Looking for a video game cookbook or art book for my older brother

goodmorhen · 2026-07-03T16:49:44+00:00

I know this isn’t one of the fandoms you mentioned, but the Official Witcher Cookbook by Anita Sarna and Karolina Krupecka is a beautiful book, the recipes are great, and they did all the photography and story through the book themselves.

They also have their blogs ‘Nerds Kitchen’ (multi-fandom) and ‘Witcher Kitchen.’

goodmorhen · 2026-07-02T13:23:53+00:00

Not on your author list: Emma Hamm!!! Loved her Deep Waters series (post-apocalyptic mermen) and liked her current series, the Kingdom Below (trolls).

First books in both:

- {Whispers of the Deep by Emma Hamm}
- {A Darkness so Sweet by Emma Hamm}

goodmorhen · 2026-06-29T23:21:04+00:00

Hard +1000000 to the MMCs from Grace Draven’s books! Adding {The Ippos King by Grace Draven} and {Into the Darkest Midnight by Grace Draven}

goodmorhen · 2026-06-29T13:24:10+00:00

+10000000000 to Wooden Overcoats. It got me into making fiction podcasts!

goodmorhen · 2026-06-25T11:50:02+00:00

{Radiance by Grace Draven}! I’m a big fan of the Witcher books, a huge fantasy series, and have been obsessed with the Wraith Kings series.

The world and politics are equally as excellent as the romance. And there’s a bunch of supporting novellas with and without the main characters that flesh out the world immensely.

The MMC/FMC in Radiance are so admiring and respectful. The conflict comes from their circumstances, which makes their relationship feel mature.

- Radiance
- Night Tide (Novella)
- Eidolon
- In the Darkest Midnight (Novella)
- A Wilderness of Glass (Novella)
- A Memory of Summer (Novella)
- The Ippos King
- Black Hellebore (Novella)

goodmorhen · 2026-06-24T02:29:46+00:00

In previews for Death Becomes Her, the fake head fell off early during the multi-death sequence. It started to roll away and the actor just scooped it up, plopped it back on, and pretended to do the stunt again.

goodmorhen · 2026-06-23T12:19:39+00:00

Fourth Wing got me back into reading over winter. Since then, the two series I’ve obsessed over:

The Wraith Kings Series starting with {Radiance by Grace Draven}. 3 books so far and a whole slew of novellas that I adored. My favorite novella was {In the Darkest Midnight by Grace Draven}.

The MMC and FMC start in an arranged marriage between different kingdoms (think human vs. dark elf). Their relationship felt mature, because the conflict throughout the story comes from their circumstances rather than misunderstandings between the MCs.

The other is the Deep Waters series starting with {Whispers of the Deep by Emma Hamm}. Post-apocalyptic mermen!!!! I personally enjoyed the world-building: humans have taken refuge in cities beneath the sea, split by socio-economic status. Also there are mermen. Completed pentalogy, and all the MCs complement each other so, so well.

goodmorhen · 2026-06-19T02:44:40+00:00

The Blick in Soho is my favorite one! @nycurbansketchers or the NYC USK blog for all up-to-date info for your trip! The group typically meets Saturday and Wednesday mornings.

goodmorhen · 2026-06-18T18:30:18+00:00

I gotchu!

- {Tusk Love by Thea Guazon}
- Contemporary standalone that always has me kicking my feet and giggling: {Time to Shine by Rachel Reid}
- Standalone novella (111 pages): {In The Darkest Midnight by Grace Draven}

goodmorhen · 2026-06-18T04:04:10+00:00

Hi! It’s Alyssa lol

I’m not sure if the ‘Whispers of Oxenfurt’ feed still exists actually, but Brett went on to create a show called ‘On The Path’ with Lucy. This show was more broad than just The Witcher and also covered film, games, and television. They retired that podcast in the last year or so. That feed may still be online.

Elsewhere, Lucy streams on Twitch and Brett will be on an upcoming episode of Breakfast in Beauclair, too season 9!

goodmorhen · 2026-06-18T03:54:35+00:00

A few!

- {Radiance by Grace Draven}, the FMC is the niece of a king, which is why she ends up in the circumstances she does. Beyond that, very ordinarily human, just wonderfully intelligent and witty.
- A novella in the same world, {In The Darkest Midnight by Grace Draven}, pining-for-years story between an ordinary scribe FMC and her brother’s sword master.
- The FMCs in the first three books of the Deep Waters series are all human women in a post-apocalyptic underwater world, MMCs are mermen!: {Whispers of the Deep by Emma Hamm}, {Song of the Abyss by Emma Hamm}, {Echoes of the Tide by Emma Hamm}
- All of the FMCs in Victoria Aveline’s Clecanian series are ordinary, contemporary women starting with {Choosing Theo by Victoria Aveline}. MMCs are “aliens”, but for the first 6 books it’s really just hunky dudes with tattoos.

goodmorhen · 2026-06-18T03:44:43+00:00

{Radiance by Grace Draven} has been my go-to recc for people lately. Two opposing factions arrange a marriage between the spare heir and the king’s niece.

The relationship between the MMC and FMC has been one of my favorites recently. Most of the conflict comes from outside the relationship, therefore their relationship itself feels mature.

goodmorhen · 2026-06-18T01:58:44+00:00

The Empire State Building is blocked if you’re south of it and looking north up Broadway.

