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mostlysignssomeportents · 7 months

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Brian Merchant’s “Blood In the Machine”

Tomorrow (September 27), I'll be at Chevalier's Books in Los Angeles with Brian Merchant for a joint launch for my new book The Internet Con and his new book, Blood in the Machine. On October 2, I'll be in Boise to host an event with VE Schwab.

In Blood In the Machine, Brian Merchant delivers the definitive history of the Luddites, and the clearest analysis of the automator's playbook, where "entrepreneurs'" lawless extraction from workers is called "innovation" and "inevitable":

https://www.littlebrown.com/titles/brian-merchant/blood-in-the-machine/9780316487740/

History is written by the winners, and so you probably think of the Luddites as brainless, terrified, thick-fingered vandals who smashed machines and burned factories because they didn't understand them. Today, "Luddite" is a slur that means "technophobe" – but that's neither fair, nor accurate.

Luddism has been steadily creeping into pro-labor technological criticism, as workers and technology critics reclaim the term and its history, which is a rich and powerful tale of greed versus solidarity, slavery versus freedom.

The true tale of the Luddites starts with workers demanding that the laws be upheld. When factory owners began to buy automation systems for textile production, they did so in violation of laws that required collaboration with existing craft guilds – laws designed to ensure that automation was phased in gradually, with accommodations for displaced workers. These laws also protected the public, with the guilds evaluating the quality of cloth produced on the machine, acting as a proxy for buyers who might otherwise be tricked into buying inferior goods.

Factory owners flouted these laws. Though the machines made cloth that was less durable and of inferior weave, they sold it to consumers as though it were as good as the guild-made textiles. Factory owners made quiet deals with orphanages to send them very young children who were enslaved to work in their factories, where they were routinely maimed and killed by the new machines. Children who balked at the long hours or attempted escape were viciously beaten (the memoir of one former child slave became a bestseller and inspired Oliver Twist).

The craft guilds begged Parliament to act. They sent delegations, wrote petitions, even got Members of Parliament to draft legislation ordering enforcement of existing laws. Instead, Parliament passed laws criminalizing labor organizing.

The stakes were high. Economic malaise and war had driven up the price of life's essentials. Workers displaced by illegal machines faced starvation – as did their children. Communities were shattered. Workers who had apprenticed for years found themselves graduating into a market that had no jobs for them.

This is the context in which the Luddite uprisings began. Secret cells of workers, working with discipline and tight organization, warned factory owners to uphold the law. They sent letters and posted handbills in which they styled themselves as the army of "King Ludd" or "General Ludd" – Ned Ludd being a mythical figure who had fought back against an abusive boss.

When factory owners ignored these warnings, the Luddites smashed their machines, breaking into factories or intercepting machines en route from the blacksmith shops where they'd been created. They won key victories, with many factory owners backing off from automation plans, but the owners were deep-pocketed and determined.

The ruling Tories had no sympathy for the workers and no interest in upholding the law or punishing the factory owners for violating it. Instead, they dispatched troops to the factory towns, escalating the use of force until England's industrial centers were occupied by literal armies of soldiers. Soldiers who balked at turning their guns on Luddites were publicly flogged to death.

I got very interested in the Luddites in late 2021, when it became clear that everything I thought I knew about the Luddites was wrong. The Luddites weren't anti-technology – rather, they were doing the same thing a science fiction writer does: asking not just what a new technology does, but also who it does it for and who it does it to:

https://locusmag.com/2022/01/cory-doctorow-science-fiction-is-a-luddite-literature/

Unsurprisingly, ever since I started publishing on this subject, I've run into people who have no sympathy for the Luddite cause and who slide into my replies to replicate the 19th Century automation debate. One such person accused the Luddites of using "state violence" to suppress progress.

You couldn't ask for a more perfect example of how the history of the Luddites has been forgotten and replaced with a deliberately misleading account. The "state violence" of the Luddite uprising was entirely on one side. Parliament, under the lackadaisical leadership of "Mad King George," imposed the death penalty on the Luddites. It wasn't just machine-breaking that became a capital crime – "oath taking" (swearing loyalty to the Luddites) also carried the death penalties.

As the Luddites fought on against increasingly well-armed factory owners (one owner bought a cannon to use on workers who threatened his machines), they were subjected to spectacular acts of true state violence. Occupying soldiers rounded up Luddites and suspected Luddites and staged public mass executions, hanging them by the dozen, creating scores widows and fatherless children.

The sf writer Steven Brust says that the test to tell whether someone is on the right or the left is simple: ask whether property rights are more important than human rights. If the person says "property rights are human rights," they are on the right.

The state response to the Luddites crisply illustrates this distinction. The Luddites wanted an orderly and lawful transition to automation, one that brought workers along and created shared prosperity and quality goods. The craft guilds took pride in their products, and saw themselves as guardians of their industry. They were accustomed to enjoying a high degree of bargaining power and autonomy, working from small craft workshops in their homes, which allowed them to set their own work pace, eat with their families, and enjoy modest amounts of leisure.

The factory owners' cause wasn't just increased production – it was increased power. They wanted a workforce that would dance to their tune, work longer hours for less pay. They wanted unilateral control over which products they made and what corners they cut in making those products. They wanted to enrich themselves, even if that meant that thousands starved and their factory floors ran red with the blood of dismembered children.

The Luddites destroyed machines. The factory owners killed Luddites, shooting them at the factory gates, or rounding them up for mass executions. Parliament deputized owners to act as extensions of law enforcement, allowing them to drag suspected Luddites to their own private cells for questioning.

The Luddites viewed property rights as just one instrument for achieving human rights – freedom from hunger and cold – and when property rights conflicted with human rights, they didn't hesitate to smash the machines. For them, human rights trumped property rights.

Their bosses – and their bosses' modern defenders – saw the demands to uphold the laws on automation as demands to bring "state violence" to bear on the wholly private matter of how a rich man should organize his business. On the other hand, literal killing – both on the factory floor and at the gallows – was not "state violence" but rather, a defense of the most important of all the human rights: the rights of property owners.

