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Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) created a post

Feb 25, 2022  
Sneak a peak at the Christian romantic suspense novel TRUST ME by Kelly Irvin, Author on my blog. Be sure to read Kelly's fantastic guest post of how "adopted hometown offers perfect setting for crime fiction—good and bad", and enter the giveaway for a chance to win a signed copy of the book - 3 winners total!

https://alltheupsandowns.blogspot.com/2022/02/book-blog-tour-and-giveaway-trust-me-by.html

**BOOK SYNOPSIS**
When her best friend is murdered the same way her brother was, who can she possibly trust?

A decade ago, Delaney Broward discovered her brother’s murdered body at the San Antonio art co-op he founded with friends. Her artist boyfriend, Hunter Nash, went to prison for the murder, despite his not-guilty plea.

This morning, Hunter walks out of prison a free man, having served his sentence.

This afternoon, Delaney finds her best friend dead, murdered in the same fashion as her brother.

Stay out of it or you’re next, the killer warns.

Hunter never stopped loving Delaney, though he can’t blame her for not forgiving her. He knows he’ll get his life back one day at a time, one step at a time. But he’s blindsided to realize he’s a murder suspect. Again.

When Hunter shows up on her doorstep, asking her to help him find the real killer, Delaney’s head says to run away, yet her heart tells her there’s more to his story than what came out in the trial. An uneasy truce leads to their probe into a dark past that shatters Delaney’s image of her brother. She can’t stop and neither can Hunter—which lands them both in the crosshairs of a murderer growing more desperate by the day (hour?).

In this gripping romantic suspense, Kelly Irvin plumbs the complexity of broken trust in the people we love—and in God—and whether either can be mended.
     
Tales & Games: The Hare & the Tortoise
Tales & Games: The Hare & the Tortoise
2011 | Animals, Book, Card Game, Kids Game, Racing
I don’t know if I approve of the box art where the Tortoise is smashing the head of the Hare while throwing peace signs, but other than that, this is a cute little game of betting, racing, and a pinch (hear that, Tortoise? A PINCH!) of take-that. Read on to learn how this game has fared in my collection.

We all know the story of the Tortoise and the Hare, where quick but cocky Hare naps during the race while “Slow and steady wins the race” Tortoise passes him and ultimately does, in fact, win the race. From what I remember of this story, it was a race between the Hare and the Tortoise. However, in this little bookbox game our titular heroes are joined in the rematch race by Wolf, Lamb, and Fox. Who do you think will win this silly race? Place your bets!

DISCLAIMER: I do not intend to cover every single rule included in the rule book, but will describe the overall game flow and major rule set so that our readers may get a sense of how the game plays. For more in depth rules, you may purchase a copy from the publisher directly or from your FLGS. – T

The winner of Tales & Games: The Hare & The Tortoise (which I will try not to write again) is the player who can get their favored characters across the finish line first. This is accomplished throughout the game by players throwing cards on their turn to help characters jockey for position. Each character has a special ability to help them achieve victory, and utilizing these abilities at just the right time could mean the difference between the podium or the port-a-potty.

To setup, build the race track using the provided tiles in any fashion you prefer. Place the Start tile, the Finish Line, and the winner’s podium in their places, set out the character animeeples, and deal each player a secret betting card (with the starball on the back). These cards will dictate who you want to win the race. Deal each player seven cards from the checker board backed deck, and have each player choose one of the dealt animals as their secondary choice for the race. You are now ready to play.

On a player’s turn they will play any 1-4 cards they want provided the set of cards played feature the same animal. This will continue around the table until eight animal cards have been played, OR four of the same animal. At that point, the animals will move and activate any special abilities. These abilities vary by animal, and I won’t be listing out each ability, but each animal can move differently depending on how many cards of each animal are played. Play continues in this fashion until three animals have crossed the finish line and claimed their spots atop the podium. Each spot on the podium scores appropriately (5 VP for 1st, 3 VP for 2nd, 2 VP for 3rd place), and the players who own betting cards of the winning animals total their points for the game and a winner is decided.

