Tag: recommendations

What I’ve read so far… 2021 Edition πŸ“š

Hi Guys πŸ‘‹πŸ»

I thought I would do a halfway through the year, book update!

Every year I have done a reading challenge of sorts, and this year, instead of monthly or quarterly updates I thought I would do two Six month updates.

So, here is my first reading update of 2021, January – June.

[Disclaimer: I’m not that fast a reader sometimes, it comes in fits and spurts, and I’ve had lots of revision to do, so its not as long a list as I’d like]

January – June 2021

The Winter Garden By Heidi Swain

The Land of Stories: A Grimm Warning By Chris Colfer

Because of You By Dawn French

The Lido By Libby Page

Push by Ashley Audrain

The Holiday by T.M Logan

A Taste of Home by Heidi Swain

Only Time Will Tell By Jeffrey Archer

The Sins of the Father By Jeffrey Archer

Until Next Weekend By Rachel Marks

The Dead Fathers Club By Matt Haig

Saving the Day By Katie Fforde

The Motive By Khurrum Rahman

Best Kept Secret By Jeffrey Archer

My favourites so far are, of course the Heidi Swain novels ‘The Winter Garden’ & ‘A Taste of Home’ as well as ‘Until Next Weekend’ ‘Push’ & ‘The Holiday’ which I could not put down. I love that feeling.

The suprise was the Harry Clifton series by Jeffrey Archer, the perfect example of not judging a book by its cover.

Have you read any of these books??

Until Next Time,

Roseanne πŸ™‚

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🌸 Books: April Throwback πŸŒΈπŸ“šβ˜€οΈ

Hi guys πŸ‘‹πŸ»

Christmas, Spring/Summer are my favourite times of year to read and as I was enjoying my book this afternoon it got me thinking about this time last year…

April 2020 was a both a confusing and enlightening time for me (It sounds strange I know, stick with me)

Lockdown was fully in swing at this point, Pandemic – WHATTTT, very confusing! But, amongst the madness of Lockdown, for the first time in probably 11 years I had time… time to do the things I enjoyed, unapologetically, emphatically and with a new found appreciation for them.

And with this feeling and freedom in place I got such a heightened enjoyment from the novels I was reading. It of course helped that they were bloody brilliant books… so, lets take a walk down memory lane…

🌸

April. This seems to be a good month for me in terms of discovering new books, especially ones that turn into firm favourites, that I always recommend when someones asks me; ‘Do you know of any good books?’

🌸

In the midst of the OG Lockdown…

I read ‘The Silent Patient’ in a day I was so enraptured by it, gripped to the last page…

We also had another Heidi Swain release, which always makes a month amazing (& this sunny seaside stay is one of my faves of hers) ‘The Seaside Escape’

…and I found another firm fave and cosy number in ‘The Flat share’ which has lead me to many brilliant books by Beth O’Leary as a result.



Fast forward to today…. & I’m thoroughly enjoying ‘The Lido’ by Libby Page. Its a cosy, feel good book that restores your faith in community, friendships (unconventional & not) and yourself along the way.



I’m so invested in this story, its endearing characters and community that I know I’ll be sad when it ends and we aren’t spending our time together anymore (if you know, you know!)

I want to see how it all plays out but I don’t want to say goodbye.

You know you’ve got a good’un when thats the case.

I’m super looking forward to the end of the month as I have a few Preorders coming my way and I’m SO EXCITED!!

They are:
~A Taste of Home by Heidi Swain
~The Road Trip by Beth O’Leary
~Until Next Weekend by Rachel Marks

(& a new Sarah Morgan book at the end of May πŸ™ŒπŸ»πŸ™ŒπŸ»)

All we need is for this sunshine to stay, Covid to be kept at bay and a nice cold drink to sip as we enjoy these brilliant books!

πŸ“š Happy Reading πŸ“š

Until Next Time,

Roseanne πŸ™‚

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Blogmas Day Two: A Festive Book Review- ‘Coming home to Glendale Hall’ πŸ“šπŸŽ…πŸ»

I thought that for Day Two I would do a little book review. I an going to do a fee of these, as part of Blogmas, throught December as I am trying to read plenty of festive books.

