On second thought my fancy is tickled by the idea that the thinness of (the print) Illumé makes it an ideal travelling companion, perfect for those 2 hour waits in lounges. In that case, better pack lunch, and possibly dinner, too. Definitely pack a drink as it’s a big wordy world between those pretty covers and you need to keep up – no wandering off to consult a dictionary.
This is travel with a cocktail hour, dressing for dinner, and proper luggage.
Dad has seen one of my characters, an Illumé escapee. Svelte, husky voiced, very polite (the kind of knife-blade polite that could go either way) and moves like she belongs on a savannah… could indeed be Neige-Larme, my Snow-Tear! I’ll have to stroll down Charles Street with a time-out for cafe latte opposite the park.
Then I can see, too.
What is the tastes of summer? Is it basil? The first tomato from the garden? Watermelon? Raspberries – mmm, raspberries… No, the taste right on the tip of my tongue is dust and not the distilled bookish dust fuzzing up the shelves. This is road dust. From powder to grit, clay-dominant greyishness to quartz-sourced white and all the shades of ochre, it’s a subtle yet very noticable flavour, particularly when it has coated the lipstick you just slicked on as your last step before venturing Beyond The Gate. Of course, it isn’t necessary to drive with the window down… but then how do you hear the crickets and smell the new-cut hay?
So, dust equals summer.
And it tastes even better just before the rain…
“It’s a lushly written urban fantasy, stand-alone but set within a richly detailed version of Paris that has lots and lots of understated backstory to it. For all its wit and darkness and elaborate language, what truly sold me on this book were the incisive, full-bodied portraits of the female characters: lots of them, all flawed and living their own lives that don’t revolve around the hero, as charming and modest as he is. This is a gem of a book and Winterbourne is proud to present it.”
Wendy, Winterbourne
Awwwww. And ohhhh… of course… but I might need to look in the mirror and congratulate my subconscious because she really knew what she was doing. In tribute to those female characters, and to Wendy, I have to add Emelie Autumn’s cover of Girl’s Just Wanna Have Fun to the Illumé playlist.
Big day today: my book is out, and when I say ‘book’ I mean a novel in print and by an Australian publisher… Winterbourne. It’s even printed in Australia (on lovely shiny paper by the way). Yes. That’s pretty much the trifecta for me.
Details on where and how to follow. For now, it’s time to bask.
… “read it” … okay, tail end of an old librarian/frog joke but that’s how I’m finally feeling after a reading splurge yesterday. Not only am I now ahead on my Goodreads challenge, but I’m up to Book 7 of the Morganville Vampires and this morning I had a deliciously gothic accompaniment to my cinnamon porridge with fresh apricot in the shape of Sons of the Wolf – classic Barbara Michaels. Oh, mmm. But I think I’ll save Victoria Holt’s Time of the Hunter’s Moon for tonight. A little time spent weeding the vegie garden should make all that gothicky goodness extra shivery.
Plus, weeding lets the brain wander … hopefully toward Pandora’s Edge where a guy in a Batman suit has turned up to save the day, only no one knows why this particular day needs saving… or how Captain Thorne will react to the latest intruder.
