December Reading Wrapup

Well into January and I’m only just finding time to share my final reading wrapup of 2025.

One More for Christmas by Sarah Morgan

Kicked off my December reading with a Sarah Morgan book about a successful woman who has been estranged from her adult daughters, Samantha and Ella, for the last five years. An accident at work forces her to reflect on her choices, and she invites herself to spend Christmas with her daughters who happen to be visiting an estate in the Scottish Highlands for Christmas. I love how relatable Sarah Morgan’s female characters are, they’re all navigating something like grief, estrangement, motherhood, secrets, regret and trying to be more authentic, but the romantic subplot was the weakest part for me.

It Always Snows on Mistletoe Square by Ali McNamara

This is the story of Elle who finds her way to a Georgian house home to two eccentric women, Estelle and her housekeeper, who want to employ her to write Estelle’s family history. There’s a fair bit of magic realism in this one, but as much as I loved glimpses of Estelle’s family history and the ripple effects that one person can have on the world around them, I didn’t like the love-at-first-sight romance between Elle and Ben, and the almost flippant references to addiction, adoption and AIDS as plot devices.

Strong Female Character by Fern Brady

Started the year by listening to Katherine May’s autobiographical account of late diagnosis of autism, and by strange coincidence ended the year by listening to Scottish comedian Fern Brady’s account of being diagnosed in adulthood too. It’s a fascinating insight into sexist biases in the medical profession that lead to women being late diagnosed or misdiagnosed with other disorders, in Fern’s case anxiety and OCD. I really enjoyed this view into an autistic woman’s lived experience and it ended up being one of my favourite reads of the year.

A Highland Christmas by MC Beaton

This was an impulse purchase that turned out to be my favourite Christmas read so far. This seems to be a bit of anomaly in a murder mystery series as instead of a death, PC Hamish MacBeth finds himself conducting enquiries into the theft of a town Christmas tree and lights, and the disappearance of a pet cat. Thoroughly enjoyed this humorous tale of grumpy, superstitious, gossiping folk the Scottish Highlands reluctantly finding some Christmas cheer and community spirit.

Greenwild by Pari Thomas

I actually started Greenwild over a year ago but put it down for a while. I wanted to love this middlegrade fantasy adventure about a secret world of botany and magic, but it didn’t quite work for me. Greenwild follows a girl called Daisy whose mother goes missing and her determination to find her mother leads her into a hidden world of plants. There are some really poignant moments about grief and some pertinent commentary on environmental issues, but overall I found the pace of this quite slow in places.

Have a lovely week! X

Wonderful Christmastime!

Hello and Happy New Year from frosty Scotland! 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 December was a lovely month, but a busy one that passed in a blur.

Before Christmas, my husband and I had a rare childfree night out where we went for dinner at our favourite Mexican restaurant and finally got to see Hamilton on tour. We don’t go to the theatre very often but have thoroughly enjoyed everything we’ve seen, and Hamilton is definitely one of our favourites with incredible music, set design and fascinating storyline.

It always feels like a bit of a marathon to get everything ready on time, and there’s a lot of pressure to make Christmas magical for the kids. Our oldest daughter woke early on Christmas morning, excited to see if Father Christmas had been. We let the kids open their stockings and some of their gifts upstairs before we let them wake up their grandparents so they could get stuck into their gifts from us and them. It’s become our tradition to host Christmas as my husband is an excellent cook and it’s easier to keep the kids entertained at home while we prepare lunch. After lunch, there were family boardgames and bike rides.

On New Year’s Eve, we returned to the theatre to see The Little Mermaid, our first pantomime with the girls, which exceeded all expectations, full of beautiful costumes, clever special effects and some very topical, risqué humour.

We had lunch with my parents and a family friend on New Year’s Day, which was a gentle way to welcome the New Year in. Though 2026 is off to a bumpy start as my father took a tumble on New Year’s Eve and it turns out he’s fractured his ankle and requires surgery to pin it back together, so there’s been hospital visits too as well as some lovely get togethers with out extended families too.

My husband and I like to have a walk on the beach early in the New Year and we headed to Lunderston on the 2nd. Lunderston has become our default beach because the kids love the playpark next to the beach and it also has public toilets (a necessity now that the girls are both out of nappies). We watched the sun climb over the horizon as we combed the beach for interesting shells and stones. It’s been fairly cold here in Scotland for the past week, and the kids enjoyed cracking the ice that had formed over the rock pools.

