December wrap up and New year's resolutions

I wrote this on NYE but forgot to come back and post it sooner than I have done.

I had planned to do blogmas. Well I say planned. I felt like I wanted to and did no planning and therefore no blogmas. Oh well maybe next year.

What I had definitely planned on doing was reading 2 books in December. Starting of with The Twelve Days of Dash and Lily, I wanted to finish reading it on the 14th as it had 14 chapters, then read a book I've had on my shelves for ages and simply bought it because of the title - Winter Solstice by Rosamund Pilcher. I got a little ill mid December and felt too tired to read after it so I ended up finishing The Twelve Days of Dash and Lily on Christmas day (which is when the story actually ends). Although the winter solstice has passed I think I will try to read Winter Solstice after my next read, which is Movie Night by Lucy Courtenay, as the weather may be more apt outside for the setting of the book.

I spent Christmas day with my parents and it was amazing. We had our first Christmas with our our new-this-year cat, Tia, and she watched us open presents and enjoyed all of hers. We had an amazing dinner and just a great time together.

On to resolutions. I don't normally make any as I know they can be sometimes unrealistic and people tend to not fulfil them anyway but this year I want to make some realistic ones and document them here.

1. Read all the magazines I have hoarded. I have a huge pile of magazines I haven't read yet, some are 5 years old. I set that goal last year and made a start when I found myself unemployed in September, but I'd like to get it right down this year as it clutters my bedroom which is small to begin with.

2. Read more books and re-read some books. I also have hoarded books and not read them. In September, I converted one of my many notebooks (I have a lot of them too) into a reading journal. As I read lots of new books this year I think it would be great to intersperse them with some old favourites. Some series I'd like to re-read and finish, as I hadn't read every book, are the Chronicles of Narnia and Harry Potter. I'd also like to read all the Oz books as I have the full collection and they are for children so hopefully won't take too long.

3. Start running. This will be the hard one. I'd love to do Run Disney but I know I've got to start small so mum and I are hoping to do a race for life this year.

4. Finish watching tv series I have started. Asphodelmoon made this resolution and I think it's a great one. I watched so much tv when my parents and I had virgin media when we lived in Bedfordshire and when we moved to Norfolk we lost that as they didn't supply our area. A lot of these series are now on Amazon or Netflix so I'm going to make a point of finishing them as they have now completed their run too or are about to. They are Grimm, Sleepy Hollow, Gotham, Continuum, Bates Motel, Orphan Black, The Shanarra Chronicles and Ripper Street. There are also lots I have started to catch up on and series that I've seen a few episodes out of order I'd like to watch the whole of like Pokemon and Charmed.

5. Watch more musical films. I'd say I'm not a big fan of musicals but I have found I enjoyed quite a few so I'd like to make the effort to watch more especially the Rocky Horror Show as cosplaying and the music are a staple at conventions I go to.

6. Cut out dairy at home. One day I'd like to be vegan (I'm already cutting down on meat) but for the moment I'm going to switch up my milk at home to plant based.

Have you made any resolutions for this year?

Lotty
xx

The thing nobody tells you about crushes

Do you remember growing up with a crush? A person at school or a pop star or a film star. And you would think about them and swoon over them. People would tease you over it but it would be an innocent thing, right?

But did you cry yourself to sleep over them? Would you feel like your heart is torn into a million pieces because you can't have them? Would you pretend to be enjoying a social situation when all you are actually is doing is getting yourself worked up thinking about them? Would you feel upset or hate at any show of romance in real life or fiction?

Because I've had that kind of crush. What nobody told me about crushes is sometimes they crush you.

I've never been in a relationship with anyone but I would say I've had 3 serious crushes in my life. Each felt more tortuous than the last. I don't know what it is like to have your heart broken by someone you love, but I believe that the crushes have hurt me enough to feel like I can empathise with the heart broken.

