i enjoy being a girl

Feb. 10th, 2026 05:29 pm
pensnest: Barbue in magenta top, cowboy hat and grin (Barbie Cowgirl)
[personal profile] pensnest
I have acquired a rather splendid scarlet T-shirt which bears the following legend:

THINGS WE DID:
Built this city; shot the Sheriff

THINGS WE DIDN'T DO:
Start the fire; shoot the Deputy

THINGS WE WANT TO DO:
Break free; know what love is

THINGS WE WILL DO:
Rock you, Anything for love

THINGS WE WON'T DO:
That.

I should like to make a feminine version. Can you help? I want phrases sung by women, in whatever context. Any suggestions for any of the categories will be considered gratefully, and I will amend this post accordingly, though bear in mind that I am old-fashioned and may not recognise them all!

THINGS WE DID:

THINGS WE DIDN'T DO:

THINGS WE WANT TO DO:
Zig a zig Ah
be loved by you

THINGS WE WILL DO:

THINGS WE WON'T DO:

Demons, Witches, and More

Feb. 10th, 2026 04:30 pm
[syndicated profile] smartbitches_feed

Posted by Amanda

The Next Best Fling

The Next Best Fling by Gabriella Gamez is $2.99! This is book one in the Librarians in Love series and it came out over the summer. The main characters enter into a no-strings-attached relationship to get over their crushes on other people.

Two broken hearts decide that the best way to get over their first loves is with a no-strings-attached relationship in this spicy and charming debut romance.

Librarian Marcela Ortiz has been secretly in love with her best friend for years—and when he gets engaged, she knows it’s long past time to move on. But before she gets the chance, she has a bigger problem to contend with in the form of Theo Young, ex-NFL player and older brother of the man she’s in love with. When she discovers Theo’s plans to confess his feelings for his brother’s fiancée at their engagement party, Marcela is quick to stop him—despite how tempting it is to let him run away with the bride-to-be. She manages to convince Theo to sleep off his drunken almost-mistake at her place and when they arrive at a family brunch the next day together, everyone wrongly assumes they hooked up.

Since Theo needs a cover for his feelings for the bride and Marcela needs a distraction from her unrequited feelings for the groom, they decide to roll with the lie. Until one late night at a bar, they take it a step further and discover a layer of attraction neither realized existed. Soon, they find themselves exploring the simmering chemistry between them, whether in library aisles or Marcela’s bed. There are no boundaries for the rebound relationship they form—just a host of complicated feelings, messy familial dynamics, and uncovered secrets that threaten to tear them apart before they can even admit to themselves that their rebound is working. Maybe a little too well.

Add to Goodreads To-Read List →

You can find ordering info for this book here.

 

 

 

The Unfortunate Side Effects of Heartbreak and Magic

The Unfortunate Side Effects of Heartbreak and Magic by Breanne Randall is $1.99! This is paranormal women’s fiction. Check triggers for this, as this does seem to touch on heavier topics.

Sadie Revelare has always believed that the curse of four heartbreaks that accompanies her magic would be worth the price. But when her grandmother is diagnosed with cancer with only weeks to live, and her first heartbreak, Jake McNealy, returns to town after a decade, her carefully structured life begins to unravel.

With the news of their grandmother’s impending death, Sadie’s estranged twin brother Seth returns to town, bringing with him deeply buried family secrets that threaten to tear Sadie’s world apart. Their grandmother has been the backbone of the family for generations, and with her death, Sadie isn’t sure she’ll have the strength to keep the family, and her magic, together.

As feelings for Jake begin to rekindle, and her grandmother growing sicker by the day, Sadie faces the last of her heartbreaks, and she has to decide: is love more important than magic?

Add to Goodreads To-Read List →

You can find ordering info for this book here.

 

 

 

How Not to Hex a Gentleman

How Not to Hex a Gentleman by Valia Lind is $2.49 at Amazon! This has a grumpy, witchy heroine, and her helpless neighbor who keeps making a bad impression.

Kennedy Hellebore knows how to keep a secret. She’s been a witch-in-hiding her whole life. But when she moves to Edinburgh for a study-abroad program, the enchanting city seems to have plans of its own. Including magically bonding her to three unexpected new friends.

Bennett MacKay never meant to run (literally) into his beautiful neighbor and would do anything to make it up to her. Lucky for him, she needs help with Edinburgh lore, and that’s his specialty.

Kennedy’s soon had enough of her gorgeous—and frustrating—Scottish neighbor, because Bennett can’t seem to help making a fool of himself as he tries to win over the grumpy beauty. She’s got enough to do without him making her already messy life messier.

Romance isn’t the only magic brewing in the Edinburgh air and Kennedy needs to focus, but as they spend time researching the city’s history, she can’t help but be charmed as Bennett’s sunny personality slowly cracks through her walls.

She’s spent her whole life hiding her powers, and her heart. He’s found out what happens when those you love most, leave you. Can they trust each other enough to risk their hearts? Or is the magic of love not strong enough?

Practical Magic meets Charmed in this cozy fantasy romcom, full of sweetness, found family, laughter, love, and magical shenanigans. How Not to Hex a Gentleman is the first in a series of standalone romances set in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Add to Goodreads To-Read List →

You can find ordering info for this book here.

 

 

 

Summoning Mr. Wrong

Summoning Mr. Wrong by Callie Colby is $1.49 at Amazon! This is a paranormal romance novella and the first book in a series.

A broke college grad with bad luck. A demon who refuses to leave my couch.

