Tag Archives: july

Three Top Books

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hilaryboydaperfecthusband

A Perfect Husband by Hilary Boyd

Hardback, 13th July 2017, £16.99

We really loved this. The characters are so vivid and it is so well written. A great book that you will not be able to put down.

 What would it take for you to give up on the man you love, the man you thought was the perfect husband – until you discovered just how much he was hiding from you? 

Lily and Freddy have a wonderful relationship: passionate and fun. Freddy taught her to love again after the death of her first husband. But then Freddy becomes tense, snappy and distracted. Is he having an affair? The truth turns out to be much worse…

Freddy is addicted to gambling. He owes hundreds of thousands of pounds to loan companies; he’s been helping himself to money from his own company, which has now gone bust; and worst of all, his wife’s money – given to him to invest – is gone. Devastated, Lily leaves him, and moves to stay with her sister in Oxford. There, among the dreaming spires, she will clear her head of Freddy and try to figure out how to move on.

 But being away from Freddy is far harder than she’d thought. He promises to get help, but can he really ever be cured of his addiction? How can Lily trust him again – surely, after the heartache he’s caused her, she would be far better off walking away and starting again? The truth is, she is as addicted to Freddy as he is to gambling – and she’s not sure she even wants to be free.

A Perfect Husband is available here.

theupstairsroom
The Upstairs Room by Kate Murray-Browne

Published hardback 27th July

This is a brilliant, atmospheric thriller. Engaging until the very last page. Brilliant.

Eleanor, Richard and their two young daughters recently stretched themselves to the limit to buy their dream home, a four-bedroom Victorian townhouse in East London. But the cracks are already starting to show. Eleanor is unnerved by the eerie atmosphere in the house and becomes convinced it is making her ill. Whilst Richard remains preoccupied with Zoe, their mercurial twenty-seven-year-old lodger, Eleanor becomes determined to unravel the mystery of the house’s previous owners – including Emily, whose name is written hundreds of times on the walls of the upstairs room.

The Upstairs Room is available here.

 

analmondforaparrotreview
An Almond For a Parrot by Wray Delaney

Published on 13th July

A bawdy and exciting historical read. Fun, naughty and full of intrigue.

‘I would like to make myself the heroine of this story – an innocent victim led astray. But alas sir, I would be lying…’

London, 1756: In Newgate prison, Tully Truegood awaits trial. Her fate hanging in the balance, she tells her life-story. It’s a tale that takes her from skivvy in the back streets of London, to conjuror’s assistant, to celebrated courtesan at her stepmother’s Fairy House, the notorious house of ill-repute where decadent excess is a must…

Tully was once the talk of the town. Now, with the best seats at Newgate already sold in anticipation of her execution, her only chance of survival is to get her story to the one person who can help her avoid the gallows.

She is Tully Truegood.

Orphan, whore, magician’s apprentice.

Murderer? Written by Sally Gardner writing as Wray Delaney

An Almond For a Parrot is available here.

 

July – All Year Round | Music News

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julyresurrectionJuly made an album in 1968 that has some of the greatest psychedelic rock music ever put to wax in its grooves , The band were initially called the Dreamers then The Tomcats and in 1968 after securing a label contract with Major Minor Records with new manager Spencer Davis they became known as July.

The album at the time of its release did not sell that well but has since become one of the most collectable records of not only its time but of all time and it’s fair to say that its rightful place as one of the very few albums that will transcend time and space is now secured, this leads me nicely into in fact why I’m doing this review! It’s the brand new album by that very same band.

JULY – RESURRECTION

Tom Newman, Pete Cook, Chris Jackson & Alan James reformed July around 2009 and this new album is just like a continuation from that marvellous record of 1968, if you are a true fan of music that is made by musicians who truly care about the art form of sounds which can conjure up feelings and indeed thoughts to take you to those very special places we all know exist but in real terms very few embrace then this album and this band are your very own first class ticket to ride!!

