Lots of reading being done in my new outdoor, hammock book nook! It's been so cosy and peaceful. Like many, I downloaded this as part of Kindle First in July but it caught my attention being recommended, so bumped it up my TBR. It didn't disappoint. It's not often you find yourself hoping that the sociopath with murder on the mind gets her happy ending, but as Jane's quest for revenge unfolds that's just what you'll wish. A compelling thriller.

As many before mentioned, "Artemis" doesn't quite hit the note the "The Martian" did. I didn't find myself rooting for Jazz to save the city the same as I wanted Mark Watney to survive desertion on Mars. Again, the science has been well researched but sometimes it felt more like a welding instruction manual than good fiction. It's refreshing to see a female protagonist in a sci-fi but it didn't connect with me. Still worth it as a short read.

I honestly did not think I would wind up "pick"ING ? this, it almost became a bail in the first half. I mainly wasn't enjoying it as I hated both of the narrators - the younger, naïve Nellie and the older, bitter Vanessa. It felt very derivative and smacked of "The Girl on the Train" which I controversially hated. But it picks up so much in the second half with a few well placed twists that I wound up enjoying it. Perfect light reading.

I have Litsy to thank for this pick! Neo the #CatsofLitsy thanks you all for this one too as I was sat still lots for cuddles. Such a well written book - I used to love Greek Mythology as a kid and I remember a holiday to Greece where I insisted getting a book of Greek Mythology and read it cover to cover. I couldn't help reading up on the myths as I read and it was wonderful feeling the myths brought to life through Miller's amazing storytelling.

Crossed the border into Spain now, quick stop in Salamanca. Why can't my local library look like this...my library is squashed into a shopping centre!

I'm so enjoying my roadtrip, today we popped into the beautiful Livraria Lello in Porto which served some of JKs inspiration when she was writing HP (she lived in Gaia which is just across the river). Truly beautiful.

Óbidos, Portugal must go on every book lovers bucket list! Not only does the town feel like something out of a fairytale but The Literary Man Hotel is truly one of a kind. If you can't stay then at least book in for the restaurant, the food was amazing. I also found a lovely used book market (bottom left) on the main street. Heaven!

Today we are in Óbidos, which is a beautiful Portuguese walled town in its own right, but it is also home to the amazing Literary Man Hotel...it's a book hotel! It's wonderful. Every wall is lined with books. And it has a gin bar. And an amazing restaurant. And based in a beautifully historic, former convent. And I'm in heaven and never leaving. More pictures will follow.

Patient husband enjoys aircon while I browse Bertrand Livreiros, Lisbon - the world's oldest bookstore. Picked up a Portuguese cookbook to couple my two loves.

Perfect book to read while waiting for the sunset, luckily Helios was on time today ☀️

Perfect poolside read. Michael's patient understanding of Stella's Asperger's, alongside Stella seeing in Michael more than he thought he was worth made it for me. Usually don't mind a bit of smut but here I felt it slightly cheapened the strong connection formed between the couple so skimmed it a bit. The final Author's Note sheds a light on how many adult women on the spectrum are left undiagnosed as they hide traits to conform to social norms.

On paper, I should love Neil Gaiman. My perfect genre, Stardust is one of my favourite movies and I've tried so many of his books now. Although I never actively dislike his writing, I never have that "can't put it down" moment I crave. "Neverwhere" is very reminiscent of "Hitchhiker's Guide" but with lots of heavy handed, London placename play on words forced in. I think I have to face facts that Neil Gaiman and I don't have a future!

Starting a road trip through Portugal, Spain and France so be prepared for lots of books on tour pics! Happened upon a beautiful book fair today in Tavira, Portugal.

OK Littens I need some advice. This finally came through on my library hold today after a bit of a wait. Unfortunately, yesterday someone posted a spoiler on the BuzzFeed PageTurners group saying how it ends (thankfully for others the post seems to have disappeared now). So my question, is it still worth the read if the twist has been spoiled?

1. Neither. I'm British so "chaps" ?
2. Car-a-mel. 3!
3. Litsy, Goodreads, Kindle, Audible, Amazon, Borrowbox
4. Drinking end of term Champagne and crying watching"Love, Simon"
5. Anybody who hasn't done one before!

