Kell

I watched the New Year special tonight and was so disappointed I could cry! I wasn't prepared for it to be a "mind palace" thing and really wanted it to be a one-off Victoriana thing that was set apart from the main series. I don't know if I just built it up too much in my mind, but I was SO much looking forward to it, and it just didn't come anywhere near living up to my expectations. As it is, having it as part of the main story was pointless (in my opinion) too, because it didn't actually progress the story any.

Oooh! I'm pretty excited about this - I totally have these on my wish list now!

I think the traditional Victorian setting is one of the top reasons I'm so excited about this particular special.

I'm quite chuffed with myself! In recent years, with Josh being so little, I haven't had as much time for reading, so I set myself a target of 2 books per month with a total of 24 books for the year. I've actually managed to read 52 books this year (and some of them were BIG FAT ones!) this year, so I've averaged one for each week of the year.

Ooh! I may well consider it as the original, unabridged novel is one of my all-time favourite books. It's high time I re-read it, as it's been several years since I last visited my old friends Stu, Frannie, Nick and the rest!

I am DYING to see it. I'm, like, wetting my pants excited about it. I adore Sherlock and having this special to look forward to has kept me going while waiting for the next "series" to air (I say series, but I'm not sure we can really cal it that when it's only 3 episodes - still, they're feature length, so we can't really complain, can we?). I plan to re-watch them all in their entirety (including the special) before the new season starts.

I was a little disappointed by the Xmas special. I was glad Brucie wasn't doing it, as I think it's long past time he was put out to pasture from stuff like this. The guy who won the People's Strictly was brilliant - what an inspiration - and the last two were superb, but I found the other three very disappointing. The waltz confused me a lot, as it was done to music that most definitely wasn't in 3/3 time - you can't waltz to music that doesn't have a 3/3 beat - it just doesn't work. The guy that won (was it harry?) was brilliant, but I thought the last guy was better and should have won it. The others who were on didn't impress me at all. I understand Alison was very popular when she did it, but I didn't rate her performance at all, and thought they would have been better off giving the spot to someone else. Still, at least the three who were good weer incredibly good, which kind of made up a little for the others not being so great. And I can't believe Craig didn't get dressed up as the Evil Queen - they missed a trick there - LOL!

I'm gutted Aliona is leaving - she seems such a lovely person and is a fabulous dancer and choreographer - and wasn't her chemistry with Jay just magical? She's been a favourite of mine this season. Looking forward to the Christmas special, but weekends just aren't going to be the same now that it's all over for another year. I think it was a particularly good season this year - they'll be hard pushed to better it!

#3 is a favourite of mine - I love a bit of Simon and Garfunkel!

Well, after four hours of wrapping, that's the kids' prezzies all wrapped now (I'd already spent about the same amount of time wrapping all the other gifts for everyone else in the weeks up till now). My back is KILLING me, so I'm off for a soak in the bath before going to bed. Getting in the festive food shopping tomorrow. I feel ready for Xmas now!

Yup, he was the only one of this year's crop not to be in a dance off.

