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Sophia (Bookwyrming Thoughts) (530 KP) rated The Ambrose Beacon (The Solas Prophecy, #1) in Books
Jan 23, 2020
Original Review posted at <a title="The Ambrose Beacon by Alena Gouveia" href="http://bookwyrming-thoughts.blogspot.com/2013/11/review-the-ambrose-beacon-by-alena-gouveia.html">Bookwyrming Thoughts<a/>
Note: Formatting is lost due to copy and paste, along with pictures and captions
<i><b>Disclaimer:</b> Review copy provided by author for review</i>
Let me blunt about The Ambrose Beacon: it was boring. It also became the third unfortunate book that lands into my DNF list and the first fantasy book oh wait. Not exactly the first... does the Caster Chronicles count as Fantasy, or does it count as Paranormal? If it counts as paranormal, then The Ambrose Beacon became the unfortunate first fantasy book I didn't finish.
So essentially, I give fair warning: I rated and reviewed it based on what I could manage to read so far. Which, I think I was being a bit lenient about, but I didn't throw the book against the wall, so it certainly didn't deserve a lower rating.
Now allow me to tell why I found it boring, and my general thoughts on it:
Larry and Jerry. They sound so similar (they rhyme as well), that I was befuddled and mistakenly read Jerry as Larry and vice-versa when it was really the other way around. They're best friends and one of them is the main character. How confusing can that get?
The characters don't seem to be in depth. While I get the why for Harper and Arianna, the other characters simply seem virtually pancake-like (no offense). Add to the fact that it suddenly switches POVs without some sort of sign. One minute it's Cole, the next? Dinah, Jerry, Harper, Vaughn, etc. >_<
Fairies. Probably one of my favorite things to read about, and it's not because they're sparkly and pretty and whatnot. But I was actually interested in Gouveia's take on fairies when the word was
mentioned in the earliest parts of the book.
Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to be well written, nor realistic. I mean, doing magic in public. In front of human eyewitnesses. That doesn't sound like the typical faery to me that tries to not let the human world find out about them because then it's all, "IT'S THE APOCALYPSE. I must be seeing things," or maybe, "HOLY MONKEYS. FAIRIES EXIST" *rubs eyes to make sure it's not an illusion.* But the fairies here seem like a bounce off of Fantastic Four (even though I haven't watched the movie). More like superheroes than the sidhe.
The same thing is repeated, but in different variations. Oh hooray. Demons, demons and more demons. Same kind of demon, which isn't a problem for me, but the very fact that they tend to be doing the same thing over and over and over again throughout the entire book, which is the main reason why I stopped (I really did stop at exactly 50%). There's not a lot going on, although maybe if I had the time and gave the book further chances, there might be other things going on rather than "OMG, THERE'S A DEMON THAT WANTS MY HEAD ON A PLATTER. RUN." (or in the case here, it's fight to the death.)
Generally I like fantasy. I love the creative worlds and character and creatures made up that gives me a free ticket to travel okay, that applies to any book really without having to move a single inch, and the very fact that you can't exactly buy a plane ticket to the area in the first place. Someone tell me if we can really buy a plane ticket to the Faery Realms if you so disagree on that fact. Of course... I wouldn't exactly try and mess with fairies in the first place.
I tried liking the story. I thought first thought it was because of reading The Jungle, which is dreadfully boring, and it may have influenced my thoughts on this one. Then I read Allegiant for awhile and came back to it. It didn't work out well either (and Allegiant didn't bore me).
So simply put, The Ambrose Beacon is not really my cup of tea.
*eats a biscuit and avoids unsweetened tea*
I really hate giving bad reviews. Especially DNFs.
Note: Formatting is lost due to copy and paste, along with pictures and captions
<i><b>Disclaimer:</b> Review copy provided by author for review</i>
Let me blunt about The Ambrose Beacon: it was boring. It also became the third unfortunate book that lands into my DNF list and the first fantasy book oh wait. Not exactly the first... does the Caster Chronicles count as Fantasy, or does it count as Paranormal? If it counts as paranormal, then The Ambrose Beacon became the unfortunate first fantasy book I didn't finish.
So essentially, I give fair warning: I rated and reviewed it based on what I could manage to read so far. Which, I think I was being a bit lenient about, but I didn't throw the book against the wall, so it certainly didn't deserve a lower rating.
