Bettie's Books

bookshelves: cover-love, published-2012, summer-2012, historical-fiction, iceland, hardback, paper-read, portugal, roman-catholic, jewish, medieval5c-16c, mythology, ouch, slaves, seven-seas

No dedication
Three front quotes
Cast of Characters

Prologue - gripping, high drama twinned with a prophecy.

Opening of Chapter One:

Anno Domini 1539

The Queen of Spain once had a dream, that a white falcon flew out of the mountains towards her and in its talons it held the flaming ball of the sun and icy sphere of the moon. The queen opened her hand and the falcon dropped the sun and moon into her outstretched palm and she grasped them.

Cheese before bedtime will do that.

I wonder if anyone else felt the auto-da-fé section went on too long?

Some very exciting moments in this story however it is within the similarities of the Iberian Catholics and the Danish Lutherans of the period that gripped me most.

On the topmost branch sits an eagle, and perched between the eyes of the eagle is Vedfolnir the falcon, whose piercing gaze sees up into the heavens and down to the earth, and below the earth into the dark caverns of the underworld." 11 comments

Little King Sebastian of Portugal 1564"

She was the most beautiful creature who ever lived"

Sintra, Portugal"

Torre de Belem portugal"

He is a Draugr, a Nightstalker." 3 comments

Lucet is a method of cordmaking or braiding which is believed to date back to the Viking era. Lucet cord is square, strong, and slightly springy. It closely resembles knitted I-cord or the cord produced on a knitting spool. Lucet cord is formed by a series of loops, and will therefore unravel if cut."

The doorway to possession = Dyra-dómr of Draugr (approx.)"

" 1 comment

Gilitrutt the troll wife"

Zaphod Beeblebrox is remembered, lampooned, a dress-up favourite; I have a feeling the characters here won't pass the test of time in the same way"

Ptarmigan"

Solid 3*

5* Company of Liars
5* The Owl Killers
4* The Gallows Curse
3* The Falcons of Fire and Ice
TR Hill of Bones (in bedroom stack)

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BOOK BLOG - the lead up:
9/3/2012 email to Karen Maitland:

Hello there Karen,
We* are wondering where we can get our handsies on The White Room, are you planning to re-publish now you are garnering such prestige?

* Goodread readers Bettie and Pat

Thanks in anticipation.

............................................

10/3/2012 email back:

Dear Bettie & Pat,
Thank you for your email. I only wish I was garnering any prestige. But its lovely of you to say so.

No, I'm afraid there are no plans to republish The White Room. It was a a modern story about a British girl being drawn into the fringes of terrorism. At the time it was written no Middle Eastern Terrorist acts had been carried out in England, but events have now sadly overtaken fiction. It was based on events I experienced in Belfast and Nigeria, so was in a sense a piece of cathartic fiction I had to get out of my system before I could write anything else.

I'm in the process of getting a new website (going live next Thursday I hope) and I will drop the mention of the book on the new website, as it isn't available, apart from the occasional 2nd hand copy popping up from time to time on Amazon etc.

Sorry, I can't be more help, but thank you so such for getting in touch and happy reading!
warmest wishes,
Karen

.....................................

Karen Maitland with a side order of Iceland is my only weakness (hah) - jeeeepers this is going to be good. Now I know of this it will seem like a l-o-n-g drag until the autumn.



More recent history: The Order of the Falcon or Hin íslenska fálkaorða is a national Order of Iceland, established on July 3, 1921 by King Christian X of Denmark and Iceland.

The Order has five classes:
Keðja með stórkrossstjörnu or Collar with Grand Cross, only for heads of state
Stórkrossriddari or Knight Grand Cross
Stórriddari með stjörnu or Grand Knight with Star
Stórriddari or Grand Knight
Riddari or Knight


DAY OF PUBLICATION 16/8/2012: You know how I swore that there would be no new books bought because of our boracic straits after crawling over northern europe like a cheap suit - I lied.

I lied to myself and to you.

Just pressed the 'place order' button. I can't be trusted.

23/8/2012: Still not here!