Sadly, this story is a common one for both women and men. I wish, I wish, I wish we could all take it to heart and stop our abuse of others however that abuse might express itself.
I have been sexually assaulted three times in my life.
I am sharing my story not because it is fun, but because it is the epitome of common. I hope to help others who have been hurt, and who might be at risk for further harm.
Around age seven, fresh off the tails of my parents’ messy divorce, I became close friends with a neighborhood girl just a few years my senior. I was vulnerable and in need of guidance. Over the next six years I hung on her every word, and believed she wanted the best for me.
Blood Tithe is a serial. Too many questions are left unanswered at the end for it to be anything else. Obviously, I recommend that you begin with this novel. I believe Blood Tithe is Soucy’s first novel and it bears signs of just that. But Soucy manages to overcome most of those problems by keeping his characters interesting and active.
“Once someone is altered, they can gather energy from every living thing. If they take that energy and wrap it around their heart, and then give it to another person, it creates a Blood Tithe. From then on, every time the original person collects more energy, the one he made the Blood Tithe automatically gets their fair share.” Glenn J. Soucy
I have been trying to remember what five-year olds are like while reading Blood Tithe. I can see a person his age falling for the temptation of the forbidden. You do not have to be five to fall for the forbidden. But five is how old Jeremy is when he goes against the commands of his parents and finds his life irrevocably changed. The point in his life when the sins of World War II genetic research comes back to haunt a community. I loved the tension Soucy managed to keep going full pace when Jeremy met Howler and his desperation during their subsequent meetings.
If Jeremy had been my son, would I have become afraid of him? Ideally, my answer should be a resounding no. As most of us end up learning, reality and ideals often do not blend. I really do not know which parent I would have become.
When we meet Jeremy at 13/14 life has become dire. He has done something he feels awful yet justified about in an eye for an eye sort of way.
In choosing to jump from Jeremy as little to Jeremy as teen-ager Glenn Soucy has undertaken a task that many authors shy from for good reason. Blending the two without getting details wrong or messing up on details is where we see that a stricter editor would have made Blood Tithe great.
The Atrocity Archives consists of two stories: The Atrocity Archive and The Concrete Jungle.
“Saving the world is Bob Howard’s job. There are a surprising number of meetings involved.” (The Atrocity Archives)
I have an admission to make. I do not believe I have ever read any Lovecraft but the Chtuluverse reaches far and wide and has many incarnations. Another admission. I am beginning to see that I do not understand what horror literature is. My placing it in this category relies solely upon what Charles Stross himself has said about his novellas.
The Atrocity Archive has to be a math/computer lover’s dream. It mixes real and imagined theories with abandon and we end up with things like “The Church-Turing Theorem”. Even I have heard of Alan Turing. The theorem itself is, of course, fantasy – or is it? Perhaps there really is an organization out there trying to protect us from reaching into the unknown and dragging out brain-eating monsters from parallel universes.
Artwork by Leighton Johns
In the case of The Atrocity Archive this parallel universe is illustrated perfectly by Leighton Johns on Deviantart. As you can see, the worship of Adolph Hitler reached new heights over there. But the lovely monster who has taken over the Nazi-universe wants in to ours, and we really do not want that to happen. Unless you belong to the Order of Null.
As a first field assignment I have to say that Bob Howard has his work cut out for him. Although Angleton (boss-man) did not KNOW what kind of mess he was putting Bob into, he had to at least have an inkling of the extent of the problem. Exactly who or what Angleton is remains a mystery. I find myself curious enough about the man to want to get more of the Laundry series so I can find out more about him.
And that is just Angleton.
I have to say that Charles Stross has a wonderful way with the names of his characters. Scary Spice for one. I just about died when Scary was introduced. Then we have Bob’s flat-mates, Pinky and Brain. Pinky and Brain are uber-intelligent guys whose creative genius (and idiocy) are on par with Leonard of Quirm.
Perhaps this is the main reason I really like Charles Stross. His writing has the exact zing it needs to be both funny and painful. Stross excels at the astoundingly difficult art of satire and I love the way his intelligence radiates his writing dragging me along for the ride.
The Concrete Jungle is of the same quality. In these surveillance times it makes perfect sense to read about CCTV security cameras being taken over to wreak havoc in an area. All in the name of politics. Who cares if a a few people die along the way? You know, proper politics. Oh, the bite.
