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Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark by Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark
Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark by Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark
1980 | Alternative, Dance, Electronic, Pop, Rock
4.0 (1 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"I'd agree that they were ahead of their time, they were quite minimalist really. Minimal electronic music. When I heard the b-side of 'Electricity', which was a track called 'Almost', that was like hearing Simon & Garfunkel, only in an electronic world. The songs were really simple, there was heaps of emotion in that particular track. It was a record that everybody had in my group, and we all played it at parties and danced to it. I say 'dance', I am not Saturday Night Fever, I'm working on it. I'm trying to break the moonwalk at the moment. 'Electricity', I didn't know what it was about, it just sounded really really exciting. They were a prog rock band in the old days apparently. I was telling the keyboard player about my admiration for 'Almost' and he said, "Yeah that was one of our old prog rock songs, there were seven people in the band"."

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Saving Private Ryan (1998)
Saving Private Ryan (1998)
1998 | Action, Drama, War

"The opening 18 minutes of that thing, I mean, when the door dropped on the Higgins craft and it all of a sudden was World War Two in color, seeing blood, seeing guys walking around looking for their arm that had been blown off. Weird poignant scenes where the medic was like stopping the bleeding and the bullet would just go right through the guy’s head. Also the story was strong too; there’s a bunch of guys named Ryan spread out all over the place and they think they’re finding him, and his guys kind of going, “Why are we killing ourselves trying to save one guy, and we’ve lost two or three of our own?” That thing that would never go on today. And all the stops along the way, there’s no way an hour into that movie I went, “Nah, I don’t care if they find him or not, I’m moving on.”"

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The Eternal (Mythology #3)
The Eternal (Mythology #3)
Helen Boswell | 2015 | Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy, Young Adult (YA)
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
The finale of the Mythology series does not disappoint in any way, shape, or form. I felt that Helen Boswell made a brave step in that a lot of this book is from the point of view of Jonathan, instead of just Hope and Micah like usual. This means that you definitely see things differently and find out reasons for the way that he has acted and the things he has done.

With plot twists and turns aplenty, this is one nail-biting climax that will keep you on the edge of your seat as you turn from page to page, afraid to put it down in case something happens whilst you're away!

Excellently written, and smoothly paced as per the author's style, this made for a thrilling climax to the series and I have no hesitation in highly recommending this series.

* Verified Purchase on Amazon *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Mar 31, 2016
  
40x40

ClareR (5911 KP) rated Sweat in Books

Mar 18, 2025  
Sweat
Sweat
Emma Healey | 2025 | Contemporary, Fiction & Poetry, Thriller
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Sweat is a really uncomfortable read (and I really liked that about it!)! I like a book where the characters are unlikeable, and Sweat certainly delivers on that score.

Sweat is set in the present and near past, and tells the story of Cassie, Liam and their thoroughly toxic relationship. It goes to prove that you should always make sure you know all of the details before you pick a side - and to be extra safe, just don’t pick a side at all!

I started out feeling sorry for one character, and ended feeling that they all got precisely what they deserved. The story is really well told to make the reader feel this way. It plays with your emotions, making you believe that Cassie has had a terrible time with Liam’s coercive behaviour and constant gaslighting.

But was Cassie complicit?
Is she any better than Liam?

I wasn’t 100% sure, even at the end!
  
The Forbidden Kingdom (2008)
The Forbidden Kingdom (2008)
2008 | Action
7
7.4 (9 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Jackie Chan (3 more)
Fun fight scenes
Beautiful scenery
Good cast
Plot was predictable (1 more)
Slow parts
Is this the best Jackie Chan movie?
First off I just want to say this was a blu ray I again paid just £1 for and it is definatly worth it. As far as Jackie Chan movies go it is 1 of the lesser known in my opinion. I had never heard of this movie, it was pure luck I came across it and I'm glad I did.

It is probably not in the top 5 of the best Jackie Chan movies but it is still great. Not sure if it is just me but in some ways it reminded me of the sorcerer's apprentice, it had that tone.

The fight scenes were well choreographed. Jackie Chan and jet li do what they do best and the acting was good. Obviously with this kind of movie you have to ignore all ideas of believability (learning Kung Fu should not be that quick) and just have a good time with it.

The plot was predictable, especially the ending but getting there was fun. The legend of the monkey king was interesting. That part kinda reminded me of avatar the last airbender and the monkey king did annoy me at times but that was the character. He was meant to have some monkey characteristics.

If you like Jackie Chan, jet li, martial arts mixed with fantasy then you will enjoy it. I feel it is a movie I can watch again.
  
Zombieland: Double Tap (2019)
Zombieland: Double Tap (2019)
2019 | Action, Comedy, Horror
Nothing new
When the first Zombieland came out in 2009, it was a wonderful and brilliant surprise and such a sleeper hit. There have been cries for a sequel for some time now and whilst 10 years is a big gap, I actually think this works in the films favour despite the fact that overall it's nothing new.

