Accidentally Perfect
10.0
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Everyone's convinced the hottest guy in school's going to ask me out - that Mason and I would be the...
The Liar's Room
7.3
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ONE ROOM. TWO LIARS. NO WAY OUT... Susanna Fenton has a secret. Fourteen years ago she left her...
The Hope Jar (The Prayer Jars #1)
10.0
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What happens when making an elderly Amish couple very happy means going along with a lie that gets...
That Hideous Strength (Space Trilogy, #3)
8.0
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The story surrounds Mark and Jane Studdock, a newly married couple. Mark is a Sociologist who is...
Topper
Book
It all begins when Cosmo Topper, a law-abiding, mild-mannered bank manager, decides to buy a...
Hope Burns
10.0
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Molly Burnett dreads returning to her hometown of Hope for her sister’s wedding, especially...
Marriage Material (2017)
3.0
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Movie
Alex, a lovable, unassuming dog trainer is in love with a great woman - Katherine - smart, talented,...
David McK (3801 KP) rated Out Law (Dresden Files 18.75) in Books
May 26, 2026
Which might explain why I was initially a bit confused about certain elements in Harry's world (He has another apprentice now? And a castle?), which - I presume - happen in that entry.
Having said that, once I got past the initial confusion I found myself thoroughly enjoying my return to Harry's Chicago; thoroughly enjoying the more 'low stakes' (well, as low as it gets for Harry, maybe) of the story that I feel was lost in the last couple of full-length novels I read.
Sure, world-ending apocalypses have their place and all, but when they are stopped time and time again ...
Merissa (14013 KP) rated Wrapped With A Bow: Nine Holiday Short Stories as Unique as Snowflakes in Books
May 8, 2023
In this anthology, there are some great stories, and some not-so-great stories, but on the whole, it is a sentimental and wholesome collection of seasonal stories to give you a warm glow over the festive period.
I would have no hesitation in recommending this anthology to all fans of contemporary sweet romance,
* 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!
Dec 6, 2015
Lee (2222 KP) rated Instant Family (2019) in Movies
Jan 24, 2019 (Updated Jan 24, 2019)
Instant Family is based on the real life experience of the director Sean Anders and the adoption process he went through with his wife. In the movie, the couple are called Pete and Ellie (Mark Wahlberg and Rose Byrne), who earn their living by flipping houses (buy, renovate, sell). After Ellie has an argument with her sister regarding kids, they begin thinking about having children of their own. Worried about their age, they begin looking into fostering, with a view to eventually adopting an older child.
They visit an adoption agency, where they are joined by a number of other couples and single parents all looking to find out more and begin their journey to becoming parents. Octavia Spencer and Tig Notaro are social workers, there to guide them all through the process. A very funny double act, providing a lot of the movies hilariously well timed lines. In fact, all of the other potential adopters are well written and funny, continuing to crop up throughout the movie as we revisit how everyone is getting on with their fostered children. None of this is zany, particularly goofy or over the top though - it's made very clear that many of the children in the foster system have had a pretty awful life so far, and this honest piece of reality is never downplayed.
At a meet-and-greet with potential adoptive children, organised as an outdoor event in a park, Pete and Ellie are drawn to Lizzie (Isabela Moner), a fiery teenage girl who is hanging out with the other older kids - separated from the main gathering, having resigned themselves to the notion that they're never going to get chosen by the prospective parents. When the couple mark her down as a potential for fostering, they learn that she actually comes as part of a package, having a younger brother Juan and even younger sister Lita. Pete and Ellie decide to go for it and foster all three, convinced they can make a difference in these kids lives.
There follows a period of new parents being thrown in at the deep end - the stressful night time routine, the problems with getting kids to eat and dress properly, problems at school etc. But again, it's not over the top - rooted in reality and successfully managing to walk the line between comedy and drama without resorting to exaggerated comedy set pieces. The problems experienced are made all the more challenging as the couple trying to care for and raise children who haven't had a great start in life, and have been used to a very particular way of living. Made even more difficult when the children's birth mother appears on the scene later in the movie.
I wasn't expecting to enjoy this movie as much as I did. There are more laugh out loud moments than any movie I've seen in recent years that bills itself as a comedy, but at the same time it's also a really heartwarming feel-good drama. So many enjoyable characters too, and with a sharp script that brings out the best in them all. Hugely enjoyable.