#City of Miracles

[satorugojjo]

cannot recommend Robert Jackson Bennetts books enough!!! I loved The Tainted Cup so much and decided to check out the Divine Cities trilogy and oh my god. The way he worldbuilds, and layers character, and is capable of such cool, strange magics is so impressive. It’s so hard to do magic based plot twists effectively without making it too complicated or too much of a gimmick, and balance it correctly with character development but he’s so good at it man.

I’d highly recommend both series (divine cities is finished but tainted cup is ongoing!) personally tainted cup was soooo unique in setting to me - the biopunk sphere isn’t actually very large so that was just extremely cool to read imo

[hyperfixated-unicorn]

Finished reading the City of Miracles by Robert Jackson Bennett, the last book in The Divine Cities trilogy. There's happiness and satisfaction in the way it ended, but, oh man, it made me cry so much. Bennett's world-building is not only written intricately but his characters are so realistically crafted, and so very much human. Moreover, it's fantasy not just to be fantastical, but it's actual speculative fiction that questions and explores real, human problems in a fantasy setting. The goal is not just to build the most creative fantasy world but to experiment and ask, and prod. The world is just a grand backdrop to the more humane part. The trilogy did exactly this and it was an emotional, darkly complex but always hopeful ride. Loved every second reading Bennett's works (also read The Tainted Cup, one of his most recent novel!). I'm gonna miss Sigrud, Shara and Mulaghesh.

[reds-poppy]

She notices his glance, and smiles and reaches out to touch his face, a strangely reassuring gesture. "Quiet now, child. All things end. Just as the stars fade and mountains fall, all things end. But that does not mean there is no hope."

Robert Jackson Bennett, City of Miracles, 2017

[sage-nebula]

Book Reviews: City of Miracles - Robert Jackson Bennett

Rating: 3/5

I wish I could say that I liked this novel more than I did. I want so much to have liked it more than I did.

City of Miracles is the last book in The Divine Cities trilogy, taking place roughly 13 years after City of Blades. This book follows the assassination of the protagonist from the first book, and follows her bodyguard as he at first opts for revenge against her assassin, and then devotes himself to protecting her adopted daughter.

The first thing I would like to say is that City of Miracles is not bad. It's a perfectly serviceable action novel. That, however, is where I think 50% of the problem lies. The strength of the first two novels (and in particular the very first novel) lay in their mystery element; we were given mysteries right at the beginning that the primary characters — and by the extension, we the reader — needed to solve. Those mysteries carried us through the plot, with each new clue we received helping to unveil a greater mystery surrounding the original mystery that felt thrilling to solve.

City of Miracles, however, does not read like that at all. There is but one mystery that main character Sigrud faces — who is the contractor behind Shara's assassination? — but that mystery gets solved extremely quickly. We learn very soon that he is one of the Divine children, out for revenge after having been tortured, and at that point we still have a little over half of the novel to go. Likewise, the true nature of Tatyana and Malwina is very obvious; once we learn that Malwina presides over the past, it makes it easy to see that Tatyana's precognition means she presides over the future, and it makes far more sense for there to be a Divinity of Time rather than a separate one for each past and future. These "mysteries" are not mysteries, and it didn't feel as if the book was really trying to treat them as such. There were no clues to discover, no characters to be suspicious of, nothing to puzzle over. It was all very straightforward.

This, combined with the series of action sequences that felt as though they were out of a movie franchise such as Die Hard, gave a very different feel and tone from the first two novels. Again, it felt more like an action novel. Which is fine, if that is what you are going for. But as someone who enjoyed the first two for the mystery element, it felt like a let down. On the one hand, I do understand that this does make sense with Sigrud as the protagonist — Sigrud has always been the Action Guy, ever since City of Stairs — but it still made me feel less engaged with the novel as a whole.

Speaking of that, the other major problem with the book is that it felt, somehow, less grounded in the reality of the world than the other two did. The books always dealt with Divinities; but the Divinities had a set history and system for how they and their miracles worked. We knew which world we were operating in, we knew the key players. Now, however, we're introducing Divine Children out of nowhere (most of whom we don't get to know and thus aren't impacted at all when they're killed — it was more of a "well this turns the tables badly" moment than any great tragedy), all of whom have different powers and quirks. At the end of the novel, these quirks are dispersed for everyone to use. Bennett, to his credit, does try to bring back some of the realism by showing how the people with the quirks are going to use them to further capitalistic endeavors, and how the government will seek to control them; but it still feels too far a departure from the grounded, interesting world he had developed before.

All of this is very negative, but again, I want to emphasize that I didn't hate this book. It had some poignant moments, and it was of course nice to see many of these characters again. (Mulaghesh, despite her brief appearances in this book, remains my favorite.) But it simply didn't have the same magnetic impact for me as the first two did. If the first book had been written like this, I would not have continued the trilogy. As it stands, this was the last book, and I feel disappointed that this is the note that we went out on.

