Small Talk: Chewing The Haggis

[WatchrTina]

So for those of you who don't follow Twitter, a funny, weird thing happened over the past few weeks involving the Outlander fan base.

 

It all started when William Shatner (yes, Captain Kirk) tweeted something un-complimentary about Outlander, the TV Show.  He said:

 

 

I watched the first ep of Outlander tonight. Nudity was gratuitous & even for a WW2 Nurse she seemed a little pushy and uppity.

 

Diana was not amused.  She responded::

 

@WilliamShatner I'd forgotten you were old enough to know a lot of WWII nurses, Bill.  Nice to know you still notice nudity, though.

 

I think there might have been some more back and forth between the two of them and then Diana went off on a USO tour.  

 

While she was gone it appears that some Outlander fans tweeted some not very nice things to Mr. Shatner.  Now, this is a guy who has been dealing with Star Trek fans for a LONG time (and Trekkers can be a passionate, outspoken group) so I doubt if those not very nice tweets bothered him at all, but he also didn't just ignore them.  He responded to some of the worst (or at least I think they were the worst -- they all were self-deleted after he replied, which says a lot about the person who posted them) and a bunch of from-the-sidelines commentary about the fight also made it into his twitter feed.  At some point one of the ugly tweets provoked Mr. Shatner into copying Sam and Cait in his response.  That's when Sam jumped in and said (regarding the nasty messages to Mr. Shatner) "I've got your back."  I'm pretty sure that put an end to the nasty messages from Outlander fans.

 

Diana returned from the USO tour and said basically "What the heck erupted here when i wasn't paying attention?"  That made me roll my eyes.  Diana's response to the original tweet was pretty snarky.  Does she really think her response didn't fan the flames?  Though admittedly, the original Shatner tweet was probably sufficient to set off a shit-storm. (It's like what Murtagh said to Claire, "We can insult you, but God help any other man that does.”)

 

Now we've got tweets flying back-and-forth between Sam and William Shatner on the topic of balls/bollocks/cojones (Shatner retweeted for a UK charity Sam is supporting); the meaning of the word pants (US vs. UK); whether or not Shatner should guest star on Outlander; and if he did would he wear a kilt.

 

In a recent tweet to Sam, William Shatner copied Adrian Paul, the star of the TV show Highlander (who played my former fictional boyfriend, Duncan MacLeod of the Clan MacLeod).  That just about made my head explode.

 

Social media is (to use William Shatner's term) cray cray.

Edited September 27, 2015 by WatchrTina

[Summer]

I saw that Twitterstorm but didn't know what started it all, thank you WatchrTina!

 

 

Diana returned from the USO tour and said basically "What the heck erupted here when i wasn't paying attention?"  That made me roll my eyes.  Diana's response to the original tweet was pretty snarky.  Does she really think her response didn't fan the flames?  Though admittedly, the original Shatner tweet was probably sufficient to set off a shit-storm. (It's like what Murtagh said to Claire, "We can insult you, but God help any other man that does.”)

 

And Diana's response.  Ugh.  She can be so smug and condescending, it bugs the crap out of me.  Shatner was merely stating his opinion on the TV show, not her books or her writing, and she has to make a crack about how old he is.  

[DittyDotDot]

Maybe this should go in the "You know you're obsessed when..." category, but I just walked out of my office and what did I see parked on the street? A truck painted with "St. Germain's Glass Works". The grin I got when I saw "Germain"...

Edited September 29, 2015 by DittyDotDot

[WatchrTina]

Well I had a weird Outlander-related experience yesterday.  Someone offered me a free ticket to "Evita" at the Zach Theater here in Austin, Texas.  I stepped outside at intermission to check on the weather (we're feeling the effects of Hurricane Patricia -- that's how the ticket became suddenly available) and I got into conversation with a man who, I eventually realized, was wearing a kilt. I didn't notice at first because he was wearing a raincoat.  Eventually I mentioned Outlander.  He had this very strong, very negative reaction.  Mind you, he wasn't a Scot but I think he went to school there and possibly he's got some Scottish ancestry.  Anyway, the next thing I knew he was demonstrating his (very limited) knowledge of Scots Gaelic (some thing he had memorized) and fussing at me about how bad the show was.  Thankfully it was soon time to return to the second half of Evita.  Wow.  That was unexpected.  

