Category: weekly treasures

Oh, January! I’m always extremely busy with work this time of year so I didn’t post my weekly treasures last week and I’ve missed it dearly! Checking in here every week forces me to slow down and take a good look at what I’ve loved before moving on to the next thing. I tried something out of my comfort zone this month – I took a historical dance class. I’ve been wanting to for years and years and decided to take the plunge and just go. I’m an introvert and it’s always hard to be in a group of people you don’t know but they made me feel so welcome. We learned the quadrille and the polka (this is insanely hard by the way, the music was going so fast) and I had enormous, enormous fun. I’m going to sign up for weekly classes come September, my goal being to attend a ball here in Paris and eventually in Bath during the Jane Austen festival, wish me luck! These two weeks have been very on theme – I was craving screwball comedies in film and romance in books. I did take the time to watch the new Father Brown series (as delightful as usual), the new season of Miss Scarlet (impeccable, I’m thinking about rewatching the whole thing already) and the new season of When Calls the Heart (the best and most fun yet, Elizabeth/Nathan have my whole heart!). Here are the things I loved the most –

Screwball comedies

Libeled Lady (1936) – When a socialite sues a big paper for libel, the editor responsible calls in the help of his ignored fiancée and a former employee to frame her and make the false story seem true. This has William Powell, Myrna Loy and Jean Harlow. I adore this and William and Myrna are my favourite pairing ever on screen. Myrna plays the rich heiress to perfection in this, she’s made for this kind of role. There’s an amazingly funny fishing scene as Powell as he pretends to like the hobby to woo her family. Powell and Harlow were a couple at the time, which I find hilarious since he ends up falling for Myrna in the film. This is quality.

My Favorite Wife (1940) – Missing for seven years and presumed dead, a woman returns home on the day of her husband’s second wedding. This has Cary Grant and Irene Dunne, both wonderful in this. She gets him back of course and this is a kind of second chance romance. It’s so endearing how she doesn’t want to shock her own children by teling them the truth about a mother they’ve never known. They try to make each other jealous but are still so fond of each other. The end scene delightful.

It Happened One Night (1934) – After running away from home to meet her beau, a young heiress stumbles upon a struggling reporter and makes an unsual deal. This has Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert. I’m not a huge fan of Gable but this has a few great lines and a few great scenes (the hitch hiking, the walls of Jericho, this is a bit of a risqué movie).

Historical romance books

The Halifax Hellions series by Alexandra Vasti – this is a trilogy and I enjoyed every book! It’s so much fun. My favourite was the first, In Which Margo Halifax Earns Her Shocking Reputation – Well that was QUITE PERFECT! Henry, a sollicitor, has been in love with the scandalous Margo Hallifax, his best friend’s sister, forever. When Margo begs him to accompany her to Scotland to prevent her twin sister Matilda from eloping, he jumps at the chance to spend time with her.

I LOVE road trip romances and this was wonderful! Super super sexy and the tension was ON POINT. I absolutely fell in love with both characters here, Margo for being so carefree and fun and independent and shocking but also kind and generous and Henry for being so proper and introverted but also for how dazzled he is by Margo’s light and how incoherent he is in her presence (how can you not love a girl whose idea of travel essentials are a book and sufficient cheese?). This was so much fun and worked so well as a novella. Great queer rep here and the dialog is sharp and witty and it’s got enough historical details that you feel like it’s really the Regency. I completely adored this.

The second book was really good too! In Which Matilda Halifax Learns the Value of Restraint – This was definitely a lot more complex than the first book but it was SO GOOD!!! I’m falling in love with Alexandra Vasti! Matilda is a skilled artist but when she goes a step too far and draws the Marquess of Ashford – accused of murdering his first wife – into her erotic drawings for all of London to see, she offers to make up for it by coming with him to his family estate to tutor his young sister Beth, a shy, burgeoning painter.

This is an amazing book and should definitely be read AFTER the first – I was SHOCKED to find out Matilda’s elopement in the first book was fake and it was so fun to read her version of the events of the first book! This is such a sexy novel where Ashford needs to work out his guilt over losing his first wife and Matilda is there to help and receive very interesting lessons in return. I loved this so much. Matilda is a vegetarian and there’s a good deal of descriptions of food in this (always lovely), kittens and heat aplenty.

What a delightful book, I enjoyed every second of it.

The Merry Spinsters, Charming Rogues series by Sofi Laporte – Escape into the world of Sofi Laporte’s Regency ton, where spinsters are merry, rakes are charming, and no one is who they seem. PERFECTION this has FOUR (soon to be five) absolutely perfect books and is one of my favourite series ever, it’s lighthearted and funny, also completely bonkers with lots of lovely romance and great historical details, in short it was MADE for ME!

Lady Ludmilla’s Accidental Letter – Ludmilla, a spinster of the first water who lives in Bath, has been corresponding with a man whose identity she doesn’t know for months and has been, slowly but surely, falling in love with him. When she sets out for London to discover who he is, she realises that it may be harder than it seems.

Well this is OF COURSE exactly the kind of book I love – a frothy, fun romance that’s full of mistaken identities and reads like a Georgette Heyer. I wish it were longer and we got to spend more time exploring the world and the characters and relationships (hence the four stars). I reminded me of A Lady’s Guide to Scandal too. It’s got a quote by Pope that I found utterly delightful and which I think sums up the book perfectly – ‘charms strike the sight, but merit wins the soul’. This was super short, I wish we could read more about Ludmilla and her sister.

Miss Ava’s Scandalous Secret – Wow wow wow. Amazing, exactly, exactly what I want in historical romance – romantic comedy with real romantic love. Scandalous Tristan, Earl of Ravenscroft, must marry someone respectable soon or his father will disinherit him. While the entire ton has fallen head over heels with the gorgeous and talented Violetta Winter, the famous opera singer, Ravenscroft has formed a friendship with dowdy, buckteeth Ava Sackville, freshly arrived in town with her brother Kit. Little does he know that Ava and Violetta are one and the same.

The premise of this is utterly ridiculous – Ava is an actress so she knows exactly how to disguise herself to protect her family name, nobody need know that she’s an opera singer, so we’re supposed to think that Violetta and her don’t look alike at all. I was happy to suspend my disbelief, the romance was so excellent as Ava falls for Tristan’s kindness and generosity towards kittens, his sister, his humour and wit and he falls for her for exactly the same reasons. There was a tiny scene in this that moved me to tears when Tristan tucks Ava in as he helps her into the carriage and Ava thinks nobody has ever cared for her physical well-being this way. I adored this entire world, Isobel, Tristan’s sister, Millicent, Kit, even Miles, Tristan’s rakish friend. This was constant fun – a medieval poetry tournament – and deep emotional connection.

This is 2025 Georgette Heyer. I was laughing the entire time. Incredible. I love Sofi LaPorte.

Lady Avery and the False Butler – When her brother’s family departs for Vienna, Avery is left alone. As a spinster, her duty is to move on to help another relative. But Avery hasn’t experienced anything of life and decides to stay at the estate with the butler, Jenkins, and try and have a taste of real joy – attend a ball, be kissed, the usual. But bigger adventures await.

I have never felt so SEEN by a book. It’s like Sofi Laporte had taken my list of favourite things and decided to write a book just for me. This is INSANELY FUNNY and unputdownable and you spend the entire book wondering what’s going on with Jenkins as more and more adventures pile on! An endless roller coaster of fun and the conclusion is absolutely crazy in a good way (you will NEVER guess!) I identified with Avery so so much, the secondary characters are so lovely (all the servants, Belinda, everyone!), this has excellent research and gives you plenty of Regency details I absolutely adore finding in my books and the romance is swoon-worthy and unforgettable.

This has balls, kisses, hidden identities, highwaymen, social commentary, endless fun. A delightful romp and one of my favourite books ever (this series is sensational, I’m GOBSMACKED at how excellent it is!)

