The Sunday Post 38; It's Monday! What are you reading? 38

 The Sunday Post - a chance for bloggers to have a catch-up - is hosted by Kimberly, here: https://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/ and It's Monday! What are you reading is hosted by Kathryn, here: https://thebookdate.wordpress.com/

Let's see ... no quiz last week as the last one for the year was the week before.

Work happened to me though despite my best efforts. 

All of my Christmas shopping is done and wrapped. There's only the 3 of us, and we'll just have a roast chicken dinner tomorrow and a quiet day. I'll get a new book, so will likely spend the day reading. 

Boxing Day is a holiday here as well, so I don't have work until Wednesday.

Spawn and I went to the library yesterday, and then watched Get Santa, which was fun. I also watched Hercule Poirot's Christmas - the one with Sir David Suchet. 

Today Spawn hung out with a friend for a bit, and I watched A Christmas Carol, which I do every year. I watched the Jim Carrey animated version, which isn't bad.  My brother and sister-in-law came for their annual flying Christmas Eve visit, and I've basically been watching Star Trek: TNG in between. I've also been snacking - I finally found cherries (it's summer here) and it's never quite Christmas without cherries.

I'm still reading Labyrinth's Heart, and I'm hoping to finish it this week. And speaking of Agatha Christie, I'm reading Three-Act Tragedy as well.

How about you? How's your week? What are you reading?

And Meri Kirihimete - Merry Christmas!

The Sunday Post 37; It's Monday! What are you reading? 37

 

The Sunday Post - a chance for a catch-up - is hosted by Kimberly, here: https://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/ and It's Monday! What are you reading? is hosted by Kathryn, here: https://thebookdate.wordpress.com/

Let's see ... .capitalism informed me that Netherfield has been let at last, so I went to work as usual because I remembered I'm not a young, single Jane Austen heroine but a middle-aged modern woman who has to earn her own living.

Anyway. We won at quiz on Wednesday, which was nice, as it was the last one of the year. There was meant to be a work do on Friday night but one of the organisers contracted COVID so that's been postponed until next year.

On Saturday Spawn and I went to the library, and also on a quest to the gaming store, both were completed successfully.

Today we finally put up the tree - it's not much to look at but it's festive and I'm happy.

Now here I am, waiting for dinner to finish cooking.

I gave up on Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow - I'm sure it's a very good book but I could not stand Dov, and didn't want to spend 500 pages with such an awful character. So I returned the digital copy to the library.

I also had to return Making it So, as it had holds on it, so I just need to wait until it becomes available again. In the meantime, I'm still bingeing Star Trek: TNG.

I still have Labyrinth’s Heart on the go, and I'm about halfway through that and seriously the whole series is SO GOOD. Once I've finished it, I'll do a post on the whole thing, I think. I'm also reading Three Act Tragedy by Agatha Christie. I know I must have read it, but I cannot for the life of me remember any of it.

How about you? How's your week? What are you reading?

Review - Hell Bent

 

 Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo is the sequel to Ninth House.

Alex Stern has survived not only her first year at Yale, but her first year involved with the magic and mystery entwined with the eight Houses of the Ivy League school.

At the end of Ninth House, Alex discovers that Darlington - her mentor and trainer in the way of the Ninth House - Lethe House - a kind of admin organisation designed to ensure the other houses don't abuse their magic privileges - is trapped in Hell.

Alex then decides what she needs to do is break Darlington out of Hell.

Things do not go smoothly.

Alex is contending with mysterious deaths - again - the other Houses (although they don't feature as prominently here as they did in Ninth House) and her own dark past suddenly rising up to haunt her.

Hell Bent does take a  bit to get going. But once it does, all you can really do is hang on for the ride.

I honestly think Alex is one of my favourite fictional characters this year. Her, and Dawes. Dawes has a lot of growth and she's great. 

I haven't read Leigh Bardugo's YA series, so I have no idea how this one stacks up. 

But. I do know it's a whole lot of fun to read.

The Sunday Post 36; It's Monday! What are you reading? 36

 

The Sunday Post - a chance for a catch-up with other bloggers - is hosted by Kimberly, here: https://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/ and It's Monday! What are you reading? is hosted by Kathryn, here: https://thebookdate.wordpress.com/

Capitalism once again trapped me with its seductive whispers about paying the mortgage and eating food, so I went to work. I didn't marry rich when I was young and skinny and we haven't won Lotto, so working for a living and feeding the machine it is.

I FINALLY managed to corral Lily into kitty jail and take her to the vet. She has hyperthyroidism and needed blood tests. Luckily her thyroid is still stable, so she doesn't need to go back for another 3 months. She was Not Impressed with the jail part, but oddly doesn't seem to mind being at the vet that much.

I did a spot of Christmas shopping yesterday, and just have a few more small things to get for Spawn. 

My sister has COVID, and she's a nurse, so she's isolating at home, so I went on a mission of mercy to the supermarket for her on Thursday and today as well. 

