I picked up Les Miserables by Victor Hugo at our local station free book exchange a while ago, and it went almost immediately into my July TBR, based on prompts picked from my TBR jar. I wasn't wholly enthused - mostly because it's so long - but I ended up really enjoying it! It took me pretty much a month to read - in amongst other books, but it was surprisingly pacy in parts, funny in others and generally very entertaining. It's ridiculously over-wordy, but most of the words are clever, beautiful, amusing or interesting, which really helps.

I know the musical really, really well, so it was fascinating to consume the source material and see which bits had been used, changed, or left out. I liked some of the characters either more or less in the book, which was interesting - but Javert will always have my heart.

Really glad I randomly picked this up and then was prompted to read it by my TBR jar! Definitely a win for my YouTube project, as I never would have read it otherwise!

alobear

As with most books of short stories, I liked some of these and not others. I certainly didn't understand them all, and a few were pretty grim and unpleasant. But there were two in particular - Green Onions and Horse Legs - which I really enjoyed, particularly because of the meta aspects and the absurd humour of them. A lot of the writing was vividly descriptive - which made the less pleasant aspects even more horrible, but also provided a fair few beautiful pictures of landscapes or amusing portraits of specific characters. Very varied in terms of subject matter and tone, so an interesting collection in terms of how they were grouped together.

althea_valara

OKAY FOLKS! So, when the Jeuno raid dropped in FFXIV, I got strong nostalgia goggles for Final Fantasy XI, and returned to the game then. My goal? To replay the game's stories and document them so I wouldn't forget them again.

I am pleased to say that I have finished the first set of my documentation! It is here:

https://altheavalara.neocities.org/ffxi/bastok

And is a fan script of the Bastok city-state's rank 1 missions up to and including the rank 5 missions.

Now, this was originally the end of the base game's story, though they added additionally missions later. And each of the three city-states start out with different missions, but then there's a LOT of overlapping (some missions are exactly the same regardless of which city-state you're from.)

I'm proud of the fan script, but it's LONG, and not everyone wants to read dialogue. So I decided to write a summary. It's... also still long, but shorter than the actual game script. Plus it was a fun exercise to explain the story.

Anyway, it's under the cut. ENJOY!

( Read more... )

Current Mood: accomplished

alobear

At the Scent of Water by Linda Nichols follows Sam and Annie, separated and grieving after the death of their daughter. It's about them coming to terms with the tragedy and finding a way forwards, with the help of their families and friends.

I really enjoyed this book - much more than I thought I would because it's billed as Christian Fiction and I was worried I would find the religious aspects off-putting. But I went with it and it was a beautiful story overall, extremely well told and very involving.

I wasn't 100% sold on all the decisions reached by the characters, but the ending was largely satisfying and came together in a very sweet and heartwarming way - but still acknowledging the complexities of the situation and that there would likely be more hardships and difficulties to overcome, which was pleasing.

I would definitely read more by this author.

pauamma posting in

dw_dev

It's time for another question thread!

The rules:

- You may ask any dev-related question you have in a comment. (It doesn't even need to be about Dreamwidth, although if it involves a language/library/framework/database Dreamwidth doesn't use, you will probably get answers pointing that out and suggesting a better place to ask.)
- You may also answer any question, using the guidelines given in To Answer, Or Not To Answer and in this comment thread.

althea_valara

Challenge #6

Journaling prompt: What games do you play, if any? Are you a solo-gamer or do you view games as a social activity?
Creative prompt: Write a story/fic around the theme "game night".

Post your answer to today’s challenge in your own space and leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

I don't watch TV (except for game shows during dinner, and that's more mom's doing than mine). I don't watch movies. It's rare I read books these days. What I DO do, though, is play video games, mostly (Japanese) Role Playing Games. Those games are filled with stories, which satisfies my need for escapism into other worlds. I also find that I very much prefer my media to be interactive these days; when I do try to watch a movie, I often get antsy and bored because it's so passive.