Miss Louisa’s Final Waltz – Absolutely amazing!! Wow, this series is insanely good!! Louisa is known as the Ice Queen of London Society – she’s entering her seventh season as an heiress and has turned down no less than 100 proposals so far. She’s looking for true love, a happiness snatched from her when she was a teenager. Exasperated by her father’s demands on her, she vows to marry the next man she sees. Her bridegroom is no other than Robert, a grocer; and a web of adventures and secrets await.

A million, million stars. Louisa develops a social conscience in this as she sees how most of society lives, there’s a lot about the state of the British military in this, a lot about the details of everyday life (how they cleaned anything, etc) and passion and fun throughout. I smiled from beginning to end and sighed in content. This is incredible, it doesn’t get any better.

I hope the first half of this month is treating you well. I had a wonderfully fresh poke bowl for lunch today (with an acai bowl for dessert) and I’m having a quiche lorraine tonight, I can’t wait! Lots of love, Emma. ❤❤

Hello everybody and happy 2025! I hope all your dreams come true this year. I took a break from my weekly treasures wrap-ups in December but I’m really excited to pick them back up again. They really force me to take a look at what I loved the most every week, before I forget all about it! Last week was a bit special since it started in one year and ended in the next. I went back to work yesterday, meaning it’s back to regular programing with a new post here every day I’m working from home (usually Mondays). I posted my first YouTube video of the year recently and I’ve been nervous about it – I received some comments which I think were bot-generated last year which made me so uneasy so I wasn’t sure about opening up the comments section again. I did and received two odd comments again but also a lovely message from one of my favourite YouTubers, Shannon. She’s got two channels and one focuses on her Disney World vlogs (she lives in Orlando) which I absolutely love (Disney World has my absolute heart). I found her main channel years and years ago and have loved her since and it’s always a delight to receive a message from her. On Saturday, we went out for ramen and found a wonderful little restaurant where we had the best ramen I’ve ever tasted. I like it when the broth is extremely flavourful and this really delivered. They were rich and morish. It was pouring out and that was the comfort we both needed.

Here were my delights this past week.

Historical Fantasy

The Twelve Houses series by Sharon Shinn. I binge read a lot of Sharon Shinn in 2016-2018, she’s one of my favourite authors and this is one of my favourite series ever. I reread it at the very end of 2024 when I needed something both gripping and comforting. This historical, adventure, friendship, romance fantasy series is one of the best. It’s about a group of 6 unlikely friends who roam Gillengaria to find out whether or not there’s a plot against the king. Could people be so frightened enough of those who possess magic to throw a civil war? On paper, it sounds like a massive high stake story and yes, it is (there is war in book 4 after all) but I can’t tell you how much of these books is about food, is about the absolutely amazing characters that feel like friends, is about the lovely romances (each book focuses on of the characters specifically and follows them as they find their soulmate), is about warmth and lovely places (Danalustrous, Goldenhall), is about loyalty and courage and heart. There’s a lot of humour and light in those books, they are some of my favourite comfort books. The secondary characters are also so great. This world feels completely real to me and our six main characters in particular feel like my best friends, in particular Kirra and Senneth, two of my favourite female characters ever. It’s worth noting that the last book, Fortune and Fate, is a spin-off of sorts and is a quiet domestic tale that takes place after the war and is maybe my favourite book in the series. I find those stories so hard to find (daily activities after a major event) and I just adore it with my whole heart. Please look up the content warnings as this mentions a lot of things (but I can 100% vouch for the fact that our six friends are happy, alive and thriving throughout the series) but if you’re in the mood for tavern adventures with your new favourite people, do pick this up.

Miss Amelia’s List by Mercedes Lackey – this is my favourite new read of the year so far! Absolutely wonderful. OUTSTANDING! I never in a million years expected this to be so good. It’s one of those books that feels like it was written just for me, I’m SO grateful!

1815, Amelia and her cousin Serena are fresh off the boat from America and Amelia is on a mission – she needs to expand her family’s business ventures (dyes and fabrics) in England and secure a husband for Serena. Against a backdrop of Napoleonic wars, elemental magic politics and slavery abolition, Amelia and Serena learn to navigate the ton and its many rules with the help of their hosts, Amelia’s brother James and the Anglefords. They might ‘smell of the shop’ but they’re determined to make friends with every echelon of society. ‘No time for vapors!’

This is SUPER COSY. 90% of the book is a list of domestic details – exactly what it takes to run a household, how sewing, knitting, cooking, working with servants, attending balls, setting up a house,decorating, husband hunting, dancing, travelling, works in Regency England. You NEVER enter a room without its being described at length for several pages, every item of clothing, every meal is explained to you. This felt SO immersive. I LOVED both Amelia and Serena, they’re both so amazing and refreshing. Amelia is a champion of the abolitionist cause and is a very capable woman, you can’t help but root for her as she learns all the rules of society and tries to help as many people as she can along the way with her extraordinary powers. This has several references to Jane Austen which made me chuckle and it was SUCH a comfort read, the magic is so interesting to read about and the only higher stakes action is at the very end of the book and isn’t much at all. What a delight. My first Mercedes Lackey, I’d just seen that it took place in the Regency and had heard of her Elemental Masters series before so I bought this as soon as I could and it’s one of the best new things I’ve read in a while. Wonderful!

Jane Austen Project

I reread Pride and Prejudice and Persuasion by Jane Austen, two of my favourite novels by one of my favourite authors. I’m not going to say too much about this since I made two separate posts with my thoughts on the books this time around, one for Pride and Prejudice and one for Persuasion. Jane Austen is one of the authors I’d like to particularly focus on this year so I’m making her novels a priority early.

Jen, from Jen’s Reading Life is hosting Jane-uary on YouTube this month, I’m going to try and hop on her videos if I can (I think she’s in California so the timezone differences make it harder!) but it’s nice to know that I’m not the only one rereading Jane this year! I love Jen’s channel and highly recommend her if you enjoy cosy, vintage books in particular.

Historical Mystery

Where Serpents Sleep (Sebastian St Cyr #4) by C.S. Harris – These books keep getting better and better! This one was a particular favourite because for the first time, Sebastian investigates with Hero, the daughter of his worst enemy, Lord Jarvis. She was interviewing a prostitute for research when the girl was murdered and Hero feels responsible for finding the truth. Their investigation takes them all around London, uncovering so many threads and conspiracies and rubbing shoulders with all sorts of unsavoury characters. I absolutely loved Hero, a well-to-do woman who’s intelligent, competent and very intellectual. Their relationship won me over straight away. I can’t wait to read the other books, this was absolutely unputdownable.

Christmas movies

The Santa Summit (Hallmark) – At a Santa themed holiday event, three teachers get their groove back, strengthen their friendship, and unexpectedly find love along the way. This was absolutely hilarious and had several relationships. The geeky one was my favourite but I really enjoyed the friendships in this the most.

Santa Class (Hallmark) – so wonderful, Kimberly is my favourite Hallmark actress. This was really a film for Hallmark fans, it had a lot of meta references, was super funny but also had real magic with the real Santa Claus having a lovely story here. Kate North (Sustad) finds herself reluctantly taking over her father’s once acclaimed and now struggling Santa School. In the weeks leading up to Christmas and the school’s next session, Kate and her new co-worker Dan (Ayres) discover who they believe to be the real Santa Claus, lost and without his memories after his sled steered off course and crashed near the school. They decide to help him remember who he is by inviting him to participate in the intense Santa training program. There’s a lot at stake this year with Kate’s school needs to best the rival St. Nicholas School or be forced to close their doors, and Nick (Santa Claus) needs to remember who he is, or the fate of Christmas might be at stake.

