #queenaleesbiggestfan-writes #hopefully somewhere in this you get an answer you were hoping for like if you wanted me to roast them lmk #this is what i'm here for I have all this unnecessary atla knowledge in my beautiful braided head the youth better come keep me young!

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fieryfantasybooklover · 4 years ago

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Cast In Shadow And Blood - A Clace fanfic

Consider this a sign that I am, in fact, alive.

Taggs: @lily-chen-deserves-better @blackthorn-trash @mithriel-of-mithlond @brotherhalal-ariahs @julieandthefandoms @themostawesomehuman @zfoxdraws @hands-dripping-ink @insane---chaos @rainbow-sheepofthefamily @girlwhohatesstuff @tessagraycarstairs @imherongraystairstrash

Note - Clary and Jace are the main characters here, the others are just mentioned.

---------------------------------------------------

Clary settled down into bed, sparing only one glance for the descending curtain of night that was chasing away the sun. Snow fell softly outside, silencing the world in a blanket of white. She turned to Jace, who had settled into bed beside her a moment before. “Good to see you here.” she said, grinning. “I was thinking you’d somehow managed to murder yourself using kitchen utensils, but thankfully you do seem to still be alive.” Jace grinned, handing her the bowl of snacks he’d gathered on his snack run. “You know me. I love to keep people guessing. You would know that most of all.” he said, chuckling. Clary, laughing, punched him playfully in the shoulder before leaning back onto the pillows. Jace grabbed the remote, settling in beside her. “Are you sure you’re ready for this?” Clary asked Jace, in that way where nobody could be sure if she was being serious. “I survived a literal hell dimension, I think I’ll be ok with some horror movies.” Jace replied, turning on the TV they had installed in front of their bed.

The next few hours speed by in a rush of buttery popcorn and melted chocolate and a myriad of scary movies. Some featured the paranormal or supernatural, others much more real fears like insanity and serial killers. By the time the clock struck 2 pm, they had watched enough scary movies for a lifetime and, though neither would admit it, were feeling quite on edge and jumpy. As the credits rolled for The Ring, Jace turned to Clary and exhaled deeply, letting all his nerves out. “Wow.” they said simultaneously, laughing in pure relief everything was right in the world. “I’m gonna go put everything away.” said Jace, standing, stretching, and grabbing the empty bowls. “Alright you do that. I’ll get everything ready for bed.” Clary replied, already flicking off the television and pulling the blinds shut. Jace returned within a few minutes, hands empty and tiredness gathering behind his eyes. It wasn’t long before both were settled under the covers with the lights off, facing each other and breathing evenly. “I love you, dork.” Clary said affectionately to Jace, kissing him. “I love you too.” he replied, hugging her close.

They fell asleep like that, happy and together and content that everything they had just seen was firmly within the realm of fiction.

Clary’s eyes fluttered open, making their way to the alarm clock. It read 3:05 am. Groaning, Clary slid out of bed and stood, making her way to the bathroom in the complete and utter black. It took her only a few moments to gather her surroundings and realize that something was very very wrong. What she saw gazing out the window was her first clue. There was absolutely no sign of life outside the Institute. No cars, or shop windows, or even a few people staggering their way home late. The snow was still steadily falling, blanketing every single surface. The pitch blackness of this time of morning covered the landscape, twisting and contorting it into something completely unrecognizable. By light, Clary could have navigated those streets with her eyes closed. But by dark, all her pleasant memories of the spot were gone and nothing could be seen or gleaned from the area. Put simply, the darkness hid things. And this darkness in particular seemed… dangerous. Parasitic. Permeated only by the faint glow of street lamps. And that light was certainly not enough to reveal anything the darkness could have been concealing.

The second clue that something was wrong was the silence. Outside the Institute and inside. Outside, the snow was silent as the grave and there were no night sounds. No animals, sounds of farawar life, or even the crackling of electric lighting. Inside, it was just as quiet. None of the sounds that were usually associated with a building so huge and old. The floorboards didn’t creak, no faint sounds echoed through the halls. The silence was eerie, and more than a little unnerving. By now, Clary had reached the bathroom and was quietly using the restroom and washing her hands. The splash of the water seemed deafening compared to the lack of sound. Darting out of the room and back to their bedroom, Clary realized the final factor in why everything felt so wrong.