Components. This is one of the IELLO Tales & Games series that are presented in a nice little book-shaped magnetic box. The box is cool, the insert is… serviceable, and the cardboard components are great. The cards are good, and the animeeples are cute. So overall IELLO gets two claws up from me.

I do not have many betting games that I actually enjoy, so having this little nugget of joy on my shelves feels good. When my children are old enough to really get into gaming, I feel confident that I can pull this out, read the included fable, and play the game with them easily. You’re just throwing cards trying to get your preferred animals to win a race. It’s a great, easy, fun little game that has always gone over well each time I have pulled it out. It will never join my Top 10 Games Ever list, but it is definitely an Old Faithful game that I will have available to whomever would like to play. If you like light racing and betting games with cute themes, then you need to play this one. Purple Phoenix Games gives this a carbo-loaded 9 / 12.
  
Last Night in Soho (2021)
Last Night in Soho (2021)
2021 | Drama, Horror, Thriller
Edgar Wright’s Haunting Love Letter to the Swinging Sixties.
A young 21st-century teen walks in her nightclothes down a darkened alley emerging into a bustling 60’s Soho street across from a theatre showing “Thunderball”. She enters the Cafe de Paris with a reflection mimicking her actions but showing a very different girl. So it was that the trailer for Edgar Wright’s “Last Night in Soho” hit earlier this year.

The trailer grabbed me by the gut and firmly cemented it as a “must see” in my movie-watching schedule. Frustratingly, Covid got in my way. But now free of the wretched virus, this had just HAD be my first outing.

Plot Summary:
Eloise (Thomasin McKenzie) is a Cornish teen whose fashion and music tastes are firmly rooted in the ’60s. She is also blessed (or plagued) with having visions of people who’ve passed, including her dead mother.

Travelling to a London fashion school, Eloise is a lost soul in a raucous world. But at night, she is mystically transported back to the swinging 60’s into the body of aspiring singer Sandie (Anya Taylor-Joy). Sandie is under the thrall of ‘manager’ Jack (Matt Smith), and Eloise witnesses events that she needs to tell people about. But who would possibly believe such a tale?

Certification:
US: R. UK: 18.

Talent:
Starring: Thomasin McKenzie, Anya Taylor-Joy, Matt Smith, Terence Stamp, Diana Rigg.

Directed by: Edgar Wright.

Written by: Krysty Wilson-Cairns (based on a story by Edgar Wright).

“Last Night in Soho” Review: Positives:
This is SUCH a tour de force of filmmaking. Honestly, there were moments in here, particularly in the first half of the movie, where I was beaming from ear to ear at the audacity of it all. That ‘time travel’ reveal is even better in ‘the flesh’ than it was in the trailer, enhanced by the vibrant cinematography of Chung-hoon Chung.
Thomasin McKensie again impressed me immensely. She was of course the ‘girl in the attic’ from “Jojo Rabbit” and the best thing in the lacklustre M. Night Shyamalan feature “Old“. Anya Taylor-Joy is as spectacular as you would expect and Matt Smith also delivers, although I wasn’t completely convinced by Smith’s cockney accent. And what a wonderful thing to watch veteran actors Terence Stamp and Diana RIgg strut their stuff on the big screen. (This was Rigg’s final screen performance, and the film is dedicated to her: “For Diana”. RIP Ms Rigg.)
The combination of ‘in camera’ and special effects here are gob-smackingly effective. Some of the ‘mirror’ effects involving Eloise, Sandie and Jack in the club are gleeful. And I’m not sure how they were all done. And a dance sequence where Eloise switches to Sandie and back again is just so clever.
The Production Design is just brilliant. It oozes a combination of 60’s style and sleaze. Surely an Oscar nomination is due here.
As with other Edgar Wright movies (like “Baby Driver“) the choice of music is superb. The score is by Oscar winning composer Steven Price, but you can be sure that Wright was heavily involved in the track selections. These prominently feature a Cilla Black track – heralded by 15 string beats of total perfection – that is in my top 5 songs from the 60’s. And Anya Taylor-Joy’s haunting version of “Downtown” is just superb.
Acting Royalty…. Diana Rigg in her last role, and….

