Sunday, December 11, 2022

How Does a Book Heroine Celebrate December?

 Greetings Friends,

Christmas, Hannukah, Kwanzaa, or a different celebration, Pen Dames thought it would be fun to imagine how the heroines in our stories might celebrate the holiday. These women are from different time periods and occupations. So join us on this imaginary journey.




                                                 

                                                

                          Mind Your Goddess 

                                       by 

                      Flossie Benton Rogers

        Tickle your fantasy with a little Yuletide fun!

The life work of Epona, goddess of fruitfulness, involves seeing her people flourish and helping humans from the nearby earth dimension. The inhabitants of Epona's realm celebrate a midwinter holiday called Yuletide. Festivities surround Winter Solstice and the rebirth of the sun after the longest night of the year. There is feasting, singing, dancing, and gift giving. Special guests are always welcome, and the sun god Apollo has been known to play his lyre after a seven-course Yuletide meal. He says Epona's blackberry wine surpasses that served on Olympus. Epona's most honored guest is her lover Eshigel, the dark guardian of the between. She adores frisking him away from the dim corridors of his domain and cuddling up with him by a crackling midwinter fire in her Rose Cottage. 

                                                                          


                                                                                          Echoes of the Moon

                                                                                by Jennifer Taylor


         Jolly Ole England, Christmas Day
                   King's Harbour, 1737

It was a Happy Christmas indeed, thanks to gracious Lena, owner of the Siren Inn. After church, the town fair danced their way to the party, awed by the greenery that graced the walls and tables groaning with the bounty of the town's excellent cooks. Identical twins Bethan and Elunid were breathtakingly beautiful in white gowns embroidered with holly and ivy by the talented and troubled Elunid.
Henry, our town night soil man stood against the bar, eyes only on Bethan. He and son George so looked like the perfect gentlemen that no one would ever know their occupation.
The day was complete when the dashing Reginald and the Wandering wastrels sallied in, singing. we enjoyed hours of revelry: eating, drinking, gambling, and hilarity.
Best of all we witnessed Henry and Bethan passionately kissing under the mistletoe.

                                                                       

                                                              Siren Descending
                                                 by Katherine Eddinger Smits

                                                              Bah Humbug!


Athenia is a Sea Witch apprenticed to Thorne, a swamp mage from the bayous and backwaters in Florida. Before, she didn't celebrate holidays. Now, with Thorne, she endures human ways. Though he forgave her for stealing his powers and abandoning him to die, he hasn't forgotten. And the other mages treat her with contempt. As Christmas approaches, Thorne drags her into the human world. Their customs mystify her. Why do they worship a fat man in a red suit? Although the mages aren't obsessed with old guy, they're incomprehensible too. They have immense power to conjure lavish meals and beautiful clothes, but they eat simply and wear shorts and t-shirts. Makeup? The women strive to be plain-ass boring. They look down on her for her fondness of luxe, and hate her for what she did to Thorne, but she can't stand them either. This Christmas complication is a bitch.



The Bone Yard by Loretta C. Rogers

A Christmas Dinner Flub-a-Roo!  


Dr. Tullah Holliday is a veterinarian, and amateur sleuth. She uses her empathic abilities to help solve
crimes. While she is a great doctor, she didn't inherit her grandmother's cooking gene. This year was Tullah's turn to host Christmas dinner. While whipping the potatoes with her new electric hand mixer, the power kicked off. Her father rushed to the basement to flip the switch in the breaker box. When he returned upstairs, Tulllah was propped against the kitchen counter holding the mixer like a pistol and shooting mashed potato bullets all over the kitchen with globs decorating her grandmother's face and hair. Tullah was relieved when the guests didn't complain about the dry turkey and gloppy gravy.

                                


 


Now that you've seen how our book heroines might celebrate the holidays, we'd love to hear how you and your family celebrate or perhaps share some of the flub-a-Roos you've experienced during this joyous season by posting in the comments section below.

From Pen Dames to you, we wish you Happy Reading, Happy Holiday, Merry Christmas, and a New year filled with Blessings!






9 comments:

  1. Oh Loretta, I love how Tullah flubbed the mashed potatoes! I can see it now, LOL!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks a bunch, Kathy. I had fun creating Tullah's cooking disasters.

      Delete
  2. Flossie, I would love a glass of Epona's blackberry wine. Kathy, I can only imagine how Athenia felt celebrating her first Christmas; and Jennifer, the nightshade men creep me out. I really enjoyed reading all of your creations. Good Job!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I love reading how the heroines and heroes celebrate this special time of year. Seeing these posts together, I am imagining the characters all in one room conversing and trying to get to know one another as they enjoy the brightness of the season.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brilliant idea, Flossie, sounds like a fun project. We should consider it.

      Delete
  4. What a great combination of Yuletide mischief and mayhem. I'd like to see these folks in a room together as well!

    ReplyDelete
  5. What a great idea to have all these characters in one place having to deal with each other! It would be awesome.

    ReplyDelete

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