Current Netflix Top Picks #11

It's been a while since my last Netflix recommendations post because to be honest I've been pretty uninspired when it comes to boxsets and movies. I've said before but I find they'll be an influx of amazing things added at one go and then for a month or two it sort of chills out a bit and I can't find anything I want to truly sit and relax with. Anyone else struggle with that? Anyway, despite that, there have been a few things here and there that I've thoroughly enjoyed so let me know if you have watched any of them too!

Murder Mystery

I'm not gonna act like this is one of the best films I've ever watched and Adam Sandler has a pretty bad rep when it comes to comedies now but I actually really quite liked Murder Mystery. It's about a New York cop and his wife who go on a European vacation to try and get the spark back in their marriage but a chance encounter leads to them being framed for the murder of an elderly billionnaire. It's obviously a bit silly but not too cheesy, and surprisingly funnier than I expected. It's got a brilliant cast too including - Jennifer Aniston, Luke Evans, Gemma Arterton and David Walliams.

After

If you're a fan of films like the Twilight series and Fifty Shades, then I think After might be a good one for you. It's something that now as a 24 year old, I did kind of cringe at, but as a 16 year old I know I would have been alllll over it. It's based on the book of the same name by Anna Todd and it's based around Tessa Young, who has just started college. It's here she meets Hardin Scott, a bit of a rebel who makes her question her life and what she wants out of it. It's a typical teen love story but I actually really liked it. I'm definitely keen on reading the series of books now.

In The Dark

I love a good British Crime Drama so when I was at a loss of what to watch recently, I started In The Dark on a whim, and as it's only 4 episodes long, I ended up watching it all in one day! It stars MyAnna Buring who has been fantastic in everything I've seen her in before, and it's an adaptation of the novels Time of Death and In The Dark by Mark Billingham. It's about DI Helen Weeks who is grappling with a pregnancy she still isn't sure about, as she takes on a very personal abduction case. It seems Helen has some secrets of her own that are about to be revealed. It's quite dark and gritty at times but a really great one to get stuck into. I think you'd like it if you're a fan of shows like The Missing.

Doctor Foster

I just love Surranne Jones! Gentleman Jack which finished recently on the BBC is such an excellent show, and I think she played the part of Anne Lister brilliantly, so when I spotted the second series of Doctor Foster on Netflix, I decided to re-watch. I've watched the series before but it's one of those shows that is done so well. It's full of difficult and complex characters, it's probably quite a real story for some people and it's easily one you can binge-watch in one go. Just love it.

Call The Midwife

Omg this show. It breaks my heart but then melts it at the same time. Adorable, beautiful, bittersweet, just amazing. I don't know why it took me such a long time to properly start it but a few months ago I did and I eventually got through all the 8 series. It took a while and I definitely preferred some midwives to others but all in all, it's just lovely. I adore Trixie, played by Helen George, Sister Bernadette (Laura Main) and Dr Turner (Stephen McGann) give me all the feels, and Sister Julienne (Jenny Agutter) grows on me more and more each series. So glad I stuck with it. I'm ready for the 2019 Christmas special already.

Have you got any Netflix recommendations?

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Dear Evan Hansen By Val Emmich Book Review

TW - Depression, Anxiety, Suicide, Grief. I finished this book almost a week ago now and I've found myself thinking about it every single day since. I've read some really great books this year so far, you can find out which ones I've rated and which ones have left me a little disappointed in my roundup posts - 1 & 2, but I can definitely see Dear Evan Hansen being in the top 5 of 2019, if not at the very top. Extremely long, all over the place review coming up.

'When a letter that was never meant to be seen draws high school senior Evan Hansen into the Murphy family's grief over the loss of their son, he is given the chance of a lifetime: to belong. He just has to stick to a lie he never meant to tell. That the notoriously troubled Connor Murphy was his secret best friend. Suddenly, Evan isn't invisible anymore. And Connor's wealthy parents have taken him in like he was their own, desperate to know more about their enigmatic son from his 'closest friend'. As Evan gets pulled deeper into their family, he knows what he's doing may not be right, but if he's helping people, how wrong can it be? No longer tangled in his once-incapacitating anxiety, this new Evan has a purpose. He's confident. He's a viral phenomenon. Every day is amazing. But when everything is in danger of unravelling, he comes face to face with his greatest obstacle: himself.'

