Death, Grieving, SOLANIN: "Reading SOLANIN Helped Me with the Death of My Grandmother" at Panels is really touching and a little painful.

Solanin, at least for me in that moment, wasn’t about any of that. It was a single chapter, chapter five, that hit me the hardest. My grandmother passed away from stomach cancer and had been suffering from dementia; her husband passed long before I was born. In the chapter, there’s an old man who’s “got Alzheimer’s or something” and he mails a letter to his wife, who died in the air raids, every day for the past 40-odd years. There’s a certain poetry in that dedication to love and it made me wonder if my grandmother ever felt the same way. I never asked her, and I regret that.

WWE, Masculinity, Feminism: Scarlett Harris' "Queer New Day" is an interesting look at the current New Day gimmick, and how it can be read as subverting both the racist storytelling and toxic masculinity of pro wrestling in general and WWE specifically.

That New Day can still be over with performances so overtly challenging yet simultaneously so covertly queering the the dominant paradigm in wrestling is a testament not so much to the higher ups willing to push them but to an increasingly diverse legion of fans (the same fans that brought about the #GiveDivasaChance and #DivasRevolution campaigns, no matter what Paige or Stephanie McMahon tell us) willing to cheer them. And not only are they subverting the traditionally masculine archetype of a wrestler, they’re toppling the savage, out of control machismo of the archetype of black men and black wrestlers.

Trans, Language: 4 ‘Compliments’ Cis People Give Trans Folks That Are Actually Hella Cissexist by James St James at Everyday Feminism is a great look at the subtle (and not so subtle) ways we can be terrible allies even when we're trying to say something positive. (And some shitty responses that are not even trying to be positive, too.)

4. ‘You’re Trans? Wow! I Just Want You to Know That You’re a Gorgeous/Handsome Wo/man’

This is a tricky one, the Validation Response.

I know in my little heart that lots (lots) of cis people who utter this one have nothing more than good intentions in mind. They want to show their support for the trans person before them, and so they compliment us in the best (or, perhaps only?) way they know how: by telling us our physical looks achieve some of the highest marks possible in the gender we identify with.

But brace yourself, I’m about to get nasty.

A major reason the Validation Response is a problem is—well—because it assumes your opinion validates our identity. To be blunt, you’re still only seeing us through the cis lens.

Being True to Yourself: You're Braver Than You Think at FuzzyGalore.com hit me right in the feelings, with something I've been struggling with for the past year: being willing to try things that I will fail because I want to try them anyway.

Thankfully, there was a little spark inside of me that continued to whisper in my ear even though I’d worked at smothering it for years. Be quiet, wild thing. You’ll only get us in to trouble! At some point though, I realized that there is no trouble worse than self-deception; cutting yourself off at the knees by denying your passions, your potential, your thirst for living the life that you want. One of the unfortunate side effects of your self-deception and fear is that you leave a field of collateral damage in your wake.

After a long and torturous build up, I finally cracked under the pressure. I gave up the game, secret by secret and walked out of the prison I’d built for myself. I had to stop being afraid.

Trash, Recycling, Collectives: The Rise of the Trash-Picker Collective, in Latin America and Beyond by Vanessa Hua at Pacific Standard is an interesting look at recycling and the power of collectives.

As they organize, the workers likewise construct a new social identity by picking a name for their occupation that isn’t tied to trash and waste, according to Dias.

“The politics of naming matters,” Dias says. “It’s very important to help a given group get together and work toward their demands. How can you get people organized if they don’t see value in what they do?”

In Uruguay, they call themselves “classifacadores,” classifiers of materials, as opposed to hurgadores (“pokers”). In Argentina, they’re “cartoneros,” or cardboard collectors. In Colombia, scrap metal specialists are “chatarreros,” while those who seek out glass bottles are “frasqueros.” In Mexico, “buscabotes” collect aluminum cans.

Dulcey points to the lapel of his uniform, which is embroidered with the phrase “Gente Emprendedora” (Entrepreneur). “We want to touch the sky,” he says. “We are entrepreneurs.”

Rape culture, Politics, India: When Taking a Nap Is a Political Act by Chryselle D'Silva Dias at Broadly.