Now allow me to tell why I found it boring, and my general thoughts on it:
Larry and Jerry. They sound so similar (they rhyme as well), that I was befuddled and mistakenly read Jerry as Larry and vice-versa when it was really the other way around. They're best friends and one of them is the main character. How confusing can that get?
The characters don't seem to be in depth. While I get the why for Harper and Arianna, the other characters simply seem virtually pancake-like (no offense). Add to the fact that it suddenly switches POVs without some sort of sign. One minute it's Cole, the next? Dinah, Jerry, Harper, Vaughn, etc. >_<
Fairies. Probably one of my favorite things to read about, and it's not because they're sparkly and pretty and whatnot. But I was actually interested in Gouveia's take on fairies when the word was
mentioned in the earliest parts of the book.
Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to be well written, nor realistic. I mean, doing magic in public. In front of human eyewitnesses. That doesn't sound like the typical faery to me that tries to not let the human world find out about them because then it's all, "IT'S THE APOCALYPSE. I must be seeing things," or maybe, "HOLY MONKEYS. FAIRIES EXIST" *rubs eyes to make sure it's not an illusion.* But the fairies here seem like a bounce off of Fantastic Four (even though I haven't watched the movie). More like superheroes than the sidhe.
The same thing is repeated, but in different variations. Oh hooray. Demons, demons and more demons. Same kind of demon, which isn't a problem for me, but the very fact that they tend to be doing the same thing over and over and over again throughout the entire book, which is the main reason why I stopped (I really did stop at exactly 50%). There's not a lot going on, although maybe if I had the time and gave the book further chances, there might be other things going on rather than "OMG, THERE'S A DEMON THAT WANTS MY HEAD ON A PLATTER. RUN." (or in the case here, it's fight to the death.)
Generally I like fantasy. I love the creative worlds and character and creatures made up that gives me a free ticket to travel okay, that applies to any book really without having to move a single inch, and the very fact that you can't exactly buy a plane ticket to the area in the first place. Someone tell me if we can really buy a plane ticket to the Faery Realms if you so disagree on that fact. Of course... I wouldn't exactly try and mess with fairies in the first place.
I tried liking the story. I thought first thought it was because of reading The Jungle, which is dreadfully boring, and it may have influenced my thoughts on this one. Then I read Allegiant for awhile and came back to it. It didn't work out well either (and Allegiant didn't bore me).
So simply put, The Ambrose Beacon is not really my cup of tea.
*eats a biscuit and avoids unsweetened tea*
I really hate giving bad reviews. Especially DNFs.

Billie Wichkan (118 KP) rated Out of the Pocket in Books
May 22, 2019
For over a century, the town of Green Beach has frightened its children with the tragic legend of Joshua Thorne. Hes the reason it not only locks its doors at night but nails its windows shut. Steeped in romance and revenge, his is the kind of story Angela Ironwright lives for.
When the specter of Joshua appears to her, insisting shes the only one who can help him piece together the fragments of his own murder, she follows him without a second thought into a place he calls the Pocket, a beautiful hidden world of jumbled memory and imagination. But the Pocket holds more than magic and mystery. Before long, its other reclusive inhabitants begin to call out to Angela, warning her not to trust Joshua and begging for her help to escape his dark power.
Angelas sure there must be some misunderstanding, and shes determined to set it straight. Otherwise, finding justice will mean betraying the only boy whos ever liked her.
Smart and genre-savvy, Out of the Pocket is a dark, honest, subversive take on the modern paranormal love story.
The plot is about a girl named Angela who doesn't have a great life in reality being ignored or ridiculed by others gets pulled into a fantasy where she falls in love and goes through perilous adventures.
Very good characters with a good story line. The characters are real with strangeness thrown in.
Love all the twist and turns.
You find yourself very surprised in a good way by this book.
This was my first from this author and I look forward to more.
I received a free copy via AXP Authors but this is my own honest voluntary review.
When the specter of Joshua appears to her, insisting shes the only one who can help him piece together the fragments of his own murder, she follows him without a second thought into a place he calls the Pocket, a beautiful hidden world of jumbled memory and imagination. But the Pocket holds more than magic and mystery. Before long, its other reclusive inhabitants begin to call out to Angela, warning her not to trust Joshua and begging for her help to escape his dark power.
Angelas sure there must be some misunderstanding, and shes determined to set it straight. Otherwise, finding justice will mean betraying the only boy whos ever liked her.
