I've Been Reading #2

Hello all! I've managed to get a lot of reading done lately (one of the very few perks of job hunting), and thought I'd tell you a bit about some of my recent favourites in an I've Been Reading post! Some of these are books that EVERYONE is talking about at the moment, while others are ones I've had on my list for a while!

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

This book is the talk of the town in the booktube community at the moment. I finally caved and downloaded it on to my Kindle after hearing so many people discussing it - it's in the YA sort of genre that I'm a huge fan of, and I haven't read a bad review of it yet.

The book centres around the life of Cadence, a teenage girl from a wealthy American family, who have their own private island. Every year Cady, her mother, her aunts and cousins spend the summer on the island with their grandparents, and she has an incredibly close bond with two of her cousins and a family friend. The family is far from perfect, however idyllic life on the island may seem, and tension bubbles beneath the surface from the very start of this book. Things take a turn for the worse when one summer Cady is involved in an accident - she has lost her memories of the events leading up to the accident and the incident itself, and the book sees her try desperately to piece together what happened to her, two years after the event. It's the first time she has gone back to the island, and the carefree summers she spent with her friends are most definitely a thing of the past.

I'd heard before I read the book that once you find out what happened, you cannot believe you didn't see it coming. I think it clicked for me just minutes before it was revealed, not everything, but certain elements of the twist. I'm looking forward to reading it again to pick up on all the clues Lockhart leaves throughout the chapters leading up to the big reveal!

If I Stay by Gayle Forman

Another book getting a lot of media attention at the moment is If I Stay, thanks to the movie adaptation starring Chloe Grace Moretz which is in cinemas now. I picked this up after Kate from gh0stparties mentioned it in a "Top 5 Books" post a couple of months ago, and I'm really glad I did.

Another story featuring a teenaged girl, this novel explores what is a really complicated question. 17yr old Mia is a cello prodigy from Oregon, living with her eccentric, music loving parents and eight year old brother Teddy. She has a boyfriend named Adam, who is in a rock band, and is on the cusp of graduating high school. Her incredible talent pretty much guarantees she will have a future in the classical music industry, and life, overall, is pretty good. Within the first couple of chapters, however, Mia and her family are involved in a life-changing accident. The book takes place over the space of a couple of days, when Mia is unconscious in hospital, but her spirit seems to have escaped her body and she is left with a massive decision to make - does she want to live or does she want to die? If she stays, her life will be unrecognisable, but deciding to die will never be easy. The book really gets you thinking, and I will admit to having shed a few tears while reading it. I'd definitely recommend it - it's such an interesting concept.

Where She Went by Gayle Forman

Where She Went is the follow up to If I Stay, and, in the interests of not giving anything away, I'll say right off the bat that this book is narrated by a different character. Where She Went follows Adam, Mia's rock star boyfriend, a couple of years after the first book ends. It explores how his life has panned out as a result of the decision Mia made, and I'm so glad that Gayle Forman decided to write a book from another character's perspective. In a situation like this, it's fascinating to see how someone on the outside deals with such a massive, life altering incident. I won't say anything else about the plot since I'm writing it in the same post as I've talked about If I Stay, but I will say that if you read the first book, definitely go and read the second one - a lot of people preferred Where She Went, though for me, If I Stay pipped it to the post!

The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes

I've been keen to read The Sense of an Ending for a while, and I picked it up in my local library last week. It won the Man Booker Prize in 2011, and is a really quick read - it's only about 150 pages in total. It explores the life of a retired English man named Tony, and the book is split into two parts. What really drew me to it was the fact that this is a story that deals with how we remember things, and how our minds can play tricks on us when we try to remember things that happened in the past. We did some work on this in my higher drama class and it just always struck me as a really fascinating subject - those moments that you are sure you can remember from when you were a tiny child, but if you think really hard you might find that you can only picture it because people have told you the story so many times. The first half of the book sees Tony describe his relationship with his three best friends from high school, through the early years of university when they were then separated. In particular, it examines his friendship with a deeply philosophical and intelligent boy named Adrian. The second half sees some of the truths Tony has held on to all of these years begin to unravel. It looks at the complexities in friendships and relationships, and how easy it is to block out moments from your past you would rather forget. It's not exactly a cheery read, but for me, the subject matter was what counted. I don't think it will be everyones cup of tea, but I really enjoyed it.

