Vicki Marklew
LightNews LightNews
banner
vmarklew.bsky.social
Vicki Marklew
@vmarklew.bsky.social
320 followers 150 following 900 posts
Expat Brit still bemused by life in America. Avid reader, SFF & mystery fan. Sometimes I write stuff. Occasionally blogging at www.AbroadInTheUSA.com
Writing Guardians of the Weave. She/her
Posts Replies Media Videos
vmarklew.bsky.social
It came! It came!!
This is a print of @museum.of.emilyk.art ‘s brilliant "Tzefardea Tzedek" (Frog of Righteousness), a riff on the Jewish reaction to the Portland resistance frog. Emily’s explanation is pasted in the alt text.
Love it ❤️
Hebrew calligraphy on dark green stretches in lines across the image. Negative space makes room for a simple representation of an inflatable frog costume with a blue bandana. That shape consists of the English translation of the Hebrew, in a lighter green, and in much smaller text. ーー Famously, the Egyptian tyrant causes Egypt to be overrun with frogs because he refuses to free the Hebrew people, but there are additional details that make this a fun one to ponder. For 7 one, the Hebrew says "the frog came up" - ONE frog -even though the rest of the time it says N "frogs." So there are a few explanations rabbis have come up with to explain this. One is that a single frog multiplied to create swarms. A more creative explanation is that there was a singular giant frog who traveled and brought destruction. Jewish social media was sharing videos of the Portland Frog protester with the caption, "One Big Frog! One Big Frog!" Of course the frog protesters did multiply, and many were seen in crowds all over the world on "No Kings" Day. SN This calligraphic work takes the verses addressing the frog plague and combines them to form a simple rendering of the Portland Frog protester. The frog figure itself is made up of the English translations of the Hebrew around it. At the bottom left my signature is in the shape of a lily pad.
November 4, 2025 at 9:31 PM
vmarklew.bsky.social
When you go to the indie bookstore to pick up one book (Willis) then find another you’ve been hoping to get (Kuang) and the owner says “Have you read any Alice Harrow?” & another patron pipes up “oh based on your library orders you’d love that!”
Weekend sorted.
Love my little town
💙📚🪐
Photo showing covers of “To Say Nothing of the Dog” by Connie Willis, “The Poppy War” by R. F. Kuang, and “The Everlasting” by Alix E. Harrow.
October 31, 2025 at 4:12 PM
vmarklew.bsky.social
Rereading this wonderful book by a favorite author for the first time in years — and wow, does it hit different after living thru an actual pandemic. Eerily prescient in places. Still 10/10

💙📚🪐
Photo of the book “Doomsday” by Connie Willis.
October 25, 2025 at 9:59 PM
vmarklew.bsky.social
And so the rewrite begins…
So much fun keeping track of multiple POV characters.
#Writerlife
#Writing
Large white poster board with a collection of different colored notecards pinned on it, all covered in dense script
October 3, 2025 at 9:29 PM
vmarklew.bsky.social
Cat has now decided I’m the best human and doesn’t want me to leave.
Small black cat sitting on my lap and looking Very Expectant.
September 21, 2025 at 4:45 PM
vmarklew.bsky.social
Picture of one totally innocent black cat in the kitchen, scarfing down an entire can of premium tuna because of course she deserves it.
Picture of one totally innocent black cat scarfing down an entire can of premium tuna in the kitchen because of course she deserves it.
September 21, 2025 at 4:42 PM
vmarklew.bsky.social
All we seem to grow successfully now are deer…
Idk from zones, suburban Philly/Montco
Two deer on a lawn, foraging under an empty bird feeder.
September 14, 2025 at 1:23 AM
vmarklew.bsky.social
Cleaning out a closet and came across this t-shirt from…1980? Courtesy of some left-wing student organization?
Deeply depressing that 45 f’ing years later it’s still relevant.