19th century textile factories were the original Big Tech, and the rhetoric of the factory owners echoes down the ages. When tech barons like Peter Thiel say that "freedom is incompatible with democracy," he means that letting people who work for a living vote will eventually lead to limitations on people who own things for a living, like him.

Then, as now, resistance to Big Tech enjoyed widespread support. The Luddites couldn't have organized in their thousands if their neighbors didn't have their backs. Shelley and Byron wrote widely reproduced paeans to worker uprisings (Byron also defended the Luddites in the House of Lords). The Brontes wrote Luddite novels. Mary Shelley's Frankenstein was a Luddite novel, in which the monster was a sensitive, intelligent creature who merely demanded a say in the technology that created him.

The erasure of the true history of the Luddites was a deliberate act. Despite the popular and elite support the Luddites enjoyed, the owners and their allies in Parliament were able to crush the uprising, using mass murder and imprisonment to force workers to accept immiseration.

The entire supply chain of the textile revolution was soaked in blood. Merchant devotes multiple chapters to the lives of African slaves in America who produced the cotton that the machines in England wove into cloth. Then – as now – automation served to obscure the violence latent in production of finished goods.

But, as Merchant writes, the Luddites didn't lose outright. Historians who study the uprisings record that the places where the Luddites fought most fiercely were the places where automation came most slowly and workers enjoyed the longest shared prosperity.

The motto of Magpie Killjoy's seminal Steampunk Magazine was: "Love the machine, hate the factory." The workers of the Luddite uprising were skilled technologists themselves.

They performed highly technical tasks to produce extremely high-quality goods. They served in craft workshops and controlled their own time.

The factory increased production, but at the cost of autonomy. Factories and their progeny, like assembly lines, made it possible to make more goods (even goods that eventually rose the quality of the craft goods they replaced), but at the cost of human autonomy. Taylorism and other efficiency cults ended up scripting the motions of workers down to the fingertips, and workers were and are subject to increasing surveillance and discipline from their bosses if they deviate. Take too many pee breaks at the Amazon warehouse and you will be marked down for "time off-task."

Steampunk is a dream of craft production at factory scale: in steampunk fantasies, the worker is a solitary genius who can produce high-tech finished goods in their own laboratory. Steampunk has no "dark, satanic mills," no blood in the factory. It's no coincidence that steampunk gained popularity at the same time as the maker movement, in which individual workers use form digital communities. Makers networked together to provide advice and support in craft projects that turn out the kind of technologically sophisticated goods that we associate with vast, heavily-capitalized assembly lines.

But workers are losing autonomy, not gaining it. The steampunk dream is of a world where we get the benefits of factory production with the life of a craft producer. The gig economy has delivered its opposite: craft workers – Uber drivers, casualized doctors and dog-walkers – who are as surveilled and controlled as factory workers.

Gig workers are dispatched by apps, their faces closely studied by cameras for unauthorized eye-movements, their pay changed from moment to moment by an algorithm that docks them for any infraction. They are "reverse centaurs": workers fused to machines where the machine provides the intelligence and the human does its bidding:

https://pluralistic.net/2021/02/17/reverse-centaur/#reverse-centaur

Craft workers in home workshops are told that they're their own bosses, but in reality they are constantly monitored by bossware that watches out of their computers' cameras and listens through its mic. They have to pay for the privilege of working for their bosses, and pay to quit. If their children make so much as a peep, they can lose their jobs. They don't work from home – they live at work:

https://pluralistic.net/2021/01/22/paperback-writer/#toothless

Merchant is a master storyteller and a dedicated researcher. The story he weaves in Blood In the Machine is as gripping as any Propublica deep-dive into the miserable working conditions of today's gig economy. Drawing on primary sources and scholarship, Blood is a kind of Nomadland for Luddites.

Today, Merchant is the technology critic for the LA Times. The final chapters of Blood brings the Luddites into the present day, finding parallels in the labor organizing of the Amazon warehouse workers led by Chris Smalls. The liberal reformers who offered patronizing support to the Luddites – but didn't imagine that they could be masters of their own destiny – are echoed in the rhetoric of Andrew Yang.

And of course, the factory owners' rhetoric is easily transposed to the modern tech baron. Then, as now, we're told that all automation is "progress," that regulatory evasion (Uber's unlicensed taxis, Airbnb's unlicensed hotel rooms, Ring's unregulated surveillance, Tesla's unregulated autopilot) is "innovation." Most of all, we're told that every one of these innovations must exist, that there is no way to stop it, because technology is an autonomous force that is independent of human agency. "There is no alternative" – the rallying cry of Margaret Thatcher – has become our inevitablist catechism.

Squeezing the workers' wages conditions and weakening workers' bargaining power isn't "innovation." It's an old, old story, as old as the factory owners who replaced skilled workers with terrified orphans, sending out for more when a child fell into a machine. Then, as now, this was called "job creation."

Then, as now, there was no way to progress as a worker: no matter how skilled and diligent an Uber driver is, they can't buy their medallion and truly become their own boss, getting a say in their working conditions. They certainly can't hope to rise from a blue-collar job on the streets to a white-collar job in the Uber offices.

Then, as now, a worker was hired by the day, not by the year, and might find themselves with no work the next day, depending on the whim of a factory owner or an algorithm.

As Merchant writes: robots aren't coming for your job; bosses are. The dream of a "dark factory," a "fully automated" Tesla production line, is the dream of a boss who doesn't have to answer to workers, who can press a button and manifest their will, without negotiating with mere workers. The point isn't just to reduce the wage-bill for a finished good – it's to reduce the "friction" of having to care about others and take their needs into account.

Luddites are not – and have never been – anti-technology. Rather, they are pro-human, and see production as a means to an end: broadly shared prosperity. The automation project says it's about replacing humans with machines, but over and over again – in machine learning, in "contactless" delivery, in on-demand workforces – the goal is to turn humans into machines.

There is blood in the machine, Merchant tells us, whether its humans being torn apart by a machine, or humans being transformed into machines.