I was just trying to manifest some abundance. Light a candle, chant a little, maybe get lucky with rent money.

Instead, I woke up to six feet of smug, tattooed demon lounging in my living room, eating my cereal and mocking my life choices.

Apparently, I signed some kind of contract, and now he can’t leave until he fulfills a “favor.” Which, so far, has meant reorganizing my kitchen, sabotaging my dating apps, and making suggestive comments every time I so much as look at him.

Asmodeus is arrogant, ridiculously hot, and way too domestic for someone who claims to be an ancient being of darkness. And the longer he sticks around, the more suspicious I get.

Because his idea of a “favor” doesn’t look like torment at all. It looks a lot like trying to win my heart.

Add to Goodreads To-Read List →

You can find ordering info for this book here.

 

 

 

Monday Music Meme

Feb. 10th, 2026 05:51 pm
extrapenguin: Ye Zun goes Yay! with sunburst-thingy behind him (ye zun sunshine)
[personal profile] extrapenguin
(Am I radically redefining the definition of Monday? Why yes, yes I am. Any day can be Monday if you believe hard enough!)

Today's challenge was slightly difficult with my commitment to new music – it generally takes time and repetitive exposure to learn all the lyrics – so my options were some songs I'd vidded, basically ... and the one I like the most, I want to use next week! So then I remembered this joyous number about the awe and wonder of childhood, of the thrill of stories, of wanting to be taken for a ride, and realized I do know all of the lyrics, because how could I not? It is perfect.

a song that you know all the lyrics of
Deep Sun - Storyteller


the lyrics )


prompts under the cut

a song you discovered this month
a song that makes you smile
a song that makes you cry
a song that you know all the lyrics of
a song that proves that you have good taste
a song title that is in all lowercase
a song title that is in all uppercase
an underrated song
a song that has three words
a song from your childhood
a song that reminds you of summertime
a song that you feel nostalgic to
the first song that plays on shuffle
a song that someone showed you
a song from a movie soundtrack
a song from a television soundtrack
a song about being 17
a song that reminds you of somebody
a song to drive to
a song with a number in the title
a song that you listen to at 3am in the morning
a song with a long title
a song with a color in the title
a song that gets stuck in your head
a song in a different language
a song that helps you fall asleep at night
a song that describes how you feel right now
a song that you used to hate but love today
a song that you downloaded
a song that you want to share
lydamorehouse: (MN fist)
[personal profile] lydamorehouse
 loon piercing a fish labeled ICE (by Fayrn Hughes)
Image: A loon made of many eyes stabbing a fish labled ICE with the words: Gone ICE Fishing (by Fayrn Hughes)

No laser eyes, but, yes, loons STAB fish with their insanely sharp beaks. There is video. It is wild.

So, I know there is some concern about whether or not I should keep these posts public, but I would like to. I am very careful not to name names (especially after the whole Capclave misadventure), and, I guess, I would be surprised if ICE infiltrated Dreamwidth to track me (or any of the rest of you) down. Obviously, we would be vulnerable to a Google Alert, but I can't imagine what the Feds would search on. ICE in Minnesota is going to get a tremendous number of Google Alerts at the moment. I'm sorry if that cools anyone's enthusiasm to join the conversation. However, I do think it is worth keeping things open so that folks who might not otherwise see this news, will. And my Food Communists have actively been asking people to push out calls for monetary assistance on social media. So, like, going public is one of the ways we are fighting in this resistance. 

Without further ado, here's what's been happening in my life.

Let's see. So, last Friday I was chatting with neighbors, as you do, when we were standing outside of our local mosque. A woman there asked if anyone would be willing to join a group that is trying to keep eyes on school pick-ups and drop-offs. I thought I might be able to help out, so I exchanged the proper Signal information, got on the right groups, and then attended an in-person meeting last Sunday.  This group is not in my immediate neighborhood, so I travelled to a DIFFERENT Lutheran Church to sit with a bunch of folks and talk about what's going on. This was their usual neighborhood gathering and I was only there to get connected into the Rapid Response team. But, it was generally very fascinating.

Without going into technical details (and I really couldn't even if I wanted to because I am no one's idea of a tech head), I can say that there are neighborhoods in Saint Paul that are already planning for what happens if/when the government shuts down Signal or the Internet in order to stop our efforts to track them. Friends? We are living in the solar punk future and it gives me such hope, I can not even. 

As it happens, however, the Rapid Response team did not meet until the very end when I needed to run off, but I happened to sit in a pew next to one of the "guys in the chair," (a volunteer dispatcher), who showed me all the how-tos before I had to run.

Monday was my first patrol and... it was a bit of a technical nightmare at first, but I got connected to the live call eventually... and, I am happy to report, all my students got off their buses safely. There was a tense moment when Saint Paul police happened to be doing parking enforcement at the same time. They aren't SUPPOSED to be aiding ICE, but I did let dispatch know of their presence and that everything seemed legit (and, in fact, was.)  That was, as others have probably talked about when they go "commuting," both an extremely tense half hour of my life, and also an extremely boring half hour of my life.

My patrol does cut into the amount time I'm able to spend vounteering with the Food Communists, but Mason has been going with me and picking up my slack. I'm also not planning to do the patrol every day of school. I could? And they absolutely do need people at my particular corner, but, I don't think it would be good for my ability to endure.

I am trying to strike a balance to make sure I stay committed to the things that I started with, like the Food Communists. There are a lot of us in this fight? But there are still plenty of roles to be filled! When I filled out my volunteer shifts for the bus patrol, there were more blank spaces than filled.

