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Productivity and Education
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Phil Leader (619 KP) rated Havana Storm in Books
Nov 14, 2019
I've been reading some pretty demanding books recently and needed something a bit more lightweight and the Cussler template usually fits the bill. You always know what you are going to get and sometimes that's just what you need. I didn't expect this book to blow me away and it didn't - but it was better than my expectations.
This is another collaboration with Dirk Cussler and as usual it's hard to know how much of the book is down to Clive and how much to Dirk. But that's not the point. In this book you get lots of underwater action, 'bad guys' intent on making money and creating environmental disaster in the process and Cuban political intrigue.
In previous installments the children of Dirk Pitt (called Dirk and Summer) have sometimes appeared to have written in just to make sure they appear in the series leaving the actual meat of the story progression to the familiar team of Pitt and Giordino. But this is quite notable for the ensemble cast that get their hands dirty in the course of the story, especially when the usual pairings are split up and Pitt works with his daughter and Dirk is with Giordino.
There are the usual scrapes and death-defying escapes but again the reader is kept guessing as sometime the escapes leave the heroes free to continue their task of thwarting the bad guys but other times ingenious and risky plans work but end up with their almost immediate recapture.
Overall the book is indeed a little more realistic that previous ones (although still pretty far fetched). The threat is localised rather than global and the motivation of political power and greed seems plausible, as does the way the NUMA team pull the threads together to work out what is going on.
This is never going to be a must read book or on any kind of literary shortlist for me but for pure escapist adventure, it's really hard to beat.
Possibly one for Dirk Pitt fans only as the first few books are far superior, but a lot better than some installments in the series.
Rating: Some violence but not excessive
This is another collaboration with Dirk Cussler and as usual it's hard to know how much of the book is down to Clive and how much to Dirk. But that's not the point. In this book you get lots of underwater action, 'bad guys' intent on making money and creating environmental disaster in the process and Cuban political intrigue.
In previous installments the children of Dirk Pitt (called Dirk and Summer) have sometimes appeared to have written in just to make sure they appear in the series leaving the actual meat of the story progression to the familiar team of Pitt and Giordino. But this is quite notable for the ensemble cast that get their hands dirty in the course of the story, especially when the usual pairings are split up and Pitt works with his daughter and Dirk is with Giordino.
There are the usual scrapes and death-defying escapes but again the reader is kept guessing as sometime the escapes leave the heroes free to continue their task of thwarting the bad guys but other times ingenious and risky plans work but end up with their almost immediate recapture.
Overall the book is indeed a little more realistic that previous ones (although still pretty far fetched). The threat is localised rather than global and the motivation of political power and greed seems plausible, as does the way the NUMA team pull the threads together to work out what is going on.
This is never going to be a must read book or on any kind of literary shortlist for me but for pure escapist adventure, it's really hard to beat.
Possibly one for Dirk Pitt fans only as the first few books are far superior, but a lot better than some installments in the series.
Rating: Some violence but not excessive
Cat's Cradle
Kurt Vonnegut and Benjamin Kunkel
9.3
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Kurt Vonnegut's Cat's Cradle is an irreverent and highly entertaining fantasy about the playful...
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Merissa (13414 KP) rated The Complete Grimm Chronicles (The Grimm Chronicles Box Set) in Books
Apr 12, 2023
I honestly don't know where to start with this book as there are so many good points. I guess a good place to start with what you actually get with this book. This book contains all 12 episodes of the series, as well as the bonus "Lost diaries" of previous heroes and all of the collected Grimm's Fairy Tales so it makes for a very long and satisfying read.
The best way I can describe this set of books is to tell you to imagine Buffy the Vampire Slayer but instead of the Scoobies and her Watcher, imagine a great big, talking, sometimes visible, white Rabbit called Briar to his friends, otherwise known as Br'er Rabbit.
The wit is fast and sharp and on pretty much every page. There is also exhaustion, pain, temptation, and even time for the usual teenage angst. There are no plot holes and the story continues with a smooth flow, making your reading of it completely and thoroughly enjoyable. Be prepared though, if you're anything like me, you will cry! And not just once, either. Characters that you don't like to start with insidiously get under your skin until you do like them and then, of course, you worry about their well-being. (Yes, I know it's a book but it's written that well that you do care!!)