Once again, Bob Howard is called upon to save the day. Along the way he manages to show me my own “Laundry”. And so I conclude with the words of the master himself:
“The Laundry squats at the heart of a dark web, a collision between paranoia and secrecy on one hand, and the urge to knowledge on the other. Guardians of the dark secrets that threaten to drown us in nightmare, their lips sealed as tightly as their archives. To get even the vaguest outline of their activities takes a privileged takes a trickster-fool hacker like Bob, nosy enough to worm his way in where he isn’t supposed to be and smart enough to explain his way out of trouble. Some day Bob will grow up, fully understand the ghastly responsibilities that go with his job, shut the hell up, and stop digging. But until then, let us by all means use him as our unquiet guide to the corridors of the Fear Factory.” (The Atrocity Archives)
Cover art by Dan Craig Cover design by Rita Frangie
Just a reminder. The Ruby Throne trilogy is a serial and, therefore, the individual installments need to be read in order.
Why do we do the things we do in life? My personal opinion is that the system of propaganda we grow up with focuses our attention on some matters and away from others. Pleasantville becomes a constant state for us rather than a place to visit when we need to rest from reality. When two systems meet, dissonance arises and our minds and bodies begin the fight of where we are going to end up.
For Caelan and Elandra that end stop was a place where they chose to confront their veils and try to strip some of them away. The tools they have utilized thus far on their journey through life are no longer adequate and must be exchanged for others that will cause more pain in the short run. Growing pains, I believe such hurt is called.
On the journey through the hidden ways Caelan makes Elandra drink her cup of veiling while he chooses to see the world of Lord Beloth for what it is. But as their journey together through the kingdom of Beloth continues Elandra fights her veil and comes through choosing to see what is rather than hide from it. For both of them the truth is frightening but at least both of them finally have the opportunity of seeing what is.
Who survives and who dies is something you will have to discover for yourself.
Cover art by Dan Craig Cover design by Rita Frangie
Shadow War is book no 2 of the Ruby Throne trilogy. You need to read Reign of Shadows first in order to get the necessary back story.
The Ruby Throne trilogy is assuredly a “hero’s tale”. For the hero to evolve, certain trials must be survived. Life-threatening lessons always seem to be par for the course. By the time Shadow War begins both Caelan and Elandra have survived their share of difficulties and are about to face even more danger. As with Reign of Shadows neither has met the other person yet, although Caelan has heard of Elandra.
Elandra’s half-sister Bixia has disappeared completely. After her passionate threat of destroying Elandra, I had thought that we would see her again. All we get as a reminder of Elandra’s old life is a scene between Hecati and Elandra.
Caelan is now the property of Prince Tirhin.
Elandra is on her way to becoming Empress Sovereign.
Although their lives are incredibly different, there is one strong similarity. Both Elandra and Caelan depend upon another person’s approval to stay alive. Both Caelan and Elandra admire their captors yet worry about the control their rulers have over their lives.
For Elandra there is real hope of gaining some control. Kostimon is training her to take on the duties and privileges of Empress Sovereign so that he need not rule alone during his last years alive. Whether he actually means to go through with this has yet to be seen.
Caelan admires Prince Tirhin and thinks the prince holds him in special regard. Perhaps this regard is great enough that Caelan might win his freedom. But lets face it. As long as Caelan holds more value to Prince Tirhin as a slave, that is what Caelan will remain – no matter what words the prince uses to maintain Caelan’s illusions. I guess the question then becomes: How long is Caelan going to allow himself to be fooled by Prince Tirhin’s promises?
Initially, letting go of our illusions can hurt more than the pain caused by those illusions.
Every experience life throws at us teaches us a lesson. Sometimes those lessons are only applicable to ourselves and our own lives. For others the understanding they draw from their experiences might potentially affect a whole world. As the Ruby Thronetrilogy is an epic fantasy, we expect the main characters to fall into the latter category. Epic fantasies have the tendency to make those lessons as harsh as possible for the age group intended.
For both Caelan and Elandra these life-lessons include deception, demon-magic, beatings and servitude. Elandra and Caelan withstand the horrors of their lives with the qualities that epic heroes have: honor, courage, stubbornness and an innate belief in the rightness of their intended actions. As usual, both make mistakes and suffer for those mistakes (when Caelan ignores the bell that one time too many).
We get to know Caelan best. I think about 2/3 of Reign of Shadows is about Caelan’s experiences at school, his experiences immediately after school and his experiences four years down the road. We get to know Elandra during her Cinderella period and while staying with the Penestricans.
