DEADLINE open thread. Have a party.

What can I say that hasn't been said? Answer: Not much. I just wanted to add my congratulations on a damn fine book (another damn fine book, that is).

Actually, a couple of comments.

1. My wife and I, having just re-read Feed the week prior to the release of Deadline, had been going back and forth over the George/Shawn relationship. She and I had picked up on the hints the first time around, but decided that we'd find out soon enough whether or not they'd been more than just very close. While reading Deadline, there were enough clues that by the time Shawn and Becks hooked up, even before his slip of the tongue, I was pretty sure. Too many comments about how he'd never had to deal with women, how George had always driven them off... And then his internal monologue made it clear that he certainly wasn't a virgin. The Devil's Advocate portion of my brain kept arguing that it could have been coincidence, but it was only half-arguing by that point.

2. It was very interesting listening to both Feed and Deadline as audio books. I read Feed in dead-tree format, and then listened to it just before Deadline came out, then listened to Deadline. I liked both of them, though there were a number of instances where I would have had the reader emphasize different things in a given sentence or phrase. Much like the "What happens to a toad when it gets struck by lightning?" line in the first X-Men movie, knowing how the author speaks makes a big difference in how you think a particular line would be delivered, as opposed to how the audio director might expect it to flow. I think the delivery in my head was better. :)

3. I've been ever so much more aware of mosquitoes the last few days... Thank you so VERY much.

4. I need the fast-forward button on my time machine fixed. It's not Blackout time yet.