 

Interestingly, Diana posted on Facebook today, sharing a current photo of the tree she was invited to plant a few years ago on the grounds of Castle Leod (the actual seat of one branch of Clan MacKenzie.)  It was sent to her by Eve MacKenzie (a.k.a the Countess of Cromartie.)  If notable members of the living, breathing Clan MacKenzie have positive feelings about Outlander, then I think that carries a lot more weight than a random American with a Scotland fetish (I mean, why WAS he wearing a kilt and white tie to a musical about Argentina?  He was also talking really fast -- somewhat manic -- not quite sure if that was just his personality or he result of something pharmaceutical.)

 

This experience serve as a good reminder that not everybody shares my love for this show.  Perhaps I'll be more careful about who I share that enthusiasm with in future.

Edited October 25, 2015 by WatchrTina

[Summer]

Interesting, WatchrTina!  

 

For me, it's that NO ONE in my life/world has A: heard of the books, B: heard of the show, and C: even has Starz on cable to watch the show.  Any time I mention the show or books to anyone I know I get "What's Outlander?"  I barely mention it anymore. And that is precisely why this board has been a lifesaver for me :)

[Laurie]

I'm the same way Summer...or at least I was. I spent years talking to my sister's and cousins about these books to the point their eyes would glaze over. Finally stopped talking about them. Then last Christmas Day we were at my cousin's house for dinner. We were sitting around talking after the meal was over when my cousin's daughter starts scrolling through her mom's Kindle and then says, "You're reading Outlander?" Then my sister says she was reading it, too. It was almost like they were afraid to tell me. I don't think my sister stuck with them but my cousin just finished MOBY and says she misses the characters. I'm taking the DVDs up this Christmas so we can binge watch.

[DittyDotDot]

That's funny Laurie, I've really felt like I'm missing something since I finished MOBY a little over a week ago. I guess I'll have to move the second half of the season up on my Netflix queue? 

[asp]

I finished MOBY last week, so I'm starting over again. I began re-reading Outlander two days ago. :D

 

Talk about obsession....

[Summer]

Does anyone know where Diana got the phrase "Jesus H. Roosevelt Christ"?  I have heard of Jesus H. Christ (my Dad used to say it, lol) but not with the Roosevelt.  Is it a well known phrase from the 40"s or did DG make it up?  

 

Kinda of curious is all...:)

[WatchrTina]

I have a suggestion for anyone suffering from withdrawal during #DroughtlanderDeux and missing the mellifluous sounds of the Scottish accent.  I'm listing to Craig Ferguson's autobiography, "American on Purpose: The Improbable Adventures of an Unlikely Patriot."  I bought the audio-book version, which Craig himself reads.  Damn he's funny.

[DittyDotDot]

Total random bit of randomness: I'm sitting here watching Jeeves and Wooster and one of Diana's favorite words--which I've hardly every heard anywhere else--was on display. 

 

"I should advise a degree of alacrity!"

 

Gave me a huge chuckle!

[WatchrTina]

Today I learned (on Reddit) that the Appalachian Mountains and the Highlands of Scotland are part of the same very very old mountain range.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Pangean_Mountains

 

Which works out nicely if, say,

a TV show filmed in Scotland needs to have the Scottish Highlands double for The Appalachians.

Edited December 1, 2015 by WatchrTina

[WatchrTina]

Okay this is kind of sweet.  Someone in Scotland is organizing a Christmas surprise for a little kid who lives on a remote Scottish island and who is the only student in his school.  People are invited to send holiday cards from the UK or post cards from all over the world.  It's happening this week.  I seem to recall our own Sam Heughan talking about his childhood and how there were only a few children in each grade at his school.  So in his honor I'll be buying a card and putting it in the mail this week.  They suggested that everyone wait and mail their letter on Dec 7 so I'm going to buy a nice Texas-style post card, figure out the international postage, and send it off.  Here's the link to Reddit if you want to join in.  Note, Redditors are staying anonymous by signing their user names or just first names.

 

https://np.reddit.com/r/Scotland/comments/3usxnb/lets_spread_some_festive_cheer_send_a_christmas/?sort=confidence

Edited December 2, 2015 by WatchrTina

[asp]

This feels kinda shallow after WatchrTina's  post and you all probably know about these, but they're new to me so I'll post anyway.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXPPHHqKwX0

 

She has recaps for most episodes (some are funnier than others).

