I suppose I ought to put something here :)

Found my niche, it's posting updates on my sister reading the Grishaverse.

[teaboot]

Yeah Mr. Darcy’s proposal was a complete turd and a half but you gotta understand. You got your life together. A good career, stable income, retirement plan, all that shit together. And you meet this girl. And she’s everything. Clever, outspoken, funny, calls you on your bullshit. Grade A cutie, right? And she doesn’t go out of her way to spend time with you but she’s nice, and sometimes you catch her looking your way in a way that makes you think you might have a shot.

But her family. Holy shit.

First off, it’s p much ALL women, and mostly UNMARRIED women, which at this time means of something happens to her dad then you’re financially responsible for like. Four grown ass adults, potentially forever

Because mom in law is DEFINITELY gonna need someone to take care of her when dad in law kicks it, and they have like. NO money. So already you’re accepting that if all goes well, you’re gonna be one random old bag’s retirement home. That’s expensive and exhausting, yeah? Imagine asking someone on a first date knowing that if they say yes and things go good her high-strung chihuahua mother is gonna move in with you. IMAGINE.

And girly’s other sisters. Well, one is a sweetheart, yeah, so she probably won’t be an issue, but that still leaves three more, and two of those ones are INSUFFERABLE. Never went to school, dumb as rocks, spend cash like it’s toilet paper

And while one of the two is young still and might grow out of it the OTHER one is actively torpedo’ing her entire family’s reputation by wandering off with random dudes and chasing ass. She’s never gonna work, she can’t build connections, she’s a fucking sinkhole, and she’s being led on by the same goddamn con man ass leeching tit who’s been bleeding you dry while telling anyone who’ll listen that your family is full of ratty thieving bastards.

And if he dumps her after a week- WHICH YOU KNOW HIS BITCH ASS IS GONNA- you’ve got a SECOND UNMARRIABLE GROWN ASS ADULT TO PROVIDE FOR. And you KNOW she’s gonna be a tantrum-throwing little shit about it, and it’s not like you can lock her in the basement or something, you’re gonna have to bring her fucking. Everywhere. And give her an allowance and shit while she contributes zero, because again, she NEVER GOT EDUCATED AND HAS NO MARKETABLE SKILLS. She’s not even good to TALK to. FUCK

And you’re looking at this girl’s father like “please for the love of fuck get your spawn under control, marry them off, get them working on their résumé, learning to sew or be nursemaids or manage staff or SOMETHING, yall got no money and one foot in the grave” and that old man just laughs like “haha yeah, what can you do. lol”

So you’re looking to the mom and finally it’s making sense how she got that twitch in her eye and as MUCH as she is you’re starting to realize she’s the SMART one, desperately throwing her armloads of girls at random men like they’re a bunch of fucking lifeboats bobbing around a sinking ship, like yes Jesus Christ sweetly that life boat IS old and ugly and kind of boring but for FUCKS SAKE PICK ONE

And you look back at this girl who is ALSO REFUSING THE LIFE BOATS BY THE WAY and god damn it she’s still the most radiant thing you’ve ever seen so fine, fuck it, Christ alive, you’ll do it. You’ll shoot your shot. She’s everything you’ve ever wanted in anybody abut it’s not even just about that anymore, it’s about being her best fucking shot at a future, and even if she doesn’t like you all that much she’s still gonna say yes and that might break your heart a bit knowing it’s about the money but who knows, maybe it will at least be civil, or companionable, and even if she doesn’t LOVE you at least you’ll know she’s well and cared for

And so you’ll do it. You’ll take on the neurotic stress mess mother in law, the absent father, the broke ass wingnut no brain no money no future airhead sisters, the bad mannered relatives and the embarrassing behaviour and the impending future of sharing your entire shit with a clown parade of freeloaders, you’ll risk it all and accept the absolute certainty of financial ruin and emotional exhaustion for the rest of your whole ass life and you’ll make your own family deal with it too, you’ll do it, you’ll fucking DO IT, you stupid lovesick motherfucker

And so you go to this chick like “look. Your whole family’s a shitshow. You’ve got fucking nothing and you’re gonna die on the street. But for some reason- and I don’t get it either- I’ve fallen in love with you, and I wish I didn’t, but I did, so I’m telling you that whether you like me or not, I’ll give you everything. I’ll give you everything even if it’s the dumbest shit I ever done. Fuck my stupid Baka ass, I’ll marry you.”

