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#nettle the goblin
c-rowlesdraws · 2 years
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nap rotisserie...
(a twist: this is all the same nap... they're just very chaotic sleepers)
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microwavebeeping · 2 years
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I think that it’s time that we appreciate stinging nettles as the boundary setting queens that they are. They’re really like “if you touch me I will stab you”
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xivymoonartx · 4 months
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fruit is decidedly Not Edible
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lady-book-trash · 1 year
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Some succulent dead-nettle
It looks so good I swear I can taste it,.,,
Circa 2/14/23.
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thegothiclibrary · 9 months
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Review of Nettle & Bone—Fairy-Tale Fantasy
Marrying a prince seems like the ending of a fairy tale, but for Marra’s sister’s it is only the beginning of a nightmare. So, Marra sets out on her own fairy tale quest to find whatever magic or powerful allies can kill a prince in T. Kingfisher’s Nettle & Bone, which came out last year. Having thoroughly enjoyed Kingfisher’s Poe-inspired horror tale What Moves the Dead, I was excited to see…
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ibrithir-was-here · 19 days
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Back from vacation! And instead of fixing my sleep schedule properly I made two fan covers of @tkingfisher ‘s fantastic fairytale book ‘Nettle and Bone’ cuz I have no self control xD
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Also I haven’t drawn in a week and that’s waaaay too long for me. Anyway go check out the book!
It’s really fun and spooky and has the feel of an epic fairytale DnD campaign; with the fantastic cast of motley heroes—a sort of a nun princess, a fay stolen soldier, a dust-witch with a demon possessed chicken, a comfy fairy godmother who’s more then she seems and The Best Dog who happens to be made of bones—all off to save a princess from a wicked prince, while traveling through a deliciously creepy Goblin Market, a forest of sympathetic cannibals, and one of the most incredibly scary dungeon crawls I’ve ever encountered.
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scoobyshowdowns · 8 months
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scooby doo side character showdown - the first round matchups are here!
side a:
scott mcdoon (be cool scooby doo: “all paws on deck”) VS detective beau neville (scooby doo on zombie island)
principal deedle (scooby doo the mystery begins) VS red herring (a pup named scooby doo)
professor kaufman (scooby doo and the cyberchase) VS jenkins (a pup named scooby doo)
horton doo (a pup named scooby doo: “the were-doo of were-manor”) VS jack o' lantern (scooby doo and the goblin king)
rufus raucus (what's new scooby doo: “riva ras regas”) VS rose (be cool scooby doo)
del chillman (scooby doo and the loch ness monster/chill out scooby doo) VS winnie the werewolf (scooby doo ghoul school)
whoopsy doo (the new scooby doo mysteries: “wedding bell blues”) VS coco diablo (trick or treat scooby doo)
crystal & amber (scooby doo and the alien invaders) VS marius brancusi (big top scooby doo)
ruby doo (the scooby doo and scrappy doo show/a pup named scooby doo) VS ben ravencroft (scooby doo and the witch's ghost)
omar karam (scooby doo where's my mummy) VS detective chomps (be cool scooby doo: “saga of the swamp beast”)
skip & peggy jones (scooby doo pirates ahoy) VS daniel illiwara (scooby doo and the music of the vampire)
marcie fleach (scooby doo mystery incorporated) VS trudy (scooby doo camp scare)
side b:
vincent van ghoul (13 ghosts of scooby doo/curse of the 13th ghost) VS scooby dum (the scooby doo show/laffalympics)
emma gale (scooby doo stage fright) VS verona dempsey (what’s new scooby doo: “fright house of a lighthouse”)
scrappy doo (various) VS wolfgong (scooby doo the reluctant werewolf)
spooky doo (archie comics: “the legend of spooky doo”) VS eric staufer (scooby doo and the cyberchase)
mayor janet nettles (scooby doo mystery incorporated) VS the hex girls (various)
tawny rogers (shaggy's showdown) VS wendy airs (scooby doo and scrappy doo: “the scary sky skeleton”)
miss grimwood (scooby doo and the ghoul school) VS madelyn dinkley (abracadabra-doo)
the secret six (what’s new scooby doo) VS flim flam (13 ghosts of scooby doo/curse of the 13th ghost)
dooby doo (the new scooby doo mysteries: “the dooby dooby doo ado”) VS principal quinlan (scooby doo mystery incorporated: “mystery solvers club state finals”)
shannon blake (scooby doo and the loch ness monster) VS nova (scooby doo mystery incorporated)
cassidy williams/angel dynamite (scooby doo mystery incorporated) VS eddie jones (a pup named scooby doo: “chickenstein lives”)
alice may (scooby doo mystery incorporated) VS bill mclemore (scooby doo and the cyberchase)
ill update with the date + time for the tournament to begin soon!!! feel free to familiarise urself with the characters u dont know in the meantime…..