OMG! OMG! OMG! He did it! Jay did it! I am SO happy he won! <3

IT'S THE FINAL! THE FINAL PEOPLE!!!!! I'm sad it's the end, but it's been a great season this year, hasn't it? Here's what I thought of the show tonight (this is pre-results and elimination etc). Jay & Aliona: Quickstep - My Generation I wan't a fan of this choice of music for a quickstep first time around, and that didn't change, however, I thought Jay improved greatly over his earlier performance of the dance. Show Dance - I Can't Feel My Face I liked it a lot, but it was more a showcase of what they've done than a real show-stopper. I loved the start where he came in hanging upside down, but I agreed with the judges, that it should have ended on a bang. Georgia & Giovanni: Rumba - Writing's On The Wall Again, an improvement on the first time they performed this dance, but not one of my favourites of theirs then, and not now either. Show Dance - Fix You The opening section with the blindfold was daring and wonderful, but the rest of the dance once the blindfold was off lacked pizzazz for me. Again, it could have done with ending on a high, rather than starting on one and then just fizzling out. Kellie & Kevin: Tango - You Really Got Me I hated this music choice for a tango, and I think I must have been watching a different dance from the judges, because I wouldn't have given it more than an 8. They danced it well, but the dance itself did absolutely nothing for me. Show Dance - The Ding-Dong Daddy of the D-Car Line Wowza! Now, THAT'S what I call a showstopper of a dance! They threw caution to the wind and took a real chance with this one. I feel they pitched it particularly at Craig, but they definitely played to Kellie's strengths and they really pulled it off with aplomb! Katie & Anton: Quickstep - 42nd Street Apart from the hatography going awry at the start and one teensy stumble, this was a VAST improvement on the original and I thought Katie actually acquitted herself very well indeed. Show Dance - O Fortuna Oh. My. GODS! Talk about drama! I thought this was pretty spectacular, especially that drop at the end - there's no way on earth I could have done that! I thought they were seriously underscored for this incredibly daring dance - I would have given them a good, strong 9! Much as I have wanted Jay to win from day one, based on tonight's dances, I think Kellie really deserves that glitterball trophy! I think Katie will be the one to be eliminated before the voting on the final three commences, which is a shame, because that show dance was something else - certainly more memorable than either Jay's or Georgia's.