And she looks at you- having heard or considered absolutely none of your months-long internal debate and monologue- and goes “The fuck did you just say about my family, you son of a bitch?”

And the shock of that is enough to jolt you back into a reality where you are able to actually hear and process what just came out of your damn mouth And yeah

Yeah, I think I kinda get it

[fieryaxolotl]

@twocatstailoring @solverne-02 @shannaraisles

[punchyguavas]

Song Saturday #4!

Today's pick is going go be "Nina Cried Power" by Hosier featuring Mavis Staples.

This might second only to "Monster" for how on the nose it is. I never listened to much Hozier, but while I was trying to create my SOC playlist I came across this one and was dumbfounded. The name alone tells you all you need to know, but then you listen and it's crazy.

Nina Zenik (the queen she is) stands for all Grisha and her nation proudly. If she existed in the real world that girl would be leading protests for the things she believes in and she would do so with pride. If this song had come before the book, you'd be hard pressed to convince me that this wasn't the reasoning behind the choice of "Nina" being her name.

The song speaks of protests and activism, and their power. It's all about how it doesn't matter who you are, where you're coming from, or even what you're fighting for. If you are fighting for it, and you are doing so with determination and pride, then you are doing your part. As well as how important it is to do so.

Nina is the embodiment of standing up for what she believes in, what she knows to be right. Her spirit and strength in standing up is what saved Matthias from the indoctrination he grew up with (obviously his innate goodness helped, she just helped him realize he was on the wrong side).

I will forever love Nina's moment in Crooked Kingdom when she basically tells Kaz that he either helps her people to escape or he does the job without her (and by extension without Matthias). Knowing damn well that he may be brilliant but he needed her. She stood her ground and as a result rescued all of the indentured Griaha in Ketterdam.

Then in King Of Scars this QUEEN goes up against the entire Fjerdan government and royal family without blinking. She stages miracles and does what she needs to do to dismantle the view on Grisha from the inside. She helped create a collective voice of the people that all stood for her people. I have no doubt that a Fjerda under her and the new prince's rule (not writing a name as I don't believe a new one was confirmed and I won't dead name them, but you all know who I mean) will flourish and find peace and, with time, even equality for Grisha.

[punchyguavas]

Song Saturday #3!

This weeks Song Saturday selection is "Devil's Backbone" by The Civil Wars.

Here is the other The Civil Wars song I said I'd be giving. It's so Kanej-coded it's insane. I picture it more specifically as Inej referencing Kaz. I remember hearing this in the car having to pause cuz I was like, hold on, this is literally Kanej.

The whole point of the song being this girl with a religious background falling for a boy that is just the complete antithesis of everything she was raised on is just *chef's kiss*

Her talking about him not really getting to choose between being wrong or right, "he did what he had to do" is wild. Because we all know Kaz could have been so good, the boy even prayed once upon a time.

Then you add on the end where she says she doesn't care if he's guilty or innocent cuz "he's good and he's bad." When she's constantly seeing the good in him and refusing to see him only as the bad he tries to play like he is. It's so perfect.

[punchyguavas]

My sister and I are at a music festival in the most perfect weather. So, right now we're just hanging out outside away from the crowds. I'm in a hammock and she's laying in the grass next to me.

She's reading Crooked Kingdom and Kaz is about to get Inej from Van Eck. I heard her giggle and asked what and she said she just realized she's literally kicking her feet reading Kaz's thoughts on Inej. She goes, "Kaz Brekker literally has me kicking my feet right now."

This is a sort of reread for her, cuz she didn't get much further than this before the appendix situation. So she's also laughing at her notes, such as her comment to this statement:

"That boy had betrayed his weakness in a single glance, had ceded the war for the sake of a single battle, and put Inej—all of them—in danger. He was a wounded animal who needed to be put down. And Kaz had done it gladly, choked the life from him without pause for regret. The Kaz that remained saw only the job: Free Inej. Make Van Eck pay. The rest was useless noise."

Comment being: "Kaz Brekker is a case study in the dichotomy of man"

And like, that's so valid.

[punchyguavas]

Song Saturday #2!

Continuing with King of Scars, this next one is for none other than THE Nikolai Lantsov.

"Monster" by Imagine Dragons.

