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Debbiereadsbook (1110 KP) rated Sweet Possession (Nights Series #5) in Books
Aug 9, 2018
I'm not liking Luke and Ash!
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.
This is book 5 in the Nights series, and you should AT LEAST read book 4, Sweet Obsession before this one, this is a continuation of Ash and Luke's story.
I LOVED books one through three, but four and now five, have been a bit of a let down. Maybe I just don't like Luke and Ash, you know??
This has a little bit of a story, thrown in with some hot and steamy stuff, and a lot of Luke being a total twat of an idiot thinking about what he thinks Ash needs. And rather than talking to Ash, he runs. Much like Cam did when Gabe says those three little words.
I loved that Ash could make the famous Luke Rutherford lose his cool and totally let himself go and take from, and indeed GIVE to, Ash, what they both really need.
Loved that we get an appearance from Gabe and Cam, and Ethan and Joe.
I dunno WHY these two books didn't quite work for me, I really don't and you KNOW how much it pains me not being able to word the feelings!
BUT!! In book 3, I saw something going on between the two guys who own the company Gabe works for. THEIR story is next, and I cannot wait to read it!
So, I'm sorry, but...
3 stars (but please keep these coming!)
**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
This is book 5 in the Nights series, and you should AT LEAST read book 4, Sweet Obsession before this one, this is a continuation of Ash and Luke's story.
I LOVED books one through three, but four and now five, have been a bit of a let down. Maybe I just don't like Luke and Ash, you know??
This has a little bit of a story, thrown in with some hot and steamy stuff, and a lot of Luke being a total twat of an idiot thinking about what he thinks Ash needs. And rather than talking to Ash, he runs. Much like Cam did when Gabe says those three little words.
I loved that Ash could make the famous Luke Rutherford lose his cool and totally let himself go and take from, and indeed GIVE to, Ash, what they both really need.
Loved that we get an appearance from Gabe and Cam, and Ethan and Joe.
I dunno WHY these two books didn't quite work for me, I really don't and you KNOW how much it pains me not being able to word the feelings!
BUT!! In book 3, I saw something going on between the two guys who own the company Gabe works for. THEIR story is next, and I cannot wait to read it!
So, I'm sorry, but...
3 stars (but please keep these coming!)
**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
The Isle (2018)
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Debbiereadsbook (1110 KP) rated The Proposition (Nights Series #6) in Books
Aug 24, 2018
straight back up to 5 stars!
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.
We met Rhys and Wade in book 3, but I would say you don't need to read the other books before this one. You don't NEED to, but you'd get a better enjoyment of these if you did. And this is book 6, so get a-reading!
Wade and Rhys are partners in the firm that Gabe works for. They've know each other some 16 years. Rhys has lusted over and loved Wade for 12 of those years, and Wade has lusted over Rhys for just 12 months. 12 months ago, he caught Rhys pleasuring himself and calling out Wade's name when he did. So, 6 weeks. They have 6 weeks to get whatever *this* is, out their system. But will 6 weeks really be enough??
Did I mention that I made a new shelf for these books? No?? Oh, well I did, and I called it "fan yourself, it's a hot one!" Books one, two and three are sitting there, and now they are joined by book 6!
Because Rhys and Wade have blow your socks off chemistry! That much was obvious when we met them before but here? Once these guys admit they are doing this, this proposition, they are all in and I think they could probably give Cam and Gabe run for their money!
I loved that both men, separately of each other, came to the conclusion, very quickly, that 6 weeks would NEVER ever be enough. That it took a silly misunderstanding on Rhys' part for them to openly admit their feelings.
Loved that Gabe and Cam (books one and three) and Ethan and Joe (book two) take part here. Luke and Ash (books for and five) are mentioned, but don't appear.
These guys do say those three little words, but they also have another book planned, which is book 9, so I'd say they have their Happy For Now, rather than a Happy Ever After.