[chi-the-idiot]

Locust City STILL makes me want to cry.

Not because "it will never happen", no no.

To me Locust City already exists. Maybe not as a game, maybe not right now (don't break my illusion, im coping), but we have enough concepts and ideas to know more or less how it was going to play out, the possible endings, and the journey Cuno and Cunoesse embarked in.

No, what makes me cry is that FOUR OUT OF 5 ENDINGS END IN TRAGEDY FOR THESE TWO.

1) Cuno Dies

2) Cuno is brainwashed into thinking he's the kid Cunoesse murdered.

3) Cunoesse Dies

4) THEY BOTH DIE???

LIKE, THEY ARE ALL (to me) BAD ENDINGS. THEY ONLY HAVE EACHOTHER AND NOWHERE ELSE TO GO, SO IF ONE OF THEM DIES THE OTHER IS LEFT STRANDED AND ALONE.

THEN THE ONE WHERE THEY BOTH DIE.

AND THEN THE ONE WHERE CUNO LOSES ALL SENSE OF WHO HE WAS????

The "good ending" is the one where they leave and make a "new tribe" together, and even THAT ONE was in the questioning stage according to the Miro board.

THESE TWO HAVE BEEN SO FUCKED OVER BY THE WORLD, THAT 4 TIMES OUT OF 5 THEIR END IS TRAGIC.

I love Locust City so much you have no idea.

[deadmotelsusa]

Miracle Strip Amusement Park was a theme park located in Panama City Beach, Florida. It operated from 1963 to 2004 and featured multiple rides, including Dante's Inferno, pictured here. After the park closed, a few of its rides were taken apart and moved to different parks. Some remained and slowly decayed for the next 5 years until the park was leveled. Today, the only remains of the park are sidewalks, concrete barriers, foundations and the main thoroughfare, which is overgrown with weeds. Sources: BeachTV and Steve Sobczuk

[lurkingshan]

Shan's Favorite Dramas of 2024

The year is wrapping up and I have forced myself to narrow down to a list of 15 (I tried 10 but the choices were too hard!) of my favorite 2024 dramas across genres and countries of origin. This is not every drama I liked this year (that list would be incredibly long), but these are the ones that inspired the most brain rot and really stuck with me.

At 25:00 in Akasaka (Japan, Gaga)

The mood and tone of this drama was just perfect, and I loved the way it explored the blurred lines and confusion that can result when the real and fake aspects of a professional relationship get all mixed up. Hayama was a great character and I loved his arc, in particular.

Cherry Magic (Thailand, Viu)

I still can't believe how much I loved this adaptation. A fantastic example of taking a work from another culture and translating it to a new context while not only retaining the core narrative, but even enhancing it. This show gave us what the Japanese version didn't--the resolution to the physical intimacy arc at the core of the premise--and retained all the charm of the original while adding new humor. And delivered one of the best romances of the year while it was at it!

Don't Care for an Old Man's Underwear (Japan, fansub)

Oppan, my beloved. Easily the best family drama of the year, loaded with excellent messages while (mostly) avoiding feeling like an after-school special. Makoto's journey to update his thinking with Daichi's help, and the mutual friendship that developed between them, is one of my favorite relationships of the year. I loved every character's story; there is something for everyone to connect with in this show.

Fangs of Fortune (China, iQIYI)

This drama was just so much FUN. A gorgeous feast for the eyes, a wealth of fascinating characters and relationship dynamics, and a fast-moving plot that you don't need to try too hard to understand. It was a great binge and Li Lun was easily my favorite villain of the year.

Gyeongseong Creature (South Korea, Netflix)

A gorgeous period piece set during one of the darkest chapters of Korean history, this one took me by surprise (I am usually not a horror girlie). The writing for this show had surprising depth and I loved its themes around family and loyalty and survival under fascism.

Knock Knock Boys (Thailand, Gaga)

My boys! I loved this show about a group of four queer men living together in a shared house, getting into mischief and supporting each other through school and work and relationship struggles. The show is funny and breezy but also manages to tackle some serious issues with grace while delivering two strong romances and my favorite coming out narrative of the year.

Let Free the Curse of Taekwondo (South Korea, iQIYI)

Winner for best QL of the year, and a romance that will be sticking with me for a long time. Dohoe is one of the most honest and unflinching depictions of a an adult psyche shaped by childhood abuse that I have ever seen on my screen. It was healing to see him treated with such compassion and to see him and Juyoung find their way to a happy life together. An absolute must watch for all you angst with a happy ending fans.