Let’s take a look!

This lovely, cosy festive read takes us on the trip back to Beth’s hometown of Glendale, and more specifically Glendale Hall, the family home.

She fled at the age of 16 due to her pregnancy being rejected by her family.

She is now back or Christmas, 10 years after she fled, to see her ill grandmother.

What I particularly enjoyed about this book is how endearing the characters are, their characterisation is really nicely developed and you instantly like them, feel for them and are rooting for them. They are very real characters with a fluffy romantic edge.

And because you have this ease with the characters, you find yourself quickly immersed into the book and turning the pages feverishly, digesting more and more of the Glendale cosyness.

The story is very enjoyable and is written with a lovely festive feel that makes you ready for the christmas season, itching to put up your own decorations, see lights around the town and make a hot chocolate or six.

I couldn’t put it down.

So, apparently this is the part of the review that I’m supposed to write something I didnt like as much about the book… (Boo!)

… I knew what was probably going to happen in the end…???

My question is…Does it matter if you predict or don’t predict the ending when the journey to it is so enjoyable though?!

I’m really clutching at straws here because I bloody loved the book and am now on book 3!

So, if you want to get into the Christmas spirit, feel cosy, festive and ready to enjoy all things Christmassy then grab a hot chocolate and cosy down with this absolutely gorgeous seasonal delight.

Any festive book recommendations are welcome!

23 days until Christmas 🦌

Until next time,

Roseanne πŸ™‚

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Black History Month πŸ‘ŠπŸΏπŸŒ

2020 has shone a light on the reality of racism, in all its forms.

Sparked by the Black Lives Matter protests, which stemmed from horrific injustices such as George Floyd and Breonna Taylor (to name a few) we are informing and educating ourselves on the wrongs of a nation, (well I hope you are) with regard to black lives and their treatment. People are educating themselves on black heritage and culture… and learning all about black history is such an important part.

‘A genuine change must first come from within the individual, only then can he or she attempt to make a significant contribution to humanity.’

Dalai Lama

This is why educating and informing ourselves is so important and Black History Month is the perfect opportunity.

Black History Month began in 1987, in order to celebrate and bring a focus to the history and contributions that black people have made to the UK.

Black history is almost completely forgotten in most traditional history curriculums.

Here is a link to the Black History Month website: Black History Month

One of my favourite mediums of information is of course print & books.

I have been purchasing some books over lockdown and in the recent weeks. These books were recommended by many people that I follow on my blogs Instagram page.

They touch on the stories and injustices of black people and they are certainly eye opening.

I would particularly recommend ‘Just Mercy’ by Bryan Stevenson, (although this is focussed on the American Justice system it is still such an important read)

Amazon have a great Black History section that offers book suggestions for both adults and children.

These include:

β€’Black and British: A Forgotten History by David Olusoga β€’Black British History: New Perspectives, Edited by Hakim Adi β€’Black Poppies: Britain’s Black Community and the Great War by Stephen Bourne β€’Black, Listed by Jeffrey Boakye

& for children..

β€’Bedtime Inspirational Stories – 50 Black Leaders who Made History: Black History Book for Kids by L A Amber. β€’Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History by Vashti Harrison
β€’Black Heroes: A Black History Book for Kids: 51 Inspiring People from Ancient Africa to Modern-Day U.S.A by Arlisha Norwood. β€’Coming to England: An Inspiring True Story Celebrating the Windrush Generation by Baroness Floella Benjamin.

I have also been listening to Podcasts on Spotify, a brilliant resource. There is a Black Lives Matter & Black History Now playlist.

This playlist is brilliant and I’m enjoying the ‘Inspirational Black Life Stories’ And the ‘BLAM UK: Black History Bites.’

