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Lindsay (1807 KP) rated Westobou Gold in Books
Feb 8, 2018
Are you looking for an adventurous, thriller fun mystery book? Well, Westobou Gold has just about all of it and more. I was brought into the book though an Indian tribe leader. There more to this story and to all the murders. What are Pervis and his crew up to other than underage porn?
The story is about a man named Craige and his love. Will Craige solve the mysteries of the murders that he is brought in though a former member named Bailey? What could Bailey want or his bosses?
We see what Pervis and his crew and Mort Raymond deal with. Pervis is part of the action mostly. If you want to know who comes out a winner, then you need to read the book. I do suggest that children do not read this book without their parent's consent. There are murders involved and some sex tape scenes. I would say this is a book for children ages 15 and up. This is my opinion.
There is crime throughout the book. What can an Indian Queen be an at of with all this and the murders? Hawk MacKinney gives you an exciting and thriller book. You will want to follow Craige and see if he makes it out or who the top dog. Pervis seem to want Craige Instagram out of the picture. What could they be trying to hide?
The story is about a man named Craige and his love. Will Craige solve the mysteries of the murders that he is brought in though a former member named Bailey? What could Bailey want or his bosses?
We see what Pervis and his crew and Mort Raymond deal with. Pervis is part of the action mostly. If you want to know who comes out a winner, then you need to read the book. I do suggest that children do not read this book without their parent's consent. There are murders involved and some sex tape scenes. I would say this is a book for children ages 15 and up. This is my opinion.
There is crime throughout the book. What can an Indian Queen be an at of with all this and the murders? Hawk MacKinney gives you an exciting and thriller book. You will want to follow Craige and see if he makes it out or who the top dog. Pervis seem to want Craige Instagram out of the picture. What could they be trying to hide?
Dan sellwood (1 KP) rated The Name of the Wind in Books
Feb 2, 2018 (Updated Feb 2, 2018)
Read. It. Now.
Contains spoilers, click to show
The Name of the Wind begins to tell the story of Kvothe, a fiery-haired arcanist on a lifelong journey to understand a tragedy that befalls his family. Kvothe is a born performer, both on the stage and off. He has a natural charisma and sheer brilliance that seem to be his ticket out of a poor childhood into a wonderful world of adventure.
The story is told from a grown up kvothe's point of view and while when he talks about his childhood and adolescence the story is filled with this lighthearted and magical energy, you soon learn that on his journey something terrible has happened to kvothe to change his adult self into someone much more reserved. It's clear he carries a terrible secret but of course in true Rothfuss style this is yet to be revealed.
This book does what many fail to do. It creates another world that's dazzling and something you want to be part of while also creating characters with such depth and personality that by the end you feel you truly know them.
All I can say is that this book was the first fantasy book I decided to read and now as a result it is all I want to read. Therfore if you haven't read it, read it! - but be warned, it is part of a triology and we are still eagerly awaiting a third book which as of yet has no release date.
The story is told from a grown up kvothe's point of view and while when he talks about his childhood and adolescence the story is filled with this lighthearted and magical energy, you soon learn that on his journey something terrible has happened to kvothe to change his adult self into someone much more reserved. It's clear he carries a terrible secret but of course in true Rothfuss style this is yet to be revealed.
This book does what many fail to do. It creates another world that's dazzling and something you want to be part of while also creating characters with such depth and personality that by the end you feel you truly know them.
All I can say is that this book was the first fantasy book I decided to read and now as a result it is all I want to read. Therfore if you haven't read it, read it! - but be warned, it is part of a triology and we are still eagerly awaiting a third book which as of yet has no release date.
Lindsay (1807 KP) rated Westobou Gold in Books
Aug 30, 2018
Are you looking for an adventurous, thriller fun mystery book? Well, Westobou Gold has just about all of it and more. I was brought into the book though an Indian tribe leader. There more to this story and to all the murders. What are Pervis and his crew up to other than underage porn?
