9 December: Spruce trees

Today’s Plant of the Day is the Corsican spruce, Pinus laricio, dedicated to St Leocadia. 10 facts about spruce trees:

1. Spruce belong to the genus Picea which contains about 40 species.

2. The word spruce might come from the Old French term Pruce, meaning Prussia, where the trees which produced commodities brought to England by Hanseatic merchants such as beer, boards, wooden chests and leather, would grow. The genus name Picea derives from the Latin for “pitch pine” because the resin was used to make pitch.

3. Spruce trees can grow 20 to 60 m (about 60–200 ft) tall. They are pyramidal trees with whorled branches and thin scaly bark. Upward-pointing branches give them a spire-like appearance. Unlike Pine trees, which have needles in clusters, spruce trees have individual needles attached directly to the branches. The cones are recognisable by their cylindrical shape and papery scales.

4. They are frequently used as Christmas Trees, with artificial trees made to resemble them.

5. The oldest living tree is a Spruce. It is called Old Tjikko and is located in Sweden. The tree is thought to be 9,550 years old. Leif Kullman, the geologist who discovered this tree, named it after his Dog.

6. The fresh shoots of many spruces are a natural source of Vitamin C. It’s possible to make Beer from them, and the Vikings did so to ward off scurvy on their long sea voyages. In more recent times, Captain James Cook provided alcoholic Sugar-based spruce beer to his crews for the same reason.

7. Spruce is the wood used for soundboards for many musical instruments, including Guitars, mandolins, cellos, Violins, and the soundboard at the heart of a Piano and the harp. When used for this purpose the wood is known as tonewood. It’s useful as a building wood, but because it has no insect or decay resistance qualities after logging, it is generally recommended for indoor use only. It has long wood fibres which bind together, making it an important wood for the manufacture of Paper.

8. In the Gaelic tradition, spruce trees are the sacred tree of Druantia, the eternal mother goddess and protector of all trees. In Greek mythology, the spruce is the sacred tree of Artemis, Goddess of the hunt.

9. In shamanic traditions, the spruce is seen either as the place where great shamen are born (The Yakuti people of Eurasia) or where they end their days (the Hopi believe the tree embodies the spirit of a wise and ancient medicine man who turned himself into a tree at the end of his life).

10. In Switzerland Spruce trees are believed to be inhabited by a spirit of the forest known as “the wise man of the forest”, who watches over livestock and brings prosperity.

A Very Variant Christmas

Last year, Jade and Gloria were embroiled in a bitter conflict to win back their throne and their ancestral home. This year, Queen Jade and Princess Gloria want to host the biggest and best Christmas party ever in their palace. They invite all their friends to come and bring guests. Not even the birth of Jade's heir just before Christmas will stop them.

The guest list includes most of Britain's complement of super-powered crime-fighters, their families and friends. What could possibly go wrong?

Gatecrashers, unexpected arrivals, exploding Christmas crackers and a kidnapping, for starters.

Far away in space, the Constellations, a cosmic peacekeeping force, have suffered a tragic loss. They need to recruit a new member to replace their dead colleague. The two top candidates are both at Jade and Gloria's party. The arrival of the recruitment delegation on Christmas Eve is a surprise for everyone; but their visit means one guest now faces a life-changing decision.

Meanwhile, an alliance of the enemies of various guests at the party has infiltrated the palace; they hide in the dungeon, plotting how best to get rid of the crime-fighters and the royal family once and for all. Problem is, they all have their own agendas and differences of opinion on how to achieve their aims.

Not to mention that this year, the ghosts who walk the corridors of the palace on Christmas Eve will be as surprised by the living as the living are by them.

Themes 

Christmas; superheroes; reunions; parties; life choices; shocking surprises; mistaken identity; kidnap and rescue.

Reasons not to read it

• It's a bit short. You could probably read it in one sitting.
• Most of the action takes place at a Christmas party. In a palace.
• It's all about Christmas but there doesn't seem to be a schmaltzy moral message.
• There are a couple of babies and some small children in it - and one nearly gets eaten.
• Santa appears in it, but he isn't really Santa.
• Superheroes. Again.
• Not to mention a whole bunch of super-villains. Again all new ones and not the ones we know from Marvel or DC.

