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sambinnie · 3 years

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1. Happy Mabon! Every autumn, I forget that the darkness comes clanging down in a great rush in the mornings. One day, I am greeted by a pinking sunrise. 48 hours later, it’s so dark on my run to the river that I have to stop a passing runner and check the time, in case my disturbed sleep sent me dressing and leaving the house at 2am. This summer may not have given us those mornings where it’s so hot I can barely get out of the water, where those early hours feel like full silent days carved out just for me to sit in the light and wait for everyone else to wake up, where the only extra thing I put on to run home is my trainers — I look at my waiting winter gear, neoprene socks and gloves, head torch, two more thickening jumpers, hat, thermal mittens — but every season, every day, is beautiful.

Today we go early for celebrations, and the water is silky, and Orion hangs over us with his phallic sword dangling and Betelgeuse winking on one shoulder. The near-full moon spotlights us and I feel almost ready for the shortening days.

2. Hilary Mantel continues to be a literary god. How does she write with that clarity? How can I ever speak with her calm good sense and wit?

3. We have two main problems at the moment, as far as I can see. a) What we’re doing (“curating” our lives; twitter spats; purity spirals; division and isolation; wanting ‘debates’ that can only be won or lost; encouraging people to buy more things; trying to buy our happiness; letting marketers tell us how we feel about the world rather than encouraging major moral lessons from throughout the ages to challenge us on our weaknesses; refusing to accept that life is suffering; asking self-care to be a plaster for everything we don’t have) and b) what we’re not doing (joining together to stand against those with more money and power; protecting the people who have even less power and voice than we do as a matter of course; learning from history; protecting nature above all else; prioritising going for walks; learning to repair things and campaigning to make things repairable; having a basic belief in human dignity for all, not just those with whom we agree; accepting that truly, we are all different and no amount of shaming or disgust will change that; working to shape our societies, culture, economies, production, food supplies and communications around improving — not just sustaining — the air, water and land, and fighting to ensure all of those new shapes protect women and children).

Individualism has morphed into something so completely self-destructive that we’ve forgotten we need nature more than anything — literally, more than anything — and we need to unionise and unite and put aside differences and work together even with people we don’t like.

Because when there are wicked people in power, when it’s genuinely exhausting to think about all the corrupt, venal, toxic, divisive, false, and cruel things they have done since coming to power, those people love to watch everyone below pointing their fingers at one another, saying, You, You’re The Enemy, You’re The Problem, while corrupt populist leaders rub their bellies and chuckle at another promise broken, another mass death on their hands, another building site on a protected forest. Do you understand the stakes here? Do you understand that it’s actual survival? It’s not about being right any more, it’s not about besting someone in the argument. It’s about having decision makers who can not only ensure there is still food to eat and air to breathe, but that relations both within a country and between countries are built on care, and support, and compassion, and believing in human dignity. And while it sounds wishy-washy and hands-clappy it’s the schmaltzy, sentimental truth. It’s the only one, really.

If we instead continue to believe every single day that my feelings are the most important, that my beliefs are the right ones, that I’ve got to prove those baddies there are evil and awful and wrong, then honestly, what the fuck? If we’re happy to live in a country where hostile architecture is the starting point for all public builds, where we send refugee boats away from our shores, where affiliate links are a career goal, where we haven’t stormed the Daily Mail offices with accounts of all our lovely immigrant friends and family and had a huge feast together and compared our long and tangled family trees, then come on. It’s only a race to the bottom if we all keep running.

Because, pressingly, whatever the spark of a major global conflict — assassination, fuel shortages, hyperinflation, invasion — the kindling is almost always a populace fed pure hatred for months, for years, until they can’t even taste it anymore but are ready to spew it out again, and are ready to use another populace as the receptacle. And hatred is brewed up in silence and isolation, and in the ashes of bridges burned between disparate groups.

And on that note, I’m not a conspiracy theorist, mainly because I don’t believe governments are generally competent enough to manage Grand Plans, but it’s annoying that technology and social trends and culture have developed in such a way that no one knocks on anyone’s door for a chat as a matter of course now, that it’s a given that a ringing phone triggers anxiety, that it’s not the norm for cups of tea with your neighbours, that we don’t know each other’s neighbourhoods, that we don’t even talk on the phone, with live words and intonation and synchronised laughter, but in text, in WhatsApp chats, in tapped out words and symbols that we know can be screen-grabbed and misinterpreted, that we know are kept, filtered and sold by the tech companies. It’s not a conspiracy. It’s just a reality that every single one of us can choose to do differently.

Sometimes exactly the right thing comes along at the right time. All of us here watched About a Boy at the weekend, a film which is so wonkily weighted and oddly rhythmed, but a perfect depiction of everything I’m banging on about here. Hugh Grant’s character likes being alone. He’s happy that way. It suits him. It’s his choice. Then, between one thing and another, he finds himself drawn into a world of a suicidal single mother, a duck-murdering young boy, more single mothers, more tricky teens, plus exes and mothers-in-law and awkward support groups. And it turns out that actually, being with people is better. Being uncomfortable often develops you as a person. Constantly prioritising only yourself produces a waxen, pointless baby. Making shared sacrifices might just be the point of being alive. Remember that to be human is to be flawed. That no one is ever completely right, and no one is ever completely wrong. That the boring stuff makes us feel good, and the glossy stuff, if all we strive for is gloss, doesn’t.

If you want anything practical, here are the things that have really helped me over the last few years:

Writing a letter or email regularly to my MP, to CEOs of organisations, to anyone I want to communicate my strong feelings and how I’d like things to be done better. Tweeting eats your soul. It’s a horrible myth the media pretends is important. It really, really isn’t.

Inviting people to go in front of me in queues, in traffic, getting on to buses and trains. It lowers my stress levels right down.

Learning the names of my neighbours and people I meet regularly on walks and letting them learn mine. (I definitely haven’t just decided I loathe a neighbour because they cut a bird-hatching tree down in their garden on the last day of the year it was legal to do so. It’s fine.)

Joining a few political parties, and the closest thing I have to a union

Making something, anything — everything can be done with love, and learning to not get sucked into the capitalist conceit of having to make it perfect, sellable, exhibitable is a genuine gift to yourself; making a cake or a film or a coaster and not putting it on social media, letting it be ugly or serviceless and loving it anyway. I felt extremely overwhelmed the other evening, but instead of doom-scrolling I knitted a… I don’t know, something flat and woollen, and it helped to have my hands and eyes working on directionless introspective creation.

Trying to stop hating. Every time I want to tell a negative story in my head about someone, I attempt to turn it into something positive: how unhappy that person must be, what they must be missing out on. It’s so nauseatingly Pollyanna-ish, and of course it isn’t always successful, and of course every single day brings a hundred thousand examples of cruelty and injustice and wickedness, but the alternative only makes my life feel worse, so why would I indulge that?

Teaching myself the names of birds, trees, flowers, clouds and constellations. I’m still at the most basic levels on all of these, but the difference one feels in the world when you can name things — let alone use them and know their stories — is a very real sort of magic. (For that reason I hope to read this book very soon.) This episode of The Cut is also good on the wonder and power of learning the names of the weeds that grow in your nearest pavement crack.

4. Creating anything is always a gamble, isn’t it, but writing a book you actually like for once and seeing it slowly and beautifully sink to the bottom of a river never to be seen again is ever so slightly crushing. However, it turns out even Thom Yorke feels that way, so I am comforted.

5. I’m sure I’ve mentioned plenty of these before, but if you want some suggestions of where to find joy, here are my favourites from the last year or so:

I was given Lucy Easthope’s book, When the Dust Settles, for work recently, and I was surprised and delighted to discover the most uplifting, hopeful, human and rightfully angry book I’ve read in a long time. Do yourself a favour and preorder it. I bought this other book for my own birthday, gave it to a housemate to give to me, forgot about it, and was delighted to later unwrap He Used Thought As A Wife. Laughed a lot, cried twice. Marvellous.

Now even the youngest housemate here can recite John Finnemore sketches and sing the songs. Has also taught them various composers, gods, logical fallacies and gothic story tropes. Also v funny. Oh, Kate Beaton! Her two books (Hark! A Vagrant and Step Aside Pops) are a bit like a comic-book version of Finnemore, but swearier and sexier and utterly unsuitable for all the housemates who have read it and been educated about the Brontes, Katherine Sui Fun Cheung, Tom Longboat, Nancy Drew, Ida B. Wells, Sacagawea, and the Borgias.

Had to give Inside a restraining order against me for the sake of us all, but Bo Burnham’s Eighth Grade is a masterpiece of writing, acting, sound design and optimism. Spy is dumb action comedy polished to perfection, and Yasujirō Ozu’s Good Morning seems like the inspiration for almost all US arthouse films since 1990, and is also beautiful, funny, thoughtful, and good.

Taylor Swift’s Evermore, like all brilliant albums, isn’t completely perfect. But most of the songs are. And Hole’s classic Live Through This is still just ideal for turning up very, very loud after a tricky day, for the enjoyment of any neighbours who may have hacked down a bird-friendly tree on the last day of February.

Watched both series of Liam Williams’ Ladhood when I had a week off this summer, and really relished the location, the intention, and the writing. More please.

Miles Jupp and Justin Edwards continue to be my comforting bedtime listening in In and Out of the Kitchen. Has it ruined Nigel Slater for me? Well, a bit, but no more than any of us deserved.

I thought this would be a book I’d mumble through the first chapter of, then let get buried in my To Read pile, never to re-open. Instead, I found Whatever Happened to Margo? laugh-out-loud funny, drily written, and full of humanity. Excellent Women has made me want to read everything written by Barbara Pym, a goal I am slowly but surely working towards.

6. I’ve spent the last few years trying to find hazelnut trees, and finally found a copse between a car park and a play area, full of nuts the squirrels hadn’t noticed. Now I’ve found them, the spell has been cast and I see hazel trees everywhere, on walks and on pavements and running along motorway slip roads. A tray of green and brown frilled hazelnuts now dries with the laundry. They are so beautiful.

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keplercryptids · 4 years

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how to read more!

hi, i read a lot of books! last year i read 150 books, and this year i’m on track to read 100 more. i’m also a pretty low-spoons disabled person with chronic pain and untreated adhd. lots of people ask me how i read so much so i thought i’d compile some tips.

disclaimer: i don’t have any learning disabilities that impair reading, and with certain workarounds, my adhd doesn’t really hinder my reading either (but please don’t ask me to sit through a movie, i can’t and i won’t). so what works for me may not work for you. just keep in mind that your mileage with these tips will likely vary!

1. audiobooks!

seriously, these are a huge help. if you’re a podcast listener, try subbing out some podcasts for audiobooks every so often. you can download the libby app for free on your phone and get tons of audiobooks from your local library. thanks to adhd, it’s really hard for me to sit and listen without doing anything else, so i like to do chores (especially cooking/laundry/folding clothes), color, do crafty things, play phone games etc while i listen. i know some folks who listen to audiobooks as they read along with a physical book which also may work for some of you.

as a note, my brain won’t let me get into audiobooks of certain genres. i prefer poetry, lyrical prose and nonfiction in audio formats. so that’s something to consider, you may have a genre preference when it comes to audiobooks. follow your bliss.

2. your mood matters.

this is key for me. i am a huge mood reader and i’ve learned that forcing myself to read something i’m not enjoying will ensure that i entirely stop reading everything forever. let yourself put a book down if you’re not liking it. there are millions of books out there! life is too short to read one you’re not loving.

also, i cannot read when i’m stressed. lots of people read to chill out when they’re anxious or upset, and i am NOT one of those people (which is why i fully did not read from ages 18-23 lmao). if you only ever attempt to read when you’re stressed out and find yourself struggling, that could be why. obviously there isn’t a simple solution to this, but taking care of your mental health first is important.

3. if you used to read a lot but struggle to do so now, your reading tastes may have changed.

5-10 years ago, pretty much all i read was literary fiction. so when i tried to get into reading again a few years ago and struggled, part of the reason why was because i’m just not that into literary fiction anymore. i’m much more into adult fantasy and scifi, and it took awhile for me to realize that. if it’s been awhile since you’ve read a lot, try out new-to-you genres.

4. ebooks are good books.

this should really be higher on the list because it’s the #1 thing that’s helped me read more. i have a kindle, and fuck amazon, but i literally only use it for library books and ebooks from indie publishers. the convenience of being able to download pretty much any book i want from the library and start reading immediately, as often as my mood demands, has been critical for both my reading habits and my wallet. last year, 60+ of the books i read were library ebooks.

this is another way of saying, find a format that works for you. i know some people who can only read books on their phones in between doing other things, which sounds like a literal hellscape for me, but you do you!

5. try reading at a certain time of day.

this could totally backfire for some of you, and i don’t always stick to this, but reading as part of my routine (right after breakfast, after i walk the dogs until dinnertime, right before bed) helps me. especially if routines help you with your adhd, this is something that could be useful.

that’s what i got for now! i may add more if i think of them. feel free to add tips and tricks that have worked for you! happy reading you beautiful bookworms.

#jd.txt #booktalk #reading #actually adhd #long text

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hollymbryan · 3 years

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Blog Tour + #Review: BRIARHEART by Mercedes Lackey (w/ #giveaway)!

Welcome to Book-Keeping! I’m thrilled today to be part of the Rockstar Book Tours blog tour for Briarheart by Mercedes Lackey. I’ve got all the details for you below, plus my review and a great giveaway, so let’s get started!

About the Book

title: Briarheart author: Mercedes Lackey publisher: Little Brown BFYR release date: 5 October 2021

From a beloved fantasy author comes this fresh feminist retelling of Sleeping Beauty about one girl destined for greatness—and the powerful sister ready to protect her by any means necessary.

Miriam may be the daughter of Queen Alethia of Tirendell, but she's not a princess. She's the child of Alethia and her previous husband, the King's Champion, who died fighting for the king, and she has no ambitions to rule. When her new baby sister Aurora, heir to the throne, is born, she's ecstatic. She adores the baby, who seems perfect in every way. But on the day of Aurora's christening, an uninvited Dark Fae arrives, prepared to curse her, and Miriam discovers she possesses impossible power. Soon, Miriam is charged with being trained in both magic and combat to act as chief protector to her sister. But shadowy threats are moving closer and closer to their kingdom, and Miriam's dark power may not be enough to save everyone she loves, let alone herself.

