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Life's Too Short
Life's Too Short
Abby Jimenez | 2021 | Fiction & Poetry, Humor & Comedy, Romance
7
7.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
A touching and heartfelt romance
Vanessa is a famous travel blogger/YouTuber. She spends her life as she wants, seizing the moment. She lost her mom and sister to a genetic disease and--not knowing if she will wind up like them--doesn't want to waste a moment of her life. But when her troubled half sister leaves Vanessa custody of her infant daughter, Grace, Vanessa finds herself stuck at home. She's forced to deal with her sister and her father and confront her illness. But she also meets Adrian, her handsome next-door neighbor. A lawyer, Adrian turns up on her doorstep, and suddenly he and Vanessa become inseparable. He's helping care for Grace as they share take-out dinners and their life stories. Vanessa knows she cannot get close to Adrian, but she's finding it really hard not to.

I loved the first two books in this loosely tied series. This was probably my least favorite of the three, but I still enjoyed it. Jimenez writes excellent slow burn romances, and this one was no exception. Plus, it offers excellent escapism while delving into serious subjects, which I always love about her work.

Adrian was my favorite here--dependable, sweet Adrian. Both characters have a lot baggage in this book, so be prepared. Beyond her genetic illness woes, there's a lot going on with Vanessa's family. Some of the way the book deals with mental illness is excellent; sometimes, I'm not so sure. And Adrian has his own issues with his family as well. As for Vanessa, her attitude and approach toward her potential genetic illness was a little hard for me to handle. It's one of those things where you just want to take the character and try to shake some sense into them. Yes, Jimenez provides some backstory and reasoning for Vanessa's attitude, but... this was the one part of the book that was hard for me to swallow. (And it was, um, key to the plot.)

If I overlooked that piece, Vanessa and Adrian were cute together. There's lots of the patented Jimenez banter, romance, and cuteness. Someone needs to learn to trust again, someone needs to come out of their shell. But, because it's Jimenez, it's done in this adorable, funny way tinged with a heartfelt touch. And this time there's a baby! (Who is amazingly portable and never causes any trouble--wish my kids were like that, ha.) The book can be heartbreaking at times. I honestly adored Adrian, his outlook on the world, and how supportive he was of Vanessa. We could all use an Adrian to take care of us.

If you like romances, you'll enjoy this one. It's cute and sweet, without being sickeningly so, and there are lots of moments that make you laugh. It's also serious in places, covering illness and family. It's not the best of the series, but it's worth a read. Just be prepared for some frustration with some of the characters! 3.5 stars, rounded up.
  
Live in Dublin by Christy Moore
Live in Dublin by Christy Moore
1978 | World
(0 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"Christy Moore is one of my mum’s favourite artists and I listened to this so much growing up. He had a record, Live at the Point, which we would always listen to on journeys around Ireland and Irish music was the first music I experienced live. My mum was born in Dublin, we would go to Galway and go in taverns all the time and it soundtracked my childhood. “I just recently fell in love and ‘Black is the Colour’ was the song that I really liked and listening to it recently I felt like I was like inside romance. I was like, ‘Ah, I’m so in love right now’ [laughs]. I’ve been quite starved of romance for a really long time and I felt I was in it. I was ‘God, this is so romantic and this is just kind of fucking insane’. I’d forgotten the importance of it and how much I wanted it, so that’s why I put the song in here. “If you get the Live at the Point version, at the beginning he says that he’d heard this beautiful song by this guy and at the end he’s ‘gimme that song!’ He wants it and I love that, that’s so cute - that’s what this is about, it’s sharing stories. Christy Moore heard this guy sing this beautiful song and he’s ‘Come on, give it to me, I want to play that tune, I want people to feel that way’ and how beautiful is that? “I’m Irish, so folk is my origin, sharing songs, telling stories and someone else passing on that story. I’ve been really looking into folklore in the past year, that’s one of the reasons that I really wanted to go to Ireland because I was ‘I need to find a record that’s related to this, this is my culture and this is where I grew up.’ As a kid I played the tin whistle and the Bodhrán. I was winning trophies for Irish dancing, I spent my holidays there and I went around playing in fucking fields with cows. And yeah, I’ve been researching fairies and mythology, I love it so much. “There’s so much ancient, beautiful, really respected and protected traditional stuff in Ireland. The traditional aspect can be so cool, there’s so many amazing musicians that just go down to the pub and play and it’s like breathing to them. I stayed in this little hotel with eight rooms in a town called Kilkee, it was in a bay, it was so cute and there was a family playing music in the pub. There was an eight year old boy just staring off, he was playing the accordion and it was so natural - just a bored eight year old that is a fucking genius and has no idea. And then if someone sang an old traditional song a cappella, everyone in the pub would go silent. It was like a movie or something."