Available from Amazon and Amazon Kindle

2 March: Elms

In the French Revolutionary Calendar today is the Day of the Elm Tree. Here are ten things you might not know about elm trees:

1. There are about 30-40 species of elm including the English Elm, Wych Elm, American elm and Dutch elm. They belong to the family Ulmacaea and the suborder urticalean rosids, which means they are they are distantly related to cannabis, mulberries, Figs, hops, and Nettles.

2. There’s even a specific name for botanists who study elm trees: "pteleologists", from the Greek word for elm.

3. Mature trees grow to 30m and can live for more than 100 years. The Preston Twins in Preston Park, Brighton are the two oldest English elms in the world, aged over 400 years.

4. The fruit of the elm is a samara, that is a tiny seed with wings which are dispersed by wind.

5. Elm wood is strong and resistant to splitting. Hence it has been used to make wagon wheels, the keels of ships, bows and Japanese Taiko Drums. Hesiod says that ploughs in Ancient Greece were also made partly of elm. The first written references to elm occur in the Linear B lists of military equipment at Knossos in the Mycenaean Period, when the wood was used to make chariots.

6. The wood is also resistant to decay if permanently wet. Elm was used as piers in the construction of the original London Bridge.

7. During the great famine of 1812 the people of rural Norway lived on boiled strips of elm bark. The seeds are particularly nutritious, containing 45% crude protein, and less than 7% fibre by dry mass.

8. Elms are under threat from Dutch elm disease, which is transmitted by a small beetle that lives in the bark It is illegal to transport elm firewood because of the risk of spreading the disease.

9. In the Bach Flower remedy system, elm is the remedy for people suffering a temporary loss of confidence due to the overwhelming amount of responsibility they have taken on.

10. The Langton Elm in Sherwood Forest, Nottinghamshire, was a large elm tree that "was for a long time so remarkable as to have a special keeper", according to a book published in 1881.

20 December: Pine trees

According to old almanacs, today’s plant is the Stone pine, dedicated to St Philogonius. Ten facts about pine trees:

1. There are more than 120 different species of pine tree. Pines belong to the genus Pinus of the family Pinaceae.

2. They’re mainly native to the Northern hemisphere, although there are a few which grow in the tropics and temperate regions of the southern hemisphere.

3. The modern English name "pine" derives from Latin pinus, which some have traced to the Indo-European word for ‘resin’. Other sources say it means "rock".

4. Some species are relatively small, reaching 3 metres/10 feet in height, while others reach 15–45 m (50–150 ft). The tallest of all pines is pine Lambert, which is native to the USA and Canada. They can reach a height of 70-80 meters.

5. Pines are long lived and typically reach ages of 100–1,000 years, some even more. The longest-lived is the Great Basin bristlecone pine which is found in the White Mountains of California. One individual of this species, dubbed "Methuselah", is one of the world's oldest living organisms at around 4,800 years old.

6. The leaves are Needle shaped, which is an especially good adaptation for those species which grow in the mountains. This leaf shape allows Snow to slide off so that it doesn’t accumulate and break off branches. The surface of the leaf is coated with cutin, a wax-like substance which prevents Water from evaporating. The waxy coating also keeps the cells of the leaf from freezing during a cold winter. The swamp pine has the longest needles of any pine tree: 40-45 centimeters.

7. Pines propagate through the production of cones. Pines are monoecious, having the male and female cones on the same tree. Wind carries pollen from the male cones to the female cones. When they are fertilized the female cones change colour and harden before bearing seeds.

8. The seeds of many pine species are edible. Pine nuts are the seeds of pine trees and are an essential ingredient of pesto alla genovese. It’s also possible to eat young male cones and the bark of young twigs.

9. Pines have a number of decorative uses in parks and gardens, and if you have a real Christmas Tree, there’s a good chance it’s a pine. Native Americans would make useful items like baskets, trays and pots from pine needles, and they’ve also been used to make biodegradable paper and fabrics.

