SLEEP NOW. REN FAIRE SOON. EXCITE.

hc-svnt-dracones:

I feel like they could remake that whole movie from Chekov’s point of view.

The title would be THIS IS NOT MY JOB! and it would just be two hours of Chekov running around the warp core with his little goggles as everything goes to shit all around him.

mercy-misrule:

Ruby Coral Carnelian by Mary Borsellino ( available here in ebook format and here in paper back) is a book, first and foremost about misused and emotionally neglected children fiercely and aggressively claiming their own personhood, and their own found family.

It’s a theme that resonates with me so much that it makes me want to weep.

It’s about body autonomy, about how sometimes the ugliness that life leaves you scarred with, also defines you, and how it doesn’t have to be a bad thing to be the walking wounded.

Del, a child orphaned and then somehow found his way into the clutches of a powerful wizard, is raised and used as a magician’s apprentice. It is not an easy or comfortable life.

He is fleeing the terrible conclusion of his situation, when his ex-master’s stepchildren need his help.

And he goes to their aid, out of a sense of nostalgia, which changes to duty, and then to familial love, as the three of them run from the magical forces and practitioners that hunt them.

Ruby Coral Carnelian is full of moments where I have to catch my breath because this is the story of three children who are in a world where there isn’t easy fixes or kindness behind every smile. 

Nothing about Del, or Kelsie or Nicholas is easy. They aren’t instantly recognisable children archetype characters.  

Kelsie is terrifying, a bright powerful spark of a person who can make brutal decisions easy, and though she might feel sad, she doesn’t regret.

Nicholas is volatile and emotional, quick tempered, and unable to keep from speaking.

Where his sister pulls her pain into her core and maintains a strong front, Nicholas wears everything on his sleeve, and it takes time to break through to him that yes, there can still be things to be happy about.

And Del. Del, self named, self contained, self freed. Del doesn’t understand why he cares but he does. Del’s story is someone who has never been allowed any value, any recognition as a human being, and then there are these children who love him, who are annoyed at him, who resent him, who care for and believe in him. 

Kelsie’s power comes from a selfish, all encompassing love, love like only children who have been denied something crucial can possess. These are hers, her family, her own. Nicholas never questions it, Del can’t comprehend it, but they are her power.

This isn’t a very good review, I know. I just, wanted to try and get out how vital and beautiful and vicious this book is.

I want more, more in this world, with it’s unique, interesting magic set up. More with these characters, as they age and bloom and transform. 

Ruby Coral Carnelian is a short book, it feels like a mouthful and then you end up sighing and wanting to eat more and more, but there’s nothing left on your plate.

At the same time, its a self contained story that sets up a rich, wonderful, world and people in it, and its the sort of story that ends with hope.

It’s a book I love now, and would have adored so very fiercely when I was a young teen. 

NO.

I AM DARK AND MYSTERIOUS.