Lucifer's Los Angeles Penthouse

Let's face it. Things have been hard in the paranormal real estate world lately. There was the fabulous house in Witches of East End, which I loved. Then there was the awesome werewolf lodge in Bitten. After that, there was...

Nothing.

Absolutely nothing.

Until now.

Now, after a long and painful drought, we have...Lucifer.

The show is funny and witty. The concept is Castle, but with Satan as Richard Castle. Yes, I know it's supposedly based on the Vertigo comic book series, but, let's be honest, it bears little resemblance to those books.

As in the comic books, Lucifer leaves Hell to become a nightclub owner, but, unlike the comics, he also decides to solve crimes with a sexy sidekick. The show is a lot of fun, but the best part is the sets.

So, without further ado, I leave you with Satan's very own L.A. penthouse.

The apartment decor is very interesting. The most eye-catching feature is the antique stone walls with Sumerian engravings. It's the first thing you see when you walk in. They are framed by a piano and a huge bar.

Here's a closer look at the walls. There's a flowery mural that references (I guess? Because Lucifer doesn't strike me as the flowery type?) Eden. There's also a bowl of apples on the piano. I guess they are souvenirs from Lucifer's glory days.

The choice of decor is interesting. There is no medieval-style representations. There is no Hieronymus Bosch. This Lucifer is more of a pre-Christian Middle Eastern deity. It's interesting. As a folk and myth nerd, I wish they would walk us through the decor choices.

Here's the bar, which is huge and has color-coordinated bottle labels. I wonder if Maze was in charge of matching the labels?

Overall, I like the set concept very much. It presents Lucifer as, primarily, a sybarite interested in worldly pleasures like alcohol, sex, and music.

Then a rival angel arrives. I don't remember this guy's name so I'll refer to him as The Guy Who Used to Be in Buffy or TGWUtBiB.

When TGWUtBiB arrives the camera turns to the view from Lucifer's apartment. I like this shot, because it's not about pleasure any more. It's about power.

The view, btw, is fantastic.

Lucifer crosses the apartment to sit down in front of his visitor. This would usually be a position of relative weakness or vulnerability, but...

It also places him in front of his library. The books are next to one of the Sumerian murals. Suddenly, Lucifer doesn't look so weak anymore. He is flanked by symbols of his power and knowledge.

Very clever.

Here's another shot, focusing on the view. Very cool.

I'm not entirely sold on the concept behind the series. Lucifer becomes a criminal detective...why? Because he likes punishing the wicked? Wouldn't he be better off in Hell, then? I mean, that's pretty much the concept behind the place, isn't it?

But the show is smart and the writing is good. So I'll keep watching. What about you?

If you liked this post, you'll love the one I did on Chloe's beach cottage. You can also check out my collection of paranormal real estate posts, including the house from Witches of East End (one of my favorite sets EVER) and the werewolf lodge from Bitten.

And, if you like villainous characters, you should check out my book, Snowbound with Ghost. The hero, Sebastian, is a Hollywood actor who specializes in movie villains. He comes back home after a movie shoot and finds himself stranded with his alluring ex-girlfriend, the girl who betrayed him. What comes next isn't Satan-level mayhem, but it comes close.

All images belong to Fox Entertainment (except for the Snowbound With Ghost cover, which belongs to me).

Link Fiesta

Emily Henderson on picking a book cover! How fantastic is this post? My favorite designer talking about how to design a book cover. I love the fact that her book over took almost as many drafts as mine. It makes me feel better about the gazillion cover mock-ups I have in my hard drive.

The Cliffs of Insanity! Awesome KBoards thread on the 30/60/90 days Amazon "cliffs." Really good info. (BTW, here's a behind the scenes look at the making of that scene. I didn't know they actually filmed it on the Cliffs of Dover. Wow.)

Great advice from JA Konrath.

Candy corn Jello shots!

Link Fiesta

Emily Henderson fixes up a to-die-for home office. I love the gallery wall. She also did this beautiful bedroom for the same client. Those lamps are gorgeous (and almost $400 each, ouch). I love Emily. How can you not love someone who gives you cat-friendly design tips?

