November reading wrap up

Another month in which I continue to be terrible at blogging. I'll remember how it works one of these days, you guys. Hopefully...

In the meantime, let's wrap up my reading month!

Books read: 35. It's beyond ridiculous.
New vs rereads: 18 vs 17. HURRAH. Although this was mostly the product of a decision to spend the last 6ish weeks of the year rereading my favourite books rather than rereading things I'm only half interested in because I feel like I have to.
Most read genre: This one was the product of much work, but it's not contemporary!! It is, in fact, a tie between sci-fi and fantasy.

Favourite book: As far as rereads are concerned? Persuasion by Jane Austen, because it's my favourite book of ever. If we're talking new books? I suspect The Martian by Andy Weir has taken out my favourite pick.
Least favourite book: Visions of Sugar Plums by Janet Evanovich. Totally unnecessary Christmas special-y novella that suddenly added a bunch of paranormal elements to an existing world with zero explanation.
Favourite cover: OH GOD SO MANY TO CHOOSE FROM. I'm going to make it a three way tie between the illustrated edition of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by J.K. Rowling, Ten Thousand Skies Above You by Claudia Gray, and Because You'll Never Meet Me by Leah Thomas.

Diverse Books Project: It's...going. I've been making a concerned effort to pick books from outside the western world, especially the US, UK and Australia. But it's proving difficult to find (read: physically get hold of, not discover) books that are set in Africa, Asia, and South America that AREN'T literary fiction. And where time limits are involved, literary fiction isn't usually my friend...










In November, I ended up reading 2 graphic novels, 2 non-fiction books and 31 novels. There are links to all of my Goodreads reviews below.

5 stars

Persuasion | Soulless | Every Breath | Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone | Gone Girl |

4.5 stars

Cress | Manners & Mutiny | Ten Thousand Skies Above You | Winter | Attachments | Sabriel | The Martian |

4 stars

Nimona | Brave New World | Career of Evil | Because You'll Never Meet Me | Trafalgar | The Interrogation of Ashala Wolf | Lady Audley's Secret | A Breath of Frost | I Kill Giants | Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets |

3.5 stars

Pyramids | Monument 14 | Uprooted | The Flywheel |

3 stars

Dead and Gone | 21 Proms | Preloved | Shadow of the War Machine | Swahili for the Broken Hearted | Sky on Fire |

2 stars

Visions of Sugar Plums | The Ice Limit | End of Days |

What did you read in November?

K xx

TTT - The Characters I'd Like to Check In With

Another Tuesday already? Must be time to talk about books and link up with the Broke and the Bookish!

The topic this week is all about the characters that we'd like to check back with and find out what happened to them after the book finished. And I have a LOT of these. But I limited myself to ten like a good child. 

1. Molly Gibson and Roger Hamley - Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell

There's a very simple reason why these two are right at the top of my list: ELIZABETH GASKELL VERY RUDELY WENT AND DIED WITHOUT FINISHING THE BOOK. Obviously, she intended for them to end up together, but I still need to knoooooooooooooooow. And find out what happens next. 

2. Literally every single character - The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling

I mean, seriously. I will never be done. I need more. And not in those little bonus content-y things that Rowling posts on Pottermore for holidays. I NEED MORE BOOKS, DAMMIT. The longer the better. 

3. Rachel Watts and James Mycroft - The Every series by Ellie Marney

I want to check in on these two like five years down the road when they've finished university. Are they still investigating crimes? Helping the police? Have their own detective agency? Over their OMG-how-are-you-still-a-functioning-human-being PTSD yet? I might just go pester Ellie on Twitter until she tells me the answers... 

4. Fair Finley and Gomery Overbove - The Wilfair series by Alysia Gray Painter

Oh, my precious babies. I want to check in on them periodically for the rest of their lives and make sure they're doing okay. Alysia - my birthday is coming up. Feel free to write me a Finley/Overbove wedding. #justsaying

5. Becky Sharp - Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray

Becky's a total antihero, and she always manages to fall on her feet no matter how deep she's dug herself in. I'd love to check in with her somewhere down the track and find out what crazy schemes she's got in the works.

6. Aristotle and Dante - Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz

This book ends on such a fabulous note. But it also ends with a beginning. And I would LOVE to see what happens next for these two and how they handle it. 

7. Ellie Linton - The Tomorrow series and The Ellie Chronicles by John Marsden

I was pretty excited when John Marsden wrote The Ellie Chronicles, because I KNEW that Ellie's story wasn't over yet. But that series ended with a slightly ridiculous bombshell that I still don't know how to process. And I'd love to know what happens as a result of that bombshell. 