About the Author

MERCEDES LACKEY is the acclaimed author of over fifty novels and many works of short fiction. In her "spare" time she is also a professional lyricist and a licensed wild bird rehabilitator. Mercedes lives in Oklahoma with her husband and frequent collaborator, artist Larry Dixon, and their flock of parrots.

My 3.5-Star Review

I have never read a book by Mercedes Lackey before - which honestly is kind of shocking given my age and my love of fantasy - so I was excited to sign up for the tour of Briarheart, a retelling of Sleeping Beauty that focuses not on Aurora herself but on her older half-sister, Miriam. In fact, Aurora is just a baby in this book, and when a Dark Fae shows up to her christening to curse her, fifteen year old Miriam vows to become her protector. The story is thus about Miriam’s love for her little sister, training with her newfound friends to become Aurora’s Companions, and discovering that she has both fae and human magic.

While Miriam is supposed to be fifteen, I did feel she read a little younger than that, and I think upper middle grade readers would really enjoy this story. It definitely feels like a book on the cusp of middle grade and young adult, and in this way actually reminds me of Holly Black’s Sleeping Beauty retelling that released in 2019, Heart of the Moors. I think younger readers will love the descriptions of the Light and Dark Fae, the magical talking animals, and the friendship that blossoms between Miri and the rest of the Companions. It’s also a quick read and not too difficult for middle grade readers. There was just a little something missing for me, something more that I wanted from the story.

I have a feeling this will end up being a series, as there’s so much left open and, obviously, Aurora hasn’t grown up to become Sleeping Beauty yet. Put this one in the hands of middle grade readers who want to venture into YA and young readers who love fairy tale retellings!

Rating: 3.5 stars

**Disclosure: I received a copy of the book from the publisher for purpose of this blog tour. This review is voluntary on my part and reflects my honest rating and review of the book.

About the Giveaway

Three (3) lucky winners will each receive a finished copy of Briarheart by Mercedes Lackey! This one is US only and ends 18 October 2021. Enter via the Rafflecopter below, and good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

About the Tour

Tomorrow is the final day of the tour, but here is the full tour schedule so you can go back and check out any content you have missed.

Week One:

10/4/2021 - Kait Plus Books - Excerpt 10/5/2021 - BookHounds YA - Excerpt 10/6/2021 - Rajiv's Reviews - Review 10/7/2021 - Devouring Books - Review 10/8/2021 - BookBriefs - Review

Week Two:

10/11/2021 - Thepagesinbetween - Review 10/12/2021 - The Momma Spot - Review 10/13/2021 - History from a Woman’s Perspective - Review 10/14/2021 - Book-Keeping - Review 10/15/2021 - @momfluenster - Review

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toomuchtimenerd · 4 years

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Reviews for 3 New Adult Novels

So I got a little bored and decided to take a short break from YA fantasy. I spent a good amount of time browsing the Kindle Unlimited catalog (I very recently found out that even if you don’t pay for Kindle Unlimited these books are still much cheaper than others. It’s like $3-4 for a book compared to the usual 9.99. Incredible). During my search, I came across the New Adult genre (seriously - why is Kindle Unlimited FILLED with NA books?) and because I’ve been needing to obsess over some steamy romance lately I picked up two of the most angsty NA books I could find plus one that simply had stellar reviews on Goodreads. And then I proceeded to finish all three books within about a week. To top it off, two of these books are like 700-page novels. It’s amazing how much one can accomplish when you have literally nothing better to do with your life, isn’t it? Yes, I am poking fun at myself. But it’s all temporary. I’m going to actually try my best to keep these three reviews as spoiler-free as possible, for once.

I’m going to start with Devious Lies by Parker Huntington, as that is the first NA book I finished reading this week. So this 700 page behemoth of a book features your standard enemies-to-lovers with a little bit of suspense/mystery added in for flavor. Oh, and sprinkled with some SERIOUS angst and brooding on top. It also features an age-gap romance, and is slow-burn. Devious Lies is basically about rich girl Emery Winthrop who, at 18 years old, is forced to forgo her rich girl life when her father goes under investigation for embezzlement and subsequently goes in hiding. When the embezzlement is leaked, this basically screws over everyone who’s employed by Emery’s father and everyone who invested stocks in his company. This includes a HUGE amount of people in the southern town Emery grew up in. This also includes the Prescott brothers, Reed and Nash. Reed is the boy that Emery had the biggest crush on her entire life, but Nash is ultimately the main love interest and POV that we see aside from Emery’s.

After the whole embezzlement thing which is a huge factor leading to Nash’s father’s death, Nash is pretty much hellbent on seeking revenge on the Winthrops. By the time the story really gets going, Nash is in his 30s and has essentially built a multi-billion dollar enterprise and of course is one hell of an angsty playboy. Emery is around 22 years old, fresh out of college (paid for by herself) and gets hooked up with a job working for Nash. Nash finds out, and makes it his life goal to make Emery’s life as difficult as possible while trying to find out where her dad is hiding. The entire story is about the progression of their relationship and the secrets surrounding the embezzlement.

So this is probably one of the better angsty love stories I’ve ever read. And that’s saying a lot because I’ve never liked angst all that much (tried it with The Cruel Prince and although I really didn’t like it I actually have been considering giving that trilogy another chance). Angst is usually so... unbelievably NOT well written at all b/c I feel like angsty characters are just angsty without a good enough backstory to defend it. This tends to be more so prominent in contemporary romance novels, or maybe that’s just because I’m a lot pickier when it comes to contemporary romance. But for Devious Lies, I think Huntington does a pretty good job at charging the main characters with believable and understandable angst. Nash grew up almost in poverty and his dad literally worked himself to death while watching trust-fund baby Emery grow up like a southern princess. The embezzlement destroyed Nash’s dad, so I can see why he blames the entirety of the Winthrop family for the hardships he faced growing up. Not to mention, Nash’s life story is the embodiment of a rags-to-riches story so of course he’s going to look down on Emery who supposedly gets millions of dollars per month just from her trust fund.

Devious Lies is told from two alternating POVS, Emery & Nash, and I think the scene I anticipated the most was when Nash found out that Emery isn’t getting a single penny out of her trust fund and that Emery is actually living in poverty and working to survive, not out of boredom. We know that Emery’s life is incredibly tough from the very beginning, considering her family name is tainted and she owes student loans on top of helping fund someone else’s college tuition. Nash doesn’t find out about this until maybe past the halfway point of the book, and for me that was probably my favorite part of the entire book - the realization of how much of a complete ass he’s been to her and how she really is the last person who deserved to be targeted by his thirst for vengeance. This is also when their relationship hits a major turning point and finally dips out of the ‘enemies’ part of enemies-to-lovers.

I think my biggest issue with Devious Lies is how unnecessarily long it is. I think it could absolutely be cut down to around 400 pages, since there were a lot of chapters (especially in the very beginning) that could’ve been very easily abridged or completely left out. The first several chapters covers major events from before Emery goes to college and Nash strikes rich, and from what I can tell these chapters are there to lay out character foundations. But Huntington really could have made these SO MUCH shorter and gotten to the actual story way quicker without sacrificing any character building. Just my two cents, although it seems like most reviewers on Goodreads agree with me over this regard. So despite some unnecessary chapters or parts that could have been left out, I think I’d still give this book a solid 4/5 simply because the author managed to write contemporary romantic angst without making me want to die of second-hand embarrassment. Not to mention, the big plot twists near the end of the story were quite well written and totally worth sticking around for in my opinion.

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Second book is The Wall of Winnipeg and Me by Mariana Zapata. Apparently Zapata is like a god at writing sports romance, and this book was rated #1 on some kind of Goodreads list plus it was like 4 bucks or something so of course I had to check it out. This large book is around 600+ pages, but out of the three books that I’m reviewing in this post today this is DEFINITELY my favorite one of the three. I haven’t read a sports romance since I was 15 and obsessed with the Escape to New Zealand series, so I honestly didn’t know what to expect from this outside of mega muscle dudes and steamy sex scenes with said mega muscle dudes. But this book managed to exceed whatever I was expecting AND to my surprise only had one actual full-blown sex scene. Which was very tactfully placed and made for a beautiful end to a truly slow-burn romance. And by truly, I mean seriously truly slow-burn. My god, I don’t think I’ve ever read a slow-burn as freaking slow as this one. But wow it was so worth the snail pacing of their relationship. Speaking of the relationship, I need to talk about our two main characters.

We’ve got Vanessa who is super in debt and has been working as a famous football player’s (Aiden) assistant in every way possible for two years by the start of the story. She finally has enough in her savings to quit and focus on her graphic design freelance career, so she leaves and over a month later her boss is at her door asking her to marry him so he could get his US citizenship. The rest of the story is about the progression of their relationship after they get married and move in with each other. Unfortunately this book was written solely in Vanessa’s POV, and I say unfortunately because I would’ve really loved to have some Aiden POV chapters too. He’s not exactly a hardcore brooder, but he’s also not super open about himself either so at times it was REALLY hard to gauge what was going on in his brain. Despite this fact, it became really obvious that he was falling for Vanessa because he started doing more and more stuff for her as their relationship progressed. There were so two scenes in particular where all he did was just show up and be endearingly supportive and I was ready to bawl my eyes out over how uplifting it all was.

The Wall of Winnipeg and Me is just one hell of an uplifting and puts-a-smile-on-your-face type of romance. It’s incredibly slow, and at some parts you may be like “oh my god jUST KISS ALREADY!” but when it all inevitably falls in place by the end you will realize just how worth it the ride was. Zapata does an amazing job of portraying a really healthy loving relationship where both members are just so supportive of each other and genuinely want the best for each other. They are actually relationship goals!! I was actually kind of SAD when I finished this book because despite the happy ending I just needed more wholesomeness. And even more unfortunately, there is no sequel and there is no add-on telling the story from Aiden’s POV. So for anyone who’s looking for a healthy dose of wholesomeness, wants something to tug at their heartstrings, and doesn’t mind just a little bit of sex, this book is 5/5 perfection.

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Last book will be one that I just finished reading about an hour ago, The Kiss Thief by L.J. Shen. Now this one I kind of had to debate on for a little bit before I ultimately decided to read it. I found it on Goodreads around the same time I found The Wall of Winnipeg and Me, but after reading its synopsis the first time I got a little bit turned off by it. Not sure why, and I’m not sure what changed my mind but I ended up giving it a try earlier this afternoon and well well well what do you know I ended up reading it all in almost one sitting. The Kiss Thief, like the previous two books I reviewed in this post, is also a New Adult book (with more graphic scenes than Deviant Lies actually) featuring an enemies-to-lovers relationship between a 19-year-old daughter of a mobster and a 30-year-old US senator. Yep, that’s an 11-year age gap right there. Probably one of the most drastic age gaps I’ve seen in a book, but hey I guess some people are into those. The Chicago mobster’s daughter is named Francesca, and her dad gives her away to Wolfe Keaton for marriage due to reasons that become apparent much later on in the book. This book not only depicts the progression of Francesca and Wolfe’s relationship, but also of Francesca’s growth from a sheltered child into a woman.

Francesca pretty much grew up as a princess, went to an elite boarding school in Europe for most of her life, and was super sheltered. To top it all off, she belonged to an incredibly old-fashioned “traditional” family where women were not expected to go to college but instead stayed at home and pumped out heirs while their husbands told them what to do. Francesca basically grew up her whole life thinking this was her destiny, along with marrying her childhood crush Angelo. But she gets thrown into Wolfe’s arms pretty quickly and early on in the book, and all hell breaks loose as these two absolutely chaotic crackheads go head-to-head with each other. Wolfe is seeking vengeance (why are all the angsty romance novels always centered around seeking revenge?) over something Francesca’s father did, while Francesca just wants to go home and be with Angelo. But things start to change when Francesca realizes Wolfe is actually willing to offer her certain freedoms that her father would never allow. Some of these freedoms include learning how to drive and going to college.

While Wolfe is ultimately the hero to our heroine, he’s such an asshat for maybe the first 50% of the book. He’s broken (just like every single male love interest in every single book ever) for reasons that occurred in his past, he’s hell bent on revenge, and he’s vowed to never take a wife or fall in love. Obviously this all changes once he is engaged to Francesca, whose own stubbornness, willpower, and innocence takes him on one hell of a roller coaster of emotions. These two, and their relationship, are incredibly explosive but good god half the time they are SO toxic for each other. Their relationship is like the epitome of that one couple you know where they keep breaking up and getting back together again, or they keep getting into fights due to miscommunication, or they keep cheating on each other because the other did it first. When their relationship is good it’s pretty dang good, but when it goes south everything just turns into a living nightmare. I definitely wouldn’t recommend this book to people who are easily triggered by toxic relationships (and I mean truly emotionally toxic relationships), but outside of that it’s definitely not a bad read at all. The progression of Francesca and Wolfe’s relationship is actually relatively unique because it’s anything but linear. There are so many ups and so many downs, which makes the peaking points even more heart-wrenching in my opinion. Especially towards the end, the scene between Wolfe and Francesca’s father. Oh god, my heart couldn’t take it anymore. After this book I’m going to need to find a nice YA fantasy book that tones down the romance. And the steaminess, because The Kiss Thief definitely had PLENTY of those. I think of the three books I reviewed in this post, The Kiss Thief is the most graphic (although tbh I think its sex scenes are the most well written of the three). I’m thinking this book gets a 4/5 from me because while it’s good, I didn’t think there was anything about it that made it really special for me. It simply told an entertaining story, it had a unique progression of enemies-to-lovers, and the character progression of the heroine was fairly believable.

In conclusion I recommend Devious Lies and The Kiss Thief for those looking for an angsty romance, and The Wall of Winnipeg and Me for those looking for wholesome slow-burn that will leave your heart feeling kinda fuzzy.

