I had a colonoscopy yesterday. The prep was pretty miserable, but the procedure itself was nothing (literally — I slept through it). Four small polyps were found and removed. I’m awaiting lab results on those, but the doctor said they were of no concern whatsoever.

The other piece of good news I received when I got out of the recovery room was this: Publishers Weekly gave a starred review to Arabella of Mars!

Arabella, a human teenager born on Mars, is catapulted into adventure in a tale that cleverly combines some of the most intriguing elements of steampunk and classic science fiction. In an alternate 1812, Arabella’s mother moves her three daughters to Earth and away from the wild influences of the Martian colony. When the family gets news that Arabella’s father has died on Mars, the headstrong 17-year-old girl disguises herself as a boy and hires on with one of the great ships that sail the solar winds between the planets, planning to protect her brother, who’s still on Mars, from treachery. Along the way, she faces privateers and mutiny, but Arabella is resourceful and courageous, gamely enduring hardship to accomplish her mission. Arabella is a fully realized character, daring and willing to risk everything to protect the brother she loves and the legacy that her father has left them. Her wits and cleverness save the ship and crew more than once in this rousing swashbuckler.

I don’t know what percentage of books get a starred review, but it’s not very large — this was the only one for a Tor book this week.

Yay!