Apologies, but this is going to be a bare bones post this week as I am feeling very ill today and can hardly type. I managed to read one book this week:
The Kingdoms by Natasha Pulley
The sharp eyed amongst you may spot that lighthouses are a part of another book, after Emma Stonex’s The Lamplighters from a couple of weeks ago! This one is The Kingdoms by Natasha Pulley.
First we have the blurb:
“A time twisting alternative history that asks whether it’s worth changing the past to save the future, even if it costs you everyone you’ve ever loved.
Joe Tournier has a bad case of amnesia. His first memory is of stepping off a train in the nineteenth-century French colony of England. The only clue Joe has about his identity is a century-old postcard of a Scottish lighthouse that arrives in London the same month he does. Written in illegal English—instead of French—the postcard is signed only with the letter “M,” but Joe is certain whoever wrote it knows him far better than he currently knows himself, and he’s determined to find the writer. The search for M, though, will drive Joe from French-ruled London to rebel-owned Scotland and finally onto the battle ships of a lost empire’s Royal Navy. In the process, Joe will remake history, and himself.”
Then my response as written of the Goodreads website:
Oh goodness! I have no idea how to write a review of this weird, wonderful and confusing book. For anyone who has read any of my reviews: you must be tired of my mentioning the stroke that befell me in 2019, but that event is very pertinent here. The plot jumps across a range of timelines from the 18th century up to the 20th, with subtle and not-so-subtle changes to events, people and settings. Major historical events either didn’t happen or happened in a different way, battles lost or won, people died or did not die or were even not born. For most people the book is a wonderful and clever puzzle.
But for me? Since I struggle to remember a previous chapter when I return to a book the next day, this plot was a complete nightmare!!! I could see how amazing it was, after all I have awarded it four stars, but my brain now feels totally tangled. Perhaps I should have left it alone!
For all that, I feel that the book deserved at least four stars. After all, it’s not the author’s fault that my brain isn’t firing on all cylinders! Those of you who don’t have any comprehension issues might find the book well worth consideration. There are many five star responses on Goodreads that confirm this.
And now I will try to rest my brain. It is not up to reading today, which just goes to show just how ill I am feeling!
I do hope that you had a good weekend. Ours was fine and I was happy to have two deliveries to open. I will show you the first one this week and will hold the other over to next Monday. How awful of me!
Well, when I say “reveal” this first parcel had really minimal packaging, so I can’t do this in the “traditional” way. This is the image that I first saw on The Vivienne Files website:
Image from The Vivienne Files, post dated 14/02/22
I just loved this whole cluster of clothing and accessories! The colours of teal and navy fit beautifully into my wardrobe and I really like peacock feathers. So, I went to the Nordstrom website and ordered the scarf straight away. Now, that was rather impetuous, particularly because the site is in the US and I would have to pay a premium for delivery etc. But, scarf addiction is so difficult to shake off, isn’t it? It took a while for the scarf to arrive, but arrive it did. First of all, here is a better image of the whole thing:
Peacock silk scarf by Bien Abyé
The colours in the above image are very close to real life. I had a quick look through my wardrobe and, as I expected, I had several items that I knew would look great with the scarf. There were also lots of things in my jewellery boxes too! On Friday, I will upload some outfit collages to show you how I will wear the scarf.
Today, I am posting a slideshow so that you can see the colours and details:
Now, the silk isn’t as heavy and luxurious as Hermès’ silk twill, but this scarf has navy hand-rolled hems and it is nicely printed. As you can see, the colours are teal, navy, green, gold and red. The central pattern is cleverly shaded so that the colours glow. The size is 21in x 21in.
OK, I hope you have found this interesting! Modelling photos on Friday.
Well, I am feeling rather foolish. It is late afternoon and I am about to go downstairs to make my dinner, but I have something niggling at the back of my mind. Whatever could it be?
Oh! I have totally forgotten to write today’s blog post! Argh!
So, apologies for this hurried and very basic Friday post. I promise that something more interesting is coming next week!
Here is one of the outfits that I wore this week. It was on a really good day, when my health and brain function felt much better than usual and I managed to get quite a lot done…
Outfit of the day 23/02/22 with Hermès’ Bibliothéque gavroche
I love this cute scarf with its cheerful colours: bright pink, orange, blue, green and yellow. And, of course, the subject matter is very appropriate for me. I wore it with some earrings that I have had for 30 years, a navy cotton jumper from Lands’ End, one of my Liberty of London enamel bangles and my navy pyjama trousers.