 

Is this the right thread to post them?

[WatchrTina]

So I've spent Christmas Eve and Christmas day immersed in a couple of other fandoms. First I saw the new Star Wars film (no spoilers here) which I prepared for by watching all 6 prior films and the making-of documentaries over the past weekend. I saw the new film at 9:00am Christmas Eve and then came home to begin my gift to myself -- an immersion into the extended edition of the The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies. I'm two-thirds of the way through the "making-of" documentaries and thoroughly enjoying it, but my Outlander-love keeps intruding on the process.

The first time it happened was in the scene in the second Hobbit film where Tauriel, the beautiful-yet-ferocious she-elf, heals Kili, the sexy dwarf played by smoking-hot Aidan Turner (a.k.a. TV's new "Poldark"). There is this moment where Kili looks up at Tauriel with amazement and adoration as she works on him. It strongly reminded me of that scene in the first episode of Outlander where Claire helps Jamie after he falls off his horse. Claire doesn't glow with the ethereal light of the Eldar, but she might as well have, given the look on Jamie's face as he gazes up at her.

The second time was during the behind-the-scene footage from the Battle of the Five Armies -- the scene where the Thorin leads his band of 13 dwarves in a desperate charge out of the gates of Erebor to either turn the tide of the fight or die in the effort. In the movie you hear cries of "To the King!" in that scene. But in the behind-the-scenes footage I swear I heard both Richard Armitage (Thorin) and our own Graham McTavish (Dwalin) shout "Tulach Ard!" I'm almost certain that scene was shot during pick-ups, after Graham had already been cast as Dougal and I think they actually did use the MacKenzie war-cry to rev themselves up for that shot. I will continue to believe that until Graham himself tells me otherwise.

It's a good time to be a SciFi/Fantasy fan.

ETA: Okay, I'm wrong. There's a scene in the "making of" documentaries when they are filming the flashback to the battle before the gates of Moria and Thorin lets out a very clear dwarf war-cry that is phonetically very similar to "Tulach Ard!" but is not, after all, Scottish Gaelic. Still, I don't think the similarity of the sounds is a coincidence, nor is it an accident that they hired a big Scot (Graham McTavish) to play the Thorin's right-hand man and war-chieftain. Nor is it a coincidence that the most warrior-like of the Hobbits (the Tooks) also have Scottish accents (Bilbo's ancestor, Bullroarer Took was so big he could ride a regular horse and did ride one into a fight where he knocked off a goblin's head . . . and invented the game of golf at the same time.)

Edited December 29, 2015 by WatchrTina

[Nidratime]

I bought both the Blu-Ray Season 1, Part 1 and Part 2 DVDs, when they were individually released. That being the case, has anyone done the same but also bought the Outlander, Season 1, Ultimate Collection (with the flask, etc.) that was released in November? I don't need a flask or extra photos, but I wanted to know if the DVD extras are different from the ones on the other Blu-Ray discs or if there are any extra items in this collection that are worth purchasing the ultimate collection despite already having the original Blu-Ray versions.

[Dust Bunny]

Happy Hogmanay to all of you! Wishing you a wonderful 2016 and that our show will be as great as ever.

 

Sláinte!

[asp]

Happy New Year, everybody!!

Sláinte!!!

Edited January 1, 2016 by asp

[asp]

Can I just say this droughtland is driving me nuts?!?!

 

Apart from the gossip of wether Sam and Cait are or not together (which is absolutely none of my business) I find myself reading and looking for any tidbit on the coming season...I'm too old for this sh*t! 

 

I like my guilty pleasures like...right now!

[WatchrTina]

So did anyone else watching the Golden Globes ask themselves "What is this show, "Mozart in the Jungle"?  I checked it out after it won all those awards.  It's available streaming online via Amazon Prime.  I'm loving it.  I watch with good headphones on because while the plot and characters are good, the MUSIC is what makes this show unique.

 

Also Gael Garcia Bernal is hot.  Funny too.  But smokin hot.  Like a certain red-headed Scot I could mention.

 

Happy #DroughtlanderDeux.

Edited January 31, 2016 by WatchrTina

[Dust Bunny]

Yeah, I caught Mozart when it was first released last year. It's fun and definitely unique. The last episode of season 1 annoyed me to no end. But I'm glad I came back for season 2.

