Leaf Cutter Bees

August 16, 2022 V.M.Sang 6 Comments

I recently noticed that my white geranium flowers seemed to be being eaten by something. The petals had become shredded and looked very tatty. Strangely, the red ones hadn’t been touched.

At first, I blamed birds. I know in the spring some birds eat the yellow flowers of daffodils and primroses, so I thought perhaps they were being attracted to the white colour.

Then one day as I was sitting on my garden seat, which is next to one group of white geraniums, I saw a small bee. She flew down and settled on one of the geraniums. I expected her to begin feeding from the nectar, but no. She proceeded to bite the petal she was on. She cut a beautiful, neat semicircle of petal and flew off, carrying it with her legs. She came back several times and each time cut a semicircle of petal and flew off with it.

Image by Anne Marie van Dam from Pixabay

I was somewhat bemused by this behaviour. I knew about leaf-cutter bees. We had them cut bits out of our rose leaves in the past, but never petals. Well, they’re called leaf cutter bees, not petal cutter bees.

I watched her for several days, busy cutting the petals. Then we had some canna come out and to my annoyance, she started on those!

She seems to have stopped now, fortunately, so our flowers are once more looking lovely.

After seeing this behaviour, I looked up leaf cutter bees, but found no reference to them cutting anything other than leaves.

Anyway, here’s a bit more information I discovered.

The bees cut the leaves (or petals) and take them back to their nest, which is usually in a hole. It can be in wood, a bee hotel, or masonry. They aren’t fussy.

I love this particular one and the sense of humour by its creator.

Once there, they form thimble-like structures to which they add a mixture of nectar and pollen. She will continue to build these cells and provision them. Then when she has finished, she lays a single egg in each cell and caps it with a piece of leaf (or petal!). Each nest may contain up to 20 eggs.

Female eggs are laid at the back of the nest, while male eggs are laid at the front. This is because the males hatch first and fly out to hang around until the females emerge.

Apparently, there are seven species of leaf-cutting bees in Britain. They are all small and have wingspans of 8-14mm. The bees are dark brown in colour and are covered in lighter brown or orange hairs.

They are amazing pollinators, being much better at the job than honey bees, apparently, so in spite of the minor annoyance, they should be encouraged.

Have you had any problems with such creatures? Please let us know in the comments box.

If you would like to receive an exclusive, free short story by me, called The Haunted Table, simply click the link. This will take you to the page where you can download it.

Maria and Tom have bought an antique table for the old cottage they have bought. When they hear strange noises in the night that sound like crying, they worry their house is haunted, but the sounds seem to come from the table.

They set about trying to find what is causing the disturbances. The answer is stranger than either of them had thought.

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Out Now: I See The World Through Darkness

August 14, 2022 V.M.Sang 3 Comments

Another exciting -sounding novella by David Kummer. I really enjoy his writing. If you like horror, he’s the author for you.
I would also recommend Everywhere, Somewhere. Not horror, but I thought it excellent.

book reviews, fantasy, novel

Review of The Prodigy of Rainbow Tower by Charles E. Yallowitz

August 9, 2022 V.M.Sang 4 Comments

Review of Prodigy of Rainbow Tower by Charles Yallowitz

OVERVIEW:

This is a continuation of the story told in The Beginning of a Hero. In this book, Luke and his companions, Fritz, the gnome, Nimby, the halfling, Aeden, the priest,and Fizzle, the little dragon-like creature known as a drite, set off to escort the heir to Duke Solomon home to Gods’ Voice.

First, though, they need to collect a caster apprentice from Rainbow Tower. She is a very prickly individual. Her first meeting with Luke does not go well.

The book is full of action. On the journey along the L’landrin River, they meet with traps and agents of the litch from book 1 that are trying to kill them.

We also learn that the litch is serving a much more powerful master that even the gods themselves fear.

This book has some shocking twists, but \I won’t spoil it by letting the cat out of the bag.

You will laugh and cry reading this book.

BLURB

Luke Callindor and his friends are about to learn that the life of an adventurer can be brutally unforgiving.

Hungering for another adventure, Luke agrees to escort the heir of Serab along the L’dandrin River and into the safety of Gods’ Voice. A deadly gauntlet of cunning traps and savage creatures lay before the young warrior and his companions. Lacking the powerful magic needed to combat his enemies, Luke’s survival and victory may be in the hands of his newest ally. That’s if the temperamental Nyx doesn’t set him on fire first.

