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Spectacles
Book
Spectacles is the hilarious, creative and incredibly moving memoir from much loved comedian, writer...
This book was given to me by a friend, a substitue teacher at the school I teach at. He is working on his teaching degree & came across this book in the course of his studies. He was so impressed with it that he purchased several copies & gave them to teachers at the school.
I enjoyed this book a great deal. It was easy to read for being a book on brain science. It was written in a very non-high brow way. The book explained the theory of brain plasticity & how the "changeability" of the brain impacts our lives. There were sections on relationships, addiction, learning, strokes, & the part I found the most interesting the development of the Fast ForWord program which we use at the school.
If you are curious about the brain & how it is able to change & heal or harm itself this is a must read!
I enjoyed this book a great deal. It was easy to read for being a book on brain science. It was written in a very non-high brow way. The book explained the theory of brain plasticity & how the "changeability" of the brain impacts our lives. There were sections on relationships, addiction, learning, strokes, & the part I found the most interesting the development of the Fast ForWord program which we use at the school.
If you are curious about the brain & how it is able to change & heal or harm itself this is a must read!
Bostonian916 (449 KP) rated Vivarium (2020) in Movies
Sep 17, 2020
I'm a sucker for Jesse Eisenberg. Something about his presence in a film draws me to it and probably allows me to enjoy it more than perhaps what the film itself deserves.
With that being said, I thoroughly enjoyed the movie Vivarium. While primarily focused on two (perhaps two and a half, depending on perspective) the movie draws you in emotionally and doesn't let go until the bitter end.
While various interpretations are definitely possible, I saw it as a scathing review on the social levity that we place on tangible things and the role we allow them to play in our lives. While a bit alarming in pace at times retrospectively, I found the drive of the movie quite satisfying. From the love of a young couple starting their future together to the unenviable realization of what has become, this movie is a ride worth taking.
With that being said, I thoroughly enjoyed the movie Vivarium. While primarily focused on two (perhaps two and a half, depending on perspective) the movie draws you in emotionally and doesn't let go until the bitter end.
While various interpretations are definitely possible, I saw it as a scathing review on the social levity that we place on tangible things and the role we allow them to play in our lives. While a bit alarming in pace at times retrospectively, I found the drive of the movie quite satisfying. From the love of a young couple starting their future together to the unenviable realization of what has become, this movie is a ride worth taking.
LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated Ready or Not (2019) in Movies
Sep 3, 2019
I saw Ready or Not earlier this evening as part of Odeon's Scream Unseen - so we went in with no idea of what movie we were about to see (apart from my friend @Neon's Nerd Nexus being bang on with his guess), and hadn't really seen much promo before hand.
And I'm glad he was right, because I found it to be a pretty good horror film (it reminded me of You're Next at times) with generous lashings of black comedy.
It made me laugh a good few times throughout whilst simultaneously making me wince at some of the gore on display.
Samara Weaving is really likable and easy to root for. In fact, I actually liked pretty much every character on display.
It's not the best horror movie you will see by a long way, but above all, Ready or Not is just extremely fun.
And I'm glad he was right, because I found it to be a pretty good horror film (it reminded me of You're Next at times) with generous lashings of black comedy.
It made me laugh a good few times throughout whilst simultaneously making me wince at some of the gore on display.
Samara Weaving is really likable and easy to root for. In fact, I actually liked pretty much every character on display.
It's not the best horror movie you will see by a long way, but above all, Ready or Not is just extremely fun.
Flame Kissed (Phoenix Rising #1)
8.0
Rate It
Book
You can’t outrun fate. As a phoenix on the run from her Legion, I’ve done my best to stay one...
Paranormal Romance Enemies to Lovers Urban Fantasy Forced Proximity Rejected Mates
Merissa (13495 KP) rated The Executioner in Books
Dec 17, 2018 (Updated May 26, 2023)
This short story briefly mentions a local myth and legend about The Executioner, but apart from that, the story is mainly a second-chance romance. On a team-building weekend, something goes wrong and they end up with two dead bodies. Maddie needs to keep it together as Team Leader to assist the police, whilst also figuring out if she will forgive her ex, Nick.
This is a fast-paced story that nevertheless manages to tell the complete story and give you a hint of the mysterious too. Well written, with no editing or grammatical errors that I found, this makes a perfect coffee break book. Recommended.
* 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 8, 2016
This is a fast-paced story that nevertheless manages to tell the complete story and give you a hint of the mysterious too. Well written, with no editing or grammatical errors that I found, this makes a perfect coffee break book. Recommended.