8. Eleanor Douglas and Park Sheridan - Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell

After that ending, how could you not want to check in on these two precious babies?? Fingers crossed Rowell will do a sneaky little cameo in a future book, like she did with Cath and Levi... 

9. Amy and Roger - Amy and Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson

Again, this book ended with a beginning. And yes, we get a sneak peek/cameo thing of these two in Second Chance Summer, but it's not enough dammit! I need to know what happened in between this book and that cameo... 

10. Anne Elliot and Frederick Wentworth - Persuasion by Jane Austen

I know that most Austen fans would say that Lizzie and Darcy are the characters they most want to check in with. But for me? I figure there are so many adaptations and retellings and sequels out there that it's pretty easy to find something that fits your particular head canon for what happens next. But Persuasion? Not so much. Given that Wentworth is in the Royal Navy and it's inevitable that they'd spend a lot of time apart, I'd love to see how these characters handled things. 

What's on your list this week?

K xx

TTT - Favourite Heroines

Another Tuesday already? Must be time to talk about books and link up with the Broke and the Bookish!

Today we're talking about our favourite fictional heroines, and sweet baby Jesus, this list could have been about 15 pages long given the chance. But I've managed to limit myself to ten. 

I think there's a tendency when the word "heroine" crops up to think of female characters who kick ass. The ones from fantasy books who wield swords and have magical powers and whatnot. But that's not necessarily what makes a heroine. According to Google, the dictionary definition is "a woman admired for her courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities". This list is going to be a mix of the two. 

1. Hermione Granger (Harry Potter series, J.K. Rowling)

There are literally no words for how much I love Hermione Granger. Sure, she's a pretty flawed character at times, but that's part of what makes her so damned fabulous. And she's 100% a heroine. Who else would set a teacher on fire at the age of eleven and create an entire social justice movement at the age of 14?? 

2. Celaena Sardothian (Throne of Glass series, Sarah J. Maas)

The Queen of Badassery and Awesomeness. She's had so much character development over the course of the first three books, and I can't WAIT to see where her story goes in the remaining books. 

3. Fair Finley (Wilfair series, Alysia Gray Painter)

Oh, my dear sweet Fair. She grows up so much and undergoes such an astonishingly fabulous amount of character development over the course of the four books, and it's absolutely magical. 

4. Anne Elliot (Persuasion, Jane Austen)

Anne's the dark horse of Austen heroines. She's quiet and tends to just sit back and do what her family demands of her. But that doesn't mean she's willing to give up her chance at happiness. 

5. Rachel Watts (Every trilogy, Ellie Marney)

Rachel, Rachel, Rachel. I just want to squish you. Sure, sometimes she make really terrible decisions about when to make out with her boyfriend, but whatever. She's been through a lot in the course of the first two books (Every Move is due to arrive on my Kindle tomorrow and I AM DYING TO READ IT), and yet she never gives up, she stops fighting for herself and for Mycroft. 

6. Verity (Code Name Verity, Elizabeth Wein)

There's not much I can say about Code Name Verity without ruining the story. Just know that Verity is one HELL of a heroine. Her bravery is astonishing, and her story gives me all the feels. 

7. Alexia Tarabotti (The Parasol Protectorate series, Gail Carriger)

Alexia has no time for anybody's nonsense. She's sassy and eyerolls her way through being kidnapped. She uses her powers to her advantage and fights hard for what she cares about. You know, while openly judging her best friend for her terrible taste in hats. 

8. Ellie Linton (Tomorrow series, John Marsden)

I've said several times recently that Rachel Watts reminds me a lot of Ellie Linton. They're both Aussie country girls who don't give up when things get tough. Ellie's been one of my favourite heroines since 1995, and I don't see that changing any time soon. 

9. Kate Daniels (Kate Daniels series, Ilona Andrews)

Kate is queen of the badasses. She's pretty fearless, and she fights with a sabre that eats undead flesh. She'd fight to the death for those she loves, and she's fabulously sassy. 

10. Tiffany Aching (Tiffany Aching series, Terry Pratchett)

Tiffany is probably that kid that teachers hate, because she never stops questioning things. She's a pretty flawed character at times - she complains about the standard tasks that come with being a witch, she jumps into things without thinking, and she a typical teenage girl in a lot of ways. But she also never gives up to protect her community, even when it means putting her own life in danger. 

Who's on your list?

K xx

Back to witches and wizards and magical beasts

Previously: Sara and I went to Stonehenge and Bath, and had an incredibly nutritious lunch of scones and chips. 

