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Friday Things and Snippet

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Patrick and Grace Draven are coming over for dinner tonight. I’m making fajitas. Quick, easy, and customizable.

Need to write a big battle for Ruby Fever. Am very sleepy. Need to drink some coffee.

Need to run an errand.

::Throws snippet. Runs off::

I found Linus in the motor pool. He had carved out a spot between Grandma Frida’s armored vehicle kingdom and Regina’s smaller workshop. When I walked in, he was standing in the middle of a carefully arranged mosaic of odd metal parts. The husk of what used to be a Paladin, a mobile field artillery system which looked like a tank but wasn’t, rested next to him, thoroughly gutted. Grandma Frida stood at her work bench, her left arm bent and supporting her right elbow, while her right hand covered her mouth.

Grandma Frida saw me. “Please tell me you’ve come to take him away. I don’t know how much more of this I can take.”

“And here I thought we’d reached an understanding, Ms. Afram.” Linus pondered the array of parts.

“When I sold the St. George to you, I didn’t know you would dismember him.”

“I’m making him into something we can use.”

Linus raised his hand, fingers up, as if cupping a glass of cognac. Translucent green streaked from his fingertips. Two random parts rose in the air, twisted, and merged. As they combined, a pulse of gold light flashed from where they touched, running through the metal in thin veins. The new part floated down and rested gently on the floor.

Grandma Frida shook her head. “Professional courtesy, Linus. Nobody wants to see how the sausage gets made.”

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Comments

  4. That warms my heart. Of course Grandma Frida would be freaked out by Linus’ approach! Good luck on the rest of the things!

    • She’s like 15 years older than Linus. I’m okay with that when it’s 25 to 40, but 60 to 75 is just too much. And as much as I love Grandma, he needs to remain single for me. I’m only 8 years older. Totally doable.

      • There is not that much of an age difference :). We know that Frida is past 70 and Linus in his 60s.

        • Totally shipping them. Time for the matchmaking tables to be turned on Grandma, she needs a younger man to keep up with her.

      • But Linus has Victoria for past exploits and world domination plans and since Grandpa Leon died the only love for Grandma Frida is Romeo.
        So no reason for shipping here 😀
        Let’s concentrate on a certain sergeant and mother…we can manifest that ????

        • I also agree. Plus, after this little chat, I’m actually appalled to ship Linus and Grandma Frida. Not sure about the how good the St. George was working (car? bus? tank?…?) or if there is a very real emergency that forced Linus’ hand, but I choose to be outraged with Grandma Frida.

          I could do with Sausages or Fajits though. Being hungry while working a quiet night shift…

          Oh and yes to more from the mother+ hearty sergeant side!

      • I looked it up. Grandma Frida is 72 and Linus Duncan is early sixties so about 10 years difference. I don’t know how to do citations from an ebook but here are the excerpts:

        “He was framed,” Grandma Frida said.
        “You don’t even know the story,” Mom said.
        Grandma shrugged. “Framed. A man that pretty can’t be a murderer.”
        Mother stared at her.
        “Penelope, I’m seventy-two years old. You let me enjoy my fantasy.”

        Excerpted from
        Burn for Me

        “The mage pulled back his hood, revealing the handsome face of a man in his early sixties, with bold features, a broad forehead, and smart hazel eyes caught in the network of wrinkles. A short beard, black and sprinkled with silver, hugged his jaw. His hair, once probably dark with some white, but now mostly white with some dark, was brushed away from his face. He looked like your favorite uncle who lived somewhere in Italy, owned a vineyard, laughed easily, and hugged you when you came to visit. Right now his face showed concern, and his eyes were saddened.”

        Excerpted from
        White Hot

        • ::deep patient sigh::

          When Grandma Frida says she is 72, that’s a fact.

          When Nevada says Linus LOOKS like he is in his early sixties, that’s an eyeball assessment. He could be 70. He could be 55. He looks like he is in his early sixties.

          We haven’t really stated Linus’ age.