Love for Love’s Sake (South Korea, iQIYI)

It's so hard to get a high concept premise like this right, but this drama did an amazing job with it. It's one of those shows where you can go back over everything that happened in retrospect and it all adds up, and I loved that the ending lent itself to so many different interpretations. One of the best watch experiences of the year.

Love in the Big City (South Korea, Viki)

Go Young, my beloved. This drama adaptation of the internationally successful novel exceeded my wildest expectations, and I am still a little stunned that we got the privilege of seeing it. It is, bar none, the most authentically queer show on this list, and a beautiful depiction of all the significant relationships in one young man's life. I will be rewatching it many times and keeping it close to my heart.

Love is Like a Poison (Japan, fansub)

A masterful blend of comedy, action, and romance, this drama about a lawyer with delusions of grandeur and the scam artist who decides to become his partner was a constant delight and gave us my favorite battle couple of the year.

Marahuyo Project (Philippines, YouTube)

I can't tell you the joy and relief I felt to get another high quality queer drama from the Philippines this year. And this one had such a great cast of characters, anchored by one of my favorite protagonists of the year in King. It's funny, it's romantic, it's touching, and as always for a JP Haboc production, it has an amazing soundtrack.

She Loves to Cook and She Loves to Eat (Japan, fansub)

My girls! I'm still amazed by how much this drama gave us in its second season by expanding the world of the show beyond our two main characters to include so many other women whose stories were just as fascinating. This is the season where Nomoto and Kasuga really came into themselves and started building the life they want to have together, and it was a real joy to watch.

Tender Light (China, YouKu)

The way this show had me in a chokehold while it was airing! Visually stunning, incredibly well-constructed, and featuring one of the best performances of the year from Zhang Xin Cheng, it's an exhilarating mystery and a very touching story of the unusual bond between a student and the older woman who fascinates and terrifies him.

The Midnight Romance in Hagwon (South Korea, Viki)

You know a drama is good when it has you deeply invested in a random topic you never thought you were interested in. In this case, that's the intense debate on pedagogical methods between the public schools and hagwons in Korea. Alongside delivering a great romance, this drama was passionate about teaching and it sucked me right in to the Korean literature lessons at the heart of the story.

Unknown (Taiwan)

No other drama inspired more brain rot in me this year than this story of a family rocked by changing feelings as the chosen siblings grow up. The loyalty and love and complex desire between Wei Qian and Wei Yuan is the heart of this story, and the drama did an incredible job of taking us along for the journey as things shifted and changed between them. I still think about them all the time.

Bonus: Favorite Classic Dramas Watched for the First Time in 2024

I am always catching up on an endless backlog of dramas alongside my live watches. Here are the best gems I finally watched this year.

Lost (South Korea, Viki)

I loved this deeply melancholy drama about two lost souls who connect unexpectedly. I finally pulled it up from my to be watched list because it shares director Hur Jin Ho with Love in the Big City (he did part 2 with Go Young's mom) and it sure feels like it! The characters are deep and complicated, the relationships are complex and carefully built, and it is hands down the best encapsulation of a failed marriage between two good people who truly loved each other that I have ever seen. It's heavy and not for everyone--mining the depths of human despair is kind of its thing--but if you like this sort of story it's world class.

Mouse (South Korea, Viki)

I was recently in the market for a good mystery thriller, so I finally watched this apparently very divisive 2021 drama--and if there's a divide I am firmly on the HELL YEAH side of the line. This drama had an interesting concept (that I will not describe bc holy shit spoilers, you should go in knowing nothing) that it unwound with remarkable patience and precision over 20 episodes. Its themes were strong and consistent, the lead characters were super compelling, the plotting and pacing and editing were unbelievably tight, the performances were incredible, and it made a lot of provocative points and ended well, feeling coherent and complete. It sustained my full interest and attention without any stumbles for ~25 incredible hours.

Mr. Sunshine (South Korea, Netflix)

Another one that's been on my watch list forever and finally got its moment when I was in the mood for a historical where ladies got to wield weapons alongside the men. And unsurprisingly, I loved it. Writer Kim Eun Sook is known for her big, glossy, epic dramas, and her style made a good pairing with a story about a rebel faction during the Japanese occupation of Korea. I really loved all the main characters in this show, and was moved by the complicated exploration of their loyalty (or lack thereof) to their homeland. This drama also has a very strong class analysis baked into its themes, which I very much appreciated. It was a traumatic watch, but in a way that felt right given the setting and the choices characters made.

The Miracle of Teddy Bear (Thailand, YouTube)

I watched this one on a mission and it was worth every moment. Nut is one of my favorite protagonists in any queer drama, and I thought the show made great use of its fantasy concept to explore some very real human experiences with depth and compassion. This show feels like an especially important counterpoint to the Thal BL bubble, and I recommend it highly for anyone who enjoys those dramas.