The air. It was strangely... heavy. Somehow forceful, as if something was compressing it down. The air slunk around the halls, and Clary could not shake the feeling that not only was it weighing on her, but something was watching her. Trying to shake the feeling of unease, Clary slid back into bed beside Jace, closed her eyes, and tried to sleep. This attempt did not last long, and soon Clary popped her eyes open again. She quickly looked at Jace. He was still sound asleep. She sighed, flopping backward. “What I wouldn’t give to just be able to fall asleep and stay that way.” Clary thought, exasperated. It was just then that something shattered downstairs in the Institute. Clary sat bolt upright, eyes wide and heart pounding. Fear ran through every inch of Clary’s body. Pure, bone chilling fear that made her feel like she was disintegrating. Shook to her bones, Clary wrapped her arms around herself and tried to calm her shivering. “You’re just being irrational.” She told herself. “Maybe I left a window open and the wind knocked something over.” she rationalized, still shaking from head to toe. If the wind was the cause, you would’ve heard it from outside, a voice at the back of Clary’s mind whispered.

A chill descended on her then. Something so cold and gripping that it was like one thousand icy wolves howling to the wind before ripping you to shreds. Clary felt an icicle slip down her back and she launched to her feet, unsure of what to do. She felt her lips turning blue and her skin paling under the duress of the chill. Something thin and skeletal whipped through the room then, cloaked in a raggedy, torn robe. The terrifying sight of it burned itself into Clary’s eyelids. It was so quick and quiet that she could have convinced herself she was imaging it, except for the fact that the blinds were now thrown open and the window was cracked. Neither had been that way a split second before. Clary turned to Jace, shaking his shoulder and hissing his name repeatedly. “Jace! Come on Jace, wake up! I think there’s something here!” but he wouldn’t wake, and it seemed he was permanently stuck to the bed, Atleast, until he shifted and his neck snapped at an angle no human could survive. His face shifted to face hers. And that was when Clary screamed.

There was a painfully large grin on Jace’s face. His lips were stretched back from his teeth, and his face seemed to glow with an unholy light. He was unusually pale, as if all the color had been soaked from him. His eyes shone far too bright with something close to madness. All Clary knew for sure in that moment was that whatever was in front of her was not her Jace. Beyond that, she didn’t know. It must have read the question on her face, because it opened its mouth and hissed out something that was infinitely not human. Clary frantically searched her index of language knowledge for a translation, but found nothing. “See you soon.” it whispered, smile stretching wider. “You have summoned me with visages of horror, and now you must pay the price.” Jace’s body collapsed onto the bed. Within moments he was stirring, and Clary was frantically at his side. “Jace? Jace! Are you ok? How do you feel?” Jace pulled himself upright, rubbing his eyes and looking around confusedly. “What’s happening?” he asked, voice still thick with sleep. “Please just trust me. We have to go now .” Clary whispered, pulling Jace to his feet. He read the frantic nature of her voice and instantly snapped to alert.

The pair began running out the bedroom and down the hall. Jace knew little of the situation, but still flew through his brain for allies to call for help. “Simon and Isabelle? No, they’re on vacation in the countryside. Magnus and Alec? Fuck, they’re investigating a situation in Cincinatti there’s no way they’ll make it back on time.” as his list of allies ran dry, fear began to sink its claws into Jace. They were still running down the halls of the Institute, desperately trying to make their way to the doors. However, one blink of time and it was all over. Screams of anguish rang in both Jace and Clary’s ears, reaching a pitch so high both bent over in pain. There were brief flashes of blood, painting the floor, walls, and ceiling red. The entire building began to shake, as if something was gnawing away at the foundations. Wraithlike forms began to appear, empty eye sockets somehow still managing to glimmer with malice. Jace and Clary were desperate now, dodging the foes while still scrambling for the door. Then, one popped into existence right in front of them. They skidded to a halt, trying to turn around but it was too late.

