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There are apparently more medieval goodies to be had!

January 6, 2013, 3:52 pm
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When I was buying Pillars of the Earth on amazon, their 'if you like x, you will like y' feature led me to a Swedish miniseries Arn the Knight Templar which I simply had to get. Clearly, there is a small but existing 'Middle Ages as a setting' subgenre I've never come across much before and excitement at discovering various movie/mini things set in the Middle Ages is eeeeee!!! It doesn't hurt that whoever plays Arn is not hard on the eyes, and there is apparently a love story in addition to all the bloody battles. Have a really really spoilery shippy MV:



I also got World Without End and am going to have a ginormous medieval binge.
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OK, this is the last 'things set in Middle Ages - well, not really, since it's 17th cnt' for the day

January 6, 2013, 4:27 pm
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But I realized that while it will take a couple of days for me to get my hands on both Pillars and Arn, I can watch the adaptation of Henryk Sienkiewitz's classic The Deluge right now! I own it but did not watch it yet (I get pretty side-tracked). EEEEEE! While I haven't read The Deluge, I've read and loved With Fire and Sword, another part of the same trilogy (as well as being a big fan of Quo Vadis).

Have a Kmicic/Olenka MV:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kC3m9gYefm0

And an embeddable one:

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Captain Vorpatril's Alliance, where have you been all my life?

January 7, 2013, 6:42 am
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I have just got to the point where Ivan and Tej are getting married (to save her from killing herself so as to avid capture - long story) and him from being arrested and I am giggling so loud, it should not be allowed (while shipping like mad at the same time). It's been years since I loved a Bujold book so badly! I have to say, Ivan is remindinge a tiny bit of Freddie in Heyer's Cotillion. Well, Freddie with a lot of guns and a homicidal conspiracy after him and Tej.


Posted via m.livejournal.com.

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Guess what I have in my hot little hands?

January 7, 2013, 6:21 pm
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Yes, I peeked. I am going to enjoy this a hell of a lot!
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Pillars of the Earth - ep 1

January 8, 2013, 8:11 pm
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It was ridiculously fun, even if they did have dialogues which meant to convey historical information in a '12th century for dummies' type of fashion, when the characters involved would have known it all already and thus had no need for exposition. Also, I've never heard the White Ship was a result of a church conspiracy before, but I suppose they needed it for the plot...

But let's all get to the important points - namely hotness and shipping...



This is here because it's pretty and shippy and the most action we get all episode:





This is Aliena, who is the sole character who is both well-fed and happy. This being set in the 12th century, she doesn't remain that way for long. I kinda love her already.





Tom the Builder. Mmmm, Rufus Sewell. I remember swooning for him back in Middlemarch almost 20 years ago and I still wouldn't kick him out of my bed for eating crackers (or, since half the people are starving in this, not eating crackers).





Lady, I like you, but if perhaps you'd be more convincing as not a witch if you a. didn't put things in your hair and b. live in a cave in the woods.





And then there is the fact that your kid is unnaturally hot. Definitely a witch!





Speaking of hot, Jack's Daddy is UNF. I'd give up my wimple for him too!








Poor poor Tom the Builder. This is really one of those 'OK, which character is going to get the plague next' type of shows :)





This is here courtesy of my crush on Eddie Redmayne, who seems to be auditioning for Faith, or maybe LOTR...





!!!!!!!! My shippy heart is pretty much this show's forever! Jack and Aliena's first meeting. I just love how he is immediately struck by the sight of her and his intensity (without saying a single word - does he ever talk btw? His Mom says he does, but we haven't heard him yet) and her warmth and the way she turns that girl's comment that he is a bastard into a compliment at his cleverness. Awwwwwww :) I love.















































And then he grabs and holds on to the flower that fell from her hair...eeeeeee! This is hitting all my kinks!







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Pillars of the Earth and Meljean Brook Guardian series...

January 9, 2013, 7:18 pm
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Am currently in the middle of ep 3 of Pillars of the Earth and three things are very clear: (a) Aliana is a BAMF; (b) whiny adult Harry Potter that is Alfred annoys me and I want him off my screen and (c) this show loves weird mother-son relationships.



Jack is speaking! Granted, since it's to prevent Tom Builder from murder, I don't think he is going to win any speaker of the year awards. I do love that his voice is raspy, as if from disuse.



Tom with the baby. Awwwww - my Rufus Sewell love is strong.



Jack clearly believes in job creation and a motto of 'God helps those who help themselves' but burning down a Cathedral so as to have a chance to rebuild it is a bit extreme;



This is here just because he is ridiculously pretty and because, being one myself, I am quite attached to redheads.




