Afandomqueen101blog - A Fandoms Queen - Tumblr Blog

Might as well try...nothing to lose.

this is the money dog, repost in the next 24 hours and money will come your way!!

Love Locks fence

Prescott, AZ

A beautiful assortment of locks featuring intials, whole names, dates -- coming in all shapes and colors; some vintage and others more modern-looking.

So much love in the world. And a thousand ways to express it.

I pray that all of these have a happy ending.

petition to shorten "classic literature" to "clit"

You are a myth born to the wrong age. You are the kind of book that has magical stories trapped in every single page.

-Nikita Gill, wild embers: poems of rebellion, fire and beauty

I think it's beautiful the way you sparkle when you talk about the things you love.

Atticus, Love Her Wild

Remember you are the softest love you will ever have.

Nikita Gill, “Belonging” from wild embers: poems of rebellion, fire and beauty

I’ve started doing handwritten letters as a way to better connect with my loved ones and fulfill a lifelong wish: to receive handwritten letters in return like in olden times before internet messenger. So far I’m off to a good start! Hoping to write more and get better at decorating and making the letters even more exciting to receive. I’m hoping to get more letters as well!

Sincerely, every book lover ever.

please don't give me responsibilities when there's a huge stack of unread books beside me. have some morals.

I HAVE RETURNED WITH A BRAND NEW QUEST!

I will always ship 12 and Clara

Shipping wars: Doctor Who

Like if you ship Whouffle Reblog if you ship Wouffaldi

Ah, the life of a fangirl....

This made my day 😂

I will always repost this ❤

(via https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x3OuSWzheHY)

I know, I know. My editing skills still need refining.

But at least I’m getting better.

The Heroes of Olympus: The Son of Neptune: A Book Review

The Heroes of Olympus: The Son of Neptune Book Review

(SPOILER ALERT WARNING)

AUTHOR: Rick Riordan

RELEASED DATE: October 11, 2011

SERIES: Heroes of Olympus

PAGES: Approx. 513 pages

RATING: 5/5 STARS

 PERCY IS BACK!

 From the very first page, I was hooked on the second installment of The Heroes of Olympus series, The Son of Neptune. Much like its predecessor, The Lost Hero, The Son of Neptune is told from 3rd person narrative by three characters; three chapters are told from one character’s POV before switching to the next character and so on. It’s an interesting format and completely different; readers are used to seeing and experiencing the world of gods, demigods and monsters through Percy’s POV only. It’s a refreshing change that makes it easier to not only see action happening from other people’s view point (one of the pluses to having multiple perspectives), but allows us to get to know the new characters Rick Riordan has introduced. And there were plenty of new characters to be introduced in this book.

 As with The Lost Hero, we’re introduced to a character who doesn’t remember who he is, where he came from, how he ended up where he’s currently at, or why; and in order to have his memories returned to him, he needs to go on a quest alongside newfound friends to save an immortal. Only this time, we’re not talking about Jason Grace, the son of Jupiter. We’re talking about Percy Jackson, the son of Poseidon. And the immortal in need of saving? The God of Death.

 *~*~*

 Percy Jackson has never had the best of luck, but even he couldn’t believe the chain of events that followed him since waking up from his long slumber: training with the she-wolf goddess Lupa with a pen-turned-sword; evading vengeful gorgons that never die no matter how many times or ways he kills them; struggling with no memory of his own name and history; living practically as a homeless teenager scavenging for food and essentials as he travels to the only safe haven Lupa explains there is for people like him – a camp for demigod children. Finding the camp isn’t easy when one is chased by immortal monsters and carrying a disguised goddess; things are further complicated when he realizes upon arrival that he is regarded as much a threat and outsider to the campers than he considered the gorgons that followed him cross-country. He perseveres for one reason, for one memory, for one name that Percy is certain must mean a great deal to him, if he was able to retain it above all other memories: Annabeth.

 Hazel Levesque is cursed. Precious gems appear where she is and it’s all she can do to make sure no one touches the diamonds, rubies, emeralds and gold that brings more misery than joy to its finders. If this weren’t bad enough, she struggles with blackouts that force her to relive memories from her life in New Orleans, Louisiana with her mother: the eve of her 13th birthday, when her mother (resentful of Hazel’s curse) succumbs to the bidding of a powerful woman’s voice; the move to Alaska, the land beyond the gods; the months of Hazel abiding by the Voice’s command and using her gift to resurrect a being from the earth itself in exchange for her mother’s safety. However much she wants to forget it, when the quest is set, she knows she has to go. The monster responsible for Death’s capture is the very creature she had helped to resurrect. Without Death, monsters will continue reviving instantly. And this is a wrong that she must correct…even if it means dying. Again.