Sugarplummed (Hallmark) – my favourite of the lot and it’s not even a romance! This was SO heartfelt and played with Hallmark’s tropes like nothing I’ve ever seen. So so funny. I laughed out loud several times. I also loved both leads, they were so great, this had great writing and it’s one of those Christmas films I can see myself rewatching every year. Emily (Lawson) has always dreamed of creating the perfect Christmas, meticulously planning every detail year after year, only to feel like she’s falling short. Hoping to bring her family closer together, she makes a wish for a holiday as picture-perfect as the ones she sees in a made-for-TV holiday movie. To her shock, Sugarplum (Parrish), the film’s relentlessly optimistic main character, magically steps off the screen to make Emily’s wish come true — whether she’s ready for it or not. As Sugarplum applies her movie-world rules to real life, Emily gets caught up in the possibility of finally achieving the flawless family Christmas. But when Sugarplum’s magical fixes start to backfire one by one, Emily begins to question what an ideal holiday really is. With time running out, Emily and Sugarplum find themselves on a heartwarming adventure – one that might just amount to an entirely different kind of Christmastime perfection.

I hope you have a lovely week! With love, Emma. 💕⃝🕊️ 💕

What a week! Last week was such a whirlwind. First off, my boyfriend Julien passed his driver’s licence which was massive news for all of us and we couldn’t wait to celebrate. That same day, we set off for a Disneyland Paris trip for our three-year anniversary. We were there for two days (we had a room booked at the Newport) and it was magical but on Thursday, the snow was relentless – gorgeous but we were absolutely freezing, most rides shut down, we had to retreat back to our hotel to watch Disney films and wait for the snow storm to calm down a bit. Friday was much better and we had an absolutely perfect day and enjoyed so many great treats in the parks, it was wonderful to create so many everlasting memories with my angel. We came back home Friday night and I spent Saturday in bed exhausted binge watching Virgin River. I was mostly myself on Sunday and I’m working from home today (Monday) and the state of my inbox, after five days off, is chaotic at best. Posting this now is a bit of a miracle! Here’s what I loved this week –

Historical romance books

Again the Magic (Wallflower #0) by Lisa Kleypas. This was a reread for me, I love the Wallflower series, it was my gateway into historical romance back in 2018. This is a prequel to the main series and you can read it on its own. Lady Aline and McKenna are childhood sweethearts but she’s expected to marry into money whereas he’s a stable boy. Forced to be separated, they spend their adult lives apart until McKenna comes back, having made a name and a fortune for himself in America and determined to take his revenge.

That was so powerful. Both stories – Aline’s and Livia’s (her sister’s) – grabbed me and would not let go (the quote in the title of this post is from this book!). This book consumed me, I thought about it when I wasn’t reading it. There’s something about a revenge plot that just has such a chokehold on me. McKenna and Aline are SO HOT and this was Passion with a capital P. Wow. WOW.

This is one of the best books in the Wallflowers series, and that’s saying something. I’ve always loved the ‘second chance’ trope in romance (if you don’t know what I’m talking about, think Persuasion) and this was no exception. There are two stories going on here – Livia’s and Aline’s and both have their set of challenges (alcoholism, misconceptions and revenge) but they’re beautifully written and jump off the page. The sexy scenes have never been sexier than in this, and the secondary characters are unforgettable (I want a whole book about Adam, a closeted gay man who’s a wonderful friend to Aline and a whole book about Mrs Faircloth, the wonderful housekeeper). A great, great book. Very unusual plot for this series but so rewarding.

Historical mystery books

We Three Queens (Her Royal Spyness #18) by Rhys Bowen. Read this in one seating, I love these books!!!

This series is so easy to read with just the right blend of history, humour and mystery to keep you entertained.

Edward VIII will do anything to marry Wallis Simpson – even if it means abdication. Desperate to keep their relationship out of the press until the time is right, he begs Darcy and Georgiana to keep her hidden at their manor, but Georgiana has her hands full with baby Janes and a film crew who’s just invaded her house, determined to use a real English country house for their film on Henry VIII. When both Wallis and a young film star disappear, Georgiana has no choice but to investigate.

The inner workings of the monarchy are absolutely fascinating – I love that I was very familiar with everything going on. I really enjoyed the characters too – Sir Hubert, Georgiana’s mum, even her sister-in-law. I figured out a lot of the mystery pretty early on but thus was so fun and made for very compelling reading!

Hallmark films

Curious Caterer : Dying for Chocolate (Hallmark) – I love cosy mysteries and I love that my favourite channel – Hallmark, has a steady supply of cosy mystery adaptations. This is exactly what I’m looking for after a long day at work. Goldy is a caterer and divorced mother and one of her friends, a Professor, is killed when her car jumps off a cliff. The police suspect foul play and Goldy investigates. I love Goldy and her teenage daughter Olive is so sweet, the food shots are yummy. The two leads have good chemistry which I think will improve with each installment. I really enjoyed this as a TV cosy mystery.

Princesses

The Little Mermaid (1989) – my goodness what a masterpiece. This is part of my Disney animated classics project, which has turned into a Disney Princess project (watch all the Disney Princess films, sequels and shows in order). I loved Sleeping Beauty but what a jump it is from Sleeping Beauty to the Little Mermaid. The Broadway-worthy score, how epic the film is, the scale, the romance, Ariel’s personality, the underwater scenes. As usual, I have so much to say and I know I’ll need to make separate posts about each of these films. Suffice it to say, The Little Mermaid is incredible. Ariel is the best and I ADORE her.

I hope your week is soothing and everything you wish for. I love you, I love you, I love you! ˚˖𓍢ִ໋🌷͙֒✧˚.🎀༘⋆

Hello everybody! Last week was a really good week. My needs are few – a relatively stress-free work week and a weekend spent at home – and I had just that so I’m very refreshed as I type this! I work from home every Monday which is why I prefer to do my blog post that day. As I speak, the heater is on in every room, I’ve got a steaming mug of Yorkshire Biscuit Tea (my go-to everyday tea), I’m full from breakfast (butter and strawberry jam toast, Greek yoghurt with maple syrup and cinnamon and an apple with cinnamon and peanut butter) and Julien is off on his driving lesson. He’s sitting the driving licence exam on Wednesday, fingers crossed!

We’ll be celebrating our three-year anniversary this week with a Disneyland Paris stay, I can’t wait to tell you more next week! He is my absolute treasure and brings me every happiness. I LOVE LOVE LOVE being alone and being single was a joy but this is an adventure and I’m so so happy. My greatest wish is to have him with me forever and ever.

In the meantime, here’s what I absolutely loved this week:

Costume Dramas

Doctor Thorne (2016). I hadn’t watched this Anthony Trollope adaptation when it came out. I remember trying it because I’m addicted to costume dramas and thinking it was filmed weirdly (too many close-ups) and gave up. I’m so glad I gave it another chance. Doctor Thorne is a kind physician who took orphan Mary under his care when she was a little girl. Mary grew up as a friend of the Gresham family, gentry who are fallen on hard times.

What a cosy, funny, lovely story. I loved the cast (Ian McShane, Tom Hollander, the actor who plays Harry in The Gilded Age). The romance between Mary and Frank is so sweet, the female friendships are so endearing (this is one of my favourite things ever) and in just three episodes, it made me deeply care for all the characters including the secondary ones (I loved Miss Dunstable, an American heiress who befriends Frank and is refreshingly honest about the marriage mart). It’s a story of domesticity and inheritance and is about money and how it affects families on a small scale. I’ve only read The Warden by Trollope and was a little bored but I’d always planned to give him another go and if his stories are anything like this, please sign me up!