Who is book 7 and 8?? No idea, don't care, wanna read them regardless! A certain someone is a little hard done by here, and I'd love for him to have his own book.
After books one through three were five stars, we slipped a little with four and five, but whoosh! Just like that, we're back up to..
5 super sexy stars!!
**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
We met Rhys and Wade in book 3, but I would say you don't need to read the other books before this one. You don't NEED to, but you'd get a better enjoyment of these if you did. And this is book 6, so get a-reading!
Wade and Rhys are partners in the firm that Gabe works for. They've know each other some 16 years. Rhys has lusted over and loved Wade for 12 of those years, and Wade has lusted over Rhys for just 12 months. 12 months ago, he caught Rhys pleasuring himself and calling out Wade's name when he did. So, 6 weeks. They have 6 weeks to get whatever *this* is, out their system. But will 6 weeks really be enough??
Did I mention that I made a new shelf for these books? No?? Oh, well I did, and I called it "fan yourself, it's a hot one!" Books one, two and three are sitting there, and now they are joined by book 6!
Because Rhys and Wade have blow your socks off chemistry! That much was obvious when we met them before but here? Once these guys admit they are doing this, this proposition, they are all in and I think they could probably give Cam and Gabe run for their money!
I loved that both men, separately of each other, came to the conclusion, very quickly, that 6 weeks would NEVER ever be enough. That it took a silly misunderstanding on Rhys' part for them to openly admit their feelings.
Loved that Gabe and Cam (books one and three) and Ethan and Joe (book two) take part here. Luke and Ash (books for and five) are mentioned, but don't appear.
These guys do say those three little words, but they also have another book planned, which is book 9, so I'd say they have their Happy For Now, rather than a Happy Ever After.
Who is book 7 and 8?? No idea, don't care, wanna read them regardless! A certain someone is a little hard done by here, and I'd love for him to have his own book.
After books one through three were five stars, we slipped a little with four and five, but whoosh! Just like that, we're back up to..
5 super sexy stars!!
**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
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Purple Phoenix Games (2266 KP) rated Dinos Not Assembled in Tabletop Games
Mar 15, 2021
I think it’s no secret that I would be super hyped to go on a dinosaur dig. My brother, Bryan, is certainly more of a dino dude than I am, but I still remember loving them as a child and wishing I could see a skeleton being unearthed. Now I am the one with children who wish the same thing, and now I can play games with just that theme and they enjoy themselves. This is just such a game.
Dinos Not Assembled is a competitive set collection board game with hints of take-that for two to four players that can be enjoyed by players as young as four years old (I know this because my son is four and he loves it). In it players are acting as assistant paleontologists vying for the prestigious opportunity to join a world-famous paleo on their next dig. The player who is first to display three complete dinosaur skeletons in their portion of the museum will win the chance to go on the dig and win the game.
DISCLAIMER: We were provided a copy of this game for the purposes of this review. This is a retail copy of the game, so what you see in these photos is exactly what would be received in your box. I do not intend to cover every single rule included in the rulebook, 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 online or from your FLGS. -T
To setup place the main Museum Board and Dig Site Board in the middle of the table. The Dino Cards are shuffled and each player receives two cards. In addition each player will choose their Character Boards and section of the museum. All Bone Tiles are shuffled into the Dirt Sack, four of these tiles are drawn and displayed on the Dig Site Board, and the Dino Meeples are placed on the table nearby. The first player receives the velociraptor talon (in my copy) and the game may begin!
On a turn a player may perform one action from a choice of five actions: Dig, Steal, Clear, Make, Plan. Since the players are attempting to build their dinosaur skeletons based on the necessary tile types from their Dino Cards, players may Dig by selecting two Bone Tiles from the Dig Site Board to add to their Character Board. Players may never have more than four tiles at any one time. Perhaps the Dig Site Board offers nothing of interest to the active player. The active player may choose to instead Steal one Bone Tile from another player onto their own Character Board. When this happens the player that was just stolen from alerts the Security Meeple and they take the meeple to their Character Board to signify they may not be stolen from again until another player has suffered a Steal action. The active player may choose to instead Clear the board by removing the tiles on offer and drawing four new tiles to the board.