I will try to just tell you a little bit about them and how they dissipated but not too much  as I don't know who could read this. The first showed me what a gentleman was like. He made me realise that that was what I want in a man. He fell in love with someone who...I had a problem with, but I think the lust for him disappeared when I came across my second crush. In my heart I have forgiven the girl and I wish them every happiness together now. It is very lifting when you decide to do that about someone.
The second listened to me. We had similar interests and he was perceptive. I thought this crush was awful. I only knew him for a month but he left quite the impression. I found out he was gay (which I had suspicions about) through stalking him on twitter (hey, I'm openly admitting it). That seemed to get rid of that crush.
The last was the worst. I saw this person so often they were a big part of my life in a way. Problem was, he was in a very long term relationship. The way he would talk about her sometimes would make me think there was trouble in paradise. It gave he hope. He treated me like no one else had and that had a huge impact on me. He was just being courteous but my heart took it the wrong way. I would cry about him so much. It was complete torture. After a year though it finally disappeared. His behaviour changed and I think that helped. Again I wish him and his girlfriend every happiness in their future together.

I never want a crush again. At least nothing like those ones.

To end this post I'm going to share some songs that I felt reflected my heartache (I know people say you should listen to songs that reflect when you are feeling down but we all so so I think it must be part of the healing process) and songs that empowered me after them.

Songs that hurt:
Heaven Knows by The Corrs
Are We There Yet? By Ingrid Michaelson
Love is All Around Us by Moje 3
Hear Me Out by Girls Aloud
Find Love by Mans Zelmerlow
Amazing by Tanja
Black Hole by Ana Johnsson
Autumn Leaves by Daniel Kajmakoski
Soldier of Love by Emmelie de Forest
Wildfire by Fahrenhaidt
Boom! By Simple Plan
I'd Do Anything by Simple Plan
I'm Stupid by Ana Johnsson
My Heart is Broken by Evanescence
Never Surrender by Skillet

Songs that help:
When the Heartache is Over by Tina Turner
Coz I Can by Ana Johnsson
Coming Out Strong by Ana Johnsson
Dark Runs Out by Amy Stroup
Girls Chase Boys by Ingrid Michaelson
Without You by Ingrid Michaelson
Phoenix by Molly Sanden
Poem to a Horse by Shakira
Now it's Gone by Ana Johnsson
This is War by Ingrid Michaelson

Have you had a similar thing happen to you? It would be nice to know I'm not alone in this.

Lotty
xx

October review

Well I didn't exactly do blogtober as planned. I realise now that I should have got everything planned and ready before the end of the first week as I went on holiday the second week. Here's a little update on what happened in Whitby and my TBR.

TBR
Well I read Mother Knows Best and I finished The Woman in Black on the 1st November. Two books is good for me. I think even if I had started MKB on the 1st October (I started it on the 7th and even then only read one chapter and didn't read more until the 13th) I would have still only just finished reading The Woman in Black as I've been ill the last couple of days which is how I've been able to read it as I lie in bed.

I don't know whether I will try The Hazel Wood or The Cruel Prince yet or read other books instead. I'll post a November TBR when I know.

Whitby
We all went on the ghost walk the second night I was there. They weren't running the Dracula walk until the night we left but as there were students studying Dracula, the guide kindly combined the two together.

We didn't do a boat trip and I didn't go into Bothams bakery and get a lemon bun or anything else for that matter. Also my car had a problem and was in a garage the day we walked to Robin Hood's Bay so we walked the Cinder Path there but felt it was too late to walk the Cleveland trail back for me to pick up my car. Although the bus we got back had commentary on the local area and history which it didn't have the last time. I feel all buses should have it.

I went to Pannet Park and the Museum. It was amazing. The rates they charge are really sensible and your ticket lasts a whole year. The museum had a good selection of everything from fossils, to taxidermy, excavations and models (and the Hand of Glory!).

 

The only downside was lots of the exhibits had really old placards which was a nice touch but unattractive to read so I didn't read any of them really. The cafe downstairs was themed to Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and it was done so well. I only ordered hot chocolate but it came in a jug with a cup which was beautiful.

We did visit the beach to scavenge for jet but the weather wasn't pleasant. I picked up black pieces but I think it is all coal. We went to the jet museum and the lady there said to rub it with a nail file and if the black comes off then it's coal. If I was to find jet, she said to go to their shop and they would value it and set it in silver if I wanted which is good as I wondered who would do that for me if I was to find any.

