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Autumn (430 KP) rated Gone in Books

Dec 2, 2017  
Gone
Gone
Michael Grant | 2008 | Children
8
7.7 (16 Ratings)
Book Rating
Interesting premise (1 more)
Kids with powers and no adult supervision
I really like the premise of this book. While we've seen stories that include an area being blocked off from the rest of the world by a dome like barrier, there are other things going on that make this original and different from similar stories. The kids are acquiring powers that allow them to do all sorts of things from being able to move at the speed of light to being able to heal any injury which adds something else to this story. The animals have also mutated in the form of talking wolves, flying snakes, etc. The kids are having to learn how to form a functioning society and fend for themselves since anyone 15 and over has disappeared from town. While all of this is happening, the fight between Sam and Caine for power and leadership holds your interest and keeps you reading. I will definitely be reading book 2.
  
TC
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
From the moment I started to read this book I knew I was in for a real treat and I loved every single moment of this book. Vivienne is a young adult who has tragically lost her mom and lives with her grandmother. She unexpectedly stumbles upon a secret that overwhelmingly changes not only her life but how she sees the world around her.

This author's creative and enlightening writing style swept me away into the magic of the past and the present, of good versus evil and of course witches. Unexpected twists and turns that keep you in this well weaved story line with beautiful and strong characters and I look forward to reading the next installment. This is a book that I will be recommending to everyone.

{I received an eARC via NetGalley and made no guarantee of a favorable review. The opinions expressed here are unbiased and my own}
  
Six Moon Summer (Seasons of the Moon #1)
Six Moon Summer (Seasons of the Moon #1)
S.M. Reine | 2011 | Fiction & Poetry
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Six Moon Summer (Seasons of the Moon #1) by S.M. Reine
Yet another book about werewolves (but no vampires to be seen of yet!) but this one is very good. It holds your interest from the beginning and takes you on a journey with the main character as she progresses through each New and Full Moon to become closer to being a fully-fledged werewolf. The "history" into the werewolf that is given is very well written and done in such a way that you don't feel like it is just something that needed to be done! There is a slight spark of romance in this but nothing that goes beyond the boundaries of Young Adult!

The pace of this book is continuous, not jerky, and the characters are well-written. Very few grammatical or editorial errors so it was a pleasure to read and I already have the second one to start.

Recommended.

* Verified Purchase ~ January 2013 *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
  
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
Ransom Riggs | 2013 | Children, Young Adult (YA)
7
7.9 (128 Ratings)
Book Rating
This book was not what I expected it to be, but I don't think that makes it deserve the many negative reviews.

 This book is not a "horror" book, with the exception of the "evil" characters who created the reasons for the plot to go where it went. It IS a weird book. I love weird, or should I say "peculiar".

The best thing about the book (and why so many thought it was different than what it was) is that the story was written completely around these found vintage, sometimes creepy, photographs. None of the images were altered with "modern" photoshop, but no one actually knows the real stories behind them or how much they were actually a trick of the camera.

This is Young Adult and so a fairly quick read, but it's also a different kind of fantasy story that is worth the read. Beware, however, the ending does NOT allow you to leave this book without needing to read the sequel.
  
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Merissa (11958 KP) rated Cross in Books

May 11, 2018  
Cross
Cross
D.A. Roach | 2018 | Paranormal, Science Fiction/Fantasy, Young Adult (YA)
8
7.3 (3 Ratings)
Book Rating
Cross by D.A. Roach
Cross is a young adult contemporary fantasy that not only deals with our main character having vEDS, but also we find out about magic, and barriers, and witches, and dragons. Trust me, there is never a dull moment. Ray is an excellent character, being charming but not cocky. He reacts to his parents' news in a completely understandable way without overreacting. He also sees people as they are, and doesn't prejudge them at all. With an action-packed story, this fantasy is one to enjoy.

With a solid story-line, great world-building, and excellent characters, this story was a delight to read. There were no editing or grammatical errors that disrupted my reading flow, making this a very smooth read. Absolutely recommended by me.

