Status Updates From What Lies (Existential Angs...

i feel bad for the heroine someone get her out of there omfg i dont think her mind can make it

im already into this

Got the ARC and really looking forward to reading this!

“Love is a cage. No one likes to think of it this way, but it’s true. Love binds one person to another, limits what that person can or can’t do, the same as a real cage.”

"I do, quickly, and am rewarded with a big tip of what can only be an éclair. I bite down, and creamy goodness gushes into my mouth."

lol.

I'm quoting this because the éclair has significance in the next book. Rereading it's crazy seeing how much is interconnected between the prequel and novel.

The poetry is my favorite part of the book. I get chills each time I read the scene.

“Know that I will hurt you, but you’ll heal, like before but not exactly the same."

I can already imagine needing to hide all that has happened here, all I’ve given in to, all I’ve become.…

If I’m ever free, I could never envision giving this me to anyone else. No one will ever know this me because I’ll need to hide and pretend again.

And I don’t know if I want to go back to that. How could I?

I like this part—the ecstasy. I like the final part—the comfort. Without the in-between part, I could almost like it here, Angel.

It’s a desolate concession, no cause for a rueful laugh. A whimper escapes my lips instead. The chains clink softly.

His voice takes on a deep orator’s tone, one that would travel far without any help. It bounces off the cement and metal, each word a slap to my ears.

As His lips leave mine, His hand snakes gently around my neck to cup the back of my head.

At the shock of our touch, I pull back.

I watch His lips move in almost a whisper.

“You can consider this room your pyramid, Larissa. In here, I’ll help you to focus on what’s most important.”

But in reality and for the existentialist, there is no love apart from the deeds of love;

no potentiality of love other than that which is manifested in loving.


― Jean-Paul Sartre

The pyramid’s purpose is to bring focus into the minds and hearts of any who stand at its base. It leaves no room for anything beyond a single-mindedness. What’s most important becomes clear.

...

God I love the pyramid scene.

“I think the builders of that site understood perception and perspective—that, and a basic fact about their fellow man. We can’t really experience anything from a distance. You see, it’s in our nature to need to be close to what we most want. But we allow ourselves to be distracted by what is future versus what is now. We too easily forget one want in the pursuit of the next.”

“The Pyramid of the Moon mimics, in perfect symmetry, a massive mountain that shadows behind it. When a person starts on the journey up the avenue, the pyramid seems impressive and large, but it is nothing in comparison to what lies beyond it. With each step closer, the pyramid takes over until, standing at the base of the sacred site, only the pyramid can be seen. The mountain is but a memory then.”

“There’s a long, wide avenue that progresses up to the smaller of the two main pyramids. Many theories exist as to what the original purpose of the place was. I have my own theories.”

He pauses and looks up at my hands. I automatically follow His eyes and gasp when I see new red lines have formed and small droplets of blood have started to work their way down my wrists.

“Look at me.”

It’s such a sad and soft demand that I slowly open my eyes and obey. My frown deepens as His features relax into a pleasant smile.

“There’s an ancient site north of Mexico City that I visited once.”

It was only after years that Dorian’s portrait was changed beyond his likeness. Maybe I’ll be free before my own image suffers that same fate, before I become His monster?

In the dark, I realized another ugly truth about my situation. Monsters have many faces, and one of them is mine now.

I didn’t recognize myself as I dreamt of Him as a beast making love to me like in scenes from my favorite fairy-tale romances. The girl giving in to her tormentor, the woman He thinks is perfect—if it means I can survive this, I may have to become her.

Love isn’t something I take lightly either...It’s the foundation to everything I think is important in life.

It’s the one thing all of my books & dreams have in common. Neither always end in a perfect happily ever after but love always survives even in the darkest versions. Of course, the darker versions like Dorian and Tess are filled with pain & suffering for love...

I’d get through this the only way I could—by surrendering.

I pictured myself much like Dorian Gray, not changing no matter the circumstances around or within me. I would remain untouched by all that happens, only facing the effects of what I have to deal with while in this cage if I ever have the chance to leave it.