A post shared on Instagram claims soccer club FC Barcelona is cutting ties with Israel.   View this post on Instagram   A post shared by Sirtaj Rahman—MR IRON-PASHTUN (@sirtajrahman83) Verdict: False There is no evidence FC Barcelona is cutting ties with Israel. Fact Check: The Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry claimed that 44,000 Palestinians had died […]

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'The Chinese Communist Party narrative is far from the truth'

Movies & TV Wicked Cynthia Erivo Elevates a Wicked That’s Mostly Just Fine Erivo’s performance grounds the film, while the rest of the cast Dances Through Life… By Molly Templeton | Published on November 25, 2024 Screenshot: Universal Pictures Comment 0 Share New Share Screenshot: Universal Pictures Wicked is a lot. It’s a bit bloated, and it’s also sometimes beautiful. It is an intimate story about a powerful friendship that arrives on a smothering wave of marketing that simply will not let up (perhaps a Wicked bubble bath to relax from it all? Pink or green bubbles?). It is a massive cultural artifact and a movie that seems, mostly, just pretty nice. It’s a juggernaut of technically well-made goodness that has at its heart one outstanding performance: Cynthia Erivo, who plays Elphaba as if she has studied everything related to her character, up to and including Gregory Maguire’s much darker novel on which the musical is based, and incorporated all of that awareness into a performance that constantly suggests that she knows so much more than she has space to let on. If you love this not-so-wicked witch, it’s heartbreaking, and it’s also a gift. Wicked’s family tree is about as long as the yellow brick road: The movie is an adaptation of the musical by writer Winnie Holzman and composer and lyricist Stephen Schwartz, which opened on Broadway in 2003. The musical was itself an adaptation—one with great liberties taken—of Maguire’s 1995 novel. That book gave the Wicked Witch a name, Elphaba Thropp, and a backstory. The musical elevated Glinda to co-lead, took out much of the darkness of Maguire’s novel, and dramatically changed the fates of many of the characters. Maguire’s book, of course, took its inspiration from L. Frank Baum’s The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and sequels, and the indelible 1939 movie The Wizard of Oz, and probably most or any other Oz-sociations along the way. (Perhaps not The Wiz, though that musical-turned-movie is clearly also an ancestor of this one.) There was a point in time when The Wizard of Oz seemed like the one movie every American had seen; it was shown annually on network television, a magical tradition in which countless households went over the rainbow together and countless kids shrieked or marveled at Margaret Hamilton’s vividly green Wicked Witch. I was one of those kids. But I was an Oz reader first and foremost, tearing through all 14 of Baum’s novels. And after an initial bout of skepticism, I became a reader of Maguire’s Wicked and all the books that came after. I can tell you that Elphaba’s story backwards and forwards; I can tell you that while Maguire reportedly set out to write about the nature of evil, he also wrote an incredible book about grief and regret that managed, at times, to be incredibly funny.  It is impossible to divorce Wicked from its source materials. It is also impossible to divorce it from what arose in its wake: Maleficent. Cruella. Wicked walked so that Frozen could run through the snow. The early 2000s were ripe for a story like this—one that tucks a pretty grim message about authoritarianism and judgment into a shiny green package and rewrites the life and times of someone perceived as a villain. Elphaba, though, was never actually a villain, but the victim of a propaganda campaign by a truth-challenged ruler who would like all of Oz under his unmagical thumb. The forces of Hollywood and time that brought this movie to theaters at this particular moment could not have known quite what they were in for, politically speaking. But almost all of that comes in the musical’s second act, and the second film, which will come along next year. The first act is the fun part, with the fun songs, but it lists a bit without that counterweight. Some new excess backstory is packed into the opening before the action moves to Shiz University, where Elphaba and her father are accompanying her sister Nessarose as she arrives for her first year (Nessarose is played by Marissa Bode, who is the first actor who uses a wheelchair to play the role). For truly mysterious reasons, the narrative is tweaked so that only Nessarose is set to attend; when Elphaba comes to her sister’s defense and inadvertently does some big, messy magic, sorcery teacher Madame Morrible (a regal Michelle Yeoh) takes Elphaba for a protege.  She also assigns Elphaba to share the perfect pink private suite of Galinda (Ariana Grande), and thus a great friendship begins: with rivalry and the pure biting fun of “What Is This Feeling?”, a love song in the form of a hate song. And then it’s movie college: A few classes, the arrival of a hot new student, complicated social (and dance) moves at the school dance forbidden club. And some upsetting news about the state of Oz’s sentient animals courtesy of Doctor Dillamond, a professor who is also a goat (and who is voiced by a grave Peter Dinklage).  The animals are perfect, every one of them, from Dillamond to the hapless lion cub that Fiyero and Elphaba rescue from a terrible classroom display. Their subplot slowly rises to the surface: The animals are being subjugated, limited, and they are losing the power of speech. When this topic comes to the forefront, in the Emerald City, it is one of the most upsetting scenes of the film—a transformation that seems almost horror-movie-like in its agony. It hints at the darkness yet to come in the second part of the story. Without the second act, the character arcs are incomplete, and none more so than that of Glinda (whose name is originally Galinda; she changes it for reasons). She doesn’t like Elphaba, and then she does, because Elphie does something nice for her and Glinda suddenly understands that everyone has feelings, even brusque green girls. She sings her big number, “Popular” (lar) (sorry, it’s impossible to stop doing that), and then, voila! Besties! Very little is asked of Glinda other than to share her spacious suite with Elphaba, and maybe to, for once in her life, acknowledge when someone has given her what she wants. (What she wants is to study sorcery, something for which she has displayed zero talent.) Grande certainly has the chops for the role; her operatic displays in the opening number, “No One Mourns the Wicked,” sound effortless, and those who know the show will catch the ache hidden in her words. She and Erivo both more than match the expanded score, which is one of the most delightful parts of the movie: The limited Broadway arrangements burst into full color courtesy of the London Symphony Orchestra, soaring and rich. It is almost odd to