Waitress The Musical (Adelphi Theatre)~ Review

Hey guys, this is Abi here,

And this is a post that I've wanted to do since my trip to London a couple of weeks ago.

It's a review of the show I went to see:

I don't know when I found out about the soundtrack for the show, but there was something about the music that made me want to keep playing it over and over again.

After researching the musical, I started listening to the soundtrack because, it's one thing to know the story, and to know which song is supposed to match each situation, and every emotion, and quite another to be in that moment where you're feeling what the character is feeling.

And then we booked tickets to go and see them in London.

And I took listening to the soundtrack to a whole new level.

I listened to it whilst getting ready for work, (well, my favourites), in the car, on my break, whenever I had a spare moment, I would be listening to The Negative, Opening Up, When He Sees Me, Bad Idea, or You're Never Ever Getting Rid of Me.

Ooh, or if I felt in the mood, She Used to be Mine.

* * * *

Having seen the show, I now know why it's the only remaining break-out musical from the year 2016/2017 other than Hamilton to still be running today. Sure, it has the big, upbeat routines with the high belting notes, same as any other big musical has.

But I'll tell you what sets it aside from all the other classic musicals that have been around for any number of years. It's these amazing, emotional, songs that pack as much power as a full cast finale would, because of how well the actors have crafted their performance.

They're what I like the most about these new contemporary musicals. They don't have magic, or some mystical fantasy element to them, they're merely about regular people, living their own lives, but there's just something about the script, the characters, the songs and the overall plot that seems to have made thousands of theatregoers (myself included) want to come and see this smash hit musical.

There were lots of things I knew I was going to love about this musical. The characters, and their quirks, (Dawn and Ogie's especially), the songs- I know most of those by heart.

But here are some of the parts that surprised me.

-The smell of something sweet, possibly pie, the moment you enter the theatre.

The way the curtain looks like an actual pie.

(The show is about a girl called Jenna who makes a pie every day in a bakery, where she works. She puts her emotions and her experiences into her recipes, like her mother did, years ago, when she taught her how to make pie. The show centres around her and her mother, who was in an unhappy marriage, and made pies, and found out she was pregnant, which is the exact same situation that Jenna is in. And it all spirals from there.)

This is the big one.

-How funny the show honestly was. I honestly didn't expect to laugh as much as I did. I knew it was going to be funny, there was no way it wasn't going to be, what with songs like "The Negative" and "Bad Idea: Reprise" in the show. But my cheeks were aching from laughing so much.

Other than those, when I heard that Lucie Jones was going to be playing Jenna, and I nearly died on the spot. Let me explain: I've been a fan of Lucie since her time on X Factor. 10 years ago. I was going to see her play Maureen when I went to see Rent last year, but she wasn't on that night. So it was kind of a big deal when I found out she was playing Jenna.

But I honestly wasn't surprised when she absolutely nailed the role. Her performance was mesmerising, every facial expression said a million thoughts. And her voice was second to none.

Not only Lucie, the rest of the cast was absolutely incredible. None of them were straining in their solos, they all acted their roles perfectly, whether they were angry, or vulnerable, or comedic. Especially comedic.

Overall, this is a wonderful, heartwarming, realistic story with unhappy memories, wonderful friendships, crazy romances, and absolutely fantastic, make you want to stand up and get on stage with them, absolutely phenomenal songs. You seriously do not want to miss this, so get on the internet and book yourself a ticket for this show, NOW. (If you can because it's closing on Broadway.)

Okay! I hope you enjoyed this post, and it you did, let me know in the comments!

Furthermore, let me know if you've seen the show, and what you thought! (Or if you've seen the film, which was made about 10 years ago.)

I hope you have a wonderful day and I'll see you soon!

Byeeeee!

-Abi xxxxx

Autumn Book Tag

Hey guys, this is Abi here,

And even though it's still a little later in the month than usual, I'm going to do a book tag!

And because it's the first day of Autumn, it's the perfect time to do the autumn tag!

Enjoy!

-What's your favourite thing about autumn?-

What's not to like? The colouring- orange and brown- warm colours everywhere. The pumpkin spice frappucinos and lattes, (I've developed a craving for them recently.)

But my favourite thing about autumn has to be the crisp, cool mornings, where you can walk around in boots, jeans, and long thick cardigans, just taking in the light blue sky and hearing the crunch of orange leaves under your feet.

-What book reminds you of your school days?-

A combination of books, but books that I incorporate with school would probably be:

-The Skulduggery Pleasant series

-The Series of Unfortunate Events series

These series' were one of the highlights of my school life, and I'm still reading one of them now.

-What cover reminds you of autumn?-

Just all the leaves, all colours of orange and red reminds me.

-What is your favourite horror/Halloween novel?-

Although I haven't absolutely loved any of the mysterious Halloween-y- novels I've picked up in the past couple of years.