Source
  
Bad, Dad, And Dangerous Anthology
Bad, Dad, And Dangerous Anthology
Rhys Ford, TA Moore, Bru Baker, Jenn Moffatt | 2020 | LGBTQ+, Paranormal, Romance
8
8.0 (3 Ratings)
Book Rating
great box set!
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this box set.

These are four unrelated stories save for the common thread that one of the main characters is a single dad and a paranormal being.

I read all four, but I only really enjoyed 3.

KISMET & CADAVERS BY JENN MOFFATT

I haven't read anything by Ms Moffatt before, but I hope I get to soon! I LOVED this! Thomas and KJ met years ago, and Thomas felt that connection. His daughter moving up from KJ's class at school gives him the perfect chance. But things are getting in the way, and a dark magic has to be dealt with.

I loved the cat in this, I really did. You don't get many undead cats playing a huge part in stories and he made me laugh, how he is with Thomas. And that he likes KJ.

It's funny, and sexy and this was my favourite, along with the next one!

WOLF AT FIRST SIGHT BY RHYS FORD

This is a novella from the Wayward Wolves series (currently only one book!) but you don't need to have read that book to follow this.

Joesph's Nana frequents the pub he is watching. The owner is rather easy on the eye, but Levi isn't the only one keeping secrets from Joesph.

Joseph and Levi have immediate attraction and it takes them time to act on that. I loved that most of the people in the pub are not what they seem and the solution to Levi's Peacekeeping problem wasn't what I saw coming.

And it was sweet, dammit!

MONSTER HALL PASS BY BRU BAKER

Vampires with a twist!

Hugh is a vampire who feeds on energy, NEGATIVE energy gives the biggest boost. So once a year, when his daughter is at camp, he goes off to help his police friends deal with their more dangerous criminals. Meeting a Fae who can smell Hugh's daughter and then goes off on one at him, wasn't really in the plan this summer. When Rykoff reveals the truth about Hugh's daughter, he knows he needs help.

Cute, really cute. I enjoyed this one, not quite as much as the first two mentioned but I did enjoy it. I'd read more of these sorts of vampires, I really would!

ELF SHOT BY TA MOORE

I didn't like this one as much as the other three, I got a bit lost along the way with this. But still, a good read, just not a great one (Sorry!)

A thoroughly enjoyable way to spend a few hours with new to me, as well as not-so-new authors. Ms Baker and Moffatt are now sat on my wish list!

4 good solid stars across the whole set, But 5 for Kismet and Cadavers and for Wolf at First Sight.

~same worded review will appear elsewhere~
  
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    Period Tracker Lite

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Haley Mathiot (9 KP) rated Fellside in Books

Apr 27, 2018  
Fellside
Fellside
M.R. Carey | 2016 | Fiction & Poetry
10
7.3 (4 Ratings)
Book Rating
Fellside was a unique combination of psychological, thriller, supernatural, crime, and romance. When I say psychological, it was because it makes you think; thriller because I couldn't put it down, and found my heart racing; romance not in the typical sense of the term, but a deep and surprising love that brought all the characters to a new level, and puts the reader in a different frame of mind. It was the kind of book you know is completely unrealistic, but since the author believes in it, you believe in it. It begins with a mysterious tug, and right as you fall in love with the main character she starts to break your heart. M. R. Carey doesn’t write cute books, or sweet books, or books that are easy to read. They make you think and confront how you feel about certain things; but it’s beautiful in it’s own way. I am totally in love with this story, this world, the concept, and the way it all comes together in the end. I definitely recommend it for ages 16+, but not as a light beach-read or hour-at-a-time read. Sit down and chew on this one, and let your mind go where it wants to. Content/Recommendation: Ages 16+ for some violent scenes. This is a women's prison. - See more at: http://www.thelifeandlies.com/2016/07/book-review-fellside-by-m-r-carey.html#sthash.DM728BD3.dpuf
  