Princesses

I’m keeping up with my Disney Project and watched Sleeping Beauty last week. What a marvel. This film is absolutely gorgeous. The animation is so detailed (just look at this gif alone, can you see all the trees they drew in the distance, even the vegetation in the foreground and the tree trunk) and Aurora is so incredibly beautiful. The Fairies, Flora, Fauna and Merryweather are the best part of this film with tons of personality and are such a good found family (‘Oh I love happy endings!‘). I love their friendship and bantering and all the domesticity of this film – drinking tea, dressmaking, enchanted baking. Aurora’s cottage in the woods when she’s hidden as Briar Rose is the stuff hobbit dreams are made of – there are paintings and engraving everywhere. The woodland animals are just darling – the squirrel is folded like a cinnamon roll on its tree branch and Aurora dancing with the owl dressed as the Prince then the Prince is absolutey enchanting. Maleficent has got such charisma too. There’s also a frame of a sunset seen from the castle and drunken kings sparring with fish. I’m in love. What a gem. I’ll rewatch it often in the future, this is a beautiful movie.

Cosy Mystery Books

Murder by Cheesecake (A Golden Girl Cosy Mystery #41) by Rachel Ekstrom Courage. I received an ARC for this from NetGalley.

‘Who’s that you’re talking to, Rose, a new beau?’
‘Oh, it was just one of those prank calls.’
‘For twenty minutes? I’ve had dates that ended quicker than that.’

WOOHOO WHAT A RIOT!!! I hope every Golden Girls fan has a chance to read this, it’s just as fun and witty as the show, with great heart. I expected a lot because it’s my favourite thing on TV, but this was even better.

My favourite Goldenverse episode is an episode of The Golden Palace, the sequel to The Golden Girls where Blanche, Rose and Sofia decide to run a hotel in Miami. In the best episode of Palace, You’ve Lost that Livin’ Feeling, a food critic drops by to test their restaurant and ends up dead at the table – the girls spend the next 20 minutes of screen time trying to hide the body from other hotel guests, journalists, and a health inspector. I only laugh this much reading P.G. Wodehouse. It’s THE BEST and I’ve always thought a cosy mystery version of the show would do so well!

Gif source.

Enter Murder by Cheesecake, which is everything I hoped for – deeply funny with killer lines, our four girls being their own fabulous selves and a plot that’s so bonkers it works. Rose decides to throw the perfect St Olaf wedding for her niece in Miami while Dorothy tries to find a plus one. When her date is found dead in a freezer full of cheesecake and Dorothy is the main suspect, our girls have no choice but to investigate, with hilarious consequences.

I LOVED THIS!!! It’s so brilliant, I don’t know how the author managed to get each voice right but every girl is perfection and even though we get a lot more of Rose and Dorothy’s perspectives than Blanche and Sofia’s, the dialog felt exactly right and razor-sharp. Rose’s catalogue of St Olaf traditions had me kicking my feet laughing and the writing is incredibly immersive. This is a must-read for any fan of the show and of cosy mysteries, I’m BEGGING for a sequel!

Ballet Books

Jane Leaves the Wells (#5 in the Sadler’s Well series) by Lorna Hill. Magical, simply magical. I think Lorna Hill can write just about anything and I’ll read it. This is the fifth book in the Sadler’s Wells series (which contains 14 books) and everyone everywhere agrees that the first two are the best so since those first two (which are, indeed, masterpieces), I’ve braced myself for a mediocre book every time. Jane Leaves the Wells blew me away.

The title is a massive spoiler. Jane has taken over from Veronica as principal dancer at Sadler’s Wells after Veronica gets married to Sebastian and leaves on her honeymoon (which lasts several months lucky girl). Jane is doing extremely well but a Hogmanay spent in the Scottish mountains has her questioning what she really wants out of life. Meanwhile, her friend Mariella, a famous dancer’s daughter, is slavishly in love with Nigel, who takes advantage of her, and it’s also up to her to find herself amidst this infatuation.

There are so many things I loved here –

– We see old favourites here again, Veronica, even selfish and spoiled Fiona, can’t keep away from the main story for too long.

– Guy is the loveliest loveliest boy and his and Jane’s story is beautiful, I adored them both so much.

– The description of the mountains is so precise Lorna Hill included a map of them and all this book makes you want to do is to book a holiday to go hike for yourself. Guy’s love of the mountains and of this part of Scotland is contagious and it’s an absolute treat to have him as your guide.

– The writing is absolutely gorgeous (a few passages made me gasp) – descriptions of food, of feasts, of silk, Dior, clothing. Lorna Hill knows exactly what life’s treats are and she spends a lot of time on them, my favourite kind of writer.

She reminds me of Mary Stewart and of Eva Ibbotson. What a special, special author. I can’t tell you how much I loved this, wow. What a gem.

Victorian Books

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. This was soooo good!! I’d never read it before even though I love this story and Mickey’s Christmas Carol and The Muppet Christmas Carol are both films I rewatch every single year, it was great to read the book for the first time.

What a genius Dickens is. This is so inventive and the characters are so vividly drawn and it’s got lovely Christmassy scenes at the end. Scrooge’s transformation is so heartfelt. I loved this. The quote in the title of this post is from A Christmas Carol.🎄🥰

Women’s fiction Books

The Christmas Cottage by Sarah Morgan. Imogen works for an event planning company and is the best at her job – she’s had to, because she can only rely on herself. Her mother doesn’t want anything to do with her and she has no other family or friends. To blend in, she pretends to her coworkers that she’s got a dog and a boyfriend, both of whom are nonexistent. After a disaster day at work, her boss forces her to take some time off and Imogen makes some surprising discoveries that fill the hole in her life and her heart.

I’m really loving Sarah Morgan. I loved this less than The Christmas Book Club because it was harder to read (what Imogen goes through is so difficult) but her writing is so good and she truly excels at writing found families. I loved all the characters in this book and could picture Holly Cottage so well. This was so heartwarming and has a sense of belonging that’s rare in fiction. This book truly welcomes you home.

Cosy Fantasy Books

Goblins & Greatcoats by Travis Baldree. A super sweet and funny 14-page closed door cosy mystery set in a tavern where a goblin named Zyll comes in to investigate two murders. I love Travis’s writing and the dialog is so excellent and hilarious. This is a perfect story. 🥰 You can grab it for free from Subterranean Press.

That’s it from this week, I’m going to catch up on Heartland and have a little snack (I’m thinking truffle goat cheese since I’ve got a little bit leftover and muscat grapes), lunch will be a tomato salad with shallots and soft-boiled eggs and chips dipped in a Boursin sauce – heaven! I hope your week is magical, lots of love and hugs! ❤️❤️

Hello everyone and happy Tuesday!

It feels surreal to type this but I’d set myself a goal of reading 200 books on Goodreads at the start of 2024 and I hit this goal on November 6. I personally don’t think this matters very much, I’d much rather read books I love, however many, than reach an arbitrary number.

That being said, it feels great because it does show that despite various reading slumps and work-related stress, I managed to read consistently this year. I can’t read when I don’t feel well mentally so it’s really lovely to see that for the most part, this year has been a really good year. My relationship is as blissful as ever, work is fine and I’m going to London at Christmas, which is filling me with so much joy.

For some reason, I sort of see the books I’ll read between now and December 31 as ‘surplus books’, as if anything were possible and wouldn’t count. I can try new genres, try new authors, pick something completely different and in a way it doesn’t matter whether I like it or not, the job is already done. It’s permission, it’s freedom. Even though, being a pure mood reader, I’ve already got all the bookish freedom in the world.

However, I was listening to the trailer to the new season of one of my favourite podcasts, the Calm Christmas podcast by Beth Kempton, in which she asks this simple question – what does your heart want?

If you ‘tune into what you really care about,’ (she asks) what would you do? And what I really care about, what my heart wants, isn’t a challenge or anything new, it’s mostly rereading all the books I own, the treasures that adorn and nourish my shelves. This is what I want and what I’m gifting myself this Christmas – spending time with my best friends, my beloved books. ❤️

The 2024 Goodreads Choice Awards have just opened their first nomination round and, no surprise there, I’ve only read one single nominated book this year –The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst, which is completely excellent. I don’t tend to read many new releases, I mostly take my time to go through backlists and follow my whims and my heart and I reread all the time.

