[do-you-recognise-this-book-filter] Books about a butterfly girl and cartographers.
January 31, 2012 12:56 AM Subscribe
Trying to recall the names of two books I read about 15 years ago. Books from the public library about a butterfly girl and cartographers.
Book 1: Aliens come to earth (although we don't know it) and infect everyone with a cold-like virus. A little later they offer everyone the choice to join them travelling the galaxy. The book is about those that stayed behind and their reasons for doing so. It is focused on a doctor(?) and what happens as he travels around America looking for others that stayed. I remember one girl stayed and transformed herself into a human butterfly. I think in the end the doctor was able to move on a join the aliens. The cover had the butterfly girl, or maybe just a big butterfly with irridecent wings on a yellow/green background (fields perhaps).
Book 2: Three female cartographers travelling and making maps together. At some point they get stop in a city to do a job and encounter mermaids (or dolphins maybe; something special in the sea). The ruler of the city becomes attracted to one of the women and I think he tries to force them to stay. It's all a bit murky now...but the cover was mostly blue. It might have had some cliffs or a city on cliffs on it.
Sorry for the lack of detail! Especially for the second one. Any help would be greatly appreciated...I don't hold out a lot of hope of actually being able to buy copies of them, but at least I can keep an eye open in the second hand shops if I know the titles.
Book 1: Aliens come to earth (although we don't know it) and infect everyone with a cold-like virus. A little later they offer everyone the choice to join them travelling the galaxy. The book is about those that stayed behind and their reasons for doing so. It is focused on a doctor(?) and what happens as he travels around America looking for others that stayed. I remember one girl stayed and transformed herself into a human butterfly. I think in the end the doctor was able to move on a join the aliens. The cover had the butterfly girl, or maybe just a big butterfly with irridecent wings on a yellow/green background (fields perhaps).
Book 2: Three female cartographers travelling and making maps together. At some point they get stop in a city to do a job and encounter mermaids (or dolphins maybe; something special in the sea). The ruler of the city becomes attracted to one of the women and I think he tries to force them to stay. It's all a bit murky now...but the cover was mostly blue. It might have had some cliffs or a city on cliffs on it.
Sorry for the lack of detail! Especially for the second one. Any help would be greatly appreciated...I don't hold out a lot of hope of actually being able to buy copies of them, but at least I can keep an eye open in the second hand shops if I know the titles.
Response by poster: Yes, yes, yes! That's it. Brilliant, thank you! That's one I can stop turning over in my head in the early hours of the morning :)
posted by eloeth-starr at 2:35 AM on January 31, 2012
posted by eloeth-starr at 2:35 AM on January 31, 2012
Response by poster: Huh, funnily enough I have another book (Spin) by RCW in my 'to-read' list at the moment. I might just move it to the top of the pile :)
posted by eloeth-starr at 2:38 AM on January 31, 2012
posted by eloeth-starr at 2:38 AM on January 31, 2012
Could the second book be The Steerswoman's Road by Rosemary Kirstein? It's been a while since I read them, but they match some of the details. I'm not sure if the mermaid/dolphins/whatever are in that book or one of its sequels, but they are in the series someplace.
posted by Janta at 6:19 AM on January 31, 2012
posted by Janta at 6:19 AM on January 31, 2012
Response by poster: Thanks Janta, but no, that isn't the book. It does sound good though, so I've added it to my wish list :)
posted by eloeth-starr at 12:23 PM on January 31, 2012
posted by eloeth-starr at 12:23 PM on January 31, 2012
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posted by Harvey Kilobit at 2:28 AM on January 31, 2012