Apart from that I haven't done very much. I went to my friend's last night and we watched TV and stitched as usual.

Today Spawn and I watched the final David Tennant/Catherine Tate Doctor Who special and it was SO GOOD, I'm very happy with the show right now. 

I also did some stitching and watched The Batman, which is a good movie, if a tad long at just under 3 hours.

I finished Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo, which did take a minute to get going, but once it did it was a great ride.

I'm still reading Making it So, and I've also started Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin and enjoying it quite a lot. I'm ALSO reading Labyrinth's Heart by M A Carrick which is the final book in the Rook & Rose trilogy. It's SUCH a good series, but I never see anyone anywhere talking about it. I might do a separate post on that one, I think.

How about you? How's your week? What are you reading?

The Sunday Post 35; It's Monday! What are you reading? 35

 

The Sunday Post - a chance for bloggers to have a catch-up - is hosted by Kimberly, here: https://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/ and It's Monday! What are you reading? Is hosted by Kathryn, here: https://thebookdate.wordpress.com/

Let's see.

Once again, I fell for the trap capitalism set for me and I had to go to work in order to pay bills, eat and live in general. One of these days I will escape the maw, but not today.

The team came second at quiz on Wednesday, which we were pleased with, because we felt we had done far worse than we had. 

Nothing else of particular note happened, which is absolutely fine with me. 

I spent my Friday night stitching and watching Star Trek: The Next Generation, which I greatly enjoyed.

Lily again evaded our efforts to take her to the vet for blood tests, which was. Stressful. So I rescheduled the appointment YET AGAIN.

I went to my friend's last night for our usual TV and stitching session, and now here I am on Sunday morning.

I'm about to go make my sandwiches for tomorrow, and some lunch for today. Spawn and I are going to watch some Dr Who, and then I'm meeting a friend for coffee.

I'm still reading Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo, but will likely finish it today so I can return it to my workmate tomorrow. I'm also still reading Making It So by Patrick Stewart, which I'm greatly enjoying.

How about you? How's your week? What are you reading?

Review - A Long Petal of The Sea

 

I like reading historical fiction - especially a book that teaches me something.

I was - of course - aware of the Spanish Civil War, but only in a vague sort of way. What I didn't know is that the Chilean poet Pablo Neruda commissioned ships to take Spanish refugees to re-settle and start new lives in Chile.

A Long Petal of the Sea starts with a family, who take in a musically talented girl, Roser to live with them. Roser grows up with them and falls in love with one of the sons, Guillem. The other son, Victor, is training to be a doctor.

When war breaks out, the brothers are called to different occupations - Guillem a soldier, and Victor a doctor.

However, when Guillem dies in the Spanish Civil War, Roser, Victor and Victor's mother Carme, begin a perilous journey to France to try and escape Franco's brutal regine.

Carme vanishes, and Roser and Victor end up in a concentration camp. Roser has Guillem's baby, and Victor is called away to work as a doctor once more. 

He finds out about Neruda's plan, marries Roser in order to secure them a place on one of the ships, and all three sail away to a new life in Chile. 

I have to admit - I wanted to like this one more than I actually did. The history is fascinating, and heart-breaking at times, as Roser and Victor find themselves subject to yet another fascist regime under Pinochet in Chile, but there's a remove with the story, almost.

Roser and Victor are the centre of the book, and every other character feels almost ... shadowy. Even their son Marcel in a way, and I wonder if that's why A Long Petal of the Sea didn't quite work for m. 

Still. An interesting read about some truly momentous - and horrific - periods in our history.

The Sunday Post 34; It's Monday! What are you reading? 34

 

The Sunday Post - a chance for bloggers to have a catch-up - is hosted by Kimberly, here: https://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/ and It's Monday! What are you reading? is hosted by Kathryn, here: https://thebookdate.wordpress.com/

Last week .... well, the jaws of capitalism opened wide and trapped me in their maw again, so I had to go to work. 

We won again at quiz on Wednesday night - no tiebreaker required this time.

I had a work function on Thursday night as well, and for this slightly extroverted introvert, that was enough peopling for one week. Although it was fun. There was dinner and prizes to hand out for jobs well done (not to me, I need to make that clear) and entertainment. The entertainment was Jingo - https://playjingo.com/ - which is a LOT of fun to play.

But. On Friday all I wanted to do was nest on the couch and watch TV. Which I did and it was glorious.

Yesterday I went out on a quest to the secondhand shops to see if I could acquire salt and pepper shakers. I was not successful but I went to the library and tripped over a couple of books so the trip wasn't entirely wasted. 

I went to my friend's as usual last night, and we watched some episodes of Survivor UK.

I finished The Long Petal of the Sea by Isabel Allende. I'm still reading Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo, and I've finally started Making it So by Patrick Stewart.

How about you? How's your week? What are you reading?

Review - Legends & Lattes

 

Gosh, I loved this. I loved this so much I almost started it again as soon as I had finished it, but it was due back at the library.

