Affliction excerpts

[dwg.livejournal.com]

LKH posted some excerpts of the latest novel over on Facebook a couple of days ago. Ordinarily, I'd leave her FB alone but since it's book related and therefore relevant to all our interests...well, here they are.

Wednesday 31 October

"If I don't say it enough, Jean-Claude, I love you, I love seeing your face across the table while we eat, and watching you root at Cynric's football games, and watching you read bedtime stories to Matthew when he stays with us, and a thousand surprising things, all of it, its you, and I love you."

"You will make me cry."

"A smart friend told me that it's okay to cry, sometimes you're so happy it spills out your eyes."

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Thursday 1 November

"Trust me," Dev said, "there are a trail of broken hearted boys back home that wish so much our luscious Micah liked men better than he does. Sadly, where men are concerned he's a one man boy." He gave a pouting face as if he were five, and then that slow grin spread across his face. I wanted to frown at him, but that damn Cheshire grin did me in every time. How could someone so big, so grown up do mischief so well?

Micah looked at Dev. "There are one, or two, men back home besides Nathaniel that I notice." His voice was utterly mild.

Dev's grin faded around the edges, and his eyes were thinking way too hard. You could almost see him reviewing every interaction he'd seen between Micah and the men back home. It was why Micah had said it, to bedevil our devil.

[link]

Comments

[door.livejournal.com]

Yawn and crap (to her writing, not the OP).

[ellenel13.livejournal.com]

who's matthew?

[dwg.livejournal.com]

That's Monica's kid. Anita was at his dance recital at the start of Bullet. He wanted "big boy kisses" with Anita on the mouth. *shudder*

[subtle-shades.livejournal.com]

BOTH of these excerpts creep me out, for different reasons (or maybe the same reason manifesting differently?)

The thing with JC should have been sweet but it wasn't when one considered the context surrounding it.

I love seeing your face across the table while we eat

Nitpicky, perhaps, but when does she eat much less eat with JC? Or is this some sort of thing where he's watching her eat so that she doesn't drag him down? At any rate, these books all cover a matter of days and she never seems to visit JC or eat when Nathaniel isn't nagging her to go through a drive thru.

watching you root at Cynric's football games

This would be adorable if the teenager in question was their/her son and not her underage and horrifically exploited sex slave.

watching you read bedtime stories to Matthew when he stays with us

Who would let their child stay with Anita? She has guns and screaming sex everywhere. And the mother loathes Anita. It isn't a normal, human response to let some relative stranger/acquaintance, whom you deeply and sincerely loathe, with no claim on your beloved child to have unlimited, unmonitored access to your child for long periods of time. This would be doubly true if the boy was picking up age-inappropriate sexual behaviors from her. JC going to visit dead-Robert's human family, okay, I'll believe that. The kid staying with 'us'/Anita? Hells no!

a thousand surprising things, all of it, its you --> Translation: I've run out of things to say so I'm going to gloss here. This is sad since I can name more things that I love about a Chik-fil-A salad than Anita can name about her Number One Sweetie. (I'm moving, by the way, that we just number them and be done with it.)

"You will make me cry." --> I too would cry if that was my life, my love interest, and someone's declaration of love to me. It's like a mini-capsule of all the things that are wrong in his life.

"A smart friend told me that it's okay to cry, sometimes you're so happy it spills out your eyes." --> I'm pleased that she got the right 'you're' in there. It almost negates the use of the word 'spill.' Almost. *shudders*


And the other thing, with Micah and Dev (Who the hell is that, by the way? Devon, (Micah's) gay ex?) has all of the little phrases and awkwardnesses that I deeply and sincerely loathe. Let me underline them for you.

"Trust me," Dev said, "there are a trail of broken hearted boys back home that wish so much our luscious Micah liked men better than he does. Sadly, where men are concerned he's a one man boy." He gave a pouting face as if he were five, and then that slow grin spread across his face. I wanted to frown at him, but that damn Cheshire grin did me in every time. How could someone so big, so grown up do mischief so well?

Micah looked at Dev. "There are one, or two, men back home besides Nathaniel that I notice." His voice was utterly mild.

Dev's grin faded around the edges, and his eyes were thinking way too hard. You could almost see him reviewing every interaction he'd seen between Micah and the men back home. It was why Micah had said it, to bedevil our devil.