#book reviews #new adult #devious lies #parker huntington #the wall of winnipeg and me #mariana zapata #the kiss thief #lj shen #contemporary romance #romance #slow burn romance #enemies-to-lovers

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riding-alpacas · 4 years

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The definition of wind

Let's see what Google says when you search for a definition of wind:

Wind is the perceptible natural movement of the air, especially in the form of a current of air blowing from a particular direction.

My definition so far has been something like this:

Wind is when your clothes are flapping in the air and it's generally harder to move forward.

Now, after hiking the O circuit, this is my new definition:

Wind is when rain covers detach from high-quality backpacks, rain jackets rip apart, people blow over like sandwich boards and experienced hikers crawl on all fours in a desperate effort to move a little forward.

And whilst I've literally been blown away in the last 8 days, figuratively I'm not.

Let's start with a look at a map. The O circuit and the W trek are multi-day hikes through the Torres del Paine National Park. Most people do the popular W trek which usually takes 3 to 4 days and can be walked in both directions. The W trek is also part of the bigger O circuit which can only be walked in anti-clockwise direction due to the windy John Gardner Pass. The O circuit usually takes between 7 and 10 days and is considered to be a bit less crowded due to a limited number of permitted hikers in the Northern section.

How the O and the W are connected

When researching the O circuit (or "the O") I found lots of different descriptions, but most of them included words like "challenging", "demanding", "rewarding", "remote" and "breathtaking". Obviously this caught my attention and soon I was in the complicated process of trying to book campsites along the trail. This turned out to be quite difficult and the fact that the camps are managed by three different organisations that don't talk to each other didn't make it any easier. Then I stumbled upon an alluring offer: Pay someone to book all campsites for you, have the tents already set up and be fed in the mountain huts (or refugios) along the way. Given that I wanted to enjoy Mother Nature as much as possible, I like minimalistic travelling and I had some cash at hand, I decided to take up that offer. The only downside was that the first part of the hike would be guided and I expected that this would cause some issues due to different walking paces. At the same time it's always nice to have someone that you can ask questions about flora, fauna and the history of the park.

Fast forward I found myself in a great hostel in Puerto Natales - the closest town to Torres del Paine - packing my 24 litre daypack for the big trip. Some people found it hard to believe that I'd do the O with this little backpack, even though I didn't have to carry a tent and food. And everybody else from our group had at least a 50 litre pack. But I can already spoil that it worked perfectly fine. Seriously, you simply don't need so much stuff, you just need the right stuff. This is all I took:

Sleeping bag (5° and I should have taken a warmer one)

2 breathable shirts as a base layer (wearing one)

Fleece jacket

Insulated jacket

One pair of convertible, water-resistant hiking pants (wearing)

2 pairs of Merino wool socks, one thick, one thin (wearing one)

2 pairs of Merino wool undies (wearing one)

Rain jacket

Windbreaker

Beanie

Bush hat

Buff (one of my most valuable pieces of gear, it's so ridiculously versatile)

Waterproof gloves

Camera

A big, big power bank

Kindle

Sunnies

Toothbrush

Toothpaste

Deodorant

Small soap bar

Small towel

Insulin pens

Glucometer

Glucose tablets

A few protein bars

Headlamp

Inflatable solar lantern

Flip flops

Water bottle

Steripen

The key is to have clothes that are quick-drying, breathable and have as much Merino in it as possible. People might be grossed out by the thought of wearing the same underwear for multiple days but it really isn't a problem. Merino wool is antibacterial and it takes ages for it to smell, it is perfectly fine.

Let's move on to the actual hike: Our group consisted of five people and our infectiously cheerful guide Debbie. The other four were Gail & Alisha from England and Julie-Dodd & Marie-Laurie from the States. Walking pace was definitely an issue from day one. Gail and I were the fastest walkers, Alisha a little in between, Julie-Dodd and Marie-Laurie were the slowest. We never really got into the same rhythm as a group which turned things into a bit of a stop-and-go activity for me. But as I said before: I expected this and could live with it.

The first three days were generally a bit unspectacular. The trail was fairly flat and we mostly walked along some beautiful coloured rivers & lakes through picturesque valleys. Things got a little more interesting on day three when we started to see a few glaciers in the distance which gave us a first taste of the famous Southern Patagonian Ice Field. Wheatherwise it was fairly sunny on day one but it became gradually more cloudy and windy. We also had a few periods of rain and the mornings were quite cold, so all layers of our clothing were used all the time.

Paine River

Mountains that separate Chile and Argentina

Did I mention that I like a good waterfall?

Lago Dickson

The wind was particularly strong on the lookouts. To our amusement, one Canadian couple put it quite nicely when we got to a point where I didn't want to pull out my camera because I was concerned the wind would take it. The girl was yelling to the guy:

This is not a good place to make a sandwich.

This line became a running gag for the rest of the trip.

At the end of day three we got up close to a glacier for the first time and the wind picked up again noticeably. Debbie told us that the next day would be quite challenging: Fierce winds and lots of rain was forecasted and there was a high chance that the John Gardner Pass - which we were supposed to cross - could be closed. She suggested to start early. Not only did we have to hike 1,200 metres up, we also had to hike about 22 kilometres to our next camp.

Glacier Los Perros

The host of the refugio overslept, so after a very sparse breakfast we hit the trail at about 5am. It already started raining and we spent the first hour walking in the dark through a muddy forrest before getting to an exposed & rocky area above the tree line. The rain turned into a mix of hail and snow and the wind pushed us all to the limits. It was here that the first rain covers flew off and people started being blown over. Gail, Alisha and I had to take quite a few breaks to wait for the other two to catch up. As a result we became very cold very quickly and Debbie noticed that we simply can't continue as a group. Even though I had my full waterproof layer on, most of my clothes were soaked in water - the rain was simply too much. The only thing that was dry were my hands, so it looks like my gloves are my most reliable piece of gear (a rather unresearched purchase from Amazon about a year ago). My feet were soaking wet and due to the wind chill became so cold that I couldn't feel my toes anymore.

Debbie sent us three ahead and it definitely helped that we didn't have to stop anymore. I wouldn't go so far to say that we were warm, we were just less cold. When we reached the top plateau of the pass we battled a constant stream of 100 km/h wind. It. Was. Unreal. And surely not a good place to make a sandwich...

Every step became a hard push - this wasn't walking anymore, this was a full-on pulling rope exercise. Alisha fell on her knees, all of us were walking bending over trying to give the wind as less surface as possible. Reaching the main pillar I climbed it with a victorious feeling but this thing was far from over. Getting to the other side we had an astonishing view of the Southern Patagonian Ice Field but we had absolutely no time to enjoy it or even take a little photo. I didn't feel my feet anymore and had to start running downhill for about 10 to 15 minutes in an effort to get warm. I reached some shelter behind some bush, the bush turned back into forest, we were finally much more protected and it became a lot warmer now. My toes came back to life and for the first time we were able to properly speak to each other again. There was a sense of achievement in the air, we hugged each other, we felt like we went through something together. At this point Alisha noticed that my rain jacket wasn't in as good spirits as I was: The hood and parts of the upper back got totally ripped apart. The irony is that I thought about replacing it before the trip but I figured it would do it for one more year.

What's left of my rain jacket

For the remainder of the walk, the massive Glacier Grey stayed on our right and we finally had some time to stop and snap some pictures. We had a rest at a ranger station and waited for the others to catch up. When they arrived, they told us their story and apparently they had to tuck their arms into each other and crawl over the pass. Later we heard that the pass was indeed closed a few hours later and the wind gusts were around 120 km/h. Needless to say that this was the bloody highlight of the whole trip. Unfortunately we don't have any photos from this epic crossing, so I really hope these memories will stay in my head for quite some time and Alzheimer's won't get me too early.

Southern Patagonian Ice Field

Glacier Grey

To our luck the rain started easing up after the pass and the rest of the day was quite cruisy. We crossed a few nice suspension bridges before reaching our camp for the night. You could clearly feel that we now joined the W trek. It was quite busy and the refugio even had a little café with couches and stuff. I wanted to treat myself with a hot chocolate and realised that all my cash that I took with me was gone. I only used a little bit for a hot drink on day one, after that I didn't take my wallet out again. Which meant that someone must have gotten into my tent on one of the other campsites and stolen my cash. I have to say that it was also partly my own fault. Whenever I arrived at my tent, I completely unpacked my bag and spread everything out for easy access. If somebody opened the tent, it would have been a five second job to take out the money. It is a shame though - the back area of the park wasn't crazy busy and it felt a bit like we were all a big family moving from camp to camp. Debbie was also shocked and it turned out that some other people from other groups had some of their stuff stolen, too. I was way too trusting.

This crazy day was also our last day with a guide: The next morning Debbie would leave us and each of us would continue at our own pace.

Debbie drew a little comic for me as a farewell

For day 5 I didn't have any high expectations. On paper it did look like a rest day with only 11 kilometres to walk and not many highlights on the map. But it turned out to be quite interesting. Most of the trail led through exposed areas which I like a lot more than forest. There were wonderful views of Lake Grey and the surrounding mountains but it was still super windy and I couldn't stay long on any of the many many lookouts.

Glacier and Lago Grey

Bye bye Glacier Grey

Hello Lake Pehoe

Day 6 was another big day with more than 20 kilometres to hike. It was the middle part of the "W": French Valley. The first section was quite steep and rocky but the reward was worth it. Reaching the first lookout I had a wonderful view of the valley to the left and the French Glacier to the right. Moving on, the trail became less steep and I barely felt that I was still going up. The second lookout offered another stunning view of the mountains further back. What a lovely little side trip.

Beautiful mountains everywhere

Lake Pehoe

Los Cuernos

French Glacier

Close to Mirador Británico

French Valley

On my way back down I stumbled upon Alisha who started the day a bit earlier than I. The one word that comes to mind when having to describe her condition would be kaputt. She had very sore muscles (or a muscle hangover as Germans would say) and as it turned out later also had two gigantic blisters on her heels. I decided to walk with her until we would reach camp trying to support her mentally as much as possible. The five minutes strategy from Snatch didn't work very well by the way.

To our surprise the trail was leading down to one of these wonderful glacial lakes and we even walked along its pebbly beach for a few metres. We ended at my favourite campsite of the trek (Los Cuernos). It was very close to shore, the showers were fantastic and the buildings quite rustic with great food (the portions were way too small though). Ironically I did not sleep very well at all that night. The wind picked up again in the afternoon and strong gusts woke me up again and again. At times I thought the tent would take off and I'd fly to the Torres. When we walked past the lake earlier, the wind was actually whirling up water which almost looked like little tornadoes. Fascinating to see.

Nice pebbles

youtube

A bit of wind

I have to say a few more words about the water (again). I'm now at a point where I would say that the water here is the best water I ever drank in my entire life. Usually I like to add a little bit of flavour when I drink plain water but here I just couldn't get enough of it. If there is one thing that I will miss most about this place it is the ability to just go to one of these natural taps and drink this wonderful water. My Steripen was only used a couple of times when I knew that there were lots of horses in the area, other than that I never had to treat it at all.

One of the many natural taps

The seventh day was another rest day with only 11 kilometres to walk. Gail and I decided to walk it together and for the majority of the time the trail was just parallel to Lake Nordenskjöld. Towards the end we took a turn at another lake that was named after my second-last car (Inge) before getting back to where it all started about a week ago.

Lake Nordenskjöld

There were a few mountains around

More Lake Nordensköld

The last day was reserved for the hike up to the towers that the park is so famous for. I was hoping that we'd have a clear morning, in which case I would have started in the middle of the night to see the Torres at sunrise - unfortunately the forecast said it would be a cloudy morning, so I rejected that idea. It was supposed to clear up during the day though. A lot of people do this hike as a day hike due to its proximity to the main entrance of the park. I wanted to at least avoid these crowds, so I started two hours before they arrived, hoping for some solitude. It kind of worked. There were already quite a few people on the trail when I made my way up but it was a lot less compared to the masses of people I encountered on my way back. And the forecast was actually true: When I arrived at the base of the towers, it was still a bit cloudy but when I left, I managed to snap a photo of all three towers not being surrounded by clouds. The whole way down it was finally super sunny and I soaked up the much needed sunbeams like a sponge. The towers itself were absolutely breathtaking and I highly enjoyed just sitting there, starring at them for two hours. As you might sense there actually weren't that many jaw-dropping moments during the hike as I originally hoped for, but this was definitely one of them.

The famous towers

On the way back

I guess the first bus has arrived

Beautiful water

What a lovely last day it was

All in all I am a little torn about the O. My expectations were definitely a lot higher in terms of everything. I expected it to be a lot more challenging but most days were actually quite cruisy. I also expected it to be a lot more remote - in reality you would never have to wait longer than 5 to 10 minutes until you'd see another human being, even on the back side. Another expectation I had was more wow moments. Don't get me wrong, it is absolutely beautiful and this is complaining on a very high level but I was very rarely blown away by what I saw. Would I do it again? Probably not. Was it still worth it? I think so.

To wrap it up, I quickly wanted to list my top positive surprises and top disappointments.

Top 3 positive surprises:

I fell in love with glaciers

Walking along the beach of Lake Nordenskjöld on the way to Los Cuernos

The hot chocolate at Camp Serón was the bomb

Top 3 disappointments:

Apart from the John Gardner Pass it wasn't very challenging at all (and that part was only challenging due to the weather)

Overall there were too many people

My cash was stolen

Next I will go back to El Calafate in Argentina and hike on the Perito Moreno Glacier on my birthday. After that I will go up North and spend some time in San Carlos de Bariloche which apparently looks like Switzerland and also has amazing chocolate. I will surely put that statement to a test.

#chile #torres del paine #hiking #o circuit

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what-stop-the-presses-rly-means · 5 years

Text

Bye, Bye, Sugar Blue Eyes part 3

Race x female reader modern au.

Warnings: some mild swearing

Part 1, 2, x, 4, 5, 6

A/N: The first few chapters are dedicated to everyone’s background stories and all the set up. Race will finally come into the story soon, I promise.

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It’s been a month since I officially started my new job. The first couple of days were a struggle, trying to fit into my new life. But it’s gotten easier. I’ve gotten to know the boys a little more and most of them have accepted me well enough. There are still one or two tough nuts, but I like a challenge.

