Talkie Tuesday: Outlander Final Season

 

"Sing me a song of a lass that is gone ..." 

 

Hello everyone!

 

Well, we did it.

 

Twelve years ago, Starz decided to premiere a time-travelling show that was a big risk at the time, because it would have to compete with titans like Game of Thrones, and yet somehow, somewhere, someone decided that this was a great idea.

 

And it paid off.

 

Because since then, for eight seasons, fans around the globe have watched the unfolding drama around Jamie and Claire Fraser with baited breath, willing them to succeed in their endeavours, and supporting all the other characters around them in some way or fashion.

 

That all came to an end this past weekend, with the airing of the very final episode.

 

If you've been a long-time fan, or if you only came into the show (binging it, really) recently, then I bid you welcome all the same. Because we'll be taking a look at the final season tonight, saying goodbye to our beloved characters.

 

Ladies and gentlemen, one last time: Outlander.

 

Talkie Tuesday: Blood of My Blood

 

"I will stand with you, whatever comes. We are one."

 

Hello everyone!

 

While I'm still not completely out of the woods yet - this stupid cold is taking absolutely FOREVER, and it probably doesn't help that I have to work in retail every single day, either - I'm feeling okay-ish enough to finally get back to blogging.

 

To a point.

 

It's going to be a much shorter post tonight unfortunately because I'm mostly just super tired all the time, and had to drag myself out of bed just now, BUT.

 

I CANNOT just stay sleeping anymore. It'll ruin my rhythm altogether!

 

So it's time we hop back in time a little bit, and check out the Scottish Highlands yet again.

 

Because nothing says 'welcome back, baby' as an Outlander-related prequel.

 

Blood of My Blood, here we come!

 

Talkie Tuesday: Outlaw King

 

"No more chivalry. Now we fight like wolves."

 

Hello everyone!

 

Tonight's choice has been floating around for a while.

 

And honestly, I had EVERY intention of watching it just as soon as I could, and then ... then, IDK what happened.

 

But on a random whim this past weekend, I finally flicked through the Netflix movie library to unearth this one, though I have to admit that I didn't even remember the correct title, accidentally landing on The King first before I bounced to this.

 

In my defense, there's a lot of kings running around the silver screen! LOL.

 

Without further ado, let's travel back in time to Scotland - ah, bonnie Scotland.

 

We'll be having a look at a failed rebellion, a successful one, wondering where Mel Gibson went off to, and plenty other subjects while also trying to discover why we need a full frontal nude shot that makes about zero sense, all wrapped in one movie package.

 

Which movie, you ask? And I answer: Outlaw King.

 

Tome Thursday: Clanlands

 

Hello everyone!

 

So before I bid adieu to Scotland entirely for some time (because naturally I could never do it forever!) I wanted to touch base with a book that I think might be one of the funniest I've read in a while.

 

And also educational considering it teaches you a lot of useful little tidbits about the country, too.

 

Plus, I mean, it's written by Sam Heughan and Graham McTavish. Need I say more?

 

If you thought Men in Kilts was something to laugh at and something to enjoy, you're going to LOVE this adventure into writing that the two of them went through together, because there is nothing funnier than reading about the by-play these two men have with one another just on a general kind of basis, not even on screen.

 

Yes, the show was scripted and filmed, and you learn more about that in this particular book, but we all knew that! It's no secret.

 

The secret is how these two didn't end up mortal enemies, or more specifically, how Graham didn't murder Sam along the way.

 

So kilt up one more time - a quick look at Clanlands is up next.

 

Men in Kilts: Battle of Culloden

 

"Oh sons of dogs, oh dogs of the breed,

Come, come here, on flesh to feed!"

 

Hello everyone!

 

And that's a wrap. 

 

We made it all the way through what is hopefully only season ONE of this show, because I'm pretty sure that every single one of us would love nothing more than to watch McTavish and Heughan traipse across some sort of landscape and give us the details as they go along.

 

I've seen commentary online that they could be giving a guided tour of the local Target or Tesco and people would still watch.

 

I mean, same, I totally would too!

 

All signs seem to point to a season two based on social media posts, but alas, for the time being, there hasn't really been any news of it, so we bid adieu to our two Scots who've done all the roadtripping.

