WE HAVE A WINNER!
For details.. read the comments, for Pete’s sake! 
What is it? It's this!
Tags: contest, Que es esto?, What is it?, what is this?
Archive for May, 2010
Jamaica Inn is one of theo most well known of Daphne DuMaurier’s novels. For those of you who may not recognize her name, her most well known novel is Rebecca which is not only an excellent work, but also required reading for most of us as we reach junior high or high school. Indeed, Rebecca is my favorite DuMaurier novel, followed closely by My Cousin Rachel and now Jamaica Inn.
Unlike the heroine in Rebecca, our main character in Jamaica Inn has a name: Mary Yellan. Young Mary Yellan has lived her entire life comfortable on a small farm which, after he father’s death, she worked on steadily with her mother. Mrs. Yellan, however, died on that farm taxed by the stresses and effort it took to maintain the farm and raise her only child. Before her death, Mary’s mother insisted that Mary must write to her Aunt Patience and ask if she could join her at Jamaica Inn. Insodoing, Mary’s mother hoped to keep Mary from suffering the same fate of a long life filled with toil.
Mary, obedient and loving, writes her Aunt Patience soon after her mother’s death. Her Aunt Patience and Uncle Joss Merlyn reply quickly and so Mary sets out on a journey to Jamaica Inn. The drive itself is uneventful until Mary explains to the driver of her coach that her stop is not the town where the rest of the passengers have stopped, but Jamaica Inn. Strange reactions greet her, but Mary is unable to do other than forge ahead. It is in the remaining drive that Mary begins to have some idea of what lies ahead.
Mary arrives at Jamaica Inn to find that her Aunt Patience is no longer the beautiful, vivacious woman that Mary saw during her childhood. Her Uncle Joss is coarse, rude, and it is easily seen that Patience lives in fear of the man. Mary resolves that, despite the ugliness of the situation she must stay for her the sake of her Aunt and Mary hopes that during her stay she can find a way to remove her Aunt from her Uncle Joss.
There are, however, other obstacles besides a nasty husband. Jamaica Inn, it seems, is a hub for some sort of namless illegal activity which Mary does not fully understand. Curious, and in a considerable state of dread, Mary goes downstairs against her Uncle’s orders one nights and finds what she believes to be evidence of a murder. Frightened and distraught, she returns to her room. The next morning she resolves to follow her Uncle Joss out onto the moors near the Inn in order to see if she can discover some proof of his guilt which can be taken to the authorities. Unfortunately, Mary is unfamiliar with the landscape and becomes lost in the wilderness.
When Mary finally finds a road, she is turned around, but is fortunate enough to meet up with a good samaritan…from here the story only grows in mystery, but Mary is not only at the center of a deadly secret, she is also likely to fall in love with a man who can’t be trusted. Whether or not Mary survives either the plots surrounding her, or a disastrous love affair depends on the decisions she makes.
Jamaica Inn is a great read, but I have to say it fell a little short of my own expecatations. Had Jamaica Inn been the first book I had read by DuMaurier I think I would have enjoyed it more, but since it was the third I found that the prior two books had given me very high expectations for the story and the writing when I picked up this book. It was not a great disappointmend, however. The writing style is that same unique style that DuMaurier uses in her other works, and is still great fun. If I can ever read her books without getting a little chill now and then I’d have to be dead. (And I do believe it would be pretty hard to read from beyond the grave.)
I would recommend Jamaica Inn to any reader, though I will admit that it might not be well understood by the younger readers. On a scale of one to ten I give this one a 7. Which, roughly translated, means “pretty darn good.”
Happy reading, folks!
Nothing blurry this time…
this is about as good a clue as you’re going to get:
Tags: contest, Que es esto?, What is it?, what is this?
Uh oh.. now it’s getting interesting…
What is it? Image 6
Remember, click on the image for a bigger view.
Tags: contest, Que es esto?, What is it?, what is this?
They’re coming fast and furious now! Pay attention. The end is near. (And I feel fine).
