01.10.12It was the third of December in 188-, and snow swirled down grey and damp upon the cobblestones of London. Meriwether paced before the wide window of the King Street flat impatiently. Balfour sat before the roaring fire, correcting a draft monograph he had written on the subject of Asiatic hand combat as adapted to the English frame.
“I cannot understand how you can be so devilishly placid,” Meriwether said at last.
“Practice,” Balfour grunted.
“Every winter it’s the same,” Meriwether said, gesturing at the falling snow. “The darkness comes earlier, the cold drives men from the roads, and I have this…stirring. This unutterable restlessness. The winter traps me, my friend. It holds me captive.”
If you missed the original story on Subterranean, you can now listen to it at Podcastle.
Hi, I can’t find another way to get in touch with you. I have received four of your books and I believe we exchanged email but I can’t find that either. I have a couple of questions. You can email me above and certainly there is no need to post this comment.
Sinc.
Steph
NOVELLA!!!
Daniel, have you read “The Debt: The First 5000 years”? If so, what did you think about it? I can’t make up my mind about that book.
Reading it now, actually. I think it’s a fascinating narrative about money, debt, and social interaction. I’ll talk about it more when I’m done and have digested it a little.
Hey, can anyone reply with a short summary of all of the B&M stories Daniel has written? I know of two – this one and the one with the golem-type creature, but I can’t remember what it was called. I listened to both of them on Podcastle. Dave, maybe you know the answer, if you come this way again.
Well, since there’s only two so far, it’s pretty easy to track down.
You’re thinking of Balfour & Meriwether in The Adventure of the Emperor’s Vengeance.
I’ve heard the two B&M stories on Podcastle. Love them! I came to your site looking for more…
Hey, I used to live in Alb for many years. Do you know (ah, just kidding)…
Russ, I’ve been here so long, I probably do. And if I don’t, I know someone that does.
Great story, overall, but I don’t understand why Samuel Brydon had the same last name as his maternal grandfather if his mother was married. Surely, he would have had his father’s last name? I thought that was going to be mentioned later as some sort of plot point, but it never was. Just wondering.
That would be me screwing up.
Neither I nor any of my first readers caught that until it was read aloud. It’s an artifact from an earlier draft when he was the son, not the nephew.