Crescendo: Chapter 2 (Part 1)
ZeldaQueen: In which we get several sources of conflict, and they are all pointless. Also, Marcie is a whore
Projection Room Voices: Starting Media in 3...2...1...
Chapter 2 (Part 1)
ZeldaQueen: We start the chapter off with Nora being woken up by her alarm clock spouting the morning traffic report. Even though she clearly was woken up and, by the way she narrates, remains awake, she somehow continues to dream. Um, is anyone actually able to work like that? I know one can try to sleep through an alarm, and I know that one can wake up and make an effort to fall back to sleep, but...oh, forget it. It's not like it's the most illogical thing that's going to be happening.
Nora is having a bland dream about making out with Patch, because it's not like she does that all while she's conscious. Oh no, such is their love that she can't even dream without him being involved. Anyway, while this is going on, we are introduced to one of the mini-conflicts that we'll be suffering throughout this book
"In my dream, Patch felt it when I kissed him. Not only on an emotional level, but a real, physical touch. In my dream, he became more human than angel. Angels can’t feel physical sensation-I knew this-but in my dream, I wanted Patch to feel the soft, silky pressure of our lips connecting. I wanted him to feel my fingers pushing through his hair. I needed him to feel the thrilling and undeniable magnetic field pulling every molecule in his body toward mine."
ZeldaQueen: Yes folks, this is it. Nora's Big Obstacle by way of her relationship with Patch is that he can't actually feel her making out with him. Honestly, I have no idea why this is a problem, especially one that's coming up now. They've been dating for two months, and given that they appear to have a routine going, it really does not look like they're having any problems managing.
And that's the only reason she wants him to become human. Not so that he'll gain some spiritual or emotional growth. Not that it would allow them to grow old together and have a meaningful life together (yes, I know, let's roll with Fitzpatrick's delusion that that would actually happen). Not so that they can be together and not worry about the angels getting pissed. Oh yeah, more on that later. Nope, she wants a guardian angel to give up his powers and home and responsibilities, just so he can feel her lips and hair and when she rubs up against him. Of course, Patch himself is a bastard who doesn't care for his responsibilities either, so I suppose it works out. Still, there's an issue here that I'll address in a moment.
All I'll say for right now is that after that comment about wanting to know the color of his walls and what kind of bedsheets Patch uses, Nora's comment about wanting him to feel every molecule of her is rather disturbing.
Anyway, the dream goes on. Patch tells Nora that he loves her, and Nora tries to tell him the same. Trouble is, Nora can't speak, as is often the case in dreams. Patch starts to get all anxious and insecure (...dude, what, you really think he ever would act like that?) and rides off on his motorcycle. Nora goes running off after him, but all she can find are beautiful women who tell Nora "I love Patch [...] And I’m not afraid to say it" and "You’re too late [...] I love Patch now." Nora shouts that she loves Patch and told him so, and finally wakes up completely when she hears the weather report.
Okay, that thing I mentioned before? I'm addressing it now. Look at the dream, and tell me what you notice.
*gives a minute*
Give up? Right. In that dream, Nora's fears are all filled by the beautiful women. They are the ones who lay claim to Patch. They are the ones who send her away. They are the ones who make her feel insecure.
Now, what isn't there? Hmm, what about Patch's part of the equation? Really, Patch doesn't play into there at all. Nora doesn't bother to think about if Patch would leave her for another woman. She doesn't think about what it would say about her boyfriend, if he were the sort to dump her for a hotter chick. She doesn't think about any of that.
I'm sure a lot of people would argue that I'm reading too much into that scene, and that it's just supposed to be an irrational fear in a dream. If that were all it was, I'd be fine. Here's the thing though. All throughout the book, Nora is extremely paranoid that Patch is secretly into other girls. And most of the blame, in her mind, goes on the other girl. It doesn't matter to her if Patch confirms or denies her fears. It doesn't matter if, in the event that it were true, Patch would be just as much to blame as the other girl. She just gets pissed at the girl.
And that's all I'm going to say about that right now. More will come when it crops up. For now, though?
YOU FUCKING WHORE: 6
ZeldaQueen: Because considering how the point was supposed to be on Nora's fear that she's not adequately expressing her love to Patch, there sure was a lot of emphasis on how hot those girls were, with their red lipstick, the boyfriend-stealing bitches.
*Sighs* Well, enough of that. I guess Fitzpatrick thought it would be a great time to have some komedy, because Nora sits up and realizes that if she's hearing the weather report, she's overslept.
... Okay, how early did she set her alarm clock? Because if that dream honestly took so long that it made her significantly late, either the writing sucked at expressing it, or Nora set her alarm pretty damned late. If it's the latter, you'd think a Harvard-bound, straight-A student like Nora would know better. If it's the former, Fitzpatrick needs a few more writing classes.
Well, we have to have that happen, because otherwise we wouldn't get this hilarious conflict, in the form of Nora running to and fro, frantically getting ready for summer school. Even though she's in a rush, she still has time to call Patch, though. Apparently he was supposed to give her a ride, and did not show up to do so. Nora thinks that this is odd, although we do not, because we know that he is a jerk. Nora does not actually get angry for him pulling a dick move like that though, because of course he would never do anything like that without good reason. *rolls eyes*
Nora heads outside and...oh fuck me
"I paused in the driveway long enough to give a scream of exasperation at the eight-by-ten-foot slab of cement where my 1979 Fiat Spider used to sit. My mom had sold the Spider to pay off a three-months-delinquent electricity bill, and to stock our fridge with enough groceries to keep us fed through the end of the month. She’d even dismissed our housekeeper, Dorothea, a.k.a. my surrogate parent, to trim expenses"
ZeldaQueen: Okay, now I really am wondering about Nora's planning skills. Because HOW DO YOU FORGET TO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT THAT YOU NO LONGER POSSESS A CAR??? I mean, my God! That's something pretty big to overlook! And I can only assume that her mother is out at work, and Nora ought to have known that, so why wouldn't she have woken herself up with plenty of time to get going if she had to walk? Why is she so stupid?
And it also makes Patch's not showing up to give her a ride even more of a dick move, since he ought to have known she'd have been up the creek. Yes, we're going to find out why he's not hanging around her, but why couldn't he just call her and say "Listen, something came up, I can't give you a ride tomorrow". Yes, it would be short notice, but at least she'd have something to go off of!
Also, since when was Dorothea like a surrogate parent to Nora? They hardly interacted, and Nora never listened to her advice.
Well, Nora starts running to school, and I'm sorry for so many quotes, but you guys have to see this
"Most people might consider the rural Maine farmhouse my mom and I live in quaint, but the truth is, there’s nothing quaint about the mile-long jog to the nearest neighbors. And unless quaint is synonymous with eighteenth-century drafty money pit situated in
the eye of an atmospheric inversion that sucks in all the fog from here to the coast, I beg to differ."
ZeldaQueen: Gee Nora, you think your house is inconveniently-located and an uncomfortable money-sink? Funny, you certainly never gave that impression in Hush, Hush, when you whined endlessly about how much your house meant to you, and how you couldn't stand the thought of moving out of it. But no, I must be mistaken. After all, it couldn't possibly be that Fitzpatrick changed your personality without thinking about consistent characterization.
