So first things first, I’ve been made redundant again! Since I hadn’t been in the job long, I only had a week’s notice so I’m back to living the life of leisure… I wish. Well I’ll have a few weeks before serious job hunting starts again. I just feel so unmotivated about it all.

So mostly I’ve been playing Planet Zoo and not writing those reviews that are piling up.

Labrador sat down and licking lips in field in evening sun

On a more cheerful note, we went camping near Chichester and the weather was glorious. Maybe a bit too glorious considering the campsite was super basic and we had no shade, but it was nice to switch off for a few days. We could walk into Chichester along the canal which was full of baby birds and dragonflies. I have never seen so many coot chicks in my life!

Here’s a rare selfie of me at the campsite. We were literally in a field surrounded by long grass, it was so peaceful.

Selfie - woman in sunglasses with sun setting over field in background

We also went to the Witterings, a long stretch of beach which was packed by the carpark but deserted everywhere else. We paddled from West to East Wittering and had a walk around the National Trust part.

Labrador dog at West Wittering beach - beach is deserted

Chichester Cathedral appear to have erected a statue of an evil wizard monk… or maybe it’s Nosferatu? I’m not sure the people there to look at the actual cathedral were that impressed by me shouting and pointing “It’s an evil monk!” but I was very hot and tired by this point.

Statue in front of cathedral that looks a bit like Nosferatu

Shout out to the amazing, massive sandwiches we had at the Pass Street Food Cafe. If you have a normal appetite you could definitely share one between two.

On the blog:

Review: Mortal Follies by Alexis Hall

Books read:

 

The Shadow Cabinet by Juno Dawson

I was so worried about the situation Theo would be left in at the end of the first book but this book moves away from TERFs as the big bad and focuses more of misogyny. The ending was a bit out of the blue for me, but I loved it up until that point.

  • ATY # 32. A book set in a UNESCO City of Literature
  • Popsugar # 23. A book with a map

Clytemnestra by Costanza Casati

I loved the glimpses of Clytemnestra from other authors’ retellings but this was a bit bland. The audiobook narrator did not help matters as all the characters sounded the same.

  • Popsugar # 17. A book with a love triangle
  • Nadine’s Mini Challenge # 9. A book about or set in an ancient civilization

The Night in Question by Kathleen Glasgow + Liz Lawson

Fun YA mystery, just what my frazzled brain needed!

  • Popsugar # 11. A book about or set in Hollywood

Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood

She definitely has a formula but I felt this one lingered less on the misunderstanding and was overall very heartwarming. I liked that the fake boyfriend was not actually the love interest.

  • ATY # 18. A book related to science
  • Popsugar # 27. A BookTok recommendation

Books acquired:

 

For Review:

Mister Magic by Kiersten White (Del Rey)

Bought – Physical:

The Shadow Cabinet by Juno Dawson

Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood

Nettle and Bone by T. Kingfisher

Bought – Digital:

Midnight by Amy McCulloch (audiobook)