Newquay 2015.

You might remember that I actually posted some pictures from Newquay almost a year ago. It's a complete coincidence that I visited the same beach again almost a year later (we really don't go to Newquay often) but hey, maybe this will accidentally become an annual feature. Who can say?

I was there with dad this time, which was a good job because it was him who noticed the tiny fishies swimming around in this pool.

He also insisted on walking up 1000 steps to get onto the cliff top though, which never would have happened with the friends I was with last year.

Still, I suppose the view was okay.

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Friday reads.

I've never done one of these Friday Reads things before but I figured what better time to start than during Read Women Month?

The first book I'll be reading this weekend is Murder on the Orient Express. This is my first Agatha Christie novel and it's fulfilling my Read Women Month challenge to read a classic. Murder on the Orient Express is the 10th in Christie's Poirot series but I'm almost half way through it already and I haven't had any issues with not having read any of the preceding books yet. The plot is sort of self explanatory: there's a murder on the Orient Express and Poirot investigates it. I'm enjoying it a lot so far.

I'm also currently reading the fourth Gossip Girl book Because I'm Worth It, which I will of course be reviewing for The Gossip Girl Review Project when I'm done. I'll leave the synopsis for that post because I'm not too far into it yet and I like to go into these books without knowing what to expect. It makes the inevitable disappointment of Chuck Bass a little easier to bear.

It does feel a bit weird to be juggling Agatha Christie with Gossip Girl but you know what, Read Women Month is about celebrating all women writers and heck, I'm having a good time.

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GGRP: All I Want is Everything.

What better way to kick off Read Women Month than with a new Gossip Girl Review Project post??

Well okay, you can probably think of a few, but this is my blog so we're doing this instead.

The Gossip Girl Review Project (GGRP for short) is a series I started on my short lived book blog, stasialikesbooks, but since I stopped updating that blog I've decided to keep going with the series over here. You can find the two previous posts in the series here.

Now let's get on with this review of the third book in the series, All I Want is Everything.

Actually, before we start I want to share this quotation from the book about one Daniel Humphrey: "He wanted to have five children and name them after his favourite writers: Kafka, Goethe, Sartre, Camus, and Keats." Can book Dan get any more awful? You will be surprised after reading that horrifying sentence that the answer is yes. Yes he can.

Synopsis
It's almost Christmas vacation and as per usual, everyone is making terrible choices. Blair has one secret admirer and one not so secret, Serena has a rock star practically stalking her (because of course she does), and the five of them all sort of end up spending Christmas vacation together, where Serena tries to avoid the rock star and Blair almost has sex with Aaron's rando friend. Dan isn't sure if he wants to sleep with Vanessa or not. Vanessa is very sure that she wants to sleep with Dan. Jenny is head over heels in love with Nate for some reason I cannot fathom. Vanessa films Jenny and Nate bare bottomed in the park and the video accidentally ends up online, after which Dan turns into a crazy person. Nate spends the entire book high. Classy choices all around for everyone.

Familiar scenes
Vanessa sends one of Dan's poems to The New Yorker without telling him, which is a classic TV show Vanessa move. Serena and Aaron are basically together by the end of the book too, which I like because in a surprising turn of events they are probably the two characters I like most in these books.

What's different?
I feel like the answer to this is just 'the characters' every single time but omg seriously. Dan goes bananas in the second half of the book and writes a poem about Jenny and Vanessa called 'Sluts'. TV show Dan WOULD NEVER. And Nate is literally high all the time. All the time. How Jenny isn't bored yet I do not know. Oh, also, Blair's mother is pregnant. So that should be interesting.

Fanciest fancy party
Serena's New Year's Eve party at the end of the book, which Serena attends barefoot. Her rock star almost-stalker shows up and plays her a song he has written for her and she kisses Aaron instead. I like book Serena so much more than I ever liked TV show Serena.

Most conniving scheme
There was no scheming! I can't believe the lack of scheming in these books. There was so much in the TV show!

What is Chuck Bass up to?
Still being creepy as heck. Honestly where did the TV show writers get their version of Chuck Bass from? Because I have yet to see him in these books!

How off the rails is Jenny Humphrey?
Oh, Jenny. I am reluctant to call Jenny 'off the rails' but she certainly needs a good talking to. Jenny has got it into her head that she and Nate are Romeo and Juliet without all the death. She thinks that even though she is fourteen and he is about to go to college they'll be together forever because they love each other so much. Nate mostly thinks about weed and Blair's ass. Jenny really needs to learn to love herself.

