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Lilyn G - Sci-Fi & Scary (91 KP) rated The Martian in Books
Jun 6, 2018
Fantastic novel! One of my all time favorite books.
Mark Watney is a snarky, foul-mouthed, crude nerd that’s stuck on Mars and forced to survive by himself. He’s beyond awesome. He takes a pounding from Mars right from the beginning. Has to be able to utilize all his skills and fix all his problems by himself (“Martian taters” “Cannibalized it so much it looks like I left it in a bad part of town”), deal with countless months by himself, and basically frantically try not to die. Through it all, he keeps a sense of humor that still (yes, still, I’m on my 12th listen or so) makes me snicker, and is obviously brilliant in a MacGuyver sort of way, yet utterly relate-able. At this point, I’ve listened to The Martian so much that he’s like a dear friend that I’m constantly rooting for. His reactions are utterly believable .
Andy Weir did a FANTASTIC job with this book.
If you like scifi at all, you will love this book. If you need a hero you can root for, you will love this book. Also, if you're looking for an audio book that is fast-paced, great quality, with an easy to understand and wonderful narrator, you will love the audio book version.
Now, to be fair, some people have complained that there's a lot of science in this book, and that it can be kind of hard to get through because of that. Here's my take on that. Is there a lot of science? Yes. BUT, its not overwhelming. Weir doesn't bombard you with pages upon pages of incomprehensible technobabble. He tells you what's going on in a way that, even if you don't understand the precise details behind what's happening, you still know what's going on. I don't believe at any point that its excessive, and most of the time I found it downright fascinating!
I'm sure this book has a few negatives, but... not any that I can identify.
PS: Lots of F-bombs dropped in the book. Don’t read if you’re sensitive to that.
Andy Weir did a FANTASTIC job with this book.
If you like scifi at all, you will love this book. If you need a hero you can root for, you will love this book. Also, if you're looking for an audio book that is fast-paced, great quality, with an easy to understand and wonderful narrator, you will love the audio book version.
Now, to be fair, some people have complained that there's a lot of science in this book, and that it can be kind of hard to get through because of that. Here's my take on that. Is there a lot of science? Yes. BUT, its not overwhelming. Weir doesn't bombard you with pages upon pages of incomprehensible technobabble. He tells you what's going on in a way that, even if you don't understand the precise details behind what's happening, you still know what's going on. I don't believe at any point that its excessive, and most of the time I found it downright fascinating!
I'm sure this book has a few negatives, but... not any that I can identify.
PS: Lots of F-bombs dropped in the book. Don’t read if you’re sensitive to that.
Hazel (2934 KP) rated The Chalet in Books
Oct 10, 2020
For a debut novel, I think this worked pretty well and it was a nice, quick read.
The plot is set in two time frames - 1998 follows the story of the death of a young man whilst on a skiing holiday with his brother and their girlfriends. Fast forward to 2020 and we find ourselves in the same ski resort, with a group of people who are somehow connected to that death. It's told from multiple points of view so you do have to keep your wits about you but it does work well for the story. In amongst this, we have a mystery narrator - that of a child and her difficult childhood spent in and out of foster care which I found heart breaking - how does she fit into the story?
I am not going to give away any of the plot or provide any spoilers as to do so would ruin it for others but what I will say is that I did see the twist coming from a mile away which took a bit of the suspense and head-scratching away somewhat. Having said that, it is a very clever plot which did make me second-guess myself a couple of times but in the end, I was right.
The characters are thoroughly awful; I think if I was stuck with them, I'd do away with the lot of them! I'm not sure whether it was the author's intention to make them so unlikeable but I felt it actually worked really well in the context of the story and I admit to secretly hoping something bad would befall them all!
Overall, this is a creditable debut and I will be looking out for more from this author in the future and I should thank HarperCollins UK / HarperFiction via NetGalley who invited me to read The Chalet in return for an unbiased review.
The plot is set in two time frames - 1998 follows the story of the death of a young man whilst on a skiing holiday with his brother and their girlfriends. Fast forward to 2020 and we find ourselves in the same ski resort, with a group of people who are somehow connected to that death. It's told from multiple points of view so you do have to keep your wits about you but it does work well for the story. In amongst this, we have a mystery narrator - that of a child and her difficult childhood spent in and out of foster care which I found heart breaking - how does she fit into the story?