Wrinkled white t-shirt. On the front a print in blocks of colour showing two overall-clad workers stomping on a pair of cartoonish top hatted bosses
August 31, 2025 at 5:33 PM
vmarklew.bsky.social
Decisions, decisions…
Overgrowth by Mira Grant (Seanan McGuire)
Or, Katabasis by R. F. Kuang???

Based on the covers it’s threatening & creepy ~OR~ threatening & gothic.
🤔
#Booksky 💙📚
Photo of the two books. On the left Overgrowth is all black with a jagged vine twisting through the title and reaching out to encircle a tiny image of Earth, with the phrase “You were warned” across the top. Vibe is threatening & creepy. On the right Katabasis is also a black background, with a big image of an Escher-like gothic building around an inner courtyard, the whole building disappearing down into the depths; one tiny human runs along the roofline, another is inside on an upper floor, writing on a blackboard; pages are blowing off piles along the roof to spiral around the building. Vibe is gothic and dangerous.
August 31, 2025 at 2:53 AM
vmarklew.bsky.social
Sometimes you just have to reread an old favourite cos it makes you laugh & has a positive ending.
Fending off the despair one book at a time…
@scalzi.com
#BookSky 💙📚
Pic showing cover of a paperback book - Agent to the Stars by John Scalzj. Cover image shows a red & white flying saucer center-left hovering near a big spotlight, with a second flying saucer hovering top right. The word Stars looks to have been written by an eager Hollywood intern.
August 27, 2025 at 3:28 PM
vmarklew.bsky.social
I send this graphic to friends & family in the UK a lot!
Image showing the outline of the USA overlaid on a map of Europe. The USA outline straddles Europe from Ireland to Turkey, and the Baltics down to Syria. i.e. its fucking BIG
August 25, 2025 at 4:53 PM
vmarklew.bsky.social
10:30pm in Covent Garden on the full moon.
(Really like this shot - happy people, tube sign, cool lamp, pub sign, and the full moon peaking out behind clouds.)
Night scene outside Covent Garden tube station, with people milling about, old fashioned style street light, a pub sign, and the full moon.
August 9, 2025 at 1:26 PM
vmarklew.bsky.social
So 25yo took me to see this - Peaky Blinders as a dance show? Yes! Incredible! Brilliant dancers, creative staging; intense & powerful. Just so so good. At Sadlers Wells. Go see it (but not if you don’t like loud music & flashing lights).
#RambertPeakyBlinders
Photo of cover of program. Mat black background with words in white: Rambert Dance; Peaky Blinders, The Redemption of Thomas Shelby.
August 6, 2025 at 9:40 PM
vmarklew.bsky.social
Two weeks into an extended trip to the UK and I’m adding crisps (chips in American) to the cheese sandwich. Crunchy Bliss.
Spouse slightly horrified but it was inevitable I’d revert to my roots sooner or later.
Photo of a (gluten free!) square bread roll stuff with sliced cheddar and a healthy handful of crisps. Crunchy goodness.
July 15, 2025 at 2:21 PM
vmarklew.bsky.social
And then there’s this, the check-out desk - where they use an actual mechanical stamper! Spent five minutes just wallowing in the ch-chunk sound ❤️❤️
#booksky
💙📚
Photo of part of the checkout desk, with tiers of books rising on stacks behind, reached via a winding metal staircase.
July 14, 2025 at 8:16 PM
vmarklew.bsky.social
Managed to snag a tour of The London Library - private lending library dating from the 1830s that sprawls thru a warren of half a dozen buildings. Recommended for any bibliophiles visiting London.
#BookSky
💙 📚
Photo of the narrow stacks in the library, chock full of tomes and a musty smell of old paper.
July 14, 2025 at 8:12 PM
vmarklew.bsky.social
When you’re meandering along the South Bank in London, of course you have to buy something at the big book market under Waterloo Bridge!
One classic #mystery, one #SciFi - both my book obsessions sated.
