Chrissy

30) Harry Potter & The Philosopher's Stone by JK Rowling 31) Harry Potter & The Chamber Of Secrets by JK Rowling 32) Harry Potter & The Prisoner Of Azkaban by JK Rowling 33) Harry Potter & The Goblet Of Fire by JK Rowling 34) Harry Potter & The Order Of The Phoenix by JK Rowling 35) Harry Potter & The Half Blood Prince by JK Rowling 36) Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling Yep, I've been Pottered again. I was looking for my next read, and in the meantime wanted to check a minor detail from the first HP book.It felt churlish to not read on. Enjoyed them as always, and even found three things I hadn't previously picked up on / registered - although for the life of me I cannot remember two of them now! 37) The Butterfly Tattoo by Philip Pullman A mature novella by Mr Pullman, centred around a chance meeting, fractured families, truth and personal morality, It was a short but compelling read, the first page sets up the books premise and from there you want to know the why and how.

It's Father's Day here too! We had a lovely lunch with my parents yesterday, and I took chocolates and a card. I will 'phone my Dad later too. Aside from that we are planning a super quiet day - my husband's D.I.Y. plans are on hold as it is already very warm here.

I actually did Laugh Out Loud at this!

That is one major Road Trip Virginia! Safe travels for all those merry miles.

Two weeks ago husband and I headed across to Normandy for 4 nights. We had a wonderful time, walking around and through one historical place after another (William the Conqueror's Caen, Henry the 5th's Harfleur and Greville, Joan of Arc's Rouen, Bayeaux (and it's Tapestry), and the Island of Mont St Michel. We also managed to accidentally catch the Whitsun parade at the coastal town of Honfleur. It was a truly lovely 3 days of wide eyes and smiling. We had inadvertently booked to be in the area at the same time as the commemoration of the Normandy Landings, so did not properly visit the landing beaches, but we plan on returning when we can,as there is only so much you can see in 3 days. It was back to normal on our return, and this weekend we are spending Saturday with my parents (I'm making and taking lunch), and on Sunday husband is apparently going to be doing some D.I.Y., something I am looking forward to witnessing. I hope all are well and happy. Have a great weekend.

An ice cold Fanta fruit twist zero. I'm not a big fan of fizzy drinks (I'm a water glugger), but I occasionally have a small glass of this when the mood takes me.

We've had heat, we've had rain. Right now it is grey outside, but very humid. We are expected to have thunderstorms later. I love a good thunderstorm!

I recently watched the 2016 Ghostbusters, which I enjoyed. I also finally managed to watch V for Vendetta, which I also enjoyed.

Mood, mood, mood.....all the way! At Uni I had to be reading a number of books at once, and while there I managed it really well. A year or two after graduating I just lost the desire to read books in that way, and reverted to one book at a time. I admire readers who set themselves challenges, but I am yet to want to start one myself. For the time being I will stick with what is working for me.

Yes thank you.

Hello Bel-ami. Good to 'see' you. All's well?

Joss Stirling and her Savant books seem to slip into my summer / holiday reading quite a bit. I think the pace and stories lend themselves to relaxing escapism. One book I re read over a number of summers for some reason was Plum Island by Nelson DeMille, an action adventure involving murders and conspiracies. Not exactly fluffy!

@Athena I have enjoyed the Mortal Instruments series, and their prequel Infernal Devices. I am not the world's biggest fan of angst ridden love situations, but found that despite their appearance in both series, they are pretty much balanced out by all the other stuff going on; battles, the supernatural, demons, friends, family, shadow hunters myths and legends. I also understand why in a lot of YA fiction that the parental figure has to be diminished - but it doesn't stop me occasionally muttering "For goodness sake, go and tell someone - they can probably help!". Blooming youngsters - they always have to do it all themselves!!

Thanks for the good wishes. All is well, just busy and muddled and far too real life'sh! @Little Pixie I really enjoy YA urban fantasy - I like the taking of something familiar (ish) and throwing in supernatural creatures and whatnot. Makes for a good escape read - not too worthy, no lesson learning as such, just escapism! Rachel Caine does a good job of this, with healthy doses of action and reflection. There isn't a 'destiny unfolding' aspect to the Morganville books, they are more of an in-one-location (town) events take place and our protagonists must react kind of thing. Escapism!

29.

