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The Dragon's Promise by Elizabeth Lim Book Review

Friday 15 July 2022


Firstly I am going to start by saying thank you to both Hodder Books and Netgalley for the opportunity to read an advance copy of The Dragon's Promise by Elizabeth Lim for an honest review.

This book was one of my most highly anticipated reads of 2022 after receiving Six Crimson Cranes for Christmas and falling head over heels for the story and its Characters. Please be aware this review will contain spoilers so if you have not read this book do not read ahead.

Following on from Six Crimson Cranes we start with Shiori entering the underwater dragon city to meet with the Dragon King to honour Raikama's last wish that the pearl be reunited with its rightful owner, I felt this would be a major plot arc in the story and that we would get more of Seryu's character in this book - maybe even a bit of a love triangle. However while I am glad the author steered away from the love triangle aspect the arc of the plot within this world seems to end rather quickly and Seryu's character is not heard of again until the end of the book. We are also introduced to a few new characters like Gen for example who seem like they are going to become included deeply within the plot only to be dropped a few chapters later. This portion of the story felt almost disconnected as if it wasn't developed enough alongside the main plot arc or the pacing wasn't quite right.

The book then jumps back to the plot with the demons trying to escape the mountain led by the main plot villain Bandur. This part of the story I thoroughly enjoyed, I have just recently finished reading Spin the Dawn and enjoyed that this duology almost is the backstory to how Bandur became trapped on Lapzur island. This part of the story all felt connected and I was hooked on the plot line to see how this would play out.

However again following on from this we then head back to Kiata after successfully trapping Bandur on Lapzur island where the book almost felt like it was at a natural end point but with what looked to be 100 pages left I could see we had more storyline to go but I couldn't see how with the main villain already defeated? Enter again the high priestesses who have been against Shiori since her return as she is the bloodsake predicted to free the demons from the mountain rift. This brings another curse upon Shiori either allow Kiata to burn to the ground  from demon fire or sacrifice herself to the flames. This again felt a bit disjointed from the plot we had just been following with Bandur and the demons and I understand it was linked to the ending however it just felt abit randomly thrown in and not quite as cohesive as the plot of Six Crimson Cranes.

This being said the ending battle following this curse with Shiori, her brothers and Takkan and the Priestesses army had me gripped and I felt incredibly emotionally invested in the characters endings. I will not spoil how the story ends but it was definitely bittersweet in the best kind of way not a completely happy ending but one that leaves Shiori becoming a legendary tale in her own right with a spark of joy left.

Despite some of the story feeling disjointed there were many elements of the book I enjoyed including revisiting the characters I loved so much from the first book Shiori and her brothers, Kiki and Takkan and it was wonderful to get more backstory on Raikama, her past and how she had come to be in Kiata with the Dragon's pearl.  The writing as always with Elizabeth Lim was endearing, magical and eloquent. The descriptions of the different world's and islands visited was compelling and left you feeling as if you were there with the characters while reading.

I just wish the plot with the demons and the plot with Seryu could have been a bit more interwoven with less of a sharp change in storyline. As well as this that we could have had more development of the characters like Gen or Seryu but I appreciate that maybe the length of the book and the story we had to cover could prevent much of this development.

Overall I am incredibly grateful for receiving this advance arc and the title and if you are a fan of the first book or any of Elizabeth Lim's writing this story is definitely worth adding to the TBR. Despite the few criticisms I have made of the story I still feel the plot points I enjoyed, the characters and the writing deserve this book 4 out of 5 stars. Not quite as good as Six Crimson Cranes but then sequels are never as good as the originals.

Will you be reading or purchasing The Dragon's Promise when it is released in August?

Comment below on your thoughts and whether you will be giving this book a go.

Thanks for Reading!







No Words by Meg Cabot

Tuesday 5 October 2021


No Words by Meg Cabot

Thank you very much to Little Brown Book Group UK for the privilege of receiving an advance copy of No Words by Meg Cabot to review.

