Sunshine

I just read "Sunshine" by Robin McKinley after hearing it touted a bunch of places as "vampire romance done right".

I really enjoyed it, but
(a)it is not a romance(*), it's at most a drama about relationships, and is more a personal-discovery-and-thriller urban fantasy. Which is fine, but means it shouldn't be read in a romancey mindset.
(b)lilysea was right, I am craving cinnamon rolls like anything(**). I forgot she'd said that until I started reading and my brain went "Oh no! It's a trap!". *ponders if I can be bothered baking*

(*)At least not by my standards. Unless there's a mutual declaration of affection and at least a brief period of happy smooches/hugs and "Yay we found each other!" before one of the other of them dies or the book ends or whatever, it doesn't count in my book.
(**)The main character is a baker, and every day, throughout all the various supernatural drama, unless she is literally shackled to a wall she gets up at 4am to make the cinnamon rolls.

Shows with and without a sense of place

This is very fresh meta, thought up last night after greteldragon asked if Leverage was more or less fun than "Burn Notice", so I'm still figuring it out as I type.

See on the whole I like Leverage more, but something bugs me about it and I realised what it is: it's characters step very lightly on the world. You don't get the feeling that there's anything going on when the camera's aren't looking. We never see the characters outside of their work, and they do not seem to have any real outside lives(*). The ONLY character I can think of who turns up in more than one episode (counting the two-part finale as one) is the ongoing antagonist Spencer. There's no sense of place beyond their office (I can't even remember where it's set).

Burn Notice on the other hand is very much set in Miama. The three main characters have family, romantic partners, recurring business contacts, and somewhat separate lives (I don't recall them having many friends beyond each other, mind you). We see their homes and where they hang out in their spare time. Secondary characters can become more or less important in a fairly organic way as the story requires it. This all makes it feel more real to me, and the characters more engaging and 3 dimensional.

Last night I thought of another show like Leverage in this respect, but I've totally forgotten it now.

What do you guys think? Do you see the same difference I do? Does it bother you too or do you like it?

(*)I keep thinking "But what about that episode where we saw Parker's apartment?" and then I remember it was fanfic :)

Buffy Night: Into Season 2!

What: Watch the next 3 episodes of Buffy:"Prophecy Girl", "When She Was Bad", "Some Assembly Required"
When: 6pm for a 6:30ish start, Wednesday 6th May. Any time before 9:00pm is ok if you don't missing bits/being quiet as you come in. Finishes around 9:30.
Where: My house. If you're not on the filter for that post (and I suck at filters so that may be lots of people) email/IM/comment etc and I'll tell you my address
Who: Anyone who knows and likes me well enough to hang out for a few hours and would get some enjoyment out of watching Buffy.
What to bring: Any snack food you wish to eat, and if neccesary your own dinner. I will provide nothing but chairs and a tv(*) :P Maybe some carrot sticks and rice thins too.

My health issues mean I will probably kick people out quite sharply not long after the last episode so I can sleep. Please do not take this personally :)

(*)I'm fine with people having a mass pizza order or something, but since I have such wierd food issues will leave that to you guys to figure out for yourselves. I'll have some menus for local places to hand.