How to Fall in Love by Cecelia Ahern

Ahhh Cecelia Ahern, how I love thee. I haven't had even indifferent feelings to one of her books yet - I've loved them all.

How to Fall in Love is the story of Christine Rose, a recently separated thirty-something who is at a bit of a cross-roads in her life when she meets Adam. She finds him set to jump off the Ha'penny Bridge, in Dublin, and in a split second decision she convinces him not to kill himself, and promises to show him how wonderful life can actually be. This puts an incredible amount of pressure on her, and those around her are not entirely convinced she has made a sensible decision.

We see her try every trick in the book (she has an obsession with self-help books) to help change the course of Adam's complicated life, from his attitude to his job, his family situation, love life and overall view of the world around him. As ever, with Cecelia Ahern, there is something sort of fantastical about this story - what I love about her books is that element of magic that flows through each of them, even though they tend to explore the lives of normal, every day people. It's warm, entertaining, romantic (as the title suggests) and philosophical, and it was an absolute joy to read.

Fractured by Dani Atkins

Last on the list is Fractured by Dani Atkins, an author I had never heard of before. I downloaded this in the Kindle sale for about 90p one night, and what a fantastic decision that was!

I'm just going to say right away that I adored this book. I have a bit of a fascination with time travel and parallel universes, and this book definitely fits into those categories. Rachel is 23 and returning to her home town for the first time in 5 years, to attend her best friend's wedding. At 18, just before she was due to head off to university, Rachel and her friends were involved in an accident (why do so many of these books include accidents!?), which completely altered the course of her life and claimed the life of one of her friends. 5 years on, Rachel's life is pretty dark, and certainly didn't turn out the way she had hoped as a carefree teen. Her first night back at home sees an incident take place which, once again, seems to alter the course of her life - she wakes up to find that everything that she has known about her life and everything that has happened to her since the night of the accident appears to have been erased, and replaced with a totally different life. The book then sees Rachel struggle to cope with this new life, and try to explain to her loved ones why nothing makes sense. She has to try to figure out what's real and what isn't, and come to terms with a life she barely recognises, albeit a much better and happier life than the one she was living before. It was a really, really interesting concept and a lovely book, and I'd recommend it in a heartbeat!

That's it for this edition of I've Been Reading - it was a long one, so I apologise for that, in future I think I'll try to keep it to three or four books at a time!

Let me know what you've been reading lately in the comments below! Hope you enjoyed that and thanks for reading!

I've Been Watching... YouTube Edition!

Evening all! In this edition of I've Been Watching, I'm moving the focus from films and television to YouTube! Here are ten videos I've enjoyed over the past couple of weeks!

1. Laci Green - She Asked For It

If you know me, you'll know I love Laci Green, and really respect what she does with her YouTube channel. This video pretty much sums up a conversation I have had on several occasions lately. This video, which centres around the dangers of victim blaming, is well executed, to the point and informative as always. My favourite line - "You were mugged? What were you wearing?" - is something Emma and I talked about in depth a few weeks ago!



2. Shannon Saunders - All I Want (Kodaline Cover)

This is one of my very favourite songs of all time, and I think this is a lovely cover.



3. Meghan Trainor - All About that Bass

This song is number one in America right now, and I cannot get it out of my head. I love that a song like this, which is so body positive is sitting at the number one spot, and I love the video. The "tell them skinny bitches that..." line is, for obvious reasons, a little bit problematic, but if we're looking at the bigger picture I think this is a brilliant song.



4. Cassetteboy vs The Apprentice

This is one of my favourite videos of all time, and I rediscovered it this week. I cried laughing once again.



5. Sarah (Curious Cookie) - But I Don't Want to be a Real Person Yet

I miss Sarah's videos. This is particularly relevant for any recent graduates panicking about life in the real world.



6. Kate (DollyBowBow) - Archie Vlog

It feels like just yesterday Kate announced she was pregnant and now baby Archie is here! I thought this was such a lovely intro to baby vlog, and it was just amazing to see how much they both adore him!



7. Badgely-Mischka - SS15 at NY Fashion Week

I loved loved loved this stunning collection from Badgley-Mishka - I'm no fashion expert, but I know what I like, and the gorgeous pieces here really impressed me :)



8. Ella Henderson - Glow

Another young female singer I'm LOVING at the moment. I love her voice, and think both her singles so far have been amazing, but the feminist in me also loves that this is a different representation of a young woman. She isn't being overtly sexualised in her videos, isn't writhing around half naked or dancing in an attempt to capture the male gaze (can't escape the film and television student in me). We need a more varied range of women represented in terms of body image and sexuality in music, and I think the clear control Ella has over her sound, her image and her career so far, at such a young age, is hugely encouraging.



