Madeleine

Always - Bon Jovi

The Sun Always Shines on TV - A-ha

Yes February flew by didn't it? Short month too. Now the days are getting a bit longer and the mornings aren't quite so dark. Happy St David's Day to anyone with any Welsh connections or roots here. It's turned quite cold and damp, I'm doing a walk tomorrow along the Blackwater Estuary so hope it's a bit nicer. Have a good weekend everyone!

I've found Forster a bit heavy going as well, haven't read Passage to India but found Howard's End a bit of a slog, despite loving the film.

Glad you managed to have a nice break and you certainly got the best weather. It's a shame that Coran isn't able to learn to drive, although that's very stressful in itself. At least it sounds positive that she can get some help.

Back to cold and rain now, not raining at the moment but did rain most of last night so very damp.

wand

The Franchise Affair - Josephine Tey

pastry

HI Karen, I love your forum name, brilliant. Welcome to the forum.

Usually two, one for commuting and one for at home, usually one which I need to concentrate on more, so I choose something lighter (both weight-wise and subject-wise!) for commuting as it's so noisy sometimes it's hard to concentrate, along with other interruptions like having to get off the train earlier as they decide to terminate it before it gets to my stop

Good idea!

They're Ok, I've read a couple now and I can see they all tend to follow the same sort of pattern and plot, bit predictable and some of the characters (as I said, especially the main male) are a bit two-dimensional. They're fine for an escapist read though.

"The Winter Secret" by Lulu Taylor - there are two storylines to this novel, both revolving around a beautiful house in Dorset, Charlcombe Park. It's original owners were Golden Age film star Natalie Lowe, her husband, a Russian prince called Paul, and their daughter Xenia. Natalie had a glittering Hollywood career, but unable to cope with the pressures of fame she gradually succumbed to drink, pills and manic depression, further exacerbated by the horrendous treatments of the time until Paul leaves one day, and Xenia and Natalie are left at the house in poverty, with only a few residual fees from Natalie's films to occasionally sustain them, as well as an artistic commune who live there for a while. Eventually Natalie passes away, and wealthy businessman Charles Redmain buys the estate, allowing Xenia to live out her days in a cottage on the estate, which she does, reflecting on past glory and wondering what happened to her father. Charles restores the house, and when his first marriage breaks up his ex, Ingrid, continues to live there in another cottage. Then he re-marries and brings his new wife Buttercup (ridiculous name, it's a nickname!) to live at the house, and whilst she initially enjoys the luxury of having everything done for her, eventually she starts to get restless, and after suffering a miscarriage she tries to go back to work. But this falls through, but on a trip back to London where Charles has his office staff as well as a penthouse flat in Westminster, she starts to realise that she is being watched everywhere, and every phone call, email and credit card transaction is monitored and logged. She starts to wonder what really caused the break-up of his first marriage, and wonders just how far Charles will go to protect his property. I did find Buttercup a bit annoying at first, but thankfully she decides not to be a victim, and sets about trying to make a life for herself; she desperately wants to keep her marriage, but once she discovers a web of lies, duplicity and obsession, she realises she is becoming more trapped. I did start to like her as she fought for her individuality, and for her admirable qualities of trying everything to save her marriage, and I just wanted her to run as soon as she could! Charles was a rather two-dimensional figure, I could almost see hear him sneering as he taunted poor Buttercup, and the ending wasn't a surprise, although there were also a couple of twists. I did get to like Xenia as well after a while, although initially she seemed to spend far too much time wallowing in her mother's faded glamour, but as her life was spent following her mother around film sets and then looking after her, she probably would have had no idea how to live a "normal" life. An enjoyable read, if the ending was a bit predictable. 7/10

Yes it looks as if it's quite warm, haven't been out yet but was warmer this morning than it was yesterday when we had a thick frost and it was really cold first thing. I've got lots of daffs opening out in the garden and several crocuses. Naturally it's meant to get colder and wetter by the weekend

I've just finished number 8, so I'm going at my usual rate at the moment ie 4 books per month, more or less.

Ah, didn't see it had gone onto another page.

cake

The Sun Rising - The Beloved

shine

I'm really sorry to hear that Talisman, it sounds like you really need a break too. I think your work situation is probably quite common, and can sympathise with you as we're always getting asked to take on more work too and we're not always told exactly what we'll be doing, or if we even know how to do it, I think a lot of people are probably in similar situations at work - usual story, cut back staff etc. I hope Coran finds the right help soon, and the situation eases up for both of you.

Two out of Three Ain't Bad - Meat Loaf

Face

Yes but never mind, hopefully the next book will be better!

The Bear and the Nightingale" by Katherine Arden - this is the first book in the Winternight trilogy, set in Russia and featuring a girl called Vasya, who lives with her family in a small town in the countryside, and is viewed with suspicion as she is able to communicate with strange creatures, including the household demons. But the real trouble starts when her father re-marries; his new wife claims to see demons everywhere and is a religious fanatic who hates Vasya. When a prospective marriage offer is rejected, her parents threaten to send her to a convent, but before she can go she runs away into the woods, where the Frost Demon has other plans for her, for he sees her special qualities and also her potential. Meanwhile a freezing winter is taking it's toll, and various neighbours, having succumbed to either illness, the cold or old age, start coming back as vampires. Vasya and her brother manage to fight them off, but the threat is growing and eventually she has to decide whether to stay at home (and certain misery in a convent) or join the demons. I found this disappointing, although I liked Vasya's character I found it all a bit disjointed, I think perhaps I thought it might be more like the Dark Materials by Philip Pullman, but it seemed to go on forever. I may however give the sequel a go, as the early chapters at the end of this book were promising. Plus it was cheap on the web, and the cover is gorgeous.5/10