Inter-Galactica,
The brief deliciously delirious dream of a spinster - or is it?
She waits, hopes he will come for her -
as he does for all of us - eventually.
as he does for all of us - eventually.
Thursday, September 22, 2016
Wednesday, September 14, 2016
Christoph Fischer Releases New Murder Mystery
Award
winning historical and crime fiction novelist
Christoph Fischer
has written a
light-hearted,
cozy murder mystery.
Order your Copy of
The Body in the Snow here:
Fading
celebrity Bebe Bollinger is on the wrong side of fifty and dreaming of a return
to the limelight. When a TV show offers the
chance of a comeback, Bebe grabs it with both hands – not even a lazy agent,
her embarrassing daughter, irritating neighbors or a catastrophic snowfall will
derail her moment of glory. But when a body is found in her sleepy Welsh
hamlet, scandal threatens.
Detective Sergeant Beth Cooper has a string of
unsolved cases to her name. Her girlfriend left her and she’s a fish out of
water in rural West Wales. Things couldn’t get much worse – until the case of
the Body in The Snow lands in her lap.
Can Beth solve the case and save her career and can Bebe make her comeback?
Can Beth solve the case and save her career and can Bebe make her comeback?
Read the fascinating back story of
The Body In The Snow,
a new Bebe Bollinger Murder Mystery,
which is
set in Wales, on Christoph Fischer’s Website:
Saturday, September 10, 2016
Found: King Nectanebo Shrine
Shrine Dedicated to
King Nectanebo I
Unearthed in Egypt
Unearthed in Egypt
An Egyptian and German archaeological team
sifting through the ruins of a temple dedicated to the ancient King Nectanebo I
has found building blocks and parts of the ceiling, which was decorated with
stars. Authorities hope to rebuild and restore the shrine.
(Egyptian
Ministry of Antquities photo)
The 30th Dynasty
king, whose name is also spelled Nakhtanebu, lived in the fourth century BC.
His house was the last native Egyptian royal line before Persians reconquered
Egypt in 343 BC and overthrew Nectanebo’s grandson.
Shared by Mark
Miller in Ancient-Origins
Read the entire article here: http://www.ancient-origins.net/shrine
Friday, September 9, 2016
Herodotus on Burial in Egypt
Herodotus Wrote:
* II:85. Their fashions of mourning and of burial are these: Whenever any household has lost a man who is of any regard amongst them, the whole number of women of that house forthwith plaster over their heads or even their faces with mud.
* II:85. Their fashions of mourning and of burial are these: Whenever any household has lost a man who is of any regard amongst them, the whole number of women of that house forthwith plaster over their heads or even their faces with mud.
Then
leaving the corpse within the house they go themselves to and fro about the city and
beat themselves, with their garments bound up by a girdle and their breasts
exposed, and with them go all the women who are related to the dead man, and on
the other side the men beat themselves, they too having their garments bound up
by a girdle; and when they have done this, they then convey the body to the
embalming.
Book
of the Dead
Read the entire article at Ancient Origins - and perhaps be glad you live in our times. Although women are known to still plaster their faces with mud; but for very different reasons - and usually at considerable cost.
*Herodotus, The
Landmark Herodotus (Quercus Publishing Plc, 2008)
Published
under Creative Commons: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
Thursday, September 8, 2016
Mummification
Woven within the story of KHAMSIN, my readers seem to appreciate
learning something new or refreshing their knowledge of fascinating
ancient rites, such as mummification.
The questions is not just what drove the Ancient Egyptians to such
lengths of wanting to preserve their dead? Rather, how did such a complex
culture rise from the harsh sands of the desert? Most of what we know is still
spotty, conjecture and theory.
I surely would love to know a lot more. Wouldn’t you?
Tuesday, September 6, 2016
Herodotus On Cats in Egypt
Many quotes and translations attributed to this Greek historian (484 - 425 BC) have been preserved for us to contemplate (or smile over).
Here is one appropriate for this blog, I think:
"In houses a cat has died by a natural death, all those who dwell in this house shave their eyebrows only, but those in whose houses a dog has died shave their whole body and also their head."
Read this interesting article here: http://www.ancient.eu/article/88/
Friday, September 2, 2016
Move Over Nefertiti
Australian researchers have reconstructed the head of an 18 to 25-year-old Egyptian mummy. The woman lived in ancient Egypt at least 2,000 years ago.
Going by the name Meritamun, meaning the beloved of the god Amun, the mummified Egyptian head lives in the basement of the medical building at the University of Melbourne.
Read a fascinating article about this striking ancient beauty here:
Going by the name Meritamun, meaning the beloved of the god Amun, the mummified Egyptian head lives in the basement of the medical building at the University of Melbourne.