Hosted by the Blank Noise Project, an all-volunteer collective that campaigns against street harassment, this seemingly subtle protest event is called "Meet to Sleep," and it asks citizens to come together to reclaim public spaces and make cities safer. Started in 2003 by Jasmeen Patheja as part of her graduation project, Blank Noise mobilizes citizen "action heroes" through its projects, events, and campaigns, and it has played a major role in the snowballing discussion surrounding street harassment in India. The organization has been hosting Meet to Sleep events in cities across India since November 2014.

I’m a Book Depository affiliate, and will receive a small credit if you order from BD using any of the BD links below. There is no additional cost to you.

First Wednesday Reading of the year for me. My reading goals this year are pretty similar to last year: read at least 100 books, 50 of which come from my To Read list. My other goal is to sort out a library card here, which I still haven't done.

What I've Read

WILL OF THE EMPRESS by Tamora Pierce: Started the year off with a reread. I love the chosen family aspect of this series so much, as well as the way their magic works. Daja is the absolute best, forever and always. So much love for her.

CUPCAKES, TRINKETS AND OTHER DEADLY MAGIC by Meghan Ciana Doidge (Dowswer #1): (Amazon link because the ebook is free as of the date of this post.) Picked this up because someone mentioned it in one of their Wednesday Reading posts, and I liked it enough to pick up the next book once I finished this one. Basically, a witch whose powers are purportedly pretty weak owns a cupcake shop in Toronto, and her world is turned upside down when werewolves start to turn up dead and she's dragged into the supernatural investigation. The world building is interesting, but the main character is often incredibly (sometimes willfully) obtuse, flat out ignoring things around her. This is addressed a little bit in the second book, but I still found it annoying. There's a bunch of casual ableism and body image stuff, too.

TRINKETS, TREASURES AND OTHER BLOODY MAGIC by Meghan Ciana Doidge (Dowser #2): The main character continues to deal with the fallout of book one. The story opens with a really terrible scene about the white characters trespassing on Native land and a bunch of stuff about wiping out the indigenous people (with their secret magic) who respond, and even though the main character points out some of the issues with this, it really came across as badly handled. I really liked the rest of the story's adventures (even though, again the main character being willfully obtuse), until the ending, which wasn't an ending at all. I later learned that though this is a longer series, the author considers the first three a trilogy that completes a part of the story, and then the next three will be another trilogy within the series. I might have found this ending less frustrating had I known that going in, but I'm not sure. I may just be too harsh on cliff hanger endings.

INDEXING by Seanan McGuire (Indexing #1): Another reread for me. The second book in the series is just finishing this month, so I reread the first one in preparation for it. I actually found myself enjoying the first one a lot more on the second read; the first time, I found the main character incredibly annoying, even though her brand of sharpness and anger is generally right up my alley, but loved the side characters and the world enough to finish it. This time, I really liked Henry, and absolutely adored the side characters and the world.

What I'm Reading

LISEY’S STORY by Stephen King: Yes, I am still reading this. I really like Lisey, and I love the way her history with her husband unfolds throughout the story, in pieces and present thoughts and scenes set back in what she remembers, but it is really slow paced and easy to put down, so it is taking forever.

TREASURES, DEMONS AND OTHER BLACK MAGIC by Meghan Ciana Doidge: I think I'm at least going to finish the first trilogy. I don't know if I'll continue it after. We'll see how much annoyance at the main character's "quirky" traits (and my dislike of first person narrators) balances against the stuff I do enjoy. So far, the stuff I enjoy is losing out, but maybe once I'm done with the cliffhanger ending, I'll like it more.

What I'll Read Next

DARK ALCHEMY by Laura Bickle (Dark Alchemy #1): I'm trying to avoid buying new books this year, except for a few favorite authors, but someone recommended the second book in the series to me recently, and I bought this book immediately. It sounds like western + magic + kick ass women, and I am here for that so hard. SO HARD.

Originally posted at carlamlee.com.

One of the things I'm working on in 2016 is clearing digital clutter. It surprises me just how difficult it can be to unsubscribe or delete a bookmark or remove a blog from my reading list. My life has changed in gigantic (sometimes terrible, sometimes wonderful) ways over the past few years, and some things just aren't pertinent to my interests or how I'm living, but it can still be difficult to let go. (I am struggling with some of the changes, and what they say about me, and what they don't say, and from where I draw my confidence and self worth. 2015 was a difficult year. 2016 doesn't look to be much better, but I am trying to be more positive day by day, even when I cycle lowest.)