 

Part of the fun are the not so random musicians in the orchestra, like Warren Boyd. Strong casting across the board. 

[WatchrTina]

So last night I stayed up late and finished "Finding Fraser" by kc dyer (and yes, she uses all lower-case letters in her name like e e cummings which was almost pretentious enough to stop me from reading this book.)  But it's #DoughtlanderDeux and I just finished a 5-month slog through the 1,000+ pages of "Infinite Jest" and I really wanted something light.  This book is barely one step up from fan fiction.  It aspires to be Bridget Jones' Diary but does not get there.  It was, however, an amusing read for an Outlander fan who could enjoy the game of "Okay who is THIS character supposed to parallel from the Outlander-verse?"  It's a novel about a 29-year-old woman, a huge Outlander fan, who loses her job and decides to got to Scotland and find a guy like JAMMF.  Three guesses if she finds him.  It was junk food.  But sometimes you really crave a Big Mac.

Edited January 31, 2016 by WatchrTina

[Nidratime]

If you're looking for something to read during "Droughtlander," you might try two books by Kathleen Givens: Kilgannon and the sequel, The Wild Rose of Kilgannon, published in 1999. There's no time travel in the books, but they're set during the early 1700's in both England and Scotland and involves the courtship and marriage of a English aristocrat and a Scottish chieftain from the Highlands. It's set against the hostilities between the two peoples.

[WatchrTina]

If you are looking for something to watch during #DroughtlanderDeux, may I suggest "Vikings" on the History Channel?  They are back on Thursday, Feb 18th with the start of Season 4 and it looks like they are going run a marathon of Season 3 all day beforehand.  All Hail Ragnar Lothbrok and his kick-ass ex-wife Lagertha!  There is a connection you know. It's pretty clear that sword under Jamie's father's bed was of Viking origin.

 

BTW, fi you are not already watching Black Sails on STARZ, you should be.  (Might as well get used to being home at 8:00 on Saturday nights, tuned into STARZ, because April 9th is coming soon!)

Edited February 17, 2016 by WatchrTina

[GrailKing]

I have Black Sails on my to watch, but kepp pushing it back because for some reason I can't get into pirates. :>/

I have to catch up with Vikings last episode I saw was the Blood Eagle episode, gruesome way to die.

[GrailKing]

I put a link in the GOT in the media on a funny video, knowing some people here watch BOTH Outlander and GOT I'll do the same here this is really good and funny if you haven't seen it already.

[Summer]

Had some thoughts so I thought this thread might the appropriate place.

 

At first I thought Ron and Co. were making a huge mistake by making the fans wait a whole year from S1 to S2.  I thought to myself "they are going to lose a lot of non book readers making them wait so long, they'll run the risk of them losing interest."  At the time S1 ended I had not read any books and I absolutely LOVED S1 as a non book reader and I have to admit anything from S2 freaked me out, I wasn't even sure I wanted to watch.  Even after I read Outlander and DIA last summer, DIA was so different I STILL wasn't looking forward to S2.  So months pass with very little to no previews/tidbits nothing and I did lose interest and moved on (my latest obsession is The Walking Dead, Jesus H. Roosevelt Christ how did I miss this show when it first started??)  Then a few months ago some casting news (yay Richard Rankin!!)  previews, and other info started to show up on social media and I started to gain interest again.  And then I realized that this long break was exactly what I needed to shake off S1 and be ready for S2.  I think if S2 had started a few months later, because it is so different than S1, I honestly don't think I would have watched.   I also think it is smart of Ron and Co. to reveal how DIA really goes down 

Claire goes back

early to allow the non book readers to digest that.  

 

I will now say I am truly looking forward to S2 and I don't think I would have said that a year ago when S1 started.  So kudos to Ron and Co for keeping this viewer! 

[GrailKing]

UUGH!

I should have gone through Amazon!

 

My package arrived from B & N in it was to be the Outlander graphic novel and a Sansa Stark figurine, instead I get a Jorah Mormont figurine and no OL graphic novel, disappointed to say the least in B & N and according to the rep they are out of stock on the figurine, but will 1 day ship me the GN.

On my way to the local B & N to have them ship it back.

[asp]

This had me in stitches

 

http://outlander-starz.tumblr.com/post/140128400311/x

[GrailKing]

LOL he actually said that?