Negatives:
The second half of the film just doesn’t *quite* live up to the promise of the first half (which was running as a clear 5*s).
While the inevitable twist in the tale is clever (and unexpected), I thought it was rather clumsily introduced. (I can’t go into details without introducing spoilers, but an envelope is involved). Something more subliminal would have been my preference; something that you would have had to watch the film again to catch.
A stunning starring role for Thomasin McKenzie. Just wonderful.

Summary Thoughts on “Last Night in Soho”
I loved this one. It lived up to my expectations, and came close to “classic status”. I need to give this careful consideration as to where this sits in my “Top 10 Films of the Year”, but it is undoubtedly up there in the list.

Highly recommended, if you are content to stomach some violent (and quite disturbing) horror imagery.
  
Tokyo Heat (Nights #3)
Tokyo Heat (Nights #3)
A.M. Salinger | 2018 | Contemporary, LGBTQ+, Romance
10
10.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
another scorching hot one!!
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.

This is book three in the series, and you really SHOULD read book one, One Night, first. This is a continuation of Gabe and Cam's story. And it's a 5 star read! Book two, The Escort ain't too shabby either!

A year ago, Cam and Gabe decided one night would never be enough. Then Gabe says those three little words and Cam's world implodes, and he runs.

I loved One Night, made a new shelf for it and everything. But, while still a great, sexy read, I found this one lacking in the emotions i expected with someone running when told I love you.

Oh! Don't get me wrong, these guys still burn high, and hot and long. I just didn't feel connected to Cam as much as I did to Gabe. Because we get Gabe dealing, or rather NOT dealing with the fact that Cam ran, but we don't get much of Cam after he runs, you know??

BUT OH.MY.GOD! When Cam pulls his head out of his ass and gets his act together and finally realises what that pain in his chest is?? That it's what he's feeling for Gabe?? He redeems himself in spectacular fashion! **that fanning again, girls!**

I saw something going on between the two guys who own the company Gabe works for. I wonder what's going on there and whether they will get a story?? It's not book 4 or 5, cos I have those all lined up ready to go, but I HOPE they get a story!

Ah, you know what?? Stuff it! I wrote 4 stars at the top of the page because of that not connecting to Cam thing. But now I'm typing it up, I think that's just CAM, you know?? He doesn't want you to know what he feels for Gabe, what he's dealing with while they are apart. He wants GABE to know, just how deeply he loves him. He DOES love Gabe, he just never thought he could love anyone.

So! Upgrading to...

5 even more scorching stars!

**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
  
I Feel Pretty (2018)
I Feel Pretty (2018)
2018 | Comedy
Pretty Average
Renee Bennett (Amy Schumer) feels average, and anything but pretty in this world. Clothing store workers sneer at her choice of fashion, suggesting that she should instead venture in the direction of the plus size clothing. Supermarket customers mistake her as just a downtrodden employee, focusing instead on the 'perfect' girl standing beside her. In busy bars, workers favour the pretty girls ordering drinks over her, and in her exercise class she's made to feel uncomfortable at her larger than average footwear needs. She's also part of a small group of 3 friends, who all struggle to attract dates in this superficial world, and wish they were prettier.

Then one day, Renee falls off her exercise bike and bangs her head. When she comes round, she believes that magic has made her beautiful, and she thinks that all her friends are seeing someone completely different. Only they're not, they're seeing exactly the same person as before.

This perceived change gives Renee a new found confidence. She believes that men are trying to hit on her, and in one of the movies funnier moments, she believes she can win a bikini competition. She also pursues her dream of becoming receptionist for the large cosmetics company she works for, moving from the dull, dark office of their online division all the way up to their big shiny head office where all the beautiful people work. And where her idol and boss, Avery LeClaire (Michelle Williams) works. Eventually, another bang to the head reverses the 'spell' and Renee has to try and deal with the sudden realisation that beauty really is only skin deep.