These fairy tales stay true to the originals by the Brothers Grimm, they have not been Disney-fied in any way. You could even say that they are 'grim' as they involve people being eaten, violence, and self-mutilation. These are all things that actually happened in these stories before they were 'softened' for today's children.
If you want a change from Disney, if you like a butt-kicking, fast-witted but altogether relatable Hero, if you want the warmth that the friendship of the Hero's helper or if you just want to read about fairy tales, then I can definitely recommend this set of Chronicles. Seriously, I can't recommend it highly enough. Absolutely brilliant.
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book; the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Jun 08, 2015
The best way I can describe this set of books is to tell you to imagine Buffy the Vampire Slayer but instead of the Scoobies and her Watcher, imagine a great big, talking, sometimes visible, white Rabbit called Briar to his friends, otherwise known as Br'er Rabbit.
The wit is fast and sharp and on pretty much every page. There is also exhaustion, pain, temptation, and even time for the usual teenage angst. There are no plot holes and the story continues with a smooth flow, making your reading of it completely and thoroughly enjoyable. Be prepared though, if you're anything like me, you will cry! And not just once, either. Characters that you don't like to start with insidiously get under your skin until you do like them and then, of course, you worry about their well-being. (Yes, I know it's a book but it's written that well that you do care!!)
These fairy tales stay true to the originals by the Brothers Grimm, they have not been Disney-fied in any way. You could even say that they are 'grim' as they involve people being eaten, violence, and self-mutilation. These are all things that actually happened in these stories before they were 'softened' for today's children.
If you want a change from Disney, if you like a butt-kicking, fast-witted but altogether relatable Hero, if you want the warmth that the friendship of the Hero's helper or if you just want to read about fairy tales, then I can definitely recommend this set of Chronicles. Seriously, I can't recommend it highly enough. Absolutely brilliant.
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book; the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Jun 08, 2015
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Night Reader Reviews (683 KP) rated The Dark Prince: The Beginning in Books
Jan 10, 2020
Honest Review for Free Copy of Book
The Dark Prince by Kyle Jackson contains elves, both dark, and light (but not the kind that helps Santa), can be found as main characters in this story. There are also dwarves, gods, dragons, and fae. Demons from the lower planes even make large appearances at various times.
The first book in The Dark Prince series introduces readers to Prince Lexxendae Tal’ Dier, a half-dark elf and half demi-god. His mother is Xeron, a demi-goddess exiled to the mortal plane by the other gods due to her being cruel to humans. She ends up marrying the King of the dark elves and gives him three sons. Price Lexxendae is the eldest of the three princes but he wars with his other evil personality. With the help of Segromor, a necromancer, and a friend of his father, Lexxendae learns how to create a mental barrier to hold back his evil side.
Xeron frames Lexxendae for the murder of his father in an attempt to get Lexxendae out of her way in her quest for more power. Segromor saves Lexxendae and sets him on a great quest for a legendary weapon that can kill a god. While Lexxendae is on his journey and making some surprising new friends his brothers are reluctantly teaming up to fight a new evil that threatens the entire island. Xeron is slowly losing her mind and questioning her choices in turning away or destroying everyone who cared about her and tried to get close to her. Meanwhile, on the realm of the gods they are watching all this unfold on their human children and some are starting to talk of rebelling.
What I liked best was that while I thought the story would drop Lex’s mother in favor of Lex himself I was surprised to find it just branched off instead. Lex’s mother played an important role in the entire story. Also seeing what the Gods were thinking about regarding the events playing out on Earth was interesting. Even though the Gods sent Lex’s mother to Earth they still regularly watched her instead of just leaving the humans to our fate. What I did not like all that much was once Lex’s brothers go to war the book seriously begins to drag. Lex’s journey keeps its pace nicely yet the rest of the book seems to lose its speed. There were also numerous places where the tense of words was so wrong that it was extremely obvious, even to me.
The target readers for this book are teens and young adults who enjoy fantasy. Even though the story is about a Prince it is not a mushy love story in any way and it will interest most anyone. There is one minor sex scene that readers should be aware of. Overall I give this book a rating of 3 out of 4. This book contains all the elements of most fantasy stories. The plotline is strong while multiple branches are being told at the same time. The war slowing down the pace of the book and the errors that even I noticed is why I did not give the book a perfect score.