My daughter received a journal for Christmas and it’s been a lovely way to end the day with her taking some time to write three things she enjoyed from her day and practising her writing before she bounces off to bed. It’s also inspired me to start my own gratitude journal, something I did for years previously.

After all the excitement and merriment of the festive season, we’ll take our decorations down today and we’re all back to work, school and nursery tomorrow

Wishing everyone the very happiest New Year! 🎇🎉🥂

Introducing Pixie

Finding time amidst Christmas preparations to share an overdue post introducing the newest member of our little family, a rescue cat we adopted at the end of October.

I wasn’t really ready to adopt a new cat, and Mara was such a special cat that I knew I’d struggle not to compare another cat to her, but the kids were asking when we’d get another cat and once I’d started seeing ads for cats needing to be rehomed, it was impossible to look away. Cats are such creatures of routine and familiarity that I really feel sorry for those that experience the shock, upheaval and distress of having to be rehomed.

We contacted a couple of local rehoming centres, and I arranged to meet two cats in foster care on a Saturday morning while my husband took the girls to dance class, both cats were lovely and I hated having to choose between them (though the other one has also been adopted now). On a Monday morning, after dropping the kids off at school and nursery, my husband and I went to pick up Pixie, a three year old black and white girl cat from her foster home.

We never knew much about Mara’s past, but we were able to get Pixie’s date of birth and full medical history, and a bit about why she had to be rehomed. Sadly, she was living with her brother and the two of them weren’t getting on, I have no idea how you choose in that situation.

Pixie spent the first week mostly hiding under the couch, but she’s gradually been getting more curious, vocal and confident. She’s been very gentle with the kids, though she does tend to hide when they get too loud or boisterous, I’m not sure she had much contact with kids before coming to us, but she’s very playful. My husband put a box on top of one our bookcases, and she likes to take herself up there when she wants to watch our antics from a safe distance, but she’s a lapcat that will happily settle down with us while we’re watching TV or reading.

I still miss Mara, but Pixie is a lovely addition to our family. X

❄️ November Reading Wrapup 📚

Currently recovering from an infection that has floored me and my youngest for the past week or so, and thought I’d share my November reading wrapup.

Good Inside by Dr Becky Kennedy

Good Inside is one of the best parenting books I’ve read, packed full of wisdom and evidence-based research, which reminds parents that we should be more invested in building a positive relationship with our children than policing their behaviour. I didn’t agree with everything in the book but this was accessible, relatable and informative, with specific chapters on the most common parenting problems and a lot of information about child development, self regulation for parents and building a secure attachment with your child.

Keeper of the Night by Kylie Lee Baker

A dark YA fantasy inspired by Japanese folklore about a half English reaper and half Japanese shinigami who fits into neither world trying to accept her unique identity and purpose in life. Although this is an epic quest, the focus is very much about what she’s willing to do and sacrifice in order to fit in. This was dark and gory but really unique, and I’m looking forward to picking up the final part of the duology to find out how the story concludes.

The Girl Who Raced the World by Nat Harrison

I’m not usually a fan of retellings, but this was such a lovely trip down memory lane for me as I adored the cartoon of Around the World in 80 Days as a child. The Girl Who Raced the World follows young orphan Maggie Appleton as she finds herself on a wild adventure with Phileas Fogg and his valet Passepartout as they race around the world to win a bet pursued by Detective Fix who happens to be investigating a bank robbery that occurred the same day Fogg set out on his journey. This was so heartwarming, touching on themes of grief, family and friendship, but really capturing the mystery of the bank robbery and the and urgency of their voyage. I enjoyed this so much that it had me digging out an old copy of the original by Jules Verne to read.

The Bullet that Missed by Richard Osman

The Thursday Murder Club has become something of a comfort series that I dip into when life feels hectic. The characters are what make this cosy mystery series so unique, and I love returning to the aging amateur sleuths at Coopers Chase retirement village and their younger police and criminal friends. The mystery they take it upon themselves to investigate is a great little workout for the old grey matter with money laundering and a murder to solve, but a few clever red herrings.

