Talkie Tuesday: Avatar

 

"I see you."

 

Hello everyone!

 

Welcome back to the blog.

 

This week, we're taking a little break from Bollywood so that I can backtrack to some other favourites I have.

 

To be honest, I'm actually going to be diving into Disney again pretty soon, if I'm looking at some of my scribbled notes correctly, er, reading them I mean, though it does look like chicken scratch.

 

But before that, we have to go back.

 

And I mean, WAY back.

 

Seventeen years back, to be exact, which is ... something. Then again, the LOTR trilogy is hitting those 20 year milestones, and I'm sitting here like WUUUUUT.

 

Without further ado, let's go back in time, back into space, and back into sci-fi, bby!

 

There's more than one movie now but, back then, it was only the one Avatar.

 

Tome Thursday: Captivated by Dominik

 

Hello everyone!

 

Welcome.

 

Welcome back to the world of Sziveria, the post-apocalyptic situation people find themselves in when they read Sarah Westill's novels.

 

If you've been following me on this blog for a bit, then you'll know I've pretty much devoured every single Gen-Heirs book that's come out from under her pen, or, keyboard I suppose.

 

Because despite the fact that I stumbled into the world completely by accident, thinking it was going to be more romance than adventure, I ended up falling head-over-heels, and literally scrambling to get copies of the books as they were releasing.

 

My next goal this year is to grab them all so I have them ready at a moment's notice and sitting pretty on my shelves! So, you know, challenge accepted haha.

 

But until then, I'll just be reading the e-book versions.

 

And the new series is now hard-launched into orbit, so here we go.

 

Welcome back to Sziveria, and to the Ralston clan, with Captivated by Dominik!

 

Talkie Tuesday: Kuch Kuch Hota Hai

 

"Love is friendship." 

 

Hello everyone!

 

Yes, I'm still in my Bollywood era.

 

No, I don't particularly care if this bothers anyone.

 

I'm finding it hard to get back into any other movie because these ones are just so entertaining for the most part, and also visually stunning! To say nothing of the acting chops on these stars, DUH.

 

So I'm slowly working my way through the list I've accumulated on Netflix so that I can confidently say I've seen everything that needs seeing.

 

Which does of course mean I VERY often run into none others than Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol, who seem to have been everywhere in an era of Hindi cinema that people look back on with fondness and nostalgia.

 

I mean, they even got a statue in the UK not too long ago! Talk about history.

 

Without further ado, let's hop right into tonight's installment, then, titled Kuch Kuch Hota Hai.

 

Tome Thursday: Poison Petals

 

Hello everyone!

 

Welcome to tonight's book of choice.

 

And oh MAN is it a GOOD one!

 

So a while back in 2025, I joined this cute little ARC team - for Ms Lea Rose.

 

This was after I read Where We Burn, which introduced me to Hot Daddy Cowboy Christian Crawford and convinced me that I need to switch religions so I can worship at that altar.

 

I'm only partially joking.

 

But I've had the honour and privilege to read several more of Ms Rose's books, and pretty much all of them have been absolute bangers, so I wasn't even all that worried going into this one.

 

Did I not quite feel 100% about the beginning part of this duet? Yes.

 

But the ending one? Oh it's absolute magic.

 

Let's stop talking about the trappings and go straight into Poison Petals.

 

Talkie Tuesday: Mardaani

 

"This is India!"

 

Hello everyone!

 

Welcome back to another one of those moments where you probably look at the blog and go 'oh heck, she's doing it again'.

 

Because yes, yes I am!

 

I can never stay away from Bollywood for long.

 

I mean, I'm still not quite over the last movie I watched, but that's beside the point, as right now, tonight, I'm picking one of the newer ones.

 

And one of the ones with a female lead I absolutely ADORE.

 

Rani Mukerji is just -chef's kiss- I have to watch more of her work. She's amazing.

 

So without further ado, let's hop right into the drama of tonight's movie of choice.

 

Because that's what we're getting with Mardaani.

 

Tome Thursday: Ghost Overboard

 

Hello everyone!