Smart and genre-savvy, Out of the Pocket is a dark, honest, subversive take on the modern paranormal love story.
The plot is about a girl named Angela who doesn't have a great life in reality being ignored or ridiculed by others gets pulled into a fantasy where she falls in love and goes through perilous adventures.
Very good characters with a good story line. The characters are real with strangeness thrown in.
Love all the twist and turns.
You find yourself very surprised in a good way by this book.
This was my first from this author and I look forward to more.
I received a free copy via AXP Authors but this is my own honest voluntary review.

Grumpy Goblin (123 KP) rated Monstress, Volume 1: Awakening in Books
Jul 25, 2019
The artwork is just breathtaking (3 more)
A complex, yet enjoyable storyline
Brilliant layout
Great quality paper and printing
I could not get enough of this.. Absolutely amazing.
Contains spoilers, click to show
I enjoy reading GNs that aren't necessarily classed as mainstream and this kept popping up on adverts. I found a copy for £4.99 on world books and figured why not give it a try.
To say I'm happy I did Woupd be an understatement... On receiving it the beauty of the artwork on the front cover just grabbed me and the pictures online really don't do it justice.
Id like to say also, it's not one I'd those GNs that has full concept pieces on the front and back covers and maybe a few inside and then the main layouts are less detailed.. Each drawing is as beautiful as the last with a mix of steampunk and art deco merged into a dark styled piece of art.
The story complimented the art perfectly and I read it from front to back in one sitting.
The story is complex seeing conflict between humans and Arcanics and you can tell there is so much backstory just waiting to be added to further volumes. The single page introductions to certain parts of the Lore within the world was extremely well done and not too overwhelming.
The story is certainly not without shock factor, seeing what is portraid as young Arcanic children tortured, eaten and with missing limbs scattered through the pages as well as a fair amount of blood and gore.
Overall the whole experience into this new dark fantasy of war, magic and monsters has been amazing and I cannot wait to carry on with this series.
To say I'm happy I did Woupd be an understatement... On receiving it the beauty of the artwork on the front cover just grabbed me and the pictures online really don't do it justice.
Id like to say also, it's not one I'd those GNs that has full concept pieces on the front and back covers and maybe a few inside and then the main layouts are less detailed.. Each drawing is as beautiful as the last with a mix of steampunk and art deco merged into a dark styled piece of art.
The story complimented the art perfectly and I read it from front to back in one sitting.
The story is complex seeing conflict between humans and Arcanics and you can tell there is so much backstory just waiting to be added to further volumes. The single page introductions to certain parts of the Lore within the world was extremely well done and not too overwhelming.
The story is certainly not without shock factor, seeing what is portraid as young Arcanic children tortured, eaten and with missing limbs scattered through the pages as well as a fair amount of blood and gore.
Overall the whole experience into this new dark fantasy of war, magic and monsters has been amazing and I cannot wait to carry on with this series.

Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated The Odd Life of Timothy Green (2012) in Movies
Aug 7, 2019
Cindy and Jim Green are sitting in an adoption agency, where they’re trying to tell their story about Timothy and how they would be good candidates in adopting a child.
The story they tell, started when they were accepting their fact that they would never be able to conceive and of having a baby. They spend time trying to accept their situation but struggle to come to terms with the heartbreaking reality.
One day Jim decides that they should imagine how their kid would be and write it down on a paper. Going through ideas on how their ideal kid would be as well as imaging how it would feel to be parents, Jim and Cindy decide to lay their ideal kid to rest and bury the paper in a box in their garden.
Little did Cindy and Jim know but something magical happened while they were asleep. A thunder storm appears, raining over their house alone and during the storm, magically, a boy name Timothy appears.
Cindy and Jim was confused at first, but came to realize where Timothy really came from and try their best to make him into an ordinary boy. But, Timothy had a few special features of his own, that would change everything.
Jennifer Garner’s acting was very well convincing as was Joel Egerton, playing Jim Green, a strong supportive husband/dad, C.J. Adams, who played Timothy Green, was very well cast as C.J. made Timothy look like every parent’s ideal kid and made it believable from the start.
The movie is an emotional film that moved more than one member of the test screening audience to tears, but such is the magic of the movies. Taking a fantasy and touching so many people in a deep and personal way.
The film is a really good family movie and it will move you.