 Frank Zhang is uncertain of his godly heritage. Being as bulky and clumsy as he is, the only form of fighting he excels at is archery – which doesn’t win him much popularity with the rest of the campers at Camp Jupiter. Worse even than that, he carries with him an object that, if burnt, will ultimately kill him. Haunted by this secret, mourning for his dead mother, plagued by a family legacy he still doesn’t fully understand, and confused by his grandmother’s and late mother’s insistence that he can be anything he wants to be – a “special power” inherited from past heroes – Frank’s only solace is his best friend Hazel. Uncertain if he can truly lead the quest issued from the Roman god Mars, she might be the only one he can trust to tell his greatest secret, his greatest weakness.

 Months have passed since Jason, Piper and Leo have returned from their quest to save Hera. Now comes the tale of the troubles Camp Jupiter has faced in the time since the end of the Titan-God war, and what has happened to the missing son of Poseidon.

 The instant revival of defeated monsters continues to plague the demigod heroes. They certainly plague Percy Jackson, who has been unable to go a day without a monster coming to attack since leaving Lupa’s care. Whatever relief he finds upon entering Camp Jupiter is short-lived, as well; despite having the Roman goddess Juno’s blessing, Percy – as the son of Neptune/Poseidon – finds himself little popularity with the other campers. He also has the distinct feeling he doesn’t belong at Camp Jupiter, whatever else Frank Zhang and Hazel Levesque claim. Being watched by both Reyna, the Praetor of Camp Jupiter with a connection to Percy’s past, and Octavian, the power-hungry Augur, Percy strives to adjust to his new home when circumstances force him and his friends on a quest to save Thanatos, the god of Death. And they must accomplish this before the Feast of Fortuna, or else Camp Jupiter may be struck with misfortune.

 Sailing from San Francisco on a raggedy boat liable to sink at any given moment, it’s a race against time as Percy, Hazel and Frank set out: first to Portland, Oregon, to see a resurrected seer who knows the location of Death; then to Seattle, Washington, to meet with Reyna’s sister, queen of the Amazons; to Frank’s home in Canada to learn the secrets of his family’s power; and then to Alaska, the land beyond the gods’ domain and power. Being on their own (and unable to contact Camp Jupiter for help, if needed), their only aid on their perilous journey comes in the form of a harpy who recites prophecies, and a horse from Hazel’s past. But will that be enough for them to survive the upcoming battle in Alaska? How to succeed, when the last group of demigods who made such a journey, decades earlier, never returned? What sacrifice will Hazel and Frank have to make to free Death? And how long will Percy have to go without his memories?

 *~*~*

 PERCY’S BACK! HE’S RETURNED! PERCY! PERCY! PERCY!

 The Lost Hero was a great start to this new series by Rick Riordan, but The Son of Neptune sealed my love and new-found fanaticism. Not only has everyone’s favorite Seaweed Brain returned (PERCY! PERCY! PERCY!), but we finally get introduced to Camp Jupiter, the other camp for demigods that we readers never knew existed and were more than curious (dare I say, obsessed) to know about, ever since we learned of its existence in the last book. And boy, was I not disappointed by what I discovered and learned.

 Camp Jupiter is both like and unlike Camp Half Blood. They have satyrs (AKA fawns) but they do nothing at this camp besides loiter and beg for food; they have ghosts; they have an entire city called New Rome where demigods can “retire” from quests to go to school, get married, have a family, etc.; they have ghosts; they separate the demigods into battalions based on rank and talent as opposed to parentage; they have ghosts; their leaders (AKA Praetors) are demigod warriors that oversee the safety and running of the entire camp alongside a Senate of  other veteran warriors; they have ghosts; they have an Augur, which is basically a seer who can foretell the future by reading the stuffing from teddy bears, as opposed to real animals like the olden days; and THEY HAVE GHOSTS!

 Again, Rick Riordan has gone above and beyond what I expected of him. I should really learn not to underestimate his ability to mix mythology and history into the modern setting, and giving us characters that are so relatable and enjoyable that it’s near impossible not to fall in love with them. I wasn’t even past the first page of the first chapter before I was reminded, strongly, why I love Percy so much: he is sassiness personified; he never lacks in humor, wit or sarcastic remarks regardless of the situation, and his loyalty, courage, compassion and understanding won over all the occupants of Camp Jupiter just as easily as it won us, the readers, over. I never realized until now just how much I missed reading from his point of view.