#friyayintro @jesshowbooks

Next read is courtesy of my wonderful (real life!) colleague @DebsF65 Hoping to get this one finished before Summer holidays start on Friday!

1. Silurians. Love the idea of a secret branch of the evolutionary tree.
2. Santa Clarita Diet. Wickedly dark. Binge watched both series.
3. Voyager. Janeway ftw.
4. Disney Princess. Belle, of course.

@LibrarianRyan #FandomFriday

I've been listening to this on my commute with great cynicism, however I still finished it despite the fact that Trinity the #CatsofLitsy is my spirit animal and this is the way I'd rather live my best life. There must be something in it though because tonight I blitzed the house and earlier today while shopping I stood in Next holding a swimming costume to my chest deciding if it sparked joy. It did.

This is the dream, need some Offred Pinot Noir! https://hellogiggles.com/news/handmaids-tale-wine

I think the Konmari method is about to lose me with talk of socks needing a holiday. Maybe I should give them to Dobby instead, more realistic. Not sure I'm made for a clutter free life...especially not now I've listened to the book section and she started tearing out pages 😱

As an Atwood fan I was really worried I wasn't clever enough for this one! It's been a long time since I've studied The Tempest and I probably didn't pull out nearly as many of the themes as were possible, however it was a compelling read in its own right. I love the reimagining of stories..here, The Tempest plays out in a Men's Prison. Pictured with my 1947 Complete Works, found in my Parent's Attic but I daren't read it's tissue paper pages!

My mum sent me the meme on the top right (apologies I don't know where she got it, if you know who to credit please let me know). I couldn't resist recreating it with my two bird lovers! #catsoflitsy

The recent UK heatwave and my Scottish genes are not a good match so I bought myself a paddling pool and an inflatable unicorn butler #noregrets. This was slightly juxtaposed as I read the tale of the beautiful final day of Rufus and Mateo.The world built is never fully explained but this leaves you all the more invested in their growing relationship. The storytelling was so similar to "The Sun is also a Star", if you liked that you'll love this.

Spending a sunny Sunday watching a travelling theatre troupe perform Importance of Being Earnest in a vineyard, might have to add it to my TBR, not one I studied in school.

#UKLittens will appreciate I've become a bit of a football ⚽ (soccer) widow in the last few weeks (apparently, It's coming home 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿, I'm Scottish 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 so a bit lost on me) I've started this to occupy myself during games. So thought provoking! I have a question for you all, if you had your Death Day call, and you were due to do something adventurous, e.g. sky diving, would you still do it?

It's bedtime here in the UK and cheating here again with the "book", buuuut.... Thoroughly enjoyed "Bedtime Stories for Cynics" for anyone who has Audible. The narration by Nick Offerman is perfect.

1. English
2. GCSE French, GCSE Latin, trying to learn Portuguese on Memrise as my parents have recently moved to Portugal
3. Assorted German books including Fellowship of the Ring (my husband is a German teacher and fluent), a French Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets that I won in a school competition when I was 13! #HelloThursday @wanderinglynn

Realising how important the voice is in audiobooks. Listening to this in the car at the moment, the reader has such a soothing voice that makes me aspire to an uncluttered zen-like existence, but also sounds vaguely smug so want to live like a slob to spite her!

On Sunday mornings my husband goes off to play football so I have a little ritual of lying in, cooking myself a little breakfast and getting stuck into a book. I've loved every Atwood I've read so especially looking forward to this one.

Last night I got glam for Prom, I convince myself that the only reason I love YA reads is as it helps in my job as a teacher. The reality is its also because they are my guilty pleasure and I love a good story - they are full of hope. The tempestuous day in the life of Daniel and Natasha had so many beautiful moments but what I loved most was the glimpses into the lives of secondary characters and how they weaved into the tapestry of the story.

Not strictly speaking a book but if you like science fiction and audiobooks check out the podcast "Sandra". You can find it on Stitcher and I can tell already I'm going to get through it quickly! Great voice acting and gripping storytelling of a small town dreamer starting a job as an Alexa style assistant.