It was just a couple days after that first meeting that I was moving all of my things into the building. The boys were a big help, acting all tough and carrying the heavier boxes up the stairs. Jack and I laughed as they got to the top and opened the box, wondering just what I owned that could possibly weigh that much. Their flabbergasted looks when they discovered it was a bunch of books was priceless.

“Who needs this many anyway? Buy a Kindle!” a boy named Winston said.

My room was at the end of the hall, across from what I learned was Race’s room. It was fairly big with the same beautiful hardwood floors, a window with an amazing view of the city, and its own bathroom. It was a lot more than I had expected.

As if he could read my thoughts, Jack spoke up. “Only the best for the brave woman who’s decided to take on the Herculean task of taking care of fifteen boys. It’s the least we could do for you. I know this is gonna be a big change and that can be a little scary, but you’re gonna do great. We all have faith in you. So we’re gonna move the rest of your stuff in here, get you situated, you’ll get a good night’s sleep, and you’re gonna kick ass tomorrow, yeah?” I was very grateful for his constant words of encouragement. He could do that kind of thing for a living, I swear.

That first day was so nerve-wracking for me. I woke up insanely early, afraid I’d sleep through my alarm. As I got ready for the day I sang any and all happy songs that popped in my head to calm my nerves. That became a habit for awhile, and then got integrated into my daily routine. Now it’s just a good way to start my day off in a happy manner.

The first thing on my to-do list was wake up all the boys and get them ready for school. Which proved to be easier said than done. I opened the door to the younger boys’ room and turned on the light.

“Wakey, wakey, boys!” They all started to stir and rub their eyes. “Let’s get up and get ready for school. I’ll bet Al will have a nice breakfast for all of you by the time you’re done.” I gave them their privacy to get dressed as I went over to the older boys’ room. Turning on the light, I was met with more exaggerated reactions. They all groaned and threw the blankets over their heads.

“Good morniiiing! Now, I know you guys don’t want to, but we’re legally obligated to send you to school so let’s not make this any harder than it has to be, okay?” I walked out into the hall and didn’t hear any movement from the other room so I knocked.

“Boys? You getting dressed?” No response. “Okay, I’m coming in.” I covered my eyes and opened the door. “Are you all decent?” Still no response. I opened my eyes to see them all still in bed. “Seriously? And someone had enough energy to get up to turn off the light but not stay up?” I shook my head. I walked over to the other room to see someone had done the same thing. I let out an exasperated sigh as I thought of what to do.

Then an idea came to me. It may be a little risky but I couldn’t think of anything better. I let out a shriek and collapsed to the floor with a loud thud. I laid there with my eyes closed for a few seconds before I heard people approaching. When I opened my eyes I saw the boys coming out of their rooms to check on me. Then I stood up and smiled.

“Good! You’re up! Might as well wash up and get dressed while you’re at it!” They looked confused and a little angry but did as they were told. I didn’t have much time for self-congratulation as I heard someone start clapping behind me. Turning around, I saw Davey at the top of the stairs, smirking.

“Good job. That’s probably the quickest anyone’s ever gotten them out of bed. But I’d be careful. Use that tactic one too many times and they might not come running to help if you ever are in danger.”

“Duly noted. I’ll only use that one as a last resort.” I opened my planner to check off my list.

“Look at you, all organized and ready to take on the day,” Davey joked.

“You expect me to keep track of a zoo of boys without writing it all down?”

“No, I suppose not. It’s just refreshing having someone else here who’s a little more in the way of a professional. The other guys kinda like to go with the flow. Which works for them, and that’s great, but sometimes I need to remind them that we are, in fact, in charge of fifteen human lives and we need to act accordingly.” That made me laugh.

“Well thanks. I like to be prepared in the best of times, let alone whatever is gonna come my way at this job. So! After breakfast I need to walk them to the bus stop. All but…”

“All but Ollie, Gus, and Tex. They stay here and start lessons with me at 8:30. Hmm, I haven’t showed you the classroom yet, have I?” I shook my head. “Well then, while they’re getting ready I can give you the tour.” He walked down the hall into one of the rooms I’d never been in. The sun was shining through the window, making it light up. I looked around at the art hung on the walls and the motivational posters. It looked like a real classroom, very vibrant and full of life.

“Wow, you go all out.”

“I wanted it to be an authentic experience for them. They already feel different, living here, so I treat them exactly as I would if I was still teaching in public school. They just need a little extra attention to get some of the lessons through to them and they wouldn’t get that being in a big class. So I’m happy to put my skills to good use. When Jack first brought up the idea of running this place, naturally, I was skeptical. It’s a lot of responsibility and I feel like we’re all still kids just like these boys. Besides, I didn’t know what I’d be bringing to the table, other than the money, and I didn’t even have that much to give. But once I met those boys, I saw all of my friends in them. They needed someone to stick up for them, to help them when everyone else gave up. I vowed not to give up.”

I sat on one of the desks, looking around and then smiling at him. “And you haven’t. And because you and your friends haven’t given up, these boys still have a chance. The details don’t matter. What matters is that you care and you provide what you can to make sure they have good lives. What more could we ask of you?”

Davey looked down at his shoes, a little teary eyed. “Thank you. It’s funny, I didn’t know what I was gonna do. But Jack found out that I could do the homeschooling thing. That’s happened a lot along the way. We don’t know what’s gonna happen or how we’re gonna get by, but eventually we figure it out and things work out. As you can probably tell, I don’t like the unknown; I don’t like not having a plan. But that’s kinda been our thing. Jack always seems like he’s got it all figured out, or at the very least he has complete faith that things will work out someway or another. I wish he’d share his secret. I wanna know how to not worry and just do. I wish I was more like him.” He takes a deep breath. “Maybe that’s what you can ask of me. To be more like Jack.”

He looked so defeated, I couldn’t not say something. “Look, I don’t know you guys all that well just yet, but I can say with confidence that you’re dead wrong.” He looked confused. “I’m sure Jack portrays that level-headedness well and he seems like he’s sure of himself, but I’d bet my first paycheck that he’s also secretly freaking out all the time. If not, then that would mean he didn’t care about this place and those boys like the rest of you do. And I know he does. He’s not this perfect, calm and collected person. He’s just good at faking it. That’s what we all do as adults, isn’t it? You said it yourself, we still feel like we’re kids. That never fully goes away, I think. We just get better and better at pretending to know what we’re doing.” He seemed to be thinking really hard. He was looking down at his shoes again, so I got up and pulled him over to the front of the room, then sat at one of the desks.

“Yeah, that seems perfect. That’s what you’re supposed to be doing. And Jack seems to be doing what he’s meant to do. No one should ever ask someone to be more like someone else. You’re you, and Jack’s Jack. That’s how it’s supposed to be. Maybe that’s why your dynamic works so much. He doesn’t look before he leaps, and sometimes that’s needed in certain situations. But for the instances that need some thought, you’re there to hold him back and think things through. It’s worked so far, right? You’ve been running this place for two years and those boys seem happy. So why change the dynamic? If it ain’t broke…”

He started to say something, but the sound of some of the boys running down the stairs cut him off.

He smiled. “Looks like it’s time for breakfast. We should join them.” I started walking to the door when he caught my arm. “Thank you. Really. You seem to be really good at healing all of our past wounds and insecurities. Maybe that’s what you’re meant to do.”

I blushed at the compliment. “Well, if that’s true, I’ll fit right in here. We’re all helping each other.” We shared a smile and walked downstairs.

Breakfast was pretty hectic, but that was to be expected. As I had predicted, Albert had a big meal prepared, but I didn’t eat much. I was still running on adrenaline and nerves. Looking around, it seemed like the boys had forgiven me for my prank. Now they seem more lively, playing with their food and laughing and making jokes. I couldn’t help but admire the scene before me.

I didn’t get to admire for long when a piece of bacon came hurtling toward my head. The boys across from me went silent.

“Sorry, Miss (Y/N), that wasn’t meant for you,” Peter said sheepishly. “I was aiming for Ollie.” I looked over to the boy he mentioned. He quickly ducked his head down. I learned early on that some of the boys gave themselves “gang names” like Jack and his friends did. They like to call this one Ollie Oxenfree because he was shy and always hiding. I found it kind of endearing. I smiled down at him, reassuringly.

I turned back, shaking the bacon out of my hair. “Not a problem, Sweet Pea. Now I can tell all my friends I’ve actually seen a pig fly!” The boys giggled at that. “But let’s keep the food on the plates, huh?” They nodded and went back to eating.

I looked down the table, to where Rider was sitting. He pushed some scrambled eggs around with his fork, looking like he had no intention of eating them. I had a feeling Albert spooned them on his plate for good measure, trying to get him to eat something. I wasn’t sure how to approach him. From what I’ve heard, he was a bit of a mystery when it came to getting through to him. I’d tried being nice and making jokes and he didn’t respond well to that. Maybe it was time for a new tactic.

When it was time to leave I made sure every boy had a coat on and a bookbag. I ushered them down the sidewalk, planner in hand.

“Okay, younger boys are on the 7:30 bus and the three high school boys are on the 7:40. Check.” The first bus was right on time and I got the boys on it with no problems. That left me to stand awkwardly with the older boys.

“I don’t wanna ride the bus, that’s lame. I’ll just walk.” I hadn’t expected Rider to say anything to me this early in the day. But it gave me an opportunity to try to reason with him.

“Oh no you won’t. Who knows where you’ll end up! And I can’t lose one of you on my first day, it’ll make me look really bad,” I laughed.

“Come on, Race let me walk sometimes.”

“Okay, 1.) I doubt that and 2.) Even if he did, I’m not Race, as I’ve stated many times before. I know you’re close to him, and that’s great, but you can’t keep pulling this crap because you’re upset he’s gone for the time being. He will be back and we’ll all be happy when that happens, but for now I need you to listen to me. So get on that bus, because I won’t hesitate to personally drive you to school. And I’ll get out and hug you like a doting mother in front of all your classmates. Don’t test me.” We stood there, staring at each other for a moment. This was the second risky move I’ve made on the first day and I was kind of worried that I went too far with this one.

Rider slowly gave me a small smile. “You may not be him… but you sound like him. He doesn’t take shit from anyone either.”

“Make sure to watch the language for when the little ones are around.”

“Okay, I’ll ride the bus.” He paused. “Thanks. You know, for actually caring.”

I wasn’t expecting that. “Yeah… no problem. Hey, if you need to talk to someone, I’m always around. Don’t hesitate, okay?” He looked like he was going to respond, but closed his mouth in a tight smile and nodded, quickly turning around and walking toward the bus that just pulled up. The other boys silently followed.

I watched as the bus drove away, and stood there for a while after it was gone. It wasn’t even 8 am on my first day, but I feel like I’ve already jumped a pretty big hurdle. And as I turned to walk back, I couldn’t help thinking that this job may not be so scary after all.

Tag list:

@technically-whizzy

@sunshine-e-cigarettes

@bencookisagod

#newsies #race higgins #race higgins x reader #mine #look! i wrote something!#bye bye sugar blue eyes

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abhisek-basu · 5 years

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My wife was psychic for a short while -A short horror story by Abhisek Basu

I love my wife, Lily, dearly. She has always been my best friend. I was devoid of love and affection for most of my life until she came along eight years ago. I have been in love ever since. We have been married for 5 years now.

You realize you love someone when you’re ready to do anything for them. I’d do anything for Lily. If she said that the sky was red: it was red. If it wasn’t, I’d paint it red.

We had a beautiful daughter on 28th March, 3 years ago. We named her Dorothy, after Lily’s grandmother.

That is when things started to get strange.

One morning my beloved Lily woke up and said:

“I need to tell you something. I cannot keep it in me any longer. I don’t expect you to understand, but you’re the only person I can trust.”

At first, I thought she was joking. But she was sweating profusely, and her eyes told me that this wasn’t some silly prank.

“Yes, darling. What’s wrong?” I asked.

“I get visions and I can see into the future,” she said, her lips trembling with each word.

“Wait. So, like a psychic?” I asked.

“I don’t know. I have always kept it to myself, but it seems I have had this gift since my pregnancy. I‘ve said nothing about this to anyone.”

“But darling. You are an atheist who prides herself on trusting logic and facts over everything else. I thought we both were like that. Do you really believe that you can see the future?”

“You don’t have to believe me just yet. I didn’t believe myself either. I just know that I have this gift now. I have these visions of looking at certain people and places, and they come true. They always come true. I have tried keeping this to myself, but after what I saw today, I had to let you know. Your mother will die tomorrow.”

“WHAT? WHAT ARE YOU SAYING?”

“Yes. Just go over there now. Don’t ask questions.”

My mother lived with her sisters upstate. It was a four-hour drive away. I hoped Lily was wrong, but I didn’t want to take the risk.

I went out. To this day, I cannot explain what happened next: but it certainly made me believe that my wife was psychic. When I was an hour away from her place, I received a call from my mother’s sister telling me that my mother had slipped and fallen in the bathroom. She died from the concussion.

Lily was right. This was not a coincidence.

Over the next few weeks, Lily got visions of minor things- like what would I get to see at work, who would visit us during the weekend, what Christmas presents I had bought and kept hidden away from her - and she was right every time.

We learned to live with it, slowly unless the visions were tragic like someone close getting fired or dying.

I didn’t believe in these things throughout my life- but it was hard being a non-believer when you’re seeing these events happen with your own eyes in your own life.

I asked her why she didn’t tell me about her gift earlier, but she said that she had no idea about it. It was only when she was pregnant that she started getting these visions.

I still loved Lily, and I always would. That will never change. If she said that the sky was red: it was red. If it wasn’t, I’d paint it red.

Things were alright for a while, and I’d like to believe that this was the time in our lives, that we were truly happy. I loved Lily and my beautiful little daughter, Dorothy. Lily loved Dorothy and spent most of her time playing with her. They were both so adorable; it filled my heart with happiness every single day.

We were happy, in love, and raising a beautiful child. Her having a psychic gift was just a bonus at that point.

However, not all love stories have a happy ending. Ours, unfortunately, wasn’t an exception.