 Frank and Hazel, much like Piper and Leo from The Lost Hero, became pleasant surprises. While at first I did think they would be similar to Leo and Piper (which one can argue they still are), it didn’t make me dislike them. Both have their own secrets, their own fears and insecurities and personal histories to overcome on this journey to the north, their own powers to discover and control, and their own weaknesses to accept. Hazel, as far as I know, is the youngest of our heroes, but she doesn’t lack courage or cleverness, and her power, the curse that brought her and her mother misfortune, is a talent that became useful in a way she hadn’t expected (and it was a surprise to us readers, too; that scene in the Amazon factory was beyond funny). Frank, described as a klutz when we first meet him, had a lot to prove but I, again, was shocked at the realization of what his “secret” power was, the one that he inherited from his ancestors, and how that same family history was connected to the gods and their history with the warriors and heroes in the East, notably China. It also made me wonder something: will Rick Riordan ever expand on that particular bit of history, or bring us stories about the warriors and heroes and gods of the Asian population? Well, I guess that’s a question for another day, but I know it will always be in the back of my mind. Just like how this other question will be on my mind: is Frank’s grandmother really dead? I hope not, because in the few scenes when she was present, I got the sense that she was like McGonagall from Harry Potter: strict, clever, stronger than appearance suggests, and able to make grown men and monsters kneel for forgiveness with just a simple glare. I absolutely adore her.

 New gods and goddesses were met and discovered on this journey. I personally enjoyed Iris, the Rainbow goddess, simply because she was so unlike anything I ever imagined. I honestly didn’t know what to expect of her, or what her modern personality would be like, but I certainly didn’t think I could’ve imagined her as I did when she was introduced. That scene when her store is nearly attacked by those monsters? I can’t deny, I laughed out loud at how it played out.

 I laughed as I read through The Son of Neptune, and it’s not because of Percy either. Rick Riordan just surprises you with every character you meet: the gods and goddesses, the monsters, the mortal villains from Greek and Roman myth, and the heroes. He has a way of adding humor to almost any situation and even though it takes a while for the descriptions to materialize in your head, when they do, you can’t un-see them.

 The Son of Neptune wasn’t just funny; it also had a lot of action. It did not lack in battles or tense moments. There were plenty of times that Percy, Hazel and Frank were in a situation and I was trying to figure out, before it actually happened, what they would do to get out of their current dilemma. None of my theories ever panned out because Rick Riordan just surprises you with how the characters manage to defeat, evade or destroy their enemies. The battle in Alaska, with Hazel, Frank and Percy facing off against the giant Alcyoneus and an entire army of ghosts, was both spectacular and nerve-wrecking to read. And then there was the battle with another Giant and another army of monsters at Camp Jupiter, when Percy, Hazel and Frank succeed with their mission and return to San Francisco. Rick Riordan, not only famous for his way of modernizing ancient myths, heroes and deities, was also able to give us enough detail so that we can picture the battles in our head and see and feel for the characters as they face  off against some of their worst enemies.

 And by far, one of my favorite scenes to happen is when Percy faces off against the giant Polybotes, the giant created specifically to oppose Poseidon.

 Now hailed as a hero of New Rome and Camp Jupiter, the truth behind Percy’s parentage – and the existence of Greek demigods – is unveiled to the Senate, Octavian and Reyna, and before any decision can be made on what to do about this piece of information, and whether it’s even possible for the Greeks and Romans to work together to prevail against Gaea and her growing army, word reaches them that a ship is heading their way. A ship, according to the message they received, that has come for Percy, and hails from Camp Half Blood.

 The time has come. It is time for the Greeks and Romans to meet at last, for Jason to return to Camp Jupiter, and for Percy to reunite with his friends. What outcome will this meeting produce, though, for the two camps?

 I can’t wait to find out as I start on the next book, The Mark of Athena.

 And if I can tell you anything about this next book, based on the title alone, it’s this: the seventh – and last – hero of the Great Prophecy to come will be revealed.

The Suicide Shop: A Book Review

The Suicide Shop by: A Book Review

AUTHOR: Jean Teulé

TRANSLATOR: Sue Dyson

RELEASED DATE: 2007 (French); 2008 (English)

PAGES:  Approx. 169 pages

RATING: 4/5 STARS

 While I was walking around a local book store several years ago, I chanced a glance at a book rack that contained several choice books that were either new releases or at discount price and my eyes were immediately drawn to this tiny blue paperback with the strangest title and book cover I have ever seen.