Once a player has collected the necessary Bone Tiles to build a dino skeleton they may Make the skeleton. This requires the player to discard their Bone Tiles back to the Dirt Sack (which I mistakenly kept calling the Dirt Bag), place their completed Dino Card on their Character Board, and place the appropriate Dino Meeple on one of their museum spaces. This player is now one dino closer to winning the game.
If none of these options suit the active player they may always Plan a new dig by drawing a Dino Card from the pile on the Dig Site Board and adding it to their hand. Players may not hold more than three Dino Cards at any one time.
Play continues in this manner of players choosing one action to perform on their turn until one player has made their third dino skeleton. That player wins the game and then gloats to their father. I mean, that didn’t happen…
Components. This game is fabulously produced. The artwork is just perfect for this game. It is colorful, cartoony without being too wacky, and lovable all around. The components themselves are also very good quality. My favorite pieces are all the Dino Meeples and the fancy Security Meeple. Securiteeple?
For a game that states it is intended for players aged eight and above this is a great family game. Yes, my four year old plays it and loves it, and absolutely zero reading skills are necessary to play. The Dino Cards have some fun facts on them, but are not required to enjoy the game. Once players truly understand the five actions that can be taken (and it may take several turns to click) the game is a breeze and flows really well. I would caution gamers playing with younger kids that the Steal action may cause some tears, but it can be used as an essential teaching moment.
Even with strictly adults this game is excellent. Very light and gateway, but still very enjoyable. There is just something about collecting dinosaur bones and building your beasts, but having to also struggle with deciding which bones to keep and which to pass on, as your board can only hold four tiles at a time, but each dinosaur requires three bones to complete. It can be a tasty balancing act of resource collection that I truly love.
This all said Purple Phoenix Games gives this one a very enthusiastic 11 / 12, with a guest score from my son. If your collection lacks a great family game for younger gamers or you are completely invested in the dinosaur theme then this one is a no-brainer. If you enjoy family games with a little bit of take-that, then this is a little gem for you to consider. I am so glad to have this in my collection and my son is already asking to be its caretaker. He has only ever requested two games to ever become “his,” and this is one of them. High praise from the son of a game reviewer.
Dinos Not Assembled is a competitive set collection board game with hints of take-that for two to four players that can be enjoyed by players as young as four years old (I know this because my son is four and he loves it). In it players are acting as assistant paleontologists vying for the prestigious opportunity to join a world-famous paleo on their next dig. The player who is first to display three complete dinosaur skeletons in their portion of the museum will win the chance to go on the dig and win the game.
DISCLAIMER: We were provided a copy of this game for the purposes of this review. This is a retail copy of the game, so what you see in these photos is exactly what would be received in your box. I do not intend to cover every single rule included in the rulebook, 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 online or from your FLGS. -T
To setup place the main Museum Board and Dig Site Board in the middle of the table. The Dino Cards are shuffled and each player receives two cards. In addition each player will choose their Character Boards and section of the museum. All Bone Tiles are shuffled into the Dirt Sack, four of these tiles are drawn and displayed on the Dig Site Board, and the Dino Meeples are placed on the table nearby. The first player receives the velociraptor talon (in my copy) and the game may begin!
On a turn a player may perform one action from a choice of five actions: Dig, Steal, Clear, Make, Plan. Since the players are attempting to build their dinosaur skeletons based on the necessary tile types from their Dino Cards, players may Dig by selecting two Bone Tiles from the Dig Site Board to add to their Character Board. Players may never have more than four tiles at any one time. Perhaps the Dig Site Board offers nothing of interest to the active player. The active player may choose to instead Steal one Bone Tile from another player onto their own Character Board. When this happens the player that was just stolen from alerts the Security Meeple and they take the meeple to their Character Board to signify they may not be stolen from again until another player has suffered a Steal action. The active player may choose to instead Clear the board by removing the tiles on offer and drawing four new tiles to the board.
