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Ivana A. | Diary of Difference (1171 KP) rated The Language Of Thorns in Books
Feb 3, 2020
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<b>3.8 ★, to be exact. </b>
Sometimes, we enter a library, not really knowing what we are looking for. One day, I entered the library, only to return a few books. Instead, I returned with two more. The first one didn’t impress me, but the second one was this book – The Language of Thorns by Leigh Bardugo. I only picked it up, because I liked the cover. And I know, we shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but I guess the magic worked on me this time around.
This book featured six stories, all six magical and beautiful in their own way. Some attracted me more, some a bit less, but I, overall, feel delighted to have read this book. I haven’t read Leigh’s previous books, so I didn’t know about this world before, but these are apparently the same woods featured in those books as well.
I will give a brief opinion on all stories, and the main rating will be the average from them all. Let’s go.
<b><i>1. Ayama and the Thorn Wood – ★★★★★</i></b>
<b>‘’Interesting things only happen to pretty girls.’’</b>
A beautiful tale that will show you how beauty comes from within. The King and Queen have two sons – one is a beautiful man, the future king, and the other one is a monster. They are scared and ashamed of the monster-boy, and let him live his life in the labyrinth they made for him. In the village, in a poor family, there are two daughters, one as beautiful as the sun, and the other one ugly. When the monster escapes the labyrinth and starts ruining fields and make disasters, everyone is scared to go and talk to him and beg for forgiveness, so the ugly lady is sent to her woods – quite certain she will never return…
<b>‘’This little prince was shaped a bit like a boy but more like a wolf, his body covered in slick black fur from crown to clawed foot. His eyes were red as blood, and the nubs of two budding horns protruded from his head.’’</b>
<b><i>2. The Too-Clever Fox – ★★★★★</i></b>
<b>‘’Freedom is a burden, but you will learn to bear it.’’</b>
I loved this story the most, out of all six of them. It reminded me of home, and of how we tell stories back there. The whole ‘’Once Upon a Time’’ is real, and I enjoyed every moment of it. The winter theme, the hunting, the girl and the fox. This is a story that will teach you to not be assured you can outsmart everyone. Foxes in stories have always been presented as the smart ones, outsmarting every animal in the woods. This reminds me of Aesop’s Tales, which I really loved as a little girl. But sometimes, you will get outsmarted, and it might cost you your life. The twist was definitely unexpected, but indeed satisfying.
<b><i>3. The Witch of Duva – ★★★</i></b>
A story where girls disappear, and one girl decides to go into the woods and try to figure out why. This story upset me, and I didn’t like it. But deep inside, it’s a good one. Very creepy though, and very horror-y, but worth reading. Turn the lights off, get under a blanket, turn your torch on, and only then you will be ready to know the deep secrets this story tells you.
<b><i>4. Little Knife – ★★★★</i></b>
The shortest story in the book, but by all means not the least intriguing. A story that features a woman that is too beautiful, that men lose their mind as soon as they see her. To get the chance to marry her, men will have to go through a various of tasks. The twist at the end is incredible, and I really liked it. It starts off as a usual story, but it goes wild.
<b><i>5. The Soldier Prince – ★★</i></b>
This was a story I enjoyed the least. It all screamed ‘’The Nutcracker’’ to me, and I couldn’t see it as original. It was a re-make, and it was very different that the story we know, but it just didn’t work for me. This is a story about a man who makes toys and gives them life. And when one toy sort of ‘’wakes up’’, interesting things start to happen. Quite a creepy story. I usually like those, but this one was not my cup of tea.
<b><i>6. When Water Sand Fire – ★★★★</i></b>
<b>‘’ We were not made to please princes.’’</b>
This one is the longest story in the book. It features a world of creatures living underwater, and Ulla, who can sing and create magic, but who, as the people believe, is not a true born, but a mix between the underwater world and the humans. She is asked to help the prince become a king, but when the magic price is too high to paid, it doesn’t seem like she has a choice. I truly enjoyed this story, as it’s a beautiful mix of emotions while you read it. It was a bit disappointing that it seems as a remake of the creation of the character of Ursula from The Little Mermaid, at least to me.
Have you read this book, or any of Leigh Bardugo’s books? Let me know in the comments, I love to chat with you!
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<b>3.8 ★, to be exact. </b>
Sometimes, we enter a library, not really knowing what we are looking for. One day, I entered the library, only to return a few books. Instead, I returned with two more. The first one didn’t impress me, but the second one was this book – The Language of Thorns by Leigh Bardugo. I only picked it up, because I liked the cover. And I know, we shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but I guess the magic worked on me this time around.
This book featured six stories, all six magical and beautiful in their own way. Some attracted me more, some a bit less, but I, overall, feel delighted to have read this book. I haven’t read Leigh’s previous books, so I didn’t know about this world before, but these are apparently the same woods featured in those books as well.
I will give a brief opinion on all stories, and the main rating will be the average from them all. Let’s go.
<b><i>1. Ayama and the Thorn Wood – ★★★★★</i></b>
<b>‘’Interesting things only happen to pretty girls.’’</b>
A beautiful tale that will show you how beauty comes from within. The King and Queen have two sons – one is a beautiful man, the future king, and the other one is a monster. They are scared and ashamed of the monster-boy, and let him live his life in the labyrinth they made for him. In the village, in a poor family, there are two daughters, one as beautiful as the sun, and the other one ugly. When the monster escapes the labyrinth and starts ruining fields and make disasters, everyone is scared to go and talk to him and beg for forgiveness, so the ugly lady is sent to her woods – quite certain she will never return…
<b>‘’This little prince was shaped a bit like a boy but more like a wolf, his body covered in slick black fur from crown to clawed foot. His eyes were red as blood, and the nubs of two budding horns protruded from his head.’’</b>
<b><i>2. The Too-Clever Fox – ★★★★★</i></b>
<b>‘’Freedom is a burden, but you will learn to bear it.’’</b>
I loved this story the most, out of all six of them. It reminded me of home, and of how we tell stories back there. The whole ‘’Once Upon a Time’’ is real, and I enjoyed every moment of it. The winter theme, the hunting, the girl and the fox. This is a story that will teach you to not be assured you can outsmart everyone. Foxes in stories have always been presented as the smart ones, outsmarting every animal in the woods. This reminds me of Aesop’s Tales, which I really loved as a little girl. But sometimes, you will get outsmarted, and it might cost you your life. The twist was definitely unexpected, but indeed satisfying.
