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Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
J.K. Rowling | 1997 | Children, Young Adult (YA)
6
9.2 (174 Ratings)
Book Rating
The tone of the first book in this series maked it a fun read while having a dark origin story. (0 more)
Some might object to the useage of witchcraft and making it positive for kids. (0 more)
Fun novel for all ages
What we have here is a well told origin story which does a good job of getting readers wanting more. We have the story of Harry Potter who live with his aunt and uncle. He is treated badly. One day he discovers he has magical powers and is invited to study at Hogwarts school of magic. There he learns about his parents and his past with an evil wizard. This is a great start to an adventure.
  
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
J.K. Rowling | 2016 | Children
8
9.0 (247 Ratings)
Book Rating
Character development (2 more)
Great cliffhanger
Emotional investment
Emotional investment (1 more)
Can be slow paced for younger readers
Much better than I remember it being
I remember that this was the most difficult Harry Potter book for me to get through the first time. I thought it was long and poorly paced. However, I was much younger and lengthwise it was a jump from the first three.

Having read it a few more times since then, I have come to better appreciate Goblet of Fire. It's still not my favorite of the series, but the story is well written, and an older me prefers that Rowling took her time developing the plot for this one.
  
SB
Seventh Born (The Witchling Academy #1)
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Let me start out with saying that this was not what I was expecting in the least. It felt like a mash up of Harry Potter and The Black Mage series. Wands, magic, a school for such things and a hierarchy just waiting for someone to come and break it.
While I enjoyed the main character and her traits. She knew what she was as a seventhborn but rebelled against just blending in. Wanting to find her family and learn magic. The only thing I didn't enjoy was the romance. A teacher/student romance just puts me off and while it is well done I didnt particularly like the way it all panned out.
  
Fantastic Beasts: Crimes of Grindelwald (2018)
Fantastic Beasts: Crimes of Grindelwald (2018)
2018 | Adventure, Family, Fantasy, Mystery
The movie was really good i loved it cinematic ally and visually it was excellent it was a film I was so excited for and the whole cast is incredible. (1 more)
Johnny Depp is the best person to play Grindelwald and Jude law as a young dumbledore is just out of this world. All actors in the movie are magical and out of this world.
My only grievance is the fact the film has lost some of what was established character wise with the Harry Potter characters. Other than that excellent film (0 more)
The good and the bad
The film is incredible and the 3rd film is highly anticipated but they better bring back Johnny Depp and Jude law
  
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Stacy (3 KP) rated The Black Witch in Books

Jun 17, 2018  
The Black Witch
The Black Witch
Laurie Forest | 2017 | Science Fiction/Fantasy, Young Adult (YA)
10
9.6 (7 Ratings)
Book Rating
Very well written and will leave you begging for the sequel!!
This is an amazing book...the first series I have been super excited about in a long time. The characters are very multi-dimensional with good and bad traits. You take a journey with the main character, Elloren, and see the world and other characters the way she does. The author is phenomenal at showing versus telling so you see the world that she has created and feel the history behind all of the cultures.

I have not been this excited about a series since Harry Potter. I have read this book 3 times and cannot wait until The Light Mage and The Iron Flower are available!!!
  
AW
Akata Witch (Akata Witch, #1)
10
8.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
Loved it! Not sure why I didn't pick it up sooner, it's absolutely wonderful! I really enjoyed the cultural details and mythology of Nigeria as well as how the author used physical abnormalities and learning disorders such as albinoism, scoliosis, and dyslexia as an indicator of strong ​magical abilities. I also thought the characters were well developed and relatable. My only issue was with the climax. There was such a strong buildup for an ultimately underwhelming ending. Overall, I found it to be a wonderful story that fans of Harry Potter will likely enjoy. I can't wait to read Akata Warrior to see what happens next!
*Thanks to First to Read for the arc!*
  
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
J.K. Rowling | 2016 | Children
10
9.1 (229 Ratings)
Book Rating
So I have to be honest - I hated the first Harry Potter book, I just really didn’t like the style of writing so I decided not to read any more of them. My sister had been going on at me for ages to read them from the third book...and thank god she did.

Once I started, I couldn’t stop. This book is clever, imaginative, heartfelt and hysterically funny - one of the divination scenes caused me to laugh out loud on a busy London tube (if that’s not a measure for how funny something is then I don’t know what is). I am so happy that my sister convinced me to give HP another shot.
  
Beauty and the Beast (2017)
Beauty and the Beast (2017)
2017 | Fantasy, Musical, Romance
Contains spoilers, click to show
We all know the story, but I haven't watched the original one for many years and don't remember much about it. This is actually quite good although some of the CGI didn't quite work and looked dated but I expect that was to keep in with the theme. Having not read or seen much of the blurb about the film, I was nicely surprised by the number of stars who appear in it, of course you don't get to see them until the end. The only problem is having grown up watching the Harry Potter films I kept expecting Emma Watson to cast a spell but that is probably because I haven't seen much of her other films. Watch it.
  
Mrs. Doubtfire (1993)
Mrs. Doubtfire (1993)
1993 | Comedy, Drama, Family
This film started my love affair with the wonderful Robin Williams and his loss feels raw even today.

Mrs Doubtfire has become something of a cult classic over the years and its impressive script means it still remains relatable today – and just as hilarious.

Chris Columbus, who later went on to direct the first two Harry Potter films crafted a near-perfect adaptation of Anne Fine’s Madame Doubtfire. Most people don’t realise the film is based on a novel, and I have to admit, I only discovered this a few years ago.

Even decades after its theatrical release, Mrs Doubtfire proves films can still throw up a few surprises if you look deep enough.

https://moviemetropolis.net/2017/07/04/films-that-influenced-me-adam-brannon/