#briar university

[the-dark-artifices-trees]

Head-cannon:

For their firsts wedding anniversary, Garrett buys Hannah this beautiful piano.

Then for the rest of the day, the Graham family, listens to Hannah play piano & sing and teach her kids how to play (or more teach Wyatt & Gigi just sits there)

[maepolzine]

Ranking the Couples in the Briar University Universe by Elle Kennedy

Ranking the couples from the Off-Campus, Briar U, and Campus Diaries series by Elle Kennedy

Because I adore Elle Kennedy’s Briar University universe (Off-Campus, Briar U, and Campus Diaries), I decided to rank the couples. This isn’t a ranking of the books based on the story, but rather on how memorable the romance between the two main characters was and how much I enjoyed the pairing. I apologize if any of them are your favorites and I ranked them lower than you would. We all have…

[marie99pedroso]

A guy from Briar University // Off Campus FANART , Elle Kennedy

[bookishbethanyerin]

The lovely ladies at Probably Smut dropped over 80 new bookish designs today – and these are a few of my faves!🥰

Feel free to use code “BOOKISHBETHIE10”! To sweeten the deal, if you make a purchase this weekend, you stand a chance to win a collection of signed books!😍😍😍

[c-rose2081]

The Rose-Beauty Twins

There is no such thing as bad genes in the Rose-Beauty family. Both Briar and Rosabella can say with confidence ‘my mom’s cooler than yours’.

Damascena and Delilah Rose-Beauty are twin sisters with opposite personalities, both attending Ever After the generation before the show takes place. One can definitely fix him, while the other just got kicked out of the library 🤭 if you manage to catch the eye of either of these feisty ladies, it should be an immediate A+ in Advanced Wooing as that’s not an easy feat.

If you’re looking for a good time (or to get stoned behind the school), Damascena Rose is your best bet. She’s easy to find as she carries a boombox around wherever she goes, both to hype up whoever, whenever, but also to help keep herself awake. She is the party animal of her class; it’s no question where Briar gets it from. Damascena is a known flirt and likes to play around whenever possible, but it’s all in fun. After all, her true love isn’t coming for another century…right? (Not true, she falls head over heels for star dragon-slayer Valor Prince Charming, but that’s an entirely different story). Much to everyone’s surprise, Damascena actually wants to settle down and raise a large family, but she needs someone with enough spunk to keep up with her active lifestyle.

If you’re looking for someone a bit more studious, Delilah Rose is a hexcellent choice of companion. She’s intelligent, well-read, and a defender of justice wherever she goes. You can usually find her in the library, or spitting fire across the table in debate. Where Delilah is less likely to jump into a relationship than her twin, she has a very…bad…taste in men, something she and her daughter Rosabella share. She likes the bad-boys and the rebels; those guys who are ‘no good’ for anyone else. But, like her sister, Delilah isn’t looking for serious love either. She’s more likely to sit you down to address your past trauma or poor grades than for an actual date. (Delilah finds love too with Valor’s estranged beast of a brother, Warren, making Briar and Rosabella double-cousins). Delilah is opposite her sister in the family department; she worries about not being a good mother, and prefers the company of books rather than people.

Random Headcanons and Facts:

- Damascena and Faelyn Thorn (Faybelle’s mom) are incredibly close friends.

- Delilah is two minutes older than her twin, making her the ‘big’ sister. This is why she has the favored of their two destinies.

- Delilah is on the debate team, while Damascena helps run Ever After’s radio station and newspaper. (Damascena also does music for school events like dances and mixers)

- Absolutely no one expected Damascena and Valor to hook up. Many thought Valor was actually Snow White’s destined true love.

- Delilah and Damascena are roommates (not by choice) and they hate every second of it despite living in the same room at home.

- Damascena and her mom don’t get along due to differences regarding the outcome of the Sleeping Beauty legacy. She’s not close with her dad either for the same reason.

- Contrary-wise, Delilah is very close to her mom and dad and is the ‘favorite child’, as she’s looking forward to her story playing out.

[i-lavabean]

A little doctor and a little archaeologist

[s-aint-elmo]

digging out the eah content i created in a frenzy during last year’s summer of obsession part 1: my personal sapphic multishipping guide (created to explain to my friends which of these dolls i think should hold hands)