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pieandpaperbacks · 3 months
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Top 10 books of 2023
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My favourite books of 2023, in no particular order:
A House With Good Bones - T. Kingfisher I was so disappointed when this didn’t win the goodreads choice awards for horror of the year. It’s so creepy and unsettling but in a uniquely T. Kingfisher way that somehow manages to still be funny and kind of cozy.
Wyrd Sisters - Terry Pratchett Of all the Discworld books I read this year, this one was definitely my favourite. I feel like Pratchett started to find his stride in this one, which I noticed more reading chronologically. Also it’s a spoof of Macbeth, and I’m a sucker for anything with Macbeth jokes.
The Bone Season (10th Anniversary Revised Edition) - Samantha Shannon I’ve loved the Bone Season series ever since I binged it in 2021, but the first book always fell a little flat for me. This revised edition fixed all the problems I had with the original. Highly recommend if you’re looking for a really unique fantasy/dystopia.
A Day of Fallen Night - Samantha Shannon I love Priory of the Orange Tree, so I was a little hesitant about a prequel, but ADOFN somehow managed to surpass Priory. It’s a  perfect high fantasy that spans many countries and characters, and features multiple sapphic characters, as well as bisexual, asexual, and other queer folks. This was my absolute favourite book of the year.
Stone Butch Blues - Leslie Feinberg One of the most important queer novels of the last 50 years. So glad I read this.
Tell Me I'm An Artist - Chelsea Martin This book found me at just the right time. It asks what it means to be an artist, and explores the intersections between the art world and privilege, and looks at the age old question; what is art?
Gideon the Ninth - Tamsyn Muir I am so late to the Locked Tomb hype, and I can’t believe it took me this long to pick up Gideon the Ninth! The Locked Tomb is quickly becoming one of my favourite fantasy series.
Heartstopper Volume 5 - Alice Oseman I waited all year for this instalment of the Heartstopper series to come out, and I devoured it in one day. Alice Oseman's work is always beautiful and heartfelt, and Volume 5 of Heartstopper is no exception.
The Well of Ascension - Brandon Sanderson I dipped my toes into Sanderson's work for the first time this year, and I started with the Mistborn series. While the prose is not the most complex, the characters and setting are what truly drew me in. So far, The Well of Ascension is my favourite of the trilogy.
Nettle and Bone - T. Kingfisher I read six T. Kingfisher books this year, with the first one being Nettle and Bone, and it's still one of my favourites. A weird dark fairytale with goblin markets, a quest to kill a prince, grave witches, an evil puppet, and a chicken possessed by a demon. What else could you want?
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i always meant to make a final 2023 poll to wrap up all my monthly reading polls and uh. oops. well into 2024 now. better get on that
*aka: all these options are the books tumblr voted as the best one i finished each month
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Nettle & Bone by T. Kingfisher is a delightful, irreverent take on fairytales with a delightful dry wit, compelling world-building, and un-put-down-able narrative. Marra is the youngest of three sisters. The oldest was married to the prince of the Northern Kingdom—and came home unrecognizable in a coffin. The 2nd oldest is married to him now, struggling through endless pregnancies and awful abuse. Marra has been stored away in a convent, but she knows that if her 2nd sister dies, the prince will come for her next. And no one is going to try and save them but her.
This book reminded me of all that I love most about fantasy, reminding me of Seanan McGuire's own play with fairy tales. Nettle & Bone has everything: a grumpy witch, a chicken with a demon inside of her, a Goblin Market, and a bone dog, to name just a few. I loved reading a fairy tale adaptation featuring a woman near my age. The way characters from the start appeared later on, the way small clues and tricks reemerged, was all so well done. (Also, when she mentioned her fairy tale inspiration in the afterword, I was completely gagged. In a pleasant way.) I devoured this one with a happy, sumptuous richness, delightful, emotional, and fun. It has my personal Hugo Award vote!
