This Time It’s Real is a YA celebrity romance that focuses a lot on identity and fitting in. Eliza Lin’s mother is a corporate crisis manager, and as a result of her mom’s career she’s spent her childhood living all over the world. Now she’s in Beijing, and even though she’s Chinese, she doesn’t feel like she fits in at her new school any better than her last one. Eliza’s passion is writing, and for … Continue reading This Time It’s Real by Ann Liang
Dr. Perfect is a low stakes, low angst contemporary romance that’s as much about loving what you do as it is about finding the love of your life. Ellie Frost set aside her passion for cooking to work as a manager for her motorbike racer ex. When he breaks up with her, she’s left with a huge gap in her CV, no severance and few options (he, of course, kept her off the books). Ellie … Continue reading Dr. Perfect by Louise Bay
The weekend of April 1, a friend and I made the three-hour trek down to the Windy City for Yarn Con 2023. Yarn Con is an independent fiber festival that features a lot of indie dyers from around the Midwest that was started in 2007. The first two days (Thursday and Friday) feature workshops and classes. The second two days (Saturday and Sunday) are a vendor marketplace that featured some of my favorite dyers. I … Continue reading Yarn Con 2023 Recap
After many showers (so, so many showers) and much pointlessness, season 27 of The Bachelor is over. So who “won?” I don’t care. Anyway, thanks to some comments from last week’s post, I found Pudding a shirt that covers the spot she isn’t supposed to lick so she doesn’t need a cone. She doesn’t love the shirt, either, but it’s better. She’s still going to poop in my shoes. We open in a studio in … Continue reading Elyse Watches The Bachelor–S27 E11: Poop in Shoes
The Secrets of Hartwood Hall is a traditional Gothic novel that suffers from uneven pacing and a lack of tension. While I was intrigued by some of the themes, overall the book was a bit of a drag to get through. Margaret Lennox is a young widow who is facing poverty after the death of her husband. A former governess, Margaret takes a job at the remote Hartwood Hall teaching ten-year-old Louis Eversham. Right away … Continue reading The Secrets of Hartwood Hall by Katie Lumsden
It’s Fantasy Suites night on The Bachelor. Cheers to my friend Jen who is here and said, “Wait, there are 27 fucking seasons of this show?!” Indeed. Lady Pudding is currently not talking to me as she has to briefly wear the cone of shame (she’s fine, it’s so she doesn’t lick a topical med off her fur). We’re in Thailand, BTW. Not Pudding and me, the people on this show. Jesse reminds us that on The Bachelorette … Continue reading Elyse Watches The Bachelor–S27 E10: Shower Crying
This week is the Hometowns episode of The Bachelor, when our titular “hero” meets the contestant’s’ families. It’s always painfully cringy. It’s also been a rough week at Chez Elyse. I have the cold from hell and just did a shot of cold medicine to make it through the recap. Pudding had her annual vet visit and, because she’s a spicy girl, had to wear a muzzle. Even as she was trying to maim the vet, … Continue reading Elyse Watches The Bachelorette–S27 E8: The Yorkie Knows
It’s Bachelor night everyone! Pudding is too busy ordering sushi from Door Dash to care. Pudding: Do I want extra tuna on my spicy tuna roll? Yes. Yes, I do. We’re in Budapest now. The first one-on-one goes to Kaity. Both Kat and Kaity are blondes with wavy balayaged hair, and I’m having a hard time telling them apart. They take a funicular to look out over the city. Zach says he still gets butterflies when … Continue reading Elyse Watches The Bachelor–S26 E7: You and I Remember Budapest Very Differently
It’s time for The Bachelor, everyone! I could be doing more fun things, like taxes or getting a pap smear, but Pudding and I are here to serve you! Pudding: Whatever. Wake me up when this nonsense is done. We’re in Tallinn, Estonia. The ladies walk around clapping their hands and yelling, “Where are ya Zach?” like he’s a lost dog. We learn Greer has covid but is asymptomatic so she’s isolating. Charity gets a one-on-one … Continue reading Elyse Watches The Bachelor–S27 E6: We’re All Like WTF
After a night of snow and wind followed by freezing rain, Pudding and I are ready to snuggle down under our favorite blankets and watch The Bachelor. Pudding may have had hit the nip a little hard. Pudding: Wake me up when this is over. Tonight everyone is in London and, apparently, crying. As you read the recap, it’s worth remembering that they allegedly keep the cast super sleep deprived to accommodate the filming schedule and also, … Continue reading Elyse Watches The Bachelor–S27 E5: London Tears
It’s the most inane night of the week, the one where we watch The Bachelor. Pudding just got done murdering the bookmark I was using— Pudding: That you thought you were using. –and is now taking a nap. We open with the contestants flying to the Bahamas to meet Zach. My theory, as you have read before, is that women go on this show not for the Bachelor, but for the international travel, friendship opportunities, and unlimited … Continue reading Elyse Watches The Bachelor–S27 E4: Zach the Snack