This is also a time of the year I’d like to make more analog – more journaling, more writing in general. We’ll see how all of this goes.

Here’s what I loved this week:

Cosy Fantasy Books

Bookshops & Bonedust by Travis Baldree. After an intense battle against a necromancer, Viv is hurt and has to rest and relax in the small sleepy town of Murk. To while away the time, she decides to venture into Murk’s dilapidated bookshop where she meets its owner Fern (whose dream it is to give everyone the book that’s exactly perfect for them) and her pet, Potroast, a gryphet.

A million stars, I read this in a day because I couldn’t – wouldn’t – put it down. I preordered the special edition from The Broken Binding (I feel like this book got a million special editions!) and it stood on my shelves unread for a year because I loved Legends & Lattes so much and had such high expectations. Bookshops and Bonedust met them, and then some. I think at its heart – this is highly personal, mind you – cosy fantasy should leave you with the absolute certainty that for a little while there, the space of a story, you are cared for. That you can have a seat by the fire and be brought peace, friendship and delicious food on a platter. That you are enough just as you are and nothing is expected of you but to just be.

I loved everything about this. The ending made me cry and cry and cry for several pages and the epilogue is so good and took me by surprise.

– This is truly a found family. Fern, Potroast, Maylee, Satchel and Gallina are all very unique and extremely charming. I love them all so so much. I already miss them.

– There are plenty of baked goods and plenty of food descriptions, this was so lush.

– This is a book about loving books. I can’t tell you how lovely it is to read entire passages about why books matter, why stories are important and how they bring people together, how reading a book can take you places when you need to escape, how they can heal as much as a physician. You also get whole passages from books that Viv reads which are so representative of different genres which is such a treat for readers.

– This is so funny. You can tell Travis Baldree has an absolute blast in some passages, some of the lines made me laugh out loud. At some point, Fern comes up with a scheme to bring more customers to the shop and I screamed ‘I see what you did there, Travis!’

I feel so emotional still, this book is everything. I rarely need more than two books in a series to feel like I’ve spent enough time with everyone but I’m begging, begging, for another installment. I can’t stop thinking about them and hoping they’re okay.

Historical Mystery Books

A Vicious Machination by Lynn Messina (#12 in the Beatrice Hyde-Clare Mystery series). Clearly, CLEARLY the best in the series by a MILE and restored my faith in the Beatrice Hyde-Clare mysteries. I read this out of order because I was approved for an ARC of Vicious Machination even though I was behind on the series. I’d suggest reading them in order but clearly I didn’t here so it doesn’t matter much, the mysteries are self-contained.

Verity Lark, the Duke’s half-sister is thrown into Newgate for a murder she didn’t commit. She published an article about a female blackmailer and was then found at the scene of the crime, holding the weapon. Beatrice is dead set on proving Verity’s innocence even though the list of suspects – everyone who was paying off this woman – is the longest she’s dealt with yet.

Amazing, everything about this.

– The plot is riveting!! Every suspect is so unique with his of her own secret . There are period details and even the mention of a scientific discovery I thought was so interesting.

– Even though some disturbing things are mentioned, the author doesn’t dwell on them, this book’s tone is really well-balanced. The story very much advocates for prison and orphanage reform.

– Beatrice and Kesgrave’s romance is lovely, flirty and fun. I loved spending time with them. He is so in awe of his wife’s talents and she loves that he’s a duke and yet so in touch with the realities of the world. I love them!

– Verity is a Sherlock type of detective. She’s brilliant and Beatrice is very impressed with her methods. I know she has a spin-off series I can’t wait to read it too!

A Ghastly Spectacle (#7 in the Beatrice Hyde-Clare Mystery series). Absolutely DELIGHTFUL!!! ❤️❤️ This was such an improvement on the first few books, I loved it!!! Bea and Kesgrave are invited to a murder mystery party in Bea’s honour but the game turns deadly when one of the guests is found murdered in a room full of the most respected members of the ton.

Loved the investigation which is very closed circle with very few clues but there were twists and turns until the very very end and that kept me on the edge of my seat! While society’s rejection of Bea’s activities is realistic, it’s mentioned in every single book at length and it’s the only thing I found boring. The absolute best parts were Flora and Bea’s new relationship and Bea and Kesgrave’s love for each other. They’re both so special and really root for each other, there was a line towards the end about their love that I read several times. Such a great romance! 🥰

Why Mermaids Sing by C.S. Harris (#3 in the Sebastian St Cyr mystery series). Well this was excellent. Each installment in this series is better than the last, this was impeccable. The main plot – a series of gruesome murders tied to a ship – is riveting and Sebastian and Kat’s own personal lives are just as engrossing. I also found the writing a lot more immersive than the first two books with beautiful atmospheric descriptions (‘The ostler squinted off across the cobbled yard to where a pair of geese was coming in to land on the holding pond, the rich light of the evening sun turning their outstretched white wings to gold.’) that take you right back to the 19th century. ❤️ Excellent series.

Fantasy of Manners Books

The Teacup Magic Trilogy by Tansy Rayner Roberts. I say trilogy, even though the series has more, because I think the first three books are flawless and I don’t enjoy the others as much. This is an impeccable trilogy of novellas and I highly recommend it! I’ve read it countless times and it’s a comfort read for me. ❤️

The first novel, Tea and Sympathetic Magic is about Mneme, a bookish young lady in a magical version of Regency England. She adores books and libraries and she’s had enough of picnics and magical croquet. One day, the Duke is captured through a portal so she teams up with the man in charge of the Duke’s protection, Mr Thornbury, whose job it is to ensure that the Duke marries for love and not because he’s been given a love potion.

This is a novella that’s so divine and has everything I want in a story that I immediately wished this was a novel so thank goodness for the sequels (the second book is about them investigating a murder at a frost fair and in the third they attend a masquerade!). This is SO fun, with teacups, enchanted wedding cake, sympathetic magic (through letters), libraries, a terrific proposal and cosy fluff. You have to read these books!

Victorian Classics

Bleak House by Charles Dickens. I loved reading this so much. I read a lot of classics prior to being on Goodreads (I have a Master’s degree in English literature) and didn’t keep track of what I’d read so this felt like my first time reading this even though I’m SO familiar with the miniseries which I’ve watched at least twice a year since 2005. ❤️

I listened to the audiobook read by Miriam Margoyles and she was absolutely perfect (her voices!! Oh my god!! I couldn’t believe just one person was doing both Esther and Tulkinghorn).

There’s too much to write about, it’s such a rich tapestry of characters, but I just want to say that I absolutely love Esther so much, Lady Dedlock is one of my favourite characters (her scenes are excellent, wow), the BBC adaptation is excellent, Dickens’s writing is exquisite (one of my favourite passages is when he describes the death of Tulkinghorn) and this was just such a joy. I can’t wait to read more Dickens! I highly recommend Katie from Books and Things on YouTube for all things Dickens. She did a massive Dickens readalong over the course of several year where she reread every single Dickens novel and I agree with everything she says about Bleak House.

Hallmark Movies

Santa Tell Me is the best film that aired on Hallmark this year. I’m a huge, huge fan of When Calls the Heart (the title of this post is one of my favourite quotes from the show) and couldn’t resist when I saw Erin was starring in a Christmas movie this year where she plays an interior designer who’s sent magic letters from Santa – this is the year she’s going to meet her soulmate, and his name is Nick. Enter three different great men all called Nick and she’s got to figure out who her heart wants before midnight and amidst a live TV special she’s got to pull off with a rival decorator, Chris (played by Dan Lissing, who also was in When Calls the Heart).