Juniper’s Christmas by Eoin Colfer

This festive middlegrade adventure is set ten years after Santa Claus mysteriously stops delivering presents to children around the world, and two years after little Juniper Lane’s father passed away. Elves from the North Pole are desperately seeking Santa before his magic runs out forever, a criminal mastermind decides to steal Santa’s magical artifacts in order to turn Christmas into a profiteering racket, a mysterious benefactor is helping the homeless people that live in a London park and Juniper is desperately seeking her mother who goes missing just before Christmas. I’m not sure what I was expecting from this but it touches on so many themes of grief and loss, greed and generosity, love and hope, and was a lovely, moving story to ease into the festive season.

Careless People by Sarah Wynn-Williams

An absolutely fascinating insight into the working culture of Facebook revealing at first American-centric naivity to global politics and legislation, and then a callous indifference to real world violence and shrewd profit driven focus to the insecurities that Facebook could cause. It was particularly interesting to see the friction between tech and business management during the early years, an insight into the workaholic culture and outrageous expectations from managers with Sarah still sending emails while giving birth, and seriously considering being arrested by a foreign government. It’s not surprising that Zuckerberg tried so hard to prevent this book reaching the public because it paints an unflattering view of both him and Sheryl Sanberg. Yet it also offers insight into how Facebook could’ve been an incredible force for connection and community if Zuckerberg and his colleagues hadn’t prioritised profit and power.

What have you read lately? X

Life Lately..!

Time seems to slipping away from me as we approach the end of the year. We are so lucky to have such distinct seasons here in Scotland, early November was unusually mild but the last couple of weeks brought a cold snap full of frosts and subzero temperatures, and we’re all looking forward to the merriment and cheer of Christmas.

Our oldest daughter started school in August, and she has settled in so well, making a little group of friends, building on her number and counting skills, writing and learning to read. I couldn’t be more proud of her as she works her way through the phonics books we borrowed from the library. She’s moved up two classes in gymnastics since May and we’re thinking about looking for a competitive club because she shows such aptitude and skill, and she enjoys it so much.

Our youngest is enjoying extra one to one time with me, something she hasn’t really had since she was a baby, and she’s coped better than I expected with going to nursery without her sister. We celebrated her third birthday with a little party at the start of November, and she’s moved up to pre-school at nursery. This season of parenting is bringing a lot of new challenges but I’m leaning into it as much as I can.

I’ve also made a big change, resigning from my role in council social services to move into the charity sector. Giving up a profession and taking a paycut feels like a step backwards, but I’m hoping it will be less stressful and a better balance for our family. Our daughters will only be little for such a short time and I don’t want to miss it. My husband’s been self employed full time since February and his business has been more successful than we expected so it feels like a good time for me to try something new.

I’ve also returned to my old yoga studio after a five year gap, it’s a lovely restorative and relaxing class that’s just what my mind and body need at the moment.

Yesterday was the first anniversary of our cat Mara’s, death. I’ve been struggling with a lot of grief through autumn, as I loved snuggling up with Mara in the evenings as she snoozed on my lap while I read, or when she would sleep between my ankles, or crawl under the duvet to snooze pressed into my side on the coldest nights. The girls had been asking if/when we’d get another cat, so we started making enquiries to see if it would be possible to adopt a house cat with small children. At the end of October, I visited a little black and white cat being fostered on a Saturday morning and we adopted her on the Monday morning. I’ll write more about our little Pixie soon, but she’s settling in well.

Life still feels fairly hectic at the moment, and our calendar is already filling up with Christmas events but I’m trying to find quiet moments amidst the hustle and bustle, and to embrace all the changes. Have a lovely week. X

October Reading Wrapup

Halloween, Bonfire night and our youngest’s third birthday means I’m only just finding time to share my October reading wrapup.

Genocide Bad by Sim Kern

I’ve followed Sim Kern, a Jewish anti-zionist writer on Instagram for a while and waited for the audiobook release because I find them such a compelling speaker. This book examines various arguments that Zionist Hasbara uses to justify the apartheid, colonisation and ethnic cleansing of Palestine. This was absolutely fascinating as Sim describes their own experiences of anti-semitism, explores the history of anti-semitism and anti-Jewish hatred in Europe. They also humourously explain why ancient religious texts shouldn’t be used to settle land disputes. More than anything, Genocide Bad reminds the reader not to get drawn into arguments about deference politics, what aboutism or anything else that attempts to distract from the fact that genocide against any group of people is never justified.

