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Little Mate (Gay Monsters in Space #1)
Little Mate (Gay Monsters in Space #1)
Rome Ford | 2023 | Erotica, LGBTQ+, Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
LITTLE MATE is the first book in the Gay Monsters in Space series, and it is a perfect hot-and-spicy coffee break book!

The pacing is fast but the story is all there. We're also talking about a HUGE case of instalust, although Jake does do his best to fight it at the beginning. His sarcasm was spot on. And Zahn's reaction to it was brilliant.

I would have liked a little more to the story, but I'm always greedy with novellas and end up wanting more. And it was nice to see Jake's sister get her HEA too.

A great start to the series and I look forward to reading more.

** 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!
Sep 13, 2023
  
Battered
Battered
GP Gottlieb | 2019 | Mystery
7
7.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Murder Hits Close to Home
Alene Baron runs Whipped and Sipped with her best friend, Ruthie Rosin. Together, the two have turned the café and coffee shop into a healthy choice with a loyal clientele. They serve only the best coffee, and most of their items are vegan, even the sweet treats, that is popular in their neighborhood in Chicago. Alene lives a few blocks away from the café in a condo she shares with her father and her three children. Her world is a little chaotic, but it gets more so when she finds one of her neighbors dead one afternoon. It is clear that he was murdered, and soon Alene is casting everyone in the role of killer. Since she knows everyone who might be a suspect, can she figure out what really happened?

This book has a couple of twists on culinary cozies that I enjoyed, the healthy food that is served and the large city setting. Author G. P. Gottlieb still manages to keep this book feeling cozy despite that setting, and I enjoyed spending time in a bigger city. There are a lot of characters, and their relationships are complicated. There is a list of characters before the book starts, but it didn’t take too long for the character’s personalities to come through and it became easy to keep them straight. There are some prickly characters in the book, and it was actually easy to root for one of them to be the killer. We get a bit of a backstory dump early on, which makes it a little slow to get going. We do need some of this information as the plot unfolds. Once the murder happens, we’ve got several good clues and red herrings. I thought I figured things out early, but I was surprised by the climax. There are a total of thiry recipes in this book, with them leaning toward the healthier side of things thanks to the vegan theme of the café. This book features a slightly different take on the culinary cozy mystery, one I ultimately enjoyed.
  
Latin Grill was amazing. That's really the only word I have to describe it. This book has everything: Salads, Meat, Shellfish, Desserts, and even Beverages. There's also information in the front about various grill-type-things like which kind of grill to use, what kinds of tools you need etc.

And the photographs… make me… drool. More than just hungry. drool. *wipes computer off* I've never wanted a salad so badly in my whole life. Grilled avocado on Caesar Salads, grilled Sea Scallops with Avocado and Apple, recipes for lamb, beef, chicken, even duck. It's hard to find a good recipe for Churros (with chocolate sauce!) Semisweet Chocolate and Coffee Brioche Bread Pudding… reading that one almost made me cry. There's a whole slew of lemonades and martinis in the back to top off a fantastic full-course grilled dinner… or just to go with your Sunday-night family barbecue.

Recommendation: hey moms, this would be a great fathers' day gift! There's a recipe in here for everyone.
  
Baby Driver (2017)
Baby Driver (2017)
2017 | Action, Comedy
Well, that was an … interesting … film

I've seen movies before where the songs were specifically written for that movie, and were used to propel the plot along (aka musicals).

I've seen movies before where the songs were 'dropped into' the story, but could almost just as easily have been left out with no real loss to the narrative.

This falls somewhere between those 2 extremes, with the titular Baby a reluctant get-away driver (paying off an old debt) who suffers from tinnitus, and spends the majority of the movie with his headphones in listening to music from his various ipods to drown out that constant ringing.

Somewhat cliched in parts - one last job, indeed! - with an eclectic mix of music, I found the romance between Baby and Lily James waitress Debora to be somewhat unbelievable, with the film - at the very start - almost going full-on musical (too much so for my sake), as Baby dances and weaves his way through crowds to collect coffee after the first expertly-choreographed car chase.
  
The Unmumsy Mum
The Unmumsy Mum
The Unmumsy Mum | 2016 | Health & Fitness
9
8.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
A Refreshingly Honest Look at Motherhood
As a new mum, I have often felt I am getting it wrong, I am not cut out for this, my child is the spawn of Satan..... this book let's you know you are not the only one to think these things.
Looking at everything from the sleepless nights to mum guilt, making the same mistakes as others, and not living up to your own expectations, the book tells you it's okay to feel like crap, most mum's do, and does so in a very funny way.
Though it has taken me about 4 months to read (since I only get through about 5 pages a week on that rear occasion my son falls asleep in his pram long enough for me to order a coffee and get my book out) it is an easy one to pick up and put down. Since it is not a story, but a look back at both the highs and lows of motherhood.
An absolute must for all new mum's!