Rudy R > Recent Status Updates

After two straight disappointments HERE COMES DRY AND READY WITH THE STEEL CHAIR!!!!!

Again I ask "what is that ending?"

(that's probably a more accurate figure)

At least I'm not the only one who isn't completely sold on "Mawkin Field". WTF was that ending? Did he die? Did Jeff die? Is everybody fine and nothing bad happened? tbh if you're gonna be in a horror anthology something bad should happen.

I expected this to be something like Bad Santas, a nonfiction account of folklore creatures. Informative, but dry and treading the same ground I'd seen before.

I like the short story approach much better, especially for communicating folklore.

Also I really liked the focus on the unhoused in "The Importance of a Tidy Home" and what that means when considering spirits that care about cleanliness.

"The Hanging of the Greens", where the real horror is the exorcism we were forced into along the way.

"The Chillingham Chair" is one of those stories (like "Rats", on the chilling tales for dark nights youtube channel) where the real horror is that some men are just like that.

I knew right away Lily is playing the photographer (Pemble). He met her after she died and her ghost is like "I never got to be your wife"? Schlub Pub Seduction Deduction. Calling it now

Of all of these, Six is my favorite character so far.

Calling 2 stories out of 8 about 1/4 of the way done, that's a good estimate I think.

I mean, I'm not really sure, they're of somewhat varying lengths and the audio version is NOT AT ALL organized like The Winter Spirits. Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3... whereas the other one lists what short story, by whom, and that gets its own chapter. It's a little jarring and I'm not a fan but that feels like a nitpick.

Loving A Study in Black and White so far. The way the chess house is described? That flag is black and white and red all over, exactly what I like.

So far The Salt Miracles and Jenkin are my favorites.

Still mad at Master of the House tho. It could EASILY have been the son disappearing or dying or running away with a nice cruel twist ending but NOOOOOOOOOOOO. there had to be an adventure in hell 🙄

Gonna skip Master of the House bc I am dying of boredom.

"The Old Play" haunts me because I haven't worked out what the dang cruel twist ending is supposed to be, but "The Salt Miracles" haunts me because oh god... oohhhhhh GOD!

Ok, pushing through that phase where it seems like Maghan has learned less than nothing is worth it bc she got Shard GOOD! That was fucking awesome. It went to shit but she did a good job!

I struggled so hard because I realized Kagawa is a discovery writer to the detriment of her own characters but I dare say I saw a glimpse of Meghan applying past knowledge to a current situation (she managed to not get lured into the faerie music ALL BY HERSELF I'm so proud ☺️).

Meghan is a scoche too disturbed by Sarah Skinflayer killing quail, for somebody who spent considerable time on a pig farm. It's not TOO much of a problem but again, that disconnect where her past isn't informing her present in any meaningful way.

I think my main problem with the book so far is the disconnect between the wacky slapstick misadventures and the character beats of great import. It's not that Meghan is stupid, it's that Kagawa seems to forget to apply Meghan's prior experiences to her current situation.

At least Meghan isn't ruining the fancy gown Oberon had designed for her with the menial work in the kitchen. (Also still not over how her entire government name is in wide circulation. I'd hoped Tansy would have offered her a little protection...)

I'm still not over this. Maybe the me of 2010 was built different but me now, if I found out I was the product of an affair and the interloper basically said "I'm just so much cooler than your mom's lame husband uwu", I would be plotting homicide. Hell, I might try to get on Titania's team like "yo I hate him too let's team up?"

So, I'd forgotten that the reason Titania is mad as hell that Meghan even exists is because of a weird double standard applied in their marriage: Oberon can sleep around but she can't. Um... girlie has a point...

I'm not over the gown thing. I feel like Meghan should've compromised. We've well established that Oberon doesn't want mortal clothes in his court. Cool. Meghan doesn't wanna wear the ostentatious, jewel-covered gown. Also cool. Can't she wear a simpler but also fancy gown instead? I get that she's 16, her world has radically changed, brain's going bonkers, but still. Take a minute, screw your head on straight.

I'm not the biggest fan of Oberon rn not gonna lie...

Meghan dealing with being poisoned is so far the closest I have felt to genuine tension. (Mostly so far I feel like I've been laughing at her wacky slapstick fairyland misadventures when the writing and narration is clearly trying to convey that these are situations of mortal peril.)

Grimalkin is still my favorite character.

"I'll make it up to you, I swear!" *sigh*

Once again I'll buy that she's a little naive to the ways of Faerie. Cool. But like, use your common sense!

At this point I wonder how many are going easy on her bc they know she's the Summer Princess and wanna get in good.

Still thinking about it, and I still mean it. I will buy that she is naive about faeries. Cool. You've got me.

But she still grew up on a pig farm literal miles from her closest neighbor and should fucking KNOW better than to follow ANYONE or ANYTHING through unfamiliar forest. There's a tumblr post I love, featuring farm kids telling stories about all the shit you DO NOT DO, as taught by relatives.

Yall were right, Meghan is a dumb bitch.

Love a troubling unchildlike "fuck off"

Puck is oscillating between condescending and kind of endearing (which is also still somehow patronizing) when it comes to Ethan being a changeling and the prospect of going into Faerie Land to get the real thing back.

(IDK if it was worse in the original since I'm listening to the 10th Anniv. edition and I know there were rewrites because that line trashing Angie in Ch 1 was removed, so Meg is less NLOG)

I'm deep into the changeling stuff rn but I can't stop thinking about Robbie making Meghan forget stuff, and reading in reviews that he's been dosing her for years with a magic wine to suppress her Sight. They're (ostensibly) teenagers and he's deeply smitten with her and you mean to tell me he NEVER NOT ONCE abused his powers or position to hurt her? Bc I feel like that's what I'll be led to believe. #teamash