Read a fascinating article about this striking ancient beauty here:
How did they do this: Check out this 4-minute YouTube video from the University on CT-Scanning:
I can already sense the wheels of Historical Fiction authors starting to spin. What strange and wonderful tales will we be able to read about her?
In the meantime, it will be interesting to find out what science is going to tell us about the beautiful Meritamun.
Wait a minute! I write HF; I write about Egypt. Hm....
Wednesday, August 31, 2016
Egyptian Law for Building Churches Angers Christians
Coptic Christians seek solace in their faith,
while facing turmoil in Egypt.
while facing turmoil in Egypt.
(AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
A general view of the Cave Cathedral or St. Sama'ans Church on the Mokattam Hills overlooking Cairo, Egypt.
After long hoping for an end to restrictions on the building of churches, many of Egypt's Christians are infuriated and feeling betrayed after lawmakers passed a law August 30, 2016, giving authorities broad powers to veto construction for vague reasons including worries over 'national security.'
http://accesswdun.com/print/2016/8/439763
(Photo: Reuters)
The Pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria is the leader of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, a faith with ancient Christian roots in Egypt. This current holder of this position is Theodoros II or Tawadros II, who was selected as the 118th pope on November 4, 2012.
He is also Patriarch of the See of St. Mark Cathedral, and in the photo above leads the Coptic Christmas Eve Mass in Cairo January 6, 2014.
Friday, August 26, 2016
Why Reader Reviews are Important
Did you know
August 2016 is Write-An-Amazon-Review
Month? No? I didn't either until I read Helen Hollick’s latest blog
post on the subject.
This staunch
supporter of Indie Writers and successful author in her own right puts it very
succinctly why reviews are so important to us authors; so I won’t repeat what
she said.
Rather, I urge
you to read her excellent post here:
https://ofhistoryandkings.blogspot.co.uk/2016/08/are-reviews-important-yes.html
And now, I better go and read another great Indie book out there so I can put my “review where my mouth is.”
Especially, since I "bragged" about my summer reading list on the B.R.A.G. blog.
Most of the books on my reading-wish list have either been chosen to be on the Historical Novel Society's winner list (an association where Helen is a founding member), or were selected as B.R.A.G. Medallion Honorees for excellence in writing.
Most of the books on my reading-wish list have either been chosen to be on the Historical Novel Society's winner list (an association where Helen is a founding member), or were selected as B.R.A.G. Medallion Honorees for excellence in writing.
So, whenever you see this medallion on a cover, you can be assured that it has passed the most rigorous selection.
Thus, while enjoying a great read, I thought I might as well glean some pointers from the best.
And now, don't forget to write that review. Time (and August) is running out. And know, the diplomatically critical ones are often the most helpful to an author...just don't go overboard if you find some negatives to report; writers are people too.
But we all appreciate your time and effort in Writing that Review on Amazon (or any of the other retailers from where you may be purchasing your reading).
But we all appreciate your time and effort in Writing that Review on Amazon (or any of the other retailers from where you may be purchasing your reading).
Thursday, August 18, 2016
My Review of Regina Jeffers' ANGEL COMES TO DEVIL'S KEEP
Manners,
Mayhem, Murder – and Love
...all in the rarefied setting of the
British Regency Period.
There are two things I don’t like in a
“review.” Spilling the plot so as to become a spoiler; and “I usually don’t
read this genre.”
Well, as for the latter, I don’t. Yet,
thanks to the author’s deftness in staying “in style” and her flawless writing,
I began to enjoy the unraveling story to the point where I was reading instead
of doing some previously planned chores.
Having grown up in a somewhat formal
European environment, I found it easy to slip into the speech pattern of the
British aristocracy with its often painfully reticent demeanor. Trust me, the
veiled tongue lashings nevertheless carried a deliciously sharp sting.
It was refreshing to have mayhem and
murder heaped upon one without the now sadly so prevalent usage of foul
language, nor were there any explicit sex scenes to groan over; however, flowing
from the masterful pen of Ms. Jeffers, it all stayed intricately suspenseful
and—indeed—exquisitely titillating.
I know how much research it takes to
write proficiently about a certain period. Everything has to be correct: mannerisms,
speech and clothing, everyday life, titles, social expectations and
restrictions as well as locations. As Ms. Jeffers has written many novels in
the Regency Romance genre, I suspect by now it may well be second nature to her
– and it shows.
No matter what the obstacles, the
desires, the ambitions, in the end it all came down to what hasn’t changed over
time: The Quest for Love. Indeed, I shut off my Kindle with a satisfied sigh:
Well done, Ms. Jeffers. Your readers will be happy with this one.
You can buy your copy at these sites:
Amazon.com: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01JTK0EJS
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