The good and bad thing about this film is that it is so similar to the original, both in style and even plot structure. Good because the original obviously worked, but bad because it just feels like we're watching more of the same. Right from the opening credits it sticks so closely to the original and I did enjoy this as it's exactly what you'd expect and it was great to see the characters back on screen again with all of their nuances. Even if some if these nuances, like the rules and bickering, did get a little bit stale towards the end. The problem is that the humour and the plot are not as good as the first film, and the new characters and ideas that have been introduced are either massively irritating (Madison) or just plain dull (Babylon). Thankfully Tallahassee, Colombus and Wichita bring this film back up to being good, even if it's not as good as the original, and there are still some pretty funny moments between them even if they're not as frequent as we'd like.

Overall a good sequel but not up to the standards of the original. It's rather sad when the best and funniest part of this film is the credits scene...
  
An Anonymous Girl
An Anonymous Girl
Greer Hendricks, Sarah Pekkanen | 2019 | Mystery, Thriller
2
7.5 (15 Ratings)
Book Rating
Mediocre plot, disappointed in book overall..
In a nutshell, this book has three not so very nice characters in one setting and they’re all trying to outdo each other in the art of being a sly crafty villain.

While the plot is interesting to read at first, because you’d like to find out what Jess got herself into, at the same time, it’s so so and falls flat. The characters themselves are rendered unlikable. Well, I should say two of the three are unlikable, the one that sticks out for me is Dr Shields. Now that’s a pretty good villain to read up on.

I found myself rooting for her throughout the book. She’s cold, she’s calculating and she’s always prepared with a plan B in case things don’t work out. I love it. She was playing the mind games like a pro. I had no like for Thomas (well, self explanatory) and I started disliking Jess more as the plot carried on. Maybe it was because she thought she was the smartest cookie on earth. Or maybe it was because she thought her stuff didn’t stink. Either way I just started not liking her so much and didn’t care too much for her behavior. By this time, I was pretty much just finishing the book just for the sake of finishing and my interest in the plot waned.

Which is unfortunate. I read The Wife Between Us and absolutely loved the book and loved the twists that was provided. The twists here were minimal, the mind games were great but hardly anything suspenseful or to be surprised about. Maybe I got spoiled by The Wife Between Us, but this one didn’t really live up to it.

I’m hoping if they do future releases that they’re better than this one. Sadly this one dissapoints for me.
  
KH
Keeping Her (Losing It, #1.5)
Cora Carmack | 2013 | Fiction & Poetry
8
8.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I loved both Losing It and Faking it so I was so happy when the publishers accepted my request to read this too :D

This one alternates between Garrick and Bliss’ POV with each chapter and we see how they feel about going to London and meeting his family and friends. Garrick is worried how is mum will treat her and Bliss is worried they wont like her. Bliss being Bliss worries far too much but in that humorous way she has that leaves you smiling if not laughing out loud and Garrick is just his charming self trying to make things as easy as possible for her.

One scene I liked was where they go to meet his parents and Bliss, being her clumsy self, knocks over his mothers favourite vase and it smashes into pieces and she just stands there like a rabbit caught in headlights while going through this funny mental conversation with herself.

It isn’t a full length novel but plugs the gaps of what happened between Losing It and Faking It with Garrick and Bliss. It was short and sweet and if you are a fan of the series then you have to read this. (Just make sure you do it in order or you may get a little confused :D )
  
Wild Boy (Gay Monsters in Space #2)
Wild Boy (Gay Monsters in Space #2)
Rome Ford | 2023 | Erotica, LGBTQ+, Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
WILD BOY is the second novella in the Gay Monsters in Space series, but it can be read as a standalone.

Connor has had a rough life up until now and trusts nobody. He doesn't see any reason to change that once he gets kidnapped by Krel and told how wonderful everything is going to be from now on. Krel knows all about Connor's past, but he knows Connor is the one for him. He'll just have to show Connor just how much he loves him!

Okay, so if you don't like spankings, you may not like this story. Connors needs them - a lot! And Krel, well, he likes giving them to Connor because it normally leads to other things. Things that are hot and spicy and pleasurable to both parties.

I am thoroughly enjoying this series. The stories are off the charts hot, with great characters, and you don't have to worry about how deep the story is going. Sometimes, that's just what you need!

A great addition to the series and absolutely recommended by me.

** 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!
Sep 20, 2023
  
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Juame Collet-Serra recommended Die Hard (1988) in Movies (curated)

 
Die Hard (1988)
Die Hard (1988)
1988 | Action

"I have to mention this as one of my favorites. I’ve been lucky enough to work with [producer] Joel Silver. It rewrote the rules on the modern thriller. It set the stage for the expectation that every question needs to be answered, and it has to be big, fun, and emotional, and a movie that can do everything. I try to do Die Hard in every movie that I do, by fulfilling that promise of delivering from the first frame. Obviously many more movies have done that — like Hitchcock — but as a movie that potentially could have gone many ways, it became a masterpiece. Before this movie, you could potentially believe that the bad guys are just bad guys; they don’t have motivation or are dumb. This guy had smart plans and dialogue, and set the bar high. Other movies have met it, but this was one of the first ones and I was blown away when I saw it. As much as I’ve liked other movies, at that time, Die Hard has had more of an influence on my work than the other ones of the time."

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