This film is a riot, I laughed out loud so many times and already want to rewatch it all over again. It’s the best kind of comedy – over the top and ridiculous, with heart. I just adored it and Erin is so special in this, you can tell her and Dan had a marvellous time shooting this movie, I can’t recommend it enough if you’re in the mood for Christmas magic (I most certainly am)!

Also, When Calls the Heart is coming back for a new season on January 5!! That’s way earlier than I thought, I’m OVER THE MOON!! I can’t wait for more Hope Valley and Elizabeth and Nathan in particular, I love them so much!

That’s it from me, I hope your week is wonderful, filled with your favourite things. I love you! ❤️ ❤️

I’m so happy to be writing here today. I had a really stressful week – I’ve been changing banks and it’s been one hurdle after another but I *think* I’ve finally got everything in order at last. I’ve always thought that in order to be happy, you need three things – security, comfort, and love, and it’s really awful when I didn’t feel any financial peace for a little while there. No hard feelings though, I fully plan on gifting my bank adviser chocolates soon so we can have a fresh start!

On a more positive note, my darling and I have started our annual Harry Potter film marathon. Harry Potter is my whole personality (no matter how much I read and watch, deep down I know nothing will ever come close!) and I do something Potter related every day but we haven’t watched all 8 films together this year yet and this seems like the perfect time to do it! I will also be rereading all seven books before the end of the year. I think I know when but I’ll let you know – and I’ve got a Harry Potter project for 2025 that I’ll tell you about next year, perhaps in a video.

Cosy shows

I’m a huge fan of When Calls the Heart which I rewatch all the time, it’s one of the cosiest shows I know about a teacher on the American frontier and the town she calls home – Hope Valley. It’s a little surprising to me that I’d never watched its spinoff When Hope Calls, especially since I was aware of its being broadcast but I gave it a chance this week after hearing that a second season is coming and ended up binging the entire thing, it’s so good! Lilian and Grace are excellent characters that I loved when they were introduced in one of the When Calls the Heart Christmas special. They’re two sisters who were separated and placed in different orphanages after their parents passed. Now adults, they’re reunited and set up an orphanage of their own in Brookfield to care for children the way they wish someone had cared for them. Lilian and Grace are the heart of this show and I love them so much. Lilian is more reserved and serious and Grace a little silly and passionate and they balance each other well. They’ve got love interests in this that I really liked and I genuinely ended up caring for the townspeople (I really like the British nurse Maggie). The sets look brand new and seeing Nathan make several appearances in the show was wonderful. The Christmas episode is the best, which comes as no surprise, I just love TV Christmases, they’re so cosy. This is a lovely, comfy show that I can’t wait to keep watching next year!

Princesses

I watched the entire first series of Sofia the First on Disney+ and had to force myself to pause and do something else, it’s SO GOOD. Sofia wasn’t born a princess. The King of Enchancia chose her mother as his wife when Sofia was small and she was whisked away to the castle and to her new role as Princess of the kingdom, alongside her stepsister Princess Amber and her stepbrother Prince James. She has a lot of adventures and gets to do all sorts of things and learn from her mistakes (with a little help from other Disney Princesses who make an appearance), which reminded me so much of the video game Princess Peach Showtime where you get to play Peach in a variety of jobs (cowgirl, ice skating star, spy, etc). Sofia is a wonderful princess. She’s so kind and loving and I absolutely adore her, she’s one of my favourites. I’m so looking forward to rewatching this show forever.

Speaking of Princesses, I’ve reached Cinderella in my Disney animated project (where I watch the Disney animated films in chronological order while listening to their related episode of the podcast Disuniversity). I loved it. What makes a girl a Disney princess – in my opinion – is that she stays true to herself despite everyone else around her being corrupted. She is good and sees the light at the end of the tunnel and never loses hope no matter what. Cinderella grows up in awful circumstances and yet never loses hope that something better is coming and that brings her godmother to help her. She has a strength and a courage that’s unyielding and I find that so inspirational.

I thought the film itself was too long – too much of Lucifer chasing the mice around – but Cinderella’s story proper is gorgeous. There are whole shots that took my breath away – the pink dress reveal, the castle, the scintillating dress transformation, the entire dance with the Prince – it all feels like a fairytale. The songs A Dream is a Wish your Heart Makes and So This is Love (My heart has wings and I can fly/I touch every star in the sky) are beautiful too. I love that she doesn’t know it’s the Prince she’s dancing with, she falls in love with him for him. Cinderella has one of the best quotes to describe falling in love – ‘I forgot about everything, even the time, but it was so wonderful’ which I chose for the title of this post).

The Kenneth Branagh movie is one of my favourite movies ever but it was lovely to go back to this. Cinderella is my favourite fairytale. One of my favourite things ever is The Cinderella Chronicles by Kate Howe, where she filmed a series of videos about all the Cinderella book and movie adaptations she’s ever read and watched.

Cosy mystery books

I love cosy mysteries and I don’t have any ongoing series right now so I wanted to give a cheese-themed cosy mystery series a try (not a huge surprise to anyone who knows me!) I picked up Cheddar Off Dead, the first in the Cheese Shop mystery series by Korina Moss.

I really enjoyed this! I’m so glad it’s the first in a series. Willa has just opened a cheese shop in a small town in California and is looking forward to showing off her shop and her cheese knowledge to a local food critic. Sadly, he turns out to be horrible and soon enough, dead; right in front of Curds & Whey. Willa has no choice but to investigate or risk having her shop’s reputation ruined forever.

I LOVED all the cheese in this. I knew most of the varieties in this book – I have a passion for cheese and I’ve lived in Paris my whole life so lots of exposure to it too – and it was wonderful to read all the descriptions, pairings and dishes. Definitely a book for foodies. The characters were well fleshed out, I really warmed up to them and I’m excited about following their adventures. I always love when we hear about other small shop owners too. A really good read, I can’t wait to read the rest!

Cosy vintage books

I also read the second book in the Barsetshire series, Wild Strawberries by Angela Thirkell, after absolutely loving the first. Woohoo that was wonderful!! Wonderfully absurd and ridiculous but also so charming and the best ending. If all her books are like this, what a gem this author is!!

This is once again about a family of wildly eccentric well-to-do characters who invite Mary, a lovely and much simpler girl, to their estate. Mary is infatuated with David who’s an inconsiderate playboy who doesn’t deserve her, there’s a ridiculously funny man who keeps inviting himself to country houses, a French family and wildly amusing series of everyday nothings with the Nanny, the housekeeper, the children, and lots of delightfully funny scenes of domestic life. I adored this. I laughed so so much.

Historical romance books

Cotillion by Georgette Heyer is one of my favourite books ever and this is my favourite book cover of all time (the Three Graces by Vittorio Reggianini)! I highly recommend it if you enjoy Regency romances.

Kitty’s, guardian, her uncle, will give her a fortune as a dowry: several unsuitable suitors propose to her but Kitty has eyes for Jack. To make him jealous, she enters into a fake engagement with one of her suitors, Freddy. Comedy ensues.

This is one of those perfect novels and the more I reread it, the more perfect it is. I laughed so much reading this, Kitty and Freddy hitting all the London tourist spots was so hilarious I had to put the book down to laugh. I love that Georgette Heyer’s world is a very niche corner of the Regency (the ton, its titles, its marriage mart, its Season) and it’s so deeply immersive because she knows this corner intimately, it feels like she lived there. I love this book so much, both Kitty and Freddy are so incredibly excellent and I’m so glad poor Dolph got his happy ending. Fantastic stuff.

Fantasy of Manners books

I also treated myself to a reread of the Harwood Spellbook series by Stephanie Burgis, about Cassandra, a woman with incredible magic in a world where magic is strictly a male pursuit, who loses her powers and to spare her fiancé Wrexham the shame of any association with her, breaks off her engagement.