I hope that you find this post helpful

Until Next Time,

Roseanne πŸ™‚

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‘One Left Alive’ & more Book Review πŸ“š

π•†π•Ÿπ•– 𝕝𝕖𝕗π•₯ π•’π•π•šπ•§π•– & the Crime/Detective Books Series.

By Helen Phifer

I stumbled across Helen Phifers books whilst browsing on the Kindle app, on my phone.
Now, I totally get the merits of a Kindle but I am defaintly team ‘Physical Book’. However, when I discovered her books I couldn’t resist and they were only available as a Kindle download.
I was hooked immediatly and here I am, three separate, stand alone detective series later and I am still throroughly enjoying her books.


Heres a general review of her books as a whole. The most recent that I have read being ‘One Left Alive’

‘One Left Alive’ is part of her newest series ‘Detective Morgan Brookes Series’.
Her books are Crime and Thriller Novels and its no suprise that they are bestselling.


They are gripping from the get go. The horrific murder/s that gets the ball rolling, in the beginning of the book, will both horrify and intrigue you in equal measure. You will have to find out what has happened and you won’t put the book down until you do.
If, like me, you are a horror fan then Helen’s books will be right up your street. There are always moments of pure, on the edge, ‘oh my god, I don’t want to read on but I must’ moments that will keep you hungrily reading until the end.
(They are not for the squeamish readers amoung us!)


The characters are  so relatable and are ‘normal’ people, and even with the strong police element, they and the storylines, aren’t overly complicated. Its quite fascinating to look into the police process. I love police dramas on TV, such as Line of Duty, and its almost like reading a episode.
And as I said, the investigation is easy to follow, but it always keeps you on your toes and is never predictable.

With regard to the characters, I like how you are following ‘the story’ but also their story too. You are always rooting for them to succeed both professionally and personally.


As soon as I read and finish one I always want more, so thank goodness there are a few in each series. The second book of this series is in preorder already.


I was genuinely gutted when I got to the last book in her ‘Annie Graham’ series. Gutted.

ᴍʏ α΄α΄ α΄‡Κ€α΄€ΚŸΚŸ Κ€α΄€α΄›ΙͺΙ΄Ι’ κœ°α΄Κ€ α΄›Κœα΄‡ κœ±α΄‡Κ€Ιͺα΄‡κœ±: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (4/5)

I hope you liked this review! I am going to try and do a review for each different genre that I read.

I recently reviewed the childrens fantasy series ‘The Land of Stories’ by Chris Colfer, (any Disney lovers young and old will love this series) So, check that review out here.

As always any book recommendations are ALWAYS welcome.

πŸ„·πŸ„°πŸ„ΏπŸ„ΏπŸ…ˆ πŸ…πŸ„΄πŸ„°πŸ„³πŸ„ΈπŸ„½πŸ„Ά

Until Next Time,

Roseanne πŸ™‚

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‘The Land of Stories’ Book Review πŸ“š

🌟 𝕋𝕙𝕖 π•ƒπ•’π•Ÿπ•• 𝕠𝕗 π•Šπ•₯π• π•£π•šπ•–π•€ 🌟

By Chris Colfer

α΄›ΚœΙͺꜱ Κ™α΄α΄α΄‹κœ± κœ±α΄‡Κ€Ιͺα΄‡κœ± Ιͺꜱ ᴍᴀɒΙͺα΄„α΄€ΚŸ, α΄˜α΄‡Κ€κœ°α΄‡α΄„α΄› κœ°α΄Κ€ α΄›Κœα΄‡ ʟΙͺα΄›α΄›ΚŸα΄‡ (& Κ™ΙͺΙ’) α΄€α΄…α΄ α΄‡Ι΄α΄›α΄œΚ€α΄‡Κ€κœ± ᴀᴍᴏɴɒ ᴜꜱ.

