There is a new challenge starting over at Creative Moments today and my teamies have made some wonderful designs to inspire you. As this is my off challenge I decided to mount one of my recent cross stitch finishes to share with you all.
It took around 5 hours to stitch this little guy (although I didn't actually time it).
I would like to enter him into the following challenges:
CRAFT #587 Christmas
TIOT - oh so cute
jinglebelles - text me
ABCChristmas - C for Carols (Joy to the World)
WinterWonderland - Anything Christmas
I also have a book review to share with you at last!
Shards of a Broken Sword:
The Trilogy by W.R.Gingell
This story begins in Montalier
(Twelve Days of Faery) with a king whose son appears to be at the centre of a
curse. Every time a woman starts to get his attention something happens to her
that ruins her life in some way. Some are seriously crippled while others have
gone missing. When an enchantress comes to court to break the curse, the King
is unsure whether to let her – not because of the demands, as he has already
decreed that anybody that breaks the curse will marry his son – but because he
feels it is foolish and that it is too much for him to be responsible for all
the bad things that are happening to the girls. However, she manages to
convince him and even allows him to come on trips to the land of Faery. During
the trips she finds two shards that she knows are important, but not what they
are for.
The second book (Fire in his
Blood) sees Rafiq, a dragon that can take human form, and his Prince trying to
free a princess. Rafiq is bound to the prince against his will by a piece of
magic tied with the shard of a sword. This magic means that Rafiq has to do
what he is commanded to by the Prince. The Princess lives is a tower with a
variety of levels that have to be passed to get out at the end. A handmaiden is
provided to help them, who is cleverer than she lets on and is intrigued by
Rafiq, so much so that she decides to try and help him. The levels of the tower
are ever more intricate and test both physical and mental skills. Does the
Prince have what it takes to make it through and can the bond between dragon
and the royal line be undone?
The final book of the trilogy
(First Chill of Autumn) is set in Llassar, a kingdom that happily welcomed the
faery into their realms. Dion ferch Alawn has only ever know the faery people
within the castle; very few normal humans remain there. However, she finds a
prophecy that indicates she has to seal the lands of faery from those of humans
once again. She knows this will cost her life; however, she does not know what
it all means. She struggles against the truth that the faery people are
conquerors and see humans as lesser beings, until she sees the truth for
herself. Then she must join forces with the man from her mirror in order to set
the world right again. This means finding the shards of the sword and reuniting
them as one. There is much danger on the path as the faery folk are not overly
keen to be sent back to their lands and give up their governance and domination
of the human lands.
I would recommend these books as
there are many twists to the plot and they always keep you guessing. The facts
that each of the stories is set with completely different people in different
locations, but they come together in the final book, is a really unique way of
telling the story too. I enjoyed the tale from beginning to end.