Once a player has collected the necessary Bone Tiles to build a dino skeleton they may Make the skeleton. This requires the player to discard their Bone Tiles back to the Dirt Sack (which I mistakenly kept calling the Dirt Bag), place their completed Dino Card on their Character Board, and place the appropriate Dino Meeple on one of their museum spaces. This player is now one dino closer to winning the game.
If none of these options suit the active player they may always Plan a new dig by drawing a Dino Card from the pile on the Dig Site Board and adding it to their hand. Players may not hold more than three Dino Cards at any one time.
Play continues in this manner of players choosing one action to perform on their turn until one player has made their third dino skeleton. That player wins the game and then gloats to their father. I mean, that didn’t happen…
Components. This game is fabulously produced. The artwork is just perfect for this game. It is colorful, cartoony without being too wacky, and lovable all around. The components themselves are also very good quality. My favorite pieces are all the Dino Meeples and the fancy Security Meeple. Securiteeple?
For a game that states it is intended for players aged eight and above this is a great family game. Yes, my four year old plays it and loves it, and absolutely zero reading skills are necessary to play. The Dino Cards have some fun facts on them, but are not required to enjoy the game. Once players truly understand the five actions that can be taken (and it may take several turns to click) the game is a breeze and flows really well. I would caution gamers playing with younger kids that the Steal action may cause some tears, but it can be used as an essential teaching moment.
Even with strictly adults this game is excellent. Very light and gateway, but still very enjoyable. There is just something about collecting dinosaur bones and building your beasts, but having to also struggle with deciding which bones to keep and which to pass on, as your board can only hold four tiles at a time, but each dinosaur requires three bones to complete. It can be a tasty balancing act of resource collection that I truly love.
This all said Purple Phoenix Games gives this one a very enthusiastic 11 / 12, with a guest score from my son. If your collection lacks a great family game for younger gamers or you are completely invested in the dinosaur theme then this one is a no-brainer. If you enjoy family games with a little bit of take-that, then this is a little gem for you to consider. I am so glad to have this in my collection and my son is already asking to be its caretaker. He has only ever requested two games to ever become “his,” and this is one of them. High praise from the son of a game reviewer.
Acanthea Grimscythe (300 KP) rated Three Heart Echo in Books
May 16, 2018
Three Heart Echo by Keary Taylor ended up on my reading list by yet another mislabeling on NetGalley, I must admit. As seen in the title image above, the book is a paranormal suspense. If you’ve read my blog for any length of time, you’ll no doubt guess that I grabbed it from the horror genre titles. Fortunately, after revisiting its cover I can at least say that its actual genre is the right one. While Three Heart Echo does have some elements of horror, it reads more like a paranormal-themed Lifetime movie.
Taking place soon after the death of Jack Caraway, Three Heart Echo tells the story of two vastly different people meeting and, you guessed it, falling in love. It’s not that simple though, and several of the more twisted things that one might expect from a horror novel surface throughout the plot. Iona Faye, a frail woman mourning the death of her fiance, seeks out Sully Whitmore, a man rumored to be able to speak to the dead. Together, the two unravel the darkness of Jack’s past while racing against time to unravel not one, but two curses.
The plot is fairly linear, with only one unexpected twist at the end. That twist defines much of the book though, and I have to admit that I actually felt anger flare up within me. I’ve gotta give Taylor kudos for that one. What I don’t like, besides the heavily romantic subplot, is the fact that, as readers see in many romance books, we’re dealing with two Mary Sue characters. Iona is described as a beautiful fawn whilst Sully is a giant Viking of a man. Catch my drift? Oh, and poor dead Jack? Apparently, he’s a stunner too.
