AARC (Asheville Anime Regional Convention) Review by Heiwa!

Hey guys! :D I don't ever write on here, but I DEFINITELY found a need to express my thoughts today!

First: I want to apologize for my absence on the blog. I've discovered that a lot of my posts resemble Aki's almost exactly, so it is kind of pointless for me to post them. I'm sure you don't want to read the same thing twice :)

Alright, now for my review of AARC. My letter grade for this event? D-! My reasoning?

Confession.

Before I explain what put me off so bad about AARC, it is very important for me to confess to the followers on Ani-Maze-Me that Heiwa (me) is a Type 1 Diabetic. I have been dealing with this disease for most of my life, as I was diagnosed when I was only 10 months old. I never felt the need to bring this up before, because it was never made an issue. (If you want to follow a separate blog that deals with diabetes, please check out diabetically speaking,) 

First Impressions.

There were a lot of cosplayers! The convention opened at 10am, but we were there at 9:30 to get our tickets. There was a ton of people in cosplay, and cosplayers got a big discount on the tickets. 

With that being said, at every other convention I have been to the cosplays were mostly hand-made and the cosplayers were very proud of the amount of time spent on their outfits. At AARC, a lot of the "cosplays" that I saw were fandom merch. The cosplays were not hand-made, and the cosplayers were mostly showing off their stuff. That isn't necessarily a bad thing, it just isn't what I am used to. I would rather hand make my cosplay, personally, because I have more pride in it when it is mine. 

In most of the cons I've attended, the fandom was very social especially while waiting in line. At AARC, everyone kept to themselves and it was awkwardly quiet and solitary while we waited. 

Offended Heiwa.

I get that their had to be bag checks. It's Asheville. I understand and appreciate security, especially high security! However, I was extremely put off by the "security" at AARC. 

Before entering the building, you have to have a bag check. Once again, that's fine. It's not like I've never encountered those before. What I haven't encountered before was the attitude regarding my medical needs. She checked my snack bag (in the event of a low blood sugar, I have to have something to eat to bring it up so I won't die) and told me that I was not allowed to keep ANY of the stuff that was in that bag. I remembered right then to inform her that I was a diabetic. To my surprise, the woman still insisted that I could not take the food in with me. 

I said "I have to have that with me. I'm a diabetic. It's in case my sugar goes low." 

She responded: "I don't know what to tell you, you're not taking it in." 

So I got mad. My response? Before I could stop myself: "I don't know what to tell you, yes I am." 

About that time, two other cosplayers jumped to my aid and informed her about my hippa rights. 

Let me tell you how much that offended me...

It is extremely embarrassing being called out on my disease in front of a huge crowd. It is almost worse when someone else has to come to my aid. I wasn't breaking any rules. I wasn't saying I was above the rules. I do not want to have to explain my disease to prove that I am obeying the rules. That is discrimination, and it is humiliating. 

She went to ask someone if I could keep the bag of food, and they told her not to argue with me. That was when it got worse. Because she then had to search my usual diabetes bag/purse before I could enter the building. She found my glucagon emergency kit (a large needle that injects glucose in case I go too low and pass out), and had to ask me what it was. I told her, and she responded with "well I guess I'll let you take that in. Since you're a diabetic." She repeated that comment when she found my apple juice, the quickest carb I had. That was very rude. 

I've been bag checked before. Even if you question me, do not question me like that. I have never felt so disrespected at ANY convention before! I've been to Yama Con, a much bigger 3-day convention in Tennessee, and the security was amazing! They made you feel like they were on your side, and that was much different from the feeling I got at AARC. 

Outcome of my Offendedness

Because of the way they made me feel at the entrance, my blood sugar bottomed out shortly after we left the dealers room. We were leaving the convention hall before 11 am to get something to sustain me. From what I remember, the feel of the entire con was very different. It felt very cliqued and isolated. Every other con I have ever been to has felt like a gathering of friends or family, but AARC was nothing like that. 

I wouldn't recommend AARC to anyone in the fandom unless it isn't out of their way to get there. It was fun, but it wasn't worth the travel to get there. I would recommend that the people producing AARC learn the difference between "guilty until proven innocent" and "innocent until proven guilty." They need to know how to treat their guests like we are all on the same side, and then it wont feel so cliquey or isolated. 

I love the fact that they gave cosplayers a discount, though. That was a great idea! I also love how they had a gaming section of the vender/dealers room.  That was something I hadn't seen anywhere except for Yama-Con. I like that. That was about it, though. 

Sorry for such a bad review, but I had to share my thoughts! 

Thanks for your patience in dealing with me :) 

~ Heiwa Kibo Hane

Aki's Edition AARC: Asheville Anime Regional Convention. Time I own up...

  AARC: Asheville Anime Regional Convention


Okay... So you guys know how I am always assuring you that I do things to my best abilities and that I always strive to be honest?
It's time I own up to that.

Going to AARC today was certainly an adventure. Why don't we take a look at the definition of "Adventure". 
Adventure: "an unusual or  exciting, typically hazardous, experience or activity"

That means that it doesn't exactly have to be a good thing, so lets go step by step with the experience.

Heiwa, Baka (or Jiyu Kasai Tsubasa) and I got up at 6 AM this morning because we live a good distance away from Asheville. This was a surprisingly good morning because as you all know, I am not a morning person and I am likely to break out in severe sarcasm in the mornings which rubs people the wrong way sometimes however that didn't happen this morning so it was good.
The long drive over was good, got to see some nice clouds and the mountains were covered in fog. Heiwa and I stared and waved at EVERYONE we passed, which was great since we had the pink and blue hair. They really freaked out and it was beautiful..

Anyways, we got to the US Cellular Center about 30 minutes early, which was right on schedule, and got in line for tickets.

The line itself wasn't long just yet and was pretty tamed, there were a few other cosplayers and no one was outwardly rude... However, once it got longer, the lines for people who had already bought tickets and for people who still needed to got mixed together and lots of people ended up going through bag check just to be sent back to the ticket booth and back of the line.

Also, I don't mind having my picture taken when people ask but what I do mind is the "selfie stalker shots" and the straight up "stalker shots". More than once while in line people would go to take a "selfie" but clearly take a picture of us. That is not consent but whatever... Heiwa and I had fun with it and made creepy faces.

There was even more people that would hide behind the pillars and take pictures of us. I might sound paranoid to you but when you make eye contact with the person and they give you a head nod, step out from behind the pillar and take the picture anyways, I deserve to be "paranoid".


To be honest, this next thing was where my biggest problem with AARC came in.
Before you give your ticket in they do a bag check. Now don't get me wrong, I love bag checks and security measures for anywhere but this one was a little off. Jiyu and my bag checking went fine but when Heiwa stepped up she happily gave them their bags and told them she was a type 1 Diabetic and consequently she has to have some form of food on her at all times and can legally have it with her in areas where it's not generally allowed.  There is also this thing called HIPPA which basically, in this case, means that Heiwa shouldn't have had to provide proof that she was a diabetic because that's a violation of her PHI. (PHI= Personal Health Information)
None the less we told the bag checker she was a diabetic, the checker then got someone else to see if it was okay to let her in and we did eventually get in.

This is a huge negative for me because everywhere we have gone so far has been completely understanding and helpful to the point as to let us know what type of medical personal and concessions would be there but for it to be a struggle to get into this convention, I was not pleased.
I will admit that I probably got rubbed the wrong way because of how strongly I feel for Heiwa but that doesn't change a near violation of the PHI.

Okay so moving on!
Once through the doors there were badge handouts, programs and freebies.
The badges were alright, the programs were good and the handouts were pretty awesome. The posters looked really cool but they wouldn't have made it home in one piece so we all opted for a Vizmedia booklet. I am glad we had a spare bag for it to all go in so it didn't get ruined or forgotten.