 Intrigued by what it was about (although I had a fair guess, considering the title), I read the back and next thing I knew, I was taking the book home. I didn’t even finish the description on the back before I realized I was at the cash register in that book store. All I knew is that I wanted to see how such a story like this would unfold.

 *~*~*

HAS YOUR LIFE BEEN A FAILURE? LET’S MAKE YOUR DEATH A SUCCESS.

 That is the slogan – and motto – of the Tuvache’s family-owned business, The Suicide Shop, where a variety of weapons, poisons and equipment are sold (legally) to the miserable people that live in this post-apocalyptic future ravaged by a number of environmental disasters.

 Meet the Tuvache family: Mishima, father, husband and proud owner of his family’s little shop. Lucréce, mother, wife, and maker of poisons. Vincent, the anorexic eldest son who invents new weapons. Marilyn, the obese daughter who feels little self-worth. And Alan, the youngest child…and also the black sheep of the family.

 Alan is most unlike his family, who are each depressed in their own manner, to the point of wanting to commit suicide themselves. From the moment he was born, he has had a love of life that mystifies customers that enter The Suicide Shop and frustrates his parents and siblings to no end. Any attempts to demoralize him or rid him of his cheerful manner backfire, and Alan is prone to driving customers away or sabotaging the equipment in the shop.

 Unused to the cheerfulness that he displays, even in the face of tragedy, the Tuvache family tries to carry on with their lives – and business – in the same depressed manner that is their entire reality. But little by little, Alan’s influence has each of his family members question the impossible: whether they, too, can come to enjoy life.

 *~*~*

 Despite its title, I found I enjoyed this book. The Suicide Shop was a quick and easy read, with peculiar characters in a strange setting and an easy plot to follow.

 Although the topic of suicide is a serious and sensitive topic, especially for those who have been affected by it personally, I found that a good way to approach reading this book is to react to it with the same morbid curiosity and delight that we feel towards dark comedies such as The Addams Family, Beetlejuice, or any film directed, produced or imagined by Tim Burton. The Suicide Shop is a dark comedy, and while most of the humor is in a morbid sense, there are genuinely funny moments that make it possible to enjoy this book. The Suicide Shop maintains a good balance as the story unfolds: for all its morbid talk about suicide, there are enough light moments that you can tell the topic isn’t being treated with condescension or lack of sympathy, empathy or compassion.

 The Suicide Shop was a little under 200 pages, and it’s a relatively small book so I wondered, when I first bought it, what would happen in this book, and why it wasn’t a very long read. Within the first few chapters, I realized several things:

 First, the background setting for this story isn’t important. Some details about the post-apocalyptic world that The Suicide Shop resides in have been given – enough that you know that it’s a disaster where few people feel like living in anymore – but it’s clear from reading the book that the setting isn’t very important to the plot. Its only significance is that it provides a (legitimate) reason for The Suicide Shop to exist in this universe.

 Secondly, nothing happens plot-wise within the story, at least not in a big sense. The Suicide Shop is a story driven more by the characters’ interactions with each other than by any particular event or tragedy. And I found I didn’t mind that very much, because this story was about the Tuvache family and their youngest son, and the influence they had on each other and to the people around them. That being said, while reading I did feel the story lulled nearing the end of the book because not much seemed to be happening and my enjoyment was slowly growing into boredom.

 Third, I could see that the main conflict in the story would be Alan and his influence on the Tuvache family, both personally and while in The Suicide Shop. Most of the story is told from the perspectives of the parents and the siblings, and it wasn’t until near the end of the book that we finally got a glimpse into Alan’s way of thinking. And I could see why it was written that way. The Suicide Shop is about each of the Tuvache members allowing themselves to fall in love with life, to have Alan influence them to look at things differently and react differently to both each other and to others in a positive manner. And we’re allowed insight to their way of thinking as it changes, from bleak and depressive to self-appreciative and enjoyment.

 Even though the book wasn’t long and you didn’t get to spend enough time with the characters to develop a strong attachment to them, you can still enjoy them. Alan became my favorite, simply because I enjoyed his character and his actions: the measures he took to sabotaging the equipment and what he did for each of his family members that eventually changed them and their views on life. I really enjoy the fact that despite his bleak surroundings, he continues to maintain a positive and cheerful outlook.

 And then ending happened.

