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Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2165 KP) rated Partners in Crime in Books
Jan 4, 2024
Five Cases of Crime in the Old West
This book collects five stories featuring Old Red and Big Red, the stars of the Holmes on the Range series. They are set during late fall 1893 and winter 1894, and find the brothers solving a variety of cases. The first story finds the brothers returning to their home town in Kansas with mixed results. When the brothers set out to find a Christmas tree for their landlady, they find a dead body instead. A series of strange events leads them to go to Idaho to try to help the sheep ranchers involved. A request in Colorado finds them in the middle of newspaper wars. Finally, they have to clear their own names when their landlady thinks they are responsible for the things that have been disappearing around their boarding house.
Combined, these five stories reach novel length. Individually, they vary in length. The first one seems to wander a bit at first, but as a fan of the series, I didn’t mind. The stories take place around two of the novels, but there aren’t any spoilers. Instead, we get Big Red and Old Red and some great new characters in each story to keep us engaged. The crimes don’t always involve murder, which I enjoyed seeing. If you haven’t tried the series yet, this would be a fun way to sample the characters. If you’re already a fan, you’ll enjoy seeing what the brothers get up to here.
Combined, these five stories reach novel length. Individually, they vary in length. The first one seems to wander a bit at first, but as a fan of the series, I didn’t mind. The stories take place around two of the novels, but there aren’t any spoilers. Instead, we get Big Red and Old Red and some great new characters in each story to keep us engaged. The crimes don’t always involve murder, which I enjoyed seeing. If you haven’t tried the series yet, this would be a fun way to sample the characters. If you’re already a fan, you’ll enjoy seeing what the brothers get up to here.
Personal Journal - Diary, images, notes
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A private journal or a diary is a fine mobile application for recording one’s thoughts, emotions,...
Whatchareadin (174 KP) rated A Land More Kind Than Home in Books
May 10, 2018
In a small town in North Carolina, there is a small church by the river. The windows are covered with newspaper so no one can see what is going on inside. But what is going on in that church? Too many people in town refuse to question it and one person in particular has decided to remove herself from the church and take all of the children with her.
So how is it that Christopher Hall is now dead after going to the church? This was the very reason children were not supposed to be there in the first place.
Christopher is a mute and has been all his life. His brother Jess and he are always together. One day when they are playing around the house, they break the waterspout going into the rain barrel. They were trying to spy on their parents, but their mother has always told them that spying was wrong. After running from "the scene of the crime," Jess discovers that it's not his father that was in there making the strange noises with his mother. After this discovery, Jess is concerned when Christopher is called to go to church for healing.
Wiley Cash has written an amazing story that makes you question humanity and religion in America. Some people will believe just about anything in order to belong. The things you read in this book will have your mind reeling. Even though it took me a couple of weeks to read this book, if I hadn't been so busy I would have gotten it done faster. I read the last 100 pages in one night.
I look forward to reading what else Mr. Cash has to offer.
So how is it that Christopher Hall is now dead after going to the church? This was the very reason children were not supposed to be there in the first place.
Christopher is a mute and has been all his life. His brother Jess and he are always together. One day when they are playing around the house, they break the waterspout going into the rain barrel. They were trying to spy on their parents, but their mother has always told them that spying was wrong. After running from "the scene of the crime," Jess discovers that it's not his father that was in there making the strange noises with his mother. After this discovery, Jess is concerned when Christopher is called to go to church for healing.
Wiley Cash has written an amazing story that makes you question humanity and religion in America. Some people will believe just about anything in order to belong. The things you read in this book will have your mind reeling. Even though it took me a couple of weeks to read this book, if I hadn't been so busy I would have gotten it done faster. I read the last 100 pages in one night.
I look forward to reading what else Mr. Cash has to offer.
Jason Williamson recommended Only Built 4 Cuban Linx by Raekwon in Music (curated)
Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated The Frangitelli Mirror in Books
May 30, 2023
69 off 235
Kindle
The Frangitelli Mirror
By G.R. Thomas
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
In 1915 a book was stolen, a crow appeared, and fate dealt its hand.
Rose Carbonelli sees ghosts.
She doesn’t sleep.
She watches every corner, studies every shadow, listens to the screams that no one else hears.
Rose Carbonelli is terrified.
Her father hasn’t been heard from since he volunteered to go to war in 1915.
The money ran out a year ago, her mother, Edith, is fading away.
Rose needs a job to save them both, and an excuse to flee the ghosts of her home.
When Rutherford House advertises for a lady’s maid, Rose seizes the opportunity.