As a part of that digital clutter clearing, I'm going to post links here instead of letting them linger in my bookmarks until -- well, since I use Chrome and the bookmarks go with the account, they no longer disappear with a computer dying, so I guess it now means until Google dies a fiery death with the end of the world as we know it.

Racism, classism, networking: Josette Souza's Dear Middle-Class People: It’s Time to Cut the Entitled ‘Networking’ Crap at Everyday Feminism is an excellent read. This part in particular struck home with me, hard:

When you’re a working-class, first-generation student of color who’s grown up in poverty, nobody gives you a map to navigate that confusing cluster of educational years we call college.

When you’re a working-class, first-generation student of color attending an Ivy League university 1,300 miles from where you grew up, nobody prepares you for the shocking amount of confusion, self-doubt, and anxiety you’ll experience as you try to keep from drowning under all the money, power, and privilege most of your classmates throw around like it was confetti.

fat shaming: "Drive-By Fat Shaming" at Dances with Fat hits on some great points about the easy, casual way fat shaming jokes turn up everywhere, even in things touted to be feminist and wonderful (yes, I'm looking at you, Jessica Jones).

This is drive-by fat shaming. Just a quick reminder to everyone watching/listening that it’s hilarious and cool to make fun of fat people – even on a show that is supposed to be feminist. I’m told that it never happens again in the show, and that many people have enjoyed the show, and I get that. Maybe I’ll keep watching, but enjoyment is going to be marred by the fact that I know that the character I’m supposed to be rooting for isn’t rooting for me, and doesn’t see us as equals.

fat shaming: Kiva Bay's "Fatphobia and Jessica Jones: Or How I Realized This Show Wasn't for Me at Medium delves a little deeper into that terrible early scene on Jessica Jones, and how something that is talked about everywhere as this great thing (and in some ways, it is great) can also be so easily, casually, horrible. So many of the great women I know who love this show and talk about it all the time don't address that at all.

Why did the show’s writer’s choose to include this? This scene makes no narrative contribution. The only possible narrative contribution of this line is to show Jessica’s mean snarky snarkiness, however, this is something virtually every other scene already does. There’s no reason for existing other than to do one thing: Let fat women know that they are lazy, that they are not Jessica Jones, that they are not welcome in the circle of safety the show creates for abuse survivors.

They are to be verbally abused.

Writing to the exclusion of fat women is one thing and it’s something that MCU has done pretty consistently but it’s nothing new or unique to Marvel. However, when a dozen women I greatly respect tell me I have to watch this show and I’m going to get so much out of it, then the show goes out of its way to insult and exclude me, I’m not really sure how I feel about any of it other than upset.

I've watched all of Jessica Jones, and I did love it. It really struck home with me in a lot of ways, particularly how it allowed women to express anger. However, this part, that came so early, was a gut punch of terrible, and I don't blame anyone for stopping there because it was so bad.

WWE, Jem & the Holograms: Scarlett Harris's guest post "Why Jem & the Holograms Flopped & What WWE Can Learn From It" at The Spectacle of Excess makes some really interesting points about the problems with the product WWE is putting out and particular owner Vince McMahon's views of the younger wrestlers and audience members alike.

This is followed by the obligatory makeover scene, a far less sophisticated and genuine version of what can sometimes be seen on Breaking Ground in the promo and character workshops. When Jem and her band emerge in wigs with their faces painted, it’s not unlike the Demon Kane or Sting, antiquities from a bygone era.

Similarly, Jem’s whole facade is a throwback to the ’80s and I understand that’s the origin of the character, but perhaps the reason the modern remake flopped is a wider allegory for for WWE’s low ratings. WWE’s characterisations also echo a time when patriots defended the honor of their country against foreigners and super villains bested larger than life heroes. That’s not gonna fly when audiences have such diversity to choose from when it comes to telling these stories: Jessica Jones, Breaking Bad, House of Cards and, indeed, shows like NXT and Lucha Underground. The ’80s may have been a simpler time, whatever that means, but there’s a lot to be said for telling simple, good vs. evil stories with integrity and flair, an asset which WWE—and Jem—has lost.

