#simon waite

Simon Waite.

so rember when I said I’m into an incredibly niche romance series now

everyone say hi to Simon… the skrunkly and my new problematic fave…

he’s not finished, I haven’t made his clothes (which is why he’s in a bathrobe. It’s from the naturalistas wash day fashion pack. I think he looks precious in it)

I hate it when I love a piece of media a lot but there’s practically no fan art for it so I take matters into my own hands but I’m not actually good enough at art to be satisfied with the results. Anyway here’s a crappy doodle of Simon from Harrow Faire in the hopes that it’ll make the next person’s search for fan art a tiny bit less frustrating.  

So i know this isn’t what i usually post and is probably a one-off, but i just had to talk about this YA book series i just finished binging. It’s a YA fantasy series set in modern day (2020) where the protagonist -Cora Glass- is thrust into a dark mystery revolving around the bustling circus/carnival that arrived in town seemingly overnight despite all logic indicating otherwise. The series has romance, mystery, a little horror, found family and deep existential questions. I’ve tagged Shadow and Bone because i went into that series assuming it would include some of the tropes Harrow Faire actually explores on satisfyingly. 

Cora Glass is, like Alina Starkov, reluctantly thrust into this bizarre magical world without much warning and expected to fill a role she doesn’t want. However, unlike the Sun Summoner, she’s actually curious by nature and confidently pursues answers rather than wait for someone to hold her hand through everything or drag her kicking towards the plot (*cough* Mal, Darkling, Genya, Baghra, Mal, Nikolai, Mal again *cough*). Cora, despite suffering from tremendous chronic pain, is witty, sarcastic, brave, fun and clever. She's no-nonsense without being disrespectful. She can acknowledge when she's wrong about someone/thing without re-writing her whole perspective everything relating to them/it. She listens to others but doesn't let them think for her. She also has relatable moments where she's consumed by confusion, anger or fear and needs support from others to pull her out of it. Her character arc is done so well because she is the one who tries to figure what she really wants, what she's willing to sacrifice and how she's going to get there. 

Although if the thing you look for in a love interest is serious brooding stoicism then these books definitely aren't for you. The dynamic between the two is at the heart of the series and Simon “The Puppeteer” Waite is undoubtedly, unapologetically insane. While he is outgoing, charismatic and funny, he is not some misunderstood bad boy with a secret heart of gold. His behaviour is unsettlingly cruel and erratic and, excluding the few area's he draws a vague moral line, he will obsessively go to any lengths to get what he wants- and his wants are always selfish. What's more is Cora is fully aware of this from the start and is drawn to him because of it. While they mostly banter back and forth, on a deeper level she's the only one who can truly push/challenge him and vice-versa. You truly get the sense that they bring out the most in each other and root for them in spite of how terrible a person he can be- another thing i was disappointed with in Darklina that this series fulfilled.

The setting is also incredibly dynamic and thoroughly explored- mostly taking place on the carnival grounds where everything is somehow surreal and grounded. Every single character from the faire meshes with it so well in their own way it makes the world feel alive. No matter how small, every background character is unique and interesting.

The villain(s?) are also incredibly compelling and feed in to deeper themes of good vs evil and what it means to live/survive. At no point does it fell like the author is grabbing you by the hair and saying 'SEE THEM? SEE HOW EVIL?!' DON'T YOU HATE THEM? NO?!! YOU'RE DISGUSTING!'

These books will sometimes subtly hint at the chance to include an annoying trope only to immediately shut it down. Some examples include; the hot mean girl out to sabotage the protagonist for no reason, unrequited love interest, love triangle, high-school cliques in an adult setting, bad guys motives going completely unchallenged and (most importantly) characters who ignore every red flag under the sun for the sake of plot convenience. 

All in all i finished these books in a couple of days and will probably return to them soon. If you do decide to give them a go feel free to message me your thoughts- there's virtually no fandom around them yet and i just think that's a shame considering how good they are. You can comment/message me any questions and i'll try to respond quickly to the best of my ability.

THE PUPPETEER // simon waite // harrow faire series // kathryn ann kingsley

He had begun to worry that his will had begun to leave him after all these years, as it happened to so many others. But his concerns were now swept away. He had just been uninspired by the fish, that was all. But that had changed the moment he saw her.

When he tasted her.

Now he was going to have the rest of her.

Oh, she’d play hard-to-get. The fish would dart and nibble the line. He would have to be patient to sink the hook just right in order to puncture through her flesh. But the lure he dumped into the waves in front of that particular tasty piece of tail -he stopped to laugh at his own terrible metaphor—was too tempting to pass up.

She was perfect. He could feel it. He had meant his words. If—no, when— she came to him, she would learn that he was not feeding her mistruths. It might take a few attempts. It might take a few pieces of bait on the line. But she would come to him.

She would also learn there were far worse things in this world than a liar.