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Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) created a post

Nov 17, 2021  
Stop by my blog to read part of the prologue from the contemporary Western fiction novel THE BIG EMPTY by Loren Steffy. If you like what you read, enter the giveaway to win a signed copy of the book as well as a logo hat - three winners!

https://alltheupsandowns.blogspot.com/2021/11/book-blog-tour-and-giveaway-big-empty.html

**BOOK SYNOPSIS**
When Trace Malloy and Blaine Witherspoon collide on a desolate West Texas highway, their fender bender sets the tone for escalating clashes that will determine the future of the town of Conquistador.

Malloy, a ranch manager and lifelong cowboy, knows that his occupation—and his community—are dying. He wants new- millennium opportunities for his son, even though he himself failed to summon the courage to leave familiar touchstones behind.

Witherspoon, an ambitious, Lexus-driving techie, offers a solution. He moves to Conquistador to build and run a state-of-the-art semiconductor plant that will bring prestige and high-paying technology jobs to revive the town—and advance his own career.

What neither man anticipates is the power the "Big Empty" will wield over their plans. The flat, endless expanse of dusty plain is as much a character in the conflict as are the locals struggling to subsist in this timeworn backwater and the high-tech transplants hell-bent on conquering it. While Malloy grapples with the flaws of his ancestors and his growing ambivalence toward the chip plant, Witherspoon falls prey to construction snafus, corporate backstabbing, and financial fraud. As they each confront personal fears, they find themselves united in the search for their own version of purpose in a uniquely untamable Texas landscape.
     
BF
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
70 of 230
Braving Fate ( The Mythean Arcana book 1)
By Linsey Hall
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶🌶🌶

As chaos looms, a warrior queen is reborn
Scholar Diana Laughton can't shake her terrible nightmares. Dreams of battle, dreams of blood... dreams so vivid she's living them day and night. When demons invade her quiet life and she flees to Scotland, she fears she might be going mad. Or perhaps she's remembering a past life she never knew existed...

In the midst of betrayal, he must protect her
Mythean Guardian Cadan Trinovante is haunted by a tortured history he shared with Boudica, Britain's warrior queen. Now that she's been reincarnated and given a deadly task, he vows to protect her. He won't let her uncover the truth about their past. It would make her hate him--a fate he refuses to accept.

To succumb to seduction could prove fatal
Thrown together in a shadowy world that exists alongside our own, Diana must learn to fight the demonic forces that want her dead. When Diana attempts to seduce Cadan for information about her past, he aches to claim her. His greatest battle will be resisting a passion that has lasted centuries... and is prophesied to destroy them both.


I really liked it. I love anything mythological or history based and I’m going to be honest I didn’t have a clue who Boudica was so I I also went off and learnt who she was. The story was really good and the characters were interesting it’s definitely a series and author I’ll be following. It was a little brushed or a bit jumpy in places but overall a decent start.
  
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Merissa (13169 KP) rated Malice (Mortisalian Saga #4) in Books

Feb 11, 2021 (Updated Aug 7, 2023)  
Malice (Mortisalian Saga #4)
Malice (Mortisalian Saga #4)
L.J. Stock, Lou Stock | 2021 | Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
MALICE is the final story in the Mortisalian Saga, and we continue where we left off. Cass is heavily pregnant, Damon is still a dream, Ras is still missing, Zander is gone, Alexa is a mess. I think that's us caught up!

As the final book in the saga, you REALLY need to read the others to understand just what the hell is going on. There is no easing into this world. You are there, right in the middle of everything, so just deal with it. Personally, I wouldn't have it any other way.

For a big part of this book, Cass' world is at war, so if you are expecting a gentle walk through the park, you are sorely mistaken. There is blood, pain, and violence, but all of it is written so beautifully. And yes, before anyone asks, my eyes were leaking again! I thought my heart was breaking but then I had to smile. This is the power over words that Ms. Stock has. Simply sublime.

A fast-paced story, I was worried I wouldn't get a 'proper' ending, but my fears were groundless. I got a happier ending than I was anticipating, which made it all the more perfect.

Such a fantastic series, I am sad at the thought of it ending but am so thrilled I have read it all. Definitely one to keep and re-read! Highly recommended!!!

