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ClareR (6054 KP) rated The Burning Chambers (The Burning Chambers #1) in Books
Jan 26, 2021
This book is an immersive experience! I found myself drawn in to the world of 16th Century France - and to be fair, it was all pretty exciting stuff! Historical fiction is one of my favourite genres, one of my ‘go-to’s’, and this did not disappoint one bit. It’s a story of religion, conflict, ambition, with a bit of a love story thrown in for good measure.
It’s all history that I know little about - my history education being that of the carefully selected English type. I’ve always tried to find out more about European history (ahem, German degree) and further afield if I can, and historical fiction makes it a bit more interesting than a dry history book. This book taught me a lot about the tensions between the catholic majority, and the Huguenot minority.
Minou is the 19 year old daughter of a bookseller, and lives in Carcassonne with her family. She meets Piet, a Huguenot convert, and helps him to escape from the town. Later, in Toulouse, they meet again in far more dangerous circumstances. They become trapped in a city at war - Catholic against Huguenot - and someone that Piet believes is a friend is very far from that. In Puivert, the chatelaine of the castle has a secret that she wants to keep hidden, and the only way to do that is for her to find Minou.
First, the most obvious thing: this is one big book. It’s the kind of book that I would buy on my kindle, because at 600+ pages, it definitely won’t fit in my handbag! The Pigeonhole is great for these circumstances!
Secondly, although this book is a serious whopper, it didn’t feel that way when I was reading it. It’s an exciting, fast-paced, delight of a read. It has it all: action, history, romance. Everything that makes for a compulsive read! The heroes and heroines are good, and the villains are thoroughly bad, and I loved them all!
It’s all history that I know little about - my history education being that of the carefully selected English type. I’ve always tried to find out more about European history (ahem, German degree) and further afield if I can, and historical fiction makes it a bit more interesting than a dry history book. This book taught me a lot about the tensions between the catholic majority, and the Huguenot minority.
Minou is the 19 year old daughter of a bookseller, and lives in Carcassonne with her family. She meets Piet, a Huguenot convert, and helps him to escape from the town. Later, in Toulouse, they meet again in far more dangerous circumstances. They become trapped in a city at war - Catholic against Huguenot - and someone that Piet believes is a friend is very far from that. In Puivert, the chatelaine of the castle has a secret that she wants to keep hidden, and the only way to do that is for her to find Minou.
First, the most obvious thing: this is one big book. It’s the kind of book that I would buy on my kindle, because at 600+ pages, it definitely won’t fit in my handbag! The Pigeonhole is great for these circumstances!
Secondly, although this book is a serious whopper, it didn’t feel that way when I was reading it. It’s an exciting, fast-paced, delight of a read. It has it all: action, history, romance. Everything that makes for a compulsive read! The heroes and heroines are good, and the villains are thoroughly bad, and I loved them all!
Emma @ The Movies (1786 KP) rated Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again! (2018) in Movies
Jun 29, 2019 (Updated Sep 25, 2019)
Be still my beating vagina indeed... I think that every time I see Andy Garcia, and this time was no exception. But no more of that or I'll start drooling on the keyboard.
One thing that made me click with the movie is that we all know a Harry, Bill and Sam in their younger forms. In fact it gave me a few little traumatising flashbacks, but luckily I was soon moved on by the singing.
I'm very pleased that Pierce's singing was hidden within group pieces or as mildly rhythmic speaking. Pierce, I love you, but no! The singing is amazing throughout and listening to Cher, well, wonderful. The songs were all lovely, toe tapping and smile inducing. If nothing else, then this movie is just a brilliant chance for some karaoke.
I think that my favourite thing is Christine Baranski and Julie Walters together. They're just perfect, and how I see myself being in the future... hell, I'm almost there right now.
