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Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2163 KP) rated Kinsey and Me: Stories in Books
Jul 9, 2023
Short Stories and Essays
This book breaks down into two unequal sections. The first roughly 70% is made up of nine short stories featuring Kinsey Millhone, PI in Santa Teresa. She solves a murder with a disappearing body and a case of a man who fell off his roof. She also gets involved when an actor gets kidnapped.
The back section featuring thirteen vignettes as author Sue Grafton reflects on her life growing up with a functioning alcoholic father and a destructive alcoholic mother. While she admits they are autobiographical, she frames them around a character named Kit.
Fans of Kinsey will delight in these nine stories, all previous published, but decades ago so hard to track down outside this collection now. Personally, I found the back section depressing, but I suspect these stories were theopoetic for Ms. Grafton to write, and I can see others benefiting from them, too.
Overall, fans of the series will enjoy the collection. If you are new to the series, you can jump in here, too, and meet Kinsey without ruining any of fun of the novels.
The back section featuring thirteen vignettes as author Sue Grafton reflects on her life growing up with a functioning alcoholic father and a destructive alcoholic mother. While she admits they are autobiographical, she frames them around a character named Kit.
Fans of Kinsey will delight in these nine stories, all previous published, but decades ago so hard to track down outside this collection now. Personally, I found the back section depressing, but I suspect these stories were theopoetic for Ms. Grafton to write, and I can see others benefiting from them, too.
Overall, fans of the series will enjoy the collection. If you are new to the series, you can jump in here, too, and meet Kinsey without ruining any of fun of the novels.
Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated Of Goblins and Gold ( Of Goblin Kings book 1) in Books
Jun 7, 2022
101 of 230
Kindle
Of Goblins and Gold ( Of Goblin Kings book 1)
By Emma Hamm
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Freya knows the sound of goblin bells. She knows to move to the side of the road and let them pass. Never buy any of their wares. And above all else, never make a deal with the monstrous beasts.
But when her sister takes a necklace and is kidnapped, Freya knows there is no other choice. She must journey to the realm of the fae where the Goblin King himself has stolen her sister. Once there, she must perform four tasks to save the only family she has left.
The Goblin King won't make this easy, however. He always seems one step ahead of her. To defeat him, she'll have to put everything on the line.
Even her heart.
I really enjoyed this! It was all fairytale vibes and such a sweet story. The characters were all such fun and it’s definitely a tale of don’t judge before you have taken the time to get to know. Really enjoyable light read.
Kindle
Of Goblins and Gold ( Of Goblin Kings book 1)
By Emma Hamm
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Freya knows the sound of goblin bells. She knows to move to the side of the road and let them pass. Never buy any of their wares. And above all else, never make a deal with the monstrous beasts.
But when her sister takes a necklace and is kidnapped, Freya knows there is no other choice. She must journey to the realm of the fae where the Goblin King himself has stolen her sister. Once there, she must perform four tasks to save the only family she has left.
The Goblin King won't make this easy, however. He always seems one step ahead of her. To defeat him, she'll have to put everything on the line.
Even her heart.
I really enjoyed this! It was all fairytale vibes and such a sweet story. The characters were all such fun and it’s definitely a tale of don’t judge before you have taken the time to get to know. Really enjoyable light read.
Daughter of Belial
Book
Some Family Trees Should Be Burned. . . Greer Girls are special. Greer Girls are rare. Greer...
Psychological Thriller
Her Scottish Rogue (The Rebels, Rakes, and Rogues Series)
8.0
Rate It
Book
Wren Taggart is no lady. Her life consists of kitchen duties at Newcastle Inn. Mistaken for Lady...
Historical Romance Scotland
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2163 KP) rated Gingerbread Cookies and Gunshots in Books
Jan 4, 2024
Missing Child at Christmas
Lucy Stone gets involved when a four-year-old boy is kidnapped in her community. With no clues to go on, Lucy begins to think that something much larger is happening. Is she right?
Even though I don’t normally read this series, I didn't have any trouble jumping into the characters here. There was enough explanation of who people were that I could follow along. The bits about those I assume are series regulars didn't mean quite as much to me, but I enjoyed meeting everyone. This is on the serious side of the cozy spectrum, and the atmosphere was carried perfectly throughout the story. Lucy did seem to jump to one conclusion, but since she was proved right with evidence later on, I can't call it a major flaw. There are two recipes at the end of this story to enjoy later. This is probably my favorite of the stories I’ve read from Leslie Meier.
NOTE: This is a novella, roughly 100 pages along.
NOTE 2: This was originally published in the anthology Gingerbread Cookie Murder.
