My Writing Ramblings: My June Favourites
Netflix, 2022
Hello July. It’s so lovely to see you. Summer is here. Let’s hope the nice weather continues.
As we’ve said goodbye to June, I wanted to share some of my favourites from last month with you. So, here we go.
Stranger Things.
I was so excited when the new episodes for Stranger Things 4 were announced. Netflix did something a little different this time and released the series in two volumes; the first seven episodes being available on 27th May and the last two releasing at the beginning of July.
My husband and I didn’t immediately watch it. We wanted to wait until the end of June so we wouldn’t have to wait too long for the last two episodes and I was so glad we did.
I loved every moment of this series. It was so well written and had me on the edge of my seat the whole time. I just couldn’t see where it was going. Incidentally, the creators of Stranger Things have done a class on Masterclass that I am very interested in viewing.
Now, I am not a ‘horror film and TV’ person but this series, for the most part, is AMAZING. If you’ve not given it a go yet, I recommend it (although there is one scene in a previous series I could have done without.)
Disney, Jam City Inc.
Aside from anything else, it has a fantastic 80’s soundtrack including great inclusion of ‘Running Up That Hill’ by Kate Bush and Separate Ways (Worlds Apart) by Journey.
Oh, I love it.
Disney Emoji Blitz (Apple and Google Play.)
My second favourite is an app – Disney Emoji Blitz. I want to start with the thing I dislike most about this app (yes, I know, strange considering it’s a favourites post.) It can be very expensive to play. You can progress without spending much but it will take a lot longer so, if you’ve got more patience than me, it’s perfect.
It’s like Candy Crush Saga in that it’s a match game and yes, it’s Disney. I am in my 40’s and I love Disney. I admit it. I’m proud of it. LOL.
If you can get over the cost, it’s a very fun yet calming game to play. I usually play it before I go to sleep as it helps to chill me out and calms the anxiety.
The Fire Killer by Ross Greenwood.
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My Writing Ramblings: My March 2022 Favourites
I know I say this kind of sentence a lot but how are we already in April?!
I wanted to take this opportunity to share with you some of my favourites from March. So, let’s get to it.
The first favourite was the BBC series, Peaky Blinders.
OK, I love this series.
My husband and I came to this series late. In fact, we’ve pretty much watched five series worth over the last month and wondering what took us so long to discover it.
Cillian Murphy is amazing, I am slightly scared of Arthur (LOL) and the last series, which we’re currently watching, isn’t the same without the wonderful Helen McCrory/Aunt Pol but it’s still brilliant so far. No spoilers. Promise.
If you’re looking for a gritty drama and you’ve not yet watched Peaky Blinders, I would throughly recommend.
My second favourite in March was Wordle.
Oh my goodness, this word game is so addictive and it also drives me crazy at the same time.
There was a time where I couldn’t check my Facebook feed without seeing a load of results from friends who were also playing.
I have even downloaded an app that gives me more than one puzzle a day! Yes, I know.
Anyone else love Wordle?
My third favourite is an app called Beatstar.
by My October Favourites
Wow, how are we already halfway through November? For anyone, me included, doing National Novel Writing Month, that 30th November deadline is speeding toward us at an alarming rate.
Due to NaNoWriMo, I am a little behind on other things. I know it’s a little late, but I wanted to share some favourites from October. Just a disclaimer, I bought all these with my own money and all that.
Speaking of this crazy challenge we call NaNoWriMo, my first favourite is this creativity notebook. My ritual every year is to buy a new notebook in an aim to be more organised and prepared. Um… this year, not so much.
However, it was still an excuse to buy a cute notebook, and, in my defence, I have written some notes. Just not as much as I’d like.
Grant Snider’s illustrations are so cute and as they feature a cat, I had to buy it.
The only problem with having a notebook addiction, is that they are all so pretty, I don’t want to write in any of them and so the cycle of buying notebooks continues. Haha.
It was hard to pick a favourite book for October as, in all honesty, there wasn’t one I didn’t like. Even picking two was hard.
The Room in the Attic by Louise Douglas and The Girl in the Maze by Cathy Haywood are the two that have particularly stuck with me.
The subject matters were intriguing for both novels. The Room in the Attic focuses on an old Asylum and to realise how people were treated at the turn of the 1900s – it’s shocking.
I also loved how The Girl in the Maze focused on the complex relationship between a mother and a daughter and how you don’t always fully know a person.
