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LilyLovesIndie (123 KP) rated Wrong Place, Right Time in Books
Nov 5, 2018
Wrong Place, Right Time tells the story of a woman who is, quite literally, in the wrong place at the right time. She makes a split second choice, and her subsequent choices are equally as important in leading her to a destiny that she was heading for all along.
This is a sweet little romance that was a really easy read. I could pick it up at random moments and dip in and out of it with ease, which I like to see in a book because, if we're all honest, we don't always have time to sit and read a whole book in one sitting. The emotion is strong and it oozes from the pages, embracing the reader in the anger, fear, upset and ultimately pure love that Kate experiences.
Kate, as a lead, is a strong character who is well complimented by the polar opposite men she is chasing after. The grass is always greener - or is it? She learns this the hard way and as a reader, you're willing to go along with the journey, even if you do shout at her from time to time for being so daft. And it's this realistic quality that makes it such an enjoyable read. Most people, if not all, could relate to some aspect of Kate's story, and that makes it all the more readable and hooks you in even more.
An enjoyable story, and a sweet happily ever after, this would be an excellent choice of book for a holiday read, sat by the pool with a sangria and dishy lifeguard to oggle.
*This book was first reviewed on Lily Loves Indie as part of a blog tour, for which an ARC was received in return for an honest review*
This is a sweet little romance that was a really easy read. I could pick it up at random moments and dip in and out of it with ease, which I like to see in a book because, if we're all honest, we don't always have time to sit and read a whole book in one sitting. The emotion is strong and it oozes from the pages, embracing the reader in the anger, fear, upset and ultimately pure love that Kate experiences.
Kate, as a lead, is a strong character who is well complimented by the polar opposite men she is chasing after. The grass is always greener - or is it? She learns this the hard way and as a reader, you're willing to go along with the journey, even if you do shout at her from time to time for being so daft. And it's this realistic quality that makes it such an enjoyable read. Most people, if not all, could relate to some aspect of Kate's story, and that makes it all the more readable and hooks you in even more.
An enjoyable story, and a sweet happily ever after, this would be an excellent choice of book for a holiday read, sat by the pool with a sangria and dishy lifeguard to oggle.
*This book was first reviewed on Lily Loves Indie as part of a blog tour, for which an ARC was received in return for an honest review*
MisterMovieDude (2 KP) rated Downsizing (2017) in Movies
Dec 29, 2017 (Updated Dec 29, 2017)
Hong Chou (3 more)
The concept
The SFX
Has heart
Every actor except Hong Chou (2 more)
Run time
Pacing issues
Big Concept, comes up short
Contains spoilers, click to show
Going into Downsizing I was excited. I had seen all of Alexander Payne’s previous work, but couldn’t necessarily call myself a fan, but I had respect for him as a filmmaker. I had a feeling that this was going to feel more like stranger than fiction, or everything must go than the trailers and tv spots were making it seem. Unfortunately, I was right.
First off, the movie is obnoxiously long. I saw this and Jumanji as a double feature and while Jumanji was 15 minutes shorter, Downsizing felt like it lasted for about 5 hours too long. The pacing was way off as well. It felt like the movie was going pretty well, and then it just slowed to a crawl at times. I get why, because the writer and director were trying to set up story and tell an awards caliber story, but that was really unnecessary. We have a movie about shrinking people down to 5 inches and placing them into a whole new community. That is a great concept, and a concept that would have made a great comedy. It didn’t make a great dramedy.
Second, the acting was bad, well for everyone except Hong Chou. I don’t know who she is but I fell in love with her in this movie. They say that beauty is In the eye of the beholder, and man, she starts out rough, but by the end she ends up this sweet, beautiful soul. It was truly a “shes all that” type of situation, but internally, if that makes any sense. The other actors just played themselves. Damon played himself, Christoph played the same character as he did in the Green Hornet(I know, we all wish we can forget he was in that too). Jason Sudeikis and NPH were in it for literally two seconds a piece, which was unfortunate, and once Wiig leaves the movie, it slows to a crawl.