α΄›Κœα΄κœ±α΄‡ ᴑʜᴏ ʟΙͺᴋᴇ ᴛᴏ α΄‡κœ±α΄„α΄€α΄˜α΄‡ ᴛᴏ α΄€ ΚŸα΄€Ι΄α΄… ᴏꜰ ᴑᴏɴᴅᴇʀ, ᴍᴀɒΙͺα΄„, κœ±α΄›α΄Κ€Κ, ᴇxα΄„Ιͺᴛᴇᴍᴇɴᴛ α΄€Ι΄α΄… α΄€α΄…α΄ α΄‡Ι΄α΄›α΄œΚ€α΄‡.

α΄‘Ιͺα΄›Κœ ΚŸα΄α΄€α΄…κœ± ᴏꜰ Κ€α΄‡κœ°α΄‡Κ€α΄‡Ι΄α΄„α΄‡κœ± κœ°Κ€α΄α΄ κœ±α΄α΄α΄‡ ᴏꜰ α΄›Κœα΄‡ Κ™α΄‡κœ±α΄› ΚŸα΄α΄ α΄‡α΄… κœ°α΄€ΙͺΚ€Κα΄›α΄€ΚŸα΄‡κœ± α΄€Ι΄α΄… α΄„Κœα΄€Κ€α΄€α΄„α΄›α΄‡Κ€κœ± ʏᴏᴜ α΄„α΄€Ι΄’α΄› Κœα΄‡ΚŸα΄˜ Κ™α΄œα΄› ɒᴇᴛ ΚŸα΄κœ±α΄› ΙͺΙ΄ α΄›Κœα΄‡ ʙᴏᴏᴋ α΄€Ι΄α΄… α΄›Κœα΄‡ Qα΄œα΄‡κœ±α΄› α΄‘Ιͺα΄›ΚœΙͺΙ΄.

Ιͺα΄› Ιͺꜱ α΄‘Κ€Ιͺᴛᴛᴇɴ ꜱᴏ α΄‘α΄‡ΚŸΚŸ α΄›Κœα΄€α΄› ʏᴏᴜ ꜰΙͺΙ΄α΄… Ιͺα΄› ᴠᴇʀʏ α΄…ΙͺꜰꜰΙͺα΄„α΄œΚŸα΄› ᴛᴏ α΄˜α΄œα΄› ᴅᴏᴑɴ α΄€Ι΄α΄… ʏᴏᴜ ꜰʟᴏᴑ α΄›ΚœΚ€α΄α΄œΙ’Κœ α΄›Κœα΄‡ α΄„Κœα΄€α΄˜α΄›α΄‡Κ€κœ± α΄€α΄› α΄€Ι΄ α΄€ΚŸα΄€Κ€α΄ΙͺΙ΄Ι’ α΄˜α΄€α΄„α΄‡.

α΄›Κœα΄‡ α΄„Κœα΄€Κ€α΄€α΄„α΄›α΄‡Κ€κœ± ᴀʀᴇ Κ™α΄α΄›Κœ ΙͺᴅᴇɴᴛΙͺꜰΙͺα΄€Κ™ΚŸα΄‡ α΄€Ι΄α΄… ΚŸα΄α΄ α΄‡α΄€Κ™ΚŸα΄‡ (κœ±α΄α΄α΄‡ ᴍᴏʀᴇ α΄›Κœα΄€Ι΄ α΄α΄›Κœα΄‡Κ€κœ±, κœ°Κ€α΄Ι’Ι’Κ.. ᴀᴍ Ιͺ Κ€ΙͺΙ’Κœα΄›!?!) ᴑᴇ α΄€ΚŸΚŸ α΄‘α΄€Ι΄α΄› ᴛᴏ ʙᴇ α΄€α΄„α΄„α΄‡α΄˜α΄›α΄‡α΄… κœ°α΄Κ€ ᴑʜᴏ ᴑᴇ ᴀʀᴇ, α΄€Ι΄α΄… ᴛᴏ Κ™α΄‡ΚŸα΄Ι΄Ι’. α΄›Κœα΄‡Κ€α΄‡ Ιͺꜱ α΄€ΚŸκœ±α΄ α΄€ κœ±α΄›Κ€α΄Ι΄Ι’ κœ±α΄‡Ι΄κœ±α΄‡ ᴏꜰ κœ°α΄€α΄Ιͺʟʏ, ΚŸα΄Κα΄€ΚŸα΄›Κ α΄€Ι΄α΄… α΄Šα΄œκœ±α΄› Ι’α΄‡Ι΄α΄‡Κ€α΄€ΚŸΚŸΚ κœ±α΄›α΄€Ι΄α΄…ΙͺΙ΄Ι’ ᴜᴘ κœ°α΄Κ€ α΄‘Κœα΄€α΄› ʏᴏᴜ α΄›ΚœΙͺΙ΄α΄‹ Ιͺꜱ Κ€ΙͺΙ’Κœα΄› ᴑʜΙͺα΄„Κœ Ιͺꜱ α΄€ α΄˜Κ€α΄‡α΄›α΄›Κ α΄‹Ιͺα΄„α΄‹α΄€κœ±κœ± κœ°α΄‡α΄‡ΚŸ κœ°α΄Κ€ α΄€ α΄‹Ιͺα΄…κœ± ʙᴏᴏᴋ.

