Novel Tourism

[alanajoli]

Thanks for all the well wishes for safe journeys! We did have a wonderful time abroad, and of the novels I brought with me, I finished almost all of them. If you knew the reading load for the course itself, you would realize that this is either an astonishing feat of speed reading or a realization that I wasn't, in fact, getting graded. (I did read quite a bit of the course material--but when on an airplane, boat, the beach, it's hard to read about sacred geography and Greek religion while also enjoying the journey or the sunshine. Balance is key.)

And so, without further ado, I present world traveling novels.


Welcome first to Istanbul, a city that certainly has magic lurking under its surface. Given that, Shanna Swendson's Don't Hex with Texas was right at home.



It's pictured here in front of the Hagia Sophia (Aya Sofia), one of the most confused buildings in the world: it was a church, then a mosque, and now it's a museum that leaves parts from each era adorning its walls. I can only imagine what sort of magical caretakers a place with so much spiritual energy would have if Katie Chandler ever saw through their veils!

From Istanbul to Truva, home of the famous city of Troy. Here, Simon Canderous from Anton Strout's Dead to Me poses at some of the most important locations--possibly taking time to interview the ghosts that must still linger at that site. (I'm curious just how long the pyschometric readings might last given that the war over Helen lasted ten years...)





Here, Simon ponders Schliemann's Trench. Archaeology? Or wanton destruction? You decide. And because Simon is doing his duty as a tourist, he also poses next to the Trojan horse (which is in great condition, considering its age!):



From Troy we make our way to one of the former seven wonders of the world: the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus. In Ephesus, Artemis was a warrior goddess, so it's fitting that warrior Kate Daniels from Ilona Andrew's Magic Burns is on the scene to take in the fallen temple.



As long as the goddess stays sleeping, we should all be fine (unlike that other war goddess, Morrigan). But we're not done with war. We're traveling to Mycenae, where Perseus, chosen of Athena, built one of the world's most defensible cities of its time: a fortress backed by two mountains and a gorge. Such strategy would suit the Marlovens of Sherwood Smith's Inda.


If Inda had been from Greece, he obviously would have been a chosen of Athena himself.

From Mycenae, we make our way to Olympia, home of another wonder of the world (Zeus at Olympia) and the Olympic Games. And entering the arena are the cheerleaders/spies of Jennifer Lynn Barnes's new series, "The Squad."


Because wouldn't you want to train on the most famous athletic site in the world?



On to Delphi, land of oracles and home to Apollo. Though Percy Jackson didn't make it on the trip (which worked out well enough, since the new book would have been most appropriate for Crete, a place sadly left off of our tour lists this year), in honor of Rick Riordan's depiction of Apollo, the book representing this site is a collection of haiku.



From Delphi to the idyllic isle of Naxos, a place of romance. This, of course, necessitated a visit from Jeaniene Frost's vampire hunter (and half-vamp herself) Cat Crawfield and her dreamy romantic interest, Bones (sadly, a vampire--it's complicated).

But while their relationship may have trials, it doesn't lack steamy scenes (have you read chapter 32?), and I can wish for Cat and Bones to have a vacation to a spot like Naxos in their adventures after One Foot in the Grave. It was a romantic enough spot for Dionysis and Ariadne, after all.

From Naxos to home of democracy Athens. Representing his government in the battle against hive minds is Johnnie Rico and his chapter-worthy battle suit from Starship Troopers. This one was suggested by militiajim, who rightly scolded me for not having read it before. Not only is it a great science fiction novel, but it's a brilliant discussion of civic responsibility and democracy, which makes Athens the ideal location for reading.




And with that, our tour is complete. Some pictures remain, of course--there are bookstores in Greece, and in the airport in London, and I followed blue_succubus's example and took some photos. But given the number of photos already here, that will have to wait for another day.

Comments

[matt-m-mcelroy.livejournal.com]

Awesome trip.

I'm looking forward to hearing (and seeing) more about it.

[alanajoli.livejournal.com]

What do you want to hear and see? :) I'm happy to go on and on about it, so let me know what elements appeal!

[matt-m-mcelroy.livejournal.com]

History (places, events) and the cool people you met while out and about.

[tezmilleroz.livejournal.com]

Ooh, me wants the Squad books, but they haven't been published in Oz yet. Can't seem to find Platinum in the library catalogue either...