go back and listen to the original versions, which seem so bare-bones in comparison. And that leads to the elephant in the room: Kristin Chenoweth. The role of Glinda was originated by Chenoweth and written with her in mind, and as I watched Grande I began to wonder if it is actually possible to play Glinda without seeming, at least a little bit, as if one is trying to slip into Chenoweth’s skin. How else could Glinda be? Sweeter, as it turns out; Grande is cotton candy on a lollipop even when she’s being self-serving. How could Elphaba resist her eventual friendly advances? Who could turn this girl down? But what makes this Glinda most frustrating is that director John M. Chu (In the Heights) seems to want the movie to belong to her. She is pink, she is present, she has tiresome minions who follow her everywhere (why put Bowen Yang in this thankless role?). She is constantly in the light, and the light seems to cater to her more than to Erivo. This is never more apparent than in “Defying Gravity,” the showstopper song that ends the film. This is Elphaba’s chance to shine. It is her moment of becoming, of having just realized that the Wizard (Jeff Goldlum) isn’t going to give her what she wants—and that what she wants has changed.  This is not a song that needs embellishment, even when it is carrying the weight of the film’s climax. It’s a song of clarity and purpose, here dressed up with stops and starts, a peculiar vision, and—most unforgivably—unfortunate lighting. Elphaba keeps slipping from the spotlight, her face half in shadow or backlit for far too much of her moment. Grande glows, blurry in the background, catching the eye.  Elphaba should be vibrant. She should be glowing. She should not be shot against a dark CGI sunset that leaves her barely more than a silhouette in the sky. Some of the other songs are staged inventively, and it’s a travesty that this one is not. Many of the sets and effects in Wicked are practical, and yet they often look, as the writer Meg Elison observed after the first trailer, like everything might secretly be cake. I simply cannot improve on this observation, despite having watched a really quite fascinating 20-minute featurette in which the production designer talked about all of the sets and their design and construction. (Still, bravo to everyone who made the “Dancing Through Life” sequence tick.) To the detriment of the emotional weight this story ought to have, Oz never looks real. It never looks like a place people would live in—not the flower-dotted homes of the Munchkins, not the confectionary towers of Shiz, and not the chilly halls of the Emerald City. This works differently in a stage show. The unreality that a theater audience is prepared to accept is massively different from what we expect at the movies—and the set for Wicked, the musical, is one of its strongest points, clever and mechanical. I wanted to climb around in it and peer at all its workings. In the movie, I just wanted to take some of the polish off. Everything is glossy. Everything is so impractical that I kept being distracted by questions I did not want to ask. How do the books stay in the spinning wheels of the library? Where do all the rest of the students live? Why is the landscape outside of Shiz so nonsensical? Where on earth is the Ozdust Ballroom when it seems there is no town anywhere nearby? Why is there a random back door in Shiz that leads to a wheat field, and why is that where Elphie sings half of “The Wizard and I,” her first big number? (The bluebirds and rainbow just don’t justify it.) I have questions. I would prefer to have feelings. And this is where Wicked, generally, falls down a bit. The film is more than an hour longer than the first act of the musical, but what Chu and screenwriters Winnie Holzman and Dana Fox have added doesn’t add much depth. We don’t need to see Elphie being bullied in childhood; when she gets to Shiz, everyone is immediately mean and rude to her. It is clear this is not new. We don’t need more of her father (why would she ever bother writing to this man, as she does at the start of “What Is This Feeling?”), or the distracting cameos in the Emerald City. What we need are emotional moments to tie the songs together, to reinforce the connection forming between Glinda and Elphaba—and, on a lesser level, Elphaba and Fiyero. (Jonathan Bailey brings a lot of chemistry to a somewhat underwritten role; by the end of “Dancing Through Life,” every student at Shiz is in love with him.) There are some good additions, like a scene in which Doctor Dillamond and other animal staff from Shiz gather to discuss the dangerous climate in which they find themselves. Their fear is palpable, and it leads directly to some of the choices Elphaba makes later in the film. But too often there is a sense of assumption in the way Wicked plays out, as if the movie expects that the audience knows the story, and therefore we will do the work of imagining the connections and emotional growth. There isn’t a song that the cast doesn’t knock out of the park (well, maybe not “A Sentimental Man”), but they’re like individual flowers in bud vases when you wanted a whole bursting bouquet. But then there is Erivo as Elphaba. If the movie often feels tipped in Glinda’s favor, Erivo pulls it back, again and again, with her gravitas, with the set of her mouth, with a cackle or a grin. She delivers the emotional range that the movie so sorely needs, from her hopeful “The Wizard and I” to the longing “I’m Not that Girl” to the heights of “Defying Gravity.” But more than that, she fills the non-musical scenes with feeling, whether she’s worried about the animals or yearning over Fiyero or coming to some really terrible realizations about the wizard.  There’s a seriousness to her Elphaba that belongs there, but that no one else matches. When Glinda does a little shriek upon first sight of her, Erivo’s response—dry, tired, so used to this—speaks volumes. This has always been a story about being other and being true to yourself; about fighting to be treated fairly, kindly, like an equal; and about fighting for those who are being oppressed. Wicked can be clunky and heavyhanded in its delivery, but the message is well meant, and stronger than ever in Erivo’s hands. Her Elphaba is green, but her Elphaba is also Black. The layers this brings to the finale, in which Elphie is defiant and Glinda anxiously clinging to established power, are unmissable. It feels a little bit wrong to judge Wicked on half of itself, but this is how the studio has released it, and this is all we get to see for now. When I think about Erivo’s performance—her eyes sharp above freckles; the way she lets herself a little bit more loose in each song; the things this character has before her—I get goosebumps. She brings something deeper, something true, to this shiny, cake-like production. She is almost in her own version of Wicked, and occasionally the rest of the film catches up to her.[end-mark] The post Cynthia Erivo Elevates a <i>Wicked</i> That’s Mostly Just Fine appeared first on Reactor.