10. The pine is a common motif in Chinese art and literature, its attributes being longevity and steadfastness. One of the main ingredients for Chinese ink has been pine soot.

Character birthday

Mask, the enigmatic martial artist in Combat Team Omega. She is in a relationship with her team mate, Cape, their healer. They met in therapy as children and would use their powers for cruel fun. Mask would cause pain and damage; Cape would heal the victim so they could do it all again. Mask never reveals her face in public and many believe this is because she suffered an accident resulting in extensive scarring to her face.

11 December: Maple trees

According to the French Revolutionary Calendar, today is the Day of the Maple Tree, so here are ten facts about maples:

1. The maple tree belongs to the genus Acer which in turn is part of the soapberry family, Sapindaceae. This means they are related to lychee and Horse chestnut trees.

2. There are approximately 132 species of Maple. Most of them are native to Asia but they are also found in Europe, North America and North Africa. Only one, Acer laurinum, is native to the southern hemisphere, and only one, the field maple, is native to the UK.

3. Fossil records suggest that maple trees were present on Earth at the time of the Dinosaurs.

4. The first attested use of the word was in 1260 as "mapole". It also appears a century later in Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, spelled as "mapul".

5. Maple seeds are the iconic “helicopter” seeds that fall slowly from the trees’ branches.

6. One of the things maples are famous for is their beautiful autumn foliage. In Japan, there is a custom called momijigari that specifically celebrates the changing of the maple leaves.

7. Maple trees are considered to be a tonewood, which is a type of wood that carries sound waves well. Hence maple wood is often used to make musical instruments Violins, violas, double basses,Guitars and cellos all have components made of maple wood.

8. They make delicious syrup. A maple tree must be 30 years old before it can have its sap extracted and made into syrup. It takes somewhere between 40 and 50 gallons of maple sap to produce just 1 gallon of syrup. Luckily, the process of harvesting sap for syrup does not harm the trees.

9. The maple is a common symbol of strength and endurance. The maple is the national tree of Canada and its leaf appears on the country’s coat of arms and flag. The maple leaf also appears in the coat of arms of Sammatti, a former municipality of Uusimaa, Finland, and has been adopted as a symbol of Hiroshima.

10. In parts of Europe, it was thought that maple branches hung around a doorway stopped Bats from entering, while a Medieval superstition said that if you passed a maple branch over a child, it would remove all traces of witchcraft.

Character birthday

Silver Rain, aka Alistair Sharpe. A good-looking teenager, Alistair modelled for catalogues before joining the military. He imagined going back to modelling after leaving the army, but was involved in an accident with faulty equipment which left him with severe burn scars on his face. He blamed the government for not providing his unit with safe equipment and that they had continued with that senseless war in the Middle East and sent him there one last time before he was due to be de-mobbed. He joined the band of villains led by the modern day Guy Fawkes, intent on bringing the government down.

5 June: Elderberries

In the French Revolutionary Calendar, this date was the Day of the Elderberry. 10 things you might not know about elderberries:

1. The scientific name for elder is Sambucus nigra. They belong to the Adoxaceae family, although in the past, they were classified as belonging to the Honeysuckle family.

2. It’s thought the name elder comes from the Anglo-Saxon word 'aeld', meaning Fire, because the hollow stems were used as bellows to blow air into the centre of a fire. Hollowed elderberry twigs have also been used to tap maple trees for syrup, and used as flutes, blowguns, and syringes.

3. Elder grows in temperate to subtropical regions, often near farms and homes. It likes soil rich in nitrogen and so is often found near places where there is organic waste. It’s often found near Rabbit warrens or Badger setts, where the animals distribute the seed via their droppings.

4. It is also known as the ‘Judas tree’ as Judas Iscariot is said to have hanged himself from an elder tree.

5. It’s said that planting elder near your home will keep Witches and the devil away, although burning the wood is said in some traditions to summon the devil, and witches are said to congregate under the trees, especially when they are full of fruit.

