#whocansail

[dangerouscommiesubversive]

I read a lot of SFF, take me out of my comfort genre!

A book I enjoyed a lot was The Dark Lord of Derkholm, a fun romp with a family that cares about each other facing the travails of a predatory colonial tourist industry.

Augh, I just realized that I never did my last few book rec asks! And ooh! I've been meaning to read Dark Lord of Derkholm for ages--I've really enjoyed other Diana Wynne Jones novels (and also The Tough Guide to Fantasyland, which I read multiple times as a child because I have always loved reference books). So, for you I will recommend:

The Devil Comes Courting, Courtney Milan - a historical romance set in Fuzhou, China, in 1870. Our leading lady is Amelia Smith, a young Chinese woman who was adopted as a child by Christian missionaries; the male lead is Captain Grayson Hunter, a Black man working to complete a worldwide telegraph network, who seeks out Miss Hunter after hearing of her genius for mechanical invention. It's a fun romance that also goes into a number of social issues of the time, which seems in keeping with our starting point tonally.

Gaudy Night, Dorothy Sayers - a mystery novel, technically one of Sayers' Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries but primarily starring his friend (and eventual wife) Harriet Vane, herself a mystery writer. The mystery is not a murder, which itself sets the book apart from most Wimsey novels, and honestly most mysteries in general--instead, Miss Vane is investigating a rash of vandalism and malicious and threatening letters at her alma mater, Shrewsbury College, Oxford. Sayers is generally a fun read, with a sense of humor that I think sort of aligns with Diana Wynne Jones' while not really being the same, and Harriet is such a good character.

[dangerouscommiesubversive]

Spectral Interludes, Chapter 1: Hunger (Spiritual)

Characters: Song Lan, Xiao Xingchen, Xue Yang

Rating: E

Summary:

Having done the unprecedented and bound themselves to a ghost, Song Zichen and Xiao Xingchen now have to go about figuring out how to live with Xue Yang, especially given all his peculiarities and unexpected needs.

Notes: My brain started working again. Thus, the first chapter of a little collection of short pieces to go with the MDZS ghost stories! There'll be one to go with each longer story, and this one's about my Yi City boys, and I hope you all like it.

Huge thank-you to @whocansail for beta-reading this chapter for me!

[dangerouscommiesubversive]

I've been tagged by @plushie-sentai in a couple of "getting to know you" memes and I feel very silly for just getting to them today, but ah, so it goes. I think I'm going to squish both of them together, also, just for funsies.

Last song: "Murder on the Dance Floor," Sophie Ellis-Bextor

Favorite color: Purple! Closely followed by red, pink, and black, and recently dark green.

Currently reading: I just started The Talented Mr Ripley, by Patricia Highsmith, which I've been meaning to read for ages. I don't think it's going to take me very long, though, so I'm also trying to figure out what to read next--I have a few different danmei I can throw myself into, lots of stored-up SFF novels and short stories, romances, the whole series of Apothecary Diaries light novels, I could get back to reading all of the Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries...I am spoiled for choices.

Currently watching: A lot of things! My partner and I are watching:

Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu

The Devil Judge

Sandman

Ultraman Blazar

Maskman

Gotchard and Boonboomger, although we're behind on those

Several Dropout shows

Word of Honor

The "New to Who" selection of classic Doctor Who on Tubi--we've just gotten to Six and I adore him

And then I'm also watching Mysterious Lotus Casebook mostly on my own, although with summer vacation starting in two days I may need to figure out a new way to do that since I will no longer be alone during my lunch break most days.

Last movie: Inside Out, which was Gremlin's pick

Sweet/spicy/savory?: All three, depending on the moment--I love to cook, and to eat, and to try new foods. I'm looking forward to trying out a chocolate and peanut butter pie recipe that a friend recommended to me, and also dreamily recalling the vast quantities of yakiniku I got to eat on Mother's Day.

Relationship status: extremely married, in real life, to @rudojudo

Last thing I googled: several songs, to answer that ask about songs to go with fics, and before that I did a quick lookup to find out which Native American peoples historically lived around Lake Huron

Current obsession(s): toku, danmei, an ever-expanding field of wuxia television, fiber crafts (more so than usual)

I will tag @materassassino @redundare @giraffeter @ginkashino @calyxcurl @thatbitchdesire and @whocansail and I think 7 is plenty, you know? Also hey @rudojudo you do this too, you gotta talk more on here