My July 2024 recent reads

July has, so far, been an excellent reading month for me - and long may it continue! We had a holiday, and we've had rubbish weather at home, sot here's been plenty of downtime. With that being said, here are 13 of my recent reads and what I thought of them...

The Funny Thing About Love by Tom Ellen

I'm trying to get through all the ARCs I requested on NetGalley, and this was one of them - I read it on Saturday in between tattoo and laser hair removal appointments (busy day) and I loved it. A really sweet, funny, clean romance story with a well-developed plot. Set in the writer's room at a comedy TV show, it features two interns who should be enemies but can't quite make that happen... It also touches on some fairly important topics, but in a light way, and I'd definitely recommend. Order it here

Wondering what a Netgalley ARC is? Read this blog post which explains a bit more about getting free books to review...

Sand, Sea and Second Chances by Catherine Michaels

Now I'm normally more into spicy romances, but a few of my recent ARCs have been more 'closed door' like this one - set on gorgeous Gull Island, it features the beach and an aquarium and a plot to save a local area of natural beauty, and a sort-of enemies to definitely lovers plot. It's a very sweet read and I flew through it, so if you want a bit of sunshine and romance in your life I'd highly recommend! Get it here

The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman

So I finally read it - or rather, listened as an audio book. I'm genuinely not sure if I enjoyed it or not, as I found the audiobook version quite difficult to get into, but the storyline is great and I think the characters are a lot of fun. Will I read the other instalments in the series? I'm not sure, but I'll definitely watch the TV show when it comes out... Buy it here

Not Exactly a Small Town Romance by JJ Knight

A bit spicier than the other romance ARCs on this list, I really enjoyed this friends-to-lovers story - it features a road trip, hitting small towns across America, and the characters work in film casting which was fun to read about. Another easy romance road, and another recommendation from me. Grab it on Amazon

The Night We Lost Him by Laura Dave

I thought this Netgalley ARC was going to be thriller, but it's not really; it's more of a tale of grief and heartache, and of getting to the bottom of a mystery that doesn't want to be solved. It's full of family secrets and beautiful hotels, relationship drama and vivid memories. I definitely thought I knew where it was going, until I absolutely didn't... well worth a read! Pre-order here

Playing the Field by Becky Ward

I really enjoy a sports romance so I had high hopes for this, another Netgalley ARC. However, it definitely fell short for me - it's about a university student who sets up a new football team with her family, because the one they support is relocating. A premier league footballer appears at one of their training sessions, and they end up getting together. The premise had high hopes but being a football fan myself, none of it really seemed to fit and it was super unrealistic, which isn't typically my thing. It's still a fun book with a nice romance, I just didn't love it. Get it here

You May Now Kill the Bride by Kate Weston

I added this to my list of books to read before your wedding, and it was another audiobook choice for me - I loved the way it was read, and although all of the hens and bridesmaids blurred into one a bit, I thought the story was great. A woman dies at her hen party, which triggers a chain of events that nobody could see coming. Childhood friends, dark secrets, bridezillas... this book has it all, and it's one I'd recommend! Buy it here

The Abby George series by Anne Kemp

I had Rum Punch Regrets from this series sitting on my ARC list, and I finally read it on holiday - it was one of those that I didn't necessarily love in terms of writing style, but it finished on a bit of a cliffhanger so I needed the read the other two. Which I did. The first book is about Abby arriving in St Kitts to help fix up her sister's holiday home, which turns out to be a B&B, where she sparks an instant rivalry with the boy living in the pool house. There's cocktails, a damaged roof, and somewhere along the way friendships form. Book 2 is super short, featuring Abby back home in America packing up her live to make the island move permanent - while the third book is centred around a dramatic storm about to hit St Kitts. I'm waiting for book 4 to round things off, as Anne Kemp has a habit of ending things in the middle of something, and the books are generally pretty fun. Grab them on KU here

Elephant and Castle by Hannah Ledford

Travel writer Nora has moved to London to pursue her dream career, and she's absolutely NOT thinking about her rock god ex-boyfriend who lives here - until fate pushes them back together, of course. This is a nice, mostly closed-door romance about trying to pick up where you left off but ending up in a completely different direction while trying to juggle work and and ill parent on the other side of the world. I enjoyed this one and it was a nice easy read, too! Pick it up here

The Kilt Trip by Alexandra Kiley

An American travel consultant rocks up in cold Scotland to try and overhaul and a family-run business, and one member of the family in particular is NOT happy about it... a picturesque, slightly spicy, very hot enemies to lovers romance that ends beautifully? Inject it straight into my veins. I adored this book, with its exploration of the Scottish highlands, and it's one I really want to see made into a film. So so so good and if you're into romance, I'd definitely say to pick it up asap! Get it here

There will definitely be more books read in July, so keep your eyes peeled for part 2 if you like these quickfire book reviews...