A great revisions checklist by Jenny Crusie. I'm printing it out and putting it on my wall.

Rachel Aaron on how to write a great blurb. Argh, blurbing is the worst. The absolute worst.

Lindsay Buroker on publishing and marketing a multi-author bundle.

Witches of East End Recap - Season 1 Episode 10

So, Witches of East End returns for a second season. That’s exciting news. I’ve missed that house. *sniff*

But that means I should finish my Season 1 recaps. And it’s been a couple of months, so I should have recovered from the trauma inflicted by the season finale, right?

Right?

I mean six months should be enough to forget the fact that they killed off (spoiler alert!) my three favorite characters, right? After all, I’m a mature, rational human being. I can’t still be sore because they offed Virginia Madsen.

Let’s see.

The first half of the episode is a series of vignettes where people find out stuff that they should have found out a loooooong time ago. And they do stupid thing they really shouldn’t do because, reasons. Asgardians, as we The Mighty Thor fans figured out long ago, aren’t too strong on the IQ front.

Anywho, the episode opens with out star-crossed lovers, Killian and Freya. Killian tries to convince Freya to dump his brother and sail off into the sunset with him. Freya, however, insists on marrying Dash. Killian tells her that Dash will destroy her.

Foreshadowing, people.

Aunt Wendy turns into a cat and investigates the catacombs under Fairhaven. She finds out that someone is trying to open the portal to Asgard. She runs back home and tell Joanna. They can’t figure out who this person could be.

Er, maybe the lady who’s spent bucketloads of money restoring the house? Maybe?

Nah.

Said lady boils some stuff in a cauldron and creates a bat tornado. Not suspicious at all. But Virginia Madsen looks awesome, y’all. Great shot.

Oh, and before that Ingrid shot Mike, the creepy guy that’s looking for the portal to Asgard. Isn’t that weird, that there’s someone looking for the portal to Asgard? She should probably tell someone. Like maybe, during the pre-wedding bonding session between the witches and Victor, the girls’ dad? Or maybe when her dad tells her all about how Asgard is full of evil people who want to kill them? Or maybe when she finds out about the long-lost brother Frederick, who was left behind in Asgard?

Oh, I guess not. No need to band together to stop this crazy guy or anything. I mean, we have a wedding to plan. Priorities, people.

Blah, blah, blah wedding. Penelope stomps around looking menacing. The girls try a couple of protection spells (spoiler: they don’t work). Crazy Mike picks up a gun and crashes the wedding.

At this point, I’m Team Crazy Mike. At least he has a plan. And it makes sense.

This is when Victor tells Freya that he knew her during one of her prior lives, when, you know, she was madly in love with this guy who was the spitting image of Killian. And so maybe Killian is her reincarnated love.

Yeah, he brings it up right before her wedding. Way to go, dad.

Joanna finally figures out the Penelope is the shifter. Duh. She tells Wendy, who is wearing a large pair of very conspicuous dark sunglasses. Does Joanna notice the ominous eyewear?

Nah.

They head to the catacombs and Wendy/Penelope zaps Joanna with a magic ray.  Penelope straps Joanna to a table and starts to monologue, Blah, blah, blah… Athena… blah, blah, blah… revenge. Turns out Killian and Dash do have magic powers but Penelope stole them when they were young. That’s pretty interesting. I’m a little apprehensive about the monologue, though. Is Penelope going to fall into the classic villain mistake?

Nope, she stabs Joanna with a tube full of poison. Go, Penelope!

Freya listens to an old record. She looks kind of sad and thoughtful.

Killian’s in his boat preparing to sail away.

Freya breaks up with Dash. Finally! Dash does not take it well.

Crazy Mike crashes the wedding party, pulls out a gun, and orders Ingrid to take him to the portal. Go, Crazy Mike. You know, I like the villains in this show. They’re so logical and effective. I’m totally Team Villain right now.

