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Showing posts from April, 2019

#HistFicThursdays - Inspirational Series - Merlin

 I remember when I was little, watching a Making Of documentary about Robin of Sherwood . One of the points which the writer made was that each person who retells the Robin Hood legend adds a little something to the story. He introduced the idea of the occult – the Baron de Belleme in particular is a terrifying character – and this later influenced other Robin Hood adaptations, including the character of Mortianna in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves . You might be surprised to find that this blog is not actually about any version of Robin Hood. In fact, it’s about the TV series Merlin . That’s your recommended viewing for wet days during summer, if we have any rain ever again after this heatwave! I first came across Merlin when it was released in 2008. It was such a Big Deal that a trailer for the series was shown at the cinema when I went to watch Tropic Thunder with my older sister while living with her in Ipswich. I mostly just remember the dragon and thinking it looked ok. Some...

Fantastic Fantasy Feasts Book Launch

Maybe outlaws have driven you from your home, or maybe the wyverns have destroyed everything you know.​ Whatever the reason, you are alone in the wilderness and you need to eat. You need this recipe book before those hungry vultures seize their chance.​ A tongue in cheek tale of fantasy cuisine. This book was written as a Christmas present for my brother and 3 of my sisters. We used to have super fun times playing Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay and I knew the old handbook back to front. My favourite section was the Bestiary and I'd include the weird and wonderful creatures in my story of the time. I also loved creating characters. There's something quite thrilling about the role of a dice, and really, really hoping that you get a good enough WS (Weapon skill) to become a warrior. I wanted to be an elf when I was little (I think the phase came after wanting to be a mammoth) so it was a good opportunity for me to fulfil this life dream. (The mammoth would be a...

“Whippoorwill” By Robert Bartram Book Review

"Barely fourteen, Ceci Prejean is a tomboy running wild in the hot Louisiana summer. After breaking the nose of a local boy, her father decides to enlist the aid of Hecubah, a beautiful Creole woman, with a secret past, who takes Ceci in hand and turns her into a lady.  Now, eighteen-year-old Ceci meets and falls passionately in love with a handsome young northerner, Trent Sinclaire. Trent is a cadet at the West Point military academy. He acts as if he knows Ceci. They begin a torrid affair, even as the southern states begin to secede from the Union.  Only weeks before their wedding, the Confederate army attacks Fort Sumter and the civil war begins. Trent is called to active service in the north, leaving Ceci heartbroken in the south. Swearing vengeance on the union, after the untimely death of her family at the fall of New Orleans, Ceci meets with infamous spy master, Henry Doucet. He initiates her into the shadowy world of espionage. After her failure to avert the catast...