Warning: this post is reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeally photo-heavy. But it's worth it. Trust me.

The day after we went to Bath somehow turned into a nothing day. We both woke up late, and decided that we should finish watching North and South before we did anything else. Eventually, we figured that we should do SOMETHING besides sit on the sofa all day, so we drove into town and had a late lunch before wandering around the shops for a while. I'd been planning on getting a new between-seasons coat while I was in England, so technically we were on the look out for that. Me being me, I came home with a pair of raspberry patent heels. FAR more important than a stupid coat!

I mean, seriously. 

We headed home via the supermarket to procure pizza and cider, and had dinner in front of Doctor Who before spending the night watching Prisoner of Azkaban. It was low key and relaxing and fabulous to not be running around all over the place for a change.

The next morning, we were up bright and early and on the road before 10am. Frankly, I'd been excited about our final destination for this particular day since about JULY, and it didn't disappoint. We started off with a trip to Windsor, because if we were going to spend all that damned time on the M25, you can bet your arse we were going to break up the trip.

Parking was a monumental bitch, as you can imagine if you've ever been to Windsor, but finally we found a parking spot and headed into the castle. After parting with a small fortune, we headed inside. And honestly? The public areas were a lot smaller than I remembered them being when I was a kid. It didn't help that the chapel was closed because it was Sunday, but I remember there being far more to see and do than just the state rooms and Queen Mary's doll house. *shrugs*

I'd also forgotten about the almost-constant low flying planes en route to land at Heathrow, which must be nice and relaxing for the queen!!

Once we'd exhausted the possibilities at the castle and decided that we didn't need a stuffed toy corgi from the gift shop, we wandered back into town for a spot of lunch before stopping at a supermarket to procure some snacks. Then we hit the road and basically flailed our way up the M25 to our final destination: The Harry Potter studio tour.

It.

Was.

AMAZING.

I mean, I thought I'd died and gone to Heaven when I went to Wizarding World of Harry Potter. And sure, this didn't have awesome rides. But it WAS non-stop amazingness from basically the moment we walked in the door. The very first thing you see (besides giant photos of the cast, and half a Ford Anglia coming out of the wall) is the Cupboard Under the Stairs.

From there, they show you a short film, and then you head into the Great Hall. If you're planning on going, I'd highly recommend going on your birthday, because of reasons.

I could happily have stayed in the Great Hall for another 20 minutes or so because it's so amazingly detailed, but there was tons more to see.

The first half of the tour is smaller sets, like the Gryffindor Common Room and Dumbledore's office, lots of costumes, and a ton of fun props, like the Horcruxes, Hermione's Timeturner, quidditch supplies, and the Triwizard Cup.

DanRad is tiny. Seriously. 

It took us at least an hour to get through it all, and it was marvellous. It's astonishing how much detail was created for props that get a couple of seconds of screen time.

Then you head outside to some of the exterior sets - Number 4 Privet Drive, the bridge at Hogwarts, and the Potter's cottage from Godric's Hollow. There's also the Knight Bus, which is pretty fabulous, and some more of the big chess pieces.

You can also get butter beer, which is pretty delicious in small quantities but is quite likely to make you feel sick if you drink more than a few sips.

The second half of the tour is all about the animatronics and the models that they used, and it's pretty damned fascinating.

From there, you get to walk up Diagon Alley, which felt oddly like returning to Wizarding World of Harry Potter (even though when I was there, it was only Hogsmeade...):

And then it was onto the last major stop, which was my absolute favourite - the scale model of Hogwarts that they used for all the exterior shots. It's absolutely ENORMOUS.

See those people over there on the right? Yeah. ENORMOUS. 

I could happily have stood there staring at it all day, because it's utterly astonishing. The lighting slowly changes from day to night, and all the lights in the castle come on.

How could we not take a terrible selfie?! 

Eventually, we dragged ourselves away from the magnificence that is Hogwarts and headed towards the gift shop. The last room you pass through is filled with wand boxes. There are over two thousand of them, and they bear the names of all the cast and crew, which is pretty fabulous.

Hell, even the gift shop was magical. I spent rather more than I'd planned, but came out with a Ravenclaw t-shirt for myself, and a wand for Little Miss A (Totally worth it).

Eventually, our wallets rather lighter than planned, we headed back to the car and drove back to Portsmouth. We wandered down the road to the pub for dinner, and spent the rest of the night watching Goblet of Fire. Because really, what else would we do after such a Potter-tastic day?!

Next time, we acquire a couple of small children and head to the zoo. 

K xx