for Confessions of A Casino Diamond12/26/2011 c2 
111LA Knight
And I have returned, reminded that I haven't finished reviewing this yet because my mother recorded SyFy's new fairy tale adaptation, Neverland (having seen only one other, Tin Man, but longing to see Red: Werewolf Hunter and Alice). So I'm back Ocean with a review for your amazing second chapter. Yay! Hopefully your internet hasn't died because of horrendous weather and you get this in a timely manner. =D
So firstly I gotta say, you know what her "life as a Diamond is pretty good" attitude reminds me of? Those actresses and dancers and such in the Regency times and Victorian times who were like, "Being a kept woman is great. Jewelry, champagne, great food, pretty clothes, nice place to sleep - I'm okay with that." It's interesting and cool because that's our world in historical times but it's so similar to Wonderland in modern times. It's like, nothing really changes, does it? Not really. And it's also interesting because Alice in Wonderland, the novel, came out at a time where that sort of thing (girls doing things that may or may not have been on the up and up because they were taken care of) was fairly common.
"Every day you live and breathe a lie, you wear two faces..." Holy crow. I love that line. It's fantastic! I might ask to borrow the first part at some point maybe. I don't know yet. With accredidation and only with permission, of course.
Hehe, "prance-me-me-out-like-a-walking-light-show." That totally made me smile.
Question - are all the Aces guys? Or is there only one Ace? Because it says "Another of her fellow Diamonds - one of the Aces - was away..." so is there more than one Ace of Diamonds? Like, is that a job? Or something you're born as, like being a vampire slayer in a Joss Whedon universe?
Have I mentioned in my previous review that "emotion potion" tickles my funny bone? Like a feather. =D
Oh, see, I just saw "a group of Diamond Aces." How do you have more than one Ace? How can you tell if someone is an Ace or, say, a Five?
What's the new emotion?
OH! OH! OH! Is it Hatter? I've only seen a few music vids on Youtube of him but it sounds like him! Is it him?
I should've asked this before - what's a scarab? Other than an Egyptian beetle.
OMG, he said "bloke." You know, I've never heard anyone say that in real life. Does he say that in the miniseries? That makes me want to see it even more.
Kudos for usage of the word "glitzed-up." Erm, phrase. Whichever. Sleepy.
Oh, yeah. I forgot she was part of the resistance AND knew Hatter. I remembered the resistance part but not his part in it and his part in her involvement. Ugh, been too long since I read chapter one. I'm horrible. Actually, no I ain't. I'm Hoggle. =D
Sleepy...
Hehehe, yeah, Rachel, what *was* all that about? Lol. I know what the techie's thinking. "OMG, he gave you his number!"
Oh, yum, moonlight and roses. Never heard that phrase before, but it's so romantic. It's a total vision of romance, actually. Crud, and now I want to write something fluffy and sickening for Once Upon a Time with some moonlight gracing some roses. Maybe I'll mention moonlit roses in chapter 51 or 52 and be like, "Ocean inspired me!" in my references. O Ocean of Titanic Epical Phraseology, where have you been all my life?
"...there was nothing he ever did for anyone - no matter how generous - where he didn't stand to gain in some way." Does that hold true in his relationship to Alice in the miniseries?
Rachel smiling when she found out about the oyster (I'm assuming that's Alice) who has the Stone of Wonderland totally made me see the Cheshire Cat grinning. =D I suppose I should ask what the big deal about the Stone of Wonderland is, but I don't care right now. I'm still smiling over the Cheshire grin. Hehehe. I don't know if you did that on purpose or if it's just me, but yeah - I suddenly saw Chessur's smile from Alice in Wonderland 2010.
Oh, and backtracking a little, yeah, Sheila! Why don't you just tell her? Ugh, I hate when people do that. Moreso when people are like, "I don't think I should tell you. In fact, I won't. Muahahaha" than when they're just like, "Did you hear about Justin and Brittany?" "Nope, spill." But still. Gossip. Blegh.
Oh, hey, I'm at the end. How did that happen? Ahhhhhhh! Your stuff is always too short, Ocean my love. I can never get enough of it. Sigh. Well, I will try to make sure less than 3-4 months goes by before I review chapter 3. Of course, once I review chapter 3 and Ten Years Beneath the Wolf Moon... then what will I do with myself? The Snow White brilliance isn't here yet. I'm so sad. =( But alas, I must be patient. I can be patient. I will be patient. I love you too much not to be patient. But man, I'm hankering for some snowy goodness. =D
Loves to you, dearest Oceanic heart of literary bliss!
