Reading, Listening, Watching 21

It's been a while since I wrote an update, but now the boys are back at school I can get back to writing and have a routine. With the boys at home it's never easy to get work done without being interrupted, so instead of trying to push through, I took time out of the office and spent it with my boys. But now that they're back at school I'm back to the writing, so let's get on with this month's Reading, Listening, Watching.

Reading

In the last Reading, Listening, Watching, I told you I'd started reading the recent novel by Linwood Barclay, Find You First. During the holidays I finished the book and I'm happy to report it's a good read. I didn't think it was up to the usual standard of Linwood Barclay books, but if you like mysteries, I'd recommend it.

After Find You First I started Project Hail Mary, the new novel by Andy Weir. I have yet to finish Project Hail Mary and it's proving more difficult to get through than other books Andy Weir has written. It's partially my fault, not making enough time for reading, but I think it's also because the genre is not one I was expecting. I'm not sure which books I'm going to read next. I may well return to the John Locke series.

Other books I've read include research material. Books about the human body. Forensic Science books. Anatomy books. I've researched how various injuries impact the body, what evidence would be left behind by different attacks, and I've visited websites and health sites to make sure I've got all the right information. I enjoy learning, and this is one of the best parts of writing a novel.

Listening

The listening has taken a back seat during the school holidays, but I have listened to one or two things. Music has been high on the list and my usual crime podcast, They Walk Among Us, while doing my ironing! Hopefully I'll be able to get some extra listening done now I have more time.

Watching

TV Series

If you're a regular reader, you'll know this section always runs long and this time is no different. After starting The Good Wife, what feels like months ago, we finished and moved on to The Good Fight. We raced through the first few seasons and got to the newest in the series. While I don't enjoy The Good Fight as much as I did The Good Fight, it's still an entertaining watch and I'm looking forward to the next season.

After The Good Fight we started 13 Reasons Why, Silicon Valley, and Friends. We like to have a few things on the go at once, so we don't get bored with any of them. 13 Reasons Why is one of the most intense series I have ever watched and I do not recommend letting your children watch this show without supervision. It covers topics like teen suicide, rape, murder, and how keeping secrets can affect your life. The most intense thing though is that it is teenagers going through it all, they're struggling with adult topics while trying to keep their secrets. As a mum I feel for the parents, but what strikes me most about 13 Reasons Why is how realistic it is. I can believe that teenagers keep these secrets from their parents and believe they can deal with it no matter what. I hope it can open the eyes of parents and young people everywhere.

Silicon Valley is a more light-hearted show and, to be honest, it's not one that appeals to me much. It's about a start-up tech company in Silicon Valley, California, and all the trials they face as a new company. The Hubby likes it because he can relate to a lot of the content being a person who has run companies for a long time now. He laughs and sniggers while I sit there, not really understanding the tech-talk and asking him to explain. While I can't relate to any of the characters, I can find some of them funny so that helps with the enjoyment.

Friends is a classic and I will always enjoy re-watching it. The will-they-won't-they with Rachel and Ross, watching Phoebe and her craziness, and Joey's struggles to become a respected actor, is all an escape. It's a chance to laugh at good old jokes and chill out.

Movies

Onto the movies, and there's a lot to get through. Movies the Hubby and I have watched together include Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels, The Sweetest Thing, and Me Before You. Lock, Stock is a movie we've watched lots of times and it's one of the Hubby's favourites. The Sweetest Thing is a romantic comedy starring Cameron Diaz. Finally Me Before You is a movie that will pull at your heartstrings and, if you haven't already, make you want to read the book of the same name by Jojo Moyes.

The movies we've watched with the boys include Yes Man, Apollo 13, Quantum of Solace, Skyfall, Spectre, Goldeneye, Goldfinger, and Austin Powers International Man of Mystery. As you can see, there's a slight theme towards the end there.

We started the spy theme with Casino Royale and over the last few weeks we've gone through all the most recent James Bond movies starring Daniel Craig. Once we finished those we had to watch Goldeneye because the Hubby helped make the iconic Goldeneye game on the Nintendo 64 and he wanted the boys to see the movie that inspired the game. Next we had to introduce them to the classic James Bond that is Sean Connery and I'm happy to report they enjoyed the movie. Of course where do you go after James Bond? We settled on the amusing parody of spy movies Austin Powers, and needless to say the boys found it hilarious.

I'm going to stop there, but as you can imagine there'll be more books, music, and movies for me to talk about next time. See you then.