<b><i>3. The Witch of Duva – ★★★</i></b>
A story where girls disappear, and one girl decides to go into the woods and try to figure out why. This story upset me, and I didn’t like it. But deep inside, it’s a good one. Very creepy though, and very horror-y, but worth reading. Turn the lights off, get under a blanket, turn your torch on, and only then you will be ready to know the deep secrets this story tells you.
<b><i>4. Little Knife – ★★★★</i></b>
The shortest story in the book, but by all means not the least intriguing. A story that features a woman that is too beautiful, that men lose their mind as soon as they see her. To get the chance to marry her, men will have to go through a various of tasks. The twist at the end is incredible, and I really liked it. It starts off as a usual story, but it goes wild.
<b><i>5. The Soldier Prince – ★★</i></b>
This was a story I enjoyed the least. It all screamed ‘’The Nutcracker’’ to me, and I couldn’t see it as original. It was a re-make, and it was very different that the story we know, but it just didn’t work for me. This is a story about a man who makes toys and gives them life. And when one toy sort of ‘’wakes up’’, interesting things start to happen. Quite a creepy story. I usually like those, but this one was not my cup of tea.
<b><i>6. When Water Sand Fire – ★★★★</i></b>
<b>‘’ We were not made to please princes.’’</b>
This one is the longest story in the book. It features a world of creatures living underwater, and Ulla, who can sing and create magic, but who, as the people believe, is not a true born, but a mix between the underwater world and the humans. She is asked to help the prince become a king, but when the magic price is too high to paid, it doesn’t seem like she has a choice. I truly enjoyed this story, as it’s a beautiful mix of emotions while you read it. It was a bit disappointing that it seems as a remake of the creation of the character of Ursula from The Little Mermaid, at least to me.
Have you read this book, or any of Leigh Bardugo’s books? Let me know in the comments, I love to chat with you!
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5 Minute Movie Guy (379 KP) rated Godzilla (2014) in Movies
Jun 26, 2019
Godzilla's gigantic scale is impressive. (1 more)
Bryan Cranston gives a terrific performance.
Aaron Taylor-Johnson is a horribly lifeless protagonist. (2 more)
The film repeatedly obscures our chances to see Godzilla or cuts away from him completely.
There seems to be very little sense of panic or concern despite Godzilla and MUTO's destruction.
As promising as this new Godzilla movie may appear to be, it falls far short of expectations, and dare I say, it isn’t even much better than the 1998 version.
This year marks the 60th anniversary of the original Godzilla film, when the King of the Monsters first emerged from the Pacific and terrorized Tokyo, Japan. Roughly 10 years after America dropped two atomic bombs on Japan to end World War II, Godzilla was artistically created to be a physical, living representation of the destructive force of those bombs. Even the texture of his skin is modelled after keloid scars, which were found on survivors as a result of the radiation. Godzilla’s arrival and subsequent attacks were spurred by the use of nuclear weapons, and he as a character wholly embodies the consequences of nuclear warfare.
60 years later, Godzilla remains a global icon, having spawned dozens of movie sequels, while introducing several other enormous monsters to battle with. Then 16 years ago, he was reimagined as he first came to America in Roland Emmerich’s lackluster 1998 film Godzilla, leaving many fans severely disappointed with not only the film, but also the new rendition of the famous monster. While Godzilla is visually depicted much more accurately in Gareth Edward’s new 2014 Godzilla than he was in ’98, his entire presence is surprisingly different than usual. This isn’t the angry, vengeful Godzilla of the past. He actually now seems almost entirely indifferent to humans. Unfortunately, as promising as this new Godzilla movie may appear to be, it falls far short of expectations, and dare I say, it isn’t even much better than the 1998 Godzilla.
Godzilla (2014) starts off pretty well, strengthened by the performance of Bryan Cranston, who plays Joe Brody, a nuclear power plant engineer living in Japan. Brody is present when an unknown disaster occurs at the plant, costing many innocent lives. Despite what the trailers suggest, Cranston’s Brody is not the main character of the film. Nor is it fellow all-star actor Ken Watanabe. The main character is actually only seen for about 4 seconds of the film’s original 2 and a half minute trailer. It’s Joe Brody’s son, Ford, played by Aaron Taylor-Johnson, in a performance that is decent but far from engaging. The protagonist Ford Brody is a character that is largely uninteresting, and who just casually wants to get back to his family after the monster invasion. He fails to convey any genuine sense of urgency amidst the chaos, although the same can be said for the entire cast, with the exception of Cranston’s Brody. Cranston’s performance is the only one that has any emotional weight to it, but he can’t carry the film alone. Meanwhile, Ken Watanabe is essentially reduced to being the quiet, ever-present voice of reason that no one wants to listen to. The film has a solid cast of actors, but they’re not given enough to work with in this convoluted mess of a movie.
For a movie that has so much death and destruction, the people in the film never seem all that concerned. You get no sense of global panic and hysteria. You have a 300-foot-tall monster destroying cities, with millions of people dying, and yet nobody seems all that freaked out by it. It’s almost like the situation isn’t treated as a serious threat, and there’s a major lack of suspense altogether. There’s rarely any edge-of-your-seat terror or excitement, and the lack of emotion just makes the action come off as sort of flat and dull. Not only that, the majority of the destruction that’s taking place isn’t even seen, with the movie instead opting to show you the aftermath. Throughout the first two-thirds of the movie, the camera continuously cuts away from the action you’ve been waiting for. Rather than showing you what you want to see in full-glory, the movie frequently will take you to a different location where you’ll briefly see a few seconds of the catastrophe being watched by someone on television. It feels like a cheap trick to build up to some amazing climax, but it’s incredibly frustrating. It’s like when watching a reality TV show and then the show cuts to a commercial break before revealing the winner. Perhaps it would be more forgivable if the end was enjoyable, but even though it does give you a full display of the showdown, it’s bogged down by a tiresome human story and still lacks any real emotional punch. Despite the fact that the movie tries to convey a serious tone, it’s also incredibly cheesy. To the extent that the big finale that this movie has been trying so hard to build up to ends up being almost laughable. Ultimately the movie ends up just being unsatisfying, disappointing, and overly long.