When I Fly Towards You (China, Netflix)

And we end on a light and sweet note, with my favorite coming of age romance that I watched all year. This drama was just lovely, and it will be a go-to rewatch for me for years to come. There’s something so comforting about a story where you start with the happy ending before jumping to the beginning, and just get to sit back and see how they get there. I loved all the characters in this and marveled at how it was never boring despite being decidedly low angst.

[lesiasmadness]

POV: you talked shit about Henry Ledore and now his staff don't fw u

[webdiggerxxx]

꧁★꧂

[fauvester]

nicktoonsunite manny physically FIGHTING the Rivera Urge to be the Most Gratuitously Romantic Partner in Any Situation

[loststarphounix]

I bet Miracle City has the sickest, most extravagant pride parade that lasts the whole damn month. I bet Timmy would get a kick out of the mischief that rears up in big festivals while Jenny, SpongeBob and Jimmy are enjoying the cultural diversity. And Danny is just in awe - Amity Park barely puts rainbow flags on light poles so seeing different flags and other queer people just embracing and being embraced by their community is amazing and also a little intimidating lol

Sam loves it, she lets Frida and Django drag her off to see the more alternative side and Tucker trails along because he heard about their cute bird based friend that looks like she’d eat him and not in the sexy way but he’s used to that. That leaves Danny with Manny who is so excited to show him everything. It’s a very eventful month.

[anemonia13]

A pegasus who's capable of miracles no unicorn can do.

Clara and Daniil as ponies because that's what comes to me every winter idk.

[reds-poppy]

"A better world comes not in a flood," sighs Ivanya, "but with a steady drip, drip, drip. Yet it feels at times that every drop is bought with sorrow and grief. It ruins us."

Robert Jackson Bennett, City of Miracles, 2017

[merrinpippy]

on masks

so shockingly miracle mask has huge mask theming in like every aspect. basically every significant character is 'wearing' a mask literally or metaphorically, except for luke who remarks in ludmilla's costume shop that he doesn't think any of the masks suit him (since the events of the previous game luke can be authentically himself now.) this is fun to notice on its own, but there's more to be discussed than just the presence of masks.

every mask in miracle mask backfires on its wearer to some degree! the most obvious case of this is descole and the masked gentleman straight up underestimating their own mask/s and failing to see their plans to the end, and the resulting consequences. dalston and henry's masks of stoicism turn out to have kept them from years of friendship they could have enjoyed, and paint them both as suspects in the masked gentleman case. angela's aloof facade and distance from everyone around her allows her to be kidnapped for a significant portion of the game without anyone but the professor noticing (and even then, he notices that something's up with her, but chalks it up initially as not knowing her anymore). less obviously, emmy's mask only means she'll end up hurting the people she has come to care for even more when the time comes.

most interesting to me, though, is hershel! even as a teen he's remarkably reserved, though clearly passionate. he keeps himself very controlled, and seems to care very much about coming across to others as helpful, grounded, and 'normal'. the interests that we know he has he keeps locked up, literally hidden away in cupboards, not to be acknowledged aloud to himself or others. he never gets angry or ever really displays any stereotypical teen behaviours apart from awkwardness.

now what this means is he is treated as the reliable one who will nonetheless go along with whatever randall wants him to do. he's never particularly assertive (something he will learn to be as an adult) so his willingness is taken for granted. he's put in mortal danger in akbadain because it never occurs to randall that hershel's protests are anything more than for appearance's sake.

and when randall falls and hershel is alone, he yells! he falls to his knees, completely overcome. he cries. he pushes through. and when he reaches angela and henry, alone, covered in dirt, looking completely haunted... they don't even ask him if he's okay. angela bodily shakes him. in the past and present, nobody treats hershel as if he's been through something traumatic - to everyone else, he was either a bystander to or complicit in randall's death, but controlled, mild-mannered and rational hershel is never considered a victim in his own right even after years have passed for everyone to think on it. years after the fact angela apologises to hershel... when she realises she needs his help. and henry immediately accuses him of betraying randall's memory and abandoning him.

and to be clear this isn't me saying oh they're evil or whatever but it's significant that they acknowledge how the trauma affected them and their behaviour from that point forward but it doesn't occur to them that hershel's behaviour and life trajectory was also altered forever! because hershel has for his whole life masked so well that to everyone else he does not have an interior life that isn't puzzle solving.

and the absolute funniest thing about it is that when hershel confesses this all to emmy and luke.... it's immediately back to the investigation, "where do we go now professor!" i'm sure there's no reason to ask if hershel's okay, he's probably unaffected by all that, let's go! readers i laughed out loud. tfw you mask so well everyone forgets you're a person

[goodluckeddie]

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[emaadsidiki]

Miracle Mile Shops 🌎 Planet Hollywood Resort