Harry Potter Moment of the Week (81): Character You Would Erase If You Could

Harry Potter Moment of the Week is a meme hosted by Uncorked Thoughts and Lunar Rainbows. The aim of this meme is to share with fellow bloggers a character, spell, chapter, object or quote from the books/films/J. K. Rowling herself or anything Potter related! A list of upcoming topics can be found here.

This week's topic is:
Character You Would Erase If You Could

The character I would erase from the series would be Dolores Umbridge. The rest of the planet and I agree that she is the most horrible villain to ever exist. The hatred she induces can rally those who agree on nothing else. Additionally, I think her role in the storyline could be replaced with someone, anyone, far less repulsive. Ugh! Every time I think about her, my blood boils and my skin crawls. I have never encountered a fictional character whom I have hated as much. Her presence would not be missed by anyone.

Discussing Game of Thrones: High Sparrow

* Spoilers ahead if you haven’t seen “High Sparrow.”

I Didn't Come Here to Sweep Floors

That's right—Arya is at the House of Black and White to learn how to kick ass like a Faceless (Wo)Man. Instead, though, she's sweeping the floor like Cinderella. Jaqen reminds her that all men must serve.

Margaery Gets Married Again *yawn*

Cersei is being transported to the Great Sept of Baelor yet again, this time to see Tommen wed Margaery. In one of the major departures from the books in this episode, the marriage is consummated. Margaery gets right down to the business of coaxing her new (and third) husband into sending his mother packing to Casterly Rock and thus out of Margaery's hair. Cersei pays her daughter-in-law a visit, during which Margaery is pretty bold with her comments. But here's the important question: will Ser Pounce the cat appear in any episodes this season?

Stop Eating and Listen

It's our first look at Winterfell this season, which is in the process of being rebuilt . . . under Bolton rule. Roose warns Ramsay that they don't have enough men to hold the North. Roose's deal was with Tywin Lannister, and with Tywin dead, House Bolton is in a precarious position. So Ramsay is going to marry Sansa to strengthen their hold on Winterfell. Yes, that's right. Ramsay is not marrying Sansa's friend Jeyne Poole forced to pose as Arya, per the books, but Sansa Stark herself. And in another twist, Brienne and Pod have followed Littlefinger and Sansa all the way to Winterfell.

Brienne and Pod Make Up

Brienne admits that she's been mean to Pod and feels rather bad about it. She asks him how he came to be Tyrion's squire. Pod was about to be hanged for eating half of a stolen ham when Tywin Lannister pardoned him and assigned him to Tyrion's service. Pod says he's proud to be Brienne's squire. AWWWWWW!!!! Brienne is going to give him some sword training. He then asks her how she ended up in Renly's service and she recounts his chivalry at a ball in Tarth when the other men in attendance mocked her.

Jon Is Staying a Snow

OK, so I feel sorry for young Olly, whose mama and papa, you may recall, were eaten by Styr the Magnar of Thenn in Season 4. But, Dolorous Edd is supposed to be Jon's steward! I love Edd and all of his gloomy, doomy words of wisdom. Anyway. Stannis wants to know if Jon has considered his offer of making him a Stark if he'll help Stannis win the North. Jon replies that he's devoted to the Night's Watch. Stannis reminds him that it was honor that got Ned killed. Too true! Jon inquires as to the length of Stannis's stay at the Wall because they can't continue feeding Stannis's men and the Wildlings. After Stannis exits, Davos has a little heart-to-heart with Jon and rightly observes that as long as the Boltons rule the North, the North will suffer.

Arya Already Has an Enemy

Jaqen walks in on another girl in the House of Black and White roughing up Arya. To truly embrace her new life there, Arya has to give up all the things that make her Arya. She hurls most of her possessions into the water but hesitates over Needle. She cries while holding her beloved sword (I totally almost did, too, because it was a gift from Jon!) and buries it under some rocks rather than throwing it into the sea. Arya then helps the girl she was fighting with earlier wash a dead body.

The North F****ing Remembers!

Sansa is back at Winterfell, and as one of the servants leads her to her room, the servant tells her that the North remembers!

Jon Passes a Sentence and Swings the Sword

Jon Snow actually jokes as he addresses the Night's Watch. Things turn serious quickly, though, as he appoints his arch nemesis Ser Alliser Thorne First Ranger. Jon tries to give Janos Slynt an assignment, but Slynt vehemently refuses the command. And so Slynt is dragged outside, whimpering for mercy as Jon takes off his head.

High Septon, High Sparrow

Lancel busts the High Septon having a jolly good time at Littlefinger's establishment. He has to walk the streets in shame and complains to the Small Council about his treatment. Pycelle is rather defensive of the High Septon, which is pretty hilarious because he himself once got busted by Tyrion, Bronn, and Shagga while entertaining a young lady, lol. The High Septon wants the leader of this upstart religious movement, the High Sparrow, punished. Cersei goes to see the High Sparrow and finds him handing out food to the poor. She tells him that the High Septon is now in the dungeons.