Here is the bangle:
Liberty of London Hera enamel bangle
Aren’t the colours of the bangle lovely? I think they go with the scarf, quite well.
Anyway, that’s all for this week and I do hope that you have a great weekend.
In this week’s Reading Roundup I have two books to write about. The first was held over from last week and the second is one I have just finished. Here is the first:
Leviathan Falls by James S A Corey
I had been putting off reading this book. Why? Because Leviathan Falls by James S A Corey is the ninth and final book in the wonderful The Expanse series. I really didn’t want to read the end of the saga, but I suppose that I couldn’t leave it any longer! So, here is the blurb:
“The Laconian Empire has fallen, setting the thirteen hundred solar systems free from the rule of Winston Duarte. But the ancient enemy that killed the gate builders is awake, and the war against our universe has begun again.
In the dead system of Adro, Elvi Okoye leads a desperate scientific mission to understand what the gate builders were and what destroyed them, even if it means compromising herself and the half-alien children who bear the weight of her investigation. Through the wide-flung systems of humanity, Colonel Aliana Tanaka hunts for Duarte’s missing daughter. . . and the shattered emperor himself. And on the Rocinante, James Holden and his crew struggle to build a future for humanity out of the shards and ruins of all that has come before.
As nearly unimaginable forces prepare to annihilate all human life, Holden and a group of unlikely allies discover a last, desperate chance to unite all of humanity, with the promise of a vast galactic civilization free from wars, factions, lies, and secrets if they win.
But the price of victory may be worse than the cost of defeat.”
After reading all nine books and watching the excellent TV series (which didn’t cover all of the books, sadly), this is the five star review that I posted to the Goodreads website:
This review is really a collective set of comments on the whole series.
Wow! I have finally made it to the end of this fabulous nine book space adventure. I am not the same person who picked up the first book some years ago. At that time, January 2018, my health was poor and I had taken early retirement, but, as I read through the series, my illnesses grew worse, I had a stroke and my eyesight was badly affected. I went from paper books to ebooks. I went from rapid understanding to struggling with some concepts. But I kept on reading.
And it has been so rewarding to read the whole series. I was sad that the TV series did not cover all of the books, although I can understand why, but I really enjoyed watching each episode. I feel almost sad that the whole thing is over now!
This particular book was a fitting finale. New characters were introduced, for good reasons. Our favourite and well known characters reached suitable places for the whole “opera” to come to a satisfying conclusion. Brilliant stuff!
Once again, I will repeat my point that it is well worth reading some of the other reviews of this book and series. There are some really detailed and excellent ones available which are far better written than my quick reactions!
And now for my second book…
The Dirty South by John Connolly
As you can see my second book was the 16th in John Connolly’s Charlie Parker series: The Dirty South. Here is the blurb:
“It is 1999, and someone is slaughtering young black women in Burdon County, Arkansas.
But no one wants to admit it, not in the Dirty South.
In an Arkansas jail cell sits a former NYPD detective, stricken by grief. He is mourning the death of his wife and child, and searching in vain for their killer. He cares only for his own lost family.
But that is about to change . . .
Witness the becoming of Charlie Parker.”
This was a complete change in tone and genre from the previous read! It was, however, a great book to which I gave four stars. Here is my review:
I have read every book in the series up to this one, but was a little disappointed with the previous episode, #17, A Book of Bones. I felt that the author was becoming over fond of killing off people in overly sadistic ways and had also lost sight of his own main characters’ plot lines. In this book, yet again, there were too many names for me to follow, but that might be due to my own issues from my stroke.
That being said, this was a much more satisfying book for me. I feel that Connolly has found his mojo again and I enjoyed this journey back to an earlier stage in Charlie Parker’s story. I already have the following book queued up and will be interested to see how that fits into the series.
All in all, this was a very good read. As well as enjoying the interesting and absorbing plot, I loved the author’s beautiful use of language. I even looked up and learned a few new words!
Hello, on a stormy Monday! Windy weather always makes my cough worse. I don’t know why. Maybe it’s because more dust is in the air, even in a house with double glazing? I’m not really sure. Anyway, the upshot is that I am really struggling to breathe, never mind get dressed or go downstairs. So I will probably remain in bed and try to entertain myself with the internet, ebooks and Netflix. At least I have my iPad!