Splendid to have you home, and have a lovely day! :-)

[alanajoli.livejournal.com]

Oh, Platinum was *so* much fun! The Squad book is the only one that made it home with me unread, and of course now I'm catching up on the zillion other things. But I think they will make good beach reading, so I'm saving them for a sunny day. :)

[sartorias.livejournal.com]

Okay I wants me that photo, I does!

And to read more about the trip--looks like you had an awesome time.

[alanajoli.livejournal.com]

I shall send it!

Also, I'll have a post for athanarel shortly about dervishes and fans. :)

[elven-wolf.livejournal.com]

Haha I love this post. Creative!

[alanajoli.livejournal.com]

Thanks! I had fun planning it. ;)

[dmoonfire.livejournal.com]

I love that idea. Though, I don't really see Simon traveling quite that much. But, great idea and looks like a great trip.

[antonstrout.livejournal.com]

My book is better traveled than I am!

[dmoonfire.livejournal.com]

You went to Chicago, where else do you need to go? :)

[alanajoli.livejournal.com]

Chicago is pretty darn cool. And given that you live at the center of the Western World, Anton, you're already one step ahead. ;)

[trayburn.livejournal.com]

I can't believe that you'd never read Starship Troopers. In my opinion it is one of three books that are must reads. Especially being from the United States, it is key to remember that we (US Citizens) take ridiculous amounts of pride in a system (Constitutional Representative Republic) which is just as arbitrary as any other ... it just works for us.

BTW, only recently found your blog. We met at DDXP, you spent some time with my wife Kate discussing women and gaming and we both played the Delve several times with Max and Brian.

[alanajoli.livejournal.com]

I know! Lame, right? I'm glad to have remedied that gap in my reading, and would probably put it up on my list near Ender's Game of books I think everyone should read.

I'm glad you found my blog! Max and I are both getting ready to start our LFR orc characters, thanks to our delve tokens... ;) I don't remember where you guys had come from to make the convention--do you know what LFR region you'll be in when the new campaign starts?

[the-outlaw.livejournal.com]

Speaking of DDXP, were the judge at the other table when my judge read a cert I have, turned to you and said "He used to be a director?" That person looked similar to you picture but not exact, so I didn't realize until much after the fact. I had wanted to say hi while I was there, but I never really got the opportunity. I got to talk to Brian a few times and relive some old memories I hadn't thought of in years, but otherwise was much removed.

[alanajoli.livejournal.com]

Ah, that's what I get for using my really good photo as my user picture. :) I'm glad that you and Brian got to chat at least! He's getting geared up for the finale (finally) at Origins.

[trayburn.livejournal.com]

We're from Arlington, TX ... so nowhere near the east coast, but I grew up in Glastonbury, CT. We'll be in Tymanther, and we've got our plans forming for what we want to play for sure. Through pure luck we left DDXP with the Gnome, Orc and Shadar-Kai cards, so we *can* play anything we want.

Look forward to bumping into you guys at a future con, we'll be at GenCon and Origins this year, and in the meantime you should check out the podcast we just started up on 4E called Radio Free Hommlet (http://hommlet.com)

[alanajoli.livejournal.com]

Ah! I used to work in the Barnes and Noble in Glastonbury. :) We're going to miss the two big cons this summer (although Brian and Max will be heading to the local ones in this area). I think all three of us are planning to be back at DDXP next year. I'll check out the podcast, and see if we can't give you a mention on Secret Identity as well!

[alanajoli.livejournal.com]

Magic Burns was so wonderfully mythically based (Stymphalian birds! While I was right in that area!) that despite its mostly Celtic leanings, it was actually a course enhancement for me! So... thanks!

P.S. Have I bugged you to write a guest entry for me about using myth in fiction? 'Cause you'd be perfect.

[alanajoli.livejournal.com]

Yay! The usual thing I tell people is that the theme is mythology, and you can run with that in any direction you like, and the length is about 500 words. My Friday entries lately have all been guest blogs in that category, so they're good examples. I'm looking forward to hosting you!

[shanna-s.livejournal.com]

Wow, my book gets around more than I do!

I got the postcard the other day. Thanks! I shall have to add it to the bulletin board of postcards from exotic destinations that I can stare at and dream about when I'm procrastinating.

[alanajoli.livejournal.com]

Always glad to help provide procrastination! (Although this ultimately works against me, as I'm already craving the new book. Hrm.)

[the-outlaw.livejournal.com]

Welcome back!

(And shame on you for not having read Starship Troopers before now.)

[alanajoli.livejournal.com]

It's remedied now, at least. :) I really should also go pick up Fahrenheit 451, since that's the other huge gaping hole in my science fiction reading...