For a moment I really wanted to give this five stars as it was immensely enjoyable but the flaws just leave me cold on that last star. Howard Stark feels to me like the weakest out of the cast, I wasn't overly keen on him in the first one either. At several times in the movie I felt like I was watching people standing in front of a green screen, I don't know if they were or if it was just the way it was shot, but it certainly felt distracting. Lastly, if you turned the singing and dancing back into normal dialogue scenes I don't feel like you're left with much of a film, the story is just padded out with what everyone is there to see.
But like I say, it's a good watch. It is emotional and it does instil you with a warm feeling. At one point I thought I was going to actually audibly cry. There are definitely enough good moments in it to make it a must watch.
One thing that made me click with the movie is that we all know a Harry, Bill and Sam in their younger forms. In fact it gave me a few little traumatising flashbacks, but luckily I was soon moved on by the singing.
I'm very pleased that Pierce's singing was hidden within group pieces or as mildly rhythmic speaking. Pierce, I love you, but no! The singing is amazing throughout and listening to Cher, well, wonderful. The songs were all lovely, toe tapping and smile inducing. If nothing else, then this movie is just a brilliant chance for some karaoke.
I think that my favourite thing is Christine Baranski and Julie Walters together. They're just perfect, and how I see myself being in the future... hell, I'm almost there right now.
For a moment I really wanted to give this five stars as it was immensely enjoyable but the flaws just leave me cold on that last star. Howard Stark feels to me like the weakest out of the cast, I wasn't overly keen on him in the first one either. At several times in the movie I felt like I was watching people standing in front of a green screen, I don't know if they were or if it was just the way it was shot, but it certainly felt distracting. Lastly, if you turned the singing and dancing back into normal dialogue scenes I don't feel like you're left with much of a film, the story is just padded out with what everyone is there to see.
But like I say, it's a good watch. It is emotional and it does instil you with a warm feeling. At one point I thought I was going to actually audibly cry. There are definitely enough good moments in it to make it a must watch.
Aisle — Dating App for Indians
Dating, Lifestyle and Social Networking
1.0
Rate It
App
Read beautiful stories of couples who met on Aisle - https://blog.aisle.co/ • What is Aisle? ...
Liebe für unterwegs - Die schönsten Liebessprüche, Zitate und Liebesgedichte für meinen Schatz
Lifestyle and Book
App
★★★ The best love texts, quotes, poems and sayings for your iPhone and iPad - ★★★ ...
Kristy H (1252 KP) rated All Your Perfects in Books
Oct 1, 2020
This is the first book in my #atozchallenge! I'm challenging myself to read a book from my shelves that starts with each letter of the alphabet. Let's clear those shelves and delve into that backlist!
Quinn and Graham had the perfect romance and marriage. But now, that marriage is on the rocks and all those perfect memories threatened as their union is about to implode. If they can't talk to each other and work things out, they're done. Can they get past their problems and find that perfection again?
Wow, I picked a doozy for the first book in my challenge! This book was almost physically hard to read at times! It's a brutal look at a struggling marriage, as Quinn and Graham--once a perfect couple--can barely look at or talk to one another. Told in a then and now format from Quinn's perspective, we see how the two fell head over heels in love. And, conversely, we see how they fell apart. It's an emotional and tense read that's often bitterly sad and heartbreaking. Hoover makes you feel as if you're in the book, part of the characters' dissolving marriage.
This one hit home, as Quinn and Graham battle with infertility, something I know quite well. If you've struggled with this, this will be a hard read--yet you'll be able to find many parallels with the couple. It's not necessarily a happy book, yet it's romantic and sweet too. It presents a very realistic portrayal of marriage and one of the best portraits of a (straight) couple grappling with infertility that I've ever read.
This isn't an easy book to read, but it's really quite good. It packs a sucker punch, but in a good way. You'll find yourself lost in Quinn and Graham's world--I certainly recommend this fierce, touching look at love, marriage, and how far we will go for the ones we care about. 4+ stars.
Quinn and Graham had the perfect romance and marriage. But now, that marriage is on the rocks and all those perfect memories threatened as their union is about to implode. If they can't talk to each other and work things out, they're done. Can they get past their problems and find that perfection again?