I only started watching wrestling a few years ago, and practically from day one, my mantra was: Vince McMahon needs to fucking retire and take his racist, sexist bullshit with him. I stand by this statement.

(Love pro wrestling, cannot stand a lot of the choices they make. Also, haven't seen the new Jem yet, but it's on my To Watch list.)

LGBTQ, racism: Michael Arceneaux's "The state of the gay black man on TV" at Fusion takes a look at how gay black men are represented on tv and pushes back at a pretty shitty statement made by Tina Fey regarding the Titus Andromedon character on The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt.

Yes, if a person exists, theoretically “it’s fair game.” But the game would be much fairer if the person you know truly exists gets to be as multi-dimensional as the white woman who created him on paper. Fey and Burgess have done well, but I’m not at a point where I can trust scripted television to correctly portray an effeminate gay male character—and to a degree, any gay black character—particularly if the person penning the character is writing an experience they don’t know anything about.

Family, Christmas, Australia: Mikaella Clements' "A Guide to Missing Australian Christmas" at the Toast is funny, and delightful, and just a little heart-wrenching, in a really wonderful way.

10. Miss Christmas on a beach. Miss Christmas in some rented or borrowed beach house, and the troop down to the sea first thing in the morning, dragging along presents if you’re still attached, hoping the sand doesn’t get too engritted in the pages of a new book or the wheels of a new remote-control car. Miss waking up on Christmas Day and launching yourself into the sea, shrieking with your sisters and brother, the sun hot on your shoulders, the water a cool slap in your face. Miss taking your body board down with you and skimming along the foamy surface of the waves, delivered tumbling and laughing to where your parents sit on the sand, their legs outstretched and their faces grinning.

Pottery: Jasika Nicole talks about pottery and making holiday gifts over at her Try Curiousity blog. I have been the tiniest little bit besotted with her ever since the very first moment I saw her on Fringe, and this post did absolutely nothing to change that. (Spoiler: So much more besotted now.)

But what's really important to me about this piece is the way she talks about pottery. I started taking pottery classes at the end of 2015, and will continue working in the studio throughout 2016, and I have struggled. Not with the skill part, so much (I mean, yes, I am learning new skills and that can be difficult), but with my perception of failure. I rarely take any piece off the wheel, most attempted projects get squashed partway through, because they always seem broken and not what I want to make, and I often come away feeling like a failure. I actually started taking pottery classes specifically to be bad at something, because I was trying to teach myself how to be okay with (be happy at) being bad at something, but that was a failure in itself. I'm not bad at pottery, but I am too much of a perfectionist; I am terrible at not being perfect at something immediately.

I'll blog more about that throughout the year, but that is the brief background I brought to Nicole's blog post, and it struck my so hard right in the heart. I look at the pictures of her pieces, and I can see so many flaws but I can also see the absolute beauty of them. I need to be more willing to take a piece off the wheel; I need to be more willing to keep pushing through. Her words absolutely touched me, and inspired me, and I am all verklempt

With some artforms, like painting, I seem to have a very rigid idea of what constitutes as “good”, and I am very hard on myself when what I create doesn’t seem to match up to those ideals. But with pottery, I have had such a different experience. Maybe because I started out with low expectations of what I was capable of- I had never worked at a wheel before, and for all I knew I would be terrible at it. And if I was terrible at it, I wanted to be okay with that and still enjoy the process. So I just followed Torros’ simple instructions and figured a lot out on my own. When I made something that fell apart, I scraped it off my wheel and started over. And when I worked on a piece that didn’t seem to be turning out the way I had hoped it would, I wouldn’t give up on it. I would keep my hands on the clay until it morphed into something unexpected and cool or until it had been worked so much that it had no more life left in it. Working this way was SO much fun and it made the end results so exciting because I rarely started making any pieces with a prediction of how they would turn out.

That is an excellent place to end this list.

Originally posted at carlamlee.com.