Tom Builder and not!witch whose name I cannot manage to remember for the life of me. I think she is sort of a medieval atheist which takes some...interesting brainpower, in the 12th century. I don't think she should rail against God though as God has clearly been kind to her, giving her Rufus Sewell for make-outs.




Aliana is the biggest BAMF ever. After being raped by Will, she has the presence of mind to escape and rescue her sweet but hapless brother and hold it all together, and promise her father to restore bro to earldom and get the bro into King Stephen's army right after watching her father's execution and terrorize a priest into paying the debt owed. Nothing slows her down. She is beyond awesome.








I just like the parallel shots, also it's the cutest baby...







I'd be making jokes about a bit too close a relationship not!witch and Jack are sharing except for the fact that Will and psycho Mama leave no room to contemplate any other potential mother-son impropriety. In this scene, she wants to know all the details about his rape of Aliana and croons over how many she is while feeling him up.



Alfred annoys the snot out of me, and I am not even snotty. His unfortunate haircut makes him look like a cross between a 1990s B-lister and a grown-up, whiny Harry Potter and his personality makes me think of wet cloth. All sorts of bad things happen to people in this show - can't a quarry collapse on top of him or something?



I do love Martha though, who is all teenage confusion and I totally love the quasi-big brother/little sister she and Jack have going. I kinda want to adopt her and then feed her up.






Ohhhh, he is still thinking of Aliana! And her drew her portrait and kept her flower! Shipper heaven. I also like that he pulls it out after his little convo about love with Martha...




Nothing like a bit of a beat-down and mangling to get this viewer's attention. Kind of him to get horribly beaten up for my delectation. Though I kept thinking 'you are going to get blood poisoning in that mud, Jack!' Points for actually being a rare take on the middle ages that shows that a trained knight is pretty much superior to an untrained person - too many fictional takes seem to think it took five days to train up, and not turning into a war machine from childhood.





In pretty much unrelated news, I've started reading Meljean Brook's Guardian series - they are urban fantasy romance and were recommended by cleobulle. I confess I wouldn't have checked them out except for her rec because the covers were atrocious and also I am pretty piky about my urban fantasy, romance or not. But cleobulle, I am in your debt! I am just finishing the second book and I am loving them!

Brook is good at world-building (as her steam punk series showed) and she creates a complicated world of demons, guardians (sort-of angels protecting humans), vampires etc. There is a lot of adventure and a complex plot (it's more more of an urban fantasy with prominent romance than a romance novel per se), but what anchors all the books are characters that get under my skin. The first book in the series is Demon Angel and its protagonists are Lilith, a half-demon who spends her time on earth tempting humans into sin or driving them to suicide and Hugh, a medieval knight who becomes a guardian as a result of his sacrifice of his life for another. Lilith and Hugh fight and long for each other through the centuries in a very complicated, messed up relationship. But then they are complicated, messed up people. The book has a big chunk set in the middle ages, but the bulk takes place in modern San Francisco. I confess it took me a while to get into it - for the first number of pages I just kept pushing through. But by a quarter in, I realized I really liked it, and halfway in, I was obsessed.

The second book, the one I am finishing right now, is Demon Moon, and follows Savitri, a computer hacker and Hugh's surrogate little sister and Colin, a vampire cursed to see into Chaos dimension (instead of his own image) any time he looks into any reflective surface. I loved this one from the get-go, and once again, the protagonists are complex and strong and fucked up. I especially loved the part where Brook blew up the usual 'noble idiot' cliche so utterly by having Savitri show how selfish it really was. If I had to pick, I'd pick Demon Angel as more my favorite, but they are both excellent.

Oh, and there was a bizarre review for DM on amazon that was whining about 'interracial' romance - so the reviewer was OK with vampires, demons, angel-types with ages in he triple digits hooking up with humans, but God forbid two individuals of different ethnic (though if we are being technical, same racial - as far as I know, Indians are considered Caucasians, though it's all idiotic anyway) background getting together was too much for her sensibilities. I wonder how she felt when she read The Iron Duke with a *gasp* Asian heroine.
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The Pillars of the Earth eps 3-4 and some fun reading

January 11, 2013, 4:18 pm
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It took me a bit to really fall for The Pillars of the Earth but I am definitely a goner by now. It might be the shipping (Jack/Aliena is so my thing, it hurts) or it might be the show's never-ending love of torturing its protagonists...