Wow, I picked a doozy for the first book in my challenge! This book was almost physically hard to read at times! It's a brutal look at a struggling marriage, as Quinn and Graham--once a perfect couple--can barely look at or talk to one another. Told in a then and now format from Quinn's perspective, we see how the two fell head over heels in love. And, conversely, we see how they fell apart. It's an emotional and tense read that's often bitterly sad and heartbreaking. Hoover makes you feel as if you're in the book, part of the characters' dissolving marriage.
This one hit home, as Quinn and Graham battle with infertility, something I know quite well. If you've struggled with this, this will be a hard read--yet you'll be able to find many parallels with the couple. It's not necessarily a happy book, yet it's romantic and sweet too. It presents a very realistic portrayal of marriage and one of the best portraits of a (straight) couple grappling with infertility that I've ever read.
This isn't an easy book to read, but it's really quite good. It packs a sucker punch, but in a good way. You'll find yourself lost in Quinn and Graham's world--I certainly recommend this fierce, touching look at love, marriage, and how far we will go for the ones we care about. 4+ stars.
Blair's Halloween Boutique
Games and Education
App
How long haven't you been to Blair's Boutique? How's her shop going? It will absolutely surprise you...
Dungeon Survival
Games
App
[*] Game Features ·Randomly generated cave levels provide a different game experience every time! ...
Grow Forest
Education and Games
App
Ah, the forest, such a magical place! In this particular forest, Banja and her friends are waiting...
ClareR (6054 KP) rated The Country of Others in Books
Sep 19, 2021
This is a fascinating look at Leïla Slimani’s own family history.
Mathilde falls in love with, and marries, Amine Belhaj, a Moroccan stationed in Alsace. After the war, she sails to Morocco to live with Amine on his family farm. Life is so different to that in France, and Mathilde struggles to adapt. The French there shun her because of her husband, and Moroccans are suspicious of her because she’s French.
It’s a time of great upheaval in the 1950’s, as the Moroccans fight for independence from France, and life becomes increasingly dangerous for the Belhaj’s.
It’s a challenging life for Mathilde: she has to work hard, and Amine has a very fixed idea of a wife’s role. When she doesn’t stick to his rules, voices her opinions or disagrees, Amine beats her - he’s a violent man, scarred by the things that he saw and experienced in the war.
Mathilde does manage to insist that their daughter, Aicha, goes to a good French speaking school, and Aicha proves to be a good, diligent student - but the other girls at school are poisoned by their parents views: they’re very unkind and bully her.
There is a real feel for the heat and dust of Morocco. The contrasting cultures and religions of Christianity and Islam are shown, as well as the roles of women and how they are restricted in the light of their religions and it’s traditions. It looks at what it is to be a foreigner in a strange land; belonging, both in a country and a family; and the Moroccan struggle for independence from France.
This is going to be a trilogy, and I’m already fully invested in it - I can’t wait for the next book. Sam Taylor’s translation is perfect, and I hope that they’ll be translating the subsequent books as well.
Many thanks to The Pigeonhole for helping me (yet again!) with my NetGalley reading, and to Faber for my ebook copy through NetGalley.
Mathilde falls in love with, and marries, Amine Belhaj, a Moroccan stationed in Alsace. After the war, she sails to Morocco to live with Amine on his family farm. Life is so different to that in France, and Mathilde struggles to adapt. The French there shun her because of her husband, and Moroccans are suspicious of her because she’s French.
It’s a time of great upheaval in the 1950’s, as the Moroccans fight for independence from France, and life becomes increasingly dangerous for the Belhaj’s.
It’s a challenging life for Mathilde: she has to work hard, and Amine has a very fixed idea of a wife’s role. When she doesn’t stick to his rules, voices her opinions or disagrees, Amine beats her - he’s a violent man, scarred by the things that he saw and experienced in the war.