Please don't post spoilers of the books I'm currently reading or have yet to read! READ IN 2016 KEY & STATS: K = Kindle e-book ® = Reviewed for author / publisher A = Interview with author B = Blog tour C = Carole Matthews Challenge F = Borrowed from family/friend G = Graphic novel L = Borrowed from library RC = Reading Circle 2 = Re-read O = Reading out loud to the kids N = Non-fiction Q = Quick Read/Novella/Short Stories W = World Book Night book Y = Young adult book Red = Abandoned unfinished FINISHED IN JANUARY: 1. Ransom Riggs - Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children - 4/5 2. Lynda Wilcox - Strictly Murder (The Verity Mysteries #1) (K) - 3/5 3. Carole Matthews - With Love at Christmas (C/L) - 3/5 4. Ava Catori - The Big, Not-So-Small, Curvy Girls, BBW Romance, Dating Agency (Plush Daisies #1) (K) - 2/5 FINISHED IN FEBRUARY: 5. Carole Matthews - The Silver Collection (C/K/Q) - 3/5 6. Carole Matthews - The Christmas Party (C/L) - 3/5 7. Carole Matthews - Sunshine With A Chance Of Snow (C/K/Q) - 3/5 8. Veronica Roth - Divergent (Divergent #1) (K) - 4/5 FINISHED IN MARCH: 9. Veronica Roth - Free Four (Divergent #1.5) (K/Q) - 3/5 10. Stuart MacBride - Close To the Bone (Logan McRae #8) - 4/5 11.Carole Matthews - Meet Me on Platform 8 (C/L) - 3/5 12. Carole Matthews - For Better, For Worse (C/L) - 3/5 FINISHED IN APRIL: 13. Carole Matthews - More To Life Than This (C/L) - 2/5 14. Steven Scaffardi - The Flood (K/®) - 4/5 FINISHED IN MAY: 15. Carole Matthews - The Cake Shop In the Garden © - 3/5 FINISHED IN JUNE: 16. Maria Grace - Four Days In April: A Pride and Prejudice Variation (K/Q) - 3/5 Matthew S Cox - Emma and the Banderwigh (K) 17. Joseph Delaney - The Ghost Prison (L/Y) - 3/5 FINISHED IN JULY: 18. Chris Riddell - Goth Girl and the Ghost of a Mouse (L/Y) - 3/5 19. Ross MacKenzie - The Nowhere Emporium (L/Y) - 3/5 20. Lemony Snicket - A Series of Unfortunate Events: The Bad Beginning (#1) (L/O/Y/R) - 3/5 21. Cameron Jace - Insanity (Mad In Wonderland #1) (K) - 3/5 FINISHED IN AUGUST: 22. J K Rowling - Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (F) - 3/5 FINISHED IN SEPTEMBER: 23. Linda Beutler - Longbourn To London (K) - 3/5 24. Anna Elliott and Laura Masselos - Georgiana Darcy's Dairy (K) - 3/5 25. Andy C E Brown - Declutter And Simplify - 33 Proven Ways To Declutter And Simplify Your Life (N/K) - 1/5 26. Jane Grix - An Heir For Pemberley (Q/K) - 3/5 27. Ransom Riggs - Hollow City (Peculiar Children #2) - 3/5 28. Amanda Grange - The Sixth Month Marriage (K) - 3/5 29. Donna Hatch - Constant Hearts (K/Q) - 2/5 30. Candice Herne - Desperate Measures (K/Q) - 2/5 31. Elizabeth Ann West - A Winter Wrong (K/Q) - 3/5 32. Michelle Escamilla - Careful What You Wish For (K) - 3/5 FINISHED IN OCTOBER: 33. Harper Lin - Cappuccinos, Cupcakes, and a Corpse (K) - 3/5 34. Lemony Snicket - A Series of Unfortunate Events: The Reptile Room (#2) (L/O/Y) - 3/5 35. Philippa Gregory - The King's Curse (Cousins' War #6) - 4/5 36. Philippa Gregory - The Taming of the Queen (Tudor Court #4) - 4/5 37. Shelley Adina - Lady of Devices (Magnificent Devices #1) (K) - 4/5 FINISHED IN NOVEMBER: 38. Ruth Manning-Sanders - Folk & Fairy Tales ® - 4/5 39. Victoria Pepe, etc - I Call Myself a Feminist (N) - 4/5 40. Amy Cross - The Ghost of Shapley Hall (K) - 2/5 41. Richard Grady - It's Never OK To Borrow Someone Else's Toothbrush - 3/5 FINISHED IN DECEMBER: 42. Melissa F Miller - Rosemary's Gravy (We Sisters Three #1) (K) - 3/5 43. Philippa Gregory - Earthly Joys (Earthly Joys #1) - 3/5 44. Lemony Snicket - A Series of Unfortunate Events: The Wide Window (#3) (L/O/Y) - 3/5 45. J K Rowling - Quidditch Through the Ages by Kennilworthy Whisp - 4/5 RETURN TO MOUNT TBR

