A Rival Heir by Laura Matthews

I haven’t read many of Laura Matthews’s Regencies, but those that I have I’ve liked because they’re unusual enough to not blend in with the rest, but not so unusual as to be weird. A Rival Heir is, perhaps, unusual in its straightforwardness and relatively mundane complications, which are simple enough to be unique in their approach if only because most fiction is concerned with being complex.

Nell Armstrong’s mother ruined herself when she ran off to marry a farmer, and when her parents died, Nell turned to her cantankerous Aunt Longstreet for a home. On a trip to Bath, Nell meets her aunt’s godson and heir, Hugh Nowlin, as well as Hugh’s sister, Emily, who decides to “rescue” Nell from her life as a companion, and Lord Westwick, who was once engaged to her aunt.

Nell and Hugh’s romance is charming and straightforward, Emily’s campaign both irritated and amusing, like Emily herself, and the mystery of Aunt Longstreet and Lord Westwick’s past works with the question of whether or not Nell’s situation can be improved to provide conflict without being irritatingly overwrought.

manga: Fullmetal Alchemist Ch 94

As always, I feel like as much happened in this single chapter as sometimes does in an entire volume of manga.

( spoilers )

Oh yeah, that's why I don't watch those...

In case you haven't noticed, I don't watch many procedurals.  The few I do watch are typically watched only because they come highly recommended by one person or another.

Today in the breakroom at work, though, I saw 10 minutes of one that skeeved me out more than all 9 episodes of Dollhouse have.

I don't know what show it was, but the setup of the weekly plot was that three boys had had sex with a mentally retarded girl in the school music room (apparently also playing some "games" with her) and told her not to tell anyone about it.  They were later charged with rape (I guess her parents found out?) and their defense, apparently, was that they didn't know she was retarded, they just thought she was braindead from drug use, and that even though it was clear that she was not mentally capable of making decisions with any awareness of gravity or consequences, it was ok because they heard she was curious about sex, and she did what they told her to.

They jury convicted them of rape. 

The judge essentially ordered the defense to appeal, then overturned the jury's decision, claiming that political correctness has clearly gone too far because even though you could tell there was something wrong with her without being told, she was curious and deliberately wore attractive clothes, so clearly she was the one in the wrong and they were totally innocent and people who thought otherwise should just be ashamed of themselves.

I FEEL THE NEED TO CLEANSE MYSELF!

Also, my air conditioner is totally dead...