Sweetie Miller may be a bookshop / newsagents (that bears an uncanny resemblance to another local…read morebookshop / newsagents), but as far as I'm concerned, it's all about the sweets and chocolate...baby. I think it's physically impossible to come out of this shop empty handed. It's certainly that way for me. Having gone in with the notion to buy a box of chocolates for a friend, I came out with a box of chocolates, three bags of Werther's Original Chocolates (my Cheepers' review explains all) and five Curly Wurly's. [Guess who Mr Dentist is going to absolutely love next month?] I couldn't resist. The Werther's Originals were only 99p, and the Curly Wurly's were unbeatable value at not one, not two, or even three, or indeed four...but FIVE for 89p. Yes, this excited me greatly. And it should excite you too. As well as the bargainous sweetie section, Sweetie Miller also stocks stationery, books, cards, magazines and all that sort of jazz. And they're all cheap as can be (except the magazines...they're just average price, but hey, we can't have it all, eh?). Now, where did my Curly Wurly go? (Apologies in advance Mr Dentist...)

This shop is in Bow Street Mall and always seems busy. I guess it can be best described as a…read morenewsagent. They carry a large variety of sweets, mainly boxes of chocolates and packs of chocolate bars and maybe just a bit cheaper in price than other shops in town. So especially good to pop into at Christmas time. The other section of the shop that interests me most is the book section. They have an alright range of books, and you can certainly find something interesting at a very good price. The only downside I can think of is can be quite awkward to move around the sweet displays near the front the of the shop when there are a lot of people about.

Somewhere I always pop into when in Bow Street Mall, just to see if they've anything new. Books are…read morealways cheaper here than anywhere else, though that means that new releases don't appear here for a while, and particular authors aren't stocked at all. But I always like to make use of one of their offers, such as 3 books for £5, or pick up something useful for 99p.. Although the shop is large enough, I actually prefer some of the other Bargain Books stores as they seem to stock a better choice of books, at least the kind that interest me.

This is one of my favourite Christian bookshops, even though I don't think I've ever bought…read moreanything out of it. This hasn't been due to lack of choice, but merely because I haven't had the money to be buying anything (which seems to usually be the case, sadly). The Faith Mission Bookshop is actually a whole lot bigger than you initially think, and has such a good variety of books (shock horror), music, cards, gifts and stationery that you could spend a right while nosing around. When I was last in, I spent forever hunting through the women's books and nearly ended up buying a couple, but the money issue prevented me (sadly). Whilst I have been in other Christian bookshops which have a much greater choice, I keep coming back to this one for its systematic layout and general organised feel (makes life so much easier), as well as its homely feel and friendly staff. Ask them anything, and they'll be willing to help you. I *will* buy something from the Faith Mission Bookshop one day, money-willing...

After a long Tuesday afternoon dandering around Lisburn, what's the one thing you need for the…read moretrain journey home? A couple of magazines of course. (Well, if you're female anyway). The nearest newsagents happened to be Sweeneys, which, luckily for us, was filled with a large variety of glossy mags. Unfortunately, it was that time of the week when next week's edition hadn't yet been published, and so we were left looking at pile of magazines which we had already read. Bummer. Thankfully, we did manage to come across a couple that we hadn't, so all was not lost. It did take my sister a few minutes to leaf through the various glossies in order to ascertain which ones these were (well, they do all look the same after a while, don't they?), and so while she was doing this, I noticed the lovely bright yellow stickers that adorned the shelves behind me, informing me that everything was £1. Thankfully for me, I had my careful hat on that day, and was easily able (well, fairly easily anyway) to a) dissuade myself from purchasing several bags of Haribo and b) distract myself by turning to the job in hand (magazine selection). Magazines sorted, we avoided the rest of the shop (for fear of my 'careful' hat tipping over slightly), and went straight to the till. By this stage on a busy Tuesday afternoon, I was managing to look like a bag lady...literally. With numerous plastic bags weighing down each arm, and no room for mags to fit into them, the shop assistant laughed and said she would happily provide a bag (groan...not another one). All in all a productive visit. Thank you Sweeneys.

With a good range of all the latest DVDs and CDs, HMV is probably the best place to get films or…read moremusic in town. There is a varied and eclectic mix of music available, with sections for all the different genres, the same also can be said for the DVD side of the shop. Definitely the best place to find films/music that aren't in the 'Top Ten'. HMV also stock video games and consoles, a small range of music or film related books, and ipods and accessories. The staff are alright. One thing that annoys me though are the sudden price jumps there can be at times, (just ahead of a sale where they are then 'reduced'!)

HMV's are all over this little island, but this is the one I was most recently in so it's getting…read moremy review! HMV have a style which is understated.....or they just paint everything black so that it's easy to clean! I love going in here on a lousy day and just paying some random comedy DVD to cheer me up. The upside is that they always have stuff on sale, and not just the rubbish people don't want any more. They always have an outstanding collection of books that you wouldn't expect to find in the store such as HMV. I recently got Bill Bryson's new book for £7, a flipping steal! Whilst they might all be a little uniform, they are still worth having a peak into, just incase!

Eason's is a large newsagent, conveniently located in Lisburn's main shopping area. A large store…read morespread across one floor, it has a wide range of products. As well as the normal magazines and books ,(and they do have a good range), they also sell all the various stationery bits and bobs you might need as well as art supplies. Staff are generally friendly and helpful enough, (and can order a book in for you if they don't have it in stock). I don't think I've ever had anything to complain about when shopping here, (other than people using the magazine section as a library!).