Last year, Dorothy died because of a heart condition that couldn’t be remedied. Lily was devastated and so was I. It was the toughest and darkest time of our lives, and I knew that I had to be strong for her. I was her only shoulder to cry on. But most of the time, I broke down alone in rooms of silence, when I was sure she wasn’t nearby. I couldn’t ever get over that and I knew Lily couldn’t either. She spent her nights crying and clutching on to me. She spent her mornings waking up and crying. On most days, I tried to calm her down but on the few days when my heart couldn’t handle the unbearable pain of our loss; we held each other and cried.

Our perfect life was over. Weeks went by like this. Lily ate less and stopped going out of the house altogether.

I couldn’t bear to see her heartache, but there was nothing I could do. I was sure that something inside Lily had shattered, and she wasn’t the same person ever since. She didn’t talk during the day and during the nights: she cried. She stared at Dorothy’s crib and broke down crying, every time she looked at it.

I tried my best to be there for her. I still loved her more than anything else, and seeing her in such misery reminded me of the blissful times in our lives that we both had taken for granted.

It also seemed that her gift of getting visions went away with the passing of our daughter. She used to stare at walls and ceilings hoping for visions, and whenever she got one (or claimed to get one), she told me about them and it didn’t come true. Her gift had gone, and she had become a soulless, depressed version of the woman I had once known. It was perhaps Dorothy has something to do with it, since she started getting these visions when Dorothy came in this world and lost it with her passing. I’m sure she realized this as well but wasn’t ready to accept it.

A few weeks later, she told me that she saw, in a vision, that our neighbor’s dog had died. Like all her visions since Dorothy had died, I thought this one would not come true.

However, things were different the next morning. For the first time since Dorothy passed away, I saw Lily smile.

“The neighbor’s dog. It died!” she said. “My gift is back! Do you understand what this means?”

“Err no Lily,” I said, still trying to process everything.

“It means I can see the future again!” she said and hugged me.

I held her tightly and hugged her. For the first time since Dorothy passed away, she wasn’t crying as soon as she woke up. Rather, she was happy.

“You don’t believe me, do you?” she asked.

“I do,” I said and kissed her. She kissed me back with eyes wide open, and I realized then, that something was still wrong with her.

However, I still loved her and I always would. Losing your own daughter and recovering from the shock isn’t going to be a pleasant experience, but I sincerely hoped she hadn’t gone crazy.

The next few days went by normally. Lily was less upset. Getting her gift back seemed to bring a new ray of hope in her life.

She told me that in one of her visions she saw that her abusive brother would die within a week. Her brother was an abusive leech to both her parents, and it was obvious that Lily wanted him to die.

“Are you sure this is a vision and not just your fantasy?“ I said, expecting her to laugh at the joke.

“No. He’ll die,” she said, in a straight voice.

Her brother died, and the police are still investigating his murder. Someone had stabbed him in his throat and left him to die in his car.

When the police came over to our place for questioning, Lily gave me a look I’ll never forget. While the police weren’t looking, she looked at me and smiled from ear to ear.

She never liked her brother, but even after hearing the news about his death: she wasn’t affected.

The police went away, but they’re still investigating this. I just hope to God they don’t come by knocking again.

I think Lily is getting happier though. She talks to me more frequently and doesn’t cry anymore.

Last week, Lily told me that she saw Mr. Hudson or “Bad mouth Billy” as he was known in the neighborhood would die. Sure enough, he died the next day with a knife stuck in his spine. I saw Lily happy again when she got to know. Never did I expect the love of my life to be happy hearing about people dying.

It seemed that, now, she expected this, and this was the only thing that mattered to her. The fact that these people whom she knew, who lived barely a block away, were brutally murdered: didn’t seem to bother her. It was as if, now, she knew that they were dead, as soon as she told me of her vision.

It might seem weird that most of my wife’s predictions about people dying were being fulfilled by them being murdered. It’s also a weird coincidence that these people were people she wasn’t fond of. Rather, she strongly disliked them.

So, I know what you’re thinking. It’s her. She’s killing these people to fulfill her visions because, after Dorothy’s death, she has gone crazy.

But I’ve always loved my wife. I know that whatever Lily is, she is not a killer, and she isn’t capable of doing this.

I know she’s not a killer.

I know she’s not.

Because I am.

Poisoning a dog and stabbing two men in the dark were easy, and I’d do it all over again for her. I’ll keep fulfilling all her visions if that’s what it takes to see a smile on her gorgeous face.

As I said, I’d do anything for her.

If she said that you were going to die, you would die.

I’ll make sure you do.

If she said that the sky was red: it was red. If it wasn’t, I’ll paint it red.

With your blood.

_____________

If you liked that, you'll love reading my books.

CLICK HERE to buy the first book, SCARE SCARE: An anthology of thirteen terrifying short tales.

CLICK HERE to buy SCARE SCARE 2: Thirteen terrifying short stories about ghosts, demons, monsters, time travelers and ALIENS! (Currently enrolled in Kindle Unlimited)

#horror #horrorstory #love #lovestory #scary #psychic #husband #wife #indie #books

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8771eh · 5 years

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A Personal Chef

Or the 5 times Sid's Chef walked in on things she didn't want to see and one time she saw something she wanted to.

1. Oct 2008-Chez Lemieux Pittsburgh, PA

It all started at a huge event. Well for the rich and famous of Pittsburgh it wasn't that big of a deal. However, she thought it was enormous. Especially as the first event that her mentor had asked her to help prep and work. It was her menu that the upper echelon of the steel city were consuming and that knowledge was overwhelming.

She had a few minutes to step outside for a bathroom break and was able to see faces she had only ever seen on the tv and voices she only heard on the radio mingling in the crowd.

The best thing about being a chef was that compliments were paid to you but so often people did not realize who you were when you went thru a crowd without the appropriate hat. She was more then fine with that because she hated attention being directly on her. Let the attention be on her food, on the combination of sweet and savory or spicey and tangy; not on her face. In fact she would much rather work on smaller crowds with an occasional big event. Then she could be the sole person in the kitchen and manage everything on her own. Not have the extra stress of managing others.

She turned the corner and stopped mid step. Before her were two hockey players who the city were talking about reviving a failing franchise. And they were staring intently at one another, a pink flush on Sidney Crosby's face as Evgeni Malkin cupped his hand over the Sid's cheek, his thumb brushing the apple of his cheek.

She took a couple steps backwards and purposefully stomped her feet as she moved back to the corner. While protecting their privacy was imperative, her bladder was demanding relief before she could get back and make sure the kitchen was running smoothly.

This time as she turned the corner Crosby was standing alone in the hallway trying to will the blush from his face. He smiled at her shyly.

"Oh, hey. Are you the chef?" He asked as he took in her outfit.

"Yes, I am. I'm Vanny. I hope you're enjoying yourself." She was trying to be polite but definitely did not miss the blush that deepened on Crosby's face.

"For sure. The food has been great. Listen, Natalie was talking about how much it helped her to have a chef while Mario was playing and the kids were babies. I was thinking it might be helpful to get a chef who can maybe help me out with food." Crosby chuckled as he looked away while rubbing the back of his neck. "Would you know if anybody who does that?"

"Oh, actually, I just might." Crosby's smile seemed to relax as she smiled back at him. This might work better then she expected.

2. Sept 2009- Crosby Kitchen

She was ecstatic about the Stanley cup celebrations coming to a close. Sidney's schedule had been ridiculous with all the parties and then attempts to get back on a meal plan. Then the amount of cheating he would do. Especially after Malkin-call me Geno- came back from Russia. She was surprised Sidney hasnt asked her to start cooking for the two of them with how often the other man was over.

That didnt mean that she wasnt going to leave him out though. She loved seeing people enjoy her food but she loved trying new recipes more. When Geno started to come around more often she spoke with her colleague who had spent a year training in Moscow. She had just picked up some ingrediants to try and make a healthier version of a cold salad her friend had sent her when she heard voices from the kitchen. She stopped just outside the door way where she could see Sidney holding his head and pacing tightly near the fridge. Geno was propped against the island with a patient look.

"We need to stop. This is a huge mistake." Sidney glanced towards Geno before he turned his back to him during his small circuit. She watched as Geno nodded in agreement before pushing himself off the island and moving closer.

"Is big mistake. But not most big. We just win Cup, Sid. We not deserve?" Geno stopped himself on an invisible line allowing Sidney his pacing space.

Vanny watched as Sidney hesitated a step before looking back at Geno. His back was to her but she could see the hope and worry mixed on Geno's face.

"Its a bad mistake, G." He sighed heavily, "Can we keep kissing until we think this through?" Geno reached out and placed a hand on Sidney's face. Similarly to the way she had found them at the Lemieux household the year prior.

"Take all the time you need. You a big mistake I want make again and again. Choose you each time, Sidka." He whispered before Sidney pressed forward to kiss him.

She definitely forgot butter or would need more butter after they had stopped steaming up her kitchen. She would also need bleach if the rustling of fabric was any sign of what was happening.

3. March 14, 2011- Crosby Kitchen

Cooking in minimal lighting was an interesting experience. Cooking for two injured cranky hockey players was more of an experience. She had worked it out that she would cook the meals at her place and bring them to Sidney's house so he and Geno could try to maneuver their limitations.

Today was different tho. Sidney had been seeming a little bit better over the past couple weeks. She had come in many times to Geno and Sidney on the couch. Geno reading with a dim book lamp attached to his kindle while Sidney looked asleep in the darkened room. The past week the lights had been on more often, there were gym clothes scattered across the laundry room and louder voices or laughter coming from the rec room.

Today she had prepared a ratatouille in hopes that the continuation of food that required minimal chewing would help with the constant ache caused from the concussion. She had become an expert in entering the house from the garage quietly in the midst of the sort days of the concussion.

However she wanted to start rethinking how quietly she entered. The laundry room was between the garage and kitchen. She stopped in there as she heard a firm 'No.' Coming from the kitchen.

Peeking around the corner she could see Sidney sitting on the island with Geno standing between his legs, his crutches on the floor.

"But I'm miss you."

"Geno. I'm serious you are not giving me a blow job. What about your knee?"

"Trust me, my knee miss you too. Sidnyushka, you skate for first time in months! You keep saying no sex, no skate, no hockey, no tv, no fun with concussion."

"Wow, G, glad I've been such a bore while I've been in pain. You know-"

"No, you not listen. You skate today, yes?" Vanny assumed Geno was waiting for Sidney to nod. "And your head not hurt?" There was a pause before a soft gasp followed by soft spoken Russian. "See you on skates again is what I want, but want you happy most. You come back today and so happy. You not tell me you think you ready to skate but you do this and see you most happy is like you most beautiful."

"I didn't know if the team would clear me."

"But you’re not tell me, so I should get included by suck you after hard work." There was the sound of kissing mixed with fabric rustling. Vanny was certain she had forgotten to turn off a stove at home and knew she had more bleach at home. She needed to start finding new places to keep bleach in this house if her poor kitchen was going to be defiled.

4. April 2013-

"Damnit, G, I want your dick in my mouth." Vanny froze. She thought of the location of the nearest spray bottle she had prepped with bleach and glanced towards the laundry room for her gloves. She was not paid enough to keep walking in on this stuff. For a couple who thought they were being really discreet, they are pretty oblivious to the domestic service crew.

By the end of the concussion and knee injuries, the entire house were well aware of how deeply in love the two hockey players were. As well as how stupid they were about communication. Mostly the staff got together on game nights and gossiped about who had walked in on what. Jaden swore they would end up outting themselves during a game and kept a book of all the near misses and missed dates as their pot grew larger.

Vanny sighed, her coworkers had stories, but they could never compare to what happened in her kitchen. She heard the sounds of kissing and fabric rustling, something hitting the ground. Years of working in the Crosby household had taught her to not look, to go do anything else. When she heard Sid state "I may be missing half my teeth but I can still suck your dick. G." She knew it was time to leave and probably call it a night. They could sort their own food out tonight and she could find a new way to blend recipes for Sidney's broken jaw.

5. NYE 2015- Crosby Kitchen

Vanny was stopped in the pantry. She didnt think they would be home this early-werent they on a road trip? She wasnt sure but either way they were in her kitchen. Going into the fridge and she didnt have the courage to leave the pantry. She had seen them in so many states of undress without them knowing that she did not have the patience to see them in whatever state with their knowledge.

"C'mon, G, its new years eve and we are going to celebrate together. I have plans." Vanny could hear the fridge shut, cabinet doors open as socked feet shuffled around the kitchen.

"Yes, I'm see maybe plan, but most worried you not joking here."

"Why would I be joking?"

"Because you not like that and now you have big jar full?"

"Oh? No, Vanny has it on hand to make stuff for you when you come over for longer stints. Pretty sure I saw some licorice for Olli in the cupboard last night. She is amazingly thoughtful. I dont think-" Vanny cant help the smile at Sidney's compliment but is well aware that Sidney is oblivious to the fact that she has been cooking for both of them for years.

"Yes, Vanny most wonderful chef. Not bad with Russian recipes, but Sidka, is maybe popular food. But you most wrong."

"Where is your sense of adventure"

"Is most big insult to Russia, you think mayonnaise good for sexy times, Sidka. Lose your Russian card before even get one." Vanny can hear a scoff and then giggling. "Never allowed to come Russia. Most sad because I am wanting take you to see Magnitogorsk."

Their voices fade as they disappear down the hall. Vanny sighs and then steps out of the pantry. She eyes the jar on the counter then promptly drops in it the trash. Mixing bleach and food wouldnt be a healthy choice.

+1 7/31/18--Cole Harbour, NS

Geno is chattering with Vanny about the recipe she is using for the salmon when she notices Sid standing just out of the kitchen doorway. He is staring intently at Geno. She has been around for so many years and seen many of the looks between the two men as their relationship grew. As they allowed others in on their life together.

She even knew the looks that meant she needed extra bleach and to prep some whisky balls for Lita when she got the next load of sheets in the wash. There was only so much bleach the sheets could handle. Or the looks they shared when they didn't realize they were not alone.

No, this look was not like that. This one was what she saw in interviews. Like he was schooling himself to not give anything away. He glanced briefly at Vanny and she could see his shoulders heave as he held her gaze for a moment.