Content warnings for animal death, domestic abuse, miscarriage, and cannibalism, sexual assault mentions
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agardenandlibrary · 1 year
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Nettle and Bone by T. Kingfisher
It’s funny how difficult it sometimes is to talk about a book you really enjoyed. When I read a book I hate, I find there are plenty of things to say about it – the art of complaining is near and dear to my heart. But what about when a book is just right? When a book is simply written and executed in a way that feels exactly the way it ought to.
Nettle and Bone is a perfect little book. In a world with godmothers and princesses, goblin markets and dust-wives, Marra, youngest princess of a tiny kingdom, sets out to kill her sister’s cruel husband. Marra is wracked with uncertainty and regret – why didn’t she notice her sister’s pain sooner, will killing the prince actually help, what can quiet, politically unsuited Marra possibly do to help? 
Marra sets out on her quest with the barest of plans: find someone who can help. She collects a ragtag group: a man stolen by fairies, a dust-wife, a bone dog, and a godmother whose only blessing is health. Not exactly the heroes of story and song but they’re all there is.
If Marra fails, her kingdom might disappear, her sister might die, and Marra herself might be next in line to marry the cruel prince.
Kingfisher builds a world of fairytales and also, in contradiction to most fairytales, practicality. Marra is a stubborn and determined character. She has panic attacks, doubts and second guesses herself, but goes forward because no one else can. Also, she makes herself a bone dog who is a very good boy. It was delightful from cover to cover.
Recommended if you liked: Stardust, Discworld, or Howl’s Moving Castle.
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c-rowlesdraws · 1 year
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started sketching this comic for Day 13 of @thebeardlyben’s “Gnollvember” prompt list... decided to use it to practice a more casual sort of inking style, and finished yesterday in between working on art people are actually waiting on me for.
Day 13 - “Think Twice”! Sweet Pea knows what money is, but Nettle wishes she'd be more mindful of their food budget.
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literary-illuminati · 6 months
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Book Review 54 - Nettle & Bone by T. Kingfisher
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I’ve been meaning to read some of Kingfisher’s work for a long while now, but I can’t say I knew a thing about this book when I started it. Or, well, I know it had been nominated for a Hugo, which is the entire reason I grabbed it, but otherwise! Extremely charming book overall, even if let down a bit by some tonal inconsistency at the beginning. But then, I’m kind of a sucker fr the whole faerie tale fantasy aesthetic when it’s done well, and this delivered it in spades.
The story follows Marra, third-born princess of a small coastal kingdom, in her quest to kill the evil prince who married and murdered one of her sisters and is waiting to do the same for her other only until she gives her a son. This involves recruiting the aid of a clever and powerful Dust Wife, a necromancer living among the dead of a necropolis, and walking with her across the land to the prince’s city, recruiting the requisite band of quirky friends and allies along the way. There is a fairy godmother’s blessing/curse, and a dramatic christening, and a visit to a goblin market, and ann adorable skeleton dog named Bonedog. Intercut with the present timeline is Marra’s backstory, dolled out in small chunks through the first half or so of the book.
Tone-wise I’d probably call this, I don’t know, whimsical? Fairy Tale fantasy is probably the best way to put it – Marra’s home is literally named the Coastal Kingdom, and the prince’s is the Northern Kingdom. Humour abounds, though in general it’s more endearing than, like, actually funny. Fairy godmothers and their blessings play a loadbearing role in the plot. Despite the subject matter, it’s all a fun and fairly light read – magic is (despite all the corpses) more wondrous than terrible, the heroine’s fortunes basically follow a straight upward curve from page one onwards, aside from the prince himself there’s not too much of the way of actual evil around, the action scenes are more fun adventure setpieces that traumatic bloodbaths, and in the end cleverness and making friends carries the day and gets the princess her happy ending (which, to be fair, does include ceasing to be a princess).