α΄›Κœα΄‡Κ€α΄‡ Ιͺꜱ κœ±α΄α΄α΄‡ α΄‘Ιͺα΄› α΄€Ι΄α΄… Κœα΄œα΄α΄α΄œΚ€ α΄›Κœα΄€α΄› α΄€α΄…α΄…κœ± ᴛᴏ α΄›Κœα΄‡ α΄α΄ α΄‡Κ€α΄€ΚŸΚŸ Κ™Κ€ΙͺʟʟΙͺᴀɴᴄᴇ α΄€Ι΄α΄… α΄‡Ι΄α΄Šα΄Κα΄α΄‡Ι΄α΄› ᴏꜰ α΄›Κœα΄‡ ʀᴇᴀᴅΙͺΙ΄Ι’ ᴇxα΄˜α΄‡Κ€Ιͺᴇɴᴄᴇ.

α΄€κœ± α΄€Ι΄ α΄€α΄…α΄œΚŸα΄› Ιͺα΄›κœ± ɒʀᴇᴀᴛ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇ ᴀᴑᴀᴋᴇɴ α΄›Κœα΄€α΄› α΄„ΚœΙͺΚŸα΄… ΙͺΙ΄ ᴜꜱ, α΄›Κœα΄‡ ᴏɴᴇ α΄›Κœα΄€α΄› α΄‹Ι΄α΄α΄‘κœ± α΄€Ι΄α΄… ꜰΙͺΙ΄α΄…κœ± α΄„α΄α΄κœ°α΄Κ€α΄› ΙͺΙ΄ α΄›Κœα΄‡κœ±α΄‡ α΄„ΚŸα΄€κœ±κœ±Ιͺα΄„ α΄›α΄€ΚŸα΄‡κœ±. α΄‘Κœα΄€α΄›’ꜱ ᴇᴠᴇɴ ʙᴇᴛᴛᴇʀ Ιͺꜱ α΄›Κœα΄€α΄› α΄„ΚœΚ€Ιͺꜱ Κœα΄€κœ± α΄„α΄‡ΚŸα΄‡Κ™Κ€α΄€α΄›α΄‡α΄… Κ™Κ€ΙͺʟʟΙͺα΄€Ι΄α΄›ΚŸΚ ᴏɴ α΄›Κœα΄‡κœ±α΄‡ α΄›α΄€ΚŸα΄‡κœ±, ꜱᴏ ʏᴏᴜ ᴍᴀʏ α΄›ΚœΙͺΙ΄α΄‹ ʏᴏᴜ ᴋɴᴏᴑ α΄›Κœα΄‡α΄ α΄‘α΄‡ΚŸΚŸ Κ™α΄œα΄› Κœα΄‡ α΄€α΄…α΄…κœ± ꜱᴏ ᴍᴀɴʏ ΚŸα΄€Κα΄‡Κ€κœ± ᴛᴏ α΄›Κœα΄‡α΄ α΄›Κœα΄€α΄› α΄Šα΄œκœ±α΄› α΄‹α΄‡α΄‡α΄˜ ʏᴏᴜ ʀᴇᴀᴅΙͺΙ΄Ι’ ᴏɴ ,α΄„Κœα΄€α΄˜α΄›α΄‡Κ€ α΄€κœ°α΄›α΄‡Κ€ α΄„Κœα΄€α΄˜α΄›α΄‡Κ€.

