Book Reviews with Amber at The Mewton-Clawson Library #249 featuring **Magic Books and Dirty Looks: Whimsical New Age Witches ~ New Age Cozy Witch Mysteries Book 1** by Lucy Burdette PLUS Friendly Fill-Ins + Photo Fails Blog Hop

Hello gorgeous library guests 

and 

Welcome to the Mewton-Clawson Library at BBHQ 

Thank mew for joining me in the stacks today, and thank Cod all those rumours from Fudge's pawty have subsided. Seriously, I'm a stand-up, highly reliable and definitely staid library cat. Mew know it really affected my mental well-being thinking that my esteemed reputation had been irreversibly tarnished. 

So great news, all those Everest-sized tall tails have now been retracted, and apologies made to yours truly. And next week at Melvyn's 6th Birthday Pawty, I am banning all recording devices and, I'm turning off the internal cameras throughout the bunker. What happens in the bunker, stays in the bunker! MOL

And as mew can see, I'm as spritely as ever for an elderly cat and really looking forward to another cat rave next week. Oh, and I quit being in charge of the bar in The Nip Nirvana Lounge because some cats took exceptional umbrage to me trying their drinks after I'd mixed them.

Well, of course, I've got to try it first, as I don't want to serve something that doesn't taste good! Some cats are just so nit-picky, anyhoo, I quit and now the bar is not my problem, and I can get on with more fun things, but nothing that was listed on last Friday's post, none of that ever happened... EVER!!!! 

Today the P.A. is also joining in Friday Fill-ins Blog Hop with the pawesome 15 & Meowing and Four-Legged Furballs.

1. When I ______________________, it means that I am sick.

2. I ___________________fireworks.

3. I have a newfound appreciation for _________.

4. I think everyone should _________ so that ________

The P.A.'s answers are...

1. When I retreat from the world, it means that I am sick.

2. I despise fireworks. And I despise the fact that anyone can buy them and set them off anywhere they like in the UK. There has been a campaign to stop the sale to private individuals for years, but so far it's been rejected. My neighbours used to set them off in their garden, and the spent rockets would land on my roof. They did it for years. So thoughtless and irresponsible. Especially since I know of an incident caused by one of my younger brother's friends; he lit a rocket, it hit the eaves on the nextdoor house and set it on fire. They should be banned, and only available at regulated events. And let's not even get into the stress it causes for animals, pets, wildlife etc... 

3. I have a newfound appreciation for mindful meditation. Where you practice consciously monitoring your daily thoughts. My mind feels much better for it and I notice that I am more productive. 

4. I think everyone in the world over 21, should pay a £1.00 or $1.00 tree tax per year so that the Amazon forest aka the lungs of the earth, plus other countries with mass deforestation, can have new trees planted and protected for future generations. Creating a new industry funded by the citizens of the world to protect and rewild habitats. However, it would never work because of how corrupt the world is right now. The administrators of such a programme would get 90% of the funds plus an extra 9% to pay for their ridiculous bonuses, and the remaining 1% would go pay for new trees and the workforce to plant them. Sad but true! 

Today, as it's the last Friyay of the month, we're also joining in the furrbulous...

So do drop by the marvellous Mudpie's blog at www.mochasmysteriesmeows.com to join in.

This month's photo fail is courtesy of Smooch.

This was taken back in February when Smooch was trying to traverse the wall on the patio where the lavender is planted.

Obviously, the wall isn't wide enough for a cat and lavender at the same time, and it was made even more difficult because he was trying to balance on three legs!

Let's see what I've got to show mew this time!

This week's top book pick is...

Mewton-Clawson Library Copy

Magic Books and Dirty Looks

Whimsical New Age Witches 
New Age Cozy Witch Mysteries Book 1

by

Kate Satori

       Here's a little snippet of the book blurb:      

Mobile veterinarian Dr. Samara Vestry has her hands full with two magic cats—one’s cursed, and the other wants to protect her. If they were sweet, simple, talking cats, life would be easier. Instead, they’re sassy, always bickering, and nuttier than a squirrel in a cage.

She thought the cats were her biggest problem. But when a local detective winds up dead, Samara gets tangled up in the case. While nosing around, she’s forced to make decisions that lead to dire consequences—choices that can’t be undone.

This week I had the pleasure of reading Magic Brooms and Empty Rooms: Whimsical New Age Witches, a novel written by Kate Satori. I must say, this book was a delight! From start to finish, I found the plot line to be engaging, keeping me reading until the very last page. Satori did a great job of weaving together a story that was both magical and whimsical, while still being grounded in reality.

