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Sarah (7798 KP) rated The Last Librarian in Books

Jul 24, 2020  
The Last Librarian
The Last Librarian
Brandt Legg | 2015 | Dystopia, Fiction & Poetry
4
7.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
Poorly written and unoriginal
I wanted so much to like this book. The synopsis makes it sound like a more modern take on Fahrenheit 451 or 1984, however no matter how many times this book tries to reference these classics, it will never live up to these.

The good thing about this book is that the idea behind it. Set in a futuristic society where a pandemic has wiped out a large part of the population, the thought behind it is fairly relevant and in keeping with today’s events and you can almost imagine that this could’ve easily happened today. That however is where the good stops. The story is far too overly complicated and predictable, and also pretty dull. It doesn’t help that the author has decided that despite being set less than 80 years from today, everything has changed - the language, the continents, technology to the point where everything has a ridiculous and laughable new name. I never understand why authors try and rename everything just because it’s classed as a futuristic book, it’s entirely unnecessary. And then there’s the acronyms. Within the first half of the book so many silly acronyms are introduced that I quickly lost the will to even try and remember what they stood for, it’s far too many.

The characters are whiny and self absorbed, with a large part of the chapters taken up by their monotonous and rambling inner monologuing. And then they all seem to inexplicably talk in literary quotes all the time, to constantly stress their self importance and the worthiness of the books. The relationships between characters also seem poorly developed yet progress far too quickly.

Overall I really didn’t enjoy this book, and the fact that it has been set up for 2 further sequels doesn’t interest me in the slightest. I’d have to be very desperate to read those.
  
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ClareR (5726 KP) rated People Like Her in Books

Feb 2, 2021  
People Like Her
People Like Her
Ellery Lloyd | 2021 | Contemporary, Fiction & Poetry, Thriller
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I thought I’d made a mistake when I was approved to read this on NetGalley. I’d requested it based on the cover photo, the fact that I’d seen it popping up on Book Twitter, and the authors name appealed to me! I read the first two pages and still thought I’d made a mistake, and then I COULDN’T STOP READING!! This book is like literary crack!
Emmy, the main character, is one of those outwardly lovely people, who beneath that veneer doesn’t really seem to care about anybody else. I even wondered at one point if she particularly liked her children or husband. Her husband seems long-suffering, backed in to a corner, having to put up with his wife being an Influencer on Instagram and ruling their lives based on the photos she must take, the places she must go to, and the companies she must appease. After all, she’s the main breadwinner in the family. He hasn’t managed to finish his second book after the success of the first. And then there’s another voice in the story.

At first this stalker seems only mildly threatening (like there’s a rating!), but as the book progresses and the stalker tells us more of their story, she begins to become more menacing.

Now, I post book reviews on Instagram more as a personal record. The likes and feedback are a bonus, and I get especially giddy if one of my favourite reviewers or, god forbid, the author, comments on what I’ve written! But to have millions of followers and millions of pounds depending on my content - it’s something that sounds far too stressful! This world was utterly fascinating to me. And the last 30% or so of the book is just devastating (I’m warning you!). This is well worth a read: I’d most definitely recommend this book - and I’m so glad that I chose this book by it’s cover!

Many thanks to the publishers, Mantle, for giving me access to a copy of this book on NetGalley.
  
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Johnny Marr recommended track Philadelphia by Magazine in The Correct Use Of Soap by Magazine in Music (curated)

 
The Correct Use Of Soap by Magazine
The Correct Use Of Soap by Magazine
1980 | Alternative, Punk, Rock
8.0 (3 Ratings)
Album Favorite
Details

Philadelphia by Magazine

(0 Ratings)

Track

"The reason I picked ‘Philadelphia’ is because of the relatively unsung brilliance of John McGeoch on the guitar during that period, the album The Correct Use of Soap is my favourite of anything that Martin Hannett produced and again, that it came from Manchester was a huge bonus. It’s a really subjective one, for myself and my girlfriend at the time Angie, who’s now my wife, it made a soundtrack to our spring when it came out in 1980, when I was working in a clothes shop. “Every song on the record is great and no one really puts a song across in the same way as Howard Devoto, one or two people have tried, but most people wouldn’t even bother, because it’s so idiosyncratic and impossible to pull off without sounding ridiculous. I can hear Alice Cooper in there and his effect on that generation in the delivery of the vocals. There’s also the literary influences in the concepts of the songs, which are really brilliant. Whether it’s Sartre, Dostoevsky, The Situationists or feminism, whatever kind of perversity is going on there, there was a really great, mysterious manifesto in the lyrics. “It was art school that managed to rock without the need for laptops, sequencers or extra musicians onstage. They could really play but they were delivering art rock music and that’s why they’ve inspired me, especially in my solo career, on the first two records The Messenger and Playland Magazine were a really big inspiration for me and the band. “John McGeoch is someone I’m more than happy to pay tribute to and it’s only really in later years that I’ve realised what a big influence he was. The fact that he joined Public Image Ltd made total sense to me, because the other guitar player of his generation who was as inventive as him was Keith Levene. He obviously had a bit of wanderlust in him as a guitar player too, and I can relate to that!"