Luke will bravely face everything that is thrown at him, but how can he defend himself when he’s ignorant of the truth behind his mission?

CHARACTERS

Mr Yallowitz has continued to enthral his readers with his story. We meet a new character in this book. She is the Prodigy of the title. Her name is Nyx and she is an extremely powerful caster. Sadly, she has a character flaw. She loses her temper extremely quickly, and with her being such a powerful caster, with a tendency to use fire magic, she is a dangerous individual.

Mr Yallowitz writes strong women. I love them.

We meet a new enemy, Trinity, the Queen of the Chaos Elves, who wishes to exact revenge on Nyx after they fight over the rooftops. Of course there is the Hellfire Elf who seems almost human in his desire to get his revenge on Luke.

There is the usual squabbling between friends, but nothing serious. This is how friends behave in real life. And we see lasting friendships beginning to form.

Nyx’s growing friendship with Luke makes her become less prickly.

As before, Luke and his friends are well-drawn. I fell in love with them all, but especially Fizzle.

WRITING

The world is believable, and fully realised and described.

We are introduced to a number of fight scenes that Mr Yallowitz describes excellently. As I have already said, the characters are well drawn and believable, and change as we progress through the book.

Sadly, though, this book has many typos, as well as grammatical errors and the wrong word used in some cases. (as Nyx’s weapon, a morning star, which Mr Yallowitz calls a mourning star all through the book.)

This gave me a problem as to how to rate it. The story deserves 5*, but the typos and grammar should have put it at 3*. I compromised by going with the average.

I gave the book 4*

My ranking of books. In order to get a particular number of stars, it is not necessary to meet all the criteria. This is a guide only.

5* Exceptional. Wonderful story. Setting well drawn, and characters believable. Not perfect, but with flaws. Will keep you up all night. No typos or grammatical errors.

4* A thoroughly enjoyable read. Great and original story. Believable setting and characters. Very few grammatical errors or typos.

3* I enjoyed it. Good story. Characters need some development. Some typos or grammatical errors.

2* Not for me. Story not very strong. Unbelievable and flat characters. Setting not clearly defined. Many typos or grammatical errors.

1* I hated it. Story almost non-existent. Setting poor. Possibly couldn’t finish it.

Book review, review of Legends of Windemere, Charles Yallowitz, The Prodigy of Rainbow Tower, fantasy, fantasy review,

plants

British Wild Flowers: The Scarlet Pimpernel

August 2, 2022 V.M.Sang 2 Comments

Many of you will have heard of the book by Alexander, Dumas, The Scarlet Pimpernel. This story told of a British aristocrat who rescued French aristocrats in the Revolution. He got his name because he took as his emblem a simple, small red flower.

This flower is also known as Poor Man’s Weathervane, or, according to the Wildlife Trust, Old Man’s Weathervane, or Shepherd’s Weathervane, but where I come from originally, it was Poor Man’s Weathervane!

This simple little flower got its name because it closes its petals when the pressure falls, and bad weather is on the way.

It is a pretty little flower that was once a weed of cereal crops, is now in decline because of the way farmers now farm the land, spraying crops with herbicides to maximise their yield. It is now found mainly in gardens and roadside banks, and other waste ground.

It is easily overlooked because of its small size, which is a pity, because it’s a pretty little flower.

The picture, which I got from Pixabay, makes it look larger than it is in real life. The flowers are only about 1 cm across. I think it’s a lovely little flower and I hope it doesn’t decline further.

I have one small plant in my garden that comes back each year, and I hope it stays. I don’t think of it as a weed, because a weed is a plant growing where you don’t want it, and I want this wild, little beauty.

Do you have a favourite wild flower? If so, what is it? Where does it grow?

Please leave your comments and answers in the comments box.

If you would like to receive an exclusive, free short story by me, called The Haunted Table, simply click the link. This will take you to the page where you can download it.

They set about trying to find what is causing the disturbances. The answer is stranger than either of them had thought.

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The 4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse.

July 26, 2022 V.M.Sang 2 Comments

Recently I’ve been watching the news, as have most of you, I suspect, with increasing anxiety. The world seems to have gone completely mad. We no longer consider anything but the short term. Even things that threaten our own existence.

