As I hit the two-thirds mark of The Tale of Genji, I realised that some of the characters here were echoing things that I saw on the Internet (especially about entitled people/dating) and for the first time, understood why The Tale of Genji has stood the test of time. Before this, I was just generally… Read More 3 Things in The Tale of Genji that still exist (infuriatingly)
Last year, I read Prosperity Without Growth by Tim Jackson, a book that felt like a very timely read. And although it’s been about a year since then, we’re still in an economic slowdown and the idea that we need to rethink our definitions of prosperity remains relevant. So when I was offered a review… Read More Book Review: Post Growth by Tim Jackson
I managed to read another book by a Golden Age Mystery author I’ve not read before! Honestly, I’m amazed that I didn’t look into this time period earlier, given that I was such a fan of Agatha Christie when I was younger. I’m not sure why I thought she was the only mystery writer worth… Read More Book Review: The Moving Toyshop by Edmund Crispin
So this review is so late that the product is no longer available (rendering the review useless) but I’m writing this in the hope that Bird & Blend Tea Co. will bring back their Tea 101 box. And also because I really, really want to talk about it. Last year, I made a pretty big… Read More I Tried Bird & Blend Tea Co.’s Tea 101 Box
I realised that I haven’t read any mysteries by Candace Robb recently, so I bought one of the Owen Archer mysteries! I’ve previously read The Apothecary Rose, which is the first book in the series, so while The Cross-Legged Knight was a bit of a leap forward (it’s the 8th book in the series), I… Read More Book Review: The Cross-Legged Knight by Candace Robb
So we all know that I like dark stories, especially dark stories with fairies in them (otherwise, I wouldn’t write dark fairytales). You Let Me In, with the promise of fairies that drink your blood, appealed to me instantly. The book definitely fulfilled the promise of dark fairies but I didn’t expect the abuse was… Read More Book Review: You Let Me In by Camilla Bruce
I was going to review the other Sara Tasker course that I bought, but a new season of The Insta Retreat just started and there are quite a few changes so I’m going to go through the course again (for at least one or two more weeks) before I review it. Instead, today I’ll be… Read More Course Review: Supercharge Your Story by FFS Media
So this was my book club’s latest pick! I don’t read much memoir, so I was excited to dive into this! The Cost of Living is what Levy calls a “living memoir”, capturing a period of time after her divorce. So the first thing to note (and this is something the whole book club agreed… Read More Book Review: The Cost of Living by Deborah Levy
Since I had the opportunity to try two new types of Benifuuki (ベニふうき/紅富貴/sometimes written Benifūki) tea, I thought it would be fun (and hopefully educational) to do a deep dive into this cultivar. What is the Benifuuki Cultivar? Developed by the National Institute of Vegetable and Tea Science (野菜茶業研究所), the Benifuuki cultivar is a cross… Read More UniversiTEA: A Deep Dive into the Benifuuki tea cultivar
So I’ve read my second Anthony Berkeley book (this time under his pen-name) and wow, he is proving to be one of the most innovative Golden Age Mystery writers that I’ve read! Trial and Error was about a man trying to prove himself guilty, and Before the Fact is a thriller from the perspective of… Read More Book Review: Before the Fact by Francis Iles [Spoilers]