While there was nothing about this book that made it special and I found the "Seven Deadly Sins" theme cliche, it was a pleasure to read. This is the kind of romance novel that makes you sigh with happiness when you finish the last page, the type of novel that is truly a delight to fans of romance. The couple doesn't argue the entire time. In fact, the only arguing was the female protagonist's, Ivy's, arguing with herself and her emotions. This is quite refreshing among the endless stream of novels where the couples are always butting heads and arguing to the point that I want to rip my hair out.

The only problem I had was Ivy's behavior. I have read so many historical novels where the women act as free as the women today. It's irritating. If those women really acted that way, then they would be complete outcasts of society no matter what their status or money. I am also sure that the menfolk would simply not allow such behavior.

The male protagonist, Dominic Sheridan, stole my heart away. He was sweet and endearing to Ivy, that it grabbed my heart strings. At first, it was amusing to watch the two's playful banter, and then watch how their behavior changed so subtly when the two began to fall in love. It was cute.

I actually liked the light-hearted feel of this novel so much, I rented the other two currently published.
  
Mr January (Calendar Men #1)
Mr January (Calendar Men #1)
Bailey Bradford | 2018 | Humor & Comedy, LGBTQ+, Paranormal
8
9.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
really great, cute read
Independent reviewer for Divine Magazine, I was gifted my copy of this book.

I've read a few of Bailey's shifter books before, they tend to be short and sweet, so this one came out of left field and surprised me! And I've no idea WHY it surprised, just that I'm left feeling that and ya'll know I gotta share!

It's sweet, it's funny, (some proper laugh out loud moments!) it is emotional and it's sexy. And I really enjoyed it!

Albert is a geek and proud of it, and there are a few geeky jokes, and some not so funny comments, but they get shot down, right quick! Gregg is a model helping with a charity calendar and Albert has no illusions that he could ever land a guy such as Gregg, but Albert pushing all of Gregg's buttons, and some he didn't know he had so it's a matter of Gregg chasing Albert.

There is an on-going issues (I've already read book 2 when writing this review) with the photo shoot, and I don't know if it will ever get done, based on these two I've read, it might well be December before it gets done!

A thoroughly enjoyable read, some 180 pages,that fit in well on my list between two heavier reads, hence the hang over tag. I look forward to reading more of this series!

4 solid stars

**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
  
The Princess Bride
The Princess Bride
William Goldman | 1973 | Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy
9
8.6 (52 Ratings)
Book Rating
Nostalgia (2 more)
Characters
Plot
Great Nostalgia!
For the past week or so I have been struggling to read. Nothing has seemed to grab my attention and due to stress & drama in my life I had to put down books that I would have otherwise loved. Needless to say, I needed something that would help put a smile to my face. I've been putting off reading The Princess Bride simply because I love the movie so much. It's one of those books where I have always worried that it would ruin the movie so I've always put it off even though I owned the book for years. With the mood I've been in, I figured that this was the perfect time to revisit old characters in a new way and boy am I happy I did.

The Princess Bride is a cute quick read. The audiobook has a fantastic narrator & I loved Rob Reiner reading the book to me. It just made it that much better. Don't expect this book to be a beautifully written masterpiece because it isn't. The writing is basic and it's definitely a midgrade book. It's something that you can read to your children and know that they too will enjoy the actionpacked book.

All in all, I'm giving this 5 caffeinated stars. Partially due to nostalgia but mainly due to it being a dang good midgrade book that is sure to pull you into the story.