Hello! I hope you are doing well on this roasting Wednesday. The weather is so very hot, I am sitting indoors, blinds drawn, Dyson on full-whack as I write this.
It has been a busy few months so I wanted to share what I’ve been up to recently, both in the day job and outside work too. I am a reporter for Reach and all my articles can be found here.
With my Reach hat on, I am always on the lookout of news stories, so feel free to get in touch via Twitter, where you can pitch me stories. I love my job where I cover a wide range of subjects including politics and wider lifestyle.
Outside of office hours, when I have any spare time, I blog here. My eternal, sweet-spot topics are food and drink and I am especially interested in reviewing restaurants, new trends in the industry and rum (always rum).
I am also working on some very exciting projects. I cannot wait to share with you soon, so do keep your eyes peeled.
I recently visited Bath, Somerset for a birthday trip. Bath is a stunning city and one that has been on my bucket-list of places to visit, since forever.
I am also a massive Bridgerton fan, parts of which were shot in Bath, so that made the visit extra special. I’ll write about the Bath trip in a standalone post, because there really is so much to tell you about.
Speaking of Bridgerton, I read the first book in the series by Julia Quinn, The Duke and I, for this month’s book club. I have been meaning to read the book ever since the first series dropped on Netflix in December 2020 (yes it’s really been that long) which made household names of Regé-Jean Page and Phoebe Dynevor.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading Bridgerton book 1. I binge-watched the Netflix series and loved it, although book 1 is markedly different to the Netflix adaptation.
I’m about to start Julia Quinn’s second book in the Bridgerton series, The Viscount Who Loved Me: Bridgerton. If you’ve read the Bridgerton series, how do you think the books compare to the Netflix adaptations?
I am genuinely fascinated by the Bridgerton phenomena and I’m really looking forward to seeing how the others found the book at the next Derby Book & Cake Club. Now, this is not exactly a book club per se anymore.
It used to be. It has evolved into a circle of friends who spend less than three minutes chatting about that month’s chosen book before we all just enjoy a massive catch up.
If you’re looking for a proper book club, check out Derby Quad’s BooksQUAD here. I love the Quad, which also does the best coffee in town, so you’d be in the right place to sip good coffee whilst reading a book.
We have an afternoon tea with my book gang booked at a local café that does the best Bakewell Tart in the world, so that will be a nice Saturday out.
Speaking of baking, I find that I’m not baking much at all these days. If you have any recipes that you think can raise me out of my baking funk, do let me know.
Another book I am in the middle of reading and cannot seem to put down is Luke Harding’s Collusion, which is a deep-dive into Russia’s election interference in the 2016 US elections. I consider Luke to be one of the best journalists of our time, do take a look at his books on Amazon here.
I am in the middle of compiling a list of places to visit over the coming months. If you know any fabulous spaces that I just need to visit, then please do let me know, happy to come by and check them out, diary permitting of course.
On a separate note, I discovered yesterday that I have Covid, following three negative LFD tests. I am lucky to experience cold-like symptoms and on occasion, crashing waves of lethargy.
I am grateful for the vaccine, science and glad that I have a job that empowers me to work from home. Speaking of being grateful, what are your thoughts on gratitude?
I started journalling around a year ago, and it helps me remain focussed and positive. It also gives me an excuse to buy pretty stationery.
PaperChase is my current favourite stationery store. If you have any go-to place that sells stunning stationery (notebooks, pens, pencils and erasers are all wonderful), please do let me know.
I hope you are all keeping cool and safe in this abnormally hot weather. Remember to get in touch if you:
- have any news stories that you’d like to pitch to me, then get in touch via Twitter
- know of any restaurant / café / eatery that you feel needs a wider audience, so I can come by to review
- have a recipe that you’d like to share with me, that will inspire me to start loving baking again
- just want to say ‘hey’ then please do so on Twitter, I look forward to connecting.
All my best,
R