6. According to folklore, if an elder tree is cut down, a spirit known as the Elder Mother would be released and take her revenge. Chanting a rhyme to the Elder Mother as you cut the tree down will protect you from her wrath.

7. The fruits of elderberry are rich in Vitamin A, Vitamin C, B Vitamins, and minerals like Zinc, Iron, selenium, calcium, and manganese. However, eating of unripe berries or any other part of the plant isn’t a good idea because they’re toxic, containing cyanide, and could kill you.

8. St-Germain, a French liqueur, is made from elderflowers, and Hallands Fläder, a Swedish akvavit, is flavoured with them.

9. Elton John's 1973 album Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player features a song titled "Elderberry Wine".

10. In Monty Python and the Holy Grail, John Cleese as the French Taunter tells the knights of Camelot, "Your mother was a Hamster, and your father smelt of elderberries."

Character birthday

Priestess of Punk: Priscilla Brinkley was born into a middle class family. At fifteen, she became disillusioned with school and tired of the athletics and gymnastics teams she belonged to. She adopted a punk lifestyle. To begin with, it was purely to alienate her family. Her romance with Chris Lang, the most aggressive, violent and debauched member of the gang was initially begun because she knew her family wouldn't approve. She moved into a squat with him. Eventually, the house was sold. Priscilla and Chris waited for the new owner to arrive, intent on killing him; but the new owner was Leopold Smythe-Warner, another middle class punk, who was delighted to find squatters living in his house. Rather than throw them out, he moved in with them. In due course, Priscilla dumped Chris for Leopold. Also living in the house was a mutated rat, Ratty Scrawny Punko, who became their pet.

22 March: Plane Trees

In the French Revolutionary Calendar, today is Platane, or Day of the Plane-tree. 10 things you might not know about plane trees:

1. Plane trees belong to the genus Platanus, native to the Northern Hemisphere.
2. They often grow near Water, and in Ancient Greece they were purposely planted near springs and wells; perhaps as sacred guardians of the water supply, perhaps to provide shade to the people who visited to fill their water bottles. There is a myth that Poseidon once turned a young woman into a plane tree because she peed him off in some way. Aristotle and Plato’s famed philosophical schools were held in the shade of plane trees.
3. Classical Chinese poetry often features plane trees as a motif for sorrow, because they shed their leaves in Autumn.
4. An early military camouflage pattern was based on the plane tree’s flaking bark. The German camouflage pattern Platanenmuster ("plane tree pattern"), was designed in 1937–1942 by Johann Georg Otto Schick.
5. In Handel's opera Serse, the famous aria, "Ombra mai fu," is sung by the title character in praise of his favourite plane tree.
6. One feature of this tree is the ability to fuse neighbouring roots or branches together if they grow too close and rub against each other. This can occur not only within a single tree, but between two neighbouring trees, and sometimes even between a plane tree and a tree of a different species.
7. The legendary Dry tree recorded by Marco Polo was possibly a plane. According to legend, it marked the site of the battle between Alexander the Great and Darius III.
8. There’s one species in the genus which isn’t found in the wild. That is the London plane tree, which has been widely planted in London parks and to line streets. At least 15% of the trees lining city streets around the world are London planes, so called because so many of them were planted there during the 18^th and 19^th centuries. This tree is particularly tolerant of urban conditions. Its flaking bark is one method the tree uses to get rid of pollutants, and it tolerates being pollarded, or trimmed to fit its environment.
9. Nobody knows for sure exactly how the London plane came about. It’s a hybrid of the oriental plane and the American plane, which come from two different continents on opposite sides of the world. Some say the two species came together in Spain in the 17^th century quite naturally, and were brought to Britain from there. Others say it was thanks to a botanist and plant collector named John Tradescant the younger, who kept a garden in Vauxhall. Needless to say, he wasn’t the only person around at the time who collected plants. Large National Trust properties often have collections of plants and trees from all over the world, so any keen botanist from the English aristocracy, or person with a lot of money could have had both the parent trees in their gardens.
10. The oldest London planes date from around 1660-80. The oldest living examples are at Buckden. Robert Sanderson, (Bishop of Lincoln 1660-1663), is said to have been presented with two London planes; both are still growing healthily. The oldest in London itself is at Barn Elms, is probably from about 1685, planted on land then belonging to the Archbishop of Canterbury. These are the trees which line The Mall, the Embankment and Berkeley Square. There are 30 London planes in Berkeley Square which were planted in 1789.

