Three Things for Your Weekend

#21: December 13th, 2024

Oooh, Friday the 13th. Spooky!

Firstly, the obligatory note that I didn’t intend to skip a week - deadline season completely ran away from me. Turns out a Master’s degree is, in fact, quite a lot of work! 

📕 The Muse of Maiden Lane* - Mimi Matthews. (*Amazon affiliate link) I raced through the first three books in Matthews’s Belles of London series earlier this year and pre-ordered the fourth (and final) book as soon as I finished those three. I find that a lot of historical romance is set in the Regency era or earlier - I love that the Belles series is set in a late-Victorian London which, for all its rules and strictness, isn’t all that different from the London that exists today. Like the rest of the series, this is a (relatively) closed-door romance, and incredibly swoon-worthy. Our protagonist is the last of the ‘Four Horsewomen’ to get married, and our love interest - a fiercely independent artist who uses a wheelchair. If you liked When He Was Wicked by Julia Quinn (which explores medical issues that weren’t fully understood at the time it’s set) you’ll like this. (At time of writing - it’s only 99p on Kindle!*)

🍫 Mince Pie Tiffin. One of the few things I’ve torn myself away form my desk for over the last couple of weeks was a Christmas get-together with my board games group. I didn’t have time to bake anything like I normally do, but I could combine a box of mince pies, some star-shaped pretzels, chocolate, and butter, and then pop it all in the fridge for a few hours. Sooo good, and the leftovers made excellent essay-writing fuel. 

🎹 Minnz Piano covers. My Spotify Wrapped reminded me how much I love to play piano and Lofi covers of Taylor Swift music while I work (Minnz Piano and Louisette were two of my top five artists), and not a moment too soon. My uni essays would not have been written without an endless soundtrack of piano music. 

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