    • He is already taken probably by the scarry grandmother. So we would be shipping someone into a three-way relationship with her and that feels wrong. Very wrong.

      • Same, I always got a Linus/Victoria vibe.

        I’m still not 100% sure if Linus is the actual grandfather after all lol

      • I see them as fond-but-wary old flames who know each other too well to fully trust each other. Definitely something there, but I’d be very surprised to see them settle down for a happily ever after together.

  8. Grandma Frida is arguably my favorite character in HL. She is funny, sassy, and she has a teenage heart.

  10. Humm intresting passing thought, can Frida connect to Linus armor…it is a weapon, and moves, but not on wheels, still this one was…as I said passing thought…thanks for snippet

  11. Lol ???? poor Grandma Frida! Linus is a brave brave man for destroying one of her machines in front of her.

  12. Looks like Grandma no longer is interested in Linus. Good. Entirely different personalities.

    I would be interested in who Ilona might write for him. He seems pretty special to forever live alone.

  13. Oooooh! Grace Draven! Another author whose books I buy unread.

    Mostly, I get a book from the library. Read it. And then decide if I need to buy it. You, Grace Draven, and Patricia Briggs are my current buy “sight unseen” authors. I buy lots of others, but only after I have read them. My sister thinks that’s weird.

      • short story anthologies help me find new authors — I find a book of stories that have authors that I like (P Briggs, I Andrews, J Frost, etc.) and others. I usually find new authors to explore.

    • It’s not weird. That’s what I do, too!!
      You can borrow lots of books from the library for free, then decide if you want to spend from your book budget on a particular book and/or author. If you do, then that’s a reading investment!! If not, then you can always borrow the library copy when you want to re-read. ????????????

      • Kinda in the same vein, when my son was little, I’d stand in the kids’ book section with a likely book reading a page or two out loud before I bought.

        (and when buying a bed or a sofa, would take along a paperback & sit reading for half an hour – big, expensive purchase, if I can’t read comfortably on it, it ain’t coming home!)

    • I’m the same in that autobuy list…also for me Nalini Singh and Tamora Peirce is on there too.
      For some authors I’m odd in that it’s only certain series that are autobuys for them, like Michelle Sagara- love her Elantra world and autobuy to all, but haven’t got into her West books at all.

  14. So good grandma and morally ambiguous grandpa shipping? Lol ????

    Great snippet, I know I’m going to love this book.

    Have a fun dinner!

      • And we don’t know for sure if he is “Grandpa” or not. Authors teased that he is Ceasar as well. I think they are going to surprise us. I smell red herrings (quick, get the Fabreeze). I have been trying to build family tree in my head where Linus is an uncle, maybe his mom married into Molpe family and grandpa is Linus’s half brother? I know, I am bending the DNA into a convoluted knot. Waiting to find out is so hard!

      • But he could be a dual, right? There’s been no confirmation or denial of dual weapon smith/siren-ness. Or, similar to David Howling, he could be the son of a Molpe and weapon smith who took after the other parent’s magic lineage…

      • There’s something going on there, isn’t there? Nevada’s reaction always struck me as odd “Something about Linus made me feel at ease. You knew that he was sincere and whatever he told you wouldn’t be a lie”. But Nevada knows even Grandma Frida lies…

        • Oh wow – that had not occurred to me but yes! He’s been charming (siren) /terrifying (hephaestus) Houston houses for decades. But you would think that mental mages like Nevada and Catalina would catch him if he was ever using his ‘wings’ even subtly.

          • Linus has had a lot of years to learn how to use his magic before those two ever showed up, and they didn’t start learning their own until they were in their teens/20s. And he’s also had a lot of years to learn how to phrase things so they’re not lies. He might well tell the truth and nothing but the truth, while conveniently leaving out the whole truth.

