Today we donned our wellies and raincoats and headed outside in search of adventure. Whilst I’m not a particularly fan of the rain and happy to curl up inside with a book when it pays us a visit, we were ready for a little dose of the good outdoors (and little guy cares not a jot what the weather’s doing).
So we headed to our local castle and played knights, tackled monsters, and found hidden treasures.
Merlin, our trusted steed, got a bit soggy, but he didn’t seem to mind.
Chasing the wild-deer, and following the roe, My heart’s in the Highlands, wherever I go.
Robert Burns
I live in England now and love where I live but a piece of my heart will forever remain in Scotland. I was very lucky last year to visit Skye, a place I’d always wanted to visit and can only agree with so many before me that it is even more beautiful than I’d hoped it would be. We loved our little Scottish holiday.
I was lucky enough to be out with friends this evening at the theatre so celebrated with a glass of wine (instead of a whiskey).
My little one had his traditional attire on too today:
Some times tending to the allotment can be a slog. The endless weeds, the war with slugs and of course, trying to navigate the joy that is the great British weather.
But watching this little chap lovingly attend to his sunflower 🌻 and the joy on his face when he gets to bring home a basket of bounty makes it all worth it.
Anyone else grow sunflowers? Ours just begun to bloom this week.
I don’t normally post pictures of myself on here but this weekend I had the joy of becoming godmother to a very special little lady and I’m bursting with pride so I thought I would share my happiness with you all.
Life in London was busy but brilliant (more on that to follow when I get some time). However, as much as I love a holiday (and I really do), coming home is an equally wonderful feeling. ❤️
That being said, not 24hrs after crossing our threshold a sickness bug took over the house and tortured each family member one by one for a 48 hour stint.
Thankfully we got rid of it just in time to celebrate tiny man’s birthday. So it’s been a long weekend of farms, exotic animals, parties, friends, families, balloons, cake and more.
Life is full of ups and downs. 🙃🥳 Hope you’re all having a wonderful weekend. KL
After being thrown out of his house, Bambi goes to stay in his deceased uncle’s house. He is surprised when he gets there to find not only his Auntie but also Esohe, the woman with whom his uncle had an affair. Also in the house is a baby boy; both women claim to be his mother. Strange events start to escalate in the house and soon Bambi is fearing the little boy’s wellbeing, he needs to figure out who the mother is before it is too late.
I often think it’s useful to see an extract of a book to get an idea of the writing style. Here is a brief extract so that you can see a sample of the writing yourself:
Esohe’s eyes widened. She seemed surprised that she was being thrown out, which was odd, considering the battle these two were in. I watched as Esohe’s mouth opened and shut. But then her eyes narrowed and she tilted her head to one side. We waited for her to say something. And finally she did. ‘No.’ ‘What?’ ‘I’m not going anywhere. In fact, the house belongs to my baby and me now. This is Folu’s gift to us.
I liked this book. It is part of the “quick reads” collection which I like to intersperse between larger novels. The idea of this collection is exactly as it says on the tin (or should that be cover), a shorter than normal book by world-leading authors. One of the things I quite like about these books is that they force the authors to cut out a lot of the waffle that sometimes goes on in books. This keeps the stories quite fast-paced with a lot happening in less time. The Baby is mine is a fast-paced plot-driven story, it meets the quick read criteria perfectly.
Bambi is a really great character who goes from being really quite selfish and self-centred to caring for the little boy, his safety and his future.
I also really liked the fact this briefly book covered covid and lockdown making it feel really relevant to what the world has been going through. It added to the stories tension without making it too dry.
Overall View: Affairs, death, epidemics, family drama. A lot of story in 104 pages. I am really looking forward to reading more of this author’s work. Please leave a like if you think my review/feedback of the item was helpful to you. Alternatively, please contact me if you want me to clarify something in my review.
Premise: Fourteen-year-old Meg is in recovery, six months previously she had a heart transplant. She has been given a second lease of life and is desperate to live it to its fullest. Her mother Lizzie is somewhat nervous, after years of living with the worry of Meg’s illness, she can’t help be cautious. When the bereaved mother of the donor, Karen, makes contact and asks to meet Meg, Lizzie worries, but she feels obligated to her for giving her daughter this new lease of life, begrudgingly she agrees. Soon Karen’s motives come into question and Meg’s attitude begins to change. Has Lizzie made a huge mistake allowing Karen to get to know Meg, worse still, is her daughter in danger?
I really enjoyed this short story, part of the “quick reads” collection which I love to intersperse with longer reads. The idea of this collection is exactly as it says on the tin (or should that be cover), a shorter than a normal book by world-leading authors. One of the things I quite like about these books is that they force the authors to cut out a lot of the waffle that sometimes goes on in books. This keeps the stories quite fast-paced with a lot happening in less time. I’m proud of authors who take on the challenge of writing these books so that they can be enjoyed by all even those who aren’t keen readers.
I often think it’s useful to see an extract of a book to get an idea of the writing style. Here is a brief extract so that you can see a sample of the writing yourself:
‘She’s taking a lot of pills already,’ I say. The bottles are in the bathroom, their labels filled with long names I can’t pronounce. ‘These are supplements. They’ll help Meg stay healthy.’ ‘She is healthy. She’s doing really well. The consultant said so.’ I don’t mean to sound so abrupt, but Steve turns to look at me, a shocked expression on his face. ‘Lizzie!’
The story is told from Lizzie’s point of view. She has felt so much strain from her daughter’s illness over the years. Her guilt and stress are palpable through the page and it’s pretty easy to picture yourself in her position, what would you do? How would you react?
The story of course captures the concept of organ donation (for a real-life insight into this I highly recommend Dan Walker’s book Remarkable People, there is a chapter on organ donation that is both heart-breaking and inspirational). The author also dabbles with the theory of cell memory, a really interesting concept that really adds to the story.
Overall View: Fast-paced, well-written, character-driven short novel. A really good read. A fantastic novelist! Cannot wait to read many more of her works. Please leave a like if you think my review/feedback of the item was helpful to you. Alternatively, please contact me if you want me to clarify something in my review.
I was undecided whether to leave a review for this or not, it’s difficult to advise others who are considering reading it of any more info than what it says in the description.
Three short stories all told from the viewpoint of dogs. Sweet, humorous and a cheap collection. I’m not sure what age bracket this book was aimed at. Most dog owners will enjoy it but I’d probably recommend it as more of something to be read with a child (maybe not the first story but definitely the other two). Summary The Bad – A little bit too sugary sweet for adult readers (I think but that could be put down to personal taste). The Good – Easy, quick reads at a low price. I imagine this book would be quite a nice book to read with a pet loving child too.
My rating: 
New2Writing 