Book of a Thousand Days

Sorry for not posting in a while, if anyone actually reads this. Heh, NaNoWriMo sure takes it out of you...
Anyway, Book of a Thousand Days. It was slow at first, but it gets way better. My one complaint is the popular medieval/fairytale trend of marrying the hot prince after barely knowing him. Ah, well.
The gist of it is that Dashti, a poor "mucker" in medieval Mongolia, was left alone when her mother died, so she came to the city seeking employment. Being very intelligent, she got a job as lady's maid to the daughter of the local lord (or king, I forget and am too lazy to look it up). For her it was an honor. The catch was that the princess (or lady) was being punished for being engaged to a guy that was not the guy her dad wanted her to marry, and having resisted, she was to be locked in a tower for seven years, lady's maid and all.
I definitely like the two main characters. They both go through a big change- Saren, the princess (/lady), starts out a total mess. She's a brat, for one, and she's very discontent. One thing Dashti does is help her find happiness, and ultimately discover herself. On the other hand, Dashti goes from being overly obedient and having a very low self-image to being a lot more independent and sure of herself. Both characters are flawed and very realistic, but incredibly relateable.
I also like the animal presences, particularly My Lord the cat. He pwns.

What would make me really happy right now:
Actually, for once I already am really happy. But a conversation with a certain person would be nice.

Next book: Fang