#without big spoilers the eros arc ending was the first one i think

[severalowls]

I've watched an ungodly amount of The Expanse in the last week and I'm glad it seems to be like, consistently really good. But also the transitions between arcs where presumably one book ended and another began are sometimes jarring as hell because they tend to have slightly different narrative tones and sets of supporting characters and sometimes this happens right in the middle of a season.

[astrarche-x]

Six of Crows (+ Crooked Kingdom)

If somebody gave a penny for my thoughts on books, I’d have zero pennies, but here are my thoughts anyway!

It’s not a very spoiler-heavy note.

I know I’m super late to the party, but it’s only a month left to read the book before the show is released and that was a motivation to finally read it. (That and the fact that I have 3 written assignments due the end of the week). 

- I haven’t read the Grisha trilogy, but Six of Crows was perfectly understandable without it, so that’s an asset. I wouldn’t mind knowing more about the war in Ravka, but generally it was ok.

- Found family in a juvenile delinquents gang is one of my favorite tropes in fiction and this book is all about that, so I was absolutely delighted. I liked how it wasn’t very obviously sugar-coated - obviously it wasn’t horribly realistic (I guess), but it avoided the Robin Hood or “criminal with a heart of gold” trope and that was nice, because it would reek of moralism.

- I liked the descriptions of the architecture etc. and could almost feel myself walking through the streets of Ketterdam. But the descriptions of Fjerda were very inconsistent to me in regard to the rest of the novel - I kinda felt like I was thrown from historical fiction to sci-fi (all that laboratory stuff) and that was weird.

- The action was very well-paced - without unneccessary delays and plot detours, but at the same time giving the characters and the reader time to breathe and bond. The only aspect I wasn’t satisfied with was the ending - it was too easy to predict the plot twist and it drained away the suspense and the sense of high stakes. And while some could say that it means that the writer set it up well, I think it would be better if it was unexpected, especially given that it’s not the kind of plot twist that changes the reader’s perception of the whole book, it just marked the turn in the action.

- post-CK addition: in Crooked Kingdom I felt that the action was moving a lot faster and left me quite exhausted at times. The moments to catch a breath were a bit too rare, but at least exuisite every time.

- While I’m rather glad that the “multiple POV” trend is dying, it was pulled off well in “Six of Crows”, because the narrative was in 3rd person. That allowed readers to switch rather effortlessly between the chapters while still directing their focus to a particular character.

- the characters, aka the best thing in this book: they are all lovable in their own ways and honestly I can’t decide who’s my favourite (jk jk it’s Matthias and Inej). I think that the number of characters is just right, not too big and confusing, but allowing for diversity in narratives. I only had an impression that characterization of Wylan was dropped halfway through the book and he’s been a plot device for solving technical problems most of the time, which is kinda sad. Also his change in personality was a bit unexpected. 

- post-CK addition: ok, Wylan got his POV & his development, but I still feel like 75% of his character are family problems. I hope that maybe a reread in a few months will make me appreciate him more. 

- Nina and Matthias: my absolutely favourite subplot (and ship in this book). It’s been a while since I’ve read so well executed enemies to lovers. The emotional and sexual tension between them! The desire to love vs the memory of past wrongdoings! The wish to trust and be vulnerable again vs the fear of betrayal! Them disagreeing on fundamental issues but finding points of mutual understanding nevertheless! Them caring for each other more than they care about their causes, even though the causes are everything! The banter! I just... can’t. Their story is such a good blend of cuteness and dark themes. I found it extremely interesting when the first chapter from Matthias’ POV showed how he was kinda deranged by his stay in prison and his desire for revenge and for love that were knit together so thight. Whereas he more or less regained his sanity as the book progressed (I wish it was more developed) he was still very much not in the best mental state and that made him a wild card, so the plot twists involving him were convincing. I also think that his disillusionment with his religious militia was quite well-written (as for an adventure novel, that is, where it was not the main plot). I liked how Matthias was trying to play 4D chess with the rest of the crew with his schemes and Nina joined him in part. Also the scene when the Crows try to get back to their ship in Fjerda and Nina gets shot, but heals herself so fast... Damn, that was some king shit. I love their dynamic, even though it’s the epitome of problematic(tm) by tumblr, but oh well, I’m all in for eros/thanatos motives and some good chemistry. One thing I feel their relationship lacked were the sex scenes - this is probably due to the book being technically YA (and that’s another reason why writing it for a bit older audiences would be ok), but both Nina and Matthias are so horny for each other that I find it impossible that they’ve never had sex. 