The being reached one of its hands right through Clary’s heart and the other hand right through Jace’s. Suddenly, they were back in their bedroom, standing beside the bed. The room was cast in shadow and blood, faint rays of light revealing the room to be a horrible parody of its former self. Both Jace and Clary tried to move, but found instantly they were frozen and rendered completely immobile. They barely had time to exchange one glance that said so much before the specter appeared before them, reaching into their hearts again. And then, it twisted. Pain. Pain that made every past grievance seem like a paper cut in comparison. Blinding white pain, like a thousand explosions in one form. The pain of bones cracking and twisting and shattering into five million glass sharp shards. The pain of loneliness, of longing so deeply for someone to be by your side that you turned into a ghost yourself. The pain of helplessness, of being unable to move or cry out or scream or do anything as your death approached. So many shades of pain, twisted neatly up and forced right down into Jace and Clary’s souls.

The terrible finality hit them then. They were going to die. And nobody could save them. Eeking out a few moments of clarity, Jace and Clary turned their gazes to the other. “I love you.” the gazes said. “I love you, and I will love you from now until the moment time ends.”

And then, everything faded to silent, deep, nothingness.

Clary sat up in bed, sweat beading down her neck and terror whining in her head. Jace was safe asleep beside her, breathing softly and calmly. The alarm clock, the sole source of light in the room, read 3:03.

A scream built its way through Clary’s mind and body, working its way slowly up through her throat.

A voice slithered into her head, ominous and inescapable.

I am coming

#clace #clary fairchild #jace herondale #malec #sizzy #shadowhunters #tsc #fanfiction #megans writing #magnus bane #alec lightwood #simon lewis #isabelle lightwood

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moomkin77 · 5 years ago

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I have the deepest respect for people who write good fanfiction. Now mind you, I also celebrate all those people who still put themselves out there and write a fanfic, even if it necessarily isn’t as good as someone else’s, because I sure as hell couldn’t do that.

As a writer, I get to enjoy the luxury of creating whole new people and worlds to interact with and expand upon for both my line and others’ enjoyment. There’s a certain kind of freedom you have, with that kind of writing, because there are only your own boundaries and standards that you must uphold. Fanfic writers; however, must adhere to canon in some way shape or form — be it through the plot, setting, or the characters themselves. Some writers tweak the characters’ personalities, or just completely change everything up altogether to provide readers with a new perspective. Some of my favorite fanfictions are written in a way that it explores a character — their motivations, their behavior — so much deeper than what is canonically seen, and yet it still feels like you are connecting with this real and accurate character, even if their personality or whatnot is not quite what you were used to seeing in the show or book or movie. Fanfiction writers are such badasses because they need to be able to capture this character’s original nature be it how they interact with those around them, their inner monologues, the true motivations behind their actions, or even something as simple as their usual speech patterns. They need to write this character in a manner that they accurately reflect how they are portrayed in canon, and then the writer can take some liberties with changing aspects of their actions or personality to fit into an entirely new plot. I cannot imagine how much work and research some fanfic writers have put into making sure the setting for their story is correct, that the various tools and creatures are something likely to be found in the story if only those things were expanded upon in canon.

The time and dedication they put forth to these works of art — because ultimately, that’s what good writing is — only to be ridiculed for their passion because people are too ignorant to acknowledge that fanfiction isn’t juvenile or silly, makes me so incredibly angry.

Don’t like the content of a fanfiction?

Don’t read it then, my dude. (Tags exist for a reason)

Wasn’t as good as you’d hoped it would be?

Oh well, just keep browsing.

Bad grammar?

I understand the frustration, but maybe English or whatever other language you’re reading in isn’t their first language. Just cut ‘em some slack.

Scathing comments are never necessary, because these writers put a lot of time and effort into creating these stories for people all over the world to read an enjoy — for FREE might I add —so they don’t deserve anyone’s shit, especially when they’ve managed to accurately write a literal fictional character who has already been created and perfectly fit them into a whole new and engaging plot. So yeah, mad respect and love to all you awesome fanfic writers out there. Keep writing and stay strong because you have an amazing gift no matter what some assholes might say.

