draggonlaady

Can you all tell I read when stressed? Escapism much? Hahahhhahahahah.

Anyway... Finished Once A Witch by Carolyn MacCullough yesterday. I'm sure it was recommended by someone, but I can't recall who to thank them. Young Adult fiction, about a girl from a family of magic-users, who grows up without demonstrating any magic of her own. Well written, engaging characters, well paced, some foreshadowing without being too predictable. I liked it. Looking forward to the sequel, when I get around to buying it. :)

So you all probably know Peter S Beagle, since nearly everyone has seen The Last Unicorn. The book was far and away deeper and more striking than the movie, and I recommend you read it. But this post is comments about a different, entirely different, Peter S Beagle book. The Innkeeper's Song is another fantasy novel, but that's about where the resemblance stops. The story is told from a half dozen or more perspectives in turn (and boy does that get interesting during the orgy. Oh, did I mention this is is NOT a cute little cartoon?). It is just the exactly correct bittersweet, and I most whole-heartedly recommend it.

Is a good book. You should read it. Steampunk or adventure, or alternate history, or all of the above. Whatever you wanna call it, it was a good read and I recommend it. If that isn't good enough for you, I read it because Warren Ellis recommended it.
A review from Tor Books, because I can find this one but apparently can't find Warren Ellis' currently.
I did, however, find Wil Wheaton's: "SQUEEEEEE!"

And now I'm going to be buying more of her stuff, because damn.

I've started reading this book, by Mayer Allen Brenner. It has apparently been put out under both Catastrophe's Spell and Spell of Catastrophe.

It is available for free download from the author's website: http://mayerbrenner.com/download/

Since I'm sort of on a reviewing kick lately, I'll just continue on, shall I?

About a third of the way in now.

The story follows 3 sets of people who have been and/or will be entangled with each other, but currently are doing their own things. Sections switch between groups. Basic world is post-apocalypse? Definitely post-technological. It seems that at some point in the past, the gods showed up, said "No." to any technology beyond blacksmithing and ship building, and replaced tech with magic. Standard fantasy stuff, really, so the attraction of this book is primarily it's light-hearted sense of humor. One of the main characters, for instance, is Maximillian the Vaguely Disreputable. How can you say no to that?
There are occasional typos, generally odd ones--substitution of 1 for I, for example. I suspect this is only found in the downloads and is a result of scanning to text, not actually the author's fault.

The primary cast are Max and a couple of his friends, one of whom is being held hostage by a moving castle; a nameless (as of yet) private investigator that just got tossed in jail; and a physician/adventurer named Shaa. Shaa is hugely sarcastic and my favorite part of the book so far.

A quote for a chuckle, chosen because it's the page I'm on:

"Then we can get on with it," Shaa said. "I have some skill with boats."
"Boats? But we don't have a boat."
"Acquiring the boat is one of my skills."

The new kick-ass snake cage Bruce built for me.

Sitting in front of the fire with a mug of tea.

Indoor gardening.

Nurk.

Cocoa butter.

Breakfast with friends.

Cuddling with Bruce.

Discardia.

Vanilla with marshmallow caramels in dark chocolate.

All emergencies from Sunday are doing better.

Oatmeal and currant raisins with the lovely butterflake rolls that Bruce baked.

Anyone out there who's not should oughta be reading Gearworld and Digger by Ursula Vernon
http://gearworld.livejournal.com
http://http://www.graphicsmash.com//comics/digger.php
(thanks, endotoxin for pointing these out to me)

And since I'm plugging things... go check out these too...

the Sir Reginald stories (and other assorted stuffs) by benchilada
lovely stories involving radiation by funranium
beautifully rendered short works that'll make you think by crisper
randomly wonderful and confusing stories of Hitherby Dragons at http://imago.hitherby.com/

to whoever sent me the Kurt Vonnegut:
thank you!
but i'm a ditz-extraordinare and cannot remember who i had that conversation with, so please remind me.

My list of links to online fiction works that I follow. Obviously, I recommend you all go read these, or I wouldn't be posting them.

By John Robinson, aka OneTusk, aka Widgett

Dark Blue Monstropolis http://www.darkbluemonstropolis.com/
Something Else http://www.onetusk.com/somethingelse/
Nextwave http://www.onetusk.com/nextwave/
Overkill http://www.onetusk.com/overkill/

By Rebecca Hitherby

Hitherby Dragons http://rebecca.hitherby.com/

By Roger Williams, aka localroger

The Metamorphosis of Prime Intellect http://www.kuro5hin.org/prime-intellect/mopiidx.html
Various short stories http://www.kuro5hin.org/prime-intellect/mopionl.html

Short Story blogs

Benchilada, aka ben sTone http://benchilada.livejournal.com/
Crisper, aka Dan Curtis Johnson http://crisper.livejournal.com/
Groundbyground http://groundbyground.livejournal.com/
Scottums http://scottums.livejournal.com/
Jaclyn Jones http://jaclynjones.livejournal.com/
Scudo's Disposable Fiction http://scud-o.livejournal.com/
Atomic Robo http://atomic-robo.livejournal.com/
Heibster http://hiebster.livejournal.com/

Mythology/Classics

Chinese myths, folk tales http://www.cdot.org/history/chinese_myths.htm
Hans Christian Andersen http://hca.gilead.org.il/

I mean it. Get thee there! I'm working my way through the archives, this was posted last July.

http://rebecca.hitherby.com

Skin and Bones

On some forsaken forgotten peak
There dwells a lonely fort:
Inside, a man of skin and bones
Rules an empty court.

His wife, she died of love for him:
A baron came to claim his rights
To kill the baron's child she flung
Herself from a height.

The banners that flap are of baron's flesh,
His drink of baron's blood:
Yet still the man of skin and bones
Pines for the one he loved.

On clear days he will bring the storm.
In gentle rains he'll bring the flood.
His cup is made of baron's bones,
His drink of baron's blood.

His son, he wandered far and fell
In love with the baron's daughter.
In the name of hatred he was
Tortured, skinned, slaughtered.

His spirit haunts the fort these days,
Though he forgave his father:
He binds the man of skin and bones
Away from the baron's daughter.

Between the forces of love and hate,
Some say that love is stronger:
But of the son and wife the son's
Spirit's lasted longer.

Upon some forsaken forgotten peak,
There dwells a lonely fort,
Inside a man of skin and bones
Rules over an empty court.

Oh yeah. And I graduated Saturday. Got all my stuff packed and moved up to the house I'm buying, but am living in the parents' garage until the house closes.

It's damn near midnight, and I don't know why I'm still awake. So instead of doing the obvious, and going to sleep, I'm posting to LJ.

First order of business... Anybody that cares to chat with me by the various messenger programs, lemme know. I just got around to getting myself signed up for a bunch of them, and downloaded Trillian, since I know a scattering of people on different systems.

Second... You probably don't care, but I'm trying out a new picture. Mostly only 'cuz I'm wondering if it puts the caption with the picture or if that only gets put on my userinfo page.

Third... The Cat Who Went to Heaven is a really really really good book.

Fourth... Anybody who's interested in rather dark short fiction pieces should check out onetusk

Fifth... I'm tired and I think I'm going to bed now. G'night.