  16. Thank you, thank you, thank you! Two of my favorite characters!!! I’m currently re-reading the Innkeeper series (for the umpteenth time), having just finished re-reading the Hidden Legacy series. Your books are such delights, the humor, the complexity, the well placed snark, the moments when I am so delighted for the character as he or she triumphs. Thank you for the ongoing pleasure of your books. And thank you for this morning’s tidbit … I’m laughing before 9 a.m. and only on two cups of tea … smiles, thanks!

      • I’m on KD for the 6th time, adding in Iron & Magic, and now finishing up with Blood Heir (4th time since publication for the latter).

        Mod R – if you get a chance to ask HA about something, I’d appreciate it.

        They paused on I&M2 last year because it was going very dark (and the ‘real world’ was dealing in pandemic misery) and, I think, someone dear died in the story. My question: Is I&M2 self-published or are they under a contract (so there’s a tentative publication window)? Thanks very much, as always!

    • Sharon- you have created the perfect sentence in regard to the HA books. “Thank you for the ongoing pleasure of your books”.
      It is so true. Whether the 1st read through or the 3rd, 4th or 5th they remain a true pleasure.

  17. ???????? Grandma Frida rocks! She should probably author a “How to destroy/ decimate a person in 3 words or less”book!

    What would make this better? Arabella’s commentary on the whole…..a là the “I didn’t really get a good look at the guy” scene…. Will literally roll on floor snorting and snuffling and laughing like a loon at that!

  21. Oooooh I NEVER get to post a comment when there are so few of them. Now I’m not sure what to say. So I guess I’ll just say thank you for the snippet. I’m currently re reading HL, I’m on Sapphire Flames, I know that that means I’m going to peak to soon for the Ruby Fever release, but I can’t help it, I needed a IA fix. ????????❤

  23. I believe I’ve said this before, but I really really am looking forward to this book and I wish it was coming to my greedy hands sooner. Great snippet!

    Have a fun dinner!

  26. I’d think Grandma Freida would love to see how the sausage was made! She has a queen quest for understanding and knowledge of all things mechanical! Maybe it’s the magic twisting of metal that disturbs her? The destroying of a part to make a new one? I love this scene and seeing Linus in his mad scientist/getting dirty mode is perfection! Thank you!!!

    • Grandma Frida loves her vehicles and connects with them :). Hence referring to the Paladin as a “him”. Linus is tearing one apart.

  27. Thank you for freshly thrown snippet. My mind is picturing the organized jumble of parts with Magic woven into pieces.
    Is Grandma Frida calling “St. George “ the name of the machine or what the machine told her was its name?

    Have a lovely dinner.

    • She says “THE St. George”, so a model (or a provenance perhaps?). Not its name, like her Romeo :).

  28. I LOLed at the comments more than anything. Reminds me of the SHIP blog post. First time I feel like I didn’t think of shipping a couple from a snippet and others did! 🙂

    I just want more of the love life of Nevada’s mom. Such a cute couple there!

  29. Thank you. Re-reading Emerald Blaze now. You, Patricia Briggs, Devon Monk, and Molly Harper are my stress busters.

  30. Ooh a snippet snack. How lovely! Very fun. Thank you.

    Enjoy fajitas with Grace and Patrick Dryden. Say hello from the BDH as many of us love her work too! 🙂

  34. Is there any way you can bribe Grace Draven with fajitas for an early release of the third book in her Fallen Empire series?….just as a favor to the BDH 😀

  35. Thanks for the snippet – can’t wait for the release Fated Blades.

    Also, would you please share your fajita recipe….I never make them and I’d love to add them to my repertoire. Thanks again.

  37. Love Friday snippets! November is getting closer!

    Heading down to the boardwalk art show this weekend, looking forward to it.

  39. I hope this doesn’t disrupt her flirtation initiative. Seems Frida is like a high caliber chef; she doesn’t appreciate interlopers in her kitchen. Err… shop.

  43. Does anyone else try to mimic the gestures (hand/body positions) that the authors write? I found myself trying to mirror “her left arm bent and supporting her right elbow, while her right hand covered her mouth.” That works and I get it. Such a good description of a body pose that evokes a feeling. Like you are trying to both comfort yourself and hold yourself back.

