'Luring a child with a computer for sex acts'

MAGA patriots, tread carefully

The suspect was charged with child pornography and unauthorized recording

'We'll let you know'

"We don't know what we're walking into"

Talk about getting lucky

'It’s because it’s Kirk and he’s a known racist'

51 breeding pairs of Bonelli’s eagles have been recorded in France’s Mediterranean regions, more than double the number recorded in the early 21st century. Though considered a species of least concern in the world, Bonelli’s eagle is vulnerable in Europe, and threatened in France, where it nests on cliffs and hunts small mammals. The survey […] The post France Sees a Doubling of Eagle Mating Pairs After Decades of Successful Work appeared first on Good News Network.

Books book reviews This Woman’s Work: The Bewitching by Silvia Moreno-Garcia An immensely readable gothic horror story that mixes folklore with suspense and mystery across three timelines. By Mahvesh Murad | Published on August 18, 2025 Comment 0 Share New Share At three different times, three different young women face something sinister, something that could destroy them if they don’t lean into the knowledge they have acquired from their love of the weird, the supernatural, the witchy, and from their ancestors. Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s latest novel The Bewitching mixes folklore with suspense and mystery, set across three timelines, with each holding its own in the larger narrative framework. Moreno-Garcia has written almost a dozen novels; she’s nothing short of prolific. Each novel is very readable and focuses on a different aspect of the supernatural, but each keeps a facet of Mexican folklore or pop culture firmly as its anchor point.  The Bewitching is about Mexican student Minerva, whose interest in the occult and weird tales began as a child, raised as she was on her great-grandmother Nana Alba’s stories about witches. But these are stories about witches very specific to Mexico—no pointy hats and broomsticks here. Rather, “on the night of the new moon evil witches like to dance against the treetops” was what her great-grandmother used to say. ‘They’d slip out of their human skins and grow wings, turn into balls of light, and cavort in the sky. The teyolloquani, the most fearsome of all, drank the blood of their victims and ate their hearts.” This is real, pure evil, not the Disney version of things we find more commonly in contemporary storytelling, especially television and film.  Minerva’s interest in the gothic continues into adulthood, her love for horror stories taking her as far as New England for a graduate degree at Stonebridge College in 1998, where she is working on her thesis about a book called The Vanishing, written by a little known female writer who also happened to attend the same college in the 1930s—the same college where every so often (but consistently), students go missing. One of these missing students was Virginia, the roommate, best friend and first love of the writer Minerva’s thesis is about: Beatrice Tremblay, whose story is set in 1934 and told via various epistolary forms including her personal diary and newspaper articles, adding to the drama and mystery that threads solidly through The Bewitching.  What really sets the mood for the novel is the third narrative: the story of Nana Alba, Minerva’s great grandmother, set in 1908 Hidalgo, Mexico, on a farm where Alba as a young woman is attempting to understand the strange things happening around her, some time after her father’s death. These are the personal stories Alba later passes down to Minerva too, in addition to Mexican folklore: a story of a disappearance that was tied to witchcraft, “just as Beatrice Tremblay’s novel had connections with the occult.” In Alba’s story, we see her navigate the entry of her shady uncle into her life after her father’s death, and the mysterious way in which her brother vanishes, in a way similar to the disappearance of Beatrice’s best friend Virginia many years later at Stonebridge. “Perhaps that was why she’d love the book so much, why she’d devoted years of her life to pursuing this tale,” thinks Minerva, “this was what got her pulse racing, not lovers or romance—it was the thrill of research, of odd questions and murky answers.” The parallels between the women’s stories run strong and true throughout The Bewitching; Moreno-Garcia is excellent at crafting multi-planar but individually whole narratives in one novel.  