"Hey Zhenya, Vanny." Sid greeted as he walked past and pressed a kiss to Geno's arm before heading to the wine cellar. Vanny picked up the platter on the counter and excused herself quickly from the conversation. She needed to get these stuffed mushrooms out to the table before Geno tried to eat them all.

As she walked back into the kitchen, she stopped just at the entry way, Geno was fiddling with a bottle opener as Sid looked on nervously. As Geno turned to use to counter for leverage and started mumbling in Russian about the cork, Vanny covered her mouth to stop her gasp from being audible as Sid dropped to one knee.

"Sid, what you do to bottle? It st-" his words trailed off as he turned and glanced around the room for Sid before looking down. The hand holding the bottle dropped to one side and the other hand holding the corkscrew went to his mouth. "Sidney? Why you on knee?"

"I have probably driven Tanger, Flower and Jack crazy with all the different words I've tried to put together. You know I'm much better at scoring goals then saying the emotional stuff. And Flower gave me a bunch of shit when I tried to use hockey metaphors even if thats-" Sid shakes his head and smiles then pulls out a small velvet box. "Enough rambling, here's the thing, I love you. I have loved you for so long and I want to keep loving you until you tell me to stop. So, Evgeni Vladimirovich Malkin, will you marry me?"

Vanny can feel her eyes watering in the silence that fills the room after Sid finishes speaking. She watches as Geno allows a rush of emotions to cross his face because he has always been one to wear his heart on his sleeve.

"G?" Sid shifts minutely on his knee. Vanny can't see his face to know what expression he is showing and she doesn't dare move to draw attention to herself.

'Sidnyushka," Geno turns and puts the bottle and corkscrew on the counter before pulling Sid to his feet. "Of course I marry you. But Sid, why you have to beat me? Propose not competition. Have big plan, best plan for your birthday. Seryozah, Taylor and Phil all help me make most plan so you say yes but need best plan because-" Geno is cut off as Sid presses a kiss to his lips.

"You know I'm a competitive asshole, Zhenya. I want to marry you regardless but, baby, I win so you win and we win."

"Best team." Geno mutters where their faces are still pressed together. Vanny watches as Geno pulls away enough to ret his forehead against Sid's. "Ok, yes. I'm marry you make you most lucky man to be husband to Evgeni Malkin." Sid laughs as he drops the velvet box to the counter and moves Geno's left arm so he can slide the ring on.

"Sidnyushka, I have ring for you upstairs. Love you most." Geno is cupping Sid's face in hands and peppering kisses on him as Sid giggles wetly. Vanny figures this is the time to give them a little extra privacy. Her kitchen is safe with all the guests, but emotions are high and they deserve a true moment alone.

Besides, she needs to start looking at who she can rope into helping with a wedding.

#sidgeno #sidgeno rpf #i read he has a personal chef and i couldnt knock the idea of what that poor chef would see if they worked for a sid who was with geno

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onpagetwentyone · 5 years

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KILL SWITCH (Devil’s Night #3)

Penelope Douglas

PUBLICATION DETAILS

An ARC has been provided by the author/ the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Kindle Edition, 522 pages

Published February 9th 2019 by Penelope Douglas LLC

RATING

5/5

SYNOPSIS

"I've done far worse than what I went to prison for. She has no idea how bad this can get."

WINTER

Sending him to prison was the worst thing I could've done. It didn't matter that he did the crime or that I wished he was dead. Perhaps I thought I'd have time to disappear before he got out or he'd cool off in jail and be anything but the horror he was.

But I was wrong. Three years came and went too fast, and now he's anything but calm. Prison only gave him time to plan.

And while I anticipated his vengeance, I didn't expect this.

He doesn't want to make me hurt. He wants to make everything hurt.

DAMON

First thing's first. Get rid of her daddy. He told them I forced her. He told them his little girl was a victim, but I was a kid, too, and she wanted it just as much as I did.

Step two... Give her, her sister, and her mother nowhere to run and no fuel to escape. The Ashby women are alone now and desperate for a knight in shining armor.

But that's not what's coming.

No, it's time I listened to my father and took control of my future. It's time I showed them all--my family, her family, my friends--that I will never change and that I have no other ambition than to be the nightmare of their lives.

Starting with her.

She'll be so scared, she won't even be safe in her own head by the time I'm done with her. And the best part is I won't have to break into her home to do it.

As the new man of the house I have all the keys.

*Kill Switch is a romantic suspense suitable for readers 18+. It is advised to read Corrupt (Devil's Night #1) and Hideaway (Devil's Night #2) prior to reading this book. Both are available on Kindle Unlimited.

REVIEW

Penelope Douglas is definitely one of my favorite authors, after reading her book Misconduct and Corrupt, I immediately became a fan. Devil’s Night Series is one of the darkest series and certainly out of my comfort zone, but it is Penelope Douglas, I’m going to read whatever she writes.

Penelope Douglas didn’t disappoint me with the 3rd installment of the Devil’s Night series. I never thought Damon's story will go this way but I won't trade it for any other stories out there. Damon Torrance is awesome.

I expected Kill Switch to be full of surprises and guess what, I’m damn right! My expressions were "fuck!", "damn!" and "crap!" the entire time plus "OMG!" in every plot twists! This book was indeed a roller coaster ride that put me right at the edge.

We all know Damon as the anti-hero in Corrupt and Hideaway. His story really intrigued me and I was damn stoked to finally get into his head. Damon is yep, an asshole, the anti-hero we all discovered in the 1st two installments. There is however more than what we saw in the past. I honestly don't know how to describe him at first, but I find him amazing as well. I find him sweet, and he will do every damn thing for the people he loves. Yup, we are still talking about Damon Torrance, ladies and gentlemen. You didn't misread that. Also, he is hot. Definitely HOT.

Then we have Winter Ashby. At first, I can't understand Winter but as the story progressed, I was able to get her more and more. Winter is a strong and an amazing character, she's also selfless and the main reason to keep Damon in line. I can't think of a better pair for Damon Torrance except Winter Ashby. They're perfect. I want her and the entire gang to be in Will's book.

All in all this book is perfection. I really didn't want to finish it yet because I missed everyone especially Kai and Banks but at the same time I can't stop turning the pages because I'm DYING to know what will happen next. It was gripping, intense, scorching, twisted, full of fucking plot twists and surprises. A total page-turner that will make you crave for more.

I adore Penelope Douglas' writing style, she has the ability to turn dark and twisted words into something beautiful. I'm not a fan of dark romance but I find myself loving this series. Kill Switch is definitely one of the best books in the Devil's Night Series and absolutely one of the best Penelope Douglas book I've ever read.

I know waiting for Will's book is a torture but I'm damn looking forward to it.

#books #book review #book reviews #5-star-read #bookstagram #bookblr #bookblogger #romancebookblogger #bookish #Penelope Douglas #Kill Switch #Damon Torrance #Winter Ashby

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ed-edward-blackbeard · 6 years

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long-ass fucking questionnaire

yoooooooo, I did it all.

I’m starting this at 1:15 in the morning. Let’s see how long it takes me to finish. cause I’m a masochist, apparently.

1: My name? do I HAVE to? Okay, it’s Kelly. But I really hate it, so usually I go by Kel. A few lucky ones get to call me Kelly, but only because I love the way my name sounds when they say it. There, my dirty secret is out.

2: Do I have any nicknames? A plethora. Artie (after the fish), Fluffie (long story) Jellybean

3: Zodiac sign? The most Libra Libra that has ever Libra’d.

4: Video game I play to chill, not to win? I don’t play video games. But I play a few online games, so Doctor Who: Legacy

5: Book/series I reread? The Black Dagger Brotherhood by JR Ward (Series) The Harry Potter books Morgan Chase and the Gods of Asgard by Rick Riordan (series) Good Omens (Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett) Watchers (Dean Koontz) Insomnia (Stephen King)

6: Aliens or ghosts? I have nothing against either. But I enjoy writing about ghosts more.

7: Writer I trust enough to read whatever they write? Stephen King

8: Favourite radio station? NPR, strangely enough.

9: Favourite flavour of anything? Lemon. I still thoroughly enjoy chocolate, but my radiation therapy changed the way it tasted.

10: The word that I use all the time to describe something great? Awesome. Both with and without the addition of the adjective “fucking”

11: Favourite song? My standard answer is, ‘Everything Louder Than Everything Else’ by Meat Loaf, because I truly love that song, but lately I’ve been on a Game of Thrones kick, and i’m stuck on “The Rains of Castamere” by Sigur Rios and “The Bear and the Maiden Fair” because it’s such a Jaime x Brienne song.

12: The question you ask new friends to get to know them better? Bold of you to assume I have friends.

13: Favourite word? sycophant, gestalt, melancholy

14: The last person who hurt me, did I forgive them? After about, oh, ten years or so, yes I did. It’s a new thing for me. usually I hold grudges until the end of time.

15: Last song I listened to? “Stairway To Heaven” by Led Zeppelin

16: TV show I always recommend? Current: American Gods, Better Call Saul Cancelled/ended: Hannibal (NBC), Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood

17: Pirates or ninjas? Drink up me hearties, yo ho! Yo ho, yo yo ho, a pirate’s life for me.

18: Movie I watch when I’m feeling down? Usually something from the Disney/Pixar Ouvre. Except UP. UP makes me sob in the first ten minutes, so no.

19: Song that I always start my shuffle with/wake-up song/always-on-a-loop song? Du Hast, Rammstein.

20: Favourite video games? Puzzles and Dragons, Doctor Who: Legacy, Dragonvale

21: What am I most afraid of? Snakes, without a doubt.

22: A good quality of mine? I’m creative

23: A bad quality of mine? I don’t think before I speak, so i sometimes don’t end up saying what I mean to say and hurt/offend in the process.

24: Cats or dogs? Bi-petual with a preference to cats

25: Actor/actress you trust enough to watch whatever they’re in? Bruce Campbell. Alien Apocalypse, anybody?

26: Favourite season? Winter

27: Am I in a relationship? No, although I do love someone very much

28: Something I miss? Being a kid, with all the possibilities of my life still ahead of me

29: My best friend? @mummyholmesisupset and @silvarbelle. they tie.

30: Eye colour? Hazel-greenish, with a little bit of sunflower around the pupil

31: Hair colour? Normally, a pretty chestnut brown. sometimes I bleach it or dye it.

32: Someone I love? @silvarbelle, she’s my sister-from-another-mister, and I will throw hands for that bitch in a heartbeat.

33: Someone I trust? @mummyholmesisupset because she’s earned it a hundred times over. @silvarbelle because I love her like family.

34: Someone I always think about? My grandmother. she died when I was seventeen, and I still miss her.

35: Am I excited about anything? My birthday

36: My current obsession? Gam of thrones, Doctor Who, Hannibal, the MCU

37: Favourite TV shows as a child? Thundercats, Scooby Doo, 60s Batman, My Favorite Martian, the Monkees

38: Do I have someone of the opposite sex that I can tell everything to? No, thank God.

39: Am I superstitious? Not overly, but I do have a few.

40: What do I think about most? Writing

41: Do I have any strange phobias? Is arachnophobia strange?

42: Do I prefer to be in front of the camera or behind it? Behind it, dear God.

43: Favourite hobbies? Writing, reading, pinning things on Pinterest that I absolutely mean to do but probably never will

44: Last book I read? Watchers by Dean Koontz, and I’m in the middle of Fear by Bob Woodward

45: Last film I watched? Backdraft. “You go, we go.”

46: Do I play any instruments? Not since band class in the early 90s.

47: Favourite animal? Cat.

48: Top 5 blog on Tumblr that I follow? ??????? I don’t think I do.

49: Superpower I wish I could have? Manipulation of probability

50: How do I destress? Writing, watching Netflix, watching Mythbusters

51: Do I like confrontation? Like it, no. Good at it, yes.

52: When do I feel most at peace? When it’s quiet and the only noises are the clicking of the keyboard and my cats’ purring

53: What makes me smile? Cute animals, stupid puns, comments on fic

54: Do I sleep with the lights on or off? Off, except for my TARDIS nightlight

55: Play any sports? Fuck no.

56: What is my song of the week? Should I Stay Or Should I Go?

57: Favourite drink? 1% milk.

58: When did I last send a handwritten letter to somebody? A few months? It was to @mummyholmesisupset in fact.

59: Afraid of heights? Desperately so.

60: Pet peeve? Anchovies, people who don’t use coasters, and men who smoke in public places. (yes, it’s a movie reference. And if you get it, I will send you a shiny nickel)

61: What was the last concert I went to see? Black Sabbath’s Theater of Madness

62: Am I vegetarian/vegan/pescatarian? Fuck no. I am, in fact, omnivorous and diabetic.

63: What occupation did I want to do when I was younger? To be Daphne Blake in Mystery, Inc.

64: Have I ever had a friend turn enemy? Yep. Not fun.

65: What fictional universe would I like to be a part of? Hannibal’s. I’m not rude for the most part, so I have a pretty good chance at surviving.

66: Something I worry about? My future. Cancer has shortened my life span, my relatives are all 65+, and I am an only child with no children of my own (Thank Christ) I haven’t worked since 2004 (been caretaking sick parents) so I’m concerned.

67: Scared of the dark? I love the dark, so no.

68: Who are my best friends? @mummyholmesisupset @silvarbelle

69: What do I admire most about others? That they can do things, very well, that I can’t do. What that is varies from person to person

70: Can I sing? Not very well, but I don't let that stop me...

71: Something I wish I could do? Write professionally. I love writing fanfic, but I'd kill to be a real, published author.

72: If I won the lottery, what would I do? Pay off bills, go back to college, buy myself a car (pickup, Ford F-150 with fog lights and automatic steering), pay off my mom's bills, hire an aide to stay with Mom, move to my favorite city and hire a winter-time driver because I can't drive for shit in the snow/ice.

73: Have I ever skipped school? Nope. Often wanted to, never have.

74: Favourite place on the planet? Asheville, NC. Technically, it's Montreat, which is right outside of Black Mountain and is a township unto itself. It's also home to Montreat Bible College, established by Billy Graham, and the Chapel of the Prodigal. It is also home to Lake Susan, one of the most quiet and beautiful places on God's green earth, and I would live by that little lake if I could. I have photos in my Google Drive, I need to share them sometime. You'll see what I mean. But I love Asheville, too, downtown and all.