It's a cosy fantasy about a former mercenary Orc called Viv who hangs up her sword and opens a coffee shop.

That's it. That's the whole book. And it sounds like an incredibly slight premise, but you're with Viv the whole way - from buying the premise  to finding people to work on it/in  it - people who become Viv's second found family and it's just. 

It's a delight, honestly.

I know that what I usually expect from fantasy novels is high stakes - you know - world-ending, questy-type stuff and I do love that as well.

But. BUT. There is absolutely nothing wrong with a book that just goes "let's build a coffee house together" and it feels like a hot cup of tea on a cold day. 

It's comforting. And yes, the stakes are - in general - low, but I like that. I like that a lot. 

The Sunday Post 33; It's Monday! What are you reading? 33

 

The Sunday Post - a chance for bloggers to catch-up - is hosted by Kimberly here: https://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/ and It's Monday! What are you reading? is hosted by Kathryn, here: https://thebookdate.wordpress.com/

The week that was. 

Capitalism still has me firmly in its jaws, so I went to work because apparently bills don't pay themselves. 

We won on a tiebreaker question at quiz on Wednesday night, which is somehow the most satisfying way to win. 

I tried to watch The Continental - the limited series set in the John Wick universe - but got bored halfway through the first episode. So I switched to re-watching episodes of Brooklyn 99 and Star Trek: The Next Generation. 

My old editor passed away a couple of weeks ago, and I wasn't able to go to the funeral, so a group of us who had worked with him gathered at a pub to raise a glass and reminisce on Saturday afternoon. I also went to the library, and to my friend's place as usual to do some stitching and TV watching.

It's Sunday morning now and I'm contemplating lunch and picking a movie to watch this afternoon while I get some stitching done. 

I finished Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree which I absolutely loved. 

I'm still reading Grace and Power (albeit very slowly) and I started Hell Bent - the sequel to Ninth House. 

I also still have A Long Petal of the Sea on the go, but I'm hoping to finish that this week. Up next I have Making it So by Patrick Stewart, which I'm very much looking forward to diving into.

How about you? How's your week? What are you reading?

Some works in progress

I’ve been meaning on and off to do a post on cross-stitch for a while. But I have so many works in progress (we’re not talking about that) so I figured I’d start with a couple and go from there.

The first one is called Monet Impressions  and I started in January 2004. It’s from designed by Sheila Hudson and was in a magazine called Cross Stitch Collection, I think. There’s a LOT of confetti stitches (single stitches of one colour scattered throughout the pattern) and colour changes so I’ve put it away many times but … last year? decided to pick it up again and chip away at it slowly so I don’t either throw it across the room or burn it. It’s coming along nicely.

 

The second one is Rivendell by CountryMagicStitch. I started it in …. 2019? I think? I have a yearly tradition at New Year’s where I re-watch Lord of the Rings and start a new project. Rivendell was 2019’s start. It’s progressing but slowly. I also have The Mines of Moria and Lothlorien by the same designer.  So far I’ve done one and a bit pages out of four. Slow progress is still progress.

That’s what I tell myself.

Two reviews

Agatha Christie: A Very Elusive Woman by Lucy Worsley

If you have been here for some time you will know that Agatha Christie is one of my favourite authors, so when I saw this biography in the library, I grabbed it to read.

I don’t read a lot of non-fiction as a rule, but I do like a good biography. And I did enjoy this one.

It goes into Dame Agatha Christie’s personal and professional life and places everything in a historical context – her marriages, her books, and her disappearance in 1926.

It’s written in a very readable and conversational style which I enjoyed.

Also, I need to re-read pretty much every single Agatha Christie book I own.

 

Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo

This one was actually recommended to me by a workmate. So when I saw it was in at the library a few weeks ago, I took it as a sign.

And I’m so very glad I did, because it was so much fun to read. Galaxy (Alex) Stern has a particular gift – she can see dead people. This brings her to the attention of Lethe House at Yale, a type of oversight committee for the Ancient Eight Houses of the school who all specialize in different kinds of magic.

Alex has come to Yale carrying a dark past and an even darker secret, but she takes the chance to start over. However, when her mentor Darlington vanishes, she finds that she’s a bit more over her head than she realised.

It’s fast-paced, readable and honestly Alex is one of my most favourite fictional characters.

So much fun.

The Sunday Post 32; It's Monday, what are you reading? 32

 

The Sunday Post – a chance for bloggers to catch-up  - is hosted by Kimberly here: https://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/ and It’s Monday! What are you reading? Is hosted by Kathryn here: https://thebookdate.wordpress.com/

Let’s see … it’s been a couple of weeks. What has been happening? Much the same honestly.

Work has happened as I’m just a tiny cog in the massive wheel of capitalism.

I did social-type things a couple of weeks ago – visited a friend who was laid up after ankle surgery, and went to a couple of craft fairs with other friends, which honestly filled my social meter up for quite some time.

I went to my friend’s place as usual on Saturday night for stitching and TV watching.