I think that the 4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse is a great analogy as to what is happening.

‘What are these Horsemen?’ you ask. Well I’ll tell you.

They first appear in the Old Testament in the prophetic book of Zachariah and Ezikiel. Then they re-appear in the New Testament Book of Revelation.

They are named as War, Pestilence, Famine and Death, and will ride at the End of Days.

Let’s take them one by one.

War.

There seems to be a lot of fighting around the globe at the moment. It’s not only Russia and Ukraine, although if you watch solely the news in the UK, you might think so. There are wars going on in Africa, (including Rwanda where the British Government has thought fit to send illegal migrants!). Have we forgotten about Syria’s civil war? And what about the Israeli/Palestinian conflicts?

I’m also going to include here the civil unrest in many parts of the world that have not completely turned into civil wars, but there are violent protests everywhere it seems.

Peaceful protest has gone. Take the Maillot Jaune in France, the storming of the White House in the USA, Sri Lanka, Equador, India, Hong Kong, I could go on.

People are turning to violence almost as a first resort.

So wars everywhere.

The first Horseman has ridden.

Pestilence.

We can’t forget the pandemic of the last three years. The lockdowns, the deaths, the seriously ill.

Now there’s Monkey Pox. And before that, AIDS. What next?

These things spread because we can travel around the globe so easily nowadays. Jump on a plane and within a few hours you can be in most parts of the world. Once, if someone was ill, they would have recovered, or not be infectious when travel was slow. If it takes a week to cross the Atlantic, a person who is infected would be known before arriving, and quarantine could be begun. But now, they arrive in a few hours and contact many people (maybe even thousands, certainly hundreds) before even knowing they are ill.

So the second Horseman has ridden.

Famine.

Climate change is having a devastating effect on agriculture. We recently heard about the farmers in the Po Valley in Italy having crop failures because of lack of water in the river. This river is fed from the snows in the Alps, but those snows are melting and are not there any more.

Glaciers are retreating. They are the source of many rivers, and rivers are where agriculture gets its water. Lakes are drying up, causing the death of wildlife who have nowhere else to go to drink.

Now you might think that that’s not a problem. We can desalinate the sea water as they do in Dubai, and use that to irrigate the crops, but it’s not that simple. We are an integral part of life on this planet. We aren’t separate. Insects need water, too. We’re already destroying many of our pollinators with indiscriminate use of pesticides, and their food plants, by indiscriminate use of herbicides, all in the name of maximizing profit. If the wildlife dies, ultimately, so do we.

Then there’s the grain shortage brought about by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. We’ve been told that will cause famine in Africa, and maybe elsewhere.

Here in the UK, the cost of living is rising, and more and more people are living in poverty, not able to afford to buy food for their families. They are relying on food banks. Food banks in a comparatively rich economy in 2022!

The third Horseman has ridden.

We are just waiting for the fourth. Death.

He may not come soon, but unless we do something to ameliorate these things, come he will. The human race will not survive. It’s not just being too hot that climate change causes, but all these other things too.

The British Government has, I understand given the go ahead for more north sea gas exploration, and I just read that one of the candidates for the leadership of the Conservative Party is promising he will allow no more onshore wind farms. So much for cutting carbon emissions!

Economic considerations come first, before the life on this planet, which will die unless we do something about it NOW.

grammar, Grammar Help

Conflicting Advice To Writers – Guest Post by Jaq D. Hawkins…

July 19, 2022 V.M.Sang 4 Comments

I came across this excellent post on Chris, the Story Reading Ape’s blog and thought it interesting. Such good advice.

Here is some of what Jaq D. Hawkins has to say.

I recently came across an article offering advice about choosing past, present or future tense and first, second or third person pov. I didn’t finish reading the article after I got to a part that said first person works best in present tense.

No. It doesn’t.

In fact, many people like myself refuse to read books written in first person present tense, despite the growing number of books on the market, mostly self-published, written that way by young, mainly Romance authors.

There will be people who disagree with my opinion on this.

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What are your opinions on tense? Do you like present tense? And what about second person?

If you’ve been and read the rest of this post, do you agree or disagree with Jaq?

Please answer in the comments box.

