Search
Search results
David McK (3801 KP) rated Blue Moon Rising (Forest Kingdom #1) in Books
Jun 24, 2022
Once upon a time ...
this was my favourite book.
That was back in the early 90s, back when I was in my tweens and back before I had discovered the likes of Terry Pratchett or Bernard Cornwell.
I then lost track of the author for a good two decades or so, only recently re-discovering him when I happened to chance across the 'GraphicAudio' version of the novel on Audible.
I did wonder what a GraphicAudio meant: simply that it was fully dramatized with a full cast, background music, sound effects etc etc - basically, everything but the actual visual aspect! - instead of only one, maybe two, no more than a handful of people reading the story.
As for that story? Firmly in the fantasy genre - Princes, dragons, unicorns, Princesses, magic, royal politics et al - however I do remember when I first read it all those years ago thinking that I had never come across anything quite like it before. That still holds true to this day: yes, it does have all those familiar elements of a classic Good vs Evil story, but the real delight is in the subverting of expectations, and in the story of Rupert and Julia and the DarkWood / Blue Moon.
this was my favourite book.
That was back in the early 90s, back when I was in my tweens and back before I had discovered the likes of Terry Pratchett or Bernard Cornwell.
I then lost track of the author for a good two decades or so, only recently re-discovering him when I happened to chance across the 'GraphicAudio' version of the novel on Audible.
I did wonder what a GraphicAudio meant: simply that it was fully dramatized with a full cast, background music, sound effects etc etc - basically, everything but the actual visual aspect! - instead of only one, maybe two, no more than a handful of people reading the story.
As for that story? Firmly in the fantasy genre - Princes, dragons, unicorns, Princesses, magic, royal politics et al - however I do remember when I first read it all those years ago thinking that I had never come across anything quite like it before. That still holds true to this day: yes, it does have all those familiar elements of a classic Good vs Evil story, but the real delight is in the subverting of expectations, and in the story of Rupert and Julia and the DarkWood / Blue Moon.
Merissa (14005 KP) rated The Panther’s Lost Princess (Redclaw Security #1) in Books
Nov 15, 2017
The Panther’s Lost Princess (Redclaw Security #1) by McKenna Dean
The Panther's Lost Princess is the first book in the Redclaw Security series, and I can't wait to read more! We start off with Ellie, a waitress who wants to enter a singing competition. She is all alone, but has her job and her friends. Things start looking up when Mr Hot Stuff turns up at the diner where she works, and seems interested in her. Mr Hot Stuff, otherwise known as Jack, is having a dilemma though. Ellie is his fated mate, but he has a job to do, which involves handing her over to her family. What's a shifter supposed to do?
Now, through no fault of the author, I thought that Ellie would be a panther, so imagine my surprise and delight when she turns out to be... well, something else! All of the characters in this story, whether they are mentioned a lot or a little, all contribute in helping the story to move forwards. The pacing is smooth, with one scene transitioning easily to the next. There were no editing or grammatical errors that disrupted my reading flow. This story was thoroughly enjoyable, with plenty to offer the paranormal fan. Looking forward to the next one, and definitely recommended by me.
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and my comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Now, through no fault of the author, I thought that Ellie would be a panther, so imagine my surprise and delight when she turns out to be... well, something else! All of the characters in this story, whether they are mentioned a lot or a little, all contribute in helping the story to move forwards. The pacing is smooth, with one scene transitioning easily to the next. There were no editing or grammatical errors that disrupted my reading flow. This story was thoroughly enjoyable, with plenty to offer the paranormal fan. Looking forward to the next one, and definitely recommended by me.
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and my comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Lost Lion of Empire: The Life of Ewart Grogan DSO, 1876-1976
Book
An African Younghusband - the compelling life of a great adventurer. Ewart Grogan, 'the baddest and...
Dead Boys 1977: The Lost Photographs of Dave Treat
Book
In the mid 1970s, photographer Dave Treat was a friend and neighbor to members of the nascent...
