Review: I Shall Wear Midnight

Witty and whimsical, tragic and terrifying, fascinating, fantastical . . . this is Terry Pratchett, my friends!

I Shall Wear Midnight is the fourth book in the Tiffany Aching sub-series of the much larger Disc World universe. Her story began with The Wee Free Men when she was only nine years old. Miss Tick took a stroll into Tiffany’s country village, recognized a particular talent, and Tiffany’s life was forever changed.

By this fourth installment, Tiffany is 16 years old and the professional witch of her village.

Note: For those of you with concerns about reading books with witches as protagonists . . . I totally understand and don’t recommend this book for you. I personally am not bothered by it, considering the universe Pratchett has created is completely different from our own. In this universe, the role of a village witch is very much the role of traveling nursemaid. Tiffany spends most of her time caring for the forgotten elderly, delivering babies, bandaging farm wounds, etc. She does work magic, but the magic is, as she puts it, “mostly Common Sense” . . . which does, indeed, seem magical to everyday people! And she wears a black pointy hat as a symbol of office.

Anyway, Tiffany’s story opens at a fair and ends at a fair, which I love. I absolutely adore bookends in stories. You start somewhere simple, build to all kinds of impossibilities then end where you started, simply. There are also brilliant uses of foreshadowing in this tale: The story the old dying baron tells Tiffany about crop-burning at season’s end . . . the recurring image of a hare running into the fire . . . everything is beautifully set up long in advance for the tumultuous climax.

I loved the very human elements of this story, especially the main character. Tiffany’s reactions to the young baron’s betrothal were hysterical and touching simultaneously. I really felt what she was going through!

Then there’s the danger: The Cunning Man, the old wraith of an evil memory, has risen from the darkness to hound Tiffany. Because she is a witch, and the Cunning Man, though he is nothing now but a memory, wants all witches to burn!

So, yes, plenty of intrigue, character development, plot twists . . . and, of course, Terry Pratchett’s laugh-out-loud wit peppering every page. I adore how the man takes a dark and complicated story but writes it from a comedic bent. He sees that life is both comedy and tragedy, that you cannot have one without the other.

So ultimately, I loved it. Not my favorite Pratchett novel ever, but a great read. I do not recommend it if you are uncomfortable reading novels with witches as protagonists. But if you don’t feel convicted on that score, this is a marvelously written and engaging tale (though you really should start with Book 1).

Pratchett is a genius.

Which is why he was knight and is now Sir Terry Pratchett. England knows how to honor her authors!

We Have A Winner!

Congratulations to need2read for her brilliant success, naming all the dragons in the Maiden and Dragon contest! The interesting thing to note is that not all of her answers were the same as mine . . . yet all her answers were correct! Here is my list of Maidens and Dragons:

1. Princess Cimorene—Kazul (The Enchanted Forest Chronicles)
2. Princess Adelina—Vollys (Two Princess of Bamarre)
3. Mulan—Mushu (Mulan)
4. Lady Sibyl—Errol (Guards! Guards!)
5. Lessa—Ramoth ( Dragonflight)
6. Una—The Dragon of Errour (Faerie Queen) OR . . . the Dragon King/Death-in-Life/Father of Dragons from my own book, Heartless! Tricky, that one . . .
7. Aerin—Maur (The Hero and the Crown)
8. Alice—Jabberwocky (Alice in Wonderland)
9. Kara—Draco (Dragonheart)
10. Princess Aurora—Maleficent (Sleeping Beauty)
11. Kale—Gymn and Metta (DragonSpell)
12. Belinda—Custard (The Tale of Custard the Dragon)
13. Princess Fiona—Dragon (Shrek)
14. Princess Elspeth—Vermithrax Pejorative (Dragonslayer)

need2read, however, answered Brom for #4, which is correct . . . Brom is another one of her pet dragons. She also answered Flagra and Byrn for #9, which is also correct. I had to research that one, but Kara turns out to be the heroine of the Flight of the Dragon Kyn, which is definitely full of dragons!