Buy the Book The Bewitching Silvia Moreno-Garcia Buy Book The Bewitching Silvia Moreno-Garcia Buy this book from: AmazonBarnes and NobleiBooksIndieBoundTarget Amidst the lonely, moody New England landscape, Minerva is attempting to figure out the true story behind Beatrice’s novel. This may have seemed achievable in the beginning, but the material in the archives of Stoneridge was “dry and impersonal,” and all of Beatrice’s private letters and diaries are kept under lock and key by Carolyn Yates, a wealthy benefactor of many student scholarships, who happened to be Beatrice’s close friend when they attended Stonebridge together but has thus far refused to meet Minerva or entertain her requests. When Minerva happens upon Carolyn’s grandson—a very drunk Noah Yates—at a party, she snags an invite to meet his grandmother. Carolyn wasn’t just Beatrice’s friend; she knew Virginia too, and after Virginia’s disappearance, it was Carolyn who ended up marrying Virginia’s fiancé Edgar, the wealthy son of an influential New England family. Carolyn, it seems, is much more tied up in the story of Virginia and Beatrice then she lets on.  Before she knows it, Minerva finds herself caught up in some ancient power, a shadow cast over her as it had been over Alba and Virginia. She must use all the knowledge she inherited from her great grandmother, not just to make sure she is safe, but also to find justice for Virginia. Alongside all this, Minerva also has to manage her actual grad student reality, but The Bewitching is not Dark Academia fantasy at all, nor should it be confused for that. Moreno-Garcia plays well with balancing the supernatural elements of an occult thriller with those of Minerva’s very real world issues, from her financial needs, to the deadlines for turning in pages to her advisor, to the pressure that Minerva places on herself because she “couldn’t afford to be anything except excellent” since her tuition at Stonebridge College was “covered courtesy of a scholarship for academic high achievers.” This is in part what makes Minerva a very relatable, very human protagonist: This high achiever also has some very low periods. In theory, Minerva has everything she wanted: She’s in grad school, obtaining an English literature degree from the same college Beatrice Tremblay had attended. It was her “childhood dream come true,” but often “she was sad for no reason.” Add witchcraft to the mix, and you’ve got a protagonist who has to manage herself out of sadness and into proactivity.  As  usual, Moreno-Garcia has created an immensely readable story. All three narratives are easy to follow, each contains its own tension, and following individual timelines isn’t difficult. Each chapter is helpfully titled with the year it is set in, so switching between narratives is fairly smooth. Each woman’s voice is unique, true to her time and her personality. While both the New England timeline settings are equally vivid, it is Alba’s story set in Hidalgo that is possibly the most evocative. There is a fair degree of threat and potential abuse lurking just below the surface of Alba’s relationship with her uncle, along with a hefty dose of gaslighting, as he insists to her that her fears are unfounded, and her belief in the supernatural is small-minded garbage. But Alba’s connection to indigenous folklore keeps her safe, as it does Minerva decades later.  Moreno-Garcia’s language really does soar when she writes about Mexico, as it has done with all her past novels. The Bewitching is of course heavily inspired by both Mexican folklore surrounding witches and 17th century New England stories of witchcraft, and Moreno-Garcia has made a concerted effort to  move away from the idea of witchcraft as currently seen in popular media currently: something good, benign, or similar to a superpower. The witchcraft in this novel is dangerous, violent, aggressive, and often needs very specific methods to combat, methods that must be taught and passed down from one generation to the next. As with most stories about witches, this novel too brings women together across time and space, sharing their stories in order to stay safe, and keep each other safe.[end-mark] The Bewitching is published by Del Rey. The post This Woman’s Work: <i>The Bewitching</i> by Silvia Moreno-Garcia appeared first on Reactor.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy came to the White House on Monday for a high-stakes meeting with President Donald Trump.   Seated in the Oval Office next to Zelenskyy, Trump expressed his fervent desire to see an end to the war between Russia and Ukraine, and his optimism for a peace deal.   “I think progress is being made, very substantial progress in many ways,” he said.   Trump’s meeting with Zelenskyy comes just three days after Trump conferred Friday with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Anchorage, Alaska. The meeting ended without a deal, but Trump said after the meeting he thought a deal to end the war could be reached quickly. Reports indicate Putin is demanding Ukraine give up its Donbas region to Russia in exchange for an end to the war and security guarantees for Ukraine. Zelenskyy has opposed ceding any Ukrainian territory to Russia.  Trump was in touch with Zelenskyy and European leaders following the meeting with Putin, talking on the phone with them during his flight back to Washington. In June, NATO member counties agreed to spend at least 5% of their gross domestic product on defense by 2035, and many of those NATO leaders were at the White House alongside Zelenskyy on Monday.  