* 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 8, 2016
Until You
9.0
Rate It
Book
Paul It feels like I’ve been drowning for five years, barely keeping my head above the water. I...
Contemporary MM Romance
Kara Skinner (332 KP) rated Fallen Angel in Books
Sep 10, 2019
Genre: Contemporary Adult
Average Goodreads Rating: 4.27
My Rating: 2.5
“What do you see when you look into my eyes?” I asked breathlessly and not entirely sure where the question had come from.
“All there is to know,” was his reply. “What do you see when you look into my eyes, Brooke?” he whispered, there was a slight anger to his voice.
I trembled. “An abyss and danger,” was all I could say.
I found Fallen Angel when I was looking for angel/mortal romance novels. Even though Fallen Angel was listed as a mafia romance and not not the supernatural romance I was looking for, I picked it up anyway. And at first it was great.
It immediately started out with a strong love story. Brooke is in the midst of an existential crisis after breaking up with her long-time boyfriend. When she visits her best friend Sam in New York, she ends up meeting billionaire Robert Stone, a handsome CEO who doesn’t know how to take no for an answer. To the point of being a jerk about it. But at least he’s self aware about that.
“I’m worried that I might hurt you. I have a knack of doing that when people get too close to me, a defense mechanism, I guess.”
No one pretends Robert is a great boyfriend, which I love. There are too many alpha billionaires out there that are disturbingly abusive while everyone pretends it’s a normal relationship. Not here. Robert’s actually one of the first to admit that he’s not a good boyfriend and he’s never had a real relationship. Which is great. I love flawed heroes. And when Robert does get better at communicating his feelings, it’s worth it.
“I love you, Brooke. You’ll never know just how much because there are no words.”
And Brooke is strong enough to handle him. She stands up to Robert when he disses Sam for being gay (which, by the way, I hated a lot. You can be a flawed badass without being a homophobe. Ugh. Major turn-off for me) and when he makes a big deal about her wearing a revealing dress.
“I wore it for you and not for anyone else. If people can see my body, so what? You’re the only one touching it,” I told him.
Brooke’s even a trained kick boxer. She’s incredibly strong and perfect to help Robert get over his past.
Then the story falls flat.
tired-and-bored-boy-sleep-014
After their second fight and make up, the story gets monotonous real fast. A lot of sex scenes– which, to be fair, were actually hot and well-written– and a lot of the mundane stuff. Brooke hanging out with Sam and Scott, Brooke working, Brooke attending one event or another with Robert. The story just dragged. And with the actual story dragging, the amount of comma splices and run-on sentences became more noticeable to me and book was practically unreadable. I had to make myself finish because I had already invested so much time into it.
It’s not like there wasn’t potential for more plot. There’s a jealous ex girlfriend out to steal Robert back and Brooke’s ex boyfriend can’t accept their break up. Brooke takes a troubled teen under her wing and isn’t this supposed to be a mafia romance?
And yet the majority of the middle of the book is sex, clothes, work days, and how great Brooke is for Robert. On top of that, Brooke loses a lot of the strength and independence I saw earlier in the book. In fact, she turned into a love sick teen.
Our souls, so entwined, were part of each other, true soul mates. Not even death would separate us.
marrypoppinsareyouill
To make matters worse, Robert’s criminal background isn’t revealed until three quarters of the way through the story! And since he got out of illegal activities years before he met Brooke, it’s really anticlimactic. Brooke makes a huge deal out of it and almost leaves him because of his past, which makes me dislike her even more. The criminal element actually seems more like an after thought to this so-called mafia romance. I’m really surprised it has such a high rating on Goodreads because I found it pretty disappointing. My rating is 2.5 stars because of the strong beginning, but I definitely won’t be reading any more of the Fallen Angel series.
Average Goodreads Rating: 4.27
My Rating: 2.5
“What do you see when you look into my eyes?” I asked breathlessly and not entirely sure where the question had come from.
“All there is to know,” was his reply. “What do you see when you look into my eyes, Brooke?” he whispered, there was a slight anger to his voice.
I trembled. “An abyss and danger,” was all I could say.
I found Fallen Angel when I was looking for angel/mortal romance novels. Even though Fallen Angel was listed as a mafia romance and not not the supernatural romance I was looking for, I picked it up anyway. And at first it was great.
