escape yourself and gravity

I just got my copy of The King Commands in the mail! I am bouncing up and down with glee and so utterly thrilled to finally see it in print! Hurray for megburden! My parents are both already fighting over who gets to read it next. :D

If the fantasy fans on my flist aren't familiar with megburden's work, you should be. She has an incredibly compelling set of characters, and the sense of place in her novels is fantastic. Northlander introduces Ellin and The King Commands continues her story.

Those of you who are Stargate fans should acquaint yourself with her writing too, because she is one of the collaborators in a six-book set of official tie-in novels that are going to be released starting later this year. I'm sure those of you interested in keeping the gate open will want to read her other work as well.

I've been privileged to call megburden a friend for...well, almost as long as I've been on LJ, I think. She's a wonderful and inspiring human being, and I'm lucky to know her. But that's not why I'm saying nice things about her book. I'm saying nice things about her book because she is also an extremely talented writer. I love her characters, I love the little glimpses I've gotten behind the scenes, and I love the setting of her novels.

Okay, now leave me alone, because I have to go read! :D

I got two packages in the mail yesterday. One was the converter cable so I can print to my colour printer with the new and paralllel-port-less Dr Reid. (Yes, that's my computer, shut up.)

The other was my Northlander package!!! Thanks, megburden!!! I wasn't expecting it to arrive so quickly.


In a slightly random moment, my dad came upstairs to wake me up this morning (Gedna's 80th birthday is Monday and we are celebrating today) and he brought me a cold Coke. He has for years made my mom a pot of tea before he goes to work every morning, and I find it terribly sweet that he brought me a Coke first thing this morning.

Now I have to go decide what to wear today. Something with short sleeves, because 1) it's supposed to hit 60 today, and 2) Gedna keeps her rooms at about 75 despite the fact that she always wears a sweater on top of a sweater and a shirt. She's very cold-blooded, with her circulation problems.

Hey everyone! I know you've seen me squeeing all over the place about my friend megburden who wrote a book. Her novel Northlander is exciting and compelling, and has some fantastic characterization and great plot twists.

She's having a contest at her LJ to give away awesome stuff like autographed copies, BPAL scents that inspired the novel, and more. All you have to do is mention that the book is available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Brown Barn Books, and then comment at Meg's LJ with a link to your post.

You see how I am? I'm making an entry to the contest right now! ^_~ BUT I'm also giving you all a chance to enter, as well. I'm so nice.

And in case you missed the real point of this post, go out and buy Meg's book!

You guys! I just finished megburden's book Northlander! It arrived in the mail today, and I immediately sat down on the front porch and started reading. And I didn't stop for three hours except for the ten minutes while I ate supper.

Now, I'd already been lucky enough to read the first few chapters online a couple months ago, so I knew some of the characters already. I can't begin to tell you how much I LOVE these characters. The five Northland princes, Ellin the Southland 'witch-girl', Ellin's wonderful, loving father. The relationship between Ellin and her father was so great, it made me think about my own relationship with my father.

The plot is exciting, and each time I started thinking, "Oh, I see where this is going", I was proved wrong. Not that I thought that very often, anyway.

I don't want to talk too much about it, because I don't want to spoil you at all for the story. Let's just say that in the Northlands, all Southlanders are reviled. They're seen as lower than low because of their red hair and their predisposition to the healing arts. They're required to carry papers, and if a Southlander wears your clothes, they're fit for nothing but burning afterwards. Yet Southlander Ellin and her father are the only people who have the ability to save the life of the Northlander king, and as healers, they feel compelled to try, even if they endanger themselves by breaking the law to do so. Because of Ellin's bravery, momentous events are set into motion, and danger threatens from several sources. She has to rely on her wits and the new talents that are awakening inside her to keep her alive--and she can't tell who to trust.

It's a riveting story, and I found it both emotionally moving and engaging. Am I biased? Well, of course, I've known megburden for a long time now, especially as internet friendships chart time. Does that mean I'm wrong? Of course not! I really enjoyed this book, and I hope you will all go buy the book based on the strength of my recommendation.

Some random things:

- I can't stop chewing on my lips today. They are peeling, and it's almost a compulsion to chew chew chew. It's annoying, and it's just a symptom of the fact that I feel like I'm going to crawl out of my own skin today. I don't know where that's coming from.

- My heart is doing its thing today, which it hasn't done for about a week. Blah. ETA: I think it's very likely that caffeine consumption has affected this today. I took Excedrin earlier, and combining that with the Coke and Dr. Pepper I've drunk so far, I've consumed about 413 mg of caffeine since 7:30 this morning. x.x

- It's freaking cold in here today. I'm wearing a tank top, long-sleeved shirt, and sweater, and I'm still frozen. I need some fingerless gloves for typing.

- OMG NANOWRIMO STARTS IN LESS THAN 48 HOURS! I AM SO NOT READY!

- Outlined my entire SnuSa fic today. Yes, I've got it about a third of the way written, but I decided outlining it would help me write it faster. That tactic has always worked with NaNo before.

- I have three fics in various stages of almost being ready to post. I can't believe this--THREE. From the girl who is usually antsy as hell to get things posted ASAPOMG! *grin* One of these is the fic that was originally written for pervy_werewolf.

- D--- said she does want me to come in on Monday, even though A--- will be back from maternity leave. I'm more than fine with having one more day of getting paid. I need to remember to call Kelly this afternoon and let them know I'll be available for assignments soon.

- I have now received three letters from the USDA letting me know my application has been received. No wonder the federal government costs so freaking much. Three letters for one application. LOL

- I want to go home.

- I hope my copy of Northlander is in the mailbox today. I'm absolutely dying to read megburden's book.