I didn’t hate the movie. It had its moments, but I feel like the could have told the same movie and leave out the downsizing concept, and have two pretty decent movies with them being separate. What this is, is matt Damon finding himself after his wife backed out. Thats it. How he copes with his irreversible decision, and his story in “Liesure Land”, the community he lives in after being down sized.
Jokes don’t land, it’s too long and its poorly acted, but Hong, she is something special. I’ve never left a movie I hated before and still wanted to see a sequel because I wanted to see more of her characters story, so for that reason I recommend this movie.
There won’t be a sequel, but it’s already basically a prequel to the borrowers. You’ll see why, if you see it.
First off, the movie is obnoxiously long. I saw this and Jumanji as a double feature and while Jumanji was 15 minutes shorter, Downsizing felt like it lasted for about 5 hours too long. The pacing was way off as well. It felt like the movie was going pretty well, and then it just slowed to a crawl at times. I get why, because the writer and director were trying to set up story and tell an awards caliber story, but that was really unnecessary. We have a movie about shrinking people down to 5 inches and placing them into a whole new community. That is a great concept, and a concept that would have made a great comedy. It didn’t make a great dramedy.
Second, the acting was bad, well for everyone except Hong Chou. I don’t know who she is but I fell in love with her in this movie. They say that beauty is In the eye of the beholder, and man, she starts out rough, but by the end she ends up this sweet, beautiful soul. It was truly a “shes all that” type of situation, but internally, if that makes any sense. The other actors just played themselves. Damon played himself, Christoph played the same character as he did in the Green Hornet(I know, we all wish we can forget he was in that too). Jason Sudeikis and NPH were in it for literally two seconds a piece, which was unfortunate, and once Wiig leaves the movie, it slows to a crawl.
I didn’t hate the movie. It had its moments, but I feel like the could have told the same movie and leave out the downsizing concept, and have two pretty decent movies with them being separate. What this is, is matt Damon finding himself after his wife backed out. Thats it. How he copes with his irreversible decision, and his story in “Liesure Land”, the community he lives in after being down sized.
Jokes don’t land, it’s too long and its poorly acted, but Hong, she is something special. I’ve never left a movie I hated before and still wanted to see a sequel because I wanted to see more of her characters story, so for that reason I recommend this movie.
There won’t be a sequel, but it’s already basically a prequel to the borrowers. You’ll see why, if you see it.
Chronicle - A Personal Journal / Writing Diary
Lifestyle and Productivity
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Take note of life with Chronicle, a simple journaling app that offers more than bound sheets without...
Debbiereadsbook (1702 KP) rated Common Powers Box Set in Books
Aug 14, 2019
good, but not great.
Indepedent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this box set.
Four stories, of men coming together when they need each other the most.
Sammi is running away from being a sex slave, can Mitchell keep him safe?
Brian and Rush have chemistry, and they haven't even touched, but can Rush step out of the dark for Brian?
Edward is in town to visit his grandmother. The Chief of Police, Jack, is so NOT his type. So why is he drawn so badly to the man?
After a homophobic attack, Phillip finds himself taken in by Brian and Rush, and Phillip can only hope to have the kind of relationship they do.
For the most part, I did enjoy these four books, but maybe reading them back to back wasn't the best idea.
The general plot lines are very similar, and some dialogue is repaeted, particularly in the final book, when ALL four guys have a say, and it is especially when the guys are getting down and dirty! And they get down and dirty a LOT in that last book! And I'm not usually one to bawk at a lot of down and dirty but I did feel that it overshadowed Phillip's story.
I did enjoy the paranormal aspect: Sammi can read minds, Brian has premonitions, Rush can see in the dark, Edward can heal by touch and Phillip can influence by touch.
I liked that all the guys in the pairings have a say, so we hear from everyone and you know that makes me happy.
I did not like the SPEED at which things moved for the first three couples. Phillip's tale was a good deal slower, with everyone else having some thing to say. The previous three though?? Very quickly it went from attraction to love, for Sammi and Mitchell, it was the first chapter! I'm all for insta-love in places, but I did not like here, especailly for Sammi because of what he was running from. But equally, Jack and Rush are hiding, deep in their only personal hall closets, and you have expected there to be a bit more reluctancy to fall in love from those two (although they DID fight it, tooth and nail!) It was just too mcuh too soon.