Excellent work on all those answers, people! Yet again, I am impressed by your dragon knowledge.

need2read, if you would please email me your mailing address (aestengl@gmail.com), I will be certain you get one of the very first copies of Veiled Rose!

Contest: A Maiden Needs Her Dragon

Some of them rode dragons. Some of them searched for dragons. Some kept dragons as pets while some were kept as pets by dragons. Some of them cooked and kept house for dragons. Some were ensorcelled by dragons. One hunted dragons . . . and one was even eaten by a dragon!

But all of them are part of that brilliant pairing, the Maiden and the Dragon.

See how many dragons you can name to go with these maidens! The first to complete the list will win a free copy of Veiled Rose. If you can’t finish the list, don’t worry! If no one finishes then whoever can name the most will still win a free, autographed copy of Heartless.

Please skip on over to here to add your tally to those already posted.

Winners to be announced on Friday. Go for it!

1. Princess Cimorene—

2. Princess Adelina—

3. Mulan—

4. Lady Sibyl—

5. Lessa—

6. Una—

7. Aerin—

8. Alice—

9. Kara—

10. Princess Aurora—

11. Kale—

12. Belinda—

13. Princess Fiona—

14. Princess Elspeth—

The Christy Awards

Well, that was a surprise! I just received word that Heartless is one of the finalists in the First Novel category of the Christy Awards. That is pretty exciting! A writer-friend told me that the Christys are CBA's version of the Oscars, so being a finalist is a big honor. That definitely caught me by surprise!

It will be interesting to see how Heartless compares to the other two books in its category . . . both of which look very interesting! Neither of which are YA fantasy/allegory. Hmmm. Well, best to both Gina Holmes and Rusty Whitener! Your work looks awesome, and it's great to be a finalist with you!

I think Rohan and I might just go to this event. It's in Atlanta, which isn't too far away. And it my first awards ceremony as an author, which is important and exciting! I'd get to meet other CBA novelists and see some of the folks from Bethany House as well. My Rohan is all for it, so . . .

Literary Crushes

How many times have you found yourself so head-over-heels in love that you wanted to spend all your time with just one person? It’s a beautiful and, for all the crazy number of people in this world, a rare thing. Something precious. Something to be nurtured, often in secret, because the idea of ridicule is so embarrassing, so painful? But you wouldn’t trade that feeling for the world . . .

How many times has that one person been fictional?

Okay, I’m going to share a list of my Literary Crushes in totally random order. Do please note two things, however:

1. I am talking about crushes! Not a character you simply like to read about/find yourself picking up more books on that character, etc. I mean a full-fledged (and usually, but not always, secret) crush!

2. All of these were before I was married. My Rohan is aware of (most of) these fellows and does, in fact, feel prepared to deal with the residual feelings (because some loves never truly die).

Okay, on to the noble company.

My very first literary crush happened when I was 14 years old. One bored evening a picked a certain thick volume off my parents’ bookshelf, purely on a whim. And was introduced to the dark, twisted, fascinating world of 221B Baker St. and this fine gentleman.

He was dangerous. He was polished. He was tortured. He was brilliant. He was musical, analytical, lethal, and sardonic. I mean . . . what’s not to love?

So I crushed pretty badly for quite a while there, read every single short story or novel Conan Doyle ever wrote on the man and even dared attempt a few spin-offs by other authors (notably, this series).

Thus I first learned what a literary crush means.

Following that, and not too very long after, I picked up The Lord of the Rings. I was familiar with the story because my father had read it aloud to me and my brothers back when I was about 9 years old, during our move from England back to the states. So I knew I loved it already. But I did not expect to fall so very hard and fast for the main character: Frodo Baggins.

A hobbit.

Well, when you’re 14, there’s not accounting for taste.

But seriously, I just adored this brave fellow who was willing to risk so much and risk it so beautifully for the sake of others. And, unlike Sam, he didn’t have a possible love-interest waiting for him back home, which made him all the more tragically appealing to me! So I crushed really bad and found myself totally swept up in his adventures.