Tags: contest, Que es esto?, What is it?, what is this?
Now this DEFINITELY looks like a dragon wing to me! How about you?
What is this? Take a guess. Between right NOW and 1 PM Central US Time on Friday, May 7th, several more visual clues will be posted here on NeoLibrarium.  Remember, kids: Guess early, guess often. You can guess as many times as you like.
Whoever gets the answer right (or a random commenter, if no one does), will get the first book in the Dragon Keeper Chronicles Series: Dragonspell, by Donita K. Paul.
It will be shipped anywhere in the world (sorry, no UPS to the International Space Station). You can comment as much as you like, as often as you like, and I will take the FIRST commenter who is correct. Just make sure I have a way to contact you.
In the chance that NO ONE guesses what IT is, a winner will be chosen at random from all entries.
Tags: contest, Que es esto?, What is it?, what is this?
And here is the FOURTH clue in our first “What is it?” mystery!
Does that look like a dragon flapping its wings to you? yeah, me too.
P.S., on all these images, you can click on the image to see it full size.
Tags: contest, Que es esto?, What is it?
Part IV of our contest kicks off with another visual clue! What is it? Would you believe me if I said it looks like a dragon to me? I thought so.
Remember, kids: Guess early, guess often. You can guess as many times as you like. First one that gets it right wins a book!
Tags: ¿Que es esto?, contest, Que es esto?, what is this?
And here… we go!
Part III of our first ever “What is this?” contest, containing the SECOND clue to our mystery..
Take a guess, readers. What is it? It looks like a dragon to me, but what do I know? Don’t forget to compare it to CLUE #1 and see what guess you can come up with!
I come up with dragons.
Tags: clue, dragons, What is it?
DragonSpell
Today we started our “What is this?” contest, and I promised y’all a prize for whoever got it right. Well, here it is: Whoever gets the answer right (or a random commenter, if no one does), will get the first book in the Dragon Keeper Chronicles Series: Dragonspell, by Donita K. Paul.
The book is in paperback, brand new, never been read. It has good reviews in amazon, and, come on: Dragons!
This book will be shipped to our contest winner anywhere in the globe (except maybe Antarctica).
What are you wating for? Go here and start guessing! And look for another clue tomorrow!
If you were to ask me, that first clue looks like a dragon. I’m just saying. It could be. Or it could be that everything looks like a dragon to me.
Dragon!
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Reviews from Amazon.com:
“A reluctant heroine, her fainting dragon, and an assortment of colorful companions make for a delightful read in Donita K. Paul’s Dragonspell. This is adventure and fantasy at its finest–a must read for the imaginative soul.â€
–Linda Windsor, award-winning author of Along Came Jones and the Fires of Gleannmara trilogy
“Dragonspell is a fine, well-written tale guaranteed to entertain both old and young alike. This was proven in our household when our eleven-year-old son snatched up the book and devoured it. Upon returning it, he exclaimed, ‘It’s good!’ –high praise from a rabid fan of Tolkein, Lewis, Jacques and company. I can only nod my head in agreement.â€
–Christopher A. Lane, Gold Medallion and C.S. Lewis award-winning author of children’s and adult fiction
“The greatest thing any author can do is to catch you up and transport you right into the very scene, the very action, the story . . . in such a way that you live the book, not merely read it. That is exactly what Donita K. Paul does with Dragonspell. For a few hours, you will take a journey to a place you have never been, with a story you will never forget. Enjoy the trip!â€
–Stephen Bly, author of Paperback Writer and Christy-award-winning The Long Trail Home
“Dragonspell is a tightly written fantasy quest set in an extraordinarily rendered storyworld. With seven intelligent races, seven evil races, several delightful dragons, one weird wizard, and an endless supply of exotic plants and animals, you will NOT be bored.â€
–Randy Ingermanson, Christy award-winning author of Oxygen and Premonition
Tags: contest, Donita K. Paul, Dragon Keeper Chronicles, Dragonspell, what is this?