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The Infinite Sea
7.9
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The Infinite Sea is the second book in the phenomenal and bestselling 5th Wave series by...
The Last Star
6.8
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The Last Star is the heart-stopping finale to the bestselling 5th Wave series by award-winning...
Leanne Crabtree (480 KP) rated Unearthing the Fae King (Bramble's Edge Academy, #1) in Books
Jan 6, 2021
I got this one, too, as a freebie from Amazon a week or two ago for the UF/PR A-Z Challenge on Goodreads.
This starts with Ryker trying to escape from fellow fae who are trying to force him into going to the Bramble Edge Academy to start his training. He's resisting after his mum tells him tales of abuse and strange treatments but he ends up being captured and starting at the academy. A week or so later Maurelle is also captured after her powers manifest but her mum is killed in the process. Neither of them are happy at the academy but neither put up much of a fight against the strict headmistress and they don't understand why. Then they decide to investigate.
This had a different description which drew me in. Humans are in charge and fae are classed as a lower form of being, forced to live in squalor and in the edges of big cities. The academies are run by the humans and fae who leave the schools are only too happy to work under them. It was a puzzle to me just why that was.
Unfortunately though, it was taking a long time to get where it was going. I think if the plot had sped up a little or had a little more excitement going for it, I would have been very into this. As I mentioned above, it did have a promising premise but it was failing to grab me. I got to a point where I didn't want to pick this up anymore.
As for the writing. Well, it felt a little stilted at times. They may be fae but what teen talks like they were doing in this? Their actions were more teenager like than their words most of the time. The sentences didn't always read the best, either:
"They turned down another street and she was surprised to see a number of Fae out and about still this late at night."
"The moment she noticed he blended with the shadows that ended and reality came back."
I'm sure some people will love this but I like a good bit of action in my paranormal books and there hadn't been any in those first 36%. I was a little disappointed.
This starts with Ryker trying to escape from fellow fae who are trying to force him into going to the Bramble Edge Academy to start his training. He's resisting after his mum tells him tales of abuse and strange treatments but he ends up being captured and starting at the academy. A week or so later Maurelle is also captured after her powers manifest but her mum is killed in the process. Neither of them are happy at the academy but neither put up much of a fight against the strict headmistress and they don't understand why. Then they decide to investigate.
This had a different description which drew me in. Humans are in charge and fae are classed as a lower form of being, forced to live in squalor and in the edges of big cities. The academies are run by the humans and fae who leave the schools are only too happy to work under them. It was a puzzle to me just why that was.
Unfortunately though, it was taking a long time to get where it was going. I think if the plot had sped up a little or had a little more excitement going for it, I would have been very into this. As I mentioned above, it did have a promising premise but it was failing to grab me. I got to a point where I didn't want to pick this up anymore.
As for the writing. Well, it felt a little stilted at times. They may be fae but what teen talks like they were doing in this? Their actions were more teenager like than their words most of the time. The sentences didn't always read the best, either:
"They turned down another street and she was surprised to see a number of Fae out and about still this late at night."
"The moment she noticed he blended with the shadows that ended and reality came back."
I'm sure some people will love this but I like a good bit of action in my paranormal books and there hadn't been any in those first 36%. I was a little disappointed.
Matt Martin (12 KP) rated Google Home in Apps
Sep 18, 2020
Unbeatable
This is my first review here and I chose this because it's my most used and most raved about product. I tell everyone to get this. Philips hue smart lights all over my house RUN THROUGH GOOGLE. Three nest thermostats for my 3 zones in my house RUN THROUGH GOOGLE. The 2 nest hub maxes, 4 nest mini's, 3 nest wifi points, 6 chromecasts all RUN THROUGH GOOGLE. My nest yale locks for my 2 doors, nest home security system with points in every window and door, my nest video doorbell & 4 outdoor cameras all RUN THROUGH GOOGLE. The dozen tp link casa smart plugs I have for everything around the house, the multiple govee light strips behind tvs and furniture all RUN THROUGH GOOGLE. You get the point. When comparing Google to Amazon Alexa I think it's a no brainer. Google is far more user friendly. Google works with everything a lot easier. The routines are amazing. At night instead of walking around my whole house turning everything off, the lights, the tvs, the fan, remembering to lock the door... None of that, just say "shut it down" (or whatever you choose to say) and it does it all for you. In the morning the routines can wake up by a phrase, by sunrise or by time and can play music, then read you the news, then turn on the lights, then make you coffee. Nothing to remember to do everyday. It really does make life so much easier. Hot day and you forgot to turn the Ac's on before you left for work? Don't even trip dawg, just tell Google it's time to go home and it'll turn all that on and give you the estimated time of your commute and then start playing your favorite podcast from where you left off. You can create groups of speakers, so if I tell Google to play Colter Wall downstairs it plays on all 6 downstairs speakers. The things this can do are literally endless. I can't say enough good things about it. If you know your tech especially this is the way to go. Google has become a part of our families everyday life.