A wage to save her mother, food to fill her belly, and an escape from the dead that occupy the shadows…
It seems just so perfect.
But is it the escape Rose has been dreaming of?
Is there truth to the rumours about Rutherford House? What lurks within the bones of it? Why has the Lady Mary Rutherford not been seen in over a decade?
Is this the perfect escape, or is it another nightmare Rose could never have imagined?
I was so lucky and so thankful to receive this ARC!
See I had a feeling I would like it as I loved her last gothic horror but this was something else it was brilliant and I loved it.
I read this at night and it just added to the creepiness I have to keep checking my dark corners. The story was compelling it kept you wanting more. The characters were so well written you became invested especially in Rose. I just can’t praise it enough!!
Amazing!
Kindle
The Frangitelli Mirror
By G.R. Thomas
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
In 1915 a book was stolen, a crow appeared, and fate dealt its hand.
Rose Carbonelli sees ghosts.
She doesn’t sleep.
She watches every corner, studies every shadow, listens to the screams that no one else hears.
Rose Carbonelli is terrified.
Her father hasn’t been heard from since he volunteered to go to war in 1915.
The money ran out a year ago, her mother, Edith, is fading away.
Rose needs a job to save them both, and an excuse to flee the ghosts of her home.
When Rutherford House advertises for a lady’s maid, Rose seizes the opportunity.
A wage to save her mother, food to fill her belly, and an escape from the dead that occupy the shadows…
It seems just so perfect.
But is it the escape Rose has been dreaming of?
Is there truth to the rumours about Rutherford House? What lurks within the bones of it? Why has the Lady Mary Rutherford not been seen in over a decade?
Is this the perfect escape, or is it another nightmare Rose could never have imagined?
I was so lucky and so thankful to receive this ARC!
See I had a feeling I would like it as I loved her last gothic horror but this was something else it was brilliant and I loved it.
I read this at night and it just added to the creepiness I have to keep checking my dark corners. The story was compelling it kept you wanting more. The characters were so well written you became invested especially in Rose. I just can’t praise it enough!!
Amazing!
Kaz (232 KP) rated The Dead Ex in Books
Nov 5, 2019
‘The Dead Ex’ was a buddy read, I had never read anything by Jane Corry before. To be quite honest with you, it will possibly be the last book I will read by this author.
Firstly, this book is split into several threads of story. We have the main character Vicki’s point of view, a little girl named Scarlett and a woman named Helen. Lately, whenever I have read a book which had more than one story thread running through it, I’ve been frustrated that one plot was good and the others, disappointing. With ‘The Dead Ex’, this was the same. I liked Scarlett’s story line and found it particularly moving. The power of this story was let down, by the weaker threads running along side it.
The characters were mostly ok, but I found some of their behaviors to be too exaggerated. This book would have been a good read for this month’s ‘Disability Read-a-thon’ (I read this just before the beginning of October), because the main character in this book, has Epilepsy. The sad thing for me though, was that this book would have been the perfect example of how NOT to portray a person with this condition.
I felt annoyed that, whenever anyone discovered that the main character had Epilepsy, she was instantly treated with suspicion. To me, this didn’t highlight the condition, but in some ways, demonized people who have to deal with Epilepsy and this wasn’t fair.
The plot of this novel was, for the most part, intriguing and I wanted to continue reading to find out what was going to happen. Whilst the many threads of story were tied up in a satisfactory way, there were a couple plot twists, which I felt to be weak, or really silly.
Overall, I think that this book was trying to highlight many social issues. Unfortunately, this need to cram a lot into the pages of this book, resulted in a weak and messy read.
This book was ok, but nothing that I would recommend rushing out to read.
My Rating: ** 1/2 Stars
Firstly, this book is split into several threads of story. We have the main character Vicki’s point of view, a little girl named Scarlett and a woman named Helen. Lately, whenever I have read a book which had more than one story thread running through it, I’ve been frustrated that one plot was good and the others, disappointing. With ‘The Dead Ex’, this was the same. I liked Scarlett’s story line and found it particularly moving. The power of this story was let down, by the weaker threads running along side it.
The characters were mostly ok, but I found some of their behaviors to be too exaggerated. This book would have been a good read for this month’s ‘Disability Read-a-thon’ (I read this just before the beginning of October), because the main character in this book, has Epilepsy. The sad thing for me though, was that this book would have been the perfect example of how NOT to portray a person with this condition.