It immediately started out with a strong love story. Brooke is in the midst of an existential crisis after breaking up with her long-time boyfriend. When she visits her best friend Sam in New York, she ends up meeting billionaire Robert Stone, a handsome CEO who doesn’t know how to take no for an answer. To the point of being a jerk about it. But at least he’s self aware about that.
“I’m worried that I might hurt you. I have a knack of doing that when people get too close to me, a defense mechanism, I guess.”
No one pretends Robert is a great boyfriend, which I love. There are too many alpha billionaires out there that are disturbingly abusive while everyone pretends it’s a normal relationship. Not here. Robert’s actually one of the first to admit that he’s not a good boyfriend and he’s never had a real relationship. Which is great. I love flawed heroes. And when Robert does get better at communicating his feelings, it’s worth it.
“I love you, Brooke. You’ll never know just how much because there are no words.”
And Brooke is strong enough to handle him. She stands up to Robert when he disses Sam for being gay (which, by the way, I hated a lot. You can be a flawed badass without being a homophobe. Ugh. Major turn-off for me) and when he makes a big deal about her wearing a revealing dress.
“I wore it for you and not for anyone else. If people can see my body, so what? You’re the only one touching it,” I told him.
Brooke’s even a trained kick boxer. She’s incredibly strong and perfect to help Robert get over his past.
Then the story falls flat.
tired-and-bored-boy-sleep-014
After their second fight and make up, the story gets monotonous real fast. A lot of sex scenes– which, to be fair, were actually hot and well-written– and a lot of the mundane stuff. Brooke hanging out with Sam and Scott, Brooke working, Brooke attending one event or another with Robert. The story just dragged. And with the actual story dragging, the amount of comma splices and run-on sentences became more noticeable to me and book was practically unreadable. I had to make myself finish because I had already invested so much time into it.
It’s not like there wasn’t potential for more plot. There’s a jealous ex girlfriend out to steal Robert back and Brooke’s ex boyfriend can’t accept their break up. Brooke takes a troubled teen under her wing and isn’t this supposed to be a mafia romance?
And yet the majority of the middle of the book is sex, clothes, work days, and how great Brooke is for Robert. On top of that, Brooke loses a lot of the strength and independence I saw earlier in the book. In fact, she turned into a love sick teen.
Our souls, so entwined, were part of each other, true soul mates. Not even death would separate us.
marrypoppinsareyouill
To make matters worse, Robert’s criminal background isn’t revealed until three quarters of the way through the story! And since he got out of illegal activities years before he met Brooke, it’s really anticlimactic. Brooke makes a huge deal out of it and almost leaves him because of his past, which makes me dislike her even more. The criminal element actually seems more like an after thought to this so-called mafia romance. I’m really surprised it has such a high rating on Goodreads because I found it pretty disappointing. My rating is 2.5 stars because of the strong beginning, but I definitely won’t be reading any more of the Fallen Angel series.
Connie (244 KP) rated Werewolf Online in Apps
Jul 26, 2018 (Updated Jul 26, 2018)
Ranked mode (2 more)
New roles being added all the time
Online means you can play anytime
The best reboot of classic Mafia/ Werewolf card games!
I liked the card game Mafia as a kid. It was fun and made parties interesting. When I found Werewolf, I was more interested--the sci-fi/ fantasy theme really sucked me in farther. Now that it's an app, I literally can't put it down!
One team faces three other teams to try and be top dog (errr... wolf, actually) at the end of the game. Assigned a random role with a special ability, you have to try and hunt down all the members of all the other teams and lynch/shoot/holy water them without your own team being knocked out first. Will you be assigned to the Villager team as a Seer or the Mayor? Will you "wake up" as a Werewolf, or as the Shaman? Will you be the Serial Killer or the Arsonist, trying to kill every other player? Or will you be the Fool or Headhunter, trying to be lynched or get one other specific person lynched?
Every game is different. Every game is online against hundreds of others all around the world. And every game, only one team (sometimes only one player) can win.
It's tactical. It's skill and intrigue, lies and manipulations and downright back-stabbing as the most clever rise to the top.
On top of that, new roles are being added constantly through the Discord servers. If you've got an idea, they want to hear it. Several writers have already had their ideas incorporated, and it's awfully interesting to help those roles get perfected!
All in all this is a solid party favorite made playable anywhere. 10/10 WILL play again!
