Firstly, I want to apologise I had a pretty epic Monday Motivation post ahead of Ange Ball half penned and I never got around to finishing and publishing it.
Yesterday I was running on tired and was on training. I had a relatively early finish so today I’m back.
Last: The Mysterious Affair at Styles By Agatha Christie is the beginning of Poirot.
My thoughts on this will hopefully be up tomorrow so watch this space.
Now: (audiobook)The Rabbit Hutch By Tessa Gunty
I am enjoying this but it’s a hard listen that’s taken me longer than I would have expected. I also have no clue how I will review this. I’m around 48% in.
Next: I’m toying with another Agatha Christie or potentially this….
Plus I have a whole host of audiobooks to dive into after my current one.
I don’t know what I did to get a Saturday off with no Tottenham but we move.
Yay so I’m back with the updates but what do I have to tell you this week.
On Monday I almost gave into every excuse and didn’t run and I’m so glad I did run. At the end I felt exhausted but in the best of ways and I had some improvements, annoyingly that’s my only run of this week. I set my alarm for park run but I woke exhausted and aching so turned it off. The weather has been all over the place today.
On Tuesday after work I headed to Wembley for England 🏴 V Italy 🇮🇹 in our qualifying game and what a night it was.
Wembley way never gets old. High up but what a night….I will never tire of screaming for Harry. I honestly thought I ruined my wind pipe…
Qualification was achieved – singing Three Lions during Half Time gave me all the feels and then singing Sweet Caroline at the end once we were qualified was magic. Now roll on getting tickets for Germany.
Thursday saw a crazy work day so I embraced a little calm before the storm descended and it was glorious. I am loving this book and I’ve almost finished it but I’ve been headachey all morning so haven’t managed any pages yet today. Fingers crossed I can get some in before the day is out.
So what’s been on the blog? It wasn’t a full week but I did post a few updates this week.
First up was my thoughts on The Secret Adversary By Agatha Christie and you can read that here.
My thoughts on Colleen Hoovers It Starts with Us that you can read here.
I posted another Midweek Reading Roundup and you can read that here.
Firstly, I must apologise as it’s been a while once again. You can read my last post here.
This week I’m back and I’m more determined to keep the blog consistent. It helps that I’m loving my books at the moment too.
So let’s see what I’ve read and what I’m reading right now.
Last: The Secret Adversary: A Tommy and Tuppence novel By Agatha Christie
Now following reading Marple a collection of short stories by authors who love Agatha Christie. I wanted to delve into her world so I enlisted in the help from Michael at Bert’s books and this was my first read. I loved Tommy and Tuppence the intrigue, the mystery and the slapstick humour you can read my thoughts here.
Now: The Rabbit Hutch By Tess Gaunty (audiobook)
This is an intriguing one that’s taking me some time to listen to.
Now: The Mysterious Affair At Styles By Agatha Christie
I’m around 100 pages in and I’m intrigued and hooked within equal measure. The copy I have has two endings as one was unearthed in a notebook and has been added I look forward to reading both and casting my thoughts.
As you will have noticed I haven’t penned a TBR for October I’ve kind of been moody reading so far.
Next: Question do I continue the mood reading or actually make a choice???
Blurb: Lily and her ex-husband, Ryle, have just settled into a civil co-parenting rhythm when she suddenly bumps into her first love, Atlas, again. After nearly two years separated, she is elated that for once, time is on their side, and she immediately says yes when Atlas asks her on a date.
But her excitement is quickly hampered by the knowledge that, though they are no longer married, Ryle is still very much a part of her life—and Atlas Corrigan is the one man he will hate being in his ex-wife and daughter’s life.
Review: Firstly, I wish I had instantly penned my thoughts on this one like I did for It Ends With Us. It’s funny to think I had a copy of this one before I had a copy of the first instalment naturally I read them in order. Although I didn’t read it straight after, which I initially thought I would have done. It Starts With Us has had a lot of negative talk, in terms of reviews, TikTok vids and just general chatter. Which I found quite strange considering this book was made for the fans of the first book.