While the plot is straightforward, Taylor also alternates between perspectives on chapters. Now, as a reader, you may think I mean she goes back and forth between past and present. It’s common enough when we read books, after all. Unfortunately, what I mean is that Taylor switches between perspectives of Sully and Iona. For the most part, the switches follow a pattern. There is some story overlap/repetition within those shifts, but it isn’t terrible. What perturbs me about these perspectives is that every now and then, there’s a break to the pattern where it may take some readers a moment to realize that the book has suddenly shifted to the past without warning.
Back to the romance side of things, there are far too many cliches. Poor, helpless main character gets an indescribable pain in their chest and they can’t fathom why it feels like their heart races when they look upon their love interest. As if that’s not bad enough, you know from the get-go that there’s going to be a love story involved. It’s not well enough to leave it a paranormal suspense, we might as well make it a romance too. Because y’know, two attractive people can’t simply be friends!
Speaking of chest pain, there’s another thing about this book that absolutely irked me. I could understand if one character had an odd need to count things. It happens and OCD is a real thing; but, what I’m referring to, is the need by both characters to take exactly five steps, to blink four times, to wait for three heartbeats before they do something so much as take a breath.
Finally, what the hell is a grand opus? The actual term is magnum opus. I’lll hope it was just a typo that was fixed in the final, published copy of the Three Heart Echo. Overall, the story itself is engaging to a degree, but it definitely wasn’t my style. I think it belongs more in the paranormal romance genre than it does horror.
I’d like to thank NetGalley and the author for providing me with a free copy for the purpose of review.
Taking place soon after the death of Jack Caraway, Three Heart Echo tells the story of two vastly different people meeting and, you guessed it, falling in love. It’s not that simple though, and several of the more twisted things that one might expect from a horror novel surface throughout the plot. Iona Faye, a frail woman mourning the death of her fiance, seeks out Sully Whitmore, a man rumored to be able to speak to the dead. Together, the two unravel the darkness of Jack’s past while racing against time to unravel not one, but two curses.
The plot is fairly linear, with only one unexpected twist at the end. That twist defines much of the book though, and I have to admit that I actually felt anger flare up within me. I’ve gotta give Taylor kudos for that one. What I don’t like, besides the heavily romantic subplot, is the fact that, as readers see in many romance books, we’re dealing with two Mary Sue characters. Iona is described as a beautiful fawn whilst Sully is a giant Viking of a man. Catch my drift? Oh, and poor dead Jack? Apparently, he’s a stunner too.
While the plot is straightforward, Taylor also alternates between perspectives on chapters. Now, as a reader, you may think I mean she goes back and forth between past and present. It’s common enough when we read books, after all. Unfortunately, what I mean is that Taylor switches between perspectives of Sully and Iona. For the most part, the switches follow a pattern. There is some story overlap/repetition within those shifts, but it isn’t terrible. What perturbs me about these perspectives is that every now and then, there’s a break to the pattern where it may take some readers a moment to realize that the book has suddenly shifted to the past without warning.
Back to the romance side of things, there are far too many cliches. Poor, helpless main character gets an indescribable pain in their chest and they can’t fathom why it feels like their heart races when they look upon their love interest. As if that’s not bad enough, you know from the get-go that there’s going to be a love story involved. It’s not well enough to leave it a paranormal suspense, we might as well make it a romance too. Because y’know, two attractive people can’t simply be friends!
Speaking of chest pain, there’s another thing about this book that absolutely irked me. I could understand if one character had an odd need to count things. It happens and OCD is a real thing; but, what I’m referring to, is the need by both characters to take exactly five steps, to blink four times, to wait for three heartbeats before they do something so much as take a breath.
Finally, what the hell is a grand opus? The actual term is magnum opus. I’lll hope it was just a typo that was fixed in the final, published copy of the Three Heart Echo. Overall, the story itself is engaging to a degree, but it definitely wasn’t my style. I think it belongs more in the paranormal romance genre than it does horror.
I’d like to thank NetGalley and the author for providing me with a free copy for the purpose of review.