 

And so, for one last time, it's hold on to your kilts, everybody.

The finale to Men in Kilts is up next.

Men in Kilts: Clans & Tartans

 

"Here's to long memories and friendship."

 

Hello everyone!

 

Despite the fact that the finale of Men of Kilts aired over this weekend, I'm an episode behind with it all because I took a bit of a break in between, which means that this week and the next will still be Scottish-coloured on the blog.

 

But when has that ever been a bad thing, am I right?

 

Our two favourite Scotsmen get themselves into even more trouble and hilarious situations just by existing, and it's one of those things that you really need to watch for yourself to believe. 

 

I mean, sure it's for the show and most of it is scripted, but these two manage to make it look as natural as it comes, which certainly amps up the appeal if you ask me.

 

I do, however, digress.

 

Right before the finale, we dived in to have a better look at just what even started this desire to learn more about Scotland and its history - the clans.

 

Clans & Tartans is up for debate next.

 

Men in Kilts: Scotland By Land, Air, and Sea

 

"What can go wrong?"

 

Hello everyone!

 

Our two Scotsmen return this week to take a bit of an additional trip across their homeland because, well, that's just the title of the episode.

 

And also because they love traipsing about.

 

Honestly though, even if this show were eight hours of Sam and Graham sitting in the camper van driving across the country, with the camera on their faces from the dashboard, I would've watched it, because that alone is priceless.

 

If you haven't heard Graham do a deep south fake American accent, now's your chance.

 

For one night, and one night only! LOL

 

But that aside, the lads do in fact show us some more beauty that is Scotland, and it's absolutely lovely to watch on screen, especially right now when travel is inhibited, if not forbidden.

 

Men in Kilts by Land, Air, and Sea, here we go!

 

Men in Kilts: Culture and Tradition

 

"There's nothing more traditional than a well-dressed Scotsman."

 

Hello everyone!

 

We return to our regularly scheduled programming ... even if we're now one episode behind the actual release dates, but no matter!

We shall persevere and continue on through our trek across Scotland.

Our two favourite Scots returned to their journeying this weekend with a new episode, but because I took a bit of a two-week break to watch some movies and review them on here, I'm still only on episode five of the show instead of six.

Ah well!

This just means that I'll be a week late in wrapping up the reviews, but that's okay.

When it's a good thing, it's definitely a good thing.

So without further ado and more lollygagging from me, here's Men in Kilts, a very traditional episode titled - you guessed it - Culture and Tradition.

Men in Kilts: Witchcraft & Superstition

 

"Ghosts and ghouls."

 

Hello everyone!

 

So we're about halfway through this season of Men in Kilts, and I have to say, you have to be tone deaf not to be enjoying this show immensely.

 

Sam and Graham take us through various aspects of Scotland (and then some!) not to mention the callbacks to Outlander are by far incredibly numerous. And on top of that, the guys are just hysterical most of the time.

 

By this point we've rolled up to what Claire experienced upon her second honeymoon with Frank back in the day, which is that the people of Scotland are as superstitious as they come.

 

Probably more so.

 

Given the fact that three quarters of their lives are spent in the bog and fog, or were at least, I'd say it's a fairly accurate description.

 

Without further ado, let's have a look at Witchcraft & Superstition in Scotland - and don't worry, we aren't getting burned at the stake.

 

Men in Kilts: Song and Dance

 

"Bagpipes."

 

Hello everyone!

 

You know, if you haven't figured out by now that this show is prime time entertainment on Sunday nights, you're missing out.

Because there's just something about Scotland that people have fallen in love with through Outlander, but more importantly, our two favourite Scots are basically having the time of their lives in Men in Kilts.

 

And it sure as heck shows!

 

I mean, we've covered food, drink, and sports thus far, which has resulted in some questionable bets and decisions (though to be fair I hear no one complaining about the skinny dipping last episode), and we keep on going.

 

Since we can't toss the boys into barley anymore and they can't toss around logs for fun, it's time to toss some swords on the ground for them.

 

Because if there's anything the Scots know how to do, and do well, it's connected to song and dance.