I worry that people are getting exhausted. I worry that Americans have already moved on to the next thing.

I do believe many of us will keep up this fight no matter what. We were here before Renee Good was murdered and we'll be here long after the last of the news cameras moves on to the next horror. 


tales from editing

Feb. 10th, 2026 10:22 am
lannamichaels: Astronaut Dale Gardner holds up For Sale sign after EVA. (Default)
[personal profile] lannamichaels


Still amused at the line I had to revise a few days ago: "She left right before [rest of sentence]"

There was nothing wrong with that sentence except. Except. "She left right".

So I had to revise and this line haunts me :P

HaBO: She Witnesses a Crime at a Ball

Feb. 10th, 2026 03:00 pm
[syndicated profile] smartbitches_feed

Posted by Amanda

This HaBO was sent in by Jamie, who wants to find this historical romance:

I am hoping to get some help on finding a book that I read over 10 years ago. It was a hardback book that I got at a used book sale. The cover was a reddish color, with a photo of a woman in a red or gold dress facing away from the camera on the back. It’s a regency-era historical romance, but with some adventure elements.

The details are pretty fuzzy, so they may not be remembered exactly correctly.

The main character has red hair and while attending a ball, she witnesses some sort of crime or break-in that the hero is somehow involved in, leading to a sort of accidental kidnapping situation. They end up traveling through some sort of smuggler caves or cellars, and are being pursued by some other bad people. I believe near the end they end up eloping in Scotland or Gretna Green.

My guess is that it may be part of a series, since it mentions in the beginning that the heroine has at least one happily married sister, but is not particularly interested in finding a match.

Sound familiar?

Killer Math

Feb. 10th, 2026 02:00 pm
[syndicated profile] cakewrecks_feed

Posted by Sharyn

+

=


Thanks to Alicia M. for reminding us to never cross a princess. Or anyone wielding a chainsaw.

*****

P.S. Remember, V Day is coming soon!

"V Is For Video Games" T-Shirt

*****

And from my other blog, Epbot:

MAN.

Feb. 10th, 2026 09:07 am
toothpastepancake: (nahla magenta)
[personal profile] toothpastepancake
Hey DW.

Things have been hard for me lately. I've been really obsessed with Starfleet Academy since I posted my review of it... and this is my first active, popular fandom in... oh... maybe a decade? And, of course, I'm someone who typically gravitates towards problematic/taboo ships, and I've gotten a lot of hate for being into Nahla/Caleb. (For a few days I actually thought it would be popular. Silly me!) I know, I know, antis are stupid and just block them, but I'm incredibly sensitive and I also already have lost quite a few friends due to a social media misunderstanding, plus I had to cut off my ex best friend for personal reasons, so I'm just... feeling very much like there's no place in the world I fit in. I'm starting to go in to situations assuming I will never be accepted and that the rug can and will be pulled out from underneath me at any moment.  I find myself wondering why I didn't come to that conclusion earlier.

Also, I don't want to go into it, but the Current Events with certain documents? (under cut for tw; not graphic but the very topic is enough to trigger me, and this is very negative)

Read more... )


Anyway, SFA has been a really big coping mechanism for me lately in regards to these events--Nahla/Caleb specifically is helping me cope with some shit, which I don't wanna go into for severely personal reasons, so to be hated on for how I enjoy this show when I am using it in this manner? It really hurts. I've been implied to be an ICE supporter, a child abuse supporter... I just can't handle it.

I find it difficult to be online, but my entire life is online. I have no friends IRL and no way to leave my house or usually bed because of my disability. I can only socialize through the internet---no other ways of socialization are accessible to me. So to have these agonies (not just the anti stuff, but the News In General) be everywhere, and the only feasible solution to having to see it be unplugging entirely... it's hard! And also I don't want to be the person who indulges in escapism at the detriment of staying informed and aware. But man. It's just. I don't know. Discord is doing a thing where it's making every single person do a face scan or ID upload and several of my friends are telling me goodbye because they don't want to do that (completely understandable!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) and that's. The main place I talk to my friends on. :(

I think I need to take a break from exchanges. I've had to default a lot recently. I really want to do Space Swap and HA but I think I need to focus on myself for a while. And it sucks because HA is my favorite exchange :/ We'll see if I can miraculously stop feeling awful by the time SpaSwap signups end.

Anyway, I care for you all deeply. Hope you're all well. <3


spiralsheep: Sheep wearing an eyepatch (Default)
[personal profile] spiralsheep
- Unwise Wording of the week: "Romance delivered in as little as 60 mins with Morrisons Now. Free delivery on your 1st order, use code: freedelnow. Choose Now". o_O

- Pre-Wednesday Reading: 18 books in January 2026 (no dnfs). These were my faves.

1. REDACTED fantasy novel (series), 4/5
Reminder, don't stan for creeps: when a rich and powerful 60-something is accused of sexually abusing his employee, who is 4 decades younger than him, the issue isn't whether she "consented" or not, the issue is why a 60-something is aiming himself at an employee (and with a notable age-gap).

2. Between the Stops, the view of my life from the top of the number 12 bus, by Sandi Toksvig, 2019, non-fiction autobiography and localised histories, 4/5
Fascinating, amusing, readable in short chunks (appropriately for both the subjects :D ). Another excellent suggestion from my book club ladies.

