January has slipped by quietly without very much going on, given that we are now back in full lockdown, again, while the Government grapples with this new, highly infectious variant. Meanwhile the vaccination programme is proceeding apace. Both sets of parents have had their first vaccination and my sister, who works in a pharmacy has had both her jabs. I’m hoping Himself will be getting his sooner, rather than later as he is a key worker who has to go out every day and regularly travels to London.
We have had the grandchildren staying over several times – including little Eliza, again. It was another successful visit where she seemed very happy to be with us. Right now, we are still coping with some hefty family issues, not improved by COVID and the lockdown. Thank goodness we are part of my daughter’s support bubble, so we can be there to help out when needed.
Reading
I read fifteen books in January, and again, I can’t fault the quality of the books. I did DNF The Shape of Darkness by Laura Purcell, but that was because it was too dark for me to cope with – the writing was excellent. My Outstanding Book of the Month was The Night Parade of 100 Demons – A Legend of the Five Rings World novel by Marie Brennan, and my Outstanding Audiobook of the Month was Tombland – Book 7 of the Matthew Shardlake series by C.J. Sansom.
My reads during January were:
Spirited by Julie Cohen – review to follow.
AUDIOBOOK I Shall Wear Midnight – Book 4 of the Tiffany Aching series by Terry Pratchett – review to follow.
Black Sun – Book 1 of Between Earth and Sky series by Rebecca Roanhorse – see my review.
Nikoles – Book 2 of the Tuyo series by Rachel Neumeier – review to follow.
Cruel as the Grave – Book 22 of the Bill Slider mysteries by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles – see my review.
Haunted House Ghost – Book 5 of the Braxton Campus mysteries by James J. Cudney – review to follow.
By the Pact – Book 1 of the Pacts Arcane and Otherwise series by Joanna Maciejewska – see my review.
Murder at the Ritz by Jim Eldridge – see my review.
Defending the Galaxy – Book 3 of the Sentinels of the Galaxy by Maria V. Synder – review to follow.
OUTSTANDING AUDIOBOOK OF THE MONTH – Tombland – Book 7 of the Matthew Shardlake series – review to follow.
Winter’s Orbit by Everina Maxwell – see my review.
The Monster MASH – Book 1 of the Monster M*A*S*H series by Angie Fox – see my review.
The Lord of Stariel – Book 1 of the Stariel series by A.J. Lancaster – review to follow.
Writing and Editing
I’ve made steady progress with Trouble with Dwarves, which is the second book in my Picky Eaters series, featuring grumpy old dragon, Castellan. I’ve now written the opening adventure featuring the ice giants and am now working on the closing chapters of the book, which I hope to have completed by the middle of February. I’ve also completed several editing projects and am continuing to work with my father-in-law on his memoirs.
Overall, I wrote just under 44,000 words in January, with just under 26,000 on the blog, just over 1,200 on lesson reports for Tim, and just over 16,000 on my writing projects.
Blogging
January was a better month for the blog, as I wasn’t going anywhere and managed to get back into the rhythm. I’m still not doing very well at visiting other bloggers – and I will try to do better! In the meantime, I very much hope you are all able to continue to stay safe, while waiting for your vaccination. Take care.x
Brainfluff 