When I first heard this song post-series, my first thought was Kaz, cuz duh (fun fact, it's on my SOC playlist and my sister thought it was for Jesper, which I 100% see). But then I actually went back and listened to the lyrics and it was so obviously Nikolai that I swear someone smacked me in the face with a chair.

I could quite literally write out every single line in this song for how much it is him. So I'm gonna try and do a quick sum up for different segments:

Verse 1 - We really go into detail in his duology to understand that he put on these masks to try and fit in with those around him. Yet he'd just never really felt free til he got on the sea; where he still had to have a mask. He wanted to belong somewhere and couldn't find a place. And now he's got this new thing that just further separates him.

Verse 2 - Not only is he different but he's terrified of not only what his demon could do to innocent people (and would, if he didn't stop it), but also that if people found out then he'd immediately be stripped of his title and Ravka might just be doomed. So he has "to run and hide" this part of him. And while he did fight The Darkling, he didn't literally ask for this and it did quite literally come to him and make "it's home inside." Like it's insane how that one line alone is so literal for him.

Pre-chorus - He's hiding the fact that he's got a literal demon inside of him and he is dangerous. Keep in mind the scene when his demon almost killed Zoya. This thing haunts him throughout the entirety of the first book in his duology while he tries to fight it.

Chorus - I mean... come on. I'm sure I don't have to explain, but I will anyway. He's fighting this demon inside him and the main challenge he's facing in the first book is getting rid of it ("escape what's inside [him]"). He quite literally turns into a monster and it is actually getting stronger. Which prompts his urgency to get rid of it. This chorus is wildly on the money for him.

Overall, this song is so insanely literal for him. And it's just so perfect that, like Dust to Dust, I'm claiming it as made for him.

[punchyguavas]

I've read the Empyrean series per my sisters suggestion. I've had a theory since the first book that Rebecca Yarros is a Six of Crows fan cuz of some scenes. My sister is starting to join that train too.

I've said since we met her in book one that I don't think Rhi's gonna make it out of the series (just a bad feeling, idk). Well I hadn't even thought of it til I finished the series, but her last name being Matthias just makes me more sure and paranoid.

And I am DYING to tell my sister how her name encourages my theory but I can't yet and it's making me crazy.

[punchyguavas]

Song Saturday #1!

My first Song Saturday selection is "Dust to Dust" by The Civil Wars.

The first time I heard this song was when I had been just starting to make the King of Scars playlist for my sister, a few months back. I was caught completely off guard by how insanely Zoyalai coded it is. Like this song was written for them, I don't make the rules.

I implore you to not only listen to this song, but if you like the sound, check out The Civil Wars discography. I've enjoyed every song I've heard, and there will be at least one other song of theirs used for a future Song Saturday (see if you can guess it)!

The way she sings about his acting and "perfectly delivered lines" (which is literally Nikolai). And he sings about her holding her head up, fighting the fight, and bearing scars (which is so figurative and literal for Zoya). Combine that with the pre-chorus which talks about them both being lonely. Then the actual chorus which talks about them both wanting the other to let them within their walls so they can help and be there and grow ughhhh. And to close it out talking about them being a mirror of each other...

This song is them.

[punchyguavas]

To the single(1) person who liked my post about song Saturday's: I am creating a scheduled post for Saturday that will have the first song choice (these will be in no particular order). I'll try to stay on top of it by utilizing that feature more often.

And to everyone who's here for the posts about my sister reading the Grishaverse:

1. I will try and use that feature to get out least one post a week. I've been missing updating people but life's just crazy when you've got 2 jobs and school (send help).

2. She's taking a pause from reading cuz she's been in a slump. I've got some reactions from before the slump that I can still share, and I will do so. But if I run out of reactions at some point just know it's only temporary and I'll try and post other content awhile.

Sorry I've been so MIA! Idk how many of you care, but if any of you are like me, seeing peoples reactions to beloved books is very entertaining (hence why I'm doing this). Like I said earlier, I'm gonna try to start getting out one reaction post and one song recommendation a week!

For the song recommendations, if any of you have songs that you'd like me to listen to and/or share, feel free to comment or send me a DM with the song and your reason. It can be a song that reminds you of a character(s), a vibe, a story plot, or just one you wanna share!

I look forward to seeing what you guys think, I've created quite the list so far!