3. redacted & 4. children's picture book )

6. Spent, Alison Bechdel, 2025, slice of life comic, 5/5
An updated and reframed set of episodes continuing Bechdel's DtWOF series. Doesn't do exactly what it says on the tin but is entertaining and edifying anyway. Probably partly inexplicable to anyone unaware of DtWOF, and also anyone even mildly conservative.
(Thanks again to white_hart for this rec.)

9. Bandette vol.5, The Wedding of BD Belgique, by Paul Tobin and Colleen Coover, 2025, lighthearted crime-caper comic series (best not read as a standalone), 4/5
My love of the Bandette series is well known and this is another delightful episode.

10. REDACTED historical biography comic, 4/5
Who knew there were two Jane Austen biographical "graphic novels" from mainstream publishers? I also have the other one To Read before I formulate valid opinions.

11. reread & 12. you don't need my opinion & 13. reread )

14. This Much is True, by Miriam Margolyes, 2021, non-fiction autobiography, 4/5
After reading Between the Stops I wondered what else the library might have in the same classmark and luckily my eyes alighted on this volume. Margolyes, who is Ashkenazi Jewish, details her family history which she has researched meticulously, explains how she became the respected person she is (not a National Treasure but a National Trinket as she herself jokes), and goes on to share scurrilous but generally harmless celebrity anecdotes (only one of which I disbelieved as overly embellished from whatever original event occurred). If you've seen Margolyes on various chat shows then you might find some of this book repetitive and her second, Oh Miriam!, is rather regurgitative of the same material but it was new to me and I enjoyed this first one.
sholio: sun on winter trees (Default)
[personal profile] sholio
So I read the fourth book in this series (by accident, not realizing it was the fourth) a couple of years ago, and stalled out on book 1. After reading the SCP Foundation book last week, I decided there would never be a better time for a cosmic horror-comedy book I already owned - and I was so right, I marathoned the entire series this past week and absolutely loved it. There's a new book coming out in 2026 and I cannot WAIT.

These books, and especially the first half of book 1 (by far the weakest part of the series), are dudebro-ish and sometimes very early-2000s deliberately transgressive humor (i.e. South Park - this gets MUCH less as it goes on, but never really goes away), and they are sometimes lovely and insightful, and sometimes just incredibly stupid, and I can see why someone would bounce off them, especially considering how I struggled to get through the early parts of book 1. But after four books, I love these characters so much that I will follow them anywhere. Even through the stupid parts!

These books, especially the first one, are primarily narrated by Dave, a slacker dudebro in the general style of early 2000s movies etc (this is very clearly in the style of the Kevin Smith movies, South Park, and other things of that era). Dave is a depressed loner working at a video store whose best and only friend is John, a Bad Idea Friend who takes every drug he gets his hands on, belongs to a shitty band, and drags Dave into a never-ending series of terrible, terrible life choices.

The plot-relevant one of these is taking a new drug sweeping their depressed Midwestern town of [Undisclosed], a drug which looks like mobile and intelligent used motor oil. It turns out that it kills most of the people who take it, but they are among the few survivors, and are suddenly able to step outside time and space, and see everything going on their small depressed Midwestern town -- all the ghosts, all the cosmic entities. They can uncontrollably travel in time, they can freeze time, and they're swept up in an attempt to fix a series of goddawful cosmic horror rifts in time and space that are wrecking their whole dimension.

The third member of the group is drawn in during the first book when she becomes a victim and later a friend: Amy, who was shattered physically and emotionally in a car accident, and then comes to the attention of cosmic horrors; starts off as one of the people they're trying to help, and gets sucked into weird spacetime shenanigans with things that she (unlike John and Dave) can't actually see. It's with Amy's introduction that the first book feels like it really kicks off and gets good.

The body count is high and gory, there are tons of gore and grossout humor and some incredibly soft, emotional and deeply affecting moments as well. This is a series where
some spoilers for one of the booksthe big dilemma can be how do we kill some giant extradimensional maggots that pretend to be adorable human children, who everyone else sees as adorable human children, while they munch gorily on their caregivers and no one else can see it ... or maybe it's the realization that the hideous maggots are also children, deserving of care and consideration as any other children, and maybe the people you need to stop are the government agents coming to kill them.


If whether the dog dies is an important factor in your reading or viewing, please click
this spoilerthere is a dog, and the dog dies.


These books are so hard to rec, because you have to slog through the worst part of the series (the first half of book 1) to get to the almost transcendentally good late middle of book one; it can be lovely enough to make me cry or just spectacularly stupid within a chapter or two. A lot of stuff is brought up and then never explained. But sometimes the explanations made me put the book down and have feelings for a while. It made me laugh a lot. There are so many bodily fluids and terrible bodily function jokes. Some of its best moments involve the characters being forced to contend with the fact that life is complicated and stupid and cruel, and the best thing you can do, maybe the only thing you can do, is to simply be kind, and make the kind choice, if that's the only choice you have to make.

Sometimes defeating the apocalypse cultists means sitting down with them and understanding their heartbreaking loneliness and convincing them to walk away because you can be the person who turns them around and becomes the only person in their lives to ever believe in them and tell them that they can be something better than this.

... And sometimes it involves a triple-barreled shotgun and a plan involving a room full of fake silicon butts. That's what this series is like.

A spoiler from book 4 )

Fox Poo and other items of interest

Feb. 10th, 2026 05:35 pm
rattfan: Quote from Seanan McGuire's Incryptid series (Incryptid quote Seanan McGuire)
[personal profile] rattfan
I've been around to take some more pictures of Lake Claremont/The Swamp, so people can see what I'm on about. Well, that's one of the things I carry on about.