Healthy mother-son relationship:





Unhealthy mother-son relationship. You know, William is a murdering and raping psycho, but for the sake of people around him, I wish there was someone to try to put the fear of hell into him(seems the only the only thing that works) instead of egging him on. His body count may be less, or slower:





I love how utterly smitten and engrossed by her he looks always. But what got me was when Prior Phillip tells Aliena that she has two protectors - God and himself, Jack adds under his breath "And me. You have me." Swooooooon.



































Seriously. So smitten.

















Alfred clearly likes her too but ummm...no, thank you.




















Evilest Bishop ever. Or something. So far he is responsible for every bad thing ever. I bet he kicks puppies in his spare time.








They kill me, seriously. I also love that the kiss happens after he's been trying to, rather incoherently, how he feels while sculpting. And it's so spontaneous and overwhelming and adorable and boooo on Alfred for interrupting! I also love how happy she looks.


















































However, since anyone is allowed only 2.5 seconds of happines per episode, we then get this. Prior Phillip is being tortured and about to be hanged by the bad guys, and Jack garotted, left for dead, and thrown into a mass grave. God, if these were modern people, they'd need therapy forever! As they are denizens of the 12th century, they'll just probably call it Wednesday.


















In other news, I've been reading a bunch of stuff, out of which these two are notable:

Elizabeth Chadwick, Shields of Pride - a novel set in the 12th century, following Joscelin de Gael, a mercenary and a bastard son of a nobleman, and Linnet, a noble widow who is given to him in marriage once her awful husband dies. It's really good - both romantic and gritty, and delves a lot into social and other mores of the time. Plus, I really like the characters. Chadwick is always always good.

Elizabeth Hoyt, Thief of Shadows - this one is so so so good! It's set in the 1730s, and follows Winter Makepeace, seemingly a staid schoolmaster in the slums, who becomes a masked avenger by night, and Lady Eleanor - an older widow, patroness of Winter's orphanage, and someone who discovers who Winter really is. This is seriously amazing! The only one of Hoyt's books I like more was The Serpent Prince. It's passionate and angsty and with a hero and heroine I really really love - Winter is suicidally principled, tightly wound, and even more intense, plus really really good as a person. And Lady Eleanor is smart, pragmatic, and just - guuuuuh. They kill me. Note - if you mind older woman, younger man romance, stay away. Otherwise - go in!


Posted via m.livejournal.com.

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Article 1

January 11, 2013, 8:12 pm
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As of episode 6, I hate pretty much everyone except for Jack, Aliena and Jack's mother. Too bad there is no nuke to drop on the rest of them.

I am a bit over invested.


Posted via m.livejournal.com.

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Gangster Squad

January 12, 2013, 9:50 pm
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Mr. Mousie and I made a date night out of it and went to see Gangster Squad, the 1940s ganster/cops flick that the critics seem to hate but we enjoyed a lot. It's no LA Confidential (one of my all-time favorites) but I loved the style, the shoot-outs and a hell lot of my favorite actors. I was especially taken with Josh Brolin's John O'Mara, who was honor and duty-obsessed, still haunted by the war, a bit insane, not super-brainy, and pretty much my favorite fictional trope come to life. And his wife was a total and utter BAMF. I kinda want fic about them.

Oh, and for the pretty factor, it had Ryan Gosling/Emma Stone as a cynical cop and a gangster's moll OTP. Fun fun fun!
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Romance books and a bit of drama

January 14, 2013, 6:21 pm
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My computer is still in the repair shop so my drama watching is pretty much curtailed. By now, I am so behind on School, I Miss You and Cheonamdong Alice, I am probably just going to give up and wait until they are done and I can marathon. BUT! I definitely plan to check out both Flower Boy Next Door and Yawang. What I am really craving is a fusion sageuk (one that is not the ridiculous and unappealing Jeon Woo Chi) but alas, there isn't one on the horizon.

Anyhow, I've been getting my romance cravings from romance novels, and here are some of the notable ones:

Elizabeth Hoyt, To Seduce a Sinner - clearly, whatever Hoyt puts into her books works for me, because I have yet to come across one of her books that I didn't adore. This book, set in the 1760s, is part of her 'four soldiers' quartet and concerns Jasper, our hero, an affable, charming nobleman who, after two failed engagements (the brides cried off), impulsively accepts a surprising offer of marriage from Melisande, a rather plain and pragmatic noblewoman, thinking to have the usual marriage of convenience. But Melisande has secretly loved him for years, and underneath his laid-back exterior, Jasper has quite a number of issues and a hefty dose of darkness, as a result of the French and Indian War (I cannot believe a romance novel referenced that, I love it!) and, more specifically, an event where his troop was captured by Indians acting on French orders, and then his men and he were tortured and his best friend burned to death in front of his eyes. And Jasper is beginning to think that this was the work of a traitor...This is really really good, both funny and angsty, and I totally adored both Jasper and Melisande, who were surprisingly well-adjusted together.