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I can't believe how few Wednesdays we have left in 2015. It's been a pretty terrible year for me and mine, but at least it is almost over. (Not that there's any guarantee 2016 will be better. We all had hope 2015 would be better than 2014, and that was very much not the case. And 2014 better than 2013, 2013 than 2012 -- 2012 really started the spiral of terrible things.)

But 2015 has been filled with excellent reading, so there's that.

What I've Read

DAUGHTERS UNTO DEVILS by Amy Lukavics: Oh, this was wonderful. I ended up reading it in one sitting, late into the night, and the creepiness of it was a joy. It's rare that any horror stories make me tense, make my skin crawl, but this definitely had its moments. Funny enough, I didn't read about the comparison most people make until after I'd finished the book. If I'd known that sooner, I would have read it the second it came out. People often describe it as Little House on the Prairie meets horror, and that's a pretty good combination for me. I definitely got Little House vibes off of it while reading (though it lacks the charming attention to detail and descriptions of food that are part of the foundation of my love of Little House, despite some of the terrible things it has to say about Native Americans), and the horror was a nice addition. My biggest complaint is that I want more; the story is rushed by the ending, and I thought Lukavics could have delved deeper into the horror and the resolution. Can't wait to read her next book, though.

THUNDERHEAD by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child: This was a reread for me. I love the Agent Pendergast series that starts with RELIC (which is, amazingly, both a book and a movie that I love, even though the stories are very different). While THUNDERHEAD doesn't include Pendergast himself, it does fall into the timeline of the series and has at least one character who appeared in earlier books. I'm always leery about reading a book by white guys that focuses a lot on Native Americans, especially as the villains, but this is fairly nuanced for its time, and has some great creepy moments that have little to do with any human threat and everything to do with being a small group of people alone in an inhospitable wilderness. Nora Kelly is a joy and a delight forever, too, as she leads a tiny archaeological crew deep into the USA southwest in search of a long lost Anasazi city.

THE HAPPINESS PROJECT by Gretchen Rubin: Finished this book for the second time just in 2015. As I said before, I generally like Rubin's writing, but there are so many times I end up rolling my eyes because her perspective is -- well, she's a rich straight white woman, so. There are many things she says in her writing which she doesn't mean as harm, but they come across as harmful. I find the rest of her writing soothing (as well as her podcast with her sister, which makes me want to do more creative projects with my sisters), and I hope to make myself happier in 2016, even if everything goes wrong like it has the past few years.

What I'm Reading

LISEY’S STORY by Stephen King: Still working my way through this one, though this past week didn't involve a lot of reading time. (The holidays are coming, plus I have a couple short writing projects I'm trying to get done before the end of the year.)

HAPPIER AT HOME by Gretchen Rubin: As a part of my Rubin reread this year, I'm about halfway through HAPPIER AT HOME now. I still prefer THE HAPPINESS PROJECT, but it is interesting to see what has changed (and what hasn't) between the two.

What I'll Read Next

No idea. I hit my reading target for 2015 (100 books finished), and I've been reorganizing my books, which always makes me want to reread things I love. I may let myself stick with rereading for the rest of the year, and then start my 2016 target. (Which will be 100 books, with a goal that at least 50 of them will be books from my To Be Read bookcases. Yes, plural bookcases. According to LibraryThing, where I track it, I have almost 700 books marked To Read. That's a terrible number.) (My other goal is to get a library card and make better use of it. The local library here is small, but that doesn't mean I can't have a lot of fun with it.)

I'm a Book Depository affiliate, and will receive a small credit if you order from BD using the following links. There is no additional cost to you.

What I've Read

CHIMERA by Mira Grant (Parasitology #3): The final book in the Parasitology trilogy. I continued to have a hard time staying connected with the main character, and the think the very end was too rushed, but I enjoyed this book, and this trilogy, quite a bit, despite my previous issue with the GIANT CONTINUITY ERROR that starts book two. Still inordinately frustrated by that.

TINY PRETTY THINGS by Sona Charaipotra and Dhonielle Clayton: I love ballet stories, especially ones that are so wonderfully diverse, and this was overall great. I loved all the characters, even at their worst, and really enjoyed all the obsession and drama and love and hate that fills the ballet school. Unfortunately, the ending fell flat for me. The book basically just ends in a way that felt like it had been cut off because the particular dance season had ended, not being the story itself had satisfactory rising and falling action. It's still a great book, and I'll read it again, I enjoyed it that much, but I was left feeling dissatisfied.

