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Sarah (7798 KP) created a post

Nov 15, 2018  
Last night I went to see Kinky Boots the musical at the Manchester Opera House. I was so looking forward to this, and I was not disappointed. If you're ever looking for a modern, upbeat, feel good show then I'd definitely recommend this.

Like the film, it's funny (downright hilarious actually) and full of heart. I was worried about how the songs would fit in with the film not being a musical, but actually they really work. It helps that the songs aren't your typical old school theatre songs, they're more modern and pop which considering they were written by Cyndi Lauper isn't really a surprise. And the cast were just fantastic. Anyone who steps into Chiwetel Ejiofor's shoes as Lola is a brave man, but Callum Francis was absolutely brilliant. And i was envious about how good he looked in a dress. He really made this show as let's face it, everyone was there to see Lola.

If you're looking for a highly entertaining night out, I'd definitely recommend this. One of the best shows I've seen at the theatre for a long time. 10/10
     
Let the Right One In (2008)
Let the Right One In (2008)
2008 | Drama, Horror, Romance
8.7 (10 Ratings)
Movie Favorite

"I love European cinema. I made a proviso that you have to watch it with the Swedish subtitles on, not dubbed in American. It’s terrible when it’s dubbed in American. It’s really a drama. It’s the story of a young boy who meets a young girl who just happens to be a vampire. But the editing, the way they show the bleakness of the world, the way that they show a period in time which is nondescript — they say it’s the modern world, but it feels like the modern world that has gone by somehow. Very beautiful part of the world, it’s sterile and full of snow. I watched that one night; a friend recommended it to me. I was in my house on my own, at night, was very scared of it, and fell in love with it. I’m not a huge fan of horror movies, to be fair. There’s no reason for me to bring that into my life, that horror element. But with Let the Right One In, it was worth it because the performances and the story were both so brilliant."

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ClareR (5608 KP) rated The House in Books

Nov 21, 2020  
The House
The House
Tom Watson, Imogen Robertson | 2020 | Fiction & Poetry, Thriller
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
The House is a taut political thriller, packed full of intrigue, secrets, corruption and betrayal. The setting is Westminster - somewhere that Tom Watson has an intimate knowledge of. And you can tell. There are nooks, crannies and offices described in here that I’ve never even heard of - and sneaky back doors too!

The story itself seemed multi-layered and quite complex to begin with, and I have to admit to struggling with the amount of names I needed to remember (this is typical of me though, to be honest!), but once I had them all straight in my head after a couple of staves, I was able to enjoy it much more.

The story tied together really nicely towards the end - the seemingly different stories coming together and resolving - but it was left on a bit of a cliffhanger. And do you know? I think I would probably read another book set in this world of the UK Parliament. I liked the characters, and particularly the unlikeable characters intrigued me (I’m nothing if not predictable!). It’ll be interesting to see where another book takes us!

Many thanks to The Pigeonhole for serialising this, I really enjoyed it.
  
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Thundercat recommended Total Eclipse by Billy Cobham in Music (curated)

 
Total Eclipse by Billy Cobham
Total Eclipse by Billy Cobham
2005 | Pop
(0 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"This is my childhood in a nutshell. I grew up in a very instrumental house, full of musicians, and this was religious for us. Billy Cobham, Tony Williams, these were the pillars my dad raised us on. Total Eclipse, though… My dad had that album on vinyl, but me and my older brother we weren't allowed to touch the record player unless one of my parents were there. But my dad would go to work, and we would wait until he left and then we would put the record on. We would do all kinds of stupid stuff that kids do when they're playing vinyl; messing with the record, warping it, trying to scratch if it's hip hop, but we were really cautious not to literally put scratches in my dad's vinyl. We would listen to Billy Cobham, and my older brother was a drummer, so he was listening to this with a lot of intent. We were really young, and on that album the level of musicianship is absolutely amazing. It's one of those things that also inspired me to play my instrument the way I play."

