wintreargo77

Hope. Thank you for the mini spoiler. I’m a sappy slop and glad to hear the boys have a future. This entry in the Carter universe has had everything. Started out as an examination of law and the personalities applying and using it to the creepiness of a whacked out sociopath posing as a religious figure while decimating boys’ lives to a tight spy thriller. Not a dull moment and each chapter was a fresh surprise of revelations and virtually non-stop action. My first time being exposed to the Carter saga and I am hooked. A lot of back reading is in order.

Andrew is making a mistake. He’s made a decision for Will and about him but he hasn’t asked what Will wants. Talk to him and let Will decide if he wants to be part of the full ride or if it is time to step away from the car. Both men desperately need a relationship counselor.

The inevitable result of an artificial intelligence creation is to learn from its initial programming and apply that learning to its present and future decision making. The result can range from an AI like HAL from 2001: A Space Odyssey to Data of Star Trek: The Next Generation. Both are autonomous yet one generates fear while the other inspires with its fundamental question of am I a man or a machine. Julian is of course in the mold of Data but a better version as part of his initial programming was to feel emotions, not just know their names. His evolution to love and compassion are logical extensions of that programming and they feel true rather than performative. Ben has a simple life with a complicated family, a family that has already jettisoned Ben’s previous relationship that was also abetted by Ben’s inability to put a boundary on them. This time is different as Julian refuses to stand by and allow them to run Ben’s life. Julian is reprogramming the family and Ben. Mom Diane recognizes its effects even if she can’t name it. Vera and Sophie do too. Ben appears to be having his Happy Ever After. He deserves it.

Ben is too good for his mother, sister, and brother. They don’t deserve him. He didn’t look at the package, he looked at the person inside it. It was said in reference to Paul, the son, husband, and father whose presence continues influencing his family after the man is gone. I too see people like this, that after knowing them I see not just their physical selves but mostly see their inner ones, their true selves. I don’t know how @mastershakeme is doing it but I see parts of myself in the characters that are created across multiple stories. It’s not unsettling but makes the stories richer and more fulfilling and satisfying. I care about the characters and while a story may end I continue thinking about them.

Oh shit. We knew it was coming yet it still feels like the vertigo of unending falling. Got to rely on @mastershakeme to protect Ben and Julian and keep them safe ‘cause I don’t see a way out of this.

Lesson: Always work within the network environment or at least back up your work to a secure server before shutting down or logging off. Will has been careless and sloppy. Will should be written up, especially because his sole machine contained the critical information for his company’s future. What if there had been a fire at his townhouse and his laptop had been incinerated or the machine stolen? However, it made for exciting reading and we saw a new hero emerge, Guillaume.

You and me

But he understood this: Ben Coleman did not know how to say no to his family. And no one in his family had ever given him a reason to learn. That, Julian thought, was going to need to change. Julian - Companion and Life Counselor. Ben’s mother, brother, and sister are going to be unhappy. Looking forward to it.

Ben is achingly lonely. He had what sounds like a boyfriend who was good for him but repeatedly being put last after Ben’s family was accumulatively wearing and grating and after two years of it he left. Ben’s new companion will help break that relationship cycle of always putting his family first. Ben works remotely and it would have behooved him to live anyplace far from his family so he could have a fuller, richer life with meaning and substance. But that’s for another story, not this one. I’m looking forward to watching Ben’s new relationship develop and hope Ben wins in the end. I’m sappy and love a positive ending and it’s easy to be that way when @mastershakeme creates vivid characters that I care a great deal about.

Love love love this story. Each chapter was a gift and I was always eager for the next one. Once the reveal of Eric and the Fleming Ranch then I started thinking of the story as Oklahoma’s Sons and appreciated when all 3 sons - James, Eric, & Taggert - were together in the same scene. Nasser turned out to be a safe landing for a motley yet lovable crew and their diversity and support were crucial for the entire ranch’s success. A beautiful story you’ve gifted us @Wayne Gray with a satisfying conclusion. Thank you.

Ben deserves a better and fuller life. Already loving Sophie. I’m here for the ride.

I want to kiss Blanchard or give him a beer. Maybe both.

Not everyone knows how to meet someone in the dark without trying to drag them into the light before they’re ready. Said by Beth in regards to Ellie and Owen yet the one who needs to hear and understand this is Ryder.

No he doesn’t but how about Owen’s first male friend, gay or not.

I would have requested Silent Lucidity as its slow pacing is ripe for variations on its runs. Looking forward as the story starts opening up.