Kell

I've read Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief and Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters (the 1st and 2nd in the series) - loved both of them, as you'll see from my reviews if you click on the links.

Ooh, I have this one on Mount TBR - I shall have to see about bumpinb it up a bit now!

Ernie - her hair is mental! Long live the 80s! I actually remember hearing this song, and found myself singing along to the chorus as it played, but I'd never seen the video before. Very 80s chic.

Not "taking over" from him, as such, but the new cast member is Laurence Fishburne (playing Dr Raymond Langston), who cropped up in the few episodes before Gil left and will be a lower level CSI. Having seen a few of the later episodes already, I can honestly say he's excellent in it.

I got my current kits all from John Lewis' and Sew & So That's lovely, Inver!

I started my third project today - another Textile Heritage bookmark, this tim ut's the Victorian Lavender one. Lovely subtle colours in it, so I'm looking forward to seeing it completed!

I had salmon in sweet soy sauce with wild saffron rice. I cooked two pieces of the salmon so I can have some for lunch tomorrow too on a salad of baby spinach leaves - yummy!

I sincerely wish that Keira "Stick Insect" Knightly wasn't involved - she can't act for toffee!

I highly recommend Once and The Magic Cottage. Ooh, and The Ghosts of Sleathe is another one featuring David Ash, but I've not read that one.

I was going to recommend Stuart Macbride too. Also Christopher Brookmyre - he's very good and had a dark thread of humour running through his writing that's very appealing too.

*Raises hand* Fellow migraine sufferer here! I've had migraines since I was 6 or 7 - apparently my Mam found me curled up in a tight ball of pain in the bathroom, unable to move. As a migraine sufferer herself, she knew exactly what I was going through. My sister is also a sufferer. They became more regular when I got my periods (I was 11 when they started) when I got them at least once a month. Fortunately, since I got pregnant, they seem to have dropped off a fair bit. I only had two while pregnant and have only had one since Xander was born. I don't have any one specific trigger, but I am more likely to get them when I'm stressed out. My sister's main trigger is bananas, which is a shame because she loves them! I also have blackouts where I drop like a stone and am unconscious for anything between 30 seconds and 10 minutes. I've suffered these since my 2nd year at college and "they" have yet to find out why, although their latest thinking is that it's connected to my migraines and is an extreme example of one. I dunno... I've yet to find anything that consistently works in helping with my migraines. At one point I was put onto a preventative pill (I can't remember the name of it), but the entire time I took it I suffered a constant low-grade headache that would not quit. Within a week of coming off it (I took myself off it), the headache was gone. I decided that even one humdinger of a migraine a month was better than a constant headache. I live in hope of one day finding something that works for me, as at present, all I can do is take some codeine as soon as possible and lie down in a very dark, very quiet room in the hope that it helps (it doesn't always). My symptoms vary with each migraine too - sometimes I feel dizzy and/or get floating blackspots or tunnel vision. Sometimes I can't stand light, other times it's sound or smells. Always, I get that stabbing, throbbing pain. The worst ones are when I feel sick. Fortunately, once I've thrown up I start to feel a little better, but I don't always throw up, so I end up just feeling incredibly sick as well as in pain. The shortest one I remember having was a couple of hours; the longest was almost 4 days.

1. Cereal or toast 2. Scrambled egg on toast

Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer Synopsis: To be irrevocably in love with a vampire is both fantasy and nightmare woven into a dangerously heightened reality for Bella Swan. Pulled in one direction by her intense passion for Edward Cullen, and in another by her profound connection to werewolf Jacob Black, she has endured a tumultuous year of temptation, loss and strife to reach the ultimate turning point. Her imminent choice to either join the dark but seductive world of immortals or pursue a fully human life has become the thread from which the fate of two tribes hangs. Now that Bella has made her decision, a startling chain of unprecedented events is about to unfold with potentially devastating and unfathomable consequences. Just when the frayed strands of Bella's life - first discovered in TWILIGHT, then scattered and torn in NEW MOON and ECLIPSE - seem ready to heal and knit together, could they be destroyed...forever? My thoughts: This was every bit as predictable as the previous books in the series, but slightly less enjoyable. It follows a different format in that the different sections are narrated by different characters (namely Bella and Jacob), but the Quileute wolves, although playing a major part near the end of the story, do not feature so much in the actual plot this time round, which is a shame because Jacob has remained one of my favourite characters, along with Alice (who also disappears for a large part of the story). There were moments in Breaking Dawn that turned my stomach just a little, namely the imprinting and, yet again, Bella and Edward's sickeningly obsessive relationship, and there wasn't enough to keep me really gripped for the entire length of the novel (which is a hefty 754 pages) - I really felt that the story could have been told in half that length and been done far more neatly and enjoyably. From about two thirds of the way through I felt I was just marking time till the final page could be reached, rather than really wanting to find out what would happen (it's actually very easy to see where everything is going, so I could have quit at that point and still have been pretty certain of the outcome). There are strong rumours of another installment (Midnight Sun, which is the story of Twilight told from Edward's point of view), which might be interesting, but only as a completion of the collection, rather than it being a "new story". I would hope the standard of that installment would rise a little above that of Breaking Dawn, which, in my opinion, doesn't really stand up quite as well as the other novels in the series. Read it, but don't expect anything special or you may find yourself a little disappointed. Rating: 6/10 Other titles by this author: Twilight Saga - Twilight / New Moon / Eclipse The Host