- post-CK addition: my heart is broken but Matthias’ character arc? Pure gold. I was so proud when he started questioning his religious beliefs and tried to reconcile them with his love for Nina. Love one redempted magic fascist. Also poor Nina... I still kinda don’t understand why their subplot had to end like this - and it’s really tempting me to read King of Scars.

- Inej’s moral/religious dilemmas were so good and I identified with them a lot (not that I’ve killed someone, but still). Also I found her characterization to be top notch, because she clearly isn’t an extrovert, but is not reduced to “i have no social skills” stereotype. I love her. 

- Kaz was a briliant character and his plans were so well written... But I have one issue with them: especially in Crooked Kingdom, when there’s a plot twist, it’s usually revealed to be just another layer of Kaz’s plan. When does he have the time to set it all up? I know he barely sleeps, but still, it feels like it kinda gets out of nowhere. But generally I’m all for scheming, ass-kicking gang boss. I also like the fact that he was still a very skilled fighter despite his disability, which allowed the author to escape the “disabled body means he can only use his mind” trope (which is justified sometimes, but still). And his trauma was so well-written... Honestly, the first full flashback with Kaz clutching to Jordie’s decaying body was one of the two most disturbing scenes in the novel (the other being Kaz ripping Oomen’s eye off) and I kinda wasn’t prepared for this. On the other hand, the bathroom scene in Crooked Kingdom with Inej? It was so beautiful, so well-crafted, so intimate; I felt the world stand still for a while. 

- me looking at Jesper: adhd

 I found him very relatable in terms of escaping his problems and felt sorry for his gambling addiction. But I wish his struggle over his powers was more expanded - he is shown being in two minds about this, but we as readers don’t really get full insight into the pros & cons of both option. But maybe it’s just the character’s specific way of going more by gut feeling and I’m being picky.

- a pet peeve of mine: if the author was really going so hard for the tzarist Russia vibe for Ravka, why did she name her character “Zoya Nazyalensky” and not “Zoya NazyalenskA” or, even better, “NazyalenskAYA” as it should be? C’mon, names ending in -sky have their female counterparts and it’s not hard to understand. 

- what was a bit of obstacle to immerse myself fully in the Six of Crows was the fact that the whole novel was so well-planned and logical that I sometimes felt like watching the author’s creative process unveil - and while it would be helpful if I was looking for writing tips, I was there to have good fun and forget about my assignments, so it kinda got in the way. It was like “ok, I want them to get inside the prison... but how they’re going to do it? Ha, I know: the jailers’ carriage. Next: what happens next in prisons? Oh right, they will be searched and... probably put in new clothes. So no clothing and no weapons means it’s time for Jesper’s big reveal. This is where I pepper in his crush on Kaz. I can cross this off the list of his character development now”. The Crooked Kingdom was better in this aspect - as the characters’ subplots were more separated and the chronology was going in loops (character A’s POV ends with all people parting ways --> character B’s chapter describes their mission --> character C’s chapter starts again at the end of character A’s POV), it was more natural and captivating read. 

- Kuwei was... very forgettable. I actually for most of the time totally forgot he was a character. I know he wasn’t a main character, but I feel like I know more about Specht and Rotty, some totally secondary gang members, than him. 

