Search
Search results
Bill Nighy recommended Performance (1970) in Movies (curated)
Debbiereadsbook (1487 KP) rated Seeing Beyond the Scars (The Manx Cat Guardians #1) in Books
Apr 3, 2018
a good solid 3 stars
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.
For the most part, I quite enjoyed this, but there was one issue that very nearly ruined it for me.
EDITING.
This book needs a major edit. Almost every other page there were words, while spelt correctly, did not fit in the sentence. Images, when it should have said imagine. Little things, that mount up, and because of this, I very nearly dumped it. It NEEDS mentioning, because it did effect my reading pleasure.
THAT SAID!
I did enjoy it, mostly. The tale of a little cat, looking after her charge. A damaged man, and a disillusioned man, coming together. Brad is pretty much a recluse, only going out his house when he HAS to. His new neighbour and his naughty cat have him all a-dither. Martin is hit with that "MINE" moment you usually get with shifters (there are no shifters in this book!) and the attraction is instant and powerful. HOT too! But I found it a little too much, too soon, you know?? Brad is damaged, emotionally and physically, by his history, and I would have expected him to be way more skittish.
I would have liked some more of Princess, more specifically, about HER, and her sort of being and her people (for want of a better word!) We get hints and clues, but I'm left feeling like I missed something, you know?? Something important about her.
A first time author and in places, it shows. BUT!!! One to watch out for, I think. A good start, as a new author, AND as the first in a series. I'd like to follow it, maybe I'll get what I'm missing from Princess.
3 solid GOOD stars
**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
For the most part, I quite enjoyed this, but there was one issue that very nearly ruined it for me.
EDITING.
This book needs a major edit. Almost every other page there were words, while spelt correctly, did not fit in the sentence. Images, when it should have said imagine. Little things, that mount up, and because of this, I very nearly dumped it. It NEEDS mentioning, because it did effect my reading pleasure.
THAT SAID!
I did enjoy it, mostly. The tale of a little cat, looking after her charge. A damaged man, and a disillusioned man, coming together. Brad is pretty much a recluse, only going out his house when he HAS to. His new neighbour and his naughty cat have him all a-dither. Martin is hit with that "MINE" moment you usually get with shifters (there are no shifters in this book!) and the attraction is instant and powerful. HOT too! But I found it a little too much, too soon, you know?? Brad is damaged, emotionally and physically, by his history, and I would have expected him to be way more skittish.
I would have liked some more of Princess, more specifically, about HER, and her sort of being and her people (for want of a better word!) We get hints and clues, but I'm left feeling like I missed something, you know?? Something important about her.
A first time author and in places, it shows. BUT!!! One to watch out for, I think. A good start, as a new author, AND as the first in a series. I'd like to follow it, maybe I'll get what I'm missing from Princess.
3 solid GOOD stars
**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
This book has a super interesting concept about super powered humans and how they may interact with the world. The characters, for the most part, were intriguing, though there were points where I didn't really understand the motivation about why they did the things they did.
The biggest issue I had with this was the inconsistent writing. It would change temporally quite a bit and there were some issues with paragraph breaks as well. Whenever a new person speaks, it should have a new line break, but most of the time, this was not the case. A lot of the characters had similar tones as well, so it made it difficult to tell who was speaking at times.
One piece of advice I would give is to slow down. Some things happen too quickly, especially at the beginning, so if the author slowed down, took the time to get into the "why" of the actions instead of rushing to get to the next plot point, I think the book would greatly benefit from it.
Overall, super cool concept and ideas with where the story is going!
I gave this a three star review, not because I didn't like it, I did. But there is work that needs to go into it for me to really enjoy it more.
The biggest issue I had with this was the inconsistent writing. It would change temporally quite a bit and there were some issues with paragraph breaks as well. Whenever a new person speaks, it should have a new line break, but most of the time, this was not the case. A lot of the characters had similar tones as well, so it made it difficult to tell who was speaking at times.
One piece of advice I would give is to slow down. Some things happen too quickly, especially at the beginning, so if the author slowed down, took the time to get into the "why" of the actions instead of rushing to get to the next plot point, I think the book would greatly benefit from it.
Overall, super cool concept and ideas with where the story is going!
I gave this a three star review, not because I didn't like it, I did. But there is work that needs to go into it for me to really enjoy it more.
Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) rated Music Box (Dark Carousel #4) in Books
Nov 23, 2020
I've loved the Dark Carousel series by Anya Allyn. I couldn't wait to dive into Music Box, the last book in the series, but at the same time, I was saddened that it was coming to an end. Music Box was definitely a thrilling read!