Music photography
Kristy H (1252 KP) rated How to Save a Life in Books
Aug 6, 2020
This was an incredibly fast read that kept me hooked, that's for sure. The Groundhog Day aspect of this book was fascinating. It's also a bit strange and completely stressful. Knowing Mia is pretty much guaranteed to die over and over--in different ways--freaked me out. I'm not sure how Dom didn't totally lose it. (I'm going to say that he definitely lost it a little bit!)
The book is certainly repetitive in some ways. I think you can't totally avoid this when you're writing a "relive the same day over and over" story. What frustrated me was the constant emphasis put on Dom's obsession with Mia: his repeated telling that she was an impulsive and different sort of person and that's why he fell for her, but also why he was wary of marrying her in the beginning. This point was hammered home far too much for me. We get it.
While I actually really loved the plot of this book--it was something new and I needed that--I couldn't fully embrace it because I just didn't adore Dom and Mia as a couple. Dom was a doormat and a bit annoying. Take control of your life! Mia's impulsive, carpe diem came across more as rude and too much. Overall, they didn't seem to be a good match.
I enjoyed the fact that this book had one narrator: Dom, even if he drove me a little crazy sometimes. I honestly couldn't grasp his infatuation with Mia and wanted to shake him and tell him to move on. The book also threw in some weird tangent plot pieces that just didn't seem to need to be there. They wound up as distractions or loose ends.
Overall, though, this was an enjoyable read. While I couldn't fully warm to Dom and Mia, this was a fast-paced read and something different. It had an interesting ending--nothing predictable here. 3.5 stars.
The book is certainly repetitive in some ways. I think you can't totally avoid this when you're writing a "relive the same day over and over" story. What frustrated me was the constant emphasis put on Dom's obsession with Mia: his repeated telling that she was an impulsive and different sort of person and that's why he fell for her, but also why he was wary of marrying her in the beginning. This point was hammered home far too much for me. We get it.
While I actually really loved the plot of this book--it was something new and I needed that--I couldn't fully embrace it because I just didn't adore Dom and Mia as a couple. Dom was a doormat and a bit annoying. Take control of your life! Mia's impulsive, carpe diem came across more as rude and too much. Overall, they didn't seem to be a good match.
I enjoyed the fact that this book had one narrator: Dom, even if he drove me a little crazy sometimes. I honestly couldn't grasp his infatuation with Mia and wanted to shake him and tell him to move on. The book also threw in some weird tangent plot pieces that just didn't seem to need to be there. They wound up as distractions or loose ends.
Overall, though, this was an enjoyable read. While I couldn't fully warm to Dom and Mia, this was a fast-paced read and something different. It had an interesting ending--nothing predictable here. 3.5 stars.
My Uncle Charlie
Book
If you lived on the notorious Canterbury Estate in the '40s and '50s, then you knew there was one...
Emma @ The Movies (1786 KP) rated Logan Lucky (2017) in Movies
Sep 25, 2019
Jimmy Logan is down on his lucky, his busted knee from college football has just lost him another job. His brother wants you to believe it's the Logan's curse plaguing their family again. That nonsense isn't going to stop Jimmy, getting something out of his life. He's got a plan.
There's going to be a robbery.
It doesn't matter how often I see the title, my brain always recalls it as Lucky Logan, it sounds so much better that way round.
I enjoyed this one, I'm glad I saw it, but I don't think I'll need to see it again. At 119 minutes long it was a little painful to watch, not because it was bad, but because it felt like every minute of that time. I actually checked the clock because I thought it must have been ending soon and it had only been on for an hour.
Despite that, all the stars worked really well on screen together. It was a little off to see Craig in that role, but he played it with a nice amusing spin. I just went on a fun little Kevin Bacon loop as well, as I didn't realise there was a Gleeson in it... "wait, he's not the one I know" after a few click I realised that this one's brother was in American Made... small world!