    I haven’t quite figured out “the mage pose” yet. I get the “arms bent at the elbows” and hands as if holding a basketball (I think I remember that correctly). I am not sure of angles (arms in front, arms to the side), and what part of the arm is parallel to the floor and what part is perpendicular. The one that seems most likely is upper arms pressed to the sides so that elbows are about at the lower ribs, then lower arms (elbows to hands) held forward, parallel to the floor, palms held up????

    Thank you for the snippet, made Friday even better.

  44. Mmmmmm, fajitas! We’re having chorizo and cheese enchiladas tonight, in a similar vein.

    I just love Grace Draven’s work, you have a great friend there. Please pass on all the best regards from us.

  45. Somebody should probably inform House Andrews that throwing a snippet at the BDH is kinda like feeding a mogwai after midnight…

    On second thought, maybe we don’t tell them? (queue maniacal laughter)

    Mod R, I leave this up to your discretion.

  51. Thank you for the snippet!! I’ve had a lousy Friday with a trip to the emergency department after a fall from one of my work horses. This has helped cheered me up ❤️

  53. Ahhh! YES!
    Inquiring minds want to know…if we’re shipping Grandma Frida and Linus would it be Lida or Frinus or Fridus?

  54. Grace Draven! I discovered her based on a recommendation I found on this blog & loved her Radiance series. I’m jealous. Jealous of fajitas too.

    Loved the snippet. Hope we can more answers of the mysterious Linus Duncan.

    Will the whole Ceasar arc get wrapped up in Ruby Fever or do we wait for Arabella’s trilogy?

    He tells Nevada in the hospital coffee shop about a woman he once loved. Do we ever get to find out about her?

  55. Love this snippet!! Love you guys!! Thank you for putting a smile on my face today. Enjoy dinner. ????

  56. So fun! Just as with House Andrews, I have everything Grace has written. Just pre-ordered Fire of the Frost.
    I actually like to see the sausage made!

  57. All the thrown snippets are lovely- but Grandma Frida is just beyond!
    Just love her ruling her armored vehicle kingdom and dispensing commentary.
    Have a nice evening&fajitas.

  60. I feel like Linus might meet his match with Grandma F.

    I also would love a Rogan/Alessandro/Linus etc POV novella of the family.

    Just in your spare time between writing 5 brilliant series, and raising family etc etc. Right. I’ll leave you to add that to the work diary.

  62. Poor Grandma Frida having to watch one of her babies get “restructured”. Since she puts so much of her time and care into them it must be very difficult for her to see happen.

    Have a lovely dinner!

  67. I had a thought while listening to EB for the umpteenth time and this snippet reminded me. When he is left at Victoria’s prison, Allesandro says “ Don’t worry about me, I’ll find my own way home” which I had assumed meant he got a cab or an Uber. But it just dawned on me that maybe he can use his magic to copy a car? He copied one of Linus’s suits, so a car isn’t that much larger, and probably not that much more complicated. And if so, couldn’t he just copy his car full of gas, drive it around all day, let the copy fade overnight and drive a new copy the next day, never needing gas? Or share a car by his driving the copy and Catalina driving the real one? Or “borrow” a car by copying it when he wants to show off for Instagram? When he still did that kind of thing?

    • That’s not quite how his magic works ????. For more explanation on Alessandro’s talent, please see here https://ilona-andrews.com/2021/back-to-life-back-to-reality-2/

      “Alessandro’s passive field is survival based. If Alessandro falls off a roof, his magic will try to compensate by creating a shield. If he is being drowned, his magic will attempt to push him to the surface. If a mental mage attacks him, his magic will shield his mind. He doesn’t need to strain for this to occur. It’s instinctive. The passive field also accelerates his healing. He is very hard to kill.