All that said, my absolute favourite two scenes in the book both suffer from the fact that, as wonderfully evocative as they are, they both seem like they were lifted out of a different and rather stranger book and into this one. One, a detour to a Goblin Market, only slightly, and I adore well done and properly fae and alien goblin market settings so much that reading it made me want to go find a Changeling campaign I could join. The other though, is the opening scene of the whole book – starting in media res as Marra quite literally tears her hands apart picking through a pit of bones to find what she needs to assemble a complete skeleton of a dog with enchanted wire, open wounds growing more infected by the minute as she tries to complete an impossible task before the cannibal spirits who haunt the blistered land she hides within find and feast upon her.
Then she leaves, and never suffers another actually dangerous injury again, and the witch who gave her these impossible tasks tasks is in open mouthed shock she actually did it and just agrees to help her and it’s time for a roadtrip. The whole narrative takes a sharp turn towards whimsy, is what I mean. Not a bad thing, but took some real adjustment.
Otherwise – look, I know that most people enjoy romance subplots in their books. Consider it a value ad. I do not understand that at all. The romance in this book was just a total nothing, felt like it existed entirely out of obligation. Like, inoffensive? But it was tangential and minor enough not to really matter, but still took up enough wordcount hitting all the mandatory beats that I started to resent it.
Also, the protagonist is theoretically thirty, but also carefully written to be sheltered and unworldly/inexperienced enough that if you made her the standard issue 20 y/o fantasy protagonist basically nothing about her would change. Which just, like, why?
Anyway, fun read! Nothing to set the world on fire, but I did enjoy it, and will make a point of digging up some of Kingfisher’s other stuff in the future probably.
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xivymoonartx · 3 months
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finally made a proper ref sheet for this gobby of mine
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terapsina · 2 years
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Book Recs for Science Fiction and Fantasy books with little to no romance. Because I'm tired.
(if you've got more recommendations, PLEASE share)
Nettle & Bone by T. Kingfisher.
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The main character Marra is the youngest of three daughters, a princess from a tiny, perilously placed kingdom who was sent to a convent when she was 15. It's been just as long since then, and recently she found out her older sister has for years now been abused by the prince she's married to. A prince protected by both his position and the magic of his Godmother's christening gift.
The book is about Marra going on a quest to kill the prince and save her sister.
It also contains a lot of death magic, spirits, terrible curses, impossible tasks, bone dogs, dust wives, godmothers and goblin markets. It's written like a novel but constructed like a fairytale.
Main character is neither thin nor 'pretty', which makes for a nice change of pace. Does contain a smidgen of romance but it's barely there, mostly background and never the focus, so it just doesn't get a chance to get obnoxious.
It does however get rather dark in places (think Gideon the Ninth levels).
The Light Brigade by Kameron Hurley.
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A heavy read about the horrors of war, the ugliness of a world where capitalism and corporate monopolies have been allowed to run without opposition, and the lies those in power feed to their soldiers and civilians to make them think the atrocities justified.
The story follows Dietz, an infantry soldier who has a strange reaction to the technology that allows soldiers to be sent through insane distances by being transformed into light. It becomes quickly apparent that Dietz is experiencing the war vastly out of order, especially when Dietz starts seeing friends die before meeting them.
Very hard to read but full of impactful moments. I'd recommend listening to the audiobook if possible, it's voiced by Cara Gee (who plays Camina Drummer in The Expanse) and she does a FANTASTIC job bringing the story to life.
Characters have a lot of sex (not sex scenes as such though), but basically nearly zero romance (it's more: relieving the stress and having a human connection in the middle of war kinda deal). I do say 'nearly' zero, because the main character (who is bisexual btw) does occasionally think about an ex.
All Systems Red (and all following Murderbot books) by Martha Wells.
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Probably everyone and their roomba knows about this one but it would be a crime not to mention it.
Books follow Murderbot, a Rogue SecUnit who has hacked its government module (a thing that when intact, and working, would fry Murderbot's brain if it failed to follow an order). The expected result in Rogue SecUnits would be to go on a wild murder spree, but once free Murderbot discovers it can download vast amounts of TV, books, movies, music and other such stuff, it decides to consume the media instead.
'As a heartless killing machine, [it's] a terrible failure.'
Other characters around it might maybe be having romances (Murderbot isn't paying attention and it's not relevant) but if someone mentioned it having one, it would stare at them with a face drawn in horror, and probably never talk to them again.