9. Melissa A. Fabello - How Can You Be a Feminist and Still Like Taylor Swift?

Melissa makes videos about body image, media literacy and gender equality, and I recently discovered her channel thanks to fellow Scottish blogger Morag! I've watched a lot of her videos now, but I particularly liked this one because it explores something that is important to me - that you can be "girly" or interested in what are widely referred to as "feminine" things, and still be a good feminist. It's all about educating yourself, folks.



10. Jimmy0010 feat. Ophelia Dagger - American Candy

I genuinely find any videos Jimmy and Chelsea film together hilarious, but this is still my favourite I think. I watched it again recently and it was still as funny as it was the first time I saw it. They've also started a joint channel (ChelsandJim) which you can check out if they entertain you as much as they entertain me.



That's all for today! Thanks for reading!

A Post-Dissertation Break in Aviemore

A photo heavy post from my trip to Aviemore last week! My mum and I headed up to my favourite place in the world for a couple of days after my dissertation was submitted, for a wee break for me to clear my head and chill out! It was, as always, just what I needed! The photos below are from Loch Morlich and the surrounding forest, the Highland Wildlife Park, breakfasts in the Mountain Café and dinners in Roo's Leap. As you can see, I didn't hold back when it came to the food, but you can't be counting the calories when you're on holiday, can you?!

Thanks for reading!

I've Been Reading #1

Hello all! I've decided that in addition to my I've Been Watching posts, I'm going to start doing "I've Been Reading" and "I've Been Listening to" (doesn't have the same ring to it, sadly, but what you gonna do?!) posts too! So welcome to the first I've Been Reading version. I'm going to do blog editions of this series too, letting you know what blogs I've been reading lately, but we'll get started with a good old fashioned book post. Baby steps, so I don't get overexcited...

I've seen the Bridget Jones movies but, despite loving them, I had never gotten around to reading the books. Emma decided the rectify that this summer, and got me the first two books (the only two books as far as I'm concerned, at the moment!) for my birthday.

What can I say - I adored these books. They are smart and funny without being pretentious or OTT-silly. They're clever without trying to be clever, and you cannot help but fall in love with Bridget. These books are so easy to escape into, like a cosy little refuge from normality. You can get lost in them so quickly, but without really having to concentrate on a complicated story. It's just like reading a letter from a particularly nutty and entertaining friend. I sat reading them on the bus into uni and laughed till I cried at some points, particularly in the second book.

If you don't know much about them, the books are (as the title suggests) the diary of Bridget Jones, an unlucky in love thiry-something year old Londoner in the nineties, trying to sort her life out. She's looking for love, a career she might actually enjoy, and balancing her own life with the mad-cap family dramas of her ridiculous mother and put-upon father. Basically, Bridget is the poster girl for every single normal woman, and that's what is so comforting about these books. She is far from perfect, and somehow manages to put her foot in it in most social situations. She and her best friends Jude and Sharon are all panicking about growing old alone, and Bridget's tumultuous career isn't helping her to feel any more confident. They drink too much wine, eat too much food, debate the workings of the male mind and worry about their appearance - they cannot help but remind you of yourself, however old you are! The brilliant thing about the books though is that no matter what trials and tribulations she faces (and believe me, come the second book there are a few), Bridget's unfailing optimism and strong friendships get her through it. Even when she's wallowing in self-pity after romantic disasters or a bad week at work, she picks herself up, drinks a glass of wine (or four) with the girls and never allows these setbacks to change who she is. It's such a refreshing read.

There's romance, there's comedy and there are some genuinely sad moments, all tied up in two of the easiest to read books I've read in a long time. So if like me you've seen the films but haven't bothered to give the books a shot, please do - you won't be sorry!

That's all for now, but I finished Gayle Forman's "If I Stay" a couple of days ago and again cried on the bus, but this time there was nothing funny about it. Seriously. I want to write a post on it before I see the film (which comes out next week I think!) so look out for that soon!

Thanks for reading!