With Amy Schumer onboard for this, I guess I was expecting it to be a lot funnier than it actually is. While I didn't not like it, I've got to say I was pretty disappointed overall. There's obviously a strong message to this movie, but it gradually becomes muddled as the movie progresses and isn't effectively executed, which is a real shame considering. I wondered if being a man, I was maybe missing the message and failing to appreciate it as much as a woman might, but my wife actually felt the same way.
  
Show all 3 comments.
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Daniel Boyd (1066 KP) May 21, 2018

Also, isn't this movie just a retread of Shallow Hal? And it wasn't funny then either.

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Lee (2222 KP) May 21, 2018

@Daniel Boyd I actually didn't mind Trainwreck, but totally get where you're coming from and had low expectations heading into this anyway. And I completely agree with the Melissa McCarthy comment too! And yes, it is definitely a retread of Shallow Hal.

Lords of Chaos (2018)
Lords of Chaos (2018)
2018 | Drama
This Was a Miss For Me
Lords of Chaos is the tragic story of a teenager trying to bring Black Metal to Norway. Let’s get this out of the way now: The movie is a mess. I didn’t feel enriched after watching it in any shape, form, or fashion. Instead, I left with a very bad taste in my mouth and a desire to cut on a comedy after watching something so morbidly depressing.

Acting: 10

Beginning: 2
”What are you watching?” my wife asked from the other room. “Sounds awful!” She wasn’t wrong as the beginning attempts to explain all the W’s to the backdrop of hardcore, in-your-face metal. The music isn’t the problem, but I feel like they should have chosen one or the other: Either jump right into the metal music and set the tone or narrate the backstory first. Both made for a horrible mix.

Characters: 10

Cinematography/Visuals: 4

Conflict: 5

Genre: 3

Memorability: 4

Pace: 1
Show a gruesome suicide. Burn 100 churches. Stab a man in the woods. There was nothing that could be done to really get me interested in this movie. A lot of the film felt like shock value which diminished my interest in what was happening. My eyes spent more time running from what was happening than being engrossed in it. Pacing is one of the most important parts of a movie. You screw that up and it spells doom for the rest of the movie.

Plot: 7

Resolution: 3
One of the worst endings I’ve seen in movies. The worst part is you absolutely know it’s coming, but director Jonas Akerlund decides to make you sit through it anyway. After it was over, I felt like I had been skunked.

Overall: 49
There are some things that this movie did well. As you watch these characters go off the deep end, it definitely feels genuine and real. Unfortunately, for every one good thing I can name about Lords of Chaos, I can think of ten bad. This was a miss for me.
  
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Lumos (380 KP) rated Book Catalogue in Apps

Jan 29, 2018  
Book Catalogue
Book Catalogue
Book
9
8.3 (3 Ratings)
App Rating
Fast to add books (0 more)
So easy!
Holy pickles! I can not say enough about this app! I have been looking for a way to better categorize my books for years. I recently rearranged my loving room (where all my books live) and I needed to take all my books from the shelves to move the book cases I have. It was quite a process but I figured, since all the books needed to come off the shelves anyway, I might as well put them away in a much more organized fashion.

 Luckily, I was able to find this wonderful app. It was SO easy to use! All I needed to do was scan the ISBN on my books and it loaded them onto my virtual bookshelves. It must pull the information from the internet somewhere because when you add a new book, it provides so much information for you (if it is part of a series, who published it, a description, a picture of the cover, how many pages). It also allows you to edit the books on your shelves. You can give a rating, note if you read the book, indicate when you started and finished the book, and you can note if you loaned the book to a friend! The best part is that you can organize your books in SO many different ways (author’s last name, unread books first, title, series, genre, publication date, date added, etc).

This app is such a life saver! It took me just over an hour to scan all 488 books I own and mark them read. It made the process of putting them all back on the shelves so much faster because it was all listed in the order that I wanted. Also, it provided a picture of the cover of the book so I knew what I was looking for when trying to find them to put back on the shelf. I love that it tells you if you have already entered the book when you scan one in… that way you don’t make the mistake of buying extra copies of books, unless you intend to.