Seriously, what the fuck? Fitzpatrick, I read the first book. You can't just do that. You can't just have your characters randomly change their minds about things, without giving any indication of when or why this happened, and expect me to buy it. I'd like to add that this case is particularly grating, because Nora's "Oh, my father's house is so precious!" spiel pretty much was the sole justification she had for not telling her mother about all of the dangerous shit she was involved in. So not only did we all read through Nora being incredibly stupid and putting her house over her personal safety, we read through it and then get "Oh well, the house sucks". No. Don't do that.
Right. So Nora is running down the road, and she's sticking out her thumb as she does so. You know, after all of the Stranger Danger she went through in the last book, hitchhiking seems like an extremely bad idea. Then again, it's been well established by now that Nora is a moron who's incapable of learning, so I guess it's business as usual.
In any case, a Toyota 4Runner pulls over and it's Marcie Miller. Oh Jesus Christ. I'm not going into this scene in detail, because it's very stupid and serves no purpose but to make Marcie out to be as bitchy as possible. Basically, Marcie offers Nora a ride, and after mentally bashing Marcie, Nora starts to accept. Fitzpatrick realizes that Marcie is coming across as nice, so she has Marcie make a weak remark about how Vee is fat. Nora gets all puffed up and righteously pissed about this, and refuses the ride. She first wishes she had her car, so that she could run Marcie over (yes, really). Instead, she settles for making. a lame attempt at insulting Marcie by asking why Marcie's dad didn't get her an environmentally-safe hybrid. Yes, it's as random as it sounds. This sets up for Marcie to make an equally lame insult about, again, how Nora's father's dead. She drives off and Nora thinks about what a bitch Marcie is and how that whole exchange was all Marcie's fault, because it's not like Nora could have just ignored her or anything, oh my no.
Like I said, pretty much serves no purpose. The only remotely useful information in it is the explanation as to why Nora isn't asking Vee for a ride. Apparently Vee is attending a training meeting for would-be editors of the school newspaper. Yes, the school paper. Yes, in the middle of the summer. No, I didn't say it was an explanation that made sense. Moving on.
Nora makes it to school, and we're reminded how the building inexplicably looks like a gothic cathedral. Methinks Fitzpatrick's fondness for gothic literature is being misplaced. Nora runs inside with minutes to go, when suddenly she gets a call from her mother. Yes, I know it happens. I knew kids in high school who inexplicably got calls from their parents while class was going on. It still makes me wonder how freaking clueless Mrs. Grey is, if she's unaware that her daughter is about to get to class.
Nora tries to tell her mother that she can't talk, but Mrs. Grey ignores her. What a beautiful mother/daughter relationship we have going on here. Anyway, Mrs. Grey says that she met with a woman named Lynn Parnell, who apparently used to be an old friend of the family. We're going to have to take her word for it, because this is the first time they've been mentioned in the entire series. Mrs. Grey also puts a lot of emphasis on how Lynn's teenage son Scott is around and how he and Nora used to be such good friends. Again, news to me. Seriously Fitzpatrick, stop that! Legitimately introduce new elements, don't just have everything be "Oh hai, person or thing or plot device I've apparently always known about but never mentioned until now!"
Anywho, Nora, being the charming bitch that she is, brings up the fact that when she last saw Scott, they were both five years old and he was still wetting his pants and forcing her to eat bugs. Mrs. Grey brushes this all off, refuses to let Nora say a bad word about Scott, and adds that she's having Mrs. Parnell and Scott over for dinner.
God. Honk if you know where this is headed.
Nora is more concerned with making it to class on time, so she hangs up and makes a break for it. She does get there before the late bell rings, and takes a seat, hoping that she'll get a smart lab partner because...OH FOR THE LOVE OF -
"I tended to be more of a romantic than a realist, and chose blind faith over cold logic. Which put science and me at odds right from the start"
ZeldaQueen: SINCE WHEN WAS SHE A ROMANTIC???
I...what? Where did that come from? Wasn't the point of the last book that she was a silly girl who was more interested in her grades and getting into college than having a boyfriend? And since when did she have trouble with science? The only time she seemed to have issues with Biology was when Patch was distracting her! Hell, wasn't she a journalist for the school paper? That involves dealing with realism and facts!
And no, constantly making out with Patch does not make her "romantic", especially given the psychotic bend her relationship has.
*shakes head* These personality ret cons are driving me insane.
So Nora is sitting there when in walks Marcie. Um...how did Marcie get to the room after Nora? She had a car. She drives off and leaves Nora on the side of the road. Are we supposed to just assume that Marcie sat in the parking lot for half an hour or something?
Marcie walks over to the desk Nora's sitting at, and Nora tells us what Marcie's wearing, for no reason other than to sneer at it. How sweet. Marcie plops down and Nora instantly gets all growly and says that if Marcie is looking for an easy "A", she won't get it with Nora as a lab partner. Marcie is Scary and says that she's not sitting next to Nora for that. No, she has a favor to ask of her. In that case, why are you sitting next to her, you twit? Why not ask her it after class? Oh, right, that wouldn't give us the contrived scene we're heading towards.
What's this favor, you might be wondering? Well, it appears that Marcie, who has been characterized as a lazy, evil, materialistic, rich party girl, has gotten a job in the front office of the high school. She says that this is because one of the secretaries is married to her dad's assistant. Nora finds this ridiculous because she feels the need to bash Mr. Miller for donating a lot of money and being rich. I find it ridiculous because dude, do high schools often actually hire students for paperwork? I could understand getting a student to volunteer as an assistant, but an actual paid position? Not to mention that the connections aspect is pretty unbelievable, though not in the "how could he be so rich and powerful?" way that Fitzpatrick was going for. I have to ask, how much say does the fucking secretary have in who gets hired for those sorts of things? Isn't it the superintendent or the principle? And yes, okay, I could buy it if the secretary told her boss that she knew Marcie and could vouch for her good character, but Fitzpatrick has spared no expense at letting us know that Marcie doesn't have any good character. Add in the fact that filing papers would be a job that would not be given to any idiot high schooler, given that have access to everyone's phone numbers and addresses and other private information, and the entire thing is incredibly stupid.
*rubs forehead* Right.
Marcie goes on, saying that every so often, she just happens to get a glimpse of what's in the files she's putting away. Nora makes it clear that she doesn't buy it being an accident, which again gets begs the question of why whoever was in charge of hiring her allowed for her to be hired. She's clearly not supposed to be trustworthy. Ah, wait, nevermind. I forgot that in this book's bizarre universe, the teachers at this school are all incredibly incompetent.
To prove her point, Marcie says that she read Nora's file and knows about her therapy, and then adds that "I know
everything about everyone". Normally I'd be hoping that this would be where Nora would put her *ahem* sleuthing to good use and prove to the secretary that Marcie is snooping around in private files and legitimately get Marcie in trouble, thus getting revenge and doing the right thing at the same time. I am not holding my breath for that, though, because something like that would require Nora to grow a pair and not just whine a lot. Plus, like I said, the teachers in the school are all dumbasses who probably would not believe her.