As Long as the Lemon Tree Grows by Zoulfa Katouh

This story follows a Syrian 19 year old pharmacy student Salama, who finds herself treating wounded civilians and soldiers at a hospital in the War-torn city of Homs during the Syrian revolution. As Long As The Lemon Tree Grows doesn’t shy away from describing the cruelty and brutality of Assad’s regime, the death, destruction and trauma caused by the civil war. The story also describes the difficulty deciding whether to stay in their beloved land or attempt the perilous journey to Europe in search of safety all refugees make. Among the rubble and heartache, Salama finds love, and the gentle, chaste romance in this story offers such sweet contrast to the darkness of the setting. Another book that will definitely be in my end of year favourites that I highly recommend.

La Belle Sauvage by Philip Pullman

I first read His Dark Materials over twenty years ago and remember being captivated by the story and worlds Pullman created, my husband and I started watching the BBC adaption last Christmas and finally finished in October, just in time to start reading this. La Belle Sauvage is a prequel to Northern Lights explaining how Lyra came to be raised at Jordan College in Oxford. It’s a thrilling adventure about a boy called Malcolm and the daring voyage he makes in his canoe during a great flood to prevent baby Lyra from falling into the hands of the Magisterium or the mysterious man with the hyena daemon pursuing them. I loved being back in this setting and can’t wait to read the next part of The Book of Dust trilogy.

A Pinch of Magic by Michelle Harrison

A middlegrade story about three sisters who live under a curse that prevents the from leaving their island, and the three enchanted items they inherit that give them magical abilities. The sisters race against the clock as they attempt to break the curse and correct an old injustice. This was a fun adventure with themes of family, justice and helping others.

A Warlock In Whitby by Robin Jarvis

I read The Whitby Witches (reviewed here) a few years ago, and finally found secondhand copies of the other two parts of the trilogy. The Whitby Witches had some genuinely creepy moments, although this one was less atmospheric it did cover some disturbing topics such as bullying and forced marriage. I enjoyed this as it was full of tension and action and I’m looking forward to finding out how the trilogy concludes in The Whitby Child.

Have a lovely week. X

An Enchanted Tradition

We recently returned from our annual trip to the Enchanted Forest in Pitlochry, which has been our tradition for over a decade.

The theme changes every year, and this year was called Luminara, which tried to capture the interconnection, balance and harmony between nature and technology. We have been to a lot of light shows around Scotland over the years but the Enchanted Forest is easily the most ambitious and technologically impressive. There were a few parts that were stunning, but overall this wasn’t our favourite theme as it felt less cohesive and a bit more spread out than previous years.

We stayed at a lodge just a few miles outside of Pitlochry and it was ideal, cosy with slightly more space than a caravan. We took a trip into Pitlochry again the next day to visit the Christmas Emporium to let our daughters choose ornaments for their Christmas tree and a lollypop from the sweetshop, before we ate a simple but tasty lunch at Hettie’s Tea Shop.

It’s always interesting to chat to the locals while we’re in the area, who have a bit of an ambivalent relationship with the Enchanted Forest as it brings a huge amount of tourism and money to the local economy, but locals always complain about a month of parking restrictions and none of the locals we spoke to had been to the show themselves.

We stopped at Active Kids Adventure play with the kids on the way home, our girls had a hoot climbing up and sliding down the indoor tree house, then we went outside for trampolines, go karts and crazy golf. I think this might become part of our annual tradition too while the kids are young.

This was our last trip for the year, we’ve been so lucky to have had some lovely holidays from our visit to Northumbria in Spring, our Summer holiday in St Andrews, our glamping trip in September and finally The Enchanted Forest. Every time I’ve loved seeing the kids’ excitement about staying in a caravan or lodge, exploring somewhere new or returning to a favourite place together.

Have a lovely week. X

Embers and Ambers

We woke yesterday to a thin layer of Frost on the car windscreen, the first of the season. We’re in the middle of autumn here in Scotland, always a season of contrasts: beginnings and endings, the last of the sun’s warmth and the first frosts, the glorious colour and texture of the leaves, and of course death and decay as leaves, flowers and insects all die back before winter.

There are still a few hardy geraniums (Rozanne just doesn’t stop), roses, nasturtiums and calendula all stubbornly blooming in our garden, though Storm Amy battered the sunflowers. There are also pots of cabbage, kale, chard and pak choi seedlings in the greenhouse that may or may not come to anything. I’m planting Meteor peas in the raised beds which are apparently hardy enough to overwinter. There are still daffodil bulbs to plant, as well as finding space in the long border for anenomes and michaelmas daisies, but I’m starting to feel the pressure now as winter is on its way.