Don’t get me wrong It Ends with Us is a strange and intoxicating read. I was mesmerised from the off but it also had a darker and more triggering element to it. But I was wholeheartedly captivated by the story, although in parts I was conflicted for a number of reasons. In learning that It Starts With Us, starts from where the first book ended yet focuses on the reconciliation with Atlas I was here for it. I loved Atlas’s character and was glad we got to delve into him some more. He had such an intense friendship with Lily but also had his own personal struggles. Seeing how he’s come from having nothing but relying on kindness and hard graft to owning two businesses was empowering to say the least.
What I loved most about this book was how Colleen was true to life. People who have came from nothing or simultaneously people who have suffered abuse will always have an aspect of worry and trauma. I feel that Colleen has touched this aspect perfectly. Lily wants to be a good mother but in doing so she has contact with her abuser. She’s often thinking of the good times like any person would but ultimately she has to do what’s right for her daughter. In real life this would be a reality and she has embraced this threefold, and how this effects her day to day life and in how she moves on in life.
I know so many people hated this book but I loved it. Atlas and Lily were exactly what I needed I also loved all the additional characters. A story that’s got sadness and abuse at the heart of it, but ultimately a love story that spans the ages. Lily and Atlas are the cutest and I absolutely loved the diary entries.
Blurb: Tommy and Tuppence, two young people flat broke and out of work, are restless for excitement. They embark on a daring business scheme – Young Adventurers Ltd – willing to do anything, go anywhere. Their first assignment, for the sinister Mr Whittington, draws them into a diabolical political conspiracy, and they find themselves plunged into more danger than they ever imagined….
Review: Being a bookworm has always been a part of me. As a child I was captivated by Enid Blyton and the famous five. As I’ve grown my reading habits have changed but remained a huge part of who I am. Over the years I’ve seen Marple and Poirot on the TV but I had never been compelled to read these classics. That was until I stumbled upon Marple a collection of short stories by authors I love and once I had wished to read. The stories intrigued and captivated me and that compelled me to look into the wordsmiths work. Having decided I wanted to read Agatha Christie I went to my favourite independent bookshop and enlisted the help from Michael at Bert’s Books. In doing so my subscription was set up and I let the Christie fan choose what order to send me the books.
Starting with Tommy and Tuppence seems apt now, I had started reading and then got distracted. So I restarted the tale and instantly fell in love with the slapstick humour, the mystery and the intrigue. The Young Adventurers had barely started their tale and I knew I was rooting for them. The banter between them had me hooked. I honesty cannot describe the feelings this novel instilled but I must say I was taken on a rollercoaster ride and had no clue as to who was the villain.
When I say the story took so many twists and turns I’m being wholly truthful. Every single time I thought they were on the right track or when I thought we had the villain bam there would be another turn. This story kept me mesmerised from start to finish and was a nice introduction to the queen of mystery. I love that this is just the start of this couple and I look forward to what other adventures they take me on. I know when a Tommy and Tuppence novel hits my letterbox I’ll be itching to dive in once again.
It’s been a while since I’ve penned an update and I can only apologise for that. You can read my last offering here.
The last few weeks I probably had loads to say but I’ve also had a few days where I’ve been shattered or felt off. Today I’m feeling a bit ropey on Thursday I had a few jabs before work and yesterday I felt off and then headed to Wembley to cheer on the Three Lions in our friendly against Australia. It’s safe to say I got rather wet last night and the temperatures sure did dip.
I’ve been back reading and listening to books which has been great.
I’m listening to this it’s intriguing to say the least. I should finish this today or tomorrow. I’m really enjoying the slapstick humour of this.
The blog has been lighter than I would like but I do have a number of reviews to pen. I’m also open to any suggestions on what you would like to see here on Hayley Reviews.
So there was my thoughts on I Meant it Once that you can read here.
I then penned my thoughts on Beckham that you can read here.
I was super organised but I guess that happens in life. I’m hoping to get back on track but so let me know if there is anything specific you would like from me. Potentially sharing a review tomorrow as have a few to write and I’m almost done with my Agatha Christie. I’m also hoping to feel a bit better and the running and classes will resume.
Hey all, I had hoped to have penned a midweek reading round up yesterday alongside my Beckham post but it wasn’t to be.
I’ve had a weird start to the month in terms of my reading but I’m hopeful that I’ll start completing some reads and adding to that GoodReads total which is still kind of impressive considering.
Last year I only read 25 books in the entire year. So I am already really chuffed by my numbers with some months loads better than others.