 Oh. Dear. God. I was NOT expecting that ending. I had to re-read that last chapter because I could not believe that that ending happened. It’s one of those twists that you have to re-read over and over again, and then wonder to yourself if the author made a mistake somewhere. Or in this case, if the translator made a mistake…because this ending was NOT what I thought it was going to be.

 Long story short: my heart broke a little. And if you happen to chance upon this book somewhere and give it a try – which, if done, shouldn’t take longer than a day because of how easy this book is and how quick you can read it (I read it in a day) – be warned: yours might break a little inside too.

 Ultimately, I commend The Suicide Shop for this unique setting and story concept. A part of me did wish it was a longer book and that more details were given in regards to the setting, the characters and the history of this family, and especially to what would happen to the Tuvache family after that surprise ending (I’m not getting over this one, anytime soon, by the way.), but another part of me likes at how quick and easy a read this was, and also I enjoyed what this book was mostly about: allowing yourself to find happiness despite the bleak past, present and future of your world; falling in love with yourself and with your life; using your talents to create things; and letting go of past scars.

Coraline: A Book Review

CORALINE: A Book Review

AUTHOR: Neil Gaiman

RELEASED DATE: January 24, 2002

PAGES: Approx. 160 pages

RATING: 5/5 STARS

  Friends have been recommending this book to me for years, but it wasn’t until the movie adaptation came out in 2009 that I finally got interested enough to buy my own copy of Neil Gaiman’s famous story. And, as is the norm that happens whenever I obtain new books, Coraline went on my book shelf and spent some several years collecting dust before I finally (FINALLY) found the time – and opportunity – to pick it up and read it.

 Coraline isn’t a long novel. It’s less than 200 pages, and even the slowest reader would be able to finish it within a day or two, just as I had. And what an amazing two days it was, as I delved into the written story that was adapted into one of my favorite movies, featuring one of my favorite heroines, the young, clever and brave Coraline.

 Neil Gaiman has just become a new favorite author.

 *~*~*

 Coraline, not Caroline, is a young girl who recently moved into a new home with her busy, and sometimes inattentive, parents. The house, which was a manor converted into several flats (AKA apartments), houses some of the strangest adults Coraline has met: Miss Forcible and Miss Spink, two retired actresses, and their many aging Scotties; and Mr. Bobo, the “crazy man who lives upstairs” that’s training a mouse circus.

 Coraline, not Caroline, is still adjusting to the move when she discovers, in her family’s sitting parlor, a locked door that once connected their flat to the other empty flat in the manor, but since been bricked up. Curious by nature, and despite warnings not to go through the door, once home alone, she opens the locked door and discovers a passage that leads to a world much unlike her own: a flat that looks like her new home, inhabited by two people known as the “Other Mother” and the “Other Father” who resemble Coraline’s parents except for having buttons as eyes. More attentive to her than her actual parents, Coraline comes to enjoy the quality time spent with the Other Mother and Other Father, and discovers that the new world allows for her to get whatever she wants (from her favorite foods to new toys that are sentient enough to play with her) and also meet the more interesting counterparts to her neighbors; the Other Miss Spink and Other Miss Forcible perform onstage in a never-ending show, and the Other Crazy Old Man Upstairs has an actual rat circus.

 The only inhabitant that Coraline is confused by is a feral black cat that talks back to her when she approaches  it; it admits to being the same feral black cat that resides near her property in the real world, and who can travel between the worlds through gaps as it pleases.

 Indeed, this world seems too good to be true. And as Coraline comes to realize, it actually is.

 Frightened by the Other Mother and her suggestion to stay forever (and the price Coraline needs to pay for that), she returns to her own world, determined never to unlock the parlor door again.

 But her parents are missing. And according to the feral cat that stalks the property, there’s only one place they can be. Unable to receive help from her neighbors or the authorities, Coraline must prepare herself to return to the Other World. She realizes she’s not the first child to fall victim to the Other Mother. But she’s determined to be the last.

 *~*~*

 As I was reading this, I was using the imagery from the movie to build up the story in my head. Then as I continued, I realized that that could only help me so much, because there were quite a few differences between the movie and the novel itself.

 In the movie, we got a clear visual idea of how old Coraline might be (I think the movie states she was 11 years old). In the novel, you get the sense that she’s a little younger, probably around 9 or 10 years. I could be wrong but that’s the way I felt as I read this book. Her actual age is never stated, so for all readers know, we could be reading from the perspective of a 6 or 7 year old. The reason I bring up her age, however, is because of how mature and resourceful Coraline proves to be despite that.

