Book Bullets From The Dark Side - Darth Heather's 2021 reads

Dit is een voortzetting van het onderwerp Book Bullets From The Dark Side - Darth Heather's 2020 reads.

Dit onderwerp werd voortgezet door Book Bullets From The Dark Side - Darth Heather in 2022.

DiscussieThe Green Dragon

Sluit je aan bij LibraryThing om te posten.

Book Bullets From The Dark Side - Darth Heather's 2021 reads

1Darth-Heather
jan 2, 2021, 7:49 am

2Darth-Heather
jan 2, 2021, 7:55 am

Starting off the new year with a selection from my Series Starters and Sequels list: Carved From Stone and Dream by T. Frohock. The Los Nefilim series has been very enjoyable so far and I hope that continues. This is the blurb description:
"February 1939. Catalonia has fallen. Los Nefilim is in retreat.

With the Nationalist forces hard on their heels, the members of Los Nefilim—Spanish Nephilim that possess the power to harness music and light in the supernatural war between the angels and daimons—make a desperate run for the French border.

Diago Alvarez, a singular being of angelic and daimonic descent, follows Guillermo and a small group of nefilim through the Pyrenees, where the ice is as treacherous as postwar loyalties—both can kill with a single slip. When a notebook of Los Nefilim’s undercover operatives falls into a traitor’s hands, Diago and Guillermo risk their lives to track it down. As they uncover a pocket realm deep within the Pyrenees, Diago discovers his family is held hostage.

Faced with an impossible choice: betray Los Nefilim, or watch his family die, Diago must nurture the daimonic song he has so long denied in order to save those he loves."

There are some short novellas that introduce the series contained in Los Nefilim, then the first novel Where Oblivion Lives. I am enjoying the setting a lot and can't wait to see what will happen to Diago next.

3YouKneeK
jan 2, 2021, 8:05 am

>1 Darth-Heather: Happy new year, I hope 2021 is a great year for you!

4Sakerfalcon
jan 2, 2021, 9:00 am

Happy new year! I hope it is a good one for you in books and in life. Looking forward to following your reading again!

5pgmcc
jan 2, 2021, 9:28 am

>1 Darth-Heather: Happy New Year. I hope 2021 is a fantastic year for you.

6Darth-Heather
jan 2, 2021, 10:33 am

thanks to all and best wishes to each of you for a bright new year!

7majkia
jan 2, 2021, 10:56 am

Happy New Year!

8jillmwo
jan 2, 2021, 11:06 am

Glad to see you posting in the Pub. Hope you continue to enjoy the Los Nefilim series as well as other books in the new year!

9Narilka
jan 2, 2021, 11:13 am

Happy new year!

10Karlstar
jan 2, 2021, 11:30 am

Happy New Year!

11clamairy
jan 2, 2021, 10:01 pm

Happy New Year, Heather. Hope all your book choices in 2021 are gems!

12reading_fox
jan 3, 2021, 6:21 am

Happy New Year! wishing you lots of reading and especially yet more books that end up on my to-buy list.

13NorthernStar
jan 3, 2021, 11:18 pm

Happy New Year!

14SomeGuyInVirginia
jan 4, 2021, 4:28 pm

I'm in! Happy New Year, Darth! On Friday I made a special point of having ham, black eyed peas, and greens for dinner. Last year I didn't and look what happened. You're welcome!

15Darth-Heather
jan 5, 2021, 8:23 am

>14 SomeGuyInVirginia: is that a luck thing? We need all we can get!

16Sakerfalcon
jan 6, 2021, 7:35 am

>14 SomeGuyInVirginia:, >15 Darth-Heather: My good friend kidzdoc did the same! He says that yes, eating black-eyed peas at new year is a tradition to bring good luck. He's a northerner with southern heritage, currently residing in Atlanta.

17YouKneeK
jan 6, 2021, 5:29 pm

>14 SomeGuyInVirginia:, >16 Sakerfalcon: My grandma usually does the same thing -- black eyed peas and either spinach or collards for the greens. Usually with corn bread, although I believe that isn't supposed to be part of the luck. My mom carried on with that tradition when I was growing up, but I happily abandoned it after moving out because I’m not a fan of any of that food except the corn bread. :)

18Darth-Heather
jan 7, 2021, 8:07 am

What do you make with the black-eyed peas? I've never had them...

19Sakerfalcon
Bewerkt: jan 7, 2021, 10:38 am

My friend makes Hoppin' John

20SomeGuyInVirginia
jan 7, 2021, 10:40 am

Black eyed peas are gross, they are to legumes what okra is to whatever okra is a subset of- cult dare food. I've found the only way to eat them is by burying them in ketchup. Ketchup kills the taste of everything. Still, I have them every New Year Day. Ham for health, BEP for luck and happiness, collards for wealth. Every.time.

21MrsLee
jan 7, 2021, 6:44 pm

>20 SomeGuyInVirginia: I beg to differ. :) I have only made the dish once, using a ham hock and other seasonings such as onion, garlic, celery, bay leaf, black pepper, etc., but everyone in our house, none of whom had tried BEP before, loved them! We also had the greens and cornbread. A yummy way to bring in the new year.

22Darth-Heather
jan 8, 2021, 8:43 am

>21 MrsLee: I made something similar-ish once, with white beans and cajun spices, and learned a valuable lesson about ham hocks. If I have extras, because they are sold in a pack of three, do NOT just throw the extras in unless I'm going to triple all of the other ingredients. The final dish was so salty I could have de-iced my driveway with it.

23MrsLee
jan 8, 2021, 6:58 pm

>22 Darth-Heather: Oh yes. Also, fully cook your beans before you add the ham hock too. :)

24SomeGuyInVirginia
jan 8, 2021, 11:37 pm

>21 MrsLee: I welcome differing opinions because, in my head, I get to think up all new reasons why I'm right.

>22 Darth-Heather: I've done the same thing with chicken bouillon more times than I want to count.

25Darth-Heather
jan 27, 2021, 8:23 am

Yesterday was our first ever Australia Day celebration. Regardless of the controversy surrounding the meaning behind it, the new owner of my company is from Melbourne and he wanted to have a little lunch party. We played an Australian Slang trivia game, and I finally got to try Vegemite! I've always wondered what it tastes like, and now I know! It's terrible! I think I was expecting it to taste like vegetable bouillon, but there aren't any vegetables in it. It's astonishingly salty tho.

26pgmcc
jan 27, 2021, 10:55 am

>25 Darth-Heather: Thanks for the warning. :-)

27hfglen
jan 27, 2021, 11:09 am

>25 Darth-Heather: Have you ever read The Last Continent? There's a wonderful scene where Rincewind plans to cook up some allegedly edible vegetation in a beer can, falls asleep before it's edible, and wakes the next morning to find a tarry substance (which he then eats) in the can -- prototype Vegemite!
I'll annoy any Australians by recalling that in 2011 I met Vegemite in Melbourne. As I rather like Marmite (in small quantities), naturally I tried some. Nothing like Marmite! It was awful!

