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Leanne Crabtree (480 KP) rated Boyfriend Material in Books
Jan 6, 2021
4.5 stars.
I'd seen this all over Goodreads and added it to my wish list on Amazon and a few weeks later, it went down to under £2 so I bought it.
It starts with Luc going to a fancy dress party and his inner musings over how he got to be wearing his bunny ears for the (mad hatters tea) party. He's the son of two has-been rock stars and is wary of some people as they may just be after some story to sell. When bad press leads to the charity he works for losing income, he decides to get himself a fake boyfriend with a good image so that he can then show his boss and their investors that he is reliable. His friend recommends Oliver, the guy he met about two years ago and who he tried to sleep with but Oliver turned him down. Oliver is also in need of a fake boyfriend so they work out a few details and run with it. Only things change between them the more time they spend together.
I really enjoyed this book. It wasn't only the romance either. Just the way it was written was brilliant. Luc didn't take himself too seriously and his thoughts and the situations he sometimes found himself in...? *snorts with laughter* He wasn't perfect in any way really. He was messy and forgetful but so likeable.
Oliver on the other hand, well, he was a little serious at times but he was also good in any situation. Put him in the middle of posh people, he could find something to talk about with everyone. Put him in the middle of a party and he fits in. He grew on me a lot with how he treated Luc and I really loved them as a couple.
I loved Luc's jokes to his colleague, Alex, at the start of some chapters. They weren't the greatest jokes in the world but...geez, Alex's reactions to them was priceless. He's not the sharpest tool in the shed, so his reactions through most of the book had me chuckling to myself. And then let's not forget his girlfriend/fiancée Miffy and that weird bar scene.
I also feel like Luc's mum, Odile, needs a mention. She's a riot. She's very forthcoming with her opinions on everything and doesn't care what people think about her and said opinions. Her curry and that scene was hilarious.
This was right up my street. I love me a good MM Romance and this one was more about the feelings that grew between our characters as there were no explicit sex scenes included in this. It was cute and very British with it's situations and humour. Recommend it to anyone who likes any of the above.
I'd seen this all over Goodreads and added it to my wish list on Amazon and a few weeks later, it went down to under £2 so I bought it.
It starts with Luc going to a fancy dress party and his inner musings over how he got to be wearing his bunny ears for the (mad hatters tea) party. He's the son of two has-been rock stars and is wary of some people as they may just be after some story to sell. When bad press leads to the charity he works for losing income, he decides to get himself a fake boyfriend with a good image so that he can then show his boss and their investors that he is reliable. His friend recommends Oliver, the guy he met about two years ago and who he tried to sleep with but Oliver turned him down. Oliver is also in need of a fake boyfriend so they work out a few details and run with it. Only things change between them the more time they spend together.
I really enjoyed this book. It wasn't only the romance either. Just the way it was written was brilliant. Luc didn't take himself too seriously and his thoughts and the situations he sometimes found himself in...? *snorts with laughter* He wasn't perfect in any way really. He was messy and forgetful but so likeable.
Oliver on the other hand, well, he was a little serious at times but he was also good in any situation. Put him in the middle of posh people, he could find something to talk about with everyone. Put him in the middle of a party and he fits in. He grew on me a lot with how he treated Luc and I really loved them as a couple.
I loved Luc's jokes to his colleague, Alex, at the start of some chapters. They weren't the greatest jokes in the world but...geez, Alex's reactions to them was priceless. He's not the sharpest tool in the shed, so his reactions through most of the book had me chuckling to myself. And then let's not forget his girlfriend/fiancée Miffy and that weird bar scene.
I also feel like Luc's mum, Odile, needs a mention. She's a riot. She's very forthcoming with her opinions on everything and doesn't care what people think about her and said opinions. Her curry and that scene was hilarious.
This was right up my street. I love me a good MM Romance and this one was more about the feelings that grew between our characters as there were no explicit sex scenes included in this. It was cute and very British with it's situations and humour. Recommend it to anyone who likes any of the above.
