Talkie Tuesday: Enola Holmes 3

 

"The puzzle is always as devious as the setter."

 

Hello everyone!

 

I'm back at it again, and mostly on time as well.

 

I can't quite believe it lol, but apparently that's what you get when you actually pay attention to what's going on and everything that might be happening online.

 

I've been a fan of the great detective Sherlock Holmes since ... forever sounds like such a long time ago but, well, it HAS been forever.

 

I used to read the children-friendly, abridged works of his, then watched the show with Jeremy Brett playing the titular character. When Netflix started poking around the Holmes family, of course I was going to watch this, too.

 

And for the most part, I've been enjoying the romp!

 

So without further ado, let's jump straight into what's going to be happening tonight, which is a review of the third installment in the series: Enola Holmes 3.

 

Tome Thursday: Ghastly Mistake

 

Hello everyone!

 

Well, we did it.

 

WE DID IT.

 

I say, as if I were single-handedly responsible for getting these books out. HA. I wish.

 

Better words to use would be that Byrd Nash did it, getting all six parts of her gaslight romantasy series out into the world at large, and with such ample success too!

 

I accidentally stumbled over Madame Chalamet on BookSirens, but then after the first three books discovered the author would actually be doing ARCs personally as well, and got myself hooked up to that.

 

Because there was no way, NO WAY, I'm telling you, that I would be missing out.

 

Elinor Chalamet is everything you might want in a female hero, and I was going to hitch myself along for the ride to witness her story come to a satisfying conclusion.

 

And boy, did it!

 

Time to talk to ghosts one last time (for now) in Ghastly Mistake.

 

Tome Thursday: Haunted Grave

 

Hello everyone!

 

And welcome to the first post-Christmas book blog that is an ABSOLUTE treat.

 

When I originally stumbled across this book series as a member of BookSirens (you know, that online platform which brings together authors and readers for mutual benefits of free books - free reviews), I was hesitant because a "Sherlock Holmes inspired story" has been done before, and not very well.

 

Then I started reading Madame Chalamet and her mysteries, and changed my mind.

 

Byrd Nash has such a way with words and manages to draw you in with her characters, in particular in this series, but I'm absolutely going to try and get my hands on some of her other works.

 

I may have found another favourite, after all!

 

But for right now, I need to not digress.

 

Because things are going bump in the night, and turning uglier and deadlier.

 

Which is probably why this book is quite appropriately titled Haunted Grave.

Tome Thursday: Gray Lady

 

Hello everyone!

 

A full April spent perusing and browsing through a single book series.

 

What could possibly be better, I ask you?

 

While the previous three books could be picked up on BookSirens - the lovely, lovely online resource for readers and writers alike when it comes to exchanging ARCs and reviews - this one was only available to the people lucky enough for Ms Nash to specifically choose for her team.

 

I count myself extremely honoured and humble to be a part of it.

 

And I am LOVING this series.

 

Like, seriously!

 

When all is said and done, this is a magnificent slow burn paranormal-based romance, and I truly wish that everyone would pick up a copy to read. It's just THAT good.

 

So without further ado - we return to the realm of ghosts tonight, in Gray Lady.

 

Tome Thursday: Delicious Death

 

Hello everyone!

 

Back again with another really, really good book, and I can tell you right now straight off the bat that I'll be doing a speed-run through these that have already been published until I run out of material.

 

The best part?

 

There's two more still to come.

 

Or at least it's projected to cover six novellas and we're supposed to get a conclusion this year, which is always exciting, because I feel that as readers we do often have to sit and wait for what feels like forever to get to a certain point (looking at you, Martin and Rothfuss).

 

Byrd Nash isn't like that. She's also a lovely woman to chat to, so if you haven't picked any of her books up yet, I highly suggest you do so.

 

Last week we started on our journey with Ghost Talker, so this week it's only right and proper that we keep on keeping on with its sequel.

 

After all, ghosts - and ghouls - don't usually wait for anyone, so let's see what Delicious Death has to offer.

 

Tome Thursday: The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes III

 

Hello everyone!

 

And so, we come to the end of our Sherlock Holmes journey.

As promised, this week I'm bringing this collection of short stories to a close, and starting something new and exciting come next Thursday.

Given that this weekend is the first Sunday of Advent already, I would say we're just about on time, wouldn't you?

Sherlock has had his run, and a fantastic run at that.

His time in the hansoms and chasing villains through the fog of London is basically at an end as he gives way to that inevitable Christmas cheer that's right around the corner.

As every year, I'll be covering some hopefully lovely seasonal books, but before we can get on to that, it's time to say a proper farewell to our super sleuth.

The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, ladies and gentlemen, one last time.

Tome Thursday: The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes II

 

Hello everyone!

 

We are back for another round of 'who the heck did this and how?!'

 

Or, in other words, for another round of Sherlock Holmes stories.

 

It really looks to be the time for these, especially if you look out the window and, for most of the view if you're living in the Northern hemisphere, you get foggy outskirts.

 

I was just watching it crawl in yesterday, and man did it remind me of London!

 

I grew up watching Jeremy Brett playing Holmes, you see, and that was a proper, Victorian era one.