28SomeGuyInVirginia
jan 27, 2021, 11:23 am

>25 Darth-Heather: I've never tried Vegemite (or Marmite) but I've always thought that Vegemite must be in the same category as okra and castor oil. In the Dare Food category.

29-pilgrim-
Bewerkt: jan 27, 2021, 11:28 am

>27 hfglen: Thanks for the comparison, Hugh. As a fellow Marmite-lover (when used correctly), I would have been tempted to try the experiment too.

>25 Darth-Heather: Where do you stand on Marmite?

30haydninvienna
Bewerkt: jan 27, 2021, 2:13 pm

Hey! As an Australian, I feel incomplete without a jar of the stuff in the cupboard. And I do eat it from time to time. Oddly, I didn't mind Australian Marmite, but British Marmite is disgusting.

ETA: The Wikipedia page on Vegemite has a picture on it of a couple of slices of toast with about the right amount of Vegemite on. Thin but uniform smear, people, not great gobs of it.

EATA: here's Hugh Jackman showing how to do it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_sUhTWtvG4. needs a bit more butter though.

31-pilgrim-
jan 27, 2021, 2:37 pm

>30 haydninvienna: And that, my friends, is how you should eat Marmite.

32pgmcc
jan 27, 2021, 2:40 pm

>30 haydninvienna: Will the extra butter help drown the taste of the Vegemite?

33Darth-Heather
jan 27, 2021, 4:10 pm

>29 -pilgrim-: We don't have either one commonly in America. I've never seen Vegemite until yesterday and have never seen Marmite at all. Are they the same?

I guess I expected based on the name that Vegemite would have some kind of vegetable flavor but the ingredients list shows just barley and yeast and salt... lots and lots of salt. My boss and his wife grew up eating it thinly spread on slices of white bread so that is how they served it; I guess it is an acquired taste? It does taste a bit like the way that dried brewer's yeast smells.

34haydninvienna
jan 27, 2021, 4:36 pm

>33 Darth-Heather: Definitely an acquired taste, but most Australians seem to acquire it. There’s actually quite a few of these umami-bomb confections: Vegemite and Marmite (and Australian Marmite seems to be different from British Marmite); there’s one called Promite which may be unique to Australia; I encountered a health-foody one in Doha when Carrefour there ran out of Vegemite; and there may be others. Wikipedia mentions something called Cenovis, which it says is popular in Switzerland, is made in the same way and is eaten in the same way as Vegemite.

35hfglen
jan 28, 2021, 5:00 am

>33 Darth-Heather: Here we mostly acquire a taste for Marmite on our mother's knees. There's also a non-vegetarian brew called Bovril, which can be used the same way, and is black like Marmite. (Though some people dilute Bovril with hot water and drink it; I find that stomach-turning, if only because in his last years my mother's uncle did that, and shared the brew with his dog, from the same cup!)

36BookstoogeLT
jan 28, 2021, 5:09 am

>35 hfglen: There goes my appetite for breakfast this morning!

37MrsLee
jan 28, 2021, 6:12 pm

>30 haydninvienna: Thank you for sharing that link. I would most certainly try it if Hugh Jackman spread it on toast for me! :D

38Sakerfalcon
feb 1, 2021, 10:46 am

I've never tried Vegemite, like Marmite in moderations ( but can mainline Twiglets if no-one takes the can away from me!) and agree >35 hfglen: that Bovril is horrific. The other day a friend posted a photo from Marks and Spencer's food department of a packet of cheese and Marmite hot cross buns. The combination of cheese and Marmite is a good one but adding it to a HCB seems a step too far ....

39-pilgrim-
feb 1, 2021, 10:57 am

>38 Sakerfalcon: Not in my opinion; they are like tiger rolls, only more so.

But seriously, HCB already?

40Sakerfalcon
feb 1, 2021, 11:47 am

>39 -pilgrim-: I know! They never disappear from the shelves now.

41Darth-Heather
feb 1, 2021, 12:50 pm

>38 Sakerfalcon: I.... I'm at a loss..... the hot cross buns I know have little bits of dried fruit in them and sugary icing crosses on top.... I can't really imagine why that would involve cheese and marmite in any way...

42-pilgrim-
Bewerkt: feb 1, 2021, 1:37 pm

>41 Darth-Heather: Fruit inside, but the crosses on top for me are carved into the bread, before baking, not iced onto its surface.

I can't imagine them as being sweet.

43Sakerfalcon
feb 2, 2021, 9:27 am

>41 Darth-Heather:, >42 -pilgrim-: I guess the dough is savoury but the dried fruit adds sweetness. It was the combination of the fruit with the marmite and cheese that put me off.

44SomeGuyInVirginia
feb 4, 2021, 6:52 pm

There's a bakery in the town I'm moving to called Mrs Joy's Absolutely Fabulous Treats. Locals rave about it and it really does seem to live up to the hype. One never knows when one will strike gold, do one?

I saw this joke on YouTube and, even though it's terrible, it's still cracks me up.

What's the difference between the people and Dubai and the people in Abu Dhabi?

The people in Dubai don't like the Flintstones but the people in Abu Dhabi do.

45Darth-Heather
feb 5, 2021, 10:40 am

>44 SomeGuyInVirginia: (winces) ouch Larry, terrible for sure :D

46ScoLgo
feb 5, 2021, 1:09 pm

>44 SomeGuyInVirginia: That terrible joke is a great candidate for the Bad Jokes thread... ;-)

47Darth-Heather
Bewerkt: feb 11, 2021, 8:35 am



Our family has grown! We adopted this little lady yesterday. She used to have a scary life outside and will take some time to get used to us. She's very shy but sweet. We are considering naming her Daisy.

48Sakerfalcon
feb 11, 2021, 8:40 am

Ooohhhh, she's beautiful! She looks like my cat Medea. I hope she will feel at home soon.

49SomeGuyInVirginia
feb 11, 2021, 8:56 am

Nice! What a pretty cat! You can tell she's anxious but also looking forward to cuddles.

50hfglen
feb 11, 2021, 9:32 am

What the others said. And these wretched, stoopid hoomins who stick a camera in her nose when she's all scared and nervous. Long-distance cuddles to her when she's ready for them.

51clamairy
feb 11, 2021, 9:57 am

What a beauty! I hope she settles in quickly. I'm so very happy for you.

52NorthernStar
feb 11, 2021, 1:37 pm

>47 Darth-Heather: She's beautiful! And what everyone else said.

