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The Underground Railroad
The Underground Railroad
Colson Whitehead | 2016 | Fiction & Poetry
6
7.7 (10 Ratings)
Book Rating
This book was an excellent history lesson. I seriously learned things I didn't previously know about our nation during slavery. I would highly recommend the book for that reason.
It was easy to read and hard to put down, but I also found it very impersonal. There were a lot of "action sentences" and not much reflection or introspection. The book is written in third person, which may be why I found myself reading about rape and mistreatment without flinching. I also considered maybe the author was trying to show the reader that most people born into slavery during that time had become so accustom to seeing other people mistreated that they showed very little reaction. Either way, it's not a novel that will cause you to reflect on it for weeks to come, which is ultimately what I expected.
  
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Vegas (725 KP) rated The Husband in Books

Jul 12, 2019  
The Husband
The Husband
Dean Koontz | 2006 | Thriller
9
8.1 (9 Ratings)
Book Rating
Easy reading (2 more)
The action
The characters
A thrill a minute
I have only read one Koontz book before and that was a very early one, so didn't know what I was going to get. The blurb on the cover grabbed me which is why I had to try it and I am glad I did... I found the story well written and composed and the short paragraph blocks made it an easy read, if an unusual style... It reminded me of Richard Laymons style of writing which I really enjoy...

The plot although far fetched is enjoyable and makes you think what you would do if you were put in the same position. It is suspenseful, action packed and violent in places but you do find yourself drawn in to the situation and feel for the characters involved.

For a quick and easy read it is worth giving a go.
  
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AJaneClark (3975 KP) Jul 13, 2019

Thank you, I will add this to my holiday reading

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Vegas (725 KP) Jul 13, 2019

Look forward to hearing what you think… Hopefully it won't disappoint

Happy: Finding Joy in Every Day and Letting Go of Perfect
4
6.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
It’s not a terrible book but it wasn’t what I expected (0 more)
The word journal suggests more journaling opportunity than provided (0 more)
Disappointingly not Happy
I’m glad I picked this up at a Charity Shop and didn’t pay full price (I now understand why I see this a lot in Charity Shops though)

I found this to be full of surface anecdotal bites filled with colourful pages.
I was expecting a journal, with spaces for the reader to explore notes within the texts but they were few and far between.

If you are genuinely looking for a guide on how to find or discover happiness then this is not the read for you.

I’m saddened that I had bought this for many people before I read this
  
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Olivia (102 KP) rated We Are Okay in Books

Aug 13, 2018  
We Are Okay
We Are Okay
Nina Lacour | 2017 | Young Adult (YA)
9
7.4 (5 Ratings)
Book Rating
This book will make you unable to breathe. This book will make you ache.
It's such a simple story; but Nina LaCour's writing took me somewhere that so few stories have.
 The entire time I read this, I was filled with this overwhelming sense of serenity, yet ached with despair. What a contradiction! But isn't that life? At least some of the time. Captured perfectly.
With every page I turned, I saddened. Due entirely to the progression of the story. With every secret brought to light. With the knowledge that every page I turned brought me closer to the end.

The only thing I found myself not absolutely loving was the ending. Not because it ended, as I thought would be the case whilst reading, but with how it ended. It wasn't bad, quite the opposite. I just wish it were different.

If you have the chance to read We Are Okay, do it. You won't be sorry.
  
The Night Circus
The Night Circus
Erin Morgenstern | 2015 | Fiction & Poetry
10
8.1 (106 Ratings)
Book Rating
Oh my gosh! What an awesome book!! I'm not even quite sure how to describe it. This book is quite unlike anything I have read before. It is part coming of age tale, part fairy tale, part love story. Celia & Marco are interesting characters who possess extraordinary abilities while still being real. The story sucks you in from the first sentence and doesn't let you go even at the final sentence...I found myself in denial that it was over. It was one of those books you just don't want to end but yet you can't seem to put down.
I finished this book a huge fan of Erin Morgenstern. I hope she will write more books as excellent and addicting as The Night Circus!!!
  
Carcassonne
Carcassonne
2000 | City Building, Medieval, Territory Building
Easy to learn (1 more)
Great for kids
I found the game unsatisfying (0 more)
Carcassonne is a modern board gaming classic, but one which did not grab me or my gaming group. I went all in by buying a Big Box with multiple expansions, but the variety in the game just wasn't enough for me to enjoy this and see it as anything but a linear tile placement game that subjected me to spend my time putting down tiles and scoring spaces. However, I appreciate my view is in the minority. If you are on the fence about buying this game, I suggest you try before you buy, so you don't end up spending too much and potentially not enjoying this game, like me.
  
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Dean (6926 KP) rated Us (2019) in Movies

Mar 22, 2019  
Us (2019)
Us (2019)
2019 | Horror, Thriller
A well made film (0 more)
Odd in many ways (0 more)
Ambitious
Well I guess everyone who loved Get Out is hoping for the best with this 2nd film by Jordan Peele. You kinda expect this to be quite odd and in that respect it is. The problem I found is it feels like a comedy horror at times, often unintentionally. The cinema were laughing at parts I think were supposed to be freaky. To top it off the final revelation was predictable for me. So a bold effort, entertaining film but it might leave you feeling indifferent.
  
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Lee (2222 KP) Mar 23, 2019

Saw this last night and I kind of agree with you. I was on edge for a lot of it, but the oddness and the comedy works against it at times

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Dean (6926 KP) Mar 23, 2019

It was strange how much the audience were laughing at the moments that were meant to be creepy.

Fatherland
Fatherland
Robert Harris | 2012 | Fiction & Poetry
10
7.7 (3 Ratings)
Book Rating
I found the book both gripping and chilling.
The plot draws you in and you see through the eyes of the main charecter, Xavier March, how a corrupt society has grown and encompassed everything and everyone. You can feel the suffocating effect that the state has produced among it's citizens with the underlying fear leading to complience and all too frighteningly you can imagine how easily this can occur.
The end is disturbing, brutal and produces the perfect finalle.
  
Out of Sight
Out of Sight
Isabelle Grey | 2011 | Fiction & Poetry, Philosophy, Psychology & Social Sciences, Thriller
2
2.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Very disappointing book. The premise interested me and I was enticed by the blurb of this book. However, I found myself reading pages and pages of Leonie mooning over Patrice which went on far too long. There lacked substance to the explanation behind Patrick's past and I felt the conclusion of the book was empty and hollow. Hate reading books which you keep reading hoping for some twist or redeeming moment which just never appears.
  
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Hazel (2934 KP) rated The Choice in Books

Aug 29, 2020  
The Choice
The Choice
Alex Lake | 2020 | Crime, Thriller
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
My exact words when I finished this book ... "Wow - that was good!"

This is sold as being "The gripping new thriller you won’t be able to put down!" and I am going to have to agree ... I wasn't able to put it down and read it way too late into the night but it was worth it. From the very first to the very last page, there is no let up and it grabs you, throws you around and doesn't let go.

I loved everything about it - the characters, the plot, the pace, the writing style - everything and it's not often I say that. The only "complaint" I have is that it is so good, I found myself reading it faster and faster because I was desperate to find out where the next twist and turn would take me so I ended up finishing it way too quickly and felt sad when it had ended.

I have read a couple of books by Alex Lake previously "Seven Days" and "Copy Cat" and this is by far the best one yet and I very much look forward to reading the next which is due out in 2021 - a sneak peak of which I found at the end of The Choice.

Thanks must go to HarperCollinsUK, HarperFiction via NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest, unbiased and unedited review.