Character birthday

Electroflux, aka Leonard Marx, who invented a suit of radiation proof power armour. He worked for Desi Troyes, unaware at first that his programme of nuclear testing was a precursor to a plot to blow up the planet of Infinitus and make himself the sole ruler of the survivors. Electroflux was one of the many pulled through the interdimensional worm hole created by the nuclear test on Bird Island. Now aware of Troyes’s plan, he turned down an offer to become his right hand man on Earth, and teamed up with the Raiders, instead.

Over the Rainbow

'We're not in Trinity anymore,' says Leonard Marx, quoting a line from an old Innovian  movie. The moon is different; the planes flying overhead are different. Nobody has any idea where they are or if it's possible to get home. 

In this strange new world, people from the highly technical Innovia and the less advanced Classica must co-operate in order to survive. In addition, travel through the inter-dimensional wormhole has given some people unusual and unexpected powers.

Innovia mourns the loss of its superhero, Power Blaster, last seen carrying a nuclear bomb to the upper atmosphere away from the inhabited Bird Island. They don't believe he could possibly have survived. Power Blaster has survived, but is close to death and stranded in the new dimension. He is nursed back to health by a Classican woman, Elena. She has no idea who he is, only that she is falling in love with the handsome stranger.  

Shanna sets out to discover what happened to Nathan Tate, who didn't return from his hiking holiday, not knowing her life is about to be turned inside out and upside down. 

Meanwhile, Desi Troyes, the man responsible for the catastrophe, is at large on the new world, plotting how he can transfer his plans for world domination to the planet he now finds himself on - Earth. 

Available from Amazon and Amazon Kindle

7 December: Cypress

In the French Revolutionary Calendar, today is Cyprès or Day of the Cypress Tree. 10 facts about the cypress tree:

1. Cypress trees belong to the genus Cupressus. Depending on which source you use, there are anything between 16 to 25 or more species.
2. They typically grow 50 to 80 feet (15-24 m.) tall with some species reaching as much as 100 feet. They can grow 24 inches a year and the trunks can reach 20 to 30 feet (6-9 m.) in diameter.
3. Cypress trees are deciduous conifers. Conifer means they produce cones. Most conifers are evergreens, which don't lose their leaves in winter. Like them, cypress trees have needles for leaves but lose them in autumn, making them deciduous conifers.
4. Some cypress trees have knees. The knees are woody growths which grow around the tree, a few feet away. Scientists don't know what the knees are for, but have observed they appear when the tree is growing in swampy conditions. It's possible their purpose is to provide Oxygen to submerged root systems.
5. Unlike the fir, covered a few days ago, cypress wood is resistant to rot and can be used extensively in building. It has been used to build canoes, water pipes and houses. It is traditionally believed to have been the wood used to build Noah's Ark .
6. Some species of cypress hold on to their seeds in closed cones for years, only releasing them when a forest fire kills the parent tree. The seeds then disperse and re-colonise the area.
7. The genus was named for Cyparissus, a young man loved by Apollo, who was distraught when his pet deer was killed by hunters. Apollo is said to have turned Cyparissus into a tree to ease his grief. For this reason, the tree has come to represent grief and mourning.
8. Another reason is that these trees are often planted near cemeteries. This is partly because the roots usually grow straight down rather than spreading out, so they won't disturb the graves. They were said to represent death because, although they can live for hundreds of years, they won't regenerate if cut back too severely. Cypress was used to adorn homes when a funeral was taking place and was used to fumigate the air during cremations. It was used to make wreaths with which to decorate statues of Pluto, god of the underworld. It is popular in modern Israeli cemeteries, because its shape resembles a candle and therefore represents the immortality of the soul. In France, they were planted near graves – one tree for a child and two for a couple. Hence the phrase Dormir sous un cyprès, or “to sleep under a cypress” means to be dead.
9. In fact, in the 1980s French estate agents had to invent a new tradition in order to sell houses which had cypress trees nearby. When people arrived in Provence from Paris, looking for a holiday home, they were often put off properties which had cypress trees growing in the grounds because of the association with death. So the estate agents and tourist board put their heads together and invented an "old tradition" that in Provence, at least, it was lucky to have a cypress tree near your home.
10. Which might beg the question, if cypress trees had such a gloomy reputation, why did people plant them beside their house in the first place? They often planted three of them in a triangular arrangement. It might have been so that if they needed to replace a beam in their roof, they didn't have to go far to get the wood. There's also a tradition that they were a message to passers by about how hospitable the owner of the house might be. Three trees meant they'd be willing to offer a weary traveller a bed for the night; two meant they'd offer food and drink and one tree was the equivalent of a sign saying, "No unsolicited callers." Or it might have been a sign that the beams in the roof had had to be replaced a couple of times and so it might not be wise to spend too much time there!

