Yaddith Times

Old Bones by Douglas Preston

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Another solid, highly informative thriller from Preston & Child -- though with very limited Pendergast content, which was slightly disappointing even though I knew this in advance. However, watching two regular women characters from the series solve a pretty twisted mystery (plus another, somewhat less twisted, one involving lost gold) was still worth the time spent reading. Previous experience with the Pendergast series seems to be expected, but possibly not required.

Dr. Nora Kelly & Corrie Swanson are both strong characters in their own right, though this is primarily Nora's novel. Based on legends surrounding the Donner Party, it offers a sizable helping of archaeological procedure & atmosphere along with rapidly turning pages. Newly minted FBI Special Agent Corrie Swanson, a former protegee of Pendergast's, gets less detailed treatment -- but no less respect as she solves her first major case.

Recommended for: Pendergast fans (who will probably get more out of it) & other thriller readers favoring strong intelligent female investigators.




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The King Must Die by Mary Renault

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This lyrical retelling of the legend of Theseus manages to add a sense of realism (circa 1958 archaeological evidence) without sacrificing the essential magic of ancient Greece. The gods may or may not manifest themselves; but they are fully real to the characters, and they behave as such, often with far-reaching consequences.

Renault does not give the reader modern sensibilities in ancient clothing, but truly ancient ways of thinking -- which can be disturbing at times. Theseus’s perception of women is the most notable case of this, though Medea and the pre-Classic Goddess cults are also active in his world. For archaeology and ancient history enthusiasts, Renault includes an Author’s Note explaining her approach to Theseus’s story, a short but useful bibliography, and a solid version of the legend itself.

I took far too long getting through this book, because there is so much to savor – and the prose, though sparely elegant, is very rich. Renault does know how to keep the pages turning during a bull-dance or a battle, however! I’ve already got The Bull From the Sea (this book’s immediate sequel) loaded on my Kindle.

One side note: Hunger Games fans who haven’t read this book yet should treat themselves as soon as possible. Theseus and his Athenian companions were the original Tributes, and their adventures in Crete are some of the most entertaining in the novel.





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My SF poem "Cave Bear Dreams" is up this week on the webzine Strange Horizons.

Although this poem was inspired by science & archaeology, there's a definite undertone of the weird here . . . I think.  YMMV.

In honor of International Women's Day -- and my own fascination with archaeology involving women -- here's a link to Archaeology.org's online feature article about a "Dynasty of Priestesses" in Iron Age Crete.

This feature is less a single article than a fascinating collection of articles, interviews, videos, and links related to the necropolis of Orthi Petra at Eleutherna on the island of Crete.   The possible priestesses were found in pithos (large ceramic jar) burials. 

I could add something here about a well-urned rest, but discretion is the better part of blogging . . . 

According to an article which will be published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association, the 19 year old King Tutankhamun (Dynasty 18, around 1323 BC) died from a combination of injury & infection, though some of his underlying trouble was very likely genetic. 

The Associated Press has a detailed article:  A frail King Tut died from malaria, broken leg

Thanks to recent DNA testing, this article has quite a lot of chewy information -- and some speculation -- about Tut's parentage, as well.

I've been fascinated by Egyptology for years,  but much of the material here is new to me.  I'll be sure to post again as more of this (continuing) Amarna mystery is unraveled by science & peer-reviewed journals.

Just found out over the weekend that my dark fantasy / mythological haibun "Mount Pacho" has been accepted by guest editor time_shark for the next issue of Goblin Fruit.

I'm particularly happy with this sale, because "Mount Pacho" is one of the longest (4 haiku included) and most heavily researched speculative haibun I've ever done.

Thanks also to Archaeology Magazine, and the Nov./Dec. 2008 article which inspired this whole thing.

The April 09 issue of   ericmarin 's Lone Star Stories is now live, with short fiction and poems by Patricia Russo,  Nicole Kornher-Stace , Josh Rountree,  Sonya Taaffe,  Amal El-Mohtar and Nicole Kornher-Stace, and Yours Truly.

My contribution, "Bones of the God,"  is actually a haibun.  Remember all that commotion back in February about about giant snake fossils being found in Columbia?  Well . . . they're baaaack.

Or was that the other way around?  At any rate, today's offering from ancienthistory is too marvelously morbid to ignore.  If you follow through a couple of links, you'll learn more about Mayan human sacrifice than you may have really wanted to -- & view some great Mesoamerican artwork, as well.