I spent the last month and a half checking out a new author, Wilbur Smith. My husband is a longtime fan and has been ‘suggesting’ that I read the books. And, I should have known that he was going to be right… I LOVED them!
Smith has several series: The Courtney Series, The Ballantyne Series and the Ancient Egypt Series.
The Ancient Egypt series is mainly based for the most part on Pharaoh Memnon’s time, however, the second book is set in modern times.
1. River God “For Tanus, the fair-haired young lion of a warrior, the gods have decreed that he will lead Egypt’s army in a bold attempt to reunite the Kingdom’s shared halves. But Tanus will have to defy the same gods to attain the reward they have forbidden him, an object more prized than battle’s glory: possession of the Lady Lostris, a rare beauty with skin the color of oiled cedar–destined for the adoration of a nation, and the love of one extraordinary man.”
2. Seventh Scroll “For 4,000 years, Pharaoh Mamose has never been found until now! Egyptologist Royan Al Simma finds a message penned by Taita which gives clues about the tomb’s whereabouts. Only one step ahead of assassins, Royan runs for her life and into the arms of the only man she can trust, Sir Nicholas Quenton-Harper-a daring man who will stake his fortune and his life to join her hunt for the king’s tomb. Together, they will embark on a breathtaking journey to the most exotic locale on earth, where the greatest mystery of ancient Egypt, a chilling danger and an explosive passion are waiting.”
3. Warlock “After a sixty-year war over the kingdoms of Egypt, two young pharaohs have risen to claim power, but only one can succeed. The mission of Prince Nefer, rightful heir to the throne, is to rebuild a magnificent kingdom out of the ruins of the city of Gallala. The desire of Lord Naja is to destroy his rival and rule the land with unholy supremacy. The warlock Taita, a matchless ally and legendary priest of notorious powers is on the side of Prince Nefer. Nefer and Taita must stay one step ahead of an assassin, ever-pursuing armies, and outwit his own flesh and blood who seek to betray him.”
4. The Quest “Egypt is struck by a series of terrible plagues that cripple the Kingdom, and then the ultimate disaster follows. The Nile fails. The waters that nourish and sustain the land dry up. Something catastrophic is taking place in the distant and totally unexplored depths of Africa from where the mighty river springs. In desperation Pharoah sends for Taita, the only man who might be able to win through to the source of the Nile and discover the cause of all their woes. None of them can have any idea of what a terrible enemy lies in ambush for The Warlock in those mysterious lands at the end of their world.”
5. Desert God “On the gleaming banks of the Nile, the brilliant Taita—slave and advisor to the Pharaoh—finds himself at the center of a vortex of passion, intrigue, and danger. His quest to destroy the Hyksos army and form an alliance with Crete takes him on an epic journey up the Nile, through Arabia and the magical city of Babylon, and across the open seas. With the future of Egypt itself on his shoulders, Taita enters a world where the line between loyalty and betrayal shifts like the desert sands, evil enemies await in the shadows, and death lingers on the edges of darkness”
6. Pharaoh “Pharaoh Tamose teeters on the brink of death. Luxor is surrounded. Hope is lost. Taita,The ex-slave, now general of Tamose’s armies is preparing for the final push. An old ally returns and the tide is turned.But upon his victorious return to Luxor, Taita is seized and branded a traitor. Tamose is dead and a new era has begun. The new Pharaoh has risen — and he must be stopped.”
7. The New Kingdom “In the city of Lahun, Hui lives an enchanted life. He has a loving father and the ruler-in-waiting of the great city, his fate is set. However, a sinister evil is plotting. Hui’s power-hungry and jealous stepmother, the great sorceress Ipsetnofret, and his brother Qen, orchestrate the downfall of Hui’s father. Hui is condemned and cast out and alone. Hui finds himself a captive of a skilled and powerful army of outlaws, the Hyksos. Determined to seek vengeance for the death of his father and rescue his sister, Ipwet, Hui swears his allegiance to these enemies of Egypt. Through them he learns the art of war, learning how to fight and becoming an envied charioteer. As the pieces fall into place and the Gods themselves join the fray, Hui finds himself fighting alongside the Egyptian General Tanus and renowned Mage, Taita.”
I was gifted an awesome journal for Christmas last year; Picadilly’s 200 Writing Prompts. I am still working my way through it! I wanted to share my most recent entry with you…
I absolutely love gardening; we have a huge vegetable patch and a greenhouse. We also have tons and tons of small planters and hanging baskets adorning our house and yard, in addition to large barrel planters and two flower beds. Both my husband and I can go overboard when it comes to buying plants. Last year was our first growing season with the greenhouse so I grew a lot of our plants from seeds –I am hoping to grow even more this year. I have already started designing the garden.
Barrel Planter 2 -Delphinium -Sweet William -Lupin
Cover Planter *various colours, heights and types -Marigolds Front Bed (House) *arranged; so that when they bloom it’s like rainbow blanket -Nasturiums -Begonia -Zinnia -Impatiens
Front Bed (Yard) *all in various shades of purples & white -Alpine Aster -Bearded Iris -Pansies -Petunias -Chrysthanthemums
One of my friends is expecting; which is super exciting, but she has been pretty unimpressed with the mocktails she has ordered lately. For her shower and other parties this spring, I set out to find some delicious (and easy to make) mocktails based on her favourite cocktails and these are the ones that have and will pass the test!