Join me next time for the fourth book in the series Because I'm Worth It. It may not sound like it but I am actually starting to enjoy these books so I'm hoping to get the next post up before the end of the month, because why not start and end Read Women Month with some Gossip Girl fun?

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My top 7 (+1) Eurovision songs 2015.

Those of you who follow me on Twitter might have noticed that I've been pretty enthusiastic about watching the Eurovision semi-finals this week. Last year I blogged about my five favourite Eurovision acts the day after the grand final but this year I thought I'd share my faves before the grand final because honestly, doesn't that feel a little bit more professional for some reason? IDK.

Why are there 7 (+1) faves this year instead of 5? Look, if we can let Australia compete in a Europe based singing contest then I can let me have 7 (+1) faves instead of 5 this year.

Let's deal with the pesky +1 first because you're probably wondering what on earth it's doing there.

Special mention goes to I Want Your Love by Eduard Romanyuta for Moldova!

Moldova isn't in my actual top 7 because it isn't actually going to be in the grand final tomorrow night. EUROPE DID NOT VOTE THIS THROUGH TO THE GRAND FINAL. I'm really mad about it and I loved Moldova's song too much to not include it in this list so it gets a special mention instead. I would have voted you through to the grand final, Moldova!

Now we can get on to the actual list (which is in no particular order.)

1. Rhythm Inside by Loïc Nottet for Belgium

I actually think I would like Belgium's song even if it weren't a Eurovision song, which is pretty much the highest compliment I can pay a Eurovision song. When I first watched it I couldn't quite figure out why I loved it so much but then James Dawson described Loïc Nottet as 'Boy-Lorde' on Twitter, and everything made sense.

2. Beauty Never Lies by Bojana Stamenov for Serbia

This one starts off a little ballad-y but don't give up on it! It gets real at about the 1:55 mark and I LOVE IT. I feel like this might be a real contender but what do I know? I liked Moldova's song so clearly I know nothing about what the rest of Europe wants.

3. Warrior by Nina Sublatti for Georgia

The award for best outfit goes to Nina Sublatti, that's for sure. There are actually two songs called 'Warrior' in the contest this year but I can't remember who sang the other one or what country it was for or even if they got through to the grand final. This one is better.

4. Golden Boy by Nadav Guedj for Israel

This is what I'm talking about when I talk about Eurovision! It's so boyband, so energetic, SO GREAT. There are so many boring ballads and serious songs this year and I am so grateful to Israel for actually getting into the Euro-trash spirit and sending this glorious entrant.

5. Heroes by Måns Zelmerlöw for Sweden

Okay so this one is a little bit on the ballad-y side too but it's so catchy! And look at how he interacts with the projections! He's having fun and so am I. Maybe he's not having as much fun as Israel's contestant but I mean, who is?

6. Still In Love With You by Electro Velvet for the UK

In a surprising turn of events I actually really like our song this year. I wasn't so keen when I first heard it a few months ago but I've listened to it a few times today and it's actually just really fun. I like it. It certainly won't win, but hopefully we'll get a few points!

7. Tonight Again by Guy Sebastian for Australia

Now, what Australia has done here is made the mistake of just sending a really good song. I like this song. I would listen to this song on Spotify. I might even download it. But it's not going to win Eurovision. Sorry, Australia. I do really it though and I hope you enjoy taking part in Eurovision for the first (and last, let's be real) time!

What do you think of my choices? Is there anyone you really liked who I haven't included here? Or do you honestly just not care one bit about Eurovision? (Don't worry, this will be the last post about it until next year.)

I'm actually having a little Eurovision party tomorrow with a few of my friends but I'm sure I'll be tweeting about it too if those of you following me on Twitter aren't bored of that already.

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#ReadWomenMonth 2015! Challenges + my TBR.

That's right, friends! If you're new around these parts then firstly, welcome, and secondly check out this post from last year where I explain what Read Women Month actually is. If you're very old around these parts then still welcome, and I hope you're as glad to see Read Women Month back as I am! Also I'm sorry I called you old...

For those of you who have no idea what Read Women Month is and who can't be bothered to click on that link (no judgement, I get you.) it's pretty simple. Last year I made the decision to only read books written by women for the whole month of June and encouraged others to join me. And I'm doing it all again this year!

