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13 Little Blue Envelopes (Little Blue Envelope, #1)
13 Little Blue Envelopes (Little Blue Envelope, #1)
Maureen Johnson | 2005 | Fiction & Poetry
4
7.8 (11 Ratings)
Book Rating
Ginny Blackstone is leading a completely ordinary life in New York City. She has a best friend, she attends school; you know, the usual. The only "extraordinary" force in Ginny's life has always been her Aunt Peg, her charming, odd, albeit slightly flighty aunt. When Aunt Peg passes away, Ginny receives a series of 13 envelopes from her--to be opened strictly in order--each with a series of instructions that will take Ginny on a set of adventures.

I certainly wanted to like this book. I love Johnson's Shades of London series (seriously, read it) and, honestly, her Twitter account. When this book popped up as a deal on <a href="https://www.bookbub.com/">Bookbub</a>;, I figured, why not? However, I just never got into the premise. Part of it is that I'm probably a lot like Ginny: I'm not adventurous, and the thought of traveling around Europe without a map or a cell phone (or a freaking plan!) absolutely terrifies me, and so the book completely stressed me out. Ginny was sweet, but also awfully naive, to an almost painful extent. While I did like her (and empathized with her at times), I had a hard time getting into the other characters, including her supposed love interest, and honestly, I found myself getting irritated at her late aunt. Who does this to a teenager? I'm surprised the poor girl didn't just self-destruct.

All in all, this is just a weird book. It's supposed to be quirky (much like Aunt Peg), but it fell short for me. It's a shame, because I think Johnson is excellent at capturing the teen voice, especially those teens who are sort of on the outside (e.g., Shades of London), and you could certainly see hints of that here. There are definitely heartwarming moments to this book and parts to enjoy. But overall, it just fell flat, and I found it, as the Goodreads 2 stars states, "OK."

<a href="http://justacatandabookatherside.blogspot.com/">My Blog</a> ~ <a href="https://www.facebook.com/justacatandabook/">Facebook</a>; ~ <a href="https://twitter.com/mwcmoto">Twitter</a>;
  
Green Lantern (2011)
Green Lantern (2011)
2011 | Action, Adventure, Comedy
Odd ball hero film
It starts out pretty well but I think it lost its way about half way through. It's an ok mix of action, comedy but sometimes tries to be too serious and other times too funny! There is far too much cgi for me and despite the budget not all of it looks that good. By the time you get to the last 15mins it just didn't feel like the right ending for the film? A mix of the Mask with Superman, odd combo!
  
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Luke (278 KP) rated Moana (2016) in Movies

Jul 21, 2017  
Moana (2016)
Moana (2016)
2016 | Adventure, Animation, Comedy
Beautiful Songs (1 more)
Great Background Story
The Main Story (1 more)
The End Scene Is Not As Good As The Start
Not The Strongest In The Disney List
This is still a great film as there are only 1 in 100000 Disney films that miss the mark, but i just didnt really enjoy this as much.
At times the story felt like it struggled and didnt run too well, the start is so good but after about 3/4 through it starts to drag and looses its magic
  
TK
The King's Deception (Cotton Malone, #8)
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
As usual Steve Berry does not disappoint!! Cotton Malone is one of my very favorite fictional characters & just like the man who thought him up, he never lets the reader down either.
This installment deals with Henry VIII & a supposed secret he passed on while on his deathbed, a secret that if proven true could decimate the English monarchy as we know it. Along with plunging them back into a bloody battle over Northern Ireland. Elizabeth I a man? How could you not be intrigued!?
  
Is there anything better than a book about books? :D Very handy little book, especially if you're a novice to the historical fiction genre and aren't quite sure where you'd like to travel next. How the author categorized books was very helpful and inventive too. Altogether it may not be the most comprehensive guide to historical fiction, but it's a darned good place to start your journey in the field or just to decide what's next. Is it weird that I read it cover to cover? ;P
  
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Cumberland (1142 KP) rated 21 Proms in Books

Apr 11, 2019  
A Mixed Bag
This book contains 21 stories by 21 different authors. All of these stories center around Prom. This book was hard for me to review, because of how different each story is. Some of them were truly wonderful, however I think the vast majority of them were forgettable. I personally like character driven stories, and character development just isn't something that you see in a lot of short stories. Overall I don't regret reading this, but I probably won't pick it up again.
  
Madison Rose is kidnapped and is about to be killed until she is rescued - by vampires. And they want to use her to try to solve a series of murders that threaten their secret existence. Can she even trust them? I enjoyed the book and really grew to like the characters. Some of the scenes were just too dark for me, however.

Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2013/06/book-review-murder-in-vein-by-sue-ann.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
  
Stalking Jack the Ripper
Stalking Jack the Ripper
Kerri Maniscalco | 2016 | Fiction & Poetry, Mystery, Young Adult (YA)
4
7.6 (11 Ratings)
Book Rating
I did not enjoy this book - it was a struggle .. 2 stars for just being a book and one that remotely had a plot and the blood and descriptions and photos were cool. The rest of it was NOT FUN and I DID NOT enjoy it.

It started off interesting, I thought it'd be cool, but it progressed slow like a snail and I wanted to sleep through it. It did not get exciting and I will definitely not be continuing this series - shame.
  
Love and Other Drugs (2010)
Love and Other Drugs (2010)
2010 | Comedy, Drama, Romance
7
7.8 (8 Ratings)
Movie Rating
It wasn't quite the film I was expecting, thinking it would be just like most rom-coms churned out at the moment that are light hearted but have little depth. This does have more in-depth characters, the main star being Anne Hathaway's Maggie who at 26 has Parkinson's disease. It does have a few laughs along the way at the more light hearted moments. If you want a sexy, fun comedy with a bit more depth to the characters, this is prefect for you!
  
The Vanishing (1993)
The Vanishing (1993)
1993 | Mystery
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Movie Rating
I've seen this film twice and it's one of those that has stuck with me.

It's not really a cast I would put together; having Sandra Bullock and Kiefer Sutherland as a couple just doesn't sit right with me, but it works in the overall setting of the film. Jeff Bridges is very good in the role of the manipulative murderer, and there is a lot of suspense throughout the film.

Very enjoyable if you like something to keep you on the edge of your seat.