Although my holidays have been pretty hectic, and I haven't read nearly as many books as I normally would on holiday, I thought I share my thoughts on those books that I have read.



Now I'm no book critic, and this post won't be an in depth analysis- just a couple of sentences (hopefully, as you may have noticed I do tend to waffle a little) with my general thoughts on a few of those well known and a few of those less well known books I've had a read of. I should also say, these books are no literary feats, over the summer holidays I like to read easy books, that don't need too much concentration and are simple to follow, since during term time I have to read those enormous text books that go into way too much detail and take forever to read. So if you're looking for the next Charles Dickens, or Jane Austen and the likes, then it is probably not best to look here!

First up, Jill Mansell, Thinking Of You. Last year I read one of Jill Mansell's earlier books, which was a funny and easy read. My church has a book case where books are 3 for £1, so when I saw another of her books, I thought why not. Thinking Of You is a somewhat predictable book, not only does the blurb give away the ending, it is fairly obvious of how the romance between the character's will turn out. Saying that, I enjoy Mansell's style of writing, it jumps from characters which can be confusing at times, and sometimes irrelevant, but it is still a book that you want to read till the end to make sure you're right in your predictions. I did feel at times it was a bit all over the shop with the story lines, but its a bit like Love Actually in that all the stories are linked together at the end.  I'd give it a 7/10.

Along the same lines, and another church bookcase purchase, Jill Mansell, Head Over Heals. This one I didn't like as much as the prior, the storyline being quite dubious and with a lot of strange things going on- for example the added story of the neighbour didn't add anything to the plot and had me skim reading those parts that she was in. I was also a little bit weirded out by the almost incest part of the story, which could have really been edited out. Again, you can tell from the off set how its going to end, but I still enjoyed the story enough to recommend it as one of the books that take a day to read and are good chick lit. Overall, I'd give it a 6/10.

The ever so popular and current John Green's The Fault In Our Stars, was another on my list. I wanted to read this before I went to see the film and its been on that list for the last year until I finally got a chance to sit down and read. And I finished it in a couple of hours. I'm quite the lover of books that concern death, as I feel these can be the most emotional and engaging books, and yes I was one of those who cried. But only a little. Okay, maybe a lot, but TFIOS is really a book that you can get attached to, and I became emotionally invested in the characters. Despite a couple of things with the plot that I didn't quite agree with- namely the Hazel Grace's favourite author and the car scene, but I found the film rectified this and I was okay with it again. I won't be able to keep my love and praise for this book short, which is why I'm going to stop now. A definite 9.5/10 from me.

 Sophie Kinsella, Remember Me? is a charity shop purchase. I absolutely love her books and own the majority of them, so this was one of the last ones I needed to read. She didn't let me down. I think of her as a beach read- another of those books to start and finish within a few hours. Yes they are simple and an easy plot, but they also make you want to read on. I do love a book with memory loss, as I am quite fascinated by the whole thing, and I feel like this book dealt with it in a funny yet almost believable manner. While still including the compulsory love interest that always makes me jealous. For this book, I'll say an 8/10.

Next up is another by Mr John Green; Looking For Alaska. This is one that I had heard absolutely no spoilers about before I read it, so when I saw it was structured as a countdown to "an event" and then the days after said event, I was immediately intrigued. I found I was unable to put this book down, I was desperate to find out what happens- and I may be silly by saying that I had absolutely no idea what was coming, so was shocked and emotional when I found out. Another heart wrencher by good ol' John, and one that I loved all the same as TFIOS. An 8.5/10 from me.

Lastly to round off this post, my favourite of my summer reads so far and one that I picked up from a small book shop on holiday- The Lovely Bones, Alice Seabold. Just like TFIOS I got totally involved in this book, I found my self on an emotional roller coaster, crying and laughing, and loving every word. I'd heard mixed reviews, but I just loved the whole concept of a young girl watching her loved ones deal and move on with her death. The reactions of the family are so believable, and it did really make me think about the after life. Sure the whole concept of the book is a bit shakey- but its really interesting to see characters from the point of view of the deceased, as well as her own mixed feelings of wanting to be missed and letting them move on. I enjoyed this book so much that I'm considering reading it again this summer just for the sake of it, and I also want to see the movie based on it to see how it has been interpreted. I couldn't recommend this book enough, by far one of the best books I've read in a while. A well deserved 10/10 from me. 


So that's some of my summer reads! I have been reading a few other books, and plan to read more over the next month, so let me know what you think and I may post another review. I feel like a mini book club! Please leave any suggestions of books that you think I might like in the comments, I'm always up for recommendations and trying out different styles and themes of books.

As always,
Love
Emily
xxx


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Today's post is written with a HUGE thank you to Katy, who is actually a really close friend of mine. She runs a beautiful blog, which I urge you all to check out if you haven't already- here. Katy has very kindly nominated me for a Liebster Award, which I absolutely love the concept of.

