The Mirador

[grassangel]

My usual comment on everything that tickled my fancy deal. You may know the drill. (And besides, it saves me from bombarding you with tweets/couple of line entries when I’m reading it.)

Same process as before, I bookmarked loads of places as I read through it and will comment on each place I marked. Might not make much sense unless you’ve read the book or have it in front of you.

I love Felix’s fashion sense. Well… sense in his reasoning why he wears a red-violet coat and because if people stare they should suffer.
It does make me wonder if the waistcoat he picked out for Mildmay in The Virtu was as horrid a colour combination or not though.

And because they’ve been playing Long Tiffany for THREE books now, I kinda want to know what game it’s based on. Hermit’s Pleasure is obviously some kind of Solitaire. (I know about… four versions, although I can only remember how to deal two…)
I doubt Long Tiffany has rounds which need to be scored, like Oh Hell or Rummy, but instead very easily on who finished first or has the highest ranked hand, like Poker or Ps & As. However, it can be played for money or not, which is the one thing I trip over with when I try to assign it a real world equivalent. Maybe I’ll ask when Sarah Monette opens up her questions post again.
(Along with: Was the waistcoat Felix picked out for Mildmay in The Virtu a horrible colour/Did Mildmay actually like it?, Why hasn’t Mildmay, the person who picks up language quickly, adopted the grammar of the Mirador after living there for two years? (Accent takes ages, but grammar and word usage tend to creep up on you) and Why does Felix have four piercings in each ear?)

Anyway, I love the little exchange where Felix says “and the unadulterated ‘if’, if you please” in response to a sentence in which Mildmay uses “if’n”. They’re both so cute.

Found Mehitabel’s different moods for Felix’s eyes rather interesting. Quite fun to read about too, especially as it seems to be a ‘this is what he’s saying, this is what he’s meaning’ type thing.

Ahahaha, so CUTE on the first Jeudy afternoon. *loves the fluff*

Bitchkitty. Such an awesome word. And so curiously oxymoronic.
Strangely makes me think of Grimmjow, resulting in laughter from me.

I vaguely want to know more about what all the characters wear. Well, colours and jewellery and little things like that. Because I have no problem imagining Felix favouring 18th century French-style jackets/coats while Mildmay favours 19-20th century English style ones. (I just got out the most amazing book detailing clothing details from the 17th and 18th centuries.)
Also, Fleur appears. She appears a lot and I can’t stop imagining her as kind of blond, pale and plump, liking blue and would almost get along with Agnes Nitt, except for the whole gossiping thing. Also, in my mental image, she looks quite pretty with that gold wizards’ sash, unlike Victoria.

Really like the sentence: “not clumsy exactly, but awkward. Like somebody’d  taught him not to be clumsy by belting him one every time he dropped a book or walked into a chair.” Because, Mildmay, I think you are perfectly spot-on with that description. *claps excitedly*

Gideon and his ereimos makes me giggle a little, as I kind of campaign of “Ukes for equal topping rights”.
And this page reminds me that I wish we got a bit more description about how noirant and clairant energy worked and how exactly Vincent could see ghosts.

Then MORE cuteness from the brothers. Leg massages in the middle of the night! (Then I get the compulsion to run off to see what essential oils would help the cramping and wishing that Mildmay could get some kind of BRACE for his leg.) Important “I love you but I’m not going to actually say it” moment!

And another midnight-talk. And Felix tries to do psychology. (It’s really more they both try it, but mostly Felix here. He vaguely fails at it, but you can’t blame him for trying.)

Gideon, having his own hair long enough to be tied back. I don’t know why, but this breaks my brain. Possibly because he reminds me of Artem a little; friendly, nice, willing to help and doesn’t mind playing card games. So it’s a bit ‘bwuh’.
Except for the helping Mildmay tie his hair up. THAT I can see.
But… almost all the guys I know in real life HATE people playing with or even touching their hair. Even if it is long. The most I’ve seen them tolerate is a head massage. (Okay, some girls don’t either, but aside from one, they don’t twitch away as violently as they guys do.)

*grips her face in her hands* Oh god, Felix’s memories. *shudders* Interesting to know, but poor Felix! And poor Mildmay, if he had anything like that done to him.

