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MaryAnn (14 KP) rated Hadassah, Queen Esther of Persia in Books
Nov 4, 2019
One of the great heroines of the Old Testament, Hadassah was a beautiful, graceful young woman who put her faith in God and her guardian, her cousin Mordecai.
She dreams of marrying Shamir, a tall, handsome, studious young man who is the rabbis son. Her heart beats faster when she hears the sound of his deep voice as he reads the Torah. And she hopes that he will visit Mordecai soon to present a betrothal request. Then, an upheaval in King Xerxess palace changes everything. Queen Vashti has been banished and an edict goes out for all qualified young virgins throughout the empire to be taken to the palace as he searches for a new queen. Fear strikes in the hearts of many, including Mordecai, as he realizes Hadassah will be taken. To hide her identity as a Jew, he tells her to go by the name of Esther. Since he works as a record-keeper at the kings gates, he can keep tabs on how she is doing. Hadassah: Queen Esther of Persia imagines what life was like for the woman who saved her peopleand perhaps found love in the process.
The author has done an amazing amount of research for this book. She has brought new life to the Biblical book of Esther. This informative and entertaining novel will touch the hearts of many readers.
I enjoyed this novel greatly, as it did open my eyes to the customs and the history that was custom during that time. The author gives the reader an interesting and accurate look into the book of Esther, from the Jewish viewpoint. It brings the reader into the life of a young Jewish girl in the reign of King Xerxes. I truly enjoyed this book, that teaches us about Gods providence, prayer and trust in God.
This is a read that I highly recommend.
She dreams of marrying Shamir, a tall, handsome, studious young man who is the rabbis son. Her heart beats faster when she hears the sound of his deep voice as he reads the Torah. And she hopes that he will visit Mordecai soon to present a betrothal request. Then, an upheaval in King Xerxess palace changes everything. Queen Vashti has been banished and an edict goes out for all qualified young virgins throughout the empire to be taken to the palace as he searches for a new queen. Fear strikes in the hearts of many, including Mordecai, as he realizes Hadassah will be taken. To hide her identity as a Jew, he tells her to go by the name of Esther. Since he works as a record-keeper at the kings gates, he can keep tabs on how she is doing. Hadassah: Queen Esther of Persia imagines what life was like for the woman who saved her peopleand perhaps found love in the process.
The author has done an amazing amount of research for this book. She has brought new life to the Biblical book of Esther. This informative and entertaining novel will touch the hearts of many readers.
I enjoyed this novel greatly, as it did open my eyes to the customs and the history that was custom during that time. The author gives the reader an interesting and accurate look into the book of Esther, from the Jewish viewpoint. It brings the reader into the life of a young Jewish girl in the reign of King Xerxes. I truly enjoyed this book, that teaches us about Gods providence, prayer and trust in God.
This is a read that I highly recommend.
Sophia (Bookwyrming Thoughts) (530 KP) rated Red Queen in Books
Jan 23, 2020
In quick and rapid-fire succession about Victoria Aveyard's <i>Red Queen</i>...
~ Amanda Dolan is a phenomenal narrator. She makes the pages come alive in the ears if you know what I mean. Regal accent for the queen, awesome rambling skills that show Mare is nervous, fabulously "bitchy" voice for Evangeline, etc. Dolan might even top <a title="Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo" href="https://bookwyrmingthoughts.com/audiobook-review-ruin-and-rising-by-leigh-bardugo/"; target="_blank" rel="noopener">Fontgang.</a> (Don't worry. I still like your skills.)
~ Someone tell me the song title and composer of the music at the beginning and the end of the audiobook because I love it. It has this ominous feeling that I like. Oh, and I admit I'm a music geek.
~ There are some things I question. 1) Why would you use a shield that contains Mare's powers if you're trying to kill her? I mean, you KNOW her power. 2) I don't think I caught how Silver blood became silver. Is it something as simple as, I don't know, putting a bit of silver in Botox before injecting it? *strokes imaginary beard thoughtfully*
~ The end. Any book that actually has an unpredictable ending is instantly music in my ears (not that I'm being biased, but let's just say you get more merit) – when you read so many books, things tend to repeat. But that's a discussion for another day.
