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Lake Season (Bluebell Inn Romance, #1)
Lake Season (Bluebell Inn Romance, #1)
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
This book was a classic feel good, and make you warm inside type of a book.  From the first chapter little by little Denise Hunter drew me in, she fed me little nuggets of information about the characters, arousing my curiosity about how the book would end. It was great getting to meet a famous author and a new innkeeper and her family. Plus, Denise Hunter threw in a bit of a mystery with an ending I totally didn’t see coming. All the characters (not just the main ones, as this book is the first in a series) were developed in such a way that I felt personally invested in their lives. By the end of the book I felt like I genuinely knew the characters and their struggles, which doesn’t always happen in books. It was also interesting to see how Denise Hunter weaved in a dual plot-line; I really loved the glimpses into the past. I think I am already looking forward to learning about the rest of the family in Bluebell, NC.

I give this book a 4 out of 5 stars for the hint of mystery, the end I totally did not see coming, and for leaving me in want of the next book in the series. Personally, I think that the best books are about what really happens in life and the ways that God can use anything for His good. In Lake Season, Denise Hunter put this into perspective for her characters and for anyone who reads Lake Season.
  
King of the Mountain (Love at Lake Clyde #1)
King of the Mountain (Love at Lake Clyde #1)
Aiden Ainslie | 2023 | Contemporary, LGBTQ+, Romance
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
quite the betrayal I saw coming.
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.

I liked this, I liked it a lot.

Clifford is racing in his final Tour de France, he needs total focus on winning. Meeting the lost student in Paris throws him, but Gabe pushes buttons he didn't know needed pushing, at least, not for a long LONG time. Can they see it through, for Clifford to win his final tour and then be with Gabe?

I found this quite an easy read, but I needed that right now. It flows and ebbs, as does the relationship between Clifford and Gabe. The big gap in the time line was necessary, I think, for them to fully recover from France, and be open to moving on.

That things were conspiring against them was obvious, but just how far that conspiracy and plan went was quite the betrayal. I liked that I saw that coming, to be honest. Something was said, and I had alarm bells ringing, much as Clifford did but I put the pieces together faster than he did.

I liked how things sorted themselves out, in the end.

It was, like I said, an easy read. Some steam and smexy times, some drama and some emotional times.

If I reading things correctly, this is the author's first book under this name. I'd like to follow them as they hone their craft.

4 very good stars

*same worded review will appear elsewhere
  
The Tea Planter's Wife
The Tea Planter's Wife
Dinah Jefferies | 2015 | Fiction & Poetry
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
The Tea Planter's wife is a mysterious sweet, loving story. It starts out with Gwen coming to Ceylon to be with her husband.

You go allow with Gwen with her struggles and learning curves of being a mother and wife to her twins and what is going on with Ceylon culture.

 When one of her children is colored she does not know if it was her husband or someone else's child. She fights with herself when she gives her daughter to a village. That is when she gives birth to her twins. She has a household servant named Naveena.

Gwen had to deal with not only decision to what she made but also her sister in law. She dealt with that and her raising her son. You are lean so much history and culture of Ceylon at that time as well. You meet Tamil and Sinhalese worker that were part of Tea Plantation.
  
Game Of Thrones  - Season 4
Game Of Thrones - Season 4
2014 | Sci-Fi
Pedro Pascal as Oberyn Martell (3 more)
More Cersei
Sansa at the Eyrie
Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson as the Mountain
Squish (0 more)
Fly through the Moon Door
I've got to say that I really enjoyed this season, mainly in part due to Pedro Pascal playing Oberyn Martell. He stole every scene he was in, even ones with Cersei, who usually draws my eye wherever she's sauntering about. And, though I knew it was coming, the squish was all together horrifying and sad.
Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson did a great job as Gregor Clegane, a mountain among men.

Though not quite following the book, I had a great time with the events at the Eyrie and loved watching Sansa grow farther away from the naive little girl she used to be.
There are a great many things that happened in this season, good and bad, but these actors/events stood out to me the most at the time of writing this.
  
AT
After the End (After the End, #1)
Amy Plum | 2014 | Fiction & Poetry
8
8.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
[After The End] by [Amy Plum] has a deceptive tile because it leads you to think it is an dystopian novel. Although I love those books this was a welcomed surprise. It turned into more of an action/adventure with a little coming of age thrown in for good measure.

[Plum] did an excellent job of developing a creative, fearless, intelligent character in Juneau. Although she is naive do to lack of exposure she know how to survive. Her loyalty to family even though they hurt her is endearing.