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and my comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
  
A Pocketful of Crows
A Pocketful of Crows
Joanne M. Harris | 2017 | Fiction & Poetry
10
9.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
A gorgeous grown up fairytale.
At first, this seems to be an innocent fairytale, but it swiftly becomes more of a proper, adult fairytale. It's a warning to the Folk that they shouldn't break their promises to the Travelling Folk.
The main character is a young girl with no name: to name her is to tame her. She falls in love with the local Lord's son, and he DOES name her. She loses the ability and the freedom to travel in the bodies of wild animals (I really liked this part). He betrays her, and she decides to exact her revenge on him so that she can get her magical abilities back. It's a beautiful story with some lovely illustrations, and each new section has a quote from a Child Ballad or an old wives/ folk saying.
It's novella size, so a quick read (I could have read more!), and well worth it.
  
Christopher Robin (2018)
Christopher Robin (2018)
2018 | Adventure, Animation, Comedy
Surprisingly Good
I was very pleasantly surprised by this film. Disney's live action remakes have been pretty disappointing to me, in general. But this one was very well made. I think they did a great job incorporating the fantasy characters into the real life world of post war England.

Ewan McGregor plays a grown up Christopher Robin who most people will be able to relate to. He's trying to find balance between his work and home life and finds himself coming up short on both sides. He's stressed and has put aside childish things to focus on trying to be a competent adult.

Then he gets a visit from a few almost forgotten childhood friends and learns to loosen up a little and see things differently. It's a wonderfully told story and I was so glad that the original voice actor was brought back. It just wouldn't have been Winnie the Pooh without Jim Cummings.
  
The Incredibles 2 (2018)
The Incredibles 2 (2018)
2018 | Action, Animation, Comedy
Good laughs and heroes, same old tired stories....
Was waiting to watch this one and had low expectations because I enjoyed the original and figured the sequel couldn't compete with it. But, it was finally on Netflix and the kids wanted to see it, so here we are. I don't know if I've just seen too many movies now or if the writers are just running out of ideas, but this film is basically a paint by number of so many recent films. Within the first 20 minutes, you get an idea of where this is going and who the villians are, and the film follows suit. Sure, the characters are fun as usual, but the story weighs them down and makes the movie feel like its runtime is extremely unnecessary. The kid in me enjoyed the laughs and heroes, but the logical adult in me has seen this story too many times before.
  
When Dimple Met Rishi
When Dimple Met Rishi
Sandhya Menon | 2017 | Fiction & Poetry, Young Adult (YA)
10
7.4 (18 Ratings)
Book Rating
I've seen this book get raved about online, but it just didn't sound that exceptional - yet another young adult romance. Contemporary, at that. But I finally read it for the Year of the Asian Challenge, and I am SO. GLAD. I DID.

Rishi Patel stole my heart. Which, as a demisexual, is completely unexpected. But he's just the exact right combination of sweet, romantic, totally geeky, and confident. He is absolutely my favorite character in this book. I like Dimple. But I adore Rishi.

I loved that both Dimple and Rishi tried to help each other achieve their dreams. I wish they'd both been a little more communicative about how they did so, but it was still cute to see them so invested in each other's life goals, as a couple should be!

This is a super cute romance, and it deserves all the rave reviews it got. I definitely need to read the sequel (about Rishi's younger brother) now.
  
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Rhubarbio (27 KP) rated Catan in Tabletop Games

May 25, 2019  
Catan
Catan
1995 | Economic, Territory Building
Easy to learn, difficult to master (2 more)
Addictive gameplay
Easy to draw in non-gamers
Game relies on die rolls and therefore strategy is secondary to the whims of a die roll (1 more)
Artwork is not very inspired
An amazing gateway game
Catan was the first gateway game I played and hooked me on my continued boardgaming journey as an adult. A chance encounter with the game left me wanting more...resulting in 3 years of playing this game relentlessly with a group of friends. Whilst the appeal has waned somewhat, I have no hesitation in recommending this to non-gamers or those looking to get into boardgaming. It is a fun game that has great variability, particularly given the result is driven by die rolls rather than stragy alone. This is also to its benefit, as casual gamers may want something light to get into, but which has room to develop strategies. Catan is a great choice.