I am not going to give away any of the plot or provide any spoilers as to do so would ruin it for others but what I will say is that I did see the twist coming from a mile away which took a bit of the suspense and head-scratching away somewhat. Having said that, it is a very clever plot which did make me second-guess myself a couple of times but in the end, I was right.
The characters are thoroughly awful; I think if I was stuck with them, I'd do away with the lot of them! I'm not sure whether it was the author's intention to make them so unlikeable but I felt it actually worked really well in the context of the story and I admit to secretly hoping something bad would befall them all!
Overall, this is a creditable debut and I will be looking out for more from this author in the future and I should thank HarperCollins UK / HarperFiction via NetGalley who invited me to read The Chalet in return for an unbiased review.
RavenclawPrincess913 (253 KP) rated Star Splitter in Books
Jul 14, 2023
Star Splitter by Matthew J Kirby was one of my favorite books I have read this year. My favorite character in this book would be Duncan, the ships captains sixteen year old son. I like the character due to him being a great friend with an amazing personality. I also love how him and the main character Jessica formed a friendship and how protective he was over her. My favorite part of the book was when they were together. I really loved the part when he saved her. I also loved all the other parts with them together which made the book interesting. This book was very well written kept me interested, and I loved the plot. I honestly had a hard time putting the book down. The author should write more books like this one.
Even though I loved this book and gave it a five out of five stars, the ending made me mad. I just don't like how it ended. It leaves many questions unanswered. Also, the back and forth between Jessica one and Jessica two got me very confused at times. One scene I disliked was when the two crew members talked about Jessica and her family behind her back. Also, the scene where her father killed the ships doctor was scary to me. Her dad's transfer was corrupted, which made him very violent. Another part I didn't like was the fact that Jessica's mother is the reason the ship was destroyed since she didn't leave Jessica's violent Dad locked up like she was supposed to. In my opinion, Jessica and her mother should have just left the ship alone and left her corrupted father behind. Jessica's relationship with her parents was bad from the start, but I imagine this made it even worse. Duncan also had a bad relationship with his dad, so I'm pretty sure them having that in common helped their relationship grow. In conclusion, I can definitely see myself rereading this book. If you love young adult science fiction with teleportation to another planet, you would love this book too.
Star Splitter was my favorite book read this year, so here's some fun facts about the book. Jessica refers to Carver 1061c as Hades, which I found hilarious and very fitting after everything that happened. Jessica's Mom was a geologist, and her dad a biological studying Hades surface. The rest you will just have to read to find out.
Even though I loved this book and gave it a five out of five stars, the ending made me mad. I just don't like how it ended. It leaves many questions unanswered. Also, the back and forth between Jessica one and Jessica two got me very confused at times. One scene I disliked was when the two crew members talked about Jessica and her family behind her back. Also, the scene where her father killed the ships doctor was scary to me. Her dad's transfer was corrupted, which made him very violent. Another part I didn't like was the fact that Jessica's mother is the reason the ship was destroyed since she didn't leave Jessica's violent Dad locked up like she was supposed to. In my opinion, Jessica and her mother should have just left the ship alone and left her corrupted father behind. Jessica's relationship with her parents was bad from the start, but I imagine this made it even worse. Duncan also had a bad relationship with his dad, so I'm pretty sure them having that in common helped their relationship grow. In conclusion, I can definitely see myself rereading this book. If you love young adult science fiction with teleportation to another planet, you would love this book too.
Star Splitter was my favorite book read this year, so here's some fun facts about the book. Jessica refers to Carver 1061c as Hades, which I found hilarious and very fitting after everything that happened. Jessica's Mom was a geologist, and her dad a biological studying Hades surface. The rest you will just have to read to find out.
Kristy H (1252 KP) rated Mr. Nobody in Books
Mar 19, 2020
Emma Lewis is neuropsychiatrist, who is surprised when she's asked to work on a case for a newsworthy patient. Dubbed "Mr. Nobody," he's a man found on a British beach, in wet clothes and without any identification. He won't speak and the hospital staff are all drawn to him. But for Emma to take the case, it means returning to a place that she left fourteen years ago in disgrace--a place she's worked to leave behind and erase any signs of herself from.
"Why can't I remember? Why can't I remember my name? The weight of what this means bears down on him with each cold snatched breath he takes. Fear pumping through him, primal and quickening. Oh God. It's all gone. His world shrinks to a pinhead and then dilates so wide, suddenly terrifyingly borderless."