 

As you do. 

Men in Kilts: Scottish Sport

 

"Skinny-dipping."

 

Hello everyone!

 

Sadly this week the blog post will be a little bit shorter as I've been dealing with the plague on human kind - and not COVID either, but taxes.

 

Adulting is one of those things you wish you didn't have to do once you actually become an adult, heh.

 

Other than that, however, we are once again blessed with some good old fashioned shot of testosterone, which would never be more imminently evident than in sports, because where else do men EVER want to clobber one another over the heads and be better than their opponent?

 

Sam and Graham didn't escape this vice either, and I think they enjoyed it much more than most.

 

Then again, they'd done it before on Outlander already, if you recall that episode in season one during which they go toe-to-toe in a hair-raising game of what looks to be a rather 18th century version of a mix between lacrosse and field hockey.

 

But I digress!

 

We return to our Men in Kilts.

 

Men in Kilts: Food & Drink

 

"Scotland."

 

Hello everyone!

 

Or should I say slainte?  

 

Either way, welcome to what is bound to be a real Scottish extravaganza in terms of both learning anything and everything about Scotland - the beautiful country many of us have fallen in love with through watching Outlander - and just trying to follow along with two men on a roadtrip.

 

That's right, lads and lassies, the full title of this show includes a subtitle which I didn't include in the opening sequence, as it would just be too long.

 

But I mean, our two hosts need virtually no presentation. Both of them have made lasting impressions on the previously-mentioned time-travelling show, and now both of them have decided they needed to spend MORE time together, showing us just how giggle-inducing that can be.

 

And I'm telling you - the giggles are real.

 

So is this show though. Men in Kilts: A Roadtrip with Sam and Graham, follows the break in the text just here. Enjoy!

Tome Thursday: The Legend of Lady MacLaoch

Hello everyone!

With the weather having changed (FINALLY) to something a little more manageable in the sense that it's not two hundred degrees outside every time I stick my nose out, I finally feel like I can actually function normally again.

I mean, I like summer, don't get me wrong, but I also like it when it doesn't try to roast me on the spot like it's been trying to do.

But then of course the downside here is that we may not GET any more real summer from now on, which is a bit of a bummer.

You can't have it all!

But maybe you CAN if you're descendant of some ancient Scottish clan or Viking-inspired seafarers, because then you just MIGHT stumble over a curse that's been hanging over someone's head for generations, you CAN try to lift it, and end up living your happily ever after!

Sounds like something you might read more about?

Then I encourage you to pick up The Legend of Lady MacLaoch. It's got all of the above, and more!

Tome Thursday: Holly's First Noel

Hello everyone!

Of course books won't be escaping the Christmas touch, either.

There's always a bunch of them that are offered for free at Kobo, which I'm honestly stoked about, and then there are also others that you can buy that won't empty your pockets and bankrupt you completely.

Tonight's choice was one of the latter.

Obviously, if you know me, you'll know there's no way in any universe that I won't be reviewing a Serenity Woods book when it comes to Christmas. There are far, FAR too many good ones to go around!

In about two weeks her newest one hits publishers, but until then we'll be taking a look at one of her earlier ones filled with Christmas spirit.

Because there are BOUND to be people who can relate to the storyline in Holly's First Noel. There's no way it's an anomaly.

Outlander (Booktober)

"Jesus H. Roosevelt Christ!"

If there's one thing you NEED in your October reading life - it's time travel. And good time travel at that. The Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon delivers that, and so much more, from beloved characters (including but not limited to one Jamie Fraser) to a stunning television show adaptation that's proof there are still hopes out there for adaptations in general. The story of a war nurse travelling two hundred years back in time through a stone circle in Scotland, only to find the love of her life, is bound to be a timeless classic no matter how you look at it.

Add in the constant intrigue and characters like Lord John Grey, however, and you have a winner.

Hurled back in time by forces she cannot understand, Claire is catapulted into the intrigues of lairds and spies that may threaten her life, and shatter her heart. For here James Fraser, a gallant young Scots warrior, shows her a love so absolute that Claire becomes a woman torn between fidelity and desire—and between two vastly different men in two irreconcilable lives ...

