#elspeth owens

[book--brackets]

The Magic Thief by Sarah Prineas (2008-2014)

In a city that runs on a dwindling supply of magic, a young boy is drawn into a life of wizardry and adventure. Conn should have dropped dead the day he picked Nevery's pocket and touched the wizard's locus magicalicus, a stone used to focus magic and work spells. But for some reason he did not. Nevery finds that interesting, and he takes Conn as his apprentice on the provision that the boy find a locus stone of his own. But Conn has little time to search for his stone between wizard lessons and helping Nevery discover who--or what--is stealing the city of Wellmet's magic.

100 Cupboards by N. D. Wilson (2007-2010)

Twelve-year-old Henry York is going to sleep one night when he hears a bump on the attic wall above his head. It's an unfamiliar house—Henry is staying with his aunt, uncle, and three cousins—so he tries to ignore it. But the next night he wakes up with bits of plaster in his hair. Two knobs have broken through the wall, and one of them is slowly turning...

 Henry scrapes the plaster off the wall and discovers doors—ninety-nine cupboards of all different sizes and shapes. Through one he can hear the sound of falling rain. Through another he sees a glowing room—with a man strolling back and forth! Henry and his cousin Henrietta soon understand that these are not just cupboards. They are, in fact, portals to other worlds.

Princess Ben by Catherine Gilbert Murdock (2008)

A girl is transformed, through instruction in life at court, determination, and magic, from sullen, pudgy, graceless Ben into Crown Princess Benevolence, a fit ruler of the kindgom of Montagne as it faces war with neighboring Drachensbett.

Little Thieves by Margaret Owen (2021-present)

Vanja Schmidt knows no gift is freely given, not even a mother’s love. Abandoned to Death and Fortune as a child, she has scraped by as a lowly maidservant with her quick wits and the ability to see her god-mothers’ hands at work in the world. But when they demand her lifelong servitude in exchange, Vanja decides that gifts not given freely…can always be stolen.

When an opportunity rises to steal a string of enchanted pearls, Vanja seizes it, transforming herself into Gisele, the princess she’s served for years. As the glamorous princess, Vanja leads a double life, charming the nobility while ransacking their coffers as a jewel thief. Then, one heist away from funding an escape from her god-mothers, Vanja crosses the wrong god, and is cursed to turn into jewels herself. The only way to save herself is to make up for what she’s taken—starting with her first victim, Princess Gisele.

Valdemar: Mage Wings by Mercedes Lackey (1992-1993)

High magic had been lost to Valdemar when he gave his life to save his kingdom from destruction by the dark sorceries. Now it falls to Elspeth Herald, heir to the throne, to take up the challenge and seek a mentor who will awaken her mage abilities.

The Numair Chronicles by Tamora Pierce (2018-present)

Arram Draper is on the path to becoming one of the realm’s most powerful mages. The youngest student in his class at the Imperial University of Carthak, he has a Gift with unlimited potential for greatness–and for attracting danger. At his side are his two best friends: Varice, a clever girl with an often-overlooked talent, and Ozorne, the “leftover prince” with secret ambitions. Together, these three friends forge a bond that will one day shape kingdoms. And as Ozorne gets closer to the throne and Varice gets closer to Arram’s heart, Arram realizes that one day–soon–he will have to decide where his loyalties truly lie.

Derkholm by Diana Wynne Jones (1998-2000)

Everyone - wizards, soldiers, farmers, elves, dragons, kings and queens alike - is fed up with Mr Chesney's Pilgrim Parties: groups of tourists from the world next door who descend en masse every year to take the Grand Tour. What they expect are all the trappings of a grand fantasy adventure, including the Evil Enchantress, Wizard Guides, the Dark Lord, Winged Minions, and all. And every year different people are chosen to play these parts. But now they've had enough: Mr Chesney may be backed by a very powerful demon, but the Oracles have spoken. Now it's up to the Wizard Derk and his son Blade, this year's Dark Lord and Wizard Guide, not to mention Blade's griffin brothers and sisters, to save the world from Mr Chesney's depredations.

Traveler's Gate by Will Wight (2013-2014)

Simon can only watch, helpless, as his family is killed and his friends captured by enemy Travelers-men and women who can summon mystical powers from otherworldly Territories. To top it off, another young man from Simon's village discovers that he's a savior prophesied to destroy evil and save the realm.Prophecy has nothing to say about Simon. He has no special powers, no magical weapons, and no guarantee that he'll survive. But he sets off anyway, alone, to gain the power he needs to oppose the Travelers and topple their ruthless Overlord. It may not be his destiny, but Simon's determined to rescue his fellow villagers from certain death.Because who cares about prophecy, really?

Deltora Quest by Emily Rodda (2000)

The evil Shadow Lord is plotting to invade Deltora and enslave its people. All that stands against him is the magic Belt of Deltora with its seven gems of great and mysterious power. When the gems are stolen and hidden in dark terrible places throughout the kingdom, the Shadow Lord triumphs, and Deltora is lost.

In secrecy, with only a hand-drawn map to guide them, two unlikely companions set out on a perilous quest. Determined to find the lost gems and rid their land of the tyrant, they struggle towards their first goal - the sinister Forests of Silence.

Furthermore by Tahereh Mafi (2016-2017)

There are only three things that matter to twelve-year-old Alice Alexis Queensmeadow: Mother, who wouldn't miss her; magic and color, which seem to elude her; and Father, who always loved her. The day Father disappears from Ferenwood he takes nothing but a ruler with him. But it's been almost three years since then, and Alice is determined to find him. She loves her father even more than she loves adventure, and she's about to embark on one to find the other.

But bringing Father home is no small matter. In order to find him she'll have to travel through the mythical, dangerous land of Furthermore, where down can be up, paper is alive, and left can be both right and very, very wrong. It will take all of Alice's wits (and every limb she's got) to find Father and return home to Ferenwood in one piece. On her quest to find Father, Alice must first find herself--and hold fast to the magic of love in the face of loss.

[companion-showdown]

Best companion to get intoxicated with: Round 0 Masterpost

the elimintation numbers on the posts themselves are largely wrong because I made a mistake and only realised when it was too late, its two per group except 14 and 15 which is 3

Day 2

Elimination Groups:

Group 8 (2 eliminations)

God the Computer

Hallan

Hass

Hebe Harrison

Hex Schofield

Irving Braxiatel

Jack McSpringheel

Group 9 (2 eliminations)

Jane Austen

Jason Kane

John (Another Girl, Another Planet)

Joseph (Oh No it Isn't)

Joseph (The Doomsday Manuscript)

Koschei

Laura Tobin

Group 10 (2 eliminations)

Lola Denison

Mark Seven

McQueen!Master

Miranda Who

Mother Francesca

Mother Mathara

Mr Crofton

Group 11 (2 eliminations)

Ms Jones

Narvin

Pandora

Peter Summerfield

Preacher!Master

Renee Thalia

Romana III

Group 12 (2 eliminations)

Ruth Leonidus

Sabbath Dei

Sam Bishop

Scarlette

Stratum Seven Agent

Tameka Vito

The Black Dalek Leader

Group 13 (2 eliminations)

The Earl of Sandwich

The Original Golden Dalek Emperor

The War King

Unnamed Courtesan (In the Year of the Cat)

V.M.McCrimmon

Valarie Lockwood

Wolsey

Group 14 (3 eliminations)

Ianto Jones

Toshiko Sato

Owen Harper

Andy Davidson

Gwen Cooper

Banana Boat

The TARDIS

Missy

Group 15 (3 eliminations)

Sally Sparrow

Larry Nightingale

Bannakaffalatta

Vincent van Gogh

Madam Vastra

Psi

Saibra

Beep the Meep

Seeding Groups

Group 8

Charley Pollard

Evelyn Smythe

Lucie Miller

Liv Chenka

Group 9

Bernice Summerfield

Fitz Kreiner

Frobisher

Iris Wildthyme

Group 10

Rose Tyler

Mickey Smith

Jack Harkness

Martha Jones

Group 11

Donna Noble

Wilfred Mott

River Song

Amy Pond

Rory Williams

Group 12

Clara Oswald

Bill Potts

Nardole

Yasmin Khan

Group 13

Graham O'Brien

Ryan Sinclair

Dan Lewis

Ruby Sunday

day 1 under the cut

Day 1

Elimination Groups:

Group 1 (2 eliminations)

Sara Kingdom

Bret Vyon

Delgado!Master

Morbius

Sutekh the Destroyer

Cessiar of Diplos

Duggan

Group 2 (2 eliminations)