Spawn and I went to the library yesterday as I had many books to return and managed to restrain myself to only getting two out. Which I’m not sure I want to read. That always seems to be the way.

We won very decisively at quiz on Wednesday night which was nice. I’m somewhat competitive so I do like to win.

I finished Agatha Christie: A Very Elusive Woman by Lucy Worsley and also Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo, both of which I enjoyed.

I’m still reading A Long Petal to the Sea by Isabel Allende, and I’m also reading Grace and Power by Sally Bedell Smith which is about the Kennedy administration. It’s interesting but also 900 pages long so it’s going to take a while. I also started Legends & Lattes by Travis Bardee which is a cosy fantasy about an orc who opens a coffee shop. So far it’s very fun.

How about you? How’s your week? What are you reading?

The Sunday Post 31: It's Monday, What are you reading? 31

 

The Sunday Post - a chance for bloggers to have a chat - is hosted by Kimberly,  here: https://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/ and It's Monday! What are you reading? is hosted by Kathryn, here: https://thebookdate.wordpress.com/

The week that was ...

Monday was a public holiday here, so no work for me (yay). I had a very lazy day and just watched TV and did some stitching. Wednesday I had off because I wasn't feeling well, so no quiz this week for me. :( But the team came second so that was good.

Friday was dress-up day at work for Hallowe'en. I couldn't wear the dress I had intended as it's a summer dress and Friday was absolutely freezing, despite the fact it's Spring here. There were even snow flurries. So I just dressed in my plainest clothes and parted my hair on the side. I also stuck up a bunch of photos of James Caan in the movie around my desk. So. Low effort.

Others went all out, and dig much better jobs than I did.

Friday night spawn slept over at a friend's place, so I watched the last episode of Our Flag Means Death, and I had finally started season 3 of Picard, so I finished that as well. Yesterday I went to visit a friend who had ankle surgery the week before to take her some books and have coffee.

Then, as always, I went to my other friend's for our usual Saturday night.

Today there was a kind of craft fair happening so I went to that with another friend. I didn't buy anything - because I don't have any money - but it was fun wandering around and looking at all of the stalls.

Finishing Picard must have made me nostalgic, because I've started watching The Next Generation from the beginning. And everyone is so YOUNG! S

Spawn wanted to go to the library to return some books, so we did that as well. And now here we are.

I'm still reading Ninth House, and A Long Petal to the Sea. I've also started the Agatha Christie biography by Lucy Worsley, and today I read The Crow graphic novel that a workmate loaned me a few weeks ago, so I can finally return it. (I am not a good person to lend books to.)

Anyway. How's your week? What are you reading?

The Sunday Post 30; It's Monday! What are you reading? 30

 

The Sunday Post - a chance for bloggers to have a catch-up - is hosted by Kimberly, here: https://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/ and It's Monday! What are you reading? is hosted by Kathryn, here: https://thebookdate.wordpress.com/

I really need to stop being lazy and start doing more posts. 

Um. Anyway.

My week was all right. Work again happened despite my feelings about it.

We came fourth at quiz on Wednesday - we were well out of the running but it was a fun night.

On Friday night I parked up and watched some TV and did some stitching. Son of Mine was at a friend's for a sleepover/birthday party, so it was a quiet evening.

On Saturday I set out on a couple of side quests - I had to get Lily's thyroid medication, and I went to the library. I also visited what felt like every single secondhand store trying to find a copy of Misery that I can take to work on Friday. Had I managed that, I was going to get people to sign it and tell them I was their Number One Fan. I did find it at the library, so shall just have to settle for creeping people out without asking for their autographs. The costume doesn't really adhere very strictly to what Annie Wilkes wears in the movie. And, also, it's not the middle of winter here. So I'm just mining my own wardrobe and going as Dowdy but Insane Middle-Aged Annie Wilkes. Should work.

I went to my friend's as usual last night. We've run out of reality TV for the moment, so we started watching Vigil, a British murder drama set on a submarine. Pretty good so far.

I also got some stitching done this afternoon while I watched a couple of movies - Escape Room on Netflix (which I wish I hadn't), and The Talented Mr Ripley, which I remember watching years ago. It's still pretty good. I also watched Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves last Sunday. I don't play D&D but it was a fun watch.

I finished Picard, the prequel novel to the series, and thought it was all right. I also finished Latest Readings by Clive James, so I could pass it on to my friend as it's her birthday today, and she loves Clive James. I decided to retire River God in the meantime, as I keep looking for reasons not to pick it up.

So for now I'm reading A Long Petal of the Sea, by Isabel Allende, which is set during the Spanish Civil War. It's very good, but it's very ... you know those books? Where it's a really really good read, but  you can't say you're enjoying it exactly, because of the subject matter? That's what this is.

I also started Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo. I haven't read any of her other books, but a workmate raved about this one, so figured I'd give it a go.

How about you? How's your week? What are you reading?