Thank you for humoring my long post, and I’d like to leave you all with a couple shout outs to some good fanfictions and their writers that I’ve read recently and I believe deserve some love and attention. (Also I’m a bit biased but I can live with that)

An amazing Team Fortress 2 fanfiction by my good friend TheTriggeredHappy:

Running Blind

An enrapturing Detroit: Become Human fic by IvyLee:

Hold Up Honey

Many of these cute and short Detroit: Become Human stories, alongside two other fantastic DBH fics by headraline:

Detroit: Become Human Prompts

The Ups and Downs of Trying Something New

Music to my ears

A Spider-Man & Deadpool fanfic series by doctorestranged:

Dead Men Walking

Two wonderful Descendants fanfictions by RebelPaisley:

Love is Actually The Worst

Life is a Masquerade

Another awesome Descendants fic by taytayloulou:

Found Family

An absolutely STUNNING Miraculous Ladybug fanfiction by angelofthequeers:

Hold Me By Both My Hands

An adorable Miraculous Ladybug series by ominousunflower:

Missing the Third

One marvelous The Dragon Prince fic by spiritypowers & wordswithdragons:

(if time is money then) i'll spend it all for you

And lastly, a Dragon Age: Inquisition fanfic by Delmire:

Haven Valley

These are all the ones I can think of off the top of my head. I encourage you to give them all a try, but if they’re not your cup of tea that is totally understandable and I hope you find something to read that you genuinely enjoy during these stressful, quarantine-and-virus-filled times.

Sending lots of love and strength to everybody, because I’m sure we’re all struggling through some shit right now, be it school or family related. Don’t let 2020 get you down, and if you wanna chat or ask a question or something, feel free to message me 💙 (also here’s a picture of my grandma’s adorable dog Bailey to cheer you up)

#fanfiction #supporting fanfic authors #cause theyre fucking badass #and deserve so much more love and credit than they get #recommended fics #detroit: become human #descendants #spiderman & deadpool #dragon age: inquisition #the dragon prince #tf2 #miraculous ladybug #also arguably the cutest dog ever

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myssparklesbookrants · 5 years ago

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FICTIONAL CHARACTERS I WISH WERE TRUE SO THAT I COULD DATE THEM or stare at them from afar

HIWow! It was hard choosing a first topic to talk about. I felt like I needed to talk about something big and glamorous to blow the brains out of… of someone. But alas, this is my best, for now..

So, I chose the first one that I had listed on the top of my head ever since I first started reading.

BOOK BOYFRIENDS!

This is a list of MEN or BOYS who tickle the romantic bone just right! (I had dreamed that there was such an organ in the human body, just near the stomach)

I selected these FICTIONAL BOYFRIENDS as potential members of my harem If I ever defy normal Filipino conceptions of marriage and take up polyandry.

The criteria I used is simple.

Choose the fictional partners that I can imagine existing in real life (not too much of an alpha and rich or good looking that borders on unbelievable). The type of characters that I can imagine talking to, who I find fascinating and can be a potential long-time partner, casual hook up or best friend.

I originally wanted to stick to 10. But as I wrote, a lot of names popped up and I can’t not put them in the list but still, I am sure after I have this article published (Char! Haha) there will be a lot of “Shoot! Why did I not put him on the list???” exclamations. So, maybe I will eventually make another continuation list???

This list is based on the BOOKS I READ so if you have a bet that I didn’t list, please don’t hesitate to give a recom. A new book to swoon over is always welcome.

Most Importantly: READ THE BOOKS WHERE THESE AMAZING CHARACTERS CAME FROM. I liked them because of their wit, their personality, how they interacted with other people, their dreams and how their love for their other half made them better people or vice versa. MEANING: THE BOOK WAS WICKED AWESOME AND THE AUTHOR WAS A GOOD STORYTELLER.

(I must apologize for the lack of female to female romantic partner mentions given my current lack of FF Romance reads, which is something I will rectify soon. But if you have recommendations, feel free to comment below and maybe add some MM ones too!)

Anyway, meet…

1. Clayton Danvers and Lucas Cortez

Kelley Armstrong’s Women of the Underworld Series

Genre: Horror fiction, Paranormal romance, Urban fantasy

This series is adapted on screen called ‘Bitten’ which is available on Netflix.

Clayton Danvers is the strong, silent, and smart type. He is a professor in a university where he met Elena(his student) and a werewolf! His devotion to Elena was sweet, passionate and faithful to the point that bordered on obsessive but not off putting. The best thing about him was how un-Alpha he was. Although he was strong , his relationship with Elena was a partnership.

This is what romance needs today guys! A PARTNER not a rich and condescending daddy!

