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Hello and welcome! My name is Emma and I've been a bookseller for over a decade. I also write fantasy under the name E. M. Epps. This blog features my Two-Paragraph Book Reviews. One paragraph from me. One from the book. Here's why I keep it short.

You are here: Home > My feet are killing me and we’re only one museum in, oh dear
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My feet are killing me and we’re only one museum in, oh dear

Image Emma 20 March 2012

==9:33pm==

We have a list a mile long of things to see in London so we’re trying to batch things together so we don’t have to backtrack. Today we went southeast to what I think was the Belgravia neighborhood. Lovely bright unLondony weather again!

First the Victoria & Albert Museum:

I didn’t see the ‘no photos’ sign at first. (I had been going by the fact that I could hear beeping cameras but no complaining docents).

Also, I didn’t look too hard.

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I’m not sure what this room was; I only saw it from above.
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Pegasus!

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A missal, dated 1200-1220.

Then we did the necessary pilgrimage to Harrods, where we ate a laughably expensive lunch in the Tea Room and then browsed around looking at blouses that cost what your typical Chinese peasant makes in a year.

Or two.

We could, however, afford the chocolates. Easter had exploded in the stunning, packed chocolate hall, and there were chocolate bunnies and eggs of all variety. I think we made our selections based on the packaging more than anything.

We hopped back on the Picadilly Line to Fortnum & Mason, which sells tea and also just about everything else. Apparently the Queen is a fan; they have dates on their website listing when they will close early due to “royal visits.” After Harrods, their prices looked remarkably reasonable.

One last stop – to Waterstone’s flagship store! I had three goals: Gervase Phinn; Jacqueline Wilson; and then something that was a staff pick (to slightly increase the odds of quality) but was completely unknown to me.

Rivers of London fit that description. I had seen the author’s name but knew nothing about his works; and there were stacks on every single display table and shelf. ‘Bestsellers’ – check. ‘Local favorites’ – check. ‘British authors’ – check. ‘London settings’ – check. ‘Top fantasy’ – check.

If you want to get rid of a book you don’t like you make one display out in the middle to make people take them quicker; if you really love it you sprinkle it everywhere.

The plot synopsis and the first few pages met my approval. Plus the cover is awesome. So it was mine.

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Grabbed the Conn Iggulden novella on a whim. A story about a menswear salesman who accidentally becomes an assassin? Title parodying James Bond? For £1.99? All right.

Then when I got back to the flat I looked up Rivers of London on Amazon and discovered that I had in fact seen it (and sold it) several times in the American edition, with a different (uglier) cover and different (boringer) title. Sigh. Can’t win.

And now I think I shall go read.


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Posted in travel
Tagged England, London, notw, UK
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My bookstore is an affiliate of Bookshop.org, so we will earn a commission if you click through my links and make a purchase. I, personally, am also an affiliate of the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program and will likewise make a commission if you click through those links and make a purchase. Having to use Amazon doesn’t fill me with joy, but they’re the only good affiliate program for used books available right now. So…that’s the way it is.

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