Books new releases All the New Fantasy Books Arriving in November and December 2024 We visit Osten Ard, Recluce, and Roshar in November and December’s new releases! By Reactor | Published on November 25, 2024 Comment 0 Share New Share Here’s the full list of fantasy titles heading your way in November and December! Keep track of all the new SFF releases here. All title summaries are taken and/or summarized from copy provided by the publisher. Release dates are subject to change. November 1 The Naturalist Society — Carrie Vaughn (47North)In the summer of 1880, the death of Beth Stanley’s husband puts her life’s work in jeopardy. The magic of Arcane Taxonomy dictates that every natural thing in the world, from weather to animals, can be labeled, and doing so grants the practitioner some of that subject’s unique power. But only men are permitted to train in this philosophy. Losing her husband means that Beth loses the name they put on her work—and any influence she might have wielded. Brandon West and Anton Torrance are campaigning for their expedition to the South Pole, a mission that some believe could make a taxonomist all-powerful by tapping into the earth’s magnetic forces. Their late friend Harry Stanley’s knowledge and connections would have been instrumental, but when they attempt to take custody of his work, they find that it was never his at all. Tied together by this secret and its implications, Beth, Bran, and Anton must find a way for Beth to use her talent for the good of the world, before she’s discovered by those who would lay claim to her rare potential—and her very freedom. November 5 Graveyard of Demons (Forgotten Warrior #5) — Larry Correia (Baen)Once a Protector enforcing the Capitol’s strict laws with an iron fist, Ashok Vadal discovers his entire life is built on lies. The ancient black steel sword chose him not for his bloodline but for his spirit, thrusting him into a destiny fraught with peril and glory. The Capitol is in chaos, teetering on the brink of collapse as the Great Extermination spreads its dark shadow across the land. The casteless, descendants of the once-great kings, are hunted to extinction. Their only hope lies in Ashok Vadal, now a fugitive, and Thera, the prophet of the forgotten gods. Thera’s visions and unyielding spirit rally the Sons of the Black Sword, fierce warriors sworn to overthrow the tyrannical Capitol and restore balance. As Ashok traverses deserts, battles sea demons, and navigates political treachery, he grapples with his identity and the heavy burden of his newfound purpose. Alongside him are allies old and new: Jagdish, the strategic commander of the Sons; Gutch, a resourceful criminal-turned-ally; and Devedas, his former brother-in-arms now caught in the Capitol’s ruthless power struggles. Meanwhile, Grand Inquisitor Omand Vokkan, a master manipulator with his own dark agenda, strikes a secret pact with ancient demons, promising them the annihilation of the casteless in exchange for godlike power. As the demonic invasion begins, Ashok and his companions must unite to combat threats both human and supernatural. Lines between friend and foe blur, battles rage, and the fate of Lok hangs in the balance. Ashok Vadal may desire redemption and vengeance, but in a world where gods and demons once walked, a warrior’s heart and a black steel sword turns out to be mankind’s last hope. The Improvisers — Nicole Glover (Harper Voyager)Velma Frye is many things. A pilot, a former bootlegger, a well-seasoned traveler, a jazz pianist… and a wielder of celestial magic. She’s also a member of the mystical Rhodes family as well as an investigator for arcane oddities for a magic rights organization, dealing with both simple and complicated cases. And when a pocket watch instigates a magical brawl after one of her flight shows, things become very complicated. In 1930s America, enchanted items are highly valuable, especially in the waning days of the magical Prohibition. As Velma digs deeper, she discovers the watch is part of a collection of dangerous artifacts manipulating people across the country—and in some cases, leading to their deaths. Something about all this is tickling Velma’s memories, and the more she discovers, the more these seemingly isolated incidents feel as if they’re building to something apocalyptic. Connecting the dots isn’t easy, though, and further complicating her work is journalist Dillon Harris. He hounds her steps, and while not actively sabotaging her investigation, he also clearly knows more than he lets on. Whether it’s his presence that she finds so vexing or his easygoing charm, that’s a mystery she isn’t interested in solving. Because someone is out there seeding cursed objects with the intent on wreaking havoc, and Velma will have to use every trick in her tool kit, including some well-placed magical improvisation, to win the day. Before We Forget Kindness (Before the Coffee Gets Cold #5) — Toshikazu Kawaguchi (Hanover Square)In the fifth book in the sensational, cozy Before the Coffee Gets Cold series translated from Japanese, the mysterious café where customers arrive hoping to travel back in time welcomes four new guests: The father who could not allow his daughter to get married A woman who couldn’t give Valentine’s Day chocolates to her loved one A boy who wants to show his smile to his divorced parents A wife holding a child with no name… They must follow the café’s strict rules, however, and come back to the present before their coffee goes cold. The Teller of Small Fortunes — Julie Leong (Ace)Tao is an immigrant fortune teller, traveling between villages with just her trusty mule for company. She only tells “small” fortunes: whether it will hail next week; which boy the barmaid will kiss; when the cow will calve. She knows from bitter experience that big fortunes come with big consequences… Even if it’s a lonely life, it’s better than the one she left behind. But a small fortune unexpectedly becomes something more when a (semi) reformed thief and an ex-mercenary recruit her into their desperate search for a lost child. Soon, they’re joined by a baker with a “knead” for adventure, and—of course—a slightly magical cat. Tao starts down a new path with companions as big-hearted as her fortunes are small. But as she lowers her walls, the shadows of her past close in—and she’ll have to decide whether to risk everything to preserve the family she never thought she could have. November 12 The Great Library of Tomorrow — Rosalia Aguilar Solace (Blackstone)Helia has served as the Sage of Hope for the Great Library of Tomorrow for centuries. She is one of the chosen few who embody and protect the values of humanity across the numerous realms of Paperworld, which are connected within the Library itself via magical Portals controlled by the Book of Wisdom. But even her hope is tested when she and her partner Xavier, the Sage of Truth, are attacked while visiting the famous Rose Garden in the realm of Silvyra. Wounded and in shock amidst a storm of fire, they are confronted by a deadly figure known to them as the Ash Man. With the Garden destroyed and its dragon protector missing, Xavier sacrifices his life so that Helia can return home to warn the other Sages. But there she finds the Book of Wisdom—always a guide