You guys know how I am a big one for location?
Well... The center was certainly an interesting one. It felt like a cement coliseum and if there was a horror movie/ horror games filmed or hosted there I would flip because it would fit those so well. However it wasn't a very convention friendly building, I understand that there are only a certain number of places that you can hold conventions in Asheville, but still.
Okay, enough beating around the bush. Here are the tactless words.

The view would have been beautiful but the windows were filthy so that ruined it.
The interior looked like a parking garage, literally the "stairs" were concrete ramps.
The vendors room was a huge pit like in a coliseum with seating in the nosebleed section.
The artists alley was in the wrap around hall that led to the seats.
The majority of vendors were either pushy or disinterested, they was a few where I liked their items but wouldn't have purchased them because of the hosts.
A lot of the artists were very young and I would even take a chance to say that this was their first convention.
There was no signage so you either had to ask for directions or follow the flow of people.
The staff were very.. Staff-y. What I mean by that is most of the successful cons that I have been to have the staff mingling and getting conversations going and introducing strangers and its just a ton of fun.
Overall my biggest problem though was the fact that it felt like something was missing.
We ended up leaving and didn't even stay for the later panels.
If you think I didn't give this convention a chance please understand that I went there wanting to love it, I tried very hard to find the good and things that I liked but really only a few things came to mind.
They had "Cosplay is NOT Consent" Signs everywhere which I adore and think that every con should have because people are often confused about that. Even though it should be blatantly obvious that if your soul isn't inhabiting that body then don't touch it.
There was a really cool "Inspector Gadget" cosplayer that was very in character and had a lot of neat tricks up his sleeve(s).
There was actually Supernatural merchandise there which was pretty cool. I did end up in a conversation with someone because I said "I don't think my Mom would like it if I wore a pentagram to church." talking about the protective demon charms that a vendor had. Well I have been thinking about that and I want to clear it up a little bit.
My roommates and family (and friends if I had any) are all supportive and understanding of my eccentric tendencies and nerdy interests. My Mother would probably have not said anything about it and wouldn't stop me from doing it because she encourages and supports me with everything but there is still a fine line between acceptable and disrespectful and I am afraid that buying that and wearing it would have been disrespectful to her. I am not that type of child, I have a very healthy relationship with my parents and they are worth not having a little bit of Supernatural merchandise.

Okay time for the over all ranking.. Obviously I have not been looking forward to this.

AARC Overall-commerce score: 7/10
AARC Overall-personal score: 4.5/10
Would I recommend this convention? If you're in the area and don't have much to do then go for it but if you have to travel say, a few hours, then I wouldn't advise it. It wasn't a favorable convention for me.
Will you be back? That is a hard maybe, probably not. I dunno.. I like cosplay contests.
Ideas for Improvement: Signs. Those are nice. I like to know where I came from, Where I should go, Where I should have come from. Cotton Eyed Joe.



That is all that I have to say for today, I am sure some of you are thankful for that. Hope you all have a good day and remember I care about you ^_^

~Aki Ame Okami  

A Chapter A Day: Day 20 "Sea of Souls" by Casey Eanes and Seth Ervin

                   A Chapter A Day: Day 20


Reviewing book two in the Keys of Candor series, Sea of Souls, by Seth Ervin and Casey Eanes.

Hey there everyone! So just a little reminder that this weekend I wont be here. I am taking Friday off to work on TLOST, Saturday I have AARC and Sundays are no work days anyways.
That doesn't mean that I am any less excited to be celebrating our 20th day!!! Only eight days left to spend with you Keys of Candor fanatics.. I don't know how I feel about that..
Oh well, lets just cherish out time together and read chapter 20!


~~~~~~74 minutes later~~~~

First I just have a few thoughts.
How will Willyn react to Luken? Will she be ecstatic or afraid?
I am interested in how that will play out.
I bet she will think that Luken being alive means Hagan could be alive and it will cause some problems.

You should never agree to a plan you are uncomfortable with. At least meet in the middle.
When Bri was so against it Willyn should have altered it then. If you have allies and need them to do something you should make sure that everyone is comfortable with the plan because if not things wont go well..

Which brings us to this.
Willyn should have known better.
If she was as talented at war as she claimed to be, then she should have known that wasn't going to end well.
Was time really that short?
They could have taken a path with stronger cover and a better retreat, they could have turned around when they saw the Dominion appear on the map.
It didn't have to go down like that.

But... I can't think of a better way for the protagonists to find out about Seams morel army. This was right for the plot.

I did really like the war terms and the proper maneuvers. It felt like the authors put a lot of thought into it and that helped sweep me into the book. They did a very good job with that and I appreciate the effort.

Now the bullet point of this chapter...

Why. Why must you do this? The sweet teddy bear took on the grizzly and it didn't work. Gah I am an emotional wreck because of this. 
I didn't particularly care about Bri's character. When he was introduced he reeked of "disposable character" smell and I knew it was coming but the way he died made me respect his character.
Not only did Bri sacrifice himself for Willyn but he agreed to her plan knowing that it would end up like that! Ultimate self sacrifice right there.


Okay guys, that's the end of todays review. I am looking forward to Bastions release and Willyn's reaction to Luken, hopefully we will get one of those things in the next chapter which I will be reading on Monday.
I hope you choose to join me, can't wait to see you all again! BYE!!!

~Aki Ame Okami

A Chapter A Day: Day 19 "Sea of Souls" by Casey Eanes and Seth Ervin

                              A Chapter A Day: Day 19
Reviewing book two in the Keys of Candor series, Sea of Souls, written by Seth Ervin and Casey Eanes.


Hello there everyone! I hope everyone is doing well and that you managed to stay out of the heat today! A nice way to get out of the heat it to settle down with a good book! I have just the recommendation for you. I recommend The Red Deaths by Casey Eanes and Seth Ervin! That is kind of a prerequisite course for this book seeing how its the first one so be sure to go and read that one first! Now for those of you who are reading along with me, lets go read chapter 19!


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~45-ish minutes later~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Okay, I love how Grift freaks out. I feel like that is exactly how a normal person would react to seeing a friend rise up from the dead.

Then when he interrogates Luken and gets no answers and he just turns to Wael like, "Explain yourselves?!" It's great because he is only making the confusion worse.

Okay, we can be serious for a minute.
Lots of people lose faith after losing loved ones. It doesn't particularly affect one faith more than another but it happens to a ton of people. When the almighty thing that you believe in lets something bad happen you lose hope and you doubt and you resent and you have never disliked someone as much as that almighty thing but in the end you know you can't feel that way about them because you have always loved them, Always.
I feel like Grift was going through that when Wael did the blessing over Rose and Eva.

"Can't say I've ever seen someone do that." - Cryic
Oh how I love that man! I lost it when he said that. I could just imagine this man who is totally confident in him self and his capabilities just sitting there lighting up a cigarette and being all chill about the fact that another human being can throw cars like pebbles.  That is how you impress and Aki apparently.

Parker? I dislike that name but the ugly face fits. If he knows about the powerful war technology then good, bring him in! Unless he wants to stop it then send him back.

The fact that Luken got nervous around the war tech makes me nervous but it is certainly a plot thickening element so that intrigues me.

That is all I have for today.
I would like to remind everyone to ALWAYS SAVE IMPORTANT FILES I had to reconstruct this review and the entire second season of TLOST because I forgot to save it. So please don't be like me :P
Oh also, we got confirmation and we will be attending Yama-Con 2016 in Pigeon Forge TN!!!!!!!!! There was actually a funny problem with it, Heiwa had registered us as well and I didn't know it so I feel awful about the confusion I am sure we caused.
See ya guys!!

~Aki Ame Okami

A Chapter A Day: Day 18 "Sea of Souls" by Casey Eanes and Seth Ervin

                                     A Chapter A Day: Day 18

Reviewing book two in the Keys of Candor Series, Sea of Souls, by Seth Ervin and Casey Eanes.

GUYS! Before I get started I just remembered something that I forgot to mention in lasts nights review.
Cyric the bad-butt bounty hunter... drives a... Jeep. A JEEP!!!

Mother of all vehicles and master of all the toys. Even in an alternate universe Jeeps exist and I will be honest.. That was a very touching moment that something I am so passionate about can transcend reality. Thank you for giving me that.

Okay, Anyways I hope everyone is well and that you are excited for todays chapter! Lets go read!