- LA Knight
111LA KnightAnd I have returned, reminded that I haven't finished reviewing this yet because my mother recorded SyFy's new fairy tale adaptation, Neverland (having seen only one other, Tin Man, but longing to see Red: Werewolf Hunter and Alice). So I'm back Ocean with a review for your amazing second chapter. Yay! Hopefully your internet hasn't died because of horrendous weather and you get this in a timely manner. =D
So firstly I gotta say, you know what her "life as a Diamond is pretty good" attitude reminds me of? Those actresses and dancers and such in the Regency times and Victorian times who were like, "Being a kept woman is great. Jewelry, champagne, great food, pretty clothes, nice place to sleep - I'm okay with that." It's interesting and cool because that's our world in historical times but it's so similar to Wonderland in modern times. It's like, nothing really changes, does it? Not really. And it's also interesting because Alice in Wonderland, the novel, came out at a time where that sort of thing (girls doing things that may or may not have been on the up and up because they were taken care of) was fairly common.
"Every day you live and breathe a lie, you wear two faces..." Holy crow. I love that line. It's fantastic! I might ask to borrow the first part at some point maybe. I don't know yet. With accredidation and only with permission, of course.
Hehe, "prance-me-me-out-like-a-walking-light-show." That totally made me smile.
Question - are all the Aces guys? Or is there only one Ace? Because it says "Another of her fellow Diamonds - one of the Aces - was away..." so is there more than one Ace of Diamonds? Like, is that a job? Or something you're born as, like being a vampire slayer in a Joss Whedon universe?
Have I mentioned in my previous review that "emotion potion" tickles my funny bone? Like a feather. =D
Oh, see, I just saw "a group of Diamond Aces." How do you have more than one Ace? How can you tell if someone is an Ace or, say, a Five?
What's the new emotion?
OH! OH! OH! Is it Hatter? I've only seen a few music vids on Youtube of him but it sounds like him! Is it him?
I should've asked this before - what's a scarab? Other than an Egyptian beetle.
OMG, he said "bloke." You know, I've never heard anyone say that in real life. Does he say that in the miniseries? That makes me want to see it even more.
Kudos for usage of the word "glitzed-up." Erm, phrase. Whichever. Sleepy.
Oh, yeah. I forgot she was part of the resistance AND knew Hatter. I remembered the resistance part but not his part in it and his part in her involvement. Ugh, been too long since I read chapter one. I'm horrible. Actually, no I ain't. I'm Hoggle. =D
Sleepy...
Hehehe, yeah, Rachel, what *was* all that about? Lol. I know what the techie's thinking. "OMG, he gave you his number!"
Oh, yum, moonlight and roses. Never heard that phrase before, but it's so romantic. It's a total vision of romance, actually. Crud, and now I want to write something fluffy and sickening for Once Upon a Time with some moonlight gracing some roses. Maybe I'll mention moonlit roses in chapter 51 or 52 and be like, "Ocean inspired me!" in my references. O Ocean of Titanic Epical Phraseology, where have you been all my life?
"...there was nothing he ever did for anyone - no matter how generous - where he didn't stand to gain in some way." Does that hold true in his relationship to Alice in the miniseries?
Rachel smiling when she found out about the oyster (I'm assuming that's Alice) who has the Stone of Wonderland totally made me see the Cheshire Cat grinning. =D I suppose I should ask what the big deal about the Stone of Wonderland is, but I don't care right now. I'm still smiling over the Cheshire grin. Hehehe. I don't know if you did that on purpose or if it's just me, but yeah - I suddenly saw Chessur's smile from Alice in Wonderland 2010.
Oh, and backtracking a little, yeah, Sheila! Why don't you just tell her? Ugh, I hate when people do that. Moreso when people are like, "I don't think I should tell you. In fact, I won't. Muahahaha" than when they're just like, "Did you hear about Justin and Brittany?" "Nope, spill." But still. Gossip. Blegh.
Oh, hey, I'm at the end. How did that happen? Ahhhhhhh! Your stuff is always too short, Ocean my love. I can never get enough of it. Sigh. Well, I will try to make sure less than 3-4 months goes by before I review chapter 3. Of course, once I review chapter 3 and Ten Years Beneath the Wolf Moon... then what will I do with myself? The Snow White brilliance isn't here yet. I'm so sad. =( But alas, I must be patient. I can be patient. I will be patient. I love you too much not to be patient. But man, I'm hankering for some snowy goodness. =D
Loves to you, dearest Oceanic heart of literary bliss!