Erato

Pangol of Argolis

Deedrix of Tigella

Soldeed of Skonnos

The Three who Rule

Varsh

Group 3 (2 eliminations)

Keara

Tylos

Tremas of Traken

Panna

Karuna

Aris

Group 4 (2 eliminations)

Richard Mace

Kamelion

King Yrcanos

Sabalom Glitz

The Kandyman

Karra

Group 5 (2 eliminations)

Adrien Wall

Alan Turing

B-Aaron

C'rizz

Captain Black

Captain Magenta

Carmen Yeh

Group 6 (2 eliminations)

Chris Cwej

Clarence the Angel

Compassion

Cousin Anastasia

Cousin Gustav

Cousin Intrepid

Cousin Justine

Group 7 (2 eliminations)

Cousin Octavia

D'eon

Death's Head

Eliza

Elspeth (Where Angels Fear)

Emilie Mars-Smith

Father Kreiner

Seeding Groups

Group 1

Susan Foreman

Barbara Wright

Ian Chesterton

Vicki Pallister

Group 2

Steven Taylor

Dodo Chaplet

Ben Jackson

Polly Wright

Group 3

Jamie McCrimmon

Victoria Waterfield

Zoe Heriot

The Brigadier

Sergeant Benton

Group 4

Liz Shaw

Mike Yates

Jo Grant

Sarah-Jane Smith

Harry Sullivan

Group 5

Leela

K9

Romana I

Romana II

Group 6

Adric

Nyssa

Tegan Jovanka

Vislor Turlough

Group 7

Peri Brown

Mel Bush

Ace McShane

Chang Lee

Grace Holloway

[lightsteeped]

ABOUT

hi! i'm griff. my main blog is @sweetcedar. i write a variety of characters on crystal dc. i'm always looking for contacts: you can read more about my characters on my carrd, here.

i want to avoid having multiple semi-inactive character blogs, so this is a catchall blog for rp chatter, inspiration, original work, and others' xiv stuff that i think is cool or funny.

ORGANIZATION TAGS

CHARACTERS where their tag came from any relationship subtags

ianthe: #ch: dulce et decorum from the wilfred owen poem, translating to 'sweet and proper'

hasret: #ch: between earth and death from persephone the wanderer, by louise glück

camille: #ch: meek to the nth from c.s. lewis' arguably rather shit essay, 'the necessity of chivalry' rl: wake me witch - iiwa rl: i am the bad daughter - her chosen mothers

lucienne: #ch: hell purgatory paradise from dante at verona, dante gabriel rosetti

elspeth: #ch: honey and gunpowder from .. something by peter s. beagle idk man i found it on pinterest

vedis: #ch: svanr sigrlana from an old norse kenning for raven, 'swan of the corpse-heaps'

synnove: #ch: scourge and sword from the prince of egypt's 'the plagues'

POST TYPES

i may or may not actually use these, being real with you original works: #writing others' rp writing: #sharing insp lit: #excerpts gposes etc: #screens oc art: #art

[dry-valleys]

The third part of my series from the British Ceramics Biennial (please see here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here for more), which is being held at All Saints, Hanley.

The artists here, from Stoke-on-Trent and from around the world, are (1) Gabriel Robins), (2) Anna Littler and Andrea Leigh, (3) Dorcas Casey, (4) Nico Conti, (5) Leora Honeyman, (6) Ranti Bam, (7) Neil Brownsword, (8) Rebecca Griffiths, (9) Jasmine Simpson, and (10) Elspeth Owen.

[quoteoftheweekblog]

QUOTE OF THE WEEK 10/10/22 - DOROTHY WEST (AND PETER ROBINSON)

'The wedding was accomplished without a hitch.'  (West, 2019, p.106).

REFERENCE

West, D. (2019 [1995] ) ‘The wedding’. London: Virago Modern Classics.

*****

' ... to witness the barbaric rite of giving a virgin in marriage.' (West, 2019, p.169).

CONGRATULATIONS TO MY NIECE AND HER HUSBAND

https://www.hitched.co.uk/wedding-venues/salomons-estate_1355.htm

AND TO MY FRIEND WHO IS CELEBRATING HER SECOND WEDDING ANNIVERSARY THIS WEEK

XXXX

SEE ALSO

‘Confrontation based on colour had addled man since Moses married the Ethiopian woman and God made leprous the skin of the sneering man who challenged His right to move Moses to love.’ (West, 2019, p.77).

*****

BLACK/BAME HISTORY MONTH 2022

*****

BHM

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/696939540727939072/quote-of-the-week-31022-herman-koch-and-the

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/665384729688866816/quote-of-the-week-181021-orhan-pamuk-i

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/664757761140244480/httpsenwikipediaorgwikile%C3%AFlaslimani-quote

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/664119007964708864/quote-of-the-week-41021-roxane-gay-every-day

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/632422170218414080/quote-of-the-week-191020-margaret-atwood

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/631780587101929472/quote-of-the-week-121020-ibi-zoboi-how-do

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/631135956358086656/quote-of-the-week-51020-yaa-gyasi-we

*****

PETER ROBINSON DIED 4/10/22

OBITUARY

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2022/oct/14/peter-robinson-obituary

BUT NEARLY

*****

RIP 2022

PETER ROBINSON - 4/10/22

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/697724896648871936/quote-of-the-week-101022-dorothy-west-and

HILARY MANTEL  - 22/9/22

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/696278823423131648/quote-of-the-week-26922-jess-walter-and-the

RAYMOND BRIGGS - 9/8/22

SUSIE STEINER - 2/7/22

JOAN LINGARD - 12/7/22

MELISSA BANK - 2/8/22

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/692654230796976128/httpswwwyoutubecomwatchv-c6ndkp4reiu-video

ELSPETH BARKER - 21/4/22

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/683777237193998336/httpswwwthearguscouknews20108710amp

DAVID McKEE -  6/4/22

JACK HIGGINS -  9/4/22

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/681249436528246784/quote-of-the-week-11422-catherine-fox-happy

SHIRLEY HUGHES - 25/2/22

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/678686834123063296/httpswwwtheguardiancombooks2022mar02shirl

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/678081383316488192/quote-of-the-week-7322-elizabeth-gaskell-and

JAN PIENKOWSKI - 19/2/22

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/676721712625254400/quote-of-the-week-21222-hodder-and-stoughton

*****

RIP

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/rip

*****

TAYLOR ALERT!!!!

COUNTDOWN TO TAYLOR … ONLY 11 DAYS TO GO UNTIL THE RELEASE OF TAYLOR SWIFT’S SURPRISE NEW ALBUM ‘MIDNIGHTS’ ON 21 OCTOBER

MEANWHILE THIS IS TAYLOR’S ‘LOVE STORY (TAYLOR’S VERSION)’ LYRIC VIDEO

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXzVF3XeS8M

VIDEO

*****

PLAY IT AGAIN SAM FOR MORE TAYLOR EXTRAS

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/696939540727939072/quote-of-the-week-31022-herman-koch-and-the

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/696278823423131648/quote-of-the-week-26922-jess-walter-and-the

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/695660223724240896/quote-of-the-week-19922-angela-kelly-her

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/695108538623803392/quote-of-the-week-12922-king-charles-iii-may

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/694395124195721216/quote-of-the-week-5922-pg-wodehouse

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/691930329759596544/quote-of-the-week-8822-delia-owens-heres

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/684409656021549056/quote-of-the-week-16522-sally-rooney-i

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/674272563943342080/quote-of-the-week-24122-ann-cleeves-and-the

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/671743225361465344/quote-of-the-week-271221-jane-gardam-and-rip

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/670374735365931008/quote-of-the-week-131221-baroness-orczy

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/668409540090478593/quote-of-the-week-221121-bolu-babalola

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/667226586275364864/quote-of-the-week-81121-pd-james

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/666636747020632064/httpswwwyoutubecomwatchv-3skk0ithtpa-video

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/666017409088503808/quote-of-the-week-251021-anne-tyler-happy

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/665384729688866816/quote-of-the-week-181121-orhan-pamuk-i

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/664757761140244480/httpsenwikipediaorgwikile%C3%AFlaslimani-quote          

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/664119007964708864/quote-of-the-week-41021-roxane-gay-every-day

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/655873944561287168/quote-of-the-week-5721-milan-kundera

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/652677832837939200/quote-of-the-week-31521-christy-lefteri-have

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/651436799241142272/quote-of-the-week-17521-anita-brookner

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/648903215189049344/quote-of-the-week-19421-john-le-carre

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/638847451166621696/quote-of-the-week-281220-robert-harris-are