[punchyguavas]

So, I had a thought. I've mentioned before that I made a SOC playlist. I actually have made one for each grouping of books in the series (S&B trilogy, SOC duology and KOS duology), and I add new songs whenever I find one that fits. My sister, who can be very critiquing on music in a playlist, thinks I've made excellent playlists for the books. I also LOVE music, I'm working towards a career as a live sound engineer, so music is sort of my life.

As such, I thought it might be fun if I start a "Song Saturday" where I share a new song. Sometimes they may he off a playlist for a book or character, sometimes maybe it could be just vibes or a song I've been listening to lately, etc. Is this something you guys would be interested in?

Part of why I say this is cuz I would LOVE to share my Grishaverse playlists, but I don't want identifying information for myself out at this time and my Spotify is, annoyingly enough, linked to my Facebook.

I've got some great songs in mind to start, 2 of which are so insanely KOS coded that I desperately wanna share them.

[punchyguavas]

My sister and I were just talking and King of Scars came up cuz I was showing her a song I put on the playlist (which btw, is so INSANELY Zoyalai coded, I will share it then when she's onto that duology).

During this convo she said part of why it's taking her so long to finish SOC is cuz she just doesn't want the duology to end, let alone the series (she absolutely LOVES Nikolai and is so excited to see him again but she doesn't wanna leave our Crows). I told her I felt that but if it made her feel better the last book is kinda open ended for an 8th book. She asked if it was a KOS continuance and I said I wouldn't tell her but she would find out.

This eventually stemmed to the Crows (as it always does) and she started talking about being stressed about their ending and asked if it was opened ended. To which I said sort of cuz it's like a "where do they go now" type of thing. She started asking if a a crow was gonna die and saying she can't mentally handle if one does.

... ah, chapter 40.

I had told her that I obviously wasn't gonna say and that she needed to be just as stressed as the rest of us wondering if they'd all make if out.

What I have not told her (for obvious reasons) is that I unfortunately went into this duology knowing Matthias was gonna die. I am SO glad she doesn't know.

I honestly don't know which Crows death would make her the most upset. But I do know that Matthias will wreck her. Part of me ALMOST feels bad, but she got me to read the Empyrean series and it's my turn to make her suffer.

[punchyguavas]

For anyone new to my page (which would be unsurprising given my little hiatus there), I post my sisters reactions to reading the Grishaverse, primarily the SOC duology.

So, since it's been a while, there are a LOT of reactions, and I'll try to share them all over time, buttttttttt in the meantime, what scenes do you specifically wanna see my sisters reactions to in SOC?

[punchyguavas]

Part 2!!! (Find part 1 here)

Her:

Me: He's got it ROUGH rn

Her: I'm freaking out

Me: And yet, you thought he had

Her:

*I didn't save the snap with her reaction to his oath and I'm so mad about it, don't talk to me (kidding, of course, love you all💖)*

Me: *in response to the now lost reaction*: THE FUCKING DECLARATION KILLS ME

Her: I'm in a constant state of shock

Me: The duology will do that to you

Her: I literally melted, like okay Nina I get it

He rewrote the meaning of his religion for her like STOP IT

Me: He declared himself to serve her and her alone, like bitch what???

Using an oath that he holds incredibly sacred

Her: it's giving Rebecca Yarros read SOC cuz that's so Xaden coded *we have had many a discussion on why we think RY read SOC and possibly the Grishaverse as a whole that I will happily go into if y'all are interested*

I can't 😭😭

Nina's response is so real too I love them

Me: I also wanna say how Matthias melts my heart in this scene

Btw, this couple gives you hella whiplash, huh?

Her: Absolutely

Like the way he's talking her down from her crisis of conscience with a single sentence

Swoon

Me: Literally such insanely well written enemies to lovers

They are THE enemies to lovers

Her: 100%

Why isn't everyone taking about this

Me: I DON'T KNOW

Her: fuck Alina why was THIS NOT THE SHOW

Like sry queen love you but damn

*this eventually spiraled into a whole convo about how we were robbed the SOC spinoff, which I can share some day if y'all want*

Still her: They're caught they're caught they're caught oh fuck

WHERE THE FUCK IS KAZ

Me: 🤷‍♀️

Suppose you'll find out

*she then begged me to read Quicksilver cuz something in this scene must've reminded her of it. I had started it at this point but not finished, still haven't cuz of shit hitting the fan*

Her:

Me: She absolutely is

Her:

Me: The way they treat Matthias breaks my heart, cuz no matter how awful the Druskelle are, they were his family

Her:

Me: Always a flare for the dramatic, that bastard

Her: IM SCREAMING

WHY ARE YOU NOT FREAKING OUT

Me: Cuz I've read it and freaked out sufficiently then

I'm rather enjoying reading your freakout though

*we started talking about Kaz and went into his chapter so I shall end the update here*

As you can see, she was having a ROUGH time, happy ending of course (short-lived though it may be). The constant up and down these two face is gonna leave her absolutely wrecked at the end of CK. They're the definition of doomed by the narrative and it's heart breaking.