Brian and I are having a joint book-launch tomorrow night (Sept 27) at Chevalier's Books in Los Angeles for my new book The Internet Con and his new book, Blood in the Machine:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-internet-con-by-cory-doctorow-blood-in-the-machine-by-brian-merchant-tickets-696349940417

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/09/26/enochs-hammer/#thats-fronkonsteen

#pluralistic #books #reviews #brian merchant #luddism #automation #history #gift guide #steampunk #makers #tina #inevitablism #reverse centaurs #amazon #arise

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runnning-outof-time · 7 months

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3 Songs, 3 Books, 3 Movies

Thanks for the tag Chi @little-diable ! 🥰 I’ve never seen this game before - it was fun to make these choices!!

3 Songs:

Speed of Light - The Glorious Sons

Tourniquet - Zach Bryan

Grim - The Blue Stones

3 Books:

The Smell of Battle, The Taste of Siege: A Sensory History of The Civil War by Mark M. Smith

Billy the Kid vs. Jesse James by Bill Markley

Stampede: Gold Fever and Disaster in the Klondike by Brian Castner

3 Movies:

Lawless (just watched it last night - great movie)

Almost Famous (a favorite of mine)

The Revenant (my favorite movie of all time)

Tagging: @raincoffeeandfandoms @look-at-the-soul @forgottenpeakywriter @toms-cherry-trees @cillmequick @emotionalcadaver @unluckycat111 @loverhymeswith @zablife

#tagged in #tag game #k’s music recs #k’s book recs

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soleminisanction · 7 months

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Have I ranted before about how the Devil's Square makes no fucking sense?

So I'm trying to write the next part of Batgirl, Repentant, and more fool me, that means I need to go back and re-read parts of Batgirl (2009) for research. And like what always happens when I do that, I noticed yet another detail that stops working when you stop to think about it for even a moment.

Because see, on the second page of the third issue, we get these two moments in rapid succession.

Scarecrow's hideout is in "Gotham's Western Quadrant, the Devil's Square," established in the previous issue as a bad neighborhood, quote, "Otherwise known as 'Thunderdome.'" This place is treated like it's a Big Stinkin' Deal for the first two arcs (maybe the first year? I don't remember clearly and I don't want to go any further down this rabbit hole than I have) of this series, but nothing about it makes sense.

We are never ever given a clear reason why this neighborhood is supposedly such a uniquely terrible place, but it's supposedly so bad that it's worth making a whole terrible philosophy lecture out of why criminals would choose to stay there.

But the closest thing we get is that, at one point, Professor Exposition describes it as "a demilitarized zone."

Which does not make any goddamn sense because that would require Gotham City as a whole to be the location of an ongoing military conflict. Y'know, like the one between the Koreas.

I can only assume, given Brian Miller et al's tendency to do zero research on even the most basic of plot elements (see also: labeling all of Stephanie's obviously freshman-level college classes with 400-level designations intended for seniors or grad students) that what he actually meant here was autonomous zone. Like the CHAZ, as imagined by your Republican uncle. The implication being that this is an area of town that's been completely abandoned by police and emergency services, reducing it to a lawless wasteland where criminals roam free. (A no man's land, you might say. 🙄)

EXCEPT. APPARENTLY. LITERALLY ONE ISSUE LATER. We get the panels I started this post off with, where Steph arrives at Scarecrow's hide-out in the Devil's Square and we get EXPLICIT confirmation that the police will be there in five minutes.

That's all to say nothing of the fact that it being "Gotham's Western Quadrant" that's been cut off makes zero sense on its face. Besides implying that's an entire QUARTER of the city that's just been completely abandoned, Steph at one point describes it as being "on the west bank of the Gotham River."

There is no west bank of the Gotham River. Gotham is on a series of islands off the coast of New Jersey. The west bank of the Gotham River is the MAINLAND where Bristol and the suburbs are.

Gotham's geography is super fluid and can change from book to book, but it being on an island connected only by a series of bridges was a big deal in this era and the only reason the No Man's Land concept even worked. If you're gonna rip that plot off, Miller, you gotta use an eastern neighborhood. Or a northern one. Or even a southern tip. Anything but west. That's like saying there's an east side of Chicago.

#batgirl 2009 #batgirl 2009 critical #batgirl repentant #this to say nothing of the fact that the police showing up in 5 minutes #means there's literally no reason for Steph to even go inside the murder hospital #there's no stakes #no time limit #no one's in danger #she doesn't even like or care about any of the people who've been forcibly drugged #all she's doing by going in there is tipping Scarecrow off ahead of time #and the only justification is 'I'm seeing something through for once!' which is just insulting to her previous character???#whatever else you want to say about War Games Stephanie SAW THAT SHIT THROUGH #it's WHY SHE DIED #she saw an entire PREGNANCY to term #it comes across like the only reason she's doing this is because Barbara bruised her delicate little ego #and she needs to Prove That Bitch Wrong About Me #uuuuuugh #ranting in the tags #stephanie brown critical #also in the tags

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inthecityofgoodabode · 3 months

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January 2024: Spitting In The Eye Of The Conspiracy

My queen's lone surviving brother called in today from Harrisburg, PA. Amongst other things, he was worried because Memphis, or The City as I call it, had been declared the murder capital of the United States according to whatever bogus source had hit his ears & local representatives were calling for the governor to dispatch the national guard to Memphis. After a little research, I discovered all this angst was based off a statement made by our (as in my queen & me) state congressional representative, Brent Taylor, back in November 2023. To be clear, my queen & I were part of the one-third of voters who voted for his opponent. Taylor represents District 31 which is divided five ways between part of Memphis (including our neighborhood which was added to the district several years ago thanks to state Republican gerrymandering), Lakeland (a white flight community), Germantown (a white flight community), Collierville (a white flight community) & a portion of unincorporated Shelby County including Eads, TN where Taylor resides (also a white flight enclave). Memphis is good enough for them to earn their inflated salaries in but not good enough to live in. Prior to Taylor, we were represented by the rightfully indicted Brian Kelsey. Note that the unincorporated part of Shelby County where Taylor resides fought to be unincorporated from Memphis a few years ago so his "concern" about Memphians reads hollow. You might ask why all these suburban white flight communities exist. The simple answer is desegregation in the Seventies & they've been pushing out further since then. Technically speaking, Olive Branch & Southaven in Mississippi have become white flight communities from Memphis in relatively recent years. All this is part of a larger & ongoing narrative in Tennessee, to paint Memphis as a lawless, dangerous city because we are an African-American majority city that doesn't vote Republican. If you haven't figured out by now, the Republican party, at least in the former Confederate states, is the party of the Old South. I walked outside for an hour on Saturday & for about 2 hours on Sunday. If the prevailing narrative was true, I'd be dead twice over with no wallet & no shoes on my feet. Don't buy it. There is a community where you live right now, no matter where you are in the world, that is steeped in bad press. Look closer. Ask yourself, who profits... who has something to gain? The answer might be complicated & might make you question yourself but embrace the complications. Despite what we learned reading myths & religious verses, existence is complicated. There are some of us humans who are lost to corruption & it can be easy to give in to hardening our hearts but, as a believer whose had his fair share of heart crushing betrayals, I ask you to trust your gut but never lose hope. There is a day that I dream of where like-minded brothers & sisters embrace & say "you were not alone." I don't know that I will see that day but my heartfelt wish is the younger generation will.

