The JANUARY Report
The Month of Simple Pleasures: Books, Music, Cookies, and Vouchers
One of life’s greatest, tiniest joys is when all the gorgeous girls file their weekly or monthly reports on TikTok. Nothing thrills me more than a well rounded debrief what they’re wearing, what they’re eating, what they’re obsessed with. I devour it like gospel. That’s the content I crave. Lifestyle updates, recommendations, general positive vibes. No notes, just pure, unfiltered enthusiasm.
So when I started my Substack, I knew this was my chance finally, a place where I could shamelessly pretend people are dying to hear my monthly reports.
READING
Sad to report that I’m deep in a reading slump. Maybe it’s the bleakness of the morning commute, maybe it’s just my brain refusing to cooperate but either way, I’m not reading, and it’s a problem. My goal is 28 books this year, and at this rate, I’ll be lucky to hit half. So, I’m begging send me your best recommendations. I need help.
However, every so often, a book comes along that reminds you why you love stories in the first place. The Ministry of Time is one of those books. Kaliane Bradley’s debut is a dizzying mix of time travel, romance, government conspiracy, and existential dread, all wrapped up in the most gorgeously addictive prose.
Bradley writes with a wit so sharp it could cut glass, balancing absurdity and melancholy with ridiculous ease. One minute, you’re howling at bureaucratic red tape for time traveler’s; the next, you’re clutching your heart over a single, devastating line about love and loss. And the romance? It’s slow-burning, awkward, intoxicating the kind that sneaks up on you and completely wrecks you.
With New Year, New Me messaging being hurled at us from every direction, I did the only sensible thing I picked up Why Am I Like This? by Gemma Styles.
There’s something so comforting about a book that feels like a long, reassuring chat with a friend over coffee one of those meandering, no-judgment conversations where you both get a bit too deep, overshare wildly, and leave feeling slightly more understood. Why Am I Like This? is exactly that.
Gemma Styles has written a collection of essays that are part memoir, part musings on mental health, identity, and the general chaos of being a person in the world. It’s the kind of book you dip in and out of, scribbling down a quote here, nodding in agreement there. At times, it feels like a deep exhale. Other times, it makes you want to text your best friend and say, Listen, we need to talk about this.
EATING
Tragically, I didn’t eat anything this month that deserved its own spotlight. I had a glorious day trip to Belgium and sampled the famous fries delicious. I also threw myself into a bottomless brunch at Las Iguanas, which ended in a predictable yet satisfying food coma. But was there a meal so life-altering that I’d demand you run out and buy it immediately? Sadly, no.
However, in a crucial moment of food journalism, my friends and I compared notes on our monthly reports and came to one unanimous conclusion: the M&S Milk Chocolate Cookies are January’s undisputed IT GIRL. I don’t have a grand speech prepared on why you need these cookies, but trust me everyone deserves a little joy, and if I were you, I’d make it happen. Your life will simply be better once you try them.
PLAYING
When I was younger, I was obsessed with making playlists. I had one ready for the inevitable moment I’d write a coming-of-age sitcom and need the perfect soundtrack. Another for staring out of train windows at sunset, pretending to be in a music video. But somewhere in the post-Covid haze, the passion faded.
I promise you, dear reader, this will change. Within the next 12 months, I will reclaim my former glory. I will craft the perfect soundtrack for your life. This passion needs to return it must return.
As you’re reading this in February—the so-called month of love—please, do yourself a favour and listen to This Is How You Fall in Love by Chelsea Cutler and Jeremy Zucker. Its the kind of song that feels like a soft, familiar hug. Chelsea Cutler and Jeremy Zucker have perfected that dreamy, heart-clenching sound whispery vocals, delicate guitar, lyrics that make you want to stare out of a rain-soaked window and feel things. It’s simple, it’s intimate, and it perfectly captures that dizzy, terrifying, wonderful moment of realising you’re in too deep. Utterly gorgeous.
OBSESSING
You might have seen in my first post that I miss being four endlessly colouring, living for the moment, no worries. I miss creating, that unfiltered joy. Well, cue the Coco Wyn colouring books, which arrived at exactly the right time. I’m obsessed. There’s nothing better than coming home after a hellish day at work, switching off, and losing myself in a world of colours. I can’t recommend it enough: sitting in bed or on the sofa with something trashy on in the background. Honestly, it’s pure bliss.
RECOMMENDING
I’m a simple girl I love the theatre, and I love pop music. There, I said it. So, it feels like the musical gods looked down and thought, Let’s make SIX the Musical for her. Honestly, it's criminal how late I am to this party. I’ve listened to the soundtrack, of course, but seeing it live was an absolute treat. The vocals, the outfits, the energy WE LOVE TO SEE TALENTED WOMEN SUCCEED. Please, grab your nearest and dearest and treat yourselves to the best 80 minutes of your life.
TREATING
Can you spot a theme in this report? I just want to be offline. This month, I treated myself to the cinema a few times saw Wicked, Better Man, and We Live in Time. There’s something about switching off with a tub of salted popcorn that just fixes my brain. Each film was a joy, but here's my real recommendation: become a coupon mum. I didn’t pay full price for a single ticket. Between my phone plan and bank perks, I scored 50% off and even a free one. 2025 is the year of vouchers, people let’s embrace the simple life.
About Twenty Five Reset
Hi, I’m Niamh, and everyone was right—25 really is a turning point. I finally know who I am, what I want, and my purpose… but it’s nothing like I expected.
I work in TV, but it doesn’t define me. This space is my reset—embracing the mess, reflecting, and creating again. You can expect:
Pop Culture and a lot of chats about 2000 - 2020 TV Shows
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