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/638124844568936448/quote-of-the-week-211220-charles-dickens-a

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/637484837713969152/quote-of-the-week-141220-charles-dickens

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/636878179558113280/quote-of-the-week-71220-charles-dickens

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/635030849800241152/quote-of-the-week-161120-bernadine-evaristo

XXXX

*****

QUOTE OF THE WEEK 2011 - 2022

11 EPIC YEARS

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/references

FROM THE ARCHIVE

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/631780587101929472/quote-of-the-week-121020-ibi-zoboi-how-do *****

[bonetrix-arts]

ArtFight Megapost part 2!! (Part 1 here)

Characters Featured:

Melody (@punkk-draws)

Nyx (@cozylittleartblog)

Onyx (@omega-quack-with-a-pen)

Skipper Waltson (MustrdBucket)

YUUNA (sela)

Sins (sinsofhumanity)

Optics (@polarpanda73)

Elspeth Meyweather (PEast)

Owen (@freak60000)

Milton the well-meaning angel (Enby_Gremlin)

[eydika]

eydika’s name list 2.0

more... names because the first name list I made isn’t enough anymore

A

Abaddon

Abbey / Abbie

Abel

Ace

Ada

Adam

Adrien

Agnes

Aiden

Akari

Alaska

Alchemy

Alec / Alex / Alexa

Alessi / Alessia

Alexis

Aliana / Alianna

Alice

Alison

Alistair

Alivia

Allie / Ally

Alpha

Alya

Amber

Amelia

Amity

Amos

Amy

Andie / Andy

Andrew

Andromeda

Angel

Anita

Anna / Anne

Annabelle / Annie

Apollo

Apple

Apricot

April

Archer / Archie

Arden

Ares

Argus

Ariel

Aron / Aaron / Auron

Arrow

Artemis

Arthur

Artis

Arya

Ash / Asher

Aspen / Aspyn

Astrid

Athena

Atlas

Atticus

Aubrey / Audrey

Audio

Auger

Auggie

August

Aurelia

Aurora

Austin

Autumn

Ava / Avaline / Avalon / Aveline

Avery / Avrey

Aya

B

Baby

Barbie

Basil

Bea / Bee

Bean

Beatrice / Beatriz

Bébé

Beck / Beckett

Beetle

Bella / Belle

Beryl

Betty

Bijou

Billie

Birdie

Bishop

Bitter

Blair / Blaire

Blaise

Bloom

Blue / Blu

Boheme

Bonnie

Bowie

Briar

Bridget

Brina

Brody

Bryson

Bunny

Byron

C

Cade / Cadea / Caden

Cairo

Cal / Calum

Caleb

Callie

Calliope

Calvin

Cameron

Candace

Canopy

Carly / Carlie

Carol / Caroline

Carter

Casper

Cassandra

Cassius

Catherine

Celia

Cetus

Chance

Charlotte

Cherry

China

Chip

Chloe

Cian

Cinnamon

Civet

Clara / Clary / Clarabelle

Claire

Clementine

Cleo

Clover

Cobalt

Colby

Colt / Colten

Constance

Cooper

Cora

Corey

Corvus

Cosmo

Cricket

Cynthia

Cyra

Cyrus

D

Dacre

Daisy

Dakota

Dalia

Dallas

Damien

Dana

Dandelion

Dandy

Dante

Daphne

Darby / Darcy

Darius

Darla

Davina / Divina

Davos

Dawn

Deacon

Deb

December

Deja

Delaney

Delta

Demi

Denim

Denver

Desmond

Dexter

Diego

Digit

Dion / Dior

DJ

Doe

Domino

Donna

Doran

Dorothy / Dot / Dottie

Douglas

Dune

Dusk

Dylan

E

Eachan

Ebele

Ebony

Echo

Eden

Edris

Effi / Effie

Egan

Elijah

Eliza

Ella / Ellie

Elliot

Ellis

Elodie

Elsbeth / Elspeth

Elsie

Elyse

Embla

Emily

Emlyn

Emma

Emmett

Emory

Erica

Erin

Ernest

Ernie

Esryn

Estelle

Ethan

Eugene

Eva / Eve / Evie

Evan

Evangeline

F

Fae / Fee

Faith

Fawn

Fawke

Felix

Fenris

Fergus

Ferris

Fig / Figgy

Finbar

Fizz

Fletcher

Fleur

Flint

Flora / Florence

Forrest

Fox

Frankie

Freya

G

Gage

Gaia

Gavin

Gemma

Gene / Genesis / Genevieve

Gigi

Gil

Giselle

Gladys

Gloom

Gloria / Glory

Goldie

Grace / Gracie

Greta

Griffin

Gus

H

Hadley

Hailey

Hana

Harlow

Harmony

Harper

Hawk

Hayden

Hazel

Hector

Henley

Henry

Hera / Hero

Honey / Honeydew

Hope

Hunter

I

Ian / Ion

Idris

Ieni

Iesha

Illori

Ilya

Imelda

Imogen

Imp

India

Indira

Ingrid

Irina

Iris

Isaac

Isara

Isla

Ivory / Ivy

Izzy

J

Jack / Jackie

Jade

Jake

Janice / Janis

Jason

Jasper

Jay / Joy

Jenan

Jericho

Jerry

Jibo

Jill

Jinx

Joan

Jude / Judith

Juleka

Juli / Julip

June / Juno

Juniper

Jupiter

Justice

K

Kaiven

Kale

Kappa

Kayla

Kellen

Kelly

Kes

Kimber

Kitana

Kitty

Kiwi

Knox

Kris

Kristy / Kirsty

Krull

Kumo

L

Laken

Lana

Lapse

Lark

Laurel

Lavender

Lemon

Lenka

Leo / Leon / Leonie

Levitt

Liberty

Lilac

Lilith

Lima

Lindsey

Locus / Lotus

Lottie

Luca / Luka

Lucia / Lucie / Lucy

Lucille

Lucky

Luis

Luna / Louna

Luther

Lux

Lynn

M

Mabel / Mable / Maple

Madison

Mae / May

Maeve

Magnolia

Mango

Mantis

March

Marcia / Marcy

Margaux / Margo / Margot

Marina

Marion

Marley

Marmalade

Mars

Martha

Mary

Mason

Maude

Maura

Maxine

Maya

Meadow

Medea

Melancholia

Melba

Memphis

Mercedes

Mercy

Mick

Milan

Milla

Millenia

Milo

Mina / Mona

Minerva

Minnie

Minnow

Miron

Misery

Mona

Monday

Montgomery

Monty

Morrigan

Morwenna

Myrtle

N

Nana

Nancy

Nasira

Nate

Nathaniel

Naveed

Navy

Ned

Nefarian

Ness

Nestor

Never

Newt

Nikki

Noah

Nora

Norma

Nova

Nutmeg

Nye

Nyx

O

Octa

October

Odessa

Olive / Olivia

Ollie

Omega

Omen

Onyx

Opal

Ophelia

Oriana / Orion

Oscar / Oskar

Otis

Owen

Ozzy / Ozzie

P

Paige

Paisley

Parker

Pat / Pattie

Paula / Paola

Pea / Peach

Pebble

Penelope

Pepper

Pepsi

Percy

Petrichor

Philippa

Philomena

Phoebe

Phoenix

Piccolo

Pip / Piper

Pixie

Poe

Pollux

Pomeline

Poppy

Portia

Primrose

Q

Queen

Quentin

Quibble

Quincy

Quinn

R

Rachel

Radian

Ransom

Raven

Ray

Razzia

Rebus / Remus

Reverie

Rhubarb

Rick

Rider / Ryder

Rigby

Rilla

Roach

Robin

Rory

Rosa / Rosalie

Rose

Roux

Rowan

Roxanne / Roxie / Roxy

Ruben

Ruby

Rune

S

Sabina / Sabine / Sabrina

Sable

Sadie

Saffron

Sage / Saige

Salem

Sam / Samantha / Sammie

Savant

Savian

Scarlett

Scotty

Scout

Sean

Sesame

Shea

Skye / Skylar

Sloane

Solomon

Spencer

Sprout

Star

Stella

Sunny

Sybil

Syc

Symphony

T

Tabea

Tabitha / Tabs

Tali / Talia

Tasha

Tate

Tau

Temper

Tharan

Theodora / Theodosia

Theros

Thimble

Thirteen

Thorn

Tia

Tilda

Tina

Topaz

Tora / Torian

Trinity

Trixie

Trope

Tulip

Turnip

Twig

U

Ukiyo

Umara

Umbra

Ursa

V

Valentin

Valerie

Valora

Vargas

Vaughn

Vector

Vega / Vegas

Velvet

Venus

Vera

Vernon

Vesper

Vinette

Violet

Vivek

Volt

W

Waverly

Wednesday

Wendy

Wes

Whisper

William

Willow

Winnie

Winona

Winter

Wish

Wren

X + Y + Z

Xena / Xenia

Xeno / Xenos

Yuki

Yuri

Zafira

Zaria

Zephyr

Zero

Zoe / Zoelle

Zona

Zyra

LAST NAMES

Abbot

Abernathy

Alton

Arcanum

Ashe

Astor

Badger

Balker

Bass

Bennett

Benton

Blake

Bleu

Blunt

Blythe

Cable

Cabot

Cain

Carter

Carver

Castillo

Choi

Clemonte

Coldwell

Collins

Colt

Craft

Craven

Crimson

Croft

Dabney

Danvers

Dayholt

Delpy

Driver

Dyer

Eades

Edge

Epithet

Epps

Evert

Farley

Fell

Fenner

Fig

Finch

Findlay

Fletcher

Foley

Fowler

Fray

Freud

Frost

Geller

Gill

Guest

Hale

Hapley

Harp

Hart

Hearst

Hooper

Hunt

Hyde

Ivy

Jinx

Keller

Kersey

Kingsley

Knight

Knox

Kraft

Krav

Laveau

Lecter

Lock / Lockwood

Lowell

Lush

Marr

Mills

Mist

Morgan

Morrison

Murray

Myers

Oaks

Patel

Pierce

Pike

Powell

Price

Pruitt

Quint

Quiver

Random

Ripley

Ryder

Sears

Sloane

Sparks

Stele

Strom

Sutton

Talbot

Tate

Thorne

Twig

Twist

Tycho

Utley

Valentine

Vance

Vaughn

Vos

Walker

Wallow

Weaver

Webb

Wiley

Wilkes

Winston

Wreath

Wright

Wrong

York

Zella

Zepeda

[alexsfictionaddiction]

12 New Thrillers To Take You Through To Autumn