I felt annoyed that, whenever anyone discovered that the main character had Epilepsy, she was instantly treated with suspicion. To me, this didn’t highlight the condition, but in some ways, demonized people who have to deal with Epilepsy and this wasn’t fair.
The plot of this novel was, for the most part, intriguing and I wanted to continue reading to find out what was going to happen. Whilst the many threads of story were tied up in a satisfactory way, there were a couple plot twists, which I felt to be weak, or really silly.
Overall, I think that this book was trying to highlight many social issues. Unfortunately, this need to cram a lot into the pages of this book, resulted in a weak and messy read.
This book was ok, but nothing that I would recommend rushing out to read.
My Rating: ** 1/2 Stars
Madbatdan82 (341 KP) rated Doom Asylum (1987) in Movies
Apr 18, 2019
Watching this may send you mad
This horror spoof tells the story of a couple who get into a car crash. She dies and he is presumed dead and sent to the local asylum (not a hospital for some reason!) for autopsy which he wakes up during and kills the 2 coroners. 10 years later the daughter of the woman who died in the crash and her friends visit the now abandoned asylum to see if the legend about a psychotic killer dressed as a coroner - the man from the crash. Whilst at the asylum they run into a weird all female punk band and they are all picked off one at time by the coroner...the gore is actually really good including a particularly nasty drill to the head and a toe snipping scene. The acting is awful as is the script but it's difficult to tell if that's by design as this is a send up of the slasher genre. Worth a watch for the gore but don't expect too much!!!
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2165 KP) rated Prose and Cons (Magical Bookshop, #2) in Books
Mar 9, 2018
It’s time for the annual Food and Wine festival in town, and this year Violet Waverly is adding a Poe-try reading at Charming Books to the week’s line up. However, when one of the readers is found dead at the bottom of the shop’s steep stairs during the event, things take a tragic turn. The police quickly decide it was murder and start looking at Violet’s friend Sadie. An Violet prove her friend is innocent?
I absolutely love the bookstore in this series, a shop where the perfect book finds you. That’s really the only bit of magic in the series, and Violet is left to use old fashion methods to sift through clues and motives to find the killer. I did feel some of the characters could be stronger, but the mystery is strong with plenty of red herrings before things fall into place at the end.
NOTE: I received a copy of this book.
Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2016/12/book-review-prose-and-cons-by-amanda.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
I absolutely love the bookstore in this series, a shop where the perfect book finds you. That’s really the only bit of magic in the series, and Violet is left to use old fashion methods to sift through clues and motives to find the killer. I did feel some of the characters could be stronger, but the mystery is strong with plenty of red herrings before things fall into place at the end.
NOTE: I received a copy of this book.
Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2016/12/book-review-prose-and-cons-by-amanda.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated Fire in Frost (Crystal Frost, #1) in Books
Mar 20, 2020 (Updated Mar 20, 2020)
"There's a fire growing inside of me. It's not the harmful kind that can kill a girl like Olivia. It's the kind that can save her."
CRYSTAL FROST tells herself she isn't crazy, but sane people don't see ghosts. As her psychic abilities manifest, Crystal discovers she can see into the future, witness the past, and speak with the dead. Add blackmail to the list of things she never thought would happen to her, and you basically have her sophomore year covered. After spotting her first ghost, secrets from her family, friends, and classmates begin to surface. Uncovering secrets can be dangerous, but giving up means someone will get hurt. Again.
What was refreshing with this YA was there was no teenage sexual tension drama!! It was a really well written story about a young girl discovering her special gift. It also raised awareness for domestic violence and that it's not acceptable at any age, Alicia Rades did this without coming across as preachy like some authors can. I was impressed with her style and looking forward to reading more by her.
CRYSTAL FROST tells herself she isn't crazy, but sane people don't see ghosts. As her psychic abilities manifest, Crystal discovers she can see into the future, witness the past, and speak with the dead. Add blackmail to the list of things she never thought would happen to her, and you basically have her sophomore year covered. After spotting her first ghost, secrets from her family, friends, and classmates begin to surface. Uncovering secrets can be dangerous, but giving up means someone will get hurt. Again.
What was refreshing with this YA was there was no teenage sexual tension drama!! It was a really well written story about a young girl discovering her special gift. It also raised awareness for domestic violence and that it's not acceptable at any age, Alicia Rades did this without coming across as preachy like some authors can. I was impressed with her style and looking forward to reading more by her.
Modelling Railway Scenery: Fields, Hedges and Trees: Volume 2
Book
Whether you are just about to embark on your scenic modelling journey, or want to re-work an...