Hazel (2934 KP) rated Child Behind The Wall in Books
Sep 19, 2020
Hard-hitting and gripping
Never having read anything by this author before let alone any of the others in this series, I took a punt based on the blurb and I certainly wasn't disappointed and I was absolutely hooked from page 1.
On his website, Mr Parker describes "My style of writing is hard-hitting, fast-paced, violent and carry moral messages that you might have to dig a bit deeper for. I try not to use more words than is necessary although more than a few of them are of the swearing variety. Hey! People swear. And they swear a ******* lot in my world. I will unashamedly tackle issues where some writers fear to tread." I would say this is a pretty accurate reflection - this book is not for the feint-hearted; it contains bad language and graphic scenes which leave nothing to the imagination so be warned!
This is a fast-paced, action packed read from the first to the last page with twists and turns and shocks along the way. The characters are an interesting and eclectic bunch with the 2 main protagonists of Paterson and Clocks being, what I would describe, an acquired taste - Mr Parker advises that they are based loosely on characters he has known throughout his 20 year career in the Police ... all I can say is that if I knew Clocks in particular, I would have probably disliked him intensely on first impression however, I can see a very loyal friend who would do anything for you plus there is definitely a troubled softie in there. Having said that, I still found him annoying!
The main plot is hard-hitting and totally gripping - there is some humour interspersed throughout which did provide some much needed lighter moments. The sub-plots are intriguing and an interesting insight into the politics within the various echelons within the Police; these, I assume, are linked to previous cases covered in earlier books in the series. Like I said, I haven't read any of the others but didn't find this too confusing but I do think I was missing the backstory somewhat which probably impacted on my overall enjoyment of the story as a whole but this is my fault rather than the fault of the author.
This is a no-holds-barred, gritty thriller that I would recommend to any who enjoy the harsher stories dealing with horrific crimes but, as I have said, it does contain gruesome details of crimes against children so if this isn't your preference, then I wouldn't go there but you will be missing out on a really excellent book.
Many thanks go to Joffe Books via NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest, unbiased and unedited review.
On his website, Mr Parker describes "My style of writing is hard-hitting, fast-paced, violent and carry moral messages that you might have to dig a bit deeper for. I try not to use more words than is necessary although more than a few of them are of the swearing variety. Hey! People swear. And they swear a ******* lot in my world. I will unashamedly tackle issues where some writers fear to tread." I would say this is a pretty accurate reflection - this book is not for the feint-hearted; it contains bad language and graphic scenes which leave nothing to the imagination so be warned!
This is a fast-paced, action packed read from the first to the last page with twists and turns and shocks along the way. The characters are an interesting and eclectic bunch with the 2 main protagonists of Paterson and Clocks being, what I would describe, an acquired taste - Mr Parker advises that they are based loosely on characters he has known throughout his 20 year career in the Police ... all I can say is that if I knew Clocks in particular, I would have probably disliked him intensely on first impression however, I can see a very loyal friend who would do anything for you plus there is definitely a troubled softie in there. Having said that, I still found him annoying!
The main plot is hard-hitting and totally gripping - there is some humour interspersed throughout which did provide some much needed lighter moments. The sub-plots are intriguing and an interesting insight into the politics within the various echelons within the Police; these, I assume, are linked to previous cases covered in earlier books in the series. Like I said, I haven't read any of the others but didn't find this too confusing but I do think I was missing the backstory somewhat which probably impacted on my overall enjoyment of the story as a whole but this is my fault rather than the fault of the author.
This is a no-holds-barred, gritty thriller that I would recommend to any who enjoy the harsher stories dealing with horrific crimes but, as I have said, it does contain gruesome details of crimes against children so if this isn't your preference, then I wouldn't go there but you will be missing out on a really excellent book.
Many thanks go to Joffe Books via NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest, unbiased and unedited review.
Jesters_folly (230 KP) rated The Kitchen (2019) in Movies
Sep 24, 2019
Contains spoilers, click to show
When their mobster husbands are all sent to prison, three women decide that the only way they can survive is to take over their criminal enterprise’s, the quest is can their friendship last.