53YouKneeK
feb 11, 2021, 3:47 pm

>47 Darth-Heather: Congrats to possibly-Daisy on being adopted to such a great home, and congrats to you on your new queen. ;) She's certainly as pretty as a Daisy! I couldn't quite tell if she was anxious as others mentioned or just intently contemplating an attack on the feathery gray thing in front of her.

54Darth-Heather
feb 11, 2021, 3:56 pm

>53 YouKneeK: she's totally terrified. She was trapped with a bunch of other ferals in September, and the nice people at the shelter have been working on socializing her. She had gotten to a comfort level with them, but then we horrible humans tore her from there and made her ride in the car.... She finally moved from the carrier to hide under the bed sometime during the night. She's going to live in our guest room for awhile until she's ready to explore further.

We can only spend time getting to know her until she decides she's ready to be friends. She lets me pet her, but I think it won't go much further until she can see us interacting with our other cats. She trusts other cats, so hopefully she will learn a lot once she can see our silly boys being snuggled and spoiled.

55YouKneeK
feb 11, 2021, 5:30 pm

>54 Darth-Heather: Poor kitty, she’ll soon learn that her life is going to be much better from here on out! Your plan to keep her confined to a smaller space until she feels more comfortable sounds like a great plan.

56Narilka
feb 11, 2021, 8:48 pm

>47 Darth-Heather: Congratulations on the new addition!

57MrsLee
feb 13, 2021, 11:32 am

Aww, lovely lady cat. My semi-feral that I adopted a couple of years ago has now convinced herself that my lap is the best/warmest place to be, and she even enjoys the daily combing ritual. She began thinking it was torture, but after months of watching the other cat enjoy it, she now wants her turn. Patience will out!

58Karlstar
feb 13, 2021, 5:06 pm

>54 Darth-Heather: Congrats on the new addition! It looks very similar to the cat we adopted 4 years back. She was very 'touch me not' for a while, but she's adjusted, at least to my wife.

59SomeGuyInVirginia
feb 14, 2021, 4:32 pm

Happy Valentine's Day!

60Darth-Heather
feb 16, 2021, 3:06 pm

A Song With Teeth by T. Frohock is the final installment of the Los Nefilim series. It gets a little confusing at times, with factions struggling between angel-born and demon-born nefilim, and then addition of political strife (set at the onset of WWII). In the end, though, I felt like everything wrapped up in a satisfactory manner.

I still have questions, though, and this book is newly released so there aren't many people to discuss with yet; hopefully someone will address my spoiler comment eventually: so when Nefilim die, they are reborn as Nefilim. The catchphrase is "I will watch for you", spoken to a Nefilim as a dying comfort, to remind them that they will one day find their friends and loved ones again in new incarnations. Ok, I guess. The thing is, WHO are they reborn to? The author doesn't really discuss where all these Nefilim babies are coming from; they can only be born to Nefilim parents. And a LOT of Nefilim die in this final book. So, are a lot of Nefilim having babies? Is there a backlog while a Nefilim soul waits for a Nefilim woman to be impregnated? What if one of the parents isn't a Nefilim? The idea of being reborn is interesting in the way that it causes characters to behave, but the logistics don't work

61Darth-Heather
mrt 6, 2021, 11:54 am

The Queen of Bedlam by Robert McCammon was amazing. I am a fan of his writing already; i think this is the 10th book of his that I've read. He is a genius with descriptions and character building. Most of his other works are horror of different types (werewolves, Nazis, creepy families who have made a demonic pact, etc) but this book is the second in his historical mystery series centered on Matthew Corbett, a young man trying to make his way in 19th century New York City. Matthew has an inquiring mind and keeps getting drawn into solving mysteries. There are five more books in this series and I'm torn between wanting to tear through them and wanting to save them and savor.

62clamairy
mrt 6, 2021, 2:50 pm

>61 Darth-Heather: Oh, I just read the first one a few months ago and was blown away. Fascinating time period, for sure. And no supernatural elements, which I actually appreciated.

63-pilgrim-
Bewerkt: mrt 8, 2021, 4:28 pm

>61 Darth-Heather:, >62 clamairy: Have either of you read The Crow Garden by Alison Littlewood? I would be very interested in how you think it compared.

64Darth-Heather
mrt 8, 2021, 4:53 pm

>63 -pilgrim-: I haven't heard of that one before. I see that it is part of a series - have you read others too? I'm going to have to check it out.

65-pilgrim-
mrt 8, 2021, 7:30 pm

>64 Darth-Heather: I am not aware of it being part of a series, or their being any other books connected to it. As far as I am aware, it is completely self-contained.

66Darth-Heather
mrt 9, 2021, 10:42 am

>65 -pilgrim-: ah, I see, I must have misunderstood the review someone posted where it sounded like this was a sequel to another book called Hidden People.

67-pilgrim-
mrt 9, 2021, 11:16 am

>66 Darth-Heather: That sounds an interesting book, but no, I can see no connection either in people or location. Just that they both are set in the Victoria era.

68clamairy
mrt 9, 2021, 1:57 pm

>63 -pilgrim-: & >64 Darth-Heather: I have not heard of this one either.

69SomeGuyInVirginia
mrt 13, 2021, 7:38 pm

>61 Darth-Heather: I've got almost every book he's written but I've never read one. Can you recommend a good starter?

70-pilgrim-
Bewerkt: mrt 15, 2021, 5:18 am

>68 clamairy: Highly recommended. Creepy, gothic, set in Victorian era. A young doctor takes a job in a remote psychiatric hospital. He is caring and interested in innovation, and horrified by some of the traditional practices the head doctor uses. But he has mistakes in his own past that haunt him too...

A really good sense of the attitudes of the era, and the remoteness of the Yorkshire moors.

71clamairy
mrt 14, 2021, 8:11 pm

>70 -pilgrim-: I'll keep it in mind.

72Darth-Heather
mrt 15, 2021, 9:21 am

>69 SomeGuyInVirginia: yes! Definitely start with Stinger, Boy's Life, or Gone South. Any of those will give you a good idea of his writing style. I know a lot of people recommend Swan Song which is a good one but a serious time commitment at 900+ pages so not a great starting point but worthwhile if you end up becoming a fan.

73SomeGuyInVirginia
mrt 17, 2021, 2:28 pm

Coolio! I've got kindle editions of all three. I think I'll start with Boy's Life, although Stinger looks good, too. Thanks Heather!

74Darth-Heather
Bewerkt: mei 1, 2021, 7:05 am

I gave The Pendragon Protocol a full 100+ pages because I really liked the premise, but the writing style was really bothering me. For some reason, the author uses contractions instead of verbs. I guess it is supposed to make it seem like you are hearing the character's voice, but I found it awkward to read. Here is an excerpt:

In this company of Knights, Malory's confident and assured, without ever failing to be deferential. Whenever the Seneschal looks as if he might interrupt, being a man who sees listening to others as an evil of limited necessity, she gives him the opportunity with a respectful pause.
So far he's mostly changed his mind and held his tongue, which may be the effect Malory's aiming for.