The story is about a man named Craige and his love. Will Craige solve the mysteries of the murders that he is brought in though a former member named Bailey? What could Bailey want or his bosses?
We see what Pervis and his crew and Mort Raymond deal with. Pervis is part of the action mostly. If you want to know who comes out a winner, then you need to read the book. I do suggest that children do not read this book without their parent's consent. There are murders involved and some sex tape scenes. I would say this is a book for children ages 15 and up. This is my opinion.
There is crime throughout the book. What can an Indian Queen be an at of with all this and the murders? Hawk MacKinney gives you an exciting and thriller book. You will want to follow Craige and see if he makes it out or who the top dog. Pervis seem to want Craige Instagram out of the picture. What could they be trying to hide?
The story is about a man named Craige and his love. Will Craige solve the mysteries of the murders that he is brought in though a former member named Bailey? What could Bailey want or his bosses?
We see what Pervis and his crew and Mort Raymond deal with. Pervis is part of the action mostly. If you want to know who comes out a winner, then you need to read the book. I do suggest that children do not read this book without their parent's consent. There are murders involved and some sex tape scenes. I would say this is a book for children ages 15 and up. This is my opinion.
There is crime throughout the book. What can an Indian Queen be an at of with all this and the murders? Hawk MacKinney gives you an exciting and thriller book. You will want to follow Craige and see if he makes it out or who the top dog. Pervis seem to want Craige Instagram out of the picture. What could they be trying to hide?
Not bad, but lacking anything special
I picked this from the library the other day, and I was shocked to see it was a novella. I’d been so looking forward to the latest King novel, and was a little disappointed to see this only stretched to a meagre 132 pages. It’s a shame too that the story itself is also a bit of a disappointment.
King has written some brilliant short stories in his time, so once I realised Elevation was a novella, I’d been expecting another thrilling story. Sadly whilst being a decent quick read, this doesn’t have all of the usual King magic. Characters are King’s speciality and it’s fair to say that the characters in this are fairly likeable and well developed for such a short story. And usual, his writing style is impeccable. The problem is that the story is detailed, just not anywhere near detailed enough and the plot is quite weak. You probably couldn’t stretch this out for a full length novel, but that’s because the plot itself is just a bit dull and lacklustre. It reminds me a lot of a slightly different take on Thinner, which is worrying - is King starting to lose his originality?
This isn’t a terrible novella by any means. You can still see King’s captivating story telling shining through, it’s just a shame it’s a very weak plot that doesn’t live up to his talent.
King has written some brilliant short stories in his time, so once I realised Elevation was a novella, I’d been expecting another thrilling story. Sadly whilst being a decent quick read, this doesn’t have all of the usual King magic. Characters are King’s speciality and it’s fair to say that the characters in this are fairly likeable and well developed for such a short story. And usual, his writing style is impeccable. The problem is that the story is detailed, just not anywhere near detailed enough and the plot is quite weak. You probably couldn’t stretch this out for a full length novel, but that’s because the plot itself is just a bit dull and lacklustre. It reminds me a lot of a slightly different take on Thinner, which is worrying - is King starting to lose his originality?
This isn’t a terrible novella by any means. You can still see King’s captivating story telling shining through, it’s just a shame it’s a very weak plot that doesn’t live up to his talent.
LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated Willy's Wonderland (2021) in Movies
Feb 21, 2021
I can safely say that I got exactly what I expected from Willy's Wonderland, a schlocky as hell B-Movie horror that manifests Nicolas Cage going toe-to-toe with a host of murderous animatronic mascots, set to a music score of synth heavy electronica/children's party jingles. Is it silly and dumb? Yes. Does it have annoying and unlikable teenage human characters who are there just to die horribly? Also yes. Is it entertaining as fuck? Most definitely.
