Author: estherolee

Jan 2021, fave media

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Books

Inferno by Catherine Cho

A memoir about the author’s postpartum psychosis. It’s billed as a memoir of motherhood and madness, but what hooked me was the way she discusses myth, family legacy/trauma, and the cycles we repeat. Her writing is excellent, and by the time she goes mad, it’s inevitable and even expected.

Blood Heir by Ilona Andrews (Aurelia Ryder #1)

Julie from the Kate Daniels series returns to Atlanta with a new name and face to save her mom.

Y’all know Andrews is an insta-read author for me. They started posting snippets of this on their blog in 2020 and the finished version did not disappoint. I need the sequels ASAP!

The Midnight Bargain by C.L. Polk

A historical fantasy romance with a classic set-up: does our heroine choose love and duty, or freedom and magic?

I know everyone loves Polk’s Kingston Cycle, but it left me cold. I did, however, love The Midnight Bargain, Nadi in particular, and the love interest’s grovel. Nadi’s line at the end about winning made me tear up too. (I do echo sixthlight’s review that the book is weirdly heteronormative, with the exception of an aromantic/asexual character)

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Dec 2020, fave media

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We made it to 2021!! I didn’t read a ton on December, mostly re-read fanfic faves, and marathoned Bridgerton (which despite its flaws was immensely bingeable).

Books

Silver ed. Andrea Purcell

Iron Circus publishes some of the most solid and consistent comic anthologies, and this one centering erotic short comics about older folks is no exception. Tons of queer and trans representation too.

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Nov 2020, fave media

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a short list this time. The last quarter of 2020’s been odd in that I haven’t read a ton of stuff I’ve loved, and have mostly just been re-reading fanfic.

Books

Ring Shout by P. Djèlí Clark

Maryse hunts down members of the KKK possessed by demons, and if she’s to stop them, she’ll have to face down The Birth of a Nation, and her own desire for vengeance.

I need the sequel now!! Fox women with vengeance swords! There’s also a TV adaptation in the works, which is really exciting, with KiKi Layne and Kasi Lemmons attached!

Pretty Deadly volume 3 by Kelly Sue DeConnick and Emma Ríos

Ginny arrives to help an old friend find out the circumstances of his niece’s death in Hollywood.

Ok, so I was meh about volume 1, though volume 2 was okay but stuck around because there’s a layout in volume 2 that was fucking amazing. Volume 3 though? Volume 3 is straight up magic. I love the fairy tale framing, the Utena-like shadow plays, and of course Ríos’ bonkers layouts.

SFSX vol. 1 by Tina Horn, Jen Hickman, Alejandra Gutíerrez, and Michael Dowling

Dystopian future set in San Francisco, where “feminism” has been co-opted by the patriarchy. Our heroine returns to her roots as a sex worker to free her husband.

This is even better than I thought it’d be, and I had high hopes to begin with. Lots of POC and I love that sex workers are talented af here. Also funny as hell, fave moment of choking a guy out with a strap on harness.

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Oct 2020, fave media

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October was a funny month in that I didn’t really love the books I read. Luckily, The Old Guard fandom provided in spades, lol.

Here’s what I did enjoy this month! Lots of articles this time.

Music

Jhené Aiko’s Tiny (Home) Desk Concert

Unsurprisingly I loved this with its live backing band, way more than the original tracks. The piano! The harp!

Linda Diaz’s Honesty for Tiny (Home) Desk Concert

A song about clear and proactive communication? Hell yeah.

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Sept 2020, fave media

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Ok this one is late because I’ve been binge-reading The Old Guard fanfiction, but hey, whatever gets me through 2020. #NoRegrets

Books

The Tyrant Baru Cormorant by Seth Dickinson (The Masquerade #3)

Baru reckons with the cost of her actions.

Ok so after how bleak (but also funny!) book 2 was, I wasn’t sure what to expect with this. But… dang, did not disappoint. Also, TAIN HU!111 *pterodactyl screaming* I’m surprised at her much she’s felt throughout books 2 and 3. Please let Baru be happy and love again!

Mikoto and the Reaver Village by forthright (Amarathine Saga #4)

IDEK how to plot summary these books, because they’re often an ensemble affair, but: Mikoto has one last chance to win his childhood love, but magic is afoot this summer…

Forthright’s work continues to be go-to comfort reads for me. I always appreciate how highly intimacy is valued, especially in non-sexual/romantic relationships. So much so, it’s pretty queer. Also I screamed when at the “last chance to win their first love” line appeared in the text because *spoilers *

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if you wanna be my lover

estherolee4 Comments

…you gotta fill out this application.