That is just one paragraph, and it bugs me that he chose to contract rather than using "Malory is confident", or "So far he has", or "the effect Malory was".

After 100 pages I gave up - there were just too many apostrophes and I found it disruptive.

75-pilgrim-
Bewerkt: mei 1, 2021, 9:08 am

>74 Darth-Heather: This is very much Dale the Tale who is talking here, at a storytelling session. He is not a narrative device; he is very much a character in his own right. And since Dale values his image as a "man of the people", I cannot imagine him speaking any other way.

I found it difficult to get used to, and irritating at first. But I can see why the author made the decision to write that way.

I have visited the Edinburgh Storytelling Centre, where professional storytellers tell stories, usually local lore, and often in broad Scots. Dale is English, but his informal narrative style is very similar to theirs. And in the third book, a similar National Storytelling Centre has been opened in England too.

76NorthernStar
Bewerkt: apr 30, 2021, 9:33 pm

>74 Darth-Heather: Ugh - I would interpret those proper nouns as possessives, and it would be very distracting. I suppose you might get used to it, eventually. The author could have left a space after the name, to distinguish it.

77-pilgrim-
apr 30, 2021, 9:59 pm

>74 Darth-Heather: I also usually find the present continous an infuriating choice of tense by an author. But in the voice of a professional storyteller, I forgave that also.

78Darth-Heather
mei 1, 2021, 7:10 am

>77 -pilgrim-: I usually am able to go along with whatever choices an author makes, so I've put this one back on the TBR pile to give it another try someday. Maybe I'm just not in the right mood for it just now. It is a great premise, so I'm hopeful that I will find a way in.

79Darth-Heather
mei 10, 2021, 4:15 pm

The Randomizer has assigned me The Wise Man's Fear to read this month. It is the sequel to The Name of the Wind, but it's been a long time since I read that one, so decided to re-read it before jumping into the second book. I was a little apprehensive about making time for two 1k pagers, but am very glad I did, since they are just so good. I was sad to reach the end, but will look forward to probably re-reading them again someday when The Doors of Stone finally gets released.

Now I'm at that stage where I can't seem to move on and read something else...

80Busifer
mei 10, 2021, 4:30 pm

>79 Darth-Heather: I remember enjoying The name of the Wind very much, but then the sequel took ages. In the end I cancelled my pre-order, and it still were some years before Wise man's fear eventually got published. At that point I decided I would only spend time on authors who actually manage to write with some consistency. At least when it comes to series.

Every now and again I think I should pick the sequel up but then I tell myself that I'll wait until the last part is published...

81reading_fox
mei 11, 2021, 4:20 am

>78 Darth-Heather: I really enjoyed the whole trilogy it's great fun. IIRC we get cutaways from Dale to Jory who's in a more usual voice.

>80 Busifer: - continue waiting until the conclusion is released. If it ever is. WMF is not as good as NotW. It has some of the brilliance in places, but also some huge diversions, and doesn't explain or explore the 'main' plot from NotW at all. I found it frustrating even while I enjoyed it, and it probably just needed a really harsh edit to chop well written but unnecessary parts.

82Busifer
mei 11, 2021, 1:04 pm

>81 reading_fox: Thanks for the warning. I will wait for the concluding part, and then probably wait for the reviews, too, before I pick that particular thread back up.

83ScoLgo
mei 11, 2021, 7:03 pm

>78 Darth-Heather: I muscled through The Pendragon Protocol but found it a struggle. I can't claim to have been bothered too much by the contractions you mention but they may have helped do me in, subliminally speaking. I did notice several typos and wrong word choices in my e-book copy. A couple of examples that I highlighted:
...the Circle even provides them for bone fide work purposes, (location 1,640)

...if he’s to complete with plans drawn up by avatars of Prince John, (location 4,107)


Sure, these are minor errors, and are not, by themselves, a deal-breaker, but it's always distracting to me - especially so in a digital medium where it's so simple for the content creator to roll out a fix.

My 2.5-star review is relatively short, in case you are interested.

84Darth-Heather
mei 12, 2021, 9:01 am

>83 ScoLgo: wow- you put a lot more effort into it than I did :) Your review helps me to feel that I made the right choice. I have kept it on my TBR and might give it another chance someday, and will adjust my expectations accordingly. I really liked the premise and very much wanted it to work...

85ScoLgo
mei 12, 2021, 12:33 pm

>84 Darth-Heather: "I really liked the premise and very much wanted it to work..."

Yes, that is exactly how I felt when starting the read. I didn't post in an attempt to talk you out of giving it another go someday, merely to let you know that there are other readers out here that didn't love the book. Some readers clearly do love it though. "Vive le Difference!"   ;-)

86Darth-Heather
mei 12, 2021, 1:22 pm

>85 ScoLgo: that's fair. It's possible that this just isn't the right time for me and this book; there have been a few others since I started going back to school. I just don't have the brain space for all of it. Some will just have to languish in the TBR for now :)

87clamairy
mei 14, 2021, 9:41 am

>79 Darth-Heather: You've given me hope that I won't hate the second book. My daughter thought it was just weird in places and is no longer excited about the idea of the third one being published. But others I know enjoyed it enough, if not quite as much as the first. Perhaps I'll do the audio, so I can zone out during the odd bits.

88-pilgrim-
Bewerkt: mei 14, 2021, 1:41 pm

>83 ScoLgo: I am surprised at your comment that you did not know how Dale knows what took place in "scenes in which he was not there". As I recall, he clearly explains who his sources were, for those at which he was not present. As to why they told him: he is the official chronicler, after all. I am not sure how much is revealed in which book, though. I read the first two in succession, which leaves my memory a little unclear as to what is revealed in which book. Do you know yet that Dale has more than one identity?

I wouldn't consider either the book or the film that you mentioned as the appropriate background material. Purser-Hallard is riffing straight off Malory, and although I would not consider that a necessary read, I think he expects his audience to be familiar with a few straight retellings rather than just the more literary twists (or films).

His point is how integrated these images are to the English psyche. Before age 10, I had read children's versions of the legends of both King Arthur and Robin Hood, and seen 1 Arthurian and 2 Robin Hood TV series. As I grew older, I took a particular interest and started reading the early works, but that pre-teen level of exposure was just the norm for growing up in the UK. The stories, both in novels and on television, change emphases with each retelling, but the new versions appear regularly.

I suspect the books may work differently on someone from a different childhood mythology. I am following your comments with interest.