Penelope steals Joanna’s immortality. Mike orders Ingrid to open the portal, but she doesn’t know how. He shoots Ingrid and her blood opens the portal. See what I said about logical and effective villains?

Wendy finds Joanna. Big fight between Wendy and Penelope. I’m a little scared because Wendy is on her last life and, hey, I love Aunt Wendy. But no need to worry, Wendy throws Penelope into a fiery furnace. Bye, bye, Penelope.

I’m totally bummed out. This looks like a pretty permanent kind of death, but it can’t be, right? She’s an awesome villain and she has Joanna’s immortality now. She can come back, right?

Killian and Dash recover their powers.

Oh, crap. I guess Penelope is really dead. Oh, well, I still have crazy Mike.

Dash hits Killian, puts him on his boat, and lets the boat float away. Oh bugger, Killian’s dead too? What is this? Kill all the interesting characters week?

Oh, well, there’s always Crazy Mike.

Wendy unties Joanna and they run to rescue Ingrid. The portal to Asgard opens and Crazy Mike is incinerated.

Aaaaaand, I’ve lost Crazy Mike. Unbelievable.

The witches stare at the portal and we fade to black. That’s it. That’s the season finale.

I’m really bummed out at this point. All I have left is Aunt Wendy and the fabulous house at this point. At least they gave me a close-up shot of the awesome kitchen tile as a consolation prize.

Really, how awesome does that look? I think it's either Calacatta marble or Grecian White. I also love the taupe beadboard on top. Awesome.

And now, back to bummerland. I can’t believe they killed off Killian and left me with Victor and Dash. Bummer. Frederick Beauchamps better be a real hottie, or next season is going to suck.

Anyway, on to next season.

All pictures belong to Lifetime Television.

Link Fiesta

Great home office design (with a separate homework area for the kids - Genius!)

I adore this octopus wallpaper. Adore.

Maya Banks tells you everything you wanted to know about e-publishing but were afraid to ask. Great interview from 2001.

The making of the Nerf zombie blaster. I saw these at the store the other day. They look so cool! I bet my kids put them in their Santa lists.

Tour StoneHaven, The Werewolf Lodge from Syfy's Bitten Series

Are you guys watching Syfy's new series Bitten? It's based on Kelly Armstrong's Otherworld series, which I've never read (time to rectify that, I think). The plot so far is fairly simple. Elena, the only female werewolf in existence, must leave her comfortable, humanish existence to help her werewolf pack hunt down a rogue wolf. Hilarity does not ensue.

I like the series. The characters are well-drawn (with lots of hunky, shirtless guys), the plot moves along (albeit at a leisurely pace) and the special effects are quite nifty. It's an enjoyable ride.

But what I really love about the series is the sets. I you liked the Witches of East End house, you'll love this series. The pack lives in a woodsy manor that is to die for. It's called Stonehaven.

Here's a front view. Pesky trees hide most of it.

Here's a side view.

But the exterior is not the best part. The interior design is amazing.

Here's the foyer. I love the blue and the cream against the wood paneling. Fabulous color choice. The big statue next to the stairs is a Native American animal totem. Very appropriate. The portraits on the foyer table are genius. They testify as to the pack's close-knit relationships. I love that they are the first thing Elena sees when she enters the house. That's the root of her conflict right there.

Another view of the foyer. You can see more of the blue and cream paint job. You can also see the large grandfather clock. It's a nice contrast to the primitive totem. I think my favorite detail is the supermarket daylilies on the foyer table. Priceless antiques next to $5.99 flowers. You can tell it's a guy house.

Here's a better shot of the hallway. I love the wallpaper and the chandelier. Very cool.

The foyer leads to the living room. Now this is my favorite room.

The decor is not exactly subtle. The room has a lot of natural details, including the stone on the fireplace, the twig chandelier, and the animal skulls strewn on the tables. Taxidermy samples and pictures of hunting scenes hang on crimson walls. The room tells you a lot about Elena's pack. They value tradition (note the Chesterfield sofas, brass lamps, and traditional frames) but death and violence are recurrent themes (dead animal parts litter the room and there's no escaping the blood-red walls).