My scarf addiction is still very active and I have two currently on order: one from France and the other from the US! All will be revealed when they arrive. I wonder if I should join Scarf Addicts Anonymous, if there were such a group, but then do I actually want to be cured? They give me such pleasure and I love the thought of, eventually, passing them down to relatives. I have a lovely scene in my head of my family looking through piles of orange boxes and exclaiming in delight as they discover my treasure trove of silk. This isn’t at all morbid as it makes me feel warm and happy that I might bring some joy to people, and some surprises, when I am no longer here!
On Twitter, I follow a lovely account that posts images of women’s art. Sometimes I save the ones that speak to me and this is one of them:
If you are on Twitter, that account is really worth a follow for gorgeous and often thought provoking art.
I thought that I would show you the lovely outfit that I put together to celebrate Valentine’s Day. Well, OK, I wore it the day after, but I would have worn it on the 14th if I had been well enough!
Outfit of the day 15/02/22 with Hermès’ Hermès Tea Time scarf
I wore the pretty orange and white Hermès Tea Time 70cm scarf with my navy v-neck cashmere/merino jumper from WoolOvers. More hearts may be seen on the pretty earrings from Etsy (a birthday gift from Younger Son) and on the orange enamel and gold friendship bracelet from Halcyon Days. Please excuse my awful hair. I desperately need to visit my hairdresser, but am having problems leaving the house.
Here is a larger picture of this cute scarf. Those of you with very sharp eyes may have noticed that I wore it reversed for the photo! The printing is so good that I didn’t realise in time 🤣😂🤣😂.
Hermès Tea Time by Jonathan Burton
As I write this post, the wind is howling outside in this powerful Storm Eunice. I keep reading updates on the BBC website and am so thankful that we persuaded Elder Son to come home from his holiday a day early. As he was in Bristol, we were concerned that he was too close to the red danger zone and that travel home would be disrupted. As it has turned out, we chose the correct option! I do hope that everyone is safe.
It has been a fortnight since I last wrote a Reading Roundup post and I have managed to read four books in that time. As I think that four is rather too many to discuss in one post, I will tell you about the first three and hold the last one over until next week.
Left You Dead by Peter James
The first book of the three was Peter James’ Left You Dead (#17 Roy Grace series). Here is the blurb:
“NO BODY. NO TRACE. NO CRIME?
Niall and Eden Paternoster start their Sunday the same way they always do – with a long drive, a visit to a country house and a quick stop at the local supermarket on the way home.
But this Sunday ends differently – because while Niall waits and waits in the car park for Eden to pick up supplies, Eden never returns. She’s not waiting for him at home, and none of their family or friends have heard from her.
Gone without a trace, Niall is arrested on suspicion of her murder. When DS Roy Grace is called in to investigate, it doesn’t take long to realize that nothing is quite as it seems – and this might be his most mysterious case yet . . .“
I haven’t read all of the books in this series as I came across it well after the earlier books. But I have been working through the more recent ones when I have found them in the Library’s ebook catalogue. This is my response as written on Goodreads:
I found this a very disappointing read. The main plot line was quite interesting at first, but then became too obvious for words. The longer term stories were largely unnecessary. One seemed to be used entirely for its potential to explain procedures to the reader and had long drawn out sections that added little to the plot. I also noticed some very poor editing with phrases used over and over again, even in the same chapter.
I have really enjoyed previous books in the series, but it feels as if the whole thing is now running out of ideas. This, and the previous book, have been really below par. Perhaps it’s time to move on?
I had been waiting in the queue for the next book for quite a while and was looking forward to reading it, hoping that it would be an improvement on the previous book in the series…
The Sentinel by Lee Child and Andrew Child
As you can see from the image above, the book was #25 in the Jack Reacher series: The Sentinel, written by Lee and Andrew Child. Here we have the blurb:
“As always, Reacher has no particular place to go, and all the time in the world to get there. One morning he ends up in a town near Pleasantville, Tennessee.
But there’s nothing pleasant about the place.
In broad daylight Reacher spots a hapless soul walking into an ambush. “It was four against one” . . . so Reacher intervenes, with his own trademark brand of conflict resolution.
The man he saves is Rusty Rutherford, an unassuming IT manager, recently fired after a cyberattack locked up the town’s data, records, information . . . and secrets. Rutherford wants to stay put, look innocent, and clear his name.
Reacher is intrigued. There’s more to the story. The bad guys who jumped Rutherford are part of something serious and deadly, involving a conspiracy, a cover-up, and murder—all centered on a mousy little guy in a coffee-stained shirt who has no idea what he’s up against.
Rule one: if you don’t know the trouble you’re in, keep Reacher by your side.”