Katie & Anton: Charleston - Too Darned Hot She started well, and I actually thought, "Hey, maybe she's going to pull this one off after all!" but then she started making mistakes and going completely out of synch with Anton. Deservedly low score. Her body and legs are just too darned long for some of those lifts and moves. Waltz - O mio babbino caro Again, started well, but was kind of blah and she's still making far too many mistakes. I don't think she's had a single dance without multiple very obvious mistakes. In both cases, when the judges were speaking to her, she looked like she was physically biting her tongue to stop herself answering back. Jay & Aliona: Viennese Waltz - Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman? It was lovely, but not his best dance by a long shot. I've found most of the waltzes a bit blah this season. I did love his pirouette though, and he always looks so elegant when he moves. I love watching him dance. I know there was talk again about facial expression and his lack of a smile through this dance, but I liked it - I thought he looked like he was completely lost in Aliola! Charleston - Doctor Waltz I worried about over-theming, but this really worked. There was that one drop at the end that I wasn't sure was deliberate (Aliona seemed to be saying it was, but I'm not convinced), but the whole dance was packed full of fantastic content and considering he took time off for a family funeral (poor Jay!), I'm amazed he did so well and was able to smile! It certainly didn't look under-rehearsed to me! Georgia & Giovanni: Cha Cha Cha - I Will Survive I know this was the dance they changed to at the last minute, but I felt it really showed. The content was lacking and the performance was lacklustre. Viennese Waltz - Runaway Well, it was nice and all, but again, pretty blah overall. Not impressed with Georgia's performance this week. I know she's been ill, but I actually thought the judges all over-scored her taking that into consideration. Anita & Gleb: Foxtrot - New York New York There was a lot of faffing about before the dance started properly, but once it got going, it was actually pretty good. You could see Anita was really trying hard not to be pigeon-toed, and I think it worked overall. Salsa - Feel This Moment Not her best dance, really, but pretty decent overall. To be honest, I can't really recall any fine details about this dance, as it didn't leave all that much of an impression on me. Kellie & Kevin: Rumba - Songbird I didn't think Kellie was using her hips quite enough, but the storytelling was wonderful and the dance was rather lovely. I spotted one little wobble, but I think it was a case of her high heel slipping slightly on the floor, rather than an overbalance on her part. American Smooth - Let's Face the Music and Dance And then Kellie blew everyone else out of the water with her American Smooth! All those lifts and spins one after another. It was absolutely breathtaking to watch - like Ginger Rogers had just materialized on the screen. The dance of the night for me! Dance Off: Katie and Anita are at the bottom after the judges' scores, but Anita has been there before and been saved by the public - will they save her again? If so, we could see Georgia dancing against Katie. I would love to see Anton in the final, but I don't think Katie is a strong enough dancer to take him there - she just makes too many mistakes, and I thin kshe's the most liekly candidate for elimination tomorrow.

The Child Thief by Brom is a dark retelling of the Peter Pan story that should not be missed - a fantastic combination of wonderful writing and awesome illustrations (he's an artist as well as an author!). I also loved Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Seth Grahame-Smith, and can hardly wait to see the film adaptation - I thought the addition of the walking dead to the original story was done very cleverly and handled well. I found Warm Bodies surprisingly good to read, and I've read the first in The Lunar Chronicles, which was quite clever. There was also a YA novel called Sisters Red that I read a few years back and rather enjoyed, and the cover was gorgeous!

Apparently Georgia has been a bit ill this week, which is partly what prompted the change in dance I think, but it's resulted in far less rehearsal time. Could it be her undoing this week?

Over recent years, I've given away most of my books, but there are certain authors who are in my "permanent collection" and are awarded precious space on my limited book-shelving. They include: Terry Pratchett Stuart MacBride Christopher Brookmyre Simon Scarrow Richard Castle Jane Austen Brom Philippa Gregory I do have a few books here and there by other authors (I have The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins, The Stand by Stephen King, and Maia by Richard Addams, for example), but those other guys have complete series and collections on my shelves and will not be vacating their spots any time soon!

