Sunday, August 15, 2021

Sunday Snippet: The Illustrious Curse (a Lantern Jack tale)

Ugh. Had a rough week in general. My work project is coming along nicely but we had storms blow through and lost power a couple of times, which kind of harshed my vibe in a big way.

I got less television viewed but I did get to finish out the second season of the Passionflix original Driven. Man … what an ending. I'm truly excited for season three next year.

I did catch another episode of New Rugrats. I'm thoroughly enjoying this show and I'll state for the record that I hope there will be another season. So much fun.

Watched a full episode of Chicago Med and started another one. I'm not sure about the new head of Rhodes's department but their interactions are very interesting.

Got another episode of The Brokenwood Mysteries out of the way and one of my favorite things about this show is how we see some familiar faces from other episodes pop up. I really like that, especially since they were suspects before in a different case. Very cool.

Started a new two-part Silent Witness. Interesting concept on this one and I vaguely remember bits and pieces from the episodes but can't remember how things got resolved. I'll look forward to seeing the second part.

Enjoyed another arc of Classic Who. Interesting concept and the resolution ended up being something I didn't expect. Hope to start a new arc this week.

Caught another episode of UFO Witness and rather enjoyed it. This one had a regression so an abductee could maybe remember what happened to him. Ended up being pretty interesting to watch.

Watched two episodes of The Muppet Show with Liberace and Marisa Berenson as the guest stars. Enjoyed both.

Still loving McCartney 3, 2, 1. I always end up being blown away by something every episode. It's also a lot of fun to watch Paul pick up an instrument and play or see him sing along at the mixing board. Love this show.

Enjoyed another Master Class with LeVar Burton. This lesson focused on the imagination being our superpower. I love listening to LeVar talk about storytelling.

Started an episode of Chilling Adventures of Sabrina and … well … I didn't finish it. I really enjoy most of the characters, especially Hilda and Ambrose, Doctor Cee, Theo, Harvey, and Roz. I like Nick a lot. Even the weird sisters are often entertaining. But it really bugs me how Sabrina started out being decent at communication and now she massively sucks at it. The whole asking for advice then doing the exact opposite—without a really good reason other than it's what she wants to do—is starting to annoy me enough to stop watching for now. I might come back to the show eventually but there are other things on Netflix I'd like to get to so Sabrina can wait for bit.

Watched another episode of Star Trek: Discovery. Man. I'm starting to really love this show. There's a lot of nuance, which I enjoy and I like trying to figure out if Lorca is an asshole or a genius … or both. Michael intrigues me to no end. I love mix of Vulcan logic with human foibles. She's such a cool character.

That's pretty much it for the weekly viewing update. Tonight's post is from The Illustrious Curse, the final installment of the Lantern Jack series.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Lantern Jack is back to right his final wrong. Inara Ives is a distant descendant of Jack's wife, the former banshee queen. Her royal blood is diluted, but still strong. Taben Tarrah can trace his ancestry back to the cursed goblin king, Lantrien Jacquard, but his noble blood is tainted by the lineage. Jack brings the two together to finally put his past to rest and join his deceased bride in the afterlife. The duo won't make it easy … but Jack's success over the years means he won't be thwarted.

And a preview snippet…

Inara Ives blinked, shook her head, and finally met her grandmother's gaze. "Why am I only hearing about this now?" Apparently, the family secrets went much deeper than Inara imagined.

Her grandmother's beringed hand tightened on her cane. "Because you didn't need to know before this very moment." She pounded the floor with the strikingly carved walking stick. "Do not presume to question me on this."

Inara bit back a sigh. "Yes, Grandmother." Irini Ives didn't appreciate any challenge to her authority. "It would have been nice to know I carry royal blood … no matter how diluted it is." Her bloodline descended from Esmera Edwards Jacquard, the banshee queen.

Stunned didn't begin to describe Inara's reaction to the news. Confused would be a better fit. Why reveal the connection now?

Irini made a garbled sound. "Change is afoot and it's time we step in." She explained about the curse the banshee clan put on Esmera's husband because they blamed him for her death.

Inara tilted her head to one side. "You condemned a grieving king to thousands of years of existence as a pumpkin and now that he's finally doing penance, you want to what? Curse him again?" She didn't understand the rage behind her grandmother's raving.

Irini sat up, her back going ramrod straight. "It's not about cursing him again. We want proof he was behind Esmera's death. If we find it, he'll be beyond redemption and banished to live out his eternal afterlife without his queen."

Inara wisely kept her opinion to herself. She wouldn't wish an eternity of being along on anyone—not even her worst enemy. But … she'd hear her grandmother out and hopefully get the full story.

Inara exhaled slowly. "What do you want from me, Grandmother?" No way would the matriarch spill the family secrets unless she needed Inara's help with something.

Irini leaned forward. "You're going to the archives and you're going to summon whatever information you can find on what happened to our beloved queen."

Inara gave a nod. "Yes, Grandmother. I'll get started right away." She got up and turned to face the exit. "By your leave…"

Irini waved a hand and the double doors opened to let Inara leave. She crossed the threshold before she risked letting out a sigh. Her grandmother didn't give Inara a specific time have the information gathered by, but All Hallow's approached and no doubt would be the best time to invoke additional punishment on the goblin king.

Inara stopped when she reached the bottom of the stairs leading away from Irini's wing of the manor house. "Maybe I'll find something that clears Lantrien Jacquard instead of damning him." Because, honestly, the stories she'd grown up with about Esmera weren't all sunshine and roses.

A banshee's work often brought grief and sadness, especially when a family had unresolved issues. The queen could pick and choose who received her gift and she sometimes settled scores with enemies by withholding the wailing cries. Esmera's rule didn't go completely unblemished but most of the fae considered her a fair and just leader.

"Maybe the best place to start is with those old grievances." With that plan of action settled, Inara stopped by her room to pack for a lengthy stay in the archives.

I have so much fun with Lantern Jack's story. The goblin king will finally have an answer to his fate one way or the other.


 

That's it for this week.

Cheers!

Skye

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