Cage's silent protagonist feels like the role that his career has been leading up to all these years. He has his very own corner of the zeitgeist at this point, and is just running with it, happily poking fun at himself whilst managing to be undeniably badass, whether it be the Mad Max-esque opening, tearing the robots to shreds with his bare hands, or him furiously dancing whilst playing pinball. Whenever he's on screen, he steals all the focus, without uttering a word. It's so ridiculous and enjoyable, that it renders the half-baked plot a moot point.
The animatronics themselves look pretty decent for the most part, and there's some solid gore here and there. It's the kind of gore that will make you burst out laughing, but in a good way.
Willy's Wonderland is far from a perfect experience, but it is what it is, and never tries to be anything more, and therefore succeeds in what it's trying to achieve.
Cage's silent protagonist feels like the role that his career has been leading up to all these years. He has his very own corner of the zeitgeist at this point, and is just running with it, happily poking fun at himself whilst managing to be undeniably badass, whether it be the Mad Max-esque opening, tearing the robots to shreds with his bare hands, or him furiously dancing whilst playing pinball. Whenever he's on screen, he steals all the focus, without uttering a word. It's so ridiculous and enjoyable, that it renders the half-baked plot a moot point.
The animatronics themselves look pretty decent for the most part, and there's some solid gore here and there. It's the kind of gore that will make you burst out laughing, but in a good way.
Willy's Wonderland is far from a perfect experience, but it is what it is, and never tries to be anything more, and therefore succeeds in what it's trying to achieve.
T Bone Burnett recommended Raising Arizona by Carter Burwell in Music (curated)
Fixies The Masters: repair home appliances, watch educational videos featuring your favorite heroes
Games and Entertainment
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Does your child often wonder how appliances and household items work? If so, this is the perfect...
Voice Actions
Business and Utilities
App
Get one of the top selling voice assistant apps today that has over 1M cross platform downloads to...
Purple Phoenix Games (2266 KP) rated Pendulum in Tabletop Games
Sep 8, 2020
This review, like the many others in the Solo Chronicles series before it, will be focusing on the solo player’s experience. For the highly-anticipated Pendulum, an Automa Factory set of solo rules is included. Automa Factory creates rules for solo play for games and have created many for Stonemaier titles in the past. This is my first time using an Automa ruleset, and I wanted to know: how do Automa games play vs a group playthrough? Find out below.
Pendulum is a real-time worker placement game utilizing sand timers to control players’ actions. While sand timers have been used in games plenty of times before, they are special components in Pendulum that will have players cursing their existence throughout the game. In a solo game the human player will be attempting to win against two Automas, essentially creating a three player game. Now, while I normally reconstruct the rules in my reviews to give a brief overview, Pendulum has too many intricacies to truly detail, so my rules overview will be quite abbreviated.
DISCLAIMER: We were provided a copy of this game for the purposes of this review. This is a retail copy of the game, so what you see in these photos is exactly what would be received in your box. I do not intend to cover every single rule included in the rulebook, but will describe the overall game flow and major rule set so that our readers may get a sense of how the game plays. For more in depth rules, you may purchase a copy online or from your FLGS. -T
Setup took me about 30 minutes the first game because I did not play it multiplayer first, but was setting up for my first Automa play. Setup is not difficult, but there are many small parts and different boards for which you must account. Subsequent games took significantly less time to setup so I was up and running immediately.
A game of Pendulum sees players vying for the crown by jockeying for mastery in Power, Prestige, Popularity, and completing a Legendary Achievement. These are all tracked on each player mat and the Automas’ mat. The game is a typical worker placement with all spaces giving some benefit, but also may be blocked by other players. By utilizing aggressive strategies and timing each worker action players will be gaining resources and votes and converting them into VPs on the individual tracks, the most important of which is the Legendary Achievement. No player may win the game without having completed a Legendary Achievement.
