Kambuyiyâ and plotbunny

Ah, the joys of reading!

After Nano, I've taken some time to rest and read literature, which I wasn't really able to do while writing, as most of my reading time is my writing time as well.

Thus, I'll re-take my writing soon, but in the meantime I've enjoyed a couple of novels, one a very funny parody of Harry Potter, the other a cool HF book by a German author I didn't know.

The book is Tamburas, the Greek (original title unknown, don't you hate when publishers don't do their homework on the ISBN page? A quick INet search threw the original title Tamburas), by Karlheinz Grosser. Originally published by Heinemann in 1967, I have a spanish translation of Belaqva of 2002.

I got it at a discount price (EUR4.95, really cheap!), it's 447 pages (I'm on page 427) and it's been a pleasing and interesting reading. Tamburas is a bastard son of Pisistratos, tirant of Athens (ca. 530), who must leave his town and face the unknown when assaulted by pirates and forced to serve Polikrates, tirant of Samos, and then to serve Great King Kambuyiyâ (Cambises).

The book is written in 1st person POV, well constructed, and pleaseantly flowing. The author did his homework, and despite some things I have frowned at, it's very well researched and it shows. It was a bit weird reading the battle of Pelusion from the POV of the Persians, when I have read it less than two months ago (you can check the archives) from the POV of the Egyptians in Scott Oden's Men of Bronze. The battles are very different, but that's understandable. However, where Scott stopped, Karlheinz went on.

Now, the second part:

I have a strong, I'd even say a stronger, plotbunny biting my shiny... um...

OK, I want to finish this novel (The Libyan), then finish Damned Linneage, my 2004 NaNovel. But (and it's a big 'but', hence the bold face) this plotbunny bit me last year as well, and it's demanding attention.

More and more attention.

Will I say it? I will, I feel generous... ;-)

It's a HF novel telling, as historical fact--at least inasmuch I am able to--, the Epic of Gilgamesh.

I have read it several times, and loved it all of them. Bronze Age culture is fascinating, and it's a chance to explore strange, new worlds. I am very tempted to go for it.

So, warning, don't feel weird if in some months you see a new work-in-progress bar on the blog...

Take care and Merry Full Moon!

Kallisti!