I loved this book so, so much. One of the most difficult things about reading fantasy is that worlds imagined by the same author can sometimes feel same-y or you find yourself drawing comparisons. Not so with Laini Taylor's rich telling of the heroic, epic tale of Lazlo Strange. He is such a wonderful, lovable character that you cheer and cry for throughout his journey. I cannot wait until the next installment!

I've just discovered my local library uses #BorrowBox and my mind is blown away with reading potential so I've reserved a load on my TBR list! Got a lot ongoing at the moment so don't mind the wait for free books!!!

Does she want me to read to her? #CatsofLitsy

Oh what a perfect book to read in the garden on a Sunny Saturday! A lovely easy romance read which although is predictable at times does not lessen the enjoyment. I particularly liked that the author doesn't include any indication of where the story is set so you can imagine it wherever you choose. Definitely recommend for anyone looking for a light summer read. 😎☀️📖

"Biology enables. Culture forbids".

Bubble bath, glass of red, doing my nails with my audiobook on the speaker. Lovely. #humpday #selfcare #quotescreatorapp

I read this a while ago but as someone who regularly gets trapped in thought spirals this stuck with me. Anyone similarly inclined have any tips on how to break the thought spirals to focus on reading more wonderful books! #quotescreatorapp #thoughtspirals

I'm a good home! Anyone know if it's a good read?

I've ended up in a word wormhole with the word "copacetic". It's not a word used much in the UK which may be due to US origins, but crops up in US reads a lot. What I find fascinating is the word isn't even 100 years old no-one can agree on its etymology! Perhaps US Littens can fill me in on how common a word it is?

"...anyone who thinks one book holds all the answers hasn't read enough books."

One of the the most enjoyable parts I am finding about #Saga is how certain parts feel like they are written as a love letter to voracious readers! Little moments like this make me smile.

Especially for @Robothugs introducing my other #CatsofLitsy , this is Neo! You will not see him in posts as often, he prefers being cute and distracting when I'm trying to work rather than when I'm reading!

Looking forward to this so much, loved Daughter of Smoke and Bone series and heard such great things about this one. Pairs perfectly with a cup of tea in my #nodramallama mug!

1. On the second Sabbath of Twelfthmoon, in the city of Weep, a girl fell from the sky.
2.536
3. Immortality
4. Master Hyrrokin
5. Blue
6. Fantasy
7. Master, add
8. Blue
9. L. T.
10. Immortality!
11. 2017
12. Leigh Bardugo
13. Nope, new read!
(No 14!)
15. Yes - a series.

Oh, if you insist!

So, after debating whether to get into graphic novels my husband had to nudge me off the sofa last night to go to bed and stop reading. As others have mentioned, it's not for those easily offended (see photo of Trinity the cat looking offended #CatsofLitsy ) but the story pulls you in so quickly you'll breeze past. I was turning every page with my heart stopping for fear of calamity for the protagonists! Looking forward to the rest of the series!

Thank you @Theshadedbuffalo for the suggestion! #Friyayintro @jesshowbooks
1. Lilac
2. Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt S4
3. Ready Player One
4. Blue Cheese and Bacon (yum)
5. Morning revision session with Year 11 for their Monday morning Biology exam, then an Evening Wedding Do. 👰🤵 Sunday for reading and relaxation!

@DebsF65 your turn!

One of the biggest criticisms I heard before reading was that the eponymous "friends" were unlikeable. The tangled lives are very messy, but it was the fact that they were flawed that kept me turning the pages. Even though I thought at times I wasn't enjoying it, I'd found I'd read for an hour without noticing! Not one I'm going to recommend to everyone I meet, but was an interesting read and refreshing to show real, complicated people depicted.

I'm cheating a bit for my first #shelfie as this is my husband's shelf and looking for some Litten advice. I've never read a #graphicnovel and thinking of starting with #Saga as I've heard good things. Two questions, 1. Do you all count graphic novels towards reading challenges etc? and 2. Does anyone have any recommendations?

Happiness is a good book and a cat. #firstpost @LitsyWelcomeWagon