Updated on: 24 November 2021

A Writer Reads

In regards to reading, I’m currently addicted to Ben Aaronovitch’s Peter Grant Series. I originally was given the first three books in the series during 2012, while I worked for Orion Publishing for free. It’s one of the perks of working in a publishing house. The lovely Ben Aaronovitch came into the office to do a book signing, and I got the first book signed. These beautiful books have been sitting on my shelves, waiting to be read ever since. This year, I started to read books one to three and purchased the remaining three books in the Peter Grant series from my local Waterstones (a book shop in the UK).

The protagonist, Peter Grant, is a wizard who has just been assigned as a trainee detective to the magic or paranormal division of the British Metropolitan Police Force. It isn’t my usual genre, but I love it. I’m almost finished, book four which is titled ‘Broken Homes.’ If this series interest you, pick up a copy of the first book in the series on Amazon by clicking here.

Lessons Learned

I was over-ambitious. I did know this already, but confirmation is a good thing. I expected to edit both of my novels, plan my wedding, and introduce Roland to my family. The interesting thing about planning a wedding is, it’s almost a full-time job, especially if you’re doing it overseas. This meant I needed to cram as many meetings into a week as possible. The great news is, I only have a few things left to do for my wedding that I can do from my computer in London. As a result of the wedding preparations, I didn’t get to show Roland as much of Brisbane as I would have liked, but I did get to introduce him to my family. So, this is a win.

I also learned the value of throwing out my schedule and simply enjoying the experience. Nothing ever quite goes to plan when you travel. You almost need to take each day as it comes, especially, when your plans are dependent upon the weather. So, this is what I had to do during the Sydney part of the trip, and it was great. There’s nothing more amazing than enjoying the moment

A Writer Travels

March and April, have certainly been busy months, so far. I’ve spent several weeks in Australia preparing for my wedding followed by a quick holiday in Sydney and Melbourne. I returned to London for a few days then we were back on the Eurostar for a quick five days in France. Yes, I decided to travel after the 24-hour flight to Australia. I know I’m crazy. Never do that. Naturally, I’m super exhausted after travelling, so I’m easing myself back into my usual writing schedule.

Brisbane

There are two seasons in Brisbane, hot and sticky and hot and rainy; we got to endure the first weather conditions. I know this sounds amazing but, when you go from a top of 13 degrees Celsius (55 degrees Fahrenheit) to 27 degrees Celsius (80 Fahrenheit), it can be a bit of a shock. We stayed at the beautiful Royal on the Park which is located opposite the beautiful botanic gardens. Our trip consisted mostly of wedding planning, menu tasting, suit fittings, meeting with photographers, hair and my make-up trial. My personal highlight or possible misadventure was when Roland (my French fiancee) discovered that you drive around a roundabout in a clockwise direction, not anticlockwise like they do in France.

Sydney

After spending, a little over a week in Brisbane, we flew to Sydney. We stayed at the Pullman on Hyde Park for three days. It’s a beautiful hotel opposite the Hyde Park gardens in the central business district in Sydney. The three days started off brilliantly. It was all blue skies and the sunshine. We strolled around Sydney and did the very touristy Big Bus Tour. And, in the evening we did a tour of the Sydney Opera House. The tour comes with a headset so the tour guide can talk to you without yelling and you straining to hear him. I wish the New York Public Library did something like that. Unfortunately, we were unable to take photos of the inside of the Opera House.

The next day everything started to go pear-shaped. The weather was borderline cyclonic. Picture, strong winds that rendered an umbrella useless with rain all day long. Juts, perfect. This meant we had to cancel our plans to visit Taronga Zoo. Let’s face it, who wants to go on a ferry during that weather?! But, it wasn’t all bad, the next day we visited the Hyde Park Barracks Museum, which is a museum focused on the convicts who lived in the Hyde Park Barracks during the settlement of Australia.

Melbourne

Roland and I are huge foodies, and Melbourne is a culinary heaven with a dash of beautiful buildings, shopping galleries, and secret side streets filled with cafes. I lived in Melbourne for a few years before I moved to London. Returning to Melbourne made me wonder why I ever left. But, Roland and the ability to travel are the perfect substitutes for this beautiful city. Other than eating, we spend our time wondering around the city and seeing the unique sights. We also managed to fit in a trip to the Melbourne Zoo.

So, what are you reading right now? Do you read exclusively inside the thriller genre? Or, do you read whatever grabs your attention? I want to hear from you. Let me know by sharing your favourite book genres in the comments section below.

Happy reading, book lovers!

Amelia xx