Book review: A Proper Family Holiday by Chrissie Manby

Hello there everyone!

I hope you're all well and enjoying your Tuesday with whatever you're up to. I have just finished reading another book and would like to do a little review for you all.

'Could you survive a week-long holiday with your entire family? Newly single magazine journalist Chelsea Benson can't think of anything worse. 

Your grubby small nephew torpedoing any chance of romance with the dishy guy you met on the plane... Your eighty-five-year-old granddad chatting up ladies at the hotel bar... Sarcastic comments from your older sister who's always been the family favourite... And all this is before your parents drop their bombshell.

Is a week enough time for the Bensons to put their differences aside and have some fun? Or is this their last ever proper family holiday?'

I really enjoyed this book and found it hard to put down when I had to do other things! It took me around 2-3 days to read (like most of my books).

This book is based around the Benson family taking a weeks cheap holiday in Lanzarote for Jacqui's (Chelsea's mum) 60th birthday. It has sibling rivalry and family misunderstandings throughout the book though it is written in quite a comical way - it made me giggle a lot of the time!

Chelsea and Ronnie are sisters and haven't spoken in two years but the story is written in a clever way where you get both of their perspectives of the situation. You soon realise that they have a warped view of each other's lives, thinking that other has the better.

This story is hilarious, fun and fast paced, perfect for a beach read whilst you relax on hopefully not quite as an eventful holiday as the one occurring in the book!

I would definitely recommend it for all of you who likes a great holiday read to pop into your beach bag! You can purchase it on Amazon here.

The next book which I am about to begin is Sophie Kinsella's - Twenties Girl! (I shall do a review of this after I've read it - hopefully in a few days time)

Lots of love,
Koren
xo

Let's bake!

Hello there everyone!

Crunchy Nut Cluster Vanilla Drops

I hope you're all doing okay and have had a great week with whatever you have been up to. At least the working week has come to an end now and you can relax for the weekend. What do you all have planned? I think I'm going to do a bit of shopping tomorrow as I need to get a few bits and bobs from Tesco's. I also need to clean out my cute little lady Poppy (the hamster) oh what fun!

I'm at home a lot being as I don't have a full time job and can get quite bored but one of my favourite past times is baking. I have a variety of different hobbies but baking has and always will be one of the most enjoyable for me!

Cheesy Loaf

I bake all sorts from cakes, scones to biscuits and loafs. I have a cute recipe book from Paperchase which was around £8 where I write the recipes I make the most often. I would love to build up my collection and fill the whole thing.

Today I have been baking and I've made a homely Cheese Loaf out of my nana's old recipe book and something I call "Crunchy Nut Cluster Vanilla Drops". They're originally called Cornflake Vanilla Drops but I much prefer them with the other cereal! Either of them do taste lovely though, it's whichever one you fancy putting in. I will write a post with the recipe in for you keen bakers to try! :)

Do you have any scrumptious recipes which I am able to try? I would love to hear from you so I can discover some new baking recipes.

Lots of love,
Koren
xo

Bonjour!

Chailland public gardens

Hello there everyone!

Even though this has been posted now that I'm back home in England I am currently writing this as I sit in the lovely country kitchen at my uncles holiday/future home in France. I hope that makes sense. We're in a tiny little hamlet next to a village called Chailland (pronounced Shion) somewhere around the Loire valley - it's very picturesque with lush green fields and tall trees covering the valley surrounding us.

The hamlet is quite out of the way from the hustle and bustle of people and different to everyday life in England. The French are VERY laid back and its their national three week holiday at the moment so not many places, like cafes or shops are open. I don't think I have ever visited somewhere this quiet before and beautiful as it is, it can get rather boring for somebody who's used to being in a busy village/town where there is mostly always something happening or something to occupy yourself with. Me and my cousin Nicole who's 18 (two years younger than me) are finding it hard to live without

Chailland village

WiFi!

This is my first time visiting France and I have to say it's very similar to England weather wise, it's nearly the end of August and has been quite chilly with a cool breeze this week, along with a few hot sunny breaks throughout the day. I really wish I had bought some more warmer layers, I have one cardigan and quite a thin coat which I've been living in (literally) whilst I've been here as this is the warmest of my clothes I bought along with me! I am a person who feels the cold extremely easily.

We've had a pretty laid back few days here mostly just staying around the house, garden and hamlet. They're quite a few children who live in the hamlet (perfect for my younger cousins aged 8 and 9) and a lot of freedom for them to roam around or play on their bikes etc. On Thursday I spent the afternoon being a child again playing out with the other kids and my cousins on bikes and making dens in the back garden - it was quite nostalgic.

On our last day we visited a beautiful large Fortress/Castle, the biggest I have ever seen! It was wonderful to look around and take a step back in time. We went up two towers with spiral staircases and these took AGES to walk up and down, I couldn't of put up with living there and having to do that every day (haha)! The town surrounding the Castle was absolutely lovely - very vintage and chic with cute cafes, shops and gift shops.

Overall it was a quite a nice break away from England though it's great to be back to a more lively atmosphere and WiFi! Oh yes, our WiFi at home is being horrendous again so I am going to have to ring them back up again! :(

Have you ever visited France, if so - what was it like and where about did you visit?


Lots of Love
Koren xo

The town where the Castle is