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Silly Sisters by Maddy Prior / Silly Sisters / June Tabor
Silly Sisters by Maddy Prior / Silly Sisters / June Tabor
1976 | Rock
(0 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"After Adrian and I broke up, and I moved into my new house, I bought myself a record player. Or, actually, if either of my kids are reading this, Father Christmas bought it for me [laughs]. Not that I think they'd be reading The Quietus yet – they're six and eight – but start them young. My mum brought me some records, and this is one she used to love when I was really small, although I only vaguely remembered it. I've always loved Maddy Prior and June Tabor's voices, though – do you know June Tabor's Abyssinians? That's an amazing record, full of depth and darkness, both in the singing, and the material. But listening to this…it made me think I'm sure it subsconsciously affected the way I make music. The way the women's voices interweave to tell their stories reminds me very much of the way Becky and I sing together, although she didn't remember the record at all! The band's also fantastic, including Martin Carthy, Nic Jones and Andy Irvine. The effect of this record on me is what I'd love to do every time making music."

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Jonathan Higgs recommended Universal by K-Klass in Music (curated)

 
Universal by K-Klass
Universal by K-Klass
(0 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"This is quite a diverse one compared to the rest of them. I'm pretty sure it was my first introduction to dance music full stop. Somehow my brother ended up with it (he was four years older so a lot of stuff I like came through him). He came along with this album called K-Klass, and I didn't even know how to say it. When I first listened to it, I didn't understand how it was made or what it was or what I was listening to. It was really just early 90s standard dance music with house vocals. I remember dancing to it with my sisters and my parents not really getting it. And so I thought, ""Well if my parents don't get it, maybe this is the cool new thing!"" I was only about 7, a chubby little kid dancing around to this stupid music. But it gave me a sense of something I had never felt, which was a sense of ownership of music. These sounds were truly new, my parents didn't have them and we did. It spurred me into more electronic music as a kid."

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Chasing Rabbits (The Underground #1)
Chasing Rabbits (The Underground #1)
Erin Bedford | 2020 | Science Fiction/Fantasy
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
88 of 200
Kindle
Chasing Rabbits ( underground book 1)
By Erin Bedford

 
Alice was wrong. Wonderland wasn't so wonderful after all.

Kat never expected to be back in her hometown, but when house sitting turns into a mad rabbit chase, Kat finds herself with a whole new set of problems.

A two-headed bird with a Game of Thrones obsession, a party full of tea addicts, and a Cheshire Cat who could seduce the pants off her grandma? And if the citizens weren't bad enough, their prince was off his rocker.

This wasn't your run of the mill Wonderland. This was the fae world, where rules are rules, and some things are exactly as they seem.


I found myself a few times during this book stopping and asking myself wtf am I reading. It got a little confusing in parts to. I have changed my stars from 2 to 3 and back a few times as I just can’t make my mind up! I feel like I’ve smoked something funny after reading it lol. I think it’s intrigued me enough to continue on to book 2!
  
Eleanor & Park
Eleanor & Park
Rainbow Rowell | 2016 | Young Adult (YA)
Eleanor and Park: First Love At Its Finest
Contains spoilers, click to show
I did this book for a reading vlog without knowing anything about it and that turned out to be a mistake. This book was a lot heavier than I anticipated. Trigger warnings for domestic violence and child abuse for those who want to read it.

Together, Eleanor and Park are excellent. They have witty dialogue full of 80’s references and general high school silliness. The two of them together made me nostalgic for high school with their cuteness.

That was definitely needed because the rest of the book was really dark.

From the start, Eleanor isn’t doing well. As the new kid in school, she is an easy target for bullies and has no friends to turn to (at least until Park). But her home life is even worse. After living off a neighbor’s couch for a year, Eleanor was finally allowed to move back into her mom’s house, where her mom and siblings live under the tyrannical rule of Ritchie, a violent and abusive alcoholic.

In Eleanor’s house, the feeling of danger and unease is always there, heightened by nightly fights between Ritchie and the mother and having no bathroom door. Eleanor only really feels safe in the house when Ritchie isn’t there.

Her escape becomes Park, the quiet boy on the bus who let her sit next to him and lets her read comic books over his shoulder. Slowly they develop a reluctant friendship which turns into love.

I really like Eleanor. I think she’s really smart and witty and very relatable. She’s insecure about her body and the abuse definitely took a toll on her emotional state. But in general, she’s just a normal teenager.