[iloveyouthree-thousand]

FFH: the good, the bad, and the missed opportunities

A’ight people, I saw the movie, I slept on it, and here are my *spoilers* thoughts (this ended up being really long feel free to ignore it): 

First missed opportunity: instead of having that intro video be a shoddy Midtown News Crew production, have the music fade into a title screen that reads, “in loving memory: a film by Peter Parker”, and swap the blurry photos out for quick iPhone clips and videos of Peter and Tony, referencing the homemade video at the start of HC and bridging a little bit of the gap between HC and IW

Second missed opportunity: don’t blip May away. Her casual relationship with Happy? Go for broke, put some depth behind it--have Peter ask them, confused, “what exactly did I miss here,” but instead of a comic beat it’s May and Happy exchanging sad glances, it’s May sitting Peter down and telling him about how she moved in with Tony because there was nothing left for her in the city. Have a powerful scene where May tries to reconcile the person she is, post-snap, with the person that Peter remembers, where she says, “a lot has happened, and Happy is a part of my life, now, but if it’s too much, too soon, we can go back to the way things were. Just you and me. Because as much as I care about him, you will always be my priority.” Not only would that give us much needed May/Peter heart-to-heart, but would show some of the real effects of the Snap.

I didn’t like the scene at the press conference much--because it felt like they took the ‘awkward teen’ trope a little too far--but that panic attack felt real and it hurt, and called back beautifully to Tony’s struggle with anxiety in the movies. 

I. Miss. The. Guy. In. The. Chair. Seriously, two weeks have passed since arguably the most important adult in Peter’s life, behind May, passed away. Remember the end of Endgame? Where Peter comes back to school and Ned just holds him? I cried. Sobbed. Bring back some of that emotion. Give me back the Ned Leeds that would do anything for Peter and vice versa. Give him an arc. Don’t just make him comic relief. 

While we’re on the topic of relationships: Peter and MJ. The concept? 10/10. I love this weird, slightly morbid MJ with Tom Holland’s dorky and painfully awkward Peter. The execution of it, though? Meh. I think the part that makes it so fast and stiff is Peter’s whole plan. He announces, at the start of the film, that he’s basically in love with MJ. Where the heckity-heck did this come from? I think it would’ve worked a lot better if you had MJ and Peter constantly sneaking off and accidentally running into each other on the trip (which would make sense, because he’s got Spidey-business and she’s observing him) and keep peppering in sweet little conversations at each of these meet-ups until Ned says something like, “dude, what’s up with you and MJ?” And Peter goes beet-red and defensive because nothing is going on, man, we just keep running into each other. It’s totally a coincidence. But then he starts thinking about it, and maybe he does like her, and then all at once he has a full-blown crush. And it feels hopeless except... he’s almost certain she’s been following him, because this is too weird to be completely coincidental, and maybe, just maybe, it’s because she likes him, too. Then go to the scene where he’s about to admit his feelings and boom! I know you’re Spider-Man.

Having Tony’s glasses be the thing he leaves behind for Peter? Wonderful. Mysterio wearing the Edith glasses was an amazing way to set up the emotional final battle scene, because the glasses represent Tony, and Peter’s guilt in the third act is driven by the fact that he screwed up, that he trusted someone else to be the mentor that Tony once was to him. Pete finally realizes, though, that Tony entrusted the glasses to him--and not because he needs to be the next Iron Man, but because Tony believed in Peter Parker. When Peter takes the glasses back, he’s shouldering that legacy, he’s remembering that he can do this, and that, even when he thinks he can’t, even when he thinks he’s going at it alone, Tony is still here with him. Even Dead, I’m The Hero. 

Also, Mysterio in general is great. He really makes you root for him, even when you already know the twist. My little brother didn’t know that Beck was the bad guy, and lemme tell you that poor little sucker was shook. The one scene I might’ve omitted or cut down significantly is that little origin story at the bar... it’s just a little too cliché.  