Elizabeth Hoyt, To Desire a Devil - this one is a reread, so I clearly love it. It was my first Hoyt book, ages ago, and it's just as good on reread. Actually, even better, since I now read the other books in the series this is the last part of. Remember the dead best friend of the hero in the book I just mentioned? Well, Reynaud St. Aubin is the not-really-dead friend in question, and is the beyond fucked up hero of this one. If you like fucked up and tortured heroes and oodles of h/c, this is the book for you. Reynaud has been a captive of an Indian tribe for seven years, but he's finally made his way home only to find out that his father is dead and a distant relative is occupying both Reynaud's title and his house. It is when he crashes a political tea in that house, barely sane, babbling in French, and almost dead with fever, that he meets the awesome and pragmatic (I am noticing a pragmatic trend in heroines, good job, Ms. Hoyt!) heroine, Beatrice, not-blood niece of the person currently holding the title. And by 'meets,' I mean 'collapses on her.' As far as meet-cutes go, this one is pretty good. Ever since they moved in, Beatrice has had a quixotic fancy for the handsome, smiling but dead young man in the portrait that hangs in the house, but this fucked up, grim, violent stranger is nothing like that. But she is still attracted and Reynaud, while hardly able to process his emotions in any functional way, can't help but think of her as home/England/things he lost. There is still the issue of the traitor and other good things, but let's face it, we are reading for the romance. Basically, this one is pure awesome. One bit of warning - if descriptions of gruesome torture freak you out, stay away. Tbh, while I was quite happy with the fact that the love of a good woman, plus friends and being home, seem to have returned the hero to joy and function (though he is always going to be a bit grim), realistically, I am not sure how the poor guy would ever mentally heal - I mean, 7 years?! I can buy he can be happy, but I am sure he is going to have PTSD forever.

Meljean Brook, Demon Night - third in her Guardian series. I didn't like this as much as the other two (and unlike the first two, it's not a fantasy book with a strong romance, but pretty much a romance novel) but it's not bad. Involves a formerly self-destructive human woman wanted by vampires (long story) and a former Wild West cowboy Guardian. I was indifferent to both of them (gimme her researcher sister and the evil to everyone but genuinely loves her demon boyfriend instead, any day) but the mythology was fun and I aim to read more.

Liz Carlyle, My False Heart - I am growing quite attached to Carlyle's stuff. This one involves the Earl of Rannoch, a bitter and disillusioned man with an awful reputation who accidentally stumbles over the rambling, warm, loving house of Evangeline, a portrait painter (and her eccentric family), is mistaken for a client, and cannot help but want to be drawn into all that warmth. It's just so darling and lovely and I love the hero and heroine and want them to be happy so desperately. It's really good!
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Jack and Aliena extravaganza

January 14, 2013, 7:05 pm
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Because those two make me giddy. I am now near the beginning of ep 7 and stopped because they are super-happy right now and, the way this show works, you know something bad will happen and I just want to bask for a bit. Also, Alfred must die.



I am not sure which is my favorite scene with the two of them, but the one where Prior Phillip calls out the bans for Aliena and Alfred and Jack (a novice monk, no less) starts screaming that he cannot because she is his and tries to get to her despite the hordes of monks trying to hold him back = !!!!!!














































































































































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Because those two make me giddy. I am now near the beginning of ep 7 and stopped because they are super-happy right now and, the way this show works, you know something bad will happen and I just want to bask for a bit. Also, Alfred must die.

<lj-cut text="Caps caps nothing but caps of shippiness">

I am not sure which is my favorite scene with the two of them, but the one where Prior Phillip calls out the bans for Aliena and Alfred and Jack (a novice monk, no less) starts screaming that he cannot because she is his and tries to get to her despite the hordes of monks trying to hold him back = !!!!!!

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Btw, I am reading the novel right now, and it's a lot better than the show (which I love solely for Jack/Aliena). It makes so much more sense!
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!!!!!!

January 15, 2013, 8:54 am
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This will make no sense to anyone except cleobulle, but eeeeeeee!!!! Michael is a half-demon?!?!?!?!?!?!?! With Belial as the Daddy?!

Well.

That was totally shocking but explains a lot. Including his soft spot for Lilith.

How a half-demon became a good guy and the big boss of all the good guys I have no idea but eeeeeee!!! Must have been interesting at home on career day.

And all of a sudden my interest in this series just spiked about 1000 times.