Lucas Cortez, on the other hand, is a lawyer/sorcerer, young master of a Cabal Group, who informally separates from his family's company to pursue a life as a lawyer protecting the rights of other magical beings against abusive Cabals(including his family's). Unlike Clayton, he was slender with brown eyes behind glasses. So basically, a cute, smart nerd who is the 'good' black sheep of the family.

(they are in separate books with different female romantic partners)

2. Quinn Sullivan

Penny Reid’s Neanderthal Meets Human

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Quin…*sighs*... So awesome! He was quiet, mysterious,unsmiling, rich and had an almost perfect handsome face. I love that the author imagined small flaws like almost unnoticeable crooked bottom front teeth and differing sizes of his ears with one prominent feature -his hawk-like stare. BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY, he took Janie's quirkiness in stride. Asking questions, debating, protecting, annoying, kissing…. You know the drill..😉

3. Beau Winston

Penny Reid’s Beard in Mind

Genre: Contemporary Romance

On first read, Beau was a good looking, charming good boy who is looking for his path after his twin, Duane left to pursue his own.

What I loved about him was how he dealt with Shelley's(Quinn's Sister) clinically diagnosed mental illness(OCD). He researched about it and made efforts to make it easier for her and was just overall supportive.

It was awesome how much the author has put an effort in researching OCD facts to make details perfectly accurate and how it was NOT at all a hastily placed plot device to get the story going.

4.Ted Beaudine

Susan Elizabeth Phillips’ Call Me Irresistible

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Hello to my favorite romance book of all time!

I think I have read this many times already and have to put off re-reading it again for next year(2021) to give my brain some time to forget some of the plot. We need to keep the mystery going! amiright??

Anyway, Ted was the perfect genius, good boy and people pleasing guy. He is perfectly polite, straight laced and has basically carried the whole town in his muscled shoulders for years. (Did I tell you he was the Mayor?)

Meg's carefree life and struggles basically tickled his good boy bone the wrong way.

Read this novel to witness how a perfect boy and wastrel girl turned out in the end. Seriously Please Read!

5. Patrick Jason 'Pick' Ryan

Linda Kage' Be My Hero

Genre: Contemporary Romance

He was the tattoed, orphan softie on the wrong side of town who thankfully did not grow up a thug because of a vision he got when he was young from a moled witch.

One day, his tinkerbell, the star of his visions, enters the bar he works at, but PREGNANT!

Gosh! I loved this so much. This was part of the Forbidden Men Series but can read as a stand alone. Although, I advise you to read the other books also, they were all awesome!

6. Colin Bridgerton

Julia Quin’s Bridgerton Series

Genre: Historical Fiction/ Romance

Charming, green eyed and younger son, Colin was considered a catch of the ton.

He had a case of wanderlust and couldn't stay at one place without getting an itch. I can't say more without giving a major spoiler, but I loved that the author made him major insecurities.

Because secretly,too perfect is boring, right??

7. Sean Cassidy

Penny Reid and L.H Cosway's The Player and the Pixie

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Wewowewowewo. *sexy flames*

Imagine a gorgeous jerk of a jock with sexual inexperience and a rainbow haired goody goody shoes girl (whose brother is his ultimate enemy) who is willing to be the TEACHER!

But it was more than that, I liked how the authors highlighted the perils of kleptomania, the privilege of the rich and how gorgeous jerks are set straight by their women who would not suffer in a relationship with a class A insensitive jerk just because he was good looking and rich.

This was a ride! I lost count how many times I re-read this book.

8. Elend Venture

Branson Sanderson’s Mistborn Trilogy

Genre: High Fantasy

Elend was the angsty boy part of the elite class who is disgusted by his privilege and looks for ways to make the government better by reading outlawed books that spark rebellious and forward ideas. In short, he was a closet revolutionary.

Throughout the series there were some major changes in his life from a closet reader to a person who pursues ideas he just once read in books?

How do they say it? Walk the talk or in his case, Walk the read? (talking about it would mean death)

9.Archer Devereux

April White’s The Immortal Descendants Series

Genre: Time Travel Romance/ Historical Fantasy

Dumdumdumdum. Imagine a conservative college boy from the past your future self time traveled in, spends time with you, helps you in your quest, likes you secretly and is shy about it and becomes a vampire stuck in immortality waiting to meet the 'present' you.