The Sunday Post 29; It's Monday! What are you reading? 29

 

The Sunday Post - a chance for bloggers to have a catch-up - is hosted by Kimberly, here: https://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/ and It's Monday! What are you reading? is hosted by Kathryn, here: https://thebookdate.wordpress.com/

Let's see. Last week ...

Work was a thing that definitely happened, against my most ardent wishes. 

We came second at quiz, which is definitely better than fourth.

Our election was last night, so I voted yesterday morning (I don't want to talk about the results, ugh) and afterwards myself, Son of Mine (Doctor Who reference there) and a friend went to the library. We then repaired to a pub for some democracy fries as a reward for exercising our civil rights. 

I drove about for a bit after dropping the passengers off at their respective abodes (mine, in the case of Son of Mine, obviously) as I'm trying to find a secondhand copy of Misery. Work has decided we all need to dress up for Hallowe'en and I'm going to go as Annie Wilkes. Mostly because I can source that from my own wardrobe. But I want a copy of the book. I do have one but it's in an omnibus with two other Stephen King novels.

I went to my friend's as usual, and we're run out of reality TV for now, so we're starting on the backlog of dramas (mostly British) that she's recorded. We watched The Ex-Wife, which was pretty good. 

Today we went to a craft show and I managed to not buy anything, so I'm proud of myself for that. 

Every so often with what I'm reading my brain decides that - for whatever reason - it's not working for me. So it proved to be the case with both The Persians and The City of Last Chances. So I returned them to the library. Nothing against the books themselves, they just weren't right for me at the time. I did finish Hallowe'en Party, though. 

I'm still reading River God, and something that I do when books aren't working is I'll either read an old favourite, or I'll read Star Trek novels. I got Picard by Una McCormack out of the library, which is a prequel to the series. So far it's pretty good.

A while back I happened upon a book on the library's withdrawn shelf by Clive James called Latest Readings. When he was diagnosed with terminal cancer, he shifted his massive library to Cambridge, and determined to spend what time he had left reading. Latest Readings came out of that. I need to finish it so I can pass it on to my friend, who is a very big Clive James fan. 

I also somehow started A Long Petal of the Sea by Isabel Allende.

Anyway. How about you? How's your week? What are  you reading?

The Sunday Post 28; It's Monday! What are you reading? 28

 

The Sunday Post - a chance for bloggers to have a catch-up, is hosted by Kimberly here: https://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/  and It's Monday! What are you reading? is hosted by Kathryn, here: https://thebookdate.wordpress.com/

My week was much the same. Work, etc.  Spawn was on school holidays (back tomorrow) and J also took the 2 weeks of the holidays off, so I've been the only one working.

J goes back to work tonight so we'll go back to "normal."

We came 4th - by ONE POINT at quiz on Wednesday which is always a somewhat bitter pill for me as I tend to be competitive. I know it happens, I just don't like it.

J took my car in to a different place for a second opinion on what work needed done, and their quote was a solid $1500 less than the first place for the warrant of fitness. I had been considering whether it was even worth keeping it, but a friend insisted we get a second opinion. So it's just a couple of tyres and the brake pads that need replacing. 

I didn't do very much at all yesterday, although I went to my friend's as usual. We've run out of reality TV for a while so we're diving in to the backlog of British crime dramas that we seem to have stacked up.

Spawn and I went to the library today as he'd asked to go, and I left without borrowing any books. I mean, I still have about 10 or so out of the library, but leaving with none is very unusal.

I've done some stitching as well this weekend and watched a couple of movies - Now You See Me and Now You See Me 2 which were fun. I also finally finished season 3 of Only Murders in the Building, which I really enjoy, and I watched the first 3 episodes of season 2 of Our Flag Means Death.

I finished Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six and ... eh. It was okay, but for a thriller I felt the author pulled a lot of punches where she could have followed through. I'm still reading The Persians albeit very slowly.

I also started The City of Last Chances by Adrian Tchaikovsky and I decided to re-read Hallowe'en Party as well.

How about you? How's your week? What are you reading?

The Sunday Post 27; It's Monday, what are you reading? 27

 

The Sunday Post - a chance for bloggers to have a catch-up - is hosted by Kimberly, here: https://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/ and It's Monday! What are you reading? is hosted by Kathryn, here: https://thebookdate.wordpress.com/

My week was relatively uneventful. Work was a place I went to so I could earn my paycheck and pay taxes like a good citizen. It's springtime here which, in September and October tends to mean very unsettled weather, and it rained for a lot of last week. Which is fine, I enjoy the rain as long as I'm not out in it.

Add in some very strong winds and little sunshine though and it does get a bit trying. However, it's been warmer and much less rainy today, which has been nice. 

We won at quiz on Wednesday night, which is always nice. 

Friday night I ordered pizza for tea and watched a terrible movie with a group of twitter friends - it's something we do periodically and it's always fun.

Saturday I did a little bit of stitching - I have a dragon WIP that is all shades of green, so I can really only work on it in daylight. Saturday morning tends to be the best time to get that done. Spawn and I went to the library after lunch, and I wend to my friend's as usual. We watched the end of The Traitors UK, which was great, and The Traitors is now one of my favourite reality shows.