(more in-depth discussion of the ships below the cut)

the polycule that will take over ever after

kitty/lizzie; kitty/maddie; maddie/lizzie

self-explanatory. frequently purchased together do not separate. bonus shoutout to maddie canonically giving kitty a little kissie on the cheek and getting off scot-free in the books though. a wonderlandiful world was a banquet to me

cedar protection squad

once again a wonderlandiful world and once upon a time i owe you my life. kitty ESP being so adamant abt not giving a shit then turning around and fucking up those boys who were mean to cedar...... i love friendship

kitty/cerise

also self-explanatory. she was a catgirl she was a wolfgirl can i make it anymore obvious. also doribuki’s phenomenal fake dating fanfic....... transformative foundational transcendental

cerise/raven

YOU MUST UNDERSTAND. i entered eah a rapple shipper and exited the book series ready to burn at the stake for cerise/raven. book two was SO MUCH. it had everything. raven befriending cerise despite her attempts to isolate herself. texting in class. winking at each other. raven meeting the parents and hearing embarrassing baby cerise stories. cerise putting it all on the line to save raven. i’m ambivalent about shadow high but cerise gets literally one (1) mention and it’s in raven’s internal monologue wherein she equates cerise’s hood w feelings of warmth and safety. like how was that in any way necessary. i rest my case 

raven & maddie

self-explanatory as well. dabesties. the ride or dies. it means so much to me that raven always has a friend in maddie no matter how many clowns and jokers (derogatory) treat her like the antichrist. maddie the character ever

raven/apple

WHAT IT SAYS ON THE TIN. the gelphie dynamic is a classic and i am EXTREMELY vulnerable to it. they are THE ship and i will pay my respects to the end of time. i am a big fan of how they trade their roles throughout the franchise and how rich the drama and history are between them. it’s pure fucking poetry.

raven/darling

TBH. a serve. the only thing juicier than evil queen/damsel in distress is evil queen/princess charming. big big fan of darling giving raven the five star princess treatment after a lifetime of being feared and shunned and vilified. equally big fan of raven’s momentous act of rebellion giving darling the courage to be true to herself. ALSO. the absolute archetype-subversion slay of the Pure-Hearted Hero(TM) confronting the Mistress of Evil(TM) and dropping their sword. looking through the smoke and mirrors and the will of Fate itself to see the girl who has wanted nothing but to be kind beneath. swearing their heart and soul and sword to the one true good they have found. picture it. i can almost see the 100-word drabble

raven/apple/darling

now THIS is just THE fairytale couple. the evil queen, the damsel in distress and the princess charming ALL holding hands and riding off into the sunset together. dappling on its own doesn’t do it for me but raven in the mix just makes everything gel perfectly. she’s the tomato in the ratatouille the cornstarch in the spring roll water, etc etc

darling/holly

this is one of those ships where i read a really convincing fic and the more i thought of it the more it just made sense. like they'd read swashbucklers and tales of courtly love together. holly would 100% write a darling placeholder in her self-insert romance fanfic pre-relationship as a way to express her feelings. darling would 100% find out and gently pull her out of the pit of sheer mortification she drilled into the ground to escape. also the height difference is a thing of beauty

safe from the polycule

duchess/poppy

they have one singular episode to their name and it was enough. it was Everything. the dynamic you can extrapolate from that one single interaction is so incredibly appealing to me. duchess’s bitchiness belied by her palpable air of vulnerability coming up against poppy’s spine of steel tempered by her skill in gaining perspective. poppy can challenge duchess into being a better person and duchess can be poppy’s character flaw like idk she just has shit taste in women that was the price she had to pay to be moisturized and unbothered by destiny. i just think they have the potential to be the unexpected, inexplicable power couple of eah

briar/faybelle

do i even need to say anything they had a whole movie to make their case. they’re rapple if rapple got their shit together before armageddon, with the bonus of a potential curse-breaking true love’s kiss for the fanfic authors to thrash between their teeth. truly unlimited. also unlike rapple where raven is 100% against being a villain and therefore it’s apple who has to do the mental gymnastics to open herself to the possibility of a relationship w raven, faybelle is just chomping at the bit to make her momma proud and presents a compelling perspective for the whole “falling in love w your fated nemesis” thing

blondie/cupid

they are icons, they are legends, and they ARE the moment. these two are so chaotic individually, what with blondie’s criminal skillset and habit of menacing innocent woodland creatures and cupid’s matchmaking powers combined w her shitty aim, that putting them together can only mean good things. there’s this whole element of their shared passion as public figures who at their best seek the truth and guide others through matters of the heart respectively that’s always interesting as a point of irony/obstacle when they start catching feelings and have to decide what to do with them. their joint youtuber/podcaster slay can level nations

[washiinmachiine]

briar in a modern fit bc i love clothes. also some fan skins i made for fun for the same reason. cafe cuties one is kinda old but ill shove it here anyway..

[lavendersartistry]

Not even 10 minutes plotting my lil group for the fandom and I already got a ship in the braincells

@onyxonline you did this lol

[au-yuukiemcee]

Swan Princess AU: What Else Is There?

~Yuuki questions Malleus' true affection for her, and the great Dragon King fumbles it big time. Not wanting to lose the love of his life, he concocts a plan to prove his love.

[beecreeper]

I thought of this as a joke but then decided I actually unironically like the idea of Briar’s makeup being made of spores to help her connect to her druid magic. She refreshes it every morning to keep that symbiotic entity fed.