As the nights start to draw in, you may find yourself hankering after a chunky darker read to match the view outside. Maybe you’ve still got a cosy staycation on the horizon before the end of the summer and want to throw yourself down a twisty path of secrets and lies. I’m a magpie for good, page-turning mysteries and complex, well-written characters, so I wanted to share my favourite 2020 thrillers with you in the hope that you’ll find something intriguing. Enjoy and stay safe! -Love, Alex x

1. Dead To Her by Sarah Pinborough.

In the sun-soaked, wealthy social circles of Savannah, Georgia, Marcie Maddox has finally managed to establish herself as the centrepoint of this lavish, sumptuous world. Then her husband’s boss brings a beautiful new wife back from London and Marcie’s place in Savannah society begins to look a little precarious. How far will she go to maintain her position and keep the wandering eyes of her husband firmly on her? Flawed, unpredictable characters and curveballs everywhere, Dead To Her is a revenge thriller that incorporates sun, sex and superstition.

2. Invisible Girl by Lisa Jewell.

When vulnerable 17-year-old Saffyre Maddox goes missing, the entire Hampstead community have their own ideas about what happened to her. With local reports of sexual attacks on young women, Cate Fours, mother-of-two and wife of Saffyre’s former psychologist Roan, has her suspicions about Owen Pick, the odd single man who lives opposite them. Invisible Girl is unnerving, twisty and highly addictive with believable characters who you both suspect and empathise with. A unique, mind-fuck of a domestic suspense novel.

3. The Octopus by Tess Little.

Despite not having spoken for ten years, Elspeth is invited to celebrate her ex-husband Richard’s 50th birthday at his stunning LA mansion, so she is surprised to discover that there are just seven other guests in attendance. The next morning, Richard is dead and of course, everyone is a suspect. Including Richard’s pet octopus Persephone. This strange, heady mystery has strong Christie vibes and explores the haziness of memory, the horrors and repercussions of abusive relationships and the dangers of power.

4. Nothing Can Hurt You by Nicola Maye Goldberg.

When a student is killed, her boyfriend confesses citing temporary insanity. His acquittal rocks the community and everyone has questions, creating a relentless search of justice and explanation. Inspired by a true story, this riveting mystery reads like a collection of short stories, as we hear from a multitude of voices of varying degrees of closeness to the victim. Focusing on gendered violence and white privilege, it’s a very timely haunting read.

5. The Search Party by Simon Lelic.

Sadie Saunders has been missing for a week and the whole town thinks she is dead but her brother, boyfriend and three of her friends are determined to find out what really happened. However, the search party quickly takes a dark turn and all of them are under suspicion, when secrets gradually start to spill out. Stephen King-esque character dynamics and a completely unpredictable ending, The Search Party is a claustrophobic multi-layered mystery that will keep you hooked.

6. Imperfect Women by Araminta Hall.

Nancy Hennessey has been murdered and naturally, her two best friends Eleanor and Mary suspect her secret lover to be behind it. When the investigation turns up nothing, Eleanor and Mary each struggle to deal with their grief amidst questioning how well they really knew Nancy. Imperfect Women features highly frustrating characters and an intensely intriguing mystery with themes of motherhood and lifelong female friendship. A stark reminder that life rarely sticks to our plans for it and that we should learn to love our imperfections gives this dark story a glimmer of light.

7. You Let Me In by Camilla Bruce.

Reclusive writer Cassandra Tipp has disappeared and no one knows whether she’s dead or alive. She has left her huge fortune and a manuscript addressed to her niece and nephew, full of instructions to follow and the truth behind all of the gossip and rumours that have haunted her life. Elements of magical realism and Gothic horror thread through this gripping original and imaginative novel.

8. Heatstroke by Hazel Barkworth.

During a sweltering summer, 15-year-old Lily fails to come home one afternoon. Her English teacher Rachel’s daughter Mia is Lily’s best friend and Lily’s absence leads Rachel to confront some painful home truths. Thought-provoking and intense, Heatstroke follows a woman’s mental spiral and obsession, exploring mistrust and power in an atmospheric setting.

9. The Wives by Tarryn Fisher.

Despite never having met them, Thursday has always known that her husband Seth has two other wives. Then she finds something that suggests a very different narrative to her husband’s life than the one she thought she knew. Be prepared to be taken for a very twisty unsettling ride through the depths of a complex polygamous arrangement and everything that entails in this compulsively readable thriller.

10. The Other Girl by C. D. Major.

Set in 1940s New Zealand, Edith has been locked in Seacliff Lunatic Asylum for 15 years, since the tender age of five. When her entire ward burns down, a new doctor Declan Harris begins to question whether Edith’s childhood stories have any truth to them. This fascinating historical thriller offers a unique insight into the horrors and injustices within a broken mental health system and throws in a haunting Gothic vibe for added creep factor.

11. Keep Him Close by Emily Koch.

When Alice’s son Lou is found dead, Indigo’s son Kane is accused of his murder. In an attempt to find out why her boy died, Alice befriends Indigo, keeping her true identity a secret, as Indigo fights to clear Kane’s name. But how long can this secret stay buried? If you like a few tears mixed in with your domestic drama, Keep Him Close is the moving, tense and sensitive read for you.

12. The Silence by Susan Allott.

When the disappearance of a neighbour from decades ago yanks Isla out of her lonely Hackney life and back to her childhood home of Sydney, Australia, she starts to question everything she thought she knew about her family and community. Is her father really capable of the unspeakable? Do the secrets run deeper into the past than anyone imagined? Set across two time periods, The Silence is a literary debut that is dark and slow-burning with heartbreaking Australian history to feed your thoughts.

[miriam-reads]

“Lives of Girls and Women” By Alice Munro (1971) - DNF

I wound up putting it down on page 111, at the beginning of the fourth story. I didn’t DNF this book because it’s bad; it’s certainly well written, and I think the characterisation of Del and Ada was quite interesting. I just couldn’t get into it, unfortunately. The way that the story is told, like it’s Del reflecting back on her youth from a vantage point as an adult, didn’t really work for me. I found some parts a little dry and difficult to focus on, because there was a lot of exposition that didn’t really feel necessary. 

I could actually relate to some of Del’s struggles, such as coming to terms with death and searching for faith. I found some characters likeable, I enjoyed Aunt Grace and Aunt Elspeth, Ada, Uncle Craig, and sometimes I liked Del, Owen and their father. Overall I do not think it was a bad book, it just was not written in a way that I enjoyed and it included some elements that I did not like, these and content warnings for this book are listed below the cut.