89ScoLgo
mei 14, 2021, 2:30 pm

>88 -pilgrim-: Yes, as I am not English and did not grow up surrounded by Arthurian legend, I am likely not the audience for these books. I also don't have a particularly overwhelming interest in the field. The description of the book had me interested at first, but the actual reading of it lost me along the way. I guess I missed where Dale explained his sources and chalk that up to the fact that I had trouble paying attention after a while. I know you are enamored with this story and am sorry to say that it just did not work for me.

90-pilgrim-
mei 14, 2021, 2:56 pm

>89 ScoLgo: I do have a long term interest in the mythology of Britain, but I think you may be doubly handicapped here, since the plot concerns how these intermesh with the current English Zeitgeist.

I cannot really explain without walking into the GD politics embargo, but its skill for me is how it relates timeless images of Britain to contemporary trends in British politics (the good and the bad). If you are familiar with neither, then I suspect you will miss a lot. With Brexit, there have been a lot of political claims made about "what it means to be British" - and the phrase can be used to mean very different things!

91ScoLgo
mei 14, 2021, 3:09 pm

>90 -pilgrim-: I suspect you are right. I simply don't have the background - nor current political knowledge of Britain - to fully appreciate Purser-Hallard's work. I'm glad the series worked for you but I don't see any possible future where I pick up the 2nd book.

OTOH, if it makes you feel any better, I did enjoy another recommendation of yours... Servant of the Underworld was a good read, (I rated it 7/10), and I do plan on picking up the sequels to that one at some point.

92Darth-Heather
mei 14, 2021, 3:28 pm

>91 ScoLgo: Yes! The Obsidian and Blood books are great - I've been gifting them to people at every chance :)

93hfglen
mei 14, 2021, 3:45 pm

>88 -pilgrim-: Your comments about the Arthurian cycle and the English psyche remind me that I must have had a very "colonial" upbringing in primary school: as much English as South African history and geography, and weekly doses of Robin, Swift or Eagle for literacy and interest.

94Karlstar
mei 14, 2021, 11:20 pm

>87 clamairy: You might not hate it, but you'll likely be disappointed.

95Darth-Heather
mei 15, 2021, 6:23 am

>94 Karlstar: Oh I hope that's not the case! I wasn't disappointed at all. I like the way it is drawn out, and immersive, and how well-drawn the characters are. I was reluctant to have to put it down and leave their world. I guess I can see why it maybe didn't meet everyone's expectations, but I really enjoyed it a lot and am dying to know how the next installment will continue where this one left off.

96clamairy
mei 15, 2021, 8:14 am

>94 Karlstar: & >95 Darth-Heather: Well, I will probably give it a shot at some point. And I won't have my expectations set too high when I do. Unfortunately I am the champion of starting a series and wandering off, so this won't be at the top of my list.

97-pilgrim-
mei 15, 2021, 11:09 am

>93 hfglen: English or British history?

I ask because I was surprised how much Scottish education used to focus on English history in their curriculum.

98hfglen
mei 15, 2021, 11:28 am

>97 -pilgrim-: It's now 60 years ago and more, but the bits that stuck were all English: I never got my mind around Scottish kings.

99-pilgrim-
mei 15, 2021, 11:33 am

>98 hfglen: I found Scottish history quite fascinating when I finally got a chance to study it. It had a government system write different from the English; and it still has an entirely separate legal system

But, given that its educational system was also quite different - and still is - I was surprised at the emphasis on English history.

I got the impression that South African school years, exams etc. followed the English model?

100hfglen
mei 15, 2021, 12:00 pm

>99 -pilgrim-: Up to a point. The school year runs from January to December, with a six-week break between years in December-January (midsummer). The primary-school syllabus was very English, but has become steadily less so after the declaration of a republic in 1961 (my last year in primary school). My first year in high school was fixing to be more of the same, but then the headmaster left with most of the best staff to start an apartheid-free school in Swaziland. The "new" headmaster had been a POW in Italy in WW2 -- later escaped -- and never got over the experience; I have seldom had the misfortune to encounter such a militarist (evidently many parents thought the same, and a year or so after I left school he was removed before he destroyed the place completely).

We have our own provincial school-leaving exams, and most private schools write the exams of the "Independent Examination Board" (formerly Joint Matriculation Board). Schools in Rhodesia and Swaziland wrote O and A Levels, respectively a year before and a year after the South African matric. I have an elderly friend who has told me about 25 times (his Alzheimers shows) that he did his teaching diploma at University of Rhodesia, and therefore it was a London qualification. Therefore he didn't have Afrikaans, which cause problems with the bureaucrats (Broeders) back home when he applied for a job with Natal Education Department.

101pgmcc
Bewerkt: mei 15, 2021, 12:49 pm

>97 -pilgrim-:
When I was doing my Junior Cert in Northern Ireland the history syllabus was primarily English history. There was very little Irish history. English kings and queens was what we had to learn about. Virtually no European history except when it involved a war with England.

102clamairy
mei 15, 2021, 1:21 pm

>101 pgmcc: So apparently the US isn't the only country guilty of flagrant ethnocentricity.

103haydninvienna
mei 15, 2021, 1:40 pm

My schooling was also very anglocentric. I still find it weird that at one stage of my life I knew more about English animals and plants than Australian ones.

104hfglen
mei 15, 2021, 1:48 pm

>103 haydninvienna: Sons of the Empah, what! I assume the same would apply to Canada and New Zealand?

105haydninvienna
mei 15, 2021, 2:11 pm

My mother worked before her marriage as a housekeeper on a sheep property, and stayed in contact with her former employer Mr Storey and his wife to the end of their lives. Mrs Storey used to refer to England as “home” as long as she lived.

106NorthernStar
Bewerkt: mei 15, 2021, 2:40 pm

Deleted due to duplication

107NorthernStar
Bewerkt: mei 15, 2021, 2:39 pm

>104 hfglen: Speaking for this Canadian, I did get some Canadian history in school, and I vaguely remember some European history, but remarkably little other world history penetrated. In junior high and high school we had "social studies" which combined bits of history, geography, and other miscellaneous things. I was much more interested in the sciences and math, though, so it may be a lack in what I absorbed, rather than what I was taught. Most of my English history comes from Mother's delightful copy of 1066 and all that by Sellar and Yeatman.

Also by reading her copies of Ellis Peters, Dorothy Sayers, Ngaio Marsh, and Agatha Christie.

Edited to fix typos and touchstone problems from typing on my phone screen. And add a few things.

108-pilgrim-
mei 15, 2021, 4:36 pm

>102 clamairy: Except, as the only descendant of the British Empire to have been educated actually in England (even though the Empire has ceased to be a thing long before I was born), I seem to have had the least Anglocentric education.
History:
Junior school: social & economic history - England only, with a concentration in what could actually be observed within easy travelling distance from the school.
1st year: World history, ancient civilisations - Greece, Rome, China, Egypt, Maya, Inca, India
2nd: English history: Roman invasion-late mediaeval
3rd: English history: Tudors-18th century (including American colonies)
4th & 5th: (2 themes)
British history - 20th century political, social and economic
European history - mid-19th-20th century
Main focus on Russia, Germany and France and their, and British, colonies.
USA only when active in Europe.