If you would like to read any of my books, you can click on the cover in the sidebar and you can then buy from your favourite store. They are all available in ebook as well as other formats, and several are also available in audio.

The ebook versions of all those books that are first in series are available FREE.

fantasy, novel, stories

Extract from my latest work in progress.

July 12, 2022 V.M.Sang 7 Comments

I don’t seem to be getting on very well with Book 4 of The Wolves of Vimar. Somehow, life keeps getting in the way. Anyway, it’s currently undergoing critiques from a couple of online critique groups I’m in. As it’s chapter by chapter, and I need to do crits for others before I can post, it’s a long process. Still, we’ll get there. Eventually!

I’m still waiting to hear about my poetry book. It’s been nearly 5 months now, but I hope it won’t be much longer. I’d self-publish it, but as it has pictures, and the formatting of poetry is not straightforward, I’m reluctant to go down that road.

For your delectation, today I’m going to post a bit from Immortal’s Death, Book 4 of the Wolves of Vimar series. Please, remember, though, that this is just the first draft, so might not be perfect. In fact, it’s unlikely to be perfect!

Here Goes.

This is from near the beginning of the book. Thadora was brought up as a thief in the Warren at Hambara, but she was recognised as a daughter to the Duke of Hambara when he saw her remarkable resemblance to his grandmother. He adopted her, thus legitimising her.

Here, Thadora is attending the wedding of her sister, Randa, the duke’s elder daughter, to Prince Almoro. It’s rather long, so my apologies.

Thadora

Outside the great banqueting hall in the palace, Thadora found herself standing next to Sandron, brother to Duke Larrin of Sendolina.

“Have you seen Larrin?” he asked.

She shook her head. “He must be here somewhere. There are so many people it’s easy to miss someone.”

Sandron frowned. “I didn’t see him in the temple, either, but you’re right, he’ll be here somewhere. Allow me to escort you into the banqueting hall, Lady Thadora.” He bowed.

Thadora giggled. “Now you’re Sandron, the courtier. Different from when we first met.”

They had met when a group of bandits, led by Sandron, captured Wolf after they found Sauvern’s Sword. The youngest son of the late Duke of Sendolina amused himself by leading these bandits, but Randa recognised him and he quickly released her and her friends when she promised not to tell his father how he had been amusing himself.

Youngest sons often found they had little to do, and so long ago they formed a band of mercenaries and called themselves The Red Hawks.

On Randa’s suggestion, Sandron recruited enough young men to form a new group, also calling themselves The Red Hawks in memory of the band from the past.

Thadora took Sandron’s proffered arm and the pair entered the banqueting hall.

As they crossed the threshold, Thadora’s shoe caught in the hem of her dress and she staggered, hopping, as she tried to release her shoe without tearing it. “Zol’s balls, I’ve been promising myself I wouldn’t do that.”

Sandron laughed as he managed to steady her. “Being the Duke of Hambara’s second daughter hasn’t improved your language any, has it? Nor your grace in a dress.”

Thadora pressed her lips together to prevent the swear word that rose to them, this time at Sandron. Instead she simply elbowed him in the ribs.

He groaned and rubbed the sore spot. “Sorry, Lady Thadora.”

Lady Thadora stared daggers at him. “Stop mocking me, Lord Sandron, or it’ll be the worse for you. I won’t always be in a dress.”

He laughed and Thadora joined in.

As the sister of the bride, Thadora was seated at the table next to King Perdillon unable to find words to say to her royal neighbour.

I must mind my manners. I must mind my manners, she told herself, over and over again.

When the king spoke she thought he sounded so ordinary that she forgot about his royalty. He asked about her adventures and the formation of Wolf, and seemed genuinely interested in her answers.

“So this sword, the one that belonged to King Sauvern, is magical and will be needed soon?”

“Yes. Carthinal found a prophecy. But you know about that. He thinks this Branlow he met in Frelli is the Never-Dying Man, and can only be stopped by using the Sword.”

She looked around the room. The crowd made a continual buzz. How was Fero coping? He never liked crowds, and with Randa marrying someone else, it would be even more difficult.

As her eyes sought her friend, she noticed a couple of spare seats.

She turned to Perdillon. “Who hasn’t come to the wedding? There are two empty seats next to the Duchess of Eribore.”