Source
  
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Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) created a post

Oct 10, 2020  
Stop by my blog, and read an emotionally charged deleted scene from the literary fiction novel LOW WATER CROSSING by Dana Glossbrenner. Enter the GIVEAWAY to win a signed copy of the book or signed copies of both books in the Sulfur Gap Series - two winners!

https://alltheupsandowns.blogspot.com/2020/10/book-blog-tour-and-giveaway-low-water.html

**BOOK SYNOPSIS**
Low Water Crossing is a tribute to those who endure heartache and nevertheless celebrate, to those who wait—and live full lives while waiting.

A backhoe unearths a human skeleton buried on Wayne Cheadham’s West Texas ranch. The investigation points a grisly finger at Wayne’s first wife. And so begins the wild ride through twenty-five years of love and heartbreak.

Wayne’s a highly eligible bachelor who runs into trouble, first because he’s naïve, and next because, well, life is unpredictable. He’s a loveable guy with a peaceful outlook. Just about anyone wants the best for him, dang it. To cope with sadness, he arranges for an old steel-girded bridge to be placed in the dry pasture in front of his house. Says it helps him adjust his perspective. Others say it’s the world’s largest yard ornament. He takes in stray emus and abandoned horses and becomes a mentor to a loveable little boy without much family. He sits and ponders his plight at a low-water crossing over the creek.

A cast of characters from the fictional small West Texas town of Sulfur Gap—the staff of a high school burger shop hangout on the Interstate, coffee groups at the Navaho Café, hair stylists from the Wild Hare, a local sheriff and his deputies, and the band at the local honky-tonk—knits together the community surrounding Wayne, and all bring their own quirks. People you’d find anywhere, some with thicker Texas twangs than others.

The town, the ranch, and familiar Texas cities such as San Angelo, Abilene, and Austin provide a backdrop for universal themes of love, grief, and loyalty.
      
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Becs (244 KP) rated A Wrinkle in Time in Books

Oct 2, 2019  
A Wrinkle in Time
A Wrinkle in Time
Madeleine L'Engle | 2015 | Children
7
7.8 (37 Ratings)
Book Rating
Genre: Fiction, literary classic, children’s, young adult, science fiction.

Audience: children – young adult.

Reading level: middle school.

Interests: science fiction, fantasy, mythical creatures

Style: Fantasy Sci-Fi

Point of view: Third Person with a mix of first person.

Difficulty reading: Not at all! As easy as eating a piece of cake.

Promise: Ground-breaking science fiction.

Quality: Like a banana split with extra sprinkles and a cherry on top on a hot day. 🙂

Insights: I absolutely kick myself in the a** for the not reading this sooner. I think everybody should read it, no matter how old you are. And I didn’t know it was part of a 5 book series until today! SAY WHATTTT!!!??? I’m definitely purchasing the complete series brand new (the copy I have is my mother’s and it’s old and ragedy).

Ah-Ha Moment: THE ENTIRE BOOK. No joke. Like I wasn’t expecting the main character to be a girl, let alone so young and to have such an ordinary family. You don’t see that typically!

Favorite Quotes: “Like and equal are not the same thing at all.” – This is great, especially with our history as human beings. We need to be seen as equals not just ‘like’.

“Life, with its rules, its obligations, and its freedoms, is like a sonnet: You’re given the form, but you have to write the sonnet yourself.” – Be true to yourself, for there is nobody like you in the entire universe.

“Experiment is the mother of knowledge.” – You can’t just go into life expecting to know everything and how it’s all going to end. You have to experiment because then you gain the knowledge that others may have not known.

Aesthetics: My old first edition copy has a really neat cover, it’s what drew me in originally. I loved the take on the story and how in my mind, I can actually imagine the different characters and their surroundings. It’s a weird yet interesting book.

“People are more than just the way they look.”