      Alessandro’s active field produces weapons on demand and reinforces his mind. In active state, Alessandro is practically impenetrable to a direct mental attack from a mental combat mage such as truthseeker, mind cutter, psionic, etc. The passive field gives him some protection, but when he concentrates, that protection becomes even stronger. That does not mean that he cancels out illusions by strolling by. Illusions are not direct attacks on the mind. They are just altered sensory input.”

      • I forgot about that, so it would rule out the “car share” scenarios. Rats, that would have been fun.

        But, if he were being chased and needed to escape, he could, in theory, still conjure a car or a combat vehicle, like a tank, since both could be used as a weapon to run over a bad guy. I imagine it would take a ton of magic to conjure something that big, however, so it might be a last resort thing and not a party trick, assuming it would work.

        This leads me to another thought. How does he practice then? Does he need a live partner to spar against or can he just imagine a threat? The more I think about it the deeper down the rabbit hole of possibilities I dive. ???? Thanks for humoring me, Mod R!

    • That’s the Ship I will continue to sail. But it will be fun during the whole cruise, waiting to see how/if we get there.

  69. Ha! Love it. Thanks so much for throwing us a snippet! Say hi yo the Dravens. I love them !

  71. I don’t care for the original fajitas made from beef skirt, and look like charcoal when they come off the grill. I prefer them rubbed with some type of dry spices with a chili base and grilled tender, medium with green onions and chili strips.

    So another Andrews feint in this blog. If Linus is not Grandpa, then who is? Linus is bored, Grandma is bored and so is the unknown person hanging around Grandma. Arabella and Alessandro know and I’m pretty sure Rogan knows who grandpa is.

  74. I think Cesar/Grandpa is the family physician. Linus could be his half- brother. Love the snippets but they make me want more.

  75. 130 comments so far – wow. Mine will be lost but I’ll post one anyway, just because.

    First – I really like the artwork for this page. I don’t know if it’s original art or something from a movie, but it’s awesome overkill. It puts me in mind, a bit, of Robocop. “You have 20 seconds to comply.” Gulp.

    Then there’s the snippet. From the comments, you’ve posted others that relate to this one, but I haven’t seen them, so I’m unfamiliar with “Grandpa” and why people are trying to link Linus to Frida that way. I’m also unsure why he has “carved out” a space in her garage. What’s he doing there?

    The last teaser I recall, while he was dancing at the wedding, was a powerful implication that he was Caesar, but I cannot reconcile ANY of his behavior with Nevada or Catalina with this concept. I can understand “staying in character” but he’s just too much the Warden for me to believe that he would, even for a second, tolerate the events of “Burn for Me.”

    However, I found the comments speculating that he might have a secondary “siren” talent interesting and believable. Though not “siren” as he doesn’t really generate a “love me” response so much as a “trust me” one. How useful.

  76. Thanks so very much for the snippet!! And I’m currently only shipping Mom Baylor (Penelope?) and her security guy whose name I can’t remember. Sorry – almost 2am, I’ve been up for about 48 hrs, and still am not sleepy. Time to finish rereading Sweep of the Blade…

  79. Does this mean that Grandma Frida will retain her ability to commune/converse with Linus’ new construction? Could we be seeing a foreshadow of Grandma reaching out and directing action of the new thing in the middle of a battle? Or calling it back to safety if Linus is incapacitated?

    Such rich daydreams from a small but lovely gift.

    Thank you!

  81. Just checked in read all the comments. I can’t believe no one had a flashback to the beginning of “Great Pumpkin” when Lucy stabs a pumpkin to make a jack o’lantern, and Linus wails “I didn’t know you were going to kill it!!!” Especially this time of year.

  83. Haha I wonder if Grandma Frida still thinks Linus is hot now after this.

    Thank you for the snippet!

  85. We LOVE the snippets!! HOWEVER!! With every one, it just makes us salivate more and more over what’s to come… I’m running out of kleenex and paper towels to clean up.. Don’t stop, I’ll just have to go to Costco and get the bilk economy size…

  88. I really like Linus, he is my favorite anti-hero/villain/mentor. Sometimes i wish he would court Frida…their power could mesh sooo good.

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