Her love and gratitude for her rescue from her old life on the streets blinded her to the truly cruel things he did to her. These are interspersed with statuesque portraits of the human form, at once channelling sculptures of ancient deities and toying with gender boundaries. In one image, seemingly portraying a mother lost in thought while holding a baby, the cable of the release is coiled across the frame like a landline phone cord. And Commander Rip, named for his affinity for ripping the heads off his enemies - he isn't a monster either.

Glint: The dark fantasy TikTok sensation that’s sold over a

The designer tweaks features on well-known apps as part of a daily side project, from previewing your Hinge date in AR to nepotism disclosures on LinkedIn. Glint is the second book in Raven Kennedy's The Plated Prisoner series, and while having a few different POV's, mostly centers on Auren, King Midas's favored saddle, the one he has gold-touched, as she navigates being prisoner to the fourth kingdom. At first glance, Michael Bailey-Gates’ new book appears to be a compendium of traditional fashion photographs. The photographer’s peers – friends, artists, collaborators – appear throughout the book too, often partly undressed but fully made up. The way this book ends, it gives her another chance to make some rights, BUT, I totally get her feelings of betrayal on both sides of the coin.I spent the whole book SURE of it, stumbled a little bit when Commander Rip and King Rot were in the same room (but held on to the small details that made me think Rip was a decoy), but the confirmation at the very end? We learned a little more about how Midas gained her trust and why she kept defending him over and over again. They’re marching to battle, and I’m the bargaining chip that will either douse the fire or spark a war. When things come to a head, who will Auren side with - the King who rescued her, and protected her, or the Commander who brings out the real Auren? If Midas really cared about her, he'd listen to her and cared more about what she wants than about gold.

Glint: The Plated Prisoner Series Vol 2: The TikTok fantasy Glint: The Plated Prisoner Series Vol 2: The TikTok fantasy

Alright the first book I did 4 stars because I wasn’t in love but I was super intrigued to still keep going. Particularly towards the beginning, where studio backdrops and the drama of black and white shots combine in an evocation of glamorous shoots in high fashion magazines. Auren was able to escape her golden cage for the first time in 10 years, only to be captured once again. After Glint, I'm still not head over heels in love with the whole story, but I am intrigued enough to start the third one. More than that, fashion imagery – with its chequered history of both cementing and challenging gender roles – is a fertile playground for Bailey-Gates’ exploratory approach to portraiture.

We get closer with Auren, learn more of her past and also a bit more about how and why she is special. The book offers a playful take on traditional fashion photography and iconic images with unexpected details, often nudity.