What I'm Currently Reading

LISEY’S STORY by Stephen King: I’m pretty sure I read this when I first bought it, but can’t remember the ending at all, so I’ve decided to do a reread. Possibly a first read, if I’m confused on whether I’ve read it before. However, I've put this on hold because...

THE FIXER by Jennifer Lynn Barnes: While I was updating my wishlist to send to my family, I realized there was a JLB book out that I hadn't read. Which is unusual, because ever since her Raised by Wolves series, she's one of the few authors on my auto-buy list, even in hardcover. My copy just arrived, and I'm reading it immediately. So excited.

What I'll Read Next

Possibly SPELLED by Betsy Schow or MONSTERLAND by Michael Phillip Cash, which I recently grabbed as ebooks. And I just received a copy of BEDLAM LOST by Jack Castle from the publisher, and I am super excited about it. Look at this description:

Deputy Hank McCarthy has just moved his family into the remote Alaskan town to replace the local Sheriff. He doesn’t think a small sleepy town like HavenPort will offer much in the way of excitement but, considering what he’s running from, he’s more than happy about that.

New York City ballet dancer Emma Hudson is running from something too. Unlike Hank, she’s not sure what she’ll find in HavenPort, especially when supernatural terrors begin to haunt her dreams, and sometimes her waking hours. The people of HavenPort claim it’s no cause for concern. No need to act crazy. She knows what crazy is like.

When Hank and Emma share a daytime terror they begin to see there’s more to this town than they know. Unfortunately for them it’s already too late. Their paths are chosen. There’s no way out of HavenPort.

A supernatural sci-fi thriller, Bedlam Lost delivers for fans of Dean Koontz and J. J. Abrams’ LOST. Step into this story and you might not be able to leave.

Ballet! Remote Alaskan town! SUPERNATURAL TERRORS! I am so, so excited.

I keep seeing this Wednesday Reading meme everywhere, and I really enjoy other people's posts, so I thought I would give it a try myself.

What I've Read

ALL IN by Jennifer Lynn Barnes (Naturals series #3): I've loved JLB's work ever since her Raised by Wolves series. While this series didn't start out as my favorite (clearly it needs more werewolves), the characters have really grown on me, and were absolutely heartbreaking and wonderful in this book. Plus in a lot of ways, it's teen!Criminal Minds, and delightful.

FOXGLOVE KILLINGS by Tara Kelly: It was a fun mystery with a lot of potential, but the ending was very disappointing for reasons that are spoilery, and the pacing seemed a little off. I liked it a lot, though, and look forward to her next book.

PARASITE and SYMBIONT by Mira Grant (Parasitology #1 and #2): I reread PARASITE in order to read SYMBIONT because the third book, CHIMERA, will be out shortly. I think I would have liked SYMBIONT a lot more if I hadn't read PARASITE immediately before, because there is a continuity error at the very beginning which annoyed the hell out of me. It's basically used as an excuse to get the characters from one place to another, and without that excuse, a lot of the beginning of the book would be much different, and it was such a weak excuse for plotting that I spent a good half of the book grumbling about it instead of enjoying the story. And there's a lot to enjoy; I loved the characters even more than in the first book, and the plot is really interesting. It definitely feels like the second book of a trilogy, with all the weaknesses that can imply (including not really having a resolution).

JUSTICE CALLING, MURDER OF CROWS, PACK OF LIES, HUNTING SEASON, HEARTACHE, and THICKER THAN BLOOD by Annie Bellet (Twenty-Sided Sorceress #1-6): Someone recommended JUSTICE CALLING to me the other day, and it was either free or only $.99 on Kindle, so I gave it a try, and then ended up marathoning through book five. Book six came out the other day, and I grabbed it immediately. These are novellas, not novels, but the first four are really strong stories with interesting world building, compelling plots, and great characters. They are really appealing and entertaining. And then books five and six happened. Book five ends on a cliff-hanger, but in a way that worked as a shocking ending to a plot that was resolving. Book six is not actually a complete story at all. It should not have been published as is, it feels rushed and pointless, and should have been combined with whatever's coming in book seven.