(from Goodreads)

xx

*image not mine

The Conqueror Series (Booktober)

The Lost Symbol (Booktober)

The Host (Booktober)

The Bridgertons (Booktober)

The Hound of the Baskervilles (Booktober)

The Infernal Devices (Booktober)

Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter (Booktober)

Daughter of Smoke & Bone (Booktober)
Broken Sky (Booktober)

The Shadow of the Wind (Booktober)

Dracula (Booktober)

Life and Death (Booktober)

ACOTAR series (Booktober)

Assassin's Creed: Odyssey (Booktober)

Sepulchre (Booktober)

Pride and Prejudice (Booktober)

Tempting Autumn (Booktober)

Harry Potter (Booktober)

The Hobbit (Booktober)

Saturday Snippet: Dougal

Because everyone needs a little Dougal in their lives!

xx

*image not mine

Tome Thursday: The Raider

Hello everyone!

It's Thursday and for once I actually had more than one book to choose from when it came to picking for this blog post.

I know: shocker!

This is because I've been reading up on some of my old favourites and catching up on actual physical books. If you'll recall, after I got my Kobo, I tended to read most everything in e-format, because it was simply easier and a lot more practical. If, say, I was heading on vacation, all I had to do was slip the e-reader into my purse and away we went.

Now though, the magic of paging through a tome is back, and I've been catching up on some series that have been woefully ignored before. One of them being Monica McCarty's Highland Guard, which I began, came somewhere around halfway, and then stopped.

I have the good luck that my mother reads the same series. So I snatched The Raider while she was away.

Talkie Tuesday: Outlander's A. Malcolm

"It's always been forever for me, Sassenach."

Hello everyone!

Okay, okay, I'll admit - whenever I run into something particularly interesting or worthy of my fangirl moments, I usually end up writing it for my blog. 

Which does, sadly, interfere with my movie recap schedule, but luckily for me I somehow manage!

This week I would have been totally content in reviewing something or other movie-related, but truth be told that went right out the window when I remembered that there were two weeks of Droughtlander and the latest episode dropped this Sunday.

Scotland, you say? Eighteenth century, with a handsome printer with a hint of rebel?

Count me in!

Also, a lot of people are on the fence about the season so far, and especially about this episode, so I thought I'd add my own two cents into the mixing bowl. Outlander's A. Malcolm covered some bases and left others open for exploration, but let's see what happened, shall we?

Tome Thursday: Beguiled

Hello everyone!

I seem to always have books to read, but that doesn't mean all of them will or would even ever end up on this blog, for different reasons. Some just aren't all that interesting, others are re-reads, and then out of those I decide to write about ... well, I can't put them all up at once, right?

Right.

I'm headed back to a trilogy I started not too long ago in this blog post, actually, as Joanna Chambers has quickly become one of my favourite authors in terms of how easily it is to sink into one of her books and forget about the real world for a little bit.

I reviewed the first novel in the Enlightenment series, Provoked, already, and the link to the post will be found at the end of this one.

For the purpose of this blog, however, I'm stepping away from book numero uno and moving on to book numero due, titled Beguiled, which continues the infamous love story of lawyer David Lauriston and Lord Murdo Balfour.

Tome Thursday: The Chief

Hello everyone!

With Outlander out and about (and did you SEE the new EW cover for the upcoming second season? I swooned, for real, it's not even funny!), the Scotland mania has certainly made its way around the globe, although I can't really remember how I got my hands on these particular books that I'm going to talk about. Or well, some of them at least, because from what I understand there will be twelve of them altogether, and I'm ... well, am I even halfway through? No not yet, I think I'm on number five at the moment, haven't started yet.

Basically, for whatever reason, I found myself a copy of Monica McCarty's books about warriors from the Highlands, who, as opposed to their 'civilized' Lowlands brethren, usually come in packages of big, built like the Hulk, and devilishly handsome.

I'm actually beginning to wonder just where on Earth these photographers who do the cover shoots find all these muscled men!

Anyway, I only later realized, when talking to my mother about this particular book, that they're being translated into Slovene, and we're obviously building that collection. But I don't exactly know what started me on this series, only that I did, and The Chief is the first of the books.