I've Been Watching #7

Warning - this post is mainly going to be me, fangirling about Orphan Black. Keeping it good and spoiler free though, nothing you wouldn't know from seeing posters or trailers for the first season.

This week has been a mixed bag. I've fallen behind a little bit with The 100, so I'll need to catch up with that when I have time, and I've watched a couple more episodes of New Girl Season 3. I hate hate hate admitting this, but I'm just not as in love with New Girl as I used to be. The first and second seasons are amazing, and The Landlord (S1E12) is one of my favourite episodes of anything ever. I was so excited about season 3 after the way season 2 ended, but for me, it's just gone a bit too OTT. Having said that, the sixth episode (Keaton) felt like the old New Girl!

Connected

I was in a documentary sort of mood last week, so I searched through every last one on Netflix and developed a sort of shortlist. In the end, I went for Connected - the tag line of which reads 'An autoblogography about love, death and technology'. This is a film from Tiffany Shlain exploring the interconnectedness of just about everything and everyone on the planet - something that genuinely interests me. Honestly, I thoroughly enjoyed this film, so I was a bit surprised when I read a lot of negative reviews of it after I watched it. A lot of people felt the film ended up being about nothing, but I disagree. It doesn't solve any of the questions it sets out to ask, but I don't think that was the point. If you go into it with the knowledge that the autobiographical aspect of it is a huge part of the overall documentary, and watch it with an open mind, it's a really touching look at a woman's relationship with her father, and the fact he always encouraged her to be curious, think big, and study and investigate the world around her. Technology is all around us, and it has made the world we live in virtually unrecognisable to the world people lived in even just a few years ago, Tiffany's wish that we could harness that connectivity and use it to fix some of the huge problems the world is facing really resonated with me - I feel like the overwhelming response to Robin Williams's death on twitter really highlighted that to me last week. If you're looking for something that sticks to the technology aspect then you'll be disappointed, because the family side of it wins out in the end, but that suited me just fine. I am now desperate to read a couple of books by Tiffany's father, Leonard Shlain - The Alphabet versus The Goddess sounds fascinating.

Orphan Black - Season 1

*Deep breath...*

Okay. Last week I finally sat down to watch the first episode of Orphan Black. I had heard people raving about it on twitter, but not to an OITNB or Breaking Bad degree, so I actually didn't know a huge amount about it when I put on that pilot episode. A few days later and I have binge watched the first season (in fairness, that's only ten episodes!), and I CANNOT WAIT to find out what happens next.

The premise is something that's either going to hook you, or it isn't. Our main character Sarah, who hasn't had the easiest time of it, is standing on the platform of a train station, and looks on in horror as a woman she doesn't know, but who looks exactly like her (we're talking the most identical of identical twins similar) throws herself in front of a train. This was enough to get me intrigued. Sarah is played by Tatiana Maslany, an actress I recognised from one of my all-time favourite shows, Being Erica. It was only after I'd watched two or three episodes that I noticed that the executive producers of Orphan Black are the EPs of Being Erica - no wonder I'm loving it. I don't want to give too much away here because I hate reading spoilers myself, but it would be ludicrous of me to not praise Maslynav to the max for what she's doing here - she is playing several characters in this show, and she is doing an absolutely incredible job. During the first episode I was a tiny bit put off by her British accent - to her credit, it isn't the generic super-posh English that most people attempt, but it bugged me a little bit during that first episode. By now though, I'm completely used to it, and I just can't get over what an amazing opportunity this must have been for her. This is not a show, or a role, that comes up every day, and from the get go she had me forgetting that it was her playing every character. They all have such distinct mannerisms and body language and voices that it never once occurs to me that it is her every time. The characters are all really interesting and complex, and she deserves so much credit for this.

Moving on from the acting, the storyline is gripping. It's described as sci-fi but to be honest I think that's purely to give it a label, I don't feel like I'm watching a sci-fi show when I'm watching it. It's intense, and definitely a thriller, but mostly it's grounded in just exploring people and how they react to their world being turned upside down. It's totally my cup of tea and I really would urge you to go ahead and watch it, because it's just about the best new thing I've watched in a while.

*...and exhale*

That's it for today! Thanks so much for reading guys, and be sure to let me know if you've watched either of the above - I'd love to know what you thought!

