Photo By Elaine Fancy

I’m celebrating an abundance of things that are hot for summer around my city and abroad, as well as some amazing seasonal reads. In my first installment of Write.Eat.Drink.Repeat, I’ll list a few of my favorite summer must-have’s, one of my new favorite reads, and of course, one of the fizziest summer cocktails: Grey Goose’s Le Grand Fizz.

Read

On my plane ride to France I dove deep into K.A Tucker’s newest novel, Until It Fades. It wasn’t as mysterious and as thrilling as some of her other novels, but I loved it all the same. (Tucker could write anything and I would probably adore it. I love that she takes risks and tries something new, while still recognizing what her readers will still enjoy!) Tucker took more of a traditional Cinderella story spin in her latest novel, and Until it Fades gets two thumbs up from me.

I couldn’t put it down, except for the occasional catnap (I was on the red-eye). Tucker’s two protagonists couldn’t be more opposite: Catherine is a 24-year-old single mom, working at a diner to make ends meet in the small town she grew up in. She has a messy past and carries her high school baggage around with her, feeling as though she’ll never be able to move forward. Meanwhile, Brett is a star hockey player with an extremely famous actress mother. He has worked hard to get to where he is in his career, so when he is suddenly in a dangerous car crash, and pulled from the wreckage by a tiny waitress on her way home from a date-gone-bad, he suddenly realizes that everything he has worked hard for is at stake. And everything Catherine thought she knew about herself is challenged by this new unexpected man in her life.

In Until It Fades, Tucker also covers a topic that I don’t see very often in fiction: teenagers who lust after their high school teachers, and the teachers that take advantage of their vulnerability. Catherine’s high school memories of her affair with her teacher act as an underlying theme throughout the story. It was an interesting subject, and I like the way the story came full circle in the end. If you are in the mood for a romantic summer read that you’re sure to fly through, grab Until It Fades today.

Photo by Elaine Fancy

Drink

Anyone who has followed my blog posts surrounding my trip to France with Grey Goose and Soho House will remember hearing about the number one summer cocktail: a Le Grand Fizz.

Here’s the recipe (also featured on our Morning Show Segment on Global TV):

Recipe:

1 ½ Parts Grey Goose^® Vodka
1 Part St-Germain^® Elderflower Liqueur
½ Part freshly squeezed lime (approx. Half a lime)
3 Wedges of fresh lime
2 Parts chilled soda water

Instructions (as per the Grey Goose site):

Build in an oversized Cabernet wine glass with lots of ice.
Add Grey Goose^® Vodka and St-Germain^®. Then squeeze fresh lime and discard. Top with chilled soda water. Stir and garnish with fresh lime wedges and a Grey Goose stirrer.

Photo By Elaine Fancy

Eat

In case You Missed It: Check out Whitney and I on Global TV’s The Morning Show where we talk about our favorite French party foods. After our four-minute segment, I guarantee your mouth will be watering.

Woofles and Cream: Just look at the picture above of my activated charcoal and vanilla ice cream, garnished with a fudge-stuffed waffle kabob and tell me you don’t want to try it. Available for a limited time at Adelaide Eats in downtown Toronto as well!

Etc.

Crazy for Coconuts: One of my favorite summer product lines is Kopari Coconut Oil. I layer the face oil on after serum and before face cream every evening, and my skin soaks it up! It’s organic, and it smells better than any other coconut oil I’ve used. I love the melt for after-sun exposure, and a little goes a long way. I’m proud to be a Kopari Brand Influencer, so feel free to drop me a line if you have any questions about their products!

Get 10% off Kopari products by clicking here, or using discount code Furgal10 on the site. Also available at Sephora.

Those Red Eye Flights, Though: Saje Arrived Revived is one of my favorite essential oil blends. It was the perfect jet lag cure after a long flight overseas, and I find it is great for mornings when I’m extra groggy and can’t get out of bed. It’s key ingredients are eucalyptus, lemon and lavender, and I feel like there is a melony-citrus scent to it too. It’s refreshing, balancing and calming all at once.

That’s it for the first installment of Write.Eat.Drink.Repeat!

Until next time….