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Feb 11, 2021
  
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ClareR (5950 KP) rated 73 Dove Street in Books

Sep 12, 2023  
73 Dove Street
73 Dove Street
Julie Owen Moylan | 2023 | Contemporary, Fiction & Poetry
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
73 Dove Street is set in the 1950’s, and begins with Edie Budd arriving at a boarding house with nothing but a suitcase. It’s clear that something has happened to her - she’s constantly alert and frightened. Edie’s story is told in a series of flashbacks starting five years before.

Two other women live at number 73: landlady Phyllis, and fellow resident Tommie. When Edie arrives, Phyllis has just finished burning the mattress of a former resident who she’d caught with her husband, along with her husbands remaining belongings.

Tommie is best described as a whirlwind. She works for a Mrs Vee, and she enjoys her nights out. But as with Edie and Phyllis, there’s a lot going on in Tommie’s life.

This is a slow burn, a character driven novel, and has exactly what I enjoy most in a book. I love learning about characters lives, especially lives that are so different from my own. The 1950’s were a time of great change (again!): men back from war, women having to adjust back to traditional roles. These things were incorporated into the stories of Edie, Tommie and Phyllis. The women are drawn together by their secrets, lies and fears, and all three end up making life-changing decisions.

The feel of this book was perfect. I was taken back to the 1950’s with its pea-souper fogs, bars with dancing and super slim skirts (or even the full ones with petticoats!).

73 Dove Street is a very emotional book at times - you’ll need your hanky - and funny too. Overall, a really great read. I thoroughly enjoyed it!
  
Fly by Night
Fly by Night
Frances Hardinge | 2005 | Children
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
116 of 220
Kindle
Fly by Night ( Book 1)
By Frances Hardinge
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A fantastic adventure story set in an alternative historical world that launches the career of a uniquely talented children's writer. In a fractured Realm, struggling to maintain an uneasy peace after years of civil war and religious tyrrany, a 12- year- old orphan and a homicidal goose become the accidental heroes of a revolution. Mosca has spent her life in a miserable hamlet, where her father was banished for writing inflammatory books about tolerance and freedom. Now he is dead, and Mosca is on the run after unintentionally setting fire to a mill. With a delightful swindler named Eponymous Clent, she heads for the city of Mandelion. A born liar, Mosca lives by her wits in a world of highwaymen and smugglers, dangerously insane rulers in ludicrous wigs, secret agents and radical plotters. She is recruited as a spy by the fanatical Mabwick Toke, leader of the Guild of Stationers, who fears losing his control over the publication of every book in the state. Mosca's activities reveal a plot to force a rule of terror on the Realm, and merry mayhem soon leads to murder..

I really enjoyed this. A girl trying to escape her fate she releases a prisoner and becomes his aide this is a full adventure for her and as she goes she learns a lot about herself and who to trust. It’s a hard road for Mosca but she has her pet goose to help her through. It’s a quirky world inspired by English history. Where books are dangerous.
  
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Daniel Holford (0 KP) rated It (2017) in Movies

Sep 20, 2017  
It (2017)
It (2017)
2017 | Drama, Horror
8
7.9 (355 Ratings)
Movie Rating
The surprise hit film of the year is here and there's no wonder it's such a hit. Immediately from the outsit of the movie it is clear what this film is going to be. Frequent scares and creepiness, mixed with excellent visuals and directing, all spliced together with a great coming of age story. Think stranger things and stand by me, with added monsters and killer clowns.

The kids are brilliant throughout, the stand out being Richie and Beverly, the former having already kicked off his career by appearing in the excellent stranger things. Although I compared the two earlier, his character could not be more different. Beverly is also excellent in her role, a brilliant young actress who shows the sadness that Beverly hides behind her fears (perhaps the most chilling/uncomfortable moment in the movie). The other kids were also good, but some rather less well developed than the others, making their struggle with their scares far less satisfying than some of the more prominent kids. I must also admit that the greatest achievement this film has is replacing Tom Curry from the original movie and having an actor, almost, maybe actually surpassing him in the form of Bill Skarsgaard. He is excellently scary and charming in the creepiest way.


The films scares are in moderate but heavy bursts, rather than the usual constant jump scares there is often anti climaxes, tension building with little to no big jump or sound effect which works in the horror franchise almost as much as a larger scare.


Overall this film has many elements that make it such a hit, the Stranger Things hype train certainly had helped it along its way. As well as having perfect comedy, great characters, directing and visuals and most of all, scares.