It is explicit, heavily so; it also carries references to murder, rape and stalking and deals with the sex industry and being held against their will.
Still, a good read, just not a brilliant one.
3 GOOD stars
**same worded review will appear elewhere**
Four stories, of men coming together when they need each other the most.
Sammi is running away from being a sex slave, can Mitchell keep him safe?
Brian and Rush have chemistry, and they haven't even touched, but can Rush step out of the dark for Brian?
Edward is in town to visit his grandmother. The Chief of Police, Jack, is so NOT his type. So why is he drawn so badly to the man?
After a homophobic attack, Phillip finds himself taken in by Brian and Rush, and Phillip can only hope to have the kind of relationship they do.
For the most part, I did enjoy these four books, but maybe reading them back to back wasn't the best idea.
The general plot lines are very similar, and some dialogue is repaeted, particularly in the final book, when ALL four guys have a say, and it is especially when the guys are getting down and dirty! And they get down and dirty a LOT in that last book! And I'm not usually one to bawk at a lot of down and dirty but I did feel that it overshadowed Phillip's story.
I did enjoy the paranormal aspect: Sammi can read minds, Brian has premonitions, Rush can see in the dark, Edward can heal by touch and Phillip can influence by touch.
I liked that all the guys in the pairings have a say, so we hear from everyone and you know that makes me happy.
I did not like the SPEED at which things moved for the first three couples. Phillip's tale was a good deal slower, with everyone else having some thing to say. The previous three though?? Very quickly it went from attraction to love, for Sammi and Mitchell, it was the first chapter! I'm all for insta-love in places, but I did not like here, especailly for Sammi because of what he was running from. But equally, Jack and Rush are hiding, deep in their only personal hall closets, and you have expected there to be a bit more reluctancy to fall in love from those two (although they DID fight it, tooth and nail!) It was just too mcuh too soon.
It is explicit, heavily so; it also carries references to murder, rape and stalking and deals with the sex industry and being held against their will.
Still, a good read, just not a brilliant one.
3 GOOD stars
**same worded review will appear elewhere**
AMBOSS Knowledge USMLE
Medical and Education
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AMBOSS makes an integrated medical library available specifically for med students to reference all...
Andy K (10823 KP) rated Psycho (1960) in Movies
Sep 30, 2019
Most Hollywood scholars and film critics agree Vertigo is the ultimate Hitchcock masterpiece with Psycho, North By Northwest or Rear Window rounding out the top 4. Although I would give each a 10 out of 10, I would say Psycho is probably my all time favorite.
Maybe you could say Vertigo is a better technical film or it uses camera, lighting, sets and scenery better, but Psycho has all of that as well and then some. I remember reading somewhere a list of movies where mid way through the film the plot was hijacked in a completely different direction than it had been going (for movies like From Dusk Till Dawn and True Lies), but Psycho was not listed.
I was extremely surprised in that by 1960, how many filmmakers would dare kill off their only main character and the only one the audience cares about partially through and leave the audience gasping as what was to happen next? I wish I had been sitting in a darkened theatre in 1960 to see just that. Working at movie theatres for years, I have had my share of watching crowd reaction both in laughter and in fear, and I can see how movie makers enjoy doing this themselves for their own films.
Great movies keep you coming back even though you are completely familiar with every detail already, but still come back to rewatch anyways.
I have to assume Anthony Perkins did too good of a job as Norman Bates to have any casting directors use him for different roles. He reprised Norman, several times in the 80s and 90s, and also had roles in other films like The Black Hole and Murder on the Orient Express, but no one really remembers him for anything other than Psycho. He was just that great.
I absolutely love the Bernard Herrmann score, especially over the haunting opening credit sequence. One of the best of all time. Have to mention Janet Leigh also won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress. She was memorable and marvelous as well.
And Hitch never won Best Director.
Maybe you could say Vertigo is a better technical film or it uses camera, lighting, sets and scenery better, but Psycho has all of that as well and then some. I remember reading somewhere a list of movies where mid way through the film the plot was hijacked in a completely different direction than it had been going (for movies like From Dusk Till Dawn and True Lies), but Psycho was not listed.
