Let's go to the beach, beach...

Wow, how is it halfway through September already? And I've yet to post on the blog this month… How neglectful! 

I've got a good excuse for being AWOL though. I was on my jollies! 

I went to Paris (more on that at a later date) and then headed to Cornwall for my auntie and uncle's 25th wedding anniversary. As I was there only bridesmaid I obviously had to be there... 

Yep, this was us. 25 years ago. Awwww. 

So 12 of us plus three dogs set off and home for a week was this lush place with even lusher views. 

It got the seal of approval from Chance and Charlie.

So what did we do all week? 

Got excited when we saw the beach 

Drank cider (when in Rome and all that. Or Cornwall in this case...)

Had cream tea on the beach. A little sand mixed with the jam makes it taste all that much better 

Went for walks 

And chilled out 

Travelled to Lands End

Surfed in the sea that was surprisingly warm 

And surfed on the, er, sand too...

Ate cakes from Rick Stein's bakery (Who knew passionfruit cake would be so delish?)

Caught a fish 

Be a little too happy about catching the fish

Cooked the fish 

Toasted marshmallows on the campfire 

Burning them adds to the flavour. Apparently. 

Oh, and a campfire wouldn't be a campfire without a little 'Kum Ba Yah' on the guitar and tambourine would it? (Or Adele in this case…)

Oh, and a campfire wouldn't be a campfire without a little 'Kum Ba Yah' on the guitar and tambourine would it? (Or Adele in this case…)

And the perfect end to a perfect holiday? Make a wish and set off Chinese sky lanterns…. Sorry there is no picture of this nice moment. Unfortunately it was VERY windy and no one thought that maybe it wouldn't be such a good idea to set them off meaning they rose up and then came back down almost setting us AND the house on fire. Not ideal but it made for a very funny end of the trip…

So thanks for having us Cornwall. You were a beaut. See you very soon. 

Holiday Reading

So if you read my last post, you'll know that last week I was on holiday (if you haven't read it, read it here).

As well as sunbathing, swimming, sleeping, eating and drinking another important ingredient of a fabulous holiday is to read as many good books as possible by the pool. 

I managed to read four and was just going to post about just one of the books I read but I really enjoyed all of them so struggled to pick… So you're getting the down low on all four! 

First up…

Sea Sisters by Lucy Clarke

I've been excited to read this ever since my good friend Emily over at Emily in Wonderland raved about it. And it didn't disappoint. 

I started it on the train to the airport and by the time I touched down in Portugal I'd finished, it was that good. 

The book is based round sisters, Katie and Mia. Katie finds out that her sister has killed herself while travelling round Bali - but she can't accept that her free-spirited sister would do that. 

Katie decides to work out what was going through her sister's mind when she died so she follows Mia's exact movements of her travels by reading her travel journal. But will she get the answers she wants? And will she like what she finds….? 

Fab book and as I've travelled to most of the places Mia and Katie went too, it made me want to dig out my backpack and head off! 

The Sleeper by Emily Barr

I love all Emily Barr books and The Sleeper certainly didn't disappoint. With the tag line: Two strangers meet on a train. Only one gets off… you know it's going to be good. 

It was gripping from the start as we're introduced to Lara who is bored of her husband and life in Cornwall. So when a job comes up in London she jumps at it, promising husband Sam she will take the sleeper train back each Friday night. 

On the sleeper train, Lara makes news friends including an handsome man who soon becomes her lover. But Lara is hiding a dark secret. And things aren't going to end well…

Revenge Wears Prada by Lauren Weisberger 

I'll be honest, I wasn't expecting much from this at all so I was pleasantly surprised to find I really enjoyed it!

Set 10 years on from The Devil Wears Prada, Andy Sachs and her former nemesis Emily are now running their own high-end bridal magazine, The Plunge. Now their own bosses, life is much better and happier without Miranda Priestly in their lives. 

But just when everything is going well, the devil is back to stir things up… 

The Silver Linings Playbook by Matthew Quick 

A couple of weeks ago I read Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick (review to come soon!) and loved it so much I was desperate to read more from him. 

I'd heard of The Silver Linings Playbook because it had been turned into a film, but as you from this post here I hate any TV show/film that has been adapted from a book because it is just never as good! 

I read this super fast as I was desperate to discuss it with my holiday mates Stephen, Sarah and Kayley who had all seen the film....

So, our main character in this is Pat. Pat is living back at home with his parents after being released from a mental health institution. He is waiting patiently for 'apart time' to end so he can be reunited with his wife Nikki. 

Pat feels like he is starring in a film of his own life, one where he is waiting for his happy ending, the silver lining of his cloud, which is to get back with Nikki. 

But during apart time, Pat meets Tiffany, another troubled soul, who helps him to deal with his metal health issues and create his own silver lining…

This book is utterly brilliant and made me really smile at the sad but nice ending. 

From talking with the holiday buddies though, straight away I realised that the film is slightly different. Why do they do that?!

Matthew Quick has easily become one of my favourite authors. I can't recommend his work highly enough.

So that's my holiday reading! Some great reads! Have you read any of the above? Or will you be taking any on your holiday?