Mathilde does manage to insist that their daughter, Aicha, goes to a good French speaking school, and Aicha proves to be a good, diligent student - but the other girls at school are poisoned by their parents views: they’re very unkind and bully her.
There is a real feel for the heat and dust of Morocco. The contrasting cultures and religions of Christianity and Islam are shown, as well as the roles of women and how they are restricted in the light of their religions and it’s traditions. It looks at what it is to be a foreigner in a strange land; belonging, both in a country and a family; and the Moroccan struggle for independence from France.
This is going to be a trilogy, and I’m already fully invested in it - I can’t wait for the next book. Sam Taylor’s translation is perfect, and I hope that they’ll be translating the subsequent books as well.
Many thanks to The Pigeonhole for helping me (yet again!) with my NetGalley reading, and to Faber for my ebook copy through NetGalley.
Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated Hanks Radio ( Haunted Collection book 4) in Books
Apr 2, 2022
58 of 230
Kindle
Hanks Radio ( Haunted Collection 4)
By Ron Ripley
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A man's seductive voice emanates from an antique radio, luring women into his murderous embrace....
It's business as usual for Stefan Korzh as he continues to send haunted antiques onto unsuspecting buyers. Despite going into hiding, his desire to punish the universe for his own misfortune remains unchecked.
Victor Daniels, now more than ever, is focused on grabbing Korzh by the neck and making him feel the full extent of his pain and suffering. But plans change when a suave ghost from the 1940s leaves a trail of dead bodies in his wake. Hank, a sly and charming specter, uses a mahogany-colored radio to reach his victims...lonely, elderly women in nursing homes who find him hard to resist.
Meanwhile, Tom Crane is slowly adjusting to the life of a home-schooled student, spending his days immersed in books from the local library. But brewing underneath his scholarly demeanor is his insatiable thirst for revenge. With Victor occupied, Tom embarks on a dangerous mission to confront the man behind his misery.
The lives of Stefan, Victor, and Tom become more and more intertwined as they continue to play the blood-riddled sport. When old friends - and enemies - reveal themselves, they discover that anything is possible in a game filled with ghosts and vengeance.
Even the hunter can become the hunted....
I really enjoy these books and the character development. We pick up with Victor And Tom in this one and how they are dealing with Jeremy’s death and there continued search for Korzh. They get split up and things go a little haywire. These are so good and they involve a different vengeful spirit each time. This on also brought back the doll Anne that thing really gives me the bloody creeps. Recommended if you enjoy a good ghost story.
Kindle
Hanks Radio ( Haunted Collection 4)
By Ron Ripley
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A man's seductive voice emanates from an antique radio, luring women into his murderous embrace....
It's business as usual for Stefan Korzh as he continues to send haunted antiques onto unsuspecting buyers. Despite going into hiding, his desire to punish the universe for his own misfortune remains unchecked.
Victor Daniels, now more than ever, is focused on grabbing Korzh by the neck and making him feel the full extent of his pain and suffering. But plans change when a suave ghost from the 1940s leaves a trail of dead bodies in his wake. Hank, a sly and charming specter, uses a mahogany-colored radio to reach his victims...lonely, elderly women in nursing homes who find him hard to resist.
Meanwhile, Tom Crane is slowly adjusting to the life of a home-schooled student, spending his days immersed in books from the local library. But brewing underneath his scholarly demeanor is his insatiable thirst for revenge. With Victor occupied, Tom embarks on a dangerous mission to confront the man behind his misery.
The lives of Stefan, Victor, and Tom become more and more intertwined as they continue to play the blood-riddled sport. When old friends - and enemies - reveal themselves, they discover that anything is possible in a game filled with ghosts and vengeance.
Even the hunter can become the hunted....
I really enjoy these books and the character development. We pick up with Victor And Tom in this one and how they are dealing with Jeremy’s death and there continued search for Korzh. They get split up and things go a little haywire. These are so good and they involve a different vengeful spirit each time. This on also brought back the doll Anne that thing really gives me the bloody creeps. Recommended if you enjoy a good ghost story.