Search

Search only in certain items:

The Simple Truth (Falls Village #10)
The Simple Truth (Falls Village #10)
J.T. Cheyanne | 2021 | Contemporary, LGBTQ+, Romance
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
It's a really lovely book, of knowing what you should have done, and making it all right in the end.
I was gifted my copy of this book.

This is book 10 in the Falls Village series, and I have not read any of the others. I did not think I was missing anything by not doing.

There is a bit at the front of the book, a prologue I think it is, that talks about the history of the village. I found myself skipping past that.

What I really loved about this book was that we have an established couple. Bran and Nick have been together 3 years. They are engaged. Bran, however, failed to tell his parents yet and this triggers all sorts of problems when they decide to visit.

I really felt for Nick, when he realised what Bran had not yet done. While Bran dod not actually LIE, he failed to tell Nick that he hand't told his parents about how serious their personal relationship was, as well as their professional one. But Nick loves Bran, that much is clear by the pain he is feeling, so Nick will wait it out.

I loved that Bran's parents were waiting for Bran to tell them! They KNEW! They knew a long time ago that Bran was gay and they were waiting for him.

Loved that while Nick is incredibly wealthy, he doesn't flaunt it. He uses it when he needs to.

It's a really lovely book, of knowing what you should have done, and making it all right in the end.

It's not especially explicit, but it is steamy. I loved the references to Nick's heritage, all the little traditions that he brings to the home.

I really enjoyed this, it just didn't quite hit *THAT* spot, you know??

Thank you, for my copy.

4 solid stars

**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
  
The Intoxicating Mr Lavelle
The Intoxicating Mr Lavelle
Neil Blackmore | 2020 | Fiction & Poetry, LGBTQ+, Romance
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
The Intoxicating Mr Lavelle rather intoxicated me, if I’m honest. It’s one of those witty yet heart-rending books that I didn’t want to stop listening to.
Ben Aldridge, the narrator, did his part so well. I believed that he was each of the separate characters - he made each of them sound so different, and he especially made Lavelle sound just how I would have imagined him to.
Two brothers, Benjamin and Edgar are on what is probably the most exciting and daunting trip of their young lives - a Grand Tour of Europe. It was what all the well-heeled young men and women would do at the time, in the hope that they’d make good business and, you never know, romantic connections. However, it quickly becomes apparent that the Bowen brothers are looked down on as being of the mercantile class. This horrified me as a modern day reader. Firstly, that two sheltered, innocent boys should be sent out to travel across Europe alone (must be the ‘Mother of Sons’ in me), secondly, that the upper classes were so bloody rude! They had the power to destroy someone with just a word. I could have scooped these boys up and taken them home, just to remove them from these horrendous people.
This is also the story of Benjamin’s self discovery. He meets and falls in love with Horace Lavelle at a time when men could be hanged as a ‘sodomite’. The author is upfront at the start that he had taken some liberties with this book. Homosexuality was illegal. No-one would take a chance of showing that they were gay. And there is that element of danger, of being found out, in this book despite those liberties.
But it’s such a lovely book - I wanted Benjamin to be happy, and I could see the potential for a train wreck ahead. And that’s all I’ll say! What I will say, is that this is a novel well worth your time!
  
40x40

Rufus Wainwright recommended Pet Sounds by The Beach Boys in Music (curated)