I recognize that some folks who come to my blog are looking for an escape. You just want to look at garden photos. I get it. I have posts for that. This one isn't one of them. Above all else, this blog is about me. That people agree or disagree with me or are comfortable or uncomfortable with what I post is immaterial. This is me spitting my ideas & images at the universe. If others find value in it, then maybe me wandering in thought helped someone somewhere. At the end of our days, that's the best any of us can hope from our humble but difficult existence. Keep safe.

#the city #memphis #brent taylor #republican #gerrymandering #district 31 #desegregation #white flight #politics #local politics #memphis politics #tennessee politics #life in memphis #people say I'm a dreamer

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dosesofcommonsense · 3 months

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NEW — There are now 25 states standing in solidarity with the great state of Texas and Gov. Greg Abbott against the lawless Joe Biden:

Wyoming - Gov. Mark Gordon

Iowa - Gov. Kim Reynolds

Arkansas - Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders

Montana - Gov. Greg Gianforte

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis

Idaho - Gov. Brad Little

North Dakota - Gov. Doug Burgum

Nebraska - Gov. Jim Pillen

West Virginia - Gov. Jim Justice

Alabama - Gov. Kay Ivey

Tennessee - Gov. Bill Lee

Louisiana - Gov. Jeff Landry

Georgia Gov. - Brian Kemp

Utah - Gov. Spencer Cox

Virginia - Gov. Glenn Youngkin

South Dakota - Gov. Kristi Noem

Oklahoma - Gov. Kevin Stitt

Alaska - Gov. Mike Dunleavy

Indiana - Gov. Eric Holcomb

Nevada - Gov. Joe Lombardo

New Hampshire - Gov. Chris Sununu

Mississippi - Gov. Tate Reeves

Missouri - Gov. Mike Parson

Ohio - Gov. Mike DeWine

South Carolina - Gov. Henry McMaster

Please encourage these men and women and tell them THANK YOU.

Remember, they can't arrest us all!

https://thefederalist.com/2024/01/25/here-are-all-the-states-standing-with-texas-against-bidens-border-assault/

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onlydylanobrien · 3 months

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Kieran Culkin, Riley Keough, Lucy Liu, André Holland and Will Ferrell Join TheWrap’s Studio at the Sundance Film Festival

Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Camila Cabello, David Schwimmer and Glen Powell are also on tap for TheWrap’s Interview and Portrait Studio presented by NFP

Wrap Staff January 18, 2024 @ 10:26 AM

TheWrap will be hosting top talent at its interview and portrait studio at the NFP Inspire Lounge on Main Street during the 2024 Sundance Film Festival from Jan. 19-23, presented by NFP.

Actors Kieran Culkin, Riley Keough, André Holland, Lucy Liu, Saoirse Ronan, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Will Ferrell, Camila Cabello, Andra Day, Jesse Eisenberg, Dylan O’Brien, Victoria Pedretti, Glen Powell, Kathryn Newton, Zach Galifianakis, David Schwimmer, Jena Malone, Justice Smith, Julia Fox, Will Sharpe, Jennifer Grey, Chris Sullivan, Alicia Silverstone, Emilia Jones and Retta are among those confirmed to attend.

Filmmakers set to join TheWrap’s studio include Chiwetel Ejiofor, Richard Linklater, Lucy Lawless, Yance Ford, Anna Boden, Ryan Fleck, Megan Park, Susanna Fogel and Josh Greenbaum.

TheWrap’s Interview and Portrait Studio presented by NFP — where TheWrap creative director and photographer Jeff Vespa will be shooting talent — will feature in-person conversations with cast members and directors from the top movies premiering at Sundance. This year’s studio sponsor is NFP, a leading property and casualty broker, benefits consultant, wealth manager and retirement plan advisor.

“We’re thrilled to be back at Sundance with our robust team to offer readers an inside look at the forefront of independent film,” TheWrap’s co-executive editor Adam Chitwood said.

In addition to interviews and portraits, TheWrap will also be hosting two panels out of the NFP Inspire Lounge. “Producers’ Perspectives: Navigating Film Festivals in 2024” will take place on Saturday, Jan. 20 at 4:30 p.m., presented by the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television and TheWrap and NFP. Dean Brian Kite will moderate the panel that includes Stacey Reiss, Mark Anker, Jess Devaney, Luke Kelly-Clyne and Jason Forest.

On Monday, Jan. 22 the panel “Championing Change: The Power of Inclusive Filmmaking” will take place at 9 a.m. with panelists Carla Gutierrez, Paola Mendoza, Henry Muñoz and Amber Sealey, moderated by Carla Renata and presented by UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television and TheWrap and NFP.

Both panels will take place at TheWrap’s studio at 268 Main Street.

