This is the ninth post of my series of monthly review posts for 2024. Other entries in the series:

Hogyween

hogyween this year was a great success! We moved into the new house the day before Halloween last year and whilst I did manage to rustle up a display, this year I've been able to take the time to properly prepare and use the space effectively. This year's theme was chosen by my eldest - "a mine" - no doubt following an outing to Woodhorn Colliery. I applied my own creative touches for the implementation and I decided to utilise the garage for full effect - building a mine shaft entrance and rock face inside, purely from recycled cardboard and packing paper left over from the house move. Fortunately, this meant I could do a lot of build work well ahead of time. Unfortunately, it meant piecemeal repairs due to water ingress. The cave wall effect is achieved by scrunching up packing paper, unfolding it and stapling it to the cardboard. I just painted some cardboard to serve as wooden supports, as wood is expensive. In fact, the only purchases I made this year were for paint and electric supplies, the candle lights (to replace my homemade ones) and the skeleton. All in all, quite the end state for such a little spend overhead!

Last year we barely had a dozen trick or treaters, this year was better at sixty, but in the old house we'd have double that in an hour. Word spreads though, and the demographic of the estate is changing as folks like me move in. I'm trying to 'advertise' a little more too.

My eldest has already chosen next year's theme, because apparently that is his responsibility now. But, he's chosen wisely and there's some cool ideas floating around in my head.

Work

Well, the sale happened. The announcement of the sale coincided with me taking the Principal role and so all my time in this position has been oriented to this huge milestone. Suffice to say I'm fucking knackered, as is the vast majority of the organisation. From when the sale was announced we've had to sift through a lot of technical details to provide readiness and assurance of segregation. It's required a careful, risk-based and pragmatic approach so that we can achieve the goal without compromising on service to our customers. In particular, this month has required us coming up with creative solutions in the face of emergent complications.

In some regards, the term 'sale' isn't quite right - as staff we've been TUPE'd over to Barclays, but it was only the banking parts of the business (savings, loans, credit cards) that were acquired, in addition to a ten-year licensing agreement to the brand name 'Tesco Bank'. Insurance, Travel Money, ATMs and Gift Cards remained with Tesco Group. So the 'sale' has actually been a partial sale AND standing up a new business. From the Platform Engineering perspective, we've acquired a new 'customer'.

The context-switching has been a tough one this month for me, as I flit between detailed technical changes for our platforms, and look forward to our next Programme Increment of work (in which we kick off the big strategy I've been working on for Platform Engineering). Thankfully, sale week coincided with North Tyneside Half Term (and Halloween), so it had been booked out as annual leave since the start of the year. Score!

Books

The City of Stardust by Georgia Summers

The Everly family are subject to a curse: once every generation, an ageless woman called Penelope steals away a family member. With the sudden disappearence of her mother, Violet embarks to break the curse before Penelope comes for her.

I thought this story started strong with an engaging premise. Penelope is a captivating antagonist: mysterious, malevolent and a constant threatening presence. Her assistant Aleksander ends up in an inevitable love interest angle with Violet. However, the final third of the book runs out of steam. The magic system isn't fully explored, in particular the building with reveurite or the keys and doors, so the ending falls flat. Spoiler: Mum isn't found, maybe that's the point, I'm not really sure. Perhaps because I didn't like The Starless Sea I wasn't destined to enjoy this one.

Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo

Serving as a sequel to Ninth House, Hell Bent picks up immediately where its predecessor left off. Alex Stern, Turner, Mercy and Tripp descend into hell to rescue Darlington, with drastic consequences. Darlington himself has changed to survive, but then again, so has everyone. Alex needs to learn to work with other people to pull off a heist into Hell.

I appreciated the approach to this sequel, it ups the stakes significantly, it doesn't spend a huge amount of time reintroducing concepts from book one, and expands upon the worldbuilding in a satisfying way. Alex's abilities as a wheelwalker are becoming more powerful (or maybe, she's becoming more confident in their use, or both). Alex can possess nearby ghosts to draw on their power, which she needs when her past catches up with her and throws her up against an enemy I fully expect is the primary protagonist of Book 3. I enjoyed the dynamic of a changed Darlington rejoining the group, but I found the secret societies of Yale themselves took a back seat this time round. It will be a while before the trilogy is completed and I will definitely re-read Ninth House and Hell Bent prior to its release.

Rough Justice by Wendy Joseph KC

Her Honour Wendy Joseph KC's follow-up to Unlawful Killings, Rough Justice asks, over four modern-day courtroom cases from the Crown Court, whether we get the justice we deserve:

We are a more thoughtful society now. But – and here’s the important question – are we a more just one?

In a similar style to the predecessor, each case teases out a particular aspect of the justice system. The focus in this book is on crimes by and against women. Through courtroom retellings and comparisons to historical trials from record, Wendy Joseph compares what's changed, what hasn't, and what should change further. One example that comes to mind is developments in how child witnesses are handled, with detailed procedures in place and guidance on technology usage.

Wendy Joseph has a fantastic ability to write about incredibly detailed subjects in a clear, accesible manner, honed through extensive experience instructing juries on complex legal scenarios. There is a particular focus on juries in this book, in how they are instructed, how they interpret the events laid before them during trials and how they arrive at verdicts. I honestly think that you finish this book a better citizen than you were before you started reading.

DallerGut Dream Department Store by Miye Lee

In our shared subconscious there is a town that you visit when you sleep and where you can purchase dreams. Penny, the main character, is employed by DallerGut at his esteemed Dream Department Store, a multi-floored bazaar for dreams. The version I read is a translation from the original Korean form. The premise itself is interesting and the story itself comprises a series of vignettes - Penny interviewing for her role, meeting Santa Claus (a renowned purveyor of dreams!) - but also some that are almost like fables, touching on how dreams impact our lives. Dreams can help us make sense of things, such as the musician and that creative act of composition. Dreams can also help us come to terms with events. I don't want to spoil the novel's take on grief.

Online, this book has been described as 'cozy fantasy' and I get why - there's no baddie or existential threat, no upping of the stake. It's a relatively short and enjoyable read with a decent level of world-building and a positive, optimistic tone.

Games

Luigi's Mansion 3

I mean, of course I played Luigi's Mansion 3. Astoundingly, this is only the third game in the over-20-year-old series. The first was an instant classic on the Gamecube. I enjoyed the second on the 3DS, but it wasn't the greatest fit and had some clunky controls. I recently learned it's been 'remade' for the Switch so it will be interesting to see how it performs on a more suitable console.

Luigi's Mansion 3 takes place in a hotel, not a mansion. A great big spooky hotel, which also has a History Museum, a Pirate Ship, an Egyptian Pyramid Tomb, for reasons. Luigi explores the hotel floor-by-floor, vaccuuming up ghosts and searching for his lost friends. Each floor has its own theme and specialised 'boss' ghost. The exploration, as you'd expect, is flawless. There's hidden stuff all over the place, and trying to suction-up everything in sight remains fun. A new mechanic for this entry is 'Goouigi', a liquid-based body double who can squeeze through tight gaps and into pipes. There are occassions where you need to utilise both Luigi and Goouigi in order to complete a puzzle. Honestly speaking, fifteen floors was a bit too much but never became a burden. I had fun, I collected all the gems and Boos for each floor. Spooky fun was had.