I was extremely surprised in that by 1960, how many filmmakers would dare kill off their only main character and the only one the audience cares about partially through and leave the audience gasping as what was to happen next? I wish I had been sitting in a darkened theatre in 1960 to see just that. Working at movie theatres for years, I have had my share of watching crowd reaction both in laughter and in fear, and I can see how movie makers enjoy doing this themselves for their own films.
Great movies keep you coming back even though you are completely familiar with every detail already, but still come back to rewatch anyways.
I have to assume Anthony Perkins did too good of a job as Norman Bates to have any casting directors use him for different roles. He reprised Norman, several times in the 80s and 90s, and also had roles in other films like The Black Hole and Murder on the Orient Express, but no one really remembers him for anything other than Psycho. He was just that great.
I absolutely love the Bernard Herrmann score, especially over the haunting opening credit sequence. One of the best of all time. Have to mention Janet Leigh also won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress. She was memorable and marvelous as well.
And Hitch never won Best Director.
Halloween Costume Party - Spooky Salon, Spa Makeover & Dress Up
Games and Entertainment
6.0
Rate It
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~~> Be ready for Halloween when you get your full costume and makeover done! ~~> Use the spooky...
Purple Phoenix Games (2266 KP) rated Munchkin in Tabletop Games
Jan 6, 2020
A “Munchkin,” in gamer terms, is someone who is only out to better themselves with treasure and power at the expense of everyone else in their adventuring party. That rings so very true in the Munchkin line of games, as you are trying to be the first to gain 10th Level in a VERY loosely-based RPG setting. OG vanilla Munchkin (pictured above) was my first entry into hobby board gaming. Many many games later I ask myself: How has this system of games aged for me as my gaming tastes have changed? Let’s see.
In Munchkin games, you are trying to become the first player to reach 10th Level. That’s the goal. You take on the persona of a 1st Level basic human (no Starbucks jokes please) who will be adventuring with a party of your opponents through a dungeon. You will be kicking down doors, fighting monsters, placing curses on your fellow party members, and buffing yourself with cards featuring funny art and punny references. Your party mates are also trying to achieve 10th Level and will do everything they can to block your progress, so be prepared!
DISCLAIMER: This review is not for a specific game within the Munchkin universe, but for the system as a whole. All Munchkin games will pretty much use similar, if not exactly the same, rules to play the game with minor variations and different theming. I will be using The Good, The Bad, and The Munchkin for my review as it is one of the two versions I still own of the franchise. Also, I will not be detailing every rule in the book(s), but giving a brief overview of how the game plays. -T
Setup is easy: shuffle the deck of Door cards and the deck of Treasure cards. Deal cards to the players for their opening hands and keep the included die handy.
Your turn consists of just a few phases: Open a Door, Look for Trouble, Loot the Room, and Charity. To Open a Door, flip over the top card of the Door deck. If it is a monster you must fight it or run. If not a monster, you can move on to the next phase. If it IS a monster, prepare for combat. Combat is simple in that you add up all your bonuses from your gear cards you have attached to your character and try to beat the strength of the monster. Your party mates can screw with you during combat by adding strength to the monster or adding monsters to the fight to make it a more difficult encounter. If you win, you gain a Level on the spot. Some monsters are worth even more than one Level. If you did not encounter a monster, you will add the non-monster card you drew to your hand and you may Look for Trouble by playing a monster card from your hand to initiate a combat. This fight will work the same way and you will be susceptible to pile-ons as before. You may Loot the Room if you defeated a monster on your turn by drawing Treasure cards equal to the printed reward on the bottom of the monster card you defeated. If you defeated the monster yourself, unaided, these are drawn in secret. If you were given help by your mates then you may have to split up the loot per any agreements made. These cards are usually very advantageous to you so they are usually very valuable to others as they attempt to steal away your goods. If you did not fight a monster yet this turn, you may draw another secret card from the Door deck to add to your hand. Should your hand size climb above your limit (dictated by your Race card, if any) you will slide into the Charity phase to relieve your hand of extra cards. Give all excess cards to the player of lowest Level, or split them among those that share the lowest Level. It is now the next player’s turn and you continue play until someone reaches 10th Level.
