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I reread the Lymond Chronicles, by Dorothy Dunnett. A grand opera of a historical roman fleuve, these just gain in depth and complexity and delight (and distress, she doesn't flinch at rather graphic nastiness). So many brilliant passages, like this bit from the sixth book, Checkmate, which could stand for why I love heroic adventure fiction:

ide by side they were evading, she and Francis Crawford, a pack of men who intended to kill them. To escape them would be a miracle. To try to escape them with wit and grace and all that civilization could add to an occasion essentially barbarous was her care, her delight, and her intention.

I finished an advanced reading copy of Naomi Novik's His Majesty's Dragon, first in three books. It could be described, sort of, as Hornblower meets dragons, though the language seems more influenced by Patrick O'Brian. Anyway, I do that only to be quick--the story was delightful, the dragon physics (I thought) wonderfully worked out. This is a parallel world in which dragons have been present for a long time, and have influenced many great events, such as the Armada in 1588. This time, it's Bonaparte's channel-crossing plan that threatens England. I very much look forward to the other books in this arc.

I've been reading some romance, especially romantic fantasy. My own tastes run to romantic fantasy with a lot of humor and Shanna Swendon's Enchanted, Inc fits the bill. There isn't actually much romance--mostly potential romance, as the 26-year-old heroine, Katie, fresh in New York from Texas, gets rid of a horrible job when she stumbles into the magical world overlaying this one. Business world clashes with fantasy world in this story, a fresh approach to what otherwise is becoming a subgenre (fey in New York) with a light-hearted touch. I loved the book, and was glad to find out she plans to go on with the story, as it seemed open-ended to me.

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