This year I've decided to come up with a few challenges for those of us taking part. (Don't worry, these are not physical challenges. We do not encourage that on this blog.) You can do any, all, or none of these challenges. It's completely up to you! There is no wrong way to do Read Women Month... unless you're exclusively reading books written by men... then you've sort of missed the point.

Read Women Month 2015 reading challenges.
(Just in case you haven't quite got it yet, all of these books should, of course, be by female authors.)

Challenge no 1: Read a classic.
My choice:

Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie.

Murder on the Orient Express counts as a classic, right? It does in my mind. I've yet to read any Agatha Christie despite buying this and one of her other books last year so I'm really looking forward to getting into this.

Challenge no 2: Re-read an old favourite.
My choice:

I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith

I reserve the right to change my mind because I do what I want, but I'm pretty sure I'll be picking up I Capture the Castle for my re-read. It's one of my favourite books ever but I've actually only read it once so it's definitely time for a re-read anyway.

Challenge no 3: Read a book in a genre you don't normally read.
My choice:

The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon

Fantasy was the obvious choice for me for a genre I don't normally read. I actually have no idea how long The Bone Season is because I have it as an ebook, which means it could very well take me the entire month just to read this one, but I'm sure I'll enjoy it even if it does take weeks to read.

Challenge no 4: Read a book by an author you haven't read before.
My choice:

Secrets and Sapphires (Cinders and Sapphires in the US) by Leila Rasheed

Agatha Christie and Samantha Shannon are both authors I haven't read before so I could totally get away with doubling up for this one but I'll probably try and squeeze in Secrets and Sapphires too if I have time after the three books I've already mentioned.

And that's it! Those are the four challenges and my choices for each of them. The challenges aren't compulsory for taking part in Read Women Month by any means. I thought it would be something a bit fun and different for this year but if you don't fancy any of them then don't worry about it! The only rule for taking part in Read Women Month is to read books by women!

Please do let me know if you choose to take part in Read Women Month in any way! You can leave me a comment to let me know if you're taking part or, just like last year, I'll be checking the #ReadWomenMonth tag frequently throughout the month on both Twitter and Instagram.

And if you'd like to see my Read Women Month posts from last year they can all be found here!

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A little road trip.

A few weeks ago I went on a little road trip with a few of my friends. We had lunch in and explored Falmouth, then we drove to Pendennis Point (where I feared we might all be blown away by the extreme winds!) and on our way back home we stopped at a roadside Starbucks, where I had my first frappuccino of the season. It was a pretty great day.

All of these photographs were taken at Pendennis Point. I had my Instax with me so my friend Chuck used my DSLR for most of the day but I managed to snap these few photographs that I'm pretty pleased with.

And for good measure, here's a bonus picture that Chuck took of me in Falmouth.

My hair was like a bird's nest by the end of the day.

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Brushing off the dust.

What is this? A post? I know. Hold on to your hats, people. We're getting back into it.

You may remember back in October last year when I announced that I was starting a separate blog, stasialikesbooks, for all my bookish posts. Well it turns out that didn't go so well. 1) I just ended up posting on that blog fairly often and never posting on this one and 2) it turns out I don't actually enjoy writing book reviews in that sort of format as much as I thought I would. Who knew?

So, what's going to happen next?

1) I won't be posting to stasialikesbooks anymore. Maybe one day in the distant future I'll change my mind again but for now we're going back to the way things used to be. By which I mean that I'm going back to just posting whatever the heck I like on this blog and trying not to worry about what a mess it might be.

2) However, I am still pretty pleased with what I did post on stasialikesbooks over the past few months so at some point in the next few days I'll be reposting all of those posts over here. I know this will probably be very annoying for your bloglovin' feed but please bear with me! There are only 19 posts to be switched over and then everything will get back to normal.

3) I'm going to start posting about makeup and beauty a little bit. This has absolutely nothing to do with anything else I've mentioned in this post but I just thought I'd let you know while we're here. It's something I'm really interested in and most of the blogs I follow are beauty and fashion blogs so this has been a long time coming really. 

4) I'll still be posting about everything else you're used to seeing here, including books, films, tv shows, baking, and photography, I'll just be adding a few more things to the mix. The more the merrier, right?

I'm sort of still figuring out what I really want this blog to be but I'm getting some idea now and I really hope you'll stick with me while I work it out.

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