to the Sages—eerily silent. With the Ash Man gaining strength, Helia soon finds herself in a race against time, searching for clues to the origins of their foe—and any possible way to defeat him. Toto — A.J. Hackwith (Ace)I was mostly a Good Dog until they sold me out to animal control, okay? But if it’s a choice between Oz, with its creepy little singing dudes, and being behind bars in gray old Kansas, I’ll choose the place where animals talk and run the show for now, thanks. It’s not my fault that the kid is stuck here too, or that she stumbled into a tug-of-war over a pair of slippers that don’t even taste good. Now one witch in good eyeliner calls her pretty and we’re off on a quest? Teenagers. I try to tell her she’s falling in with the wrong crowd when she befriends a freaking hedge wizard made of straw, that blue jay with revolutionary aspirations, and the walking tin can. Still, I’m not one to judge when there’s the small matter of a coup in the Forest Kingdom…. Look, something really stinks in Oz, and this Wizard guy and the witches positively reek of it. As usual, it’s going to be up to a sensible little dog to do a big dog’s job and get to the bottom of it. And trust me: Little dogs can get away with anything. The Legacy of Arniston House (Edinburgh Nights #4) — T. L. Huchu (Tor Books)Ropa Moyo is a wannabe magician, can speak to the dead, and has officially given up being an intern. Leaving Scottish magic behind, she now works for the English Sorcerer Royal. But just as she adjusts to working for the English, an old enemy reveals a devastating secret about her Gran, and Ropa’s world falls apart. Outraged, she rushes home, but finds her grandmother dead—murdered—with no killer in sight. What’s more, she’s the prime suspect. In her quest to find the true murderer, Ropa becomes caught in the dark tendrils of a cult, hell-bent on resurrecting an ancient power. Ropa must use her wits, her magic, and call in all favors to stop the ritual—and clear her name. Witch Queen of Redwinter (Redwinter #3) — Ed McDonald (Tor Books)Having been saved from execution at the hands of the Draoihn—powerful magic users Raine used to count as allies—Raine finds herself in the Fault, a vast magical wasteland, which is falling apart before her eyes. Alongside her two closest companions, they are searching for the only person Raine believes can help them get back home: the enigmatic and infuriatingly elusive Queen of Feathers. But what home are they trying to get back to? Ovitus LacNaithe, power-hungry traitor that he is, has taken control of the Draoihn and is unwittingly doing the bidding of a darker master. He is soon to take control of the Crown of Harranir and plunge the land into unending darkness. The fate of two worlds hangs in the balance. The stakes have never been higher. It’s going to take Raine’s dark, terrible powers, as well as the unbreakable bond of three friends, to ensure everyone lives to see the dawn. Overcaptain (Saga of Recluce #24) — L. E. Modesitt, Jr. (Tor Books)Alyiakal, overcaptain in the Mirror Lancers of Cyador, has completed his tour of duty as officer-in-charge of a small, remote post. He just wants to finish and see his best friend consorted and assume his next post assignment. If only it were that easy. He discovers corruption in the Merchanter Clans of Cyador, but investigating Mirror Lancer officers end up dead. Before he can go on leave, he has to replace one of these officers, close a post, dodge an attempt on his life, and an investigation from Magi-i. At Lhaarat, Alyiakal is assigned as a deputy commander to a post that never had one, and the commander doesn’t want one—and that’s just the beginning of Alyiakal’s problems. The Shiver Tree — Holly Searcy (Blackstone)For millennia the land of Amarra was guarded by five Druid Orders: Jade, Ice, Spirit, Sky, and Sun. But the clans splintered long ago, and without their protection, Amarra is struggling in the face of blighted crops, monstrous aberrations, and pitiless pirate raids. As the daughter of Amarra’s High Druid, Kiana Paletine is certain that if the Orders were reestablished, peace and plenty would follow. But no one agrees—not even her own father. Tired of the politics and eager to make a difference in the world, Kiana sets out to enlist the help of her estranged sister, Ravaini. Soon a series of visions begins to haunt her, and Kiana learns of an ancient druidic artifact called the Shiver Seed. This powerful relic has fallen into the hands of the malevolent Deep Ones, who seek to use the Seed for their own nefarious purposes. If Kiana can find the lost Ice Druids, she may be able to retake the Seed and save the clans—but if the druids fall to the Deep Ones, all of Amarra will be in danger. The Lotus Empire (Burning Kingdoms #3) — Tasha Suri (Orbit)Malini has claimed her rightful throne as the empress of Parijatdvipa, just as the nameless gods prophesied. Now, in order to gain the support of the priesthood who remain loyal to the fallen emperor, she must consider a terrible bargain: Claim her throne and burn in order to seal her legacy—or find another willing to take her place on the pyre. Priya has survived the deathless waters and now their magic runs in her veins. But a mysterious yaksa with flowering eyes and a mouth of thorns lies beneath the waters. The yaksa promises protection for Ahiranya. But in exchange, she needs a sacrifice. And she’s chosen Priya as the one to offer it. Two women once entwined by fate now stand against each other. But when an ancient enemy rises to threaten their world, Priya and Malini will find themselves fighting together once more – to prevent their kingdoms, and their futures, from burning to ash. The Invisible College — Jeff Wheeler (47North)Millennia ago, a magical race called the Aesir found a new home on a distant world. Attracted to the cold during an ice age, they hibernated for hundreds of years at a time. With each awakening, however, they saw their world changed by ever-evolving mortals encroaching on their territory and way of life. Two civilizations with opposing magic, poised to clash over and over. Now, the Aesir are awakening to wage a new war—this time to exterminate their enemy once and for all. Robinson Hawksley is an elocutionist at the Invisible College who has perfected a way of teaching speech to train sorcerers by using the intelligences that create magic. The world needs more sorcerers to protect against the looming Aesir threat, and Robinson’s newest charge is McKenna Foster, a barrister’s daughter rendered deaf after a bout with a plague unleashed by the Aesir. As their lessons progress and they grow ever closer, there also comes a strange connection to the Aesir—one that crosses the boundaries of time itself and the unfathomable mysteries of the Unseen Powers. Emerging from their icy fortresses, the Aesir begin their bombardment. Can Robinson and McKenna, brought together by magic, stop an endless war with powers even they have yet to fully understand? The Navigator’s Children (Last King of Osten Ard #4) — Tad Williams (DAW)The Hayholt is besieged by the Norns. Once the home of their immortal brethren, the Sithi, now capital of the kingdom of men, the fabled castle is under attack. And as the world is distracted by this strike against humankind, the Norns’ deathless witch-queen Utuk’ku turns towards the mysterious fateful valley called Tanakirú—the Vale of Mists. Meanwhile, Queen Miriamele hurries to save the Hayholt and capture the treacherous noble Pasevalles, but arrives to discover the traitor has escaped. And inside Tanakirú, Vale of Mists, the bond between Prince Morgan and Nezeru, a renegade Norn, has become something deeper and stranger than either of them could have anticipated.  