I also missed out on Halloween as I was ill, so I'm hoping to have a gothic Christmas evening soon to make up for it. I might do a blog post about it.

How was your October?

Lotty

xx

Dracula Dream Cast

You're going to get sick of me talking about Dracula.

Yesterday was the official press release for the new series of Dracula, this time adapted by Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss. While I had heard of this before, today it became official. I know Mark to be a horror nut so I really hope they do the original story justice. I would love it to be totally like the novel, definitely no romance between Dracula and Mina, but I could watch it being set in modern day as they certainly did a good job with Sherlock.

Normally the same actors aren't used for the same roles, so they probably wouldn't use my favourites which you can read about here, so I've decided to make a new dream cast. It will be short and sweet so here it is:

Dracula - Mads Mikkelsen
Mina Harker - Emma Watson (I'd hope she would do this as Mina is quite a feminist role, certainly for the time at least)
Jonathan Harker - Jeremy Irvine
Dr Seward - Colin Morgan
Arthur Holmwood - William Moseley
Quincy Morris - Liam Hemsworth (Taylor Lautner may be more attainable due to his work on Cuckoo)
Renfield - Toby Jones
Lucy Westenra - Sophie Hopkins
Abraham van Helsing - Sam Neill

I think some of these might be aiming high, but after the success Mark and Steven had with Sherlock I would think it might be easier for them to get bigger actors.
Who would you cast?

Lotty
xx

Reasons I love Autumn

Ok, so I have a confession to make. I used to really not like autumn as a season up until a couple of years ago. In fact, I used to not like it for some of the reasons I now love it. Just shows how a person's tastes can change. So here's why I now like Autumn.

1. The colours of the leaves
Man I used to hate this. I like pastel colours and the oranges and reds were just bleh to me. But I've found an appreciation for it. I love it as much as the green grass after a drought or the green leaves on trees in spring.

2. Cooler weather
I love pyjamas. I love my duvet. I do not like having to sleep without my duvet because it's too hot. Just don't like getting hot when I'm trying to sleep full stop. So I find peace in the fact that I can cosy up at night as the weather gets cooler.

3. Spooky season
I've enjoyed Halloween ever since I was a child trick or treating. But I have an appreciation now for all the nuances and characteristics. Music, themed food, foggy weather, dark evenings etc.

4. Hot food
Ok, so we eat hot food all year round but in autumn it starts getting to the point where the heat in the food is warming and relaxing. I get cravings for something hot to eat.

5. Pumpkins
They look awesome. I like the pumpkin themed foods and pumpkin spice but pumpkins themselves just look amazing. I drove past a pumpkin patch being harvested the other day and it look so fun.

6. Nuts
I have fond memories of going on walks with my dad's family foraging for chestnuts and beech nuts. I love eating nuts so these were and are a highlight for me when I go for a walk at the right time for harvesting.

7. Window displays
I think autumn window displays (and other displays) come second to Christmas. Places go all out with the colours associated with autumn whereas other season don't have that so much. You recognise an autumn display from a mile off.

What are the reasons that make you like autumn?

Lotty
xx

Creepy reads

October being spooky season is a great opportunity to read books that are scary or creepy. Here's a list of some books I've read that are like this.

Blood Sinister by Celia Rees
I remember in year 9 one of my friends going on about getting this book in our school library. I later won it in a competition with the library and started reading it but took it with me to Germany on my first German exchange. I remember being chilled by the book and devouring it once I got to Germany. I started reading it again as soon as I'd finished.

One For Sorrow/Two For Joy/Seven For A Secret by Clive Woodall
This is a dystopia but not as you know it. A dystopia set in the bird world. Magpies and other corvids (crow family) are top of the pecking order and killed all the smaller birds except for one robin. The first book is that robins quest for survival. To tell you any more would be spoilers but these stories are, to be honest, quite graphic and horrifying. It's also why I don't care for magpies as much as other birds.

The Woman in Black by Susan Hill
Ok so I haven't read this book yet, but I just know it's going to be terrifying after seeing the stage play.

