Chawton Vintage Fair

So yesterday called for a little trip to Chawton, for their Vintage, Antique, Collector’s and Craft fair! The sun was shining, the birds were singing, the dog made it all the way there without throwing up…perfect!

 

We didn’t stop in at Austen’s place this time (still haven’t finished my hardcopy of Sense and Sensibility from the last visit!) but definitely plan to return for a copy of Pride and Prejudice, because I love the hardcover classic designs. 

I hadn’t been to one of their vintage fairs before (to be honest, I didn’t even know it was a thing!), and despite being the home of Jane Austen, what I left with was a gothic-style picture of the bard himself. Can’t wait to get this up in my bedroom somewhere, once I’ve finished with the whole decorating/putting-up-shelves-I-don’t-own-yet stage that is. Which will probably take forever, because if there’s one thing that distracts me, it’s EVERYTHING ELSE. I’d hoped there’d be more stallholders there, but it is a small village hall, and these things are always nice to trawl the table tops for a hidden treasure. And who knows, might go again next month. 

 

What a stud

 

Unfortunately we suffered another near miss when it came to Cassandra’s Cup (we’ll get in there one of these days!) but I did get a lovely bit of sponge cake at the village hall because let’s be honest, that’s what you have to do at these things. Drink tea, and eat cake. That’s basically my life’s motto. That, and ‘Leave me alone, I’m reading.’

On the way home we made a quick stop off somewhere I’d been meaning to get to for a while now – the grave site of my great great great grandfather. He was something of a minor celeb back in the day (not for the best reasons, unfortunately). The village is mostly notable as the home of Gilbert White who, I don’t know…drew pictures of birds or something? (Riveting, I know) but with an ‘award winning tea parlour,’ and huge garden for the dog to roam, we’ll probably end up going back to see the house and explore the grounds. This time, we only went as far as the gift shop (mostly to ask if dogs were allowed in the garden. They are) and after a quick look around, found a book detailing great etc granddad’s exploits, with a rendition of his five minutes of fame on the front cover.

My great great great grandfather The Trumpeter of Selbourne, doing his thing.

Had to take a picture for my great uncle who researches the family tree, BUT, that little gift shop was where I bought these.

 

Pretty right?

 

I’ve never in my life used a bookplate before, or written my name in a book (sacrilege!) but I couldn’t resist. To be honest, I was mostly taken with the box, but I’m sure I’ll whack a few labels in some books with a vintage, feminine style. Starting with my copy of Sense  and Sensibility.

For more details on the Chawton fair, click on the link

 

THE MIRROR WORLD OF MELODY BLACK

synopsis          

      

It all starts, as these things sometimes do, with a dead man.

He was a neighbour, not someone Abby knew well, but still, finding a body when you only came over to borrow a tin of tomatoes, that comes as a bit of a shock. At least, it should.

And now she can’t shake the feeling that if she hadn’t gone into Simon’s flat, if she’d had her Wednesday night instead, then none of what happened next would have happened.

And she would never have met Melody Black…

 

 

 

The Mirror World of Melody Black reminds me of films that look good on the trailers, but prove to be a bit of a disappointment at the cinema. The intrigue  of the ‘mirror world,’ together with the synopsis, makes the novel feel as though it sits within the realms of fantasy, or at the very least, magic realism. It doesn’t. Nor does it hold any element of detective fiction, mystery or thriller. This disjointed element is reflected in the plot, which jumps from one unrelated event to the next, leaving the novel feeling poorly structured and lacking direction.

EVERY DAY

synopsis 

Each morning, A wakes up in a different body. There’s never any warning about who it will be, but A is used to that. Never get too attached. Avoid being noticed. Do not interfere.

And that’s fine – until A wakes up in the body of Justin and meets Justin’s girlfriend, Rhiannon. From that moment, the rules by which A has been living no longer apply. Because finally A has someone he wants to be with – every day…

 

A character devoid of sex or gender (not to mention body), how could it possibly work? But it does. So well. In Every Day, you lose yourself between the pages, flying through tightly constructed chapters that showcase a new day, and introduce the reader to a host of equally diverse and thought-out characters, that are just as engaging as our protagonist.