Ιͺ α΄Κκœ±α΄‡ΚŸκœ° ᴀᴍ α΄‡Ι΄α΄Šα΄ΚΙͺΙ΄Ι’ α΄›Κœα΄‡κœ±α΄‡ Κ™α΄α΄α΄‹κœ±, α΄›Κœα΄‡Κ ᴀʀᴇ α΄€ ɒʀᴇᴀᴛ α΄„α΄α΄κœ°α΄Κ€α΄› ʀᴇᴀᴅ, α΄€Ι΄α΄… ᴇxα΄„Ιͺα΄›ΙͺΙ΄Ι’ ᴛᴏ ʙᴏᴏᴛ, ᴑʜΙͺα΄„Κœ Ιͺꜱ Ιͺα΄…α΄‡α΄€ΚŸ ΙͺΙ΄ κœ±α΄œα΄„Κœ α΄€ κœ±α΄›Κ€α΄€Ι΄Ι’α΄‡ α΄€Ι΄α΄… α΄œΙ΄α΄˜Κ€α΄‡α΄…Ιͺα΄„α΄›α΄€Κ™ΚŸα΄‡ α΄›Ιͺᴍᴇ.

Ιͺ α΄›ΚœΙͺΙ΄α΄‹ α΄›Κœα΄‡ Κœα΄€Κ€Κ€Κ α΄˜α΄α΄›α΄›α΄‡Κ€ ΚŸα΄α΄ α΄‡Κ€ ΙͺΙ΄ ᴍᴇ Κœα΄‡ΚŸα΄˜κœ± ᴛᴏ ᴍᴀᴋᴇ α΄›Κœα΄‡κœ±α΄‡ κœ±α΄œα΄„Κœ α΄€ ꜰᴜɴ ʀᴇᴀᴅ.

α΄›Κœα΄‡Κ€α΄‡ ᴀʀᴇ ꜱΙͺx Κ™α΄α΄α΄‹κœ± ΙͺΙ΄ α΄›Κœα΄‡ κœ±α΄‡Κ€Ιͺα΄‡κœ± κœ±α΄›α΄€Κ€α΄›ΙͺΙ΄Ι’ α΄‘Ιͺα΄›Κœ ‘α΄›Κœα΄‡ ΚŸα΄€Ι΄α΄… ᴏꜰ κœ±α΄›α΄Κ€Ιͺα΄‡κœ±: α΄›Κœα΄‡ α΄‘ΙͺꜱʜΙͺΙ΄Ι’ κœ±α΄˜α΄‡ΚŸΚŸ’.

α΄›Κœα΄‡ α΄€α΄œα΄›Κœα΄Κ€, α΄„ΚœΚ€Ιͺꜱ α΄„α΄ΚŸκœ°α΄‡Κ€ Κœα΄€κœ± ᴑᴏɴ ᴍᴀɴʏ α΄€α΄‘α΄€Κ€α΄…κœ± κœ°α΄Κ€ ʜΙͺꜱ ᴑᴏʀᴋ α΄€Ι΄α΄… Ιͺꜱ α΄€ Κ™α΄‡κœ±α΄›κœ±α΄‡ΚŸΚŸΙͺΙ΄Ι’ α΄€α΄œα΄›Κœα΄Κ€ α΄›Κœα΄€Ι΄α΄‹κœ± ᴛᴏ α΄›Κœα΄‡ κœ±α΄œα΄„α΄„α΄‡κœ±κœ± ᴏꜰ α΄›ΚœΙͺꜱ α΄‘α΄Ι΄α΄…α΄‡Κ€κœ°α΄œΚŸ ʙᴏᴏᴋ κœ±α΄‡Κ€Ιͺα΄‡κœ±.