Even though I don’t normally read this series, I didn't have any trouble jumping into the characters here. There was enough explanation of who people were that I could follow along. The bits about those I assume are series regulars didn't mean quite as much to me, but I enjoyed meeting everyone. This is on the serious side of the cozy spectrum, and the atmosphere was carried perfectly throughout the story. Lucy did seem to jump to one conclusion, but since she was proved right with evidence later on, I can't call it a major flaw. There are two recipes at the end of this story to enjoy later. This is probably my favorite of the stories I’ve read from Leslie Meier.
NOTE: This is a novella, roughly 100 pages along.
NOTE 2: This was originally published in the anthology Gingerbread Cookie Murder.
As a young teen, Charlotte was kidnapped, and spent over four horrible years as a prisoner of her kidnapper, locked in his attic. The only thing that kept Charlotte going through the violence was the thoughts of her family: her mom, dad, and twin sister, Alexa. She imagined Alexa fulfilling all the fantasies the girls wrote down in their dream book. Then, one day, Charlotte manages to escape. She's suddenly "free," but the life she returns to as a sixteen-year-old is nothing like she imagined. Her parents have split, her mother is an alcoholic, her father is using her disappearance for fame, and her sister has completely changed. Charlotte, meanwhile, is struggling with the return to normalcy and finds herself obsessed with the girl kidnapped before herself: a girl her keeper tortured her with to behave, using her death as a way to keep Charlotte in life. Will Charlotte ever be able to move on until she knows what happened to the girl before her?
This was an interesting and rather original novel. Where often you get a story leading up to a kidnapping, or a mystery trying to solve who kidnapped someone, in Kensie's tale, Charlotte's actual confinement takes up little of the story. She learns who her kidnapper is pretty quickly (he never revealed his name to her). Instead, the novel truly does focus on the aftermath of her kidnapping: how will Charlotte recover from this horrible trauma. And, indeed, how will her family recover as well? The novel hooks you very quickly, and I found myself then wondering how Kensie would sustain such an odd plot without the push of a kidnapping or whodunnit (although there is Charlotte's desire to find the girl before her, but we only have her word that she existed). But the novel is very nuanced and has a psychological depth to it. Initially, I was wary that Charlotte wasn't going to exhibit a lot of signs of a young girl who spent four years trapped and abused; she seemed to jump easily from twelve to sixteen. But as Kensie peels away the layers, we do see how much Charlotte is suffering, and how hard it is for her to adjust to life outside of the attic.
While the tale focuses on Charlotte, we also get to see how her disappearance affected her family, as well, which is an interesting technique, as many kidnapping stories don't always involve the family. The dynamic between Charlotte and her twin, for instance, is a complex one, and well-portrayed. Kensie also throws in several surprises along the way, plot-wise: in a novel where you wouldn't think there would be much to hide. These devices don't seem contrived, however, but fit in nicely with the flow of the story.
Overall, this was a nice change of pace from a typical kidnapping novel and well-written. I still think some of Charlotte's adjustment was a little too easy overall, but it didn't detract from my overall enjoyment of the novel. A strong 3.5 stars.
I received a copy of this novel from the publisher and Edelweiss (thank you!) in return for an unbiased review; it is available everywhere as of 11/1/2016.
This was an interesting and rather original novel. Where often you get a story leading up to a kidnapping, or a mystery trying to solve who kidnapped someone, in Kensie's tale, Charlotte's actual confinement takes up little of the story. She learns who her kidnapper is pretty quickly (he never revealed his name to her). Instead, the novel truly does focus on the aftermath of her kidnapping: how will Charlotte recover from this horrible trauma. And, indeed, how will her family recover as well? The novel hooks you very quickly, and I found myself then wondering how Kensie would sustain such an odd plot without the push of a kidnapping or whodunnit (although there is Charlotte's desire to find the girl before her, but we only have her word that she existed). But the novel is very nuanced and has a psychological depth to it. Initially, I was wary that Charlotte wasn't going to exhibit a lot of signs of a young girl who spent four years trapped and abused; she seemed to jump easily from twelve to sixteen. But as Kensie peels away the layers, we do see how much Charlotte is suffering, and how hard it is for her to adjust to life outside of the attic.
While the tale focuses on Charlotte, we also get to see how her disappearance affected her family, as well, which is an interesting technique, as many kidnapping stories don't always involve the family. The dynamic between Charlotte and her twin, for instance, is a complex one, and well-portrayed. Kensie also throws in several surprises along the way, plot-wise: in a novel where you wouldn't think there would be much to hide. These devices don't seem contrived, however, but fit in nicely with the flow of the story.
Overall, this was a nice change of pace from a typical kidnapping novel and well-written. I still think some of Charlotte's adjustment was a little too easy overall, but it didn't detract from my overall enjoyment of the novel. A strong 3.5 stars.