One facet of the book I really liked, was the detailed and beautiful setting that the author created. The quaint little town where the story takes place was so vividly described that I almost felt transported there myself. It was easy to visualize the characters' surroundings and to get lost in the world that Satori had created.

The overall tone of the book was light-hearted and fun, making it the perfect read for a lazy weekend afternoon. I appreciated that the story didn't take itself too seriously, while still managing to be captivating.

The main characters were well-developed and it was fun to witness how they grew and changed throughout the course of the story. However, what really stole the show were the two magical cats, one of which is Gloria; who used to be a human until a magical law was broken by her parents and she paid the price. The talking cats were integral to the story and added a touch of whimsy that I enjoyed, mew know how much I like it when the cats communicate properly.

I would highly recommend Magic Brooms and Empty Rooms to anypawdy who is looking for a fun, easy read that is full of magic and charm. So if mew like magical tales of witches and cats, then this is right in your cauldron!

If mew have Kindle Unlimited, this and the second book in the series are available with your subscription. And book three costs £4.02p.

A highly entertaining read and a supurr promising new series!

E-book: 186 pages

My Ratings Scale

Ratings of:

Magic Books and Dirty Looks

Overall Enjoyment

Other Fun Blog Hops to Join in Today

          Brian's Home   Catblogosphere    Feline Friday   Nature Friday    Flashback Friday   Friendship Friday          

I really hope mew enjoy the book if mew decide to read it.

It's time for me to say BFN or bye-for-now as mew know the drill, so many books, so little time and I'll be back next week with another specially paw-picked book just for mew, and don't forget that all my previous reviews can be found on my Book Review page.

Until next time...

Keep calm and read more books

Amber 

Follow me at angry_amber_badtemperedkitty

& @BionicBasil® on Instacat

Don't furget to subscribe and never miss another review! 

 graphics created with paid licence www.canva.com 

The BBHQ Midweek News Round-Up ~ Parsley Pays No Heed To Fierce UV Warning, Smooch and The Ant Hill Mob, and Melvyn's Wearing This Week's Top Pick Bandana **PLUS** This Week's Top Videos **AND** The Brand New Bandana Collection For July

Furbulous Greetings Supurr Furiends

Welcome to the BBHQ midweek news round-up!

We were a little short on time last week, so there wasn't much of a gardening update. 

Two weeks ago, we showed mew the new veggie garden under construction at the back of the house, down the narrow strip. And we also mentioned that Cat Dad had sacrificed scarified the lawn.

Anyhoo, the lawn had Round Two of scarification on the following Saturday, and Cat Dad filled another ton bag of moss.

Mew can see him wielding that electric beast on TikTok, just click here to view the video. He then used a mini spreader to sow the new grass seed, and now we're waiting as germination takes between 7 and 21 days.

The P.A. also planted the runner beans into the pots with the garden arches, she'll make a video for next week, and she also planted some peas, mew can watch that video on TikTok here. The pea seed was quite old, from a crop a couple of years ago, so she wasn't hopeful, but she was pleasantly surprised that six days later the majority of them sprouted. And after two weeks they look like this:

They've grown 3 to 4 inches or 8 to 10 cm in a week.

Here are the runner beans. They've grown about a yard, or metre high in the last couple of weeks.

The P.A. is using garden arches as supports this year, as her garden canes are not tall enough. Buy some taller ones mew say - she did, and accidentally had them delivered to work instead of BBHQ. And they wouldn't fit in the back of Cat Dad's van, so he cut them off, and now they're no taller than the previous ones! (Mew couldn't make it up! MOL)

The Catnip grown from seed in Mid-April is also flourishing, take a look at this! 

So it's all systems go in the BBHQ garden at the moment! MOL

Anyhoo, let's look at this week's top headlines.

First up in the news this week

Parsley Pays No Heed To Fierce UV Warning

It was pretty scorchio at BBHQ over the weekend, and most of us stayed indoors during the daytime. That is except for Parlsey when he escaped.

Mew see all the blinds were closed to keep the house cooler, and the P.A. went out the backdoor to hang some washing on the line, when she came back and opened the door, Parsley had positioned himself in complete stealth in the shadows within the porch, and as she checked for any sneaky cats through the window, she missed our black panther. Who, as soon as the door opened shot outside like it was 'freebie day' at the Catnip Factory!

Seriously, he's really fast and rather sneaky when he wants. So anyhoo, the P.A. tracked him down on his way along the path to the summerhouse, mew can just see a little black furry shape taunting her near the roses. 

She explained to him, that he needed to come back inside, as; 

A: She was about to burst into flames! (We think the P.A.'s a little vampiric as she is so pale and avoids the sun). 

B: Because it was a super high UV index. 

C: Black absorbs heat, and he's black! 

