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The Successor (Tales of Pern Coen)
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A loyal warrior of the Ri of Ceffyl, Torin has no choice but to do the Ri's bidding when he's sent...
Epic Fantasy Romance
Merissa (13373 KP) rated The Lost Art of Seducing a Mage Warrior (The Lost Arts #1) in Books
May 9, 2025
THE LOST ART OF SEDUCING A MAGE WARRIOR is the first book in The Lost Arts series and does NOT give you everything all at once, which I loved!
Perian is a charismatic character, effortlessly drawing others to him. He is aware of this but doesn't weaponise it. When he is attacked by three men who don't understand that "No" is a complete sentence, he thinks his time is up. Instead, he is rescued by Brannal, a Mage Warrior, who takes him back to the Queen's castle to recover. If Perian is the sunshine one, then Brannal is the grumpy one, although this description doesn't fit either of them perfectly.
There are plenty of misunderstandings between Perian and Brannal, which I actually loved to read. They are at the beginning of a new relationship, with lots of things going on and different characters in the mix, so, surprisingly, they're not that good at communicating. When they do speak to each other, they both admit it is something they need to work on, and that neither of them will get it right all the time. It made a refreshing change to read that, rather than unnecessary angst.
The ending was satisfying for now, but I oh-so-desperately want more! Lots of loose threads that I want tying up! A great story and a brilliant beginning to the series. Definitely recommended by me.
** Same worded review will appear elsewhere. **
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book; the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
May 9, 2025
Perian is a charismatic character, effortlessly drawing others to him. He is aware of this but doesn't weaponise it. When he is attacked by three men who don't understand that "No" is a complete sentence, he thinks his time is up. Instead, he is rescued by Brannal, a Mage Warrior, who takes him back to the Queen's castle to recover. If Perian is the sunshine one, then Brannal is the grumpy one, although this description doesn't fit either of them perfectly.
There are plenty of misunderstandings between Perian and Brannal, which I actually loved to read. They are at the beginning of a new relationship, with lots of things going on and different characters in the mix, so, surprisingly, they're not that good at communicating. When they do speak to each other, they both admit it is something they need to work on, and that neither of them will get it right all the time. It made a refreshing change to read that, rather than unnecessary angst.
The ending was satisfying for now, but I oh-so-desperately want more! Lots of loose threads that I want tying up! A great story and a brilliant beginning to the series. Definitely recommended by me.
** Same worded review will appear elsewhere. **
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book; the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
May 9, 2025
Stephen O'Connor (8 KP) rated Assassin's Apprentice in Books
May 14, 2017
Easy to read and well writen (3 more)
The story is just a hook that keeps you reading
One of the best first person books I've ever read
The world built by Hobb is beautiful and epic
My number one, but for bias reasons
Now I have to be honest and admit that my feeling for this book/series are slightly Bias, let me give the reason. This is the book that got me into my love of reading Fantasy as a whole and the other reason, when I decided to quite smoking I swapped the cigarette for reading, with this being the book that got me through it đ . So moving onto the book itself and how it's just god Damn Awesome. Robin Hobb is just a fantastic writer and this just shows throughout the book, the story telling and writing are second to none. Fitz is a royal bastard that gets dumped at the castle doors and left to the care of his unknowing royal family. His struggle of trying to find a place in court and live with the stigma of being the bastard are his young life. This book will have you falling for the character of Fitz like he's your own blood and you'll care for him like no other book characters. Putting the book down for more than 1 day isn't even possible. I'm pretty terrible at writing anything, never mind trying to sell a good book through a review, so please just take my advice and trust me when I say how bloody awesome this book is.
Goddess in the Stacks (553 KP) rated Rebel of the Sands in Books
May 19, 2018 (Updated May 19, 2018)
Amani is a girl in a country that doesn't value women, and treats them as useless property only good for breeding sons. The country is basically occupied by another country that the Sultan is "allied" with, but lets run roughshod over his people. She has her sights set on escaping her backwoods, dead-end town, and running to the capital city, where the aunt she's never met lives. All of that is derailed when she meets Jin at an underground shooting competition, and then later hides him from the armed forces hunting him.
The country is definitely middle-east inspired, but there's a lot of religion-bashing, and complaining about the culture oppressing women. It's the same problem I have with a lot of knight-and-castle era fantasy - just because historically in OUR world those time periods weren't kind to women, doesn't mean they have to be the same in fantasy. It's FANTASY! It can be anything you want! Break the tropes! It's a fine line to walk, taking the good parts of a culture without just cherry-picking and appropriating the culture, and who's judging what the good and bad parts are, anyway? So I understand it's difficult, but bashing the culture in a book inspired by their mythology is not quite cool, either. I feel like City of Brass, another fantasy book set in the middle east, hit a better middle ground of embracing the culture of the inspiration without bashing parts of it.
That gripe aside, I really enjoyed the world-building. I'm not quite sold on the characters yet - Amani is far too quick to abandon things she should fight for - but I'm interested enough to see how they progress in the next two books.
You can find all my reviews at http://goddessinthestacks.wordpress.com
The country is definitely middle-east inspired, but there's a lot of religion-bashing, and complaining about the culture oppressing women. It's the same problem I have with a lot of knight-and-castle era fantasy - just because historically in OUR world those time periods weren't kind to women, doesn't mean they have to be the same in fantasy. It's FANTASY! It can be anything you want! Break the tropes! It's a fine line to walk, taking the good parts of a culture without just cherry-picking and appropriating the culture, and who's judging what the good and bad parts are, anyway? So I understand it's difficult, but bashing the culture in a book inspired by their mythology is not quite cool, either. I feel like City of Brass, another fantasy book set in the middle east, hit a better middle ground of embracing the culture of the inspiration without bashing parts of it.