They journey ever deeper to the heart of the valley’s mystery, encountering wonder and horror, and come face to face at last with the ancient secret that has kindled the Norn Queen’s war—a secret that will destroy immortals and humans alike. November 19 The Last Hour Between Worlds (Echo Archives #1) — Melissa Caruso (Orbit)Star investigator Kembral Thorne has a few hours away from her newborn, and she just wants to relax and enjoy the year-turning party. But when people start dropping dead, she’s got to get to work. Especially when she finds that mysterious forces are plunging the whole party down through layers of reality and into nightmare. One layer down: It’s no big deal. Stay alert, and you’ll be fine. Two, three layers down: Natural laws are negotiable, and things get very strange. Four layers down: There are creatures with eyes in their teeth and walls that drip blood. Most people who fall this far never return. Luckily, Kem isn’t most people. But as cosmic powers align and the hour grows late, she’ll have to work with her awfully compelling nemesis, notorious cat burglar Rika Nonesuch, for a chance to save her city—though not her night off. The Fate of Silent Gods (Age of Ire #2) — Scott Drakeford (Tor Books)Emrael Ire has won the first round of war against the dark god, but at a terrible cost to himself. Unsure of who he can trust, even among his own people, Emrael must find a way to score a major victory against both the forces of the dark lord and the corrupt lords of the provinces. He thought he already paid his price. The gods will exact another. Conan: Cult of the Obsidian Moon — James Lovegrove (Titan)Still mourning Bêlit, Conan attempts to drink away his sorrows. In his tavern-hopping journey he meets and befriends married couple Hunwulf and Gudrun and their son, Bjørn. A decade ago, Hunwulf eloped with Gudrun after killing her betrothed, they live on the run from her tribe, who are desperate for revenge. Bjørn has the makings of a shaman, while Hunwulf is prone to having strange fits which bring him visions of past and future lives. When a descendant warns Hunwulf of imminent danger, he and his wife ride out to ambush the tribe, leaving Bjørn with Conan, who vows to protect the boy with his life. Unfortunately, Conan is betrayed by a former accomplice, and Bjørn is kidnapped by the tribe. Conan and Bjørn’s vengeful parents search for the lad. They catch up to the tribe, only to find Bjørn has been taken by murderous bat-winged figures, who fought with talon and sword. The boy, and other “gifted” children have been taken to the Rotlands, a place plagued by a contaminating supernatural force that warps all who go there. To save Bjørn, the trio must go to the heart of the Rotlands, where strange, horrifying fates await at every turn. Red Sonja: Consumed — Gail Simone (Orbit)The warrior Red Sonja, the famous fiery She-Devil of Hyrkania, has never concerned herself with the consequences of her actions. She’s taken what she wanted, from treasure to drink to the companionship of bedfellows. She’s fought who deserved it (and sometimes those who didn’t). And she’s never looked back. But when rumors start bubbling up from her homeland—rumors of unknown horrors emerging from the ground and pulling their unsuspecting victims to their deaths—and a strange voice begins whispering to her in her sleep, she realizes she may have to return to the country that abandoned her. And finally do the only thing that has ever scared her: confront her past. November 26 Kalyna the Cutthroat (Failures of Four Kingdoms 2) — Elijah Kinch Spector (Erewhon)Radiant Basket of Rainbow Shells, scholar of curses and magical history, has spent several years on a research expedition abroad in Quruscan, one of the four kingdoms of theTetrarchia. When Tetrarchia and Radiant’s home country of Loasht suddenly revoke their tenuous peace, Quruscan is no longer the safe haven for Radiant that it once was. He needs someone to help him escape: a bodyguard, perhaps, or someone with the sheer cunning to escort him to safety. The perfect candidate is Kalyna Aljosanova: a crafty, mysterious mercenary with an uncanny reputation. But the political situation in Loasht is far more volatile and dangerous than Radiant left it; it soon becomes clear that he may never be able to return home to his family. With a little of Kalyna’s signature guile, she finds Radiant asylum in a utopian community on the border between Loasht and the Tetrarchia, and, for a moment, it seems like they might finally have a safe place to stay. But when the group’s charismatic leader grows wary of the refugees flocking to his community—and suspicious of Kalyna in particular—that sense of safety begins to unravel once more. December 3 Queen of Fury (Queens of Fate #2) — Natania Barron (Solaris)Hwyfar, eldest daughter of King Leodegraunce and famed libertine of Carelon, has returned to Avillion to find her father ruined by madness and a usurper poised to take the throne. Reluctantly she takes the mantle of Queen Regent to protect her kingdom, but she’ll need an army—which King Arthur pledges to send her, providing she marries one of his knights and surrenders the crown. Arthur’s forces arrive under the command of Gawain of Orkney, who Hwyfar remembers as a brute; but she comes to realise he is not the man she thought he was, and finds herself irresistibly drawn to him. But Arthur has plans for her, and has commanded Gawain to keep well away—and in Arthur’s court, without the King’s blessing, love is treason. Hwyfar and Gawain must navigate both a world of ancient forests and corrupt magic, and the political machinations of two courts, if they have any hope of escaping Arthur’s ever-tightening grasp. Rebel Blade (Burnished City #3) — Davinia Evans (Orbit)Siyon Velo has given magic back to the Mundane. But with it, monsters of myth have awoken to cause chaos in Bezim and—of course—everyone’s blaming him. Hunted high and low, Siyon struggles against the rising tide of mystery, magic and mayhem threatening the city that’s turned its back on him. In the Flower District, Lady Sable has unleashed chaos. But in the Avenues, Anahid is desperate to keep her slippery secrets just a little longer, until Zagiri can join the froth and frippery of high society. With scandal stalking the sisters and revolution rumbling anew, the best—and the worst—they can do may not be enough to save their city… The Alchemist must rise, or Bezim will burn. Von Bek: The Warhound and the World’s Pain and The City in the Autumn Stars (Eternal Champion) — Michael Moorcock (Saga)This is the story of Ulrich von Bek, a cynical mercenary who sells his skills as a soldier in the wars taking place all over Europe. After the particularly horrific destruction of a city in which he played a role, von Bek decides to desert the military company he