1. Stirred “Stirred cocktails are spirit forward, boozy drinks that typically consist of a base spirit, a sweetener, and modifiers such as bitters, additional spirits, liqueurs, or fortified wines.”
Old Fashioned from veryobsessed.com *Most non-alcoholic recipes call for bitters; however they contain trace amounts of alcohol; which is important to note; always check with your pregnant guests. 2. Shaken (Sours) “Sours are shaken cocktails that are composed of something acidic, something sweet, and something strong.”
Margarita from acoupleofcooks.com 3. Highballs “Highballs are called “long” drinks as they are usually a sour or stirred base that is lengthened by the addition of carbonated water…served in the iconic highball glass.”
Hurricane from Taste of Home 4. Flips, Fizzes, Swizzles, and Smashes “A smash begins with muddled herbs and/or citrus, which are then shaken with a spirit and sweetener and served over crushed ice.”
I was gifted an awesome journal for Christmas last year; Picadilly’s 200 Writing Prompts. I am still working my way through it! I wanted to share my most recent entry with you…
Covid has ruined a lot of people’s travel plans. My husband, my family, my friends and myself have all had to cancel trips; so we all have quite a bit of money sitting in our travel banks with various airlines. Spring break is coming. I haven’t been back to Victoria in ages –I love re-discovering locations from my childhood. Normally I cram in as many things as possible; but since Victoria isn’t super far and it’s relatively affordable, I can go back whenever to see what I missed. My itinerary this time is much more relaxed.
As a Social Studies nerd; I have to go back to the Parliament Buildings; my all time favourite field was here in grade 4.
No trip would be complete without a pit-stop at a museum; theRoyal BC Museumwill NOT disappoint.
I love food; atInner Harbourthere is fantastic fare.
Butchart Garden&Victoria Butterfly Gardensare a MUST SEE; I still have vivid memories from the last time I went. These are also super family friendly locations; everyone of all ages will have a good time.
Being a teacher is challenging and amazing at the same time! I am sharing some teacher musings with you today.
Stuff My Students Say… 1. “Even though you are really old; probably too old to have kids of your own, I think you’d make a good mom!” (Such a wonderful back-handed compliment. Also, I am only 35… how old do they think I am?!?!?!?) 2. S1: “I am bored” S2: (without missing a beat) “She’s not our cruise director!” Me: *turns around with a completely caught off guard look on my face* S2: (with a wink and finger guns) “My mom’s a teacher; I got you!” 3. “Morning, Mrs. Teacher, do I have some facts about cheese for you!” (This was literally the first thing this kid said to me as he walked into the school; we had never talked about cheese before that –but we did for the next 15 minutes. Gotta say, he should host a podcast! It was AMAZING! Also, he has no idea that I LOVE cheese)
Hacks…
1. Wordle Warm Up/Reward Capitalizing on the popularity of this site/game; we start our ELA period with the Wordle. If we are too chaotic during the day (three strikes) we don’t get to play the next day. OR, in non-ELA classes, you can also create your own with Wordles using key vocabulary from the unit you are studying. Each time you introduce a new word, get the kids to write down the definition, come up with an example, an ‘anti-example’ and draw a visual. They can create a master vocab list to study off of throughout the unit. 2. Hall Pass Our students are notorious for LONG bathroom breaks; they just love to wander the halls. So now they have to carry around something large and seasonal. Example: a pumpkin in October, a sled in December, a pot of “gold” in March, etc. They hate it, but we enjoy it. 3. Getting Rid of Annoying YouTube Distractions I don’t know which genius to thank for this; or even if I am super late to the game on this one, but; if you add a hyphen to the YouTube link (ex: yout-ube), students will be able to view the video without being interrupted by advertisements or get distracted by the inappropriate or extraneous video suggestions.
Latest TPT Buy… The Princess Bride Movie Guide Activities & Answer Key *I made the questions from the quiz into a Kahoot and the top three players got movie candy to enjoy during the next movie we watched in Film Studies. The kids LOVED making their own Fire Swamp Signs and creating a Miracle Max inspired recipe.
Rewarding Story…
I try to bring economics to life for my students; we do a scarcity activity with food; in the hopes that they take only enough for themselves to ensure that everyone gets some; recognizing that the amount of our resource (the food) is limited, why it may be limited and what is the best way to achieve public good (cooperation or individualism). Sometimes we play Monopoly and discuss capitalism, rules and regulations in the economy, consumer fairness, supply & demand, competition, pros and cons of monopolies. Yesterday, we wrapped up our Monopoly game and a kid who really struggles, yelled out to everyone: “SOCIAL IS THE BEST CLASS.” Watching the kids play really warmed my heart. Everyone was engaged, having fun, learning (even though they won’t admit it) and even kids who had conflicts with each other were able to forget them and come together and connect. It’s always nice when a lesson works as you intend.
I was gifted an awesome journal for Christmas last year; Picadilly’s 200 Writing Prompts. I am still working my way through it! I wanted to share my most recent entry with you…