There are a lot of ways in which Godzilla goes wrong, despite the film’s great potential. One of my issues is with the musical score, which ends up coming off like a bad punchline. Music is supposed to accentuate the action and drama of a film, yet the film feels emotionless and boring. The only time the music really stood out to me was when it was being used to heighten the suspense of the climactic battle, and essentially narrate who was winning. It was done so ineffectively that it was both kind of comical and embarrassing. I also have an issue with all of the special effects, which are being touted as absolutely amazing. They’re not. However, I will say that the use of special effects in the movie is quite ambitious, but it works to the film’s detriment. There’s simply too much of them, and this excessive nature of the film is, I think, its biggest mistake. Godzilla (2014) is ridiculously CGI-heavy, and while their scope is admirable, I really think the quality would have been substantially improved if they didn’t overdo it so much. I think a less-is-more approach would have benefited the film in many ways. It’s excessive to the point of making good things turn bad. Everything is way too over the top, causing the action to lose its impact. It’s evident the filmmakers were trying so hard to make this big-budget movie as epic as possible, but this enormous scale ends up backfiring. The rampage covers two continents, multiple cities, and even traverses the length of the Pacific Ocean. I can appreciate their attempt, but the movie is trying to do too much. In other words, Godzilla (2014) bites off more than it can chew.
I also have some problems with the film’s treatment of the titular character, Godzilla. First of all, for a movie named after him, he sure doesn’t appear much in it. He’s the reason why we want to see the movie, but he’s absent for the majority of the film. Even when he’s around, he’s largely obscured by CGI smoke and storm clouds, up until the final moments of the movie. I’m also not particularly fond of his appearance. He just doesn’t quite look like Godzilla to me. It’s like looking at a T-Rex head on Godzilla’s body. I’m aware that Godzilla’s facial appearance has changed many times over 60 years, but something just doesn’t look quite right here. Additionally, I feel that Godzilla’s face is actually too expressive in this new film. I wonder if this was done to cause viewers to feel more sympathetic to him, because in the film, Godzilla is actually depicted as something of a tragic hero, rather than a colossal beast. This is my biggest concern with the movie’s handling of his character. Godzilla’s destruction in the film is treated like it’s all unintentional, and just a result of his massive size. Even though humans attack him, he’s not angry about it or anything. Never mind the movie’s claim that all of America’s nuclear bomb tests after Hiroshima and Nagasaki were actually secretive but unsuccessful attempts to kill Godzilla. He doesn’t mind. He’s just a poor gentle giant that’s misunderstood. Really, Hollywood? Give me a break!
To say that Godzilla (2014) is almost as bad of a film as Godzilla (1998) is a statement that I don’t take lightly. It’s a bold and controversial thing to say, and it may seem a bit absurd considering that this film goes in the right direction, whereas the previous film was all wrong from the beginning. Yet while the new movie has all the right pieces for greatness, it extends its reach too far and attempts to do too much, while never managing to make any of it very good. In all seriousness, I was more entertained with the ’98 film than I was with this one. I can hardly comprehend how a movie with a giant 300-foot-tall monster destroying cities can be so boring. Godzilla (2014) focuses so much on trying to build up to an epic conclusion that it forgets to worry about making the audience care, or even about keeping them entertained, and it just gets worse as it goes on. It repeatedly tries to raise the stakes, as well as our expectations, while attempting to delay gratification until the end. It’s a risky move, and unsurprisingly, it certainly doesn’t pay off. On the bright side, Godzilla (2014) is probably a pretty sweet movie if you’re a 12-year-old. There’s plenty of action, some cool special effects, and he’s still a pretty awesome monster. However, for me, I was totally pumped up for this movie, but an hour and a half into it, I had endured enough and wanted to walk out. Godzilla (2014) disappointed me on so many levels. It’s a movie without a beating heart. It’s predictable, overly long, has uninspired characters and a weak story, and the action just never hits the right note. A little more emotion and a little less CGI could have a gone a long way in making this movie better. As a fan of Godzilla, I felt frustrated, detached, and perplexed with how they were able to do so much wrong when they had the groundwork for something great. You know, perhaps I’m wrong in claiming it’s comparably bad as Godzilla (1998). After all, the last time I saw that movie was in the theaters when I was 12.
(This review was originally posted at 5mmg.com on 5.17.14.)
60 years later, Godzilla remains a global icon, having spawned dozens of movie sequels, while introducing several other enormous monsters to battle with. Then 16 years ago, he was reimagined as he first came to America in Roland Emmerich’s lackluster 1998 film Godzilla, leaving many fans severely disappointed with not only the film, but also the new rendition of the famous monster. While Godzilla is visually depicted much more accurately in Gareth Edward’s new 2014 Godzilla than he was in ’98, his entire presence is surprisingly different than usual. This isn’t the angry, vengeful Godzilla of the past. He actually now seems almost entirely indifferent to humans. Unfortunately, as promising as this new Godzilla movie may appear to be, it falls far short of expectations, and dare I say, it isn’t even much better than the 1998 Godzilla.
Godzilla (2014) starts off pretty well, strengthened by the performance of Bryan Cranston, who plays Joe Brody, a nuclear power plant engineer living in Japan. Brody is present when an unknown disaster occurs at the plant, costing many innocent lives. Despite what the trailers suggest, Cranston’s Brody is not the main character of the film. Nor is it fellow all-star actor Ken Watanabe. The main character is actually only seen for about 4 seconds of the film’s original 2 and a half minute trailer. It’s Joe Brody’s son, Ford, played by Aaron Taylor-Johnson, in a performance that is decent but far from engaging. The protagonist Ford Brody is a character that is largely uninteresting, and who just casually wants to get back to his family after the monster invasion. He fails to convey any genuine sense of urgency amidst the chaos, although the same can be said for the entire cast, with the exception of Cranston’s Brody. Cranston’s performance is the only one that has any emotional weight to it, but he can’t carry the film alone. Meanwhile, Ken Watanabe is essentially reduced to being the quiet, ever-present voice of reason that no one wants to listen to. The film has a solid cast of actors, but they’re not given enough to work with in this convoluted mess of a movie.
For a movie that has so much death and destruction, the people in the film never seem all that concerned. You get no sense of global panic and hysteria. You have a 300-foot-tall monster destroying cities, with millions of people dying, and yet nobody seems all that freaked out by it. It’s almost like the situation isn’t treated as a serious threat, and there’s a major lack of suspense altogether. There’s rarely any edge-of-your-seat terror or excitement, and the lack of emotion just makes the action come off as sort of flat and dull. Not only that, the majority of the destruction that’s taking place isn’t even seen, with the movie instead opting to show you the aftermath. Throughout the first two-thirds of the movie, the camera continuously cuts away from the action you’ve been waiting for. Rather than showing you what you want to see in full-glory, the movie frequently will take you to a different location where you’ll briefly see a few seconds of the catastrophe being watched by someone on television. It feels like a cheap trick to build up to some amazing climax, but it’s incredibly frustrating. It’s like when watching a reality TV show and then the show cuts to a commercial break before revealing the winner. Perhaps it would be more forgivable if the end was enjoyable, but even though it does give you a full display of the showdown, it’s bogged down by a tiresome human story and still lacks any real emotional punch. Despite the fact that the movie tries to convey a serious tone, it’s also incredibly cheesy. To the extent that the big finale that this movie has been trying so hard to build up to ends up being almost laughable. Ultimately the movie ends up just being unsatisfying, disappointing, and overly long.