Source: thewrap.com

#dylan o'brien #sundance film festival 2024 #ponyboi #news

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sitting-on-me-bum · 29 days

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Dublin, Ireland

Two young male fallow deer lock antlers during rutting season

Photograph: Brian Lawless/PA

#brian lawless #photographer #pa #dublin #ireland #fallow deer #deer #animal #mammal #wildlife #nature

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kamreadsandrecs · 6 months

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Title: The Words of Kings and Prophets (Gael Song #2) Author: Shauna Lawless Genre/s: historical, fantasy, mythology and folklore Content/Trigger Warning/s: slavery, physical and emotional abuse, murder, death, depictions of mental illness Summary (from author's website): The sequel to the critically acclaimed The Children of Gods and Fighting Men, The Words of Kings and Prophets is the powerful new historical fantasy novel by Shauna Lawless. Power fades but fire endures… Ireland, 1000 AD. Clouds of war gather for mortals and immortals alike as the Irish kingdoms strive for supremacy. Gormflaith, unhappy queen of Brian Boru, schemes to destroy the Descendants, sworn enemies of her Fomorian kind. As her plans take an unexpected turn, Gormflaith discovers her magic is more powerful than she ever realised – but at what cost? Descendant healer Fódla dwells disguised in the mortal world, seeking to protect her young nephew – but the boy has secrets of his own. Fódla must do all in her power to keep him hidden from those who would use him for evil. When a mysterious man comes to King Brian’s court, his presence could spell disaster for both Gormflaith and Fódla – and for Ireland herself. For he is Tomas, an ambitious immortal – and he will do anything to see his plans become reality. Buy Here: https://bookshop.org/p/books/words-of-kings-and-prophets-volume-2-shauna-lawless/19782163 Spoiler-Free Review: As a continuation of the first book, this functions perfectly well. It focuses a lot more on intrigue and developing the established characters, which makes for a somewhat less action-packed read but still entirely fun read, in my opinion. Reading how Gormflaith and Fódla develop was absolutely fun: Gormflaith still has more layers than Fódla, but Fódla experiences some solid character development in this book, which is where much of the fun reading her derives. We also get Colmon as a narrator in this one. In the last book he was a somewhat minor character, but this time around he gets narrator status and it looks like he’ll be developed into another protagonist for the third book. I look forward to it, not least because his perspective is so different from Fódla’s and Gormflaith’s. There was also an interesting dialogue in this book about oppressive systems, and how it can be hard to dismantle such systems when one is benefitting from them. It’s only a moment in the book, but it does address an element of the previous book (and the actual historical milieu in which this series is set) that I think other readers wanted the author to deal with a bit more explicitly. I can’t say for absolute certain if it was handled well, but I will say that it gave me food for thought, especially when thinking about that element in the context of the history of the period, and what certain characters then promised to do about it. I think that the main gripe I have about this is that it really feels like a transition book, moving characters so they’re in specific places (literally and metaphorically speaking) as preparation for a big finale or big change of events in the next book. This is just a small complaint though, as I liked the book regardless, but it’s definitely got that vibe. Overall, this was a solid continuation of the previous book. Characters grow in their own ways, and the plot continues to be a fun ride. I’m looking forward to seeing how Colmon steps up in the next book in the series (along with another character I won't mention because spoilers). Still, this does feel a lot like a book that’s meant to put particular characters in specific places in preparation for something big going down, so readers looking for something a little more action-packed might not be entirely happy with this one. Rating: five ships

#book review #book reviews #the words of kings and prophets #gael song series #shauna lawless #historical #fantasy #mythology and folklore #books

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rockislandadultreads · 1 year

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Historical Fantasy picks & Female Rulers

The Children of Gods and Fighting Men by Shauna Lawless

The first in a gripping new historical fantasy series that intertwines Irish mythology with real-life history, The Children of Gods and Fighting Men is the thrilling debut novel by Shauna Lawless. They think they've killed the last of us... 981 AD. The Viking King of Dublin is dead. His young widow, Gormflaith, has ambitions for her son – and herself – but Ireland is a dangerous place and kings tend not to stay kings for long. Gormflaith also has a secret. She is one of the Fomorians, an immortal race who can do fire-magic. She has kept her powers hidden at all costs, for there are other immortals in this world – like the Tuatha Dé Danann, a race of warriors who are sworn to kill Fomorians. Fódla is one of the Tuatha Dé Danann with the gift of healing. Her kind dwell hidden in a fortress, forbidden to live amongst the mortals. Fódla agrees to help her kin by going to spy on Brian Boru, a powerful man who aims to be High King of Ireland. She finds a land on the brink of war – a war she is desperate to stop. However, preventing the loss of mortal lives is not easy with Ireland in turmoil and the Fomorians now on the rise...

Strike the Zither by Joan He

The year is 414 of the Xin Dynasty, and chaos abounds. A puppet empress is on the throne. The realm has fractured into three factions and three warlordesses hoping to claim the continent for themselves. But Zephyr knows it’s no contest. Orphaned at a young age, Zephyr took control of her fate by becoming the best strategist of the land and serving under Xin Ren, a warlordess whose loyalty to the empress is double-edged—while Ren’s honor draws Zephyr to her cause, it also jeopardizes their survival in a war where one must betray or be betrayed. When Zephyr is forced to infiltrate an enemy camp to keep Ren’s followers from being slaughtered, she encounters the enigmatic Crow, an opposing strategist who is finally her match. But there are more enemies than one—and not all of them are human.

The Lost Queen by Signe Pike

Intelligent, passionate, rebellious, and brave, Languoreth is the unforgettable heroine of The Lost Queen, a tale of conflicted loves and survival set against the cinematic backdrop of ancient Scotland, a magical land of myths and superstition inspired by the beauty of the natural world. One of the most powerful early medieval queens in British history, Languoreth ruled at a time of enormous disruption and bloodshed, when the burgeoning forces of Christianity threatened to obliterate the ancient pagan beliefs and change her way of life forever. Together with her twin brother Lailoken, a warrior and druid known to history as Merlin, Languoreth is catapulted into a world of danger and violence. When a war brings the hero Emrys Pendragon, to their door, Languoreth collides with the handsome warrior Maelgwn. Their passionate connection is forged by enchantment, but Languoreth is promised in marriage to Rhydderch, son of the High King who is sympathetic to the followers of Christianity. As Rhydderch's wife, Languoreth must assume her duty to fight for the preservation of the Old Way, her kingdom, and all she holds dear.