I went to the volunteers' seedling watering session on Sunday morning. They're going to think I don't talk much, because that's 7.30 am and the brain is not out of bed yet, but they'll learn. Somebody told me why we're doing it in that area, which was good to know. There used to be five Moreton Bay Fig trees there, but they fell victim to the polyphagous shothole borer, which is a tiny beetle that can kill really big trees. It's not from around here, but decided to move in.

photos.google.com/share/AF1QipNJMTB35YXYd0cKRpLOD0OtPN6WUzEd8Ov0uu1UkDIiZ0y1-L2kv8ciEMTNH4wNxg

Anyway, in no particular order, the photos depict: The shed where volunteers' equipment is kept, two of. The path to where the seedlings are. I didn't have my camera on the day and I can't go in there unless on official business. There's a distant photo of some of the seedlings taken from the public path. All this is a wetland in the centre of Perth, by the way. Claremont is an inner suburb, about six kilometres from the CBD if you take the bike path. [Inner-ish].

There's also one of the surviving Moreton Bay fig trees, which has some 'crime scene' tape up because a branch, the size of any other normal tree, fell off a while back. Then there's the lakeside with some of the residents. I'm told this is a lot of water for the lake to have in late summer, but there's quite a few weeks of hot weather yet to come.  Then a surprise, somebody's nest built almost in arm's reach of a public viewing area. Then a distance view of the whole lake.

Then we have some holes. They're as close as I've been able to get a camera to the elusive southwestern brown bandicoot, also called the quenda. I *think* these are quenda holes. I asked at the volunteers thing if there were rabbits here and someone said "rarely," though as we know, two rabbits are all you need. But I've seen and nearly broken my legs around rabbit holes and these don't look like those. Rob, Leece, what do you think?  In the link is a quenda someone prepared earlier.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quenda

There are definitely foxes, for whom live-capture traps have been set. Somebody had found fox scat right outside the shed. There was a moment of respectful silence for the knowledge of one who knew fox poo when he saw it.
tamaranth: me, in the sun (Default)
[personal profile] tamaranth
2026/018: Tools for Life: 10 Essential Therapy Skills Everyone Should Know — Dr Kirren Schnack

Our environment can influence the way our genes are expressed through a process known as epigenetics, with both positive and negative experiences influencing how our genes work... nature and nurture are constantly working together, reminding us that who we are is not set in stone. [Chapter 1]

Read by the author, who has a warm and restful voice, this is an overview of some common psychological issues and how to address them. There are ten chapters, ranging from 'How You've Become Who You Are' (which examines the role of genetics, culture and trauma in shaping personality, and discusses attachment theory) to 'Healing from the Pain Caused by Others' (which focuses on relationships ending, forgiveness and closure, and how to move on). 

Read more... )
pingistam: (Default)
[personal profile] pingistam posting in [community profile] podfic_bingo
Title: Paper Stars by [archiveofourown.org profile] Seito
Reader: [archiveofourown.org profile] PingiStam
Bingo Square(s): November challenge - Wish
Fandom: Fullmetal Alchemist
Pairing: Edward Elric/Roy Mustang
Summary:
Folding Paper Stars can be fun. Who knows maybe your wish will come true. ("Make a wish, Edward,""That's not even a real star,""Just make a wish, Fullmetal.""Fine." "Umm, sir? What are you doing?""Folding paper stars,")
Rating: General Audiences
Content Notes: No Archive Warnings Apply
Link to Podfic: Paper Stars [Podfic]

Title: Silphium by [archiveofourown.org profile] Kotosk
Reader: [archiveofourown.org profile] PingiStam
Bingo Square(s): Trans Character
Fandom: Fullmetal Alchemist
Pairing: Edward Elric/Roy Mustang
Summary:
It dawned on Ed just how fucked she would be once her periods started, so the moment she had some free time after passing the state exams she set out to the state library. Ed was capable of reconstructing a female body from base elements at the age of ten - surely she could figure out what hormones could induce a miscarriage.
Rating: Mature
Content Notes: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Link to Podfic: Silphium [Podfic]

Title: It's a Party by [archiveofourown.org profile] metisket
Reader: [archiveofourown.org profile] PingiStam
Bingo Square(s): Repod Cold, January challenge - Party
Fandom: Fullmetal Alchemist
Summary:Once Edward became legal, the number of office outings to the pub went up exponentially. Possibly this was because Edward was really fun to take to a pub.
Rating: General Audiences
Content Notes: No Archive Warnings Apply
Link to Podfic: It's a Party [Podfic]

Title: Paper Cranes by [archiveofourown.org profile] Seito
Reader: [archiveofourown.org profile] PingiStam
Bingo Square(s): Fairy Tale
Fandom: Fullmetal Alchemist
Pairing: Edward Elric/Roy Mustang
Summary:
They say if you fold a thousand paper cranes, the gods will grant you one wish(Really, Fullmetal, first paper stars, now paper cranes.""What was that for?""That, Roy Mustang, was for kissing me last time.")
Rating: General Audiences
Content Notes: No Archive Warnings Apply
Link to Podfic: Paper Cranes [Podfic]

Title: Paper Triangles by [archiveofourown.org profile] Seito
Reader: [archiveofourown.org profile] PingiStam
Bingo Square(s): Read a Fic Cold
Fandom: Fullmetal Alchemist
Pairing: Edward Elric/Roy Mustang
Summary: Dragons represent Fire, the powers of the rules, and hidden secrets. (Why paper triangles and where was my hello when you came back?" )
Rating: General Audiences
Content Notes: No Archive Warnings Apply
Link to Podfic: Paper Triangles [Podfic]

Title: Paper Flowers by [archiveofourown.org profile] Seito
Reader: [archiveofourown.org profile] PingiStam
Bingo Square(s): Aspirational Project
Fandom: Fullmetal Alchemist
Pairing: Edward Elric/Roy Mustang
Summary: Paper flowers are the best way to deliver a message. "So who are these for?" "For you." "Aishiteru."
Rating: General Audiences
Content Notes: No Archive Warnings Apply
Link to Podfic: Paper Flowers [Podfic]

My Card
[syndicated profile] smartbitches_feed

Posted by Amanda

Welcome back!