Indications of their challenges come through Caelan’s meeting with the haggai and Elandra’s encounters with Hecati. Both serve to introduce us to the baddies of the empire of Emperor Kostimon. The biggest baddies of them all are Lord Beloth and Lady Mael (evil deities bound by the good gods). Neither haggai, Hecati, Lord Beloth nor Lady Mael are creatures/people/deities one wishes to encounter. Unless you are into that sort of thing of course. And some of the people we meet in the novel are into some or all of these creatures.
I enjoyed Deborah Chester’s writing. She kept me interested throughout Reign of Shadows. Her take on epic fantasy was fun and age appropriate. Although some of the violence was harsh, it wasn’t gory. Reading Reign of Shadows I knew that down the road something would have to happen between Caelan and Elandra but exactly what wasn’t given. After all, Caelan’s and Elandra’s places in society were moons apart when the novel ended.
It has been many years since I read this trilogy the first time, but I believe I enjoyed it as much now as I did then.
This adventure story is about 56 pages long. It is about two mercenaries who make their living selling their services to people Kozef and Ceinan feel deserve it. These two guys live for the fun of fighting. I am definitely not that kind of person. Fighting scares me and that seems to be the problem in Thieudan.
You know, it is interesting how a large group of people is willing to be dominated by a smaller one if the smaller group utilises some form of violence to rule. We do it all over the world. Our governments are one example of people letting others rule on behalf of themselves and the rulers having potential violence as a tool to enforce that rule. If that rule is more or less of a benign character, then hey – I’m one of those being ruled. But if we had moved to Thieudan at the time Kozef and Ceinan arrived there, we might not enjoy life a whole lot.
Using the Tanner’s Guild as our baddies shows us some of their trade. The Tanner’s Guild rule with terror. Punishment meted out to those who do not obey are line with the Tanner’s trade. Water-boarding takes on new meaning when a tanner does it to you. But their trade can also be used against them. I particularly enjoyed Ceinan’s cow-trick.
I have placed Leathern Men as a young adult novel. I kind of feel that the target group is among the younger ones of that age group. There is some violence I would hesitate to allow a child to read, but I’m really not certain about my judgement on this one. Predictability and the clear “good vs. evil” angle is my main reason for placing R.J. Creaney’s story in this age group. I had fun with it.
Family, grief, danger, courage, hope, death, and relief. All of this in 18 pages.
Amund is Barrandal’s sheriff and when the log palisade around the town is taken by a slide and bandits sow murder and mayhem in the area, it is Amund’s duty to find a solution – no matter the dearth of people from whom he can choose.
I enjoyed the way Ross Dupree managed to allow us a glimpse of the many lives of Barrandal and its surrounding area without detracting from the whole. If you’ve got it, you’ve got it, and Mr. Dupree does.
Earth’s Lament is a serial that is both fantasy and science fiction. I love it when an author defies convention and writes the way they want not the way tradition demands.
Old Earth and the one with all of the fantasy creatures are somehow conjoined through an inter-dimensional bridge. This joining of the two earths has created a unit called Mirth.
The people from old Earth seem to have willingly had their memories replaced – except for a few rebellious humans like Jazz.
Jazz is a Monster Collector. It would be unfair to say that she does her job on her own. Her helper is a demon she calls Ship because a demon possesses her ship. Without Ship, Jazz would be toast – burned at that in this short story called Crash Down.
When Jazz utters these words:
“Besides, what could be more boring, self-effacing, and eventless than tracking a lost dog for one of the Welmont elite?”
you know something is bound to happen. Guaranteed!
Off Jazz and Ship go on a tail chasing, ship shooting, dragon, and pirate filled adventure.
My very good friend Rolf Campbell happens to live a ways away from Norway, just across the pond in Scotland. Or as he might say it:
In a place I have loved all my lifetime;
In Auchmithie I wish to remain
Until the wheel turns its full circle,
Until I’m reborn once again.
When I’m Gone: From the Heart
As some of you might know, poetry is not my forte because so many poets speak over the head of my autism. But Rolf Campbell speaks to my heart. Except maybe when he extolls his favorite rugby team 😉 in Always An Arab from his For Better or Worse collection.
He has made me laugh, brought forth my tears and caused me to sit quietly afterwards – my mind finally empty of thought. Some of his poetry is painful, such as Rebecca’s Song in From the Heart. Rebecca’s pain clung to my heart and was the poem that caused my thoughts to flee.
Mary’s Wish made me snort with laughter. Cross-communication or misunderstandings arise from the smallest comments and can bring about interesting experiences. She is not in any of his collections on his web-site.
On Rolf’s website you will find examples from each of his collections. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did.