Components. It’s a bunch of cards and one die. The cards are of okay quality. Nothing to write home about. The die is nice with one of the faces having the Munchkin logo head imprinted on it. It will also have a color scheme that matches the version of Munchkin you are playing, so it’s easy to match them back up if they become integrated with each other. Overall, the components are fine, but not wonderful. That’s probably why these are pretty inexpensive to purchase.
Okay, so like I said earlier the original vanilla Munchkin was the first hobby board game I ever purchased. My friends and family had no idea hobby games existed, so there was actually a pretty steep learning curve for us. Once we figured it out, however, we began to play it a ton and really love it! The cards are cute, the game play is pretty easy if you have played hobby games before, and the puns kept us rolling for a good while. There was a time when I owned every version of Munchkin in circulation and we never even played half of them. Seeing this I got rid of them through BGG Auctions. I have The Good, The Bad, and The Munchkin and Munchkin Zombies right now and I feel that will be plenty for me from here on out – unless they make a Doctor Who or Firefly set or something /*checks warehouse23 to find out if these are available/.
Do I still love Munchkin? No, not really. I LIKE it, but I don’t really want to play it all the time any more. Why? Well, as my gamer experience increases and I level up, my game tastes also level up. I see why people enjoy and even love this game system. I myself loved it for a time. But there are better games out there that accomplish the same feelings without being as sophomoric and have better choices to be made. Will I still play these games? Heck yeah! If someone asks to play a Munchkin game I am all in. I have different tastes and preferences now, but I’m no snob. Just come prepared, because I won’t go easy on you.
We at Purple Phoenix Games give this family of titles a backstabby 16 / 24.
In Munchkin games, you are trying to become the first player to reach 10th Level. That’s the goal. You take on the persona of a 1st Level basic human (no Starbucks jokes please) who will be adventuring with a party of your opponents through a dungeon. You will be kicking down doors, fighting monsters, placing curses on your fellow party members, and buffing yourself with cards featuring funny art and punny references. Your party mates are also trying to achieve 10th Level and will do everything they can to block your progress, so be prepared!
DISCLAIMER: This review is not for a specific game within the Munchkin universe, but for the system as a whole. All Munchkin games will pretty much use similar, if not exactly the same, rules to play the game with minor variations and different theming. I will be using The Good, The Bad, and The Munchkin for my review as it is one of the two versions I still own of the franchise. Also, I will not be detailing every rule in the book(s), but giving a brief overview of how the game plays. -T
Setup is easy: shuffle the deck of Door cards and the deck of Treasure cards. Deal cards to the players for their opening hands and keep the included die handy.
Your turn consists of just a few phases: Open a Door, Look for Trouble, Loot the Room, and Charity. To Open a Door, flip over the top card of the Door deck. If it is a monster you must fight it or run. If not a monster, you can move on to the next phase. If it IS a monster, prepare for combat. Combat is simple in that you add up all your bonuses from your gear cards you have attached to your character and try to beat the strength of the monster. Your party mates can screw with you during combat by adding strength to the monster or adding monsters to the fight to make it a more difficult encounter. If you win, you gain a Level on the spot. Some monsters are worth even more than one Level. If you did not encounter a monster, you will add the non-monster card you drew to your hand and you may Look for Trouble by playing a monster card from your hand to initiate a combat. This fight will work the same way and you will be susceptible to pile-ons as before. You may Loot the Room if you defeated a monster on your turn by drawing Treasure cards equal to the printed reward on the bottom of the monster card you defeated. If you defeated the monster yourself, unaided, these are drawn in secret. If you were given help by your mates then you may have to split up the loot per any agreements made. These cards are usually very advantageous to you so they are usually very valuable to others as they attempt to steal away your goods. If you did not fight a monster yet this turn, you may draw another secret card from the Door deck to add to your hand. Should your hand size climb above your limit (dictated by your Race card, if any) you will slide into the Charity phase to relieve your hand of extra cards. Give all excess cards to the player of lowest Level, or split them among those that share the lowest Level. It is now the next player’s turn and you continue play until someone reaches 10th Level.
