Charles26

Yes. At last. If Richard can't break the Nicholas addiction on his own, he now has two (or three) people who care enough for him to help him break it. He still needs a proper boyfriend...

Extremely moving and oh, so very sad. All the wrong things done for reasons which, if not right, were understandable and indeed excusable in the light of human frailty and human love. Perhaps Maelor is now at rest, released by Christopher's compassion and forgiveness from the impact of the ritual he enacted and the curse that it became. I hope so. And if so, then the pattern truly is changing. What impact this will have on Christopher and Marco I don't know. I hope it will be kind to them. A fairly short chapter, but pivotal and very effective. Good job @andy cannon

I take your point @Summerabbacat, but I fear that that programme would require a complete character reconstruction 🙃. Richard bis might well be more effective than the original Richard but would he be the same person ? Meanwhile, Mrs Hansen should be pleased, if no-one else !

Um. Well. I really don't think Nicholas is the one for him. Apparently Stu isn't either. But at least this time he is thoroughly, viscerally furious. That's progress of a sort, perhaps ?

At a guess, it might be the difference between a choice made without understanding the consequences and an informed choice made knowing what may result. Another quotation: "the truth will set you free" could be relevant here. Christopher has chosen Marco - again - but this time he understands what it means. They are coming to see that it has to mean that to be whole they have to accept that there will be an end as well as a beginning.

Well, it could, I suppose, but I don't think that's quite @Mark Ponyboy Peters's usual style😇. A great chapter - again - with intriguing developments all round. Casey seems to have been silenced, if only for the while. And Levi is learning a lot about his Dads, both as people in the present and as people with a past history that he hasn't known about. All good. Even some possible progress in selling the house; while his taking responsibility for it, or at least the garden, and recognising that he has moved on - "it looked smaller than Levi remembered" - both speak to his own growth as a person. Basically a pleasure to read, so thanks, Mark.

It's exactly the kind of bullshit that is used all the time to provide a fig leaf of cover for prejudice; more often from the hard right than the left but by no means always so. It's barely even a parody - it could easily be a quote from some real-world comment (though it probably isn't).

If this isn't the crisis, I don't know what the crisis will be. They know the current situation, they know the history and they believe they understand it. But that's a gamble. They still have to decide and believe that their choices are right - and perhaps pray that the outcome will free them, and free them in such a way that they can be happy. I wish them entirely well. Another excellent chapter.

Ah, wonderful. "I'm gay." "Yes, I know." At least that's one hurdle over and out of the way. But he still has to find a worthwhile boyfriend and there is nothing to suggest that Nicholas is the one.

It has been said that the only way to keep something that you value is to be willing to let it go and then have faith. The context is obviously different, but the New Testament has a number of verses along the lines of "for whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me will find it." I think something analogous may be applicable here. No doubt the next chapter (or so) will make things clearer.

Certainly a new twist to the story but for the moment the mysterious newcomer doesn't seem to be especially friendly to the ranch or its people. We shall see, no doubt.

Right. A way forward. Matthew 7:14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it. Which of course has nothing to do with straight ! And so at last there is an understanding of the nature of the curse which offers some possibility of cutting through it. But the way is difficult to find and hard to follow. Still, Christopher has partially achieved his side of it; or it seems he has. He has chosen Marco in the present, freely and aware of at least some of the possible consequences. What will Marco be able to do ? What exactly does he have to do ? But at least the fog of uncertainty is clearing a little. Another strong chapter in a compelling story..

No doubt he needs to change - rather more assertiveness needed, I think. But Harriet is a true friend or at least has the potential. On the other hand, he clearly needs a real boyfriend since "Dickoless" clearly lacks the necessary attributes. That's backbone, loyalty, moral fibre; not the dangly bits between his legs😜

All very Jona Lewie "Kitchen at parties". Good luck, Richard !

I'm not sure what the left-over said, but it's gone, so... I think the key thing here is that Christopher has definitely and freely chosen Penmere and, surely more importantly, Marco. He has accepted the danger that goes with that choice. And, perhaps critically, in some subtle fashion things are different this time: "I don't know what happens next." "Neither do I." "I don't know whether Vale is right." "I don't know either." Christopher searched his face. "You really don't." "No." "I have never reached this point before." Christopher remembered those words. The pattern is changing. I'm not altogether clear about what has changed but I hope that the change will be that little thing that is sufficient to transform everything that follows. And for the moment, this chapter presents us with a beautiful declaration of love, offered regardless of the possible cost. Well done @andy cannon and thank you.