I just discovered (22 jan 2019) that Mr. Campbell just died. In homage to his memory, here is the complete version of the above quote:
When I’m Gone
It’s important folk think on their ending,
And tell other friends of their choice
To be buried, cremated – whatever –
Leave no doubts, let them all hear your voice.
For myself, I would wish for cremation,
But no garden remembrance for me:
Instead, my remains should be scattered
From the cliffs, high above the North Sea,
In a place I have loved all my lifetime;
In Auchmithie I wish to remain
Until the wheel turns its full circle,
Until I’m reborn once again.
My reason’s threefold for my choosing,
For a cemetery holds no appeal.
How morbid, depressing and sterile,
Forgotten loved ones, it seems so unreal
With graves overgrown and neglected
And dead flowers ranked on each side;
I’d rather folk gazed on the ocean
And remembered my friendship with pride.
Have a meal, raise a glass to memory,
Maybe walk on the beach for a while;
Save your tears for the living who suffer
And remember my life with a smile.
I’ve always been proud of my country,
Loved Scotland with all of my heart.
Every atom’s a product of Scotland
From my home my remains shouldn’t part.
And when all that’s left are the ashes,
If everything goes as I planned,
Let the sea winds disperse them through Angus;
My remains, give back the life to the land.
Fertilise all that grows in Glen Isla,
And nourish the berries and fields,
Repay my debt to Caledonia,
Participate in future yields.
While my last reason’s really quite silly,
I’ve never done things by a half.
Even now I imagine the mourners,
For I’ve always been fond of a laugh.
As the winds that blow up from the harbour
Carry what’s left in their wake,
I can picture folk diving for cover,
Hear the voices that shout “Heaven’s Sake!”
And while at the end I’ve departed,
I enjoyed all my days, foul or fair,
Though memories may not long linger,
You’ll not get me out of your hair.
In this post I am going to look at which states struggle the most economically. In addition I will try to include the worst and best schools of that state and finally I’ll see if there are high risk cities/towns/places in the state.
Although things are looking better in the US, they still have a ways to go economically. According to the US Census Bureau their latest numbers show that the ten poorest states are:
Mississippi 22,6 %
New Mexico 21.5 %
Louisiana 20,4 %
Arkansas 19,5 %
Georgia 19,1 %
Kentucky 19,1 %
Alabama 19,0 %
Arizona 19,0 %
South Carolina 18,9 %
District of Columbia 18,7 %
Foreign exchange students are sent to all ten of these states.
Cover left: Matt Stawicki Cover right: Steve Stone
Boo, hoo 😥 my son and I have finished the trilogy. Each time we finish a series, I wonder if our reading adventures will continue or if this was the last time. Time passes and change comes to us all, even to my family.
Finn (Katla’s twin) is a right bastard. He was the kind of child that tortured cats. You know, that kind of guy. Then life catches up with him. Something happens to us as we grow older. Whether we solidify or become like waves seems arbitrary. Finn solidified and in the end that turned out to be unfortunate for him.
As a reader, I appreciate it when I get a look at the propaganda system an author has grown up during without getting the feeling that the writer is trying to push her points of view down my throat. In fact, I love that because this has not been one of my strengths. Jude Fisher manages it.
So, Death! Death is for many an unwanted companion. For those who encounter Tanto Vingo and Tycho Issian the opposite could be said. The evil twins might be one term that applies to them – except their motivation is different. Tycho is trying to eradicate all the “evil” from the world by burning people while Tanto gets his kicks from torture and mayhem. Just hearing their names brings terror to the hearts of the people of Istrian. A worse combination could probably never have been invented.
Tanto’s favorite victim is Saro. Saro was gifted/cursed with an overly active empathic ability toward the end of Fool’s Gold. Since then, he feels and sees all that goes on in a person at the time that he touches them. I wonder what it must be like to have such an ability? Pretty freaking terrible I would imagine. After Tanto figured out what was going on, Saro was mentally tortured. Once Saro was brought back to Jetra, he was physically and mentally tortured in the prison/torture chambers of the Miseria (Jetra’s infamous prison).
Katla’s physical, emotional and attitudinal journey is huge in The Rose of the World. She continues to be my favorite. Her resilience and stubbornness help her survive what seems to break her sisters from Rockfall. Her mother is the same. Both have to overcome prejudices and fears that have not been encountered previously. Mam likes this gritty little chit of a girl who maintains such a strong will to live true to herself.
