She did have promising news about her next essay into Deryni
territory. Ginjer Buchanan who is her editor at Ace indicated that Ace
was getting ready to talk seriously about drawing up a contract for the
Childe Morgan trilogy. Of course, this is the talking stage and not
the "sign on the dotted line" stage. AND Katherine has to finish the
next Templar book and Joan of Arc before work can truly begin on Childe
Morgan. She did say that she has it mapped out and knows basically
what will happen when, but not all the fine details. She said that at
very least, we wouldn't have to wait another six years for the next new
Deryni novel after KKB.
At any rate, Katherine was very generous with her
time, and when we'd been kicked out of our original room, we went to
another one, and she talked to us for another two and a half hours. I
got some great and surprising new insights into Brion and Jehana's
marriage, and hints of Brion's relationship with Kelson, indicating
that maybe things had been less than completely cozy, there. I'd
always thought that as Royal families go, Kelson had had it pretty
good, but maybe not....
Melissa
We took Katherine to dinner at a Chinese restaurant called Mings Saturday
night since the service at the hotel restuarant was so terrible. Scott
declined the invitation...he doesn't like MSG (which this place didn't use as
it turned out). We got a few answers out of Katherine at dinner...but she
skillfully deflected out questions into KKB tidbits. BTW: Carolyn, she's
using your subtitle "Four Weddings and a Funeral" And she repeatedly
complemented the web team. She told about our evening at the Majestic, too.
She did say she didn't think merasha effects unborn children. She wouldn't
answer my "What prompted Coram to become Rhydon in 1115 when he couldn't know
that Wencit would become King and that Brion would die and Kelson would need
his help?" She admitted Coram had his own agenda, but wouldn't specify. So
I guess I can spin a few more tales around that one...at least until Childe
Morgan comes out. KK said that ACE is interested in buying Childe Morgan after
they do Codex 2 so that's probably her next Deryni project.
She also talked a little about Adept VI/Lammas Night II which will tell about
Hess's flight to Scotland and Phillippa's work with Graham. That will be her
next project with DTH after Temple and Crown. She's supposed to finish T&C by
Feb. 1, so they have a lot of work to do in the next couple of months. And
she's working on Joan of Arc.
I did get her to admit that empowered Haldane's probably can't do all
Deryni spells and probably would need help shape-changing. She admitted Donal
had help when he seduced Alyce, but she wouldn't say who helped him.
Most of what she told about KKB I already knew...but
we did get some interesting info on Brion and Jehana's "tense" marriage. She
wouldn't answer my question about the giant shirals...are the one Coram and
Laran have in "Priesting" the same as the one Alaric got from the Hort of Orsal
and has in his tower in "Deryni Checkmate" and did Coram use it as a listening
device (since he knew what Duncan said and told me so when he met him as Camber
on the Coroth Road) and does that mean Laran and Coram are working together in
other respects? So I guess my theory stands until Childe Morgan proves me
wrong.
Donald skewered me by bringing up newsgroup controversies over whether Camber
or Nigel could have a shady past. Jen confessed that she started the
speculation by suggesting Camber might have known Megan was Deryni and picked
her for Cinhil for that reason..and then I admitted what I suggested.
Katherine laughed and said, "Goodness, Susan, you really ARE the Mistress of
Complications!" But she said Nigel and Camber are genuinely good and don't
have any shadowy pasts.
Of course...we don't know that Camber's brothers were so good...maybe one of
them sired a child before dying and the mother hastily married someone
else...but Camber knew the child was his neice and then raised her daughter,
Megan, when she and her husband died. Okay..that one's a stretch...but not
impossible!
And she said Charissa probably didn't do anything to Conall when she was
in Rhemuth. Then she said Payne will probably marry Morag and LIonel's
daughter Stanisha, who appears briefly in KKB. I suggested maybe Stanisha is a
treacherous woman who will murder Payne and Kelson..or else maybe she's good
and someone like Teymuraz will force her to choose between Payne and Torenth.
Katherine wouldn't comment on that (I don't think she's thought it out that far
yet) but she did say Ronal is a bit weird and might cause trouble somewhere
down the road. And she admitted Rhidian might have had a child...she hasn't
decided whether she needs a bastard Haldane yet or not.
Oh, one more thing. At the big Deryni funeral in KKB, another funeral is
mentioned...the funeral of one powerful Deryni mage, Michan (sp?) de Courcy,
who trained the Arilans. I asked if he might Coram's father or grandfather
(she said he's old and died long before KKB) and she said "possibly." So,
later, in the hot tub and pool, Melissa, Donald, and I started trying to work
that in with my earlier theory that Rhetice and Nemo's child marries Tamarina
Festil-Haldane's "extinct" offspring and that union produces Coram. According
to Codex, Coram is born around 1076. Rhetice disappears with Nemo in 1040.
Tamarina is born in 1031. If Tamara had a child at 16 or 17 like her mother
did, that daughter could be old enough to give birth to Coram in 1076.
So..either Tamarina marries Mishan de Courcy...or Nemo is a de Courcy and thus
his son with Rhetice is Mishan who then marries Tamarina's daughter and fathers
Coram. It could work either way.
Susan -- Mistress of Complications
1) KK retracted the suppostion that it was Alaric who yelled out "A
priest forever" in "The Priesting of Arilan".
2) ACE is planning a book-signing tour for KK up the East Coast this
summer. And she'll have y'all post the itinerary on the website when
she gets it.
Rebecca