The Kitchen is based on comics released by DC Vertigo and is set in ‘Hell’s Kitchen’, New York during the 1970’s and focus’ on the lives of the wives of an Irish/American mob and their struggle to maintain a basic life style once their husbands have been arrested. Each of the women have a different type of relationship with their husbands; Kathy is in a seemingly normal, loving relationship, Claire is in an abusive relationship and Ruby is in a mixed marriage which is looked down on by alto for the other characters. One of the threads of the film is how each woman reacts to their husbands being away and what will happen when they return.
First off, this is not a comedy, I have seen some reviews where people seem to have been expecting a few laughs, mainly because of the casting of Melissa McCarthy and Tiffany Haddish. The Kitchen has violence, abuse, attempted rape, bad language, lots of guns, prostitutes and shootings but no humour. I think there was only one time anyone laughed (in the cinema audience) and that was when the characters were being shown how to dispose of a dead body.
I have to say that this is a good, well written female lead film, the premise is not forced and there is a reason the characters are female and in a situation that women would not normally be in, especially for the time it is set. Even though the characters are slightly stereotyped (The beaten woman trying to get stronger, the loving wife trying to keep things together) they are not turned into a joke or overly exaggerated and is a big step up from the Ghostbuster’s remake which also had McCarthy as part of an all-female team. Like Ghostbusters there is also a male character who helps the team, Gabriel, but the Kitchen avoids turning him into a joke unlike Chris Hemsworth in ghostbusters.
It could be said that the way the male characters are portrayed is bad, most of them are either thugs, stupid or crazy but this not due to any kind of feminism agenda but is a slightly stereotyped view of how a segment of people were seen, most of the people they deal with are the Irish/American mobsters. This is also shown by the Italians; they are not portrayed in the same way.
I do get the feeling that The Kitchen will be remembered more for scenes and its characters than for the overall movie as there are some bits that seem to drag but, overall it is a film worth watching.
The Kitchen is based on comics released by DC Vertigo and is set in ‘Hell’s Kitchen’, New York during the 1970’s and focus’ on the lives of the wives of an Irish/American mob and their struggle to maintain a basic life style once their husbands have been arrested. Each of the women have a different type of relationship with their husbands; Kathy is in a seemingly normal, loving relationship, Claire is in an abusive relationship and Ruby is in a mixed marriage which is looked down on by alto for the other characters. One of the threads of the film is how each woman reacts to their husbands being away and what will happen when they return.
First off, this is not a comedy, I have seen some reviews where people seem to have been expecting a few laughs, mainly because of the casting of Melissa McCarthy and Tiffany Haddish. The Kitchen has violence, abuse, attempted rape, bad language, lots of guns, prostitutes and shootings but no humour. I think there was only one time anyone laughed (in the cinema audience) and that was when the characters were being shown how to dispose of a dead body.
I have to say that this is a good, well written female lead film, the premise is not forced and there is a reason the characters are female and in a situation that women would not normally be in, especially for the time it is set. Even though the characters are slightly stereotyped (The beaten woman trying to get stronger, the loving wife trying to keep things together) they are not turned into a joke or overly exaggerated and is a big step up from the Ghostbuster’s remake which also had McCarthy as part of an all-female team. Like Ghostbusters there is also a male character who helps the team, Gabriel, but the Kitchen avoids turning him into a joke unlike Chris Hemsworth in ghostbusters.
It could be said that the way the male characters are portrayed is bad, most of them are either thugs, stupid or crazy but this not due to any kind of feminism agenda but is a slightly stereotyped view of how a segment of people were seen, most of the people they deal with are the Irish/American mobsters. This is also shown by the Italians; they are not portrayed in the same way.
I do get the feeling that The Kitchen will be remembered more for scenes and its characters than for the overall movie as there are some bits that seem to drag but, overall it is a film worth watching.
Emma @ The Movies (1786 KP) rated Upgrade (2018) in Movies
Sep 25, 2019
I'd go classifying Upgrade as sci-fi action... for some reason it also has a genre of horror on IMDb. Sure it's a bit gory, but with everything that happens in it I wouldn't have lumped it in there as well. It briefly gave me pause to ponder where the lines of classification are... but that way madness lies!