AD | Novotel Poznan Malta review

Poznan is my favourite city in Poland and, I think, just my favourite city. It's colourful and gorgeous and so much fun, and so friendly, and not too big. We recently spent a week there, and we stayed at the Novotel Poznan Malta. So, what did we think?

Novotel Poznan Malta | location

First of all, the location of the Novotel Poznan Malta - it's near Lake Malta, as the name suggests, around a 5-10 minute walk from the water. This places it around a 15-20 minute tram ride from the old town, and around a half an hour drive from the airport. We got an uber to/from the airport, which was only around £7, and we each got a weekly tram ticket using the Jakdojade app. This cost us around £10 per person and was absolutely perfect, as we got the tram pretty much everywhere! The hotel has a large car park, if you're driving, and the tram stop is about a 3 minute walk from the hotel doors.

The location means it's out of the way of the city, more in nature, and has a real 'holiday' feel as opposed to 'city break' feel, if you know what I mean... there is a park, thermal baths, aqua park and more within walking distance, and you can hire bikes to get around if you want to.

The food & amenities

We had breakfast included in our stay, and every morning there was a large array of hot and cold buffet food from croissants to scrambled eggs to pasta salad to smoothies. Bread, cheese, cold cuts, coffee, cereal, juice, sausages, cheesecake, the whole shebang. We also ordered lunch and dinner a fair few times, especially when it was too hot to be going out anywhere, and we never had a bad meal at the Novotel Poznan Malta! Highlights included the Caesar salad, cheese burgers, pizza, and chocolate fondant dessert.

The bar was really well priced, given that it's a hotel, with pints of lager coming in at around £3.50 - bargain. The hotel has plenty of outdoor seating, and some indoor bar seating too, as well as sun loungers and hammocks around the small (but big enough and well supervised) swimming pool. I was SO glad to have a pool, as it got to around 33 degrees some days - jumping in was the perfect way to cool off. There is a volleyball court on site, too!

Novotel Poznan Malta is hot on sustainability; you can request no housekeeping in exchange for Accor rewards, and there is a cold filtered water machine on every floor so there's no need to buy bottled water. There's information about food waste to encourage you to only pick up what you'll actually eat from the buffet, and the hotel has their own veg/herb garden too! We were so impressed with this aspect, and definitely made the most of that cold water...

From the foosball table to the Xbox to the indoor & outdoor kids' play areas, there is plenty for little ones too. There weren't many kids there at the same time as us, but I can see it being a great place for a nice family holiday.

Our room at the Novotel Poznan Malta

We had a superior room, which was really spacious with a comfortable bed, separate toilet & bathroom, desk space, a TV, a wardrobe, a sofa and big windows. The one thing we missed was a mirror in the bedroom area, but it didn't matter too much. There was a coffee machine, plugs next to the bed, various lamps and lighting, and air con. It was a brilliantly sized, clean room with everything we needed for a chill week away in Poznan!

I'd definitely recommend a stay at the Novotel Poznan Malta if you're planning a summer trip to gorgeous Poznan - the staff can't do enough, the location is spot on, the food is incredible and the amenities are brilliant. 10/10 from us :)

8 books to get you in the mood for your wedding (maybe...)

As you may or may not know, I am currently planning my 2025 wedding - it's booked, we have a plan, and as yet there's not really that much else we can do until nearer the time. Or so I'm telling myself, anyway! So today I want to share a list of bride/wedding-related books for brides-to-be, in case you're also getting married and hoping to build a TBR for the run up to the big day...

You May Now Kill The Bride by Kate Weston

I've recently listened to this one as an audiobook, and it's very funny, very twisted, and very dramatic. A comedy thriller, if you will. It's a good lighthearted read if wedding stress is getting to you a bit!

