D: (some weeks back)
I’m reading
Tempt the Devil for Shitty Book Club. I’m only on chapter 3, but: oh man I hope there's a gay
subplot. And aristocratic allusions and then piracy? THIS IS PIRATES OF PENZANCE SLASHFIC, INNIT?
A Lady: You are going to be really
disappointed.
D: Dammit. Not that I really know
Pirates of Penzance all that well, but I figured singing pirates could go
homoerotic really easily.
Even the
Foreign Swarthy Silent Bodyguard isn't gay?
A Lady: I know! Or a eunuch! But no.
D has
finished the book and has lost a significant number of brain cells as a direct
result.
A Lady: Dude, the opening sentence is:
"It was a terrible day to die--was there ever a good one?"
It was a
terrible day for punctuation.
D: Things this pirate will not harm:
ladies, the innocent. Things he will massacre: grammar, punctuation.
A Lady: The pirate isn't actually so awful
at it; I blame the narrative voice.
D: Well yes, because he is Secretly
Posh, which must be how he acquired a taste for expensive silk pirate shirts and
all those sashes.
A Lady: So many sashes! If you're that
well-to-do, wouldn't you own some belts?
D: Doesn't that seem like an
impractical thing to wear on a boat? I mean, the loose ends would always be
blowing around and getting in the way.
A Lady: Belts were definitely around by
then.
D: They are not particularly HARD TO
MAKE.
A Lady: LET’S GET TO THE NAMES. OUR
HEROINE’S NAME IS DEVON. Devon is definitely a lady's name in the, um…
Ah right,
we're in 1715, which is a very specific year. In 1715, Devon is a shire, not a
name.
D: And there’s a photograph in 1715.
A Lady: RIGHT, the photograph of Devon's
mother. Because this novel also includes a time-traveling daguerreotyper? Or, I
guess, photographer, since it's not even as archaic as a daguerreotype.
D: (I am trying REALLY HARD not to
make a time-travel Doctor Who joke here. I am sparing you)
A Lady: (Oh god, thank you. You know my
feelings about Doctor Which.)
D: (I almost bought a Doctor Who
novelization last night. BUT I DIDN'T. And I'm not gonna make you read one for
shitty book club, either.)
A Lady: (Which Doctor)
D: (Seventh, I think)
A Lady: (No, I mean that's his new name.
The Which Doctor. Because whenever I see him on TV I feel my head shrink.)
D: (BLASPHEMER!)
So when Our
Heroine Devon is on the boat and all these clothes magically fit her: did they
raid an atelier? Is Devon a fit model?
A Lady: Yeah, I'm thinking someone doesn't
understand how dressmaking worked in the early 18th century. Of course, someone
also doesn't understand that photography wasn't invented until the 19th century.
D: Stretch jersey? Lycra?
A Lady: She is on a boat. And sailors wore wool
jersey, so, um… no.
D: How many times did they do that
jaunt from London to the Caribbean? Seven or so?
A Lady: Back and forth like it's no big.
D: Frequent flier miles: invented in
1715, just for them.
"BRB,
gotta go check on the house halfway across the world.”
“BRB gotta
break off my London engagement!”
A Lady: Sailor miles! I'm amazed they
didn't have smart phones.
D: Also, apparently boats never need
maintenance. Pirate ships are built to be lower-upkeep than my 2005 Honda Civic!
Anyway,
where were we? Names? Our Pirate Hero’s name is KIT. I can
totally see why he gave himself a pirate moniker. Diablo > Kit.
A Lady: Kit I can let fly historically, on
the grounds of Christopher Marlowe. But: "Kit the Pirate"?
D: No one fears Pirate Kit. They
assume he's 9 years old.
Also, let’s
not neglect Pirate Kyle. The fact
that a pirate is named KYLE is killing me.
A Lady: I know, I knowwww. Kyle is just
such a piratey name.
D: The fierce, bloodthirsty... Kyle.
A Lady: First Mate Chad
A Lady: Deckhand... Rick
D: Deckhand Trip
A Lady: TRIP YES
D: Pirate Buddy! (I totally knew a kid
named Buddy. It was his GIVEN NAME.)
A Lady: No you did not.
D: I TOTES DID. We went to elementary
school together.
A Lady: Pirate Buddy definitely sounds like
a toy from the 80s. Also: First
Lieutenant Chip!
D: Second Lieutenant Bryan!
A Lady: Omg omg Seaman JARED
D: YESSSSSSSSSSSSSS
A Lady: Bless the 90s.
Er, the 80s.
I am in
denial about my age, clearly.
D: We totally escaped the 80s w decent
names, thank god.
A Lady: Just barely.
D: COUNTESS CRYSTAL
A Lady: WENCH LINDSEY
D: Lady Mindy
D: Wasn't the fey fiancé Winston?
A Lady: Winnie!
D: This is basically the cast of Fresh
Prince with slightly different names.
A Lady: What was the piratess's name? Scarlett?
D: Yessssss. I love her. Because 1)
weapons 2) good hair 3) DOESN'T GET KNOCKED UP.
A Lady: That's definitely the slashfic way
I was hoping it would be headed. I was really disappointed she didn't seduce
Devon.
D: Oh Devon would be shocked, SHOCKED.
A Lady: And confused.
D: (Hopefully in a hot way.)
A Lady: Duh.
I'm sick of
these spineless women and the men who abuse them but make them like it. This
seems to be a trend in Connie Mason novels, which always involve a woman
betraying a woman. The men lose their temper or are stupid; the women are also
stupid.
Having now
skimmed five of her novels, I've decided I have no patience for Connie Mason.
D: Five. Really.
Your patience/masochism
astounds me.
"Bad
boy! Nice lady! Struggle! Love! Everyone gets married! Even the angry
vaguely-ethnic dude, because we found an ethnic lady to pair him off
with!"
Fuck that
shit. Let's give all the romance "heroines" some Judith Butler, a
knife, and a vibrator.
A Lady: It's not even that; it's "Bad
man! Spoiled lady! Easily explained misunderstandings that are never explained!
Lies kept for no reason!" etc. And the endorsement of/desire for a tiny
lady/huge man dynamic is (for obvious reasons?) so bizarre and creepy to me.
D: The tiny lady/huge dude immediately
makes me think of a doberman and a miniature dauschund.
A Lady: So can I just tell fans of bodice
rippers that there are plenty more and insanely better books where that one
didn't come from?
D: Yes! Recommendations for
bodice-rippery that will not induce head-smackery!
A Lady: Seriously, Julia Quinn's novels,
which are hilarious and witty and way sexier.
Also, Lisa
Kleypas and Stephanie Laurens. End
of discussion.