~~~~~~~~~JeepJeepJeepJeepJeepJeep~~~~~~~~


They will meet again soon? Where? How? Why?
If they see eachother again soon then that means someone else will probably die.. again.. I don't want to know the details.

That was an incredibly sweet moment between Kull and Rose.
*I am going to go all stereotype ranting on you again.* 
Usually protagonists have at least one crappy parent and a tragic backstory but I just realized the we are living his tragic backstory.
He is manning up in the moment because he has to, he isn't rising up for glory and power a few years later. That is really cool to me because as crappy as life has been its realistically not that bad (I am a pessimist/realist so I didn't expect much) so this makes it easier to relate to Kull's character. He wasn't anything special and didn't have any life altering moments, he was almost human.

We later figure out that he is special and yaddy-yadda but for the time being it was really special.


Pretty birdy-kitty-puppies?
Those obsidian guards were pretty sick. In a good way.  I was all for the creepy critter description until we hit the word "Beak" and that was... unexpected. I like birds, especially birds of prey, but that just threw me off. I really enjoyed the curveball. I love that no matter how much I have figured out in this book they always surprise me.
But I would seriously like to adopt one of those lil cuties ^_^

Aleph above, is that Aleph? Is Kull doing house chores with ALEPH? I think that Aleph is essentially the Almighty in this book so basically Kull is washing dishes with God. That's kinda... epic.

Nah, I don't know who Kull is with in Mir but I do know that they are helping him so I am alright with them.

Kull so would have burned his mouth. When StrangerDanger gave him the fresh loaf of bread from the pan that was buried in part of the fire bed he would have burned his mouth. There are no ifs ands or buts about it.

So in the spirit of some of my favorite discussions on Disqus this week I was inspired to prepare a short Haiku for this.

Make friends with stranger,
The worlds at war but who cares, 
As long as there's wine.

Note: A Haiku is 5 syllables, 7 and then 5. It usually relates to seasons but it was made to fit the topic of review.

That is all that I have to report for todays chapter, it was really light and fluffy so I am concerned about what comes next!
I actually finished this post at about midnight but the internet is down once more so I don't know when it will be posted. Sorry guys :/

See ya later!!! Stay safe out there!!!

~Aki Ame Okami

A Chapter A Day: Day 17 "Sea of Souls" By Casey Eanes and Seth Ervin

                                         A Chapter A Day: Day 17
Reviewing book two in the Keys of Candor series, Sea of Souls, by Seth Ervin and Casey Eanes.

Hey everyone, so just another random thought that relates to the reviews. I don't know if anyone has noticed this yet but I take care to rotate which name gets spelt first for each of the authors. It starts from the blog title and then every time I mention them by name thereafter. Alrighty, lets get to reading!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Some Time Later~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This chapter was exciting so I am going to do the least exciting thing first.... That would be the meanings of words!!! :D

Topographical: of or relating to the arrangement or accurate representation of the physical features of an area:

Abode: a place of residence; a house or home.
(Like the term, "welcome to my humble abode")

On to the seriousness!!! *My inner sarcastic voice weeps*

My reactions went from,
"Finally!!! We hear from Wael! I was getting worried that we hadn't had a chapter from his point of view." then they dropped drastically to, "no no, that's not what I had in mind O.o ".
As much as I love any chapter that features Cryic, I really didn't want to have a double feature like this however I like the mature seasoning it added to the book.

Cryic is well trained in his field and he is certainly a beast but he isn't a monster.
I liked how civil he was towards Wael and how there wasn't mindless abuse.
The stereotypical assassin/hunter (Minus the Winchesters) would have been physically or mentally abusive to their bounty, the old "They only need you alive" shtick but Cryic wasn't so that's nice.

Next up we have my um, settle reaction about the last paragraph.
I am pretty sure that we have already covered my obsession with being right, right?
I WAS SO RIGHT! I WAS RIGHT ABOUT EVERYTHING!
The authors used "anime logic" and Luken isn't actually dead!!!! HE LIVES!!! but not only does he live, he is The Sixth.
The one who can help them save the world has returned and boy am I glad.
Hey Willyn, I know that you can't really celebrate this but Luken is the "take home to Momma" type. Good choice and great catch!
(get it? Catch? since he was last seen falling into the ocean I think its funny but that might just be me...)

Luken my precious, welcome back! How have you been? Oh and um, I know you don't like him but please don't hurt Cyric too much, okay?


With the celebration over I need to look at how this will affect the plot. Will Cyric pursue Wael even though he is under the protection of Luken? Would it matter? The position Cyric is in will end up with him dying no matter what. If he returns to Seam without Wael he is dead and if he goes to get Wael he is dead and that is not a happy thought. I wanted to be attached to him, mostly because I thought he would live, but I will sacrifice that love for Lukens survival.
I think.. I dunno, I might add him to my group of favorite characters that also happen to be dead.

I am happy you all joined me today, I hope you had a good Sunday and I look forward to seeing you tomorrow!
See ya!

~Aki Ame Okami  

A Chapter A Day: Day 16 "Sea of Souls" by Casey Eanes and Seth Ervin

                              A Chapter A Day: Day 16
Reviewing book two in the Keys of Candor series, Sea of Souls, by Seth Ervin and Casey Eanes.

Hey guys, so I just wanted to remind you that the way I write is very personable and how I would speak to my closest friends so if you have seen my at any of the conventions or anywhere else and thought that I was very polite and well spoken I just wanted to apologize because everyone knows by now that I am 15% manners and 85% fangirl noises. 