Talk about love lasting through time! This was a great book if you love time travel stories with historically accurate and interesting facts injected heavily into the story!

10. Rupert Carsington

Loretta Chase’ Mr. Impossible

Genre: Historical Fiction/Romance

A hellion younger son of an earl who loves an adventurous carefree life who is without inhibition, just goes along the ride and has a set of surprisingly caring and dependable muscled shoulders.

Meets a beautiful tempered scholar who needs his help finding his kidnapped brother in the sands of Egypt.

This is perfect for those who love adventure romances, and topics on the papyrus, mummies and the french and British looting conflict in the African colonies.

11. Sebastian Ballister

Loretta Chase’ Lord of Scoundrels

Genre: Historical Fiction/Romance

My favorite Historical Romance book ever!! Like Ted Beaudine's book, I try to read this at least once or twice a year to forget some of the plot and keep the mystery going.

He was called the Marquess of Dain and has been raising hell since childhood and in the present day France where he meets the blue stocking Jessica. The author throughout the book continually refers to them as the Beauty and the Beast.

What makes this book SPECIAL is how intelligent, witty and funny most of their conversations were. It's funny how many books are under many sexy, funny and witty lists on goodreads but only some of those on the list are actually true! THIS BOOK IS ONE OF THEM!

Jess was not annoying or shy or too much of a fighter and Dain was not too obnoxious. It was perfect.

And if you have not read this book or others from this author or genre, I command you to start reading after you finish this article.Break some cherries!

12. Hardy Cates

Liza Kleypas’ Blue Eyed Devil

Genre: Contemporary Romance

A blue neck Town boy chasing dreams outside of town to leave the shithole of a living. He has white knight complexes but leaves the damsel in distress after the case is solved. Also, muscular and has the blunt and bluest eyes on Texas

This book I have also reread many times because it talks about dealing with domestic abuse and moving on after an abusive relationship, dealing with people who have narcissistic disorder and the life of the privileged.

13. Connor ‘Mad’ Rogan

Illona Andrews’ Hidden Legacy Series

Genre: Paranormal Romance (PNR)

Wootwootwoot. Imagine a former military but now head of the House 'Mad' Rogan successfully publicly kidnapping you in broad daylight using only wads of cloth. Talk about a powerful telekinetic!

I loved that he was once again, A partner in the relationship and not an overprotective ape despite him being awfully more powerful than Nevada.

14.Phil Tucker

Jennifer Crusie Welcome to Temptation

Genre: Contemporary Romance

This is written by an author whose ALL BOOKS WRITTEN i have read and loved.

Phil is part of a long line of male Mayors in the family and meets almost fugitive-like Sophie.

Read as they deal with each other, try to take down a production of town porn video, deal with an enemy, try to dirty Phil down to win the next election and spend time reading a romance classic.

15. Ansel Guillaume

Christina Lauren’s Sweet Filthy Boy

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Known for the many explicit sexy times that can be read throughout the book. So, if you want to stay green in the ears, skip this one till you're legal.

Ansel is a sweet, full of life French Lawyer celebrating with friends in LA and Mia with her friends also, celebrating their newly graduated from college selves.

Ansel is soft, a daydreamer, magnificent bringer of orgasms and game with all things Mia is willing to do.

They married through Elvis and decided to not divorce yet to explore the beautiful France and a possibility of a good relationship.

AND DONE!

I actually have a lot more but these are for now.

CONSIDER THIS LIST AS A BOOK RECOMMENDATION FOR AWESOME ROMANCES WITH WELL WRITTEN AND SWOON WORTHY CHARACTERS

Topic for my next blog entry:

How to Find the Next Good Book to Read:

A Guide to Good Sources of Book Recommendations

#bookaholic #penny reid #jennifer crusie #christina lauren #ilona andrews #loretta chase #lisa kleypas #susan elizabeth phillips #kelley armstrong #april white #brandon sanderson #julia quinn #book boyfriend #bookstagram #books to read #boys #men #love #romance

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havingphung · 5 years ago

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Young Adult Fantasy/Dystopia

This is probably the most successful genre of YA fiction. If there’s a dark-haired, brooding asshole male love interest, you know everyone’s gonna be all over it. There won’t be any Sarah J. Maas, Leigh Bardugo, or Cassandra Clare on here but maybe one day I’ll commit myself to their books (but it likely won’t happen anytime soon).