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The first book in The Dark Prince series introduces readers to Prince Lexxendae Tal’ Dier, a half-dark elf and half demi-god. His mother is Xeron, a demi-goddess exiled to the mortal plane by the other gods due to her being cruel to humans. She ends up marrying the King of the dark elves and gives him three sons. Price Lexxendae is the eldest of the three princes but he wars with his other evil personality. With the help of Segromor, a necromancer, and a friend of his father, Lexxendae learns how to create a mental barrier to hold back his evil side.
Xeron frames Lexxendae for the murder of his father in an attempt to get Lexxendae out of her way in her quest for more power. Segromor saves Lexxendae and sets him on a great quest for a legendary weapon that can kill a god. While Lexxendae is on his journey and making some surprising new friends his brothers are reluctantly teaming up to fight a new evil that threatens the entire island. Xeron is slowly losing her mind and questioning her choices in turning away or destroying everyone who cared about her and tried to get close to her. Meanwhile, on the realm of the gods they are watching all this unfold on their human children and some are starting to talk of rebelling.
What I liked best was that while I thought the story would drop Lex’s mother in favor of Lex himself I was surprised to find it just branched off instead. Lex’s mother played an important role in the entire story. Also seeing what the Gods were thinking about regarding the events playing out on Earth was interesting. Even though the Gods sent Lex’s mother to Earth they still regularly watched her instead of just leaving the humans to our fate. What I did not like all that much was once Lex’s brothers go to war the book seriously begins to drag. Lex’s journey keeps its pace nicely yet the rest of the book seems to lose its speed. There were also numerous places where the tense of words was so wrong that it was extremely obvious, even to me.
The target readers for this book are teens and young adults who enjoy fantasy. Even though the story is about a Prince it is not a mushy love story in any way and it will interest most anyone. There is one minor sex scene that readers should be aware of. Overall I give this book a rating of 3 out of 4. This book contains all the elements of most fantasy stories. The plotline is strong while multiple branches are being told at the same time. The war slowing down the pace of the book and the errors that even I noticed is why I did not give the book a perfect score.
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Sensitivemuse (246 KP) rated Silence of the Grave in Books
Sep 1, 2018
Bleak atmosphere, excellent writing and story
Contains spoilers, click to show
***Spoilers you have been warned***
I loved Jar City because of the dark bleak mood setting that’s described in Erlandur’s world. This one proves to be just the same. Coupled with a well written mystery that goes back into the past, this one lived up to the previous.
The book goes back and forth in time. It features on the past of a woman and her family and the horrendous abuse she endures. It leads up to the mystery surrounding the body found in the present. It’s good background storytelling and put in the missing pieces gradually as you progress in the book. Then as it goes forward to present day, you have Erlandur and his crew attempting to figure out the mystery but it also focuses on Erlandur’s past, and his attempt at patching things up with Eva Lind as she’s in a coma at the hospital.
Don’t expect twists and turns or any special revelations in this novel. It’s a subtle mystery but so well written that it’s a quick read and you’re so immersed into the book that the pages do fly by. It’s the writing style that makes it so good. The mood and setting is again, dark as usual. It’s more bleak than the previous one due to the subject matter and with what Erlandur experiences.
Admittedly, this isn’t for everyone. The physical, mental, emotional abuse featured in this book is hard to read. You sympathize with the mother and her children and Grimur is just one awful piece of garbage. Erlandur’s ghosts from the past is also revealed in this book and he’s got quite a lot of baggage on his shoulders (not including his ex wife and Eva Lind) but it gives his character more substance and he’s not just a presence in the novel. You also learn more about his colleagues (although I’d like to learn more about Elinborg) as they have their lives as well. I like this aspect of the novel as it shows what they do out of duty and gives them a more realistic human feel to the book.
Not much of a mystery but makes for really good reading, not only do the characters flesh out more but the writing is so well done. Recommended and I’ll be moving onto the next book after this one.
I loved Jar City because of the dark bleak mood setting that’s described in Erlandur’s world. This one proves to be just the same. Coupled with a well written mystery that goes back into the past, this one lived up to the previous.
The book goes back and forth in time. It features on the past of a woman and her family and the horrendous abuse she endures. It leads up to the mystery surrounding the body found in the present. It’s good background storytelling and put in the missing pieces gradually as you progress in the book. Then as it goes forward to present day, you have Erlandur and his crew attempting to figure out the mystery but it also focuses on Erlandur’s past, and his attempt at patching things up with Eva Lind as she’s in a coma at the hospital.