If you're into historical fiction, Philippa Gregory is the biz: Tudor Court (not technically a series, but they all tie in together) 1. The Constant Princess (2005) 2. The Other Boleyn Girl (2001) 3. The Boleyn Inheritance (2006) 4. The Taming of the Queen (2015) 5. The Queen's Fool (2003) 6. The Virgin's Lover (2004) 7. The Other Queen (2008) Cousins' War 1. The White Queen (2009) 2. The Red Queen (2010) 3. The Lady of the Rivers (2011) 4. The Kingmaker's Daughter (2012) 5. The White Princess (2013) 6. The King's Curse (2014) If you like strong, feisty female leads, then you should enjoy Kelly Armstrong. She has several series, but the ones I most highly recommend are: Women of the Otherworld (werewolves, vampires, witches, demons - but in a very normal and down to earth setting - these are regular people just trying to get by!) 1. Bitten (2001) 2. Stolen (2002) 3. Dime Store Magic (2004) 4. Industrial Magic (2004) 5. Haunted (2005) 6. Broken (2006) 7. No Humans Involved (2007) 8. Personal Demon (2008) 9. Living with the Dead (2008) 10. Frost Bitten (2009) 11. Waking the Witch (2010) 12. Spellbound (2011) 13. Thirteen (2012) Nadia Stafford (She's a hit woman!) 1. Exit Strategy (2007) 2. Made to Be Broken (2008) 3. Wild Justice (2013) If you like gritty crime fiction with a Scottish flavour, you will LOVE Stuart Macbride: Logan McRae 1. Cold Granite (2005) 2. Dying Light (2006) 3. Broken Skin (2007) aka Bloodshot 4. Flesh House (2008) 5. Blind Eye (2009) 6. Dark Blood (2010) 7. Shatter the Bones (2011) 8. Close to the Bone (2013) 9. The Missing and the Dead (2015) 10. In the Cold Dark Ground (2016) Ash Henderson 1. Birthdays for the Dead (2012) 2. A Song for the Dying (2014) If you like satire and your humour is pitch-black, my go-to guy is Christopher Brookmyre (also with a Scottish flavour). Jack Parlabane 1. Quite Ugly One Morning (1996) 2. Country of the Blind (1997) 3. Boiling A Frog (2000) 4. Be My Enemy (2003) 5. Attack of the Unsinkable Rubber Ducks (2007) 6. Dead Girl Walking (2015) 7. Black Widow (2016) 8. The Last Day of Christmas (2014) Angelique De Xavier 1. A Big Boy Did it and Ran Away (2001) 2. The Sacred Art of Stealing (2002) 3. A Snowball in Hell (2008) Jasmine Sharp 1. Where the Bodies are Buried (2011) 2. When the Devil Drives (2012) 3. Flesh Wounds (2013) His stand-alone novels are also excellent! Not the End of the World (1998) One Fine Day in the Middle of the Night (1999) All Fun and Games Until Somebody Loses an Eye (2004) A Tale Etched in Blood and Hard Black Pencil (2006) Pandaemonium (2009) Bedlam (2013)

There are actually two series of books tied to the TV series of Castle - the Nikki Heat books and the Derick Storm books. Both are excellent and all the books are written by... Richard Castle! Seriously, they have an "author pic" that shows Nathan Fillion and a bio that fits his TV show character! The books are very well written and a lot of fun to read. The Nikki Heat books in particular have lots of little things that you will recognise from the show, but also little nods to Fillion's popular but cancelled too early show, Firefly (blue gloves, characters that hag around in a pair who are called Malcolm and Reynolds, etc). Nikki Heat 1. Heat Wave (2009) 2. Naked Heat (2010) 3. Heat Rises (2011) 4. Frozen Heat (2012) 5. Deadly Heat (2013) 6. Raging Heat (2014) 7. Driving Heat (2015) Derrick Storm 1. A Brewing Storm (2012) 2. A Raging Storm (2012) 3. A Bloody Storm (2012) 4. Storm Front (2013) 5. Wild Storm (2014)

I've been in two minds about the finale. I was a bit bored by the penultimate episode (I cottoned on to what was happening really early, so it felt like i was waiting forever for the episode to catch up with me), but I got into the final episode a little more - more so as we approached the end. Like Michelle, I thought that bit in her spoiler tags was a good idea (although I twigged to that really early on too, so I felt all clever - LOL!). With how it ended, I do now wonder if there'll be a spin-off series: I'm pleased to see River Song will be in the Xmas special - she (and Alex Kingston, who plays her) is a favourite of mine. I'm glad Clara isn't going to be part of it any more, as I've never really liked her. I've warmed to Capaldi as The Doctor, but it's taken a while, and I think this season has been better than last season overall.