The king looked to where she indicated and raised his eyebrows. “I think that’s where my wife put Duke Larrin of Sendolina. I wonder why he’s not here?” He leaned across to Almoro.

“Duke Larrin isn’t here, Almoro. Do we know why?”

Almoro shook his head. “He answered the invitation saying he’d be here. It’s not like him to go against protocol.”

Thadora leaned forward. “Sandron was looking for him, too. He thought his brother should be here.”

“No doubt it’ll sort itself out. There must have been some emergency we’ve not heard about.”

The banquet continued through four more courses, then a messenger came and whispered something in Perdillon’s ear.

The king blanched, stood and left, apologising.

His wife, Queen Helloria looked up. “What is it, Perdillon?”

The king told her it was probably nothing, but he had to go and see someone.

He returned shortly and walked over to where Duke Firbolt of Meridor sat next to his wife. The duke looked unwell. His health had not been the same since the mysterious illness that had killed King Gerim, and many of the dukes. The king bent and whispered something in his ear. The duke immediately stood, said something to his wife, and both hurried out of the room.

Without speaking to the master of ceremonies, who announced the speeches, Perdillon lifted the man’s gavel and banged on the table.

“May I have your attention, ladies and gentlemen.”

Silence fell as King Perdillon began to speak.

“I apologise to Almoro and Randa for this interruption to their wedding festivities, but there has been a serious event. It seems that the army of Erian has entered our territory. They have taken Meridor.”

A hubbub of voices broke out. Meridor had never been taken in battle until now. People called out asking questions, but the king banged the gavel once more.

“From what I have been told, Meridor capitulated without a fight.”

Gasps were heard around the gathered crowd.

Perdillon continued. “We have no idea why the Duke Firbolt’s steward surrendered without a fight. The duke has gone to find out. We also noticed the absence of Duke Larrin of Sendolina. We hope there isn’t a similar problem in that duchy.

“Again, I apologise to Almoro and Randa, but, in view of the situation, I’m calling an immediate meeting in the council room. Would the dukes please attend me there? The rest of you please continue with your meal.”

The king strode out of the banqueting hall, followed by the dukes.

Everyone else remained sitting in silence. The joyful occasion had turned sour, and few people wanted to eat anything more.

Seeing this, Almoro stood. “This has spoiled a happy celebration. I’m sorry. I think we should abandon the meal. You can either leave for your accommodation, or we’ll meet in the ballroom. Thank you all for attending, and for the generous gifts you have given to my wife and me.”

~*~

Thadora spotted Carthinal across the room. His deep blue robe looked startling with his shoulder-length auburn hair, and almost matched his indigo eyes. He had trimmed his beard to a short stubble.

No doubt about it, he’s a handsome man.

Sitting next to him at a low table was his wife, the elf, Yssalithisandra. She had plaited her golden hair and wound it around her head. Her robe was a rich burgundy. She smiled at their daughter, Starralishinara, who played with a stuffed dragon.

Starr, as she was known, had her father’s auburn hair, and her mother’s blue eyes, paler than her father’s.

Thadora made her way over to them, accompanied by Randa and Prince Almoro. The three drew up chairs and sat.

Sandron approached with the little dragonet, Muldee, sitting on his shoulder. Thadora exclaimed with delight at seeing this small relative of dragons. His iridescent scales gleamed in the light coming through the large windows on the south side of the huge room. They changed colour as he moved.

“You’re here, Muldee.” She tried to put her arms around the creature, but he flew into the air moments before her assault. “I thought you’d gone back to the lake to join your brothers and sisters.”

“I did, for a while, but after the excitement of living with Sandron, it was boring. When I came back, and Sandron told me Randa was getting married, I had to come. I wouldn’t miss the wedding of one of my friends.” He studied Randa. “You look lovely, Randa. But Sandron told me to stay away from the actual wedding. What did he think I’d do?”

Sandron tossed his head back and laughed. “I had no idea what you might do. That’s why I said you weren’t to come to the ceremony.”

Thadora looked around. The ballroom had been decorated in blue and white in a similar way to the great hall. Tables surrounded an open space in the centre of the room.

I don’t suppose the dancing will take place now. That’s good. I would probably fall over my own feet and end up in a heap, the laughing stock of the whole court.