The first book, Snowspelled, takes place on one snowy night and features a wide cast of characters and a world where goblins are elves’ pets and politics is firmly a female activity. The gender dynamics are really interesting but what moved me the most what Cassandra’s family and their love for her, which she only realises slowly throughout the book. It’s a great tale of a burgeoning revolution born out of the desire to do better together. It’s a beautiful story and the heroine is perfect and the banter in this second chance romance is amazing.

I don’t want to spoil the rest of the series but I think Thornbound is even better than Snowspelled because the setting is so cosy and Wrexham and Cassandra are together (no spoilers there I hope!) and my favourite thing ever in this series is the novella Frostgilded which is a bonbon of a Christmas gift where Cassandra tries to set up a surprise for Wrexham at Christmas only to have everyone thwart her plans. It’s hilarious, super cosy, and there’s curry!

I highly, highly recommend this series, it’s one of my favourites ever and I’m so so happy I reread it, it’s so perfect!

That’s it for me this week, I’m going to finish my current read today, have meatballs and braised fennel for lunch and lots of tea. I hope your week is magical, you deserve the world! Lots of love! ❤️

Hello! I hope you’ve had a fantastic weekend. Mine was absolutely perfect – we didn’t go out at all so I could enjoy the comforts of home to the fullest! Here are some treasures from last week:

Cosy shows

I started rewatching Virgin River which very much feels like coming home, especially in autumn. The quote in the title of this post is something Jack tells Mel when they first meet. I made myself a pot of biscuit tea, a few madeleines and cosied up to this cocoony show. I think this is my fourth time watching the entire show. I’ve just finished season one again.

Jack’s bar with its fireplace, dark woods and delicious squash and lentil stew is heaven. Mel’s clothes always look so soft and cosy chic.

Their relationship is lovely – the flirting is excellent and they grow together and actually communicate, bless. I love Mel so much. This show can be so sad – they’ve both been through a lot – but they show up for each other and the whole town is so lovely and loving.

Fantasy of manners books

Krista D. Ball published the last installment in the Ladies Occult Society series and this was my most anticipated release of the year! This is the last book and it was every bit as wonderful as the rest. I feel like this is such a hidden gem of fantasy of manners, I’ve never heard anyone talk about it even though it’s amazing!

Elizabeth, a dutiful, obedient eldest daughter of a family of girls in Regency England is gifted an inheritance from a loving uncle – books on magical theory. She decides to use her newfound independence for good to help the women around her and restart the Ladies Occult Society with the help of a temperamental ghost.

This series is SOOOO GOOD. Full of domestic details of what the daily life of the impoverished gentry was like. It’s about managing a household, making clothes, mending clothes, preparing meals (you ALWAYS know what they’re eating!), helping servants, sisterly affection and a lot of lovely details about letter-writing, what goes into throwing a ball and more.

Elizabeth is focused on helping her sisters at the expense of her own happiness and learns over the course of four books that she matters too. I can’t tell you how much I loved this, it’s one of my favourite fantasy of manners of all time. The characters are so vividly written and the female characters are all so different and really come to life. Wonderful, wonderful stuff. I’m so sad it’s over.

Women’s fiction books

I was in the mood for some Christmas contemporary romance and picked this one up because the cover is to die! The Christmas Book Club by Sarah Morgan was everything I wanted.

First of all – petition to rename women’s fiction ‘friendship fiction’ which is, after all, what it is.

This was BRILLIANT and I’m so happy it was my first Sarah Morgan. What a fantastic story about a group of friends each with her own set of difficulties coming together to hold their annual book club at a picture-perfect little lodge over the Christmas holidays and meeting the owner in the process.

I loved everything about this and was invested in every story. I also loved that one of the characters, Claudia, is a chef, and there was a good deal about food here (my number one obsession). The Christmassy ambiance was gorgeous and the found family feeling too. The writing is so clear and effortless, I never felt any of the transitions. This is lovely stuff. I can’t wait to read more by Sarah Morgan!

Historical mystery books

I absolutely love historical mysteries and always have a series on the go. I’m currently working my way through the Sebastian St Cyr mysteries by C.S. Harris and I read book number two, When Gods Die.

It was excellent, I’m LOVING this series even though it’s quite dark. The sheer amount of history in this was incredible and riveting and I couldn’t put this book down!

Sebastian is hired to investigate the death of Guinevere, the Marchioness of Anglesey, who’s known in society for having married a man much older than her and whose body was found by none other than a drunk Prince Regent. The mystery takes a whole new dimension when Sebastian realises Guinevere was wearing a necklace he thought had been buried with his mother.

Things I loved in this particular book:

• Sebastian (a Viscount, our detective), Kat (the actress he’s always loved) and Tom (the orphan Sebastian rescues) all have sections of this novel and I loved following each of them in their own sphere of society. I think Kat is my favourite, I really enjoy learning more about her with each book.

• Incredibly detailed history here, you don’t need to know anything beforehand but as I realised just how high the stakes were, this genuinely blew me away. It is SO interesting. The author explains it all in a note at the end.

• Regency London truly comes alive here, not the balls but the criminal world, politics and some great immersive writing. Excellent social commentary too. A few lines really impressed me, this has a great sense of place.

Loving this series, this was much better than the first book too! I highly recommend it.

Hallmark movies

I absolutely love Hallmark movies and I’m currently catching up on their Fall in Love films (6 movies total). The Real West blew me away. It’s about Rebecca who’s a Professor of the Old West, recently widowed with two children. They all take a family holiday at a ranch where she meets Jake, a famous cowboy who’s never settled down.

This has, hands down, the best kiss I’ve EVER seen in a Hallmark movie and off the charts chemistry. I love Kimberly Sustad, she’s great at being emotional on screen and this movie has some great scenes for her. There’s also a ghost hunting subplot (her youngest is obsessed with ghosts) which turned out really heartfelt which was a nice surprise. The children were well-written too (her teen son is navigating his first relationship) and great scenery with gorgeous horses. This is a must-watch and I know I’ll be rewatching it in autumn!

That’s is from me, I hope you have a wonderful week and I’ll see you next Monday! ❤️Lots of love!

Good morning, I hope you’ve had a fantastic week! Mine was truly excellent! It was my boyfriend Julien’s birthday on Wednesday, October 16 (I gifted him a good quality bomber jacket that he wanted and his mother came from out of town to have dinner with us at a Japanese restaurant – his favourite cuisine) and I also had plenty of time to myself to enjoy some lovely things (taking his birthday off work really helped!).

Cosy vintage books

I’ve absolutely got to tell you about High Rising because this is a huge, huge favourite. I’ve been hearing about Angela Thirkell forever, ever since Virago started reprinting her Barsetshire books in 2012. Goodreads tells me I’ve read and enjoyed High Rising before but I had no recollection of it so I read it again and what a delight! This is a hugely entertaining humorous village novel in the style of, say, Miss Buncle’s Book or Diary of Provincial Lady. Laura Morland is a widow with four boys (whose names and lives nobody can keep straight) and has got a rather successful career as a writer (which she constantly dismisses as unimportant and just here to pay the bills because she only writes potboilers – a topic for a different day). She lives with her youngest son Tony who’s an absolute DEMON and the novel consists of the whole lot of wonderful everyday nothings that happen in her village life – keeping things civil with her housekeeper Stoker, acquiring a secretary, keeping appointments with her publisher, school drama, Tony being an absolute nuisance every single minute of every day with his obsessive love for trains and the railroad and a little dash of very funny romance.

I can’t tell you how much I laughed reading this. The whole thing is wonderful but I must say Tony takes the cake. What a riot his scenes are! Angela Thirkell writes his (exhausting) conversations with his mother (who vacillates between wanting to hug him and wanting to smother him) so well I found myself absolutely CRYING with laughter so much several times. I’m SO happy I revisited this because all I want to know right now is read all of her books back to back. They’re exactly what I look for in cosy, fun village books. There seems to be 29 books in the series so I’m over the moon that I’ve got so many wonderful books ahead of me still!