My review

If you didn't already know, because not everyone is as theatre mad as me, Dear Evan Hansen is a Tony Award winning musical which opened on Broadway in 2016 and is actually opening in the West End in November. It centres around Evan who has social anxiety and has always been a bit of an outcast at school. A sudden tragedy involving classmate Connor Murphy allows for Evan to finally be part of something, to fill a space that Connor has left, and to create a new life for himself. Unfortunately after claiming to be Connor's best friend to comfort his family, the lies start to spiral and he finds himself in deeper than he ever thought possible.

I think the book resonated with me for a lot of reasons but the main one being I felt I could totally relate to Evan's struggles with anxiety. So many times throughout the book I just thought YES I'm like that too, and I know so many other people have had that same experience which makes you feel so much less alone. Sometimes anxiety can be something so many people just don't understand unless they have it themselves and one of Evan's big struggles is that he feels so incredibly different to everyone else because of it. At times I just wanted to cry because it felt so real. The writers of the musical and the novel, have got it spot on with how lonely and isolating anxiety can be.

Aswell as tackling anxiety, Dear Evan Hansen also deals with other hard hitting issues such as suicide and grief which I'm sure is a tricky subject to broach. I personally felt like it was written really well though and as we get to hear from Connor, aswell as Evan throughout, I didn't feel like the topic was being brushed over. It was important that we got to hear Connor's side too, find out why he was finding life so painful and then have the aftermath unfold to show what an impact it can have on everyone around.

I know the book sounds very doom and gloom, and to be honest at times it is a tough read, and probably too close to home for a lot of people, but there was something about it that really just got to me. I don't know if it's because I was already a fan of the musical so instantly felt like I was jumping into a story I knew and was prepared for, or if it was just how relatable it was at times, I just couldn't love it more if I tried. Whilst I didn't always agree with Evan's actions, I couldn't help but like his character, aswell as most of the people throughout, despite how complex they could be. There was so much depth to each person, far more than you could ever get from just listening to the cast recording. I've actually listened to it countless times since finishing the book and now I understand the story much better, and it's added an even deeper meaning to it.

To say this was a musical first and the novel has been written afterwards, something I've never known to have been done before, Val Emmich has captured the story perfectly. The music and lyrics have been subtly added into the dialogue so if you have listened to the cast recording before, several bits will stand out as you read through, and I like that this really sets you up to go in and watch the show next. I think if you saw that first, you may get a bit of a shock and struggle to connect with the story so it's definitely worth reading the book beforehand.

I'm almost certain I haven't done this book justice with my review, but I really do think it's such a powerful story that lots of people will be able to relate to. As sad as it is, people are struggling more than ever with depression and anxiety, and whilst we all know how important it is to talk and get help, it's not always as simple as that, but this book was a comfort to me. It's beautiful, it's heart-wrenching at times, and actually surprisingly funnier than I would have ever expected. It's raw and it's real and whilst it might not be the happiest story you've ever read, it makes you feel like you're not on your own and shows that there are others going through the same difficulties as you. I can see myself re-reading this time and time again for that reason alone. I think that's part of the reason the musical is so loved and will continue to be for a very long time.

'Dear Evan Hansen, today is going to be a good day, and here's why. because today, at least you're you, and that's enough.'

Have you heard of Dear Evan Hansen?

Book reviews - The Ingredients Of Us by Jennifer Gold // Gone by Leona Deakin

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The 7 Day Basket by Ian Haste Recipe Book Review*

I'm sure you all know by now I'm a real foodie and there isn't much that makes me as happy as cooking or baking. Each week I love to plan our meals in advance, do a big food shop which fills me with joy each time (anyone else LOVE supermarkets?) and then each night make something for George and I to enjoy. I've posted quite a few recipes recently including Creamy Pesto Pasta, Perfect Roast Potatoes and Chicken Fried Rice just to name a few, but today I wanted to share what has been giving me all the inspiration when it comes to food recently - The 7-Day Basket by Ian Haste.