 

So this is legitimately right up my alley, which is why I keep going back to the books and reading them again and again.

 

Let's not keep our master sleuth waiting for too long then, shall we?

 

Because we haven't finished The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes yet, and the detective has this thing about unfinished business.

Saturday Snippet: Sherlock

 

Just a little appreciation post <3

 

xx

*image not mine

Tome Thursday: The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes I

 

Hello everyone!

 

Continuing on in the vein of what we began with this week, I'll be taking a look at a compilation of short stories through the rest of November.

You guessed right, watching Enola Holmes 2 made me dig out and dust off my copies of Arthur Conan Doyle's famous Victorian era sleuth.

And let nobody fool you, this is the perfect time to read them.

There's fog outside, the weather's particularly dreary (for the most part) and you just need something cozy to read while you wrap up and sip your hot beverage of choice. Doyle made sure, back in the day, to provide everything you'd ever need in that aspect.

So did several others writing on the topic of crime and solving crime, but I digress.

Tonight we take a look at the original who snooped around London way before Enola was conceived in the heads of Netflix producers.

There's a plethora of stories to choose from, but I picked the Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes.

Talkie Tuesday: Enola Holmes 2

"If you stay true to yourself, the path will always find you again."

 

Hello everyone!

 

I'm actually almost right on the money with this one for the particular round we're in, which is a surprise considering I usually spend SO LONG before getting to a movie.

Looking at you, The Next 365 Days.

Yes, I'm still debating whether or not I'll sacrifice some more of my brain cells to watch that, as I've already seen the first two, but I digress.

Because tonight's choice has absolutely nothing to do with anything Italian mafia related.

Rather, we take a step back into the past to Victorian England.

And we have a look at the youngest of the Holmes brood once more.

Yep, that's right, it's time to pay a visit to the England of cabbies, top hats, chaperones and corsets, and just what on Earth was going on with the suffragette movement at the time.

Our sleuth is here to help us. We're talking Enola Holmes 2.

The Sign of Four (Booktober)

 

"When you have eliminated the impossible, 

whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth."

 

 

Okay so I MAY have made a slight doo-doo since I mixed up A Study in Scarlet and The Sign of Four. Oops! My apologies. In my defense ... well, there isn't a good one really. But that said and done, what would ANY fall read-a-ton be without a look at the classic sleuth in Victorian London? Sherlock Holmes has held the hearts of people around the world since his very first appearance, and the recent dive into stories about the fictional Enola Holmes have reinvigorated public interest. If you're waiting for cute teenagers running amok in London, however, be warned: the OG Holmes stories are NOT for the faint-hearted, especially not with epic riverboat scenes like in this one! Arthur Conan Doyle knew his stuff.

 

 

 

As a dense yellow fog swirls through the streets of London, a deep melancholy has descended on Sherlock Holmes, who sits in a cocaine-induced haze at 221B Baker Street. His mood is only lifted by a visit from a beautiful but distressed young woman - Mary Morstan, whose father vanished ten years before. Four years later she began to receive an exquisite gift every year: a large, lustrous pearl. Now she has had an intriguing invitation to meet her unknown benefactor and urges Holmes and Watson to accompany her. And in the ensuing investigation - which involves a wronged woman, a stolen hoard of Indian treasure, a wooden-legged ruffian, a helpful dog and a love affair - even the jaded Holmes is moved to exclaim, 'Isn't it gorgeous!'

(from book jacket)

 

xx

*image not mine

 

Harry Potter #2 (Booktober)

Troublemaker (Booktober)

The Lord of the Rings (Booktober)

Talkie Tuesday: Enola Holmes

"To be a Holmes, you must find your own path."

 

Hello everyone!

 

So my original plan for this week's blog post for Tuesday was to follow up the previous one about Mulan with our all-time favourite, the 1998 version, but something else happened and the plan went right off the rails.

 

Kind of like jumping off a train!

 

Here's the thing.

 

I forgot Netflix was premiering their new movie about Sherlock Holmes' younger sister last week.

 

I know, I know, I should have ACTUALLY been paying attention, but sadly my mind's been all over the place, so while I clocked into the trailer and the date, I didn't realize the date was REALLY just around the corner!

 

And there you have it. Paying attention is everything, kids.

 

Which means that the Mulan cartoon is unfortunately getting bumped right along. Because without further ado, allow me to introduce yet another member of the prodigiously talented Holmes family: Enola Holmes.

 

The Hound of the Baskervilles (Booktober)

"The footprints of a gigantic hound ..."

 

Well, if we're talking Victorian London, foggy streets, and potential murder mysteries, we really can't go through Booktober without at least saying hello to one of the world's most famous detectives. Sherlock Holmes is and will probably always remain a fan favourite, no matter who portrays him in any iteration. And of course, the famous Hound of the Baskervilles is one of those books you need to read with your light on if your nerves are a little more relaxed, or maybe even in daylight.

Just in case, you know, a glowing dog with red eyes comes at you all of a sudden.

Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson had been sharpening their detective skills deducing the characteristics of the man whose walking stick is in their possession, when the owner arrives greatly in need of their help. Dr Watson is dispatched by Holmes to the desolate moorland of Devon. He learns about the ancient myth of the Baskerville Hound, and as he uncovers the malevolent fury that lay behind Baskerville's death, he comes perilously close to meeting his own ...

(from book jacket)

xx

*image not mine

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)

Talkie Tuesday: The Final Problem

"The Game is afoot."

Hello everyone!

Well. We've made it. 

And contrary to what I generally feel when a show season ends, I'm not entirely certain what to make of this particular one.

This weekend saw the end of season four in the lives of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, but fans all around the globe are pretty much crying out, either in confusion, shock, or just point-blank outrage.

As a wise individual once said: "I feel a disturbance in the Force."

Fortunately, we can always go back and watch the first two seasons (and three, three was okay-ish, as well) if we want to go back to Sherlock's glory days. Unfortunately, despite previous statements that Benedict Cumberbatch is contracted for a fifth season, this has now been pulled and in its place was said that, while a fifth season has been plotted, Gatis and Moffat aren't sure if they'll produce it.

On that note, let's dive into this Sherlock recap, shall we?

Talkie Tuesday: The Lying Detective

"The Game is afoot."

Hello everyone!

I'm back after yesterday's rather exclamation-filled watching of the second episode in the current Sherlock season. 

Now, I'll admit, I tend to be quite vocal when I watch the shows I like - mainly because my reactions are just that explosive on more than one occasion, but also because I'm alone when I watch this. Occasionally, I do watch things with my friends - like, say Sherlock specials - but that being said, more often than not it's just me and my poor, over abused laptop.

If this thing could speak ...

It would probably complain how much I keep talking to it. But then, I wouldn't NEED to if the shows I watched wouldn't be bad for my blood pressure.

Sherlock, of course, being the rather prime example, seeing as there is literally no one on this planet Earth who can annoy people quite so much as the good detective from Baker Street.

Talkie Tuesday: The Six Thatchers

"The Game is on."

Hello everyone!

Happy New Year! 

I hope that you've all celebrated with your loved ones and had an amazing time during the longest night between 2016 and 2017. I'll admit mine was spent very lazily, at home, watching the Police Academy movie marathon and going to bed before one o'clock.

I know, I'm hopeless.

BUT.

That being said, with 2017 now firmly in our midst, the new series, and new seasons are finally beginning!

I'm looking at you, Shadowhunters, but before I even nip at that particular episode (because I still have to watch it) I'm going to go into a review of what is quite possibly the most anticipated show besides Game of Thrones and probably Walking Dead.

Ladies and gentlemen, our favourite detective from Baker Street is back!

Saturday Snippet: Sherlock!

Hello everyone!

STOP THE TRAFFIC. STOP WHAT YOU'RE DOING. STOP EVERYTHING.

Sherlock season 4 just got a release date!

That's right ladies and gentlemen, January 2017 is the month when our favourite sleuth will come back to 221B Baker Street and entertain us once again with his marvelous deductions!

So wake me up when it's January, okay? 'Kay.

xx

*image not mine

Talkie Tuesday: The Abominable Bride

"If you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth."

Hello everyone!

Happy New Year! 

I hope you all had a festive and cozy get-together with the people you care about the most, and started off this calendar year with a bang - I know I did. Not so much the bang as it was the previous part, as I was lucky enough to spend my New Year's Eve with very good friends who make everything a whole lot less problematic and seem much brighter than it sometimes is. And then I got to go home to my family, which, of course, is even better.

To top it off, the first weekend of this new year was spent in the most delightful way imaginable (I may be chaneling my inner Galadriel here, but An Unexpected Journey was on TV this Sunday night, blame it on that): watching the Sherlock special, The Abominable Bride, surrounded by a bunch of Sherlockians and Sherlock-enthusiasts!

Really, life just doesn't get any better than that.

Talkie Tuesday: Mr. Holmes

"If you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains - however improbable - must be the truth."

Hello everyone!

Back again with another movie review and I have to say I had a different one waiting, as I still have quite a list of those I watched during my time spent in Croatia, but I postponed that in favour of a more recent watch. And with recent I mean I actually saw the movie this week. 

I was invited to have a bit of a get-together and a movie night with two good friends of mine, and even though it was a weeknight which means that mostly everyone has to either get up early the next day or there's a lot to be done and you'd do well to be well rested, we spent quite a few hours just chatting and catching up before actually plunging into the movie itself. Once we did though, it was easy to see why it's so much better, sometimes, to watch movies at home rather than in the cinema, as it's a lot more comfortable and discussion-prompting.

The movie we watched was Mr. Holmes.

Saturday Snippet: Bookshelf Tour, part 2

Hello everyone!

I may be a little trippy at the moment. Not because I've drank anything, or otherwise consumed anything of the illegal sort of variety - but mostly because staring at translation stuff and then on top of it all reading through Alice Clayton's Cocktail book series is seriously something to make your mind spin.

Ahem.

But I'm back with the second round of my bookshelf tour! If you've fallen behind, never fear, there'll be a link at the bottom of the post to the previous part.