The Fionavar Tapestry
by Guy Gavriel Kay
This fantasy trilogy is incredible! In a high school English class, we were assigned to read the first book in the series, The Summer Tree, and it was probably the only "assigned-reading" book that I actually read cover to cover. I immediately bought the two follow-up books and loved them just as much.
The writing is smooth, the characters are realistic, the character development is incredible and the story never dulls. I truly recommend that everyone reads this trilogy! I plan on reading it again soon. An added plus is the fact that not only is the author a fellow Canadian, but part of the initial setting is in Toronto, Ontario.
Please give The Fionavar Tapestry a try! If you want to start with the first book only, go ahead, but I'm sure you'll want the others by the time you're half-finished it, so make sure your local library carries all of them!

The Summer Tree
Synopsis:
First in a new trilogy from the bestselling author of Tigana. This finely textured tapestry tells of five young persons and their journey into a mystic realm. "Kay's intricate Celtic background will please fantasy buffs."-- Publishers Weekly. Kay has been retained by J.R.R. Tolkien's estate to help complete The Silmarillion. Paperback

The Wandering Fire
Synopsis:
The ice of eternal winter enshrouds Fionavar and frees the Unraveller, whose terrible vengeance takes its toll on mortals and immortals, mages and warriors, dwarves and the Children of Light.
Only five people who were brought by a mage's power to Fionavar can hope to wake the allies they so desperately need. "One of the very best of the fantasies which have appeared since Tolkien. . . ."--Andre Norton.

The Darkest Road
Synopsis:
The final volume of Kay's vast epic fantasy weaves together all the complex threads of the previous volumes, as the heroes of the first two stories--The Summer Tree and The Wandering Fire--unite to aid the armies of Light in the ultimate battle against evil. Paperback

Also by Guy Gavriel Kay:
* Tigana
Drawing on the most powerful mythic archetypes, this master epic of magic, politics, war--and the power of love and hate--is a rich, beautifully written, multidimensional work. The few surviving inhabitants of the destroyed land of Tigana bond together in a secret battle to release their homeland's curse and gain their freedom. Paperback
* A Song for Arbonne
Facing conquest by the neighboring Gorhaut--ruled by a dour, crusading, misogynist lord--the men and women of Arbonne find that their fates lie in the hands of a rough-hewn mercenary captain. Paperback

The Dancing Gods
by Jack L.Chalker
Also in the fantasy category is the series of The Dancing Gods by Jack L. Chalker.
Each chapter begins with a "Rule", and I've listed a few below to give you a feel for the sense of humour in the writing of these books!
* People taken from other universes should always be near death.
-- The Books of Rules, XX, 109, 234(a)
* Barbarians must be tall, dark, and handsome, exotic in race but of no known nationality.
-- The Books of Rules, XL, 227, 301(a)
* Magic swords for quests must be named.
-- The Books of Rules, XVII, 167, 2(c)
* Virgins are uniquely useful for certain magicks, yet they have drawbacks beyond the obvious.
-- The Books of Rules, CX, Introduction
* Those aligned with evil may cheat, but must always leave an opening, however tenuous, for the virtuous.
-- The Books of Rules, II, 112
And.... the wizard is named "Throckmorton P. Ruddygore"!
In order of book:
* Dancing Gods: Part One Paperback
* Dancing Gods: Part Two Paperback
* Horrors of the Dancing Gods

There are quite a few other books that I recommend, but I have them listed on my Vampire & Halloween Page , or go to the direct links:
* Library of Vampire Books
* Library of Vampire Music

"Develop interest in life as you see it; in people, things, literature, music -- the world is so rich, simply throbbing with rich treasures, beautiful souls and interesting people. Forget yourself."
Henry Miller

More HOT Links!
I will be updating this area as often as I can.
* Chris Noth Home Page
* The Cabinet of Dr. Casey - Horror In Television
Includes:
- A message board to share your thoughts about horror on television with other fans from around the world.
- Links to Horror Television websites on the Internet.
- The latest breaking news about Horror-related topics in the world of Television.
* Wookie Theatre
Mini-movie comic strips featuring Star Wars characters. Including S.W. with the A-Team, S.W. in Alien, and more.
* Dr. Jekyll's Scooby Sites
* Cloning Humans
* Late Night Links: Fun Sites
* Deep in the heart of the Enchanted Forest lies Elfsong Hollow...
* Indecent Images
Despite the title, this page is really "A gallery of Pre-Raphaelite art and other pictures that the CDA would not permit on line". It is very tasteful, and the pictures are quite beautiful.
* Welcome to FaceMaker
This site lets a web surfer experiment with facial animation by controlling a number of parameters that affect the expressions of either a dragon, a dog, a Haida mask, or a human face.
* Mary Van Deusen's Roses
Although part of this site contains gardening links, the main portion contains quotations told to her by influential people in her life (ie: her grandmother) that made a difference in shaping who she is today.
* Anonymomma's World
strange.... but interesting! (awesome graphics)
* Ask the Graphics Oracle Page
This is a great page! I highly recommend it if you have any questions re: graphics.