I hate to say that I gave this book only one star – ONE STAR for a Jack Reacher!!! My review tells you more:
Oh, how disappointing! I was sad when I finished the last book, but gutted by this one. I feel that Lee Child has let all of his fans down by handing his hero over to his brother. This book made a mockery of Reacher and I won’t bother with any more.
After that, I decided to choose a book at random from the catalogue, just to see whether I could find something better. This is what I read next…
The Lamplighters by Emma Stonex
I am not sure what attracted me to this book, The Lamplighters by Emma Stonex, but the blurb sounded intriguing:
“Inspired by a haunting true story, a gorgeous and atmospheric novel about the mysterious disappearance of three lighthouse keepers from a remote tower miles from the Cornish coast–and about the wives who were left behind.
What strange fate befell these doomed men? The heavy sea whispers their names. Black rocks roll beneath the surface, drowning ghosts. And out of the swell like a finger of light, the salt-scratched tower stands lonely and magnificent.
It’s New Year’s Eve, 1972, when a boat pulls up to the Maiden Rock lighthouse with relief for the keepers. But no one greets them. When the entrance door, locked from the inside, is battered down, rescuers find an empty tower. A table is laid for a meal not eaten. The Principal Keeper’s weather log describes a storm raging round the tower, but the skies have been clear all week. And the clocks have all stopped at 8:45.
Two decades later, the wives who were left behind are visited by a writer who is determined to find the truth about the men’s disappearance. Moving between the women’s stories and the men’s last weeks together in the lighthouse, long-held secrets surface and truths twist into lies as we piece together what happened, why, and who to believe.
In her riveting and suspenseful novel, Emma Stonex writes a story of isolation and obsession, of reality and illusion, and of what it takes to keep the light burning when all else is swallowed by dark.”
This is one of the things that I love about libraries: that you can wander around the collection, physically or virtually, and just stumble across an unexpected treasure! The review will show you what I mean:
What an unexpected reaction! Mine, that is. I usually like books with plenty of action and excitement, thrillers and fantasy, science fiction and crime. Those kinds of books. Not one like this. But the beautiful descriptions of the sea and of the weather, the sheer atmosphere of water and sky, the claustrophobia of living on a lighthouse with two other men, the loneliness of women left on the land without their men. All of this was so beautifully written.
The structure of the plot was very interesting and unusual, switching between two different times thirty years apart and two groups of characters as the story unfolded. There were also faint hints of the supernatural, which added an extra shiver or two! The momentum accelerated as I reached the later chapters, and I felt that I couldn’t take a break from reading. I just had to know how it would all turn out.
All in all, a very satisfying read and I will watch out for the author’s other books.
Happy Valentine’s Day to you all! I hope that you received suitable cards and gifts. After all these years together, Lovely Husband gets out several cards from past years and displays them in a row for me to see. I wish we could go out together for dinner, liked we used to, but I am simply not well enough and don’t feel safe outside the house. Never mind! I am sure that he will cook something nice tonight.
I like how Facebook shows your posts from years ago. One of mine today reminded me of a gorgeous green lace dress that I wore to a Valentine’s dinner seven years ago. I loved that dress but don’t think I would fit into it now!
Emerald lace dress – Planet
Isn’t it gorgeous?
Also today, Elder Son has gone away on a trip for a few days. It was his birthday yesterday and he always likes to travel somewhere as a treat for himself at this time of year. I shall keep in touch with him and make sure that his holiday goes well.
Apologies, but I am going to take a short break from the blog this week. My health is very poor and my stress levels are pretty awful. I just don’t feel up to writing and I don’t want to moan at you all.
Next week should be better (I hope!!) and I will try to return then.
In Monday’s post I wrote: “Anyway, in this household things seem to be pretty quiet at the moment and long may that continue”. When I was writing this sentence, I wondered for a few seconds whether I was setting myself up for a fall…
Well, I was! Since then we have had a horrible week with some awful incidents. As they are so personal to members of the family, I am not going to describe what has been happening. Let’s just say that we are all suffering enormous stress and upset. We are in the process of reaching out for help to various people and organisations and I hope that we can eventually get to a better place for us all.
Anyway, as I am personally exhausted and wiped out, I cannot write any more today. I hope we are in a better position on Monday.
Former professional school librarian, now retired through chronic illness. Trying to keep cheerful by reading, drinking lots of tea, blogging my new life, and my love of bling!
The Kingdoms by Natasha Pulley
The Librain
The Librain......retired 
[…] If you would like to read more about this scarf, here is my Scarf of the Moment post with…