This is where the month starts to get beefy for new releases. There are contemporary romances, mysteries, and more!

What new releases are you excited for this week? Let us know in the comments!

Honey Bee Mine

Honey Bee Mine by Sarah Dubb

Author: Sarah Dubb
Released: February 10, 2026 by Gallery Books
Genre: ,

In this small town, enemies-to-lovers romance from the author of Birding with Benefits, a type-A beekeeper and a former bad boy join forces to plan a summertime Honey Festival.

Like the bees she keeps, Penny Becker lives by a golden rule: never stop working. That mantra kept Becker Farms running when her grandfather, dad, and ex all left for greener pastures. But after taking out a loan for an expansion plan that crashed and burned, Penny has to find a way to pay or risk losing it all, and she’s betting everything on the Sullivan’s Glen Honey Festival. To save the farm, she has to make the festival bigger, better, and more successful than ever before—and she plans to do it all on her own.

Reformed bad boy turned restaurateur Zander Bouras left Sullivan’s Glen in a blaze of glory and vowed to never return. But when his ex-wife wants to go back for the summer, Zander grudgingly follows. He refuses to miss time with his son, and figures it’s finally time to deal with the farmhouse his grandfather left, for some reason, to him.

His first day in town brings Zander face to face with Penny, the girl whose perfect life mocked him from next door. It’s just his luck that his son loves her and her bees, and before he knows it he’s been volunteered to help plan a honey festival with the sexy, stubborn beekeeper whose braid he just wants to tug. As they learn to work together, Zander faces his demons and learns to see Sullivan’s Glen in a new light as Penny realizes that accepting help isn’t so bad—especially from the right person. But as the festival day and Zander’s departure draw near, they’ll have to decide if the romance buzzing between them can last past the sweet days of summer.

Amanda: Former bad boy has a kid who is obsessed with the heroine’s bee colony. I’m curious.

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The Midnight Taxi

The Midnight Taxi by Yosha Gunasekera

Author: Yosha Gunasekera
Released: February 10, 2026 by Berkley
Genre:

When the last fare of the night turns up dead in her backseat, a Sri Lankan American taxi driver works off the clock to clear her name in this mystery novel by debut author Yosha Gunasekera.

Siriwathi Perera doesn’t quite know where she’s going in life. She never expected to be a taxicab driver in New York City, struggling to make ends meet and still living with her parents at twenty-eight. The true-crime podcasts that keep Siri company as she drives don’t do much to make up for the legal career she imagined for herself, or the brother she’s grieving.

When public defender Amaya Fernando gets into her cab, they make a quick connection through their shared Sri Lankan roots. Siri, whose social circle is limited to her grade-school best friend, Alex, thinks things might finally be looking up with this new potential friendship. But she’s suddenly dropped into her own true crime when she discovers her next passenger murdered in the backseat, and she has to call Amaya sooner than she’d expected.

Pinned as the obvious and only suspect, and desperate to clear her name, Siri chases down leads across the boroughs of New York City with Amaya’s help. But with her court date looming, they have just five days to find out who really killed the midnight passenger—or Siri’s life will be over before she can even truly live it.

Sarah: This book’s cover copy grabbed me because of the characters and the short time span – they have 6 days to figure out who killed Siri’s last fare. It looks so layered and interesting and I’m so excited to read it.

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Murder Bimbo

Murder Bimbo by Rebecca Novack

Author: Rebecca Novack
Released: February 10, 2026 by Avid Reader Press / Simon & Schuster
Genre: ,

Murder Bimbo is Gone Girl for the Luigi Mangione era, and Rebecca Novack is one of our funniest and most acerbic new writers. —Catherine Lacey, author of Biography of X

An exhilarating and provocative debut perfect for fans of My Sister the Serial Killer, Yellowface, and Killing Eve—the origin story of sex worker turned assassin turned unlikely folk hero, Murder Bimbo, as told by the Bimbo herself (and then revised, uncensored, and reconsidered).

A thirty-two-year-old sex worker is shocked when she’s approached by undercover government agents to aid them in a top-secret plot to assassinate a politician known as “Meat Neck.” But once the deed is done, she realizes what made her the perfect She’s 100% disposable.

Holed up in an off-the-grid cabin in the woods, she now has only two days, her wits, and a laptop to save her own life.

Her best bet is to reach out to the wildly popular feminist investigative podcast Justice for Bimbos. In a hastily typed series of emails, the newly minted “Murder Bimbo” explains how she was recruited and then trained by a cabal of code-named US agents to take out Meat Neck.

Then she starts a new series of emails. This time, they’re addressed to her ex, and the facts line up a little differently…

Constructed in three increasingly unhinged acts, each a more subversive, twisted version of the story than the last, Murder Bimbo can be read as a gloriously bold literary thriller, a satirical megalomaniac’s manifesto, or a raucous send-up of the political insanity we all live inside every day. Either way, it’s a dead-serious announcement of an electric new voice in American literature.