As the game progresses in real time, the sand timers will be flipped into areas blocking access to players, but allowing player meeples already stationed in these areas to enact their special abilities. Three timers of different time-lengths are used in Pendulum: 45 seconds, 2 minutes, and 3 minutes. The action spaces corresponding to the 45 second timer are less effective than the 3 minute timer areas, but are indeed necessary to generate more resources.
After the 3 minute purple timer has been flipped three total times, the game halts and a special Council Phase is enacted. This phase allows players to receive Council Reward cards, assess and compare placement for the next round, and set up for the next round. After the fourth Council Phase, the game ends and players will check for victory conditions.
Components. Have you seen a Stonemaier Games title recently? The components are stellar. Everything from the plastic (resin?) cubes and vote tiles and meeples, to the good-looking sand timers, to the linen finish on the cards AND the rulebooks is just amazing. Several reviewers have issues with the art in Pendulum, and say that it is drab and “uninspiring.” Well, I think it’s great, and I also think it is a bit muted to get out of the way of play. I certainly would not appreciate this game more if it had more exciting art. More exciting art means more attention spent on appreciating the art and not playing the game. Normally this is a boon for me, but Pendulum is a REAL-TIME game. I don’t have time to be gawking at game art! Components: excellent!
I really enjoyed my plays of Pendulum using the Automa system. I can’t necessarily say it felt like playing against two other players, but I don’t think it’s meant to do that. The Automa players sufficiently block spaces, and gain VP each round to compete with the human player. Also, I have never played a game using Automas before, so I had zero expectations getting into Pendulum. I do think I would enjoy this game lots more playing against other humans, but the current virus situation has nixed that for me. The Automa system is good, and I am so happy that it exists for Pendulum. I just want to play it with other gamers.
Purple Phoenix Games never award games with scores for previews and Solo Chronicles. However, I would certainly rate Pendulum high. I don’t believe it will ever crack into my Top 10 Games of All Time, but I also can see myself pulling it out when I want to exercise my brain and I don’t have access to any other gamers. I want you to understand that I do like this one quite a bit, and would certainly recommend it. I truly enjoy having to keep on my toes (literally) controlling my components as well as keeping track of the Automa movements, and assuring the timers are being flipped appropriately.
If your collection is missing a game that utilizes sand timers for more than just buzzing others on their turn, certainly give Pendulum a look. The design is fantastic, includes the Automa Factory solo rules (and extra components), and is satisfying to play. Heck, I didn’t even sit down when I played this because I needed to be so active around the board. If it weren’t so late as I am writing this, I would break it out and give it another go right now. Alas, I am old and need to sleep. Check out Pendulum.
Pendulum is a real-time worker placement game utilizing sand timers to control players’ actions. While sand timers have been used in games plenty of times before, they are special components in Pendulum that will have players cursing their existence throughout the game. In a solo game the human player will be attempting to win against two Automas, essentially creating a three player game. Now, while I normally reconstruct the rules in my reviews to give a brief overview, Pendulum has too many intricacies to truly detail, so my rules overview will be quite abbreviated.
DISCLAIMER: We were provided a copy of this game for the purposes of this review. This is a retail copy of the game, so what you see in these photos is exactly what would be received in your box. I do not intend to cover every single rule included in the rulebook, but will describe the overall game flow and major rule set so that our readers may get a sense of how the game plays. For more in depth rules, you may purchase a copy online or from your FLGS. -T
Setup took me about 30 minutes the first game because I did not play it multiplayer first, but was setting up for my first Automa play. Setup is not difficult, but there are many small parts and different boards for which you must account. Subsequent games took significantly less time to setup so I was up and running immediately.
A game of Pendulum sees players vying for the crown by jockeying for mastery in Power, Prestige, Popularity, and completing a Legendary Achievement. These are all tracked on each player mat and the Automas’ mat. The game is a typical worker placement with all spaces giving some benefit, but also may be blocked by other players. By utilizing aggressive strategies and timing each worker action players will be gaining resources and votes and converting them into VPs on the individual tracks, the most important of which is the Legendary Achievement. No player may win the game without having completed a Legendary Achievement.