There are a lot of ways in which Godzilla goes wrong, despite the film’s great potential. One of my issues is with the musical score, which ends up coming off like a bad punchline. Music is supposed to accentuate the action and drama of a film, yet the film feels emotionless and boring. The only time the music really stood out to me was when it was being used to heighten the suspense of the climactic battle, and essentially narrate who was winning. It was done so ineffectively that it was both kind of comical and embarrassing. I also have an issue with all of the special effects, which are being touted as absolutely amazing. They’re not. However, I will say that the use of special effects in the movie is quite ambitious, but it works to the film’s detriment. There’s simply too much of them, and this excessive nature of the film is, I think, its biggest mistake. Godzilla (2014) is ridiculously CGI-heavy, and while their scope is admirable, I really think the quality would have been substantially improved if they didn’t overdo it so much. I think a less-is-more approach would have benefited the film in many ways. It’s excessive to the point of making good things turn bad. Everything is way too over the top, causing the action to lose its impact. It’s evident the filmmakers were trying so hard to make this big-budget movie as epic as possible, but this enormous scale ends up backfiring. The rampage covers two continents, multiple cities, and even traverses the length of the Pacific Ocean. I can appreciate their attempt, but the movie is trying to do too much. In other words, Godzilla (2014) bites off more than it can chew.
I also have some problems with the film’s treatment of the titular character, Godzilla. First of all, for a movie named after him, he sure doesn’t appear much in it. He’s the reason why we want to see the movie, but he’s absent for the majority of the film. Even when he’s around, he’s largely obscured by CGI smoke and storm clouds, up until the final moments of the movie. I’m also not particularly fond of his appearance. He just doesn’t quite look like Godzilla to me. It’s like looking at a T-Rex head on Godzilla’s body. I’m aware that Godzilla’s facial appearance has changed many times over 60 years, but something just doesn’t look quite right here. Additionally, I feel that Godzilla’s face is actually too expressive in this new film. I wonder if this was done to cause viewers to feel more sympathetic to him, because in the film, Godzilla is actually depicted as something of a tragic hero, rather than a colossal beast. This is my biggest concern with the movie’s handling of his character. Godzilla’s destruction in the film is treated like it’s all unintentional, and just a result of his massive size. Even though humans attack him, he’s not angry about it or anything. Never mind the movie’s claim that all of America’s nuclear bomb tests after Hiroshima and Nagasaki were actually secretive but unsuccessful attempts to kill Godzilla. He doesn’t mind. He’s just a poor gentle giant that’s misunderstood. Really, Hollywood? Give me a break!
To say that Godzilla (2014) is almost as bad of a film as Godzilla (1998) is a statement that I don’t take lightly. It’s a bold and controversial thing to say, and it may seem a bit absurd considering that this film goes in the right direction, whereas the previous film was all wrong from the beginning. Yet while the new movie has all the right pieces for greatness, it extends its reach too far and attempts to do too much, while never managing to make any of it very good. In all seriousness, I was more entertained with the ’98 film than I was with this one. I can hardly comprehend how a movie with a giant 300-foot-tall monster destroying cities can be so boring. Godzilla (2014) focuses so much on trying to build up to an epic conclusion that it forgets to worry about making the audience care, or even about keeping them entertained, and it just gets worse as it goes on. It repeatedly tries to raise the stakes, as well as our expectations, while attempting to delay gratification until the end. It’s a risky move, and unsurprisingly, it certainly doesn’t pay off. On the bright side, Godzilla (2014) is probably a pretty sweet movie if you’re a 12-year-old. There’s plenty of action, some cool special effects, and he’s still a pretty awesome monster. However, for me, I was totally pumped up for this movie, but an hour and a half into it, I had endured enough and wanted to walk out. Godzilla (2014) disappointed me on so many levels. It’s a movie without a beating heart. It’s predictable, overly long, has uninspired characters and a weak story, and the action just never hits the right note. A little more emotion and a little less CGI could have a gone a long way in making this movie better. As a fan of Godzilla, I felt frustrated, detached, and perplexed with how they were able to do so much wrong when they had the groundwork for something great. You know, perhaps I’m wrong in claiming it’s comparably bad as Godzilla (1998). After all, the last time I saw that movie was in the theaters when I was 12.
(This review was originally posted at 5mmg.com on 5.17.14.)
Purple Phoenix Games (2266 KP) rated Dungeon Scrawlers: Heroes of Undermountain in Tabletop Games
Apr 8, 2022
I’ve mentioned before that Travis and I are currently playing a D&D campaign with another friend. I’m the DM and those two dudes are my ever-entertaining party. The adventure we’re running at the moment is Dungeon of the Mad Mage, which takes place in Undermountain. So imagine my surprise whilst browsing my FLGS recently and came across this game: a D&D real-time maze racing game set in the very same dungeon as our current campaign! I knew then and there that I had to give it a shot. It’s not as involved and intensive as the actual campaign, but this game can be just as exciting. Keep reading to see why!
Dungeons & Dragons: Dungeon Scrawlers – Heroes of Undermountain (simply referred to as Dungeon Scrawlers from here on out) is a real-time line drawing maze race for 2-4 players. The goal? To crawl your way through the dungeon floors, defeating Monsters/collecting Treasures/casting Spells/and more to collect the most VP by the end of the game. To setup for a game, each player receives a marker and a random Character. Select the Dungeon you wish to play this game, and give the corresponding sheet to each player. Check the bottom of the Dungeon sheet to see if any special components are needed (more on this in a bit), grab a timer, and the game is ready to go! Pictured below is the setup for a 3-player game.
Once the timer begins, the race is on! Players all begin at the “Start” entrance of their sheet, and draw their path through the dungeon floor. When making your path, there are a few rules to follow. Your path must be one continuous, unbroken line – no dotted lines or ambiguous markings! Keep your path within the lines – don’t be drawing through walls, at risk of losing VP. And finally, whenever you enter a new room, you must interact with all elements within.