My Contrary Mary by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, Jodi Meadows

Welcome to Renaissance France, a place of poison and plots, of beauties and beasts, of mice and . . . queens?⠀ ⠀ Mary is the queen of Scotland and the jewel of the French court. Except when she's a mouse. Yes, reader, Mary is an Eðian (shapeshifter) in a kingdom where Verities rule. It's a secret that could cost her a head—or a tail.⠀ ⠀ Luckily, Mary has a confidant in her betrothed, Francis. But after the king meets a suspicious end, things at the gilded court take a treacherous turn. Thrust onto the throne, Mary and Francis are forced to navigate a viper's nest of conspiracies, traps, and treason. And if Mary's secret is revealed, heads are bound to roll.

#Fantasy #YA Books #Ya books for adults #historical fantasy #historical #to read #tbr #booktok #booklr #Book Recommendations #reading recommendations #female rulers #queens #library books #books to read #adult fantasy

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typingtess · 2 years

Text

Tiptoeing through the “Of Value” guest cast

Bar Paly as Anastasia "Anna" Kolcheck Duncan Campbell as NCIS Special Agent Castor Both return from “Come Together” (season 13’s finale).

Gregory D. Gadson as Army Colonel Jackson Ladd Greg Gadson is a former colonel in the Army, a West Point Graduate. In May of 2007, he lost both of legs above the knee and had a severe arm injury due to a roadside bomb in Iraq. Gadson is a well-regarded motivational speaker. A speech given to the New York Football Giants early in the 2007 season was credited with helping the team during the Super Bowl run. He is often seen on the sidelines of Giants games in his wheelchair.

Gadson was in the feature film “Battleship”.

Sigrid Owen as Mila Curren Owen appeared in episodes of Geeks Outside, Married, Code Black, The Middle, Roadies, Hand of God and General Hospital. She was Elisabet in Silicon Valley.

Regina Ting Chen as Navy Commander Cheng Was in episodes of American Dynasty, Dynasty (2019), The Outsider, The Resident, Black Lightning, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Queen of the South, Queens, Woke and Stranger Things. Played Alice in Dreamsville.

Melanie Hawkins as Lindsey Sandhagen Had guest roles in Strong Medicine, Tell Me You Love Me, The Middleman, Eleventh Hour, CSI: Miami, Sam & Cat, Dirty John and 9-1-1.

Lawrence J. Hughes as Emmett Sandhagen Was Rhino in the streaming series Party Betchez. Guest roles include Stitchers, A La Carte and the limited series Mike about Mike Tyson.

Elester Latham as Jerry Starred in the series Blended Family and The Rich & The Ruthless. Guest starred in episodes of Bitch Please, Dabsity, Insecure, Off the Track, Nice Guy Finish Last, Quinta vs. Everything, I Am the Night, Frank James, Thrilling Stories, Grace and Frankie and Baby Gay.

Latham was a Marine in Vietnam, left the service to go to college. Joined the Air Force to become a pilot, retired and was a United Airlines pilot for decades.

Dominic Zamprogna as Paul Figueiredo Was Mark Deosdade in Edgemont, Jammer in Battlestar Galactica (2006), Greg/Jim in The L Word (2008) and Dante Falconeri on General Hospital.

Guest roles include Are You Afraid of the Dark, The Neverending Story, Ready or Note, Kung Fu: The Legend Continues, Wind at My Back, Tales of the Cryptkeeper, MythQuest, Leap Years, Odyssey 5, DaVinci’s Inquest, StarGate Atlantis, Cold Squad, Tru Calling, Supernatural, Blade: The Series, Painkiller Jane, Bionic Woman (2007), The Border, Smallville, Stargate Universe and Tin Star.

Kaya Jackson as Sophia Sandhagen Was in an episode of Call Me Kat and two episodes of Side Hustle.

Devin Looc as Ty Sandhagen Child actor.

Matthew Law as Josh McCall Was Kendrick in The Paynes, Agent Julian in Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD and Kareem Richardson in The Oval. Guest roles in Shooter and Home Economics.

Alain Mora as Chito Aldana More appeared in episodes of CSI: Miami and Lawless. Was Brian Escobar in the series Los Teens.

Torshawn Roland as Jay Appeared in an episode of Just Add Magic.

Glen Steele as Man Appeared in a number of short films.

Written by: Kyle Harimoto wrote "Omni", "Merry Evasion", "Chernoff, K", "Command and Control" as episode 150, "Granger, O.", "Ghost Gun", "Kulinda", "767", "Se Murio El Payaso", "Assets"/"Liabilities", "Venganza", "Superhuman", "One of Us", "Let Fate Decide" (season 11 premiere), "Decoy", "Answers" , "Watch Over Me", "Cash Flow", "Fukushu", "Bonafides" and “Come Together” (season 13 finale). He co-wrote "Three Hearts", "Leipei", "Humbug", both ends of the "Matryoshka" two-parter, "Smokescreen" part two, "Searching", "A Fait Acompli" and "A Tale of Two Igors" (season 12 finale).

Directed by: Diana C. Valentine who directed "Lokhay", "Fallout", Three Hearts", "The 3rd Choir", "Forest for the Trees", "Beacon", "Unspoken", "Seoul Man", "Crazy Train", "Under Pressure”, "Better Angels" and “The Circle”. This is Valentine’s first episode with the series since season 11.

#tiptoeing #NCIS: Los Angeles #NCIS: LA #NCIS Los Angeles #ncis la

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thetragicallynerdy · 1 year

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tell us about undeadwood pls?

HELL YEAH HELL YEAH HELL YEAH

Okay! So! UnDeadwood is a four-part Weird West themed mini series put on by Critical Role, an Actual Play TTRPG company. Critical Role's main stuff is typical fantasy DnD actual play show streamed on youtube/twitch/in podcast form. UnDeadwood is also an actual play show, but using a different TTRPG system (Deadlands: Reloaded, which uses the Savage Worlds core system). It's a weird West setting - Old West frontier mixed with zombies and the like.