That gripe aside, I really enjoyed the world-building. I'm not quite sold on the characters yet - Amani is far too quick to abandon things she should fight for - but I'm interested enough to see how they progress in the next two books.
You can find all my reviews at http://goddessinthestacks.wordpress.com
Roxanne (13 KP) rated Paranormal Cornwall in Books
Nov 14, 2018
<b>3 Stars</b>
<img src="http://i.imgur.com/sXx2zjN.gif"; width="200" height="160"/>
There is just so much information packed into this gem, I was entertained, I was interested and I was definitely fascinated...to an extent.
I love to read about the paranormal, especially when it's to do with where I'm from and have lived all of my life; Cornwall really is a beautiful and mysterious place.
This book features many different locations in Cornwall which are thought to be haunted as well as different types of myths and legends. One of the locations I have visited myself, which is Pengersick Castle, is where I have personally experienced some paranormal activity. I would definitely like to return for a second visit so if you get the chance to go it is definitely worth it.
On first glance this book is beautifully presented with a thought provoking front cover and glossy pages which are a pleasure to read.
<b>Then why 3 stars you ask?</b>
When I was reading this book I came across many spelling and grammar errors, I know that's probably really fussy of me but when you encounter these errors constantly then it does effect the enjoyment of a book. The layout didn't turn out too great either in my opinion. On one hand the photographs are great, however, they weren't very well positioned within the book...I was reading about one location but underneath there was a photo about something completely different, this became quite confusing after a while.
I removed 2 stars instead of 1 as due to errors and image misplacement I ended up not enjoying this book, however, I believe it's worth reading for some of the information.
<img src="http://i.imgur.com/sXx2zjN.gif"; width="200" height="160"/>
There is just so much information packed into this gem, I was entertained, I was interested and I was definitely fascinated...to an extent.
I love to read about the paranormal, especially when it's to do with where I'm from and have lived all of my life; Cornwall really is a beautiful and mysterious place.
This book features many different locations in Cornwall which are thought to be haunted as well as different types of myths and legends. One of the locations I have visited myself, which is Pengersick Castle, is where I have personally experienced some paranormal activity. I would definitely like to return for a second visit so if you get the chance to go it is definitely worth it.
On first glance this book is beautifully presented with a thought provoking front cover and glossy pages which are a pleasure to read.
<b>Then why 3 stars you ask?</b>
When I was reading this book I came across many spelling and grammar errors, I know that's probably really fussy of me but when you encounter these errors constantly then it does effect the enjoyment of a book. The layout didn't turn out too great either in my opinion. On one hand the photographs are great, however, they weren't very well positioned within the book...I was reading about one location but underneath there was a photo about something completely different, this became quite confusing after a while.
I removed 2 stars instead of 1 as due to errors and image misplacement I ended up not enjoying this book, however, I believe it's worth reading for some of the information.
Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Shutter Island (2010) in Movies
Aug 8, 2019
The mysterious disappearance of a patient has left the security of Aschecliffe Mental Facility baffled. In an effort to figure out exactly what occurred, they have brought in US Marshalls Teddy Daniels (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Chuck Aule (Mark Ruffalo). But when a number of questionable situations are uncovered, such as the restricted castle where they keep the most violent patients and the mysterious muchrumored about lighthouse, Teddy ends up investigating more than he bargained for.
This Martin Scorsese adaption of âShutter Islandâ takes viewers on a visual retelling of the popular 2003 novel authored by Dennis Lehane. It is a film that takes you straight into the detective scene of the 1950âs with a mystery that is both complex and has a compelling plot.
âShutter Islandâ is a very visual film, from the immersion we get into Teddyâs memories to the hugely powerful storms that at times scatter the film. Equally well defined are the details, from the plush dĂ©cor of the doctorâs quarters to the intensely retro soundtrack. Costumes are also a key feature of this film, establishing the date with ease in a way that does not detract from the comprehensive story.
It is hard not to support Teddy in his quest to figure out the mysteries of Shutter Island. He is a likeable good guy to the core. And in a film filled with baddies such as the two good cop/bad cop doctors played by Ben Kingsley and Mac von Sydow, a good protagonist is a requirement. Further filling out the film is Dolores, Teddyâs wife played by Michelle Williams.
If you like mysteries, thrillers, or a good look back in time, âShutter Islandâ will leave you guessing and wondering right up until the very end, in a way that only the talented Scorsese can.
This Martin Scorsese adaption of âShutter Islandâ takes viewers on a visual retelling of the popular 2003 novel authored by Dennis Lehane. It is a film that takes you straight into the detective scene of the 1950âs with a mystery that is both complex and has a compelling plot.
âShutter Islandâ is a very visual film, from the immersion we get into Teddyâs memories to the hugely powerful storms that at times scatter the film. Equally well defined are the details, from the plush dĂ©cor of the doctorâs quarters to the intensely retro soundtrack. Costumes are also a key feature of this film, establishing the date with ease in a way that does not detract from the comprehensive story.
It is hard not to support Teddy in his quest to figure out the mysteries of Shutter Island. He is a likeable good guy to the core. And in a film filled with baddies such as the two good cop/bad cop doctors played by Ben Kingsley and Mac von Sydow, a good protagonist is a requirement. Further filling out the film is Dolores, Teddyâs wife played by Michelle Williams.
If you like mysteries, thrillers, or a good look back in time, âShutter Islandâ will leave you guessing and wondering right up until the very end, in a way that only the talented Scorsese can.
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