'Waiting for Sunrise' | William Boyd

Last week I mentioned my weekend in Brussels. A 400 mile trip across a massive section of France calls for a long train journey, and a long journey calls for a great book.

Luckily I had this gem in my bag waiting to be opened on the train. William Boyd is one of my favourite authors at the minute – his attention to historical, geographical and character detail, in particular, is second to none. On the subject, I’ve never read any of the James Bond books but was so excited to hear that Boyd has taken over the writing of the series and have been meaning to get my hands on Solo ever since. If you’ve read it, I’d love to hear your thoughts on how this spy novel measures up to Fleming’s originals!

Back to Waiting for Sunrise, and I was gripped from the start. The novel opens in early 20^th-century Vienna, where Boyd’s protagonist Lysander is being treated for a personal psychological problem by a protégé of Freud. In the waiting room, he meets Hettie Bull, with whom he begins an intense and incredibly problematic affair. Later he is arrested but placed under the supervision of the British Embassy on bail and flees.

Indebted to the British government, the next year Lysander has gone from established theatre actor to a spy in the war. But his seemingly simple mission has more links, danger and consequences than he Lysander could have anticipated. In the midst of the intelligence events Hettie returns and Lysander becomes caught up in yet more trouble.

Boyd retains the unfailing momentum of the plot by weaving adeptly between family life, wartime events, sex and scandal. He has evidently taken inspiration from the events of the time, including scientific developments, and used them to deftly craft a work bringing together mystery, drama and love. Electricity and peril runs from beginning to end – a wholly satisfying and riveting read. I’m already looking forward to reading my next Boyd novel.

Lille & Brussels

Last weekend I took a wonderful little trip up to Brussels via an afternoon in Lille. Now that I’m nearly halfway through my second semester of university over here, I’ve started panicking that I’m not making the most of living in France, so have started trying to see more of what’s around me while I’ve got the chance!

Lille is one of my favourite places I’ve visited in France, if not the best so far. I went there for a day on the Eurostar about 10 years ago and was looking forward to checking it out again. If you’re short on time like me, I recommend heading for Vieille Lille (the old town) via the Grand Place and taking your time getting lost in the cute little streets in the area – there’s a vibrant market, as well as interesting shops and unique cafes and restaurants. The cathedral is definitely worth a nose around too, and if I’d been there longer, I’d head to the Musee des Beaux Arts too.

The next day, it was round two of tourist fun in Belgium, the country that put me up for a couple of years back in the day! I took the tram into Brussels and jogged my memory by visiting the main square, the Mannekin-Pis, the museum, and naturally, one of the hundreds of incredible vendors selling Belgian waffles. Waffles are compulsory and I'm quite sad I didn't think to take a picture before scoffing mine down as they're an incentive to go in themselves, so I'm linking you instead to The Waffle Blog to make up for it. Don't click if you're on a diet! I think Brussels is a brilliant capital city as it’s just the right size without being too small or too daunting. It’s a city of fusions – buildings and park areas, French and Flemish, culture and fun. Definitely one to visit if you’re looking for a European weekend away!

'Emma' | Jane Austen

Having had it on my bookshelf for years, I have no idea why I’ve only just got round to reading Emma.

For me, no one writes quite like Jane Austen, capturing the individual characters in such a lifelike and sensitive way and turning the everyday into the eventful. This is one of those books that makes you want to curl up by the fire with a cup of tea and forget about all the things you have to do until you’ve finished reading.

Emma is the exuberant heroine and the combination of her wilfulness with her fallibility inevitably leads to the comedy-serious mixture for which the writer is renowned. Sometimes we are drawn to like and support her, at others Emma comes across as snobbish and naïve. Naturally, the plot is based around her search for suitors (for herself as well as on behalf of her friend Harriet) against a general backdrop of social hierarchy, family relationships and flirtation. The bachelor Emma scopes out for Harriet has reserved his affections for Emma, but Harriet has already fallen in love with him. Emma’s meddling leads to Mr Elton’s departure, followed by a string of new problems. Yes, it’s pretty much a 19^th-century Gossip Girl.

Admittedly, it’s not going to replace my all-time love for Pride and Prejudice but Emma is definitely a book I’ll be reading again and again. One of the standout points, though its been said countless times before, is how relevant the themes and ideas remain today. As you might expect from an Austen classic, it’s completely relatable and a total joy.

A quick update...

Bonjour and happy February to you all!

I don’t know about you, but so far 2014 has been very busy for me! I started off the New Year at home, and then went over to Northern Ireland for a few days to spend time with family. When we returned I had a lovely early birthday celebration with friends from home before heading back off to Poitiers.

Stranded at Daft Eddy's. There are worse places to be stuck for an afternoon.

It was straight back into lectures at uni and trying to revise for my last exam at the same time. Luckily I’m doing some very interesting and relevant political-based units this semester, such as international relations and methods of political science, so I’m enjoying the lectures, which always helps!

Last week marked my 21^st birthday, and after being very spoilt with a meal out and some gorgeous presents from the Poitiers group, off I went to Paris for the weekend to spend a fantastic couple of days with friends from home and Bristol (well, you do only turn 21 once!) We managed to pack loads into the weekend – naturally, all the tourist trips to the Eiffel Tower, Louvre, Galeries Lafayette and Versailles as well as a hilarious birthday night out. I’d never visited the Palace of Versailles before and loved it – plus it’s free for EU residents under 26. If I was there in the summer I could easily while away a lazy afternoon wandering around the palace gardens. Another recommendation would definitely be the Le Marais area of the city, with its quirky streets, cute cafes, unusual art and, most importantly, the BEST falafel I’ve ever eaten.

Excited for falafel

From the Eiffel Tower

Versailles. Let us eat cake.

Sleep, of course, was sacrificed. You can’t have it all!

Back to books and the blog then, and I’m just getting through Austen’s Emma at the minute so will be blogging about it in the next few days. Next on my list will be something by William Boyd or Ian McEwan, both two of my favourite authors, so keep your eyes peeled!

I’ve also got a bit of exciting news (well, exciting if you’re into your poetry, anyway). I entered a poetry competition last year and just before Christmas was sent a compilation book called Between the Lines with my work in it, published by United Press. If you’re interested in this sort of thing, get in touch – I think competitions are a great way of getting your work noticed as well as motivating yourself to get writing!