Narcissus in Chains; because I just won't let that horse die

[ellenel13.livejournal.com]

So, today I began choosing the books I'm going to be taking to my new dorm in a months time and I ran across the old copy of Narcissus in Chains that I rescued from my town's public library soon-to-be-trash bin a few years ago and I couldn't help myself; I actually flipped through the pages. I'm convinced these books have some sort of magnetic pull that entrances people for a few minutes. That's the only thing that can explain their continued success.

Anyway, I ended up wondering about some of the plot points that LKH pretty much forgot about. I only tried to read Ceruleans Sins after that, and I must admit it scarred my psyche, so I maybe she did mention some of this stuff and I just wasn't brave enough to wade through the horrifying attempts at a JC/Asher/Anita "threesome" (JC and Asher need the assistance of a woman to fuck? WTH?). So, I ask those of you who were strong minded enough to deal with the hell that were the next books, did LKH ever do anything with the following plots even if it was only at the "epilogue" at the end of all the books:

The thing with Dolph and his son marrying a vampire. That was the only part of Narcissus in Chains were I was actually interested in what was going on instead of just morbidly fascinated at the sheer badness of the book. Did Anita ever meet with Dolph's wife like she promised to do?

The werefox Jill. And while we're on the subject, why did LKH decide to characterize foxes as cowards? In all the legends I've ever read, foxes were either powerful tricksters and villains or sacred animals. Did LKH do her fox research from Dora the Explorer?

And no, I will not be taking that book with me to college.

Comments

[dwg.livejournal.com]

Not to mention, DM is some two or six weeks or so after ID (and somewhere in between, Micah happened) so I have to doubly WTF. At least in the earlier books, there was a recognisable rest of a month or so in between and you could buy into what small changes went on, because stuff like that does happen.

But this? No, too much wrong.

two days?!?!

[skeezix74.livejournal.com]

So Anita had sex with approximately seven different men totally about 67 times in the span of two days??? I don't even know how she walks any more. *sigh*

[vmisery.livejournal.com]

Same thing she's done with the Merry Gentry series. Same thing. Whole book crammed into practically no time. Has she been watching 24 or something?

[ladymuttly1.livejournal.com]

According to the massive spoiler on the board Anita refers to her pregnancy scare as 'last year,' so I have no friggin idea of the time frame.

[dwg.livejournal.com]

This just supports my theory that LKH does not think beyond the book she's currently writing. Oh, she might have a few vague ideas to try and tie in, but beyond that? I don't think she's got any definitive character/plot arcs (HA!). It's kinda like a season of Lost -- there's definitely episodes that actually further things, but it feels like the writers have no idea how to actually lead up to those episodes and then they just throw a bunch of random shit together and hope that nobody notices because of the sheer level of bullshit that's come before. Or the hardcore fans will find some deep, hidden meaning that's purely coincidental.

So there's all these loose threads that probably could be picked up later and used for awesome....but only if they were in the hands of another writer. If asked about them, she might claim that she's trying and this was one of those things she "dropped the ball" on, or thought she wrote down but totally didn't. I can probably point the finger at a half dozen threads that would have gone into making things so damned cool in the series, if only LKH would be willing to go there, and play it smart, but since that's not going to happen...I'll sink into my own world and create my own shiny awesomes.

I don't buy into the claim that she's got plots (HA!) sketched out some five books in advance.

[ellenel13.livejournal.com]

But . . . but . . . it's a series! How can she not plan something? It's just . . . . I really hate her and her misogynistic ways.

I tink I thaw a puddy tat!

[witchwillow.livejournal.com]

Wait wait wait.

Hold on.

Anita Blake fights off Red Woman's Husband and goes home to deal with her life, her 'boys' and St. Louis.

Then within one month (two months?) of that, she's entrenched in the ArDeur, assaulted and raped, broken up with Richard, invited the rapist into her home, is now having sex in public with whomever is closest, repeatedly, until she bleeds, doesn't find anything wrong with her behavior, doesn't think she's being used, hasn't been to work in ages and called her best friend a jealous ho?

On top of that, Edward shows up, and doesn't think anything is hinky with her since the last time he saw her when she was being a strong, independent woman who'd cut the men in her life off in order to have time to think?

OMG!

Anita's dead.

Anita's dead and she's in hell and because it's hell she doesn't even know this is all her torture....

Wait, no, didn't someone promise her they could make her do things and make her like it?

She's not dead. She's been captured.

OMG! OMG! Anita Blake's been captured, mind whammied and turned into a sex jester for some Vampire Council Member's amusement!!!!!


OMG! OMG! Jean Claude totally allowed himself to be a conduit to manipulate Anita in order to continue being Master of the City. He gave up the necromancer for the good of all VampireKind!

OMG! And maybe Richard keeps picking fights with her cause...cause he's protected from the mind whammy? But how? I mean even Edward doesn't seem to be protected....