75: Where do I want to live? Asheville, NC. Except I can't drive in the snow and ice, so there's that.

76: Do I have any pets? I have two cats, Samhain Murray (Sam) and Margaret May (Maggie, Maggie May, Margaret Ann)

77: What is my current desktop picture? On my laptop, it's Oswald Cobblepot (Robin Lord Taylor) from Gotham. On my tablet, it's the Superman logo. On my phone, it's my cat, Sam.

78: Early bird or night owl? Night owl, given that it's 2:30 AM and I'm still working on this.

79: Sunsets or sunrise? Sunsets, please.

80: Can I drive? i don't know, can you? I can.

81: Story behind my last kiss? I kissed my cat on his cold wet nose because he was headbutting me and so I kissed him.

82: Earphones or headphones? Earphones, sadly. I prefer headphones, but headphones are uncomfortable because I wear glasses. So, earbuds.

83: Have I ever had braces? Did you? I don't know. Did I? Yes, I did, I fucking despised them.

84: Story behind one of my scars? in late 2004, I started getting very ill. I couldn't keep food down, I was puking all the time, pale and everything, so I went to the ER and found I had a mass the size of a basketball growing in my abdomen. I was shipped to the local cancer center because of the cancer markers, and at the tender age of 27, I got a hysterectomy. I was cut from my navel to my diaphragm, old school, because the mass was twenty-four pounds. Benign, thank goodness, but it had started to go necrotic and I was well into blood poisoning (the reason I was puking and sick all the time). I still have the scar, and always will.

85: Favourite genre of music? instrumental celtic.

86: Who is my hero? I don't know that I have one, as such

87: Favourite comic book character? SUPERMAN, BABY. SUCK MY DICK BATS

88: What makes me really angry? Mistreatment of people and animals. Abuse of people and animals.

89: Kindle or real book? Both have their benefits, but I love the weight and feel of a real book. I love the portability of a Kindle.

90: Favourite sporty activity? Marathon TV-binge

91: What is one thing that isn’t tight in schools that should be? There's NOTHING RIGHT in schools

92: What was my favourite subject at school? Creative writing

93: Siblings? Nope, my parents saw their mistake and decided never again.

94: What was the last thing I bought? A pair of Sperry deck shoes with Han Solo and Chewbacca on them.

95: How tall am I? 5'6

96: Can I cook? yes, I can. perhaps not well, but I can cook enough to feed myself and my mom.

97: Can I bake? Yes, I can. I'm a SLIGHTLY better baker than a cook.

98: 3 things I love? Writing, my cats, Christopher Reeve

99: 3 things I hate? So many things. Um, spiders, snakes, creepy clowns

100: Do I have more girl friends or boy friends? at the moment, girl. when I was in school? boy.

101: Who do I get on with better, girls or boys? General rule? Boys, or girls that are kind of not-ultra-girly.

102: Where was I born? North Carolina, that hotbed of conservative bullshit. I'm actually ashamed to admit that's where I'm from.

103: Sexual orientation? I'm working on figuring that out. Let's call it bisexual for now, and I'll update you as it happens.

104: Where do I currently live? North Carolina, sadly.

105: Last person I texted? @mummyholmesisupset

106: Last time I cried? Today. I was watching WALL-E on STARZ, and UP came on while I was finishing dinner. By the time Ellie was miscarrying, I was bawling.

107: Guilty pleasure? I'm not really guilty about my pleasures, but I do have a soft spot for mind-candy romance novels. Like Johanna Lindsey, Nina Bangs, Harlequin, etc.

108: Favourite Youtuber? I hate Youtubers.

109: A photo of myself. uh, no.

110: Do I like selfies? fuck no.

111: Favourite game app? Doctor Who: Legacy

112: My relationship with my parents? It varies from moment to moment. My dad never really understood me, and after he got sick and was in a coma for awhile, it changed him. so there was never really a chance for him to try. My relationship with my mom is... complicated. Sometimes we're BFFs and finish each other's sandwiches, and other times, we hate each other's guts and would gladly murder each other and bury the bodies in the backyard.

113: Favourite accents? Spanish, English/Scottish, all the Asian ones (the gentleman that runs my local Chinese restaurant speaks Cantonese and Mandarin both, and I could listen to that all day.)

114: A place I have not been but wish to visit? London, Dublin, Cork, Kerry, Scotland, Italy, Greece, New York, Japan, Los Angeles

115: Favourite number? 15

116: Can I juggle? Nope

117: Am I religious? Eh, not really. I go to bible study mostly because I have half a crush on the preacher.

118: Do I like space? YES.

119: Do I like the deep ocean? Not so much.

120: Am I much of a daredevil? NO

121: Am I allergic to anything? Ciprofloxacin, IV contrast dye, Mobic/meloxicam, Zofram/ondansetron, and a ton of fragranced products (I have sensitive skin that breaks out at the drop of a hat.)

122: Can I curl my tongue? Yep!

123: Can I wiggle my ears? Nope!

124: Do I like clowns? Yes, if they're cute. NOT PENNYWISE, I HATE PENNYWISE. But I love Tim Curry's Pennywise. But that's because Tim Curry is awesome.

125: The Beatles or Elvis? Elvis. I'm an Elvis chick.

126: My current project? "By Inches We Fall," a Game of Thrones fanfic that's Jaime Lannister x Brienne of Tarth. I'm also working on some Christmas projects involving spray paint and recycled K-Cups

127: Am I a bad loser? Horrible loser. I hate to lose.

128: Do I admit when I wrong? sometimes. depends on who I'm talking to, and the tone of the discussion. if it's a civil discourse, yes I will. If we're shouting? I'm not backing down.

129: Forest or beach? Forest. A forest doesn't leave sand in your butt crack.

130: Favourite piece of advice? Mind your own business and you won't be minding mine

131: Am I a good liar? I used to be.

132: Hogwarts house / Divergent faction / Hunger Games district? Slytherin/what the fuck is a Divergent/12

133: Do I talk to myself? i do, and sometimes I answer

134: Am I very social? HAHAHAHAHA NO.

135: Do I like gossip? sit by me and pour that tea, bitch.

136: Do I keep a journal/diary? I do, on paper, and you'll never read it.

137: Have I ever hopelessly failed a test? i failed every physics test I took in high school. after becoming a Mythbusters stan, I retook an online physics test and passed it.

138: Do I believe in second chances? depends on the situation and the person, but generally not. i have been known to give them, though.

139: If I found a wallet full of cash on the ground, what would I do? oh man. I'd like to say I'd turn it in untouched, but. I also know I've got medication pay for (mine and mom's), her insurance to pay for (i'm uninsured), groceries and gas to buy, so in all probability? I'd keep the cash but return everything else.

140: Do I believe people are capable of change? No. People are who they are. they might change what they think or what they believe in, but who they are? No.

141: Have I ever been underweight? AHAHAHAHAHA NO

142: Am I ticklish? ...there's no good way to answer. If I say no, you'll tickle me to prove it. If I say yes, you'll tickle me. But yes, I am. especially my feet.

143: Have I ever been in a submarine? WTF? No.

144: Have I ever been on a plane? Once, and never again

145: In a film about my life, who would I cast as myself, friends and family? Rebel Wilson as me, America Ferrera as @mummyholmesisupset, Kristen Bell as @silvarbelle, Jessica Lange as my mother, and I can't think of anyone else.

146: Have I ever been overweight? Always, am currently, though I'm working to lose it. I've lost about 50 lbs in the past year, so I'm doing okay

147: Do I have any piercings? Three in my right ear, two in my left.

148: Which fictional character do I wish was real? Hannibal Lecter.

149: Do I have any tattoos? nope, but I want a couple.

150: What is the best decision I have made in life so far? .....i haven't made a single good decision....

151: Do I believe in Karma? it bites me on the ass often enough, so yes I do.

152: Do I wear glasses or contacts? Glasses, and I'm pretty sure I'm gonna have to switch to bifocals next time

153: What was my first car? 1979 green Dodge Aries K

154: Do I want children? If they're furry and four-legged, sure.

155: Who is the most intelligent person I know? um, probably my uncle with two frigging masters degrees

156: My most embarrassing memory? I met John deLancie at a Star Trek con once, just coming down the stairs from his room to the con floor. And I fell all over myself talking to him because I was like, fourteen or something and he was tall and handsome and genuinely happy to be tthere and I was basically every fangirl's nightmare.

157: What makes me nostalgic? watching old TV shows I loved as a kid, or reading books I haven't read in years.

158: Have I ever pulled an all-nighter? Yep

159: Which do I value more in others, brains or beauty? brains. i'm practically a zombie.

160: What colour mostly dominates my wardrobe? Purple and fuschia equally.

161: Have I ever had a paranormal experience? Not as such, no.

162: What do I hate most about myself? Everything?

163: What do I love most about myself? I like my hair.

164: Do I like adventure? only the ones in books.

165: Do I believe in fate? not really.

166: Favourite animal? Felis cattus

167: Have I ever been on radio? nope

168: Have I ever been on TV? nope

169: How old am I? 42

170: One of my favourite quotes? "Lock the door. And hope they don't have blasters."

171: Do I hold grudges? you bet your bippy I do. (what is a bippy and why are you betting it?)

172: Do I trust easily? No.

173: Have I learnt from my mistakes? I hope I have. But I suspect I haven't.

174: Best gift I’ve ever received? A single cupcake and a rosebud, given to me by the nurses at the cancer treatment center because it was my birthday and I was having radiation and felt absolutely shitty. so they surprised me with a little cupcake and a rose for my birthday and it made me feel better.

175: Do I dream? Yep.

176: Have I ever had a night terror? Yep

177: Do I remember my dreams, and what is one that comes to mind? I remember some of them, like the Continuing Adventures of Roxy, the Pink Police Poodle.

178: An experience that has made me stronger? My breakups.

179: If I were immortal, what would I do? Sleep a lot, read even more, learn everything that I never had before.

180: Do I like shopping? I do!

181: If I could get away with a crime, what would I choose to do? Bank robbery.

182: What does “family” mean to me? family is a group of people, not necessarily related by blood, who have chosen to band together in love and support of each other.

183: What is my spirit animal? According to my meditation quest, it's a wolf. But I'm not really comfortable saying that because it wasn't a real vision quest, I'd have to go to the res for that (i have Cherokee blood on my father's side) and I haven't.

184: How do I want to be remembered? As someone who tried to be good.

185: If I could master one skill, what would I choose? Woodcarving.

186: What is my greatest failure? I dropped out of college in the 90s, when I had an accident that broke my ankle. I never went back.

187: What is my greatest achievement? five-year survivor, cancer-free!

188: Love or money? Money, sadly.

189: Love or career? love

190: If I could time travel, where and when would I want to go? Am I an observer like the Doctor? If yes, then I would go back to the Globe Theater and see all of Shakespeare as it was originally performed. Am I living there, stuck? Future, please.

191: What makes me the happiest? Writing.

192: What is “home” to me? Where I lay my head.

193: What motivates me? How I feel, what I see, something that fascinates me.

194: If I could choose my last words, what would they be? Wake me up when it's over

195: Would I ever want to encounter aliens? Depends on if they're hostile or kind.

196: A movie that scared me as a child? The Dark Crystal. I love it now.

197: Something I hated as a child that I like now? V-8 juice

198: Zombies or vampires? oooh, both. But vampires.

199: Live in the city or suburbs? Suburbs

200: Dragons or wizards? Dragons all the way, man. I love dragons.

201: A nightmare that has stayed with me? Its always the same. I'm being chased by someone/something, it's always getting closer, and it sounds like a loud, roaring motorcycle. And I'm always running or racing through the Black Lodge from Twin Peaks (the place with all the red curtains and the black/white zig-zag floor. That place freaks me the fuck out, and ever since the show aired, it's been in my nightmares)

202: How do I define love? Love is not love, that alters when it alteration finds, nor bends with the remover to remove; O no, it is an ever fixed mark, that looks on tempests and is never shaken.

203: Do I judge a book by its cover? sometimes. I've found great books in the bargain bin that way. I've also found a few stinkers. Come to think of it, I've found a few people that way too. Some great, some stinkers.

204: Have I ever had my heart broken? I have.

205: Do I like my handwriting? i do, actually

206: Sweet or savoury? Savoury

207: Worst job I’ve had? Market research interview administrator. I was one of those assholes that flagged you down in the mall and made you watch a commercial or a movie trailer, or try a snack product and then asked you a billion and five questions about it

208: Do I collect anything? Funko POPs, Superman memorabilia, Star Wars and Star Trek memorabilia, penguins, mooses

209: Item of clothing or jewellery you’ll never see me without? my dragon ring, my pocketwatch

210: What is on my bucket list? I don't have one

211: How do I handle anger? Depends. I sometimes hold it in, but most times I blow like a firecracker. hot and hard, and then I cool off.

212: Was I named after anyone? my dad's uncle Kelly, and my mom's father Ray (i'm Kelly Rae)

213: Do I use sarcasm a lot? me? sarcastic? Perish the thought.

214: What TV character am I most like? Dobie Gillis.

215: What is the weirdest talent I have? I can twirl just about anything like a baton and not drop it

216: Favourite fictional character? Ashley j. Williams

3:24 AM. Son of a bitch.

#everything you ever wanted to know about me #but were afraid to ask

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the-reading-potato-blog · 5 years

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Worst Reads 2018

So I have seen a couple of BookTubers do this for a couple years now and thought that I finally can do it given that I have a “Bookish blog”.

Of course, these are just my opinions I’m sorry if these are one of your favorite books please don’t be offended

So these are in no particular order and again I emphasize that these are only my opinions please don’t be offended. Most of my mentions are basically books that I thought were MEH or just didn’t hold my interest long enough and comparing to the amazing books I’ve actually read they fell flat for me.

Now without further ado let’s get started:

1- Saving Wishes(Wishes #1)by G.J. Walker-Smith. This is one of those books were MEH and quite forgettable because LEGIT I already can’t remember a thing from the plot. All I remember is that I found the actions a bit dramatic and the interactions too childish for a 17-year-old but maybe I’m just becoming a grandma. on a brighter note, I loved a quote from it.

