The Scab

In the face of mindless malice
This city shrugs, again.
Outrage, intrigue, blame, concern
Vivisected per usual, through a dull ache

Networks light up, with concern, with baying
Martyrdom is on the departed bestowed
The accused accursed, the vehemence ever growing
For pundits and experts with brows furrowed

Who was warned? Who is to blame?
Who was the sod who felt such hate?
Who got there first? Who got away?
Who wasn't lucky, and you, sir - what say?

Spare a moment here, I beg
Not in memoriam, nor lofty praise

One Last Turn of the Wheel

I've never been this excited for a book for so long a time. That was the first thought in my head when I finally got my hands on "A Memory of Light", by Brandon Sanderson and Robert Jordan - the final book of "The Wheel of Time". I had been wanting to read this book, this ending, ever since I first read "The Eye of the World" back in 2002. Funny, I thought it'd been longer!

Rand al'Thor (finally) comes to Shayol Ghul

For me, as for many other fans of fantasy literature born in the 80s, this series was our post-Tolkein bridge into contemporary fantasy literature. It has now come to occupy that special place, reserved for ticklers of the imagination like Star Wars, or the Matrix mythos, or Middle-Earth, which once reached makes the thing that got there immortal. Never mind the flaws, apparent and unnoticed! Here  is a dream, an escape, that will be dear to you forever after. An old friend that you have spent enough time getting to know that you do not notice the rough edges, or the parochial attitude. A house so well lived in, you don't mind the crumbling paint.

Did I love this book? Absolutely! Was there ever a realistic chance I wouldn't? Not really. What follows then is not so much a review, but a retrospective. Reflections on closure, a long time coming...