 
Pet Sounds by The Beach Boys
Pet Sounds by The Beach Boys
1966 | Psychedelic

"For me, this is very much a hallmark of where I was able fit in musically in my career. When I started out I was in Montreal, but went to New York periodically and failed miserably with what I was trying to do. It was right at the time that Jeff Buckley was on the rise, and grunge, and that whole movement was incredibly heterosexual, incredibly nihilistic, incredibly guitar-based and very, very dark. I admired it, I'm not against that, but when I was dropped into that equation I was this gay piano-playing opera queen who wanted to be romantic and harken back to other more refined eras. What I was trying to do just didn't make any sense in New York. People would often try to categorise me and say I was cabaret or that I should be doing Broadway. It was very complicated and I never figured it out. Then I was signed to Dreamworks, by Lenny Waronker – whom I believe helped make Pet Sounds. I went to Los Angeles and suddenly realised that I was definitely more part of the Brian Wilson tradition. Whether it was him or Randy Newman or Van Dyke Parks or Harry Nilsson, there was a kind of spot that I could fit into. So I listened a lot to Pet Sounds. You can hear it somewhat on my new album, songs like the last track 'Alone Time', but all through my career there's been a real concentration on harmonies and interesting chord changes and a dreamlike quality. I was able to find my niche through that tradition, as opposed to the East Coast. I have a lot to thank Brian Wilson for, he allowed me to inhabit my world comfortably, as opposed to when I was in New York and I was a total anathema to what was happening there. I can't say that I listened to the album obsessively or that I'm obsessed with him and know all his work, but I definitely feel I am a Wilsonite."

Source
  
40x40

Darren Fisher (2447 KP) rated Island of Death (1976) in Movies

Jan 11, 2021 (Updated Jan 11, 2021)  
Island of Death (1976)
Island of Death (1976)
1976 | Horror, Thriller
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Movie Rating
70's Exploitation At Its Best
Story has it that Greek director Nico Mastorakis saw the Texas Chainsaw Massacre at the cinema and was impressed that such a violent low budget horror film could make so much money. So with that in mind Nico decided to make an even more depraved feature than Tobe Hooper and therefore make even more money! He succeeded in the latter but as for make more money? Well, we can only guess not. I won't bother going into the plot as I assume most people already know about this depraved and sick little flick. All that I will say is that as far as 70's exploitation flicks go this is one of the best. Depravity has never been in so much abundance as is on show here. This will not be to many viewers taste (and a big "no, no" for the Snowflake Generation) as we are subjected to rape, gay rape, incest, drug abuse, beastiality, torture, urinating on pensioners and even a fart in the face as a downright insult. The list of depravity doesn't stop there but to list them all would take some time and spoil it for those that want to watch it for the first time...
The gore is kept to a mimimum and the acting is pretty bad, but as the film progresses this is not really an issue (there are some great bits of crazy dialogue throughout). The majority of death scenes are very imaginative, including deaths involving a plane flight, bulldozer and a pot of paint.
Also there is a cracking soundtrack provided by the legendery Nikos Lavranos (Destination Understanding being the obvious favourite of the 'cult elite').
I cannot recommend this film enough, it is superb, but if you are easily offended I would suggest giving this one a very wide berth. Maybe I need psychiatric help... A MUST SEE.
  
Obscura Burning
Obscura Burning
7
7.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
3.5 stars.

I love the cover of this. It's very sci-fi-y and drew my attention straight away before I even read the synopsis.

So I found this to be a bit confusing with the continuous switching between realities and it took me a while to get used to it, especially keeping up with how all the other characters interacted with Kyle between the two realities he was living. In one people are alive who should have been dead, in the other he was friends with a girl who treated him like crap in the former. Another strange fact is that while he's in one alternate universe, he continues to function in the other, so he zips back and forth and can be in the middle of doing something that he then doesn't remember starting.

The girl I just mentioned above, Mya, tries to help Kyle figure out what's happening by taking him to a scientist/professor who did a paper on multiverses. In the "Danny's dead" world, I really like her, she's friendly and fun, while in "Shira's dead" world, well, she's not. (I think I got that right...)

As for Danny and Shira, I don't think I was a fan of them from the start. I'm not sure why, maybe it was because we never really saw enough of them, or the them before the fire that injured/killed them. But by the end, I definitely didn't like them.

The writing style was easy to get into and I kinda devoured the book when I finally just sat back and let myself read it without any distractions.

Don't be put off with it having a gay relationship in it, there's nothing overtly graphic between Danny and Kyle, just references, it doesn't go into great detail. It doesn't go into detail with Kyle's female relationships either.

This was probably a little too sci-fi for me; alternate universes? Erm...not really my thing but I did enjoy it. If you like sci-fi and mystery then you'll probably like this.