“You’re so much more beautiful when you’re not tearing yourself to shreds “

2- Living Out Loud(Austen #3) and Wasted Words(Austen #1) by Staci Hart. So I kinda have a love-hate relationship with these kinds of books honestly. I enjoy reading them but at the same time, I kinda don’t. EH I don’t know how my mind works it cannot make a solid opinion on them. I’ve read a book from Staci Hart before and I completely fell in love with it so since then I’m trying to find another one of her gems. that’s why these two are a bit disappointing for me although they have really good ratings on Goodreads.

3- Love, Life, and the Listby Kasie West. So I used to really love Kasie West’s books I always found them cute, quirky and light. They were always fun to read and would never fail to get me out of a reading slump as they gave me all the butterflies in the world. But lately, I have been feeling that she is over publishing. so instead of writing one amazing book in a year, she would write a couple of "okay” ones. Nothing too new or too different just a good book that you read then forget about. Or again maybe I’ve grown out of YA contemporary and that’s why I have been reading less and less of them because I don’t find myself being WOWED by them anymore.

4- A Quiet Kind of Thunder by Sara Barnard. So this is again another meh read It was a cute fast read that got me out of a reading slump but nothing too exciting.

5- Until Friday Night(The Field Party #1)by Abbi Glines. I’ve been trying so hard to remember even one character from this AND I CAN’T! I’m even starting to doubt that I’ve even read it eh I have such a terrible memory I hate myself. I haven’t even written a review on Goodreads to help me remember why I gave it a three-star rating.

“It never leaves you... the heart,” she said as she opened her eyes to look at me. “But you learn to live and you learn to deal with the loss. You do what you have to survive.”

So I found this beautiful quote among many others that I highlighted in my Kindle. That erases my doubt and confirmed that I’ve actually read this and I don’t think a ghost highlighted those.

Remember how I said that these are in no particular order? guess what?

I LIED!

I left the one that I disliked the most for the end.

6- A Very Large Expanse of Seaby Tahereh Mafi. This might be a surprise to a lot of people since this book has a really good rating on Goodreads and the most popular Bookish Blogs and Youtubers have really enjoyed it but boy do I have a mouthful to say. To be honest, I thought this book was supposed to be about Islamophobia and a way for us to look at what living as a Muslim in the west feels like. It had so much potential but it focused on all the wrong things. It was heavily focused on the romance that It had. I found myself not caring about that. Also as a Muslim myself I found myself very poorly represented. yes, I do realize that everyone’s take to religion is different but man there are key elements that cannot be missed. I think Islam was basically reduced to a piece of clothing, which is the scarf and Ramadan. Another thing is that we didn’t get to see any character growth. We reach to the point where she realizes that she has all this anger but we don’t actually see that development as it ends right where it should be starting. I think I have too many things to say that maybe I might dedicate an entire post of me ranting about it.

#books #bibliophile #bookishrant #book #ya #reading #review #goodreads #worstbooks2018 #booklover #booklr

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stormyvixen · 6 years

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Release Week Revew! Dark Sentinel (Dark #32) Christine Feehan!

In an explosive novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Christine Feehan, a human woman ignites the desire of her Carpathian lifemate--and of an ancient vampire with a score to settle.

After the devastating loss of her entire family, Lorraine Peters heads to the woods searching for peace of mind and anything to quell the anger in her soul. Instead, she stumbles upon a scene of horrific violence, as one man lies helpless in the face of three attackers.

Andor Katona's existence has been a harsh one, living for centuries as a monk in the Carpathian Mountains. Unable to find his lifemate, he almost welcomes his release from a colorless and unfeeling world at the hands of the vampire hunters who have mistaken him for their prey. That is, until a whirling ball of fury bursts onto the scene, determined to save him.

In one glimpse, in one breath, Andor recognizes Lorraine as his lifemate, but it will take more than their telepathic connection to convince her of their immortal bond. Lorraine is a lethal combination of cunning and courage. So much so that she captures the attention of a master vampire, one who has already lost what was once irreplaceable to him. One who will strike with deadly precision at Andor and his ancient Carpathian comrades in a war to end all wars. . .

The newest book in the world of the Carpathian is a spectacular read full of electrifying suspense, volatile action and carnal passion. Andor and Lorraine are two solid, enthralling characters that easily draw you into their story but it’s their exciting relationship that keeps readers glued to the pages from the very beginning. The relationship is a bit rocky because of the situation and their differences which causes some emotional turmoil, but like all lifemate romances, the magnetic attraction sizzles from their core and refuses to be denied.

The story starts off with some intense, thrilling excitement and continues to keeps on the edge with lots of fast paced, explosive action and anticipation building thrills. This novel flows smoothly from page to the next while the hunters go up against vampires that have a diabolical plan and seem to have formed an army. Surprising twists and turns keeps the characters on their toes and defeating this enemy may just take more hunters than they have.

I was unable to put Andor and Lorraine’s story down until I had read every last word of this spectacular Carpathian story, the world just keeps getting more fascinating and the author continues to wow readers with her creative imagination and wonderful world building. I especially love the flying carousel that she brought to vivid life and how lifelike the characters and thrilling danger is while I suspended in her world.

Author's Book Page - https://www.christinefeehan.com/darkbooks/dark_sentinel.php

Add Dark Sentinel to your shelves at:

Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/37457488-dark-sentinel

BookBub - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/37457488-dark-sentinel

Dark Sentinel is the 32nd book in the Dark series

Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/series/41089-dark

Author - https://www.christinefeehan.com/darkbooks/index.php

Amazon - https://www.amazon.com/gp/bookseries/B00CJ8T1WE/ref=dp_st_0451490088

which includes -

1 Dark Prince 2 Dark Desire 3 Dark Gold 4 Dark Magic 5 Dark Challenge 6 Dark Fire 7 Dark Dream (in Dark Nights) 8 Dark Legend 9 Dark Guardian 10 Dark Symphony 11 Dark Descent (in Dark Nights) 12 Dark Melody 13 Dark Destiny 14 Hot Blooded (in Darkest at Dawn) 15 Dark Secret 16 Dark Demon 17 Dark Celebration 18 Dark Demon 19 Dark Curse 20 Dark Slayer 21 Dark Peril 22 Dark Predator 23 Dark Storm 24 Dark Lycan 25 Dark Wolf 26 Dark Blood 27 Dark Crime (Edge of Darkness) 28 Dark Ghost 29 Dark Promises 30 Dark Carousel 31 Dark Legacy 32 Dark Sentinel

in hardcover or ebook at:

Berkley - https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/562835/dark-sentinel-by-christine-feehan/9780451490087

B&N - https://bit.ly/2w0c0aZ BaM - https://bit.ly/2MlnRuf Amazon - https://amzn.to/2MF6Ms2 Amazon UK - https://amzn.to/2Ovbauu Audible - https://adbl.co/2AZcvb2 Walmart - https://www.walmart.com/ip/Dark%20Sentinel/363108124 Kindle - https://amzn.to/2NLPmuT Nook - http://bit.ly/2uuP2YH iBook - https://apple.co/2uuWvqJ Kobo - http://bit.ly/2Jf6d5T GPlay - http://bit.ly/2NaSD5J

You can read chapter one at:

https://www.christinefeehan.com/darkbooks/dark_sentinel.php#excerpt

I live on the beautiful Northern California coast and draw much inspiration from the beauty around me. I've always been a writer, for as long as I remember. My sisters were forced to read all of my books from the time I could write a story on paper.

I love family. I love my brothers and sisters, my children, my grandchildren and my great grandchildren. My home was always full of kids and children give me so much joy.

I also love my "sisters of the heart", those friends who have supported me through my life, laughed with me, cried with me and loved me regardless of how crazy my life got. I am a strong supporter of women helping each other which is why I became a third degree black belt and taught self-defense to women who'd been abused.

I love people and dogs, good books and great coffee and I'm lucky to know just how blessed I am.

Website - http://www.christinefeehan.com/

Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6268.Christine_Feehan

BookBub - https://www.bookbub.com/authors/christine-feehan

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/christinefeehanauthor

Twitter - https://twitter.com/AuthorCFeehan

InstaGram - https://www.instagram.com/authorcfeehan/

Pintrest - http://www.pinterest.com/authorcfeehan/

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vickisventures · 3 years

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Pumpkin Spice and Everything Nice

3 weeks to go! The weather has become more fall like and some of the trees have begun to change already. I heard that was supposed to happen earlier than normal this year due to the dry summer. I love this time of year! Makes me want to play hooky from work when it’s so nice out. Steve is ready to go. I went through that a week ago and am over it now. I’m sure when we get down to the last week, I will get antsy to move on again. This week was quite a mess. We started our newly assigned bay on Monday. Monday was a good day. We were busy but not overwhelmed and we liked the bay. It was in a good location, the workspace was ample and we liked the product there for the most part. Day 2 it was crazy. We arrived to find 4 rows of totes 7 high with putaways (product that needed to be shelved). Some of it had been there from when we’d left the night before. (Makes you wonder what the night shift did!). Then the labels just kept flowing. We had a really busy day but still enjoyed it once we got some of the totes put away where we felt less claustrophobic and disorganized. On Wednesday, we arrived to find a girl at “our” bay. She was the one who had been working the bay before us but had been moved by DigiKey to work elsewhere. It was rather awkward. We knew she didn’t want us there and we didn’t need her there. At break, we went to our supervisors and told them that 3 people weren’t needed there and we’d be ok if we needed to be moved. Lisa said, “I was just getting ready to come find you.” Not a surprise! She explained that the girl was a very unhappy person. Apparently at the bay she’d been moved to, she had been rude to everyone and just made everyone miserable. So, guess what DigiKey did? Tell her to suck it up and learn this new bay or else? Nope! They allowed her to go back to her old bay; telling people that all you have to do at DigiKey is throw a fit and act ugly and you can get what you want. Lisa was not too happy with DigiKey, but what can you do? Some people are very territorial. Hard to believe in our short time here, I had to deal with 2 people who caused me to have to change bays. Lisa asked Steve and I to go to another bay to work for the rest of the day and on Thursday; then we would go to another bay on Friday where we will supposedly work for the rest of our time here. (I’ll have to see it to believe it!). I did not like the bay we were moved to, but I knew it was just for a day and half. I spent most of my time using the weigh machine to count out product. It was only 2 rows (4 shelving rows) of product and the workspace was tiny. I was so glad when Friday arrived so we could move to JZ. I knew of this bay. I had been told it was a lot of fun and so easy. The couple who had been working it were temps like us and they were leaving so they needed someone to fill their spots. It’s considered a “super bay.” It is a fast paced bay because almost everything is pre-packed. That means that if you get an order for 50 of something, you go to the bin and there are baggies with 5, 10, 25, 50, 100 etc. already filled and ready to go. You just grab the amount you need, put the label on it and toss it onto the conveyer belt. Occasionally, you have to prepare your own order but very rarely. I think I fulfilled 151 orders on Friday. My average has been around 85 at other bays. It was great! Steve wasn’t so sure about it because it was different from anything we’ve done so far, but I think this is the perfect way to finish up my stint at DigiKey!

I probably should have mentioned in my blog titled “The Job,” that that is the job as I know it. As soon as they open the new facility, the job will change significantly. No more handheld scanners. No more working at bays with others (Mike will be happy!) and trying to fight for workspace. People will mostly have their own supplies, their own workspace and won’t move much since the product will come to them on the belt. I still wonder how it will all work and if I’d like the job as well as I do now. Hopefully we’ll get a chance to find out next spring, but DigiKey may decide that this “experiment” isn’t worth repeating and won’t look for seasonal workers anymore.

We haven’t been able to work the overtime we’d wanted so far. We have 1/2 a cruise paid for. (I guess one of us can go. HA!) We are still hoping that might change since a lot more of the Express Pro people are leaving this next week, but time will tell. My worn-out body is glad, but our vacation account is sad.

We finalized our departure plans today. We moved up our departure date a week so we could go to Missouri to visit family. I haven’t seen some of my family in over a year and a half. I have a great niece I’ve never even met. We plan to drive to Missouri and stay for a few days. Then since I mentioned to Steve that I’d like to camp a bit instead of just run from job to job, we started to look for somewhere we could chill for a few nights. Problem was, it appears everyone else is doing the same thing in mid-October. I mean, who can blame them? Fall weather and colors at their best! We had hoped for a state park in Arkansas or Oklahoma but struck out. We ended up finding a privately owned park in Northwest Arkansas. It’s close to a beautiful state park with hiking trails which will work for us. We also found out that there’s a huge arts and crafts fair about an hour away while we are there. They have live music every day and food trucks. It sounds like my kind of place, so we are really excited about our camping trip. Then we’ll head to Amarillo as planned for our appointments.

On a different topic, I love to read and got a Kindle probably 3-4 years ago. I never read paperback books anymore. Kindles are just so much easier to travel with and when I finish a book, I can just start another one without a trip to the library or bookstore. Many of you may be familiar also with Book Bub which emails you daily with discounted or free books that you can get for your Kindle and I rarely spend money on books anymore. Plenty of free ones to entertain me. Well, Steve decided he’d like to read “Nomadland” after I finished so I had to lend him my Kindle to read it. I had brought a few paperbacks with me from when we sold our house that I hadn’t ever read. I dug one out and decided to read it while Steve used my Kindle. So, I put on my reader’s and turn on the reading light (see why Kindles are so great?!?) to see my paperback. Not too long into my nightly reading, I caught myself trying to tap the page to get it to turn for me! How sad is that? (For you who don’t use an e-reader, after reading a page, you just tap on the screen to move on to the next page.). Shows how much I use my Kindle. Also, may say something else, but we’ll not go into that because I refuse to give up my beloved Kindle. I have to admit I did that at least 3 more times while reading the book (not all on the same night at least!).

Happy Fall, ya’ll! Time to start buying the pumpkin flavored grocery items. I found pumpkin spice marshmallows and some delicious pumpkin spice cream-filled cookies this week at Walmart. Can’t wait to see what I find next week!

#DigiKey #full time rving #workcamping

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