Now that we have that out of the way lets begin our leisure reading!


~~~~~~~~~A Timely amount of Time Later~~~~~~~~

The long awaited battle...

                                    Willyn VS Rander

                     Grand prize: Leadership of the Groganlands
                                1 round, winner takes all,
                                                
                                                  Fight
                                                    To
                                                   The
                                                  Death

That was a beautifully written physical altercation.
It contained proper amounts of strength and strategy.
I really liked the way Willyn sized up Rander, she noted his strengths but didn't rule out other possible strengths. Such as his legs, he didn't presumably have any reach with them but she didn't rule it out.
The authors made sure to use more than the usual hit points, such as the knee cap, back of the neck, kidneys and so on. Usually
people just aim for the face so it was very refreshing and inspiring to see them hit elsewhere.

I liked the way that Rander and Willyn made "peace" after the fight. They are both true Grogans to the core and even though they can't trust each other completely, they can understand why and that's a form of trust on its own.

Willyn is known as the Sar and the Groganlands are united again!! That was exciting but I didn't fully appreciate it because I was a little busy laughing at the fact that she had to have her hair dyed before the broadcast. I understand her wanting to be her true self whenever she was acknowledged by her people.
But I think that was the first girly thing that she had done.

Also, I love the description "He was built like an anvil."

Credit to jerzeedevil.com

That made me picture Rander as this guy with tiny little muscle-y legs and these super broad shoulders and a flat face. I am sure he looks nothing like that but I definitely got a good laugh out of it.


That is all for today, I am going to actually go and post the link on the FB page now. I know I have been doing a terrible job of updating you guys with that :P

See you all on Monday!! Have a safe day tomorrow :)

~Aki Ame Okami 

A Chapter A Day: Day 15 "Sea of Souls" by Casey Eanes and Seth Ervin

                                    A Chapter A Day: Day 15

Reviewing book two in the Keys of Candor series, Sea of Souls, by Seth Ervin and Casey Eanes.

Hey guys! So it hit me today... When we finish this book in 13 chapters there wont be another book ready for us to read.
Somehow that train of thought sparked another thought, who's

Obviously, this is Draco Malfoy.

faces did they use for the book covers? I am assuming that the people were asked to do it and stuff but the bottom left face on the cover of Dominions End looks like Daniel Radcliffe. 

Oh well, just some pre-chapter thoughts. Lets get to digesting this new chapter!!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~25 minutes later~~~~~~~~~~~~

First, I must warn you that I have been up for about 20 hours so my train of thought might be a little stranger than usual and I probably wont be covering much from this chapter.

Lets go ahead and get the fancy words out of the way.
Strafed: attack repeatedly with bombs or machine-gun fire from low-flying aircraft:

I actually really like that word and had no idea that it existed.

Adley... dang girl! She has this war thing figured out. I was very impressed with how she took control and fought alongside (if not ahead of) Grift. Usually this is about the time when the girl starts crying and begs the guy to not do something stupid but she is just like, "If we are going to do this, we are doing it right!" and runs off and does the stupid thing with him! 

Now even after having said all that I don't think Grift was being overly stupid. That was the appropriate response for the situation and he was still using strategies and military tactics to remain as safe as possible.

This book has some revolutionary technology! Where can I get one of those things? It wouldn't be for mass murder or anything, more like minor destruction and amusement.

Seriously though, I think that this is a brilliant and plausible way to defeat the Serubs without going all magic-y in the book.
If they somehow find a way to wrap this up using technology and the human brain/body I will be ecstatic because that is the type of example young readers need. Not to say that whatever holy thing that the Monks got going on isn't cool, its just not applicable to the problems of our world.

They are falling back to Preost. That will have to be one of the last stands because now they are all that stands between Seam and Isphet. I am excited and concerned for the release of Isphet... I like his and Bastions personalities so I am sure this will be fun.

That brings us to the end of the review, I know it was short and I am really sorry about that. There is something to celebrate though.... Rot made it through another chapter!!! The dog LIVES! You don't usually get to celebrate and animal surviving so lets not underestimate this grand achievement. 

Thank you for reading along, I am sorry if I ended up disappointing anyone. I will see you for Saturdays chapter later but I wont see you Sunday. Thanks for being awesome, just remember you are all wonderful people and I am glad you exist ^_^ 

See ya!!

~Aki Ame Okami

A Chapter A Day: Day 14 "Sea of Souls" by Casey Eanes and Seth Ervin

                           A Chapter A Day: Day 14
 Reviewing book two in the Keys of Candor series, Sea of Souls, by Seth Ervin and Casey Eanes.


Hey there guys!! Today has been another busy, busy day. I am well into the making of another sword! This time is going much better than the first time I made a sword and documented it for you during the "21 Days of Cosplay" segment.
But we aren't here to hear about that ^_^
Grab your books and lets go admire a literary masterpiece!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~45-ish minutes later~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`

Oh good! The very first sentence has us gasping and panting for air. Those are my favorite ice breakers, you know.



The Beast referred to the serubs as his kin... This is interesting.
Now here is the tricky part with that way of referring to the serubs, does that mean that "The Beast" is somehow the way that Isphet is gaining power without leaving the mirror, or is Satan just really close with the serubs and likes to refer to them as his kin?

This is probably just a little personality flaw but I love the "I own you" scene.
For some reason whenever there is an announcement of ownership in a book, tv show, movie, ect. I pretty much get cold chills because there are very few things that are more evil and more profound than stating that you "own" someone. That is right up there with the ill wishing of ones mother. You just don't do it, unless you do and in that case you better be entertaining.
A new word!!! There is only one that I am going to focus on because the past few days have featured a lot of cool new words. I am no monster so I wont make you suffer days on end of learning. That is what school is for.....

Asunder: apart; divided OR into pieces.

So... I don't know how to say this where it won't sound conceited but um...

I was right! Nameless was/is Kull!!!! It's not like that was a shocking plot reveal or anything but I still like being right so that was a very good moment for me.

On a more serious note, I think that the ending was very touching and heart warming moment. The authors used Rose in a way that I hadn't thought about.
Like a true Mother she went and found her son, saving him from The Beast himself. Now we get to see what she is truly capable of. So far all the of the people who loved her have been talking about how strong, brave and caring she was and now we may finally get to see that with our own eyes.

I know that if you are reading this post, it probably is the weekend already. So let me be a dear and tell you how wonderful Century Link internet is! We have been stuck with them as a provider for many years and they always do this thing where the internet will die whenever I am trying to do daily posts or post something I promised would be up.
I might be bad with deadlines but I am very devoted to my blog and to my people, last time I reviewing I came home from Prom early so that I could still have the post done at a reasonable time so please never doubt me when I say I will do something if its humanly possible.

Obviously if you're reading this then the internet came back but I still wanted you to know I am hopelessly devoted to you guys :)
See ya tomorrow, provided I have connection.

~Aki Ame Okami

A Chapter A Day: Day 13 "Sea of Souls" By Seth Ervin and Casey Eanes

                        A Chapter A Day: Day 13

Reviewing book two in the Keys of Candor series, Sea of Souls, by Casey Eanes and Seth Ervin

Howdy my friends, you may have noticed I have already posted once today. That was the promised review of my trip to Shelby-Con, minus the part about me winning the costume contest, and it wont stop me from writing this! My headache and the building list of props I need to finish before AARC might try and stop me but it still wont happen, so grab your books and possibly your reading glasses and lets get our read on!!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~25 Minutes Later~~~~~~~~~~

Today I am going to do things out of order, first I will cover the deep "Plot thickening" points of the chapter, then I will do the funny things and provide humorous pictures and lastly I will let you adore the vocabulary used in this chapter. This way if you aren't interested in any of that you don't have to read it.

The plot thickens!!!

Seam is becoming madly overpowered to the point that the Serubs are worried about it. This is really intriguing because the way the book has read up to this point makes it seem like the Serubs were the ultimate evil but I think it is pretty clear that if Seam concerns them then he might be worse.  I think that he is just about as unstable as Vanessa and Tiffany from Big Brother but whatever.

I thought it was a little awkward when Seam was talking about experimenting with his powers on Kulls shell of a body. I get it, kind of. It really doesn't matter how you look at it, it really isn't healthy to be playing with undead bodies. When serial killers keep a trophy it usually isn't an entire body so we are breaking new ground for psychologists everywhere!!!