(Another note: I did not fall in love with the movie incarnation of this character. I mean, Elijah Wood was very wide-eyed-sweet and all that . . . but he just did not compare to my own imagined Frodo. And he never will.)

So that crush on Frodo lasted a good long while. Until about midway through The Two Towers. Because you see . . . that’s when I met Faramir. (Again, not the movie version. I am sticking strictly to literary crushes, not cinematic ones).

If Frodo was a crush, Faramir was a passion. Mixed with a crush.

Okay, moving on.

After that, at various times my literary crushes included:

Howl from Howl’s Moving Castle

Sydney Carton from A Tale of Two Cities (you knew there’d be a bad-boy in there somewhere)

Eugenides from The Queen’s Thief series

Mac from Eight Cousins (O! I crushed hard on him! In fact, that may have been an earlier crush than Sherlock Holmes . . .)

Dr. Neil McNeill from Christy (book, not TV series. Didn’t particularly care for the TV series)

Cyrano de Bergerac from the play. (And no, his romantic French prose didn’t hurt a thing! “Non, merci! Non, merci! Mais. . .chanter, rêver, rire, passer, être seul, être libre . . .”)

Wow. What a strange romantic history I have had all in my head. Some of these I have to ask myself . . . where the heck did that come from? But, hey. True love knows no bounds.

I once really crushed on a historical figure, Major John Pitcairn, who died tragically at the Battle of Bunker Hill. I fell for him while studying Lexington, then turned the page to Bunker Hill and . . . Sniffle! Sob!

My brother very practically pointed out that he would have been long dead by the time I was born anyway. Thanks! ‘Cause that helps! (sniffle)
 
Anyway, those are mine. I’m sure I’ve forgotten several, but that’s a goodly number of them anyway! Who were some of yours?

Recent Reads and Recommendations, Spring 2011

Here are some books I've read in recent history and thought particularly good. Some are rereads, some first-timers. All good in very different ways, some better than others. Have you read any of these? Any recommendations of your own? I'm always looking for new reads!

1. Cordelia’s Honor—Lois McMaster Bujold
An interesting sci-fi . . . a bit of a “romance in space,” but with intriguing plot twists. If you’re looking for your next Isaac Asimov, skip this one. If you’re looking for a fun, snappy, longish adventure with plenty of romance and intrigue, this might be just for you! Rating: P-13 for sensuality (the main characters are married).

2. The Enchanted Castle—Edith Nesbit (reread)
I adore Nesbit! This is one of my favorites . . . a great read-aloud with children (or with your new husband, whatever the case may be!). Nesbit is a true genius. Seriously! Rating: G

3. Richard III—William Shakespeare
The ultimate villain! But historically unlikely. Read for the pleasure of Shakespeare’s language and wit, not for any historical information . . . and possibly balance it out with Josephine Tey’s Daughter of Time just to be fair to poor Richard. Rating: N/A

4. Gaudy Night—Dorothy Sayers
Brilliance! Slow-paced at the beginning, but I don’t think that’s a bad thing. Take the time to get into it, into these characters. Great mystery and even greater romance! Wonderful insight into the life of a writer. This one gets the Adored status. Rating: PG for some scares.

5. Gone with the Wind—Margaret Mitchell
Epic . . . Some say America’s version of War and Peace. Great writing, great pacing (especially considering how long this book is!). Definitely recommended. Rating: PG-13

6. Tombs of Atuan—Ursula Le Guin (reread)
Scary, atmospheric, and heavy despite its brevity. I enjoyed it, though. If you’re in the mood for something darker, give it a try. Rating: PG for frightening moments and dark themes.

7. Rose Daughter—Robin McKinley (reread)
This is a book to read if you’re in the mood for poetic language and rambling prose. McKinley takes her time developing the plot and the characters, but I so enjoy her processes. Gorgeous fantasy. Rating: PG

8. The Weirdstone of Brisingamen--Alan Garner
Strange book, but excellent. One of the scariest children’s books I’ve ever read. Actually, though the protagonists are children, I wouldn’t call this a children’s book. Interesting and unusual fantasy. Rating: PG-13 for frightening moments.