Miles, on the other hand, is a spoiled rotten brat who has had the easy life. He starts out for his own gain but what he really gains is a new insight about life and love.

This story has some supernatural aspects but over all is more of an exciting journey of discovery for two young people who have a lot to learn from each other.
  
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Domonique (0 KP) rated The Maze Runner in Books

May 12, 2018  
The Maze Runner
The Maze Runner
James Dashner | 2011 | Children
10
8.0 (55 Ratings)
Book Rating
I absolutely loved this book! I first heard about it via the movie of course and then once I was able to get a copy from the library, I started it immediately. And I was hooked! I love to read books told from the perspective of teenagers because it always amaze s me how perceptive and curious they can be. Even though I knew Thomas was supposed to be the hero and save everyone, there were still a few things I didn't see coming: the truth about the maze for one thing, where the kids came from and how they ended up in the maze to begin with and just the lengths people were willing to go to save humanity. It really makes me think about what would happen if the world as we know it suddenly was hit by a natural disaster that killed millions and created disease. How would we survive? It certainly makes you think and find out what happens next!
  
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
2002 | City Building, Economic, Farming
Straightforward Rules (1 more)
Deep Strategy and Gameplay
Brown and Uninspriring (0 more)
A True Classic
I have always loved Puerto Rico. I love Euro games and this was one of the first ones I really saw the beauty in. The mechanics and the flow of the game are intricate and intertwined. There are so many pathways to victory and always the option of altering you path if things do not go your way. The rules are easy to explain and once a couple of rounds have passed more new players pick everything up quickly.

On the downside, the game looks a little bland and unappealing compared to so many of the new games coming out these days. There is a very nice 10th Anniversary Limited Edition and a Deluxe edition that reworks the art and adds metal doubloons and other enhanced pieces. So is aesthetics are your issue, you should totally pick up a copy of that, and you can send me one while you are at it. ?
  
At the Table of Wolves (Dark Talents #1)
At the Table of Wolves (Dark Talents #1)
Kay Kenyon | 2017 | Paranormal, Science Fiction/Fantasy, Thriller
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I've had this book on my nook e-reader since it was released, but I just never had the itch to read it.
I'm glad I finally did. This is the first of a trilogy that's an alt-history in the 1930s. After the Great War, there's an event called 'the bloom' and individuals begin to have 'talents' or powers manifest. It's definitely a riff off of the X-Men, but it really worked for me in this novel. The lead character, Kim, is a 30-something who has the talent of 'spill', which is essentially compelling people to spill various secrets, though she can't exactly control it. I liked Kim because she was completely relatable and made mistakes.
I wish that the book had been longer, but now I'm anxiously awaiting for the 2nd book from the library. Luckily, the final book in the trilogy is coming out in March, so I won't have long to wait for book 3.
  
The Promise
The Promise
Teresa Driscoll | 2019 | Thriller
10
7.5 (4 Ratings)
Book Rating
Three girls held a deep, dark secret. Three girls made a promise they vowed to keep forever. Now something and someone is threatening that promise. Will the truth come out or will these women do anything possible to keep their secret hidden forever?

I found this to be an excellent psychological suspense story. Some may describe this as a slow burn but I found the pace to be perfect for this story. The characters build and grow with the story as does the plot as told from past to present. The ending you won't see coming.
The are loads of little hints dropped through the story and some are just red herrings to keep you guessing. I found myself totally absorbed and unable to put the story down til done.
All in all I thoroughly enjoyed this psychological story with all it's dark twists and turns!

Many thanks to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and enjoy!
  
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Billie Wichkan (118 KP) rated Twisted in Books

May 22, 2019  
Twisted
Twisted
Steve Cavanagh | 2019 | Thriller
10
9.5 (4 Ratings)
Book Rating
BEFORE YOU READ THIS BOOK
I WANT YOU TO KNOW THREE THINGS:

1. The police are looking to charge me with murder.
2. No one knows who I am. Or how I did it.
3. If you think you've found me. I'm coming for you next.
After you've read this book, you'll know: the truth is far more twisted...

When Maria Cooper accidentally uncovers one of her husband Paul’s secrets she enlists her lover Daryl in a plot to get even.
This book is full of suspense and intrigue with lots of twists and turns.
Just when you think you've got it worked out there's another revelation that blows your theory away.
The characterization is excellent, the storytelling first class and the final reveal is kept for the very last page.
Can't wait to see what Steve Cavanagh comes up with next; definitely a book I would recommend reading.

Thanks a lot to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.