This Savage Song is by far the favourite halloweenish book. It's also the only V.E. Schwab duology that I've read.

-What is your favourite horror/Halloween film?-

This was the first horror film that I watched. Ever. And it still remains one of my favourite. It's about a father and a son that get stuck in a supermarket, and they can't get out because of the mist. During the day, they're safe, but then things start coming out of the mist. One of the things that I've never forgotten is the ending. If you horror, and a storyline, I recommend this film.

-What autumn book release are you most looking forward to?-

This. This is basically it. I know next to nothing about this but the whole world is waiting for this release it seems. Looking forward to what's going to happen.

-What autumn film release are you most looking forward to?-

I absolutely loved the first one, ten years ago. It's one of my favourite films, with the unique comedy, and it's filled with zombies! And then, I found out we were getting a sequel- and I can't wait. The release date is 18th October, and you can bet I'm seeing it that first weekend.

-What are the three books you plan to read this autumn?-

1. A Sorrow Fierce and Falling (Kingdom on Fire #3), by Jessica Cluess

2. The Girl In Red, by Christina Henry

3. A Darker Shade of Magic (Darker Shade of Magic #1), by V.E. Schwab

-I tag:-

Everybody that wants to do this tag!

Okay! That's the Autumn Book Tag! I hope you enjoyed it, and if you decide to do the tag, be sure to comment below so I can come and see your answers!

I hope you have a wonderful day and I'll see you all soon.

Byeeeee!

-Abi xxxxxxxx

All the Finales On My TBR!

Hey guys, this is Abi here,

And even though I've always been a fan of posting TBR lists: Debut authors I want to read, Series I Want to start, one list that I don't think I've ever done is the series finales that I have yet to read, whether I received them in the last week or months back.

These series' finale have started to creep up on me, and I hope you enjoy reading about them.

1. A Sorrow Fierce and Falling (Kingdom on Fire #3), by Jessica Cluess

I've been continuing through this trilogy for as many years as there are books. What made this book interesting to me was that it challenged the idea of the chosen one, the one that will save all of society. Aside from that, the time period that it's set in, the feel of the writing, and the amazing/kick-ass characters at every turn, it was enough to sweep me up into Henrietta story, and the journey she took as she tried to master the elements.

Oh, and there's politics.

After the end of the second book, I know that it's not going to be long until I pick up ASFAF, so this trilogy is definitely one that I'll be able to add to my "Completed series" list on my 2019 Wrap Up.

2. Wildcard (Warcross #2), by Marie Lu

Wildcard has been on the list the longest, by far. The first book was read and reviewed back in 2016, and I've had the copy of Wildcard since January, after my boyfriend Jordan finished both books and gave them back to me.

I was immediately pulled in by the premise of this duology, purely by the fact that the whole world was obsessed with this VRish videogame world- Warcross. Aside from that, I've always wanted to go to Tokyo.

If you're into Middlegrade, science fiction, or looking for an introduction for either, then I highly recommend this duology. It's such a fast read, and it'll leave you hungry for the next book.

3. Five Dark Fates (Three Dark Crowns #4), by Kendare Blake

These are the copies that I have.

I just got Five Dark Fates today and assuming I finish Becoming before tomorrow (I should do, I only have about 45 minutes at this point in time- I've been listening for nearly 4 hours straight) I'll be reading it on the train to London tomorrow afternoon.

Even though this is yet another political fantasy series, there has always been the premise of three powerful sisters, each with their own discipline, participating in a fight to the death. The hype for this series is huge and even though I don't typically tend to follow the hype of Booktube, because of the pressure of not liking said series, I have to admit, I'm glad I've stuck with this series.

Highly recommend this.

4. Finale (Caraval #3), by Stephanie Garber

As much as I've had kind of mixed reviews for the first two books, I don't dislike them enough to DNF the series, and from what I've heard, you get to read from both Scarlett and Tella in the third and final book. In the second book, we found out who Legend is. And I definitely want to find out what all the characters end up doing.

I recommend this series if you like reading about characters being swept away in what feels like a dream, but might actually be a nightmare.

This is by far the dreamiest fantasy series it's ever been my fortune to read and I'm so interested to see how it all wraps up.

Okay! Those are all the finales I own but have not yet read! I hope you enjoyed the post and feel free to comment down below any series' that you're hoping to wrap up this year!

I hope you have a wonderful day and I'll see you all soon!

Byeeeee!

-Abi xxxxx

Updates on 2019 TBR Jar Challenges

Hey guys, this is Abi here,

And with just under 1/3 of the year left (how has 2019 flown so fast?), I haven't done an update on my TBR Jar Challenges in a very long time.

With just over 113 and 1/2 days left, these are how I'm doing with all my challenges of the year.

