Tolkien Birthday Toast, Rings of Power, Characters Family Tree, Photos, and a New Kait Nolan (in Scotland!)

appy new year!

This post will be up for a couple of weeks, so it's chock-full of goodies!

Let's go in reverse order from the title.

First up, we have a brand new series from Kait Nolan -- we're moving from the South to Scotland!

Jilting the Kilt by Kait Nolan

a prequel to the Kilted Hearts series

Arranged marriages are so three centuries ago. But that doesn't stop Afton Lennox from being bound by one. All her life she's been pledged to wed Connor MacKean. It's the only way to save both their families' estates, and they're friends, after all, so it won't be that bad. Right?
Hamish Colquhoun has spent his entire adult life trying to find a way to liberate his best friend from a marriage he doesn't want. If it also spares the woman he's secretly loved for years, it's of no mind to him. He's already got a wife and family of his own. Freeing them both is just the right thing to do.
But with the wedding just days away, time is running short. Afton and Connor are prepared to do their duty, fulfilling the pact made by their long-dead ancestors. There's one option Hamish hasn't mentioned. It would only buy some time at best and risk everything at worst. But as Afton begins to question everything, Hamish finds he can't stay silent.
God save them all.

Scotland?
A centuries-old pact and characters desperate to carve their own futures?
Burning passions long held secret that simply refuse to be hidden any longer?
Yes, yes, and yes.
I loved every aspect of this prequel and simply can't wait to dive into the world of these characters, not only Afton and Hamish but Connor and his sister and anyone else who might enter their orbit.
The promise of an HEA is delicious and the thrilling ride is just beginning!

The next book will be

Cowboy in a Kilt, releasing 13 January 2023

A cowboy without a home
Robbed of the family ranch that should have been his legacy, Raleigh Beaumont is a man with no roots and no purpose. When a friend drags him to Vegas, he figures he’s got nothing to lose. But after a hell of a lot of whiskey and a high stakes poker game with a beautiful stranger, he finds himself the alleged owner of a barony in Scotland.
An heiress with a crumbling heritage
When her brother’s bride disappears just days before the wedding that’s meant to save their ancestral home from the mad marriage pact that’s held their family captive for generations, Kyla MacKean believes they’ve been granted a reprieve. Until she finds out about the new, single—male—owner of Lochmara and knows she’s next on the chopping block or ownership of both their estates reverts to the crown.
A modern answer to a three-hundred-year-old problem.
Raleigh’s lost his land once. He’s not about to lose it again. Not even because of some lunatic pact made centuries before he was born. Kyla’s desperate to save Ardinmuir. She agrees to marry him on one condition: They wed for one year to satisfy the pact, then get a quick and quiet divorce. There’s no stipulation against it, and they’ll both get what they want.
But this displaced Texan and his fiery bride are about to find so much more than they bargained for.

Some recent photos!

Real Montreal bagels, courtesy of a friend!

First fire of the season!

Taking a break during the library book sale

My new desk!

How Orcs knit!

The only way to eat an apple (I thought I was the only one who did this!), courtesy of Nathan W Pyle

Teaching Miss E how to play the card game King

I couldn't attend the latest exhibit at Turner's House, but got this book instead

A sketch from Switzerland, 200 years ago

My family tree of characters is growing!

I'm sharing both together because the latest one doesn't have room for the photos or for the 15th Century!

Now we come to Rings of Power.

I really wanted to like this show, especially after attending Oxonmoot and hearing Production Designer Ramsey Avery's talk on the set designs and all the work that went into them. It was wonderful to hear one of the main people on the show talk so comfortably and knowledgeably about the legendarium. One of the fascinating things he said was about so many of the designs being forward-looking, e.g. Eregion will be destroyed but the Elves of Hollin didn't know or suspect that, hence there are all these low buildings by the water, with nary a wall. Too bad Avery won't be back for season 2.

But, as usual, I had the same two problems that I always have with adaptations:
1. Set design, costumes, music, etc. are all amazing, but the storytelling is weak (and then some: here's a good article by Erik Kain that sums it all up)
2. Continuity is sacrificed for special effects

I'd like to post all my particular concerns here, for the record, but I'm afraid it wouldn't interest many of you. I've shared quite a few of them on thelitforum.com.

Instead, I'll note this comment by Louise Penny on the adaptation of her books:

By the end, I was getting so frazzled by the nonsense that my thoughts were like this:
Halbarad's wound needs "Elvish medicine" (whatever that is) but he can ride a horse?! All the way to Eregion?! It only takes six days to ride from near Pelargir to Eregion?! With a chest wound?! They're going across half of Middle-earth so Galadriel leaves her sword behind?! A sword too big for the boy she leaves it with?!

And another general note:
I reeeeeally cannot abide any kind of casual treatment of library materials. People in TV and in books (where the authors should know better!) do this all the time.

Make. A. Copy.

Don't just tear/steal/drop in a river the only copy of an ancient document!


So let's get back to Tolkien.

Next week is the Tolkien Birthday Toast!

"Each year on 3 January, the Tolkien Society encourages Tolkien fans from across the world to celebrate the Professor’s birthday with a simple toast-drinking ceremony.
At 9pm your local time, simply raise a glass and toast the birthday of this much loved author. The toast is simply:
The Professor!
All you need to do is stand, raise a glass of your choice of drink (not necessarily alcoholic), and say the words “The Professor” before taking a sip (or swig, if that’s more appropriate for your drink). Sit and enjoy the rest of your drink."

Here's some brilliant art by Jenny Dolfen

The Last Alliance
(featuring Gil-Galad, Elrond, Elendil, and Bert (see this great interview with Jenny Dolfen on the Tor site))

And to close out the year, here's a post on Remembering Queen Elizabeth II: Royal Impact on Knit and Crochet.

Happy new year!

Will you be making any new year's resolutions?