Park is a typical teenager as well. He’s frustratingly insecure and angsty, which makes him act like a jerk to Eleanor sometimes, especially in the beginning. But despite that, he’s usually a really nice guy who cares deeply for Eleanor. He’s pretty understanding about her home life and is patient with her, which I really like. He does a lot of things that he thinks are small, like lending Eleanor comics and making her mixtapes, but they mean the world to Eleanor, and it’s really sweet.

The only time I didn’t like him was when he found out someone was writing dirty messages on Eleanor’s textbook and he accused her of writing the messages herself. That was really out-of-character for him and was pretty horrible. Aside from that, though, he was nice. He was, in general, a normal, realistic teenage boy.

My biggest problem with the book was the ending. It wasn’t satisfying for me because it ends abruptly and I didn’t get enough closure about Eleanor’s family. It’s hinted at that they move out of the toxic house but it’s never confirmed. So because of that, it’s only 4 out of 5 stars, but still definitely worth reading.
  
Synopsis:

Bitterness, stalking, and a neighbor to die for

What's a girl to do?
 
Trailed by a stalker in New York City, Willow Thomas, a young ad executive, scurries back to her small North Carolina hometown and the lake house where ten years earlier a scandal revealed her entire life had been a lie, and a seed of bitterness took root in her soul. The cocoon of safety Willow feels upon her arrival home soon unravels when she meets opposition from her family, faces the man she left behind, and the stalker reveals he is close on her heels. Can Willow learn to trust God to tear out her roots of resentment, reunite her family, ferret out a deadly stalker, and to rekindle the love she left behind?





My Thoughts: This novel grasps the reader's attention from the first sentence. Full of action and suspense the reader won't want to put it down.



Willow's family had been keeping secrets from her for years, she had a mother who didn't want her and a stalker on the loose.



The story of forgiveness, of a family that finally comes together. It's a story of how a family can overcome jealousy and bitterness toward one another.



This was an interesting story-line and full of action. I enjoyed reading this book and I have to say my favorite character had to be granny. With her faith in God, her prayers and her notes that she left behind really made the story and brought the family together.




 I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review and the opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
  
The Beguiled
The Beguiled
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
“A classic slice of Southern Gothic, shot through with psychological suspense, which is the basis for Sofia Coppola’s (winner of Best Director at Cannes) 2017 film of the same name starring Nicola Kidman, Colin Farrell and Kirsten Dunst”. Source: wiki/The_Beguiled_(2017_film).

The book was originally written with the title A Painted Devil and some of you eagle-eyed readers and film fanatics may also remember this was a film starring Clint Eastwood and Geraldine Page in the ’70s. The maid in the latter film and this 1966 novel, was black and there was also another bi-racial character, too. However, in the new film, mentioned above, this bi-racial character was played by Kirsten Dunst. This totally ruined the whole point of the book that the black woman was really a slave in their household and the bi-racial woman (who was a free woman) could not seem to see that she herself was not truly white. And that, dear readers, is a very relevant part of the original book, why change it? (Rolls eyes). Is it so wrong to portray this black woman exactly how the author intended her to be? The way I see it, what she did in that house was her way of surviving. It’s an integral part of the story. Why hide it?

After all, if you look at the underage sex and the way the main male character acts by taking advantage of his position in a household full of young girls who are basically shut away from society, should he also be seen as wrong? These young girls are easy prey, but some, are also very willing to learn… Incidentally, I must say the heat and sexual tension within the book is superbly done.

I found parts of the way this was written to be a little repetitive and confusing in style, despite this, it was still a great story. It’s only told from the girls’ perspective, which in many ways adds to this atmospheric, hothouse of lies and deceit the further into the story you delve.


The Beguiled is chock full with a Gothic sense of foreboding and unease, set against a backdrop of the Civil War, which made for some serious, ghostly tension. Who is this injured solider who turns up on their doorstep? How can these girls protect themselves from this seductive man when they have no idea what life is like outside the four walls of the house they live in?

If you read right to the end you’ll find out the brilliant twist of fate this story has in store for you. A devious surprise!