Sunday, January 29, 2017

Sunday Snippet: Rack and Ruin

Okay, Riverdale, you have my attention. My high hopes were met and surpassed. Here's hoping the following episodes stay the course. My sister blog, Universes Altered, might pick up a weekly recap on this show. The acting and cast are a terrific mix and I look forward to seeing what this crew does.

Gotham's follow-up episode intrigued me. I'll lay money Leigh made a deal to stay away from Jim to spare his life. We'll see how long that lasts. Having Jerome loose in the city will be chaotic, to say the least. If the origin story I think is playing out continues, I'm in. I also love the other two prongs of the cold war between Ed and Oswald along with the mama drama between Selena and Bruce. Thoroughly love how the trio of plot threads are playing out.

The Flash returned and didn't disappoint. Future vibing is kind of cool, but something tells me the crew is going to have burnt asses before it's all over.

Legends of Tomorrow always makes me happy when they visit someone famous before they're, well, famous. Having George Lucas kind of made the show. While I rather enjoyed Malcolm and Damien's team-up, I'm not sure how much fun it'll be if it's overused. I don't, however, think Mick and Stein sharing screen time will ever get old. More of that, please.

Arrow rocked, as usual. I have some doubts about the district attorney really helping Oliver, but we'll see what happens. Having Earth 2 Laurel is an interesting twist. Looking forward to seeing what happens there. Loved the bonding moment between Curtis and Rene, too.

Finished up Strike Back through season three. Holding off on four, but should start it soon. Got caught up on The Librarians, Murdoch Mysteries, and Teen Wolf. I'm thrilled to be current on all three. Whew. Missed the premiere of The Magicians and hope to catch up on that one soon.

Decided to forego watching MacGyver for now. I might binge watch after the season is over. The show just isn't holding my attention like I want it to and the cast shake-ups aren't something I'm thrilled with.

And that's it for television this week. Tonight's post is from Rack and Ruin, a novella that got a start with a writing community prompt. Drugs, alcohol, whatever the vice of choice is, one character can't resist and can't dig out of the hole, but the other one will try. I liked the concept of having the main characters addicted to something and needing to work their way out of the bad decision angle.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Vespa Thorn, a maintenance adept for the Mage Ministry of Defense, is an addictive gambler—whenever, wherever, she'll go all in. Hale Walterson, a special forces soldier has a problem with sex—he can't get enough of it. Vespa wants Hale, but he's the one thing she won't bet on until he challenges her to keep up with him.

And a preview snippet…

Vespa cashed in her winnings and casually strolled out of the underground gaming den riding the euphoric high of coming out on top. Maybe she could find another game. Dice. It had been a while since she rolled the cubes. She sent a seek spell out to find a location. Eighth-floor laundry room.
Grinning, she stepped onto the escalator. Her eyes narrowed when she spied Hale. He couldn't be there on business; he didn't have the standard issue black on black attire the m-mods usually adopted when on duty. Instead, he wore civilian clothes, nice ones at that. And he'd passed the third level, which housed the security hub in the hotel. He must be headed toward the private rooms. Curiosity piqued, she stepped off on the seventh floor instead of staying on for the level above.
She followed him through the atrium but remained a respectable distance behind. She didn't get off to bust his chops, more to satisfy her inquisitive nature. He never gave her shit about her gambling, and his carnal pursuits were none of her business. But she often wondered how he managed to satisfy his cravings and not have the m-mod brass catch wind of them.
She might just find out.
He took a corridor to his left and Vespa slowed down, not wanting to cramp his style. Or get caught. She peeked around the corner of the wall and discovered Hale using a keycard to unlock a door. It opened before he could finish the action and two very curvy women greeted him in nothing but smiles.
Vespa's eyes went wide and she bit back a gasp when Hale hauled one of them close, his mouth closing over the painted, red lips of her mouth. The other female grabbed Hale's lapel and dragged him into the room. The door closed softly behind him but Vespa heard the tittering giggles of the women before it shut completely.
Shaking her head, she made her way back to the escalator, noting the security cameras placed strategically throughout the level. Heading up to the eighth floor, she made sure she stayed out of sight when she worked her way to the laundry area. Hale hadn't bothered when he went to his room, which concerned Vespa.
"Sloppy isn't usually his style."
She rapped on the door, two long, three short, and then whispered the incantation for entrance. The steel slabs swung open, giving her admittance. The hum of voices and the rattle of dice being thrown grabbed hold of her but not before she promised to have a casual chat with Hale… very soon.

I'm excited to see where I can take this one. I have a couple of ideas but the sages haven't settled on one direction yet.



That's it for this week.

Cheers!

Skye

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