As a not-so-random side note, liking or not liking men has nothing to do with whether or not you subscribe to monogamy in your relationships, sexual or otherwise. But if Micah is or was sexing up men, he's not straight. Bi, possibly, but not purely, unadulteratedly hetero-anything.

The sentence about noticing a couple of men besides Nathaniel makes no sense to me. Maybe it's just awkwardly phrased? It sort of gives the impression that Nathaniel is a relic from his younger, gayer days.

It's good to know that "dev" keeps his brains in his eyeballs. It's the sensible place to do your thinking. Also, I enjoy the fact that he gives/does expressions and verbs with LKH's trademark awkward flare.

That last line might be clever? I'm not sure since I get the impression that it's referencing something not in evidence. Also, what the hell is up with 'our Micah' and 'our devil'?

Anyway, I just don't like these.

[shadwing.livejournal.com]

Dev is ASHER's ex, you know the one Anita had sex with while JC & Asher had their last night together before he left St Louis...he of the famous 'Glued together scene'

[jya-bd-cp-ttgb.livejournal.com]

Actually, I don't think Monica had a problem with Anita at all, but Anita definitely had a problem with Monica for betraying Catherine to the vamps back in book one or two. I don't really remember the book where Robert died, so if Monica started hating, *shrugs*

Either way, Matthew don't belong around the harem.

[plastraa.livejournal.com]

The whole 'he's a one MAN BOY' thing is a pet peeve of mine. The word BOY used interchangeably with MAN, annoys me. I know it's common enough to do that when one man is younger even if both characters are adults, but I dislike it (I once downloaded a story I liked and used 'find/replace' and got rid of every incidence of referring to the younger character --in his 20's-- as ' the boy' and put in the character's own name in it's place...heh).

The whole 'boy' thing, smacks of consent issues to me and also then we have Anita's(LKH) fascination with ever younger lovers.

[dwg.livejournal.com]

I think there was an interview where LKH said that Jon is more like a mix of Micah/Nathaniel, but soon after came the vehement denials that any characters are based on real people at all nooooooo it's totally not true. Likewise, that Richard is totally not her first husband in any way, shape, or form.

[duamuteffe.livejournal.com]

"...watching you root at Cynric's football games..."


I am laughing hysterically at that mental image. The supposedly sexy, powerful, ancient Master of the City sitting on metal bleachers wearing a sweatshirt with a high school logo, with a big foam hand that says "Go Team!" on one hand and a pennant in the other. And possibly earmuffs and a striped scarf.

[rodentfanatic.livejournal.com]

Oh god that is hilarious.

[snarky-imp.livejournal.com]

I love this mental picture and shall cherish it always.

[subtle-shades.livejournal.com]

This is awesome! (Aw, poor JC. He sounds so... desperate.)

[suzycat.livejournal.com]

Also, where I come from "root", especially when lacking the subsequent modifier "for", has a very different meaning. Totally appropriate in LKH-land but maybe not at a football game.

[mocha-latta.livejournal.com]

Anita isn't a white picket fence kind of girl because she's not naive enough/too darkty dark to believe in it? Bullshit. She wants to be the male in the 1950's relationship dynamic while fucking her barely legal son.
I know this is just a stupid urban fantasy novel and I shouldn't get upset, but the rape culture in these novels is as thick as LKH's skull.

[suzycat.livejournal.com]

I also find the whole notion of darkity dark paranormal executioner Anita and king of vampires JC having cutesy-woo domestic dining arrangements and going to high school football games hilariously funny.

There's no way to do paranormal and domesticity without making it humorous, frankly.

[aikaterini.livejournal.com]

/Anita isn't a white picket fence kind of girl because she's not naive enough/too darkty dark to believe in it? Bullshit. She wants to be the male in the 1950's relationship dynamic while fucking her barely legal son./

Exactly. And the fact that LKH tries to dress it up as wholesome (reading to Matthew, watching Cynric’s football games, etc.) makes it even creepier. “Oh, there’s nothing wrong with Anita and her harem! They’re just one big happy family!”

Right. Just like the FLDS polygamist cult led by Warren Jeffs was just one “big happy family.”