Fantasy of manners books

Fantasy of manners – essentially Jane Austen with magic – is my absolute favourite brand of fantasy and my favourite thing ever in books is comedy so it’s no surprise that I absolutely adore India Holton whose books about pirates, spies, flying houses, tea and a whole lot of enemies to lovers romance are amongst my most treasured possessions. Her Secret Service of Tea and Treason is my favourite of the three – Alice, Agent A, and Bixby, Agent B, have to infiltrate a pirate country house party under the guise of being husband and wife and much hilarity ensues. The most exacting, literary-minded characters with tons of chemistry thrown into THE silliest situations (a pirate conga line, anyone?). What a treat this book is and this entire series is a true gift.

I’m currently reading the first book in her new series, The Ornithologist’s Field Guide to Love (the quote in the title of this post is taken from this book), and it’s the light academia fantasy romance of dreams. I haven’t felt like something had been written specifically for me like this in so long. This made me want to apply to Oxford to pursue another degree (I’ve already got a Master’s in English literature, but perhaps a BA in History, or a PhD in English lit? Studying fantasy of manners? Oooo). This book features rival academics, parasols, tea (of course) and a whole array of exotic & rare birds. Also tenure and fowl play (HA!). I love it to pieces already and look at that cover, my goodness! Obsessed. This also made me want to reread all of Gail Carriger who was my first introduction to this genre and was the first author I felt was catering to my every whim without having ever met me!

Costume dramas

Bleak House (2005), written by Andrew Davies is one of my favourite costume dramas. I rewatch it all the time. I never watched much of Little Dorrit when it aired in 2008 – I remember that the Tattycoram scenes really upset me. I decided to revisit it this week and couldn’t help but watch the entire thing. Beyond anything else, Amy Dorrit (brilliantly portrayed by Claire Foy) is an absolute light and an angel and stays true to herself and to her values – goodness and truth always – through really challenging circumstances. While some of the characters irritated me hugely (Rigaud, Ms Wade), I thought this was an excellent, deeply entertaining adaptation and both Arthur and Amy must be protected at all costs. It’s got great secondary characters too (I loved Frederick, Amy’s uncle, very much). Amy’s unfailing kindness and patience and love (the ‘you can’t stop me loving you’ part of it all is so touching) makes her an absolute role model for me. I love her to pieces. I’d like to watch and read as much Dickens as possible before December to be ready for a Dickens tour I signed up for in London. I’m beyond excited about this trip! In one form or another, be it book, audiobook or adaptation, I’d like to go back to Our Mutual Friend, Dombey and Son, Great Expectations and A Christmas Carol as priorities.

Princesses

I’ve embarked on a bit of a Disney project. I’m a Disney princess devotee through and through but I don’t rewatch the other animated films nearly as much as the princess movies so I wanted to remedy that. I’ve been following along the Disuniversity podcast from the beginning – they’ve got a whole episode for each animated film and give you background and useful information for each. I’ve been absolutely loving their episodes. I’ve only watched the first two so far and while not every film I’ll revisit will be a hit (I think Pinocchio will haunt my nightmares for the rest of my life), I thought I’d tell you about some I’ve really enjoyed.

Snow White is never going to be my favourite princess film (hello, traumatising witch) but I loved watching it again and I love Snow White who’s such a gentle soul. The woodland scenes are gorgeous and beautifully pastel. I also absolutely adored the domesticity of this film – the cooking, the baking, even the cleaning with a song, I know Enchanted (a huge favourite of mine) has got similar scenes and it was a joy to see them here too. Snow White always sees the brightness in darkness (‘you can fill the world with sunshine’) and she gets her heart’s wish and gets to live with someone who loves her after years of abuse from her stepmother. It’s a fantastic story for her.

I’m wishing for the one I love to find me today/ I’m dreaming of the nice things he’ll say/ Away to his castle I’ll go to be happy forever I know.

I’ve had a look around for Snow White inspired fanart and I came across this absolutely gorgeous piece of art for the Wishing Well scene (one of my favourite scenes).

That’s it from me! I hope your week is full of lovely things, I’ll speak to you next Sunday or Monday. Lots of love. ❤️

Good morning! I’m so happy to be chatting with you here on my blog. I’ve been wanting to have a space to write whatever my heart feels like sharing for a little while now. I’ve had various blogs since 1999, some of them for a number of years and others for just a few weeks and I’ve really missed it. You can expect a lot of posts about cosy books – books with little to no content warning you want to snuggle up with by the fireplace with a cup of hot chocolate sprinkled with cinnamon and perhaps a freshly baked pumpkin spice roll too. Mmmm… but I digress!

Today is Sunday, and I’m heading back to work tomorrow (I wish I could stay on holiday forever!). It’s been blissful staying at home and devoting my time to doing my favourite things! Here are a few highlights of my week:

Baking an apple crumble & new food musings

Whenever I want to bake something, I always head to Sally’s Baking Addiction, she rarely steers me wrong (I make her banana bread pretty much every month! I don’t change a thing and add the recommended chocolate chips & walnuts – it’s divine). I followed her apple crisp recipe to a T even though I forgot the nutmeg but I must have missed a step in the making of the topping (I think my butter might have been too warm?), it wasn’t as crispy as I wanted it to be but a bit apple water logged. It was still delicious though and my sweetheart thoroughly enjoyed his share with plenty of Greek yoghurt (we both prefer this to vanilla ice cream, the tanginess offers a great balance here!). Next time, I’ll double the topping, make sure my butter is rock solid, buy nutmeg & cook the filling one the hob for about 5 minutes to give it a gooey caramelised headstart. I’ll report back!

I don’t cook or bake much (I’m extremely picky with food and have expensive tastes and none of my cooking comes up to scratch. My darling once joked I should have been a Michelin star critic – I WISH!) but I’m obsessed with food, and good food in particular, and I’m always thinking about dishes and recipes. I want to make it a priority this year to master at least ten recipes that I personally find wonderful (I think the banana bread mentioned above is out of this world even when I make it, so it IS doable). This is my fourth time baking an apple crisp/crumble for the past few months and none of them were exactly where I wanted them to be (though I’m delighted my angel seems to appreciate those attempts nonetheless!). I’ll let you know how it goes and will post a picture each time I cook something great! ❤︎

Princesses & fairytales

I went through a bit of a reading slump in December for two reasons. 1/ I was looking forward to a fresh start in January and 2/ I was away visiting family on holiday and any change in my routine always impacts my reading. I, however, have been fully embracing all things Princessy since the beginning of the year. I will be writing a separate blog post about this soon – I’ve been revisiting a lot of favourites and rediscovering just how much this is my own special niche! To tide you over and if you haven’t seen it yet, I posted a video about a few of my favourite magical princess books here. There are four recommendations there, including two series. The Elemental Blessings series in particular is my desert island pick alongside Harry Potter! ❤︎

I’ve also always loved Disney concept art but finding art for this first blog post has been marvellous. The Tangled bookshop concept art at the very top of this post, by Scott Watanabe, for example, was found here. I loved reading this post on Pushing Pixels about The Art of Tangled. I own the gorgeous book but I had never seen this cut bookshop scene before. I’ve also watched Tangled: Ever After, but I still need to watch Rapunzel’s Tangled Adventure. I can’t wait!

Currently Watching

I’ve reached the end of the second series of Miss Fisher. This is a rewatch for me. I completely adore it. A 1920s lady detective who’s a flapper, a wit and has a great heart. Hugh and Dot are engaged! My precious babies. I’m sad I’ve only got one more season to go, it’s been such a romp!

Father Brown is also back for its 11th series. Bless this show, I love it so! Ms Devine is an absolute delight, I adore her.

That’s it from me, I hope you have a marvellous week! ❤︎