I love a good recipe book. I have a ridiculous amount and they all vary massively. Some are solely based on slow cooker meals, some are money saving recipes, some are just freezer friendly, but I had nothing like this new book from Ian Haste. If you've not heard of Ian before, he has his own Youtube channel called Haste's Kitchen which has been up and running for 5 years. There you'll find everything you need to start cooking nutritious meals for healthy living. Each video is quick, easy to follow and always leaves me wanting to create something tasty. Because I've been a fan of him for a while, I was thrilled to receive his brand new cookbook and I couldn't wait to put some of the recipes to the test.

Within a few pages, you know this book is different to the rest. Each chapter starts with a shopping list for the week ahead followed by seven varied dinners. It's pretty much all sorted for you, you just need to take that list and pop to the shops. No more struggling for ideas or picking random bits up from the supermarket. 1 shopping basket + 1 week = 7 dinners.

There are 10 chapters in the book - Warming, Round The World, Relaxed, Light, Veggie, Twist, Summer, Spicy, Variety & Comforting so you have so many recipes to choose from! Each recipe serves two which suits us perfectly but you can easily halve or double the ingredients if you need to. So let's see what I thought of some of the recipes. We've tried out quite a few now but the ones I had to mention are the Crispy Parma Ham & Chive Mac & Cheese, Speedy Chicken Madras & Turmeric Rice, and the Chicken Katsu Curry.

Crispy Parma Ham & Chive Mac & Cheese

I've already made this for George and I a few times and now I'm craving it again! I can see this becoming a regular Saturday night dish. It's warming, comforting and filling, everything I love in a meal. It contains basic ingredients like macaroni, garlic, butter, flour, milk and cheese, things I'm sure most of us have in our kitchen, though you could use any pasta that you have in. For a pasta bake I'd usually use bacon but the crispy parma ham was out of this world. Grilling it only intensified the flavour and it broke apart beautifully meaning each mouthful had a crispy hit. Also the addition of chives to the cheese sauce really surprised me as it's never something I'd think to do but it just added something extra that I think I'd miss now if I didn't include it. I'm just obsessed with this meal.

Speedy Chicken Madras & Turmeric Rice

We love a curry in this house, it always takes me back to a time George cooked for me during our first few months together and gives me that warm, fuzzy feeling. We love most curries but a madras isn't something I often attempt myself so I was really excited to find this recipe. All of the ingredients make for a beautiful spicy sauce (though not too hot) and adding turmeric to the rice is such a simple change but gives it much more flavour. This is absolutely perfect on a Friday night after a busy week with some naan bread and a refreshing glass of something cold!

Chicken Katsu Curry

You know when you attempt a meal fully prepared for it to all go wrong and then have to end up with a takeaway? Well the Katsu Curry was something I was 100% sure I would mess up and put us in that situation but I'm so proud to say it went well, and it's now a new favourite of ours. I don't know why I find meals like this so daunting sometimes, I mean I know mine doesn't exactly look like the one by Ian but I think for a first attempt, I did pretty well. I loved making my own katsu curry sauce from ingredients like carrot, apple, ginger, onion, garlic and turmeric and the flavours were divine. It might be a meal that requires a bit of time and effort but it's so worth it.

The majority of our meals from The 7-Day Basket have so far been from the Variety and Comforting chapters so I'm really excited to try some of the other meals in the next few weeks. A few I have planned are - Bombay Chicken & Hasselback Potato Bake, Tear & Share Chicken Shashlik Naan, and finally the Sausage Bake with Balsamic Roasted Onions, Butternut & Broccoli.