Homemade soup for me tonight - I roasted a load of cherry tomatoes, red peppers, red onions and garlic, whizzed them in the food processor, added a little stock, some balsamic viniegar, some herbs and spices. It's simmering right now and will be heated up for dinner tonight. Delicious with hot, buttered crusty bread (got some par-baked French sticks for this). Really looking forward to it!

Oops, forgot to put it in that post, but it was included in the choices when I asked Dale to choose (I promise!). I was showing them to him as they were posted, so he saw them all. When I asked if he wanted to see them again, he replied, "The lass on the bidet wins it for me, love!" and laughed like a loon. I will, however, go back and add the link into the post so everyone can find the pics more easily for a look.

Wholewheat pasta with chicken in a spinach and riccotta sauce - yummy!

The list of books to choose from for Kate's prize has just been emailed to Kate. I wonder which one she'll pick!

And the grand winner is (chosen by Dale, so it was completely impartial) Kate on a bidet Congratulations, Kate! I'll PM you tonight with a list of books for you to choose from and I'll get your proze posted out to you next week. THanks to all those who participated - it was great seeing your photos!

I hope so too, Kylie - they're great fun to read.

The Immortals by Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell Synopsis: Five hundred years into the third age of flight and mighty phraxships steam across the immensity of the Deepwoods, plying their lucrative trade between the three great cities. Nate Quarter, a young Lamplighter from the mines of the eastern woods is propelled on an epic journey of self-discovery that encompasses tournaments, battles, revolutions and a final encounter with the Immortals themselves. This is the final tale in the "Edge Chronicles" sequence and it's a fabulous climax to the most original and dramatic fantasy series being written today. Set years in the future, this book is ideal for new readers to discover the series before going back to read the 'history' of "Twig, Rook and Quint". Packed with incredible illustrations from Chris Riddell, this is a wonderfully funny, moving and utterly inventive book. My thoughts: Having already read the previous books in The Edge Chronicles in their entirety, I already had all the back history before starting out on reading this, the last and most ambitious episode in the saga. Not that it would have mattered if I hadn't - the characters, although with a firm history which is alluded to throughout, are all new and this is set many years after the previous trilogies have ended. I'm pleased to say that the allusion that this can be read as a stand-alone or as an introduction to The Edge Chronicles is entirely correct, although I would still recommend leaving this gem till the end, as it pulls all the strings together and ties them up very neatly, as well as making mention of previous events (although it manages not to spoil anything of their plots - a nifty trick!). It's a huge, hefty chunk of a book, with 101 chapters, but don't let that put you off! It's jam-packed with action and adventure to keep the most reluctant reader hooked, and Riddell's illustrations are, as always, wonderful; adding to the excellent descriptive prowess of Stewart (they really make a great team). Overall, it's a must-have for all fans of The Edge and will bring legions of new fans to the series. Rating: 7/10 Other titles by this author: Edge Chronicles - Quint Trilogy - The Curse of the Gloamglozer; The Winter Knights; Clash of the Sky Galleons Edge Chronicles - Twig Trilogy - Beyond the Deepwoods; Stormchaser; Midnight Over Sanctaphrax Edge Chronicles - Rook Trilogy - The Last of the Sky Pirates; Vox; Freeglader Edge Chronicles - Non Trilogy - The Lost Barkscrolls

Chicken breast in a light, tangy orange sauce with, following my reading of "How to eat like a hot chick", (a great big pound of) spinach, because I was out for lunch today (although, I was very good anfd had pasta arrabbiata - yummy!).