It's a fun story line, and you do get a bit of an Ocean's feel about the whole thing. It is pretty much Ocean's Eleven with hillbillies. The ending did amuse me. I'm not sure why they left it like that, but it does leave you wondering...
There's going to be a robbery.
It doesn't matter how often I see the title, my brain always recalls it as Lucky Logan, it sounds so much better that way round.
I enjoyed this one, I'm glad I saw it, but I don't think I'll need to see it again. At 119 minutes long it was a little painful to watch, not because it was bad, but because it felt like every minute of that time. I actually checked the clock because I thought it must have been ending soon and it had only been on for an hour.
Despite that, all the stars worked really well on screen together. It was a little off to see Craig in that role, but he played it with a nice amusing spin. I just went on a fun little Kevin Bacon loop as well, as I didn't realise there was a Gleeson in it... "wait, he's not the one I know" after a few click I realised that this one's brother was in American Made... small world!
It's a fun story line, and you do get a bit of an Ocean's feel about the whole thing. It is pretty much Ocean's Eleven with hillbillies. The ending did amuse me. I'm not sure why they left it like that, but it does leave you wondering...
Dana (24 KP) rated Le Morte Darthur: Selections in Books
Mar 23, 2018
This is a very long book. I am normally pretty okay with long books, too, but this one felt like it went on for an eternity. I think my biggest issue with it was the lack of quotation marks so we have no idea who is talking at any given time until they are half done with the conversation, which is super irritating to say the least. Another thing that made this hard to read is that there is no set timeline since it is a collection of books rather than a coherent novel. Because of this, there are characters who die and come back to life miraculously without any explanation or characters who are lost and never seem to find their way back to the story.
Overall, it was interesting to read. I am glad I got to read one of the source texts for some of my favorite series (television, film, and book). It is cool that I get to say I have read this in casual conversation with other book nerds because it is definitely an accomplishment to say the least.
Will I be reading it again? No. A resounding no to that.
Overall, it was interesting to read. I am glad I got to read one of the source texts for some of my favorite series (television, film, and book). It is cool that I get to say I have read this in casual conversation with other book nerds because it is definitely an accomplishment to say the least.
Will I be reading it again? No. A resounding no to that.
Kristy H (1252 KP) rated Lock Every Door in Books
Mar 19, 2020
This book wasn't what I was expecting, but, pleasantly, in a good way. Jules is hired as an apartment sitter (apparently those exist) at the ritzy Bartholomew in New York City. She's incredibly broke and down on her luck, so getting paid to stay in a beautiful apartment seems like a dream come true. But the job comes with a lot of rules: no overnight guests, spend every night at the apartment, don't bother any of the other residents, and more. Jules finds a friend in another sitter, Ingrid, who tells her everything isn't as it seems at the Bartholomew. Jules figures she's just exaggerating. Until Ingrid disappears. Hunting for her friend, Jules finds out some dark secrets about the Bartholomew--and starts to believe Ingrid was right.
LOCK EVERY DOOR is a total page-turner. Jules is an engaging, if occasionally frustrating protagonist, who is easy to like. The premise of this one is certainly interesting and just when you think it's going off on in one direction, it completely surprises you. Sager nails the creepy atmosphere coupled with the NYC setting, allowing you to get completely lost in the book for a couple of hours. 4 stars.
LOCK EVERY DOOR is a total page-turner. Jules is an engaging, if occasionally frustrating protagonist, who is easy to like. The premise of this one is certainly interesting and just when you think it's going off on in one direction, it completely surprises you. Sager nails the creepy atmosphere coupled with the NYC setting, allowing you to get completely lost in the book for a couple of hours. 4 stars.
Visitation
Susan Bernofsky and Jenny Erpenbeck
10.0
Rate It
Book
By the side of a lake in Brandenburg, a young architect builds the house of his dreams - a...