Geography:
1st: physical geography
2nd: South America
3rd: Africa
(I presume I might have got to Eurasia and North America if I had taken the'O'-level)

So, relatively little on the New World, but about 50% the country I was in, 50% beyond.

109Busifer
mei 16, 2021, 10:13 am

>102 clamairy: I consider Swedish education to be very ethnocentric, even as the curriculum includes close looks at all parts of the world, from both classic, politic, economical histories, "place" geography, political science, all world religions. Because everything is taught through the lens of ethnocentricity: I, as did my son, decades later, learned about the greatness of Gustavus Adolphus ("The Lion from the North"), not about the fanatic warrior priests, not about the religious persecution (torture, execution) that went after fellow protestants if they deigned interpret some text in a marginally different way than the official one: other religions were opponents, but other protestants were deviants, abominations to eradicate.
We learn that we stayed out of WWII and benefited from it when Europe lay in ruins, and we learn about Raoul Wallenberg who saved Hungarian Jews from the Nazis, but not that we placed "disruptive" citizens in work camps, suppressed freedom of speech, and sold enormous amounts of iron ore to the Nazis as a way to strengthen an enemy to our ancestral foe ("Russia" - whatever the political entity that presently resides in that general area of the world...) ("the foe of my enemy is my friend").

And so on.

110SomeGuyInVirginia
jul 6, 2021, 3:13 pm

Good Lord, Heather! How do I keep missing your new threads?! Sorry, I've not been a very good LT friend, which is especially bad because I value your friendship.

I had a family drama that kept me out of town for the better part of three months, but it's resolved itself to the point where I'm no longer involved on a daily basis. Which is good because both I and my family have fantasies about my being adopted and my real family is out there somewhere.

111Darth-Heather
jul 6, 2021, 4:29 pm

>110 SomeGuyInVirginia: hey, good to hear from ya!

Family drama sounds like a drag, I hope for your sake that you can keep your sanity and take care of yourself.

You will be glad to know that the Randomizer has assigned me Vicious Circle by Mike Carey for this month (the second book in the Felix Castor series). :)

112Darth-Heather
okt 2, 2021, 7:28 am

Oh my it's been too long since I posted new reads here. This summer wasn't conducive to reading - I've been taking online classes, and found that while many classes are manageable online, Chemistry isn't one of them. We had to basically teach ourselves chemistry from a textbook and submit homework problems. We even got lab kits to do experiments at home (you have to submit photos to prove you've done the lab, and a lab report). I was having to spend about 20 hours a week on this one course, which is much more than most classes I've had so far.

I'm glad that is over! Back to my regularly scheduled programming... err... reading.

I just finished The Green Man's Challenge by Juliet McKenna. Kindle pre-orders are a wonderful thing. The book was released on tuesday and automatically showed up in my Kindle. It kept me company during a medical procedure yesterday; I couldn't have asked for a better distraction. This installment in the series is every bit as good as the previous ones; actually now that we are at the fourth one the general premise is shaping up nicely.

Other recent reads of note included Vicious Circle and Dead Men's Boots by Mike Carey - the second and third books in the Felix Castor series. These are great fun! Felix is an exorcist who works in London, and keeps getting in and out of complicated scrapes with all manner of supernatural beings.

Over the summer I read the Discovery of Witchesseries by Deborah Harkness, and while I occasionally wished the heroine would have a bit more spine, overall I really enjoyed the setting, and some unexpected twists. I understand there is a tv show version but haven't looked into that - I'm afraid it won't live up to the version in my imagination. The author writes with a lot of vivid description so my internal visualization is fully fleshed out.

I also read all three The Fall Of Ile-Rien books by Martha Wells - she is such a clever writer! Topped that off with the fourth Murderbot book; I'm hesitating to read them all right away, because I'm not ready for it to be over :)

The Green Man's Challenge was a perfect start to October's Month of Spooky Reads.
Next up:
Dead Voices and Dark Waters by Katherine Arden.

113pgmcc
okt 2, 2021, 9:03 am

>112 Darth-Heather:
I am delighted you enjoyed The Green Man’s Challenge. I have it on my Kindle and it will be my next read.

114-pilgrim-
okt 2, 2021, 12:34 pm

>112 Darth-Heather: I hope the medical procedure went ok.

115Darth-Heather
okt 3, 2021, 8:33 am

>113 pgmcc: I think you are going to enjoy it! It's going to be a long wait to the next one though...

>114 -pilgrim-: I am well, thank you :) Just age creeping up on me, I guess.

116clamairy
Bewerkt: okt 3, 2021, 11:28 am

>112 Darth-Heather: I really need to start that Greenman series. I am delighted that you enjoyed A Discovery of Witches, which is one of those books people seem to love or hate. I enjoyed it, and like you wish the heroine had more of a spine. I saw the author speak at my daughter's college commencement, and appreciated her sense of humor.

Hope your medical procedure went off without a hitch.

117Darth-Heather
Bewerkt: okt 3, 2021, 3:53 pm

>116 clamairy: you can't go wrong with the Green Man series; after all, it comes highly recommended by >113 pgmcc: pmgcc - so that's all the recommendation we need :)

have you seen the tv show version of Discovery of Witches? I'm afraid to try it for fear that the casting won't live up to my imagination, particularly in regards to Matthew's parents. They are such fascinating characters; I'd hate to see them done wrong.

118pgmcc
okt 3, 2021, 4:31 pm

>117 Darth-Heather: it comes highly recommended by >113 pgmcc: pgmcc: pmgcc - so that's all the recommendation we need :)

That is very flattering. I am glad your experience with the Green Man series does not conflict with that sentiment.

119catzteach
okt 3, 2021, 8:06 pm

>112 Darth-Heather: I want to read the Green Man books. Are they only available as e-books? And I really liked The Discovery of Witches. I have watched the show. I liked it, but it’s been a while since I’ve read the books. Have they filmed a season 2?

120clamairy
okt 3, 2021, 8:21 pm

>117 Darth-Heather: & >119 catzteach: I haven't watched it either and probably won't. There are too many other things I'd rather watch, and I barely put on my TV already.

121pgmcc
okt 4, 2021, 3:00 am

>119 catzteach:
The Green Man physical books can be bought from the publisher’s website or Amazon.

122reading_fox
okt 4, 2021, 5:15 am

Chemistry at home! That sounds entertaining, if hard work. What sorts of experiments did they get you doing?

I didn't get on so well with vicious circle not sure why I enjoyed the first, but wasn't so taken by this one.