I enjoy cooking so much, there isn't much that relaxes me more (though maybe not in this heat) so this has been such a welcome addition to my recipe book collection. We've honestly devoured every meal we've tried so far. If you like the look of any of the meals I've mentioned or if you're in need of some meal inspiration, you can find The 7-Day Basket at Amazon, Waterstones and WHSmiths.

Have you tried any new recipes recently?

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A Beauty and Skincare Haul

It's been a while since my last beauty haul so as I've been picking a few bits up here and there over the last few weeks, I thought now was the perfect time for another. I try not to over do it with makeup products and skincare because I just don't have the room at the moment but I felt like my makeup bag was in need of a bit of a refresh and there were a few products I'd had my eyes on for a while.

L'oreal Life's A Peach Blush £8.99

I've been wanting the L'oreal Life's A Peach Blush for absolutely ages! It's been a product I've ummed and ahhed over everytime I've seen it in store or when I've spotted it online so I thought it was about time I just grabbed it. I couldn't resist that beautiful packaging and peach scent (yes, it actually smells like peaches!) any longer. I've used it a few times now and I just love it. It gives a warm peachy glow that I think would be flattering for all skin tones, a little goes a long way but it's really buildable. The scent is a bonus, I can't resist anything with peach.

Maybelline Fit Concealer £5.99

The Maybelline Fit Me Concealer is a re-purchase but it's actually been a long time since I last picked it up. I used to use it all the time but then my skin seemed to improve and I only really used it to cover any blemishes and occasionally under my eyes and once I changed my foundation, the shade I had wasn't suitable anymore. The weather has been playing havoc with my skin though so I thought I'd give it another try and luckily I found the perfect shade this time. Since going back to it, this time I've really noticed the difference it makes and I don't think I'll be going without it again anytime soon. It just adds a bit of brightness under my eyes which is very much needed each morning and I find it somehow makes the rest of my base look better. 

L'oreal True Match Foundation £9.99

I've mentioned the L'oreal True Match Foundation several times on my blog before, I even reviewed it a while ago and compared it to my previous love, the Rimmel Lasting Finish Foundation. It's just brilliant for my skin, it doesn't cling to dry patches, it's quite full coverage which I like and it blends really well. I seem to go through it quite quickly but it's worth it.

I Heart Revolution Star Spinners £1.99

I first tried one of the star spinners from I Heart Revolution last year and I really liked using it, it had a gorgeous sweet scent and it was just as impressive as any Lush bath bomb so when I spotted them reduced to just £1.99 instead of £5 I picked up the two in the range which I'd not yet tried - Vanilla Spin and Star Gazer. I've not seen them on the Superdrug site since so I assume it was because they were being discontinued which is a shame but I'm glad I'll have been able to try each one in that case.

Rimmel Rita Ora 60 Seconds Nail Polish, shade Roll In The Grass £2.99

I don't often pick up Rimmel nail polishes anymore. I tend to to stick to my trusty Essie or my new fave Sally Hansen but I couldn't resist the shade Roll In The Grass from the Rita Ora collection. It's not a colour I'd typically go for but it just screams Summer to me so I thought it would be perfect for warmer days. I think this would look especially beautiful on toenails with some pretty sandals to show them off.

Zoella Cream Scrub £2

I'd not tried anything from the many Zoella beauty ranges but when picking up some bath bombs I spotted all of her stuff was reduced, massively reduced actually so I decided to grab a few bits, one of them being the Cream Scrub from the Gelato range. I love a body scrub, a good exfoliation makes me feel so fresh and this smells absolutely beautiful. It's not overly sweet which I expected and it's a really decent sized tub so I think it will last me a while.

Original Source Hydrating Water Infusions Shower Gel £2

Omg, this smells incredible! I actually picked this up in Tesco for 99p but it's currently £2 in Boots. I seem to have a stash of shower products for ages and then one day I'll see I'm almost out of all of them so I've been picking a few things like this up here and there recently. There were 4 scents to choose from in the new Water Infusions range but Apple and Melon was my fave out of them all. So fresh and fruity!

I'd love to know if you've tried any of these products too and what you thought of them. Have you picked any new beauty bits up recently?

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