was working for and travel alone for a while before seeking further employment. On his solo journey, he happens upon a castle where he takes refuge with—and then falls in love with—the keeper of the castle, the beautiful Sabrina. It is in this castle that he meets Lucifer, the master of Hell, and finds out that his soul is already destined for Hell. And so, in exchange for his soul, von Bek agrees to go on a quest for Lucifer, namely to find the Cure for the World’s Pain. This quest is also known as the Search for the Holy Grail. As von Bek travels around Europe on his impossible quest, he will find himself caught up in wars, politics, intrigue, and romance. But he can never forget his purpose—or the terrible bargain he has made with the devil… December 6 Wind and Truth (Stormlight Archive 5) — Brandon Sanderson (Tor Books)Dalinar Kholin challenged the evil god Odium to a contest of champions with the future of Roshar on the line. The Knights Radiant have only ten days to prepare—and the sudden ascension of the crafty and ruthless Taravangian to take Odium’s place has thrown everything into disarray. Desperate fighting continues simultaneously worldwide—Adolin in Azir, Sigzil and Venli at the Shattered Plains, and Jasnah in Thaylenah. The former assassin, Szeth, must cleanse his homeland of Shinovar from the dark influence of the Unmade. He is accompanied by Kaladin, who faces a new battle helping Szeth fight his own demons… and who must do the same for the insane Herald of the Almighty, Ishar. At the same time, Shallan, Renarin, and Rlain work to unravel the mystery behind the Unmade Ba-Ado-Mishram and her involvement in the enslavement of the singer race and in the ancient Knights Radiant killing their spren. And Dalinar and Navani seek an edge against Odium’s champion that can be found only in the Spiritual Realm, where memory and possibility combine in chaos. The fate of the entire Cosmere hangs in the balance. December 24 Miss Amelia’s List (Elemental Masters #17) — Mercedes Lackey (DAW)The year is 1815, and an American, Miss Amelia Stonehold, has arrived in the Devon town of Axminster, accompanied by her “cousin” Serena Meleva. She’s brought with her a list to tick off: find a property, investigate the neighbors, bargain for and purchase the property, staff the property and… possibly… find a husband. But Amelia soon finds herself contending with some decidedly off-list trouble, including the Honorable Captain Harold Roughtower, whose eyes are fixed on her fortune. Little does Amelia know that his plans for her wealth extend far beyond refurbishing his own crumbing estate—they include the hidden Roman temple of Glykon, where something very old, very angry, and very dangerous still lurks. But Roughtower isn’t prepared to reckon with the fact that neither Amelia nor Serena are pushovers. And he certainly isn’t ready for the revelation that he has an Earth Master and a Fire Mage on his hands—or that one of them is a shapeshifter. The post All the New Fantasy Books Arriving in November and December 2024 appeared first on Reactor.

The Washington Monument in Baltimore, Maryland is more than 30 years older than the Washington Monument in D.C. Now over 200 years old, the building is one of Maryland's most popular tourist attractions. But when construction workers repaired the monument in 2014, they discovered a cement block filled with unusual objects. In late 2021, an excavator announced that the capsule would be opened. Source

Hunter S. Thompson was an American author and journalist, best known as the founder of the "gonzo journalism" movement. A struggling writer, he saw initial success after the release of his 1967 book about the Hell's Angels motorcycle gang, and slowly became well-known for his unique writing style and hard living. Along with his best-known novel, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, several of his works... Source

The Office of Management and Budget is a less well-known entity within the executive branch, but few are as critical for ensuring the implementation of the president’s agenda. President-elect Donald Trump has once again placed that awesome responsibility in Russ Vought’s hands. The previous Trump OMB director will return to the White House, where he says there is “unfinished business on behalf of the American people.” Trump released a statement announcing Vought’s nomination as OMB director on Friday evening. “I am very pleased to nominate Russell Thurlow Vought, from the Great State of Virginia, as the Director of the United States Office of Management and Budget (OMB). He did an excellent job serving in this role in my First Term – We cut four Regulations for every new Regulation, and it was a Great Success! Russ graduated with a B.A. from Wheaton College, and received his J.D. from the Washington University School of Law,” Trump’s statement read. “Russ has spent many years working in Public Policy in Washington, D.C., and is an aggressive cost cutter and deregulator who will help us implement our America First Agenda across all Agencies. Russ knows exactly how to dismantle the Deep State and end Weaponized Government, and he will help us return Self Governance to the People. We will restore fiscal sanity to our Nation, and unleash the American People to new levels of Prosperity and Ingenuity. I look forward to working with you again, Russ. Congratulations. Together, we will Make America Great Again!” Thank you @realDonaldTrump! There is unfinished business on behalf of the American people, and it’s an honor of a lifetime to get the call again. https://t.co/iqxO733w63— Russ Vought (@russvought) November 23, 2024 OMB is not just the president’s budget division. While OMB oversees the structure and execution of the budget, it also has oversight powers over federal agencies and federal regulations to ensure the commands of the president, bestowed executive powers by the American people, are being followed. In a recent interview with Tucker Carlson, Vought explained how OMB can use those powers to kill the deep state—a death by a thousand cuts. “OMB is the nerve center of the federal government, particularly the executive branch,” Vought told Carlson. “Office of Management and Budget has the ability to turn off the spending that’s going on at the agencies. It has all the regulations coming through it to assess whether it’s good, or bad, or too expensive, or could be done a different way, or ‘What does the president think?’” In short, “presidents use OMB to tame the bureaucracy,” Vought said. “It is the President’s most important tool for dealing with the bureaucracy, the administrative state,” he reiterated. “And you know, the nice thing about President Trump is he knows that, and he knows how to use it effectively.” Vought was previously atop the OMB, first in an acting capacity and then confirmed by the Senate, for the second half of Trump’s first term. His foremost achievement as OMB director was helping lay the groundwork for Trump’s most important campaign promise; namely, the construction of a wall along the southern border. While Trump issued an executive order instructing the federal government to build the wall his first week in office, actually getting the government to fund and construct it—whether because of Congress, the