#BookSky
💙📚
July 12, 2025 at 5:37 PM
vmarklew.bsky.social
Just cracked this one open last night - Schwab’s Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil.
Already on p.160/500+ because it’s just that good. Luscious, pulls you in, “just one more chapter before I sleep” dangerous.
And how gorgeous is this inside cover?
#BookSky
💙📚
Cover of VE Schwab’s “Bury our bones in the midnight soil”. Blue roses on a black background, their vines twining around the title in gold letters. Inside cover of the book. On a black background, one shimmering blue rose with blue drops of…could it be blood?… dripping from the petals. (It’s blood!)
June 24, 2025 at 6:11 PM
vmarklew.bsky.social
Historical corker from Harris - PM Asquith descending into obsession with his 27yo mistress in 1914 as Europe slides into war. In his own words from the 100s of letters he sent her. Surreal reading right now about distracted leaders causing millions of deaths.
Cover of Robert Harris book Precipice.
June 18, 2025 at 5:36 PM
vmarklew.bsky.social
Meanwhile, in my desperate bid to escape this fucking timeline with great SFF, I’m only 150 pages into this and it’s absolutely fantastic! Totally hooked. Brilliant world building.
But goddamnit, did it have to be spiders… 🙀
Pic of the cover of “Children of Time” by Adrian Tchaikovsky. Image of deep space with a slice of green planet in the top left corner and a space ship bottom right. Tagline says “The smartest evolutionary world-building you’ll ever read.” (Accurate)
June 12, 2025 at 11:25 PM
vmarklew.bsky.social
Spouse: how do we stay sane right now?
Me: well the local bookstore has my copy of #Overgrowth AND I found a signed copy of the latest #V.E.Schwab book so…
Coping strategy from childhood is really coming in useful right now.
#BlueSkyBooks 💙📚
@seananmcguire.bsky.social
Photo of Overgrowth by Mira Grant (black background, thorny vine twisting thru the title and reaching out towards a little image of Earth, tag line says You Were Warned); photo of Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V. E. Schwab (dark blue background with three blue roses, small sticker saying signed edition). Bookmark from Capricorn Books nestling between the two.
June 11, 2025 at 6:25 PM
vmarklew.bsky.social
Another comfort re-read and I can’t help but wish that Granny Weatherwax would fly over here and unleash some of her “headology” on the fascists in DC
📚💙
Cover of Terry Pratchett’s novel “Wyrd Sisters: A Novel of Discworld” showing three colorfully garbed women and a becrowned king with a long white beard, against a blue and orange sky background. One of the women is stirring a cauldron, one is straddling a broomstick, and the third & oldest looks to be giggling at something. There’s also a large, snarling cat in the foreground.
June 8, 2025 at 2:32 PM
vmarklew.bsky.social
📚💙
Rereading this one & remembering how much I love LOVE Jemisin’s work - but also how bloody heavy this omnibus edition is (1450 pages).
#BookSky
Cover of “The Inheritance Trilogy” by N. K. Jemisin, a hefty paperback book. Cover image is of a massive arched doorway in stone, but with a grey-turquoise color pallet.
May 25, 2025 at 9:11 PM
vmarklew.bsky.social
As usual, Octavia was 100% right.
#BookSky
Text of a quote from Octavia E. Butler’s book Parable of the Talents: Choose your leaders with wisdom and forethought. To be led by a coward is to be controlled by all that the coward fears. To be led by a fool is to be led by the opportunists who control the fool. To be led by a thief is to offer up your most precious treasures to be stolen. To be led by a liar is to ask to be told lies. To be led by a tyrant is to sell yourself and those you love into slavery.
May 18, 2025 at 4:11 PM
vmarklew.bsky.social
The world is going to hell but the firstborn just gave me this for Mother’s Day and suddenly things feel a lot more hopeful. ❤️❤️
A white coffee mug printed with “Mom, you were right about a lot of shit”
May 10, 2025 at 6:56 PM