books Archives - GirlChickBetty

Hello lovelies! I finally kicked my naughty habit of zoning out while endlessly scrolling on my phone during breaks at the office. I never get anything done, and considering I'm typing on a computer my entire shift it'd be beneficial to get away from a screen even just for a little while. Monthly Book Picks This post contains affiliate links; if you snag a deal through my link it will send some spare change my way to keep this slice of the internet up and running. These are three of my favorite books that I've read over this past month. First up is Fresh & Pure by Jules Aron. I've always wanted to dabble in making face masks and balms from scratch, and this volume is jam-packed in simple but powerful DIY recipes! What I'm Reading Fresh & Pure has everything from face masks, lotions, cleansers, and hair care recipes. There is also a nifty guide detailing the properties all the ingredients used throughout the book so you can get a good grasp on the benefits of the balms you're creating. I especially found the section on different oils helpful. It's hard to keep track of what oil gives what benefit and is best for what skin type. I still have to track down some missing ingredients before I can get cracking on these recipes. In the meantime, the ingredient guide will definitely be useful to reference while writing beauty reviews! I've noticed that beauty brands tend to use the same buzzwords in their product claims without any bearing on what the ingredients can actually do. I end up usually fact-checking the individual ingredient's benefits before believing any claims a brand may tout. Next up is: Elmet by Fiona Mozley Elmet is about a small solitary family roughing it in the woods of modern-day Yorkshire. I enjoyed this one, but I found the description rather misleading. The brunt of the novel just detailed the day to day life of the children, which was interesting but anti-climatic. "The family thought the little house they had made themselves in Elmet, a corner of Yorkshire, was theirs, that their peaceful, self-sufficient life was safe. Cathy and Daniel roamed the woods freely living outside all conventions. Their father built things and hunted, working with his hands; sometimes he would disappear, forced to do secret, brutal work for money, but to them, he was a gentle protector. Narrated by Daniel after a catastrophic event has occurred, Elmet mesmerizes even as it becomes clear the family’s solitary idyll will not last. When a local landowner shows up on their doorstep, their precarious existence is threatened, their innocence lost. Daddy and Cathy, both of them fierce, strong, and unyielding, set out to protect themselves and their neighbors, putting into motion a chain of events that can only end in violence." The Clockwork Dynasty by Daniel Wilson This is one of the best books I've picked up all year. It's been quite a while since I've been tempted to just sit down all day and zip through a book. This is quite the page-turner! When a young anthropologist specializing in ancient technology uncovers a terrible secret concealed in the workings of a three-hundred-year-old mechanical doll, she is thrown into a hidden world that lurks just under the surface of our own. With her career and her life at stake, June Stefanov will ally with a remarkable traveler who exposes her to a reality she never imagined, as they embark on an around-the-world adventure and discover breathtaking secrets of the past… Read any good books lately? My to-read list is growing slim, I'd love to get some recommendations!