Streamed Games

I'm currently playing three games on my Twitch Stream:

* Final Fantasy V for the Four Job Fiesta, Mondays at 7:30pm CDT
* Final Fantasy XI, where we're currently in the Chains of Promathia expansion, Fridays at 7:30pm CDT
* Final Fantasy XIV, doing side content, Saturdays at 7:30pm CDT

...uh, yeah, I LOVE FINAL FANTASY. I have played non-Final Fantasy games on stream - most recently was the Nintendo Switch game Yonder: The Cloud Catcher Chronicles which was chill and delightful. And I really hope to play more non-Final Fantasy games in the future.

Final Fantasy V is a single-player game, in which there are a multitude of jobs your four characters can play as. The Four Job Fiesta is a challenge in which you are assigned four jobs to play, one for each character, and you can only play as those jobs. It's usually a fun, grand time, but I have not had luck with the RNG this year; I've gotten terrible jobs that I don't enjoy playing as (so far: Thief, Mystic Knight, and Beastmaster). Yuck! But I intend to continue the run.

Both FFXI and FFXIV are MMORPGs (Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games). FFXI has been around for over 20 years (!!!) and I used to play it heavily about 12 years ago. Back then, I played with other players, because it was the best way to progress. The game is much more solo-friendly now, and I'm playing through story on a new alt, so I've been soloing everything with Trusts (non-player characters).

FFXIV is most efficient when played with other players, and yet I do a lot of things solo in that game too. I'm pretty shy and have social anxiety, so it can be hard for me to find the courage to play with others. I'm getting better at doing that, though! I've been joining some Party Finders that sound fun and interesting, including a challenge run of an Alliance raid (we went all healers!) and a Blue Mage spell learning party.

I'm grateful there's so many different ways to advance in FFXIV, and I can do it in a way that's comfy for me. But yes, I do want to practice putting myself out there and being brave.

Casual Games

I play a number of casual games, too! These I can pick up and play for a few minutes here and there.

On my Fire tablet, I play Word Shaker (a Boggle clone) and Solitaire City where I am VERY partial to the Yukon solitaire game.

On my iPhone, I play WordScapes. My particular version sets of the board as a crossword.

On my computer, I'm playing Cats In Boxes which is a delightful puzzle game in which you direct cats to push boxes around so the boxes land on the shaded squares. I'm really enjoying it!

So yeah, I'm a BIG gamer. I enjoy casual games because they distract me from my thoughts and give me a few minutes to reset. I enjoy my (J)RPGs for the amazing stories and fantastic characters. I hope to be gaming the rest of my life!

Current Mood: enthralled

alobear

The Deep by Rivers Solomon is about a society of merfolk living in the deep of the ocean, who choose a historian to hold their ancestral memories for them. Yetu, the current historian, is struggling to maintain her own identity under the weight of the memories, so she gives them all back to the other merfolk and runs away. Her actions have far-reaching consequences that force her to confront her purpose, her place in the world, and prompt her to find a better way for her people to live.
The book has several narrative threads, and my engagement with each of them ebbed and flowed somewhat (see what I did there?) throughout the story. I struggled with the deeper meaning of some aspects of the story, while others felt a bit too bluntly stated. But it went to some interesting places and I liked how Yetu's thread developed in the latter stages. I really wanted to be able to just accept the ultimate conclusion as really heartfelt and beautiful but it didn't quite land for me, which was a shame. But there was a lot of profound beauty in this novella, even though I didn't connect to it as much as I wanted to.

althea_valara

Challenge #5

Journaling prompt: Be a carnival barker for your favorite movie, book, or show! Write a post that showcases the best your chosen title has to offer and entices passersby to check it out.
Creative prompt: Write a fic or original story about a character reluctantly doing something they are hesitant about.
Post your answer to today’s challenge in your own space and leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

(I am not going to write a fic, but I read the prompt and went OH, IT'S ME!!! I am very hesitant about the things I need to do these days, and pretty reluctant to actually do them. But I'm trying. By gods, I'm trying.)

Re: the journaling prompt: it doesn't include "your favorite game", HOW RUDE. But I am going to natter at you about Final Fantasy XIV anyway, because (a) most of my media consumption is through games these days, (b) I get to meme at you.