We had lots of Red Admirals visiting the garden and feasting on our plums all through September, but this month we’ve found lots of Caterpillars in the garden much to the children’s fascination.

While most people are looking up at the trees, there’s lots to see at ground level too. Our little street is hidden beneath a carpet of beech tree leaves at the moment, and I’ve spotted a few Aminita Muscaria (or fly agaric toadstools) at the base of the trees. It seems like the world is full of reds, ambers, golds at the moment, all the fiery shades for the “ember” months.

As we move through the autumn months, life still feels hectic with no signs of slowing down and there are some big changes ahead, but I’m trying to ground myself in nature, enjoying pottering around our little garden and taking time to notice all the little wonders of nature at this time of year. Have a lovely week. X

Glamping Anniversary Trip

To celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary (and 17 years together! 😱), we decided to take a family trip glamping on a farm just outside Edinburgh.

We used it as an excuse to visit two of our favourite attractions that were nearby, our youngest wanted to go to the zoo so we had a day at Five Sisters Zoo, where we were lucky to see the adorable otters gambolling around, eurasian lynx, lions, say hello to the new black bear and clouded leopard, and learned about the snow leopard and conservation efforts to save this beautiful creature which is struggling with the impact of climate change in the wild.

Our oldest daughter had asked to go back to the World of Illusions in Edinburgh which is full of interactive exhibitions that the kids loved exploring and playing with from kaleidoscopic mirrors to plasma balls, and of course the mirror maze and the vortex bridge.

The pod we stayed in was small but very cosy with an en-suite. The girls were happy to play on the swings, chute and toy cars scattered around the farm, and enjoyed toasted marshmallows in the firepit, while my hubby and I loved soaking in the private hot tub once the girls were asleep.

*View from the pod and toasting marshmallows*

We finished our weekend away with a trip to Dalkeith Country Park, which is one of our favourite places to take the kids. The kids spent the morning jumping and flopping on the bouncy pillows, climbing the forts and riding the flying foxes.

Though it was a busy few days, we all really appreciated some time together after so many changes to our family routines lately. Have a lovely week. X

September Reading Wrapup

As we stepped into Autumn, I found myself seeking out a real mix of genres from magical realism and middlegrade fantasy to contemporary fiction and romance, and I enjoyed them all.

The Beauty of Your Face by Sahar Mustafah

A meandering story that follows Afaf, the middle child of a Palestinian family living in America from her childhood, through adolescence and adulthood. The Beauty of Your Face explores alienation, isolation, assimilation, identity, religion and community. The time line jumps back and forth from Afaf’s formative experiences such as the disappearance of her older sister, adoption of Islam and years of family dysfunction right up to the moment she comes face to face with a racially motivated school shooter.

The Bookshop on the Corner by Jenny Colgan

I often find myself reaching for chick lit or contemporary romance when my own life is in flux and I’m in need of something comforting to read. The Bookshop on the Corner follows Nina, a librarian who finds herself redundant when her library is closed and takes the opportunity moves North to Scotland to open a travelling bookshop. Much like the Christmas Bookshop stories also by Jenny Colgan, I enjoyed the little community that Nina becomes part of as much as the slow burn romance.

Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell

A thrilling fantasy adventure following Mal, a girl born on an archipelago full of mythical and fantastic creatures, and Christopher, a boy from our world who finds out that his family are guardians of the crossing to the archipelago. All is not well on the archipelago, as the creatures are dying and the land is being poisoned, and the two children decide to investigate with the help of a smuggler and a scholar they meet along the way. I loved all the different creatures in this story, especially some of the more dark and dangerous beasts. Impossible Creatures was a great adventure that had plenty of humour, lots of thrills and a little bit of sorrow too, looking forward to seeing where the second book in the series takes the story.

Spells for Forgetting by Adrienne Young

I love stories about witches and picked this one up expecting something similar to Practical Magic but it turned out to be more of a twist-filled mystery with a slow burn romance set on a small island. Spells for Forgetting is heavy on mood and atmosphere, and it took a while to get going, but I still enjoyed this story about the inhabitants of a small island community rife with secrets and unsolved mysteries.

If you’ve read any of these, I’d love to know your thoughts. X

Lovely and Grateful

Surviving on coffee and catnaps

Author: lovelyandgrateful