So, that favor of Marcie's ties into this. Apparently she was poking around in Patch's file and saw that it was completely empty. I'm not sure why we're supposed to think it's oh-so-nosy of Marcie to be doing that, considering that NORA AND VEE DID THAT IN JUST THE LAST BOOK! More double standards, I guess. If Nora does something, it's perfectly justified. If Marcie does the same thing, it's Bad and Wrong. Anywho, Nora asks why Marcie cares about this, apparently not getting ideas like "A guy with no files at all, not even an address and means to contact a parent, is suspicious". As it turns out, though, Marcie has a legitimate reason to be curious about Patch. She explains to Nora that "He was standing in my driveway last night, staring at my bedroom window".
*stares*
*blinks*
Well. After my feeling that he'd beat up Marcie, and after his offer to "talk" to her for upsetting Nora, that just...well, that raises all kinds of frightening, doesn't it? And Marcie isn't oblivious to the implications either, because she actually has a brain
"I frowned. 'Did he say anything?'
'He saw me watching from the window and left. Should I be thinking about a restraining order? Is this typical behavior for him? I know he’s off, but just how off are we talking?'"
ZeldaQueen: Okay, that right there is a reasonable reaction for someone who just saw a guy staring in her bedroom window. Granted, it's on the flippant side, but Marcie is perfectly right in being concerned about his motives. Combine that with his lack of information on file, and one could see the concern that he's mentally disturbed, like oh, a sociopath who gets off on stalking and torturing and assaulting naive girls (which he is).
And to answer your question, Marcie, yes it is typical behavior for him. The only reason he hasn't been arrested by now is because the Suethor of the book your in not only thinks such behavior is desirable, she gets off on it.
Now, if I was dating a guy who had violent tendencies and then I told him that a girl insulted me, only to later that he was staring at said girl through her bedroom window, I would jump to a conclusion along the lines of "Holy fuckballs, he's going to kill her!"
So naturally, Nora is the idiot she is and doesn't think of anything remotely like that. Instead, she outright ignores Marcie's questioning about whether or not that's normal behavior for Patch. I shall repeat that. Someone is talking to her about very justified fears that Patch intends to stalk or hurt her, and Nora is ignoring it. And what is Nora concerning herself with, instead?
"I was worried about last night. Patch had left abruptly, claiming he had something he needed to do, but I was having a hard time believing that something was hanging out in Marcie’s driveway. It was a lot easier to accept that he’d left because of what I’d said."
ZeldaQueen: That's right. She's ignoring the fact that Patch stalked a girl in her home and stared in her bedroom window, all in favor of worrying that Patch is starting to lose interest in Nora and want to date Marcie.
*strained grin* I do hope you guys enjoy that, because guess what? THAT'S ONE OF OUR OTHER MINI-CONFLICTS FOR THIS BOOK. I shit you not, a good chunk of this book is devoted to Nora whining and crying and moping because she thinks that Patch the Abuser is dumping her for Marcie. And that is why I'm not blowing up right now, because this is just starting out and I'm saving all of my rage for later points in the story. For now, all I'll say is that I guess it shouldn't be a surprise that Nora comes to the conclusion that Patch stalking Marcie means that he loves her. After all, she came to the conclusion that they were meant to be after he tricked her into that sleazy motel and assaulted her.
When Nora doesn't answer, Marcie starts talking about going to the office administrator and/or the police about the matter of Patch having nothing in his school file. This is all written so she sounds as devious and slimy as possible. I'm sorry, Fitzpatrick, am I supposed to not like her for that? Am I supposed to think badly of Marcie for noting the incredibly obvious, that there's something very suspicious about a student who has no contact information, no previous school records, no documentation of the proper booster shots, and none of the other files necessary for a student to be in high school? Am I supposed to be worried that Marcie will blow the horn and bring this suspicious situation to the police? Am I supposed to be concerned that Patch might actually get arrested and not be allowed to run around and do whatever he wants with impunity? Because if so, I am not. I am in no way seeing Marcie as in the wrong for this. In fact, I wish very much that she would go through with those threats. At the very least, it would provide your story with a legitimate source of conflict, and it would have the added bonus of Patch actually dealing with the repercussions of his crimes.
Well, that's my reaction. Nora's reaction is to panic and start to weeble and tell Marcie to mind her own business. I have no idea why Nora cares. Patch has proven himself willing to mind rape anyone who gets in his way. If the police came after him, he'd probably just do the same to them, so they'd forget why they were sent to get him. There's some pointless sniping between Marcie and Nora, which ends with them arguing over which of them should move to a different table. See, this is why Marcie should have waited after class to talk to Nora. Instead, we now get komedy in the form of the teacher telling them that class has started and they're spending the next eight weeks with whoever they're sitting next to. Hilarious. *rolls eyes*
We jump ahead to after the first day of class, where Nora and Vee are at that bistro they like to visit. Vee is annoying and yammers on about how they need to go to Portland to go shopping. Yes, because their last visit to Portland went so well. Funny how neither of them seem to recall that, or have any negative associations with the place. Why do none of these people remember the events of the last book?
Nora, meanwhile, has noticed a Volkeswagen Cabriolet in the parking lot, which apparently the owner is selling for one thousand dollars or best offer. Nora very much wants to purchase it, but obviously doesn't have one thousand dollars to spare. Vee doesn't have any money either, which makes her talk about going shopping pointless as well as annoying. Nora decides to look into getting a summer job, even though it means taking time away from Patch, ohes teh noes!
Christmas, this is boring. Is anything interesting going to happen?
Apparently not. Instead, we must make do with Vee talking about how she has found a guy she wants to date. She obviously has forgotten that her last boyfriend locked her in the high school, threatened her life, and tried to kidnap and murder Nora.
Again. WHY CAN'T THESE PEOPLE REMEMBER WHAT HAPPENED TWO MONTHS AGO???
Nora herself doesn't remember this, because she doesn't bring it up or even think about it. Instead, she says a very random line about hoping that Vee isn't dating Scott Parnell, which is just a very contrived way to bring that dude into the conversation. Nora reminds Vee exactly who Scott is, because I guess Vee knew him as well. Vee's memory is jogged with the pants-wetting, and apparently the poor kid had the nickname of "Scotty the Potty". This is really not amusing. Not in the slightest. Anyway, Nora explains that her mother is having Scott and his mother over for dinner. Vee, in a brief flash of perceptiveness, points out the blindingly obvious - that Nora's mother is trying to set her up with Scott. To get Nora to understand what's going on (because apparently Nora's too stupid to understand the cliche of the nosy parent not-so-subtly trying to get the child to hook up with an appropriate love interest), Vee compares the situation to a Spanish soap opera. That's...really an awkward comparison there.
Nora refuses to believe this to be the case, because her mother knows that she's dating Patch. Yes Nora, and it's not like your mother has made it clear that she's not happy with your choice in boyfriend. Wake up, you idiot! Aren't you supposed to be smart? At the very least, consider the possibility that your mother is resorting to sneaking you on a date with Scott because she tried to make it clear she didn't like Patch and you just had your head so far up your ass you didn't notice!