D: The risk of sunburn or heatstroke could be quite likely for heat-lightweights like us! 

And E: All of the above.

Needless to say, he replied with a rather blase, "Fluff Mew!" And promptly headed off under a shady bush. Several minutes later, he was sat under the gazebo at the patio doors, waiting for the door monitor to open them so he could return to the cool breeze of the fan.

Seriously mew couldn't make it up! MOL

Next up in the news

 Smooch and The Ant Hill Mob

Smooch went out around 6.30pm on Sunday evening as the wind had got up and really cooled things down no end. So while he was languishing on the rather sparse BBHQ lawn (See above for video of what happened to the lawn) on a little patch of green with a weed flower the P.A. hasn't yet removed.

He's just got himself in a really comfy spot, when the Ant Hill Mob appeared. Yep, the lawn has multiple ant hills and Smooch had sat on one.

Luckily the P.A. was there to brush them off him and move him to a better location, an ant-free one, on the bench on the deck.

The ants are really quite hostile, the P.A. has noticed when she's weeding the borders around the edge of the lawn, they come out of nowhere and are suddenly crawling all over her hands and arms.

As mew can imagine in true BBHQ tradition, this will soon be remedied.

Smooch offered to get the flame thrower out of the bunker, yet, surprisingly the P.A. declined the thoughtful offer, citing that she didn't want crispy, burnt flower borders.

So we've put it to Angel Humphrey in his brand new R & D Laboratory (Research and Development) to come up with a solution to the aggressive Ant Hill Mob.

Finally this week

Melvyn's Modelling The Top Bandana Pick

Melvyn finally got to wear the Purrtastic Peach Blossom bandana, and doesn't he look such a sweetie?

He's really got his catwalk strut on this week, and even did a partial jog! MOL

Though on his final walk, he only made it halfway up the catwalk and had to stop, citing he needed treats immediately and somepawdy to fan him! 

Cod help us if he ever gets an agent...

Check out Melvyn's catwalk runs here :

TikTok

Instagram

YouTube

 

Which one should he model next?

Here's the brand new bandana collection for July.

The options from the top left in a clockwise direction:

1. 100's and 1000's of Purrs

2.  Luscious Leopards

3. Popcorn-Tastic

4. Crazy Daisies

Tell us your top pick for next week in the comments!

EXTRA, EXTRA!

Check out this week's top videos:

AI Commando Cats - Nearly like The B Team!  - TikTok

Birdwatching with Pandora - Instagram

Happy Monday from Parsley - YouTube

That's us done for today, Amber will be back on Friday with another fab book just for mew and if mew missed any other posts, here are the links:

The B Team's Westbury White Horse Selfie

Brain Training with Cats

Fudge's Birthday Pawty and Giveaway 

Mew've still got time to enter Fudge's epic giveaway, the cut-off time is 5pm GMT today.

And don't forget it's Melvyn's 6th Birthday next Tuesday, and we'll be pawtying hard again! MOL

Until Friday...

Wing Commander Basil & The B Team 

Don't furget to subscribe and never miss another post! 

Graphics created with paid licence www.canva.com 

Brain Training with Cats #76 with your Epic host ~ Professor Basil P.H.D. **PLUS** A Throwback To April 2018

Happy Monday guys

Welcome to another fab Brain Training sesh on the blog today, and if mew missed any posts since last week, here they are:

Sunday Selfies 

Amber's Latest book review

The Midweek News

Fudge's 8th Birthday Rave & Giveaway

I hope mew've had a truly pawesome weekend, and that the sun was shining wherever mew are in the wurld.

This week I'm sharing a throwback from the 5th of April 2018. 

I must say, I was looking rather serious in the photo, but for the life of me, I can't remember why. Purrhaps Smooch, Fudge and Parlsey were up nefarious things in the bunker again! MOL 

It's time to get those little grey cells working.

Here's the answer key to last week's sudoku puzzle #42

Are mew ready for this week's puzzle?

Just click right-click to save and/or print the puzzle. 

The answer key will be on next time's post.

Here's this week's wurdsearch.

Just click right-click to save and/or print the wurdsearch.

And here's this week's jigsaw puzzle.

It took me 8 mins 49 secs...  How did you do?

I hope mew enjoy today's puzzles and The B Team will be back tommorrow with the Midweek News Round-up, and we look forward to your company then.

In the meantime...

Keep calm, and puzzle on

Epic purrs

Professor Basil 

Follow Us @BionicBasil® on Instacat

Jigsaw Puzzle www.jigsawplanet.com  Sudoku & word-search created with paid licence www.crosscompiler.com

Other graphics created with paid licence www.canva.com & www.befunky.com