Elyse: I would probably buy this book just for the title, but the plot sounds delightfully bananas.

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Operation Bounce House

Operation Bounce House by Matt Dinniman

Author: Matt Dinniman
Released: February 10, 2026 by Ace
Genre:

A man must fight for his planet against impossible odds when gamers from Earth attempt to remotely annihilate it in this epic, fast-paced novel from the New York Times bestselling author of the smash-hit Dungeon Crawler Carl.

All colonist Oliver Lewis ever wanted to do is run the family ranch with his sister, maybe play a gig or two with his band, and keep his family’s aging fleet of intelligent agriculture bots ticking as long as possible. As a fan of Earth television and culture, he figures it will be a good thing when the transfer gate finally opens all the way and restores instant travel and full communication between Earth and his planet, New Sonora. But there’s a complication.

Even though the settlers were promised they’d be left in peace, Earth’s government now has other plans. The colossal Apex Corporation is hired to commence an “eviction action.” But maximizing profits will always be Apex’s number one priority. Why spend money printing and deploying their own AI soldiers when they can turn it into a game? Why not charge bored Earthers for the opportunity to design their own war machines and remotely pilot them from the comfort of their own homes?

The game is called Operation Bounce House.

Oliver and his friends soon find themselves fighting for their lives against machines piloted by gamers who’ve paid a premium for the privilege. With the help of an old book from his grandfather and a bucket of rusty parts, Oliver is determined to defend the only home he’s ever known.

A brand new book from the author of Dungeon Crawler Carl.

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Promise Me

Promise Me by Sara Cate

Author: Sara Cate
Released: February 10, 2026 by Sourcebooks Casablanca
Genre: , , ,
Series: Sinful Manor #2

He let him get away once… Now he has seven days to get him back.

Fifteen years ago, Declan Barclay left for uni with plans of becoming an artist and escaping his family’s heavy rule. What he didn’t expect was to meet a soft and enigmatic actor in desperate need of guidance…and a friend. Declan quickly took Colin Shelby under his wing and the two were inseparable ever since.

That is until the night before graduation, when lines were crossed and everything changed.

Now, after years apart, Colin is back in Declan’s life, but he’s not alone. He’s made a promise to marry someone else, and Declan only has seven days to win back the love of his life. There’s just one His family is counting on him to pull this wedding off at Barclay Manor.

With just one week until vows are exchanged, Declan must decide—stay silent and lose Colin for good, or risk everything and ask the one who got away to promise him forever.

Elyse: Cate is an auto buy for me.

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She Made Herself a Monster

She Made Herself a Monster by Anna Kovatcheva

Author: Anna Kovatcheva
Released: February 10, 2026 by Mariner Books
Genre: , ,

A heady, dark-hued Gothic gem of a debut novel: in nineteenth-century Bulgaria, a self-proclaimed vampire slayer—actually, a traveling con artist—joins forces with a teenage girl to create a monster deadly enough to vanquish their own demons. 

We make monsters in order to destroy them. For thousands of years, we’ve named witches and burned them, suspected demons and exorcised them. When crops die and children fall ill, who better to blame than a monster?

In nineteenth-century Bulgaria, Yana rides from one desolate town to the next, staging grisly displays while the villagers sleep: animal corpses in the public square, eggs filled with blood in the chicken coop. She tells the stricken villagers stories of vampires that stalk the night. Then Yana eliminates the threat, and leaves seeds of hope in her wake.

The village of Koprivici, however, is plagued by exceptional illness and misfortune, its children rarely surviving infancy. There, Yana meets Anka: a headstrong orphan who the villagers blame for their curse. As Anka approaches womanhood, the village Captain is grooming her for marriage against her will. Anka is powerless against him—that is, until Yana arrives. Together, the orphan and the vampire slayer hatch a plan: to conjure a monster so vile, it might provide cover for Anka to escape. But their plan quickly takes on a horrifying life of its own…

Inspired by Slavic folklore, She Made Herself a Monster concocts a clever mix of witchery, ghost stories, heresy, and deception to spin a feminist fable about agency and the power of collective action. It is a haunting and astoundingly cathartic tale of two women who will stop at nothing to take control of their fate.

Amanda: Any book that uses Judith Beheading Holofernes for a cover is an automatic yes

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Still Into You

Still Into You by Erin Connor

Author: Erin Connor
Released: February 10, 2026 by Forever
Genre: ,

Two exes reunite for a make-or-break interview that will either bring them back together  or drive them apart forever.

Sloane Donavan dreamed of being a rock journalist ever since she posted her first MySpace blog. Now, one journalism degree, a failed internship, and dozens of backstage passes later, she’s struggling to land a full-time staff position. So when punk rock’s most notorious and elusive frontman offers her his first interview in eight years, Sloane should be jumping at the opportunity—but taking it would mean reconnecting with the only guy she’s ever loved (and lost), Dax Nakamura.

Unable to pass up a shot at making her name—and helping Dax clear the reputation that’s plagued his—Sloane agrees. It’s only a conflict of interest if anyone finds out. But the article Dax wants and the salacious tell-all Sloane’s editor is expecting are two completely different stories. And as old feelings resurface, Sloane’s journalistic integrity hangs in the balance. This is the career-making piece she’s been waiting for, but it comes with a the chance to rewrite the ending with her first and only love.

Amanda: The last second chance romance with a setting in music I read was a 5-star read, and I normally avoid those tropes. Let’s see if we can go two for two.