I received a copy of this novel from the publisher and Edelweiss (thank you!) in return for an unbiased review; it is available everywhere as of 11/1/2016.
Merissa (11935 KP) rated Aries (Zodiac Twin Flame #2) in Books
Oct 4, 2017
Aries (Zodiac Twin Flame #2) by Rachel Medhurst
Aries is the second book in the Zodiac Twin Flame and, obviously, this story focuses on him. He is a firefighter that enjoys the women, although he has been with Natalie on and off again for years. The Zodiacs are still trying to find their kidnapped father, and it is after an event to do with that, that Aries runs into Natalie again and spends the night with her. The following day he is called into work as there is a bad fire, and it's all hands on deck. During the rescue, Aries is injured.
Whilst this book did sort of carry on with the twin flame story, I felt it was more about Aries' recovery and mindset. The time line moved very quickly in places, which was a tad disturbing when reading. However, this book does continue the story moving along, with plenty of hints given for future pairings.
* 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!
Whilst this book did sort of carry on with the twin flame story, I felt it was more about Aries' recovery and mindset. The time line moved very quickly in places, which was a tad disturbing when reading. However, this book does continue the story moving along, with plenty of hints given for future pairings.
* 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!
Madbatdan82 (341 KP) rated Child's Play (1988) in Movies
Mar 21, 2019
He'll be your friend till the end
Coming from the UK the childs play films are best remembered for the real life James Bulger murders where 2 evil shits kidnapped a young boy and killed him using scenes from the films as inspiration - particularly childs play 2. It was a horrible crime and I remember when i first watched the Childs Play films i expected gore galore but in all honesty there was never really that much gore in them until Bride of Chucky. It's been years since I've watched them and with the 'remake/reboot' out soon I thought I'd revisit the original. So being the film that started it all, the original childs play is far more a suspenseful horror than a gore flick. Tension is built up as chucky stalks his prey and then dispatches them using some good old fashioned jump scares. Some of the support acting is quite wooden but Andy and his mum are really good and the always impressive Chris Sarandon is excellent. A 'classic' that holds up ok still.
Mark Halpern (153 KP) rated The Hangover (2009) in Movies
Jan 19, 2018 (Updated Jan 19, 2018)
Wolf Pack
Four guys embark to Las Vegas for their friends bachelor party. The four friends could not be better opposites of each other. Doug the groom is the normal one, Alan the brother in-law is kind of mentally unbalanced, Phil who is a good friend is the wild one and Stu the other friend is the safe and cautious one. Well one thing leads to another and we see them wake up all deranged and Doug is missing. They have to retrace their steps in trying to find them which leads them into crazy findings such as a baby, a stolen police car, a tiger, "iron" Mike Tyson, A kidnapped Chinese man and a marriage. Do they find Doug or don't they.
For what it was it was the the hardest I have laughed in a theater ever at that time. I don't think there was a moment where my gut did not hurt. If you watch make sure you watch the credits how ever we do see one of the cast getting a hummer which i could have done with out.
For what it was it was the the hardest I have laughed in a theater ever at that time. I don't think there was a moment where my gut did not hurt. If you watch make sure you watch the credits how ever we do see one of the cast getting a hummer which i could have done with out.
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2163 KP) rated Star Island (Skink, #6) in Books
Mar 9, 2018
Teen pop sensation Cherry Pye is about to release a comeback CD – her second. Her entire future is riding on its success, however her partying is getting in the way of preparing for the tour. In fact, her family has hired Ann DeLusia, a look alike, to fool the paparazzi. Unfortunately, for Ann, she’s about to be kidnapped. With everything spinning out of control, what will happen?
I’d been curious to try one of Carl Hiaasen’s books for a long time, and when I needed an audio book, I decided this was the best chance. Sadly, I didn’t care for it. Outside of Ann, there weren’t any sympathetic characters. Oh, I get that we are supposed to find them crazy, especially with how whacky some of them are, but I did. Especially since several of them were self-destructing before our eyes. The plot was interesting enough to pull me in, but the characters got on my nerves. I won’t be revisiting this author.
Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2017/08/book-review-star-island-by-carl-hiaasen.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
I’d been curious to try one of Carl Hiaasen’s books for a long time, and when I needed an audio book, I decided this was the best chance. Sadly, I didn’t care for it. Outside of Ann, there weren’t any sympathetic characters. Oh, I get that we are supposed to find them crazy, especially with how whacky some of them are, but I did. Especially since several of them were self-destructing before our eyes. The plot was interesting enough to pull me in, but the characters got on my nerves. I won’t be revisiting this author.
Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2017/08/book-review-star-island-by-carl-hiaasen.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.