9. Elidor—Alan Garner
Again, a strange book. But fascinating. This man is in a league all his own, though he is heavily influenced by Robert Browning in this story. Read it! His endings are unbearable and wonderful all at once! Rating: PG

10. The Foundling--D.M. Cornish (Book 1 of the Monster Blood Tattoo series)
Another slow-paced book, but worth the time it takes to gain momentum. Interesting world building, beautiful illustrations, and I loved the character of the Monster Hunter. She was excellent! Rating: PG

11. Demon: A Memoir—Tosca Lee
Not bad at all. Lee deals with some interesting subjects and writes some beautiful imagery. The message of grace was presented with great elegance as well, which I loved. Rating: PG for some frightening moments.

12. The Great Divorce—C.S. Lewis (reread)
One of the most beautiful and challenging books I have ever read, for all it is very short. Such a perfect picture of the Heaven we reject and the Hell we cling to. Rating: PG

13. A Wrinkle in Time—Madeline L’Engle (reread)
Great children’s book! Startlingly profound. I don’t agree with all of the message she preaches, but when I read it this time, I was surprised at the depth and understanding she packs into this relatively short novel. Definitely recommended! Rating: PG

Moonblood Illustration Process

Some of you may know that I am also an artist. I used to teach art classes to children and adults and also painted portrait commissions for a couple of years there! But my true love is for illustration. When I went to college, I studied both illustration and English Lit. with the hope of one day writing and illustrating my own stories.

Well, the writing is happening on a professional level . . . not so much the illustrating. But, my Rohan gave me a gorgeous art studio after we got married, so I figured I might as well start dabbling a little bit in that side of my creativity again! Thought you all might like to see the development of one of my illustrations.

This is a collage-style acrylic painting for Moonblood, book 3 in the Tales of Goldstone Wood. Here is the initial sketch and beginning of the base coats. I kept the sketch very minimal since most of the details will happen in the paint. The color blocking I did in gouache.

And here it is completely blocked, all the various characters in place. Oh, dear! I have to be careful not to name names! Don't want to spoil the next book or two for everyone. Well, the cat at least you will recognize from Heartless. Monster is looking very smug here in his base coats, isn't he?



Here you see the first layers of acrylics going down. I always start with either a blue or a purple undertone for skin, thus the corpsy look for the girl! Probably too much detail in the unicorn for this early on. Oh well! The forest was probably the hardest part for me . . . I'm used to portraits, but landscapes are not my thing. Had to experiment a couple of times before finally hitting on the right undertones. Monster looks smugger than ever with his first layers of gold!

Oh no! She went goth! Actually, I realized her mouth was the wrong shape and had to reconstruct it.



Now she has highlights! Less goth though, right? And you can see that the forest is starting to develop nicely . . .

Flesh tones for her. And the Hunter is starting to come into his creepy own! He has a bit of a batman-esque quality to him. Not sure if that's what I was going for, but okay!

Now for the tiny queen. I kept putting her off because she was SO tiny, I wasn't sure how I would paint her! Even considered painting her out for a while there. Glad I didn't though. She adds a nice ghostly touch:



Now for the unicorn and Monster. They've patiently waited long enough in their base coats. Looking much handsomer now:

Here you an see the rose getting redder and stars starting to emerge. But she's looking a bit pasty. I wanted a moonlit glow, but she kind of looks sick. Besides, she's described as having golden skin in the novel . . .

Okay, that's better. And finished too! I gave her a bit more color and reconstructed aspects of her face as well. Added some ominous mist, and voila! The first illustration I've done in years! I think my favorite part is Monster. But then, I'm always partial to the cats!



So nice to get back into a bit of painting. Just for the fun of it, I made an advertisement!

This was a purely for-fun project, not professional work. Hope you enjoyed watching it develop!