**Personal Favorites

Penryn & the End of Days Trilogy** by Susan Ee: This is my all time favorite Dystopian Fantasy trilogy ever. It is so underrated and I literally love it so much. Like if there’s one series on this list I want everyone to read it’s this one. Post apocalyptic world where angels descended to demolish the world and the main character makes a deal with a wingless fallen angel to go on a journey to save her sister and get back his wings. The yearning is A1 in this, and also Penryn is Asian and can kick ass.

The Blood of Stars Series** by Elizabeth Lim: Project Runway meets Mulan was the tagline and that convinced me so fast. It’s one of the more promising new series and it does a good job building a fictional Asian country. The author used to write Sailor Moon fanfic and that’s how I knew this was my type of book.

To Kill a Kingdom** by Alexandra Christo: Probably one of the best fantasy standalone books I’ve read (because almost all fantasy books are series). She’s a siren. He’s a siren killer. That’s a recipe for disaster and also one of the best enemies to lovers stories. It’s basically a better and more elevated Little Mermaid.

The Poppy War Trilogy by R.F. Kuang: I’ll admit that I haven’t actually read this yet but I KNOW it’s good. It’s just a big commitment with the length and the heartache that I know will come because this is not a happy story. It’s about war and politics and scheming and betrayal and it’s really dark. I need to read it, but I keep putting it off because I know it’ll take an emotional toll. This is not for the faint of heart, and it’s on this list cause it does have some fantastical elements like magic and dragons.

The Folk of the Air Trilogy** by Holly Black: Okay everyone that reads YA Fantasy has probably read this, so I won’t say too much. It’s one of the best enemies to lovers series I’ve read and it’s fascinating to read about an anti-heroine on the quest for power taking advantage of a useless prince. Both characters are hella compelling and I love how no one is truly good in this series because everyone has their own agenda.

The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer: Futuristic retellings of classic fairy tales with badass diverse characters taking the stage with amazing world building. If you haven’t read it yet, check it out.

Flame in the Mist Duology by Renee Ahdieh: Set in feudal Japan with Japanese mythology, samurai, crossdressing female warriors, secrets, lies AND just the right amount of sexiness. The sexual tension was to die for and for something that could be done so tackily, it really did portray the Japanese elements in a tasteful way that made sense to the story and weren’t just used for plot devices.

Warcross Duology by Marie Lu: Okay the male lead is hella morally gray and you definitely feel conflicted about him (without saying too much) but damn he’s hot. People complained about that big old plot twist but to be honest, I wasn’t that mad. Anyways the whole world basically plays this one AR video game and the female lead is a genius hacker that’s hired to find the glitch in the code of the game by competing in the big tournament. Super cool premise and diverse representation.

Red Queen Series by Victoria Aveyard: Regardless of what other people say, I really did enjoy this series. I liked Cal and Maven but Maven’s hella fucked up and Cal may be a little bratty but I was team Cal all the way. Maven is a fascinating character though. Mare’s pretty cool, too. Anyways, I would pick this over the Hunger Games (partly because Mockingjay was the biggest let down ever) if you like dystopia. People might think it’s overrated but I love flawed characters that gotta choose between love and power and obsession and peace.

Caraval Trilogy by Stephanie Garber: This one’s pretty decent if you’re looking for a carnival/circusy-y/magic themed fantasy book. It wasn’t a waste of time and while a lot of the characters did get annoying, I got so intrigued by the Prince of Hearts (Jacks) that I had to finish it. Jacks deserved so much better, and he could have had the greatest arc but the author butchered it. Definitely a what could have been series. There are better books on this list but I just wanted to shoutout Jacks.

Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin: There’s A LOT of controversy around this book because of 1) the explicit sex scene that’s basically smut and 2) the characterizations and world building. I’m okay with the sex but I did agree that the dialogue was kinda ridiculous and there were a lot of problematic viewpoints. ANYWAYS, that won’t stop me from reading the second book probably. It’s not good but also I wanna know what happens. There are better books on this list.

#young adult #ya fantasy #ya dystopian #book recs #ya reads

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