*huffs* Moving on.
Vee promptly goes back into airhead territory by suggesting that Nora being set up with a near stranger isn't such a bad thing, because Scott might have gotten hot over the years. Yes, clearly that sort of thing is all that matters with a guy. It doesn't matter if he's nice or funny or smart or considerate or caring or respectful. All that matters is if he's good-looking. I suppose this bizarro world has done little to dissuade these twits of that notion though, so moving on.
Nora brushes this all off and brings the subject around to Marcie Miller. Oh boy, not looking forward to this. As soon as Nora drops Marcie's name, Vee immediately refers to Marcie as "The ho"
YOU FUCKING WHORE: 7
ZeldaQueen: *dangerously* If anyone in this fucking book has no right to make judgements like that, it's Vee. Not only does she throw herself at every hot guy that crosses her path, but she was nearly killed by two of them, because she was too stupid to know when to get away!
Right. So Nora tells Vee how Marcie is such a horrible person for wanting to know if the suspicious guy staring at her window has any history of stalking or psychosis or anything. Nora mentally starts wangsting about Patch stalking Marcie to her house and then...Jesus Christ
"I’d once heard a rumor that Marcie propped a tennis racket in her window when she was open to payment for certain 'services,'
but I wasn’t going to think about that. Weren’t rumors 90 percent fiction, anyway?"
ZeldaQueen: *opens mouth*
*closes mouth*
*opens mouth again*
I... WHAT?!? What the FUCK? What is with that?!? Why would we get that? That has got to be the most pointless piece of character-bashing I have ever read! It came out of fucking nowhere, and by Nora's own admission, it's likely nothing more than malicious gossip!
Not only that, but it's incredibly stupid bashing! God knows I'm hardly the most worldly person, but does any teenager do that? Any at all? Because in all honesty, it sounds like those rumors adults have about secret rituals and signs teenagers have for sex, which are completely baseless. What next, are we going to find out that Marcie uses gel bracelets to let people know what kind of sex she's in the mood for? Even if we ignore how completely idiotic that sounds, it's also incredibly pointless! What, does Marcie secretly run a brothel in her room when her parents are out of town? Do her folks not notice the endless stream of horny teenage boys who visit?
Seriously Fitzpatrick, that is STUPID. That's just gone beyond annoying and offense and is flat-out moronic.
YOU FUCKING WHORE: 9
ZeldaQueen: One point for the complete pointlessness in that little tale, one point for the slut-shaming, and one point for Nora playing the "Well, I'm sure it's not true," card. Listen, you judgemental bitch, if you really didn't think it was true, you wouldn't be bringing it up in the first place!
*pauses to get her temper in check*
This story is not good for my blood pressure.
There's a pointless bit where Nora tells Vee that she confessed her love to Patch, and Vee either laughs or gasps at it. Nora has no idea why Vee reacted like that, and I don't either. If it's a gasp, why is it so shocking? They've been glued at the hip for two months, after all. If it's a laugh, why is it so funny? Yes, we find it absurd that anyone would try to romance a creep like Patch, but in this weird world, he's inexplicably extremely desirable.
Anyway, like I said, that bit is pointless. Vee doesn't give any advice and Nora changes the subject before she can actually come to any conclusions or anything. She asks Vee about this mysterious guy she's angling for, and Vee says that she's been trying to tell Nora about him for the past few days, but Nora has been ignoring her calls in favor of Patch. Nora does not take the hint, and asks who could possibly have set Vee up with this guy, seeing as Vee has no other friends. Vee drops the bombshell that she was set up with this mysterious guy by none other than Patch. Uh huh. Apparently Vee still doesn't trust him and thinks that he murdered Jules, but she's still fine with dating someone he set her up with. I think Vee needs to get checked for brain damage, or perhaps get a logic transfusion. Her supply of logic appears to be nonexistent.
Vee starts telling Nora how hot this guy she's been seeing is, and spills that his name is ... Rixon. Yes, Rixon the fallen angel! Vee is dating a fallen angel, a being who is generally considered a demon, and who possesses and tortures people for a living! How does Nora respond to this?
"As a standard rule, I didn’t trust fallen angels, but Rixon was an exception. Like Patch, his moral boundaries were drawn in the gray area between black and white. He wasn’t perfect, but he wasn’t all bad, either."
ZeldaQueen: *rubs bridge of nose* Nora, dearest? On what grounds are you able to make that assessment? I would like to list all of the times she has seen or interacted with Rixon.
- When she and Patch went on a date, and Rixon first helped himself to her drink, and then made a very crude comment to Patch about how she was "easy on the eyes" before even acknowledging her.
- In the flashback, where it's made clear that Rixon knows about Patch's plot to become human, the plot which involves murdering two people, and makes it clear that he only objects on the grounds that he thinks it's impossible. He'd be fine with murdering two people if it meant getting a human body. He also makes it clear that he has a Nephilim vassel that he intends to possess for having sex with a woman, which means that not only is he fine with stealing a person's body, he's also fine with forcing them to have sex with a complete stranger, all while they're still conscious and aware of it. Also, unless he told the woman about this (highly unlikely), we also see that he's fine with pretending to be someone else and having sex with an unsuspecting person. In other words, he's fine with going about raping two people at the same time. And he's been doing it for God-knows-how-long.
- In the first chapter of this book, when he shows up for all of ten minutes of pagetime, just to remind readers that yes, he existed.
So Rixon is the "exception", is he? Well, if he and Patch are held up as examples of "good" fallen angels, I shudder to think of what the regular ones are like. Regardless, Nora looks as stupid as ever, because she thinks that Vee dating Rixon is just the greatest thing ever. I wonder if she'll think to warn Vee that Rixon will be showing up for sex in a stolen Nephilim body for two weeks in November?
Nora points out that it's odd how Vee hates Patch but is willing to date his best friend, and Vee points out that "Best friends doesn’t mean anything. Look at you and me. We’re nothing alike". Yes, I know that best friends aren't identical in personality, likes, or opinions. That being said, Vee thinks that Patch is a murderous fuckhead (he is) and yet she fails to wonder what sort of company a murderous fuckhead would enjoy keeping. I'd also like to point out that there are still some similarities between friends. For example, Vee and Nora are both selfish bitches who think that hotness excuses horrible behavior, enjoy slut shaming Marcie Miller, and have IQs lower than that of roadkill.
The rest of the scene is pointless and mostly is Nora angsting over how she can't tell Vee the truth about Jules, and I'm skipping it. It's really the most Jules is thought of, and that's pretty weak. Instead of trudging through that, let us go to the next scene, at Nora's house. She's getting cleaned up for the dinner guests, because "Every single memory I had of
Scott Parnell was unpleasant, but company was company." How incredibly sweet of her to not let her memories of his behavior as a five-year-old keep her from being a good host! Keep that in mind when the actually dinner starts, mkay?
After a bit of description of Nora getting ready, the doorbell rings and wouldn't you know it, it's Patch! And I'm going to pause here because this next bit is long and wanky and I need a breather before taking it on.