The one I pitied the most was Aran (Katla’s father/Bera’s ex-husband). Being caught in a geas is a terrible thing. Once you are caught in its spell there is no escaping until you have done whatever this magically imposed command tells you to do. You will sacrifice anything to get to the end of it without realising how much you are giving up. It is as if something has possessed you and you become unable to impose your own will. Aran’s story is a story of both being a victim of his possession and a victim of circumstances. Poor guy.
The conclusion was magical indeed. Not much reality used to get us there. I haven’t really made up my mind as to how I feel about it yet. But it fits with Ms. Fisher’s intro to the novel.
There were happy parts and sad parts to the novel. Gruesome parts and satisfying parts. A whole lot of obsessed people causing mayhem and destruction. All in all a trilogy I recommend.
My talking and singing to myself works like that. It annoys the hell out of some people and can embarrass my children, but these two stims are a force of nature. My medication lessens my anxiety stims but does nothing at all to my concentration, happy, silly – whatever other non-anxiety moods there are.
This has become a catchphrase in the autism community. And for good reason. It’s certainly true.
A child runs from a store and experts assure the frustrated parent that behavior is communication.
A parent asks for advice about why their recently diagnosed child bursts into tears at bathtime and experienced parents nod in sympathy. “Behavior is communication,” they say.
A child refuses to eat anything but raw carrots and pancakes and the child’s occupational therapist isn’t the least bit surprised. Behavior is communication.
A child flaps at a wind-up toy that’s stopped moving and the experts . . . somberly intone that the child doesn’t know how to communicate . . . that he isn’t aware of the adults around him and is “trapped in his own world”, unable to share his joy with others.
An adult walks away from an autism researcher who is treating him as…
Designed by Jaquelynne Hudson Illustration by Gordon Crabb Cover design by Lisa Litwack
Master of None is Sonya Bateman’s debut novel and she does a good job with it. Her characters are fun and loony. My favorite one is Trevor, the VP-baddie.
Trevor is the kind of nut that I thoroughly enjoy. He is completely unpredictable. If one of his goons displeases him at all, Trevor will shoot them on the spot. He he has put the fear of himself into both criminals and the police in the area. Even the locals know not to get Trevor’s ire up. Remember – one must not displease Trevor:
“I don’t believe in trust. I believe in control.” Frigid green eyes settled on me for a moment and then languidly scanned the rest of the group. “Conner. Come here please.”
The cop approached Trevor, his expression neutral. “What’s up?”
“Where is our friend in the trench coat?”
“Still in the van. He’s dead.”
Trevor stared at him. “You must be mistaken.”
“Uh …” A flicker of unease penetrated Conner’s features. “No, he’s gone. I shot him a few times, just to make sure.”
“Did I tell you to shoot him?”
Those flat words were Conner’s death sentence. I knew it. Conner did too.
“Wait.” Conner stumbled back. “Trevor, I-”
Trevor’s arm jackknifed up to press the gun against Conner’s forehead. He fired without hesitation. The silencer allowed a whining snap, no louder than a breaking branch. Trevor didn’t even blink when the cop’s blood spattered his face and pristine linen shirt. The body dropped to the floor. Trevor released a short sigh and shook his head.
That kind of bad. Completely amoral. Anything goes as long as Trevor gets his way. Not the kind of bad that I would like to meet. Not at all!
Gavin Donatti has the great misfortune of having botched his latest job for Trevor and Gavin has the sense to be frightened shitless. When we meet him, Gavin is doing his best to stay ahead of Trevor and his goons. Sadly, he is not doing a very good job of it. However, as usual his unlucky streak seems to run out at an essential moment, the moment when the Djinn/genie Ian steps into his life. These two guys are the main characters of the story. Gavin needs Ian and Ian needs Gavin to become more real.
In the beginning, I guess you could sum their relationship up with these words:
Being this surly bastard’s master was about as useful as ordering the weather around. And if achieving my life’s purpose depended upon coaxing a flesh-bound hurricane to cooperate with me, I’d take eternal bad luck.
Of course, things do not remain like this between the two of them throughout the novel, but they are never easy around each other. Gavin seems to have that talent, the talent to make people wary of being around him. Perhaps that has something to do with his luck and their misfortune whenever Gavin takes on a project. For the unluckiest thief on the earth, Gavin is awfully lucky. It isn’t that Gavin does anything to create the disasters that other people who work with him experience. In fact, he feels terrible about his spread of unhappiness all the while having Ms. Bateman show us Gavin’s reluctance to own what he has done. A reviewer called him yellow-bellied. I do not know the color of his belly, but I agree with the premise while all the time remembering that Gavin’s cowardice is interspersed with a great deal of courage (when needs must).
By Ali Greene
humanitysdarkerside 