November Update
Hello, there and welcome to the next monthly update at The Lady of Letters!
This month has been an eventful one. I've (temporarily?) abandoned my old novel in favour of a new one- The Governess. It is, of course, also a historical romance set in the nineteenth century.
The reason for that? Well, apart from the fact June Lilies had almost no direction and was growing increasingly boring (both for writer and, I suspect, reader), November is also of course National Novel Writing Month! (For precisely which nation I'm not sure).
Of course, I couldn't resist joining along, and I was so so thrilled when I won.
I'm planning on doing a full review later, but let's just say it'll be a glowing one.
This was also an excellent month in terms of reading. I've long been on the search for good historical fiction, having nigh exhausted the limits of good Victorian fiction readily available in the twenty-first century, and I've finally found one: Mary Kingswood.
I found her books from a Goodreads recommendation, and ever since I started reading her The Governess, some three days after I started mine (perhaps I unconsciously nabbed the title somehow?), I've been hooked. I've already finished the Woodside series, and progressed upon the Daughters of Allamont Hall. The first book, Amy, is a dream to read, and the rest of the series looks to progress just as wonderfully as Woodside. As of yet, there's been just enough variation in the novels to keep me hooked, without compromising on a comforting similarity Kingswood doesn't shy away from with the subtle links intertwining books from the series together.
And the best thing- there are so many books, with more constantly being churned out, so I can't burn my way through them all too quickly!
Reading and writing aside, this was also the month I finally embarked upon my trip to Bath. I think it's safe to say that I was entranced.
The place was magical, it looked like one had stepped straight back into the Georgian era, with its long rows of characteristic Neo-Classical buildings in fine Bath Stone. If, that was, you replaced the reticule-maker and the greengrocer's with Greggs and HSBC. Yet, quite surprisingly, the familiar array of shops- with the faint lettering of circulating library still present under the sign for M&S foodhall- did not detract from the Old-World charm so much as add for it.
Naturally, we had to stop at the delightful Jane Austen Centre, which I loved, but we also payed a visit to the Roman Baths (utterly fascinating) and the Royal Crescent (also great fun). The sight-seeing was intercepted by long-rambles beside the River Avon, simply absorbing the magnificent landscape around us, and swimming at our hotel The Old Macdonald Bath Spa. The hotel itself was set amidst the foot of the Bath hills, and perfectly stunning from the outside, and rather pretty in too. Certainly, its pool facilities were most exemplary.
It was the most wonderful long weekend, and the perfect break from staying at home. It's safe to say that I wasn't bored back here in London, though, and my routine has been all the sweeter to me after one reluctant aberration.
Now it's for Yuletide.