July – Resurrection is like listening to all your favourite bands at once but still retaining their own very special distinctive, unique, quirky, idiosyncratic, isolated, does not sound like anything else charm. It would be easy to say The Beatles , Xtc , Blossom Toes, or even Jethro Tull but that could be say my comparisons on that level as easily as someone else might say The Koobas ,SRC , or even Captain Beefheart, but then again ALL that stuff is in there somewhere . Check out `can I go back again` for instance. These are the sounds of JULY, A great album by a great band of musicians. Do yourself a favour now.

Album available now at http://www.griffiths-clothing.com
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_(band)

 

 

July Cultural Highlights: Amanda Eliasch has it As She Like It.

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Frost’s favourite theatre production in July was Amanda Eliasch’s semi-autobiographical play As I Like it. Amanda wrote the play and Nicky Haslam did the set, a dream combination if ever there was one. It was directed by Lyall Watson, who Amanda knew from RADA. The set was opulent and glamorous, much like the play itself. Amanda is a socialite, photographer, fashion editor, blogger and poet. You can read the review in my theatre column here:
http://www.lastminutetheatretickets.com/blog/index.php/5908/as-i-like-it-review/

Frost enjoyed the Kanaloa & Gallo Summer Red Party.

As did Jo Wood, Henry Holland (who was also DJ), Pixie Lott, Jo Wood, Alice Dellal, Henry Holland, Francesca Hull, Gabriella Ellis, Natt Weller, Leah Weller and Diana Vickers and her boyfriend George Craig

Summer, wine, interesting people, what more could you want?

Flaming July [Travel]

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July is the grumpiest month for Brits, according to findings from a new survey conducted by Travelodge.

Hot, humid nights mean, we miss out on 56 hours of sleep during flaming July – that’s one entire week of sleep.

Sleep deprivation is taking its toll with 78 per cent of adults admitting they are moodier in July than any other month.

Nearly 90 per cent of us (88%) loose sleep every night with two hours being the average amount lost.

More than three quarters of the population (69%) will take one to two days off work to catch up on lost sleep.

Seventy per cent of parents admit they are woken up at least three times a night by children struggling in the heat and humidity.

According to the snap survey by Travelodge, sleep deprivation is fuelling more arguments at work, bust-ups between couples and kids being snapped at.

A higher number of men and women also admit they are likely to have an attack of travel rage due to the heat and exhaustion.

One in two (49%) tired or hot drivers will shout at another motorist out of frustration at least once over the month.

A quarter will use bad language, 40 per cent will make rude gestures and a really mad one in five will go as far as tailgating an unsuspecting driver.

More than one in five short tempered rail, tube or train commuters admit they will make a rude comment to another traveller while 15 per cent will end up arguing with staff.

Over a quarter (27%) of commuters will even shout at a partner or child when they are travelling.

Work will be the tensest place during moody July, 45 per cent of hot, tired men and women admitting they will take their grumpiness out on colleagues.

Partners, kids, friends and even the boss will also come under attack from irritable adults.

Leigh McCarron, Travelodge Sleep Director said; “We wait all year for the hot weather, but when it arrives, most of us aren’t prepared. We lose valuable hours of sleep and everything goes downhill from there. The lack of sleep makes us irritable, that combined with soaring temperatures in the day make many of us quite tense. We like the heat – but it takes us time to get used to it.”

Listed below are Travelodge’s Sleep Director’s top five tips to help you sleep in the summer months

1. Change your duvet to a lighter tog (4.5 to 6)
2. Sleep in 100 per cent natural fibre sheets
3. Change your sheets every couple of days
4. Have a shower or bath before bedtime
5. Have a milky drink or herbal tea before going to bed

But the July misery doesn’t end with lack of sleep – up to 40 per cent will suffer sun burn, while one in five will endure sun stroke or an increase in their asthma symptoms.

The same number will also be laid low by hay fever while 15 per cent endure heat related migraines, according to the Travelodge survey.

Exhaustion, dehydration and nose bleeds will also increase as the temperature rises.

Work pals (43%) will also suffer the most from body odour followed by friends (27%) and commuters (23%).

Just over 80 per cent of Brits also admit getting fed up in July – because they are too ashamed of their bodies to strip off and soak up the sun.