ꜱᴏ, α΄‘Κœα΄‡α΄›Κœα΄‡Κ€ Κα΄α΄œΚ€ 8 ᴏʀ 88 ᴑʜʏ ɴᴏᴛ ΚŸα΄‡α΄› Κα΄α΄œΚ€κœ±α΄‡ΚŸκœ° α΄‡κœ±α΄„α΄€α΄˜α΄‡ α΄€Ι΄α΄… α΄‡α΄α΄‡Κ€κœ±α΄‡ Κα΄α΄œΚ€κœ±α΄‡ΚŸκœ° ΙͺΙ΄ κœ±α΄α΄α΄‡ ᴍᴀɒΙͺα΄„.

ᴍʏ α΄α΄ α΄‡Κ€α΄€ΚŸΚŸ Κ€α΄€α΄›ΙͺΙ΄Ι’ κœ°α΄Κ€ α΄›Κœα΄‡ κœ±α΄‡Κ€Ιͺα΄‡κœ±: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (5/5)

100% α΄‘α΄α΄œΚŸα΄… ʀᴇᴄᴏᴍᴍᴇɴᴅ

I cannot wait to read these stories to my nephews/niece & any future children I may have because they are just brilliant.

Have you read them? What do you think?

Until next time,

Roseanne πŸ™‚

by Categories: books, harry potter, LifeTags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

My 2020 Reading Challenge: The Second Quarter πŸ“š

Sorry guys, this is a bit late… but I thought I would still post it as I want to keep up with the quarterly posts.
I’ve been a lot busier since I started back at work.

April/May/June

So, that bloody pandemic is still happening… I am however back at work and have been for two and a half weeks. It is definatly nice to have a bit more normality. My work schedule isnt 100% back to what it usually is so I’m trying to make sure I still use this extra time to get through all my new books that I bought for the COVID-19 outbreak.

Lets have a look at what I have read during this next quarter… we’re halfway through the year already, madness.

Books I have read:

The Flat Share by Beth O’Leary

The Secret Seaside Escape by Heidi Swain

The Switch by Beth O’Leary

The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by JK Rowling (3/4, but I’ll leave it on the list as its a biggun’)

The Land of Stories: The Enchantress Returns by Chris Colfer

Heidi Swain is one of my favourite authors so I was so excited to have this book in my second quarter. I had pre ordered it so that was a very welcome arrival.

As you can see I have also been enjoying Beth O’Leary’s books this quarter. I started with ‘The Switch’ as I have seen lots of recommendations on Instagram and then my friend at work read it and suggested it too. I really enjoyed it and consequently bought her second book, which I enjoyed even more.

‘The Family Upstairs’ I found really gripping. I literally couldn’t put it down by the end, its funny how some books grip you like that! I had this book at the beginning of lockdown so I can’t believe its taken me this long to get around to it.

I have even more books planned for the third instalment, so check back to see what I’ve been reading.

Or, check out my Insta ‘RoseannesBlog’ as I post regularly on there too.

Until Next Time,

Roseanne πŸ™‚

by Categories: books, Life, UncategorizedTags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

The Body Shop Skincare πŸ§–πŸΌβ€β™€οΈ

Something that I’ve wanted to address this year is my skincare.

I haven’t been very good at keeping on top of it, especially during the last half of 2019! But, I have finally got around to rectifying that.

I popped into The Body Shop as I have heard really good things about their skincare, I’m a big fan of the brand anyway, so I thought I would give them a try.

My skin has been quite dry recently so I was looking for something to add moisture, I was instantly drawn to their Vitamin E range.

With a bit of help (& thanks to a well timed 3 for 2 deal) I grabbed some bits from this and their Drops of Youth ranges.

Let’s take a look…

These are the two staples that I was looking for, a cream cleanser and a toner. Having these, at least, is a good shot at skincare (& your usual moisturiser of course)

As I said, I went for the Vitamin E range as this is great for adding moisture to your skin. Especially at this time of year, my skin is in much need of it.