YOU FUCKING WHORE: 9
Onward to: Chapter 2 (Part 2)
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Projection Room Voices: Starting Media in 3...2...1...
Chapter 2 (Part 1)
ZeldaQueen: We start the chapter off with Nora being woken up by her alarm clock spouting the morning traffic report. Even though she clearly was woken up and, by the way she narrates, remains awake, she somehow continues to dream. Um, is anyone actually able to work like that? I know one can try to sleep through an alarm, and I know that one can wake up and make an effort to fall back to sleep, but...oh, forget it. It's not like it's the most illogical thing that's going to be happening.
Nora is having a bland dream about making out with Patch, because it's not like she does that all while she's conscious. Oh no, such is their love that she can't even dream without him being involved. Anyway, while this is going on, we are introduced to one of the mini-conflicts that we'll be suffering throughout this book
"In my dream, Patch felt it when I kissed him. Not only on an emotional level, but a real, physical touch. In my dream, he became more human than angel. Angels can’t feel physical sensation-I knew this-but in my dream, I wanted Patch to feel the soft, silky pressure of our lips connecting. I wanted him to feel my fingers pushing through his hair. I needed him to feel the thrilling and undeniable magnetic field pulling every molecule in his body toward mine."
ZeldaQueen: Yes folks, this is it. Nora's Big Obstacle by way of her relationship with Patch is that he can't actually feel her making out with him. Honestly, I have no idea why this is a problem, especially one that's coming up now. They've been dating for two months, and given that they appear to have a routine going, it really does not look like they're having any problems managing.
And that's the only reason she wants him to become human. Not so that he'll gain some spiritual or emotional growth. Not that it would allow them to grow old together and have a meaningful life together (yes, I know, let's roll with Fitzpatrick's delusion that that would actually happen). Not so that they can be together and not worry about the angels getting pissed. Oh yeah, more on that later. Nope, she wants a guardian angel to give up his powers and home and responsibilities, just so he can feel her lips and hair and when she rubs up against him. Of course, Patch himself is a bastard who doesn't care for his responsibilities either, so I suppose it works out. Still, there's an issue here that I'll address in a moment.
All I'll say for right now is that after that comment about wanting to know the color of his walls and what kind of bedsheets Patch uses, Nora's comment about wanting him to feel every molecule of her is rather disturbing.
Anyway, the dream goes on. Patch tells Nora that he loves her, and Nora tries to tell him the same. Trouble is, Nora can't speak, as is often the case in dreams. Patch starts to get all anxious and insecure (...dude, what, you really think he ever would act like that?) and rides off on his motorcycle. Nora goes running off after him, but all she can find are beautiful women who tell Nora "I love Patch [...] And I’m not afraid to say it" and "You’re too late [...] I love Patch now." Nora shouts that she loves Patch and told him so, and finally wakes up completely when she hears the weather report.
Okay, that thing I mentioned before? I'm addressing it now. Look at the dream, and tell me what you notice.
*gives a minute*
Give up? Right. In that dream, Nora's fears are all filled by the beautiful women. They are the ones who lay claim to Patch. They are the ones who send her away. They are the ones who make her feel insecure.
Now, what isn't there? Hmm, what about Patch's part of the equation? Really, Patch doesn't play into there at all. Nora doesn't bother to think about if Patch would leave her for another woman. She doesn't think about what it would say about her boyfriend, if he were the sort to dump her for a hotter chick. She doesn't think about any of that.
I'm sure a lot of people would argue that I'm reading too much into that scene, and that it's just supposed to be an irrational fear in a dream. If that were all it was, I'd be fine. Here's the thing though. All throughout the book, Nora is extremely paranoid that Patch is secretly into other girls. And most of the blame, in her mind, goes on the other girl. It doesn't matter to her if Patch confirms or denies her fears. It doesn't matter if, in the event that it were true, Patch would be just as much to blame as the other girl. She just gets pissed at the girl.
And that's all I'm going to say about that right now. More will come when it crops up. For now, though?
YOU FUCKING WHORE: 6
ZeldaQueen: Because considering how the point was supposed to be on Nora's fear that she's not adequately expressing her love to Patch, there sure was a lot of emphasis on how hot those girls were, with their red lipstick, the boyfriend-stealing bitches.
*Sighs* Well, enough of that. I guess Fitzpatrick thought it would be a great time to have some komedy, because Nora sits up and realizes that if she's hearing the weather report, she's overslept.
... Okay, how early did she set her alarm clock? Because if that dream honestly took so long that it made her significantly late, either the writing sucked at expressing it, or Nora set her alarm pretty damned late. If it's the latter, you'd think a Harvard-bound, straight-A student like Nora would know better. If it's the former, Fitzpatrick needs a few more writing classes.
Well, we have to have that happen, because otherwise we wouldn't get this hilarious conflict, in the form of Nora running to and fro, frantically getting ready for summer school. Even though she's in a rush, she still has time to call Patch, though. Apparently he was supposed to give her a ride, and did not show up to do so. Nora thinks that this is odd, although we do not, because we know that he is a jerk. Nora does not actually get angry for him pulling a dick move like that though, because of course he would never do anything like that without good reason. *rolls eyes*
Nora heads outside and...oh fuck me
"I paused in the driveway long enough to give a scream of exasperation at the eight-by-ten-foot slab of cement where my 1979 Fiat Spider used to sit. My mom had sold the Spider to pay off a three-months-delinquent electricity bill, and to stock our fridge with enough groceries to keep us fed through the end of the month. She’d even dismissed our housekeeper, Dorothea, a.k.a. my surrogate parent, to trim expenses"
ZeldaQueen: Okay, now I really am wondering about Nora's planning skills. Because HOW DO YOU FORGET TO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT THAT YOU NO LONGER POSSESS A CAR??? I mean, my God! That's something pretty big to overlook! And I can only assume that her mother is out at work, and Nora ought to have known that, so why wouldn't she have woken herself up with plenty of time to get going if she had to walk? Why is she so stupid?
And it also makes Patch's not showing up to give her a ride even more of a dick move, since he ought to have known she'd have been up the creek. Yes, we're going to find out why he's not hanging around her, but why couldn't he just call her and say "Listen, something came up, I can't give you a ride tomorrow". Yes, it would be short notice, but at least she'd have something to go off of!
Also, since when was Dorothea like a surrogate parent to Nora? They hardly interacted, and Nora never listened to her advice.
Well, Nora starts running to school, and I'm sorry for so many quotes, but you guys have to see this
"Most people might consider the rural Maine farmhouse my mom and I live in quaint, but the truth is, there’s nothing quaint about the mile-long jog to the nearest neighbors. And unless quaint is synonymous with eighteenth-century drafty money pit situated in
the eye of an atmospheric inversion that sucks in all the fog from here to the coast, I beg to differ."
ZeldaQueen: Gee Nora, you think your house is inconveniently-located and an uncomfortable money-sink? Funny, you certainly never gave that impression in Hush, Hush, when you whined endlessly about how much your house meant to you, and how you couldn't stand the thought of moving out of it. But no, I must be mistaken. After all, it couldn't possibly be that Fitzpatrick changed your personality without thinking about consistent characterization.
