Search

Search only in certain items:

40x40

ClareR (5681 KP) rated The Ice in Books

Dec 31, 2017  
The Ice
The Ice
Laline Paull | 2018 | Crime, Thriller
8
7.7 (3 Ratings)
Book Rating
Thoughtful thriller
If a book has "apocalypse" somewhere, anywhere, in the description, I'm pretty much guaranteed to at least attempt to read it. The Polar ice caps are a bit of a buzzword (buzz phrase?) at the moment, and this centres around an impending environmental disaster. Business vs. Ecology.

In The Ice, everyone wants to exploit the land under what was once protected by ice. Tom and Sean both love the Arctic: Tom is an environmental campaigner, Sean is a businessman who wants to make lots of money and get a Knighthood. This follows the accident that causes Tom's death and the Coroners investigation that occurs three years after his death.

I loved the story and the characters were easy to like (or dislike!). I especially liked the little excerpts from the books written by Polar explorers at the beginning of each chapter. These were largely written by the trailblazers: the men who made the first journeys in to the arctic in the 19th and early 20th centuries. This was a lovely touch, I felt. Well worth reading.
  
The First Purge (2018)
The First Purge (2018)
2018 | Action, Horror, Sci-Fi
Entirely unnecessary
It really frustrates me when they make films like this that are so obviously motivated by the money only. Did we really need a prequel to the Purge films to know exactly how it all began? Of course we didn't as everything we needed to know was in the other Purge films anyway. How many people have really wanted a Purge prequel? And sadly this film is as unnecessary as you'd expect.

Most of it plays out in a similar way to the others, and is entirely predictable and lacking in originality. It doesn't even have any creepy costumes or decent deaths like the others, so it really is lacking entirely. It gets slightly more interesting towards the end with the Raid-like tower block scenes but even this seems to just be trying to replicate the Raid and all of the other films like it. The characters too are all immediately forgettable.

Unless you absolutely love the other Purge films, this really isn't worth a watch.
  
40x40

Andrea D (21 KP) rated Six of Crows in Books

Mar 6, 2019  
Six of Crows
Six of Crows
Leigh Bardugo | 2016 | Science Fiction/Fantasy, Young Adult (YA)
10
9.2 (45 Ratings)
Book Rating
Variety of characters (1 more)
The lack of black and white thinking
A Second chance.
This is the second time I have attempted to read Six of Crows and I've only chosen to pick it up after loving the original Grisha Trilogy so much. This time around I stuck with it and feel deeply hugely in love with the Dregs.
There are very few morals in this book and money is king, don't expect to go into this book liking all the characters as it seems to take a while to truly understand them.
I love the way Leigh Bardurgo has refused to make her characters pure and innocent people who can do no wrong. Every single person in this book is deeply flawed but that's what makes it all so good.
The Grishaverse has a huge following and it is certainly well deserved. You do not need to have read the original trilogy to read this one but I did find myself overly excited every time I recognised a character from the originals.
  
Monopoly: Game of Thrones
Monopoly: Game of Thrones
2015 | Territory Building
A must for Monopoly and GOT fans
I'd been waiting for a Game of Thrones themed Monopoly for such a long time, and it does not disappoint.

To start with, the box and entire contents look very high quality and they really make the most of the Games of Thrones theme. The box decoration is sleek and minimal and looks quite fancy, and the instructions are on a rolled up, red ribbon tied scroll. The playing pieces are good choices, although i do wish there was a dragon (as opposed to an egg) as it may stop the constant bickering over who gets to be the Direwolf... The money, cards and properties too are all well suited and really fit in with the theme, to allow you to finally own your own little corner of Westeros.


Of course if you're not a Game of Thrones or Monopoly fan, then this isn't going to appeal. But if you love both, then I'd highly recommend adding this to your game collection. You won't want to play standard Monopoly ever again!
  
40x40

Amy Curtis (49 KP) rated A Christmas Prince (2017) in Movies

Dec 23, 2018 (Updated Dec 30, 2018)  
A Christmas Prince (2017)
A Christmas Prince (2017)
2017 | Comedy, Romance
Jolly (1 more)
Easy watch
Standard Christmas film
Contains spoilers, click to show
What with Christmas just around the corner, I decided to give this a go. It's a lovely film to watch with the build up to Christmas. At times I felt like there wasn't much going on. I'm not a huge fan of Christmas so that could add to why I didn't score it as highly. The plot itself was very good and unique for a Christmas film. It features a young aspiring journalist, Amber who is about to marry a prince in Aldovia. When she arrives in the country she has to be aware of what she can and cannot do as the Queen to be. Prince Richard is under a lot of stress following his royal duties. It is soon discovered that money was being taken out of the royal account. I just felt that it was a bit obvious who was behind changing the figures and it could have had more of a build up. Overall a good film but don't make the same mistake I did and watch the second one first without realising!
  
Days of War, Nights of Love
Days of War, Nights of Love
Crimethinc Collective | 2001 | Education, Essays, History & Politics, Mind, Body & Spiritual, Philosophy, Psychology & Social Sciences
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Got no money? No problem you can download this book for free (0 more)
Crimethinc exists on the verges of capitalist society instead of forming a better one for all. (0 more)
Radical revolutionary
This book is a manifesto of sorts that challenges you to challenge yourself and the things around you. To deliberately seek meaning in all you do and live your life in ways that bring joy and make the world a richer place because if it.
Crimethinc take you away from the false idea of anarchy if safety pins and riots and show it as an intellectual intelligent philosophy in being a more positive human being. It changed the way I think and live and I hope I've managed to bring others more happiness because of it. And after all, like the books says, is there anything more anarchic and radical than falling in love? It goes against all conventions of reality and is irrational and yet something we live for.

My only criticism is Crimethinc's ideas often act on the fringe of an existing society instead of bringing everyone with us.