A Very Variant Christmas

Last year, Jade and Gloria were embroiled in a bitter conflict to win back their throne and their ancestral home. This year, Queen Jade and Princess Gloria want to host the biggest and best Christmas party ever in their palace. They invite all their friends to come and bring guests. Not even the birth of Jade's heir just before Christmas will stop them.

The guest list includes most of Britain's complement of super-powered crime-fighters, their families and friends. What could possibly go wrong?

Gatecrashers, unexpected arrivals, exploding Christmas crackers and a kidnapping, for starters.

Far away in space, the Constellations, a cosmic peacekeeping force, have suffered a tragic loss. They need to recruit a new member to replace their dead colleague. The two top candidates are both at Jade and Gloria's party. The arrival of the recruitment delegation on Christmas Eve is a surprise for everyone; but their visit means one guest now faces a life-changing decision.

Meanwhile, an alliance of the enemies of various guests at the party has infiltrated the palace; they hide in the dungeon, plotting how best to get rid of the crime-fighters and the royal family once and for all. Problem is, they all have their own agendas and differences of opinion on how to achieve their aims.

Not to mention that this year, the ghosts who walk the corridors of the palace on Christmas Eve will be as surprised by the living as the living are by them.

Themes 

Christmas; superheroes; reunions; parties; life choices; shocking surprises; mistaken identity; kidnap and rescue.

Reasons not to read it

• It's a bit short. You could probably read it in one sitting.
• Most of the action takes place at a Christmas party. In a palace.
• It's all about Christmas but there doesn't seem to be a schmaltzy moral message.
• There are a couple of babies and some small children in it - and one nearly gets eaten.
• Santa appears in it, but he isn't really Santa.
• Superheroes. Again.
• Not to mention a whole bunch of super-villains. Again all new ones and not the ones we know from Marvel or DC.

Available from Amazon and Amazon Kindle

4 December: Fir trees

In the French Revolutionary Calendar today is the Day of the Fir tree. 10 things you might not know about fir trees:

1. There are around 60 species of fir tree. They belong to the family Pinaceae and the Genus Abies. They are close relatives of the cedars.
2. The genus name is derived from the Latin "to rise", because they are tall trees, reaching heights of 10–80 m (33–262 ft).
3. The Douglas fir isn't technically a fir tree at all because it belongs to the genus Pseudotsuga, which means "false hemlock", because it isn't a hemlock, either. Here are a couple of facts about them anyway. The Douglas fir was named after David Douglas, a Scottish botanist who first studied it. Its leaves can be used to make pine needle tea, which has a citrussy flavour; they can also be used as a substitute for the herb Rosemary. According to Native American myth, the unusual pointed cone bracts of this tree are the hind legs and tails of mice who would hide in the cones to escape forest fires.
4. Firs typically prefer cool and moist environments. They are found through much of North and Central America, Europe, Asia, and North Africa, mostly in mountainous areas.
5. Fir cones stand upright on the branches rather like candles, and disintegrate at maturity to release the winged seeds. Some species are popular as decorative garden trees, especially the Korean fir and Fraser fir, because they produce brightly coloured cones.
6. Fir wood, after logging, isn't very resistant to decay or pests, so the wood isn't suitable for use outdoors. It can be used for construction indoors where it's sheltered from the elements but outside it wouldn't last more than about 18 months. Fir wood is often used as pulp for plywood or Paper.
7. The Cherokee used Fraser fir resin as a dressing for fresh wounds, and also as a seasoning for other medicines.
8. In Ayurveda, Abies spectabilis is used as a cough suppressant.
9. Many firs are an important food source for caterpillars. Abies religiosa, or sacred fir, is the overwinter host for the monarch butterfly.