Cassie has given up hope of not being Balthazar's bride. She's about to just give in to it when she finds a way to the tower where the spooky figure she has seen lives. Scared as she is of the figure, she decides to investigate and is shocked to discover who the figure is. Cassie, with the help of her friends, must find some way to defeat the serpent shadows before they take over the Earth all while battling the humans and spirits of the castle. While she and her friends put their lives in great peril, they never give up hope of returning the Earth to its former glory.
The plot of Music Box did a fantastic job of holding my attention throughout. While there are some parts of this novel that are a bit too fast paced like in previous books in the series, for the most part, the pacing is easy to follow along with. There are a few plot twists that I wasn't able to predict. There was so much action going on in Music Box, and I loved it. It wasn't overwhelming, and it was underwhelming. Anya Allyn did a fantastic job with getting the ratio of action to narrative perfect! I did have a feeling that one of the characters in the Dollhouse would make an appearance, and I wasn't wrong. I liked the way all the loose ends from the previous books in the series were all tied up nicely. While I wasn't really a fan of how the book ended, I will say that it didn't have a rushed ending feel. I just wish things would have turned out a bit differently. However, I did love how the author explains more of the ending and what she believes happened to all the other characters in the afterword, so definitely don't skip out on reading the afterword!
As always, Anya Allyn was amazing at making her characters come alive. It was so easy to relate to all of them (bad guys and girls aside). Cassie was even more hardcore in this book! I loved how Cassie was willing to sacrifice everything to protect her friends and others. Ethan was the same as Cassie. He tried to protect innocents from the bad guys. While I liked Molly, I still don't think her character was needed, same with Frances. Don't get me wrong, they are great characters and written really well, but they seemed a bit pointless. I was happy about Aisha in this book. (I won't go into greater detail due to minor spoilers.) I absolutely loved Zack, and I was always secretly hoping that Cassie would end up with him. Zack turned out to be such a gentlemen from the second book. I loved how he was willing to cut ties from his family to help Cassie even though he knew it was an unrequited love. Henry was another character that I really loved. I felt that he wasn't all bad and that there was some good in him. The book he was seeking in the novel was what brought out the bad. He did have a bunch of redeeming qualities though. I was overjoyed that Jessamine was finally featured a bit more in this book! Jessamine has been my favorite character throughout this series. I was thrilled with how her story ended. I always knew she'd turn out to be awesome!
Trigger warnings for Music Box include violence, death, murder, suicide, attempted rape, minor swearing, the occult, and imprisonment.
While I'm devastated that the Dark Carousel series has come to an end, I am so grateful that Music Box was a great read. All of the characters were still so amazing, the story was thrilling, and everything was so nicely explained. I would definitely recommend Music Box (and all of the Dark Carousel series) by Anya Allyn. If you want a book with lots of action and a great cast of characters, this is your book. Do be prepared to suffer from a book hangover when you're done reading it though!
Cassie has given up hope of not being Balthazar's bride. She's about to just give in to it when she finds a way to the tower where the spooky figure she has seen lives. Scared as she is of the figure, she decides to investigate and is shocked to discover who the figure is. Cassie, with the help of her friends, must find some way to defeat the serpent shadows before they take over the Earth all while battling the humans and spirits of the castle. While she and her friends put their lives in great peril, they never give up hope of returning the Earth to its former glory.
The plot of Music Box did a fantastic job of holding my attention throughout. While there are some parts of this novel that are a bit too fast paced like in previous books in the series, for the most part, the pacing is easy to follow along with. There are a few plot twists that I wasn't able to predict. There was so much action going on in Music Box, and I loved it. It wasn't overwhelming, and it was underwhelming. Anya Allyn did a fantastic job with getting the ratio of action to narrative perfect! I did have a feeling that one of the characters in the Dollhouse would make an appearance, and I wasn't wrong. I liked the way all the loose ends from the previous books in the series were all tied up nicely. While I wasn't really a fan of how the book ended, I will say that it didn't have a rushed ending feel. I just wish things would have turned out a bit differently. However, I did love how the author explains more of the ending and what she believes happened to all the other characters in the afterword, so definitely don't skip out on reading the afterword!
As always, Anya Allyn was amazing at making her characters come alive. It was so easy to relate to all of them (bad guys and girls aside). Cassie was even more hardcore in this book! I loved how Cassie was willing to sacrifice everything to protect her friends and others. Ethan was the same as Cassie. He tried to protect innocents from the bad guys. While I liked Molly, I still don't think her character was needed, same with Frances. Don't get me wrong, they are great characters and written really well, but they seemed a bit pointless. I was happy about Aisha in this book. (I won't go into greater detail due to minor spoilers.) I absolutely loved Zack, and I was always secretly hoping that Cassie would end up with him. Zack turned out to be such a gentlemen from the second book. I loved how he was willing to cut ties from his family to help Cassie even though he knew it was an unrequited love. Henry was another character that I really loved. I felt that he wasn't all bad and that there was some good in him. The book he was seeking in the novel was what brought out the bad. He did have a bunch of redeeming qualities though. I was overjoyed that Jessamine was finally featured a bit more in this book! Jessamine has been my favorite character throughout this series. I was thrilled with how her story ended. I always knew she'd turn out to be awesome!