Inside the rooms of the dungeon, you will find Monsters, Treasures, Spells, Artifact Fragments, or Exotic Plants. Each is dealt with in a specific way, and award you VP when scoring the dungeon floor. To defeat a Monster, you must draw over and fully color it in. To case a Spell, you trace the indicated path. To collect a Treasure, you must completely outline the treasure icon on your sheet. Artifact Fragments are collected by connecting the stones in numerical order, and Exotic Plants are collected by simply drawing a line through them. If you leave a room and you have not interacted with every element within, you will earn negative VP for any elements you missed! Each player is given a Character at the game start, and these Characters provide special rules/abilities for use throughout the game. For example, the Barbarian allows you to only color a Monster head to complete it, instead of having to color the entire thing. And that could be a huge time-saver in the long run! So knowing your Character ability, and how to effectively utilize it, is a huge bonus in the game.
Some dungeon floors have special components that come into play. These are Orbs, Portals, Keys, and Prisoners. Orbs provide bonus VP, and their value decreases as they are collected. So collecting an Orb first earns you more VP than if you wait to collect the last one. Portals allow players to teleport between the portal entrance/exit, thus moving you to a new part of the dungeon floor. And Keys are collected throughout the dungeon, and allow players to open ‘locked’ doors of the corresponding color. Without the appropriate key, you can not pass through a locked door. And finally you may need to rescue some Prisoners who are trapped throughout the level.
The scrawl ends when a player has defeated the Boss Monster, but certain levels have different ending triggers, like collecting an Orb triggers the end. Once the level ends, all players must stop drawing. Players pass their sheet to the player on their left, and that player scores their run – kinda like how we used to do in school sometimes. Players record their scores, and the player with the highest score wins! I do have to say that the rulebook suggests a ‘complete’ game of Dungeon Scrawlers be a total of 3 dungeon floors – the player with the highest total score from all 3 floors is the winner. But you are always welcome to play with as many or as few dungeon floors as you wish.
I actually enjoyed this game more than I thought I would. I think the real-time race element is what gets me. You want to go as quickly as possible so you can amass the most points, but you also have to move carefully so as to not miss any elements, draw through walls, and ultimately earn negative VP. Also, each dungeon floor has so many different paths and options, it can be stressful choosing which way to go when you know you’re racing against other players. That being said, you’re kind of also playing a game of risk by trying to collect as many elements as possible. Maybe your opponent is gunning straight for the end-game trigger, and if you’re not fast enough you won’t collect enough VP this floor. Or maybe everyone is trying to be a completionist, collecting as many elements as possible, nobody wanting to be the person to trigger the end quite yet. There’s some good strategy to be had, and the real-time element enhances it.
To touch on components, this game is a set of dry-erase dungeon sheets and markers, and some cardboard tokens. The quality of the dry-erase sheets and markers is pretty decent, and honestly better than I was expecting. In total, there are 10 different dungeon sheets, and each is unique and interesting. The cardboard tokens are thick and chunky, and will definitely hold up to many plays. Overall, great production quality!
So do I like Dungeon Scrawlers? Yes! It’s a fun, fast-paced game that is easy to teach, learn, and play. It’s pretty light-hearted but still gives you some strategic options with the real-time pressure. It’s not necessarily one that I’ll pull out at every game night, but it’s one that I can definitely use as a quick little filler, introductory game, or a game to use with younger gamers! This game is a neat concept that is executed well, and it makes for a fun time for all players. Purple Phoenix Games gives this one a scrawling 4 / 6. This game sounds easy, but add that real-time race and it gets a whole lot harder!
Dungeons & Dragons: Dungeon Scrawlers – Heroes of Undermountain (simply referred to as Dungeon Scrawlers from here on out) is a real-time line drawing maze race for 2-4 players. The goal? To crawl your way through the dungeon floors, defeating Monsters/collecting Treasures/casting Spells/and more to collect the most VP by the end of the game. To setup for a game, each player receives a marker and a random Character. Select the Dungeon you wish to play this game, and give the corresponding sheet to each player. Check the bottom of the Dungeon sheet to see if any special components are needed (more on this in a bit), grab a timer, and the game is ready to go! Pictured below is the setup for a 3-player game.
Once the timer begins, the race is on! Players all begin at the “Start” entrance of their sheet, and draw their path through the dungeon floor. When making your path, there are a few rules to follow. Your path must be one continuous, unbroken line – no dotted lines or ambiguous markings! Keep your path within the lines – don’t be drawing through walls, at risk of losing VP. And finally, whenever you enter a new room, you must interact with all elements within.
Inside the rooms of the dungeon, you will find Monsters, Treasures, Spells, Artifact Fragments, or Exotic Plants. Each is dealt with in a specific way, and award you VP when scoring the dungeon floor. To defeat a Monster, you must draw over and fully color it in. To case a Spell, you trace the indicated path. To collect a Treasure, you must completely outline the treasure icon on your sheet. Artifact Fragments are collected by connecting the stones in numerical order, and Exotic Plants are collected by simply drawing a line through them. If you leave a room and you have not interacted with every element within, you will earn negative VP for any elements you missed! Each player is given a Character at the game start, and these Characters provide special rules/abilities for use throughout the game. For example, the Barbarian allows you to only color a Monster head to complete it, instead of having to color the entire thing. And that could be a huge time-saver in the long run! So knowing your Character ability, and how to effectively utilize it, is a huge bonus in the game.
Some dungeon floors have special components that come into play. These are Orbs, Portals, Keys, and Prisoners. Orbs provide bonus VP, and their value decreases as they are collected. So collecting an Orb first earns you more VP than if you wait to collect the last one. Portals allow players to teleport between the portal entrance/exit, thus moving you to a new part of the dungeon floor. And Keys are collected throughout the dungeon, and allow players to open ‘locked’ doors of the corresponding color. Without the appropriate key, you can not pass through a locked door. And finally you may need to rescue some Prisoners who are trapped throughout the level.
The scrawl ends when a player has defeated the Boss Monster, but certain levels have different ending triggers, like collecting an Orb triggers the end. Once the level ends, all players must stop drawing. Players pass their sheet to the player on their left, and that player scores their run – kinda like how we used to do in school sometimes. Players record their scores, and the player with the highest score wins! I do have to say that the rulebook suggests a ‘complete’ game of Dungeon Scrawlers be a total of 3 dungeon floors – the player with the highest total score from all 3 floors is the winner. But you are always welcome to play with as many or as few dungeon floors as you wish.
I actually enjoyed this game more than I thought I would. I think the real-time race element is what gets me. You want to go as quickly as possible so you can amass the most points, but you also have to move carefully so as to not miss any elements, draw through walls, and ultimately earn negative VP. Also, each dungeon floor has so many different paths and options, it can be stressful choosing which way to go when you know you’re racing against other players. That being said, you’re kind of also playing a game of risk by trying to collect as many elements as possible. Maybe your opponent is gunning straight for the end-game trigger, and if you’re not fast enough you won’t collect enough VP this floor. Or maybe everyone is trying to be a completionist, collecting as many elements as possible, nobody wanting to be the person to trigger the end quite yet. There’s some good strategy to be had, and the real-time element enhances it.