Posted via m.livejournal.com.

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I think I found a cure for my month-long drama slump

January 15, 2013, 7:08 pm
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And it's Yawang/Queen of Ambition, with Kwon Sang Woo as a man willing to do everything for a woman, and Soo Ae as the woman who takes his everything and uses it to advance her position. I looove drama melos and that cast!

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Obsessing over Guardian series...

January 16, 2013, 5:56 pm
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Thanks to crack-dealer cleobulle, I've been binging on Meljean Brook's Guardian series - a series of urban fantasy romances with very complicated mythology and world-building. I am currently on book 7 (the last book in the series, book 8, is coming out in August).

In the Guardian universe, once a a human dies saving others from demons or nosferatu, he or she is offered a choice - to move to the Great Beyond or to become a Guardian - a being dedicated to fighting the forces of evil and to protect the world. Guardians have been created thousands of years ago because when angels were doing the same people started worshipping them and a less divine alternative was needed. The world has a lot more complicated layers and rules, but that's the basic one. So far the books are as follows:

1. Demon Angel - I posted about it here

2. Demon Moon - I posted about it here

3. Demon Night - I posted about it here

4. Demon Bound - I haven't read that one because cleobulle wasn't keen on it and because I met the hero of this in another book and didn't find him in the least interesting.

5. Demon Forged - follows Irena and Alejandro, two fairly old guardians who have major unresolved issues. This was such an odd duck. I really liked this book but for everything except the OTP, who I found boring and whose scenes I skipped. I love the world-building and the plot (if Brook ever wanted, she could write kick-ass fantasy series), and glimpses of Hugh/Lilith and Colin/Savitri (the awesome OTPs of the first and second books), and everything about Michael, who is the leader of the Guardians despite being a half-demon and is by far my favorite character. Plus, there is the possibility of Michael/Taylor (she is a homicide detective and a new Guardian)...

6. Demon Blood - ahhhh, I really did like the OTP of this one. Rosalia is a very smart, meticulous Guardian who plans to protect the vampire communities of Europe and to wipe a bunch of demons at once. And then there is Deacon, once the leader of the Prague vampire community, now a man with nothing to live for but revenge against demons. This has a good OTP and a good plot, but I confess my favorite thing was still the whole fucked up fucked-uppedness that is Michael-Taylor 'relationship' - the whole 'he has volunteered to be eternally tortured in Hell as a way to keep the seal between worlds going, but a part of him lives in the back of her head and occasionally takes over' is pretty much so insane that I can't resist. Gives a whole new meaning to cohabitation. I do love that Taylor is coping pretty damn well and also vows to break him out. You go, girl!

7. Demon Marked - !!!!!! I loved this and I was obsessed with the OTP! This, with Demon Angel and Demon Moon, are by far my favorite in the series. Actually, it might be my most favorite. It involves a human demon-hunter whose childhood has been wrecked once a demon took over his mother and did her best to destroy everything in his life and an amnesiac half-demon who has been made into one as a result of being a human who made a bad bargain. He loathes demons but can't help but care for her. How could I not go for it? SO FUCKING AWESOME. And angsty. Super-angsty. And all the Taylor/Michael stuff was, once again, driving me nuts in a good way - Michael pretty much stopped manifesting in her head and is also keeping her from teleporting into his lovely bit of hell, so Taylor is freaking out because (a) what on earth can be so bad as to make him keep her out, when he didn't do so when he was involved in previous hell torture (b) the Guardian realm is pretty much held by Michael's will so the place is now literally crumbling and falling apart...

Guardian Demon, the last book (and Michael/Taylor one!) is coming out in August...
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A bunch of more romance novels

January 18, 2013, 3:44 pm
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This one is a true mixed bag, from WTF to awesome.

Kresley Cole, A Hunger Like No Other and No Rest for the Wicked - well, these are two separate books, but I might as well write about them together. Books 1 and 2 of an urban fantasy romance series, they reminded me why I am so super-picky about this subgenre - most of it drives me nuts! (And that is why Meljean Brook's series is such a rarity - it's urban fantasy romance which I actually love!) And Cole's 'Immortals After Dark' series is no exception to my issues, despite the fact that I really enjoyed her Victorians. The first book involves a powerful werewolf King who discovers that his destined mate is half-Vampire - seeing he has just spent gazillion years being tortured by vampires, he is not a happy camper. The second book involves a Valkyrie and an emo vamp. OK, first of all - a man (book 1) or woman (book 2) who spends a decent chunk of time contemplating whether to kill you, is NOT a good choice for a significant other, however hot their bod. Secondly, unless you are narrating a Discovery Channel special about lions of the Serengeti, you should not be using the terms male and female to refer to your protagonists - man and woman are, as far as I am aware, not yet archaic. Thirdly, according to Ms. Cole, there is a large number of supernatural species, who all consist of bodybuilder-looking men obsessed with true love. Really? Fourthly (and most importantly) - I am fine with the concept of soulmates, insofar as it concerns the idea that there is someone out there in the world that is perfectly suited to your soul (growing up with a language where a common endearment is 'my soul' probably helps). But the way urban fantasy romance likes to do it is beyond that - the typical trope is that there is some sort of cosmic destiny that gave you one perfect matched mate and you'll know the moment you meet them and you are soulmates not because your personalities align and make you happy together but despite any personal traits, compatibility or anything but because some sort of an equivalent of a magic spell says so - it's insane. I hate hate hate that.

