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The Last Leaves Falling
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
This ARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

The Last Leaves Falling is an emotional read by the author Sarah Benwell. Set in modern day Japan, Abe Sora, a 17 year old boy is trying to come to terms with his diagnosis: Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ASL). Although Sora is aware that he will die soon he is ashamed of his deteriorating muscles and his inability to walk and function like other boys his age. In order to attempt to have a "normal" life he signs up to KyoToTeenz forum where he hides behind the username SamuraiMan. He never lets on to his new friends about his disability but they soon find out when they meet in person.

Despite his initial predictions, Mai and Kaito want to stick by Sora and remain his friends. The three of them spend as much time together as possible making Sora's life more bearable while his body rapidly deteriorates.

It is very sad to read about Sora's life knowing that he will never grow up to be the person he always wanted to be. Even though there will never be a happy ending to his predicament, Sora encourages his friends, particularly Mai, to fight for who they want to be rather than giving into the the pressures of parents and school.

Knowing that Sora is going to die makes the ending slightly predictable however it is still heartbreaking. It makes the reader wonder what happens to the other characters: Mai, Kaito and Sora's mother; after the final pages.

This is a brilliant book for young adult readers. As well as dealing with difficult themes such as death, Benwell emphasises the importance of wishes and dreams. Due to certain aspects of the story (death and suicide) this book is unsuitable for the more vulnerable reader. Overall The Last Leaves Falling is an excellent work of fiction.
  
Braveheart (1995)
Braveheart (1995)
1995 | Drama, History, War
Action (2 more)
Swordplay
Freedom
Historically inaccurate (1 more)
Gibson's accent
Hold... Hold... HOOOLLLLDDDD!
Contains spoilers, click to show
As a story this is a great film, unfortunately people who have limited or no knowledge of Scottish History take this film as a portrayal of all things Scottish around this time.

So to save some confusion:
Longshanks died well after Wallace
The French Princess did not exist
The Bruce wasn't a traitor
Wallace wasn't the leader until after Stirling Bridge
Woad hadn't been worn for about 1000 years
It didn't start with the death of his wife

So now I have this off my chest, to the film itself. It is an epic and one of the films that you must see before you die, just like Shawshank, High Noon and Inside Out.

The story of the one group persecuting another, and a man coming back to his village after spending time abroad learning taking revenge on the death of his secret wife cumulating in open rebellion and war is a common story told many times in cinema history. What makes this is the scenery and the cinematography.

The fight scenes show the brutality and barbarity of war in this era in history. This does it expertly!

If you want something more historically accurate look at Rob Roy with Liam Neeson, if you want a chill film this is the one for you.
  
D(
Dishonour ( The Hallowed Crows 2)
6
6.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
20 of 220
Kindle
Dishonour (The Hallowed Crows MC 2)
By G.N. Wright
⭐️⭐️⭐️

Death. Distraction. Destruction.

That’s all my life consists of now.

It wasn't supposed to happen like this, but everything went wrong. I knew the game, the rules, the consequences, yet still I chose to play. And now he's dead. He killed him. I killed him, and nothing will ever be the same again.

I thought I could survive, that I could beat him, that I could turn to my best friend and everything would be okay, but I was wrong. Now I have blood on my hands and death in my heart.

I thought I had to fight before, that I had to watch my back, but that is nothing compared to now. Any chance of ever getting them on my side again faded the moment that bullet was fired.

My saviors

My tormentors

My salvation.

Now nothing but my enemies. I had their love, then their hate, now I have nothing but their rage.

It’s said that Crows won’t attack unless you give them a reason.

Guess I gave them one.

This is exactly as the author describes and has plenty of potential trigger warnings. It was a quick read and I did like it. Like the first it was a bit repetitive in parts and it’s the only thing that annoyed me. But make sure you read her warning’s first this is a dark reverse harem romance.