The Secret Bridesmaid by Katy Birchall

I read this a couple of years ago, and really enjoyed it - a bridesmaid for hire, a diva bride, a career challenge and a handsome lord... another really fun read, but very sweet at times too.

The Bride Test by Helen Hoang

I've not read any Helen Hoang books, but I've heard good things - this is part of the Kiss Quotient series, featuring an arranged marriage set-up for autistic Khai and mixed race Esme. Will they be able to fall in love? Who knows, but it's an interesting concept!

Always the Bridesmaid by Lindsey Kelk

I've never actually read any Lindsey Kelk, but her books are super popular and I'm sure I have a copy of this somewhere that I'll be reading before my wedding. As far as I know, this one's about a perpetual bridesmaid who is always in the background, finally being thrust into centre stage...

Welcome to Your Life by Bethany Rutter

Kind of wedding-y? At least at the beginning - a plus-size bride calls off her wedding on the day and embarks on a journey of dating as a fat woman. It's such a gorgeous book!

The Wedding Crasher by Mia Sosa

This fake dating rom-com is right up my street, so I'm definitely adding it to my bridal TBR. Big romantic Solange crashes Dean's wedding because she doesn't believe it to be true love, and somehow they end up fake dating. Fun fun fun.

The Wedding Game by Meghan Quinn

As someone who is planning to DIY a lot of wedding decor and other bits & pieces, this one is definitely one I'm adding to my pre-wedding reading list; it features a TV show where couples compete for the title of DIY wedding expert, and (from the sound of it) some enemies to lovers action too...

Her Husband's Murder by Jaime Lynn Hendricks

I absolutely love a thriller, and I enjoyed this one where the groom (who nobody likes) dies AT the actual wedding. It's got good pace and it's well written, too.

Are you looking for the best books for a bride-to-be to read on the run up to your wedding? These ones are definitely worth adding to your list!

My May/June 2024 reads

2024 has not been a great reading year for me so far, in terms of volume - I definitely thought I'd have read more this year than I have so far. I've been quite poorly for a lot of May and June, with severe (and prolonged) sinusitis which has made it difficult to concentrate as I've been having terrible headaches and dizziness; this explains why I've not got through as many books as I'd hoped, but enough about that. Let's move onto the books I *have* read over the past 6 weeks or so and what I thought of them!

The Crew by J M Hewitt

I am such a water baby and I love anything set on a boat/ship, at a port and so on. This is a thriller about a girl who works on a fancy yacht, and she's coming back for a new season after the death of a colleague last summer. But who really was the girl who died, and what really happened? It's fast paced, set in gorgeous Greece, and full of characters who are very difficult to work out... I really enjoyed this one, and I think it's the sort of book that's a perfect sunbed read if you're into thrillers. Buy it here

Nobody Saw a Thing by Andrea Mara

I listened to this as an audio book, which is something I've been trying (and honestly, failing) to get into. I get too distracted and end up missing bits of the plot! Nevertheless, this is a great book and I can see why it's had so much praise lately. It follows a woman who is visiting London with her husband and two kids, to meet up with the husband's old friends, and her little girls get on the train before she does - and one of them doesn't come back. But it seems that nobody saw what happened, and the book tracks the day as they try to figure out what happened. Definitely worth a read - and I didn't see the twist coming... Buy it here

The Quit List by Katie Bailey

I've been getting SO into romance lately, and I adored The Quit List by Katie Bailey. Fed up of dates with awful men, our main character befriends the barman from her usual date night haunt and he attempts to coach her into finding the perfect man. I'm sure you know exactly how that ends! If you like friends to romance tropes and books set in nature, give it a go - I can't wait to read more from her. Buy it here

Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty

I know this is now a TV series and I definitely want to watch that as I've heard such good things, but I wanted to read it first and I've had this on my bookcase for years - I read it in a day, despite how chunky it is, when I was off work poorly. I thought it was brilliant, and it genuinely had me questioning ever single character as I flew threw it. It's a really interestingly written thriller about a parent who dies at a school event and the story behind it all, and I'd definitely recommend. Buy it here