For content warnings in this book, there are a lot. Although, most of the time nothing is graphically described, simply because scenes don’t really happen, so much as they are reflected upon. 

Child abuse

Animal death

Death 

Sexual assault/harassment 

Religious trauma 

Antisemitism 

These are the main ones, all of which occurred just in the three out of six or seven I think short stories in the book. I have heard later on there is a scene where Del is nearly drowned while her boyfriend(?) tries to Baptise her, and a scene where a man masturbates in front of her, but I don’t know anything beyond that, including how graphic either scene is. 

The child abuse, death, sexual a/h and religious trauma are things I can deal with reading about, even if I do not necessarily enjoy them in book. I really do not like reading about animal death, especially in the context that this book put it in (family dog killed sheep, must be shot to prevent further incidents). I also can’t read about antisemitism. In the first 111 pages, it was pretty much just her Uncle Bill I think peddling the stereotype that Jews control all business in America. Oh and the first three stories at least take place during the Holocaust, so personally I think that time frame makes his comments considerably more heavy than they otherwise would be if it was a different time frame. 

[rob-art]

Make, Do and Mend by Elspeth Owen with Sally Connie Todd

[winsonsaw2003]

I'm looking for descendant from Lieutenant Colonel David Campbell (1747-1828) Of Coupar,Cupar Angus

I'm looking for descendant from Lt-Col.David Campbell (1747-1828),son of David Campbell of Coupar (Cupar) Angus & Susan Watson.He married Mary Lyon Playfair. His issue:- i) James David Lyon Campbell (1809-1844) married Alicia Richarda Houghton.His issue:- ai) Henry George Lyon Campbell(1835-1890) married Agnes Graham. His issue:- bi) Charles Arthur Murray Lyon-Campbell(1874-1926). bii) Murray Graham Lyon-campbell(1875-1923). biii) Agnes Hilda Lyon-Campbell (1869). biv) Marjorie Hatt Noble Lyon-Campbell(1886-1975) married William Rushbrooke Eden. Their issue:- ci) Robert Archibald Eden(1912-1981). cii) Joan Agnes Eden(1913-2006) married Gerald Hilary Cree. Their issue:- di) Henrietta Sophie Ann Cree married John Patrick Heawood. Their issue:- ei) Jonathan Paul Cree Heawood. eii) Sophie Ann Cree Heawood. bv) Dorothy Irvin Hatt Noble Campbell(1886-1968) married 1stly,George Henry Gardner & 2ndly,Cyril Halsted Frith. Their issue:- ci) Patrick Michael Gardner(1915-1980) married Elspeth Lillian Arnott. aii) Arthur Lyon Campbell(1836-1884) married 1stly, Louisa Annabella Cuthbert & 2ndly, Cecilia Cleghorn. His issue:- bi) Henry George James Lyon Campbell(1870-1952). bii) Arthur Robert Seignelay Lyon-Campbell(1871-1956) married Evelyn Muriel Knowles. His issue:- ci) Esme Geraldine Seignelay Lyon-Campbell(1909-1979) married Lewis Stafford Northcote. Their issue:- di) Sarah Caroline Patricia Northcote married Patrick Timothy Sheehan. Their issue:- ei) Clare Anne Sheehan married Thomas Richard Glen Downes. Their issue:- fi) Annabel Sarah Downes. fii) Elizabeth Jane Downes. fiii) William Thomas Downes. eii) Joanna Mary Sheehan married David Charles Carreras. Their issue:- fi) Claudia Sophie Carreras. fii) Jos Alexander Carreras. eiii) Timothy Stafford Sheehan. dii) Jaquetta Seignelay Northcote married Michael R Philip. cii) Eric Murray Lyon-Campbell(1904-1930) married Elizabeth R Easterby. biii) Mary Alice Lyon-Campbell(1871-1924). biv) Agnes Louisa Lyon- Campbell(1872-1919) married Rev.Charles Edwin James Carter. Their issue:- ci) George Cuthbert Charles Pemberton Carter(1906-1983) married Marjorie L Morris. cii) Mary Kathleen Augusta Lee Carter(1907-2000) married Neville Owen Quinn. Their issue:- di) Remone Susan Quinn married John T Morgan. ciii) Mary Noel Agnes Knatchbull Carter(1911-2010) married Andrew M Cooper. bv) Douglas Percy Lyon Campbell (1875-1876). aiii) George Murray Lyon Campbell(1837-1877). aiv) Charles Albert Lyon Campbell(1841-1919) married Louisa Mary Ann Ramsey O’Gorman. His issue:- bi)Louisa Lyon-Campbell(1865-?) married Hubert Moody Wood. Their issue:- ci) Hubert Lyon-Campbell Wood(1903-1982) married Irene P Murrey. bii) Charles Henry Donald Lyon-Campbell(1866-1939). biii) Arthur Francis Lyon-Campbell(1869-1937) married Ethel May Robbins. His issue:- ci) Charles Rupert Lyon-Campbell (1990-1972). cii) Donald Arthur Lyon-Campbell(1901-1958) married Catherine R. Benson. ciii) Ruth Lyon-Campbell (1903-1969) married Charles P. Warren. Their issue:- di) Charles Lyon Campbell Warren(1926-2018) married Emma Josephine ?. His issue:- ei) Diana Warren. eii) Robin Warren. eiii) Charles Warren. dii) Ruth Ann Warren married ? Denig. aiv) ? Campbell (1843). ii) Susan Lyon Campbell (1809-1829). Please contact me at - winsonsaw20032000@yahoo.com

[companion-showdown]

It's nomination day for: Who is the best companion to get intoxicated with?

All main TV companions (and some of the better known EU companions) automatically qualify and will be in the tournament, there is no need to nominate them (full list here). There are 8 slots up for grabs for nominated candidates, so the list below will go through a group stage to bring us down to that.

You can nominate anyone you like, they do not have to be a companion, and no additional rules spring to mind to add, except im instituting a 2 gerry anderson charater limit, which has already been reached, nothing against them or him, just keeping this about Doctor Who characters, and not different programmes that crossed over in comics

Nominees

The TARDIS

Andy Davidson

Madam Vastra

Gwen Cooper

Ianto Jones

Toshiko Sato

Owen Harper

Narvin

Irving Braxiatel

Bannakaffalatta

Sabalom Glitz

The Earl of Sandwich

D'eon

Sabbath Dei

Scarlette

Adrien Wall

Laura Tobin

V.M.McCrimmon

Eliza

Compassion

Jason Kane

Hebe Harrison

Valarie Lockwood

Missy

Koschei

Delgado!Master

McQueen!Master

Preacher!Master

Father Kreiner

Cousin Justine

Wolsey

Chris Cwej

God the Computer

Joseph (Oh No it Isn't)

Emile Mars-Smith

Elspeth (Where Angels Fear)

Clarence the Angel

John (Another Girl, Another Planet)

B-Aaron

Renée Thalia

Joseph (The Doomsday Manuscript)

Captain Magenta

Captain Black

Lola Denison

Tameka Vito

Erato

Kamelion

The Kandyman

C'rizz

Cesiare of Diplos

Vincent van Gogh

Pangol of Argolis

Deedrix of Tigella

Soldeed of Skonnos

King Yrcanos

The Three who Rule

Varsh

Keara

Tylos

Tremas of Traken

Panna

Karuna

Aris

Richard Mace

Sara Kingdom

Bret Vyon

Mark Seven

Mavic Chen

The Black Dalek Leader

The Original Golden Dalek Emperor

Stratum Seven Agent

Hallan

Pandora

Morbius

Jane Austen

Sam Bishop

Banana Boat

nominations will be open for at least the next 24 hours, that is until 11:45 GMT (UTC+0), 11/03

after that there is no guarantee

[antigonick]

Dear Pauline, can you recommend me some good books, essays, etc. about witches, witchcraft, witch trials in England?