Insta-Update #2

Gill's Leaving Night / Commonwealth Games / Fancy Looking Cider
Barry M Sugar Apple / Barry M Mini-Haul / Barry M Waikiki
Eyeliner Art / Girls Night In / Meerkat Family

My pal Gill moved to London a few weeks ago for a new job, so we had a wee night out to celebrate - this involved cider in fancy glasses and dancing till 2am.

The Commonwealth Games came to Glasgow and they were amazing. Sadly I didn't actually go to any of the events, but I watched it unfold on TV and the buzz around the city was incredible. It made me really proud of where I come from. Not that I wasn't already!

I love Barry M - that is all. I did an updated Barry M collection video recently if that kind of thing interests you!

A bit of eyeliner art always soothes me, as bizarre as that sounds. I was recently thinking about what I'd do if someone told me I could only ever use two makeup products for the rest of my life (shock horror) and I really do think it would be concealer and liquid eyeliner. Everything else would have to go.

I had a lovely girls night in with three of my besties recently, where we ate too much food, laughed too much and watched Frozen. Pretty perfect, if you ask me.

We got a new member of our ever-expanding meerkat family - welcome to the gang Yakov :)

TGI Friday's Blogger Event / Strawberry Daiquiri / Party Party Photo App
Sanitise at the Edinburgh Fringe / RIP Robin Williams / Pizza Time
Hair Colour Booth app / Dissertation Organisation / Smokey Purple Eye Makeup

A few of us went along to a blogger event at TGI Friday's a couple of weeks ago and I enjoyed an amazing Strawberry Daiquiri the size of my head, and a cheeseburger (what a surprise).

I've become addicted to the Party Party Photo App lately - in particular, the little stop-motion videos you can make on there are brilliant, but the little collages are great too.

Iona, Lynne, Gillian, Laura and I went for dinner and then headed to see Sanitise at the Edinburgh Fringe last week. I would definitely recommend going to see it if you get a chance while it's still on!

The impact of Robin Williams's death on what seemed like everyone really blew me away. It's so sad, and I hope that his passing encourages more of an open conversation about depression. It just shows, you never know what struggles someone might be facing.

My friend Gemma (who has just started a new blog - check it out here!) and I went for dinner in Bunker recently and I had a pulled pork pizza with barbecue sauce. And yes, it was as good as it sounds!!

Another app I love to revisit from time to time is Hair Colour Booth - not only do I like to see what I'd look like with a variety of hair colours, I also decided to give blue eyes a go. It really doesn't look like me!

Just over a week until the dissertation goes in now - where on earth has the summer gone?!! I've moaned about this from time to time, but really I've loved it. I'm studying something that really, genuinely interests me and collecting and analysing my own data has made me feel like a proper researcher. What a big academic geek I am.

And finally, a selfie to show off some smokey purple eye makeup I was wearing last weekend. Not much more to say about that!

That's it for my little instagram update! Other than that, the past few weeks have involved celebrating Emma's 25th birthday, job hunting woes and binge watching Orphan Black. Hope you are all well!

Thanks for reading!

I've Been Watching #6

All films and no tv this week - who am I?! This week I've been reliving my youth and embracing my love for chick flicks - although one film in the above collage certainly didn't fit into that category as much as I had expected it to. So let's revisit my viewing material from the past week...

The Princess Diaries and The Princess Diaries 2 - Royal Engagement

I was worryingly excited when I realised that The Princess Diaries (one of my favourite childhood films) and the sequel are both on Netflix, - I had only ever seen the second film once, so I embraced the opportunity for a double bill. My memory did not serve me too well, however, as I seemed to think I hadn't particularly enjoyed the sequel - this time around I loved it.

There's something dangerous about watching your favourite childhood films after going years without seeing them, because while some live up to the fond memories, others let you down. The rose tinted glasses you have on when you remember your favourite kids show or movie can make watching them disappointing, because you're now watching them in a totally different context, and through adult eyes. Much to my relief, this was not one of those occasions! I totally related to Mia as a teen, being the shy, incapable of talking to the opposite sex type, and I think every little girl dreamed of having that princess makeover. When I was watching it, half way through I found myself thinking "is this a really terrible representation of growing up, telling a young girl that if she's a bit awkward and geeky, with tough to tame hair and glasses she's not good enough to be a princess?". But as it progressed, I remembered that the whole point of the film is that through this transitional period Mia learns that the most important thing is to be herself, an important life lesson for anyone. Also, it might just have the most perfect ending to a teen/preteen movie ever; the soundtrack, the dress, the ball, the kiss... perfection. I'm 25 and I can quite honestly say, I'd still kill for a night like that. Escapism at its best.