 

Got the link to the actual footage?

[asp]

Here it is:

 

http://outlander-starz.tumblr.com/post/140109904021/a-fun-quiz-about-jamie-in-claire-through-the

[GrailKing]

Now I remembered it, I faced palm and my wife asked if he said her anus we had a good chuckle over that .

 

ETA: as nice as Cat looks in those gowns, they must be uncomfortable as hell, she must have loved working in pants and shirt last year.

Edited February 29, 2016 by GrailKing

[GrailKing]

Any thoughts on the Oscars?

I thought it was a little boring.

I can only comment on movies we saw, well accept for ROOM-WE have to see that one.

Creed-nice, not Oscar calibre to me or wife, it was ok but not great, Michael Jordan was good,Stallone eh.

 

Bridge of spies- like that a lot we saw it twice, sent me back to my early teen years and how scary it actually was between the U.S. and the Soviet Union.

The Revenant - Happy for Leo and what he and the crew did to tell the story, but felt like it went  beyond forever like Tom Hanks in Castaway, yet we like both these guys.

 

Carol- All I'm saying here is We love Cate Blanchette  in anything, liked Rooney Meera in the girl with the Dragon Tattoo and she was good in this movie.

 

I don't get the E-channel, was Catriona at the Oscars? she was in the George Clooney movie, I saw Sophie Turner was there.

Just my thoughts.

 

OH! before I forget, LADY GAGA ! moving, sad, angry; she was GREAT! and the survivors brave.

[Nidratime]

I have to admit, I only lasted about an hour into the show. (I live not too far from the National Zoo and spent the day trudging up and down the hills looking at various animals - including the baby panda. It wiped me out!)

 

I was happy Spotlight won. Good picture not only about a disturbing topic but about how important responsible, investigative journalism is.

 

I didn't see Mad Max or the Revenant. They're not my type of movies. Too violent.

 

I saw Bridge of Spies -- a real throwback, old Hollywood type film.

 

And I loved Brooklyn. No sensationalism. Just a little film about real people facing big transitions in their lives.

 

I enjoyed The Big Short, but it left me with a sour taste in my mouth seeing as so many people who could've rung the alarm bells instead, chose to profit from the crisis.

 

I hope to see Creed down the road.... Maybe on Netflix. I'm from the Philly area and it would be great to see some of the streets I know personally on the screen again.

[GrailKing]

Have to put Brooklyn on the list along with spotlight and the big short, we didn't like the first MadMax so never saw the sequels, won't see this one either.

[ulkis]

Does anyone have any "if you like Outlander you'll like so-and-so" book recommendations? Thanks in advance!

[GrailKing]

Does anyone have any "if you like Outlander you'll like so-and-so" book recommendations? Thanks in advance!

If you like early England historical romance, Joan Wolf had a trilogy no science fiction though:

The Road to Avalon, A romance take on King Arthur and Morgan Le Fay 

Born of the Sun- Celtic Princess falling for a Saxon Prince

The Edge of Light- Alfred the Great and the woman he could not help but Love

If you asked this years back I would have added The Mist of Avalon, but in view of news that came to light I would no longer promote Marion Zimmer Bradley.

Keeping with the King Arthur theme Persia Wooley has a triplex of stories on Guinevere.

As close to historical fiction and romance that I have.

A Song of Ice and Fire by G. R. R. Martin, but don't expect romance, based on some Scottish and English history, with Dragons and Zombies thrown in.

Parke Overall has a trilogy also but they are buried and it's too late to go rummaging through my book shelf at the moment.

Edited March 6, 2016 by GrailKing

[GrailKing]

Just to add, The Mist of Avalon was made into a TV movie.

[Nidratime]

Does anyone have any "if you like Outlander you'll like so-and-so" book recommendations? Thanks in advance!

 

Keep in mind, I haven't read some of these books or series of books, but many others I know have and have enjoyed them:

 

Sarah Donati's series of books about a young english woman who comes to live in early America, in New York. Books start with "Into the Wilderness."

Paullina Simons' series of books about a young Russian couple who meet around the time that Hitler's army begins their invasion of Russia. The story moves on to other places from there and starts with "The Bronze Horseman."