123Darth-Heather
okt 4, 2021, 8:55 am

>122 reading_fox: I'm fortunate to have an entire chemistry laboratory at my disposal, so I got to do my experiments at work; I think most students have to do them in their kitchen.

I took chemistry with my environmental science degree but that course didn't meet the requirements of the geoscience program so I had to take another one and it's been a lot of years so basically had to learn everything over again. ugh. I had to subscribe to a Youtube professor to fill in for the absence of a live lecture, just so I could see equations demonstrated. Thanks to 'Professor Dave Explains', I got through this course and don't have to take any more.

The labs were kind of fun - we did a calorimetry one where we made chemical heatpacks using calcium chloride and ammonium chloride, and one about equilibrium rates using silver nitrate, and a gas law one using yeast.

124clamairy
okt 4, 2021, 2:39 pm

>123 Darth-Heather: It sounds fascinating, and I'm glad you didn't have to do it all in your kitchen.

125Darth-Heather
okt 8, 2021, 8:04 am

Jeepers heckin creepers - Dead Voices by Katherine Arden is terrifying. She is a good writer, and makes this spooky story really engrossing in a spine-tingling way.
The main characters are 11 years old, so this is meant to be YA but seriously if I'd read these as a child I would have had to sleep with the lights on for years to come.

This is the second in the Small Spaces series, and I plan to read the third one this month but I'm going to read something less creepy in between.

126reading_fox
okt 8, 2021, 11:13 am

>123 Darth-Heather: that sounds great!

127catzteach
okt 9, 2021, 6:45 pm

>121 pgmcc: thanks! I’ll look for them.

>125 Darth-Heather: oooh, I like creepy. I’ll have to see if my library has these.

128clamairy
okt 9, 2021, 9:51 pm

>125 Darth-Heather: Oh! I loved her The Bear and the Nightingale series. I will tag this series on OverDrive for some other time. I'm already in the middle of something Halloweeny.

129emmacornish600
okt 10, 2021, 4:58 am

Deze gebruiker is verwijderd als spam.

130Darth-Heather
okt 10, 2021, 8:13 am

>128 clamairy: yep, that's how I found these - I loved the Bear and Nightingale ones so much, and went looking to see what else I could find by the author. The third Small Spaces book just came out, but I don't know if more are planned.

131SomeGuyInVirginia
okt 19, 2021, 10:03 pm

Darling, I'm not going to read the above because I don't want it to jinx me. Welcome, welcome back!

132Darth-Heather
okt 23, 2021, 7:17 am

>131 SomeGuyInVirginia: Don't worry Larry, I will keep you safe from the jinx! And welcome back to you too. Are you finished with moving and unpacking? (Don't forget to give me your new address if you would like a calendar this year.) Did you get to meet with WHL on his journey of discovery?

Happy Mole Day to everyone!

I have finished the course on map making, which was very interesting, and now am starting the next course which is terrifying. Intro to Scripting will teach me basic programming, but I'm going into it with exactly zero programming experience so am expecting it to be tough.

133SomeGuyInVirginia
okt 27, 2021, 2:08 pm

I haven't finished with the unpacking, although the moving is all done. Slowly but surely I'm completing the house room by room. The next big push is going to be the home office. I've got a kid coming in to put wallpaper up in the dining room and I explained that the walls were black, the wallpaper had a black background, and the ceiling was painted in a gold metallic paint. Then I said that I like it but I hope it doesn't look like a drug dealers dining room. He laughed and said his fiance is an interior designer and when he comes over he'll bring her and she can give me some ideas. I'm at a complete loss on what to do as far as curtains are concerned.

I did not get to see WHL. I had a family drama flare up the day before he got here and left early in the morning to drive to Virginia Beach. I felt really terrible about it, but I couldn't have gotten out of it. I think he had some good adventures and some good times but I'm not sure that he had a very good time. That's too bad.

You're going to do fantastic in your classes, I know you are. I want to know why? Cuz you're worried about them. Smart people worry about everything. You be fine.

Don't tell me I missed Mole Day!

134Darth-Heather
Bewerkt: nov 14, 2021, 2:39 pm

Saddened to hear of the passing of Wilbur Smith, an author who I have much enjoyed over the years.

legendary-novelist-wilbur-smith-passes-away-at-the-age-of-eighty-eight

135Darth-Heather
nov 30, 2021, 1:36 pm

Recently returned from waging a mighty battle with Glen Cook's The Black Company. This was much better than I expected based on some reviews; I enjoyed it greatly.

It starts as a basic medieval fantasy/sword&sorcery setting of good versus evil, only the main character is a regular guy in the evil army, trying to figure out if he should be on the side he's on.

I read all three books in the original trilogy; they came as a set through Kindle Unlimited. I see that there are more books in this series and I will definitely seek them out.

136Darth-Heather
dec 14, 2021, 10:21 am

This month started with Tainted Trail by Wen Spencer, the sequel to Alien Taste. The first book starts off as a sort of detective story with an unusual twist, but turns into something unexpected towards the end. The second one elaborates on the main character's unusual abilities, and is a decent progression of the plot but a bit weaker than the first. I might seek out the next one, but no guarantees.

Now onto my traditional December read: The Dark Is Rising series by Susan Cooper. Although only one book in the series is set during the Yule season, somehow the whole thing is connected to this time of year for me.

137Sakerfalcon
dec 14, 2021, 10:54 am

>136 Darth-Heather: The dark is rising is the perfect winter reread! I love the series!

138SomeGuyInVirginia
dec 16, 2021, 3:12 am

That's a great series! All that lovely snow!

139Karlstar
dec 16, 2021, 10:54 pm

>135 Darth-Heather: Glad to hear you enjoyed The Black Company. You've read up to The Silver Spike? I read those books years ago and just realized that The Annals of the Black Company, the edition I have, is actually the first three books.

140Darth-Heather
dec 17, 2021, 7:52 am

>139 Karlstar: Its confusing to look at the listings; the individual books are compiled into collections that aren't always called the same. The one I got is called The Chronicles of the Black Company (but in some listings is The Annals of the Black Company and contains The Black Company, Shadows Linger, and The White Rose. This group is confusingly referred to as "Book 1", and there are three more "Books" that each contain multiple books...

I also downloaded "Book 2", which is called The Books of the South and has the next three installments. Hoping to get onto that sometime soon.

141SomeGuyInVirginia
dec 25, 2021, 11:44 am

Merry Christmas, Heather!