This one isn't for the faint hearted. There's quite a lot of violence in it. There was only one bit that I thought "that was a bit much", but even then it was more that I reacted to it with an intake of breath and a slight wince before laughing... because it was a tad ridiculous. The guy in the row behind me did the same, but his girlfriend wasn't overly impressed.
I actually found Grey's reactions to his body doing violent things to be very well done, and a nice touch because you do forget that it's not actually him. Acting so that your face is doing something completely different to how your body is performing must be very challenging, but Marshall-Green did it really well. He had humour, and really brought out the conflict between his head and his body... wow, well there are just some things that you don't expect to say when reviewing films.
The main reason it's missing that last half star is purely personal preference. I like sci-fi, and I like mindless violence. What I don't like are the motion and camera quirks. But like I say, it's personal preference. Those tracking shots that put Grey centre of the frame and follow him round like it's a third person shooter game (third person?) did nothing for me, and made everything seem kind of jumpy. This was so you could get the contrast between him being in control and STEM being in control, and I understand that but it's a shame they couldn't find another way to do it. My only other bug was that when Grey is laying on the floor and STEM gets him up to standing he goes from horizontal to vertical like he's on a hinge. How is that even possible? STEM is still constrained by what the human body can do, right? And last time I checked I can't pivot from laying down to standing just on my heels.
What should you do?
Great lead, interesting story line... if you don't mind mindless violence then you should definitely go and see this.
Movie thing you wish you could take home
I'd quite like to take home STEM and have my body be that coordinated all the time... but that does have the whole killer robot issue. So perhaps I'll just go with the self driving car this time.
This one isn't for the faint hearted. There's quite a lot of violence in it. There was only one bit that I thought "that was a bit much", but even then it was more that I reacted to it with an intake of breath and a slight wince before laughing... because it was a tad ridiculous. The guy in the row behind me did the same, but his girlfriend wasn't overly impressed.
I actually found Grey's reactions to his body doing violent things to be very well done, and a nice touch because you do forget that it's not actually him. Acting so that your face is doing something completely different to how your body is performing must be very challenging, but Marshall-Green did it really well. He had humour, and really brought out the conflict between his head and his body... wow, well there are just some things that you don't expect to say when reviewing films.
The main reason it's missing that last half star is purely personal preference. I like sci-fi, and I like mindless violence. What I don't like are the motion and camera quirks. But like I say, it's personal preference. Those tracking shots that put Grey centre of the frame and follow him round like it's a third person shooter game (third person?) did nothing for me, and made everything seem kind of jumpy. This was so you could get the contrast between him being in control and STEM being in control, and I understand that but it's a shame they couldn't find another way to do it. My only other bug was that when Grey is laying on the floor and STEM gets him up to standing he goes from horizontal to vertical like he's on a hinge. How is that even possible? STEM is still constrained by what the human body can do, right? And last time I checked I can't pivot from laying down to standing just on my heels.
What should you do?
Great lead, interesting story line... if you don't mind mindless violence then you should definitely go and see this.
Movie thing you wish you could take home
I'd quite like to take home STEM and have my body be that coordinated all the time... but that does have the whole killer robot issue. So perhaps I'll just go with the self driving car this time.
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Jesters_folly (230 KP) rated Cooties (2015) in Movies
Aug 14, 2021
Contains spoilers, click to show
First off a warning, Cooties is a Zombie film where the zombies are children so, if you don't like violence against children than this really isn't the film for you.
Clint (Elijah Wood) moves back to his home town to work on his book and takes a job as a substitute teacher at his old school. On his first day a virus breaks out that turns all the children into zombies. Clint and the other teachers fight to escaper the school and find out what is happening.
Cooties is quite a self aware film, in one of the first scenes Clint askes his mother what she thought of his book and she tells him that the the characters are unlikable, the plot makes no sense and it's boring, the first one of those is true, most of the characters are unlikable, at least at the start of the film. The pre-zombie children are brats and the teachers range from meek to bullies. Making the children unlikable is necessary because of what happens later.
Some of the teachers do undergo character growth, as I said they start off unlikable but a few of them become more likeable as we find out what made them become teachers and how they react to the situation.