On the plus side, the hero of the first book does chew off his own leg (literally) to meet the heroine. So there is that...Too bad he wastes his brownie points by proceeding to sexually assault her. He doesn't rape her though so hooray? Or not.

Liz Carlyle, A Woman of Virtue - I really liked this one (quite a contrast with her A Deal with the Devil, the hero of which was the definition of a sexual harasser, pretty much blackmailing his housekeeper into sex). The heroine is a widow of a much older man who gets involved in a charity helping prostitutes. The hero is a man who has never been able to forget the heroine but his courtship of her ended disastrously (because both were immature and had no emotional clue) six years ago. But now he is involved in the running of the charity and their connection is rekindled. And then prostitutes start turning up dead. This is lovely and plotty and emotional and I really did love both leads.

Courtney Milan, Trial by Desire - this was, as always with Milan, moving and lovely. More interesting than this, I think it is so rare to find a feminist romance author or, more specifically, one who brings a feminist sensibility to her writing. That is why her heroines are complicated and strong and need their agency to be respected and that is why her heroes are uniformly good people who respect women. This one involves around a married couple - shortly after their marriage, Ned left for three years on a business trip to China in order to deal with his demons and Kate learned to be self-sufficient. And now he is back, but will they give it another try? They are both strong and damaged and good and I love them.

Suzanne Enoch, A Lady's Guide to Improper Behavior - by far my favorite of the bunch! The hero is tormented by a past that is not a result of stupidity or evil parents but the fact that his entire troop except for him has been massacred during a skirmish with Thuggees in India. But he doesn't wallow in self-pity and, while caustic and full of survivor's guilt, is not cruel or horrible. And the heroine is so full of common sense and just a lovely person! I liked this book from the start, but my heart was won when she asked him what happened to him and he tells her, so as to drive her away, and it's horrible and she doesn't either walk away or emoes and weeps over him, but tells him that it was horrible and she is sorry, but it wasn't her fault and a 19th-century equivalent of "I would like to go out with you." I am still in the middle of this book, and am rooting for them quite desperately - they are such lovely, courageous souls who have been hurt (she less obviously, but it's there) who break out of their shells with each other. This one is probably the only one that can compete with England's Perfect Hero for my favorite Enoch and one that's not just charming fun but rather more.
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A book list...

January 22, 2013, 11:34 am
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No drama is catching my eye, and no drama until Gu Family Book is likely to, so I spend my time reading. Here is the latest (largely) romance novel tally.

Kresley Cole, Immortals After Dark series - call it the trainwreck syndrome. I want to murder most of the heroes and heroines of these, and the tropes drive me up the wall, but I can't stop. Out of all of them, there was only one book I genuinely liked (about which more below) but somehow I read every single one. The lowlights were two books which intimated that, respectively (1) rape/sexual assault BDSM (yes, I realize BDSM between consenting adults is nobody's business, but this isn't consenting adults - hence the 'rape' part of the phrase) is great and awesome as long as it's the guy who is the victim and (2) if a dude murders a bunch of innocent people in front of you and kidnaps you so as to kill you (more specifically to cast your soul out to use your body as a vessel for a serial killer Goddess), but then changes his mind and is hot, he is your true love. I'd think 'doesn't kill me, after all' is a really low standard for a significant other, but Ms. Cole seems to disagree. I am not sure I'd want to meet her in a dark alley. Or even a well-lit one.