Dahlia: Connor’s debut, Unromance, was one of my favorites last year, so especially as a former rock journalist-wannabe, I’m excited to see what she brings back to the table. (Plus, demisexual rep!)

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Throne of Nightmares

Throne of Nightmares by Kerri Maniscalco

Author: Kerri Maniscalco
Released: February 10, 2026 by Little, Brown and Company
Genre: , , ,
Series: Prince of Sin #3

‘Beware of waking the gods, their dreams are often our nightmares . . .’

A book of dangerous magic draws two readers into a perilous quest to find it – and their own happy ending – in this action-packed standalone fantasy romance from Sunday Times bestselling sensation Kerri Maniscalco.

A prince who prefers games of the head to those of the heart.

Prince Sloth hates leaving his enchanted library, but when a forgotten deity threatens the very fabric of the Underworld, he’s thrust into a race against time. He must find the Book of Nightmares – an ancient artifact that has the power to break worlds – before it unleashes a deadly game to free its master, the Goddess of Night. When a betrayal leaves him marked, and desperate, his path collides with a young woman who possesses the legendary Phoenix Tear – a portal stone unlike any other.

A librarian who is all sweet sunshine . . . until she burns.

Lore Brimstone has always loved getting lost in a book – but she never meant literally. Yet, after visiting a traveling caravan, she quickly finds herself transported to a terrifying but oddly familiar world – with a calculating prince at her side. Realizing they are living out her favourite novels one by one, they face off against an increasingly dark magic as they try to survive the story.

A twisted tale that means they can’t trust themselves – or their hearts.

As Lore and Sloth navigate the pages of her beloved novels gone wrong, she must channel her inner main character to defeat the Book of Nightmares before the wall between the gods and mortals comes crashing down, dooming them all.

Amanda: I’ve been enjoying this series (and surprisingly staying on top of it), so I’m excited to keep going!

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small victories.

Feb. 9th, 2026 10:44 pm
hafnia: Animated drawing of a flickering fire with a pair of eyes peeping out of it, from the film Howl's Moving Castle. (Default)
[personal profile] hafnia
1). The sourdough starter appears to be working. I made English muffins with it tonight. They were good! I'm going to try baking bread this week; we'll see how it turns out.

2). I applied for two jobs. One, I am massively overqualified for (it's a temporary position within public works for the city — basically I'd be doing as-needed water quality testing).

The other is a part-time writing gig for a publication I'm familiar with thanks to Hobby Reasons. Saw that they were hiring, immediately went, "!", and since they said zero experience required, figured I'd shoot my shot. I am incredibly unlikely to get it, but this is The Year of Becoming Comfortable With Rejection, so, you know, if I hear back with anything that's not a form, "we've decided go to forward with another candidate...", I will be a happy creature.

3). Someone I don't know left me a really lovely comment on a thing I wrote (and posted to AO3, and will share when it's no longer anonymous i.e. after the collection fully reveals). It was just really well-timed and genuinely kind, and I very much needed it. ♥

Weekly Goals 2026: 07

Feb. 9th, 2026 08:25 pm
cyberneticdryad: An anthropomorphic white rabbit with long, dark teal hair.  They wear a pastel pink dress with a lighter teal shawl and hold a wooden bobbin of thread. (Default)
[personal profile] cyberneticdryad
Is this the week my body finally stops playing games with me (for a bit at least)? Need to catch up on housework and some organizing before getting back to the big crafty things, but some fun stuff planned this week!

Routine
  • GYWO: Write 20 minutes 0/4
  • Exercise 0/2
  • Bullet journal: 0/7


Tasks
  • Solo date (Pasta making video lesson through the library on Wednesday! ^u^)
  • Sock knitting: 0/10 rows
  • Deep clean bathroom (Saturday?)
  • Recycling
  • Valentine's Day nails


Delaying
  • Steam finished handspun
  • Plan Calad shirt modifications

Tragic....

Feb. 9th, 2026 09:08 pm
olivermoss: (Default)
[personal profile] olivermoss
* I realized that the fictional hockey team name in this original fic would not work. Klickitat Cats is an amazing sounding name, a Portland reference and a cryptid reference. But the street/region name comes from a local tribe and no way would a Portland team would overlook that and use the name that way unless they were themselves Klickitat.

Poly-b-us would be an amazing pun name for a local team, but the amount of Portland brain rot you'd need to fully get it is too much. Like, a team would use the name but the layers would be lost on readers. (Could use it as a one-off background joke, though. Also, Oregon is the Beaver State so I'm surprised none of our IRL recc league teams haven't snagged Beaver Skate)

* Guess who walked 2.6 miles for a PDXWLF exhibit that turned out to not be there? Yup, that's our PDXWLF. I think I am going to hit one more location, one that I am hopeful for, and call it good for this year.

* Heated Rivalry related link - This is a really good breakdown as to how Shane and Ilya being in the same division effects them and the story.

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Merrilee

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AI use statement

I sometimes hand write posts on a TCL NXTPAPER tablet that uses an AI Large Language Model (LLM) to convert my handwriting to text.

I do not intentionally use generative AI in anything that I make but note that I use apps (Microsoft Office, Canva, etc) that have integrated AI. These may have hidden AI 'features' operating in the background or offer assets that may be AI generated and not labelled as such.

To the best of my knowledge any content made by other people that I use or link to does not use generative AI.

Acknowledgement

Written and published on Ngunnawal and Ngambri country.
Sovereignty was never ceded.



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