One team faces three other teams to try and be top dog (errr... wolf, actually) at the end of the game. Assigned a random role with a special ability, you have to try and hunt down all the members of all the other teams and lynch/shoot/holy water them without your own team being knocked out first. Will you be assigned to the Villager team as a Seer or the Mayor? Will you "wake up" as a Werewolf, or as the Shaman? Will you be the Serial Killer or the Arsonist, trying to kill every other player? Or will you be the Fool or Headhunter, trying to be lynched or get one other specific person lynched?
Every game is different. Every game is online against hundreds of others all around the world. And every game, only one team (sometimes only one player) can win.
It's tactical. It's skill and intrigue, lies and manipulations and downright back-stabbing as the most clever rise to the top.
On top of that, new roles are being added constantly through the Discord servers. If you've got an idea, they want to hear it. Several writers have already had their ideas incorporated, and it's awfully interesting to help those roles get perfected!
All in all this is a solid party favorite made playable anywhere. 10/10 WILL play again!
Merissa (13495 KP) rated Bratva's Vow (Bratva's Undoing #2) in Books
Aug 19, 2025
BRATVA'S VOW is the concluding part of Wren and Maxim's story, although not the end of the series! Phew!!! You really do need to read the first book to fully appreciate this one, so I won't go over the story again, apart from to say that it follows on from the first one.
Right then...
This really is a book of two halves, well, three thirds, if you want to get picky. The First Act is where Wren and Maxim are still working on their relationship, with all the secrets that entails. The Second Act is trauma and betrayal - I'll give you three guesses what that part's about. And the Third Act is the culmination of all the behind-the-scenes machinations, more betrayal, LOADS more love, and a possible set-up for the next book.
Once again, I was lost in Wren and Maxim's world. A guy like Maxim would have me heading for the hills in real life, but when I can curl up on the couch and read about it? Yum!! Definitely a guilty pleasure. Maxim is who he is, and he's unapologetic about it. He will move heaven and earth for Wren, if only Wren will let him. He may be the Big Boss in every other aspect of his life, but he will do anything if it makes Wren happy. And Wren himself is so much stronger than he first thought, BUT I adored his reaction when he found out about Maxim. It was lifelike and raw, and I was completely hooked.
If you've read my review for Bratva's Intern, then you'll know I mentioned getting an itchy feeling about a character. I WAS RIGHT!!! My Spidey senses were tingling for a good reason. In fact, they were all the way through. So you can imagine how happy I was to be proven right in every way, from who it was, to what they were doing, and why.
This book gave me all the answers I was looking for, as well as giving me the warm fuzzies for Wren and Maxim, not forgetting Jellybean. I'm really hoping they appear in later books. As for who's next? I'm presuming it's Sergei and Leo, but I don't really care. I will read whoever it is in this series, and no doubt love every word too. Just in case you've not realised, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND this book, so long as you read the other one first.
** Same worded review will appear elsewhere. **
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book; the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Aug 19, 2025
Right then...
This really is a book of two halves, well, three thirds, if you want to get picky. The First Act is where Wren and Maxim are still working on their relationship, with all the secrets that entails. The Second Act is trauma and betrayal - I'll give you three guesses what that part's about. And the Third Act is the culmination of all the behind-the-scenes machinations, more betrayal, LOADS more love, and a possible set-up for the next book.
Once again, I was lost in Wren and Maxim's world. A guy like Maxim would have me heading for the hills in real life, but when I can curl up on the couch and read about it? Yum!! Definitely a guilty pleasure. Maxim is who he is, and he's unapologetic about it. He will move heaven and earth for Wren, if only Wren will let him. He may be the Big Boss in every other aspect of his life, but he will do anything if it makes Wren happy. And Wren himself is so much stronger than he first thought, BUT I adored his reaction when he found out about Maxim. It was lifelike and raw, and I was completely hooked.
If you've read my review for Bratva's Intern, then you'll know I mentioned getting an itchy feeling about a character. I WAS RIGHT!!! My Spidey senses were tingling for a good reason. In fact, they were all the way through. So you can imagine how happy I was to be proven right in every way, from who it was, to what they were doing, and why.
This book gave me all the answers I was looking for, as well as giving me the warm fuzzies for Wren and Maxim, not forgetting Jellybean. I'm really hoping they appear in later books. As for who's next? I'm presuming it's Sergei and Leo, but I don't really care. I will read whoever it is in this series, and no doubt love every word too. Just in case you've not realised, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND this book, so long as you read the other one first.
** Same worded review will appear elsewhere. **
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book; the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Aug 19, 2025