The sole exception to the never-ending rage-making was Dark Deeds A Night's Edge, which I genuinely liked. I am not sure how she managed to write one book that hit my kinks, when the rest of them are repulsive, but I suppose even a broken clock is right twice a day. Ironically, the hero of this one is insane at the start and various characters discuss how he is a scourge that must be put down, yet he does not mistreat the heroine in any way and doesn't off anyone who hasn't had it coming. Hero is Conrad, who is a vampire bounty hunter (by that I mean he is a vampire who is a bounty hunter). The problem is that if vampires drain someone (which is Conrad's killing method, eventually they are going to go mad because the memories of victims will take over etc. Add in the fact that prior to his unwilling transformation (barely anybody in these books has heard of informed consent, apparently) he was a vampire hunter, and madness is tied in with self-loathing and you got good stuff. At the start of the book, Conrad's brothers corner mad Conrad and drag him off to a remote estate to try to get some sanity into him. That estate is the former home of Noemi, a famous ballerina, that was murdered by a jealous lover in the 1920s and has haunted the mansion ever since. And Conrad can see her. Yup, it's a vampire bounty hunter/ballerina ghost romance and it was utterly and completely awesome and angsty and shippy and they actually fell for each other independent of the 'fated mate' crap and treated each other well. Also, because I remember someone on my flist likes that trope - it's one of the really rare virgin hero/heroine with a ton of mileage romances.

Elizabeth Hoyt, The Leopard Prince - oh, this was just so so lovely! Not as good as Serpent Prince, because nothing is, but still going on the list of my favorites. It's a Georgian romance between Lady Georgina and her land steward, Harry Pye, who is not a secret aristocrat or anything, but just a hard-working, smart, complicated man. There isn't much driving plot and I know it doesn't sound exciting but it's such a gorgeous, romantic, passionate book, trust me.

Liz Carlyle, No True Gentleman - I loved it! It's by far my favorite of all of Carlyle's stuff I read so far. Set in the 1820s, it follows Max de Rohan and Lady Catherine - despite their social differences (he is a foreigner! a police inspector!), the intense, closed-off Max with a giant chip on his shoulder about the aristocracy and the pragmatic, straightforward Catherine are drawn to each other. I loved this in every way! The hero is a police inspector, which would have made me love it all by itself (a man who works! Imagine!), but both Max and Catherine are just such good, smart, intense people and - guuuuuuh. I like most of Caryle's heroes but think Max is the first of them that I wouldn't mind hooking up with in real life.

Veronica Roth, Divergent - this YA novel with its smart, tough heroine made such a great palate cleanser to all the 'I love my hot serial killer' novels I read lately. It's quite famous so I won't get into it, but I thought it was much better than (IMO) derivative Hunger Game. And Tris was someone I liked much more than I did Katniss.
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Article 1

January 22, 2013, 12:07 pm
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Browsing amazon led me to discover that there is a whole series of romance books about English aristocrats who are former denizens of Turkish brothels?!?!?

I didn't realize that was a sort of thing that apparently routinely happened in the 19th century...

WTF!!!!

I can't unsee...
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Upcoming dramas that might tempt my fancy

January 22, 2013, 2:11 pm
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I am in a month-long drama slump, which is unprecedented. But I find myself craving either a fusion sageuk or an intense actioner and neither are available...

Let's look at the umcoming dramas then.

Gu Family Book - my most anticipated. Starring adorable Suzy and even more adorable Lee Seung Gi in a period fusion fantasy adventure about half-gumiho and his quest to become human? Why is this not airing already?

IRIS 2 - Remember my mention of needing an intense actioner? Let's hope this delivers and be more like the original IRIS than the abysmal Athena. At the very least, I am going to get the awesomeness of Jang Hyuk/Lee Da Hae as an OTP one more time.

War of the Flowers - it sounds dark and full of palace rivalry and hopefully intelligent.

Incarnation of Money - History of the Salaryman was too wacky for me, but it was smart and well-paced, so this drama is in good hands. Plus, this has Kang Ji Hwan and Hwang Jung Eum so I need this as I need breathing. Also, look on the bright side - no project of KJH can be as horrid as Lie to Me. No way but up!

That Winter the Wind Blows Intense and dark romantic melodrama with my ultimate kdrama crush Jo In Sung back to dramaworld and written by Noh Hee Kyung? I need this pumped straight into my brain.

I Love You, Ahjussi - the premise of Yoo Sang Hyun (who is too fabulous for words) playing a pop star who's been in a coma since 17 and now wakes up to a new world while still being immature, is delicious. Please please get made!

Jang Ok Bin - I am a big sucker for period fusion, but the notorious Jang Ok Bin is not a very heart-tugging subject, and the drama seems to be 'history on acid,' what with making her a fashion designer (?!) and cobbling a cast that is fine individually but does not mesh together at all - I mean, Kim Tae Hee, Yoo Ah In and Jae Hee? Did they get it out a random roles generator?

Nine - it's from the folks that brought us the sublime Queen In Hyun's Man and involves time travel, but the premise of a modern time traveller travelling within a modern timeline is much less exciting to me. I do adore Lee Jin Hyuk though...

7th Grade Civil Servant - my love for Joo Won is vast, but not vast enough to watch him in a stupid-as-rocks romcom starring the unappetizing and much too old for the role Choi Kang Hee. Why, after spectacular Gaksital, the man picked this hot mess, I do not know.

Ad Genius Lee Tae Baek - blah blah advertising agency hijinks blah blah I can't hear it over the snoring.

What's your take?
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Yet more books on my romance binge...

January 24, 2013, 6:04 am
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Two of these are rereads, so clearly I love 'em.

Loretta Chase, Lord of Scoundrels - this one is a reread, but I read it so long ago, I barely remember details, other than the fact that it is the only Chase book I ever truly liked. And on this reread, it's as fun as ever! Set in the late 1820s France and England, the book's heroine, Jessica Trent, sets out to rescue her idiot brother from the bad company he keeps. The bad company being our hero, the Marquis of Dain. Let's get this out of the way first, because it's the most important thing - I love Jessica! Love her! A more common-sense, unflappable heroine never drew breath in the pages of a romance novel. But this book also features the rare instance of a hero starting out the book as a jerk where I still like him and buy his eventual gradual change. In part because it is gradual, in part because Chase explains why he is the way he is, and also in part because Jessica deals with him so well, in part because she gets that he has the emotional maturity of an 8-yr-old boy and is totally high-strung into the bargain. It's adorable how befuddled by her he is. Anyway, this book is a total total darling.

Grace Burrowes, The Heir - this is an incredibly low-key 1820s romance between an aristocrat and his housekeeper (who is not exactly who she appears) which has incredibly well-adjusted hero and heroine who are good, kind, duty-bound, and low drama. Nothing particularly exciting happens but I adored the leads and it's just such a lovely lovely book - it made me think of a warm summer day when I was reading it, and in the middle of winter, that's a quite wonderful thing to be.

Kresley Cole, Dreams of a Dark Warrior - I might rant about Cole's Immortals After Dark series, but the joke is on me, as I keep reading every single one with unholy fascination. This said, DoaDW is only the second one of all the books in the series that I genuinely like. I've noticed a clear correlation between 'lack of instantenous soulmate crap' and 'if one of the parties treats each other badly, the other doesn't overlook it' and 'I like.' This one is deliciously twisted and angsty, but in all the right ways. Regin the Radiant is a 1000-year old Valkyrie who is doomed to relive her tragic love affair with a Viking berserker over and over. The berserker died back in the Dark Ages but loved her so much, he keeps being reborn over and over, but every time, shortly after finding her and falling for her, he gets killed, over and over and over. So this time, Regin is staying away from the latest reincarnation, for his own good. One problem, the latest reincarnation is Declan Chase, a scarred, drug-dependent, screwed up fanatic in a secret order dedicated to elimitating immortals. And his latest mission results in capturing Regin and bringing her to the secret facility for interrogation and other less pleasant things. I loved it! First of all, Regin does not break and also takes no nonsense from anyone and doesn't do the whole 'oh, he mistreats me but woobie!' crap, not until Declan does show he changes and earns her forgiveness. Second of all, Cole for once doesn't posit that hero's actions are OK, but does explain them - if you saw your whole family tortured to death and than got tortured for days by the same supernatural creatures when you were a kid, and then got saved and literally brainwashed by an order bent on offing supernatural, you'd be utterly fucked up too. Anyway, this was fun. I can't say I am going to keep this close to me all the days of my life, but a fun, angsty read it was.

Jennifer Ashley, The Madness of Lord Ian McKenzie - another reread. Ashley is an odd duck for me because this book is the only one of hers I love, the others bored me stiff. Still, fluke or not, this one is totally and utterly beyond awesome. It's set in Victorian era, and involves a widow and a hero who has (obviously undiagnosed, since it's Victorian era) Asperger's. Normally it would have never caught my attention, but flisties recced it, I read it and loved it. And now I am rereading it, and it's every bit as good. Beth is completely fabulous, but Ian is what makes this book - he is pretty unique as far as romance novels go but it so so so very much works! It's on my Top 10 Romance Novels list.
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IRIS 2 teaser

January 24, 2013, 6:21 am
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Yesss! Finally a drama to bring me out of my slump! Please be good, please be good! But at the very least, it's going to give me Jang Hyuk/Lee Da Hae as a gun-toting OTP and for that, I can forgive anything.
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