Reuben... Ewing trusted you. Imagine the sad and disgruntled face of our lil old Ewing when he finds out your a traitor and plotting to bring Aleigha into Seam. How could you willingly disappoint him? I am very concerned about Aleigha. I can't decide if I think Seam will kill her or make her a morel/puppet type of thing. How twisted would you have to be to control your own mother... I actually don't want to think about that.

Isphet and The Betrayer (The 6th) Returned the Serubs to Aleph. Why is Isphet locked away if he helped lock the others up? What secrets does he know about gaining power and stopping The Keeper and did he learn those secrets from The 6th?

Even though this is one series I feel like I am trying to piece together the plot of about 6 different books. I actually don't hate it. Being able to see the protagonists and the antagonists points of views makes me drawn into the world even more. As always, I am still rooting for the bad guy even though I love the good guys.
Gotta love the love/hate relationship with the book :P

Okay, I have two shamelessly funny things.


First, we have Reuben.


Not only is he a traitor to the rebellion, he is also a delicious looking sandwich that is made out of Corned beef, Swiss cheese, Sauerkraut and Russian dressing, grilled between two slices of rye bread. (The kind with the swirls) Why does he have to look so good and be so bad?



So at some point in this chapter Seam referenced the black Spartan uniforms..... That lead to one of the best google searches ever. 

The results went from normal to more clothes, less clothes, male, female, game uniform, army uniform, football and basket ball uniforms, some little logo guys for some brand and pet costumes but the best by far has to be seeing these two side by side. I just... I don't know what I am doing with my life..

                         


And finally, my favorite segment, the Vocabulary lesson!
Charade: an absurd pretense intended to create a pleasant or respectable appearance:
This word isn't all that rare but most people don't know what it means so it made the list.

The meanings of this word go from simple to rocket science.
Oscillated: move or swing back and forth at a regular speed: AND "vary in magnitude or position in a regular manner around a central point"

Defiler: Noun of Defile: sully, mar, or spoil.
Basically someone who had sullied, marred or spoiled.

Incensed: very angry; enraged.
I actually didn't know this word and its existence fascinates me!!

Sedition: conduct or speech inciting people to rebel against the authority of a state or monarch 


So once again I thank you for joining me on this reading journey, we are far from over and I can't wait to see you again tomorrow.
See Ya!

~Aki Ame Okami

Shelby Comic Con: Summer 2016

                   Shelby-Con Summer 2016

Once again we hit the road, looking forward to a con held by the same people who hosted Marion Con. I knew it was going to be fun but I could never have pictured what happened next.

 The first amazingly pleasant thing to happen was the venue, for some reason I was still expecting the con to be in a community center or gym and be, well... little.
Not that that would have been a bad thing! Well let me assure you, The LeGrand center is not little. It has a unique, eye catching design that is very pleasing to look at from the outside. The inside is even more pleasurable with its easily located rooms, wide walkways and FANTASTIC Air Conditioner. I was actually very infatuated with the lamps and ceilings at the end of the hall.. I even took a picture... We even had a nice outdoor view.

This will probably sound like an exaggeration to someone who doesn't go to very many cons but this convention center was so well ventilated that it could have moved me to tears. One of the huge things that *almost* every con has is this thing called "Con Funk" and that is basically a kind term for mass B.O. It is nothing against anyone who attends cons. Its just a fact, if you put a ton of people in the same poorly ventilated areas in a generally hot region you are going to have a ton of people sweating and at the end of the day the entire place ends up pretty rank. Shelby-Con did not show signs of Con Funk!!!!!!!!!! We were there from 12-4 so I am sure we would have noticed. Even my precious Yama-Con that I adore so much showed a little bit of Con Funk by the end of the weekend, though I guess after 3 days of partying you have to show some signs of weakness...


The vendors room was always packed, in fact it was so packed full of vendors that a few set up in the hall. It was still set up so that the floor of traffic ran smoothly. We have a few notable vendors (by that I mean I actually made it to their booth and didn't get swept away in the crowd)!!!

I have picked my top 5 favorite vendors.

1st goes to Pixie Pete Creations!!!! That link currently goes to a closed FB group but she is more than willing to add you. Their booth was really cool and had a new, fresh type of merchandise that I hadn't seen before and that is why they took 1st. They sell these really cool towels. Yes, towels. Hang on though, these towels are hooded and she puts all kinds of popular characters on them. I saw a ton of familiar childrens characters, I saw a few adult characters (Nothing inappropriate but like Ahkmed from Jeff Dunham) and all of the popular emoji's of todays youth! Mrs. Janet has actually spent a many years in the creative businesses and has degrees in that field as well and after an eventful life she has settled down into something she likes. That would be Pixie Pete Creations. I am glad I got to talk to them and I will have to pick me up a towel next time, though to be honest I would want something like This or....

This. There really would be no in between. 
It would have to be chibi or Ikemon because I am stereotypical with my types :P

Please go and look at her stuff, its really awesome!







2nd place goes to....... Wynne's Wonders and her fantastic Steam Punk jewelry. Unfortunetly Baka has infected me with her love for all things steam punk so I couldn't help but appreciate the craftsman ship in her works. Hats off to you, Wynne :)  Feel free to check her out!

In 3rd we have Yume Creations!!!!! Her(?) little trinkets were adorable and I think that the wide variety and the alluring business card is what drew me to her booth. Please go check her(?) out!!


The final places belong to a service and a wish list vendor.

4th goes to Felis Minor Productions!! They are a photography and videography type of business. I got their card at the con (the card is adorable) and have been looking at their pictures and videos over the past few days and they truly have an artists eyes. I would trust them with all my picture needs any day of the week. If you feel like looking at something beautiful, go check them out :)

And finally.... The 5th place goes to a shop I have only heard rumors about, a place everyone recommends but knows better than to talk about. A place where your true geek can be unleashed....
                THE NERD HERD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!      
Now I have been trying to get to this booth for a few cons now and just recently I have figured out who owns it so you better bet that once I find  you I will be spending a ton of money that I don't have! I think my problem was that they were back where Spider The Man and DeadPool of Hickory were because that is the one corner I didn't go to. Too many people for me...
None the less I will find you eventually, Nerd Herd.
(Please go check out their stuff, that way you can understand my passion and obsession!!)


Now one of my other favorite parts of the con was being able to actually meet people! You guys all know that one of my goals ever since I first started cosplaying and blogging was to actually meet people at a con. Morganton-Con and Hickory-Con were always way to packed and pretty much just one big dealers room and Yama-Con last year was what first brought me out of my socially awkward shell so I didn't have a chance there but while we were at Shelby-Con we had a good amount of down time and got to do just that!!!! I met a few wonderful people but my top 6 would be,


Harley Quinn and The Penguin.
These guys had such AWESOME cosplays and great personalities to boot! I will admit that when I first spotted Harley's Hammer I mega nerded out because it was a work of art. And The Penguin was actually very reassuring to talk to about college which, as some of you know, I will be taking my placement test for.. today. So he was definitely a confidence booster that I needed. If you guys ended up reading this, Thank you for being awesome! I hope we see you in the future!

I sadly don't have a picture of the other 4 people, one of them was an amazing lady who stopped us almost right after we got in the door. We chatted with her for quite a bit of time and I was very happy to find someone right away that was into anime! She actually gave me some pointers and reminders about how Butler and Maids would really act that helped me out in the Costume contest.

The next two were in their own little group cosplayer (Awesome last minute cosplay btw) and the other I think was a member of Team Rocket (Pokémon) and they were a lot of fun to talk to. Heiwa and I gave them the group title of "Fangirls" because they were very perky and excited and it was contagious because just talking to them made me super happy. ^_^  Also, I hope the Team Rocket one went around playing Pokémon Go. That would have been perfect.

Then the final person I sadly did not give a business card too so if she finds this post then its simply a miracle. She was with me in my rank for the Costume contest and had an epic Rae (Star Wars) costume. Her name was Grace and she was super nice and I had a great time talking to her even though it wasn't for very long. I wish I had given her a card... If anyone knows Rae/Grace can you pass this post along?


Okay, other than Penguin and Harley I only took 2 pictures of cosplayers. I know that is awful in comparison to my usual.. 200?
But because of the tight dealers room and the fact that most people were there in groups I didn't want to disturb anyone or take time from them.

I have mad respect for this gentleman right here because not only was that costume probably hand made but it was also probably like wearing a moving sauna. He was very nice all the way around and took time out of his con day to let me get a pic.