Dracula by Bram Stoker and Dracula the Un-Dead by Dacre Stoker
Well Dracula was always going to be in this list. One of the original horrors/monsters. There are lots of nail biting scenes when Dracula is involved. You never quite know what he is going to do. The other book is the official sequel written by his great grand nephew. This story turns the tables and introduces Countess Bathory. It is also quite the bloodbath.

Once Upon A Dream by Liz Braswell
I'm loving fairytale reimaginings but did not expect a Disney licensed book to be this dark. I would call this book a psychological horror and I honestly felt I had to read a non fantasy book after I read it. I'm curious as to how the other Twisted Tales are and whether they go as dark as this one.

The Spiderwick Chronicles and Beyond The Spiderwick Chronicles by Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black
These are great fantasy books but there are spooky, tense moments that give it a slightly darker tone to other children's books. The authors constantly hint that the faeries live among us too and they are not all friendly either.

The Power of Dark by Robin Jarvis
Set in Whitby, this story is the first of a trilogy and involves dark, unsettling magic. For example, under the influence of a magical object, one of the main characters creates an amusement machine of an executioners chair and when it is used it transports the user to a scene as if they are actually in the chair about to be executed. I can't wait to read what happens in the rest of the series.

Disney Villains series by Serena Valentino
You can read my full review of the series here, but I wanted to put these in here as I believe they are creepy in the way that you read about psychological trauma characters go through. Also being Disney Villains, they're perfect Halloween reading.

Have you read any of these books? Have I inspired you to read them?

Lotty
xx

My favourite portrayals of Dracula characters

I really couldn't think of a title to describe this post but basically I'm going to list my favourite portrayals of Dracula characters e.g. my favourite Mina Harker was Zoe Tapper in Demons. Hopefully you'll get it and enjoy it. It's a bit of a dream cast, although some aren't what I would call perfect and are just the better ones, so from what I've seen of these portrayals I'd want most of these people to play these characters in one movie or tv show rather than being split up as they are.

Dracula is so big in pop culture and there's so many adaptations, some are trying to do the original story and others just take the characters and put them something new. I'll start by listing what adaptations I have seen so you know this list doesn't include every single one but it means you can recommend another one. I'd love to watch them all no matter how bad it might be (some of them are really bad). Also I'm not including Nosferatu as it's not official but also no one from that is in this list so I guess it doesn't matter.

Adaptations I've seen:
Dracula (BBC, 1977)
Bram Stoker's Dracula (Columbia, 1992)
Buffy the Vampire Slayer "Buffy vs. Dracula" (2000)
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (20th Century Fox, 2003)
Van Helsing (Universal, 2004)
Dracula (BBC, 2006)
Demons (ITV, 2009)
Dracula Untold (Universal, 2014)
Dracula (NBC, 2014)

Dracula - Richard Roxburgh
Richard's Dracula is an example of the character being lifted from the original story and planted into a new one. This Dracula comes from Van Helsing and fights against the titular character (although this is Gabriel Van Helsing and a monster hunter as is often misconstrued). Dracula is trying to create a whole army of vampires with his bride but needs a lot of energy to hatch them, which he planned to get from Frankenstein's monster but uses a werewolf as the monster is thought dead. The reason I love Richard's portrayal of Dracula is he appears how I imagined him to in his young form (the older form is so often ommited): unconventually attractive. Now Richard is good looking but you don't hear about women or men crushing on him. I think the make up truly gives him an undead look. But at the same time he is attractive and seductive. I believe Dracula should be not very attractive in appearance but his words and actions seduce you. Also Richard gets the anger correct. In the novel, Dracula has a calm demeanour but occasionally goes into a full blown rage which Richard nails.