*takes a deep breath*

HAVE YOUR HEARD OF THE
CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED MMORPG
FINAL FANTASY XIV
WITH AN EXPANDED FREE TRIAL
WHICH YOU CAN PLAY THROUGH THE ENTIREY OF
A REALM REBORN
AND THE AWARD-WINNING
HEAVENSWARD
EXPANSION
AND ALSO THE AWARD-WINNING
STORMBLOOD
EXPANSION
UP TO LEVEL 70
FOR FREE
WITH NO RESTRICTIONS
ON PLAYTIME?

https://freetrial.finalfantasyxiv.com

( a bunch of reasons wny I love Final Fantasy XIV )

Current Mood: enthralled

althea_valara

Okay, this is long so I'm gonna cut them to save your reading pages.

( Challenge 3: Summer-associated Foods )

( Challenge 4: What makes you smile? )

Current Mood: happy

alobear

I enjoyed Mr Mercedes by Stephen King so much, I was really looking forward to continuing with the Bill Hodges trilogy - the second books is Finders Keepers - but it didn't quite live up to my expectations.
The premise being about writers and unpublished writing appealed to me and I liked how the story unexpectedly connected to the case from the first book.
But it felt very dragged out, there were lengthy flashbacks detailing information that had already been revealed, and the characters I had been so looking forward to spending more time with - Hodges, Holly and Jerome - were barely in the first half, and only really got properly involved towards the end.
The bad guy was also rather a repeat of the bad guy from the first book - bad relationship with terrible mother, major superiority complex, wildly offensive attitudes to things - which was a bit tedious.
It did really pick up towards the end, though, with a very tense and exciting climax that had me shouting at my phone - and actually siding with the bad guy at one point!
And I liked how the epilogue mirrored the epilogue from book one.
I'm not sure how I feel about the introduction of hints of the supernatural - but I'm still keen to find out where the story is going overall, and I still think Will Patton is one of the best audiobook narrators around - so I'll definitely complete the trilogy.

alobear

The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K Le Guin is probably the book that's been on and off my wishlist the most over the years. It kept getting recommended to me in various ways but then I would keep getting put off it for various reasons and never actually reading it.
This month, the time finally came to give it a try - but I only got about 25 pages in before I gave up, so now it's off the wishlist for good, unfortunately.
It may have been the wrong time for me to try and read it - but I found it almost incomprehensible. There was a lot of discussion of various aspects of an alien world and culture in the opening chapter, but with very little context and almost no explanation of anything. And some of the wording was so unfamiliar and dense that I had to read some sections several times and still couldn't quite work them out.
I wasn't engaged by the first-person protagonist, the story didn't seem to be going anywhere, and the whole of the second chapter was a rather dreary and unpleasant folk tale, which isn't my favourite thing at the best of times.
I was also confused by the internal inconsistency. The protagonist stated that the natives of the planet he was visiting shouldn't be gendered but that he automatically did so, because it was what he was used to. But they also called their leader 'the king', which is a gendered title, and referred to that leader as 'he' and 'him' when discussing him in direct dialogue, so the society didn't seem to follow its own rules.
Anyway, I'm sure I'm more at fault than the book here - just not for me.

alobear

The Roanoke Girls by Amy Engel is about a young woman named Lane, who is called back to her family's home by her grandparents after her cousin disappears. But that's not what it's really about. Since the main 'secret' of the family is revealed very early on in the story, I don't feel any qualms about stating it here - this book is about incest - on a very grand, very dark, very messed-up scale. You have been warned.
But it's a very well-written tale, which kept me gripped throughout, despite the weirdness of the structure and the vagueness of the flashbacks making it feel as if the author forgot she revealed the secret early. There's a lot more to uncover, though, and none of it is good. I considered DNF-ing at one point, but I'm glad I didn't because it all comes together very successfully and the last few pages, in particular, are really excellent. There are no easy answers or quick fixes here, which is realistic, under the circumstances. But it's a satisfying conclusion and rounds of the story very well.

S	M	T	W	T	F	S
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A game for one to thirteen billion players

Les Miserables

Rashomon and Other Stories

FFXI Base Story summary (Bastok missions 1-5)

At the Scent of Water

Question thread #143

Sunshine Revival #6: GAMES GAMES GAMES

Streamed Games

Casual Games

The Deep

Sunshine Revival #5: Be a Carnival Barker!

Sunshine Revival 3 (Summer Foods) & 4 (Smiles)

Finders Keepers

The Left Hand of Darkness

The Roanoke Girls

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