 

Welcome back to the blog.

 

For tonight's book of choice, we're picking a series that's been ongoing for a bit, but always seems to keep fresh no matter which one you choose to read!

 

I've been a fan of Dina Marie's work since I accidentally stumbled upon Going Ghost, and I've loved the rest of the books ever since.

 

I'm sure plenty of people out there will argue with me and say these books are short, bring nothing to the table, and are much too simple to be considered proper sleuthing ones.

 

I disagree!

 

It doesn't always have to be a crime so deep you need to bring out Holmes or Poirot.

 

Sometimes, all you need is logical thinking, a little bit of luck, and a ghostly companion while you're at it.

 

So let's check that out in Ghost Overboard.

 

Talkie Tuesday: A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms

 

"In the name of the Warrior, I charge you to be brave;

In the name of the Father, I charge you to be just;

In the name of the Mother, I charge you to defend the innocent."

 

Hello everyone!

 

Welcome.

 

Welcome, welcome, back to the continent of Westeros, and the stories and (mis)adventures that happen to take place within it.

 

Now, I've by this point made my peace with the fact Martin will absolutely never finish his A Song of Ice and Fire series. That's cool, that's great, let's move along now.

 

And yes, season 8 was basically trash and we're not here to talk about it again.

 

House of the Dragon returns for its third season this summer, but IN THE MEANTIME, we get to talk about our very favourite hedge knight!

 

Buckle up, grab those spears, make sure your shields are strong and reinforced enough, and then find the nearest snorting charger, because we're about to enter a tournament, and boy, will you need all the luck you can get to survive it.

 

The first season of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, everybody!

 

Tome Thursday: The Blood Locket Mystery

 

Hello everyone!

 

Welcome back to the blog.

 

I'm finally climbing out of the hole that is our Mardi Gras, which we celebrated just this week, and for which the bakery I work at produced ... insane amounts of sweet treats, let's put it that way.

 

So we're FINALLY now entering more normal stages again, and I don't feel like I'm drowning anymore.

 

Instead, I get to enjoy some really, really good books.

 

Among them is this one.

 

I actually read it much sooner than it's making the debut here on the blog, but I just couldn't get to it sooner.

 

Too many books, too little time.

 

Now, at last, here we are back in Byrd Nash's imaginary world where ghosts run around and ghost talkers try to lasso them back, and one apprentice finds herself on her own for a mysterious case.

 

That's what we get in The Blood Locket Mystery!

 

Tome Thursday: Elemental Awakening

 

Hello everyone!

 

Welcome.

 

Welcome to tonight's book of choice, which landed in my lap literally forever ago and completely at random - so random, in fact, that I can't even remember how!

 

Although I have vague recollections of finding a post asking for ARC readers for it, and applying thinking that it was never going to happen, yet here I am.

 

Having read the ARC, backed the Kickstarter project, and now seeing the book release into the world.

 

Because yes, it's release week, bby!

 

The official published prints went live February 9, and it has been a WILD ride. It's only getting better too, because the second book is coming this summer, there's a novella focusing on a fan favoured side character slated for autumn ... it's a good time to be in this world, is what I'm saying.

 

So buckle up, get your fingers all flexed and ready, sharpen those swords, and dust off ye ole leathers from our Empyrean drought; here there be dragons!

 

Let's walk with them in Elemental Awakening.

 

Talkie Tuesday: Sikandar

 

"No one is above the law."

 

Hello everyone!

 

Welcome to this week's movie of choice.

 

And boy, is it a GOOD one.

 

Of course, if you look at IMDB or any of the movie critics' sites, you'll probably think this stinks to high hell and won't ever touch it.

 

I've learned not to trust those evaluations, because more often than not my personal taste will diverge WILDLY from what the world says you should or shouldn't like. It always comes down to what YOU personally want.

 

And this one is beautiful, with a soulful story that made me cry at least three times (but who's counting?!?).

 

Buckle up, then, grab some tissues, and of course your favourite snacks, because we'll be running into Bollywood at full-speed.