As the game progresses in real time, the sand timers will be flipped into areas blocking access to players, but allowing player meeples already stationed in these areas to enact their special abilities. Three timers of different time-lengths are used in Pendulum: 45 seconds, 2 minutes, and 3 minutes. The action spaces corresponding to the 45 second timer are less effective than the 3 minute timer areas, but are indeed necessary to generate more resources.
After the 3 minute purple timer has been flipped three total times, the game halts and a special Council Phase is enacted. This phase allows players to receive Council Reward cards, assess and compare placement for the next round, and set up for the next round. After the fourth Council Phase, the game ends and players will check for victory conditions.
Components. Have you seen a Stonemaier Games title recently? The components are stellar. Everything from the plastic (resin?) cubes and vote tiles and meeples, to the good-looking sand timers, to the linen finish on the cards AND the rulebooks is just amazing. Several reviewers have issues with the art in Pendulum, and say that it is drab and “uninspiring.” Well, I think it’s great, and I also think it is a bit muted to get out of the way of play. I certainly would not appreciate this game more if it had more exciting art. More exciting art means more attention spent on appreciating the art and not playing the game. Normally this is a boon for me, but Pendulum is a REAL-TIME game. I don’t have time to be gawking at game art! Components: excellent!
I really enjoyed my plays of Pendulum using the Automa system. I can’t necessarily say it felt like playing against two other players, but I don’t think it’s meant to do that. The Automa players sufficiently block spaces, and gain VP each round to compete with the human player. Also, I have never played a game using Automas before, so I had zero expectations getting into Pendulum. I do think I would enjoy this game lots more playing against other humans, but the current virus situation has nixed that for me. The Automa system is good, and I am so happy that it exists for Pendulum. I just want to play it with other gamers.
Purple Phoenix Games never award games with scores for previews and Solo Chronicles. However, I would certainly rate Pendulum high. I don’t believe it will ever crack into my Top 10 Games of All Time, but I also can see myself pulling it out when I want to exercise my brain and I don’t have access to any other gamers. I want you to understand that I do like this one quite a bit, and would certainly recommend it. I truly enjoy having to keep on my toes (literally) controlling my components as well as keeping track of the Automa movements, and assuring the timers are being flipped appropriately.
If your collection is missing a game that utilizes sand timers for more than just buzzing others on their turn, certainly give Pendulum a look. The design is fantastic, includes the Automa Factory solo rules (and extra components), and is satisfying to play. Heck, I didn’t even sit down when I played this because I needed to be so active around the board. If it weren’t so late as I am writing this, I would break it out and give it another go right now. Alas, I am old and need to sleep. Check out Pendulum.
Bob Mann (459 KP) rated I Care a Lot (2020) in Movies
Feb 27, 2021
Rosamund Pike - what Gone Girl did next (1 more)
Supporting cast: Peter Dinklage, Eiza Gonzáles and Dianne Wiest
An inky black comedy thriller
Maria Grayson (Rosamund Pike) and her colleague-cum-lover Fran (Eiza González) are running an extensive con. Through the manipulation of the Boston legal and medical systems, Maria arranges to be appointed the legal guardian for numerous older people. Packing them away to a drugged up life in a care home, the pair then plunder the estates of their wards, turning a tidy profit. The weatlhy and unattached Jennifer Peterson (Dianne Wiest) appears to be a "cherry" that can take their fortunes to a completely different level. But all is not as it seems, and Maria and Fran's evil but comfortable lives are about to be turned on their heads.
Positives:
- When I say the comedy is inky black, I mean it. It's unusual to find a movie without a single character that you can relate to or even remotely like. For some reason, it reminded me of the Michael Douglas / Kathleen Turner vehicle "The War of the Roses" in that regard. And yet, once you let the evilness of it sink in, it becomes a rip-roaring story that delights to the very end.