- LA Knight
8/30/2011 c1 LA Knight
Hello, Ocean of Delirious Joy! How are you? Hope all is well for you! Hope you enjoy the reviews and messages I have left for you. And I hope I can review all the amazing goodness you have on your profile. =D
Only two complaints, wanna mention them right away so I can rave about everything else. One is a personal thing, not even an issue with the work: ack! Usage of the Eff Word! *shudders in sheltered Mormon girl horror like a doofus* Okay, done spazzing. And second thing, you use the phrase "in Wonderland" 4x in the first 2 paragraphs, and all in 6 consecutive sentences. Is a bit repetitive. Might try mixing it up a bit more.
Onto my ranting and raving over your epicalness! *takes a big long cyber drink so can talk for long time without voice cracking*
"She loved her life. She hated her life. Life was good. Life sucked." OMG! That is me, right there. I think you've just hooked about 60% of the population (if not more) because I think at least that many people feel that way about their lives. Ugh! *amazed* I haven't even *seen* this miniseries/movie but right now, I'm feeling the rapport/character connect. =)
"Life at the casino was glittery, cushy, flashy... empty." I like this line a lot. Because when people think flash and glitter and glitz, it's like, "Oooh! Wow! Impressive! Joyous! Cool!" But the "empty" shows that nope, not so happy/cool. Kinda sucky, actually. Like, more than kinda. I like.
"emotion potions" LOVE!
"In short, a Diamond's job was to make everyone happy - regardless of whether or not they had any happiness for themselves."
:(
Oooh! Sucky indeed! And sad.
But at the same time, she doesn't come off as all "woe is me, wah-wah." More like, "Life sucks, but I rock anyway, so screw you guys! Rawr!"
I like her spunk.
=D
Omg, mirrors? Skank-tastical and lame. And she knows it. Poor thing.
"... and her life, like a ghostly flame, a flickering phantom in their dreams." Holy crap. I LOVE THIS LINE. Could I maybe borrow it sometime? I'd credit you (how could I not). I don't know why exactly I love it so much, but I'm falling in love again and again every time I read it. *snuggles the line*
The atmosphere I'm getting from this is like a combination of 80s/90s L.A. streets, during the time of Kurt Cobain with kids shooting up in the street and serial killers and an almost sucking emptiness in the lives of the people, with just a few stars glittering and shining amidst the smog and the pain. And then mix in a black-and-white glamor-smoky setting of 20s flapper-Harlem-style Prohibition places, and a girl struggling to live and love and be in a place without color or feeling. Does that make sense? I like it. It's kind of depressing, but cool. It reminds me (setting-wise) of Francesca Lia Block's earlier books, though not written in the same style. Since she's one of my favorite authors, that's really good.
"It was wrong. All wrong." And I like this final line(s), because it ties back into what I was saying about hooking into the emotions of 60% of the people in the world. I haven't been out of high school, for example, long enough that I've forgotten that I felt like this almost every day (actually, even before high school, from the first day of fifth grade until after I graduated). And I love that you tap into that. It comes off as being so easy for you. Is it?
Loves to you and your Wonderland awesomeness!
*hugs*
- LA
Hello, Ocean of Delirious Joy! How are you? Hope all is well for you! Hope you enjoy the reviews and messages I have left for you. And I hope I can review all the amazing goodness you have on your profile. =D
Only two complaints, wanna mention them right away so I can rave about everything else. One is a personal thing, not even an issue with the work: ack! Usage of the Eff Word! *shudders in sheltered Mormon girl horror like a doofus* Okay, done spazzing. And second thing, you use the phrase "in Wonderland" 4x in the first 2 paragraphs, and all in 6 consecutive sentences. Is a bit repetitive. Might try mixing it up a bit more.
Onto my ranting and raving over your epicalness! *takes a big long cyber drink so can talk for long time without voice cracking*
"She loved her life. She hated her life. Life was good. Life sucked." OMG! That is me, right there. I think you've just hooked about 60% of the population (if not more) because I think at least that many people feel that way about their lives. Ugh! *amazed* I haven't even *seen* this miniseries/movie but right now, I'm feeling the rapport/character connect. =)
"Life at the casino was glittery, cushy, flashy... empty." I like this line a lot. Because when people think flash and glitter and glitz, it's like, "Oooh! Wow! Impressive! Joyous! Cool!" But the "empty" shows that nope, not so happy/cool. Kinda sucky, actually. Like, more than kinda. I like.
"emotion potions" LOVE!