Saying that though, Cooties is not an overly cleaver film, it's a zombie film that uses horror tropes; people are trapped in small rooms, there are air vents, people get eaten and, despite how it starts there is no big message to the film. I say despite how it starts because I did think that it was going to be a big 'Anti Meat' film but any sigh of that is forgotten very soon and, apart from a slight pro-teacher message the film soon becomes another zombie flick, it doesn't even have the usual political undertones like the night of the living dead film.
Over all Cooties is generally a good zombie film but I think it will lose a big chunk of it's audience because it becomes quite violent as the teaches have to fight the children to get out.
Don't expect anything great, Cooties is just another zombie film with a gimmick that some will find distasteful but, if you like your zombie films with a bit of humour and mindless action and you can look past the fact the zombies are children then give Cooties a go.
One last thing, I did find myself asking, if the air vent is big enough to fit to small adults side by side then it must have been big enough for a large man so any one could have gone on the mission.
Clint (Elijah Wood) moves back to his home town to work on his book and takes a job as a substitute teacher at his old school. On his first day a virus breaks out that turns all the children into zombies. Clint and the other teachers fight to escaper the school and find out what is happening.
Cooties is quite a self aware film, in one of the first scenes Clint askes his mother what she thought of his book and she tells him that the the characters are unlikable, the plot makes no sense and it's boring, the first one of those is true, most of the characters are unlikable, at least at the start of the film. The pre-zombie children are brats and the teachers range from meek to bullies. Making the children unlikable is necessary because of what happens later.
Some of the teachers do undergo character growth, as I said they start off unlikable but a few of them become more likeable as we find out what made them become teachers and how they react to the situation.
Saying that though, Cooties is not an overly cleaver film, it's a zombie film that uses horror tropes; people are trapped in small rooms, there are air vents, people get eaten and, despite how it starts there is no big message to the film. I say despite how it starts because I did think that it was going to be a big 'Anti Meat' film but any sigh of that is forgotten very soon and, apart from a slight pro-teacher message the film soon becomes another zombie flick, it doesn't even have the usual political undertones like the night of the living dead film.
Over all Cooties is generally a good zombie film but I think it will lose a big chunk of it's audience because it becomes quite violent as the teaches have to fight the children to get out.
Don't expect anything great, Cooties is just another zombie film with a gimmick that some will find distasteful but, if you like your zombie films with a bit of humour and mindless action and you can look past the fact the zombies are children then give Cooties a go.
One last thing, I did find myself asking, if the air vent is big enough to fit to small adults side by side then it must have been big enough for a large man so any one could have gone on the mission.
Neon's Nerd Nexus (360 KP) rated the Playstation 5 version of Guardians of the Galaxy in Video Games
Oct 25, 2021
YOU GOT THE TOUCH. YOU GOT THE POWER... YEAH!
This game is absolutely fantastic and a contender for one of my favourite games of this year. In fact I actually prefer Starlord in this game to how he's portrayed in the films. I guess it's also safe to say Im really enjoying this game as I've played it solidly now for two days, I'm only on chapter 8 and there's apparently 16 chapters so I'd say if that's true it's a pretty meaty game. I'm honestly having and absolute blast with it and if you are a fan of the characters, the world and the lore you really should pick it up for sure. Id say is a cross between The Order a light version of Mass Effect and Tales Of Arise If you need a comparison and more importantly it's nothing really like the recent Avengers game. It's not overly challenging however on medium anyway unless you let enemies overwhelm you (I've died roughly 4 times I'd say) but that's not bothering me at all because it's so much fun and if you want more of a challenge you can crank it up. Graphics are awsome, voice acting is great and the humour is on point, controls are responsive and characters have a nice weight to them and overall it's an incredibly polished game that's clearly had a lot of love put into it by huge fans of the source material. The soundtrack also kickass and really does add to it alot really getting you going when it all kicks off action wise. Ive only had 3 really annoying bugs one where I got stuck in the floor and had to restart, one where a character was stood on a bar with his head in the roof and the other where a tutorial message got stuck in the middle of the screen but reloading sorted them. Like I said earlier however it's the lore, environments, characters and creatures that have mainly pulled me and it's a joy to explore the different detailed areas (even though they are quite linear experiences) and it's absolutely crammed to the teeth with dialogue, collectables, costumes and little details everywhere from the films and comics. The end of the day it's quite a casual affair but to me that doesn't matter I'm just loving spending more time with these characters and essentially living in a rich and dense sci-fi world (it's almost like a Star Wars game at times and is better than any of the Star Wars games we have had so far if I'm honest). An absolute must buy for any sci-fi or Guardians fan.
