Truth or Dare by Non Pratt

The first time I heard about Truth or Dare was all the way back in December, at the Walker Books YA showcase. Not much was revealed about the book just yet other than that it would look at the question: 'what does it take to be brave?', but the intriguing way Non Pratt talked about her writing – and the enthusiasm from everyone around me about this author already had me sold on this young adult title.

The Blues Brothers Summer Special at The Hippodrome

The Blues Brothers is a cult classic for a reason. Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi's portrayals of brothers Jake and Elwood on the run from the cops, set against a back drop of catchy jazz and blues tunes, is one I've rewatched many times on rainy Sunday afternoons. They were criminals, sure, but they were also multi-talented showmen, and their charismatic performances were the heart and soul of the film. And with an extended set list and subtle nods back to the origin story, The Blues Brothers Summer Special at the Hippodrome could be one of those shows the famous band performed during their career.

Dinner at the Bite Me Burger Co. Pop Up in Holborn

I love foodie pop-ups and one of the newest to make its way to London is Bite Me Burger Co., which opened in Holborn last month in a temporary residency inside Hong Kong café Cha Chaan Teng and will receive more pop-ups across London, including in Soho and in West London, throughout the summer – in addition to offering deliveries and catering. Bite Me Burger is the brain child of award-winning chef Adam Rawson who made a name for himself as the winner of the Slider Decider competition two consecutive years and, unsurprisingly, sliders are front and centre on the menu.

Lost Boy by Christina Henry

Adaptations of traditional fairy tales or classic literature have really seen a surge in recent years within YA books especially, and what's particularly notable is how often the same source material has contemporary versions published around the same time – even though the publishing cycle means that the majority would've worked on this separately without knowing about the upcoming releases. Sometimes this is driven by a major movie release (see Beauty and the Beast), and at other times it seems more of a coincidence. I'm loving that Neverland is the latest hype as this is one of my all-time favourite fantasy worlds and now I get to explore it all over again.

Literary Edinburgh: Book Sculptures

On my recent visit to Edinburgh, the majority of my plans (unsurprisingly) revolved around books. After all, Edinburgh was named the first City of Literature by UNESCO back in 2004 for a good reason. What I didn't expect, was quite how many bookish things and places I'd come across. Way too many for a single blog post, so rather than cramming them all into one piece, I've split up my bookish Edinburgh guide by: sculptures, people, food, places and book shops. And today I'm kicking it off with the mysterious book sculptures that appeared across the city a few years ago and are now on display in various literary location. 

The Daily Prophet Exhibition at House of MinaLima

I love the work by design duo Miraphora Mina and Eduardo Lima (aka MinaLima). They created the incredible fully illustrated Beauty and the Beast and Peter Pan hardbacks I've blogged about before, as well as all the design work for the Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts films (from product packaging to posters and anything in between). They have an awesome shop and exhibition space in London's Soho which I, not gonna lie, frequent. I've blogged about the Harry Potter exhibition before, but they change it every few months so I always try to pop by when I'm in the neighbourhood. After their recent Fantastic Beasts exhibit the focus has now shifted to The Daily Prophet, the newspaper from the wizarding world.

Interview with Lucy Clarke about Last Seen [blog tour]

If you've been on my blog or social channels before you know that British author Lucy Clarke writes some of my all-time favourite books. I've been journeying across the world with her novels ever since The Sea Sisters back in 2013, and in Last Seen she brings her beautifully descriptive and atmospheric writing to British shores in a gripping missing person's read. I'm delighted to be a part of the blog tour for Lucy's brand-new book today as it gave me the opportunity to ask her about her story settings, writing tips, the highlight of her publishing career to date, and much more.

5 Highlights From My Weekend Break in Edinburgh

Last weekend I was in Edinburgh and it was wonderful. I'd been only once before a few years ago and I'd forgotten quite how amazing the city is. With the sun out every day this time, it was even more delightful to wander around the city to explore. I hit up a lot of literary hot-spots for future blog posts (there are SO many bookish things in Edinburgh), in addition to checking out the sights I didn't get a chance to go to last time. The weekend was pretty much non-stop awesomeness and I'll be writing dedicated blog posts about many of the things we did, saw and ate over the coming weeks, but as a teaser here are my top five highlights from the trip.

What I Read in June 2017 – Wrap Up & Mini Reviews

I posted my first monthly book round-up in May, which received a lot of nice comments on social channels and on my blog for which many thanks. I loved writing it and I'm glad you guys enjoyed it too, as I'm back today with June's book wrap up! It has been an exceptional reading month with just one 2-star read and the others all 4 stars or more. My favourite books in June were political courtroom thriller Anatomy of a Scandal by Sarah Vaughan, missing person mystery Last Seen by Lucy Clarke, teenage action adventure Never Say Die by Anthony Horowitz and contemporary YA Juniper Lemon's Happiness Index by Julie Israel.

A Photo Tour of Colourful Notting Hill

Notting Hill is an iconic part of London. Being the star of a film by the same name and the location of the annual Carnival as well as the famous Portobello Road Market, it's a wonderful area to wander into and explore without having a destination in mind. It's vibrant neighbourhood filled with eclectic shops and a ton of independent places to pick up drinks and snacks to keep you going, making it the perfect place to spend a sunny afternoon. And with its pastel houses, eye-catching street art and flower-covered pubs, it's also very photogenic as the colours pop around every corner.