"In short, a Diamond's job was to make everyone happy - regardless of whether or not they had any happiness for themselves."
:(
Oooh! Sucky indeed! And sad.
But at the same time, she doesn't come off as all "woe is me, wah-wah." More like, "Life sucks, but I rock anyway, so screw you guys! Rawr!"
I like her spunk.
=D
Omg, mirrors? Skank-tastical and lame. And she knows it. Poor thing.
"... and her life, like a ghostly flame, a flickering phantom in their dreams." Holy crap. I LOVE THIS LINE. Could I maybe borrow it sometime? I'd credit you (how could I not). I don't know why exactly I love it so much, but I'm falling in love again and again every time I read it. *snuggles the line*
The atmosphere I'm getting from this is like a combination of 80s/90s L.A. streets, during the time of Kurt Cobain with kids shooting up in the street and serial killers and an almost sucking emptiness in the lives of the people, with just a few stars glittering and shining amidst the smog and the pain. And then mix in a black-and-white glamor-smoky setting of 20s flapper-Harlem-style Prohibition places, and a girl struggling to live and love and be in a place without color or feeling. Does that make sense? I like it. It's kind of depressing, but cool. It reminds me (setting-wise) of Francesca Lia Block's earlier books, though not written in the same style. Since she's one of my favorite authors, that's really good.
"It was wrong. All wrong." And I like this final line(s), because it ties back into what I was saying about hooking into the emotions of 60% of the people in the world. I haven't been out of high school, for example, long enough that I've forgotten that I felt like this almost every day (actually, even before high school, from the first day of fifth grade until after I graduated). And I love that you tap into that. It comes off as being so easy for you. Is it?
Loves to you and your Wonderland awesomeness!
*hugs*
- LA
5/20/2010 c3 56GoldenRoya
Interesting - who is this mysterious man? Well, scent, anyway.
Think there's any chance of wrapping Owl into your fic? She didn't get nearly enough airtime for such an interesting character, and I can see her and Rachel getting along as only a diva and a nerd can. Just an idea to inspire...well, inspiration. *wry smile*
56GoldenRoyaInteresting - who is this mysterious man? Well, scent, anyway.
Think there's any chance of wrapping Owl into your fic? She didn't get nearly enough airtime for such an interesting character, and I can see her and Rachel getting along as only a diva and a nerd can. Just an idea to inspire...well, inspiration. *wry smile*
5/9/2010 c1 Avidadmirer
Good title options.
Good title options.
5/9/2010 c1 Avidadmirer
Interesting concept...prisoner of the system in Wonderland. I picture her looking like Thumbelina.
Interesting concept...prisoner of the system in Wonderland. I picture her looking like Thumbelina.
5/2/2010 c2 3GrangersTwin2595
YEAH! Another chapter! First off, love that you gave Rachel her name. Definitely brings the character to life, and makes her more real and relatable. And absolutely love how sutely you brought in Hatter. Brilliant! Ok, and you must update soon. Need to see how the rumor pans out on Rachel's side, and what all is going to happen. Again, another great chapter!
ps - thanks for the shout out!
3GrangersTwin2595YEAH! Another chapter! First off, love that you gave Rachel her name. Definitely brings the character to life, and makes her more real and relatable. And absolutely love how sutely you brought in Hatter. Brilliant! Ok, and you must update soon. Need to see how the rumor pans out on Rachel's side, and what all is going to happen. Again, another great chapter!
ps - thanks for the shout out!
5/2/2010 c2 4Nightlife Maiden
Now I was under the influence that Alice was the diamond casino girl..? I'm not exactly sure how Rachel fits into this and still be considered an alternate universe story..
4Nightlife MaidenNow I was under the influence that Alice was the diamond casino girl..? I'm not exactly sure how Rachel fits into this and still be considered an alternate universe story..
4/19/2010 c1 Nightlife Maiden
This story, i believe, has great potential. Keep up the awesome work, and I cant wait for the next chapter! :)
This story, i believe, has great potential. Keep up the awesome work, and I cant wait for the next chapter! :)
4/15/2010 c1 3GrangersTwin2595
I really like how you are taking a different take on Alice and Hatter. There are not enough Alternate Universe stories. The description of life in Wonderland for her is excellent. I hope you update soon. I want to know when Hatter comes into play, and how exactly! Good luck writing!
3GrangersTwin2595I really like how you are taking a different take on Alice and Hatter. There are not enough Alternate Universe stories. The description of life in Wonderland for her is excellent. I hope you update soon. I want to know when Hatter comes into play, and how exactly! Good luck writing!