Dr. Qyburn's Lab

Qyburn is in his lab when Cersei arrives because she wants him to send a message to Littlefinger. OK, I nearly crapped myself when the thing that's under the sheet (Frankengregor!) suddenly moved, lol!

Roose Bolton, Mail Tamperer

Theon hides his face from a passing Sansa. Ramsay tells Littlefinger that he'll never hurt Sansa, which, I'm not quite sure I believe. It looks like Sansa is also going to see some trouble from Ramsay's bevy of lady friends, who shot Sansa rusty dagger looks when she arrived at Winterfell. Bolton tells Littlefinger that Cersei will be enraged by Littlefinger marrying Sansa to Ramsay. He further casually says that he read Cersei's message to Littlefinger before handing it over and will also be reading any reply.

I Have to Get Out of This Wheelhouse

Tyrion is going nuts being confined. He and Varys arrive in Volantis, where a Red Priestess is giving a sermon about the Dragon Queen. Later in a brothel, they run into a sad-looking Jorah, who grabs Tyrion, ties him up, throws him over his shoulder, and says that he's taking Tyrion to the queen.

In the Next Episode

The Sons of the Harpy continue to cause trouble for Daenerys. It's time to meet the Sand Snakes of Dorne!

Review: Curtsies and Conspiracies by Gail Carriger

Curtsies and Conspiracies (Finishing School #2)
By Gail Carriger
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Format: eBook
Source: Purchased

To Sum It Up: Sophronia is excelling at her studies in all things espionage at Mademoiselle Geraldine’s Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality, so much so that her friends start giving her the cold shoulder. As if that weren’t enough to cope with, Sophronia finds herself the center of particular attention from Lord Felix Mersey, one of the visiting students from Bunson and Lacroix’s Boys’ Polytechnique. Someone also seems intent on harming the Plumleigh-Teignmott siblings, and Sophronia is determined to uncover the culprit.

Review: This is my seventh excursion into Gail Carriger’s wonderful Victorian world of steampunk, vampires, and werewolves, and I never want to leave. Ever. I have entirely too much fun when I’m ensconced in the pages of her books, and Curtsies and Conspiracies was a riot to read from beginning to end. I don’t often find myself laughing out loud while reading, but let me tell you, I LOL-ed my way through this one.

The plot here is beefed up a bit from Etiquette and Espionage. Sophronia, always on alert for something amiss (which is why she’s an ace intelligencer in the making), fears for the safety of her dear friend Dimity Plumleigh-Teignmott and pieces together a nefarious scheme that only Sophronia, of course, can thwart. Her escapades on board the airship that houses Mademoiselle Geraldine’s Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality and later in London feel more cohesive than they did in the previous book. That’s not to say that there aren’t a few plot details that could have benefitted from some further fleshing out, but on the whole, the plot stays on course.

The character development in Curtsies and Conspiracies is spot-on. I love Sophronia as a heroine, even more in this novel for showing flaws that bring more of a balance to her character. According to her first school evaluation, she’s prime intelligencer material, but she needs to work on her social skills. Sophronia quickly feels the harsh truth of this when the other girls start ignoring her because she’s too good for them. The sting of ostracism especially hurts coming from her friends Dimity, Sidheag, and Agatha. Sophronia also gets a little overzealous with a mission that results in some serious consequences. The latter incident, which turns out not to be entirely Sophronia’s fault, still leaves her feeling guilty and with a new appreciation for not throwing all caution to the wind all the time.

Romance takes a step to the forefront in this book and even displays signs of heading into love triangle territory. So far I’m not put off by it because I have so much trust in Carriger’s skills. Just for the record: Team Soap!

I can’t emphasize enough how delightful the humor in Carriger’s books is, and I especially enjoyed Curtsies and Conspiracies. The characters’ various idiosyncrasies combine with Carriger’s vibrant prose to make these novels very addictive. You can’t wait to see what sorts of capers these characters will get into next, and that’s exactly my sentiment toward the next installment in the series.

All in All: I’m totally in love with the Finishing School series. I also love the references to Gail Carriger’s adult Parasol Protectorate series, but even without those, Curtsies and Conspiracies is an amazing read in its own right.

Discussing Game of Thrones: The House of Black and White

* Spoilers ahead if you haven’t seen “The House of Black and White.”

Knock. Knock?

It's Arya! She finally arrives in Braavos at the House of Black and White, home of the Faceless Men. Unfortunately, she doesn't get past the front door(s), despite flashing the coin Jaqen H'ghar gave her. After hanging out on the steps for . . . a while, Arya hurls the coin into the sea.

