Hello hello! At this point I am crawling on my hands and knees towards a 10 day vacation. Here’s a recap of my week:
Things I Read
Books
If you’re looking for a book to read, try this list of contemporary romance recs, this list of other fiction recs, or this list of non-fiction recs. I also track everything I read on Goodreads.
Yours Truly by Abby Jimenez: Last week I finished Part of Your World and I had this book on my shelf so I picked it up next. This takes place in the same universe, but is a stand alone story about Briana and her new coworker, Jacob. They get off on the wrong foot and then he apologizes in a letter, which leads to them writing letters back and forth to each other, which leads to you can guess what. This is so CUTE, I liked it a lot more than Part of Your World. My main problem with this is that the miscommunication that keeps them from getting together goes on *way* too long, and I wanted them to be together for more of the book. But overall I really liked this, I read it in one sitting, and I definitely recommend.
The Idea of You by Robinne Lee: I cannot stop thinking about this movie and I wanted to read this again before I see it, but I’ve already read it twice (lol) so I made a bit of an unhinged choice and listened to the audiobook. This is definitely better on paper than on audio but this book is SO good. It’s so addicting and fun and dramatic and hot!! I just cannot recommend this enough, especially if you are in a reading slump. I have made so many people read this book, now is the time for you to join the list. The movie comes out May 2 and so far I’ve seen lots of positive reviews. Read this!!!
Articles
Beyoncé Won’t Burn Down the Barn with “Cowboy Carter”: I really like the album, and I have been doing a lot of reading about all of the historical context behind the references she makes throughout it. This review is written by Doreen St. Felix, who I think is brilliant. I read everything she writes. I think she’s so astute and always right, and every time I read something she’s written I learn at least five new words. Her culture criticism is so thoughtful.
Things I Watched
TV
If you’re looking for a show to watch, try this list.
The Gilded Age (Max): I have been watching this with a friend so it took us a while to get through the season, but we finally finished it! This is just such a nice low stakes rich people period drama. If you liked Downton you absolutely must be watching this, it’s created by the same guy. I love that the drama is not actually that serious, I love judging all the outfits, it’s just a good time. The cast of this is full of so many iconic women— Christine Baranski, Audra McDonald, Cynthia Nixon, Carrie Coon! How do I get invited to this dinner party?? This has already been renewed for a third season, and I’ll be watching.
Movies
Musica (Prime Video): I don’t actually have anything bad to say about this, but it didn’t really hold my attention for some reason. This is a coming of age/rom com story about a guy who is trying to figure out what to do with his life. He has synesthesia, which makes him hear music in everyday sounds, so this is very musical (hence the name of the movie). This stars Rudy Mancuso (he wrote, directed, stars, and wrote the music) and Camila Mendes, who I think has found a very good niche post-Riverdale in these streaming rom com movies. They have great chemistry, they met making this movie and now are dating in real life. This movie is very quirky and it has it’s moments but overall just didn’t really do anything for me.
Things I Bought
You can read about my full skincare routine and favorite products here. If you need a sunscreen recommendation, try this list.
Happy Sephora sale! Lot’s of recs in the lists linked above. Here’s what I bought:
Perfume Sampler Set: I was going to buy a bottle of Phlur Missing Person, but then I realized it was part of this set. I love these sample sets because you get to try several scents, and then they come with a certificate to redeem for a full size of whichever one you want. So, I can still get the full bottle of Missing Person, and I get deluxe samples of four other scents! They have several of these sets, and others that are cheaper and you can redeem for a travel size, too. A great way to try out fragrances before you commit to a full bottle.
Tower 28 concealer: I have tried a lot of different concealers in the past few months but I still haven’t found one that I want to commit to as my go-to. This one is new to me but I’ve seen a bunch of good reviews so I have high hopes.
NARS concealer: Also new to me, but I wanted something mostly for spot concealing and went for this.
Farmacy Green Clean cleansing balm: I buy one of these every sale because I love this stuff. My favorite way to remove make-up.
Ceremonia ACeite de Moska Pre-Shampoo Scalp & Hair Oil: I’ve never tried this either but I saw several people talk about how good it is, so I bought it to try.
One Last Thing…
I’ve been listening to this podcast, Lost Patients, this week and it is truly incredible. It’s about the system for mental health treatment in this country, and how it works. Or really, how it doesn’t work. This is the most comprehensive reporting I’ve ever encountered on this issue, told in the most thoughtful and emotionally effective way. Some of the stories in this are hard to listen to, but I think it’s so important to understand the true reality of what it is like to live in this country if you have a severe mental illness. This is a must listen. There is one more episode coming this week. Full list of podcasts I recommend here.
That’s it for me! I’m about to go on a very exciting trip, so I’ll be gone the next couple weeks. See you all back here on May 4th!
TTYL,
Emily