Don’t expect twists and turns or any special revelations in this novel. It’s a subtle mystery but so well written that it’s a quick read and you’re so immersed into the book that the pages do fly by. It’s the writing style that makes it so good. The mood and setting is again, dark as usual. It’s more bleak than the previous one due to the subject matter and with what Erlandur experiences.
Admittedly, this isn’t for everyone. The physical, mental, emotional abuse featured in this book is hard to read. You sympathize with the mother and her children and Grimur is just one awful piece of garbage. Erlandur’s ghosts from the past is also revealed in this book and he’s got quite a lot of baggage on his shoulders (not including his ex wife and Eva Lind) but it gives his character more substance and he’s not just a presence in the novel. You also learn more about his colleagues (although I’d like to learn more about Elinborg) as they have their lives as well. I like this aspect of the novel as it shows what they do out of duty and gives them a more realistic human feel to the book.
Not much of a mystery but makes for really good reading, not only do the characters flesh out more but the writing is so well done. Recommended and I’ll be moving onto the next book after this one.
Hazel (1853 KP) rated Ancient Fall in Books
Jun 28, 2019
Jaime Lee Mann continues to enchant readers in the seventh book in the Legend of Rhyme series.Ancient Fall begins with the characters in various states of confusion. Twins, Ariana and Asher, find themselves lost in an ice-covered land and their mentors have vanished into thin air. Other characters are desperately trying to return to the magical realm of Coraira, however, the land appears to have died. Not only has Coraira been destroyed, but the Earth is not faring much better.
The Ancients have failed to look after the world and the humans, under a dark curse, have been abusing the planet for centuries. Mother Earth has decided to fight back. If she wins, it will mean the end of human life. By removing the powerful Ancients, Mother Earth does not think anyone will be able to stop her, however, she underestimates the heirs of Elora and Larque who join together to attempt to lift the curse. The only problem is, they are running out of time.
In the previous books, the main goal has been to protect the twins - of which there is more than one set - because they have a vital role in the future of the land of Rhyme. The fight has always been between good and evil, however, things are different in this final(?) book. Most of the baddies have been defeated and it is Mother Earth that is the antagonist. But is Mother Earth really evil? For years, humans have been polluting the world beyond repair and destroying everything is the only way Mother Earth can end her pain.
Although Ancient Fall is a work of fiction, it strikes close to the truth of the current predicament our own world is facing. Unless we completely change our ways, we will destroy the Earth and everything on it. Unfortunately, unlike Ariana, Asher and friends, we do not have magic on our side.
Admittedly, the last few books of the series have felt a little tedious, the story being dragged out to involve more and more characters. Once reading the seventh installation, however, the importance of each character becomes clear as they join together in a battle against nature.
Until now, Jaime Lee Mann has subtly alluded to issues relating to pollution and climate change, however, now the references are obvious. Children (or adults) will be thinking about the planet whilst they read and enjoy the storyline. If only Ariana and Asher were real!
The Ancients have failed to look after the world and the humans, under a dark curse, have been abusing the planet for centuries. Mother Earth has decided to fight back. If she wins, it will mean the end of human life. By removing the powerful Ancients, Mother Earth does not think anyone will be able to stop her, however, she underestimates the heirs of Elora and Larque who join together to attempt to lift the curse. The only problem is, they are running out of time.
In the previous books, the main goal has been to protect the twins - of which there is more than one set - because they have a vital role in the future of the land of Rhyme. The fight has always been between good and evil, however, things are different in this final(?) book. Most of the baddies have been defeated and it is Mother Earth that is the antagonist. But is Mother Earth really evil? For years, humans have been polluting the world beyond repair and destroying everything is the only way Mother Earth can end her pain.
Although Ancient Fall is a work of fiction, it strikes close to the truth of the current predicament our own world is facing. Unless we completely change our ways, we will destroy the Earth and everything on it. Unfortunately, unlike Ariana, Asher and friends, we do not have magic on our side.
Admittedly, the last few books of the series have felt a little tedious, the story being dragged out to involve more and more characters. Once reading the seventh installation, however, the importance of each character becomes clear as they join together in a battle against nature.
Until now, Jaime Lee Mann has subtly alluded to issues relating to pollution and climate change, however, now the references are obvious. Children (or adults) will be thinking about the planet whilst they read and enjoy the storyline. If only Ariana and Asher were real!
Dora's Great Big World! HD
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