Then I of course got a picture with the in house serial killer. I am surprised this picture turned out this good because I threw my hands up and did a half scream and Heiwa laughed so hard she dropped the camera. This cosplayer was very serious and dedicated for his character. Even when it came to judging time in the contest he didn't say a word. Everything he did was through body language and it was 100% creepy and thrilling. Good job Mr. Meyers.
(Note: I know you can't see his other hand but it is on the back of my neck. Very good placement, gave me chills because that was very authentic. I am a mega horror fan so it rocked!)  

I will be ending the picture and personal feelings segment here with a picture of the crowded yet spacious hallway/walk area.
See how gorgeous the ceiling is?! Suck natural lighting!! (I am also an Architecture nerd.)

So lets get down to business, To defeat the Cons.

Pros of Shelby-Con:                                       Cons of Shelby-Con:
Felt like day 1 of a 3 day con.             Felt like day 1 of a 3 day con
Super friendly staff.*                      *DeadPool didn't judge the teens
Perfect building.                                            Costume Etiquette        
Variety of vendors and cosplayers.                        Had to be quiet    
Informative Signage.*
Seating for everyone*
Panels
Clean and spacious restrooms.


Since there are fewer things in the cons section lets go over them first.

Felt like day 1 of a 3 day con means that it was really awesome and had the momentum and energy to go longer. Not really a con, just a bummer.

DeadPool didn't judge the teens costumes.. This isn't a bad thing, I do believe that the people who judged them/us were completely capable and qualified to do the judging I was just a little disappointed because I harass/talk to DeadPool on FB quite a bit and even though we go to all the same cons I haven't gotten the chance to talk to him yet so I was hoping to see him with that. That is entirely a me thing so nothing really against a con.

Costume Etiquette. Um, this is still a touchy (no pun intended) subject. I will be writing an entirely separate post about this. This was the first time someone ever made me feel uncomfortable in a costume so it did leave a bit of a bad after taste. That wont effect the cons final grade though. It wasn't their job to monitor pictures or anything so this has nothing to do with them.

For the costume contest we had to be quiet because there was a meeting going on in a nearby room. That was a little frustrating because we couldn't clap for the winners of the contest. It was unavoidable and I don't think anyone got upset about it but I would like to say this to everyone who entered the contest.
Ahem, You were all fabulous! You're costumes were great and even if you didn't win a prize that doesn't mean that you should stop trying. Keep going with what you love and never stop!

Alright, onto the Pro's!!!

It felt like day 1 of a 3 day con, It was great! We could have kept going! There should have at least been an after party :P

Super friendly staff, That is a bit of an understatement. Not only were they friendly they were also, informative, efficient, reliable and they gave you a feeling of being safe. Now I know that sounds silly but stay with me. When you are at a con a feel like the people running it are totally in control and capable and having fun themselves then it gives you a feeling of ease that helps you to just let loose and enjoy the con. They definitely had that and I genuinely appreciate it.

Perfect building, I am pretty sure I went on and on about it above so I wont say much here. The AC was amazing, the space and design was incredible and it had a strong "Wow" factor.

Variety of vendors and cosplayers. The vendors were everywhere from Comics to manga to video games. The only thing I could have asked for was stuff from shows like Supernatural and Sherlock. I saw plenty of Doctor Who stuff so why not the other of the trio? The cosplayers were even more diverse and made there way into the historical spectrum and the horror genre. It was fantastic, baby.
(That was a K-pop reference)

Informative Signage. Lots and lots of cons have very confusing buildings with very few signs. Thankfully Shelby-Con had signs everywhere. I couldn't have gotten lost if I tried. That is one of the little things that usually gets overlooked but I noticed and I am thankful!


Seating for everyone. One of the things that I adored at this building was the chairs. Now I know everywhere has chairs or benches but this place had these chairs that were big enough for two people, super comfy and were seated close enough to the other chair that you could be sitting with them but it was just far enough away that strangers could comfortably sit next to each other. That was a miracle in disguise because usually all forms of seating are wasted because of socially awkward or just introverted people. By that I mean we wont go sit in a free sit if someone is next to it.

Panels. I am so glad they added them. I have never seen a 1 day con have them before but I think they were a great addition and I hope that is something that they continue to do in the future.
Heck I would host one if they would let me.

Clean and spacious restrooms. Usually one of the biggest concerns with public events is the restrooms. They are almost always a wreck but the ones at the LeGrand center were the cleanest and most spacious ones that I have seen since Yama-Con. I was very, very pleased with them.


Overall Shelby-Con earned itself a grand 95/100 on a professional scale and an 80/100 on a personal scale. Those are really good numbers! I will definitely be recommending this con to friends and strangers and I will absolutely be back.

Ideas for improvement: If you ever add background music or a radio in the background and play things like the Cha Cha Slide or Cupid Shuffle I guarantee you that people will dance. Is it a super con thing to do? Sort of. Most cons have raves and dances and I think this would be a cute way to add that element to a one day con.

One final shout out to Spider The Man and DeadPool of Hickory, they did a fantastic job maintaining control of the costume contests and did a wonderful job judging fairly. Behind all the jokes and smiles, well I am assuming they smile, they know when to get serious and take control. Good job guys!

Thanks for the read, I hope you enjoyed it and that it convinced you to attend Shelby-Con at some point in the future!
You can catch me at my next con which will be AARC in Asheville NC on the 31st of this month.

See ya!

~Aki Ame Okami

A Chapter A Day: Day 12 "Sea of Souls" by Casey Eanes and Seth Erivn

                      A Chapter A Day: Day 12

Reviewing book two in the Keys of Candor series, Sea of Souls, by Seth Ervin and Casey Eanes.


Hello there everyone, I hope that you have been well and had a good Tuesday. I still have a lot of work to do but I sat down an hour early to write this up for you all so that maybe it wont be 2 AM by the time I post it! Lets get reading!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Minutes Later~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I had almost forgotten about the position that Willyn was in.

I feel like ever since she found out that Hagan was "dead" she had lost a certain defiant spark, it was the same spark that had drawn me into her part of the story. Her change was proven even further when she faced the Serub in Preost and he got inside her head.
Thankfully in the chapter we saw her reignite that spark and take on her old Willyn ways.

I loved the moment when she lied to Bastion. I am amazed that he believed it though, I feel like the serubs would usually be able to spot a lie a mile away but hey, what ever works.

The main stars of this chapter were the Baggers. I feel like we learned something very important about their history and the future but I am not sure what.
Maybe the Baggers know how to destroy the mirrors? That strange chant thing certainly felt like "magic" of some sort and I think that it definitely had an affect on Bastion.
What other secrets are the Baggers holding? Should I still call them Baggers or should I call them Former Rihts? Gah.. So many more questions.

Back to Willyn, Her fight with Rander is going to be great!!! As a dabbling author I am always looking for great fight scenes in written format because I always have such a hard time with even trying to write that up because it ends up really wordy and I never think its intense... then again almost 1000 people looked at the first chapter so maybe wordy is my style.

I predict that since I am so excited for that fight, it wont happen. Either the Dominion will invade and prevent them from fighting, Bri or Wael wont let it happen or somehow they will make peace beforehand. I still want the fight but it is always good to look at your options.

Since todays chapter was pretty short I don't have that much to say about it, mostly I just have another grand list of questions. I hope that we continue to explore Nameless and the Baggers in the chapters to come.
Thanks for reading, I tried to keep it brief and to the point-ish. See you tomorrow for chapter 13!!!!!!!!


~Aki Ame Okami

A Chapter A Day: Day 11 "Sea of Souls" by Seth Ervin and Casey Eanes

                     A Chapter A Day: Day 11

Reviewing book two in the Keys of Candor series, Sea of Souls, by Casey Eanes and Seth Ervin.

Hello there everyone! So I know this little intro is my well wishes and letting you know how much I missed the book over the weekend but I have to admit that I have been a little distracted this weekend..
Not only did I win my very first Cosplay Contest (I took 1st!!!) I also completed my placement tests for college and have all of my classes registered!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Of course I will be in class every day at 8 AM and on the campus until 8 PM on Tuesdays and Thursdays but I am sure it will be fine... Sort of.
The reason I am mentioning that to you guys is because with this schedule I will be completely uprooting my life schedule and trying to make myself a morning person, that means I will be trying to write my posts in the morning and going to bed before 3 AM so in the long run it is good for you!!!

Okay with that out of the way I feel comfortable typing my signature words of, LETS GET READING!!! (Chap. 11)