10. The best known use of a fir tree, however, is as a Christmas Tree. The

11. Nordmann fir, noble fir, Fraser fir and balsam fir are popular as Christmas trees. The Fraser fir has a strong scent while the Nordmann fir is popular because it holds on to its leaves and has a more subtle scent. Nordmann Firs are the most popular Christmas tree variety in Denmark and also a favourite in the UK.

A Very Variant Christmas

Last year, Jade and Gloria were embroiled in a bitter conflict to win back their throne and their ancestral home. This year, Queen Jade and Princess Gloria want to host the biggest and best Christmas party ever in their palace. They invite all their friends to come and bring guests. Not even the birth of Jade's heir just before Christmas will stop them.

The guest list includes most of Britain's complement of super-powered crime-fighters, their families and friends. What could possibly go wrong?

Gatecrashers, unexpected arrivals, exploding Christmas crackers and a kidnapping, for starters.

Far away in space, the Constellations, a cosmic peacekeeping force, have suffered a tragic loss. They need to recruit a new member to replace their dead colleague. The two top candidates are both at Jade and Gloria's party. The arrival of the recruitment delegation on Christmas Eve is a surprise for everyone; but their visit means one guest now faces a life-changing decision.

Meanwhile, an alliance of the enemies of various guests at the party has infiltrated the palace; they hide in the dungeon, plotting how best to get rid of the crime-fighters and the royal family once and for all. Problem is, they all have their own agendas and differences of opinion on how to achieve their aims.

Not to mention that this year, the ghosts who walk the corridors of the palace on Christmas Eve will be as surprised by the living as the living are by them.

Themes 

Christmas; superheroes; reunions; parties; life choices; shocking surprises; mistaken identity; kidnap and rescue.

Reasons not to read it

• It's a bit short. You could probably read it in one sitting.
• Most of the action takes place at a Christmas party. In a palace.
• It's all about Christmas but there doesn't seem to be a schmaltzy moral message.
• There are a couple of babies and some small children in it - and one nearly gets eaten.
• Santa appears in it, but he isn't really Santa.
• Superheroes. Again.
• Not to mention a whole bunch of super-villains. Again all new ones and not the ones we know from Marvel or DC.

Available from Amazon and Amazon Kindle

6 April: Larch

In the French Revolutionary Calendar, today was the day of the Larch. 10 things you might not know about these trees:

1. Larches are conifers in the genus Larix, and belong to the pine family. There are eleven species of Larch.
2. They are conifers, meaning they produce cones like pine trees and have needles, but unlike pine trees they shed their needles in the autumn.
3. The larch is native to Northern Europe and Asia and Northern parts of North America. They like cold, mountainous areas.
4. A larch can grow to 30m tall and live for 250 years or more.
5. They're good for wildlife. Red Squirrels and several types of bird eat the seeds while Moth caterpillars eat the foliage and cone scales.
6. The cones start off as Pink flowers and change colour as they mature. It's possible to eat them, although they become bitter as they mature, so they're best eaten in the pink flower stage.
7. The sap of the larch tree contains a natural Sugar gelatin. Native Americans used to chew the sap like gum.
8. The wood is tough and water resistant and so has been used in boat building and for exterior cladding of buildings. Otzi the Iceman used larch to build part of his pack frame.
9. In legends where there is a "world tree", it is often depicted as a larch.
10. Burning or wearing larch was said to protect people from enchantment by evil spirits.

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