My Mechanical Romance by Alexene Farol Follmuth

I love a bit of YA, and this one is great - it's about a girl who moves school and has to join the robotics club. She's smart enough but has no interest in it at first, and she really doesn't get on with the popular guy who seems to run the whole thing. But over time, she falls in love with both robotics AND the boy... Buy it here

The Second Husband by Louise Candlish

I borrowed this off my mum's bookcase because I was staying there for a night and I'd finished the book I'd taken with me - I've tried a Louise Candlish book before and DNF'd it as I didn't like it, and honestly I'm not sure if I enjoyed this one either. I was definitely more intrigued by this one and I did finish it; it's a really dark story about a woman who remarries and goes on to find out something pretty gross about her new husband. I thought the ending was very rushed, and the characters were unremarkable. A bit 'meh' for me! Buy it here

The Bad Sister by J A Corrigan

The final book of this round up was absolutely crazy; it's about three sisters who grew up in a big house marred with tragedy, and now as adults they're all trying to escape their past - which was absolutely awful, as it goes. With twists, turns, secrets, surprises, drama, death and so much more this is definitely a thriller that's not for the weak. Buy it here

A Girl Can Dream by Emily Barr

This is my second Emily Barr read and I absolutely LOVED it; I read it on the way back from our recent trip to York, and just devoured it. Hazel wakes up in Venice with no memory of getting there, and we follow her trip as she jumps through time, loses her friends and so much more - this story is interspersed with throwbacks to her abusive relationship. The way Emily writes is enchanting, and the story is so clever and important, and I just definitely think everyone should read this. It's YA, though the topics are a bit more grown up, and it's simply beautiful. Buy it here

Let me know if you've read any of these books and what you thought of them...

AD | Making our house baby-friendly with Rex London

As you may or may not know, I'm an aunty - I have a niece and nephew, and of course I'm also Aunty Katy to some of my friends' kids which is lovely lovely lovely. But being childless (by choice) myself, I often find that our house just isn't particularly baby/kid-friendly. That's all about to change, though! I've got some bits and bobs from the wonderful team over at Rex London to share with you, so without further ado here's what I'm adding to our home to make it a bit more baby-friendly!

When my mum has my niece during the week, she sometimes brings her round - and let me tell you, this child LOVES her food. The issue is that we simply don't have any bowls, spoons and so on that are quite 100% suitable for babies. Luckily, Rex London stock some in really cute designs. I opted to pick up some bits from their Cookie the Cat range: a melamine bowl and spoon, as well as a beaker and snack pot. The pink is so lovely, and the cat design is adorable, and they're really good quality. I'm hoping she loves them when she tries them out. The four pieces come to £13.80 all in, which I don't think is a bad price at all for a little set she can use when she's here.

Alongside this, we were seriously lacking in the toy department; I have a few kids books, but she doesn't always want to be read to and prefers getting involved - but then again, I didn't want anything too garish! I picked out a gorgeous wooden puzzle featuring a tiger, elephant, crocodile and lion. Again it's fantastic quality and vibrant while remaining stylish, and puzzles are great for little hands. I know this is something she'll get some joy out of when she visits, and it's not too big meaning we can store it away nicely.

And of course, I couldn't leave my nephew out! He's a teenager now, but he still loves having fun with his favourite aunty. I got us a 'make your own spring motor-powered racing car' that we can do when he stays over, and I'm very excited to put this together. It's something a bit different to just watching a film, as we usually do, and it was under a tenner which I think is perfect. It would make a great gift idea if you have any kids' birthdays coming up. Along the same lines is a little Spy Eye - a secret agent-style spyglass that allows you to see around corners. It's a wonderful little addition to a present, especially if you're shopping on a budget as it's under £2!

Last but not least, I also got my hands on a make your own dog treats kit; I don't have a dog (yet...) but my niece and nephew do, as do my parents, so I think this would be another really fun activity to do with my nephew. It comes with five recipes and some cutters, as well as a storage bag, and they look really simple to make. I'm definitely looking forward to doing this together on a rainy day, which seem to be all too frequent right now.

Rex London are fantastic for cute kids products and homeware - they stock everything from toys to cutlery and fridge magnets to bamboo toothbrushes. Everything is fantastic quality, and really stylish - nothing is cheap/tacky looking, and if you're looking for kid-friendly additions to your home that won't disrupt your vibe then it's definitely worth a look!