Seriously, what the fuck? Fitzpatrick, I read the first book. You can't just do that. You can't just have your characters randomly change their minds about things, without giving any indication of when or why this happened, and expect me to buy it. I'd like to add that this case is particularly grating, because Nora's "Oh, my father's house is so precious!" spiel pretty much was the sole justification she had for not telling her mother about all of the dangerous shit she was involved in. So not only did we all read through Nora being incredibly stupid and putting her house over her personal safety, we read through it and then get "Oh well, the house sucks". No. Don't do that.
Right. So Nora is running down the road, and she's sticking out her thumb as she does so. You know, after all of the Stranger Danger she went through in the last book, hitchhiking seems like an extremely bad idea. Then again, it's been well established by now that Nora is a moron who's incapable of learning, so I guess it's business as usual.
In any case, a Toyota 4Runner pulls over and it's Marcie Miller. Oh Jesus Christ. I'm not going into this scene in detail, because it's very stupid and serves no purpose but to make Marcie out to be as bitchy as possible. Basically, Marcie offers Nora a ride, and after mentally bashing Marcie, Nora starts to accept. Fitzpatrick realizes that Marcie is coming across as nice, so she has Marcie make a weak remark about how Vee is fat. Nora gets all puffed up and righteously pissed about this, and refuses the ride. She first wishes she had her car, so that she could run Marcie over (yes, really). Instead, she settles for making. a lame attempt at insulting Marcie by asking why Marcie's dad didn't get her an environmentally-safe hybrid. Yes, it's as random as it sounds. This sets up for Marcie to make an equally lame insult about, again, how Nora's father's dead. She drives off and Nora thinks about what a bitch Marcie is and how that whole exchange was all Marcie's fault, because it's not like Nora could have just ignored her or anything, oh my no.
Like I said, pretty much serves no purpose. The only remotely useful information in it is the explanation as to why Nora isn't asking Vee for a ride. Apparently Vee is attending a training meeting for would-be editors of the school newspaper. Yes, the school paper. Yes, in the middle of the summer. No, I didn't say it was an explanation that made sense. Moving on.
Nora makes it to school, and we're reminded how the building inexplicably looks like a gothic cathedral. Methinks Fitzpatrick's fondness for gothic literature is being misplaced. Nora runs inside with minutes to go, when suddenly she gets a call from her mother. Yes, I know it happens. I knew kids in high school who inexplicably got calls from their parents while class was going on. It still makes me wonder how freaking clueless Mrs. Grey is, if she's unaware that her daughter is about to get to class.
Nora tries to tell her mother that she can't talk, but Mrs. Grey ignores her. What a beautiful mother/daughter relationship we have going on here. Anyway, Mrs. Grey says that she met with a woman named Lynn Parnell, who apparently used to be an old friend of the family. We're going to have to take her word for it, because this is the first time they've been mentioned in the entire series. Mrs. Grey also puts a lot of emphasis on how Lynn's teenage son Scott is around and how he and Nora used to be such good friends. Again, news to me. Seriously Fitzpatrick, stop that! Legitimately introduce new elements, don't just have everything be "Oh hai, person or thing or plot device I've apparently always known about but never mentioned until now!"
Anywho, Nora, being the charming bitch that she is, brings up the fact that when she last saw Scott, they were both five years old and he was still wetting his pants and forcing her to eat bugs. Mrs. Grey brushes this all off, refuses to let Nora say a bad word about Scott, and adds that she's having Mrs. Parnell and Scott over for dinner.
God. Honk if you know where this is headed.
Nora is more concerned with making it to class on time, so she hangs up and makes a break for it. She does get there before the late bell rings, and takes a seat, hoping that she'll get a smart lab partner because...OH FOR THE LOVE OF -
"I tended to be more of a romantic than a realist, and chose blind faith over cold logic. Which put science and me at odds right from the start"
ZeldaQueen: SINCE WHEN WAS SHE A ROMANTIC???
I...what? Where did that come from? Wasn't the point of the last book that she was a silly girl who was more interested in her grades and getting into college than having a boyfriend? And since when did she have trouble with science? The only time she seemed to have issues with Biology was when Patch was distracting her! Hell, wasn't she a journalist for the school paper? That involves dealing with realism and facts!
And no, constantly making out with Patch does not make her "romantic", especially given the psychotic bend her relationship has.
*shakes head* These personality ret cons are driving me insane.
So Nora is sitting there when in walks Marcie. Um...how did Marcie get to the room after Nora? She had a car. She drives off and leaves Nora on the side of the road. Are we supposed to just assume that Marcie sat in the parking lot for half an hour or something?
Marcie walks over to the desk Nora's sitting at, and Nora tells us what Marcie's wearing, for no reason other than to sneer at it. How sweet. Marcie plops down and Nora instantly gets all growly and says that if Marcie is looking for an easy "A", she won't get it with Nora as a lab partner. Marcie is Scary and says that she's not sitting next to Nora for that. No, she has a favor to ask of her. In that case, why are you sitting next to her, you twit? Why not ask her it after class? Oh, right, that wouldn't give us the contrived scene we're heading towards.
What's this favor, you might be wondering? Well, it appears that Marcie, who has been characterized as a lazy, evil, materialistic, rich party girl, has gotten a job in the front office of the high school. She says that this is because one of the secretaries is married to her dad's assistant. Nora finds this ridiculous because she feels the need to bash Mr. Miller for donating a lot of money and being rich. I find it ridiculous because dude, do high schools often actually hire students for paperwork? I could understand getting a student to volunteer as an assistant, but an actual paid position? Not to mention that the connections aspect is pretty unbelievable, though not in the "how could he be so rich and powerful?" way that Fitzpatrick was going for. I have to ask, how much say does the fucking secretary have in who gets hired for those sorts of things? Isn't it the superintendent or the principle? And yes, okay, I could buy it if the secretary told her boss that she knew Marcie and could vouch for her good character, but Fitzpatrick has spared no expense at letting us know that Marcie doesn't have any good character. Add in the fact that filing papers would be a job that would not be given to any idiot high schooler, given that have access to everyone's phone numbers and addresses and other private information, and the entire thing is incredibly stupid.
*rubs forehead* Right.
Marcie goes on, saying that every so often, she just happens to get a glimpse of what's in the files she's putting away. Nora makes it clear that she doesn't buy it being an accident, which again gets begs the question of why whoever was in charge of hiring her allowed for her to be hired. She's clearly not supposed to be trustworthy. Ah, wait, nevermind. I forgot that in this book's bizarre universe, the teachers at this school are all incredibly incompetent.
To prove her point, Marcie says that she read Nora's file and knows about her therapy, and then adds that "I know
everything about everyone". Normally I'd be hoping that this would be where Nora would put her *ahem* sleuthing to good use and prove to the secretary that Marcie is snooping around in private files and legitimately get Marcie in trouble, thus getting revenge and doing the right thing at the same time. I am not holding my breath for that, though, because something like that would require Nora to grow a pair and not just whine a lot. Plus, like I said, the teachers in the school are all dumbasses who probably would not believe her.