Oh! And it's also set in the sleepy town of Deadwood, and uses a lot of the places and people from the show Deadwood. (I've never seen the show, but many of the usual players in it - who are all based in history - such as Al Swearengen, Joanie Stubbs, EB Farnum, and Doc Cochran, all make appearances. And Johnny. Can't forget Johnny!) Deadwood was a big gold mining camp in South Dakota, and was known for being a particularly lawless settlement.

All that aside - it's a show about five newcomers to Deadwood who get hired to investigate some weird happenings around the mining camp. It's got an absolutely amazing cast (Brian W. Foster as the GM, Anjali Bhimani, Matthew Mercer, Travis Willingham, Marisha Rey, and Khary Peyton. Also Ivan van Norman as the barkeep), and in my opinion, is the best thing Critical Role has done production wise. It's got an amazing set, costumes, miniatures, etc for an actual play show.

And for an improv based show? It's got some of the rawest fucking lines. Just absolute brilliance. For example:

I've seen enough people be animals out there, to know that if God made us in his image, God's every bit as feral as the things he created. - Clayton Sharpe, played by Matthew Mercer.

Also the characters are so fucking good!! They are:

Clayton Sharpe - a gun for hire with some Secrits who can barely hit the broad side of a barn (we love him he's baby)

Matthew Mason - the new Reverend in town, a bumbling sweetheart of a man (when he's not being scary) who's also got some Secrits

Miriam Landisman - a 'purveyor of goods needed' who can charm anyone into doing anything, who also has Secrits she's hiding

Arabella Whitlock - an occult enthusiast and rich girl who's grieving her dead sister - guess what? She's also got Secrits

'Aly' Aloysius Fogg - a bounty hunter and suave motherfucker who - you guessed it! ALSO HAS SECRITS

Basically all of them are full of secrets like Regina George's hair and it's absolutely amazing. I've listened to the podcast like half a dozen times and I'm still noticing new things on my most recent re-watch.

UnDeadwood is also the first fandom I've ever been really involved in!! It got me started writing fanfic, and I now mod a very small discord for UnDeadwood fans. I've made SO many fandom pals through it, and I love them very much. It's a really small fandom, and very quiet these days, but it's really lovely.

If you enjoy watching people play TTRPGS and also enjoy Old West settings and really beautifully done character arcs, I would highly recommend it. It's about 9-10 hours of watching/listening in total. However - be warned that the ending is kind of devastating, if that's not your thing.

It is all available on the youtube! This is the link to the first episode!

Also if you watch it you are contractually obligated to come yell at me about it anon (not actually, but i would love u forever if you did)

Thanks for the ask!!

#undeadwood #COME JOIN ME IN SMALL FANDOM HELL #it's fun and the characters are wonderful #if u want to know more about it hit me up with more specific questions!#rambling #anon #asks

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fantomcomics · 1 year

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What’s Out This Week? 5/10

Thanks for making Free Comic Book Day 2023 one of our best ever!

Count Dante #1 (of 6) - J C Barbour, Wes Watson & Cary Nord

Sydney Brown relives his years fighting alongside Count Dante, the cape-wearing, car-selling, controversial karate master from the 1970s. But while the reporter interviewing him is excited to hear the salacious details of a crazy life, it is clear the time was bittersweet for Brown.

Daughters Of Snow & Cinders GN - Nuria Tamarit

Princess Mononoke meets Jack London in this gritty, ecofeminist adventure. Fleeing the fires of her war-torn homeland, a young woman travels to the New World in search of gold to rebuild her life. In this strange, lawless land, Joana encounters friends (the kind Native women Tala and Opa), foes (the cruel gold hunter Matwei and his men), and an unexpected traveling companion who may just be her good luck charm - and amidst the icy reaches of the wilderness, a fearsome fantastical beast lurks in the shadows.

The English debut of Spanish cartoonist and illustrator Núria Tamarit, Daughters of Snow and Cinders conjures the awesome natural beauty of the frozen north in vibrant color. A rugged adventure story with two strong young women at its heart, this graphic novel offers a poignant message about the urgent need for humanity to overcome our greed and base impulses to be good stewards of the world in which we live and depend on.

The Dog Knight GN - Jeremy Whitley & Bre Indigo

A nonbinary middle schooler saves a dog from bullies and is offered the chance to become the Dog Knight, protector of a magical pact between humans and dogs, in the first book of this humorous and heartwarming middle-grade graphic novel series.

Frankie knows who they are. They're a drummer, they're nonbinary, and they're.. . the Dog Knight? One day Frankie is a relatively normal middle schooler, with relatively normal challenges, like finding the perfect outfit to wear during their upcoming drum solo. Then, they save a friendly golden retriever from bullies and wake up in a giant magical doghouse, with a funny looking helmet, talking to a group of dog superheroes called the Pawtheon. If Frankie can prove that they possess the six dog virtues of loyalty, kindness, honesty, justice, stubbornness, and smell, they will be named the Dog Knight and be given the power to fight the forces of chaos. Maybe there is more to Frankie than they thought?

The Final Girls TP - Cara Ellison & Sally Cantirino

When the world's most powerful working hero asks her retired peers for help, they secretly agree to deal out punishment on another hero in the public eye. But when the weapon of publicity is wielded, it threatens to kick up all of the personal traumas of the heroes, past and present . . . Collects the original digital series for the first time in print!

What does justice look like when violence isn't enough?

Frankenstein: New World HC - Mike Mignola & Peter Bergting

Safely tucked away inside the hollow earth where humanity survived after Ragna Rok, precocious young Lilja receives visions of a new darkness taking root on the surface. Defying her elders, Lilja awakens the timeless oracle--once known as Frankenstein--to investigate the warnings and, perhaps, even explore the new world above.

Ghostlore #1 (of 12) - Cullen Bunn, Leomacs, Brian Hurtt & Leomacs

We've all heard of ghost stories... but what stories do the ghosts themselves tell us? An estranged daughter and her pastor father wander a haunted land; they only have the restless spirits, each with its own story to tell, as company along the way. After a deadly accident of which they were the only survivors, Lucas and Harmony Agate can see the dead-an overwhelming amount of the deceased, all with their own warnings, cries for help, and malevolence alike. But Lucas and Harmony aren't the only ones with this ability; there are other nearly-deads, some of which have malicious motivations...

