Hiding out in the Cotswolds

30/06/2025

Morning walks before it heats up ❤️

02/06/2025

A rainy bank holiday spent in the peak District




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23/03/2025

Enjoying the hyacinths and botanical garden at Jephson gardens in Leamington. So nice to have a park that's kept beautiful ❤️ 🪻






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13/03/2025

Trying to read as much as possible between writing my first novel. This has constantly been in my feed and with the release of the third book, I thought I'd give it ago. Having not read much fantasy lately it was a great introduction back into the genre! I have written a review of what I did and didn't like about the book with minimal spoilers but focusing on the weaknesses and strengths of the writing and worked building. Overall I enjoyed the book for the plot but not so much for the actual writing. 7/10

http://hidingoutinthecotswolds.com/2025/03/12/fourth-wing-a-review-7-10/

19/01/2025

Having made the traditional resolutions for the year, I gladly started the month off by achieving the first one my list goals. Being a sort of introverted person and spending the majority of my time at home, I rarely have the opportunity for social interactions. Therefore, I intended to set a goal that would get me out of my comfort zone socially with the added benefit of opportunities to improve my writing skills. Thus I found myself in a beautiful home filled with strangers, delicious coffee and a prompt to encourage us to write, a welcome break from the novel I have been so fervently writing. At random, a selected folded up piece of paper in a small jar, revealed that today’s prompt would be “Mr Kipling.” Having decided to simply call my main character by the name, I proceeded to created Mr Kipling, a 78 year old man living in a small bungalow with a long garden and a competitive spirit. Having tidied it up a little, I thought I’d take the opportunity to share it. Enjoy.

Having made the traditional resolutions for the year, I gladly started the month off by achieving the first on my list goals. Being a sort of introverted person and spending the majority of my time…

05/01/2025

Feels good to be back in a place of Goal setting this year.

28/11/2024

About a month late but finally made my air dry ghost 👻

16/11/2024

Dark evenings, mean more time inside 😭 but it also makes for a great excuse to crack out some board games. We played one of my favourite games to play, Beez and the ever popular Azul. I usually always win Beez and always lose Azul, yet today was completely the opposite!

These games have a lot of similarities, both are easy to set up, easy to learn rules and last about the same length to play but most noticeably they are both Strategic.

Azul requires you to think moves ahead and to also consider your opponents moves, much like a game of chess. You will want to place your counters in a position that will result in receiving optimum points and avoiding penalties. Scoring is done throughout the game and further scoring is done at the end.

Beez requires you to place counters strategically in a way that works towards personal and shared objectives. There are a set amount of rounds you have in order to achieve those goals.

Both games are great for two players to enjoy of an evening and do not require much social interaction and can be played at a leisurely pace, without having to worry about it going on too long. They are also easy to reset to play multiple games in one sitting and do not take up too much table space.

All in All, they are absolutely keepers on my shelf that keep me coming back for more!

Follow me for more boardgame recommendations!









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03/11/2024

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23/10/2024