Okay. The origin story. The thing that’s got people heated. Look, the I-became-a-villain-because-Tony-was-mean-to-me is basically a Marvel trope at this point. And this does kinda feel like a desperate attempt to have Tony in the movie without really having Tony in the movie. But. Hear me out. I do hate that they went and re-edited those scenes. Honestly, though, you need to remember that Beck is an illusionist and that his whole schtick is making people believe what he wants them to believe. He’s the epitome of an unreliable narrator. He’s proved time and time again that, no matter how convincing he is, you can’t trust a word that comes out of his mouth. So do I believe that Tony stole his tech in any way, shape, or form? Of course not. Beck is a pathological liar who is attacking a child just because that child happened to be cared for by Tony Stark. 

Another missed opportunity, in my opinion, and I get that most of these are unrealistic because they require RDJ, but just think about a scene, after it’s all over, where Peter sneaks into Stark Industries in the dead of night with his old internship keycard. Pepper finds him there (because of course she’s still at work), watching old memories on the BARF tech. She asks him about something she heard on the news, something about a night monkey and a fire monster, and his face falls. “I kinda screwed up, Ms. Potts. I just--I know I don’t have to be him, no one can do that, but I still... I just want to make him proud.” And Pepper wordlessly takes the VR glasses off of him and puts them on herself, and the room switches to one of her memories, one of her favorite memories, where Tony is holding a newborn Morgan with a faraway look in his eye and Pepper tells him, gently, that Peter “would’ve been a great big brother, don’t you think?” And Tony would scoff and say something about how Peter would have Morgan swinging up the Chrysler Building before he could even say underoos, but then his eyes would go soft and he’d whisper, “even though I have a sinking feeling that those two together would be the death of me... I don’t think there’s anyone else I’d rather have my little girl look up to.” When the video finally turns off, Peter’s crying into her arms. “He is proud of you, Peter. And he always has been.”

Lastly--I think they missed an opportunity during the mid-credit scene. Instead of Peter’s date being MJ, have it be Morgan. Cut to them swinging through the woods, running up to the cabin, and zoom on a very scared looking Pepper rushing them inside when they get close. And Peter asks what’s wrong, because something is clearly wrong, but Pepper forces a smile and tries to sound casual when she tells Morgan to show Peter the room that Tony built for him, because he might be staying with them for a while. But as Morgan pulls him up the stairs, his super-hearing catches the muffled audio of the TV, and his heart drops, because he swears to God he hears them say: “this just in, local menace Spider-Man is revealed to be sixteen-year-old Queens resident, Peter Parker.”

[ravenonice]

Update on my ongoing fics! (and fun facts)

In case you're here because of my fics, here's a little update everything concerning those :D

I just started my semester abroad in Scotland. Since I'll be working and I want to travel a bit too, I will be busy...so I am not entirely sure yet how much time I'll have for writing... So updates might come even less regularly than they already are...I'm sorry.

As for specific fics:

Playlist of a Love

I've run into a stupid problem here... I have a notebook that contains the scores and layouts for Yuuri's short and free for the rest of the season, as well as Viktor's free (I've decided to not think of a short for him because it's really not relevant at all...). And I left that Notebook in Germany...in a box...in a self storage place...because I'm stupid...

The next few chapters are centered around Yuuri's programs and the story they tell and how that story changes a lot. The scores are fairly important for that too because a lot of Yuuri's perception of himself is based on those. Without wanting to spoil too much, but I think I established this in the last two chapters, it's a big part of how Viktor and Yuuri communicate emotions with each other.

So, in order to continue the story line like I intended too...I need those scores and notes on the programs...

I'll need to do that all over again and it's going to take some time and a lot of effort...and I don't know if I'll have that time and energy any time soon...

So this fic is on ice (badum tss...) for an uncertain amount of time, I'm sorry.

It's a shame really because a lot of it is allready written or outlined...but the key conecting pieces are simply missing...

Outlook on the future of the story (aka: why you maybe want to bear with me ^^'):

I have a halfway finished one shot prequel for PoaL regarding Viktor's childhood that I want to post when we get to that part in the story. It just doesn't fit in the flow of the story telling, so I'm posting it seperatly.

