After reading Two Years in the Forbidden City, I thought it was time to read about the woman who wrote the book, “Princess” Der Ling. Der Ling, who was also known as Elisabeth Antoinette White, was a fascinating woman. She claimed to be part of the Manchu ruling class, that she was fluent in multiple… Read More Book Review: Imperial Masquerade by Grant Hayter Menzies
I first heard about Der Ling when a friend mentioned that there was a Manchu “princess” who spoke English, Chinese/Manchu, and French. She was given the title “Princess” when she served as Lady-in-Waiting to Empress Dowager Cixi, and she also lived overseas for a significant period of time before and after entering the palace. Her… Read More Book Review: Two Years in the Forbidden Palace by Der Ling
To be very honest, this review is more for me than it is for anyone else, because Kyoto in Autumn was a time-limited afternoon tea and I went on the second last day so it’s pretty much over by now. But, I do love anything Japan-themed and after the disappointing afternoon tea from Pan Pacific,… Read More Afternoon Tea Review: Kyoto in Autumn @ Four Seasons
Thanks to years of media, winter and Christmas have become inextricably linked, even if you live in year-round summer. So when I saw Murder on a Winter’s Night, I thought: “this book would be perfect for the Christmas season.” Edited by Cecily Gayford, Murder on a Winter’s Night collects 10 crime stories from various classic… Read More Book Review: Murder on a Winter’s Night edited by Cecily Gayford
It’s December which means that I can play Christmas music for my whole commute and no one can say anything! And more excitingly, it’s time for another tea advent calendar! This year, I opted to get the tea advent from Fortnum & Mason. I think I’ve tried only one of their teas before this, so… Read More The Fes-TEA-ve Season: 2022 Fortnum & Mason Tea Advent Calender
After yesterday’s review of how social media and influencing could harm someone, I thought it would be interesting to review another book on influencers; this time looking at how influencing can harm others. This book is about Belle Gibson, the wellness influencer who was found to have faked a cancer diagnosis (meaning her story of… Read More Book Review: The Woman Who Fooled the World by Beau Donelly and Nick Toscano
I chanced upon this in the library and since I’m always slightly ambivalent about Instagram and other social media, I thought it would be interesting to read this and see what life is like for an “instafamous” person. The Accidental Influencer is the story of Bella, who creates a satirical wellness account “deliciouslystella” and achieves… Read More Book Review: The Accidental Influencer by Bella Younger
I high-key adore Christmas so I thought that it would be fun to come up with a list full of Christmas-themed books, based on the mood you might be in! I don’t think the post needs further introduction, so here it is! Mood: Stressed Is the impending holiday season stressing you out? Does your blood… Read More Christmas Themed Books for Various Moods
I’ve followed Claire for a while now because I find her enneagram approach to writing characters to be really helpful (I’ve had alignment sessions with her before as well); it focuses on the core desires and fears of a character and feels a bit more intuitive than deciding what a character’s MBTI is (or however… Read More Book Review: Reclaim Your Author Career by Claire Taylor
Friends, I have finally finished all the teas in the Renegade Tea Taster Set! One day, I’ll go back to that first post and update it with links to all the reviews but today, let’s dive into the last tea – Georgian Breakfast. I generally like black teas and I actually have a place in… Read More Tea Review: Georgian Breakfast by Renegade Tea