STRAY, LAB RAT ONE, CASZANDRA, and GRATUITOUS EPILOGUE by Andrea K. Host (Touchstone Trilogy): This is the second time I've reread these books this year. After reading the Twenty-Sided Sorceress series (while waiting for book six), I went back to these because they are super satisfying reads. Very pleasing to the id, much like the TSS series, and I wanted the joy of them again. I have another of Host's books to read, but since it's a very different setting, I haven't yet given it a try.

What I'm Currently Reading:

I just started reading A TRIFLE DEAD by Livia Day (Cafe La Femme #1), which is a super cute "culinary crime novel" set in Hobart, Australia. I'm really enjoying the characters and the mystery, and unless something goes terribly wrong by the end, I'll be picking up the next book.

What I'm Reading Next:

No idea. Maybe THE GHOST DRAGON'S DAUGHTER by Beth Bernobich. Maybe AFTERWORLDS by Scott Westerfeld, which has been sitting around and waiting to be read for a couple months. Maybe I'll unpack another box of books and reread some of those.

Some links in this post are affiliate links, which means if you click the link, I receive a small benefit without any additional cost to you.

BOOKS

Still reading WHAT WE LEFT BEHIND by Robin Talley and just started TOUCHED by Michelle Sagara, which is the sequel to SILENCE, which I loved. (Review here.)

MOVIES

Had a mini-reunion with some of my law school bffs over the Fourth, and we went to see Magic Mike XXL. I haven't watched the first one, but XXL is ridiculous amounts of fun. Watching it brought more joy than any other movie I've watched this year, despite my love of the Marvel cinematic universe and Jurassic Park series. Surprised the hell out of me that it was one of the most body positive movies I've seen lately, too.

TELEVISION

Pretty Little Liars: I'm racing through season five. Each time I sit down, I plan to watch one episode during lunch, and then I end up watching two or three in a row. I don't even care where this story is going (well, more or less), I love the ride. The second half of the season has me filled with chosen family feelings. I love how those girls love each other and the people important to them. (Except for Ezra. Ezra can disappear any time.)

MUSIC

The road trip home from Chicago was basically All Covers All the Time because I found out J had never heard any of the "Radioactive" covers, so I played them, and then of course my second favorite song to be covered, "Bad Moon Rising." (My favorite is "Carol of the Bells" but I didn't have any on my device.)

Radioactive: Imagine Dragons, Pentatonix and Lindsey Stirling cover, and the Dirty Tees mix.

Bad Moon Rising: Mourning Ritual and Thea Gilmore.

GAMES

No time to play because of Chicago road trip + reunion, but we finally got the band back together for some Rock Band, so that was pretty epic.

(Originally posted at www.carlamlee.com.)

It has been particularly hard to write lately. Hard to do anything. I'm in the middle of a pretty nasty bipolar cycle, and I am not doing very well. I haven't been doing well for a long, long time, though.

Current active projects include:

The UK Horror Series isn't off this list because it's complete, unfortunately, but because my cowriter needed to take a break.

Stand Alones

Werewolves in Love
New adult romance. Werewolves, murders, and the constant sea. Status: Outline complete, first draft in progress.

Monsters & Music
Young adult supernatural mystery. Werewolves, murders, and teen witches. Status: Outline in progress, first draft in progress.

Love in the Time of Percussion
New adult romance. Marching bands, rock bands, and snarky flirtations. Status: Outline in progress.

Sex, Love & Drums
Young adult contemporary romance. Status: Outline in progress.

Chase the Sun
Young adult contemporary. Sisters on a road trip. Status: Outline in progress.

Monsters in the Trees
Young adult horror. Friends, makeouts, and monsters in an isolated cabin. Status: Brainstorming.

Race the Drums
Young adult contemporary. Marching band can save a life, if he lets it.

Essays

Nothing currently in draft form, but I'm starting to make notes about a series of essays about my experiences with bipolar.

The Three Ks have a different sort of fashion emergency.


Show: Wolfblood
Source: online streaming
Show summary: Fourteen year old Maddy Smith has a secret: she and her family are all wolfbloods – people that transform into wolves. Her ancestors have lived in the town Stoneybridge for centuries, disguising their heightened ability of hearing and smell from the rest of the world and living as normal humans. But with a new wolfblood in the Smiths’ territory, and Maddy’s best friend suddenly obsessed with the thought that there is a beast out on the moors, the quiet little town Stoneybridge isn’t so quiet anymore.