Zelenskyy was accompanied by French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.  Zelenskyy’s return to the White House on Monday comes about six months after his first visit ended with sparks flying between him and Trump. The tone between Trump and Zelenskyy was strikingly different from the contentious meeting the two men had in February.   1. Trilateral Meeting  If the meeting with Zelenskyy and the European leaders goes well today, Trump said, the next step is likely to be a “trilateral”—referring to a meeting featuring Zelenskyy, Putin, and himself. “There will be a reasonable chance of ending the war when we do that,” Trump said.  Asked whether a lack of a deal today would mean the end of U.S. support for Ukraine, he said he would not say that.   “People are being killed, and we want to stop that, so I would not say it’s the end of the road,” Trump said.   The U.S. president said he wants a long-term peace agreement adding, “We’re going to make sure it works.”  Europe is the first line of defense, he noted, but “we’ll be involved.”  Trump said he will have a call with Putin on Monday following his meeting with Zelenskyy and the European leaders.   2. ‘Lasting Peace’  “The war is going to end,” Trump said, later adding the peace deal between the two counties will be one designed for “lasting peace.”   “When it ends, I can’t tell you; but the war is going to end,” he said.   “This gentleman wants it to end,” Trump said, referring to Zelenskyy. “Vladimir Putin wants it to end. I think the whole world is tired of it.”   TRUMP: Russia-Ukraine Peace is One of the Toughest Challenges I’ve Faced While the world longs for an end to the Russia-Ukraine war, this conflict is one of the most difficult challenges @POTUS has faced. Yet, the president remains confident that a peace deal can be reached. pic.twitter.com/To8Zt2mprC— The Daily Signal (@DailySignal) August 18, 2025 Trump said he has helped to end six conflicts since returning to office and “thought maybe this would be the easiest one, and it’s not the easiest one. It’s a tough one.”   3. Postwar Election in Ukraine   Asked if he is open to holding an election in Ukraine following a peace agreement, Zelenskyy said he was.   “Of course, we are open [to an] election, yes,” the Ukrainian leader said.   Zelenskyy said the circumstances must be safe to hold elections, adding, “We need a truce, yes—everywhere on the battlefield, the sky, the sea—to make it possible.”   Zelenskyy Says He’s ‘Open’ to Resuming Elections After War During a meeting with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office, Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy was asked if he would hold presidential elections in his country if/when the war with Russia concludes. The… pic.twitter.com/m8hQ9EPQOf— The Daily Signal (@DailySignal) August 18, 2025 The Ukrainian has drawn criticism for postponing presidential elections in Ukraine during the war.   4. ‘I Don’t Think You Need a Ceasefire’ “I don’t think you need a ceasefire,” Trump said, adding, however, that one might be necessary in this case, even though a ceasefire gives nations time to rebuild militarily.   “I like the concept of a ceasefire … You stop killing immediately, as opposed to two weeks or whatever it takes,” he said.   “I wish they could stop fighting,” the president continued. “I would like them to stop, but strategically that could be a disadvantage for one side or the other.”   ‘I Didn’t Do Any Ceasefire’: Trump States a Direct Peace Deal Between Ukraine and RussiaAlthough @POTUS likes the idea of a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine, he is confident that a direct peace deal can be reached without even mentioning a ceasefire, pointing to his… pic.twitter.com/bgFfxRs2sE— The Daily Signal (@DailySignal) August 18, 2025 Trump noted that the other peace deals he has helped to negotiate, such as the one between nuclear-armed neighbors India and Pakistan, have been just that—peace deals and not ceasefires, and he would like to see the same for Russia and Ukraine.   5. Article 5-Type Protections for Ukraine  Following reports that Putin is willing to agree to NATO Article 5-type security protections for Ukraine as part of a peace plan, Trump said nothing has been formally decided in that regard.   “If you look back, and you go back long before President Putin, it was always a statement that they would never allow Ukraine into NATO,” Trump said, adding that Article 5 protections would be discussed with the European leaders at the White House on Monday. Article 5 guarantees protections for NATO member counties, stating that an attack on one NATO ally is considered an attack against all NATO members. Europe wants to help give Ukraine protection, and “we’ll help them out with that,” Trump said.   The post 5 Big Takeaways From Trump’s White House Meeting With Zelenskyy appeared first on The Daily Signal.