This week I stopped listening to an audiobook by an author I love as I just wasn’t getting it. I’m not sure if it’s the sort of story that needs to physically be read but I was lost, I tried for a bit and then decided enough was enough.
I love the shadowhunters so was looking forward to being back in that realm. I’m back fully immersed in this beauty, I’m well over the half way mark so we’ll see how much reading I can get done before I start work later.
In terms of audio I’ve started listening to this beauty. I’m not entirely sure how to describe it per se but it’s intriguing to say the least.
My question is as it’s almost the middle of the month would we still like to see an October TBR or just see where I’m at when the month ends and go fresh into November.
So much has been said about David Beckham over the years. Wrongly or rightly? But can we sit here and appreciate what a gifted footballer he was, watching back some of his epic moments in Beckham was simply breathtaking – I’m fully Spurs but as an England fan he was always magic to watch. Those runs, those corners, those free kicks and dare I say those goals.
Rewatching that Columbia goal gave me all the feels once again..
I’m not sure why now is the right time for Beckham the documentary but I binged the first 3 eps of the 4 quite quickly. I will also admit there were a lot of tears.
I do remember him being spellbinding to watch but I don’t remember all the little things. Thinking back I was a kid during his heyday granted watching that Columbia goal again still gives me goosebumps.
Looking at now and players like Dele and Richarlison suffering with their mental health and looking at just how bad the abuse was to David Beckham. Honestly I love the beautiful game but that level of abuse is never acceptable. It’s also made me question if the FA could do more to help footballers.
Whether you like or loathe Alex Ferguson – Beckham showcased what a power of strength his manager was for him in a time so heartbreaking.
Don’t just take my word for it watch Beckham streaming now on Netflix.
Blurb: With this sharp and witty debut collection, author Kate Doyle captures precisely that time of life when so many young women are caught in between, pre-occupied by nostalgia for past relationships – with friends, roommates, siblings – while trying to move forward into an uncertain future. In “That Is Shocking,” a college student relates a darkly funny story of romantic humiliation, one that skirts the parallel story of a friend she betrayed. In others, young women long for friends who have moved away, or moved on. In “Cinnamon Baseball Coyote” and other linked stories about siblings Helen, Evan, and Grace, their years of inside jokes and brutal tensions simmer over as the three spend a holiday season in an amusing whirl of rivalry and mutual attachment, and a generational gulf widens between them and their parents. Throughout, in stories both lyrical and haunting, young women search for ways to break free from the expectations of others and find a way to be in the world.
Written with crystalline prose and sly humour, the stories in I Meant It Once build to complete a profoundly recognizable portrait of early adulthood and the ways in which seemingly incidental moments can come to define the stories we tell ourselves. For fans of Elif Batuman, Ottessa Moshfegh, Patricia Lockwood, and Melissa Bank, these stories about being young and adrift in today’s world go down easy and pack a big punch.
Review: Firstly, I want to thank Netgalley for giving me the chance to read these short stories. I’ve always been a fan of shorts and this just proved it’s been a while since I’ve read any. Yet I should be doing so more regularly.
Kate Doyle’s debut collection is enlightening, some of these stories will make you feel seen and some will just claw out your heart. I thought it would have been a quicker read for me but alongside audiobooks and life it wasn’t but I really enjoyed each and every story. Some were so different and others the same….each addition leaving you feeling poignant and thoughtful in equal measure. As an older sibling I loved the stories based on family and how true to life that rivalry and bickering really is, even to this day in my 30s. We can easily revert back to our most childish selves when we’re together.
What struck me about these stories is how relatable they are..it will definitely have you thinking or reminiscing and in some ways understanding.
A collection full of thoughts and feelings and almost every single person will be effected by something in these tales. It’s made me realise how much I love delving into short stories and discovering new writers.
As always let’s look back at what I had hoped to read at the beginning of the month and how I faired. You can read that post here.
The last week or so of the month I had mental headaches and was wrecked so I didn’t get much reading or audio in. That did tarnish my final figures but I’m still pretty chuffed with how much I’ve read so far this year.
Two audiobooks and two physical books
Two I’ve already reviewed and two I’m still to pen my thoughts on.
HayleyReviews10 
You must be logged in to post a comment.