To touch on components, this game is a set of dry-erase dungeon sheets and markers, and some cardboard tokens. The quality of the dry-erase sheets and markers is pretty decent, and honestly better than I was expecting. In total, there are 10 different dungeon sheets, and each is unique and interesting. The cardboard tokens are thick and chunky, and will definitely hold up to many plays. Overall, great production quality!
So do I like Dungeon Scrawlers? Yes! It’s a fun, fast-paced game that is easy to teach, learn, and play. It’s pretty light-hearted but still gives you some strategic options with the real-time pressure. It’s not necessarily one that I’ll pull out at every game night, but it’s one that I can definitely use as a quick little filler, introductory game, or a game to use with younger gamers! This game is a neat concept that is executed well, and it makes for a fun time for all players. Purple Phoenix Games gives this one a scrawling 4 / 6. This game sounds easy, but add that real-time race and it gets a whole lot harder!
Acanthea Grimscythe (300 KP) rated Nails (2017) in Movies
May 12, 2018
Contains spoilers, click to show
If you’re looking for a film packed with clichés and continuity issues, I recommend Nails – an Irish film currently available on Netflix. I ended up watching it yesterday with my sister-in-law and while it isn’t absolutely awful, it was definitely something I won’t be watching again.
The movie begins with a bam, jumping immediately into what can be read in the above synopsis. There’s not much of a build up and the characters are awfully flat. In fact, we don’t really get much of a chance to learn anything about them other than that Dana Milgrom, the main character, is helpless and dismissed by her healthcare professionals, and Steve Milgrom is a cheating asshole (because hey, what movie does that not happen in?). There’s also a daughter, and while she plays a major role toward the end of the film, she’s fairly minor otherwise.
What bothers me most about Nails isn’t its dry characters, though. The film is riddled with continuity errors. For instance, Dana is struck by a car and hits the pavement, but her face appears to have been severely burnt after the fact. Also Dana’s broken arm somehow heals faster than her face. Similarly, her stitches don’t lighten up or begin to heal. Later, there’s a scene where she’s tossed haphazardly over a wheelchair, then magically has repositioned herself.
As for clichés, here’s a list of them:
-Creepy scenes accompanied with ear shattering music
-Borderline creeper psychiatrist
-Eric Nilsson is an “angel of mercy” that killed five children then, surprise, killed himself in the same room Dana just happens to be stuck in.
-Hospital has a prior nefarious history and record of poor choices
Steve’s affair
-The dismissal of Dana’s concerns as being a mental issue (though this does have some importance when you consider the current mental health battles, it is hugely overplayed in horror movies without actually addressing the issue itself)
This is just a short compilation of issues I found with the movie. It’s one saving grace really is the type of monster being radically different from what you usually see. I felt Nails, the entity itself, was unique enough to save this movie from a one skull rating. Nonetheless, it could have been a lot better.
The movie begins with a bam, jumping immediately into what can be read in the above synopsis. There’s not much of a build up and the characters are awfully flat. In fact, we don’t really get much of a chance to learn anything about them other than that Dana Milgrom, the main character, is helpless and dismissed by her healthcare professionals, and Steve Milgrom is a cheating asshole (because hey, what movie does that not happen in?). There’s also a daughter, and while she plays a major role toward the end of the film, she’s fairly minor otherwise.
What bothers me most about Nails isn’t its dry characters, though. The film is riddled with continuity errors. For instance, Dana is struck by a car and hits the pavement, but her face appears to have been severely burnt after the fact. Also Dana’s broken arm somehow heals faster than her face. Similarly, her stitches don’t lighten up or begin to heal. Later, there’s a scene where she’s tossed haphazardly over a wheelchair, then magically has repositioned herself.
As for clichés, here’s a list of them:
-Creepy scenes accompanied with ear shattering music
-Borderline creeper psychiatrist
-Eric Nilsson is an “angel of mercy” that killed five children then, surprise, killed himself in the same room Dana just happens to be stuck in.
-Hospital has a prior nefarious history and record of poor choices
Steve’s affair
-The dismissal of Dana’s concerns as being a mental issue (though this does have some importance when you consider the current mental health battles, it is hugely overplayed in horror movies without actually addressing the issue itself)
This is just a short compilation of issues I found with the movie. It’s one saving grace really is the type of monster being radically different from what you usually see. I felt Nails, the entity itself, was unique enough to save this movie from a one skull rating. Nonetheless, it could have been a lot better.
Debbiereadsbook (1444 KP) rated Snowed In: Ross and Ashton in Books
Feb 4, 2019
kinda fell into this one, loved it!
Totally unprepared for the snow storm, Ash drives to his new job. Or at least, he tries to. He runs his car off the road and is found by Ross. The same Ross who broke his heart in college. But Ross doesn't recognise Ash straight away, although he thinks him familiar. When the penny finally drops, all the heartbreak that both suffered all those years ago comes rushing back, along with the intense chemistry they had. Can they survive the monster storm? Could they try again?
I REALLY enjoyed this! It was a great easy read, and I mean that in a good way!
Sometimes, you just need a book that isn't too complicate, not to taxing on the old brain. A book that throws enough hints at you that you know there was something that happened, but you aren't sure what. A book that pulls you in, and doesn't let you in for the next hour or so, the 90 pages that this book is.
Ash knows his rescuer straight away but it takes time for Ross to know it's Ash. But Ross hasn't seen Ash since college, and Ash has been dropping into Ross' social media from time to time, cos he's a sucker for punishment.
What I particularly liked about this book, was how much BOTH men were affected by what happened all those years ago. For very different reasons. But they are different men now. I'm not going into spoiler, really I'm not, but it's great reading the same situation from both sides, and seeing both of them realise just what could have been.
It's not overly explicit but that's not needed here. The whole book takes place over a matter of HOURS so there really isn't a lot of hot and steamy stuff. It is sexy though, what's here.
I just FELL into this book and I really REALLY enjoyed it!
Ah sod it! I wrote 4 stars at the top of the page when I wrote this review, but now I'm typing it up? Can't figure out a single reason why!
So!
5 full and snow covered stars
**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
I REALLY enjoyed this! It was a great easy read, and I mean that in a good way!
Sometimes, you just need a book that isn't too complicate, not to taxing on the old brain. A book that throws enough hints at you that you know there was something that happened, but you aren't sure what. A book that pulls you in, and doesn't let you in for the next hour or so, the 90 pages that this book is.