Hi! Sorry for my late reply. I do have a few good texts that come to mind about witches, witch trials, the gendered witch, etc, but I’m afraid they won’t be solely targeting England. In any case, these could be useful:

ESSAYS

“The Making of the Female Witch: Reflections on Witchcraft and Gender in the Early Modern Period”, by Willem de Blécourt in Gender and History“‘I am a Gosple Woman’: On Language in the Courtroom Discourse during the Salem Witch Trials, with Special Reference to Female Examinees”,by Leena Kahlas Tarkka in Studia Neophilologica

“In Search of the English Sabbat: Popular Conceptions of Witches’ Meetings in Early Modern England”, by James Sharpe in Journal of Early Modern Studies

“The Witch ‘She’ / The Historian ‘He’ : Gender and the Historiography of the European Witch-Hunts”, by Elspeth Whitney in Journal of Women’s History

““Witch” as metaphor in America: An interdisciplinary analysis of the linguistic shaping of women in literature”, by Maureen Anderson [dissertation]

“Beyond the Witch Trials: Witchcraft and Magic in Enlightenment Europe”, edited by Willem de Blécourt and Davies Owen (special issue, contains 10 essays)

“Topical Ideology: Witches, Amazon, and Shakespeare’s Joan of Arc”, by Gabriele B. Jackson, in English Literary Renaissance

“Capturing Magics: The Witches in Early Modern England, Project as Micro-Historical and Visualization Research”, by Kirsten Uszkalo, in Preternature

“The Great Witch-Hunt, The Persecution of Witches in England, 1550-1660″, by Anna Garland in Auckland University Law Review

BOOKS

The Salem Witchcraft Papers, edited by Paul Boyer, Stephen Nissenbaum, Benjamin C. Ray and Tara S. Wood

Enemies of God: Witch Hunt in Scotland, Christina LarnerI, Tituba, Black Witch of Salem, Maryse Condé

Witches !, Mona Chollet

In the Devil’s Snare, Mary Beth

Man as Witch: Male Witches in Central Europe, Rolf Schulte

The Witch-Hunt in Early Modern Europe, Brian P. Levak

Malevolent Nurture : Witch-Hunting and Maternal Power in Early Modern England, Deborah Willis

Witch, Wicce, Mother Goose : The Rise and Fall of the Witch Hunts in Europe and North America, Robert Thurston

Sorceress or Witch? The Image of Gender in Medieval Iceland and Northern Europe, Katherine Morris

Witchcraft and Magic in Europe: The Period of the Witch Trials, Bengt Ankarloo

There you go, I hope this helps!

[dry-valleys]

A new Etruria decks Britannia's isle. Charm'd by your touch, the flint liquescent pours Through finer sieves, and falls in whiter showers;.

Erasmus Darwin.

All Saints Hanley was built between 1910 and 1913 by Gerald Horsley in the Gothic Revival Style that had become popular in the 19th century, flecked by the Arts and Crafts style that had just come into fashion.

(This is a series; please see here, here, here, here, here, here and here for more).

Horsley, a member of the Art Workers Guild, was, like all Anglicans of the time, mindful of the battle with the Nonconformists for Potteries souls; a battle that was usually lost by the Anglicans, but this is a great bastion of its defence.

I had somehow never been here before the British Ceramics Biennial of 2023; this is the eighth such festival (my fourth), and it brought me to a new place as it did two years ago when I made my first and only visit to the old Goods Yard, which I'm pleased to say is being rebuilt (and perhaps will be ready for the 2025 festival?)

Please see here for earlier BCB visits. It is a celebration of pottery from throughout the world and this year is working with the Indian Ceramics Trienniale. Although as a Keele man it pains me to say this, Staffordshire University has been invaluable through its sponsorship.

Folded in amongst the church architechture and fitting into the arts and crafts theme were works by (7) Steve Dixon (I had no idea this wasn't the reredos and is in fact part of the BCB until a guide pointed out the male nude- it's disguised very well indeed!) (8,9) Emilie Taylor (10) Kieran Harris,(11) Matt Whiting, (12) Elspeth Owen,(13) Copper Sounds, alongside many more which are on their way in the next few posts.

Charm'd by your touch, the kneaded clay refines, The biscuit hardens, the enamel shines; Each nicer mould a softer feature drinks, The bold Cameo speaks, the soft Intaglio thinks.

[a-boros-named-seamus]

Under The Darkened Moon

WARNING, MENTIONS OF CHILD DEATH, VIVID, GORY DESCRIPTIONS

As the howls died down, I saw her cock her head, as if listening to someone speak.

"Before we can begin our work, I must return to Thraben, leaving tomorrow morning. I will return with help to create a new order and to restore your farmland," she declared, sounding... unsure, "But those of you that wish to accompany me, to ensure that I do not lie, that I speak truth, may."

After that, she lowered to the ground, taking off her cloak and setting aside her spear, and began to help. With caring for the wounded, with cleaning up, with cooking.

It was a beautiful sight. Inspiring.

Where Avacyn had been like moon, brilliant and bright, but austere, Elspeth, her Heiress, was like a hearth flame, warm and bright and, welcoming.

As I helped dig a ditch for... wastes, covered in dirt and sweat, three people approached me, two ladies and a man.

They looked at me like I, personally, was responsible for the sun rising this morning, for their lives continuing.

They were wrong. This victory was all theirs, their faith, their sheer bloody-mindedness, their hard work is what saved them.

"We are going to take The Lady up on her offer, Sir Knight," said the person in the lead, a tall, curvy, and solidly built lady with dark skin. Her hair was frizzy and black, bound back into a tight bun to prevent the dead from grabbing it, like most of the other ladies around whose hair wasn't cut short. Her eyes displayed only respect and curiosity.

Her bearing was kind, friendly, and more than a bit stern, like that of a parent, or a teacher, or a nurse.

She was also covered in blood, her clothes torn up, chestplate scratched, wounds already healing, and the claw-severed head of a Skaab hanging at her hip.

More like a particularly matronly general, then.

I kept working, doing the work of two people, as I spoke.

"Alright, milady. You'll have to speak with Lady Elspeth, though. I'm the one in the lead," I told her, "But me, personally? I've got no problem with it. Also, stop the sir talk. Call me Seamus. Seamus Faodlah."

"Alright! Call me Engel. Engel Kinder," she said, thumping her, breast plate, thankfully free of that boob-cupping bullshite. Her two companions moved to stand beside her.

"I'm Brighid Wulver! Nice to meet you!" Exclaimed the other lady.

She was of average height, but she was built like a brick shithouse, covered in muscle and scars. Her hair was cut short, in an odd style that I'd never seen before. She was obviously the brawler type. As she stepped forwards, she stood close to Engel, looking comically short next to the other woman, and I noticed matching rings on their fingers.

"You two married?" I asked, tone exactly the same as if I were asking about the weather or the price of food. IE neutral. "Yes," they answered, almost at once. "Aaaaanyways," said Brighid.

"I'm Owen," said the man, almost sounding embarrassed at the sound of his own voice.

He was tall, with strong, lean muscles. His hair was dirty blonde, eyes green, and jaw strong. He also wore glasses, and a sweater emblazoned with the multiversal symbol for medic, a red cross, on his shoulders. On his shoulder hung a bag with the same symbol on it. It looked heavy, and the blood spattered on it showed that it had been used as a bludgeon.

"Well, nice to meet you all, but I should get back to work. Lady Elspeth is that way," I said, pointing.

They walked off, chattering to each other, mostly about how... unusual I was. I smiled and waved.

---

It was noon the next day dofore the villagers would let the five of us leave.

On the upside, one of the gifts bestowed upon me as they showered lady Elspeth and I with such things was a nice big pack, meant to withstand the change.

At the gates, the four of us lacking wings stripped, putting our clothes in our packs.

Then we shifted. We were going to run to Thraben. Lady Elspeth would keep watch above, providing direction.

We ran well into the night, through the ancient forest, the new moon casting no light. It was beautiful, and due to the power of Avacyn, we never flagged, having tome to drink in the sights and smells and sounds.

It was among those that we heard them hunt.

The Leeraug...

I let loose a howl of pure fury, feeling mana fill my being, ready to shape into magic.

The other three cowered

Lady Elspeth looked confused. "Ask the frrrrragmmment of Aveacyn.abount the Leeraug," I told her, barely able to form words.

I let loose another howl, full of magic.

From the woods emerged more of my wolven brethren, werewolf, wolf, and nature spirit alike, all of them recognising my strength and that it was MY call that they obeyed. Strange, fey magic linked us all.

I didn't even speak, just set off toward the things that took the shaper of werewolf.

I could feel silver fire flood my veins and those of my howlpack. Avacyn and Elspelth both approved of what I was about to do.

We encountered an orphanage.

We were too late to save the children.

Lady Elspeth entered, and I felt a wave of rage explode out before the orphanage exploded in bloody light.

Out stepped Elspeth, The Purifier, wings still soaked in blood and white streak dyed crimson, gaze still blank and pitiless, but now a being of vengeance, of penance for failing her duty, and she was holding in her arms a little girl.

Her legs were torn away at the knee, one arm simply gone, her face hanging open, and guts spilling out.

She was still dying.