The Incal: The Dying Star HC - Dan Watters & Jon Davis-Hunt

Things are not going well for Commander Kaimann. Luz, the love of his life, is dead, his home of Tortuga destroyed, his crew ghostly apparitions, and his crocodilian mutation taking over more and more of his body, Commander Kaimann is fighting for his life on multiple fronts. Just when it seems like despair may overtake him, a chance encounter with a strange violin connects him to Aurora, a woman living in a future where she is staring down almost certain destruction. With his passions renewed, Kaimann hatches a bold plan to find a cure for his mutation and a future with his newfound love. However, Kaimann's past is catching up with him, and Aurora's future faces imminent doom from an approaching hostile fleet. Two timelines tick towards tragedy, and only an act of pure love can save them!

Kong: The Great War #1 - Alex Cox, Tommaso Bianchi & Bryan Hitch

The World at War! While men of all nations fight on foreign shores, an Imperial German U-Boat is lost at sea! The crew now faces terror beyond imagination! Monsters from creation's dawn! Gruesome, blood-stained death from above and below! Impossible beasts, reigning by fear and violence in the South Pacific! And looming over all, the gargantuan ape-god that knows no master! These brave men have faced death before, but now they must contend with...Kong!

Lost Falls Vol 1 TP - Curt Pires, Antonio Fuso & Pierluigi Minotti

When Detective Daniel Pynchon Wakes up in Lost Falls, on the shore with no recollection of how he got there, he struggles to piece together the events that lead him there. As he investigates the phenomenon surrounding his memory loss and the town itself, he discovers horrors both human and otherwise. Collects the original digital series for the first time in print!

Murder Inc: Jagger Rose #1 (of 6) - Brian Michael Bendis & Michael Avon Oeming

From the creators of the Eisner Award-winning, bestselling POWERS comes this brand-new world of historical crime fiction like you've never seen before. Discover a world in which the five families of organized crime never lost their stranglehold on the United States. Now, half the country is a smorgasbord of sex and sin ruled by loyalty and "family values" and the rest of the world looks on in awe, rage, or jealousy. Join us as newly "made" Valentine Gallo and Jagger Rose rise through the ranks of the notorious Bonavese family. No spoilers, but Jagger has already proven herself one of the greatest assassins of all time. And, uh, the Pope would like a word. Yeah, that Pope. Huh.

Pet Peeves GN - Nicole Goux

In this horror graphic novel, the new dog that aspiring musician Bobbie has adopted is cute, but also stealing her life. Bobbie's life is going nowhere fast. She's working at a bar, wanting to play music but never having the time or energy. The only bright spot is her dog-always cheerful, always cuddly, and always there for her. As the relentless day-in, day-out of work piles up, music and roommates and social plans begin to seem less and less important as Bobbie struggles to make rent and have any time to be creative. The only thing she has time for outside her job is her dog... and her dog is going to do everything he can to keep it that way. This debut solo graphic novel from breakout author Nicole Goux explores the struggles of a young artist, haunted not only by debt and society, but by more sinister (though adorable) canine forces.

Soloist In A Cage GN Vol 1 - Shiro Moriya

Chloe and her baby brother Locke were born in a prison the size of a city: a walled-off collection of ramshackle buildings full of dangerous criminals who live bleak and isolated lives. Their parents are gone, leaving Chloe to care for her brother. When a trio of soldiers manage to break out of the prison, Chloe goes with them but loses Locke during the escape. After years of training, Chloe returns to the prison city with one goal: to find her now 11-year-old brother and get him out of that hellhole, no matter what it takes.

Something Epic #1 - Szymon Kudranski & Tony S. Daniel

IMAGINATION IS REAL. Outside our perception, creative thought takes physical form, with only a handful of individuals known as Epics able to interact with this wondrous hidden world. But for fourteen-year-old Danny Dillon, accepting these responsibilities himself won't be easy-or safe. Lose yourself in a world of endless fantasy and creativity, where superheroes, monsters, magical creatures, and cartoon characters live and breathe alongside us.

ThunderBoom GN - Jack Briglio & Claudia Davila

Logan's going on the train to see the Santa Claus parade. Logan loves parades and trains. But Logan isn't like most 11-year-olds - he can't speak, and he mostly lives in his head. This adventure means facing his greatest fears: masks, dogs and the unknown. When he's separated from his parents at the parade, Logan goes where he's the bravest version of himself - his imagination. Transforming into superhero ThunderBoom, Logan is ready to stomp through any challenge! A fresh take on dealing with life's difficulties. Kids will be rooting for their new favorite superhero: ThunderBoom!

Twilight Out Of Focus GN Vol 1 - Nisioisin & Oh Great

Second-years Mao Tsuchiya and Hisashi Otomo make three promises: 1) That Mao will never tell anyone that Hisashi is gay and has a boyfriend, 2) That Hisashi will never think of Mao "in that way," and 3) That they'll always knock before entering, in case someone is having some "private time." The two's ground rules should ensure a peaceful life together in their dorm, but life is never as simple as it should be, and some things are not so easily promised...

We Are The Smurfs: Bright New Days! GN - Falzar Culliford, Peyo & Thierry Culliford

Welcome back to Smurf Village in the third installment of this early reader comic series! With the help of Papa Smurf, Smurfette, Hefty Smurf, and Brainy Smurf, young readers will learn how to process big feelings such as impatience, rejection, and grief, while learning how to take better care of themselves, their communities, and the Earth around them. With three all-new, full-color stories, and back matter dedicated to helping children explore and better understand their emotions, this book is the perfect option for newly independent and reluctant readers alike.

Wolf Girl & Black Prince GN Vol 1 - Ayuko Hatta

High school girl Erika may be on Kyoya’s leash, but she’s determined to break free and unleash his heart! Fed up with being hopelessly single, high schooler Erika makes up a boyfriend to fit in. When her lies start to unravel, her schoolmate Kyoya offers to be her pretend boyfriend—for a price. With no other choice, Erika finds herself at the mercy of a blackhearted prince! But is Kyoya truly as blackhearted as he seems?

Whatcha scooping up this week, Fantom Fam?

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