The story they tell, started when they were accepting their fact that they would never be able to conceive and of having a baby. They spend time trying to accept their situation but struggle to come to terms with the heartbreaking reality.
One day Jim decides that they should imagine how their kid would be and write it down on a paper. Going through ideas on how their ideal kid would be as well as imaging how it would feel to be parents, Jim and Cindy decide to lay their ideal kid to rest and bury the paper in a box in their garden.
Little did Cindy and Jim know but something magical happened while they were asleep. A thunder storm appears, raining over their house alone and during the storm, magically, a boy name Timothy appears.
Cindy and Jim was confused at first, but came to realize where Timothy really came from and try their best to make him into an ordinary boy. But, Timothy had a few special features of his own, that would change everything.
Jennifer Garner’s acting was very well convincing as was Joel Egerton, playing Jim Green, a strong supportive husband/dad, C.J. Adams, who played Timothy Green, was very well cast as C.J. made Timothy look like every parent’s ideal kid and made it believable from the start.
The movie is an emotional film that moved more than one member of the test screening audience to tears, but such is the magic of the movies. Taking a fantasy and touching so many people in a deep and personal way.
The film is a really good family movie and it will move you.

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Merissa (12698 KP) created a post
Mar 13, 2021

Bai Ling recommended Roman Holiday (1953) in Movies (curated)

Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated Born of Hatred (The Hellequin Chronicles #2) in Books
Dec 5, 2020
Contains spoilers, click to show
201
Kindle
Born of Hatred ( The Hellequin chronicles book 2)
By Steve McHugh
There was a time when Nathan Garrett was feared. When the mention of his name was enough to stop his enemies in their tracks. That time has long since passed.
When Nathan's friend asks for help investigating a pattern of horrific crimes, he reluctantly agrees. But his investigation leads to a serial killer who is something more, or less, than human, a creature of pure malevolence and hatred.
There are some things that even a 1600-year-old sorcerer hesitates to challenge. But when evil targets those Nathan cares about, his enemies will discover exactly who Nathan used to be. And why they will learn to fear him once more.
Born of Hatred is an action-packed, Urban Fantasy set in modern-day England with historical flashbacks to late nineteenth century Montana. It's the second book of the Hellequin Chronicles, following the widely praised Crimes Against Magic, which introduced sorcerer Nathan Garrett. I did t think I could enjoy the second as much as the first, I was so wrong!
Loved it!! Written by a Brit the character is English it’s set in England and what’s not to love about Nate!! I love the bloke he’s powerful and funny! This one be brings Hades and Persephone In to the picture and I absolutely love all Hades parts in books! The werewolf pack are brilliant, Tommy and Kasey are great I even warmed to Olivia!! Shame about the romance not working out but a mere mortal isn’t enough for our Nate! The big bad was really chilling along with his ghouls and the barren! We are one step closer to finding the assholes in Avalon. Brilliant read! Ooo and yes the Hellequin is back!!!
Kindle
Born of Hatred ( The Hellequin chronicles book 2)
By Steve McHugh
There was a time when Nathan Garrett was feared. When the mention of his name was enough to stop his enemies in their tracks. That time has long since passed.
When Nathan's friend asks for help investigating a pattern of horrific crimes, he reluctantly agrees. But his investigation leads to a serial killer who is something more, or less, than human, a creature of pure malevolence and hatred.
There are some things that even a 1600-year-old sorcerer hesitates to challenge. But when evil targets those Nathan cares about, his enemies will discover exactly who Nathan used to be. And why they will learn to fear him once more.
Born of Hatred is an action-packed, Urban Fantasy set in modern-day England with historical flashbacks to late nineteenth century Montana. It's the second book of the Hellequin Chronicles, following the widely praised Crimes Against Magic, which introduced sorcerer Nathan Garrett. I did t think I could enjoy the second as much as the first, I was so wrong!
Loved it!! Written by a Brit the character is English it’s set in England and what’s not to love about Nate!! I love the bloke he’s powerful and funny! This one be brings Hades and Persephone In to the picture and I absolutely love all Hades parts in books! The werewolf pack are brilliant, Tommy and Kasey are great I even warmed to Olivia!! Shame about the romance not working out but a mere mortal isn’t enough for our Nate! The big bad was really chilling along with his ghouls and the barren! We are one step closer to finding the assholes in Avalon. Brilliant read! Ooo and yes the Hellequin is back!!!