 Coraline is a favorite heroine because, despite her young age, she proves to be as clever as any adolescent or adult would be in her situation, and just as brave. She even explains to the feral cat, before she enters the Other World, what she thought being brave was. All throughout the novel, as she goes up against the Other Mother, and discovers the warped reality that the Other World is transforming into, Neil Gaiman makes a point of giving you a good visual of the horrible things that Coraline encounters as she tries to save her parents and other victims, and each time Coraline admits to being afraid but refused to back down or give in.

 This is a different book with a new heroine that I had never discovered until now. This isn’t an adult, or even an adolescent (whom people would assume can survive this ordeal); this is a young child that proves to anyone who knows her that despite her age, she can be as brave and clever and resourceful as anyone else. She doesn’t even have a weapon to protect herself from the creatures that attack her. All she has is a feral cat and a stone with a hole in it. In every situation that she finds herself in, she found a clever way to escape and win.

 I absolutely adore Coraline, not only for her bravery, but also her compassion. After this ordeal, she finds herself having a better relationship with her parents and neighbors, and she was even able to say goodbye to the other children that were the Other Mother’s previous victims. No one asked her to save those children; she did it because she believed it was the right thing to do.

 I have heard that Neil Gaiman is an extraordinary writer, but it wasn’t until I was halfway through Coraline that I realized what people meant by it. Neil Gaiman has a way with words: he’s able to write details that give you a clear visual of what he’s describing; he gives enough of a description of the characters that you can see them in your head but allows you to really get to know them through their actions and words; he has a way of building these fantastical settings that seem too good to be true. In a way, his writing is almost poetic, they flow and they build and create and you just fall into the story you’re reading.

 I can’t help but compare this to its movie adaptation but I think both versions of the story work. I like Coraline the book and I like Coraline the movie; neither is better than the other in my opinion. The movie adaptation changed several things, added a few scenes and characters here and there, but that’s the norm. What matters is that the movie stayed true to the spirit and message that Coraline the novel has, and it did.

 Coraline, not Caroline: the story of a young girl who, for people everywhere, no matter their age or gender, defined for us what bravery truly meant.

And this just reminds me why I fell in love with Newt.

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them →  Newt Scamander

Newt’s been damaged by human beings, and at the beginning of the film, he’s someone that’s pretty content in his own company and the company of the beasts. He enjoys his solitude, and he’s also spent a year out in the field. So he really hasn’t had to deal with people. And when he arrives in New York, there are more people than he’s ever imagined. Eddie Redmayne

(via https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TBZUOITKXec)

I’ve returned!

And I feel SO much better for it! Extremely excited for this year!

In the past hour I have flopped from the carpet floor and more or less crawled myself up the couch, laughing hysterically @ an anime that is so mind blogging that I can't tell if I should take it seriously or not.

~Laito Sakamaki Phone Wallpapers~

Reblog/like if using but don’t repost!

This is just too beautiful not to reblog

(inspired by…)

UNTIL DAWN LIVE STREAM PLAY THROUGH

Alternate title: Me and My Friend Being Hilariously Dumb on TWITCH

For anyone interested, I am going to be playing the video game, UNTIL DAWN, live stream on Twitch, accompanied by my friend whose account I will be playing on. I have played a part of the game already but I will be starting a whole new game and making different choices this time ‘round.

Commentary will be provided by me and my friend, with high hopes that we can be as entertaining to you as possible.

If anyone is interested in watching 2 people (plus more, you never know) acting dumb and entertaining while doing a horror game, then join us on TWITCH @ 12pm Tuesday 9/6/2016 on his channel, username Fayt2250.

If you have any friends who might be interested, please spread the word!

Thanks, and hopes to see  you there, and that I make it through the game!

(via https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T6YTnxWkvs8)

HARRY POTTER AND THE CURSED CHILD BOOK REVIEW

(*SPOILERS AHEAD*)

 AUTHOR: J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne, John Tiffany

PUBLISHED DATE: July 31, 2016

SERIES: Harry Potter [Original Script by Jack Thorne, John Tiffany]

PAGES: Approx. 320 pages

RATING: 4/5 STARS

 The eighth story – 19 years later.

 Rumors about J.K. Rowling continuing the adventures of Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley have been circulating the Internet since the publication of Deathly Hallows in 2007. Although there are 7 full-length novels, 8 movies, 3 companion stories, several video games, a couple thousand fanfiction websites, numerous blogs, Pottermore, and the Wizarding World of Harry Potter amusement parks located in California, Florida and Japan – the world still constantly asks for more adventures about the Boy-Who-Lived and his two best friends. It wasn’t until December 2013 that it was revealed to the world that a play about the much-beloved fantasy series was being put into production, with plans to launch the performance in 2016 at the latest.