I love that freshly cleansed feel with the added refreshment of a cold toner. It’s such a good feeling at the start of a new day and at the end of a long one!

& knowing you are adding moisture and comfort to your skin is great.

That’s why I also picked this up from that range…

This is their Vitamin E ‘Sink-in moisture sleeping mask’

This gives you an intense hydration boost to your skin, at night, which is when your skin needs that moisture and can take it in really well.

I must mention that this range is good for all skin types which is great πŸ‘πŸ»

From their ‘Drops of youth’s’ range I picked up…

The ‘Youth liquid peel’ & ‘Youth Eye concentrate’.

The peel is very satisfying, as soon as you rub it onto your skin it starts to peel away the dead skin. It leaves your skin feeling super fresh.

The eye concentrate has a metal rollerball applicator which is so refreshing for under/around the eyes. It’s great if you wake up with puffy/sore eyes in the morning.

The final item that I got, as a little extra, since it was 3 for 2 (be rude not to) was their Himalayan charcoal purifying clay wash.

This is a lovely face wash that cleanses and purifies your skin. It also unclogs pores.

It leaves your skin feeling really clear, bright and much smoother.

This is a nice treat, to use every now and then, alongside the other products I picked up.

I am really enjoying using all of these products so far and I’m hoping my skin will thank me for it too… my skin is already feeling softer and my pores smoother.

Have you used any of these products?

What do you think?

Until next time,

Roseanne πŸ™‚

by Categories: beauty, Life, skincare, UncategorizedTags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

My reading challenge: June!

June is here!

The 6th month of the year is here, halfway!! That’s insane.

So, I have reached the halfway point of my reading challenge too and I’m super happy that I’ve made it this far and am managing to keep it up, and still enjoying it too, which is a bonus!

In May I read…

  • Summer at the Little Duck Pond cafe By Rosie Green β˜†β˜†β˜†β˜†
  • Tell me I’m wrong By Adam Croft β˜†β˜†β˜†

So, what am I going to read this month?

Poppys recipe for life by Heidi Swain

‘Things haven’t always been straightforward in Poppy’s life but her dreams are finally within her reach.

She’s moving into a cottage in beautiful Nightingale Square, close to the local community garden, where she can indulge her passion for making preserves and pickles. She may not have the best relationship with her family but she is surrounded by loving friends, and feels sure that even her grumpy new neighbour, Jacob, has more to him than his steely exterior belies.

But the unexpected arrival of Poppy’s troubled younger brother soon threatens her new-found happiness and as the garden team works together to win community space of the year, Poppy must decide where her priorities lie and what she is prepared to fight for … ‘

I love Heidi Swains books and she is definitely one of my favourite authors.

I love how all her books are stand alone but that the characters from the other stories pop up in them.

They are a lovely read and I always want to read her new ones straight away, anticipating their release for weeks. This book only came out on June 1st so I’m excited to have this to read this month.

&

The house across the street By Lesley Pearse

‘Is there a murder across the street?

Its 1964 and twenty-three year old Katy Speed is fascinated by Gliria and the goings-on at the house over the road.

Who are the mysterious women arriving in a black car most Saturdays?

Then one night, Gloria’s house burns to the ground. In the wreckage, bodies are found.

And Katy’s horror turns to disbelief when her father is arrested and charged with murder.

Determined to prove his innocence Katy sets out to uncover the truth about the mysterious house across the street. But that means uncovering the real murderer and risking her own life…’

My husband chose me this one for my birthday, because, in his words ‘your nosey and you like a good mystery’ πŸ˜‚πŸ€”

I have really got into this one so far and I like how it’s set in the 60s, all the other mysteries and thrillers I read are usually set in modern times so it’s really interesting.

Two very different books again for this months challenge!

Happy reading! πŸ“š

Let me know what books you are loving at the moment 😊

Until next time,

Roseanne πŸ™‚

by Categories: books, Life, UncategorizedTags: , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment