Karen Chance Fans discussion
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Touch the Dark
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Touch the Dark (Cassandra Palmer #1)
@Lannister "Prepare to die?" What? Is Mircea Indigo Montoya now???
I knew I wasn't the only Mirtkin fan!!! We have too many Prissie's and Missie's (yes yes, I am am a Missie fan), we need more Mirtkin fans, that way, none of the Missie or Prissie lovers could be upset.
Claire wrote: "@Lannister "Prepare to die?" What? Is Mircea Indigo Montoya now???"Absolutely! :D
*sigh* I should have expected that
Aileen wrote: "I knew I wasn't the only Mirtkin fan!!! We have too many Prissie's and Missie's (yes yes, I am am a Missie fan), we need more Mirtkin fans, that way, none of the Missie or Prissie lovers could be u..."Pooh, I'm a Mirlowe or a Marcea fan. Or something. I don't want dirty mages in my fantasies! :P
Oh God, I either love it or hate it and I can't at all tell which!
Lol I thought those two were M&M!!!! Since Marcea could be MARCO and Mircea!!! Oh god...that's just wrong...And I had forgotten that Marlowe wasn't in TtD...I always felt like he was always there...he is just one of those characters (like Casanova) that just stick in your head and you just love them from the very beginning.
LMAO, I hadn't thought about Marco! There's too many 'M' characters in these books!Poor Marlowe spent most of Touch the Dark lying in a dark room with a bandage round his head. It's tragic. :)
Lol you would think it's tragic!! And there really is a lot of M names...of people we LIKE at least...there are a couple R names too...And how could you forget Marco!!! He is so funny!!! I hope he is in TtS. He always makes me laugh. I can't wait for the reread of HtM because some of his scenes had me crying with laughter.
Lannister wrote: "Pooh, I'm a Mirlowe or a Marcea fan. Or something. I don't want dirty mages in my fantasies! :P ..."Methinks the lady doth protest too much =p
Aileen wrote: "Lol you would think it's tragic!! And there really is a lot of M names...of people we LIKE at least...there are a couple R names too...And how could you forget Marco!!! He is so funny!!! I hope h..."
I think Marco's going to spend Tempt the Stars with the vamp equivalent of high blood pressure!
Claire wrote: "Lannister wrote: "Pooh, I'm a Mirlowe or a Marcea fan. Or something. I don't want dirty mages in my fantasies! :P ..."
Methinks the lady doth protest too much =p"
LOL, surprisingly no. I do love Pritkin, and he has his moments, but overall he doesn't make my heart flutter like some of the other characters. So he's all yours! :)
Lannister wrote: "LMAO, I hadn't thought about Marco! There's too many 'M' characters in these books!Poor Marlowe spent most of Touch the Dark lying in a dark room with a bandage round his head. It's tragic. :)"
Hmmmm Rasputin? Or Lady Marlowe? I think we got the wrong villian!
Conspiracy theory #1245?
Lannister wrote: "Mircea raised his hand to deliver the death blow and ... paused. It was feeling a little warm in here. He found himself loosening his tie. He'd never noticed how green the mage's eyes were before. Or those solid muscles. It was definitely getting hotter ......."I laughed. So. Hard.
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Zeenat wrote: "Hmmmm Rasputin? Or Lady Marlowe? I think we got the wrong villian! "Hahahaha! No comment. :D
Leodora wrote: "hahahahahahahahahshshahahsjhahahahahahahahahhahahahahhahahahahah!!!!!! Lannister you ned to write a Mirtkin slash fic!!! omg I can't breath..."LOL, I'm glad you liked it but I think I reached my fanfic limit with this. :D
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Someone should put that in a Q & A
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The English lit nerd in me rejoiced when I read that. The symbolism is great- Pritkin's water douses Cassie's fire :P though the choice is certainly ironic considering how fiery-tempered Pritkin is :D
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I remember wondering if the shield element meant the magic user would have certain powers attributed to their element. Like Cassie would be able to throw fireballs once she learned how to use her father-inherited power, or Pritkin would be able to do water stuff, like part the Red Sea or something.
@Duca I agree, I would think fire suited Pritkin.Then again, maybe he shields with water as part of his mental disciple- it helps keep him calm and his demon nature in check. Or it could just be another way of thumbing his nose at Hell.
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That said, I actually think it's a great scene, 'cos it shows that Cassie really DO know what Mircea is, but it got me thinking, has he ever taken blood from Cassie? Willingly or otherwise??
I don't think Mircea ever took Cassie's blood before that scene in TtD, because later he comments on her taste
I wondered about the taste thing before. If a vamp absorbs blood through the skin (like Mircea does in this scene in Touch the Dark), does he really 'taste' it? Or does he need to actually bite to taste? (I think we might have discussed this before somewhere but I can't remember what we concluded.)Leodora, I think it's funny that Mircea gets relatively close to that guy's privates when he's feeding. It feels odd for Mircea to do something like that, though I suppose the whole point was humiliation. But even so...!
It sounds more humiliating to Mircea than the other guy. Then again, maybe I see it that way because I am solidly heterosexual.
Well, personally, I don't see anything humiliating about two guys going at it. Could be the very opposite LOL! But Mircea has said that he's not into guys, so it seems an odd place for him to bite. But, I guess he's not homophobic at least, though it's probably got more to do with the fact that nothing's really private amongst vamps.
Well, I'm not homophobic, as I do write about stuff like that. I just prefer the finer things in life, and when it comes to sex - that ain't a guy!
Oh wasn't trying to imply you were homophobic :) I'd like to see Mircea bite someone like that in front of Cassie LOL!
I thought Cassie was there; am I mistaken? I thought she was the narrator of the story.And I didn't think you were implying anything about me - I guess with the way I wrote it that it was just the way it came out. ;-)
@Lannister I get the feeling that if Cassie could have asked Mircea's opinion of it in private, he would have expressed his distaste. As I recall, the prisoner was clearly repelled by the thought of being that close to Mircea. So Mircea chose the most intimate spot possible to really ramp up the anxiety and humiliation. In that moment Mircea wasn't thinking about his own tastes, but about the best punishment.
At least, that's how it seemed to me.
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and yeah that Mircea naked guy scene was kinda toe curling, and that's from the humiliation poi t of view. but omg I would feel like I was trapped between a rock and a VERY akward place if I had had to ser that with a bunch of guys around .. you know the whole orgasm sticky thighs and flasset privates part ... XD
I think it's the blood per se, but the power the blood contains. Kind of like how Cassie compared the energy to champagne. And yes, it was awkward and it was meant to be. In that respect, the vamps accomplished their goal.
I found it weird because I feel like we don't see that more **ahem** animal /predatory side of Mircea as much in later books and it came as a complete surprise to me, I had forgotten it ever happened.Cassie was present at the feeding, and not too put off by the display as she was used to Vampire humiliation tactics. If anything she was unnerved by how calm she felt compared to Pritkin's disgust and outrage. Maybe her reaction to a similar scene now would be a little different due to the nature of her relationship with Mircea, however.
God wouldn't that be fun? He's getting too over protective, he has a secret daughter and when she walks in to confront him she finds him snacking on a guy's lap. I think I'd clap my hands in glee.
d c (Duane) wrote: "I thought Cassie was there; am I mistaken? I thought she was the narrator of the story."LOL, you're right, I phrased that badly. I meant watching Mircea bite someone for pleasure rather than for punishment.
Claire wrote: "@Lannister I get the feeling that if Cassie could have asked Mircea's opinion of it in private, he would have expressed his distaste. "
Yeah, I think you're right. What a shame Mircea would feel that way! :)
Leodora wrote: "I think you do taste the blood whilst absorbing it, it would explain how Cassie smells so much like food to Tomas and none of the other vamps had made any hints towards her taste :)
and yeah that..."
Yeah, that whole scene is quite graphic. I don't think we get anything else quite like it in the rest of the series.
That's a good point about Cassie smelling good, but I wonder if maybe all humans smell something like that to vamps? Or maybe Cassie just smells extra tasty (like the way your favourite restaurant smells).
I think there is one more scene...I don't remember which book exactly, but I THINK it's EtN...I THINK. In all honesty, I could be remembering an entirely different series but it doesn't feel that way...I just remember that there was a giant ball, and there was a male and a female vamp both feeding on a woman and while she was getting the sexual part of the feeding it was also like foreplay for the two vamps...I don't think it was QUITE as graphic as the one in TtD, but I think it was close. I will look for it during the rereads in case I am completely off my rocker and have mixed books up because of the scene in TtD.
I remember that scene, Aileen. It was during the vamp convocation and, yeah, it was quite explicit too. I feel it didn't quite have the same impact for me, because none of the main players were actually involved in the feeding but were only watching. But it does emphasise how little humans mean to vamps. What the human woman experienced didn't really matter to the vamps. It was all about what they were feeling. They probably didn't drain her completely only because it would have been bad etiquette!
Thank god I am not the only one...and yeah, it wasn't AS graphic, but it still showed how vamps see humans. I think that humans and those who go against the Senate are kind of seen in the same light, sad to say.
I finally finished Touch the Dark. Here's a few more random thoughts.Cassie talks about how vamps can control humans by biting them. She says one bite is usually enough and two always is, but despite being bitten twice by Tony, she was able to shake off his control. Cassie theorises that this is because she spends a lot of time with Billy. Do you think this is correct, or could it be her half-goddess blood that actually protects her? Obviously Cassie has no clue about that at this point and she's making assumptions based on the facts she has, but I wondered if maybe her conclusions were incorrect.
And let's not forget those big whoppers from Mircea ...
"So perhaps you can appreciate what it means to me that only Radu remains of all my kin"
And
"I have thought of killing him many times to spare him, but I cannot. He is all I have."
And then we have this from Cassie:
"despite having every reason to do so, Mircea had not lied. He was right; I could forgive almost anything but that."
Oh dear .....
On rereading, I'm actually a little amazed that Cassie gives the vamps and their senate the time of day. Mircea basically spells it out that if Cassie doesn't agree to voluntarily lose her virginity, the Consul will have someone rape her. And on the very last page of the book, she says that whilst Mircea is very luscious, there were simply too many strings attached. So before the geis kicked in and threw them together, Cassie decided that she didn't want to have a relationship with Mircea because it wouldn't be an honest partnership. So what's changed? Mircea is still entangled with the Senate and has to follow the Consul's wishes and their relationship has many, many strings attached. I wish Cassie had stuck to her guns.
I think it's her demigoddessesness. She is just more powerful than she thought. I'm guessing demigoddesses can't be changed? Plus they way Mircea loves the taste of her blood... she's spe-shul.And yeah Mircea LIED!!!
Love and sex makes us do weird things. Even someone as levelheaded as Cassie, has her weaknesses. Childhood crush, never been in a relationship, forget never had sex before tomas, and now only Mircea.
Also, Cassie grew up with them. She understands their rules are different. she knows how to play by them. Mircea makes that comment a couple of times in TtD. She gets how the game is played.
I think it's Cassie's godly blood too that stops vamps controlling her with a bite, though she is still susceptible to influence from them, but I guess that's mind rather than blood.I think it's pretty funny that Cassie thinks a couple of times through the book that Mircea is being honest with her and wouldn't lie to her. That's placing a helluva lot of trust in someone just because they were kind to a child. Mircea didn't really deserve that trust, I don't think. But, between almost being killed by Tony's people, discovering Tomas's deception and becoming Pythia, Cassie had a lot to process in a very short time and it's understandable that she would reach out to the one friendly face that she knew, kinda like a drowning person grasping at straws!
But, I'm sticking with my belief that if there had been no geis, there would have been no relationship between Cassie and Mircea!
I agree with you Lannister, if the geis hadn't been cast, Cassie wouldn't have dated Mircea. But re-reading Cassie's thoughts about how Mircea wouldn't lie to her, while knowing how much he lies, it makes me dislike him even more. For example, Cassie has no idea that Mircea paints. He'spainted Dory and his wife, but Cassie never even mentions it in passing. Hell, if Cassie mattered so much, why didn't he paint her as a child? He spent a year with her.
I suppose it's possible he did paint her but we don't know about it. Or maybe he doesn't paint at all any more (too many memories?) But you make a good point that there's so much Cassie doesn't know (or takes for granted) about Mircea. Someone asked KC recently about how almost everyone except Cassie views Mircea as extremely dangerous, and KC said that basically Cassie was wrong in her assumptions that Mircea was benevolent. I think these charitable assumptions about Mircea may come back to bite her one of these days.
It's been my main issue with Mircea from day one, I don't think Cassie can trust him as far as she can throw him. In the first book Cassie's all about being aware of the fact she can't trust the Vamps, and aware of how easily they will manipulate her but as the series progresses I think Cassie begins to lower her guard and trust Mircea more... A large part of that is the geis and a part of that I'm suuuuure is calculated manipulation by Mircea.We know that without the geis Cassie would not have dated Mircea, but I bet he'd still have tried to seduce her just for control over her. The wife thing definitely wouldn't have happened, I don't think he loves her that much. It's like the two of them got drunk and had a vegas wedding, and now he's determined to stick it out :P
"a vegas wedding" <--- LMAO! Yup, that's exactly what they did have!Outside influences got Cassie and Mircea together, and the same influences got them 'married'. Whilst they may care about each other (which I can understand, because they've been through a lot since they've been thrown together) I just don't see this as a bedrock for a lasting relationship. And Cassie's doubts start to increase as the series goes on. I will document these! :D
Mircea may have said that he would have preferred if Cassie weren't Pythia, but that's frankly irrelevant. Cassie IS Pythia and that comes with a whole load of baggage (like the Consul wanting control over her). Mircea can't get away from that no matter what nice words he might say. Mircea's a senator and a manipulator. I don't think he stops being any of those things whenever Cassie's around, and if anyone doubts that, then justify him handcuffing her to a chair. That's how to treat someone you love?
I'd enjoy seeing Marlowe handcuffing Mircea to a chair LOL!
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Hmm if the geis thing never happened, do you think she would have tried a bit harder to get in Pritkins pants? Or would she just have casual sex with Mircea and whoever she finds hot? :p
I think if the Geis didn't happen, she wouldn't have been that close to Pritkin. Figuring out the codex to find the cure was why they were traveling all over the place.If you take away the Geis then you have vampire politics and the war, a lot of which would have been handled differently if Mircea was in the right mind. Mac woulda been alive. Things would be vastly different. Cassie woulda have ended up with some random mage lol.
Karen Chance Fans
Books mentioned in this topic
Touch the Dark (other topics)Greywalker (other topics)
Hehe, now my mind is boggling over what might happen if Pritkin DID use his incubus powers....Aaaand there's your cliffhanger ending! :D