 At first, because of certain choice comments released to the media, it was believed that the play, The Cursed Child (its official title was revealed June 2015) would center on Harry Potter and his parents, James and Lily. The idea that this was going to be a prequel story about the Potter parents and their son, with speculation revolving around the concept that the play would start in James’ and Lily’s 7th year, follow as they graduate Hogwarts, marry, and fight in the Order of the Phoenix, eventually leading up to their deaths by Voldemort, continued for some time before Rowling herself admitted that The Cursed Child was actually a sequel to the book franchise, with the story centering around Albus Severus Potter, Harry and Ginny’s second child and son.

 Divided into two parts and four acts, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child opened at West End Palace Theatre, London, scheduled on July 30th, 2016. On July 31st, 2016 – Harry Potter and the J.K. Rowling’s shared birthday – a printed and digital copy of the two-part play, a special first edition entitled “Special Rehearsal Edition,” was released, with plans for a finished, re-edited “Definitive Collector’s Edition” to be released in 2017.

 *~*~*~*

 Two boys from two different families. One with a family legacy that he fears he’ll never live up to; the other with a legacy he fears he will never escape from.

 Albus Severus Potter arrives at Hogwarts with a particular set of expectations already placed on him. Not unlike his father, Harry Potter, Albus must contend with other people’s estimation on what kind of person he is, the kind of wizard he’ll grow up to be, and how he’ll measure up to the legacy left behind not only by his father but also his namesakes, Albus Dumbledore and Severus Snape.

 Scorpius Malfoy – the son of Harry’s rival Draco Malfoy – also has expectations, but whereas Albus is viewed favorably due to his family and name, Scorpius is looked down upon with fear, disgust and morbid curiosity. There are rumors circulating the Wizarding World about Scorpius Malfoy’s true parentage, rumors that make him out to be something much worse than the son of an ex-Death Eater. Surprisingly, despite the fact that he physically resembles his father Draco, people speak – in hushed tones – that Scorpius is actually the progeny of Voldemort.

 Neither boy looks alike nor do they come from the same background, family, or circle of friends. The burden of their legacies, however, bonds the two children, and from there, a friendship is born.

 Being sorted into Slytherin helps to strengthen that friendship; it does nothing to alleviate Albus’ situation. From the first night at Hogwarts, through the rest of first year, then second year, then third, Albus is continuously judged by the other students on not only his choice of House but also his choice of friends, his lack of flying talents, and everything else that sets him apart from the rest of his family. Sullen and resentful, by the beginning of fourth year, Albus has resigned himself to being the “black sheep” of the family.

 Harry Potter’s life is no easier than his son’s. Despite the war being over and Voldemort dead, there is still much trouble needing to be dealt. He cannot seem to mend his straining relationship with his youngest son, and he’s being plagued with nightmares about his past. If that wasn’t bad enough, in between working as an Auror, managing as Head of the Magical Law Enforcement Department, and juggling his responsibilities as a father and husband, he, Hermione (the current Minister of Magic) and Ron stumble upon a magical item that no one thought they’d ever see again, at least not after the Battle at the Ministry of Magic: a Time-Turner. The discovery of such an object brings a figure from the past to Harry’s doorstep, and when Albus overhears this particular conversation, it sets into motion a daring quest to change the past and bring back to life a much-missed character.

 What neither Albus or Harry or anyone could’ve predicted, this same quest may end up resulting in Voldemort’s return. After all, why else would Harry’s scar start to hurt again?

 *~*~*~*

 Reading Harry Potter and the Cursed Child was a quick and enjoyable experience. Unlike the 7 novels and 3 companion books, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is printed in the script format, so there isn’t much detail about the surroundings, classes, people and events that were featured. It was a new way to experience Harry Potter, certainly, and made for a quick reading, but there were several issues. A lot of scenes took place in familiar settings – the Ministry of Magic, Hogwarts, Dumbledore’s (now Minerva’s) office, the Forbidden Forest, the Quidditch pitch – so it wasn’t difficult to picture it mentally because a lot of the scenes came from watching all 8 Harry Potter movies. What was difficult about reading The Cursed Child in the script format was when it came to certain scenes involving magic, transformations, duelings, and subterfuge. A great part of the reason why I want to see the play for myself is because I want to see how the theatre adapted the Wizarding World onto a live stage: I want to see the costumes, the stage props, the background designs, hear the sounds and see the lighting and how they accomplish making it look like the actors were doing magic or transforming into each other with the use of Polyjuice Potion. Another difficulty is the lack of emotional empathy for the characters introduced, most especially the new ones. Caring for Ron, Hermione, Harry, Ginny or even Draco comes from the fact that we were able to connect with them because Rowling had fleshed out their characters and was able to elaborate on their thoughts, emotions, decisions and pasts; I enjoyed the characters that were newly-introduced in The Cursed Child but I couldn’t feel as strongly for them because we were only able to garner their personality from the dialogue they had and speculate on everything else about them.