Hope so. That would be one in the eye (or wherever) for Jessica.

Oh, man. This is intense. What next ? Well written !

This is not quite your normal far-away-from-home disorientation (and I have a lot of experience of that). I could well understand that when all the internal structure of your life is collapsing like a sandcastle as the tide comes in, the external form and rhythm would become all the more important. Something to cling to in the deep water. In any case, Christopher has tried distancing himself from Penmere and it seems that it is not going to help. Some other approach is needed - but what ? Could he try to confront his past lives actively and assemble them into a whole that no longer threatens his sanity? Or... ? I don't know !

The what ? The who ? The age of empire is dead, even here in France. Thankfully. Not so much of the "you Brits", if you please. 🙃Like any true Englishman I have (in my case) Italian ancestry on my mother's side and Irish ancestry on my father's. If I had to salute a flag it would be blue with a circle of twelve golden stars.

I have never so much as set foot on Australian soil. The USA only one visit long ago. (Now there is a truly alien culture.) In fact I'm fully European (more so than British, despite the passport). Even so, I feel at home in Thompsonville too. It is, as we all know, a good place.😍

You are the lucky one if you still have the whole of Mardi Gras Murders to discover. One of @Mark Ponyboy Peters's best, in my opinion, and that's saying a lot!

There is more than a hint in all of this of one of those incurable degenerative diseases, when the specialist says that such and such a treatment may (only may) delay onset, or in this case slow the progression, of symptoms without providing any kind of cure and where there will be unpleasant side-effects. Not a brilliant offer. It's hard to imagine Christopher leaving Marco. It hasn't been said that the potential benefit of leaving Penmere will be lost or reduced if Marco goes with him but the implication seems to be that he should leave both the place he loves and the man he loves. And of course he is frightened. His life - his very self - is disintegrating. So, yes, the problem is real, severe and distinct. Any solution is none of these things. Abandoning everything he cares about might, just might, give him more time. Christopher is not in a good place. Some spark of genius, intuition or inspiration would be helpful at this point ! What will the next chapter have to offer ? Another excellent chapter.

I think that Levi is decent enough and self-aware enough that his own conscience is already a pretty severe punishment. More than that, and short of thrashing him with his grandfather's walking stick, I'm not sure how much more punishment Matt and Luke can impose. The name of the game is, I hope, correction rather than vengeance. And for the record I guess I'm also of a similar age to Levi's late grumpy old bastard grandfather. It would be great to see Rick and Adam and indeed the rest of the cast of Mardi Gras Murders. Of course I'm also hankering for a link with JJ and Dallas - just to keep everything tidy, you understand😉

Oh, brilliant. Zack has finally put in an appearance - and I think Levi has noticed. And Jimmy and Shane, no less, from Sydney and Newcastle. We know them well from their younger days. What a great chapter! Oh, yes: not to forget that Levi really does seem to be getting his act together. What's not to like? 😀

I have to admit that every revelation, rather than adding clarity, increases my confusion. I thought I more or less had a grip on the situation. Now I know I don't. Simplistically I assumed several chapters ago that the main threat would be that the curse led to Christopher's inevitable premature death and that his 28th birthday and the ultra low tide would be the crisis point at which death would be imminent and then avoided (or not). But no. Nothing so simple. There have been many deaths, often while still young, but not always; some caused by violence or war, some by accidents, some by illness, even some from simple old age. The effect of the curse appears to be more in the pain of the repeated and unresolved cycle of birth, death and - for Marco - bereavement. In addition we have learned that the integrity of Christopher's personality is threatened from within by his own insistent memories of past lives. And now Christopher has recovered his memories of that fateful day and the imposition of the curse. He has an understanding at last of what it has done to him but still no idea of what, if anything,they can do to change things. "They're cursed because neither had been allowed to finish grieving. The curse had begun at the precise moment Maelor believed love could be preserved by refusing to let death complete its work." This is a fascinating concept but I'm struggling to think through the implications. Um. Well written !