3rd Annual #NameThatButt: Round 4, Bonus Quote

For Round 4, we're switching it up to marble, rather than bronze -- and a huge thanks to the photographer, Tommi Lou Carosella, for capturing this backside! Head over to blog.amaliadillin.com to #NAMEthatBUTT, if you haven't, or keep on scrolling for this week's BONUS QUOTE, and #NAMEthatBOOK instead, for an extra 2 points!

photo by Tommi Lou Carosella, used with permission

“XXXX, hear us,” I began, pouring a sip of the wine into the fire. “We are the vessel, and you are the wine. And so we drink to you, of you, with you, that we might know you, and you might know our hearts and prayers, and carry them up, to Olympus, to Zeus our king of kings, and Hera our queen in all things, that we might be heard and answered!”

And then I drank. One sip, then two, before I circled the hearth, pausing between each of the four pillars, to raise the cup again and drink, giving thanks to [him] with every touch of the wine against my lips. When I reached the position before the throne again, I finished what remained in the kylix and dropped to my knees before the hearth.

“Accept our offerings and all our prayers, we beg of you,” I finished, lifting my arms and throwing my head back. My eyes closed. “Accept us as your servant, your vessel, in this.”

Drop your best guess of the name of the book in the comments on either blog, and thanks for playing! Next week there will be NO bonus quote, but don't worry -- there will definitely be more #NameThatBook fun for round 6!

3rd Annual #NameThatButt: Round 3, Bonus Quote

I can't promise a bonus quote every week -- there are a couple of sculptures of mythic figures in my hoard who I haven't referenced even obliquely in my books, and in fact, this quote is kind of a stretch but(t)! Name this Book, and you'll get your 2 bonus points, regardless! (If only Helen's Sequel were out, I'd have a much better quote -- but alas and alack!)

And don't forget to #NameThatButt over at blog.amaliadillin.com, when you're done here! But at LEAST click over to see the reveal for Round 2 because it's one of my favorites of this year's game!

This round's bonus quote:

The Northlands had fallen to the Christians, one after another. All but the Sami, in the far north, and the peasants and Samogitians of Lithuania, to the east, had converted. The old ways were outlawed along with the worship of the gods who had nurtured them for so long. There were those among the converted lands who still made sacrifice in private, praying to Freyr to protect their crops, or calling upon Odin to give them strength in battle, but every year, they grew fewer in number. Every year, the gods of Asgard spoke of moving on. And every year, Odin refused to be persuaded, his one-eyed gaze falling upon Thor, and grimmer lines forming around his mouth and eyes. Odin had never forgiven him for Loki’s murder, nor was he at all pleased that the Council had sanctioned it. But that was not all that lay between them.

“All these years, and you are still under her spell,” Odin had spat, after Thor had told him he would not go on to the new world that Zeus and his brothers had found, regardless of any decision made by the Aesir.

XXXX and Anubis traveled between the two planes, now and again, bringing news and invitations. The Covenant had forged bonds between pantheons that had not been forgotten, and Zeus had not quite given up on reclaiming his wisest daughter. Most of the Egyptians had left, at Ra’s urging, and a good many of the Persians had followed. There was no longer room for any worship but that of Elohim in those lands.

Name that Book! And maybe the mysterious XXXX's backside will come into better focus! :)

3rd Annual #NameThatButt: Round 2, Bonus Quote!

Ready for Round 2? Come #NAMEthatBUTT over at blog.amaliadillin.com! But(t) first: Name this Book for 2 extra bonus points this week!

My photography might not be great but hopefully my writing doesn't disappoint -- here's this week's Bonus Quote!

Reu was watching her, searching her face. “What will you do?”

[She] stepped toward the tree, and the low branch from which the serpent had hung. One of the fruits, hidden in the red leaves, winked with a flash of sunlight. A faint tingle traveled down her arm as her hand closed around it and the fruit came free. The branch swayed, relieved of its burden, weeping the broad scarlet leaves in a shower around her.

The fruit was heavy in her hand. Much heavier than an apple would have been. She wondered briefly about the angels. Who they were, and what they would do to her when they realized she had broken God’s law. Sin, the creature had called it. But was it, really? Or was it wisdom, for the greater good, like the story Reu had told her about the one-eyed man in the sky?

She raised the fruit to her lips.

Name that Book in the comments below, or Name that Butt AND Book over at blog.amaliadillin.com and aim for the title of #NAMEthatBUTT Champion!

(But seriously you at least want to check over yonder next Tuesday for the full frontal reveal of this sculpture because it is frankly phenomenal, in my most humble opinion. A very different take on its subject!)

3rd Annual #NAMEthatBUTT: Round 1, Bonus Quote!

Guess the Butt, and then Guess the book (hint -- it was written by me) from which this quote was taken! Or just guess the book, and you'll still score your bonus 2 points for this round!

Her auburn hair hung loose down her back, myrtle flowers floating in the soft curls like gulls on the sea. A scallop-shell pendant rested at the hollow of her throat, and sparrows and doves darted around her feet, picking at the crumbs of past offerings. Strange that I had never met her before, but I wished that she had not dedicated herself to the gods. Perhaps Menelaus might have fallen in love with her, instead.

“Do you feel so ill-used? The most beautiful woman alive, with a brother who loves you well—Pollux will never forsake you. And a man who would offer you the same, though you spurn him.” She seemed to look right through me, pinning me to the earth. “Is there someone else you would prefer over Menelaus? You have only to name him and he will be delivered.”

“No.” I rose to my feet. I did not like the way she spoke of Menelaus, as if he were nothing more than a convenience. “I ask nothing of these gods. Let Menelaus love me for his own reasons, or better yet, not at all.”

Name that Book, and while you're at it, go ahead and Name that Butt, too! (You know you want to!) Drop your guesses in the comments --they're moderated so no one will see your answer but me-- and join the fun!