- Rosamund Pike delivers yet again another superb performance, making Maria an icy cold villain. The role could be summed up as "What Gone Girl did next".
- Peter Dinklage delights in portraying an evil character which, for reasons of spoiler avoidance, I shall say nothing further about. But it's a cracking performance and brilliant to see a script that steadfastly ignores his physical characteristics.
- Dianne Wiest ("The Mule") and Eiza González ("the sexy one" from "Baby Driver") also deliver strong supporting roles.
-J Blakeson - who did "The Disappearance of Alice Creed" - directs with style, and hopefully his truly novel screenplay will be suitably recognised through awards. There are some clever twists: one near the end which (Smug McSmuggerson from the University of Smugchester) I saw coming, and another one soon after that I didn't!
- Mark Canham - not a composer I know - delivers a really engaging and bouncy score that's top notch. Loved it.
Negatives:
- The plot is just SO inky black at the beginning, that some may get through the first 15 minutes and think "Nope, not for me". You should stick with it: after Peter Dinklage appears, the movie shifts up a gear and changes in tone.
- The plot occasionally stretches credibility beyond breaking point. In particular, all the characters seem to be wholly incompetent at 'dispatching people' when they have the opportunity to do so. The repetition of these failures I found to be a bit tiresome.
Summary: Finding a movie with a novel storyline is an unusual thing these days, and one that combines that with a taut and engrossing screenplay is a gem indeed. It's probably not one recommended for very elderly people to watch.... then again, perhaps with so many evil scammers around in real life, it might be considered required viewing! But, if you have one, you'll probably want to have a chat with your granny after watching this.
(For the full graphical review, check out the full review at One Mann's Movies here - https://bob-the-movie-man.com/2021/02/27/i-care-a-lot-an-inky-black-comedy-thriller/. Thanks).
Positives:
- When I say the comedy is inky black, I mean it. It's unusual to find a movie without a single character that you can relate to or even remotely like. For some reason, it reminded me of the Michael Douglas / Kathleen Turner vehicle "The War of the Roses" in that regard. And yet, once you let the evilness of it sink in, it becomes a rip-roaring story that delights to the very end.
- Rosamund Pike delivers yet again another superb performance, making Maria an icy cold villain. The role could be summed up as "What Gone Girl did next".
- Peter Dinklage delights in portraying an evil character which, for reasons of spoiler avoidance, I shall say nothing further about. But it's a cracking performance and brilliant to see a script that steadfastly ignores his physical characteristics.
- Dianne Wiest ("The Mule") and Eiza González ("the sexy one" from "Baby Driver") also deliver strong supporting roles.
-J Blakeson - who did "The Disappearance of Alice Creed" - directs with style, and hopefully his truly novel screenplay will be suitably recognised through awards. There are some clever twists: one near the end which (Smug McSmuggerson from the University of Smugchester) I saw coming, and another one soon after that I didn't!
- Mark Canham - not a composer I know - delivers a really engaging and bouncy score that's top notch. Loved it.
Negatives:
- The plot is just SO inky black at the beginning, that some may get through the first 15 minutes and think "Nope, not for me". You should stick with it: after Peter Dinklage appears, the movie shifts up a gear and changes in tone.
- The plot occasionally stretches credibility beyond breaking point. In particular, all the characters seem to be wholly incompetent at 'dispatching people' when they have the opportunity to do so. The repetition of these failures I found to be a bit tiresome.
Summary: Finding a movie with a novel storyline is an unusual thing these days, and one that combines that with a taut and engrossing screenplay is a gem indeed. It's probably not one recommended for very elderly people to watch.... then again, perhaps with so many evil scammers around in real life, it might be considered required viewing! But, if you have one, you'll probably want to have a chat with your granny after watching this.
(For the full graphical review, check out the full review at One Mann's Movies here - https://bob-the-movie-man.com/2021/02/27/i-care-a-lot-an-inky-black-comedy-thriller/. Thanks).
