On the fifth of February I went to the Weta Cave to attend Mary Victoria’s book launch for Samiha’s Song.

It was a lovely event and I really enjoyed meeting Mary and Frank Victoria – so much talent in one household!!! Mary has been a Weta animator and Frank still is. Now Mary concentrates on her writing full time and she is working hard on the third book of her trilogy which will be released in August of this year.  I had a great time at the launch – there were many friends there new and old.

While I was at the Weta Cave I also saw this knife:

I’m thrilled to have spotted it – it is exactly the knife I picture the Beast Masters of the Rift Tides series (which Somewhere Else is part of – Beast Masters will appear in the second book To War) using. So I have put it up here as a source of ongoing inspiration.

I bought the first book in Mary’s series Tymon’s Flight because I hadn’t yet read it. I have recently been on a reading frenzy of Sean McMullen books but – perhaps feeling guilty because Bess has chewed the back cover of one of Mundens signed hardcovers *wince* – I’ve succumbed to the tempting cover art of Tymon’s Flight and have just started reading it. I love the idea of a world that exists solely in the canopy of a giant tree. So far the writing is simply beautiful – and I am just at the beginning. I have a feeling this story will swallow me up for hours as all really good books do. I will keep you all posted.

Mary is also running a wonderful series on Strong Women Writers and her current installment features Helen Lowe. You should head over to her delightful site and take a look.