Lake Vyrnwy

Thursday 15 October 2020

This picture shows the dam at lake vyrnwy.

Lake Vyrnwy

Now that we are out of lockdown I have been slowly ticking off my UK destination bucket list. One of these destinations that I have heard a lot about but have never seen in person is Lake Vyrnwy. The lake is a reservoir in Powys and has become an important nature reserve for habitats and wildlife, with the total walk around the lake equalling 12 miles.

We arrived on a sunny Saturday and decided to walk around the lake to get views of both the dam and the gothic tower stretching out into the middle of the lake.

Farmer's Welsh Lavender

Friday 2 October 2020

Farmer's Welsh Lavender

Back at the end of August I visited Farmer's Welsh Lavender in Builth Wells with some friends. I had been recommended the spot by a former colleague who had visited and it looked like an idyllic place to go for a day trip, relax and even have a wild swim in the lake.

The farm was a good trip away from where we were in Shropshire and I must admit some of the roads to get to the farm advance warning are quite steep and bendy. However do not let this put you off visiting!

The farm is open year round for visitors however the best time for the lavender is midsummer, when we arrived at the end of August the farm was clearly coming towards the end of its lavender season. However there was still some lavender and a lot of lovely flowers and wild flowers planted around the lake.

Wollerton Old Hall Garden

Wollerton Old Hall Garden 

On a sunny Sunday last weekend I had the fortune of getting to visit Wollerton Old Hall Garden based in Market Drayton in Shropshire. I hadn't heard of the gardens before and like many of us I am sure I have been searching around my local area for new ideas for day trips or days out. 

We were fortunate to be able to visit at such short notice as the gardens are private but open to the public on select days throughout the year, see their website for more information on this. The gardens are set around a 16th Century hall and feature a variety of plant combinations including David Austin Roses.

UK Destinations I Want to Visit

Friday 25 September 2020

UK Destinations I Want to Visit

Coronavirus is looking like it is here to stay for the foreseeable future and due to this all travel abroad is either being cancelled or advised against. I am aware some people are currently travelling abroad and booking new trips for this year but with the circumstances being what they are I have realised I am not comfortable with the idea of travelling abroad currently.

With this in mind and being an avid traveller who likes to have at least one trip to look forward to a year I have decided to put together a UK Bucket List or as people are calling it 'staycation' destinations that I want to visit in the UK. Below are the destinations or sights that I have never been to that I would love to visit: 

A Day in Bratislava

Tuesday 4 August 2020

A Day in Bratislava


Back in November while on holiday in Vienna me and my boyfriend had a day trip to the capital city of Slovakia, Bratislava. Being only an hour train ride from Vienna where we were staying made it an ideal day trip destination. If you're planning a trip around a few different countries, I believe these two capital cities are the closest together in the whole of Europe making this an ideal place to start.

While we were only there for a day we managed to pack in a lot of the major sights and we even got to visit the Christmas Market in the centre that happened to have just started for the season.

The city is incredibly easy to walk around and if you do not wish to walk from the train station you can cheaply get a day trip bus ticket for a couple euros. However all the sights are located in or near the main centre so this would just be needed to get to and from the train station. Below is a guide of of the sights we saw and would recommend and the restaurants we ate at on the day. I cannot recommend any accommodation as we did not stop over in the city.

What I Have Been Doing While in Lockdown

Thursday 30 July 2020

What I Have Been Doing While in Lockdown

I had a lot of travel content that I was planning on writing up for this blog but sharing it in the current climate feels a bit odd so I am saving it for future posts. Instead I thought I would share with you all what I have been doing to keep myself busy while lockdown has been enforced. Currently I am working from home so that is filling up most of my working days. That aside what I have been doing to keep myself entertained is:

1. Catching up on TV Shows
I watch a lot of TV generally it is one of my favourite hobbies, I love getting invested in a good programme. This extra time has helped me catch up on shows that I started watching but never finished as well as binge watching new shows. You can check out what I have been watching here.