Thadora glanced towards the door where Queen Helloria entered with three year old Crown Prince Gerim. Dowager Queen Carrolla accompanied her. Seeing Randa and Almoro, they approached.

The company bowed or curtsied to the two queens, Thadora barely managing to keep her balance as she stifled the swear word that sprang to her lips. If she swore in front of two queens, her father would definitely kill her.

“I am really sorry your wedding has been spoiled.” Queen Helloria shook her head and hugged Prince Gerim tightly. “I hope we can avoid a war with Erian. What’s this Master doing, attacking us? We’ve been at peace for so long.”

Little Prince Gerim squirmed. When the queen released him he ran towards Starr. Yssa and Queen Helloria moved off to discuss the merits of their children.

Queen Carolla turned to Sandron. “I wondered why your brother wasn’t here. Do you think it’s anything to do with this crisis?”

“I don’t know, Your Majesty,” Sandron replied, “but I think Muldee, here, might be able to help find out.”

“Ah, yes, your little dragonet. I heard…”

Muldee interrupted the queen dowager. “I’m not his little dragonet. I’m my own little dragonet. I’m not a pet to be owned by someone.”

Thadora stifled a grin that Muldee should speak so to a queen, but the monarch smiled.

“My apologies, Muldee. How can you help find out?”

“You might have heard we dragonets are telepathic. We can hear people’s thoughts. Oh, not everybody, and not all the time.” He giggled. “But it’s fun sometimes to listen to the thoughts of people if they don’t know about blocking.”

“Stop chattering, Muldee.” Sandron turned to the queen who had a slight frown on her face. “I apologise, Your Majesty. Muldee has no idea of rank and treats everyone the same. As to hearing your thoughts, he rarely tries, and even if he does, most people are not telepathic.”

The queen smoothed her face and smiled. “What’s your idea about finding out about your brother?”

“I can ask Muldee to go to Sendolina. It will be much better than sending someone on a horse. He can slip in, listen to people’s thoughts and find out what’s going on.”

“What a good idea.” The queen dowager beckoned to Sandron. “Follow me. We must put this to my son.”

When Sandron and the queen dowager left, the other members of Wolf approached.

Asphodel smoothed the white robes that showed her as a priestess of Sylissa, the goddess of healing. She curtsied to Prince Almoro before sitting next to Randa.

Thadora watched The Cat as he squirmed in his seat. She understood why the small thief was uncomfortable. Not long ago he had been a wanted man in Bluehaven and had fled to avoid capture. Now he was here in the royal palace in the company of members of the royal family. He ran his fingers through his dark hair and looked everywhere except at the prince and the queen.

Grimmaldo looked at ease in his yellow robes. She liked the young mage. He made her laugh with his sense of fun. He did not talk much about his family, but she understood he came from Frind, in the far north, and that his family had been well off merchants.

Many guests sat on chairs assembled around small tables surrounding the dance floor. From what Thadora could hear, most were discussing the missing duke.

Footmen strolled around the room with glasses of wine and fruit juice.

All the members of Wolf chose to drink fruit juice, although Basalt exclaimed he would have preferred a good glass of dwarf spirits.

Thadora watched Fero as he looked sharply at the dwarf. “Bas, this is not the place for drinking dwarf spirits, nor any other strong drink. You know what happens when you start.”

“And you’ve never got drunk with me, ranger?” He glanced at Randa and Almoro. “I would have thought this was a perfect time for you to get drunk.”

Fero shook his head. “No, friend. It would spoil her day. That I will not do. I will, however, get blind drunk with you tonight. And perhaps tomorrow, too.”

history

The National Trust and Petworth House.

July 5, 2022 V.M.Sang 5 Comments

I recently visited several places owned by the National Trust. This is a charitable institution in the UK. It preserves important and interesting buildings and countryside. It was founded in 1895.

It is the largest land owner in Britain, owning 250,000 hectares, and 780 miles of coast.

It owns over 500 historic houses, castles, archaeological and industrial monuments, gardens, parks and nature reserves. People can pay to join the membership, either annually or a lifetime membership. They can then visit the properties for free.

Here are a few photos I took at Petworth Place, a stately home in West Sussex, just within the boundary of the South Downs National Park.

This is the house, seen from the grounds, just in front of the lake.