I was lucky enough to get the Morganville series on special offer a couple of years ago. They make a good escapism read - so long as you enjoy vampire stories and their associated mythology. Do you mean the Gateway Tracker books? They are surprisingly pricey at the moment, aren't they? I'm waiting too. Again, I nabbed the Gateway trilogy when they popped up on special offer (99p each on kindle) this time last year. I have the GT books on my wishlist, so if they do drop in price I should see straightaway.

28) City Of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare - RR Having re read the Mortal Instruments 'prequels' I just had to read the last MI book to catch a glance of two of the Infernal Devices characters. I couldn't face reading through the whole series again (7 or 8 books), but wanted to indulge myself with this particular aspect. For those who have read the two series, you will know to what I am referring, and for those who will be reading them, you will find out what I mean! 29) The Things We Learn When We're Dead by Charlie Laidlaw Oh boy, how do I review a book my mind hasn't quite got itself around yet? On the way home from a dinner party she didn't want to attend, Lorna Love steps into the path of an oncoming car. When she wakes up she is in what appears to be a hospital – but a hospital in which her nurse looks like a young Sean Connery, she is served wine for supper, and everyone avoids her questions. (Amazon) This is an intriguing, unfurling story of Lorna, her past, her immediate past, and her present. A clever and beautifully wrapped story. The story sets its own pace, and as you read you make little connections, a phrase here, a scene there. You just know you are headed somewhere, but you cannot fathom where until the final pages. I will most definitely read this book again. It deserves that. Hell, I deserve that!

23) And The Rest Is History by Jodi Taylor When an old enemy appears out of nowhere with an astonishing proposition for Max – a proposition that could change everything – Max is tempted. Very tempted. With an end to an old conflict finally in sight, it looks as if St Mary’s problems are over with. Can they all finally live happily ever after? As everything hangs in the balance, Max and St Mary’s find themselves engulfed in tragedies worse than they could ever imagine. (Amazon) A more sombre outing in many ways for Maxwell this time around. Light relief is found through the R & D department, and from the unexpected arrival of a tea pot. Nuff said! After the first book of this fabulous series, I now begin each one pondering where we will end up; on the timeline, which dimension, with whom, and how. This pondering gets me nowhere at all, but I can't stop my mind from trying. I won't even look at the characters stories here - too much to be told, and I'm not sure I could or should touch on it. I will however mention Harold, William the Conqueror and The Battle Of Hastings. I was delighted that they were included as husband and I will be in Normandy for a couple of nights next month and plan (among other things) on visiting Bayeaux and Caen. I feel like this author reads my mind! 24) A Bachelor Establishment by Jodi Taylor Elinor Bascombe, widowed and tied to an impoverished estate, has learned to ask little of life. With no hope of leaving, the years have passed her by. Lord Ryde, exiled abroad after a scandal, has returned to strip his estate and make a new start in America. A chance encounter changes their plans, plunging Elinor and Lord Ryde into adventure and not a little peril until, finally, they are forced to confront the mystery of what happened on That Night, all those years ago. (Amazon) A delightful story, and not at all as I expected. Described as 'High adventure and dark mystery combine in a sparkling historical romance', I was expecting fluffy and inconsequential, but actually discovered a beautifully written Regency story, with meaty and meaningful characters, a proper unfurling mystery and peril. A surprising read. 25) Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare - RR 26) Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare - RR 27) Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare - RR I had remembered a part from one of this trio, so decided to re read them. I love the steam punk feel to the books, the misty Victorian London setting and the well handled not too over-the-top romance aspects. The peril is taut, and the mystery is genuine. Cassandra Clare's big message is always that family is often found outside of blood bonds. Love, loyalty, friendship and redemption can all be found when sought out. Not a terrible message to find in a supernatural story.

