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Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2204 KP) rated Christmas Cocoa Murder in Books

Sep 26, 2019  
Christmas Cocoa Murder
Christmas Cocoa Murder
Carlene O'Connor, Maddie Day, Alex Erickson | 2019 | Mystery
10
9.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
Snuggle Up for this Christmas Novella Collection
Kensington has released another Christmas novella collection, this time featuring three authors that haven’t been featured before. All three stories feature hot cocoa is some capacity. Up first is “Christmas Cocoa Murder” by Carlene O’Connor, which takes place in an Irish village leading up to Christmas. Her series main character, Siobhan O’Sullivan, is just a couple of weeks away from joining the police force, but she gets pulled in early when the village’s Santa’s stunt at the annual panto goes horribly wrong and he’s found floating in a dunk tank filled with hot cocoa. Next, we get “Christmas Cocoa and a Corpse” by Maddie Day. Robbie Jordan, the star of the Country Store Mysteries, is looking forward to a quiet Christmas, but first she must figure out what happened to Jed Greenburg who was found dead while out walking a dog and drinking some of Robbie’s special hot chocolate mix. Finally, comes “Death by Hot Cocoa” by Alex Erickson. Krissy Hancock, his main character, has been talked into doing a Christmas themed escape room, but when she and the rest of the participants finish the first part, they find themselves locked in a second room with the body of their host next to a puddle of hot chocolate.

All three of these stories are fun. The only series I read regularly is Maddie Day’s, but that didn’t keep me from enjoying all of them. The plots are all wonderfully constructed and perfect for the shorter novella format. I did feel a little lost with some of the series regular characters in the first story, but that’s to be expected since I haven’t read the series before. However, it didn’t hamper my overall enjoyment at all. The main characters all come to life in the stories, and the suspects are just as vivid. Each story is filled with Christmas detail that will put you in the holiday spirit no matter what time of year you read them. A couple of the stories even feature some recipes, including two different versions of hot chocolate. So, make yourself a cup of hot chocolate (or maybe not given the theme of this book) and snuggle up and enjoy.
  
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Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2204 KP) rated A Christmas Mourning in Books

Dec 22, 2020  
A Christmas Mourning
A Christmas Mourning
Laura Bradford | 2020 | Mystery
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Mystery of the Missing Christmas Spoon
Claire Weatherly is going to enjoy a rare day off with her aunt Diane, and the two are going to play tourist, visiting the Amish sites that are open for tours. When Claire mentions this to Jakob Fisher, her new boyfriend, he tells her a story about a Christmas years ago. Raised by a local Amish family, Jakob actually attended school in the one room school house Claire and Diane will be visiting. The last year he was there, he took a fancy Christmas spoon his mother owned to show off to his friends, and it got lost. Claire decides to see if she can figure out what happened to it. But can it be recovered all these years later?

I’ve been meaning to read this short story at Christmas one year, and I’m glad I finally made the time. While the events of the past are set around Christmas, the contemporary part is not set during the season, which was a surprise that I got over quickly. The story was perfect for a short story; it kept me engaged without being overly complex. The ending made me tear up, but in a good way. We don’t see all of the characters, but it was wonderful to check in with those who were part of the story. It took me just under an hour to read, so if you want to read it this year, there is still time to slip it in before the holiday.
  
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Matthew Krueger (10051 KP) rated Anna and the Apocalypse (2018) in Movies

Feb 18, 2020  
Anna and the Apocalypse (2018)
Anna and the Apocalypse (2018)
2018 | Comedy, Horror, Musical
7
7.4 (19 Ratings)
Movie Rating Watch
Just Strange Overall
Anna and the Apolcalypse- is basically Shaun of the Dead meets Santa Clarita Diet meets a musical. You throw horror, comedy, action, drama and music all togther you get Anna and the Apolcalypse. I think their is too many genres in this movie. First its wants to be a drama, than a musical than a zombie film than a zombie action film than musical mix comedy in. So many genres i cant tell what this movie wants to be. And thats its major downfall.

The plot: A zombie apocalypse threatens the sleepy town of Little Haven - at Christmas - forcing Anna and her friends to fight, slash and sing their way to survival, facing the undead in a desperate race to reach their loved ones. But they soon discover that no one is safe in this new world, and with civilization falling apart around them, the only people they can truly rely on are each other.

Ohh i almost forgot its also trying to be a christmas film, revolving around christmas and set during christmas. Yes its one of those horror films. A horror film based/set around a holiday.

The reason im giving it a "7", because it reminds me so much of "Shaun of Dead" and i loved that film. And this film had good zombie kills in it and good action.