OMG it's a big arching mystery and the only problem is, is that it's too big for LKH to write and that's why it seems to suck, but think about it, think about it!

...

...

...

Wait, I think I had this thought before. Was it this well thought out? Did I smack myself upside the head for trying to see story where really there isn't any?

(But look, look at the time line! Mind whammy! Big time! That's why everyone in the world is suddenly a jealous hater!)

Please someone stop me before I talk about how the Harlequin Squad is really there to make sure the Necromancer's conditioning has really stuck and she'll now try to use sex before using her actual powers of smite.

Hope is a terrible thing to waste in the Anitaverse.

Re: I tink I thaw a puddy tat!

[ditaykan.livejournal.com]

...holeeeeee crap. I CLING TO YOUR THEORY LIKE MY CAT DOES TO MY HEAD WHEN BEING BATHED.

The dude from OB who had the necklace of tongues! That was basically the last book that was even remotely plausible!

IT ALL MAKES SENSE NOW

Re: I tink I thaw a puddy tat!

[saucyirishlass.livejournal.com]

I've been thinking about this.... Is the current Anita a Pod-Anita of some sort, just as Podward is not the REAL Edward (the REAL Edward is safe and ploting revenge), or is this who Anita has just unfortunately become because of LKH's lunacy? Has she just devolved, or is she a different entity entirely?

Re: I tink I thaw a puddy tat!

[rozasharn.livejournal.com]

That actually makes a lot of sense. I don't like the idea of our main character being tortured in front of us for several books, but the mindwhammy idea would make it possible to have Anita revert to her original self--albeit perhaps a much more paranoid and cynical self.

'bout foxes

[mad-troll.livejournal.com]

The werefox Jill. And while we're on the subject, why did LKH decide to characterize foxes as cowards? In all the legends I've ever read, foxes were either powerful tricksters and villains or sacred animals. Did LKH do her fox research from Dora the Explorer?

I'm sadly [well, happily, from what I'm reading on here] behind on reading, but I'm fairly certain that foxes=cowards is a Western concept. I'm thinking about the "Renard tales" of late romance, where Renard the fox comes out as a coward, however cunning, sly and quick-witted, against the wolf.
Which I personally value as working self-preservation instincts, but it might be just me..

Re: 'bout foxes

[ellenel13.livejournal.com]

Sadly, I have not read much folk tales and legends. Comes from not being raised in the USA, I guess.

[nightangel486.livejournal.com]

I think the insane timeline is LKH's attempt to keep Anita from aging. LKH herself is aging much faster than her avatar, and so she's reduced the timeline of the books in order to keep Anita younger longer.

[dwg.livejournal.com]

that is a plausible theory, given the whole OMFG ANITA WILL BE THIRTY IN ONLY THREE MORE YEARS! *FLAILS*

Because one you reach thirty, your life is officially over, much in the same way should you fall pregnant with a mutant vampire werebaby. Look what turning 30 did to poor Ronnie.

[pandorasblog]

This would make a lot of sense. It ties in with what we've discussed here about how the books began in the 1980s, and Anita's still using the slang/wearing the clothes that a young woman like her would've done at the time: well, like LKH would've done at the time. I think with long-running series it's kind of a given that you look the other way on stuff like that unless it's really badly handled (in the X-Men comics, there's been forty-plus years of comics, but I think the events of the comics have maybe only covered fifteen years, to judge by character ages), but for LKH it probably is yet another source of insecurity...

[ravenhaley.livejournal.com]

I think I should also mention that Peter has gone through girlfriends like changing his underwear himself.

From what I read in the spoilers, he has had two girlfriends who couldn't take his hard sex life. Oh and did I mention he has a huge crush on Anita.

[ellenel13.livejournal.com]

. . . Who's Peter?

[amamelina.livejournal.com]

Please, love of God and baby kittens, tell me you don't mean Peter, as in Edward's stepson. That's the only Peter I remember in the series, and I'll bomb LKH if she has some minor mooning over Anita.

[longtail.livejournal.com]

I think Anita DID meet with Dolph and family, but it was never written out. It was just glossed over and everyone is still working on it.

I can't tell you anything past IB, and I don't even remember what the plot was in the inbetween all the fuckin'...fucking. I think he pops up now and again, but doesn't do much. Plus I think it's just Gil who's the coward, because he was supposed to be the only werefox in town. I don't know if it's been said that he's a reflection on all foxes.

[roguetailkinker.livejournal.com]

Plus I think it's just Gil who's the coward, because he was supposed to be the only werefox in town. I don't know if it's been said that he's a reflection on all foxes.

That was the way I understood it- poor ol' Gil is just scared of everybody. Personally I love the idea of werefoxes, but unfortunately I suspect we won't be seeing much more of poor Gil. But that may be a good thing, considering the way Anita treated him. Sorry, but I don't consider it badass or impressive to threaten somebody who's scared of their own shadow. It's just being a bully, and that disgusts me more than any amount of gratuitous monkey sex. :P