 

It's time for Sikandar.

 

Tome Thursday: Lily & Thorne

 

Hello everyone!

 

Welcome to this week's book of choice.

 

Now if you've been following me for a bit, you might remember that this title seems familiar to some extent.

 

Perhaps you're thinking: have I seen this before?

 

Have you?

 

Well, turns out, you have!

 

Originally published as part of an anthology, this particular novella got expanded upon, rewritten, and re-published!

 

And, because I'm a good soul like that - and also, because Rhi Hargadon is an absolute ANGEL - I'm here to write a quick review about this new version of the tale.

 

Without further ado: Lily & Thorne!

 

Talkie Tuesday: The Mysterious Affair at Styles

 

"Perhaps one day, when this terrible war is ended, 

we shall work again together, eh?

And Poirot will explain it all to you."

 

Hello everyone!

 

My, but it's been a WHILE since I've done one of these.

 

It's a shame really, because this piece tonight happens to be part of one of my all-time favourite series ever made, and I'm talking EVER.

 

There is nothing out there that can compare to it.

 

Basically, I'm someone who grew up watching Jeremy Brett play his way through Sherlock Holmes stories, then once I was old enough, I switched to this.

 

But apparently all I've ever done have been snippets and vague looks into the series, which won't do!

 

It's time to be more serious about it, possibly even gotta-catch-em-all serious.

 

So without further ado, let's hop straight into The Mysterious Affair at Styles.

 

Tome Thursday: Midnight Bargain

 

Hello everyone!

 

It's been a bit since I started this trilogy of books from Serenity Woods, and while it actually already concluded well before 2025 ended, I simply couldn't fit it into my review schedule otherwise.

 

So here we are tonight.

 

And I mean, you KNOW I'll be reviewing a Serenity Woods book any chance I get, right?

 

Obviously.

 

I love her romance stories, the realness of them, the obstacles she writes so cleverly, but most importantly the way she writes her couples, who never do the dramatic Hallmark-y thing but actually behave like real people in real situations.

 

THAT's the draw for me, and why I keep coming back for more.

 

... well, that and all her hot billionaire men LOL. 

 

Without further ado, let's wrap up Midnight Billionaires, shall we, since we're starting a new series soon enough? Here's Midnight Bargain.

 

Talkie Tuesday: Percy Jackson and the Olympians

 

"The War has started. A Great Stirring is underway."

 

Hello everyone!

 

Welcome to the next installment in our Greek mythology adaptation saga which began a few years back with Disney acquiring rights to adapt these books in the first place.

 

Now, I'm not here to talk about what's good or bad or whatever, although I'll definitely touch on some of those things, but I'm mostly just here to give you a rundown of how the second season unfolded, what you can watch happen during it, and what to expect going forward.

 

But to do that, we actually have to dive INTO the story.

 

You can't really do a review without talking about exactly what you've been alluding to now, can you??

 

So without further ado.

 

Sharpen those weapons, demigods, and wake up, because it's time to pick a side. Will you fight for order or for chaos? And no, this isn't Assassin's Creed.

 

This is the second season of Percy Jackson and the Olympians.

 

Tome Thursday: Of Sky and Sea

 

Hello everyone!

 

Welcome back to the blog.

 

Tonight's book of choice is just over one month in the world today! So congrats to it, and the author, because that's an amazing feat.

 

I'd actually read a copy of this book way back in December, but didn't get a chance to talk about it on here much at all, because I was too busy with other books, and of course, the Christmas thing that I have going on here.

 

But now I finally can, so here we are.

 

Let's dive into prophecies, angels, demons, vampires, the works.

 

There's a whole lot of fantasy characters all bopping around in here, and of course there's a prophecy that will probably make you want to cry your eyes out. 

 

Without further ado, here we go, then.

 

Of Sky and Sea.

 

Talkie Tuesday: Tiger Zinda Hai

 

"We cannot let politics get in the way of humanity."

 

Hello everyone!