~~~~~A Many A Minutes into the future~~~~~~~

Dang them feels.  I actually have a little something extra for this chapter.. I recommend this song for it.

I never thought about how Ewing would feel about Kull "Dying"... I mean, he is the one who let him go. That moment was strong and reminded the readers just how human everyone was. I just... Ouch.
Ewing, a weathered man of sound mind, will always carry the guilt of letting Kull go. This is one of those things that you regret doing and no matter what you are told or tell yourself the pain doesn't get better.
Why did you have to go all feels heavy on me today? It has been a very emotional weekend and you guys are bringing me to tears.

Dang it Grift. I don't like that side of me so please don't make me talk about it... Ugh, I have to talk about it now. I have been in those shoes far too many times for me to be this young. I am in those shoes at the moment so my next comment is going to be emotionally charged and I do apologize for that.

Loving someone who will never get better.. It changes you. As humans we have this annoying habit of hoping for things even when we know that we should give up. It isn't something we do on purpose and it's not something we can change. In the long run we just hurt ourselves even more and some of us push ourselves past the point of repair. We break with the broken ones and become something a little less than human. The armor that we spent so long perfecting cracks and the barest part of our soul and true character is revealed.

That is a hard thing to write without being emotionally invested or having previously experienced this pain to some degree so Authors, if you have been in that spot I am genuinely sorry for whatever happened. I can't tell you how much I appreciate you making this character and describing a more in depth version of this emotional state than most authors are willing to do. Thank you.

Okay, I am going to be heartless and a schmuck.
We knew it was coming, Rose was going to die. I am kind of relieved that she wont be a stress factor anymore. She released our supreme warrior of his last earthly tie so that he can unleash the beast. What comes next is going to be a mix of disaster and glory and I am glad that I will be there to see it.
I would also like to note that I think she was talking about Kull not Seam. So what about Kull would make him "Unstoppable"? This is certainly another secret that has tons of theories running through my mind that I wont bother you guys with.

We are undoubtedly about to face some hard times and I am incredibly interested to see where they take it. I do have one warning though, if Rend or Rot die I might riot. I have decided to emotionally attach myself to those characters because they are the least likely to die. Now because I said that we will probably find them both dead within a few chapters... Ah Suspense....

That was an emotionally exhausting chapter on top of a lonnggg 4 days so unfortunetly I am ending this here.
Be sure to come back and cry with me over tomorrows chapter, I am sure someone else is gonna die!!!
Just kidding, I hope you are all doing well and I look forward to seeing you again soon ^_^

~Aki Ame Okami

A Chapter A Day: Day 10 "Sea of Souls" By Casey Eanes and Seth Ervin

                   A Chapter A Day: Day 10
Reviewing book two in the Keys of Candor series, Sea of Souls, by Seth Ervin and Casey Eanes.

Hey everyone, I am sure you noticed that Friday's post was postponed. Sorry about that, I had to travel and figure out where Shelby-con was at and I don't think I would have been able to properly review anything last night. Before we get reading I do want to say a few things about today, I entered my first Cosplay Contest and I won first place which was amazing! I will be posting the review of said con tomorrow so if you want to come back and look at it then feel free and I have also been inspired to talk about Con Etiquette and that will probably not be a passing thing because I was strongly affected by some things from today. I am going to leave that at that for now. Lets go read! (Chapter 10)


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Minutes Later~~~~~~~~~~

**********Warning! I am in a good mood so there might be a little bit of hope, happiness and kindness in the review, sorry about that.*******************

This chapter speaks to me on a deep level. The first thing I see is "Where am I?  How long have I been here? Who am I?"
Is the answer Kull for $200? We don't find that out in this chapter but that's where I am throwing my chips in.

Funny thingy, so um.. Nameless can taste the Blackness..?
What exactly does Blackness taste like? Can I have some? I think that might be what my soul or heart tastes like...
No, in all seriousness I do think that that detail and section where Nameless is all disoriented is very important to help with the setting.

What is this setting? Well, like everything this is up to interpretation to everyone. I am sure the authors have their own view for it but what I saw in it was Heaven and Hell, or at least Purgatory.
Aleph is The Almighty and, I am going to make a new word, The Beast is The Unmighty. Satan. Evil incarnate, the great no-no. Whatever you want to call him it doesn't change the resemblance.
This place where Nameless has ended up seems like Purgatory.

I don't mean to go all "learning" on you but its happening so buckle up, butter cup. What exactly is Purgatory? I am glad you asked because like many things in relation to the past and religions it has a wide variety of meanings. The noun version of Purgatory is defined as "(In Roman Catholic Doctrine): a place or state of suffering inhabited by the souls of sinners who are expiating their sins before going to heaven"
So it is basically like a holding cell or torture chamber in that sense.

But wait! There's more!

The Adjective: having the quality of cleansing or purifying: Now that sounds totally different, doesn't it? 

Another definition, ":Severe anguish or suffering."
That one is pretty good.

And another "Purgatory, according to Catholic Church doctrine, is an intermediate state after physical death in which those destined for heaven "undergo purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven. " Now that sounds very close to the first version except it doesn't sound like a torture chamber! That combines versions 1 and 2 and makes it sound a little sweeter...

But the perfect version that I think fits this story is the version used by the wildly popular show Supernatural.
"Purgatory is a realm where the souls of supernatural creatures go after they die. Its physical location is separate from both Heaven and Hell. Crowley estimates there are 30-40 million souls there.^[1] It was originally created by God to contain the oldest creatures, Leviathans, for fear they would destroy the rest of creation" (Courtesy of the Supernatural Wiki )" OR the more colorful version, " It's like the backside of your worst nightmares. It's all blood and bone and darkness. Filled with the bodies and souls of all things hungry, sharp, and nasty." (Courtesy of Bobby Singer- Supernatural Wiki )
I think that version compliments the Candor world very nicely. Not the whole "Full of nasties" thing but I do think that it is a special realm made for the "Essences" that The Serubs Excuse from existence. There you go, you learned something... Sorry....

We have Rank and File, those names compliment each other so nicely. Okay, We have these two vile creatures/people that are the harbingers of essence and hold them captive for manual labor to keep themselves away from The Beast.
This is actually a disturbingly wonderful thing for the plot because now Nameless is surrounded by people who are probably from the last time the Serubs were free which means there is a good chance that they will know how to stop them. Remember how the Serubs usually only Excuse people who do something awful to them or their kin? Obviously the people on that boat are not innocent and know something about the Serubs. This is going to be another wonderful element and I looking forward to see how it alters the story.


One more thing about Rank and File... If this series did get turned into a movie or television series I think that the "dusting" scene would have to be altered a little... We literally have a bright light of a person that they go and rub dust all over that turns into a bare human body.  That wouldn't be camera friendly but I would laugh like crazy because that would be so awkward for the actors to do and for me to watch.
I cannot believe that I just admitted that the remake shouldn't be just like the book! Oh how I have fallen....

Alright I will leave you with the meaning of 4 wonderful words that were used in this chapter.

Detritus: waste or debris of any kind

Despondent: in low spirits from loss of hope or courage
Cur: an aggressive dog or one that is in poor condition, especially a mongrel. (I actually didn't know that one)
Dank: disagreeably damp, musty, and typically cold.

Okay, I didn't get into my feelings on the literary masterpieces above because I know that this post is very "Fact heavy" and  I do apologize for that but sometimes it really helps to be able to dig into the meaning of things and figure out what you are looking at or doing. Rethink this chapter where Nameless, Rank and File are all just in pitch black. It doesn't have the same depth or emotion behind it, its a meaningless fact that we brush past and forget. That is why I tortured you for what has been almost an hour to write.

I hope you all have a wonderful day tomorrow, I wont see you but that doesn't mean that I don't want you to be happy. Lets all look forward to resuming our reading on Monday!
I am honestly going to need your reassuring presence and normalcy in my life on that day because that is the day I take the test. 