The Best European Cities to Visit After Lockdown

Monday 1 June 2020


The Best European Cities to Visit After Lockdown


I'm sure a lot of people like myself have had their travel plans this year cancelled or rearranged, this week I should have been sunning it up in Zadar in Croatia a trip which unfortunately could not be rearranged. 

To make myself feel better about this I have been looking back on past holiday photos and reminiscing over memories. I figured I would share with you some of my favourite cities that I have visited and that I would recommend visiting once lockdown is over and travel is a possibility again. After all we can only dream of destinations and plan for future trips currently!

My Tarot Deck Collection

Tuesday 26 May 2020

My Tarot Deck Collection


A hobby I am fascinated in and working on improving is tarot card reading I own multiple tarot and oracle decks and have been learning the differing meanings of the major arcana cards and the four suits in the minor arcana. It is a hobby I am hoping to improve with continued practice and learning.
I wanted to share with you the different tarot and oracle  decks that I own and use starting with my tarot decks I have three different ones.

Rider-Waite Tarot

The one deck I am sure everyone has heard of is the Rider-Waite tarot deemed the perfect beginner's deck filled with the classic images that people associate with tarot, originally printed in 1910 with images designed by Pamela Colman Smith the deck comprises of 78 cards. The images represent each card well, a small booklet is provided with the deck but it does not provide vast detail on each card though I am sure with how simple the pictures depicted on the cards are they are easy to analyse from your own opinion with the basic knowledge of the meanings of the major arcana and the four suits. As stated previously this is a great deck for someone new to tarot who wants to begin learning a deck.

Game of Thrones Tarot

 I first saw this deck when I visited the Game of Thrones Touring Exhibition, as a massive fan of the show I was keen to add this deck to my collection. The drawings and imagery depicting each card is stunningly done and the characters used correspond with each card very well. These cards may be slightly harder to read than the Rider-Waite unless you already know the meanings but this deck does come with a more detailed guidebook with information on each card linked to the Game of Throne's plots. If you are a keen Game of Thrones fan and interested in learning tarot this would be a good deck for you.

The Light Seers Tarot

 Finally I have saved the best for last. This is the most recent deck I have bought but it is by far my favourite tarot deck! The 78-card tarot deck created by Chris-Anne reimagines the traditional style tarot in a more contemporary boho style using bright and detailed imagery to help explain the meanings of each card. I love how expressive the cards are and how well the characters are used in the imagery to help explain the meanings, this is a stunning collection for those whole like more colourful and bright imagery and detail in tarot decks.

Let me know are you a fan of tarot? If so what decks are in your collection?

Thanks for Reading!

Tips for Finishing a Dissertation at Distance Learning

Saturday 23 May 2020

Tips for Finishing a Dissertation at Distance Learning


Back in February I finally handed in my last assignment for my degree this was the one everyone dreads the Dissertation! Over the past 3 to 4 years I have been completing this degree while working full time and I can definitely say there have been some times when this has been a struggle and the burnout has been strong!

With the current situation alot of you I'm sure are finishing off your degrees or doing assignments at distance learning from home and I wanted to share with you some of my tips that helped me be productive when finishing off my dissertation.

1. Gather all your Research First
When completing my dissertation and all my assignments really I tended to gather all my research that I wanted to use first. I then used to identify all the quotes that could be useful to be included into the assignment based off of the question that I was trying to answer. I felt this saved me so much time when starting to write the assignments.

2. Create your References
When I would find a quote I would always create the full reference and add it onto the document then and there. This saved me so much time and meant that I didn't forget which text I had found the quote from or the page number.

3. Plan Your Time
I set aside certain days and evenings of the week purely for university work. I found this worked well for me as I had time for my personal life on the days when I was not doing university work. Sticking to a schedule is the best way to be productive and get work done by set deadlines.