 

Back to Bollywood I go - of course, what else is there? - to continue where we left off last week.

 

Last week, if you remember, we took a look at the first movie of the YRF Spy Universe, although at the time it wasn't actually that. Turns out, the Powers That Be decided only after tonight's choice and WAR aired that they're going to connect it all and come full circle.

 

I mean, if it's not baroque, amirite?

 

But regardless.

 

For us, now, this is the second movie in the spyverse, and I have to admit that it's the first ACTUAL spy movie in the universe that brings all the cards to the table: action, nail-biting suspense, a sprinkle of romance, and a good dose of humour so you don't end up flatlining out of pure boredom. 

 

So without further ado, get those fancy scarfs out.

 

It's time we take a look at Tiger Zinda Hai.

 

Tome Thursday: Heart of Faelithia

 

Hello everyone!

 

Welcome to the next installment in our book reviews saga here on the blog.

 

I have some really fantastical books to talk about this month - and for the next few months, actually, because I just looked at my list and I'm pretty much all squared for this little space for the next who knows how many days.

 

Life just happens while you're having fun reading, is all I'll say!

 

But tonight's book is a very lovely choice, and, conveniently, it JUST released out into the world.

 

Happy release, Magdalena Gavlasova! You really outdid yourself with this book.

 

I do know she has at least two more that you can read either concurrently or as prequels before this one, because they happen in the same expanded world, but tonight's choice was my entry into the universe she's crating, and that's what we'll be talking about.

 

So hold onto your butts, grab a comb, and make sure you look presentable, because we're headed into a world where beauty is everything and cheating isn't an option, in Heart of Faelithia!

 

Talkie Tuesday: Ek Tha Tiger

 

"The day you follow your heart, consider yourself dead."

 

Hello everyone!

 

Have you missed my forays into Bollywood?

 

Well, say no more!

 

Tonight, we're going back to where it ALL started.

 

Okay, maybe not everything, but we're definitely going back to where the YRF spyverse actually began, although doing some digging it turns out that the first three movies were actually considered standalones until Pathaan came along and tied them all together.

 

I guess you just need SRK to make it a family party, right?

 

Anyway, the movie we'll be talking about tonight is a respectable age old at this point in time, going toward the 15 year marker, so it's been a bit, and honestly it occasionally shows its age in that there are plenty of the 2010s tropes in there you can recognize.

 

But it's also a neat action movie, so let's jump into Ek Tha Tiger!

 

Tome Thursday: Stay for Christmas

 

Hello everyone!

 

I know this particular book looks like it really ought to have been featured on the blog much, much earlier - oops!

 

I unfortunately lost blog space since I was doing some other reviews first, but I figured it might be a really great way to kick this all off, you know?

 

We started strong with Sandokan this Tuesday, and so now we're finishing the week off even stronger.

 

Serenity Woods is an author I will NEVER not feature on this blog, because her books are amazing. I've pretty much read almost her entire bibliography at this point, and I'm not ashamed to admit it. I've been a fan of hers since the Three Wise Men days, and it's all just gotten better and better.

 

Now, after focusing on billionaire romances for a good bit, she's returning to the small-town sort of feel with tight-knit communities, families who help each other out, and some wonderful animals that'll warm our hearts along the way.

 

With that said, let's hop straight into this series prequel, shall we?

 

Because everything has to start somewhere, and we're about to in Stay for Christmas.

 

Talkie Tuesday: Sandokan

 

"We protect what is ours. We fight for what was taken from us."

 

Hello everyone!

 

Happy New Year!

 

I hope that your entry into 2026 was calm enough, and that it's treated you well so far. I know for my part that I'd have LOVED if I could have spent a little more time at home - I got super lazy over the four days off I had LOL!

 

Then I went back to work yesterday and my entire body protested.

 

Such is life.

 

BUT.

 

That said, we are back to blogging on a semi-regular schedule, bby! And I have a special treat for you all with this first post of the year.

 

Because sometimes, tigers get to walk on two legs, and this one's handsome as sin to boot.

 

Introducing: Sandokan!