At the moment I'm also enjoying a couple of home-grown reality shows - House Rules NZ where teams renovate each other's house and are scored on it, and Celebrity Treasure Island, where celebrities (well, NZ value for celebrity, we don't have a deep well to draw on) compete in a Survivor-style game to win money for charity. It's a lot of fun, though one of my favourites went home last week. 

What else. I haven't done a lot today. Spawn and I watched some Golden Girls - he loves it - and I did some stitching. We also baked a lemon loaf, which came out really well. Spawn did most of the work, while I directed operations. 

I'm still reading Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six and it's okay, but a little bit annoying with the time jumps and the implied You Will Never Guess Who This Person Is. It's due back at the library via Libby in a couple of days, so I need to try and get it finished. I'm also still reading River God, and I picked up a non-fiction book - Persians: The Age of Great Kings by Lloyd Llewellen Jones. I don't read a lot of non-fiction but occasionally 

The Sunday Post 26; It's Monday! What are you reading? 26

 

The Sunday Post - a chance for bloggers to have a catch-up - is hosted by Kimberly, here: https://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/ and It's Monday! What are you reading? is hosted by Kathryn, here: https://thebookdate.wordpress.com/

Okay, the week that was ...

I had a very sore right arm on Monday - I still don't know what I did to it, but even driving home from work was a struggle, and I had to go around corners with only one hand on the steering wheel.

I had Tuesday off luckily, so I thought "painkillers and rest" which is what I did, while bingeing Only Murders in the Building. Wednesday morning I woke up, had a shower and realised that my arm was too sore for me to put a bra on. So I got as dressed as I could, and took a sick day. More painkillers and rest, and that - so far - has done the trick. 

My workmate who had Covid is back, so our workload was not as great as it had been.

Friday night I was going to watch a movie with Spawn, but a friend of his came over for a sleepover, so I watched The Matrix Resurrection, and wished I hadn't. It is a movie that I watched. I can't say it was good, because it wasn't. But I managed to get some stitching done - my friend's birthday is next month, so I'm making something small for her.

Saturday morning I did some stitching and watched another terrible movie - The Misfits on Netflix. Not the old-school one with Marilyn Monroe but an egregious heist movie with Pierce Brosnan. I love a good heist movie. But this was not that.

I took the boys into town after lunch so Spawn's friend could meet up with his family, and Spawn and I then went to the library. I went to my friend's place as usual last night, and we discussed whether we'd make good traitors or faithfuls - we're still watching The Traitors UK.

Today she talked me into going to the movies to see A Haunting in Venice and frankly I wish she hadn't. I love Agatha Christie, and I'm ambivalent on Kenneth Branagh's Poirot, but this movie ... was certainly something that I watched. It's apparently based on the novel Hallowe'en Party, but it bears about as much resemblance to that book as I do to Kenneth Branagh.

And it was just ... tedious. Heavy on jumpscares and symbolism and honestly I think if I'd been alone I  might have just left. 

Anyway, here we are. I still need to make my bed and cook dinner, so thought I'd get this done first.

I finished High on Arrival by Mackenzie Phillips - she of 1980s One Day at a Time fame and also the daughter of John Phillips of The Mamas and the Papas. It is an interesting read, but a very disturbing one. 

I'm still reading Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six, and I started River God by Wilbur Smith. I actually read it years ago, but I have the series up to Desert God, so thought I'd start over. It's not a short book, so that one is going to be read in short bursts. 

How about you? How's your week? What are you reading?

Two reviews

 

It's 1983, and Susan Arkshaw has just turned 18. She moves to London, intending to start art college, and look for her father.

However, Susan's life takes a very different turn when she meets Merlin - a left-handed bookseller. From the moment Susan meets Merlin her life goes down a very different - and very magical path.

I can't be articulate about this book. I loved it so much. There's something cosy about it somehow? There's magic, and there's myth and a little bit of romance, and some really excellent worldbuilding. 

It is honestly pure fantasy escapism in the best way.

Twenty year after his sister Tara has disappeared, Peter receives a phone call from his parents. Tara has turned up. The trouble is - she looks exactly the same as she did when she vanished 20 years ago, and she's come back with a wild tale of where she has been.

For Tara, it's only been six months, and she's been living in a very strange kind of fairyland. 

The book weaves together the past, the present and Tara's story of her time in the other land to create a kind of modern myth, almost. There's the mundane of Peter's life with his family, and the wild of Tara's story, and the in-between as well. 

It's an extremely readable book that does make you think "What if?"

The Sunday Post 25; It's Monday! What are you reading? 25

 

The Sunday Post - a chance for bloggers to catch up - is hosted by Kimberly here: https://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/ and It's Monday! What are  you reading? is hosted by Kathryn, here: https://thebookdate.wordpress.com/

The week that was .... let's see.

