Spring has sprung!

I'm so pleased that it finally feels like Spring is here. I always try to take the time to appreciate the beauty of nature and Spring feels like a kind of fashion show with all the trees and plants showing off their new outfits. Our town is filled with sunny daffodils and crocuses, and the trees along the main road are filled with pink and white blossom - gorgeous!

We've had a few bugs going round lately and I'm currently feeling sorry for myself as I'm full of cold. Still, I have it a lot better than many and am at least generally healthy with no major ills to worry about. I managed to find time to finish The Whisper Garden last week and I have to say I really enjoyed the story. As I think I mentioned in the last post, I'm trying to stray outside my comfort zone in terms of reading this year. So although it wasn't my usual type of read. I'm really glad I tried it. You can read my review on Goodreads here.

I've done my usual trick of saying I'll read one of the books I already have on the go once one is finished, but then end up started another new one. This time it's a dark fantasy novel called The Immortal Circus by A R Kahler which I've borrowed through Amazon's Kindle lending library. How cool is it that you can borrow e-books from Amazon? I know my local library also allows you to borrow e-books and I'm certainly not going to stop using the library as it's essential to the town in my opinion. In fact, having now got my Kindle Paperwhite (which is awesome! Never thought I'd say that about an e-reader!) I've had a major clear out of physical books, much to my husband's delight. To say that I have a book hoarding problem is an understatement. To my horror, I discovered that I have over 150 books (and that's just the spare room!) that are sitting unloved and unread. So, I set about sorting through them and identifying which ones I had already registered on Bookcrossing.com and which ones I hadn't. Those which were in good condition and not already registered are being donated to the library in the village where my Dad lives. Since October last year the library has been run by volunteers as the local council stopped funding. Having spent many happy hours choosing books there as a child I'm happy to do anything I can to help them out. The rest of the books were 'released' at the OBCZ (Official BookCrossing Zone) at The Purple Pumpkin Patch shop. The lady who runs the shop is also helping to organise this year's Bookcrossing UnConvention so I know the books will be in good hands and she'll help them find new homes.

So, yes, a new book has been started and I'm 62% of the way through it in less than a week (always a good sign). The story surrounds runaway Vivienne who decides that joining the strange circus that comes to town is preferable to her old life, which we are left to guess about. Although it's clear to Vivienne that the circus performers are no ordinary folk, she doesn't yet know quite how strange things can get inside the big top. So far there are various Fey folk and a handsome witch with a serpentine familiar tattooed on his torso (although it likes to move occasionally). Whilst it's not going to win any literary prizes, it's entertaining and great for getting away from real life. There are two other books in the series and I think I will be reading them too before the year is out.  I've also now bought The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo on Kindle so I no longer have to worry about dragging around a 2" thick paperback when I want to read it.

Last week I had a fantastic evening out with 'Mr Butterbean' where we went to see Elbow in concert. It's about the 3rd or 4th time I've seen them live and they never disappoint. This was the smallest venue I'd seen them at and we managed to get just a few rows back from the stage, with a great view of Guy Garvey. His voice is just so relaxing! Although I loved hearing the tracks from the new album, Little Fictions, the highlight for me had to be their rendition of Mirrorball. Here's Elbow performing it live at Abbey Road...



Last but not least, I had my hair re-coloured and it's now a lovely bright pink and orange. I love it and can't quite get over how natural it feels to have such bright hair. Perfect for Spring!