Enjoy!

-My TBR Jar Challenges-

These are all the challenges that I've completed so far this year:

1. The Dark Artifices trilogy, by Cassandra Clare

I read a book a month, starting in April, I think it was. My favourite of the three was Lord of Shadows, by far. I'm sorry, but Queen of Air and Darkness was just too darn long. I was reading it for a good three months before I finally hit the end, when I got through near enough the same amount of pages in the space of a week for Lord of Shadows. 'Nough said.

2. A Poison Dark and Drowning (Kingdom on Fire #2), by Jessica Cluess

Even though I've completed this, the third and final book, A Sorrow Fierce and Falling, is on my TBR for this month. I want to see how this trilogy ends, where all the characters end up, and I can't wait to get started.

3. 1 Stephen King book-

I chose Pet Sematary for this challenge. My boyfriend Jordan got this for me from, somewhere and he wanted me to read it before we watched the film, which he had on his hard-drive. It was a decent story, and one I recommend picking up if you want an intro into the genre. I don't recommend the new film, it's not accurate at all.

 4. Skulduggery Pleasant Book 12 (Bedlam)- I read this a couple of months ago, after I met DEREK LANDY HIMSELF- and he was such a nice man (even though I brought every single one of my books- including the Demon Road ones). But I have to say, Bedlam was just as good as the original Skulduggery Pleasant books, better than Midnight and Resurrection for sure.

5. Muse of Nightmares (Strange the Dreamer #2), by Laini Taylor

I read this back in February, and even though I didn't love it quite as much as I loved Strange the Dreamer, I loved the character development, how much more I got to see the world created by Laini Taylor, and the lovely poetic writing was just beautiful throughout the book. If you're a lover of beautiful fantasy with vast world-building and imaginative characters then I highly recommend Laini Taylor's books.

Here are the challenges I have left:

1. Five Dark Fates (Three Dark Crowns #4), by Kendare Blake

The only reason this book hasn't been read yet is because it's not out in the UK until the 19th September. I was going to read it this weekend when I'm in London, but it's not out until next week. That just means I'm going to read it a bit later. I'm just going to have to avoid the internet until I do.

That's it! There's only one challenge that I have to complete this year, and hopefully I don't end up procrastinating and not finishing it!

Right, I hope you enjoyed my post, comment below if you've read any of these, and whether you enjoyed them or not!

I hope you have a wonderful day and I'll see you all soon!

Byeeeeeee!

-Abi xxxxx

September TBR (2019)

Hey guys, this is Abi here,

And it's time for maybe my favourite post of the month: the new month's TBR.

I have some books that conclude trilogy's, books that are spin-offs, and a couple of standalones lined up for this month.

I hope you enjoy the post!

1. Anne of Green Gables, by L.M Montgomery

I'm 120 pages into this book at the moment, and I'm working through it slowly. I've seen the first season of Anne with an E, and I'm trying not to remember what happens within the pages of the book. (Because it's making me less enthusiastic to pick the actual book up.) I'm thinking I'll slowly make my way through the course of the book over the month. With the remaining days left, I just need to read 12 pages a day.

2. Five Dark Fates (Three Dark Crowns #4), by Kendare Blake

Book 4 in the Three Dark Crowns series comes out tomorrow, and it's the final book in my TBR jar challenge for the year. I plan to read it whilst in London for my birthday, and I've pre-ordered it so I get it as soon as possible. (Even though I've now found out that it's not out until the 19th, so that's a bummer.)  I'm not looking forward to reaching the end of the series, especially as its been on my top ten list for a number of years now, but I'm excited to see what happens.

3. A Sorrow Fierce and Falling (Kingdom on Fire #3), by Jessica Cluess

Now, this book isn't in the TBR jar challenge, just the second book is. I decided that, when I ordered A Poison Dark and Drowning, that maybe I'd feel like I wanted to continue on with the concluding book. And lucky, I liked the ending of the second book to want to add another trilogy to my list of completed series'.

4. Four: A Divergent Story Collection (Divergent 0.1-0.4), by Veronica Roth

I got this from one of my friends in exchange for one of my dvds that I didn't want any more. Even though it was more than a couple of years since I've read the Divergent trilogy, I'm kind of  intrigued as for what it's like to read from Four's perspective. I'm hoping this will be a fast read that I can fly through in the space of a week or so. After all, it's only a collection of short stories.

I think I'm just going to leave it at four books for the month. I'm also currently listening to Becoming, by Michelle Obama at the month so I'm working my way through that and I have to say, I'm thoroughly enjoying listening to it.

That's going to be it for today. I hope you enjoyed reading about what I plan to pick up in September, and feel free to talk about what you're planning on reading, down in the comments below.

I hope you have a wonderful day, and I'll see you all soon.

Byeeeee!

-Abi xxxxxx