* D.FILM Digital Film Festival
Includes Moviemaker Game, interviews with directors, make your own digital films and distribute them amongst your friends, and more!
* I Wish It Was Cool! News
Parody site.
* About Urban Legends - Urban Legends and Folklore
* HALLOWEEN: Costumes, Parties..
* Bert is Evil!

EMAC -- E-Mail Autograph Club!

"Diane. 11:30 am. February 24th. Entering the town of Twin Peaks. Five miles south of the Canadian border, 12 miles west of the state line. I've never seen so many trees in my life."
-- Agent Dale Cooper, Twin Peaks

Did you know that the word "Canada" may have come from the Iroquoian word "kanata", which means "village" or "community"?

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Do you like making fun of Canada?
You have to check out this site!
Weird and Wonderful Lies about the Wilderness called Canada
(includes "How to build an Igloo") but if you get an error -- type in the URL manually (http://www.ualberta.ca/%7Erditzian/canada.html) and that should work properly.

CANADIAN BANDS/MUSIC I RECOMMEND:
* Due South Soundtrack
(includes Spirit of the West, Sarah McLachlan, Kashtin, Blue Rodeo, Holly Cole Trio, The Guess Who, and more!)
* Figgy Duff
A wonderful Folk group
* Sarah McLachlan
Any of her CD's is going to be one of your favourite all-time finds! She is an amazingly talented vocalist.
* The Headstones
They now have 3 CD's out: Picture of Health, Teeth & Tissue, and Smile & Wave. They're awesome in concert!
http://www.headstones.com/
* Ashley MacIsaac
Fiddling like you've never heard it before!

"I merely took the energy it takes to pout and wrote some blues."
Duke Ellington

Some of the best songs:
Songs that stand the test of time!

* With or Without You -- U2
* Wicked Game -- Chris Isaak
* Sugar Water -- Cibo Matto
* Staying Alive -- Bee Gee's
* Don't You Forget About Me -- Simple Minds
* Mrs. Robinson -- Simon and Garfunkel
* The Boxer -- Simon and Garfunkel
* Bela Lugosi's Dead -- Bauhaus
* She Sells Sanctuary -- The Cult

WEBSITES FOR GRAPHICS/ANIMATION
(I believe they're all FREE!!!)
* SSA Custom Design! * THe SKuLL!! . COM
* The Virtual Reality Mall * The GeekZone's Ani-Gif Pages * IconBAZAAR
* John's Background Page -- One of the best backgrounds pages I have seen!
* GIF Animation Designs by ProMotion - Many Transparent Animations

An additional comment I would like to make is this:
Politeness, courtesy, and helpfulness are important factors in maintaining successful relationships anywhere.
But they are especially important in this electronic medium, whether you are someone who is offering a service, or someone using a service.
On the Internet, we are usually talking to people we don't know, and everyone has probably noticed that it is difficult to tell what "tone" is being used in emails.
The reason I mention this is due to a very unfortunate misunderstanding.
I submitted one of my sites to someone (through a form on their website) for review.
I have often submitted my sites for review to different reviewers because so many of them do not respond.
I received an email a few weeks later (approx.) from a name I did not recognize that basically insulted me and told me not to waste their time, as there were other people who could use their help. I had no clue what this was in response to, so I immediately emailed back, apologizing for whatever it was I had done to offend them, and to ask for enlightenment. Well, I did receive a response which was even more rude that explained that I had submitted my site for review and that they had tried to visit it 3 different times and received a 404 error. This person then made it clear that I had intentionally submitted a non-existent site through a non-existent email address in order to waste their time, and if I persisted in bothering them, I would not be pleased with the results. This went on a bit longer, but the main point is -- the problem most likely stemmed from a typo or something (part of the address is EmmaPeel1, another of my screen names, yet they referred to me as EmmaPeel -- forgetting the 1) and that this person automatically assumed the worst.
The best thing to do is to give a person the benefit of the doubt. If there is a problem reaching a site, or understanding someone's message, contact them and *politely* inform them and see what happens. Especially in a business-related area, where word-of-mouth can spread quickly. It is a proven fact that people are quicker to spread word of poor customer service than they are to praise it.

"Most human beings have an almost infinite capacity for taking things for granted."
-- Aldous Huxley

Go on to one of my other pages:
RAVEN2DOVE's Entertainment Pg: TV & MOVIES!
X-Files, Monty Python, and so much more!
Links, lists, trivia, recommendations...

Elaine's AMERICAN GOTHIC Montage
Dedicated to Shaun Cassidy's dark TV series, includes a large picture gallery, trivia, fan writings, and much more!

THE WRITE PATH: A Writer's Resource Page
Includes quotes, author email addys, links, recommended books, and other tools.

Elaine's MONSTER Download & Resource Page: INDEX
Includes separate sections such as GAMES, search engine info and direct url's, software downloads (educational/financial/business), and more!

Come back soon!

Member of the Internet Link Exchange