I've been reading up on a lot of the posts of others who have been nominated, and its great to get to know people, most of whom I wouldn't have heard of before without this award. So, in short, I was really excited when Katy nominated me- I can share more silly little facts about me, and can hopefully recommend other blogs that some of you may not have heard of.

The rules are pretty simple.

1. Thank/ link the blogger who nominated me. 
As above, but thank you Katy again!

2.Answer the 11 questions they have written for you. 
Here goes!

What would be the name of your alter-ego?

While I was on holiday with my family in Leominster, we took a day trip to the Rhayader Dams which are in Wales. My brother acted as a tour guide for us, telling us about the history of these truly stunning water stores. If you've ever watched "The Dam Busters", then you may recognise some of the photos that I have included in this post.



Not only are these dams famous for their beautiful scenery that surrounds them, but they also played a key part in World War 2. The British Air Force used the Rhayader Dams to practice bouncing bombs off of the water in order to cause an explosion off of the dams, thusly destroying a German town, which was the target of this attack. The film "The Dam Busters" is based on this event, but was filmed partly at the Rhayader Dams.When standing on these dams, it was amazing to think that such activities were occurring where we stood, around 70 years ago.



The dams are also incredible to view from standing on top of them, looking down I experienced a strong feeling of Vertigo, and must admit I didn't feel quite so safe on the view chamber that had been created. Hills surround them, making them feel very enclosed and peaceful, but you can imagine the sound that these incredible structures would make when they were actually turned on, and surprisingly a house was situated at the bottom of the largest one! Looking into the actual reservoir, you can't see even close to the bottom, the still water was so vast. Anthony told us of how for one of the dams, they flooded a whole village, and when the water level was very low, you can actually see the church spire and the tops of the taller buildings.


We also found a little chapel, just off the path to the first of the dams, which offered us a break from the sun and the walking- and also some music as it has an old pump organ, which my brother played as we explore the area.




It made for a lovely day out, we took the dog, a picnic and plenty of water and had a good ol' time exploring the hills and the wildlife around these spectacular features.




Much love,
Emily
xxx

I thought that I'd compose a little post showing off the beautiful city that is Chester. If you have read my most recent post then you will have seen that I spent three weeks in Chester for my archaeology dig- if you haven't given it a read then you can do so here to read about that aspect of the three weeks. This post, however, is a gallery in order to showcase the city. I never even knew Chester was a city as it is rather on the small scale, but the history that surrounds it is just mind blowing.

It was a very important and strategic point for the Romans during their invasion of Britain, it lies on the border of Wales giving it noteworthy position to help the Romans conquer Southern Britain. After the fall of the Roman establishment in Britain, the site became significant throughout the medieval times with links to King Arthur fighting his ninth battle here, as well as Anglo-Saxon ties.

The stunning black and white buildings dating from medieval times line the streets of Chester, and are a beautiful display of the history. These buildings house shops and pubs and- well- everything, the whole town centre is made up of streets of these black and white buildings one after another. When walking through them, I didn't feel like I was in England- I could have been in a different country or a different time period because these buildings are not what I have in mind when I think of an English city.





My wander through the town centre took me to the River Dee, which I had previously only seen from the car on our rides to and from the dig. On a sunny late afternoon the river sparkled, it was so lovely to see families, couples and solo people like myself, walking along the banks with ice creams and in shorts and t-shirts.



After having a gander along the river side, I took a street back up to the heart of Chester where stood the Roman Amphitheatre, which I had been very keen to see. I'm not going to lie, I was imagining a structure like those I see in text books of a grand theatre which has been preserved, so was somewhat disappointed to see that only the steps had survived and the main stage was a painting on the wall. All in all though, it was good to see the site and imagine people watching shows and gladiator fights on the ground that I stood on.


I finished off my stroll with a walk through Grosvenor gardens and decided to eat my dinner on the grass by the duck pond. The huge gardens were amazing, with a little train going through it, play parks, ponds, an outside theatre venue, and beautiful views of the River Dee.



Over the three weeks I was there, I was also able to go to the Cathedral, whose height was unimaginable. The carvings on the walls were so detailed and striking and the gardens felt peaceful and safe. Unfortunately my photos of it are no more, as my phone broke before I could back it up- something which saddens me greatly.

I hope that this post has inspired some of you to see Chester, and what it has to offer- it was a truly amazing experience, and the city is- I say it yet again- beautiful.

Thanks for reading,
Emily
xxx

***Wee disclaimer before I write the actual post, the photos that I've posted have been borrowed from Alison who taught me during my weeks at Poulton, which I hope is okay by her. You can follow what Alison gets up to on Twitter, or the Poulton blog- which I highly recommend a read of, here.***

Week 1- excavating a juvenile

Week 2- excavating a baby skeleton which was resting on the legs of an adult skeleton

Week 2- excavating the adult and child skeleton

Under the shade tent after a long morning in the sun