Just finished reading "A Briar Book of the Dead" by A. G. Slatter, and starting on "Undetectables- The Undead Complex" by Courtney Smyth

Head and small amount of body of a crochet snake lying on a white fluffy background. A dark blue and green section is closest to the white head. This section is labelled "China". The next section is red, yellow, and orange, and is labelled "Australia". The whole coloured part of the body is labelled "January".

Took me a while, but I finally managed to finish January on my temperature snake.

Dingo soft toy sitting in the courtyard of a small replica model of Stirling Castle. Her paws are out in front and she looks very pleased with herself.

Small dingo soft toy lying in the sun on a stone wall. In the distance are green fields and trees. She looks content and sleepy.

Small dingo soft toy behind a medieval looking metal gate, set into stone walls. She looks small and lonely.

Small dingo soft toy nestled in a patch of yellow daffodils, on green grass. She looks at one with nature.

G'arri on holiday! Stirling Castle, Scotland.
Check the alt text for details.

More things that have made me happy on this train trip
- dogs running madly across sheep fields!
- sheep at a picturesque distance!
- a pheasant!
- old stone churches and cemeteries
- walls covered in ivy
- Tudor style decorations on houses

Things I've seen that made me happy on my train trip to Manchester
- rabbits!
- stone walls!
- fractally trees!
- baby sheep!
- moss on everything!

Stirling Castle

I'm in Scotland!

I bought HT, and got IW on kobo, but I accidentally downloaded the French language version. So... do I redownload, or learn French?

Heading home! Bye for now Australia! I'll see you in six months.

I have not been reading much recently. Just haven't been able to (curse you ExDix) but I got my #Kobo back from mum, and I've started reading (rereading) Scarlett Pimpernel. She this is #IronWidow and #HeavenlyTyrant by @xiranjayzhao.bsky.social and then... Sabatini?

Michael Malm - Light and Hope

About to dive in and finally watch #Arcane season 2. I have snacks, drinks, and antidepressants at the ready

a cartoon character from the emperor 's new groove is holding a fan and says boom baby ALT: a cartoon character from the emperor 's new groove is holding a fan and says boom baby

I'm back!

Very disappointed by Baiyun Premium Lounge staff. Incredibly rude and dismissive.
#BaiyunPremiumLounge #RudeStaff #BaiyunAirport #Guangzhou

ONE MORE SLEEP!!!!!

a drawing of a girl with tears coming out of her eyes and a star on her head ALT: a drawing of a girl with tears coming out of her eyes and a star on her head

My family is heading back to Australia, and I am stuck here in China for a few days more.

Just booked my tickets back to Australia! I'll be there for 2 weeks-ish.
Now I need to book from China to Edinburgh. @missyobvious.bsky.social - Not long now!!!!!

My latest Keepley build

The Undetectables
@cswritesbooks.bsky.social
It took me a long time to read this, so I missed a lot of the clues. Fun and interesting world building.

Hooked
A.C. Wise
Smart and at times visceral.

A Sorceress Comes to Call
T. Kingfisher
Never underestimate an angry goose

Bury Your Gays
@chucktingle.bsky.social
I liked it, but... I don't know, there seemed to be so much that didn't make sense.

A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking
@tkingfisher.com
Makes you wonder why there are so many stories where children are expected to save the world

When Women Were Dragons
@kellybarnhill.bsky.social
Love a good feminist magical realism! I felt a bit lost at time in the minutia, but the premise was great.

Empire of the Damned
@misterkristoff.bsky.social
When is the third book arriving??????

Fortunately, The Milk
@neilhimself.neilgaiman.com
I read this to see if it was suitable for my ESL students. It wasn't, but it was fun to read.

The Final Girl Support Group
@awfulagent.bsky.social (Not his BlueSky)
Not my usual reading, but fun. Twist was great!

Namesake: The World of the Narrows #2
Adrienne Young
A nice finale. The world was great, characters were great.

Once More Upon a Time
Roshani Chokshi
I actually have no memory about reading this book except for a vague feeling of 'Meh'.

Origins of a Guild Master
A. M. Emo
A free book I won on StoryGraph. Short, but a good start to world building

Empire of the Vampire
@misterkristoff.bsky.social
Best book I read this year, along with the sequel I read a little later. Rich, bold, bloody... like a good vampire party should be.

Skin of the Sea: Of Mermaids and Orisa #1
NatashaBowen.com
I still need to read the sequel and find out what happens! POC mermaids!

The Three Body Problem
Cixin Liu
I read the book, so I knew when to cover my eyes in Episode 6. I kind of understood the maths! I do have questions, though.

The New Revelation: The coming of a New Spiritual Paradigm
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
No, not an obscure Sherlock Holmes. Who knew he wrote other stuff too?

Fable: The World of the Narrows #1
@adriennebooks.bsky.social
I read this on the plane, which really added to the sense of seasickness.

My reading achievements of this year

Jan-
No Blood Spilled: Don Sebastian Chronicles #5
Les Daniels
A comforting guilty pleasure about a vampire with no fucks left to give.

One For All
@lillielainoff.bsky.social
A female musketeer assassin with POTS? Gorgeous!