 The story for The Cursed Child was certainly an interesting one. I wouldn’t have guessed that Time-Turners would come back into the story, although this probably fulfills the wishes of every reader whom wished that J.K. Rowling expanded on the time-travel magic that she introduced in Prisoner of Azkaban but never thought to bring up again. A probable reason for why Rowling hadn’t involved time travel more is most likely because it’s a confusing concept with many variables, outcomes and possibilities for paradoxes and the sort, assuming she goes for the basic rules of time travel: the butterfly effect, fixed timeline events, paradoxes, etc. It was certainly confusing in The Cursed Child, more so because there was little elaboration on how time travel magic worked in the Wizarding World and how one’s actions in the past ultimately led to the new future created.

 Another surprise was the subject of Voldemort having fathered a child. That idea always seemed more like a fanfiction story prompt than an actual detail belonging to the story of Harry Potter. Needless to say I was shocked that it featured here in The Cursed Child. And I thought that the idea of Scorpius actually being rumored to be that child was laughable. Even disregarding the physical resemblance to Draco, I got enough of an impression on Scorpius’ personality to know that no one in their right mind would believe he was related to an ex-Death Eater, much less be the son of the Dark Lord.

 I was greatly overjoyed about Harry’s, Hermione’s and Ron’s return in The Cursed Child. Now adults and married, with kids in school and their own individual careers, everyone’s favorite Golden Trio continue their lives as both family and friends now that Voldemort has been vanquished and the Ministry and Wizarding World is rebuilt. In the 19 years that have passed since the end of the war, Harry, Hermione and Ron have experienced much and it shows in the small changes to their personalities. The most noticeable change is Harry: juggling his work and his family life is no easy task, but the strain shows in particular when it comes to Albus, whom during one particular scene he has a bad argument with. Readers will know which scene I’m talking about; it’s the same scene that most people take issue with because of how out-of-character Harry responds to Albus and then to McGonagall in a later part of The Cursed Child. I have my own issues with this scene but I put it down to the fact that Harry as an adult is a different person to when we last saw him as a 17-year-old hero, and that because we skipped to 19 years later, we weren’t able to see how him develop into the person, father and husband he is now.

 Because of how the play is written and how long it would actually take to perform, it’s understandable that certain things couldn’t be properly explained and why certain characters didn’t appear or weren’t even mentioned. That being said, it’s another disadvantage of The Cursed Child being released in script form. James Sirius and Lily Luna, Harry’s and Ginny’s other children, appeared in, at most, three scenes total in The Cursed Child and then never mentioned again. None of the Weasley’s beyond Ginny and Ron appeared; none of the other kids of the new generation (besides Rose Weasley) appeared; not even Neville and Luna appeared in The Cursed Child. Only Neville has been given a mention at all the entire script. It was disappointing that we weren’t able to check in on any of the other characters, especially in regards to the situation, or how they thought it should be dealt, and that other characters that were featured were given a brief cameo at best.

 For all its problems, The Cursed Child is still something worth checking out. I can’t honestly say that The Cursed Child met everyone’s expectations, and for some of us it came as something of a disappointment because of how certain scenes were written, what certain characters did and how the story progressed, because I know that another issue is the fact that the Time-Turner and its uses, discovery, and creation were never properly explained and that, in turn, caused a bit of confusion regarding the storyline.

 That doesn’t mean, however, that The Cursed Child didn’t have its own merits and value. Although I can’t say that I love The Cursed Child with the same energy as the novels and movies, that’s an unfair comparison. When read and analyzed on its own, the story was intriguing, the characters were a great surprise in how we came to know them and re-know them, and despite the lack of details and explanations, it gave readers the chance to mentally build up the story in their own minds, which is something we’ve always had to do before the movies were created. And that’s what we have to do now.

 At least until the play comes to America.