The voice of Murderbot is humorous and awesome. Recommend these books to EVERYONE. Absolutely everyone.
Sisters of the Vast Black (and the book following) by Lina Rather.
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Follows the Sisters of the Order of Saint Rita. The setting is a future where people have expanded far into the galaxy, some decades after the last time the Central Governance tried to keep power over the colonies.
The Sisters in question travel in a living ship (the absolute coolest ship I've seen in quite a while), and go where they're needed. Technically still under the power of the Church, but not really being affected all that much by its edicts when they're so far away from Earth. Unfortunately the Church is trying to regain its control over 'the flock' recently and sends them a very obnoxious priest who just doesn't understand the realities of life in the black (he's very early-season-Wesley-Wyndam-Pryce about it).
Then they receive a distress call from a newly-formed colony though, and the Sisters will have to make a choice between following orders from the Church and doing the right thing.
One of the Sisters does have a romantic connection with a woman she met before the start of the story (but the romance itself is nearly absent and more focuses on her struggle to choose between love and her faith (would like to add that the problem is the fact that she's a nun not that she has feelings for a woman)).
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And other books that I have enjoyed, that don't contain overpowering amounts of romance.
Discworld novels by Terry Pratchett (always a safe bet and absolutely worth all its hype, especially the ones following the witches (Granny Weatherwax is the greatest character ever)), A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking by T. Kingfisher (middle grade book that's fun to read but also contains adult themes and in my opinion is enjoyable whatever your age), Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir (a fun read, which gave me an extreme soft spot for the... character the main character ends up meeting), Imperial Radch trilogy by Ann Leckie (from the POV of the only surviving Ancillary of a ship whose AI once had hundreds of bodies, she starts out on a revenge mission against the leader of the Empire), The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison (deals with a very kind-hearted half-elven/half-goblin son of the Emperor who has just been given the throne, very blatant racism allegory shown in the story, but it's also not trying to hide it (elves being fair skinned and goblins having dark skin), some romance but the 'arranged marriage' kind and not the focus).
Seriously if you have recs, please share.
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booksandchainmail · 4 months
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re: recent discussion of cozy fantasy
Looking at some lists that popped up when I searched cozy fantasy/sci fi, I've read precisely half of this goodreads list: https://www.goodreads.com/blog/show/2496-36-cozy-and-feel-good-fantasy-and-sci-fi-books
and they are:
The House in the Cerulean Sea: quit your soul-destroying job! find emotionally fulfilling work with misfit children!
Legends and Lattes: slice-of-life coffeeshop, minor romance
Witchmark: traumatized veteran working as a doctor, finds romance and government exploitation
The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet: slice of life on a spaceship
A Psalm for the Wild-Built: monk and robot hang out and talk philosophy
Paladin's Grace: fantasy romance
Silver in the Wood: fae romance
The Goblin Emperor: abused young man unexpectedly inherits an empire, struggles
The Spare Man: mystery in space, with added romance
Piranesi: abstract, literary sort of novel about a strange man living in a strange place
A Marvelous Light: fantasy romance
Unnatural Magic: fantasy romance
All Systems Red: sci-fi action with comedic narrator
Stardust: fairy-tale-like fantasy
Half a Soul: fairy-tale-like fantasy romance
Nettle and Bone: fantasy novel, whimsical narrator
The Curse of Chalion: historical fantasy, political drama and war and curses?
Howl's Moving Castle: comedic, also for children
I think the major elements here are:
A) Books that are as much romances as fantasies, and so place more weight on emotional/character conclusions than plot ones
B) Book with a clear narrative voice, comedic or snarky or whimisical
C) Hurt/Comfort
D) Looser focus, seeing more day-to-day than tightly focused on the plot
I think all these books meet at least one criteria, and most meet multiple. That said, I'm baffled at the inclusion of some of these books, in particular Curse of Chalion, which opens with the protagonist having narrowly escaped slavery with scarring so bad people assume it was done as a penalty for child molestation, and then proceeds to political drama around the joining of fantasy!Castille and fantasy!Aragon, periodically interrupted by divine cancer.
Also, while Unnatural Magic is certainly not following conventional fantasy novel plot weights, the vibe it's going for is less "cozy" and more, uh, "horny"
tagging @literary-illuminati and @apollo-cackling
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