Mina Harker - Zoe Tapper
Mina is a very hard character to pick a favourite as I think so many adaptations get her right. She is my favourite character from Dracula and probably my favourite literary heroine. Peta Wilson in The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen was my first Mina but I only saw her as a vampire lady at the time as I didn't know the Dracula story. Zoe in Demons was my second Mina and the character was pretty close to fully explained thanks to an episode centred around she and her son, Quincy. It also highlighted chapter 21 in the novel so I never forget that number and what happens within. Mina is a headstrong character, feminine yet fits in well with the band of men who are her heroes. They value her and she holds her own against their opinions of keeping her out of the action. Mina in Demons at first appears as a blind pianist with psychic abilities. But when we get the episode focussed on her we learn that she IS Mina Harker, which is astonishing as the story is set in present day, and she is still a vampire. The vampiric characteristics are subdued by dialysis which renders her blind, but when she ingests her own blood they come back to the surface. I've picked Zoe because she is still a vampire (mostly), headstrong, but also displays the vulnerability that the character had in the novel. While Peta's Mina is similar, I believe that she is too studious and determined. Judi Bowker from the BBC adaptation and Jessica De Gouw from the NBC adaptation also come pretty close.

Jonathan Harker - Oliver Jackson-Cohen
Choosing a favourite Jonathan is hard as he is a character that is sidelined in favour of a Dracula/Mina romance and portayed as a wet blanket. I feel this isn't how the character was written in the novel but is just a hard one to translate into media without falling into that trap. While Oliver's Jonathan wasn't in an accurate adaptation, I believe he is the strongest portrayal. He maintains composure and you can truly see the fight in his eyes against Dracula. That is about all I can say really, bless him.

Dr. Seward - Tom Burke
The 2006 BBC dracula was a very recent watch as I knew it was accessible to me and I wanted my list to be as inclusive as I could make it. I was going to pick Mark Burns as my favourite Dr Seward from the older BBC Dracula but even though i preferred him to Richard E. Grant's portrayal, I didn't feel he stood out. However, even though the 2006 version wasn't great, Tom Burke really stood out. This was a Seward who really exuded confidence and appeared heroic. Watching him I just knew he was my favourite in the whole adaptation.

Quincy Morris - Billy Campbell
There are only two Quincy's to choose from, but technically only one as one of them was an amalgamation with Holmwood. I also like Billy Campbell so I guess it was always going to be him I chose. He embodies the American cowboy really well. The only negative in would say it that Quincy in the novel seems to be more muscled and tough when the situation calls for it. Billy's Quincy is still a gentleman to the ladies though.

Arthur Holmwood - Carey Elwes
While I think Carey's Holmwood doesn't have a lot of character, he embodies the rich lord who throws his money at their quest to kill the beast that killed his fiancee. You can also see how much he cares for Lucy behind his stiff upper lip. Dan Stevens' portrayal was too changed, selfish and violent for me to choose his.

Lucy Westenra - Susan Penhaligon
Lucy is a character interpreted in many ways. Her curiosity and sensuality when a vampire blurs lines in different portrayal such as Sadie Frost's more sexual version. As much as it was a great idea to have Lucy portrayed as a lesbian in the NBC adaptation, it deviates from the fact that Lucy attracted three suitors. Sophia Myles, while brilliant, just seemed too mature for my liking. That leaves Susan Penhaligon. Susan plays Lucy as the innocent young girl she is, full of curiosity and adventure. Declining in health but hypnotised by Dracula, you really feel for her and feel the same emotions as the friends in her life and death.

Renfield - Jack Shepherd
Renfield is an often forgotten, insignificant or changed character in adaptations. For me there were only two contenders for this which were Jack Shepherd and Tom Waits. I felt that Tom Waits portrayal was too crazy. I know that's a weird thing to say considering he's a lunatic. But this is an ordinary man driven to lunacy by Dracula. Jack Shepherd shows this much more and you can sympathise with the character more.

Dr. Abraham Van Helsing - Frank Finlay
Let's get things straight. Van Helsing is not a vampire/monster hunter. Frank's Van Helsing is a doctor who has an amazing bedside manner, as he should be. I would love to have this cuddly old man look after me if I was unwell but I can also see him hunting down Dracula with the same passion (but not too much) as it was written in the novel. Anthony Hopkins' starts well but they turn him into a hunter and almost a fanatic which I don't like. I found David Suchet's portrayal deviated too far from the original to choose him but I believe if he was playing Van Helsing as written I might have chosen him.

What do you think? Do you agree with my choices? I hope I didn't ramble too much.

Lotty

xx