Work was busy, but not overwhelming. One of my team members - the one who went on the cruise - came home with Covid, and so was off sick all last week. Hopefully she's feeling better this week.

We came third at quiz on Wednesday night, which for me is frustrating. It's always a fun night, but I'm competitive, so I like to win. The pub is closed this week for renovations, so no quiz this week.

There was a movie night at work on Friday after work. I wasn't going to go, because I like to sit in my house on Friday nights and do nothing, but it was organised by one of my work friends, so I went to support her.

It was a good night actually - we had snacks, pizza and watched Dogma. AND I was home by 9. 

Spawn went to a friend's place on Friday night for a party/sleepover and I picked him up on Saturday morning. We went to the library and I had a couple of other errands to run, so did those as well.

Now, of course, he's sick. Blocked nose, sore throat, the full monty. Poor kid. 

Today I haven't done much at all. I'm going to park up in the living room with TV and some stitching, and that will be my day.

I finished Some Kind of Fairy Tale by Graham Joyce, and really enjoyed it.

I'm still reading A Marvellous Light by Freya  Marske, and that's really good. I also had Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six as a digital loan, and I had started it, but it's due back today. So I'll just borrow that one again when it's available.

A workmate loaned me The Crow graphic novel, and if I have time I'm going to pick that up today.

How about you? How's' your week? What are you reading?

The Sunday Post 24; It's Monday! What are you reading? 24

 

The Sunday Post - a chance for bloggers to have a catch-up - is hosted by Kimberly here: https://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/ and It's Monday! What are you reading? is hosted by Kathryn here: https://thebookdate.wordpress.com/

The week that was.

Work was certainly a place I went to every day to remain a law-abiding tax-paying citizen.

Our library has a book sale every year to offload withdrawn books. The sale ran Monday to Friday, and as I finish at 5pm on Tuesdays, a friend of mine and I went after work. Spoiler alert: I bought some books. 

We won at quiz on Wednesday night, by a margin of 1 point, and it was a fun evening.

On Friday night after work I went to a workmate's place as a group of us celebrated the end of The Rock 2000 countdown: https://www.therock.net.nz/home/music/the-rock-2000.html

It's a yearly countdown of the top 2000 rock songs voted by listeners. Every year a few of us have a friendly competition trying to guess what will be in the top 10. I lost early on, thanks to Ozzy Osborne playing at number 500. Anyway. This year we decided to listen to the end of it all in the same place and have snacks. We played board games and also bonded with the host's cat. 

It was a fun evening.

On Saturday Spawn and I went to the library as he had a game to return. The library sale was technically over, but you could fill a box for $5 from the books that remained. Spoiler alert: I bought more books.

I went to my friend's as usual on Saturday night, and we started on The Traitors UK, which is a lot of fun.

Today I've done some stitching and podcast listening - two activities which go very well together. I've been listening to You Must Remember This: https://www.youmustrememberthispodcast.com/ which is about Hollywood's first century. 

I also made progress on my reading corner. I repurposed a shelf that's been sitting in our hallway for weeks, and stacked it with the books I got at the library sale, and a few other strays. Also, snacks. Now I just need a comfy chair.

I didn't end up starting the Star Trek novel. I had The Left-Hand Booksellers of London as a digital lend from the library, and it was almost due, so I ended up reading that instead, and absolutely loved it.

I'm still reading Some Kind of Fairy Tale, which I'm still enjoying, and I started A Marvellous Light by Freya Marske - an M/M fantasy suspense novel. So far it's proving to be very light and magical.

How about you? How's your week? What are you reading?

The Sunday Post 23; It's Monday! What are you reading? 23

 

The Sunday Post - a chance for bloggers to catch up - is hosted by Kimberly here: https://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/ and It's Monday! What are you reading? is hosted by Kathryn, here: https://thebookdate.wordpress.com/

Let's see .... 

My working week was okay - busy as one of my team is on holiday, cruising around the South Pacific. But I'd rather be busy. The unfortunate side effect of that is my braincells get tired and I make mistakes. But I try to be philosophical about them so I don't carry them around with me rent-free.

We won at quiz on Wednesday night on a tiebreaker, which was tense, but fun as always.

On Friday night, Spawn and I had pizza pockets and watched Sing 2. It was fun, and we both wanted something we didn't have to focus on too much. I also finished the project on the left - a small gift for a workmate - it just needs to be ironed, framed and handed on now.

Spawn, myself and a friend of mine went to the library yesterday. Spawn is currently very big on Ancient Egypt, thanks to playing Assassins Creed Origins, so he got out a couple of non-fiction books on that. He's not a great reader, but I'm always happy to encourage any reading he does want to do.

We also went to a garage sale in support of a local animal rescue. I found a small purse for $4 and an iron (I've been needing one for a while) for $10.00 so I thought that was all right.

J finally found some kitchen chairs at one of the secondhand stores. They're sturdy wooden ones - not flash, but much better than the fabric ones we did have that had been torn to shreds by the cats. 

