Reading roundup: SPECTR and things
13. Jordan L. Hawk, Master of Ghouls (SPECTR #2)
14. Jordan L. Hawk, Reaper of Souls (SPECTR #3)
15. Jordan L. Hawk, Eater of Lives (SPECTR #4)
16. Jordan L. Hawk, Destroyer of Worlds (SPECTR #5) -- sooo, yeah, I kind of mainlined most of the first series of SPECTR, even though I thought I was going to be reading other things. There's actually a ( Read more... )
14. Jordan L. Hawk, Reaper of Souls (SPECTR #3)
15. Jordan L. Hawk, Eater of Lives (SPECTR #4)
16. Jordan L. Hawk, Destroyer of Worlds (SPECTR #5) -- sooo, yeah, I kind of mainlined most of the first series of SPECTR, even though I thought I was going to be reading other things. There's actually a ( Read more... )
I think it goes back to the what Caleb said in the first book about Gray not really getting why humans refer to the past, how he lives only in the moment.
Yeah, the present tense makes great sense for Gray, given that, and the jarringness of the return to the other characters is actually an interesting side-effect. But it still gives me pause every time, so feels like a bit of stunt-writing rather than organic...
It showed an adjustment John had to make with his new partner, but without being super dramatic about it. (The couch doesn't count because it's obviously there to be the Sex Couch.)
Haha, yes, I don't count the couch, either, for that very reason. But I do find it very nice, and kind of... soothing? to see these little adjustments, John learning to cook vegetarian, Caleb putting on a dress shirt as a favor to him -- they're very mundane, plain old grown-up touches, and I guess that's actually a more effective marker of a serious relationship for me than the "I promise to love you forever!" stuff of W&G. (Which is not to say that W&G don't have the mundane grown-up touches, but they're diluted by the other stuff, which is probably more appropriate for the era, and for Whyborne's raised-on-books upbringing, but less to my personal taste.) I felt the same way about Sean helping Caleb move his stuff (though I'm bummed the way all that ended, of course).
Book 8 will take place in Kansas so perhaps your wish will be fulfilled?
Oh cool! I'm glad to hear that!
It does lead to familial misunderstandings instead of romantic ones though.
Heh, OF COURSE it does. :P *sigh*
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He is! That's a really good comparison.
And it would be unrealistic to expect him to just leapfrog to full emotional maturity in the space of a year. But, gahh, reading about it gets old. As does Whyborne's "but I'm so ugly, how could anyone want me :(((" thing.
Yes, but TBH I almost gave up on the series after Threshold it bothered me so much. Especially the "obviously Griffin was cheating on me!" bit that was the conflict in the middle of the book. That just came out of nowhere: at that point I don't think Whyborne knows much about Griffin's sexual/romantic history (beyond getting thrown out of his hometown) so it just doesn't seem to have any basis.
I feel like 'negotiating consent' in fiction is a fine line [...] Here it feels very natural, partly probably because they do get it wrong sometimes/misunderstand each other's cues, like above, but also because it's done in an in-character way
It doesn't help that most of the romance tropes from, well, human history aren't that great about it. (I do not like Twilight or Fifty Shades of Gray but one positive thing I will say about them is they got a conversation going about problematic elements in romance fiction.) It can be really hard to unlearn things like that, and easy to fall into PSA territory trying to avoid it. Mind, that's a reason not an excuse. But here it's done really well.
I felt the same way about Sean helping Caleb move his stuff (though I'm bummed the way all that ended, of course).
Yeah, I was kind of hoping it meant Sean was coming around. Man, was I wrong.
It does lead to familial misunderstandings instead of romantic ones though.
Heh, OF COURSE it does. :P *sigh*
Yeah. Whyborne, honey, TALK to people and LISTEN to them before you get yourself all twisted around an idea and blow up at them. *sigh*
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That is true, and SPECTR does benefit over W&G by being set in the modern times, when talking stuff out like this is more probable. Still, very refreshing to see it done right!
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