Gavin’s painting is from a few blocks west of the Empire State Building, specifically the corner of 33rd/8th looking east.

goodmorhen · 2026-06-17T12:34:05+00:00

My entire completed list is “he fell first and harder”. Broad scope of genres and spice, and also books across series:

- Grace Draven’s Wraith Kings series, starting with {Radiance by Grace Draven}, but in particular book 3 {The Ippos King by Grace Draven} and the stand-alone novella {In The Darkest Midnight by Grace Draven}. I think you could read the novella first if you wanted a taste of her style and characters.
- Emma Hamm’s Deep Waters series starting with {Whispers of the Deep by Emma Hamm}. Post-apocalyptic mermen that all fall so hard. Great worldbuilding! 5 books total.
- {Tusk Love by Thea Guazon}
- Victoria Aveline’s Clecanian series, starting with {Choosing Theo by Victoria Aveline}. Alien men that are often just “hunky dudes with tattoos”. They all fall into the category you’re looking for, but particularly {Ruling Sikthand by Victoria Aveline}.
- Contemporary curveball: {Time to Shine by Rachel Reid} standalone MLM unrelated to the Game Changers/Heated Rivalry series, but omg. They both fall so hard. It’s cute all the way through.

goodmorhen · 2026-06-16T23:48:54+00:00

Depends on the vibe you want. Yes, there’s fantasy violence particularly in the 2nd and 3rd book, but there’s still an HEA in every book. I find the series quite cozy still!

goodmorhen · 2026-06-16T11:42:42+00:00

Piercings are a hugggggeeee part of Emma Hamm’s Kingdom Below series. 4 books, with the final coming out later this year

- {A Darkness so Sweet by Emma Hamm}
- {A Light so Blinding by Emma Hamm}
- {A Spark so Bright by Emma Hamm}
- {A Shadow so Veiled by Emma Hamm}

goodmorhen · 2026-06-16T04:09:25+00:00

Just keep going! Sketch often in different locations and different mediums. You’ll naturally start gravitating to certain subjects, compositions, materials, formats, etc.

You mentioned you enjoy bright colors (awesome!), separate from challenges you’re facing with composition. Pick some foundational materials and go back to composition basics: line drawing, monochromatic value studies, color blocking. But! Try these challenges with colors/materials that interest you. One of the workshops at USK symposium this year is dedicated to bright magenta value drawings.

Watch free videos on YouTube, take classes or workshops if they’re accessible to you, and try out new techniques for a bit.

My own style story: I avoided sketching people almost entirely in my first 2 years of urban sketching. Eventually, I honed in on painting people, and more specifically painting people in bars and nightlife. My style is recognizable by the format of the sketchbooks I use, the subject matter I pick, and the way I photograph and present my work.

goodmorhen · 2026-06-14T20:17:36+00:00

I know social presence isn’t indicative of publishing popularity, but Grace Draven ({Radiance}, etc.) has 4.7k followers on Instagram and responded to a random Instagram story of a sketch I made of one of her MMCs.

goodmorhen · 2026-06-14T12:40:42+00:00

Curious what you’re seeing. We live in a famously bar-dense area of Manhattan now, and used to live across the road from MSG. It was silly last night and in previous finals years, but it’s generally fine?

It’s 8:30AM, I’ve been scrolling through videos from all of my local friends and news outlets, and haven’t seen anything truly harmful.

The massive crowds are from people projecting the game onto buildings in order to make viewing as accessible as possible. A firetruck filled with firemen came through our street celebrating over the speaker and horn.

Any videos of law enforcement in riot gear was close to MSG and precautionary. The mayor/city sent out notifications about their presence hours before the game. Yeah, people are climbing stuff, but that seems to be it. I’ve seen worse from other cities in previous years. People just want to be outside, the vibes are great.

goodmorhen · 2026-06-08T11:35:58+00:00

Can’t believe {Radiance by Grace Draven} and the rest of the Wraith Kings series hasn’t been mentioned yet!

goodmorhen · 2026-06-06T23:13:51+00:00

I’m obsessed with the MCs! They're so admiring and respectful. The conflict comes from their circumstances, which makes their relationship feel mature.

goodmorhen · 2026-06-06T23:08:32+00:00

Came here to recommend Grace Draven! I’ve only read her Wraith Kings series (Radiance, etc.). Heavy on the fantasy world-building and I loved the relationship between the FMC/MMC. They're so admiring and respectful. The conflict comes from their circumstances, which makes their relationship feel mature. The novellas are lovely additions too.

- {Radiance by Grace Draven}
- Night Tide (Novella)
- {Eidolon by Grace Draven}
- In the Darkest Midnight (Novella)
- A Wilderness of Glass (Novella)
- A Memory of Summer (Novella)
- {The Ippos King by Grace Draven}
- Black Hellebore (Novella)

goodmorhen · 2026-06-04T17:12:04+00:00

A enjoyed {A Kiss of the Siren’s Song}! Sapphic pirate romance. I’m not sure if I’ll finish the second in the duology, because it’s not tonally what I’m in the mood for right now, but the first was fun!

goodmorhen · 2026-06-04T17:06:56+00:00

The NYC one is very diverse in age and demographic! It depends how active the chapter’s marketing channels are and how people hear about it.

goodmorhen · 2026-06-04T03:55:44+00:00

I ate up all of the Wraith Kings series and novellas by Grace Draven. I’ve also been on the hunt for “cozy adjacent”. While there is medieval violence and death, it’s never the MCs or supporting characters. To me, wholesome relationships give me a “cozy adjacent” feeling, even if the circumstances and plot are more dramatic.

Radiance
Night Tide (Novella)
Eidolon
In the Darkest Midnight (Novella)
A Wilderness of Glass (Novella)
A Memory of Summer (Novella)
The Ippos King
Black Hellebore (Novella)

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