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The Beggar's Opera

Vivian Jones, John Gay and David Linley

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Mr. and Mrs. Peachum are horrified when they learn of their daughter Polly's secret marriage to the...

Slap Shot Science: A Curious Fan's Guide to Hockey

Alain Hache

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From the moment the first player steps onto the ice, every conceivable principle of science is in...

Shelle Perry (66 KP) rated The Accidental World in Books

Jul 24, 2021

The Accidental World

K.A. Griffin | 2021 | Science Fiction/Fantasy, Young Adult (YA)

9.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

The Accidental World is one of the more unique stories I have read of late

The Accidental World is one of the more unique stories I have read of late. Ethan Scott is thrust into a world of intrigue in an alternate world where the only lifelines he has are the vague instructions left to him by his grandfather before his disappearance and the board game that he has played since he was a child. There are those who help him along the way, but there are always more questions than answers and he has a role to play.

On the surface this seems like a tropey Y A novel with an unlikely hero who is thrust into the role of savior (yada yada), but it is really such a well written imaginative world that comparisons like that fall by the wayside in favor of well paced and exciting adventure. The book is packed full of interesting characters who engage the reader full throttle. In my mind it played out just like a movie, especially the gaming sequences and the action near the end.

The cliffhanger ending has me wanting to return to this world and these characters to see what happens next.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4.5 out of 5.
I received an advance review copy through IRead Book Tours for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

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Leanne Crabtree (480 KP) rated Devil May Care (The Veil, #2) in Books

Jan 11, 2021

Charlie is now working for the Institute, a group who defend against demons who cross the veil, but only doing it in an effort to regain her demon so she can go and hunt Stefan in the demon world. Unfortunately, though, it seems that her old master, Damien, didn't die years ago like she thought and is torturing enforcers of the Institute in a bid to get her attention.

Charlie/Muse suffered terribly at his hands as we see in flashbacks and even her demon is afraid of the sick demon so it's a terrible struggle for Muse to know he's back and hunting for her. Eventually, though, they come face to face and she's transported back to the Netherworld. Bad news in the fact she's in Damien's clutches but good news in the fact she can now find Stefan.

Things don't always go to plan, though, and we have a lot of struggles in the demon realm as they try to figure out how to get themselves back across the Veil and stop Damien

It was action packed but I missed Stefan for a lot of the book. Gone was the protective, fun guy we met in the first one. His demon has taken over and he's not as carefree as he used to be. It's definitely a bit of a rollercoaster this one.

Off to start book three to see if Stefan can control his demon half once more.

Kudos

Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2389 KP) rated The Secret of Shadow Ranch in Books

Jul 15, 2019

The Secret of Shadow Ranch

Carolyn Keene | 1965 | Children, Mystery

8.7

(3 Ratings)

Book Rating

Is the Ranch Haunted?

It’s summer, and Nancy has been invited to spend it with her best friends Bess Marvin and George Fayne on the ranch their uncle Ed and aunt Bet have just bought in Arizona. However, she has barely landed when she learns that things aren’t going well on the ranch. Someone is trying to drive the new owners off the land with acts of sabotage, most of which are foreshadowed by a phantom horse. There is a legend that an old outlaw cursed the ranch, but Nancy thinks the culprits are more modern and very real. Can she figure out what is going on and why?

This may be the fifth book in the series, but this is the first time we are seeing Bess and George, Nancy’s usual sleuthing companions. They jump right in here for another action-packed story. The general plot outline is fairly obvious early on, including a massive coincidence in the story, but that didn’t keep me from turning pages as quickly as I could. As an adult I find the characters thinner than I remember, but we still like them enough to care about the outcome. Since the book was last updated in the 1950’s, some of the language is a little dated (it even stopped me a little), but I doubt it will slow down today’s kids as they race to see how Nancy will piece together this fun mystery.