This book started out like gangbusters. Alternating between Emma and Mr. Nobody, whom the hospital staff quickly dubs Matthew, I was drawn in immediately. Who on earth is Matthew, why can't he remember who he is, and what is his deal? But there were a few issues. Emma clearly has a backstory. Yes, something happened to her fourteen years ago. To me, this is the equivalent of "vaguebooking"--you know when someone posts something on Facebook or social media: "Something horrible has happened. Oh woe is me." And then all their friends have to either guess, or say "Oh I'm so sorry," but the poster never actually tells you what happened? I'm sorry, but in books, after a while, dragging this all out is too much. Just freaking tell us what happened to you, Emma, or stop alluding to it!
So Emma and Matthew, of course, surpass patient/doctor boundaries, finding each other fascinating. There are, accordingly, twists in the book. Some, I will hand it to Steadman, are pretty darn good. Much of the book is quite readable and moves at a good pace--Emma's allusions to her past not withstanding. It's certainly intriguing. There are some interesting side characters: a local police officer and his nosy reporter wife; a benevolent nurse, etc. Emma's kind and patient brother.
But then the ending and biggest reveal comes along and eh. I found it a little anticlimactic. After all we've been through together, Emma?! I don't know. I was hoping for more, especially after all the fuss about Something in the Water, which I still haven't read. (I know, I know. It's on my TBR.)
So, in the end, this is an intriguing one. The plot is definitely original, I'll give you that. But throw in a slightly irritating main character and a somewhat disappointing ending and it was a 3.5 star read for me-just barely.
"Why can't I remember? Why can't I remember my name? The weight of what this means bears down on him with each cold snatched breath he takes. Fear pumping through him, primal and quickening. Oh God. It's all gone. His world shrinks to a pinhead and then dilates so wide, suddenly terrifyingly borderless."
This book started out like gangbusters. Alternating between Emma and Mr. Nobody, whom the hospital staff quickly dubs Matthew, I was drawn in immediately. Who on earth is Matthew, why can't he remember who he is, and what is his deal? But there were a few issues. Emma clearly has a backstory. Yes, something happened to her fourteen years ago. To me, this is the equivalent of "vaguebooking"--you know when someone posts something on Facebook or social media: "Something horrible has happened. Oh woe is me." And then all their friends have to either guess, or say "Oh I'm so sorry," but the poster never actually tells you what happened? I'm sorry, but in books, after a while, dragging this all out is too much. Just freaking tell us what happened to you, Emma, or stop alluding to it!
So Emma and Matthew, of course, surpass patient/doctor boundaries, finding each other fascinating. There are, accordingly, twists in the book. Some, I will hand it to Steadman, are pretty darn good. Much of the book is quite readable and moves at a good pace--Emma's allusions to her past not withstanding. It's certainly intriguing. There are some interesting side characters: a local police officer and his nosy reporter wife; a benevolent nurse, etc. Emma's kind and patient brother.
But then the ending and biggest reveal comes along and eh. I found it a little anticlimactic. After all we've been through together, Emma?! I don't know. I was hoping for more, especially after all the fuss about Something in the Water, which I still haven't read. (I know, I know. It's on my TBR.)
So, in the end, this is an intriguing one. The plot is definitely original, I'll give you that. But throw in a slightly irritating main character and a somewhat disappointing ending and it was a 3.5 star read for me-just barely.
Mothergamer (1598 KP) rated Yakuza Kiwami SteelBook Edition in Video Games
Jun 21, 2019
I had never played any of the Yakuza games, but I had always been curious about them so when Yakuza Kiwami was one of the free games offered up with my Playstation Plus I picked it up. The introduction at the beginning of the story is interesting and I really liked Kazuma Kiryu because of his sense of honor and doing his best to protect his friends. I was glad to see that there are a range of difficulty settings in the game options and went with easy so I could get a feel for the game and just enjoy the story.
The story begins with Kiryu taking the fall for a friend and emerging from prison ten years later. This opens up a small tutorial for how the game controls work. Exploration and level grinding are a big part of Yakuza Kiwami as you progress in the main story and there are side quests as well. The night life of Tokyo is vibrant and colorful in the game adding to the atmosphere. I found myself stopping often just to look around at all the different things.