Strike Two for Brienne

Brienne and Pod walk into an inn . . . and guess who else is there? Littlefinger and Sansa! Pod points this out to Brienne, who springs into action. Pod has also pointed out that they only have one horse and are quite outnumbered by the knights of the Vale. Of course Sansa won't go with Brienne, who makes a hasty exit with Pod. The knights give chase—I was seriously worried about young Pod for a few moments there! Brienne dispenses with their pursuers and says they're going to tail Sansa and Littlefinger.

You've Got Viper Mail

Cersei summons Jaime to see the fake red viper that's arrived—with Myrcella's necklace. It's a threat, so Jaime is off to Dorne (and off the course of his arc in the books) to bring her home. And guess who's going with? Bronn!

Ellaria WILL Have Vengeance

In the picturesque Water Gardens of Dorne, Ellaria Sand demands to know what Prince Doran will do about his brother Oberyn's death. Doran points out that Oberyn died during trial by combat and technically wasn't murdered by the Mountain. Ellaria says she has the support of Oberyn's daughters, the Sand Snakes, in her crusade for revenge and wants to send Myrcella back to Cersei in pieces. Doran refuses to do anything of the sort.

There's Something Sketchy about That Wall

Daario and Grey Worm (well, mostly Daario) capture a Son of the Harpy. Barristan advises Daenerys to put the man on trial rather than jump straight to executing him. After the rest of her council is dismissed, Barristan tells her that her father, the Mad King, thought he was doing justice by burning people alive but instead gave his enemies a reason to rise up against him. Daenerys agrees to let the prisoner stand trial.

Tyrion and Varys (Still) on the Road

Varys and Tyrion are on their way to Volantis so they can then head to Meereen. Varys compliments Tyrion, who's still putting some serious hurtin' on the wine supply, on his brief stint as Hand of the King. Tyrion wants some fresh air, but Varys tells him he can't because . . . .

Cersei Stacks the Small Council

Cersei has a bounty on Tyrion's head, and the story cuts to her and Qyburn looking at a head that's been erroneously brought before her. Qyburn, however, apparently can recycle it for his experiments. *shudder* Cersei then proceeds to a Small Council meeting. Mace Tyrell is appointed Master of Coin as well as Ships. Qyburn, to Pycelle's outrage, is named Master of Whisperers. Cersei offers Master of War to her uncle Ser Kevan, who wants to be asked by the King himself rather than his plotting mother. Ser Kevan further declares that he won't be Cersei's puppet and is returning to Casterly Rock.

Do Shut Up, Selyse

Shireen is teaching Gilly to read while Sam is ostensibly reading a book but totally listening to their conversation. Gilly asks Shireen how her greyscale was cured—two of Gilly's sisters died from it. Selyse walks in and boots Sam and Gilly from the library and warns Shireen to stay away from Gilly.

Jon . . . Stark?

Stannis chews Jon out over showing Mance mercy. Jon says the Wildlings will never follow Stannis, only one of their own. Lyanna Mormont's letter is freaking hilarious and awesome! Stannis offers to make Jon a Stark if he can rally the North to Stannis's cause. Later, as the Night's Watch assembles to elect a new Lord Commander, Jon tells Sam that he's going to refuse Stannis's very, very tempting proposal. Janos Slynt puts in a good word for Alliser Thorne, and Denys Mallister is also put forth as a candidate. Maester Aemon is about to start the vote when Sam elects Jon. And Sam makes a damn good case for Jon, too. The vote ends up being tied between Thorne and Jon until Maester Aemon casts his vote for Jon!

A Man Reprises His Role

Arya is surrounded by some menacing dudes in a Braavosi street when that guy who wouldn't let her in the House of Black and White turns up and then turns into Jaqen H'ghar! And Arya gains admittance to the House of Black and White!

Being Queen Isn't Easy

Mossador, a former slave who sits on Daenerys's council, kills the imprisoned Son of the Harpy, putting Daenerys in a tough spot politically. The other freed slaves demand mercy for him, but he's still taken a life. So justice is done, and a riot breaks out. The Unsullied rush Daenerys back into the pyramid.

Drogon Checks In

The prodigal dragon returns! He pops by for a quick visit with his mom then takes off again for who-knows-where.

In the Next Episode

Time to check in on those crazy Boltons!

Harry Potter Moment of the Week (80): Character You Wished You'd Invented

Harry Potter Moment of the Week is a meme hosted by Uncorked Thoughts and Lunar Rainbows. The aim of this meme is to share with fellow bloggers a character, spell, chapter, object or quote from the books/films/J. K. Rowling herself or anything Potter related! A list of upcoming topics can be found here.

This week's topic is:
Character You Wished You'd Invented

Ummm . . . pretty much ALL the characters? This is a seriously hard question! I'll go with Dumbledore, because just about every single line of dialogue he speaks in the books is instantly quotable. Plus Dumbledore is mind-bogglingly wise and kind with a keen sense of humor, not to mention a phenomenal wizard. The sheer amount of genius that went into creating such a character still awes me to this day.