Lady Elspeth spoke kind words to her, assuring that a better place was her destination, that she'd been good, that she would be loved and happy and she could be whatever she wanted, like a knight or a princess or an angel. The little girl laughed, and smiled weakly.

"Thank you miss. I should like to see this place. Will you come with me?"

Lady Elspeth smiled at her. "Of course, little one. Of course."

"Thank you miss. But I should like to take a nap first. I'm really tired," she said, smiling and closing her eyes.

Her life left her as she slipped into dreams of paradise, of heaven.

I knelt down, and started using my claws to dig. The rest of the pack joined in following my lead, and soon, we had a grave.

Lady Elspeth set the little one in the grave, and said a prayer in a language I didn't know.

I filled it back in, and stuck a broken piece of the stone heath of the fireplace in the ground at her head.

There was a flash as Elspeth pointed her spear-sword, now dart onyx shot through with crimson, at the stone, and an inscription appeared. "Here lies an innocent soul, Alice. May she find peace."

Elspeth stood, tears flowing down her now pale, rage painted face.

"My knights, let us scrub clean this corruption," she said, all warmth replaced by rage.

We howled our furious agreement.

I charged, my pack surrounding the town and doing the same.

I came upon a thing, a twisted mass of fur and latticed flesh. A thing that had embraced corruption. It was long, thin, bony, and contorted. A creature of shadow and ambush.

I fell upon it, full of rage. I did to it what had been done to the girl.

It didn't die.

Good.

I made it suffer more.

I stalked through the town, streaked with blood and pus and ichor, killing Leeraug as I went. I also granted the blessed sleep to the dying, my heart breaking with each mutilated child that I had to comfort. To kill. Letting them die slow would be cruel.

Images of my little Sean, mutilated like that little girl, of my gentle Aspen bent and broken and dismembered and defiled and eaten, of my gentle Mathias, mind broken and form twisted into another dark thing, all of these flashing through my mind, filling me with fear and rage and determination.

Two long, lithe, and strong weres crossed my path often. Engel and Brighid worked as a team, making up for each other's weaknesses. They left a trail of death as they went. They were wreathed in stone and silver fire respectively, nature's fury incarnate.

Owen was a massive wolf, like someone had twisted tree trunks into the shape of a werewolf and covered the whole thing with fur. He was wreathed in holy golden light, protecting all the children he could round up, his touch healing, reassuring, reinvigorating. His holy might was like an silver wall around the children, impassable, burning and maiming the Leeraug.

As I fought, I saw people, villagers, elders, teenagers, protecting their families, savage snarls slowly becoming snouts, fingers curling into claws. These wolves joined our hunt, driving out the black hearted invaders killing them, unraveling lattices of flesh, dismembering the rest.

Still, many of my pack died to the Leeraug, ambushed and torn apart.

They were avenged.

Lady Elspeth fought with absolute fury, her light harsh and burning, her words inspiring divine fury in the defenders. Truly an Avenging Angel, extracting a price of blood.

The light we shone burned away their shadows, exposing them, and destroying their powers of fear and stealth. They were all eradicated.

Three escaped, only for a strong, cunning werewolf to shred them. He gave me a nod of respect, and left. I had the respect of Ulrich. I was awed.

Eventually, the dawn broke over a nightmare ended, and a people saved, and with it, the end of the hunt.

I strode up to Engel. "Hey, could you talk to these people? Explain our purpose, and the situation? I'm going to find Our Lady," I told her. Elspeth had touched down somewhere in the woods, but she hadn't stopped powering our holy magic.

"Of course. You better speak to her. She looked rattled," she said, smiling and giving me a nod.

I followed Elspeth's scent to a large stream.

She was scrubbing at the blood, sometimes dislodging feathers and hair.

She was sobbing, so I sat down next to her. "My lady, what is wrong? Please, tell me," I said to her, recognizing that her mind was drowning in the past as I spoke.

It was... jarring to see such a person, an unstoppable force, so... frail, so broken, when she inspired such hope.

She jerked out of it and looked at me. She looked so... helpless, full of despair, so I hugged her, until she broke away.

She wiped her eyes, calmed herself, and began to speak. "This plane, the Leeraug, they remind me of the plane I was born on, and many others. It was overrun with phyresis, and each day was a fresh horror. I did horrible things, helped the phyrexians just to... just to survive..." Her face was contorted in pain.

Phyrexians. Some, like Ezurad, weren't half bad, but most of their strains were evil. Pure, undiluted evil. I'd heard the whispered horror-stories of Mirrodin, personal accounts of Dominaria during the war from oldwalkers. The utterly chilling stories Maris and even other Phyrexians have of Elesh Norn.

I tried to help "You don't have to tell me if it hurts too much, we all have our secret pains,"

She looked in my face, steeling herself. "No, I need to let this out, to say it, or I never will," she said, before diving headlong into the rest of it, "On Alara, after Conflux, the liches of Grixis assaulted Bant."

She put a hand on my shoulder when she noticed my grimace at my memories of them. My quest to kill a lich. My phyrric victory. I chuckled softly. I was trying to comfort her, and here she was, comforting me.

"I faced the Phyrexians again on Mirrodin, alongside Venser and Koth to save Karn," she said, as I nodded. I'd heard the stories.

"I went to Theros, defended the people there, championed Heliod," she spat his name in the same way I did Emrakul, "journeyed into Nyx, Ajani at my side, to kill a god of a strength not seen in the multiverse since the Mending*, facing untold monsters along the way," tearing up, beginning to shake, her pain apparent.

I embraced her, one person wracked by trauma to another.

"My lady, you don't have to tell of this part. I've been to Theros, heard how the people speak of you, with more reverence than even that thrice blasted traitor, with love and respect," And it was true. They practically worshipped her as the platonic ideal of a Hero. I'd heard her story told, many different ways in different regions, but all full of respect.

"I... Alright. You can quite obviously tell that I finished my mask. When I left Theros, it slipped off," she said.

"But never have I seen such... utter, disgusting, wanton cruelty as I have seen here. The Phyrexians always had purpose, cold reason, their cruelty a byproduct, not the purpose," she twinged at the memories "The Liches simply killed, trying to swell their armies, killing inventively, but not caring about cruelty cruelty," That, I knew, from personal experience, "On Theros, hordes of monsters killed, but never went out of their way to make their deaths worse. They just killed," I believed her on that. "Here, the things in the dark, the monsters and beasts, they kill for sport. When I joined with Avacyn, I knew about it all, but the true horror..." She looked distant, disconnected.

"In all those places, people fought back, resisted, were able to save themselves. Here, their weapons do nothing. The simply prolong doom," She had begun to weep again, trembling.

"Look at me. Look me in the eyes," I said, stern, determined. She looked up. "That is what you and the other angels are for. To protect. To give us strength to defend our own," dragging her to her feet as I spoke, the blood and the bone paleness running off of her like water.

"You saw Owen, using your holy light to protect, to heal those children, Brighid using the very fury of the sun, Engel crtushing the beasts with the bones of the earth," I slapped her spear, already lightening back to ggold-streaked silver, into her hand.

"You give us power and hope. You are Elspeth. You are Avacyn. It is your duty, your task, to help us, to inspire us, to show us that we can fight!" I bellowed, encouraging her.

As the last of The Purifier cleared away, returning to the dark corners of her soul, she nodded. "Thank you," she said, hugging me. Her light shone, radiant as she returned to the village, the dawn at her back.

She was both the Archangel, and The Purifier. She was hope. She was vengeance. She was Elspeth.

*=I saw in a Q&A on the Wizards Website somewhere that said that Xenagos DID retain his spark

@actualborossoldier @gardianforce @leonin-pal-adin @leonsgirl @selesnyapokemonprofessor @aspenvald @ezurad @ezurad-radomancer @lasav-the-sneakster @asmund-scion-of-ice @nicool--brolas @leagueofbantcraft @kopala-warden-of-tumbr @chandra-pyromaster @ruzena-of-ravnica @holypupper @burning-angrath @innistrad-historian @sorin-investigations @avacynthepurifier @avacyntheangelofhope @avacyn-angel-of-nope @avacyn-jr @milolikesthings @werewarlock @wearepaladin @probablywerewolfrpgideas @userwordandpassname @wearepaladin @ormos-demon-born @chelsea-beleren-vess @poison-stripes @golgaristorm @lucianofsamosata @wearepaladin

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3 July 2020

Live admin

Lots of links today so I'll keep this short: we had a great time at Data Bites 12 this week, an administrative data special courtesy of ADR UK. Catch up on the presentations - covering health, coronavirus, Troubled Families, homelessness reduction, justice, and population data (and how to engage the public) -  and my lockdown hair here. Previous events all here. We'll see you on either Wednesday 5 August or Wednesday 2 September for the next one.