Ash knows his rescuer straight away but it takes time for Ross to know it's Ash. But Ross hasn't seen Ash since college, and Ash has been dropping into Ross' social media from time to time, cos he's a sucker for punishment.
What I particularly liked about this book, was how much BOTH men were affected by what happened all those years ago. For very different reasons. But they are different men now. I'm not going into spoiler, really I'm not, but it's great reading the same situation from both sides, and seeing both of them realise just what could have been.
It's not overly explicit but that's not needed here. The whole book takes place over a matter of HOURS so there really isn't a lot of hot and steamy stuff. It is sexy though, what's here.
I just FELL into this book and I really REALLY enjoyed it!
Ah sod it! I wrote 4 stars at the top of the page when I wrote this review, but now I'm typing it up? Can't figure out a single reason why!
So!
5 full and snow covered stars
**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
Rikki Hammond (33 KP) rated King of Tokyo in Tabletop Games
Jun 4, 2019
Easy to teach (2 more)
Great at all player counts
Looks visually great
Games are over far too quickly sometimes (1 more)
Some cards are far too overpowered
Yahtzee With Monsters
Please note, this review is for the first edition of the game.
King of Tokyo is one of the first games I bought for myself, when I got back into board gaming years ago, and it's definitely a fantastic light filler game, that will appeal to all ages.
Players choose a monster, and then take it in turns rolling six custom dice up to three times (like Yahtzee,) to either attack other players, heal their own health, gain 1,2 or 3 victory points, or collect energy.
Once one player attacks another, they enter Tokyo, and gain an extra victory point for each turn they are in there, however, everyone else can attack you, and you can't heal, but your attacks hurt everyone else to counteract this. You can decide to exit Tokyo, which will put the last player who attacked you in there instead.
Energy is used to buy special cards that help you out in one way or another. This can be anything from allowing you to roll an additional die, to giving you an extra life if you are destroyed. Each card has a different energy cost to buy them, and generally the better cards cost more, although some cards cost very little, but can be very overpowered, which can throw a little imbalance in the game.
A player wins by either destroying all other monsters, or by gaining 20 victory points (although it's usually the former that occurs.)
King of Tokyo is a lot of fun, but sometimes the games can be over far too quickly, especially if someone gets lucky with the attack rolls and card purchases, and sometimes players can be eliminated early on, leaving them to sit and watch as the rest of the game is played.
Overall, I would recommend King of Tokyo to casual gamers, and those starting out in gaming, especially those with kids, as it's light, easy to teach, and fun to play.
King of Tokyo is one of the first games I bought for myself, when I got back into board gaming years ago, and it's definitely a fantastic light filler game, that will appeal to all ages.
Players choose a monster, and then take it in turns rolling six custom dice up to three times (like Yahtzee,) to either attack other players, heal their own health, gain 1,2 or 3 victory points, or collect energy.
Once one player attacks another, they enter Tokyo, and gain an extra victory point for each turn they are in there, however, everyone else can attack you, and you can't heal, but your attacks hurt everyone else to counteract this. You can decide to exit Tokyo, which will put the last player who attacked you in there instead.
Energy is used to buy special cards that help you out in one way or another. This can be anything from allowing you to roll an additional die, to giving you an extra life if you are destroyed. Each card has a different energy cost to buy them, and generally the better cards cost more, although some cards cost very little, but can be very overpowered, which can throw a little imbalance in the game.
A player wins by either destroying all other monsters, or by gaining 20 victory points (although it's usually the former that occurs.)
King of Tokyo is a lot of fun, but sometimes the games can be over far too quickly, especially if someone gets lucky with the attack rolls and card purchases, and sometimes players can be eliminated early on, leaving them to sit and watch as the rest of the game is played.
Overall, I would recommend King of Tokyo to casual gamers, and those starting out in gaming, especially those with kids, as it's light, easy to teach, and fun to play.
Awix (3310 KP) rated Godzilla Vs Biollante (1989) in Movies
Feb 8, 2018 (Updated Feb 8, 2018)
The Rise of the Rose of the Risen Dead
Toho Studios held a competition to find the plot for their next Godzilla movie after the semi-reboot of the series in 1984, and this is the film that resulted from the winning idea. Heaven knows what the losing entries must have been like, because this is a tale dripping with utter insanity of a kind you just don't get in conventional western movies.
Scientists hoping to grow extra-resilient genetically-modified wheat give some harvested Godzilla cells to a brilliant scientist who has been left unhinged by the death of his lovely young daughter in a terrorist attack. The scientist promptly decides to use the G-cells to create a new form of hybrid rose (as you would), which starts to exhibit worrying Godzilla-ish tendencies (demolishing the greenhouse and heading off across country, for instance). It transpires the new creature is possessed by the spirit of the scientist's daughter. 'I think now I may have made a mistake,' admits the scientist, in one of the great movie understatements.
Not to worry, for Godzilla himself erupts from the volcanic prison he was stuck in at the end of the previous film, and the new creature (Biollante, in case you haven't already figured it out) may be able to lend a hand in sorting him out. There is also a slightly dull subplot about evil American corporations and spies from the desert nation of Saradia (i.e. Saudi Arabia) which sometimes gets in the way of the monster action.
Well, if you've ever wanted to see cinema's most famous mutant nuclear dinosaur battling a botanical semi-clone of himself which has been possessed by the ghost of a young woman, this is the movie for you. Actually, this is a cut above most Godzilla movies of this period, being filled with (admittedly mad) ideas and actually keeping Godzilla at the centre of the plot. The monsters look good and it treats them with a welcome seriousness. Unfortunately, the poor box office for this outing led Toho to adopt a policy of bringing back old favourites in subsequent movies, rather than new monsters, but this is a refreshingly different and rather well-made Godzilla film.
Scientists hoping to grow extra-resilient genetically-modified wheat give some harvested Godzilla cells to a brilliant scientist who has been left unhinged by the death of his lovely young daughter in a terrorist attack. The scientist promptly decides to use the G-cells to create a new form of hybrid rose (as you would), which starts to exhibit worrying Godzilla-ish tendencies (demolishing the greenhouse and heading off across country, for instance). It transpires the new creature is possessed by the spirit of the scientist's daughter. 'I think now I may have made a mistake,' admits the scientist, in one of the great movie understatements.
Not to worry, for Godzilla himself erupts from the volcanic prison he was stuck in at the end of the previous film, and the new creature (Biollante, in case you haven't already figured it out) may be able to lend a hand in sorting him out. There is also a slightly dull subplot about evil American corporations and spies from the desert nation of Saradia (i.e. Saudi Arabia) which sometimes gets in the way of the monster action.