I created this application half in exasperation at men sexualizing me (thus some of the flipness) and half because I am serious about communication. While this might not be your exact situation, I think you can adjust this for your own purposes – COVID hangouts, cuddle puddles, new friend dates, whatever’s clever. These questions aren’t new by any means, but I hope they get you thinking about what you want.

Please free to take what is handy to you, adapt as you need, and discard the rest.

(The Republican question specifically is actually asking: “do your politics undermine my right to exist as a person in this world?” But I phrased it the way I did to troll people. And yes, when I IRL said “Republicans need not apply,” I got some pissed people in my inbox. *shrug* This pussy don’t pop for you, not sorry.)

Credit:

  • thanks to Octavia, who encouraged me when I said, “I’m tempted to just interview dudes who want to sleep with me, including asking for their exes as references.”
  • Some of these questions were directly inspired by Midori and Zoe Ligon’s video.

[Name here],

Your interest in having sex with me has been noted. Please respond to the following questions, and I will reply to you at my leisure.

Basics

  • Are you a Republican? Y/N
  • What name should I call you?
  • What are your pronouns?
  • Best way to contact you? I will use this for any subsequent contact and/or to let you know if I test positive for COVID or an STI.
  • Does the experience you want include just me and you, or does it involve additional people? If the latter, please have each individual fill out their own application.
  • Why should I share the gift of my time and attention with you? Let alone my body?
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Aug 2020, fave media

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August taught me a lot about patience, in my writing and with the fires. At least PG&E hasn’t done a public safety power shutoff cut my power like it did last year. *knocks on wood*

Here’s what I consumed that got me through this brimstone and fire month.

Books

DIE vol. 1 by Kieron Gillen & Stephanie Hans

After getting sucked into a D&D campaign Jumanji-style as kids, four adults find themselves back in the game they thought they outran.

lasjfkdsl;ajlf This was so dang good. Ash is also exactly the kind of woman I’m a sucker for – charismatic, manipulative, powerful.

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July 2020, fave media

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The main reason I started this blog last year was to write more creative nonfiction. Unsurprisingly, 2020 threw a wrench into that. I haven’t done much of that at all this year. Instead, I’ve been reading a ton, and re-reading old favorites (a new feature in these 2020 roundups).

I’m trying to remember that I only need to create what brings me joy/comfort, and not what I feel obligated to (often by capitalism). So I’m trying not to stress about this aim of this blog shifting. Thanks to Asali Earthwork for that reminder via a tarot pull on Asali’s Patreon.

Here’s what brought me joy and pleasure in July.

Books

Of Dragons, Feasts, and Murders by Aliette de Bodard (Dominion of the Fallen #3.5)

Murder and intrigue ensue when dragon prince Thuan brings his fallen angel husband home for Lunar New Year.

De Bodard’s been on my radar for awhile, but I didn’t like In the Vanisher’s Palace, so I wasn’t sure what else to try from her. As de Bodard mentions, these characters are a “do-gooder bi dragon prince and his husband, best described as lawful evil with ground rules and no scruples,” so I gave this a whirl.

I liked this so much I went and started the original books. (It was the power play undertones that sold me, lol.) I binge-read books 1 and 2 (The House of Shattered Wings and The House of Binding Thorns), and am waiting for my hold to come in on The House of Sundering Flames. On paper, this trilogy isn’t in my wheelhouse, but I got sucked into Shattered Wings in the first two chapters.

De Bodard’s Patreon here.

Take a Hint, Dani Brown by Talia Hibbert (Brown Sisters #2)

After asking Oshun for a fuck buddy, Dani Brown gets more than she bargained for when she winds up fake dating Zafir, the security guard in her building.

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June 2020, fave media

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June was a weird month for me. Two of my fave authors, Nalini Singh & Joey W. Hill, both released new books that I was looking forward to… but I just wasn’t in the right mood to enjoy them. Finding the right book for the moods I was in was difficult. So, while I read a ton of books, this list is heavy on short stories on articles.

Books

The Obsidian Tower by Melissa Caruso (Rooks and Ruin #1)

With flawed magic, Ryx’s sole charge is to make sure the Obsidian Tower is never opened. But warring diplomats, a group of traveling spies with their own agenda, and Ryx’s own family throw everything into chaos.

I was ambivalent about Caruso’s The Tethered Mage, but I loved The Obsidian Tower. I was hooked from the get-go. Mystery! Power! A heroine who can’t touch people but longs to! Bad-ass grandmother! Queer people everywhere! A mystery talking cat!

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