Elsewhere:

A busy week on the civil service reform front. Jane Dudman's article for The Guardian has lots of links to Whitehall Monitor analysis (all our civil service workforce analysis is here). And obviously there's been plenty from the IfG too.

The winners of this year's Orwell Prizes will be announced next Thursday. Full details about how that will play out will appear here soon.

Have a good weekend, and see you next week

Gavin

Today's links:

Tech, tips, etc

Staying connected and looking after your mental and physical health (UK Civil Service)

In Our View, issue 19: Higher marks for homeworking* (Socitm)

How to work well from home (SA Mathieson)

Citizens assemblies are back, in handbook form (mySociety)

The radical technologies to keep offices clear of coronavirus (FT)

Graphic content

Viral content: Leicester is more

Leicester lockdown exposes lack of local Covid testing data* (FT)

Leicester and Merthyr Tydfil top table for UK-wide Covid infections* (FT)

COVID-19: exceedances in Leicester (Public Health England)

Coronavirus: How many cases of COVID-19 where I live? (Sky News)

Data reveals coronavirus hotspots in Bradford, Barnsley and Rochdale (The Guardian)

Viral content: cases

The pace of death (Reuters)

Coronavirus: UK hardest hit by virus among leading G7 nations (BBC News)

Death rate 'back to normal' in UK (BBC News)

Anatomy of a crisis* (New Statesman)

Slow to lock down, slow to stop the spread* (New Statesman)

Ten years of data reveal how austerity weakened the UK's pandemic response* (New Statesman - though some questionable viz choices...)

Newly released data shows towns in the North and Midlands at risk of a second wave* (New Statesman)

This coronavirus mutation has taken over the world. Scientists are trying to understand why.* (Washington Post)

The virus that shut down the world* (Washington Post)

Coronavirus vaccine tracker: How close are we to a vaccine? (The Guardian)

Cox's Bazar refugee camps: where social distancing is impossible (The Guardian)

New normal: How far is safe enough? (Reuters)

Into the fog: How Britain lost track of the coronavirus (Reuters)

How speedy lockdowns save lives* (The Economist)

How the Corona Virus Spreads in Your Region (Zeit Online)

A pandemic primer on excess mortality statistics and their comparability across countries (Our World in Data)

Viral content: consequences

Three Months In, Many Americans See Exaggeration, Conspiracy Theories and Partisanship in COVID-19 News (Pew Research Center)

INFODEMIC COVID-19 IN EUROPE: A VISUAL ANALYSIS OF DISINFORMATION (AFP, CORRECTIV, Pagella Politica/Facta, Maldita.es and Full Fact)

It's been a year since YouGov started tracking Britain's mood on a weekly basis (YouGov, via Ketaki)

Covid-19 and Changing Attitudes: Technology and Big Tech (Institute for Global Change)

N95 mask price differences amongst Latam countries (Ojo-Publico.com via Gavin Hayman)

The Jobs Numbers: Who’s Hiring in America—and Who’s Not* (Bloomberg)

Viral content: sport and leisure

Bookmakers hail return of sports fixtures across Europe* (FT)

Lucrative US college sports industry faces uncertain future* (FT)

Shopping may never be the same again (ONS)

#BlackLivesMatter

Waking up to the realities of racism in the UK* (FT)

Demand for anti-racist literature is up. These black bookstore owners hope it lasts.* (Washington Post)

Lex in depth: Examining the slave trade — ‘Britain has a debt to repay’* (FT)

Britain’s diversity is much more complex than it seems* (New Statesman)

US

Data point to soaring US gun sales in June* (FT)

Forecasting the US elections (The Economist)

The Supreme Court Struck Down A Louisiana Abortion Law. Here’s Where The Fight Could Head Next. (FiveThirtyEight)

Deadliest Mass Shootings Are Often Preceded by Violence at Home* (Bloomberg)

Mapping America’s Underwater Real Estate* (Bloomberg, via Alice)

UK

Mind the values gap: The social and economic values of MPs, party members and voters (The UK in a Changing Europe)

Maps of local deprivation in England (University of Sheffield/MHCLG/mySociety)

Cabinet committees (Oliver for IfG)

A second Scottish independence referendum (Elspeth for IfG)

Cabinet secretaries (me for IfG)

Meta data

Viral content: appy days

The rise and fall of Hancock’s homegrown tracing app* (FT, via Graham)

COVIDSafe has been downloaded by millions, but yet to identify contacts (and authorities say that's a good thing) (ABC News)

Three cheers for the failed NHS coronavirus app (CapX)

COVID-19 Phone Tracking Apps: This Is What Millions Of New Users Need To Know (Forbes)

Privacy is not the problem with the Apple-Google contact-tracing app (Michael Veale for The Guardian)

Viral content: everything else

COVID-19 Local Area Data (UK Statistics Authority)

How governments use GovTech to fight Covid-19* (Apolitical)

How our silent ‘API army’ has helped DWP’s COVID-19 response (DWP Digital)

Covid 19 coronavirus: Government releases hundreds more documents on pandemic response (NZ Herald, via Andrew)

Almost 17,000 Protesters Had No Idea A Tech Company Was Tracing Their Location (BuzzFeed)

Responding to a crisis: balancing short-term tactics with longer-term priorities (Public Digital)

Caldicott Principles: a consultation about revising, expanding and upholding the principles (National Data Guardian)

HMCTS response to letter on open justice in the COVID-19 emergency (Judith Townend for Inforrm)

COVID-19: Overview of HMCTS response (HMCTS)

How Estonia fights Covid-19 by going online* (Apolitical)

NEED FOR OPEN DATA (letter from the Nuffield Trust to The Times)

Viral misinformation

Democracy under threat from ‘pandemic of misinformation’ online, say Lords Committee (Democracy and Digital Rights Committee)

Click Here For Outrage: Disinformation in the European Parliamentary Elections 2019 (Institute for Strategic Dialogue)

Big tech

New regime needed to take on tech giants (CMA)

Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum (CMA, ICO and Ofcom)

India Just Banned TikTok (BuzzFeed)

Andrew Yang Wants You to Own and Sell Your Data (Slate)

A sense of place

FindMyAddress – Making official addresses and UPRNs accessible to the public, for the first time (GeoPlace)

INSPIRE data to be shared under open terms (HM Land Registry/Registers of Scotland)

UK government

The state of the UK’s statistical system (Office for Statistics Regulation)

The UK data governance landscape (Royal Society)

The 2020 to 2021 GOV.UK roadmap (Inside GOV.UK, via Oliver)

Rest of Government: Data misuse as “Missed Use” (medConfidential)

UK Research and Development Roadmap (BEIS)

Launching the Digital, Data and Technology Functional Standard (GDS)

National Data Strategy – "page updated" (Owen Boswarva)

360 x 5

We are 5: our highlights, lessons and hopes for the future (360Giving)

360Giving: About us

Who uses 360Giving data?

Democracy

A democracy sector network? A needs, tools and capacity review (Joe Mitchell)

The Good Web Project (Demos)

AI

Most journalists see AI robots as a threat to their industry: This is why they are wrong (Press Gazette)

How AI helps historians solve ancient puzzles* (FT)

Everything else

Data Bites #12: Getting things done with data in government (IfG)

Missing connections from government platforms (Michael Smethurst)

DARPA vs the Wheely Suitcase; Or, The Quantity vs Quality Theories of Innovation (Jonathan Haskel and Stian Westlake)

Federated Identity for Access to UK Public Services: 1997-2020 (Jerry Fishenden)

Renew Normal podcast: Martha Lane Fox (Demos)

When Proof Is Not Enough (FiveThirtyEight)

Five ways to ensure that models serve society: a manifesto (Nature, via TranspariMED)

Data, Compute, Labour (Ada Lovelace Institute)

The symptoms of toxic technology (Dave Rogers)

Walking the tightrope: 5 tips for writing a data strategy (DataIQ)

Opportunities

EVENT: Careers event at GDS in design and research for under-represented groups (GDS)

JOB: Senior Data Scientist (GDS)

JOB: Data Scientist (GDS)

And finally...

A shipping and delivery map of the UK and Ireland... (Alasdair Rae)

me with a new dataset (Kareem Carr)

When they go low, we go high. (The Lincoln Project)

You can go back 100 years in just four players (David Kane)

How mobile games crushed consoles* (FT)