See ya!!! :)

~Aki Ame Okami





 

A Chapter A Day: Day 9 "Sea of Souls" by Casey Eanes and Seth Ervin

                        A Chapter A Day: Day 9

Reviewing book two in the Keys of Candor series, Sea of Souls, by Seth Ervin and Casey Eanes

Hey guys, obviously I am late today as well! I will try to work on that.... I hope everyone is doing good and that you haven't read ahead without me! I would understand if you did but it would make me a little sad.. Lets go read!


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Some time later~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Seam is losing it. He has developed such a "god complex" that I thought for a moment that I was reading a *Manga or Light Novel*!
*= Historically the majority of anime/manga/light novel villians and pretty much every villain in history has had a major god complex.


"Nyx would only need remind him of his debt to her, and he obeyed, praying that his compliance would prevent Abtren from saying anything-" Abtren? shouldn't it be Nyx? I could have sworn that
Bronson was thinking about, talking about and had made the deal with Nyx. It is a little confusing this way but I am probably just not reading it right or missing something.


Bronson's term, Zookeeper of Nightmares, has inspired me to write a story... I am very much into that plot.


Bronson, drinking and drugs are never the answer. How my favorite cinnamon roll has fallen. :/
*Cinnamon roll generally refers to the sweet innocent characters that don't deserve whatever fate they have.

Authors, good jobs depicting the different ways that people use to cope with severe stress, regret and self hate. This is probably the best description of a depressed person that I have ever seen.
Bronson is to the point where he doesn't feel like he deserves Aleph's grace. I have been there, felt like that and I can promise you that this reaction is accurate. I don't know if the authors have ever felt that way but major respect to them for this accomplishment.  I hope that we see Bronson's struggle have a good outcome but that would be too much of a happy ending...

I am happy to know what Abtren does for the creepy trio. So far we knew that Arakiel and Nyx made the morels, or at least the undead armies, but I wasn't sure what Abtren had to do with it. Apparently she is useful for trapping which I think compliments her seductive abilities quite well.
That entire process with the baggers and the serubs got me thinking... The authors did such a wonderful job creating a disposable population. The baggers are really essential to the environment and government in this book and I don't think it would flow as smoothly with out them. So lets just take a moment to appreciate our sacrificial citizens.


Seam.. tone down the control issues O.o
I don't know what was going on with that last thing. I have honestly mulled over the interactions and the trains of thought but I cannot piece it together. Good job Casey and Seth, you have stumped me and I love it.


That is all I have on todays chapter. I would like to tell you guys that I am about to go curl up in bed and get some sleep (Since its 2 AM) but I have been watching the "Wrong Turn" movies on Syfy and I doubt that I will be sleeping tonight.
I also have good news, I will be helping with props for the short film A Many A Moon and we are setting to film from the 11th-15th of next month!!! That's super exciting!
Can't wait to see you all tomorrow, or later. Whatever you wanna call it, I will still be here!

~Aki Ame Okami

A Chapter A Day: Day 8 "Sea of Souls" by Casey Eanes and Seth Ervin

                    A Chapter A Day: Day 8
Reviewing book two in the Keys of Candor series, Sea of Souls, by Seth Ervin and Casey Eanes.

Hey everyone and sorry about the title slip up yesterday, I promise you that today is the official day eight review! It is about midnight right now and I am super sorry about that. As you can tell I am obviously a night owl and that throws off my timelines. Anyways, lets get reading! I will try to not rush the review portion ^_^


~~~~~~~~~~oh so many minutes later~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So, like most of her chapters, this one was all about Willyn!

The authors and her earned some brownie points this chapter when they showed her gaining respect or at least some understanding for the Baggers. I feel like in the her last chapter she really looked down on the Baggers for their dirty and unstable lifestyle but in this chapter when they easily adjusted to their forced allegiance I think she saw a new aspect of their life and that caused her to think of them a little differently. Or I could be totally wrong and she could have over looked all of that...


Willyn you can't do it alone. I know you want to but you can't. That isn't how life works. 
Her decision to go into the mine alone and unarmed was not only risky but stupid as well. Her life isn't just hers anymore, she is one of the few people who can help stop The Dominion so she needs to be a little more careful.

BUT because of that decision we are put in an interesting position.

The Serub in the mirror can potentially save her or kill her and she thinks she is hearing Hagan telling her to trust him even though she knows better. That is a wonderful cliffhanger. I am interested to see what choice she makes because it will certainly speak leagues about her character.

I think the person descending from the gap is Bri. That is just my personal opinion but I refuse to believe that Wael would have sent Willyn out without a capable body guard so I have the utmost faith in Bri.

I know that is a pretty short review but this was a pretty short chapter and the time was stressed...
I can't wait to see you all tomorrow and read about what horrible thing Seam is doing next ^_^ Good night friends!

~Aki Ame Okami

A Chapter A Day: Day 7 "Sea of Souls" By Casey Eanes and Seth Ervin

                           A Chapter A Day: Day 7
Reviewing book two in the Keys of Candor series, Sea of Souls, by Seth Ervin and Casey Eanes


Hello everyone and welcome back! Today has been a very progressive day for me and I hope that it has been for you as well!
Lets kick back relax and endulge in our achievements as we celebrate with another chapter of Sea of Souls!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~45-ish minutes later~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What is a Queen without her King? Historically, better.
This time it has a little twist though.
What is a Queen without her kid? Currently, better.
At this point in the story it is very refreshing to have the leader(s) of the resistance exposed. I was not expecting Aleigha to have anything to do with that so it was a nice twist.

The amount of strategic war planning and complicated plans and procedures gives the impression that at least one of the authors or a close friend or family member has had military experience. It feels very authentic and detailed which greatly increases the ability to dive into the story.

Lets talk about Grift. I am certain that he had to have been one of the best and well trained soldiers that ever existed. That means he had to have been trained to emotionally and mentally cope with the loss of loved ones and friends! I don't want to belittle his character, because the struggles that he is going through are certainly tougher than anything in our world, but come on man! You can't just back out of a rebellion!
"Welp, everyone I love has died. Guess I am just gonna go hide in a cave and wait to die." No! Just no. Go get your flipping revenge! Make them rue the day the were born, show them what true fear is and just when they think you will free them from the suffering and pain of this life, make them experience a fate worse than death. Don't just give up...

I adore the use of the word Rend for a name. I absolutely love it and it is something that I would name a child. It gives the impression of attractive, strong and edgy.

I have one typo, sort of, to report and one funny thing.

So the typo..... When Grift was talking about leaving Rose he got all chocked up... Yep. Chocked. I am almost 100% sure the authors were going for Choked but hey, they could have been suggesting that Grift had a "block or wedge placed under something else to keep it from moving" that was breaking his sentences caused by severe emotions. 
By the way, that is the definition of a chock. It is an actual thing used to stop tires and such. See, you are always learning when you come here to read.  (Page 92)Now the funny thing!!!  "Ewing's hands shook. He nodded his hands, his tongue licking his dry lips. "I understand.""
That is a uh.. nice habit that you have there Ewing. What exactly does the nodding of hands express? Now it is entirely possible that this is what they meant to put and that it isn't an error. One of the definitions of Nod states: "signify or express (greeting, assent, or understanding) in this way:" and that could have been his expression of understanding. A Nod means to understand, regardless of the body parts used to do it.

Okay, that is all that I have to report on the chapter but before I go I want to give you a little "heads up" on this weeks schedule.
I will be doing the reviews through Saturday but on Saturday I will be attending Shelby-Con in Shelby, NC and will be reviewing it. Because of the conflict of review schedules I will be posting the review on Sunday the 17th even though it will have been written on the 16th. I also have a really important test for college sometime this week so I don't yet know how that will affect the schedule.
I look forward to seeing you all tomorrow!!! Stay safe out there :)

~Aki Ame Okami