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[rhienelleth]

Camping was fun and good and relaxing - other than the dirt and thunderstorms, but hey, camping, right?

I finished reading a historical fantasy based on The Aeneid - Black Ships by jo_graham. It was really, really good. I loved how she took the episodic stories of Aeneas and his crew and made them a continuous, living, breathing story that might have actually happened in history.

It reminded me a bit of some of David Gemmell's more historically based work, like Dark Prince (Alexander the Great), except this had a more feminine touch, possibly because the narrator was female. It was told in first person POV through the eyes of Gull, a young girl who becomes Pythia as she grows up, seer and oracle to Prince Aeneas. It had a great voice, a good story, and an ending that made me tear up and smile both. What more could you ask for, really?

I admit I'm a sucker for things like this. I love the old stories - Beowulf, The Odyssey, The Aeneid (I like to read those last two back to back and make comparisons!) I'm the sort of person who has shelves that include everything from The Complete Works of Shakespeare and The Three Musketeers (I should read that again, hmm), to Janet Evanovich's latest Stephanie Plum.

Books like Black Ships sort of straddle the two lines. The story is old, but the writing is (even though the voice is appropriate and perfect for its setting) more modern, the characters for accessible, and thus, easier to just read and be entertained. As much as I love the story of Aeneas, for example, reading The Aeneid for fun is something I don't want to do too often.

In less fun news, I am sick, or stressed, or both. Everyday for the past week I've had a damn headache. I'm getting really tired of having them. But I tend to get them when stressed, and well, things haven't exactly been stress free of late.

I'm fairly certain I had another miscarriage last week. I mean, it could have just been the usual cycle, except I'm usually like clockwork, and this wasn't. And it was strange and heavy with lots of cramping and clotting, two things I don't normally have. And I was really "off" emotionally. Like, I cried for pretty much no reason when we were getting ready to leave for camping, because we were running late and Mark was irritated we were running late. It was certainly nothing to get worked up over, and I know I baffled him just as much as I did myself.

Now it's all over, whatever it was, and I am sitting at my desk at work this morning with another hella bad headache and a queasy stomach that comes and goes (which may be due to the headache). Bug? Maybe. Stress? Maybe. I don't know, but I don't like it.

Oh, and joy. I just found out I am required to go to an all day training thing today. Fabulous. *sigh*

I'll check in again around lunch time.

Comments

[sabaceanbabe.livejournal.com]

*hugs you tight*

[dragonsinger.livejournal.com]

Ooh...that book sounds extremely interesting. I might have to see if our library carries it...once I read ten books on my TBR shelf.:)

[stephdub.livejournal.com]

You need to win an all expense paid vacation to a spa resort, that comes with someone to cover you at work so nothing falls behind while you are gone.

Seriously, that would be the best contest ever. Someone should do that.

*hugs*

[kayjayuu.livejournal.com]

*hugs*

[kistha.livejournal.com]

Oh sweetie! It seems that lately all it does is pour. Here's hoping you get some good news, somewhere.

Many loves to you. We need to escape...somehow, someway. Wish we lived closer.

Snuggles.

[misssimm.livejournal.com]

*hugs*

[fatema.livejournal.com]

*HUGS*

[celli]

*hugs*