Travel Club App
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Phillip McSween (751 KP) rated Barbarella (1968) in Movies
Aug 10, 2020
Vaguely Memorable
An outer space agent travels to another galaxy in search of a missing inventor.
Acting: 2
Good cast, none of whom are swinging for the fences in Barbarella. Honestly, I can compare the acting chops in this movie to the likes of a softcore porn. Science fiction or not, there is absolutely nothing believable about this movie in the slightest. The acting made the rest of the movie hard to watch.
Beginning: 10
Characters: 10
Despite the terrible acting, I didn’t hate the characters, namely the woman of the hour Barbarella (Jane Fonda). She’s quirky and I loved all of her inuendo references to sex. The movie is very sex-oriented and it succeeds, albeit minutely, in Barbarella’s experience and everyone else’s lack thereof. If they had given the movie more of a solid story, the characters would have had a fighting chance at being a part of a solid movie.
Cinematography/Visuals: 10
Not terrible in the way of sci-fi. They tried a number of cool things that really are fairly impressive for a 1968 movie. From the weapons to the numerous space settings, I wasn’t disappointed by what was showing up on screen.
Conflict: 6
I think Barbarella cared more about being trippy than having a true conflict to drive the story. There are points where I cared about the outcome, but it seems more often than not that the movie is satisfied with being light-hearted and slowly paced. There was not enough going on for me to overly care.
Entertainment Value: 9
Memorability: 6
There are a handful of moments that stand out, but there isn’t a lot of replay value here. Even as I rewatch it as we speak, there are some spots that I forgot even happened. Definitely not a movie I need to see twice.
Pace: 5
Plot: 1
Never a good sign when I have to look the story up on Rotten Tomatoes. It was honestly that forgettable. I think the 800 screenwriters on this movie cared more about being funny than they did writing a good movie. Not impressed.
Resolution: 2
Overall: 61
I wanted to like Barbarella, but they gave me nothing to work with unfortunately. I wouldn’t even advise the Amazon Prime users (where the movie is available) to give it a shot. Steer clear.
Acting: 2
Good cast, none of whom are swinging for the fences in Barbarella. Honestly, I can compare the acting chops in this movie to the likes of a softcore porn. Science fiction or not, there is absolutely nothing believable about this movie in the slightest. The acting made the rest of the movie hard to watch.
Beginning: 10
Characters: 10
Despite the terrible acting, I didn’t hate the characters, namely the woman of the hour Barbarella (Jane Fonda). She’s quirky and I loved all of her inuendo references to sex. The movie is very sex-oriented and it succeeds, albeit minutely, in Barbarella’s experience and everyone else’s lack thereof. If they had given the movie more of a solid story, the characters would have had a fighting chance at being a part of a solid movie.
Cinematography/Visuals: 10
Not terrible in the way of sci-fi. They tried a number of cool things that really are fairly impressive for a 1968 movie. From the weapons to the numerous space settings, I wasn’t disappointed by what was showing up on screen.
Conflict: 6
I think Barbarella cared more about being trippy than having a true conflict to drive the story. There are points where I cared about the outcome, but it seems more often than not that the movie is satisfied with being light-hearted and slowly paced. There was not enough going on for me to overly care.
Entertainment Value: 9
Memorability: 6
There are a handful of moments that stand out, but there isn’t a lot of replay value here. Even as I rewatch it as we speak, there are some spots that I forgot even happened. Definitely not a movie I need to see twice.
Pace: 5
Plot: 1
Never a good sign when I have to look the story up on Rotten Tomatoes. It was honestly that forgettable. I think the 800 screenwriters on this movie cared more about being funny than they did writing a good movie. Not impressed.
Resolution: 2
Overall: 61
I wanted to like Barbarella, but they gave me nothing to work with unfortunately. I wouldn’t even advise the Amazon Prime users (where the movie is available) to give it a shot. Steer clear.