I like the transition from the pretty cream-and-blue foyer to the crimson-drenched living room. It mirrors the pack's dual nature. Very well done.

A close-up of the leather Chesterfield chairs. Very masculine. There's a mural on the wall behind Jeremy, the pack alpha. It's a fleeing stag, perfect for a werewolf lodge.

I love this decor, it's beautiful and creepy and sad. It reminds me of the set design in WoEE, but I think I like the Bitten set design more than the WoEE design. The WoEE house is pretty, but it doesn't really tell a story (not that there's anything wrong with that. I luuuuurve the WoEE house). The Bitten house, on the other hand, tells the story of Elena's werewolf clan perfectly.

I also like how the set design highlights the estrangement between Elena and her pack. It's very effective. Take a look at Elena's Toronto apartment.

Gorgeous, isn't it? It's also completely different from the werewolf lodge. The apartment is airy, bright and full of windows, and everything is modern, clean and free of clutter. This is the home of someone who is breaking away from the past. Instead of hunting scenes, Elena's apartment is decorated with abstract portraits. A perfect setting for someone trying to figure out who she is.

The set designer did a fantastic job. The sets are not only pretty and interest, they are an integral part of the storytelling. Kudos.

I'm excited about this series. I'm really looking forward to following Elena in her journey. I also hope Syfy does a Stonehaven house tour like the one they did for Being Human. That would be awesome!

All images belong to the Syfy Network.

Link Fiesta

Jennifer Crusie dissects The Black List and explains why set-up is not story.

A converted barn in Cornwall. Perfect for a holiday.

A Christmas tree gallery by El Mueble. I haven't seen fake snow on a tree since the 70s. Is there a fake snow revival? And I like the idea of hanging Christmas cards from the fireplace matel. That's very cute.

The Zara Home Christmas Lookbook. I want all of it!

Link Fiesta

Jennifer Crusie explains why Trouble is not Conflict. She also explains why Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. flounders.

A beautiful bedroom makeover by Emily Henderson. I adore the wallpaper and the curtain hardware she uses is pure win.

A blog devoted to vintage 50's and 60's horror paperbacks. Fabulous!

Tour the House from The Witches of East End - Part I - Kitchen and Dining Room

I watched the Witches of East End this weekend. I loved it. Julia Ormond and Madchen Amick are fabulous as bickering sisters. The plot seems pretty standard for a paranormal show, but it has a couple of cool twists. Most, importantly, the sets are to die for. I guess I have a new favorite show now. 

The show feels a lot like my old favorite, Charmed. It even has a gorgeous Victorian house.

Adorable isn't it? The interiors aren't as quaint as in Charmed, but they're still lovely.

Link Fiesta

Marjorie Liu tries on unicorn pants. And speaking of unicorns, a unicorn ring holder.

Book trailers can be hit or miss, but the Sassy Belles book trailer is fabulous. I have to read this series.

Pantry porn. Reall, this is the prettiest pantry ever.

Gandules (pigeon pea) Soup recipe. This is a fall staple in out household. It's warm, hearty and easy to make.

Random Romance Novel Title Generator. This is so much fun. This one is even funnier.

Link Fiesta

Art by Claire Elsasser. Beautiful. I need one of these prints. My favorite is Flowers for Inez. The artist's Etsy shop is here. A post about her home is here. Her spice rack is to die for.

What editors want. Many agents and editors recommended this article on Twitter. It sounds very useful.

Rachel Aaron on failure.

Gorgeous fall decorating at Thitlewood Farms.

I love this! College Football Cupcakes, the Florida and Georgia ones look yummy.

Link Fiesta

Shel Silverstein's Where the Sidewalk Ends cartoon made out of Legos. Fabulous.

Nephele Tempest on writing the short synopsis. Very useful post from an agent's perspective.

Rachel Manija on the unexpected ending.

How an upstairs landing became a library. This is a gorgeous remodel. I want this library so much.