This wouldn't be Yakuza without the brawls of course and there are many. Often gangs roaming the streets will pick fights with Kiryu and this is where the game really shines. The fights are fun and being able to switch between Kiryu's four fighting styles; brawler, rush, and beast give you a feel for the fighting mechanics while feeling that raw criminal underworld vibe. However, there are times where the game fails to give you an idea about which fighting style works best and how they differ from each other. I did a lot of trial and error with many fights because of this. That didn't make the game any less fun for me though and successfully winning a fight felt great.
There is one thing that really bugged me about the game and that is all the fights with the character Majima. While I understood that Kiryu being forced to fight Majima was a way to get him back to his original top tier fighting shape after his long stint in prison, I felt incredibly annoyed at how often Majima turned up demanding a brawl especially when I was trying to get somewhere in the story. I did not want to have a constant detour of fighting him and yet he kept popping up everywhere. Majimi is an interesting character don't get me wrong, but I found these fights tedious. Of course the reward for all these fights is it unlocks Kiryu's dragon fighting form which is great, but the irritation of Majima fights sucked a bit of fun out of the game for me.
I enjoyed the story for Yakuza Kiwami a lot because I liked Kiryu and was invested in his journey. There are a lot of flashbacks explaining what happened to certain characters and shines a light on how they came to be where they are in the present. Sometimes the story feels a little slow in places, but it is well thought out and well done. Where it really stands out is with the intrigue and drama with plot reveals that give amazing cinematic cutscenes that feel like you're watching a movie. Overall the game is great and while it's not necessarily a long game, there is plenty to do with the side quests, mini games, and exploration of the city. Once you finish the game, you can also try new game plus which carries over all your learned abilities, mini games, and side quest stories. Yakuza Kiwami was a lot of fun for me to play and I'm glad I checked it out. Thanks for reading, see you at the next adventure!
The story begins with Kiryu taking the fall for a friend and emerging from prison ten years later. This opens up a small tutorial for how the game controls work. Exploration and level grinding are a big part of Yakuza Kiwami as you progress in the main story and there are side quests as well. The night life of Tokyo is vibrant and colorful in the game adding to the atmosphere. I found myself stopping often just to look around at all the different things.
This wouldn't be Yakuza without the brawls of course and there are many. Often gangs roaming the streets will pick fights with Kiryu and this is where the game really shines. The fights are fun and being able to switch between Kiryu's four fighting styles; brawler, rush, and beast give you a feel for the fighting mechanics while feeling that raw criminal underworld vibe. However, there are times where the game fails to give you an idea about which fighting style works best and how they differ from each other. I did a lot of trial and error with many fights because of this. That didn't make the game any less fun for me though and successfully winning a fight felt great.
There is one thing that really bugged me about the game and that is all the fights with the character Majima. While I understood that Kiryu being forced to fight Majima was a way to get him back to his original top tier fighting shape after his long stint in prison, I felt incredibly annoyed at how often Majima turned up demanding a brawl especially when I was trying to get somewhere in the story. I did not want to have a constant detour of fighting him and yet he kept popping up everywhere. Majimi is an interesting character don't get me wrong, but I found these fights tedious. Of course the reward for all these fights is it unlocks Kiryu's dragon fighting form which is great, but the irritation of Majima fights sucked a bit of fun out of the game for me.
I enjoyed the story for Yakuza Kiwami a lot because I liked Kiryu and was invested in his journey. There are a lot of flashbacks explaining what happened to certain characters and shines a light on how they came to be where they are in the present. Sometimes the story feels a little slow in places, but it is well thought out and well done. Where it really stands out is with the intrigue and drama with plot reveals that give amazing cinematic cutscenes that feel like you're watching a movie. Overall the game is great and while it's not necessarily a long game, there is plenty to do with the side quests, mini games, and exploration of the city. Once you finish the game, you can also try new game plus which carries over all your learned abilities, mini games, and side quest stories. Yakuza Kiwami was a lot of fun for me to play and I'm glad I checked it out. Thanks for reading, see you at the next adventure!
Joally (1 KP) rated the PlayStation 3 version of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim in Video Games
Jan 30, 2019
Visuals (5 more)
Mechanics
Characters
Quests
Quality
Free to roam
Glitches (1 more)
Voice actors
Too good to miss!