4) The Something Girl by Jodi Taylor Having read and adored Jodi Taylor's St Mary's Chronicles (ongoing) series, I was bound to buy her other works, The Frogmorton Farm series. I read The Nothing Girl last year and loved it, then the short story Little Donkey (and again loved it), and so was looking forward to reading the next The Something Girl. I was not disappointed. Jodi Taylor takes the quirk and makes it work. Any attempt to describe her writing makes her sound wacky and clumsy, yet she it absolutely not these things. Her books are charming, thought provoking, humorous and observant. They bring you to tears of laughter, and tears of genuine heart ache. The characters are well developed and the reader gets to see their tender underbellies as Taylor seeks to expose their foibles and motivations. The central character of Jenny Dove is the Nothing / Something Girl of the titles, and it is through her that the story is told. Things have moved on since the last book, and Jenny is certainly in a much happier place now, yet there remain a number of unresolved issues and new developments in old situations. The book will not blow your socks off (if that is what you are after), but it is a book worth reading and enjoying just because it is well written, with a curious plot and well drawn central characters. Oh, if for no other reason than Thomas! 5) Spirit Legacy by EE Holmes - RR 6) Spirit Prophecy by EE Holmes - RR 7) Spirit Ascendancy by EE Holmes - RR A re read of the enjoyable Gateway Trilogy. Ghosts, destinies, prophecies, long lost siblings, friendship, danger and drama and a hint of romance. YA comfort food! 8) Glass Houses by Rachel Caine - RR 9) Dead Girl's Dance by Rachel Caine - RR 10) Midnight Alley by Rachel Caine - RR 11) Feast of Fools by Rachel Caine - RR 12) Lord of Misrule by Rachel Caine - RR 13) Carpe Corpus by Rachel Caine - RR 14) Fade Out by Rachel Caine - RR 15) Kiss of Death by Rachel Caine - RR 16) Ghost Town by Rachel Caine - RR 17) Bite Club by Rachel Caine - RR 18) Last Breath by Rachel Caine - RR 19) Black Dawn by Rachel Caine - RR 20) Bitter Blood by Rachel Caine - RR 21) Fall of Night by Rachel Caine - RR 22) Daylighters by Rachel Caine - RR Bullied teen finds room off campus in Morganville town. Once there she discovers and enters the heart of Morganville's dark and toothsome secrets. The 15 books that make up the series merge into one big ongoing story when read in sequence in a immersive reading session. This is not a bad thing, but means that the reader flows through the time and town without hesitation of pondering the who and what of the series. Rachel Caine is able to maintain a strong story arc across a series (as evident in her Weather Warden series) as well as making each book a 'proper' story. I checked out the webisodes of the series, and would advice avoiding - despite the inclusion of a couple of decent actors they are pretty dire, and by the end I wanted them all to get eaten!

In the non book world I have had a funny ol' nine months or so. This usually sends my reading abilities either out the door or into overdrive. What I found this time around is that I have done mainly re reading of books (especially series) with some new books thrown in randomly. The great thing is that I have managed to keep reading throughout - losing the solace of reading when life gets wonky has always been awful. I won't re review. 1) Working Stiff by Rachel Caine This quote from an Amazon review sums up my feelings on this first-in-a-trilogy book, It is not often an author kills off their protagonist in the first fifty pages, but it is this bravery that makes the story so compelling. The edge and brutality of the story combined with the author's unerring determination to harness the fantastical subject in the "real world" gives it a coldness that is not only refreshing but in my opinion welcome. Surprising, inventive and remarkably though provoking. 2) Two Weeks Notice by Rachel Caine This 2nd books continues the story of Bryn, this time dealing with the disturbing disappearances of members from her un-dead support group. 3) Terminated by Rachel Caine The third and final book of the Revivalist Trilogy The three books are certainly an original concept - they are not the zombie stories that one would expect. They are full of action, but equally they ask the questions that one would regarding definition of humanity and the concept of being alive. A weird combination of ideas and threads that somehow work to bring a story to the reader that they cannot predict. I wouldn't necessarily read them again, but I'm glad I read them the once. Rachel Caine is good at developing characters that are rounded, with flaws and faults as well as charisma and cleverness. In series she maintains tensions and action, but doesn't shy from asking the tough questions of her characters. It was because of this that I dived later on back into her Morganville Vampire series as a re read later on.

That is most definitely the kind of table I love! All I would need is a tiny wee square of space to rest my cuppa - the rest BOOKS! It is also lovely to see so many different covers next to each other - what a range.

@Athena Sorry to read about your troubles. Take care. I have spent a couple of hours in the garden today, but the weather has changed and so I am now indoors with an aching back and a cup of tea! I'm sure the ironing I will be doing later will help (NOT!). in the meantime I have some paperwork to get through.

We came back on Sunday from a nine night trip. One night at each end were en route stops, but we spent seven nights in a lovely cottage in Scotland with our niece, her husband and two sons (aged 11 years and 16 years old). Despite forecasts for rain we somehow managed to avoid it every where we went. It was a really good holiday, and I thoroughly enjoyed the company. We spent our evenings playing board games, working our way through puzzle books, and chatting. Lovely! It's now back to reality and a huge pile of washing. *sigh*

Sorry to read your sad news. Take care.

How could I have overlooked Terry Pratchett's Tiffany? I second this suggestion!!!!!