I also started writing a prequel for Yuuri which will be considerably longer than Viktor's....and I really shouldn't do that before finishing the main story...but the thing is is that PoaL is basically finished in my head...but not on "paper"...and I need to write it down because it also helps me understand my version of Yuuri better and how to write him, same reason why I write the Viktor one shot. Maybe I'll start posting it alongside PoaL as soon as it wouldn't spoil anything anymore.

I have a whole ass fanfiction in my notes app which's whole purpose is for me to practice writing smut with plot because I never published smut before...but there will be smut in PoaL and I want it to be damn good. If anyone is interested in a snipet of that while you wait I'm happy to provide that ;) As for the plot part: Viktor has commitment issues, Yuuri takes whatever he can get.

Hearts of Glass

I'm actually halfway through the 4th chapter! This chapter will conclude the World Championships arc and we will soon move on too Yuuri's Hasetsu vacation and his training for the new season :D I'm really excited for this actually!

Fun fact: when I started writing I thought it would be a two chapter fic or a really long one shot to take my mind of PoaL for a moment...

At first I wanted Yuuri to win worlds and then resolve the issue after the banquet there... But then I got ideas for what a season with them being absolutly pissed at each other would look like and all the sexual tension and now this fic has about 14 chapters planned...uff...

I will continue to use irl programs as inspiration because I don't really want to make this more work for me than I have too...and I have Yuuri's programs planned.

Skip the next paragraph if you don't want any spoilers:

If you listen to the playlist to this fic, there is a hint for Yuuri's short programm ;)

Since Viktor isn't coaching Yuuri, I can't keep Eros and Yuri on ice... But: Viktor will get Eros.

End of Spoiler

I don't have a free for Viktor...I need something that works well with Eros but is also expressing the complicated romantic feelings he has for Yuuri. So if you have any ideas: Please leave them here! If you just know music that's great too honestly, I'm willing to make an exception on the low effort rule here if it means I get what I'm looking for ^^'

The Air I Breathe

I finished the 3rd chapter...but I hate it. Viktor is way too out of character and it's really just boring to read so I'll have to work on this a lot more...

As I mentioned before, there are 5 chapters to this fic, and all of them live in my notes app more or less finished, they just need polishing.

Fun fact: This was also meant to be a one shot! But in the very beginning, this was part of the very first draft of Playlist of a Love! I was sick with covid remember? So Yuuri had to deal with that...uups...

In that very early draft, the banquet night ended with Viktor putting his number on a scrap piece of paper and putting it behind Yuuri's phone case while he showers.

TW: Non-con

They had sex in that version and I cut that because I found that to overstep the boundaries and on what a healthy and trusting relationship could be built on... Yuuri was blackout drunk after all and I don't think Viktor would take advantage of that...and I also don't want to romanticize such things at all. Viktor scraped at that boundary in the version I have now enough...

End of TW

Yuuri does find the paper on the flight to Detroit, but he's way to confused and embarassed by what happened to actually call or text...

The season ends like it does in canon with Yuuri flopping at Nationals and not going to 4CC and Worlds. And also with the Stammi Vicino video.

So Viktor does show up and then there's a lot of hurt/ (no) comfort and i honestly don't quite know why I randomly decided to almost murder Yuuri in the process ^^' despite me having covid

It did not make any sense so I scrapped it all and replaced it with what I have now....which also still has parts that don't make sense and I need to smooth over...but oh well I'm getting there...

When I wrote Viktors backstory for PoaL I felt really sad and angsty...so I dug this out again and decided to turn it into a standalone fic.

Other updates in relation to my fics:

As mentioned before I have a ticket for the Saturday events of the Grand Prix Event in Sheffield! It's the first competition I will be at and I hope that I'll take some things with me that'll help me with describing competitions better!

I posted a very angsty one shot when I couldn't sleep and was really depressed....so if you are into main character death and dead soulmate AUs, Maybe my soulmate died... is for you ^^' I appologize in advance for possible mistakes and terrible writing...I did not read it again...I just couldn't...

So...that's the info dumb regarding my fics ^^' If you read this far: Thank you for your interest in my writing! I really appreciate you all <3