Please ignore the date. I’d not set it on the camera!

The Lake had quite a number of birds on and over it, such as swans, moorhens, great crested grebes and swallows, not to mention geese and ducks. And there were some amazing trees.

A sweet chestnut just coming into bloom.

I didn’t take any photographs of the inside of the house, but it is filled with amazing artworks. A fantastic place to visit if you ever get the chance. And the village is interesting, too, but I’ve no pictures of it.

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Church Bulletin Bloopers – Reblogged

June 29, 2022 V.M.Sang 8 Comments

A hilarious post from Aurora Jane Alexander.

Thank God for church ladies with typewriters. These sentences actually appeared in church bulletins or were announced in church services:

1. Bertha Belch, a missionary from Africa, will be speaking tonight at Calvary Methodist. Come hear Bertha Belch all the way from Africa.

2. Announcement in a church bulletin for a national PRAYER & FASTING Conference: “The cost for attending the Fasting & Prayer Conference includes meals.

3. The sermon this morning: “Jesus Walks on the Water.”
The sermon tonight: “Searching for Jesus.”

4. Our youth basketball team is back in action Wednesday at 8 PM in the recreation hall – Come out and watch us kill Christ the King.

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book reviews, fantasy

Review of Beginning of a Hero by Charles Yallowitz

June 28, 2022 V.M.Sang 5 Comments

OVERVIEW:

I got this as a bundle of 3 books, but I am going to review them separately as I read them.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading about Luke Callindor, even though he has a very Earth-like name for a half-elf!

It is filled with action and great characters. We have a mystery at the beginning. Luke is contracted to safeguard the heir to Serabia. There is only one problem. He doesn’t know who the heir is, for even whether he’s protecting a male or female. When Luke discovers who it is, he is plunged into further problems as he is pursued by a powerful lich and a demonic elf.

BLURB:

Every hero must take the first courageous step into adventure. For Luke Callindor, it’s more of a blind stumble.Depending more on bravery than common sense, Luke sets out to protect a royal heir who is attending the prestigious Hamilton Military Academy. With a demonic assassin in the shadows, the determined warrior will have to think on his feet to defend his charge. If only he waited long enough to find out which student is the hidden noble.With Luke’s dream on the horizon and a deadly enemy on his path, how will he transform from a reckless adventurer to a true hero of Windemere?

CHARACTERS:

Luke Callindor is the main character in this story. He is a forest ranger, tasked with keeping the forest in good health, but he is not the only one of interest.

There is a halfling called Nimby who is great fun. He’s a retired thief and helps Luke in his quest to find out whom he is supposed to be protecting.

Fritz, a gnome, is an illusionist and his illusions are a help in the story. His steed, bizarrely, is a sheep!

Luke, Nimby and Fritz are joined by a half-elf priest, Aedin who is invaluable when people get injured. As they do during the practice fights in the Acadamy.

My favourite character, though, is not humanoid, but a small dragon, a drite called Fizzle. Fizzle is a simple creature, but not without intelligence. He loves apples, especially when baked in a pie.

And there is Luke’s loyal companion, a dog called Stilletto.

As the main character, Luke develops from an inexperienced young fighter to one who learns that strength isn’t the only way to win fights.

All the characters are well-drawn, and have their own clear characteristics, as well as character flaws.

WRITING:

There are a few typos, and, in a couple of places a wrong word is used, but on the whole the writing is good.

Mr Yallowitz paints a clear picture of the world he has created. He shows us how the characters react to each other so we can easily picture the scene.

I enjoyed reading this book and will soon be starting on the second one.

I gave the book 4*

How I rank books.

In order to get a particular number of stars, it is not necessary to meet all the criteria. This is a guide only.

5* Exceptional. Wonderful story. Setting well drawn, and characters believable. Not perfect, but with flaws. Will keep you up all night. No typos or grammatical errors.

4* A thoroughly enjoyable read. Great and original story. Believable setting and characters. Very few grammatical errors or typos.

3* I enjoyed it. Good story. Characters need some development. Some typos or grammatical errors.

2* Not for me. Story not very strong. Unbelievable and flat characters. Setting not clearly defined. Many typos or grammatical errors.

1* I hated it. Story almost non-existent. Setting poor. Possibly couldn’t finish it.