I went to my friend's last night as usual where we stitched and watched TV. 

Today I've made chocolate chip muffins, and they are good if a little ... crunch. Nothing a few seconds in the microwave can't fix, I'm sure.

I finished Aunts Aren't Gentlemen by P G Wodehouse, which I was reading before bed. Every so often I like to dip into Star Trek novels - they're usually entertaining and readable, and not too mentally demanding. So I have Captain to Captain by Greg Cox lined up next.

I'm also reading Some Kind of Fairy Tale by Graham Joyce. I haven't read any of Graham Joyce's novels for many years, but he is one of my favourite authors. I have had this book on my shelves for a very long time, and discovered an absolute treasure when I opened it.

I must have specifically ordered this copy, but I don't remember it, so got a very pleasant surprise. It's even more of a treasure to me as Graham Joyce died in 2014.

So far I'm greatly enjoying the book, and it's making me want to go back and read or re-read his other novels. 

How about you? How's your week? What are you reading?

Short reviews

 

Tangerine by Christine Mangan is set in Tangiers in the 1950s.

Alice Shipley has come to Tangiers with her new husband. However, Alice feels uneasy and out of place and seldom leaves their apartment.

The very last person Alice expects to see on her doorstep one day is her old college room-mate, Lucy Mason. Not after what had happened...

Tangerine has a very strong 1950s Hitchcock film or film noir vibe. It's claustrophobic and tense, with secrets simmering just under the surface.

Even the cover looks like a film poster from the era.

The only quibble I had with the book was the ending, which I wasn't a big fan of. Otherwise, enjoyable.

Carpe Jugulum, by Mr Sir Terry Pratchett. This is a treat, but basically anything by Terry Pratchett is a treat. 

Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg and Agnes are preparing for the christening of Magrat and King Verence's baby girl. Before that can take place, however, there are other things the witches need to contend with.

The family of vampyres for a start, that intend to move into Lancre Castle and basically take over. Then there's the falconer, searching for a phoenix. 

And we can't forget the Wee Free Men ... Discworld is pure escapism, but also very very clever, and all you can really do is hop on your broomstick and go along for the ride.

The Land of Stories: The Wishing Spell by Chris Colfer. I have to confess - I have had this book on my bookshelves for a very long time.

I've decided to make a bit more of an effort to actually ... read my own books, and so I started here.

The Land of Stories is a series of books by former Glee star Chris Colfer, starting with the Wishing Spell in which twins Alex and Connor find themselves trapped in a fairytale world, and have to find a way home.

It's a cute, easy-to-read middle grade/intermediate fantasy that can definitely be enjoyed by kids of all ages who secretly still believe in magic. (It's me. I'm kids.)

The Writing Retreat by Julia Bartz is a ... wild ride, to say the least.

Five young women are invited to the isolated mansion of an eccentric write for a month, after winning a competition.

They will spend a month at the retreat, writing a novel and being mentored by the famous author. At the end of the month, the idea is that they will have completed manuscripts.

It's not long, however, before everything starts to go a bit pear-shaped.

Then it gets strange, THEN it straight up goes whack-a-doodle. 

I wasn't a great fan of Alex, the protagonist, but she kind of grew on me as the book progressed. And I can definitely say I was entertained. If I had to classify it genre-wise, I'd call it a modern-day gothic thriller. Entertaining and readable and honestly? Bonkers.

The Sunday Post 22; It's Monday What are you reading? 22

 

The Sunday Post - a chance for bloggers to have a chat and a catch-up - is hosted by Kimberly, here: https://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/ and It's Monday! What are you reading? is hosted by Kathryn, here: https://thebookdate.wordpress.com/

Let's see ... I'm trying to think! Work was much the same as always, but that's not a bad thing. 

We came second again at quiz on Wednesday - only one point off the leaders. But it was a fun night.

Spawn had one of his wee friends over for a sleepover on Friday night. (Spawn and his friends are all teenagers, and most are taller than me. It amuses me greatly to call them his wee friends).

I've started to list some cross-stich charts on Facebook that I know I'll never get around to doing, and posted one of those yesterday. Spawn came with me, and we trawled a couple of secondhand stores - I'm on a quest for new kitchen chairs. So far nothing, but I persist.

I've been working on a gift for a workmate who's birthday was this month. It's a bit late, but I'm sure she'll like it anyway. And I went to my friend's last night as usual. We've been watching Hunted Australia, and also The Traitors NZ. The UK one is starting here in a few weeks, which I haven't seen at all, but we're greatly enjoying the NZ version. 

I finished The Land of Stories, and also The Writing Retreat.

So now my bedtime reading is Aunts Aren't Gentlemen by P G Wodehouse. And I'm trying this thing where I alternate a library book with one from my own shelves, to actually READ some of the books I own. Since The Writing Retreat was a library book, I've decided to pick up Some Kind of Fairytale by Graham Joyce - in my opinion a criminally under-rated writer.

How about you? How's your week? What are you reading?