Trigger warnings for Music Box include violence, death, murder, suicide, attempted rape, minor swearing, the occult, and imprisonment.
While I'm devastated that the Dark Carousel series has come to an end, I am so grateful that Music Box was a great read. All of the characters were still so amazing, the story was thrilling, and everything was so nicely explained. I would definitely recommend Music Box (and all of the Dark Carousel series) by Anya Allyn. If you want a book with lots of action and a great cast of characters, this is your book. Do be prepared to suffer from a book hangover when you're done reading it though!
Kristina (502 KP) rated Avoiding Commitment (Avoiding, #1) in Books
Dec 7, 2020
Contains spoilers, click to show
When I first heard about this book, I was extremely interested. There's nothing better than watching a man who refuses to commit be roped in. However, I most certainly did not care for this story. First of, Alexa is really annoying. I understand her infatuation at first, because well make mistakes, but it didn't take me nearly as long as it did her that Jack would never choose to be with her unless there was another person involved. The only times he slept with her were when one, or both, of them were unavailable - this tells me what a jerk Jack is. Also, in the beginning, I thought maybe Jack had called Alexa to come down because he was actually having second thoughts and wanted to see if he still had feelings for her before he got married. Then she meets Ramsey. I liked him immediately and quickly threw Jack aside, because nothing he did convinced me he would treat her better. Each past story of their reunions left me cringing and wishing she would just tell Jack to F off - no such luck. By the end of the book, I was praying that Jack would get hit by a bus and that Alexa would realize that Ramsey could be a good match for her. It was hard to keep up with the writing and, occasionally, the view would change for a sentence or two and reveal what either Jack or Ramsey were thinking; this was confusing. The ending was perfect, though. She finally tells Jack to shove it and, though I liked Ramsey, she tells him there's no room for him. I thought, "Good for you. You've been too obsessed with Jack for too long to start up a relationship this soon." I loved that it ended with Alexa being alone, it's what she needed.
Merissa (13197 KP) rated Kindred Spirits (Spirits of Nature #2) in Books
Sep 8, 2017
Kindred Spirits (Spirits of Nature #2) by Michelle Post
Kindred Spirits is the second book in the Spirits of Nature series, and I couldn't wait to read it as I had loved the first book. Now, due to the ending of the first book, I knew that this book would be about different characters, but I was also hoping that The Mourning Dove and Running Wolf would also pay a visit. Is this cryptic enough for you? I certainly hope so, because these two books are simply amazing.
Kindred Spirits is about the children and grandchildren of The Mourning Dove and Running Wolf, with some hard-hitting history thrown in too. There is nothing 'soft' about this book, it paints a harsh reality. At times, you will be gasping for breath amidst the sorrow as the story unfolds. And yet..., there is still hope. There are characters that still have a part to play. There is love so deep, so pure, it transcends death. And yet, not everyone gets a guaranteed HEA. This may be a fictional story, but there are so many elements of truth in it, it may just break your heart before it slowly stitches it back together again.
There were no editing or grammatical errors that disrupted my reading flow. The pace is gentle and smooth where necessary, with a brilliant story that tells its own tale at its own speed. The only thing I would say, which isn't negative by any means, is that I wish I had re-read Spirits of Nature, just so I could immerse myself for longer. Absolutely recommended by me.
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and my comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Kindred Spirits is about the children and grandchildren of The Mourning Dove and Running Wolf, with some hard-hitting history thrown in too. There is nothing 'soft' about this book, it paints a harsh reality. At times, you will be gasping for breath amidst the sorrow as the story unfolds. And yet..., there is still hope. There are characters that still have a part to play. There is love so deep, so pure, it transcends death. And yet, not everyone gets a guaranteed HEA. This may be a fictional story, but there are so many elements of truth in it, it may just break your heart before it slowly stitches it back together again.
There were no editing or grammatical errors that disrupted my reading flow. The pace is gentle and smooth where necessary, with a brilliant story that tells its own tale at its own speed. The only thing I would say, which isn't negative by any means, is that I wish I had re-read Spirits of Nature, just so I could immerse myself for longer. Absolutely recommended by me.