4. Take Breaks
It is important if you have limited time in the week and can only work on weekends to take breaks. Grab a drink, some food, watch an episode of your favourite programme. This will help keep you motivated and clear your mind rather than working non-stop and feeling burnt out.

5. Change Your Workspace
Do your work in different places that suit you I found working in multiple places such as my computer room, the library or even at work helped change my headspace.

6. Keep in Contact
Keep in contact with your tutor, any questions you have e-mail and ask, contact over e-mail helps ensure you feel supported and ensure that you have some guidance that you are going in the right direction with the structure and content of your dissertation.

These are all the tips I feel that helped me and may help you while completing a dissertation at distance learning. Are you studying via distance learning? What do you feel helps you keep motivated and what tips do you have?

Thanks for Reading! 

How I'm Managing My Mental Health in Lockdown

Sunday 10 May 2020


How I'm Managing My Mental Health in Lockdown.


I'm sure the current situation surrounding lockdown over the last month has affected everyone's mental health in differing ways. During this time I have set myself many routines aimed to help and improve my mental health during all of this uncertainty and I thought I would share with you the routine tasks that have been helping me:

1. Exercising Everyday
Before Lockdown I was lucky if I found time to exercise twice a week, during this period with all the additional time I have forced myself to exercise in some way everyday be it going for a walk or following exercise videos on YouTube. I find even if I haven't been feeling the best that doing some form of exercise has always boosted my mood and made me feel better about my self image.

2. Reading 
I finally can read for joy again now my degree is complete, so this spare time and the kindle daily deals have given me chance to get stuck into some fiction. You can see what I have been reading in this post.

3. Baking
I have been practicing and perfecting a lot of baking recipes that I have never tried before such as banana bread (as who isn't baking that currently?) and brownies. The only problem with this one is I then have to eat all that I have baked!

4. Watching Movies/TV Shows
Catching up on the shows and films that I have not seen, either on Netflix, Amazon Prime or Disney+. You can see what I have been watching recently here.

5. Practising Self-care
My self-care before lockdown was awful, I never left time for any extra pampering. So during this time I have made full use of face masks, practising with makeup, having baths to relax and finally sticking to a skincare routine.

These are all the tasks I have been doing to aid my mental wellbeing during this time. What have you all been doing to help your mental health during these strange times?

Thanks for Reading!

What I'm Currently Reading

Friday 24 April 2020

Currently Reading

With all of this time on my hands I am actually catching up with my reading list. I think this year will finally be the year I hit and surpass my Good Reads book goal!

I figured I would share with you some of the books I have started that I am intending to finish. I always seem to have multiple books on the go and tend to start another one before I have finished one, I just can't help myself!

Here is what I am reading currently:

Never Let Me Go - Kazuo Ishiguro

This book follows the lives of a group of children, focusing on the main narrator Kathy who is trying to come to terms with her childhood at the seemingly idyllic boarding school Hailsham and the fate that has always awaited her and her friends in the outside world.

I am really enjoying this story, I had already seen the film so it does take away the plot twist in the book! The film I remember being incredibly emotional so I expect the book to end in much the same way. I am half way through this currently and hoping to finish it shortly.

5 Things I Want To Do After Lockdown

Wednesday 15 April 2020

5 Things I Want to Do After Lockdown

This post was inspired by Hello Miss Jordan's post 7 Things I'm Going to Do Once Lockdown is Over

I like the idea of looking ahead past all the doom and gloom of the current situation and setting future plans and goals that I can look forward to.

Currently I am very much enjoying the break this lockdown is providing me with, I don't think I realised just how rundown I had been feeling and I am incredibly grateful that I am in a fortunate position where I am currently able to work from home. 

Despite the break however I have been very sad to have a lot of future plans cancelled, while I understand it is necessary in the current climate it has definitely taken away the joy of having things booked in advance to look forward to.