The game starts at the main quest where the MC (main character) is about to be executed when a dragon appears within the village. It is very instructive as to your controls and how you play the game. I found it relatively easy and I was a beginner to gaming at this point. The story progressed as does the side quests. Characters are almost fledged as if they could be real and there are things in the game which you can have your MC marry an NPC and build your own house etc. It is truly a work of art. There are glitches which make the game frustrating, the combat is simple and easily boring, and they reuse the same voice actors for many of the characters which makes it unbelievable in some cases. Other than that.. Skyrim is beautifully made. (It says PS3 cause there was no PS4 option)
Awix (3310 KP) rated Mary Queen of Scots (2018) in Movies
Jan 23, 2019 (Updated Jan 23, 2019)
There's Something About Mary
Yet another crack at the famous life-story of Mary Stuart. It's all a bit complicated and has to do with religious conflict and dynastic succession; if I understood it better I could probably get higher scores on Crusader Kings 2. This is a period of history that everyone sort-of knows a bit about without really understanding the details, and it would have been great if the film had really got to the heart of the politics and personalities involved, but instead the director seems more interested in giving the story more of a modern resonance than it really requires.
Still, good frocks, and many incidental pleasures to be found, especially amongst the supporting performances. Saoirse Ronan doesn't quite dominate the film as you might imagine; Margot Robbie is at least as impressive in a rather smaller part. In the end it's kind of okay if you just like costume dramas, but it doesn't really bring the story to life.
Still, good frocks, and many incidental pleasures to be found, especially amongst the supporting performances. Saoirse Ronan doesn't quite dominate the film as you might imagine; Margot Robbie is at least as impressive in a rather smaller part. In the end it's kind of okay if you just like costume dramas, but it doesn't really bring the story to life.
Emma @ The Movies (1786 KP) rated Joker (2019) in Movies
Dec 8, 2019
Contains spoilers, click to show
Had this been released on any regular week I'd have seen Joker the day it came out and not been overly bothered by the Twitter frenzy that happened in the aftermath of the opening... but, Joker came out two days into the London Film Festival and that meant I couldn't see it straight away. I ended up taking a day off in the middle of it and going out to have a regular cinema outing, it was only 6 days after release but the barrage of feedback online was enough to make me bored at the thought of seeing it.
I do not know how to do this review. It's not that I don't have things to say about it, because I do, but there's a lot of grumbling. I'm going to try bullet pointing it as it covers things that cross audience feedback with moaning.
• What is real? We see the Sophie shots replayed without her in them and we realise he imagined it but we also know that he's imagined other things... everything could be a twist on reality.
• I did not assume that the man with Bruce at home was Alfred.
• I would not have found it unbelievable had Arthur and Sophie been a couple.
• This film could easily have been a pre-origin story for the Joker character.
• I know Arthur needs every push to make the story progress but I don't see that Thomas Wayne needed to be that aggressive.
• Wouldn't it have been good if this film made no reference to anything Batman/Joker related and the first time we're actually shown the connection is in that iconic alley scene?
So there are the things I had thoughts, they all have me waffling on for ages when I voice them out loud.
Joaquin Phoenix really commits to the journey of Arthur and it's an incredible depiction. I'm not so bothered about the violence in the movie, what disturbed me more was how Phoenix manages to laugh without it showing on his face... that was chilling. Everything crafted around him really shows his life, the way he's captured in the shots, the way you see the darker side taking over him, you can see it in every scene. It's uncomfortable to watch him sometimes, but that's the way it needs to be.
As an environment you can feel the dirt and the story of the city really comes through in everything you see. There's a very clear divide between rich and poor and I really thought the sets and costumes worked perfectly.
I'm going to mention the song... it worked perfectly in the scene, it had the right tone for it and I thought it was very effective. As you look down the rest of the tracklisting it was nice to see that everything had a very theatrical leaning.
When we get to the point where Arthur, now under the guise of Joker, appears on Murray's talk show there's an element of uncertainty about what's going to happen. The escalation is chilling and when he starts his speech you can feel the change in him. That speech had a moment of understanding in it before you remember everything we've just seen. I would happily have seen the film end with that test card.
What happens after this is a big piece that feels like hallucination moments rather than real ones. I really didn't need that... BUT... it did bring us to that iconic alleyway scene. It was perfectly captured and would have been amazing if we saw the clown slip into the alleyway and then... no pearls. I groaned when I saw that. I'm fed up with it, it took that tense moment and could have left you with that sense of knowing without hitting you with that now rather common slap in the face of an image.
Unlike other films I still don't have a very clear idea of how I feel about this film, there are lots of issues I had with it but then there's that brilliant performance from Joaquin Phoenix. I'm sure this needs another viewing, but even then I'm not sure I'd be totally certain about how I felt.
Originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2019/11/joker-spoilers-movie-review.html
I do not know how to do this review. It's not that I don't have things to say about it, because I do, but there's a lot of grumbling. I'm going to try bullet pointing it as it covers things that cross audience feedback with moaning.
• What is real? We see the Sophie shots replayed without her in them and we realise he imagined it but we also know that he's imagined other things... everything could be a twist on reality.
• I did not assume that the man with Bruce at home was Alfred.
• I would not have found it unbelievable had Arthur and Sophie been a couple.
• This film could easily have been a pre-origin story for the Joker character.
• I know Arthur needs every push to make the story progress but I don't see that Thomas Wayne needed to be that aggressive.
• Wouldn't it have been good if this film made no reference to anything Batman/Joker related and the first time we're actually shown the connection is in that iconic alley scene?
So there are the things I had thoughts, they all have me waffling on for ages when I voice them out loud.
Joaquin Phoenix really commits to the journey of Arthur and it's an incredible depiction. I'm not so bothered about the violence in the movie, what disturbed me more was how Phoenix manages to laugh without it showing on his face... that was chilling. Everything crafted around him really shows his life, the way he's captured in the shots, the way you see the darker side taking over him, you can see it in every scene. It's uncomfortable to watch him sometimes, but that's the way it needs to be.
As an environment you can feel the dirt and the story of the city really comes through in everything you see. There's a very clear divide between rich and poor and I really thought the sets and costumes worked perfectly.
I'm going to mention the song... it worked perfectly in the scene, it had the right tone for it and I thought it was very effective. As you look down the rest of the tracklisting it was nice to see that everything had a very theatrical leaning.
When we get to the point where Arthur, now under the guise of Joker, appears on Murray's talk show there's an element of uncertainty about what's going to happen. The escalation is chilling and when he starts his speech you can feel the change in him. That speech had a moment of understanding in it before you remember everything we've just seen. I would happily have seen the film end with that test card.
What happens after this is a big piece that feels like hallucination moments rather than real ones. I really didn't need that... BUT... it did bring us to that iconic alleyway scene. It was perfectly captured and would have been amazing if we saw the clown slip into the alleyway and then... no pearls. I groaned when I saw that. I'm fed up with it, it took that tense moment and could have left you with that sense of knowing without hitting you with that now rather common slap in the face of an image.
Unlike other films I still don't have a very clear idea of how I feel about this film, there are lots of issues I had with it but then there's that brilliant performance from Joaquin Phoenix. I'm sure this needs another viewing, but even then I'm not sure I'd be totally certain about how I felt.
Originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2019/11/joker-spoilers-movie-review.html
Ivana A. | Diary of Difference (1171 KP) rated Cryptofauna in Books
Aug 3, 2020
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Cryptofauna by Patrick Canning is definitely a read that will certainly stay in your memory, for how unique and random it is.
<b><i>Synopsis</i></b>
Jim is a janitor at an insane asylum and one day, he decides to commit a suicide at his workplace. But before he can do the deed, a mysterious resident at work equips him with a dog and a bag of ash, and throws him into a secret game known as Cryptofauna.
Cryptofauna is played by Operators, people with special abilities, who battle one another to influence important events around the world. To become an Operator, Jim must successfully pass a couple of exams, including surviving the Pacific Ocean, surviving some weird monks, and ultimately, passing the exam that proves his mind and soul are ready as well.
On top of this, there is his enemy as well, another Operator, who is forever his rival until the game ends.
This is how Cryptofauna works, in case you are curious. The image was sent to me by the author:
<img src="https://i2.wp.com/diaryofdifference.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/How-To-Play.jpg?resize=768%2C994&ssl=1"/>;
<b><i>My Thoughts:</i></b>
From the synopsis, I expected this book to be unique. However, I never expected to enter such a creative and random world. The events are all so random, the characters too. It is all very random and chaotic in a very interesting way. I am still struggling to decide whether I love this chaos or not.
This book is amazing in terms of creativity and world building.
The author is quite good at creating something new in a place where everything already exists. Patrick Canning managed to create a whole new reality within our real world. A place where Cryptofauna exists as a game and a way of life, and I was glad I entered that world.