Merissa (12069 KP) rated Relentless (Relentless, #1) in Books
Jun 8, 2023
Have you ever picked up a book and thought that you knew exactly where it was heading before you even started it? Well, that's what I thought about this book. I thought it would be a light, easy read where the story follows the 'set' pattern and it would while away a couple of hours. Boy, was I wrong!!!
This story is simply fantastic. It is fresh and incredibly well-written. There aren't many books out there that can blend fantasy with paranormal but Karen Lynch can and does with aplomb. The synopsis states that vampires are involved so fair enough but I certainly wasn't expecting trolls, imps, sylphs, undines and demons - to name but a few! There are enough characters in here so that everyone can have their favourite although I suspect I'm in the majority for thinking that Nikolas is just "Oh Yeah!". The relationships between Sara and her two best friends, Roland and Peter, are not only believable but also in the minority in books. Yes, people, you can be friends with a guy without any benefits apart from a solid friendship. It was so nice to read this part even with the explanation given by Aine as to the why.
Sara has special gifts, some of which can be explained by Nikolas and some that remain a mystery. Sara states that she is not a warrior. Warriors come in different shapes and sizes but Sara definitely is. She has much to learn and I'm really hoping that Nikolas will be there to help her.
Relentless is full of secrets which I loved reading about, it is also full of humour. Sara is a strong female lead and she is not afraid of speaking her mind, especially to Nikolas. One of my favourite parts is when she speaks to Nikolas on the phone and calls Chris "Dimples". It may not be funny here but read the story and you'll see what I mean.
This is book 1 of a trilogy with book 2 (hopefully) due out late this year. I am now stalking, I mean, following 😉 Karen Lynch on Facebook and GoodReads so that I can see it as soon as it's available. Good things come to those that wait and if this book is any indication, book 2 is going to be even better. So many things that I want to see happen. Definitely recommended for anyone who likes YA, Fantasy or Paranormal. Excellent!
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Mar 9, 2014
This story is simply fantastic. It is fresh and incredibly well-written. There aren't many books out there that can blend fantasy with paranormal but Karen Lynch can and does with aplomb. The synopsis states that vampires are involved so fair enough but I certainly wasn't expecting trolls, imps, sylphs, undines and demons - to name but a few! There are enough characters in here so that everyone can have their favourite although I suspect I'm in the majority for thinking that Nikolas is just "Oh Yeah!". The relationships between Sara and her two best friends, Roland and Peter, are not only believable but also in the minority in books. Yes, people, you can be friends with a guy without any benefits apart from a solid friendship. It was so nice to read this part even with the explanation given by Aine as to the why.
Sara has special gifts, some of which can be explained by Nikolas and some that remain a mystery. Sara states that she is not a warrior. Warriors come in different shapes and sizes but Sara definitely is. She has much to learn and I'm really hoping that Nikolas will be there to help her.
Relentless is full of secrets which I loved reading about, it is also full of humour. Sara is a strong female lead and she is not afraid of speaking her mind, especially to Nikolas. One of my favourite parts is when she speaks to Nikolas on the phone and calls Chris "Dimples". It may not be funny here but read the story and you'll see what I mean.
This is book 1 of a trilogy with book 2 (hopefully) due out late this year. I am now stalking, I mean, following 😉 Karen Lynch on Facebook and GoodReads so that I can see it as soon as it's available. Good things come to those that wait and if this book is any indication, book 2 is going to be even better. So many things that I want to see happen. Definitely recommended for anyone who likes YA, Fantasy or Paranormal. Excellent!
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Mar 9, 2014