With all that being said the 5 things I want to do after lockdown include:

Memory Scrapbooking

Tuesday 14 April 2020

 Memory Scrapbooking

With all this extra time on my hands I have finally got around to starting a task I have had on my to do list for years! This would be my holiday memory scrapbook.

Over the past 6 years whenever I went on holiday I took photos and kept hold of tickets to sights, boarding passes, metro ickets etc. This was all with the intention of putting them together creatively into a scrapbook so that I could look back on my favourite memories from my various trips.
Included in this post are some pictures of my progress so far with this scrapbook. I've already managed to fill nearly one book because I just cannot choose between photos!

What I have enjoyed the most about this project at this time is that it has given me a creative outlet and something to focus on amidst all the chaos going on in the world currently.

I've really let my creative juices flow and created things out of coloured paper like mini planes, mini suitcases and flags for the different countries all to stick onto the pages with the photos and tickets to make them stand out.

I love the idea of having a book like this put together that I can pull out and have a look at over the years.

I still have a long way to go with this project but I am grateful to have something that I can use as a creative outlet where I can look back over my favourite memories and happier times while new memories currently cannot be made.

What have you been doing with your extra time during this lockdown? What do you enjoy doing that brings out your creativity?

Thanks for Reading!

What I've Been Watching

Monday 13 April 2020

What I've Been Watching


Since lockdown started and I've been working from home I have had a lot more time on my hands. As I have finished my degree now I have been making the most of this extra time by catching up and watching new shows and films.

I thought I would share with you all what I've been watching.

Disney+

Like many people I invested in Disney+ when they had the offer of £50 for the year. Following this I have watched a lot of stuff on the platform, I'm a big Disney fan and loved the movies and the original Disney Channel shows. A few of the shows and films I have watched so far include:

My 2020 Goals

Thursday 26 December 2019

It's that time of year again when everybody sets out the goals they want to achieve in the coming year, so I thought I would share with you the goals that I would like to achieve in 2020. Think of it as an early new years resolution/goal setting post if you will.

1. Complete my Dissertation/University Degree - This is a work in progress currently, I have started and am in the process of completing my dissertation for my BSc degree. Once this is complete I will have officially finished and completed all the work that goes towards my degree. I am of course aiming to complete this to the best of my ability and am hoping for a 2:1 or even a 1st if the overall marks go in my favour.

2. Continue Going to the Gym - Another overlapping goal. I have been going to the gym for the past year but in 2020 I really want to work on the 'gains' so to speak and increase my strength and muscle mass.

Barcelona: Parc Guell

Wednesday 25 December 2019

Barcelona: Parc Guell


In February 2019 I got to visit the stunning city of Barcelona, which had been on my bucket list for quite some time due to the stunning Gaudi architechture.

Despite being February the weather was beautiful and sunny and quite frankly not that cold we got incredibly lucky!

I want to take a moment to talk about my favourite sight from this trip and that was Parc Guell.

The outskirts of this park are free to walk around but if you want to see the Guadi architechture including the famous tiled bench that everyone has to get a photo on it is around 8 to 10 euros -if my memory serves me correctly.

The Views Around Amsterdam

Friday 29 November 2019

Throwback to October 2018 and a long weekend in Amsterdam. Having never visited the Netherlands before Amsterdam was high on my bucket list of city breaks with its picturesque buildings and canals. It's an ideal city to visit where you can get around all of the sights available by foot which is the best way to take in the views.

On our first day in this city we joined onto a free walking tour which gave us an overview of the history of the city and walked us around all the major sights which gave us a fantastic grip on our bearings of the area.

Paris: Eiffel Tower

Saturday 17 August 2019

 
When visiting Paris there is one sight that everyone wants to see and that is the Eiffel Tower, it is a must on the tourist trail of people visiting the area. Being the generic tourist that I am I knew when visiting Paris I wanted to see the Eiffel Tower and go to the top to view the city for the structures fabulous lookout.

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