courts, or rogue bureaucrats—proved difficult. Trump, in consultation with Vought and others, used the transfer authority (provided by Congress in appropriations) and assumed emergency powers to construct hundreds of miles of border wall. “We at OMB gave him a plan to be able to go and fund the wall through money that was in the Department of Defense, and to use that because Congress wouldn’t give him the ordinary money at the Department of Homeland Security,” Vought told Carlson of the fight over the wall. In Vought, Trump has found a rare talent with the ability to articulate a vision to return government to the people with the technical knowledge to implement it. “The left has innovated over 100 years to create this fourth branch of an administrative state—you and I might call it the regime—this administrative state that is totally unaccountable to the president,” Vought said in his interview with Carlson. “The Left stopped talking about constitutional amendments because they innovated to this new fourth branch, which is totally different than anything the Founders would have ever understood.” “[When] Republicans that take office,” Vought continued, “you find that it’s incredibly difficult to wield power to get them to deal with all of that muscle memory, to get them to do what you want.” What’s needed, Vought added, is “a president kind of steps in and says, ‘I am fully aware of where I sit in the Constitution. I am fully aware of the tools at my disposal, and I’m going to use them on behalf of the American people, because I just won a massive agenda-setting election, and I’m going to go do what I said I would do.’ ” As Trump and Vought prepared to depart the White House in 2021, Vought told the president of his intention to start the Center for Renewing America, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank that sought to keep Trump’s policy vision alive in the nation’s capital. Trump was supportive of Vought’s endeavor, and the pair remained in close contact while Trump was out of power.  Vought’s fingerprints have been all over Republican politics and the conservative movement for the past four years. He wrote the Project 2025 chapter on how to reform the Executive Office of the President of the United States. In the media, he was an outspoken proponent for “draining the swamp” by making the federal agencies once again accountable to the president and the American people. And, over the summer, Vought lead the Republican National Convention’s policy platform committee. Now, his fingerprints will be all over bringing the bureaucracy to heel. The post This Trump Pick Can Silently Strangle the Deep State appeared first on The Daily Signal.

Special counsel Jack Smith filed a motion in D.C. District Court to drop the Jan. 6 case against President-elect Donald Trump with Judge Tanya Chutkan.  “As a result of the election held on November 5, 2024, the defendant, Donald J. Trump, will be inaugurated as President on January 20, 2025,” Smith’s motion said. NBC News just broke in to announce "Special Counsel Jack Smith just filed a motion to dismiss the federal criminal case against the president-elect."This is a MASSIVE WIN for the rule of law. pic.twitter.com/2lkzsE2v1t— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) November 25, 2024 “It has long been the position of the Department of Justice that the United States Constitution forbids the federal indictment and subsequent criminal prosecution of a sitting President. But the Department and the country have never faced the circumstance here, where a federal indictment against a private citizen has been returned by a grand jury and a criminal prosecution is already underway when the defendant is elected President.” Smith first secured a grand jury indictment in the election interference case 16 months ago. A federal court in Florida previously ruled that Smith lacked standing to bring the classified documents case against Trump The post Jack Smith Drops Trump Election Case appeared first on The Daily Signal.

In June, illegal alien Victor Martinez-Hernandez was charged with the murder of Rachel Morin, a mother of five in Maryland. Police in Oklahoma tracked the accused repeat offender down with a sample of his DNA recovered from a Los Angeles home invasion in which a 9-year-old girl and her mother were assaulted. Police say Martinez-Hernandez came to the U.S. illegally to escape prosecution for at least one other murder in his native El Salvador in December 2022.  “That should never have been allowed to happen,” said Harford County Sheriff Jeffrey Gahler, referring to the numerous missed red flags the case presented. His office apprehended Hernandez in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Like the member of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua sentenced to life in prison last week for the murder of nursing student Laken Riley in Georgia, Hernandez’s case is shining a light on the federal government’s failure to properly vet and keep track of lawless migrants. These gaps have led to broad claims that illegal immigrants have less involvement with the criminal justice system than native-born Americans. A review of the available data, however, shows that the criminal records of millions of migrants—the ones President-elect Donald Trump vows to prioritize for deportation—remain unknown due to illegal crossings, lax enforcement, and lax data collection by federal and “sanctuary” jurisdictions.  In addition, an analysis of the available statistics by RealClearInvestigations suggests that the crime rate involving noncitizens is vastly understated. A separate RCI analysis based on estimates developed by the Justice Department’s National Institute of Justice suggests that crime by illegal aliens who entered the U.S. by July 21 cost the country some $166.5 billion. These criminals disproportionately entered the U.S. during the Biden-Harris administration. The problem begins with incomplete initial vetting by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE. The criminal histories of migrants from far-flung countries with often shoddy record-keeping are somewhat hard to determine. It is also impractical to hold each person until he or she has passed a rigorous background check. As a result, ICE routinely releases many illegals into the country on their own recognizance and then discovers afterward that many had criminal records in their home countries.  In response to a request from Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, ICE reported this summer that it has released  7.4 million such “nondetained” noncitizens into the U.S. during the past four decades. ICE reports that these include 662,566 noncitizens with criminal histories—435,719 individuals with criminal convictions in their home countries and another 226,847 with pending criminal charges. These precise figures, however, do not say whether the crimes of the latter group were committed in the accused’s home country or the U.S.  In a July 21 letter to Gonzales, ICE reported that 13,099 of these nondetained individuals have convictions for homicide, with 1,845 facing criminal homicide charges. Another 9,461 have convictions for sex offenses (not including assault or commercialized sex), and 2,659 face pending charges. The convictions include other crimes such as assault (62,231), robbery (10,031), sexual assault (15,811), weapons offenses (13,423), and dangerous drugs (56,533).  