There were times I felt very confused on what is happening. I had to re-read chapters and scenes, which resulted in average reading experience. I liked Jim as a character, and I loved how he slowly develops throughout the book and finds his true purpose in his life. As a person that was about to commit suicide, I felt he learned a valuable lesson to not give up. However I felt that the other characters had more liveliness in them (no pun intended, given the fact he wanted to kill himself). I actually loved the evil guy more. He had a recklessness about him that I found intriguing.
Overall, I did enjoy the creativity and the idea of the game itself. However, I felt very lost and confused at certain times, which made my experience less enjoyable. I still recommend it to you, if the synopsis intrigues you and you enjoy stories about good battling evil.
Thank you to the author, Patrick Canning, for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
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Cryptofauna by Patrick Canning is definitely a read that will certainly stay in your memory, for how unique and random it is.
<b><i>Synopsis</i></b>
Jim is a janitor at an insane asylum and one day, he decides to commit a suicide at his workplace. But before he can do the deed, a mysterious resident at work equips him with a dog and a bag of ash, and throws him into a secret game known as Cryptofauna.
Cryptofauna is played by Operators, people with special abilities, who battle one another to influence important events around the world. To become an Operator, Jim must successfully pass a couple of exams, including surviving the Pacific Ocean, surviving some weird monks, and ultimately, passing the exam that proves his mind and soul are ready as well.
On top of this, there is his enemy as well, another Operator, who is forever his rival until the game ends.
This is how Cryptofauna works, in case you are curious. The image was sent to me by the author:
<img src="https://i2.wp.com/diaryofdifference.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/How-To-Play.jpg?resize=768%2C994&ssl=1"/>;
<b><i>My Thoughts:</i></b>
From the synopsis, I expected this book to be unique. However, I never expected to enter such a creative and random world. The events are all so random, the characters too. It is all very random and chaotic in a very interesting way. I am still struggling to decide whether I love this chaos or not.
This book is amazing in terms of creativity and world building.
The author is quite good at creating something new in a place where everything already exists. Patrick Canning managed to create a whole new reality within our real world. A place where Cryptofauna exists as a game and a way of life, and I was glad I entered that world.
There were times I felt very confused on what is happening. I had to re-read chapters and scenes, which resulted in average reading experience. I liked Jim as a character, and I loved how he slowly develops throughout the book and finds his true purpose in his life. As a person that was about to commit suicide, I felt he learned a valuable lesson to not give up. However I felt that the other characters had more liveliness in them (no pun intended, given the fact he wanted to kill himself). I actually loved the evil guy more. He had a recklessness about him that I found intriguing.
Overall, I did enjoy the creativity and the idea of the game itself. However, I felt very lost and confused at certain times, which made my experience less enjoyable. I still recommend it to you, if the synopsis intrigues you and you enjoy stories about good battling evil.
Thank you to the author, Patrick Canning, for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Emma @ The Movies (1786 KP) rated Teen Titans Go! To the Movies (2018) in Movies
Sep 25, 2019
I love Teen Titan's Go! The TV series is so fun to watch, it feel like it's the Deadpool of the DC Universe, happy to take the piss out of itself and doesn't take itself massively seriously either. It was going to be a fairly safe bet that I'd enjoy this one.
It felt a little Robin heavy to me though, and a lot less Teen Titans than I'd hoped for. During their musical numbers I found it a little loud and hard to hear compared to the rest of the film, but you could still follow everything. The credit scene also felt a little odd, unless you know the other version of Teen Titans it would make absolutely no sense.
Even with that is was very enjoyable. Toe tapping, funny with humour across the range, including the classic fart joke and a series in-joke about waffles. I enjoyed the extended universe references, and the MCU references... with an amusing Stan Lee cameo which does leave you going "There's the Stan Lee cameo! ... Wait... this is DC!?" Apart from the regular voice actors you've got some great cameos in there too which, to the older generation in the audience, added some bonus amusement
It felt a little Robin heavy to me though, and a lot less Teen Titans than I'd hoped for. During their musical numbers I found it a little loud and hard to hear compared to the rest of the film, but you could still follow everything. The credit scene also felt a little odd, unless you know the other version of Teen Titans it would make absolutely no sense.
Even with that is was very enjoyable. Toe tapping, funny with humour across the range, including the classic fart joke and a series in-joke about waffles. I enjoyed the extended universe references, and the MCU references... with an amusing Stan Lee cameo which does leave you going "There's the Stan Lee cameo! ... Wait... this is DC!?" Apart from the regular voice actors you've got some great cameos in there too which, to the older generation in the audience, added some bonus amusement