So, that favor of Marcie's ties into this. Apparently she was poking around in Patch's file and saw that it was completely empty. I'm not sure why we're supposed to think it's oh-so-nosy of Marcie to be doing that, considering that NORA AND VEE DID THAT IN JUST THE LAST BOOK! More double standards, I guess. If Nora does something, it's perfectly justified. If Marcie does the same thing, it's Bad and Wrong. Anywho, Nora asks why Marcie cares about this, apparently not getting ideas like "A guy with no files at all, not even an address and means to contact a parent, is suspicious". As it turns out, though, Marcie has a legitimate reason to be curious about Patch. She explains to Nora that "He was standing in my driveway last night, staring at my bedroom window".
*stares*
*blinks*
Well. After my feeling that he'd beat up Marcie, and after his offer to "talk" to her for upsetting Nora, that just...well, that raises all kinds of frightening, doesn't it? And Marcie isn't oblivious to the implications either, because she actually has a brain
"I frowned. 'Did he say anything?'
'He saw me watching from the window and left. Should I be thinking about a restraining order? Is this typical behavior for him? I know he’s off, but just how off are we talking?'"
ZeldaQueen: Okay, that right there is a reasonable reaction for someone who just saw a guy staring in her bedroom window. Granted, it's on the flippant side, but Marcie is perfectly right in being concerned about his motives. Combine that with his lack of information on file, and one could see the concern that he's mentally disturbed, like oh, a sociopath who gets off on stalking and torturing and assaulting naive girls (which he is).
And to answer your question, Marcie, yes it is typical behavior for him. The only reason he hasn't been arrested by now is because the Suethor of the book your in not only thinks such behavior is desirable, she gets off on it.
Now, if I was dating a guy who had violent tendencies and then I told him that a girl insulted me, only to later that he was staring at said girl through her bedroom window, I would jump to a conclusion along the lines of "Holy fuckballs, he's going to kill her!"
So naturally, Nora is the idiot she is and doesn't think of anything remotely like that. Instead, she outright ignores Marcie's questioning about whether or not that's normal behavior for Patch. I shall repeat that. Someone is talking to her about very justified fears that Patch intends to stalk or hurt her, and Nora is ignoring it. And what is Nora concerning herself with, instead?
"I was worried about last night. Patch had left abruptly, claiming he had something he needed to do, but I was having a hard time believing that something was hanging out in Marcie’s driveway. It was a lot easier to accept that he’d left because of what I’d said."
ZeldaQueen: That's right. She's ignoring the fact that Patch stalked a girl in her home and stared in her bedroom window, all in favor of worrying that Patch is starting to lose interest in Nora and want to date Marcie.
*strained grin* I do hope you guys enjoy that, because guess what? THAT'S ONE OF OUR OTHER MINI-CONFLICTS FOR THIS BOOK. I shit you not, a good chunk of this book is devoted to Nora whining and crying and moping because she thinks that Patch the Abuser is dumping her for Marcie. And that is why I'm not blowing up right now, because this is just starting out and I'm saving all of my rage for later points in the story. For now, all I'll say is that I guess it shouldn't be a surprise that Nora comes to the conclusion that Patch stalking Marcie means that he loves her. After all, she came to the conclusion that they were meant to be after he tricked her into that sleazy motel and assaulted her.
When Nora doesn't answer, Marcie starts talking about going to the office administrator and/or the police about the matter of Patch having nothing in his school file. This is all written so she sounds as devious and slimy as possible. I'm sorry, Fitzpatrick, am I supposed to not like her for that? Am I supposed to think badly of Marcie for noting the incredibly obvious, that there's something very suspicious about a student who has no contact information, no previous school records, no documentation of the proper booster shots, and none of the other files necessary for a student to be in high school? Am I supposed to be worried that Marcie will blow the horn and bring this suspicious situation to the police? Am I supposed to be concerned that Patch might actually get arrested and not be allowed to run around and do whatever he wants with impunity? Because if so, I am not. I am in no way seeing Marcie as in the wrong for this. In fact, I wish very much that she would go through with those threats. At the very least, it would provide your story with a legitimate source of conflict, and it would have the added bonus of Patch actually dealing with the repercussions of his crimes.
Well, that's my reaction. Nora's reaction is to panic and start to weeble and tell Marcie to mind her own business. I have no idea why Nora cares. Patch has proven himself willing to mind rape anyone who gets in his way. If the police came after him, he'd probably just do the same to them, so they'd forget why they were sent to get him. There's some pointless sniping between Marcie and Nora, which ends with them arguing over which of them should move to a different table. See, this is why Marcie should have waited after class to talk to Nora. Instead, we now get komedy in the form of the teacher telling them that class has started and they're spending the next eight weeks with whoever they're sitting next to. Hilarious. *rolls eyes*
We jump ahead to after the first day of class, where Nora and Vee are at that bistro they like to visit. Vee is annoying and yammers on about how they need to go to Portland to go shopping. Yes, because their last visit to Portland went so well. Funny how neither of them seem to recall that, or have any negative associations with the place. Why do none of these people remember the events of the last book?
Nora, meanwhile, has noticed a Volkeswagen Cabriolet in the parking lot, which apparently the owner is selling for one thousand dollars or best offer. Nora very much wants to purchase it, but obviously doesn't have one thousand dollars to spare. Vee doesn't have any money either, which makes her talk about going shopping pointless as well as annoying. Nora decides to look into getting a summer job, even though it means taking time away from Patch, ohes teh noes!
Christmas, this is boring. Is anything interesting going to happen?
Apparently not. Instead, we must make do with Vee talking about how she has found a guy she wants to date. She obviously has forgotten that her last boyfriend locked her in the high school, threatened her life, and tried to kidnap and murder Nora.
Again. WHY CAN'T THESE PEOPLE REMEMBER WHAT HAPPENED TWO MONTHS AGO???
Nora herself doesn't remember this, because she doesn't bring it up or even think about it. Instead, she says a very random line about hoping that Vee isn't dating Scott Parnell, which is just a very contrived way to bring that dude into the conversation. Nora reminds Vee exactly who Scott is, because I guess Vee knew him as well. Vee's memory is jogged with the pants-wetting, and apparently the poor kid had the nickname of "Scotty the Potty". This is really not amusing. Not in the slightest. Anyway, Nora explains that her mother is having Scott and his mother over for dinner. Vee, in a brief flash of perceptiveness, points out the blindingly obvious - that Nora's mother is trying to set her up with Scott. To get Nora to understand what's going on (because apparently Nora's too stupid to understand the cliche of the nosy parent not-so-subtly trying to get the child to hook up with an appropriate love interest), Vee compares the situation to a Spanish soap opera. That's...really an awkward comparison there.
Nora refuses to believe this to be the case, because her mother knows that she's dating Patch. Yes Nora, and it's not like your mother has made it clear that she's not happy with your choice in boyfriend. Wake up, you idiot! Aren't you supposed to be smart? At the very least, consider the possibility that your mother is resorting to sneaking you on a date with Scott because she tried to make it clear she didn't like Patch and you just had your head so far up your ass you didn't notice!
*huffs* Moving on.