These figures only suggest the extent of criminality because they only list the most serious crime committed by each individual. A murderer, for example, who also committed a sex offense is counted only as a murderer. A listing doesn’t include the fact that millions of migrants are violating the law because of their presence in the U.S. It also doesn’t account for the lawbreaking involved in working without proper authorization or the widespread use of stolen Social Security numbers to secure employment.  The 662,566 convicted and likely criminals make up 9% of the 7.4 million released noncitizens in the last four decades.  The statistics miss much of the relationship between crime and illegal aliens. Noncitizens in the “national docket data” either surrendered to Border Patrol agents or were apprehended at the border. Those who avoid surrender likely have reasons to evade authorities, such as a criminal background.  But there are others who avoided being caught and won’t be in these numbers. That group includes “gotaways”—individuals observed crossing the U.S. border illegally but not apprehended or turned back. With up to 38% of border agents shifted from monitoring to processing duties and 30% of surveillance cameras not functioning, millions more likely entered the U.S. undetected, potentially including the most dangerous individuals. U.S. Customs and Border Protection, or CPB, estimates that some 2 million such “gotaways” have entered the country since 2021. The data on migrants who have been processed also understates the problem. Criminals rarely commit just one crime. For example, from 1990 to 2002, in the 75 most populous U.S. counties, 70% of those convicted of a violent felony had a prior arrest and 56% had a prior criminal conviction. In 2023 in Washington, D.C., the average homicide suspect had been arrested 11 times before committing a homicide. Data for 30 states shows that 60.1% of criminals released from prison in 2005 had been arrested again within two years, and 73.5% had been arrested within four years. The ICE data set provides a single entry for each individual. Most violent crimes don’t result in an arrest, so looking at arrests or convictions in other countries will underestimate whether illegal aliens are criminals. Across all U.S. cities in 2022, only 35.2% of violent crimes resulted in an arrest. While 50.6% of murders resulted in an arrest, just 24.1% of rapes produced an arrest, 22.7% of robberies, and 39.9% of aggravated assaults.  As the Laken Riley and Rachel Morin murder cases make clear, it is difficult to calculate all the victimization costs of crime to families and society. Using tools developed by the National Institute of Justice, RealClearInvestigations estimated the likely bare-minimum economic costs of crimes committed by illegal aliens. It arrived at an estimated cost to victims in dollar terms by assuming that each of the 662,566 “nondetained” noncitizen offenders on ICE’s list committed just once in the U.S. the crime for which he had been previously accused. ICE presented Gonzales with numbers on 42 different types of crime, but the National Institute of Justice calculated the cost to victims for only eight types of crime. Professor Mark Cohen at Vanderbilt University, who co-authored the original NIJ report, updated the list with 15 of the crime categories reported by ICE: murder, sexual assault, sexual offenses, robbery, assault, arson, burglary, larceny, motor vehicle theft, weapon offenses, drugs, fraud, liquor offenses, gambling, and stolen property. Cohen’s updated numbers also provide estimates for the damage from child abuse, drunk driving, and vandalism, but ICE didn’t collect numbers on those crimes. The National Institute of Justice’s estimated losses from crime victimization include medical care/ambulances, mental health care, police/fire service costs, social/victim services, property loss/damage, reduced productivity (at work, home, and school), and nonmonetary losses (fear, pain, suffering, and lost quality of life).  Murders account for almost $153.8 billion of the $166.5 billion in estimated criminal victimization costs (a breakdown of the costs of crime for each type of crime is available here). Another $6 billion involves sexual assaults/offenses, and an additional $5.2 billion comes from sexual assaults and sexual offenses. Half of the crimes these nondetained individuals commit don’t have cost estimates. These crimes include kidnapping, embezzlement, extortion, smuggling, traffic offenses, and weapon offenses. These criminal illegal aliens entered the U.S. under multiple presidential administrations, but the size of the problem was likely larger under the Biden-Harris administration. That isn’t just because so many more illegal aliens were entering the country. Under the first Trump administration’s remain-in-Mexico policy, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services performed background checks on immigrants. That included contacting their countries of origin.  ICE agents can’t access the same databases to check on migrants, and the agents don’t contact their home countries. Plus, the massive inflow of illegal immigrants has overwhelmed the system. ICE’s deputy director blames the “enormous workload” agents face, preventing them from doing even limited background checks. There are so many coming in that the government can’t house these immigrants until their backgrounds are properly checked. ICE has been processing criminals as they enter the country, but without identifying them as criminals. So, under the Biden-Harris administration, they have simply been released into the country. Now, they are walking freely in the United States, and no one knows where they are. As bad as these numbers are, the reality may be even worse. The Biden-Harris administration is accused of presenting the border crisis so that it does not look as bad as it is. In mid-September, retired San Diego Border Patrol Chief Aaron Heitk testified how the Biden-Harris administration ordered him not to publicize the arrests of illegal border crossers identified as having terrorist ties. The American Immigration Council, which strongly opposes Trump’s deportation policies, estimates that it could cost $88 billion to deport 1 million illegal immigrants. But if we accept this estimate and ignore the various government benefits that these individuals might be receiving, ICE’s number of 662,556 illegal criminal immigrants implies a cost of $58.3 billion to remove them—just over one-third of the conservative estimate given here of the cost of the crimes by these criminals. The estimate of over $160 billion in costs from criminal illegal aliens is quite likely an underestimate. It assumes the average criminal coming into the country commits only one offense similar to what he committed in his home country. We also aren’t counting the costs of half of criminal illegal aliens. This article was originally published by RealClearInvestigations and made available via RealClearWire The post Are Illegal Migrants Less Likely to Commit Crime? Guess Again. appeared first on The Daily Signal.