Marsha Canham, who has written at least a couple of series. One is set in Scotland, with a book called "The Pride of Lions." Another series is set in medieval England during the time of Prince John and Robin Hood. I read the first book, "Through a Dark Mist," and enjoyed it.

Dorothy Dunnett's series, together called "The Lymond Chronicles," and starting with "The Games of Kings." It follows the adventures/life of Francis Crawford and starts in the 1500's in Scotland.

Susanna Kearsley's books. I don't know if any of them are part of a series, but she writes wonderful books, some of which involve time travel or stories set in two periods, simultaneously. I read "Mariana" and loved it.

Laura Kinsale's books. Most are stand alone novels, but she does have a couple of books that link with each other. One that I really enjoyed was "For My Lady's Heart," which is set in medieval England and is written with an old English way of speaking. It's followed up by "Shadowheart."

Connie Willis has written some well regarded time travel books. "The Doomsday Book" and "To Say Nothing of the Dog."

Kathleen Givens' wrote two books which are linked. They're set in England and Scotland and involve a romance between a Scotsman and Englishwoman. The first book is "Kilgannon" and the second is "The Wild Rose of Kilgannon."

Jennifer Donnelly has written a very well regarded series. It begins with "The Tea Rose," which begins in 1880's London, but moves on to other places.

Jude Deveraux wrote "A Knight in Shining Armor" which is a well-regarded time travel book enjoyed by many romance readers.

Edited March 6, 2016 by Nidratime

[ulkis]

Thanks to both of you!

[ulkis]

In turn,  thought I'd recommend some of my favorite "if you like Outlander, there is a good chance you might like this" books:

 

"The Aeronaught's Windlass" by Jim Butcher. I read this recently and it was pretty good, basically about a pirate captain, except the ships are in the air instead of the sea. It's a new book that's the first in a series.

 

Rafael Sabatini. I've liked most of his books that I've read, although they range from "one of my favorite books ever" to enjoying it but then promptly forgetting about it once I was finished with it. My favorite is "Scaramouche" (although I'm not a fan of the 50s film). Honorable mentions are "The Trampling of the Lilies"  and "Mistress Wilding". "Trampling of the Lilies" is a bit of a poor man's Scaramouche, but I love the main female character. (One book of his I did not like though - "Bellarion". Sabatini has a tendency to make his characters Marty Stues, and the main character is the martiest of marty stus. I could deal with that I guess but I just found it plodding in general as well.)

 

"The Sunne in Splendour" by Sharon Kay Penman. I imagine most people here have heard of it but I'll throw it in here for people who might have not. It's pretty much the novel about Richard III. I usually don't crush on alpha males, but I came away with a huge crush on Edward of York, but all the characters are great, and (mostly) everyone gets a fair point of view. Oh, and there's an annoying tendency to use "be" instead of "is" to make the dialogue sound more medieval-like, but you get used to it. Or at least, I did.

 

"Anne's House of Dreams", "Rilla of Ingleside", and "The Blue Castle" by L.M. Montgomery. The first two books are the fifth and eighth books of the Anne of Green Gables series, but imo both can be read alone, especially "Rilla". In the first one, Anne starts her married life and the second one is about Anne's grown daughter Rilla dealing with World War I. If you've never read any of the previous Anne books the very beginning of "House of Dreams" might be a bit confusing but once she moves to a new town it should be fine from there. "Anne of the Island" is also a great favorite of mine but I don't recommend it as much because it's not quite as stand alone, but I do recommend it if you're inclined to try it out. I read it first and I was fine with it, and it features one of my favorite Montgomery characters, Phillipa Gordon. It comes before "House of Dreams" and you can go straight from "Island" to "House". There is a book in between them now ("Anne of Windy Poplars") but it was written and inserted into the series later on.

 

"The Blue Castle" is about a woman who is suppressed by her strict family, and decides to make a marriage of convenience. It gets  a little ridiculous towards the end, but it's a good read.

 

"the Thief/The Queen of Attolia/The King of Attolia" by Megan Whelan Turner. It's a YA fantasy series (although there isn't much magic in there - I'd guess more of an alternate universe Byzantium). It's probably better to start with the Thief, but that skews pretty young and is kinda slow, so if you really want to you can start with the "Queen of Attolia". There's also a fourth book ("A Conspiracy of Kings"), but I hesitate recommending it because the first three imo can be read as a contained trilogy and the fourth continues the story, but it's been 6 years since that came out and I don't think there is a new one coming out any time soon.