Episode: Season 1, episode 3 “Family Ties”
Episode summary: A school art exhibit with the theme of family brights out discussions about several strained relationships -- and ends in the exhibit being vandalized.

Recap

Roll Call!

Main:
Maddy Smith (Aimee Kelly): Our introduction to this world, and a delightful, tough, smart wolf girl.
Tom Okinawe (Kedar Williams-Stirling): One of Maddy’s BFFs, photographer, footballer, and all around delight.
Shannon Kelly (Louisa Connolly-Burnham): Maddy’s other BFF, photographer, obsessed with finding the thing howling on the moors and leaving pawprints, and, again, all around delight.
Rhydian Morris (Bobby Lockwood): New kid, the wolfblood trying, and failing, to be a lone wolf.

Supporting:
Emma Smith (Angela Lonsdale): Maddy’s mother, overprotective, cheesy funny.
The Three Ks: Kay (Shorelle Hepkin), Kara (Rachel Teate), and Katrina (Gabrielle Green) are the requisite popular (usually mean) girls.
Jimi Chen (Jonathan Raggett): Footballer, popular boy, jackass. Jimi runs around with two other friends whose names I never hear. They mostly echo Jimi, so not really important anyway.
Mr Jeffries (Mark Fleischmann): School administrator, tough on the students.

( read more )

Show: Wolfblood
Source: online streaming
Show summary: Fourteen year old Maddy Smith has a secret: she and her family are all wolfbloods – people that transform into wolves. Her ancestors have lived in the town Stoneybridge for centuries, disguising their heightened ability of hearing and smell from the rest of the world and living as normal humans. But with a new wolfblood in the Smiths’ territory, and Maddy’s best friend suddenly obsessed with the thought that there is a beast out on the moors, the quiet little town Stoneybridge isn’t so quiet anymore.

Episode: Season 1, episode 1 “Lone Wolf”
Episode summary: Maddy has a secret: she can transform into a wolf. But her world gets even stranger when a boy with the same ability moves into her neighborhood.

Trailer

"Wolfblood - Series 1 Trailer" (Watch on YouTube)

I think this is the actual trailer (I saw the same version a few different places), but can’t guarantee it. Whether it is or not, it’s cheesy as hell. I’m glad I watched the first episode before watching it, because the first episode, and these characters, absolutely captured my heart.

Initial Thoughts

I don’t remember hearing anything about this show, though it’s been on my queue for awhile now. There are three seasons currently available, and apparently a fourth season has been approved, so there’s plenty for me to watch. I’m intrigued; I love werewolves, I love teen stories, and I love monsters on the moors, so this has a lot going for it already.

Based on this first episode, I am THRILLED. I fell in love with Maddy within the first minute.

Recap

Roll call!

Main:
Maddy Smith (Aimee Kelly): Our introduction to this world, and a delightful, tough, smart wolf girl.
Tom Okinawe (Kedar Williams-Stirling): One of Maddy’s BFFs, photographer, footballer, and all around delight.
Shannon Kelly (Louisa Connolly-Burnham): Maddy’s other BFF, photographer, obsessed with finding the thing howling on the moors and leaving pawprints, and, again, all around delight.
Rhydian Morris (Bobby Lockwood): Decidedly not Welsh new kid in town who is our titular lone wolf.

Supporting:
Emma Smith (Angela Lonsdale): Maddy’s mother, brief appearance, snarky wolf mom.
Daniel Smith (Marcus Garvey): Maddy’s father, brief appearance, fun wolf dad.
The Three Ks: Kay (Shorelle Hepkin), Kara (Rachel Teate), and Katrina (Gabrielle Green) are the requisite popular girls intrigued by new boy Rhydian.
Jimi Chen (Jonathan Raggett): Footballer, popular boy, jackass.
Miss Parrish (Clara Onyemere): Teacher, obsessed with badgers, and listed because I find her charming, though she doesn’t do much this episode.

Welcome to Stoneyridge, where werewolves run amock.

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