The second film was so much better than I had remembered! I also forgot that a very youthful Chris Pine starred opposite Anne Hathaway this time around. Mia's ready to take her place as queen of Genovia, but an outdated, sexist law that states a woman can only be crowned queen after she is married gets in the way. Cue the search for a husband and plans for an arranged marriage. As an avid fan of the books, I think the second film bothered me because they split Mia and Michael up, and at the time I was not okay with that. With some distance from the situation, however, I can appreciate that the film was a perfect example of what it is - a daft, romantic sequel to a story about a girl who grows up feeling like a nobody and discovers she's a princess. It's cute, it's funny and it passes a couple of hours quite nicely. Once again I was loving the music over the credits at the end, and horrified myself when I discovered that the track I was dancing around to was by none other than Lindsay Lohan - but I know you guys won't tell anyone...

Beauty and the Briefcase

Ohhh dear. I never thought there would be a romantic comedy that would defeat me - I constantly defend this genre, and I can usually sit through even the cheesiest, most over the top romcoms without wanting to switch them off, but this almost got the better of me! Beauty and the Briefcase (an ABC original movie which is now available on Netflix), stars Hilary Duff as Lane, a wannabe journalist looking for love and her dream job at Cosmo magazine amongst the buzz of New York. You'd think it was just like any other run of the mill romcom, right? Well, it is, except that it is really, really terrible. In terms of other movies, one I'd say it's most akin to is Confessions of a Shopaholic, except that I actually liked Confessions of a Shopaholic; Isla Fisher was likeable, and the story was daft but made sense. I hate saying this because much like The Princess Diaries, I actually only put this on because I liked Hilary Duff when I was a child, but I'd be lying if I say there weren't a myriad of things that bothered me about this film. The acting was poor, the structure was dreadful (more on that in a second) and do not even get me started about the bizarre sexism - a feminist critic would have a field day with this one. I lost count of the number of shots of Lane as the "only girl in an office full of men", who are leaning out of their cubicles with their tongues hanging out of their mouths, getting distracted from their important, businessman work by her tight skirt, while the two or three other women in the office might as well be wearing bin bags. Because, y'know, if you're a woman in the business world you're probably uptight, unfashionable and unfanciable.

In order to avoid spoilers, I won't bother with specifics when it comes to structure, but all I'll say is that for a film that lasts an hour and twenty five minutes, this one wasted a disproportionate amount of time on the wrong storyline. Most films have a beginning, a middle and an end, and this one seemed to have an incredibly long middle, with a rushed end tagged on without much thought having been given to it. But that's just my opinion, I'm sure there are plenty of people who did enjoy it, so if you love a cheesy romcom, it's always worth watching the first ten minutes to see what you think!

Thanks for Sharing

And the surprise of the year goes to... Thanks for Sharing! This film genuinely surprised and impressed me. I went in with an already formed opinion, which is never the way to go! I knew it was a film in which Mark Ruffalo plays a recovering sex addict named Adam - from The Princess Diaries to this, talk about genre hopping - and I knew that Pink was in it. I had decided it would be one of those comedies that uses something controversial (sex addiction, in this case), to make people talk about it, and it would probably end up with a couple of couples falling in love, and a few awkward laughs at the expense of Adam et als' "lack of control". It really wasn't. It kind of reminded me of Friends with Kids - one of those films you go in expecting to spend two hours laughing at, but in fact find that it has a much darker undertone than you were expecting. I doubt it's going to be nominated for an Oscar any time soon, but I actually feel like this did a good job of highlighting the genuine, daily struggle of an addict, whatever they're addicted to. There are some pretty disturbing moments in it - again, I want to leave this spoiler free, but if you've seen it I'm sure you know what scene I'm referring to! I was also pretty impressed with Pink/Alecia Moore. While she doesn't get a huge amount of screen time, her very first scene was acted really, really nicely. I'm giving this one a big thumbs up as something that genuinely surprised me, and it's definitely something to check out. I wasn't really a fan of Gwyneth Paltrow's character, which was a pity because it put a bit of a dampener on that particular storyline for me, but otherwise this is worth a watch.

Now I must go and get on with my dissertation, but I do hope that you enjoyed that, and be sure to let me know if you've seen any of the above! Thanks for reading!