FINALLY, a conversation where the two brothers actually sort some stuff out. Even if Felix’s fashion choices are distracting me. (How many dressing gowns does he HAVE? Which one is he wearing? It is even vaguely warm? How long is it? (It had better be at least knee-length.))
And then another one, which goes along much more nicely and is, again, really cute. Also, kind of ‘Dreaded Middle Name”-ish.

Mildmay thinks something smart again, not even six hours after he and Felix have a conversation about their mother. Yay for figuring out that he is seriously messed up emotionally when it comes to attachment and love.

The Gordeny/Septimus thing is DAMN interesting. More on that later.

Um, yes. Vincent is now officially represented in my head canon by some weird mashing of Watanuki and Clow. Long hair + sees ghosts = ‘nuff said.
Also makes a pretty neat comparison with Kolkhis and Felix being Yuuko. Felix for the magical-ly stuff and Kolkhis because she and Vincent apparently look the same. (I want to write that crossover so badly though; Yuuko + Kolkhis and both are trying their hardest to not pay too much to the other. IT’D WORK.)

Another Mildmay is smart moment. YES, you are fucked up emotionally too. Also, English is a sucky language, isn’t it?

“Mikkary is the hatred of the memory of being human” I somewhat really like that quote. And I love how Mehitabel wanted to copy a gesture of Vincent’s. Hee.

More smart!Mildmay. Yes, you hate killing, so now you’ll stop killing for other people. (Although that begs the question, could you kill a person now, if your life depended on it? Like, either he takes a step backwards and falls off a cliff or you take a step backwards and fall off a cliff.)

Another cute, “I don’t hate you” moment between the brothers and I kind of really like friendly!Shannon, the one we only ever see from Mehitabel’s point of view.

The Jenny Dawnlight plot thread was AWESOME, especially when Mildmay convinced Simon to heist the box out of there.

More cuteness during a meeting. A really, really cute one and I wish everything could’ve stayed that way, or, alternatively, GOES that way.

See? Plays = stories = books. Or, at least you have the proper detachment to not consider RPS. (Mildmay paying attention to the play, not the actors. Yay, gotten over something.)

Already talked about Vincent being Watanuki even though he looks like Kolkhis… but not about Mildmay being slightly voyeuristic and his watching of Felix when he’s really concentrating. It’s cute. Again.

Then we get another mention of a card game called Hogram’s Key. Apparently a four handed version of Long Tiffany. *is really tempted to ask in the next questions round*

Simon’s so considerate~! That was a really cool moment when he differentiated what the sides of his oaths. Or something like that, I can’t phrase it properly.

Tabby comments on how Felix blushes beautifully under his pale skin. (What a sight they must make! Especially if they laugh too much. Not that Mildmay would and Felix hardly ever seems to truly laugh, but still…)

ANOTHER card game. A round of the Queen of Tambrin? What’s that?

HUGS! Hugs in the Verpine. Yeah, cute, especially when Mildmay comforts Felix about how the White Lady would be there for Gideon. At least that bit is happy.

“Of course I wouldn’t let you do it, you suicidal half-wit!” = I love you. Ahahahahaha. Awesome.

 

Yeah, as I mentioned, I really liked the Gordeny/Septimus thing, especially with how it all tied up with Kolkhis and Mildmay. Mostly because it’s all ‘Oooh, Gordeny got away from Keeper and now Septimus is’ exciting and I do want to know if Septimus eventually got away like Mildmay did and if he and Gordeny ever make up. I’d also like to see Kolkhis’ reaction to having her assassin get away from her again and, less importantly, if Mehitabel ever figures out the story.
It’d be so exciting and I want Septimus to be happy too.

For some reason, I left out commenting on the bit with Cardenio. Not that it matters, because I’m doing that here.
Anyway, when Mildmay went to him to get some information it was, again, cute. And I know they’re best friends and all that and Cardenio is smart and the closest thing Melusine has to a mortician and used to tell lots of stories to Mildmay, but I can’t help but feel he’s got a little crush on Mildmay.
A really tiny one, not quite admiration, not quite an actual crush but one of those “I want to be your friend forever!” ones. It’s really cute and kind of makes me sad that Mildmay’s been exiled along with Felix.