[plastraa.livejournal.com]

OH HEEEEEELLLLLLL NO! Sleepovers at Anita's place? UH, no, no, and NOOOOO! As far as I am concerned she is a creepy sexual abuser and you don't send your children home with creepy sexual abusers (at least not on purpose). This one really hit all my triggers. So much super creepiness. How is this cute and adorable? I am fur-balling like my cat right now just thinking about this.

Also I am guessing all the football games are night games or uh oh, there goes Jean-Claude up in smoke. Whoops.

Dev crushing on Micah now? UGH 'their devil" oh yes he's all broken up about Asher, who I am just thrilled has been exiled. I can imagine him running through fields of daisies (at night) with someone who really will love him (I had hopes for Jean-Claude at one point, but I think he is Anita's servant right now and Asher his companion for hundreds of years...yeah, he'll get back to you later Asher). I had so much love for Asher back in the day. His brokenness, just made me want to cuddle him and make it all better. :-\

All in all, the excerpts make me even more disgusted with the way this series has gone.

[suzycat.livejournal.com]

How old is this child supposed to be? Do you think it's likely that he'll be sucked into the harem if the series runs long enough or if some paranormal thingy occurs to age him up to adolescence?

[rodentfanatic.livejournal.com]

As others have said, why in the hell is Matthew having anything to do with Anita & Co.? Anita made DEATH THREATS to his mother and they have not been on anything close to friendly terms ever since. No child should be near her and her group, of course, but Monica's child in particular makes no sense.

That reminds me, whatever happened to Catherine?

[subtle-shades.livejournal.com]

I knew there was a reason for Monica to dislike Anita! I just couldn't remember what it was. (Which says nothing good about the 'hero.') But yeah, death threats and intense dislike aside, Anita was awfully preachy about it when Monica got pregnant with that kid. She was all 'He shouldn't exist! Vlad syndrome! Giggly sex in a hot tub! TRYING FOR A BABY WITH YOUR HUSBAND! THE HORROR!"

Catherine has either used the better part of valor and slunk away or is busy in court earning her hefty legal fees keeping Anita off of the execution lists.

[rodentfanatic.livejournal.com]

Also, if these are supposed to be teasers to get us interested, they suck. There's nothing exciting, intriguing, or plot-related there at all.

[lady-fellshot.livejournal.com]

When did anything plot related, exciting, or intriguing happen in the past 7 or so books? :P The only screaming horror her is having to read about a sociopath that isn't being treated like the murdering abusive sociopath she is.

[aikaterini.livejournal.com]

/watching you root at Cynric's football games/

HE’S NOT YOUR SON. HE’S YOUR UNDERAGE VICTIM. STOP PRETENDING THAT THIS IS ALL WHOLESOME FUN WHEN YOU’RE A GROWN WOMAN AND YOUR ‘BOYFRIEND’ IS STILL IN HIGH SCHOOL!

/watching you read bedtime stories to Matthew/

HE’S NOT YOUR SON. And you make no attempt to hide your contempt for his poor mother, so why do you even want to have anything to do with him? Why does his mother even allow a monster like you to baby-sit him? She really can’t find anybody else to look after her son while she’s out? Somebody who doesn’t have a penchant for sexually abusing underage boys? She might as well entrust her son’s care to a registered sex offender.

[astronauta.livejournal.com]

Anyone noticed how every time Cynric comes into the scene Anita is always struggling? It's like she truly doesn't want a relationship with him, her gut instincts are screaming at her to stop, but LKH is forcing her to continue..

[queenmeow.livejournal.com]

This is unpublishable writing. What is she, twelve?

[pryzmkess.livejournal.com]

I had a terrible thought. What if Matthew has a growth spurt because of his dad being a vampire and that's how LKH justifies adding him to the harem? I can totally see her pulling a Remessesssnessie (whatever they named the half-vampire magibaby in Twilight) in the series with a child. The timing... she establishes his existence in KtD, along with him liking her and being far too aware of her sexuality. Affliction has a mention, at the least, that shows that Matthew remains close to them. So what if the next book has him gettin' all grown up, with his mother unable to cope or care for him and JC taking him in.

As an aside, I'm going to believe that Monica didn't want chose to leave the boy with them. I like to think that JC knew Anita likes to have him around (shudder, shudder, shudder) and told Monica, "He will be staying with us from time to time."