[maepolzine]

My Thoughts on The Dixon Rule (Campus Diaries, Book 2) by Elle Kennedy

Sharing my thoughts on the second installment of the Campus Diaries series, The Dixon Rule, by Elle Kennedy, which is a spin-off series from the Off-Campus and Briar U series.

The Dixon Rule by Elle Kennedy is the second installment of the Campus Diaries series, which is a spin off series of the Off-Campus and Briar U series. Whereas, the first book followed Gigi Graham, daughter of Garrett Graham from The Deal, this one follows her best friend Diana Dixon and Shane Lindley (best friends with Luke Ryder the other main character in The Graham Effect). One thing I really…

[briaryoung]

Here's something I've been workin' on for a while

Some silly designs for some silly AU...

I'm probably gonna write something about it, too

Enjoy, I s'pose!

Also, thank you for the overwhelming support on my last post?? I wasn't expecting that at all. You guys are. Amazing

[checkoutmybookshelf]

Welcome to Emelan

My (super subjective and objectively non-empirical) experience has been that Tamora Pierce's Tortall Universe is where most of her fans begin, and it seems to be her more popular universe. Heck, I started in Tortall. But as I read more, and found more of Pierce's books, I found the Circle Universe, and I gotta say, for all my love and nostalgia for the Tortall Universe, I think my heart lives in Emelan with Sandry, Briar, Daja, and Tris. I certainly tried to balance my Rosethorn half with my Lark tendencies and my extremely Niko academic oeuvre when I was teaching, and I love that the Circle Universe gets away from more traditional medieval europe settings. Let's talk The Circle of Magic Quartet.

Sandry's Book introduces the world, the magic system, and our four protagonists. Sandreline Fa Toren is almost royalty in two countries and has exactly zero compunction about hopping back and forth between "just Sandy" and "Lady Sandreline" as the occasion calls for it. We love her, and honestly she's perfect. Joining Sandry at Discipline Cottage in Winding Circle Temple are former street rat Briar Moss, neglected and rejected merchant daughter Trisana Chandler, and orphaned and exiled Trader Daja Kisubo.

This book brings the four together and they learn that they are ambient mages--mages who manipulate the power inherent in the world rather than mages who use power inherent in themselves (academic mages). The magic system in the Circle Universe is objectively my favorite, because it is so detailed and so nuanced and so tied to craftsmanship. It's something I've never seen done better than it is here. And because our four protagonists are incredible, they also manage to spin their powers together, making them exponentially stronger together than they could have imagined being individually--which is just a stunnign thematic tie-in. A+ no notes.

Tris's Book explores Tris's past, her magic, and the choices she has to make to keep her terrifyingly powerful weather magic under control despite her deep emotional wounds and temper. Tris is honestly one of my two favorite characters in this series because this girl just has SO MANY feelings and she has to literally learn to take herself in hand to not accidentally hurt or kill anyone. It also explores Tris's relationships to her blood and found families, and Pierce makes no bones about how sometimes family can be irredeemably toxic, and that it's ok to choose the found family that loves and supports you. Honestly Tris needs a hug, but good luck getting through the lightning to give it to her.

This book also really deepens the relationships between each protagonist and their teachers. I love how much time Pierce spends in all of her books focusing on student-teacher relationships, and the ones here, in a literal educational setting (non-traditional though it is), are top tier. This continues to be expanded in later books, but Niko and Tris's relationship really cements here and I love them as a student and teacher.

Also, there are pirates in this book. That's pretty cool.

Daja's Book takes reader and protagonists beyond the walls of Winding Circle and expands the world at the end of a difficult, dry summer that was poised for a firey fall and a possible starving winter. The Duke of Emelan is touring the outer estates to assess who needs what help and what he can do.

Meanwhile, the book explores Trader culture and Daja's relationship to it. This is done so spectacularly that I am loath to give any spoilers, but suffice it to say that not only does this book explore the downsides of exclusionary cultural practices, it also explores the complex emotions of being excluded and both knowing it's wrong but desperately missing being included. Disability is also handled spectacularly in this book, and I love it for that.

While Daja is exploring her own culture from the outside, Sandry, Briar, and Tris are dealing with the aftermath of spinning their powers together in Sandry's Book. This is very much a subplot, but it works beautifully to expand the worldbuilding and magic system.

Briar's Book sees everyone return to Emelan proper, and this book hits DIFFERENT after 2020. Winding Circle must deal with a mysterious plague, and honestly after Covid, I can't actually read this book without sobbing. It's damn good, and Briar and Rosethorn are just the absolute peak student-teacher relationship. This book also really highlights Briar and Tris's relationship, which will continue to grow and develop throuhgout the Circle Universe books.

I absolutely recommend these books. Tamora Pierce is technically YA, but the protagonists are between 10 and 12 in these books, so they might feel more middle-grade than YA at times, but that truly does not diminish any of the very human themes and challenges.

These books also have absolutely stunningly performed and edited full-cast audiobooks, and I cannot recommend those enough either. I now read these books in the voice actors' voices, and that just makes the whole experience more magical.