Blameless

This originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader.
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... a pitcher of some dark liquid that smelled like heaven. Floote poured a portion for her into his cup

Alexia took a tentative sip and was quite overwhelmed by an acute sense of betrayal. It was absolutely
vole tasting, a mixture of quinine and burnt dandelion leaves.

“That, I am to assume, is the infamous coffee?”

Madame Lefoux nodded, pouring herself a splash and then adding a good deal of honey and milk. Alexia could not believe a whole hive of honey capable of rescuing the foul drink. Imagine preferring that to tea!

Changeless

• I enjoyed the narration, the dialogue, and so on. Ivy writing a letter just might be better than Ivy talking – her malapropisms are too much fun. It was nice to see a responsible streak in her, nevertheless.


• Floote's hiding more than we previously thought, I hope something makes him crack.


• The effects of garlic on vampires, and basil on werewolves in this world gave me a good chuckle.


• At the end of the day, Professor Lyall shines brightest here – it's been clear all along that he's powerful, capable, and resourceful – but he really gets to strut his stuff here, while Lord Maccon is licking his wounds and drowning his sorrows. That was fun to see.


• In between the assassination attempts, the bullets, the supernatural goings-on, and everything else, there were a couple of really sweet moments. Making everything just a little more human.

Soulless