What I Watched: The Order, a werewolf – magic – secret society – collage-aged protagonists television series. There were only two seasons on Netflix, although it achieved a Rotten Tomato score of 100 and an audience score of 72.
From Rotten Tomatoes: When Belgrave University student Jack Morton joins a fabled secret society, the Hermetic Order of the Blue Rose, he is thrust into a world of magic, monsters and intrigue. Out to avenge his mother’s death, he uncovers dark family secrets and lands in an underground battle being waged between werewolves and practitioners of dark magic. Assisting Jack in the fight is Alyssa, a tour guide at Belgrave and fellow member of the Order, which is led by Jack’s estranged father.
This show is the television version of some of the mindless books I read which feature monsters…you could do worse.
What I Read: Desperation in Death: An Eve Dallas Novel by J. D. Robb. I’m hooked on this 56-book series. Here is the blurb from the website:
New York, 2061: The place called the Pleasure Academy is a living nightmare where abducted girls are trapped, trained for a life of abject service while their souls are slowly but surely destroyed. Dorian, a thirteen-year-old runaway who’d been imprisoned there, might never have made it out if not for her fellow inmate Mina, who’d hatched the escape plan. Mina was the more daring of the two—but they’d been equally desperate. Unfortunately, they didn’t get away fast enough. Now Dorian is injured, terrified, and wandering the streets of New York, and Mina lies dead near the waterfront while Lt. Eve Dallas looks over the scene.
Mina’s expensive, elegant clothes and beauty products convince Dallas that she was being groomed, literally and figuratively, for sex trafficking—and that whoever is investing in this high-overhead operation expects windfall profits. Her billionaire husband, Roarke, may be able to help, considering his ties to the city’s ultra-rich. But Roarke is also worried about the effect this case is having on Dallas, as it brings a rage to the surface she can barely control. No matter what, she must keep her head clear–because above all, she is desperate for justice and to take down those who prey on and torment the innocent.
Also Reads:
A Lark’s Tale: A Regency Cozy by Lynn Messina this is a sort of mediocre spin-off from her ten-book Beatrice Hyde-Clare Mysteries series.
The Dead Cold Series: Books 25-28 (A Dead Cold Box Set Book 7) by Blake Banner I finished up this long series; he bogged down a bit in books 20-24, but has ended it with a flourish.
Dragonkin Bundle Books 5-9 (Dragon Kin Book 2) by G.A. Aiken I’d previously mentioned books 1-4, maybe in a comment? The series has grown to have more plot and action and fewer dragon (as humans) sex scenes. The link is to the glossary of character, lands, etc. – their world-building is superior, as this shows.
High Times in the Low Parliament by Kelly Robson, a book I was looking forward to…but am reading in fits and starts because it just hasn’t captivated me (sigh). With reviews such as this, I was expecting to enjoy it more ““High Times is funny, literally outlandish, and deeply relevant. A dazzling world, a terrifying predicament, and a lot of hallucinogenic drugs combine in an unlikely, engaging tale of friendship, wit, heroism, and romance.”—Malka Older”
What I Listened To: Alex G – Miracles (a pretty song); Jon Batiste – FREEDOM (oh, the dancing), Reymour – Holly Mother [Knekelhuis], different; and Born Ruffians – Don’t Fight The Feeling (so post punk wave)
Thank you for playing Brain Drain! How are you, darling ones? What’s up, DeadSplinterites?
What I watched: Mrs. Butcher and I have been making a point of watching older sitcoms, and recently we finished watching Cheers. It’s still a really funny show. Most of the humor still holds up with a few pretty obvious exceptions. One thing I’d forgotten was just how fucking annoying Shelly Long’s character was. I remember when I was a kid being disappointed that she’d been replaced, but this time I was relieved that she wasn’t there anymore.
What I read: Finished the King/Chizmar trilogy with Gwendy’s Final Task. This was the longest of the three–404 pages–but I still blew through it. Again, very readable, and a great story. This time the main character finds herself aboard a space station tasked with sending a very dangerous thing out into the void.