With it being October, my film favourites for last month had to be Hocus Pocus and The Nightmare Before Christmas.
by September 2021 Favourites
Summer is lovely (not that we got much of it,) but there is something I love about the autumn, about how the colour of the leaves change, having a reason to get the warm jumpers out and sitting listening to the rain whilst snuggled up inside.
September was, for me, a little bit of a blur. Having not had a great month in terms of my mental health, finding things that occupied my mind became very important.
So, I have some favourites to share with you.
My first favourite is No Plot? No Problem! by Chris Baty, the founder of NaNoWriMo. OK, this isn’t technically a ‘new’ favourite but it’s a book I’ve heavily been consulting during the past month as I begin to prepare for National Novel Writing Month 2021 which is in 26 days. Eeek!
This book, in my opinion, should be in everyone’s list when getting organised for NaNoWriMo. From developing characters to giving me a week by week guide through the weeks of November, this book won’t leave my side. Anyone else taking part this year? My user name is Laura Parish if anyone wants to be buddies.
It was really hard to pick a favourite book from the month of September. The ones I have read were all so good.
Jane’s Away by Clare Hawken made it to the top spot. It was such an interesting, compelling and unique take on the spouse leaving and Roger goes through quite a transformation. It’s a great novel.
Here’s the blurb and you can read my full review here.
Roger Kurmudge is rather smug about his affluent life and happy marriage.
It’s just as well his wife, Jane, is totally in the dark about what he got up to in the past. But on his retirement day, Jane disappears. Roger’s about to panic. Will he have to sell some shares or – heaven forbid! – the house in Bordeaux to pay a ransom demand? Worse – has Jane discovered his guilty secret?
Then Jane’s emails start arriving. Take the dog to the vet. Look after grandson Alfie for the day. Do the washing, shopping and cooking. Host Christmas for the family. Roger doesn’t know why Jane’s gone but he’s sure he can manage her ‘women’s work’ without any trouble. Although it’s harder than it looks.
As the weeks go by and Jane stays away, Roger is forced to re-examine everything he thought he knew about his family, his life and himself. But even if Roger can change for the better, will Jane ever come back? Or has she, too, been keeping secrets of her own?
My TV favourite for last month is a show called Miracle Workers, based on a book by Simon Rich.
I came across a clip of this show when I’d fallen down one of my many You Tube rabbit holes and immediately wanted to watch more. For anyone who has watched it, it was the clip from series three, in the bar, with one of the characters singing.
by My Writing Ramblings: My March Favourites
I know we’re already in the middle of April but I wanted to share some of my March favourites, especially as we are all stuck inside and if you, like me, are looking for recommendations, then posts like this are perfect.
Without further ado, let’s get into my favourites.
My favourite show that I’ve recently watched is The Stranger.
This is based from a book by Harlen Coben. I had heard so many people talking about this TV show both on and off social media. I had also throughly enjoyed Safe which was another adaptation done for Netflix.
I did worry that the hype was going to ruin The Stranger but I need not have worried.
Richard Armitage plays the husband of a woman who disappears under suspicious circumstances after he has confronted her with a secret, disclosed by someone he has never met before.
That’s all I will say about the plot but what follows are many twists and turns which resulted in me trying to guess what was coming and completely failing.
I throughly recommend it especially if you can binge all the episodes. The theme song is such an ear worm too.
The app I have been enjoying the most is Disney+. If you’ve followed this blog for a while, then you will know how big of a Disney fan I am despite being in my late thirties. I have no regrets. Hahaha. It was inevitable that this was going to end up on my favourites list.
I had been incredibly excited and impatient for this app, especially as it had already launched in the US. I was just about stopping short of marking off the days in my diary until it’s launch and I have not been off it much since. I love the fact that I can access it from my Sky Q box.
I am seeing films listed that I have not seen for years. It is going to be easier to complete my Disney watch list that’s for sure.
I know that it means an additional subscription but I feel it’s worth it. Not only have you got movies and TV shows, there’s a lot of behind the scenes and short films too. Also, Star Wars and Marvel if you’re a fan (I am more of a fan of the latter if I am honest.)
As usual, I found it quite hard to pick a favourite book for March. I enjoyed all the novels I had the chance to read. If I had to choose a favourite, it would be The River Home by Hannah Richell.
by Book Club
