Greetings, friends and enemies! I have been away for a while, but now I am back. Some stretching may be required, but bear with me. ‘Normal’ programming shall resume!
What did I get up to elsewhere? Let’s take a look…
Where Did You Go?
First up, I took a much anticipated trip to Inverness with a dear friend, to hang out with another dear friend and her absolute star of a partner who had offered to feed my Dungeons & Dragons fascination by DMing a one-shot game for us. Said game kicked off our four-day adventure in hilarious and awesome style, and after rolling THREE natural 20s I think it’s safe to say I have Favourite Dice now. Below are a few particularly awesome pics, including one of the collected dice I used in case that sort of nerdery is your bag. And if you should find yourself in that lovely corner of my world, I can thoroughly recommend the Rocpool restaurant. Best food I’ve tasted in a long damn time, people. (Word to the wise: reserve a table. It’s a lovely place, but small, and very popular! FOR GOOD REASON. So, yeah. Make a reservation. You’ll thank me.)
There was also a day trip to the Isle of Arran, which was a first-time experience for both Nikki (the visiting friend) and myself. It was entirely worth all the walking, and we only hit Brodick! I do believe there will be future return visits, equipped with Real Boots. In the meantime, here are a few glimpses of what we saw…
And if you’re wondering, yes I do have a food-related recommendation for you here too! Not a restaurant, and it requires a bit of a schlep, but the Arran Cheese Shop is entirely worth seeking out. Best cheddar that’s ever passed my lips, and I’ve eaten a lot of cheddar, people. It is legit. It is so, so good. So. Good. Oh, and you can order their goods online.
*Goes to nibble on some*
Yes, But What Did You Read?
Good question! I hit a bit of a reading slump in the first half of July, to my annoyance, but the time off helped me get over it, or at least find my groove again.
Read:
- Critical Role – Vox Machina: Origins, by Matthew Colville & Matthew Mercer, Art by Olivia Samson | Rating: 4/5
- Record of a Spaceborn Few, by Becky Chambers (Wayfarers #3) | Rating: 4/5 (Review coming soon)
- Dead Air Season 1, Episode 1: The Night of the Screaming Horses, by Gwenda Bond (Serial Box) | Rating: 4/5
- The Radical Element, edited by Jessica Spotswood (A Tyranny of Petticoats #2) | Rating: 4/5
All in all, a pretty solid recovery period! Here’s hoping I don’t backslide, but so far it’s looking good, what with my latest picks from the TBR/ARC pile…
Reading:
- In the Hand of the Goddess, by Tamora Pierce (The Song of the Lioness #2)
- Witchsign, by Den Patrick (Ashen Torment #1)
Aaaaand it wouldn’t be a holiday worth mentioning if I didn’t add some new curiosities to the shelves! Mixed in are a few gifts, because I have the best friends in the world.
Acquired:
- Mechanical Failure, by Joe Zieja (Epic Failure #1) – this one was a gift and has been recommended to me for forever by another friend, and honestly, I just love that series title. See also, the book’s tagline: “Please restart your warship.” This is totally next on the list, people.
- Kill The Farm Boy, by Delilah S. Dawson & Kevin Hearne – another gift, and it just sounds hilarious. Pun-derfully good. No, I will not apologise for that.
- The Emperor of All Things, by Paul Witcover – my loyalty to Tremontaine writers remains firm.
- Implanted, by Lauren C. Teffeau – another ARC from the good folks at Angry Robot to add to my ever-growing pile of AR review copies and this will be how they bury me. In all the awesome-sounding ARCs. I swear I’ll get through them! This one sounds especially intriguing, though, and it just got released so go and check it out!
… I think that’s it? Yeah, that just about covers it! Now I’ve got reviews to write, books to finish and some more physical recovering yet to do, so here’s where I sign off. Until next time, geeks!
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