[punchyguavas]

As promised (finally):

This is gonna be rather long, consider it an apology/making up for time.

We're gonna start right from the moment Brum reveals Matthias is there:

Right before he revealed himself my sister said "everything is a mess and I am stressed." Girl you can bet she was real stressed a minute later.

Her:

Me: 🤷‍♀️

Her: WHAT IS GOING ON

Me: Pain

Her: NOTHING MAKES SENSE

THIS CAN'T BE REAL

THIS IS WORSE THAN TOLYA AND TAMAR *referring to when they betrayed Alina*

Me: I very much agree

Her:

Me: Love watching you spiral, I've been waiting for this

Her:

Still her: I can't belive I dedicated a John Legend song to this dickhead *she's referring to the song "Drown" which was one of her additions to my SOC playlist cuz the second she heard it she thought of Helnik (I laughed when she showed me cuz it made me think of Kanej, obviously she doesn't know that yet cuz she has yet to experience the ✨bathroom scene✨ but it's totally both)*

*My sister's an Empyrean fan (as am I thanks to her) so for any other fans, comment your vote to this next part*

Her: Ok Brum, Varrish or Aetos for biggest asshole in history

Still her: Okay we get it religious trauma and the pretty girl made you feel things you didn't know how to process

Giving white people the worst name

*"Black and Blue" by Thomasin Grace started playing in the middle of this and she started to lose it cuz she "need[s] to know what's going on with everyone at all times" and it's very much a Kanej song and she is "obsessively thinking about them" especially while things were falling apart with her favorite couple, "one love story is falling apart I need to check on the other"*

Her... still *she was rambling like crazy as you can see*: "oH yOu FeEl gUilTy???!"

Fucking good

*unfortunately, I seem to have lost the snap where she says what song it is, but trust I have a killer playlist for this duology that strikes at the perfect moments*

Me: This is a hard chapter for sure

Her: I hate it here

Me: Yep

Her:

...So did y'all know there's an image limit? I did not. Afraid this is gonna have to be a 2 parter. NO WORRIES, I will upload the second part in a few minutes💗

Find part 2 here!

[punchyguavas]

Been working on the update for at least 2 hours, forgot how long these take and this post is WAY longer than usual. It's almost 3 am for me, I need to be up around 5:30 so I gotta stop. BUT I'm still gonna finish and post it tomorrow, I promise!

[punchyguavas]

I'M ALIVE!!

So so so so so so sooooo sorry!

Life kinda got crazy after my moms appendix situation. I had started an internship the week prior (in addition to my already existing part time job) and her appendectomy revealed some concerns. So my sister and I ended up extremely busy cuz my mom owns her own cleaning company and was physically limited; so we had to do her job too.

She's pretty much good to go now, and I've settled into my new routine. So, while I won't make promises, cuz I started classes last week, I should be good to start posting on a pretty regular basis again.

I will be posting that promised update to my sisters reaction to the Matthias' betrayal later today. Then I will share her reactions to the remainder of the book. She started CK around when everything went to shit but is restarting it cuz she had to take such a long pause. SO, once there are some updates there and we're caught up in SOC posts I will get those out too!

I also haven't forgotten my promise for her reactions to other Grishaverse books, I'll get those out periodically.

Fingers crossed that my life doesn't go to shit again and it's smooth sailing for at least a few more weeks (til my internship ends lol).

[punchyguavas]

Hey all! Sorry for the continued delay, my mom's appendix burst over the weekend so we're just dealing with some chaos here. I'll get some updates out in the next few days but it may be a bit yet.

[punchyguavas]

I promise I haven't forgotten my promise to post my sisters reactions. She ended up binging the entire end of the book and I've started a new job while simultaneously getting sick this week. I will post all the different, reactions and comments but it'll probably be this weekend cuz I'm kinda dead rn.