Components. It’s a bunch of cards and one die. The cards are of okay quality. Nothing to write home about. The die is nice with one of the faces having the Munchkin logo head imprinted on it. It will also have a color scheme that matches the version of Munchkin you are playing, so it’s easy to match them back up if they become integrated with each other. Overall, the components are fine, but not wonderful. That’s probably why these are pretty inexpensive to purchase.
Okay, so like I said earlier the original vanilla Munchkin was the first hobby board game I ever purchased. My friends and family had no idea hobby games existed, so there was actually a pretty steep learning curve for us. Once we figured it out, however, we began to play it a ton and really love it! The cards are cute, the game play is pretty easy if you have played hobby games before, and the puns kept us rolling for a good while. There was a time when I owned every version of Munchkin in circulation and we never even played half of them. Seeing this I got rid of them through BGG Auctions. I have The Good, The Bad, and The Munchkin and Munchkin Zombies right now and I feel that will be plenty for me from here on out – unless they make a Doctor Who or Firefly set or something /*checks warehouse23 to find out if these are available/.
Do I still love Munchkin? No, not really. I LIKE it, but I don’t really want to play it all the time any more. Why? Well, as my gamer experience increases and I level up, my game tastes also level up. I see why people enjoy and even love this game system. I myself loved it for a time. But there are better games out there that accomplish the same feelings without being as sophomoric and have better choices to be made. Will I still play these games? Heck yeah! If someone asks to play a Munchkin game I am all in. I have different tastes and preferences now, but I’m no snob. Just come prepared, because I won’t go easy on you.
We at Purple Phoenix Games give this family of titles a backstabby 16 / 24.
Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated Archangel MC in Books
Jan 19, 2020
Brilliant
Contains spoilers, click to show
“Even shattered wings hold heavenly beauty.”
I don’t know who I am.
I don’t even remember what my name is.
I was lost, confused and broken the day I met them.
My Angels.
To the world, they’re nothing but leather wearing, foul-mouthed bikers, but to me, they are my saviors.
The light at the end of a very dark tunnel.
However, as my memory starts to come back to me in pieces, I fear the darkness ahead. Maybe the reason why I can’t recollect anything is because I don’t want to.
Life is sweet in heaven.
But hell doesn’t want to let me go.
Archangels MC is a Contemporary Romance Reverse Harem Standalone story where the heroine is just as fearless as her men, but the mystery that torments her once unraveled might be too much for them to overcome.
If you like hot bikers with attitude with a soft gooey center, a little suspense in a story with twists and spins that will make your jaw drop and whole bunch of hotness mixed with sweet tender moments, well then this baby is for you!
My view
This book has so many emotional twists and turns I was so engrossed. The trauma we see Hope go through from crawling out of her shallow grave to finally getting revenge on the person who put her there. For once you are rooting for that happily ever after! The 3 gorgeous,kind and amazing men helping her every step of the way. Really was an emotional roller coaster!
Love the little nod to Freya and her 5 boys too!!
⭐⭐⭐⭐
I don’t know who I am.
I don’t even remember what my name is.
I was lost, confused and broken the day I met them.
My Angels.
To the world, they’re nothing but leather wearing, foul-mouthed bikers, but to me, they are my saviors.
The light at the end of a very dark tunnel.
However, as my memory starts to come back to me in pieces, I fear the darkness ahead. Maybe the reason why I can’t recollect anything is because I don’t want to.
Life is sweet in heaven.
But hell doesn’t want to let me go.
Archangels MC is a Contemporary Romance Reverse Harem Standalone story where the heroine is just as fearless as her men, but the mystery that torments her once unraveled might be too much for them to overcome.
If you like hot bikers with attitude with a soft gooey center, a little suspense in a story with twists and spins that will make your jaw drop and whole bunch of hotness mixed with sweet tender moments, well then this baby is for you!
My view
This book has so many emotional twists and turns I was so engrossed. The trauma we see Hope go through from crawling out of her shallow grave to finally getting revenge on the person who put her there. For once you are rooting for that happily ever after! The 3 gorgeous,kind and amazing men helping her every step of the way. Really was an emotional roller coaster!
Love the little nod to Freya and her 5 boys too!!
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Need to Know
9.7
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PERFECT HUSBAND. PERFECT FATHER. PERFECT LIAR? ‘You'll devour this terrific debut like the rest...
thriller