142Darth-Heather
dec 30, 2021, 8:40 am

My top reads this year all seem to be parts of series:

The Chronicles of the Black Company trilogy by Glen Cook
The A Discovery of Witches trilogy by Deborah Harkness
The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss (sequel to The Name of the Wind
The Queen of Bedlam by Robert McCammon (Matthew Corbett series)
The Semiosis duology by Sue Burke
The Los Nefilim series by T.Frohock
All Systems Red and the rest of the Murderbot series by Martha Wells

some of these are ongoing series' that I will hopefully spend more time with this coming year

143SomeGuyInVirginia
dec 30, 2021, 9:03 am

Works for me, I just downloaded the ebook A Discovery of Witches from my local lie-berry. I don't read many series books, but I do love the Bryant & May books by Christopher Fowler. I've been reading them for almost 20 years. I've got the latest but someone said it's also the last in the series so I haven't even looked inside yet!

144Darth-Heather
dec 30, 2021, 9:14 am

>143 SomeGuyInVirginia: I will take a look at those too! Your recommendations have held up well so far :)

145Darth-Heather
Bewerkt: dec 31, 2021, 8:18 am

I'm pretty close to the necessary 150 posts already, so I'm going to just piffle a bit here and post some photos from this year's trip to South Dakota.

Here's one from the Badlands National Park:


the landscape just seems totally bizarre to me, compared to heavily forested NH.

146Darth-Heather
Bewerkt: dec 31, 2021, 8:19 am

Bigfoot Pass:

147Darth-Heather
dec 31, 2021, 8:20 am

148Darth-Heather
dec 31, 2021, 8:21 am

149Darth-Heather
dec 31, 2021, 8:28 am

This is the model sculpture for the Crazy Horse monument, however its going to be a long time before the actual carving gets this far along (you can see it in the distance outside the window)

150Darth-Heather
dec 31, 2021, 8:29 am

Mount Rushmore:

151Darth-Heather
dec 31, 2021, 8:30 am

Black Hills National Forest:

152Darth-Heather
dec 31, 2021, 8:31 am

Buffalo:

153Darth-Heather
dec 31, 2021, 8:34 am

The Mammoth Hot Springs archaeological site is really interesting. It was discovered by a farmer, plowing his field. He turned up some very large bones, and sold the land to a research society who are still excavating. They aren't sure how deep it goes, but they think it was originally a steep-sided sinkhole that attracted mammoths seeking water. Over many years, a lot of animals fell in and their remains are stacked in layers that have to be painstakingly uncovered to preserve the findings.

154Darth-Heather
dec 31, 2021, 8:36 am

Speaking of digging, I was delighted to discover that South Dakota is a rock collectors dream. There are a lot of different kinds of interesting stones, and the towns are full of 'rock shops' where you can buy rocks by the pound. I couldn't bring home very much (luggage limitations) but it was hard to pass up the temptation.

155Darth-Heather
dec 31, 2021, 8:37 am

Another interesting discovery was the SD Air Museum.

156Darth-Heather
dec 31, 2021, 8:40 am

Thanks for attending my TED talk piffle fest! :)

157-pilgrim-
dec 31, 2021, 8:44 am

>156 Darth-Heather: Those were fascinating. I particularly liked seeing the statue in progress.

158clamairy
dec 31, 2021, 8:51 am

Great photos! Looking forward to your new thread!

159Darth-Heather
Bewerkt: dec 31, 2021, 8:59 am

>157 -pilgrim-: They have been working at carving it for 40 years, so it looks like it's going to be a very long time to finish!

160-pilgrim-
dec 31, 2021, 9:19 am

>159 Darth-Heather: What tools does one use on sonething of that scale?

161pgmcc
dec 31, 2021, 9:43 am

Fantastic pictures. Your posts were top notch piffling. Very high standard of piffle.

162SomeGuyInVirginia
dec 31, 2021, 2:44 pm

Those are all fantastic pics, Heather, you have a great eye! May it carry you far and wide in 2022, and may you and yours have every happiness! Happy New Year!

163catzteach
dec 31, 2021, 3:31 pm

Wow! Those pics make me want to visit the Dakotas! Very cool!

164MrsLee
jan 2, 2022, 1:19 pm

Love the photo tour! I'm with >163 catzteach:, you have made me want to visit a place which has held very little interest for me before this.

165Darth-Heather
jan 3, 2022, 8:07 am

>164 MrsLee: I definitely got the impression that there is quite a large expanse of absolutely nothing in the rest of the state, stretching all the way to Minnesota, and if you go south all you get is Nebraska. The Badlands and Black Hills are in the southwestern part, so we flew to Rapid City and got a cabin in Custer and did everything in day trips from there. Mount Rushmore and Crazy Horse are right on the highway in between, so it's actually very conveniently set up for tourism.

166MrsLee
jan 3, 2022, 9:27 am

>165 Darth-Heather: Good to know! One of our dreams is to putter around America in an RV when we are both retired, with no definite plans. Just following roads. That may not be practical if gas prices and the economy continue the way they are. :|

167Darth-Heather
jan 3, 2022, 9:30 am

>166 MrsLee: Mr. Darth and I have it on our bucket list to visit every National Park, some of which will have to wait until we are retired as they are harder to get to. We have been to about half of the Alaska ones, but the Gates of the Arctic and others on the North Slope are not easily accessible. We may not make it to all of them, but are having a lot of fun trying :)

As you say though, I'm going to have to boost my retirement fund if I have any hopes of this!

168pgmcc
jan 3, 2022, 10:09 am

>166 MrsLee: Get a solar panel on the RV roof. :-)

169majkia
jan 3, 2022, 10:20 am

>140 Darth-Heather: I need to get back to The Black Company. Read the first ages ago, then, what do you know, got confused about what comes next. I'll try again to figure that out.

170Sakerfalcon
jan 3, 2022, 11:22 am

I love your photos of SD! Like most people, I've never been there although I lived in Kansas for a year so was relatively close by. I'd love to see the Badlands.

171Darth-Heather
jan 3, 2022, 7:16 pm

plane piffling:

172Darth-Heather
jan 3, 2022, 7:16 pm

173Darth-Heather
jan 3, 2022, 7:16 pm


this is my husband's favorite one - he flew on one similar.

174Darth-Heather
jan 3, 2022, 7:17 pm

175Darth-Heather
jan 3, 2022, 7:17 pm

176MrsLee
jan 3, 2022, 11:54 pm

>168 pgmcc: Sure, but I don't think they have made one that can run a vehicle yet?

177pgmcc
jan 4, 2022, 2:48 am

>176 MrsLee:
As long as it powers the wifi who cares?

;-)

178hfglen
jan 4, 2022, 5:20 am

>174 Darth-Heather: How good to see a dear old Dakota (the backbone of African aviation back in the day) in a state called Dakota.

179haydninvienna
jan 4, 2022, 6:39 am

>173 Darth-Heather: I believe you can still see the KC-135s flying around East Anglia, or so Flightradar24 says. The oldest of them still flying must be over 40 years old.
Dit onderwerp werd voortgezet door Book Bullets From The Dark Side - Darth Heather in 2022.