What I listened to: Our next stop on the best engineered albums of all time is Two Against Nature by Steely Dan. Released in 2000, this was their first album in 20 years–and it still took them two years to cut the goddamned thing, so clearly they didn’t learn their lesson about how to avoid making the process as painful as possible. But, the fact is that they make great sounding albums that none of us have to be around for the sausage making part. Of course, with such a long stretch between releases, this one met with a shitload of pent up demand and sold very well and also met with a lot of critical success. Their tour likewise made them a big fat truckload of cash. But, none of that matters here. Their sonics are just as solid and tight as ever. Great frequency response and sound staging.
@butcherbakertoiletrymaker I like Steely Dan quite a bit, and haven’t listened to them in ages. Thanks for the reminder!
I started to crochet again. My favorite amigurumi designer, Yan Schenkel, has finally published her third book. If you preorder the hard copy, you get the PDF copy right away. Her books are beautiful and well explained even for those new to crochet. What I love about her designs other than her distinct style is that there is minimal sewing involved (she like most of us hates sewing parts together) and most of the animals also come with an optional outfit to make. I’m making two penguins because my kids are currently obsessed with them.
*edited my comment and lost the video
Been there, done that, all the darn time.
@HammerZeitgeist, I would love to see your finished penguins! That is such a cool thing…I have never knit or crocheted and am very impressed with your talent.
Yes, post some pics sometimes please.
Having crocheted 1 rather wonky teddy bear, I’m in awe of people who can do amirugumi and NOT have it come out looking a hot mess. I do best with squares and straight lines… scarves, blankets, and so on. Seconding the request for penguin pictures!
I know nothing of crochet, but my kid does:
The Avengers
Baby Yoda:
Some giant D&D die for a D&D pal:
Turtle baby shoes for my grandniece:
Those are amazing! Tell your kid that they are very creative and do an excellent job!
@bryanlsplinter those are so great!
I’m now halfway through the first season of Derry Girls on Netflix and it keeps getting funnier. It walks a tightrope due to the setting in Northern Ireland but hasn’t fallen into either cheap sentimentality or stupid cynicism.
@bluedogcollar
I will add Derry Girls to my watch list; I have no comedy shows on queue. (TV queue as opposed to a professional British queue.)
I loved the first season of Derry Girls! I think I got distracted/lost interest before the end of season 2… I should go back and try again.
I watched the new season of Cobra Kai. Silly fun show.
Listening to: Hello Mary
My wife’s birthday is Monday so I’m at her mercy this weekend. Looks like today will be building a privacy screen for my eldest at her new apartment. The area is having a Seafood Fest so that might be fun if we get this done quickly.
@Loveshaq happy birthday to Mrs. Shaq! And you are a very good dad.
@Elliecoo , thanks for the kind words. Screen turned out great after my wife & I stopped arguing on how it should be built. It was a nice day & my daughter makes me very proud, she even took us to watch the salmon try to swim up the waterfalls to spawn.
Heading out a birthday lunch for family. See you all later.
I just got the ebook of the new J.D. Robb from my library yesterday! I’m trying to finish up the book I’m reading now before I start it.
I just finished up the Manners and Monsters series by Tilly Wallace (sooo good… thanks for the recommendation, @elliecoo!) and was disappointed that I can’t find the prequel series on any of my library apps. On the wish list it goes!
Currently reading the 3rd book of a Swedish crime series… The Torso by Helene Tursten. Being as it’s written in Swedish and translated into English, some of the phrasing is a little awkward, but I really love the main character, Detective Irene Huss, and the stories are always intriguing.
Sometimes, I see something that sounds so eyerollingly bad it’s great and I have to read it. The Daddy Dragon Guardians series by Meg Ripley and the follow-up series, Shifters Between Worlds, is one of those. They turned out to be actually pretty good!
I’ve been listening to the Dead Djinn Universe books by P. Djèlí Clark, narrated by Suehyla El-Attar, while I crochet (currently working on another kid-sized blanket for the foster kid group nearby). I definitely recommend these!
@HoneySmacks we do share an appreciation of similar books. (Scurries off to add Swedish books to list.)