"All this he saw, for one moment breathless and intense, vivid on the morning sky; and still, as he looked, he lived; and still, as he lived, he wondered."
Tuchulcha was a double-gendered, lesser deity in Etruscan mythology, announcer of death and guide through the Underworld. They're today's feature on my Patreon. ...
In Egypt, concepts that might in other cultures belong to the realm of ab- stract philosophy were expressed by symbols, images, and, to a lesser extent, myths. Geraldine Pinch, Egyptian Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Goddesses, and Traditions of Ancient Egypt (2002) While I was at...
The Gwragedd Annwn, Wives of the Lower Lands, are Welsh water creatures connected with the myth of how the black cow came to be. They're today's feature on my Patreon. ...
Once upon a time, the god Ra started to grow old and humanity plotted to overthrow him. Upon discovering their treachery, he assembled the gods and decided to send against men a female embodyiment of his wrath: the goddess Hathor in the form of the...
Invoked in one of the Orphic Hymns, Melinoë is a rare example of chthonic nymph, an underworld being harbinger and inspirator of madness, nightmares and other fancy stuff. She's a daughter of Persephone and Zeus, who tricked the Queen of the Underworld by disguising himself...
I rarely do this anymore, but this book was so good that I just had to write about it. The Faerie Hounds of York by Arden Powell is a relatively short novella set in 1810, and it's a dark, queer one. Do I have your attention? Good. England, 1810....
Thanks for bearing with me through the Spooky Season: I hope you enjoyed some of my recommendations and that you'll want to stay with us as we go back to our usual scheduled content through the three tiers of the Patreon. Remember that some of...
I really liked season 1 of Carnival Row, starring Orlando Bloom and Cara Delevigne, and this is the music that plays in the end credits. The artist calls herself Patty Gurdy and plays the hurdy-gurdy, a weird hand-crank string instrument with a keyboard that sounds...
Do you like Jane Austen enough (or not enough) to enjoy parodies and retellings? Did you like Pride and Prejudice and Zombies? Well maybe, just maybe, you'll enjoy Melinda Taub's The Scandalous Confessions of Lydia Bennet, Witch. The story tries to bring justice to Lydia...
Most people go on vacation to relax, which often requires disconnecting from reality entirely. Being wired that way, they are able to enjoy runaway resorts and places where all you do is sleep. Alas, my brain won't accept anything of the sort: if you want me...
