Way back in the day I was a hugely geeky X-Files fan. Mulder and Scully were my het OTP in the biggest way for a long time. I haven’t seen the show or read the fanfic in years, but I stumbled on it again the other day and now I’m reading and watching vids and just soaking it all up and feeling that warm, swimmy feeling in my stomach. I’ve even been watching the show again, starting with Season One (thank God for Netflix’s instant watching thingammy!). So, in honor of my trip down fandom memory lane, here are some vids I came across this morning. Enjoy!
Title: Believe Again Created by:Erockfurnia Pairing: Mulder/Scully Notes: This vid is labeled “XF3 Army”. I’m not sure exactly what that is, but I’m assuming it’s some sort of campaign to get a third movie. Even so, it’s a smashing vid that does what it’s supposed to – make me want more! :)
Title: Love Remains The Same Created by:Erockfurnia Pairing: Mulder/Scully Notes: This one’s made like one of those music videos that go with a movie. It’s got clips of the show and movies spliced in with clips of the guy who’s singing the song. Good song, great vid.
Title: Everything Changes Created by:Erockfurnia Pairing: Mulder/Scully Notes: What would she have missed if she’d gone to Salt Lake City? What would have changed if that moment in the hallway had been different.
Well, I hope you enjoy the vids! For more vids (or to download HD versions of the ones above) go to the vidder’s website. I highly recommend the one called “Resist or Serve”.
So … you’re halfway through a book and you’re hating it. It’s boring. It’s trite. It’s badly written. But … you’ve invested all this time to reading the first half.
What do you do? Read the second half? Just to finish out the story? Find out what happens?
Or, cut your losses and dump the second half?
If I absolutely hate it and can’t find anything whatsoever redeeming about it, then I usually give it up as a loss and stop reading. If I can find even the smallest thing in it to like, then I try my best to hang on, even if I end up skipping and skimming through the rest of it just to see how things turn out. There have been books I’ve stuck with that I’ve regretted giving the benefit of the doubt to, and there have been others that really did get better in the end, if only slightly. There have been a few rare instances when I’ve struggled through a book, gnashing my teeth all the way, only to end up throwing the book across the room in a fit! One such book was a historical romance by an author who shall remain nameless (at least, in this post. Feel free to ask me elsewhere and I’ll tell you, if you’d like). I can’t remember the title, but it’s probably been a good ten years or so since I read it. I just remember that I hated every last person in the book and thought that the twist at the end came off more as a dirty trick on the reader than as a believable plot device. In a word – I felt pretty damn shafted. Hence, the book-throwing.
BOOK BLURB: Sophie Curtis lives a big secret. She’s been having an affair with Duane Koch. Their days – and nights – together are their own oasis away from the world. It’s unconventional but, given the difference in their ages and her troubled past, it works for them.
Then Duane is asked to step into the political ring – an opportunity he’s been waiting for. Too bad about the timing, though. Because Sophie’s just found out she’s pregnant, and an instant family – with her – could ruin his chances. The right thing would be for her to bow out of his life. But when he surprises her with a proposal, will she have the strength to walk away from the man she loves?
MY THOUGHTS:
This was a well-written read, but I found that I wasn’t as invested in the characters and their situation as much as I could have been. I don’t think this was due to any particular flaws in the story, maybe it was more that I just didn’t care for the emphasis put on reputation and politics, nor for the fact that there were a lot of issues for the couple to work through all at once, much of it having to do with Sophie’s past and Duane’s present. It felt as if there were just too many ingredients in the pot. The political figure in the spotlight because of his relationship with a younger woman with a past just isn’t my usual go-to in a romance. If some of the issues the couple dealt with in the book had been more interesting to me personally, I probably would have rated this much higher. I’d recommend this to someone looking for a category romance that features an older man/younger woman dynamic and the relationship-in-crisis trope.
This isn’t really a video, just a song, but it’s just so pretty and simple and beautiful that I just have to share it. :) So have a listen and I’ll go see if I can scrounge up something to read. My TBR pile is collecting dust, the poor, neglected thing.
Here I am with another fanvid rec. I know, I know – I should be reading! But some of these are just so good! I can’t help myself. :)
Title: I’m Sorry Created by: Anaapenas (Just go ahead and watch all of her vids) Pairing: Dean/Castiel | AU Warnings: Alcoholism, Domestic Violence Notes: Dean is an alcoholic struggling with his addiction and Castiel is his lover. I don’t condone domestic violence, but the vid does an amazing, yet painful job of illustrating how bad things can be for those dealing with addiction.
Welcome to Oz | Bauble | Dean/Castiel | NC-17 | 90,000 words
Dean wakes up in the cheerfully painted yellow kitchen of a middle class home in Suburbia, USA.
Slow Dancing | Bauble | Dean/Castiel | NC-17 | 1,050 words
“You’re dreaming,” a familiar voice says somewhere behind Castiel. He turns around and the darkness around him parts, melts away until the shape of Dean is sharp, seemingly lit by a spotlight from above.