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and my comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Alison Pink (7 KP) rated Mista in Books
Jan 15, 2018
I won a copy of this book on Goodreads. I entered the giveaway because, as a teacher, any book about teaching by a fellow teacher is worth checking out. When I read the description I had only 1 thought go through my head, "This sounds like where some of the kids I have now are going to end up." I myself teach in an "innercity" elementary school. Some of the things John experienced are things I've seen too...thankfully not the pervasive sex & drugs culture, I mean my students are 8 after all. But the blatant disrespect, cursing, lack of motivation, & uncaring attitude toward education are all definitely things I contend with on a daily basis as well. To me, reading this was both encouraging and heartbreaking. Encouraging because it is nice to know that there are teachers out there that truly care about what happens to these "tough kids" & are wiling to put up with a great deal of abuse to see that they get what they need. Heartbreaking because this story is all too common. There are not enough people that care & not enough dedicated teachers that sacrifice so much for the kids.
The book was well written & as far as I'm concerned, spot on. I've never taught high school, let along in the city, but based on my experiences this is where some of my students are headed. I can only hope that they have the benefit of a caring, persistent teacher like John that won't give up on them or let the students give up on themselves.
The book was well written & as far as I'm concerned, spot on. I've never taught high school, let along in the city, but based on my experiences this is where some of my students are headed. I can only hope that they have the benefit of a caring, persistent teacher like John that won't give up on them or let the students give up on themselves.
Emma @ The Movies (1786 KP) rated Colette (2018) in Movies
Jun 22, 2019 (Updated Sep 25, 2019)
Colette has left me bemused. The performances are amazing, the costumes and sets are beautiful, the story is interesting and well told, and yet at 1 hour 51 minutes in length if felt too long. I wasn't bored at any point, I was just really surprised that I was still sitting there watching.
There was an amazing cast. Up until this point I've never particularly enjoyed Keira Knightley roles, after The Nutcracker And The Four Realms I was very close to giving up hope. As Colette she shone. It's absolutely the best piece of acting I've seen from her. Dominic West playing Willy her fame seeking husband was a great bit of casting too. The pair had such chemistry in everything from love to rage. It was also lovely to see Fiona Shaw pop up as Sido, a small role but by no means forgettable.
It's certainly an interesting story of gender norms in history and the literary world of Paris. But beyond the acting, costumes and sets it's not... Exciting? Moving? It's a very good film but just lacks that little something extra to push it to the top. It's difficult to say much more about the film really, I hardly took any notes during the screening. In fact, the only note I made that wasn't related to things I've already mentioned was this: "Four films this year, 50% lesbians."
What you should do
It's a well made film and certainly enjoyable to watch. If you fancy watching a period drama then it's well worth a trip to the cinema for.
Movie thing you wish you could take home
A beautiful second home in the country would be lovely.
There was an amazing cast. Up until this point I've never particularly enjoyed Keira Knightley roles, after The Nutcracker And The Four Realms I was very close to giving up hope. As Colette she shone. It's absolutely the best piece of acting I've seen from her. Dominic West playing Willy her fame seeking husband was a great bit of casting too. The pair had such chemistry in everything from love to rage. It was also lovely to see Fiona Shaw pop up as Sido, a small role but by no means forgettable.
It's certainly an interesting story of gender norms in history and the literary world of Paris. But beyond the acting, costumes and sets it's not... Exciting? Moving? It's a very good film but just lacks that little something extra to push it to the top. It's difficult to say much more about the film really, I hardly took any notes during the screening. In fact, the only note I made that wasn't related to things I've already mentioned was this: "Four films this year, 50% lesbians."
What you should do
It's a well made film and certainly enjoyable to watch. If you fancy watching a period drama then it's well worth a trip to the cinema for.
Movie thing you wish you could take home
A beautiful second home in the country would be lovely.
Tom Chaplin recommended OK Computer by Radiohead in Music (curated)
Mothergamer (1589 KP) rated the PlayStation 4 version of Vampyr in Video Games
Nov 16, 2020
The game is not totally terrible. I found the concept interesting and being set in 1918 London during the influenza epidemic and World War I made for an interesting setting. I really wished that there was fast travel in the game because walking back and forth between neighborhoods for quests and gathering information could be really tedious. I also felt that the game was hindered by the lack of a manual save because sometimes conversations would go wrong if you picked the wrong choice with an NPC and you would lose the clue forever and there's no way to redo it unless you want to start the entire game over again. I truly don't understand why that decision was made by the game developers and it could be really frustrating to use a conversation hint and not be able to have a redo. The combat isn't bad, figuring out what vampire abilities worked best for each fight was intriguing, but it wasn't too challenging which I liked. The story is good, but not great because there were some unanswered questions and some plot holes leaving more questions. Overall, I did enjoy the story and I'm glad I played through it at least once. Full Mothergamer review is here: http://lorrie28-mothergamer.blogspot.com/2020/11/mothergamer-plays-vampyr.html