January Roundup: Monthly Favourites

 Hello Readers & Friends,

I can't believe we're one month into 2021 already. January came and went so quickly. It's been a horrible month. Dark, cold, and the UK still in complete lockdown. But with February at least brighter days seem around the corner. 

January Book Roundup:

I bumped my GoodReads target up to 100 for 2021 so I pushed myself and got through 9 books this month. I was a bit up and down, I read some which were disappointing (The Magpie Society) and some which were just bizarre and not for me (Bunny). But here we are: 

Shadow of Night by Deborah Harkness ****

The Secret Bridesmaid by Katy Birchall ****

The Ravens by Kass Morgan, Danielle Paige **/*

The Magpie Society by Zoe Sugg, Amy McCullock **/*

The Lost Storyteller by Amanda Block *****

Kingdom of the Wicked by Kerri Maniscalo ***

Foul is Fair by Hannah Capin ***

How The King of Elfhame Learned to Hate Stories by Holly Black ***
Bunny by Mona Awad **

FILM

 

Pride and Prejudice - Netflix

Okay I know this sounds wild but I've never read or seen Pride and Prejudice before, so I sat down and watched the film, the one with Kiera Knightly, and absolutely loved it! So now I have the Colin Firth TV series sat in my watch list as well, because I'm interested to see how it was adapted for a series. 

TV

Bridgerton - Netflix

Clearly I've been in the mood for period things, but I absolutely loved Bridgerton. And, to my GREATEST surprise, so did Steven. It was like a historical Gossip Girl, I loved the characters, particularly Daphne and Eloise, and am fascinated by how women were treated back in those days. 

And, of course, the Duke wasn't bad to watch either. I loved it and it made me want to wear corsets and ballgowns and I can't recommend enough, even if you don't think it's your thing. (It's not my usual thing, at all! And definitely not Steven's! So that's your proof if you're on the fence.) 

Books

I thought I'd take this blog post space to discuss Bunny by Mona Awad because it was so bizarre! I gave it 2 stars because I was just honestly so confused. It's described as a black satire about female friendships, and Heathers meets The Craft. I typically don't enjoy satires but this was especially strange. It basically follows four girls undergoing a Creative Writing MFA at Warren University who refer to each other as 'bunny'. They envelop introvert outsider, Samantha, into their weird clique which ends up involving cult-like behaviour and strange rituals involving animal sacrifices. The story takes several bizarre twists and turns, some parts I had to read twice because I was so confused about what was happening, and in a very Fight Club-esque way, you are never sure what is real and what isn't. The end was a whirlwind of revelations and complicated implications and honestly I didn't enjoy it even though I know many people have loved it. For me, I skim read a lot of it because the craziness of what was going on amidst what was otherwise a very realistic setting was really offputting for me, and by the end I was just thinking everything was happening in her head because it was just so far-fetched. I also didn't like any of the characters, so for me it fell flat there and meant I really didn't care where it went - not that I could have guessed anyway. So a weird one for me, I'd love to hear what you think!

Music

Renaissance Girl -Alybob

I spend quite a lot of time searching for musicians in random places like Youtube, Soundcloud etc. I love indie artists and supporting undiscovered gems, and I fell upon Alybob on TikTok and this song has been stuck in my head ever since I love the poetic lyrics. 

How are you feeling for 2021? 

Love, C x