Georgia & Giovanni - Foxtrot - Beauty and the Beast I actually thought this was pretty blah, and was narked that the extras went and minced their way over to stand right in front of the judges for the beginning section of the dance - you could clearly see Bruno trying to see round them. Anita & Gleb - Argentine Tango - Cell Block Tango Yes, she was a little pigeon-toed (she admits as much herself), but I actually thought this dance was pretty great. Very dramatic. The only thing I would have liked was a bit more sharpness to the flick-kicks behind - they were a little slow and limp, whereas I think they should be strong and definite. Overall, though, I enjoyed it and was shocked to see her at the bottom of the leader board of the back of that performance. Kellie & Kevin - Viennese Waltz - Oom-Pah-Pah I wasn't overly enamoured of the dance itself - to me, it wasn't really a Viennese waltz as it was too in your face (which was dictated by the music choice). However, I thought she performed it quite well and I loved that they were both singing along as they danced. It's hard work to sing and dance with such gusto at the same time! Jay & Aliona - Rumba - Falling Slowly I don't like Rumba, but Oh. My. Gods! This was so beautiful! Darcy wasn't the only one with tears in her eyes - I was openly blubbing! My favourite dance of the night. He managed to look strong, masculine, and masterful, yet soft, romantic, and sensual. Absolutely gorgeous! My dance-crush continues unabated! Katie & Anton - Foxtrot - Maybe This Time This was pretty decent. Not my favourite dance, by her or by anyone else, but she acquitted herself quite well, and Anton is always joyous to watch in a foxtrot. Helen & Aljaž - Paso Doble - At the End of the Day I didn't like this one at all. Couldn't stand the god-awful grimace plastered to her face (she just can't do Paso face, can she?). It felt like she was trying too hard and it showed. Not her finest moment by a long shot. Dance Off Although nobody expected to see Georgia and Helen in the dance off this week (who could have imagined?), they were actually the two I wanted to see there and the two I thought deserved it most. That said, I actually preferred Helen's dance off performance over Georgia's, despite the grimacing. The shock on both Katie and Anita's faces was so clear - it's obvious they both thought they would be dancing against each other this weekend, but I'm glad they are through. Looking Ahead Anton is in the semi-finals! Who would have thought it, eh? I do think it will be either Katie or Anita to miss out on a finals spot, though. It's tough to call which it will be! Everyone will be dancing two unlearned dances next week. Jay will be dancing Charleston and Samba Katie will be dancing Charleston and Waltz Anita will have to do two from Viennese Waltz, Salsa and Foxtrot (the only ones she hasn't done) Georgia will have to do two from Viennese Waltz, Argentine Tango and Salsa (only dances not done) Kellie will have to do two from Argentine Tango, Rumba and American Smooth (one dances not done) If Kellie has to do a Rumba, it could mean being in the dance off, as it's been notoriously a non-favourite of the judges (especially Len), that said, she's an actor so she may do well on the emoting/story side of things. Katie's long legs might be her undoing in a Charleston, but she should shine in the waltz. Anita may be scuppered if she has to do the Foxtrot, as it's a fancy footwork dance and she's pigeon-toed. I think Kay and Georgia are most likely to get through to the final, and of the others, Kellie is the most likely to pick up the last final spot.

I think you guys are looking at last year's games - this year's one has signposts. I only have 7 on that one...

I thought some of the music choices were, again, a bit weird (When the Doves Cry for a Tango? Eh?) There were a couple of really lovely dances - Helen and Jay stood out for me particularly. I was shocked Jay didn't get scored more highly in the Quick-Step-a-thon, as I thought he showed real flare there. The dance off, I thought would be between Peter and Anita, although Kellie was also a close contender in my eyes. Overall, Kellie has been more consistent than Peter, but when it came to the dance off, I thought he showed greater improvement and I was surprised that all four judges chose Kellie to stay. Ah well. Now Jay is the only male celeb left - I hope he makes it to the final, because I think that he started well, but has also shown great improvement over the weeks. I think Georgia is obviously the judges' favourite, closely followed by Helen. Next week the dance off will include two of Kellie, Anita or Kate, I think - although Kate and Anton were pretty damned good this week, I think she's been inconsistent and I just can't warm to her at all...