 

"The Wolf Hunt" by Gillian Bradshaw. I'll just take the amazon description here because I'm getting lazy. :)

 

"When Marie Penthièvre of Chalendrey is abducted from her Norman priory and taken to Brittany's court, she vows never to dishonor her family's ties by marrying a Breton brute. There is only one man who might change her mind: Tiarnán of Talensac, a handsome, skilled, and noble knight indeed. But Tiarnán does not love her, and when he marries a slip of a girl instead, Marie vows to become a nun as soon as she is able. But Tiarnán has a secret, and that slip of a girl betrays him once she learns of it."

 

"The Tenant of Wildfell Hall" - by Anne Bronte, aka the third Bronte sister. I read "Jane Eyre" and "Wuthering Heights" and enjoyed them both, but I never felt the urge to re-visit either novel after I was done with them. This one I went and re-read my favorite parts. The bulk of the middle of the book is a flashback that goes on a mite too long but I like the romance between the main characters.

Edited March 6, 2016 by ulkis

[Bort]

Well, drat, work is sending me out of town smack in the middle of Outlander season to… Scotland.

[Glaze Crazy]

^^^Oooooh, lucky you!^^^ I hope you can find time to get out in the countryside and see it in it's glory.

 

So, the zombies are over for the season (The Walking Dead anyway) and this comes back just in time.  I'm trying something different and finally dumping my (very overpriced) satellite service for apps and streaming options.  I even bought a Roku tv.  Already have Amazon Prime, which also just put Dr. Who back on the menu, so I think I won't run out of options for stuff to watch, at least for a while.

[Bort]

^^^Oooooh, lucky you!^^^ I hope you can find time to get out in the countryside and see it in it's glory.

I'll be in Scatsta, then Aberdeen, the latter of which is only about a 2 1/2 hour train ride from Inverness. I thought I'd check out Culloden on an off day.

[WatchrTina]

Remember the lady who ran the boarding house in the very first episode talking about Saint Oran?  Turns out Neil Gaiman wrote a poem about him and now someone is making a stop-motion animation film based on Neil's poem.  Below is a link to the kickstarter page with an interesting video talking about the project.  I'm not promoting the project -- I just thought it was interesting to hear about Saint Oran again.

 

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/jimbatt/the-grave-of-saint-oran-a-neil-gaiman-animation

[GrailKing]

For those who also follow GOT, I put a link to the Conon show in the GOT media thread, it's an expansion on a scene in the recent trailer, if you like Davo and

Ghost

you'll love it.

Edited April 8, 2016 by GrailKing

[GrailKing]

More Info:

Apr. 7th (tonight): Liam Cunningham on Conan O’Brien
Apr. 11th: Sophie Turner on Conan
Apr. 12th: John Bradley on Conan
Apr. 13th: Maisie Williams on Late Night with Seth Meyers
Apr. 14th: Emilia Clarke on Conan

[Summer]

Not sure where to put this but this thread seemed the best fit I guess...

 

Someone asked Diana on Twitter who told Claire Jamie's last name was "McTavish"?  Diana said Jamie did, but the line was accidentally omitted from the book and they didn't think to do it for the show.

 

So glad to finally have an explanation for that, it drove me batty!  

[AD55]

I've spent way too much time in the past several hours hanging out in the Sleepy Hollow forums. For those who don't watch, the season, possibly series, finale was a travesty. I'm so grateful that Outlander's second season started this weekend. Thank goodness for Diana, Ron, and the huge crew and cast. Whatever quibbles I have this season, I feel pretty confident that I'm not going to be throwing crockery after episode 13. Not that there is any broken crockery in my kitchen right now. And when I say none, I mean some, to paraphrase Monty Python.

[Dust Bunny]

 

I've spent way too much time in the past several hours hanging out in the Sleepy Hollow forums. For those who don't watch, the season, possibly series, finale was a travesty.

 

I liked Sleepy Hollow in the first season, but I left after it started getting away from itself. So I had to check the forum and see what happened it its finale. Yikes. It's like they went out of their way to ruin their own show.

 

Hope you still have some crockery left, AD55. Especially if you have a much better throwing arm than the fair Letitia.

Edited April 9, 2016 by Dust Bunny