Still
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Here's an excellent web page to learn more about this fascinating legend: http://roma.andreapollett.com/S1/roma-c20.htm
Ryuuko in Tōdai
Ryuuko’s English may leave something to be desired—although it does efficiently convey her intent and meaning under all circumstances—but she’s actually a brain: Tōdai, short for Tōkyō Daigaku—University of Tokyo—is the most prestigious university in Japan. The entrance exams are legendarily selective, so it’s no small feat that she made it through this rigorous selection process twice under two different names.
Ouranos’s nuts
Again, I'm not making any of this up. According to Greek poet Hesiod's Theogony, Ouranos was the incarnation of the sky, and a complete douchewaffle, who gave twelve children—the titans—to his consort, earth goddess Gaia. Ouranos, however, disliked his children and feared that they'd try to overthrow him. When Ouranos imprisoned his youngest children in Tartarus, Gaia asked her sons to take action, and Chronos was the only one brave enough to turn against his father: he castrated him with a sickle. Nice.
Chronos subsequently deposed his father and threw his testicles into the sea, and from them came Aphrodite—don't wanna know how. The blood Chronos spilled on the earth when cutting the nuts gave birth to the Giants, the Erinyes—the avenging Furies—the Meliae—the ash-tree nymphs—and, in some versions of the story to the Telchines—the original inhabitants of the island of Rhodes.
Acknowledgments
This book wouldn't have happened without Tiffany Yates Martin—who more or less made me rewrite it, and she was right about that—Mitzi Carroll and Risa Nichols—who did a fantastic job editing Still despite an incredibly tight deadline—and Orsola Gelpi, who kindly reviewed my Italian dialogues: guys, I don't deserve you.
I'd also like to thank the many bums in Paris, New York and Tokyo who inspired me to write this book: I owe them some of the funniest and most humbling moments of my life.
Lastly, special thanks are owed to B. who puts up with me and my crazy deadlines.
Addendum: Jesus, Regina, you end up in the acknowledgments again, you big winner, as Chronos would say!
Also by Camilla Monk:
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In a fresh, witty series that blends fast-moving action with romantic suspense, a romance book–addicted computer engineer and a charming, cleaning-obsessed professional killer team up to take on the bad guys…and forge a highly unconventional working relationship. With a splash of James Bond’s sophistication and a heaping helping of Stephanie Plum’s spunkiness, Camilla Monk’s Spotless series combines high stakes and plenty of humor with lushly exotic settings and a funny, relatable heroine readers can’t help but cheer for.
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About the author
Camilla Monk is a French native who grew up in a Franco-American family. After studying business and advertising in Paris, she taught English and French in Tokyo before returning to France, where she spent eight years building rickety websites for financial companies.
Today, she lives in Montreal, where she keeps a close watch on the squirrels and complains on a daily basis about the egregious number of Tim Hortons.
www.camillamonk.com