after larklight i was in the mood for more new children's fantasy, and quickly found in sengkang library kai meyer's the flowing queen, which i gather was well-received in the states last year (though in a different translation and under a different name.) this british edition bore a translator's name which impressed me (anthea bell, who also translated sebald) so i was keen on taking a look. there are three books in the series: die fließende königin, das steinerne licht, and das gläserne wort, but only the first two are available in english (i am told the last volume is due out in may, but the library hasn't ordered it yet.) i like the story universe which recalls tasso and boiardo, and which seems to me particularly mediterranean in concerns, in so far as sieges, changing political alliances and hostility between north africa and europe are historically played out in this setting. and i am much interested to see how the implication of kinship between mermaids, sphinxes and the winged stone lions of venice will play out in the third volume, as the venetian stone lions were something i was trying to connect to sphinxes in my riddles project a few years ago (through gozzi's turandot).