Well, if you've ever wanted to see cinema's most famous mutant nuclear dinosaur battling a botanical semi-clone of himself which has been possessed by the ghost of a young woman, this is the movie for you. Actually, this is a cut above most Godzilla movies of this period, being filled with (admittedly mad) ideas and actually keeping Godzilla at the centre of the plot. The monsters look good and it treats them with a welcome seriousness. Unfortunately, the poor box office for this outing led Toho to adopt a policy of bringing back old favourites in subsequent movies, rather than new monsters, but this is a refreshingly different and rather well-made Godzilla film.
Dana (24 KP) rated The Witch of Duva (Grisha Verse, #0.5) in Books
Mar 23, 2018
There will 100% be spoilers in this review, so read at your own caution.
Um. I did not see that ending coming. Not by a long shot.
Okay, Leigh Bardugo is a master wordsmith. This story was so creepy and foreboding, I just can't keep up with her. The writing style was kind of mystical and whimsical, but it a really dark way. I have no idea how she does it, but holy crap, she does it so freaking well!
I love how the ending was such a twist. I thought, in trying to "out-trick" Ms. Bardugo, that it was going to be Nadya who was the monster because that would be something weird, right? WRONG!! Wrong on every thought I had about that.
I did not see that her freaking father would be that weird!! Ugh. That was pretty gruesome to read, to be completely honest. There were only two points in this story that my stomach actually turned: when she got her freaking fingers chopped off and baked into a ginger-child and when her father ate the ginger-child and basically exploded all over the floor. Just thinking about it makes me shudder.
Bardugo loves drawing the attention one way then ripping the carped out from under everyone. Kinda like something Kaz would do. She's a trickster like that.
Again, with this story, Leigh Bardugo is creating a more immersive world that not only draws me in to the story more, but also creates a deeper world for the characters to live in. I could see a little Nina or Alina sitting by the fireplace being told these stories as little girls to keep them from being reckless. I just freaking love this so much.
If you haven't read the rest of her folk-tales, stop reading this review (it's almost over anyway) and go read them right now!!!
Lastly, I just want to say a big thank you to Leigh for writing these folk-tales. I have always loved any kind of folk-tale but coming from a world that I already love and know a lot about, this made me really happy!!
Um. I did not see that ending coming. Not by a long shot.
Okay, Leigh Bardugo is a master wordsmith. This story was so creepy and foreboding, I just can't keep up with her. The writing style was kind of mystical and whimsical, but it a really dark way. I have no idea how she does it, but holy crap, she does it so freaking well!
I love how the ending was such a twist. I thought, in trying to "out-trick" Ms. Bardugo, that it was going to be Nadya who was the monster because that would be something weird, right? WRONG!! Wrong on every thought I had about that.
I did not see that her freaking father would be that weird!! Ugh. That was pretty gruesome to read, to be completely honest. There were only two points in this story that my stomach actually turned: when she got her freaking fingers chopped off and baked into a ginger-child and when her father ate the ginger-child and basically exploded all over the floor. Just thinking about it makes me shudder.
Bardugo loves drawing the attention one way then ripping the carped out from under everyone. Kinda like something Kaz would do. She's a trickster like that.
Again, with this story, Leigh Bardugo is creating a more immersive world that not only draws me in to the story more, but also creates a deeper world for the characters to live in. I could see a little Nina or Alina sitting by the fireplace being told these stories as little girls to keep them from being reckless. I just freaking love this so much.
If you haven't read the rest of her folk-tales, stop reading this review (it's almost over anyway) and go read them right now!!!
Lastly, I just want to say a big thank you to Leigh for writing these folk-tales. I have always loved any kind of folk-tale but coming from a world that I already love and know a lot about, this made me really happy!!
Little Ray Of Sunshine (41 KP) rated A Monster Calls in Books
Jan 11, 2019 (Updated Feb 10, 2019)
Book Review | A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
Blurb
An extraordinary novel of love, loss and hope. Conor has the same dream every night, ever since she started the treatments that don't quite seem to be working. But tonight is different. Tonight, when he wakes, there's a visitor at his window. It's ancient,elemental, a force of nature. And it wants the most dangerous thing of all from Conor.
It wants the truth.
Review
I read this book with my friend/sister Christine. We read a few chapters a day. But we wanted to read more as this book is beautifully written. The story is about Conor he's mother is ill with cancer and hes dad as a new family in America. I felt really sorry for him as the one person who should be there is hes dad. But it had to take care of hes mum and get is self to school. School as been tough as people make him feel invisible and 3 lads bully him and while this is happening he's mum aint going to get better and he have to live with hes Grandma who he doesn't like. All these problems make him have a dream of a Yew tree that starts to talk to him and tells him 3 tales and the Yew tree tells him when he tells him the 3 stories he need to tell him the fourth story and it will be the truth.
I feel the Yew tree is making him stronger and face what is going to eventually happen to him. I won't tell you what happens as you will need to read it for yourself.
I felt this book made me realise what every child is going through while their loved ones are going through cancer, I hope it does for you.
Patrick Ness took Siobhan Dowd idea and helped by writing and publishing this book to show what she went through. As she sadly died from breast cancer back in 2007. All the royalties from this book go to the Siobhan Down Trust www.siobhandowdtrust.com
Thanks for the read x
An extraordinary novel of love, loss and hope. Conor has the same dream every night, ever since she started the treatments that don't quite seem to be working. But tonight is different. Tonight, when he wakes, there's a visitor at his window. It's ancient,elemental, a force of nature. And it wants the most dangerous thing of all from Conor.
It wants the truth.
Review
I read this book with my friend/sister Christine. We read a few chapters a day. But we wanted to read more as this book is beautifully written. The story is about Conor he's mother is ill with cancer and hes dad as a new family in America. I felt really sorry for him as the one person who should be there is hes dad. But it had to take care of hes mum and get is self to school. School as been tough as people make him feel invisible and 3 lads bully him and while this is happening he's mum aint going to get better and he have to live with hes Grandma who he doesn't like. All these problems make him have a dream of a Yew tree that starts to talk to him and tells him 3 tales and the Yew tree tells him when he tells him the 3 stories he need to tell him the fourth story and it will be the truth.
I feel the Yew tree is making him stronger and face what is going to eventually happen to him. I won't tell you what happens as you will need to read it for yourself.
I felt this book made me realise what every child is going through while their loved ones are going through cancer, I hope it does for you.
Patrick Ness took Siobhan Dowd idea and helped by writing and publishing this book to show what she went through. As she sadly died from breast cancer back in 2007. All the royalties from this book go to the Siobhan Down Trust www.siobhandowdtrust.com
Thanks for the read x