Vee promptly goes back into airhead territory by suggesting that Nora being set up with a near stranger isn't such a bad thing, because Scott might have gotten hot over the years. Yes, clearly that sort of thing is all that matters with a guy. It doesn't matter if he's nice or funny or smart or considerate or caring or respectful. All that matters is if he's good-looking. I suppose this bizarro world has done little to dissuade these twits of that notion though, so moving on.
Nora brushes this all off and brings the subject around to Marcie Miller. Oh boy, not looking forward to this. As soon as Nora drops Marcie's name, Vee immediately refers to Marcie as "The ho"
YOU FUCKING WHORE: 7
ZeldaQueen: *dangerously* If anyone in this fucking book has no right to make judgements like that, it's Vee. Not only does she throw herself at every hot guy that crosses her path, but she was nearly killed by two of them, because she was too stupid to know when to get away!
Right. So Nora tells Vee how Marcie is such a horrible person for wanting to know if the suspicious guy staring at her window has any history of stalking or psychosis or anything. Nora mentally starts wangsting about Patch stalking Marcie to her house and then...Jesus Christ
"I’d once heard a rumor that Marcie propped a tennis racket in her window when she was open to payment for certain 'services,'
but I wasn’t going to think about that. Weren’t rumors 90 percent fiction, anyway?"
ZeldaQueen: *opens mouth*
*closes mouth*
*opens mouth again*
I... WHAT?!? What the FUCK? What is with that?!? Why would we get that? That has got to be the most pointless piece of character-bashing I have ever read! It came out of fucking nowhere, and by Nora's own admission, it's likely nothing more than malicious gossip!
Not only that, but it's incredibly stupid bashing! God knows I'm hardly the most worldly person, but does any teenager do that? Any at all? Because in all honesty, it sounds like those rumors adults have about secret rituals and signs teenagers have for sex, which are completely baseless. What next, are we going to find out that Marcie uses gel bracelets to let people know what kind of sex she's in the mood for? Even if we ignore how completely idiotic that sounds, it's also incredibly pointless! What, does Marcie secretly run a brothel in her room when her parents are out of town? Do her folks not notice the endless stream of horny teenage boys who visit?
Seriously Fitzpatrick, that is STUPID. That's just gone beyond annoying and offense and is flat-out moronic.
YOU FUCKING WHORE: 9
ZeldaQueen: One point for the complete pointlessness in that little tale, one point for the slut-shaming, and one point for Nora playing the "Well, I'm sure it's not true," card. Listen, you judgemental bitch, if you really didn't think it was true, you wouldn't be bringing it up in the first place!
*pauses to get her temper in check*
This story is not good for my blood pressure.
There's a pointless bit where Nora tells Vee that she confessed her love to Patch, and Vee either laughs or gasps at it. Nora has no idea why Vee reacted like that, and I don't either. If it's a gasp, why is it so shocking? They've been glued at the hip for two months, after all. If it's a laugh, why is it so funny? Yes, we find it absurd that anyone would try to romance a creep like Patch, but in this weird world, he's inexplicably extremely desirable.
Anyway, like I said, that bit is pointless. Vee doesn't give any advice and Nora changes the subject before she can actually come to any conclusions or anything. She asks Vee about this mysterious guy she's angling for, and Vee says that she's been trying to tell Nora about him for the past few days, but Nora has been ignoring her calls in favor of Patch. Nora does not take the hint, and asks who could possibly have set Vee up with this guy, seeing as Vee has no other friends. Vee drops the bombshell that she was set up with this mysterious guy by none other than Patch. Uh huh. Apparently Vee still doesn't trust him and thinks that he murdered Jules, but she's still fine with dating someone he set her up with. I think Vee needs to get checked for brain damage, or perhaps get a logic transfusion. Her supply of logic appears to be nonexistent.
Vee starts telling Nora how hot this guy she's been seeing is, and spills that his name is ... Rixon. Yes, Rixon the fallen angel! Vee is dating a fallen angel, a being who is generally considered a demon, and who possesses and tortures people for a living! How does Nora respond to this?
"As a standard rule, I didn’t trust fallen angels, but Rixon was an exception. Like Patch, his moral boundaries were drawn in the gray area between black and white. He wasn’t perfect, but he wasn’t all bad, either."
ZeldaQueen: *rubs bridge of nose* Nora, dearest? On what grounds are you able to make that assessment? I would like to list all of the times she has seen or interacted with Rixon.
- When she and Patch went on a date, and Rixon first helped himself to her drink, and then made a very crude comment to Patch about how she was "easy on the eyes" before even acknowledging her.
- In the flashback, where it's made clear that Rixon knows about Patch's plot to become human, the plot which involves murdering two people, and makes it clear that he only objects on the grounds that he thinks it's impossible. He'd be fine with murdering two people if it meant getting a human body. He also makes it clear that he has a Nephilim vassel that he intends to possess for having sex with a woman, which means that not only is he fine with stealing a person's body, he's also fine with forcing them to have sex with a complete stranger, all while they're still conscious and aware of it. Also, unless he told the woman about this (highly unlikely), we also see that he's fine with pretending to be someone else and having sex with an unsuspecting person. In other words, he's fine with going about raping two people at the same time. And he's been doing it for God-knows-how-long.
- In the first chapter of this book, when he shows up for all of ten minutes of pagetime, just to remind readers that yes, he existed.
So Rixon is the "exception", is he? Well, if he and Patch are held up as examples of "good" fallen angels, I shudder to think of what the regular ones are like. Regardless, Nora looks as stupid as ever, because she thinks that Vee dating Rixon is just the greatest thing ever. I wonder if she'll think to warn Vee that Rixon will be showing up for sex in a stolen Nephilim body for two weeks in November?
Nora points out that it's odd how Vee hates Patch but is willing to date his best friend, and Vee points out that "Best friends doesn’t mean anything. Look at you and me. We’re nothing alike". Yes, I know that best friends aren't identical in personality, likes, or opinions. That being said, Vee thinks that Patch is a murderous fuckhead (he is) and yet she fails to wonder what sort of company a murderous fuckhead would enjoy keeping. I'd also like to point out that there are still some similarities between friends. For example, Vee and Nora are both selfish bitches who think that hotness excuses horrible behavior, enjoy slut shaming Marcie Miller, and have IQs lower than that of roadkill.
The rest of the scene is pointless and mostly is Nora angsting over how she can't tell Vee the truth about Jules, and I'm skipping it. It's really the most Jules is thought of, and that's pretty weak. Instead of trudging through that, let us go to the next scene, at Nora's house. She's getting cleaned up for the dinner guests, because "Every single memory I had of
Scott Parnell was unpleasant, but company was company." How incredibly sweet of her to not let her memories of his behavior as a five-year-old keep her from being a good host! Keep that in mind when the actually dinner starts, mkay?
After a bit of description of Nora getting ready, the doorbell rings and wouldn't you know it, it's Patch! And I'm going to pause here because this next bit is long and wanky and I need a breather before taking it on.
YOU FUCKING WHORE: 9
Onward to: Chapter 2 (Part 2)
Return to: Chapter 1
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