As You Wish | Bauble | Dean/Castiel | NC-17 | 5,700 words
That day, she was amazed to discover that when he was saying “As you wish,” what he meant was, “I love you.” And even more amazing was the day she realized she truly loved him back. – The Princess Bride
Jared/Jensen RPS
God Loveth His Children | Mystic Reader | RPS AU | Jared/Jensen | R | 34,399 words
When faith and obligation meet the renewal of old sins, two Mormon missionaries must decide if it’s worth losing everything they’ve ever known for a chance at love.
I have been so out of the loop when it comes to my favorite shows! I think between three moves and a whole hell of a lot of other stuff, I just haven’t been able to keep up with things – like Supernatural, for example. I think I left off somewhere at the beginning of Season 3. I usually try to avoid spoilers as much as possible when I get out of the loop on tv, but, yesterday I came across a Stargate: Atlantis/Supernatural crossover fic. I read it and was immediately hooked on a new pairing. Dean/Castiel. I know I’m really, really late in the game here, but whoa! :)
That one fanfic has led me to search out more fics, and of course, fanvids. And since it’s after 4 a.m. and I’ve nothing better to do, I’m going to share a few of my vid finds with you. Here’s a small sampling for you to enjoy. I’ll post more later. :) The first few are AU Dean/Castiel and the rest are AU Sam/Dean (but not Wincest – not that I have anything at all against Wincest /wink).
Title: Stray Created by: Anaapenas Pairing: Dean/Castiel Notes: AU. Castiel is human, married to Dean, and the two hunt evil things together. When Cas is killed during a hunt, Dean is so lost and desperate that he makes a deal with a demon to get Cas back. But nothing good can come from such a deal…
Title: Push Created by: Bachaboska Pairing: Dean/Castiel Notes: AU Movie Trailer. Dean has powers that make him the target of an organization called Division, who want to study him/turn him into some kind of super-soldier. Sam has the power to see the future. He has a crush on Dean, but knows that Dean will fall for Castiel. Castiel was once one of Division’s projects, but now he’s Dean’s only hope in the fight against them.
Title: Silence by Heaven’s Door Created by: Bachaboska Pairing: Dean/Castiel Notes: AU Movie Trailer. After a car accident begins the end of Dean’s life, he starts seeing a man watching him. Is he a hallucination or an angel? Can a hallucination be the love of your life?
Title: Nothing Personal Created by: Bachaboska Pairing: Sam/Dean (Not technically Wincest) Notes: AU Movie Trailer. When Dean was a kid, his sister was kidnapped. Now he dedicates his life to finding people who disappear. Sam hires Dean to find his father, an FBI agent who disappeared during an undercover operation. During the search, Dean begins to fall for Sam. His rule has always been not to get emotionally involved with his clients. Can he deal with his feelings and keep Sam from seeking revenge against the people who took his father?
Title: Our Ordinary Life Created by: Bachaboska Pairing: Sam/Dean (Not technically Wincest) Notes: AU Movie Trailer. Sam and Dean are two crooks who try to leave their thieving ways behind in order to live a normal life together. Can they meet the challenge?
Title: The Day Sammy Lost His Shoe Created by: Bachaboska Pairing: Sam/Dean (Not technically Wincest) Notes: AU Movie Trailer. Sam wakes up, lost and alone and can’t remember who he is or where he’s from. While wandering around the city, he meets Dean, a crook who’s just run afoul of the mob. Sam witnesses a murder while following Dean around and now Dean’s the only one who can keep Sam alive and help him get his past back. As the vid maker says, it’s a comedy about an innocent boy and a cynical tough guy who fall in love. :)
I’m almost finished with the layout and design I’ve been working on. Since I didn’t go to sleep last night when I started getting blurry-eyed and kept working, there are a few more things that I need to go back over and fix today. But it’s coming along nicely, despite my bloopers. I may change the 3-columns back to 2-columns because the design looks a little cleaner that way. I’ll take a few of the things that are currently in my sidebars and make pages for them that will show up in the navigation menu. I’ve got a few kinks in the code to work out and a few graphics that need to be straightened out (what looks centered at 3 a.m. doesn’t look so centered after a bit of much-needed sleep). I plan to fix as much as I can throughout this afternoon and evening. I apologize if the blog has gone wonky for any recent visitors. :)
Welcome to my blog! My name is Anesthezea. This blog is dedicated to book reviews, random discussion, a few book challenges, and a few other (hopefully) fun things. I read and review Straight and GLBT fiction, romance, fantasy, mystery/suspense, historical fiction, and erotica. Some reviews may contain adult content or concepts.
In accordance with the new US FTC Guidelines for bloggers, unless otherwise noted, all books reviewed on this site were purchased in new or used condition by me from various physical and online retailers.
Sophie’s Secret
Welcome to my blog! My name is Anesthezea. This blog is dedicated to book reviews, random discussion, a few book challenges, and a few other (hopefully) fun things. I read and review Straight and GLBT fiction, romance, fantasy, mystery/suspense, historical fiction, and erotica. Some reviews may contain adult content or concepts.