~ You're like <i>The Winner's</i> trilogy. I don't need to say anything more, because <a title="The Winner's Crime" href="https://bookwyrmingthoughts.com/review-the-winners-crime-by-marie-rutkoski/"; target="_blank" rel="noopener">this letter explains it all</a>. If I write this one as a letter, I'll plagiarize my own self.
<a href="https://bookwyrmingthoughts.com/chibi-views-dare-to-dream-by-carys-jones-and-red-queen-by-victoria-aveyard/"; target="_blank">This review was originally posted on Bookwyrming Thoughts</a>
~ Amanda Dolan is a phenomenal narrator. She makes the pages come alive in the ears if you know what I mean. Regal accent for the queen, awesome rambling skills that show Mare is nervous, fabulously "bitchy" voice for Evangeline, etc. Dolan might even top <a title="Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo" href="https://bookwyrmingthoughts.com/audiobook-review-ruin-and-rising-by-leigh-bardugo/"; target="_blank" rel="noopener">Fontgang.</a> (Don't worry. I still like your skills.)
~ Someone tell me the song title and composer of the music at the beginning and the end of the audiobook because I love it. It has this ominous feeling that I like. Oh, and I admit I'm a music geek.
~ There are some things I question. 1) Why would you use a shield that contains Mare's powers if you're trying to kill her? I mean, you KNOW her power. 2) I don't think I caught how Silver blood became silver. Is it something as simple as, I don't know, putting a bit of silver in Botox before injecting it? *strokes imaginary beard thoughtfully*
~ The end. Any book that actually has an unpredictable ending is instantly music in my ears (not that I'm being biased, but let's just say you get more merit) – when you read so many books, things tend to repeat. But that's a discussion for another day.
~ You're like <i>The Winner's</i> trilogy. I don't need to say anything more, because <a title="The Winner's Crime" href="https://bookwyrmingthoughts.com/review-the-winners-crime-by-marie-rutkoski/"; target="_blank" rel="noopener">this letter explains it all</a>. If I write this one as a letter, I'll plagiarize my own self.
<a href="https://bookwyrmingthoughts.com/chibi-views-dare-to-dream-by-carys-jones-and-red-queen-by-victoria-aveyard/"; target="_blank">This review was originally posted on Bookwyrming Thoughts</a>
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Let me start off by saying that I love Marissa Meyer's writing so much, but this book wasn't as good for me as The Lunar Chronicles.
This was a really cute and quirky book with so many puns! I loved all of the puns about baking, they gave me life. Especially since I love puns and I love baking, so putting those two things together made me so happy!
This had a very interesting story, one we all know the end of, just not how the story will get to that point. If you have read or even know of Alice in Wonderland, you know that the Queen of Hearts is a villain, so it was interesting to see how she got to be that way. I am always a little hesitant to read the villain backstories because a lot of times, authors will make them out to be the heroes and completely go against what the audiences know about these beloved villains. While Meyer does have some instances of this, she also is able to build up the story enough to the point where it may be believable.
So there are going to be some plot spoilers in this paragraph, so if you do not want to read them, skip to the next paragraph! Okay, so the plot goes like this: Catherine doesn't want to be queen, she wants to bake, but the King of Hearts, as well as her parents, want her to be the queen. Cue the Joker, Jest, who is the wrong guy to fall for, but she does it anyway which eventually gets him killed and will make Cath want revenge and become the killer we know her as. There were a lot of moments throughout the plot that I was not as engaged with because they felt like they had been too much. Of course Cath would fall for Jest and of course a man would be her turning point. I was not the biggest fan of those aspects of the story. I wanted her to have more agency in why she becomes the Queen of Hearts, not just that she wants to use her power to avenge her lost love.
There was a prophecy in this book, I won't say what it was, but I will say that it wasn't my favorite because it takes any and all tension out of the story.
I loved the play on names from Meyer. Hatta being the Mad Hatter and Haigher being the March Hair, loved it!
The characters were pretty interesting, but they weren't as gripping or memorable as I would have like them to be.
I usually adore Marissa Meyer's books, but this one fell a little flat for me. Overall, it was enjoyable, but I am not sure if I would read it again.
This was a really cute and quirky book with so many puns! I loved all of the puns about baking, they gave me life. Especially since I love puns and I love baking, so putting those two things together made me so happy!
This had a very interesting story, one we all know the end of, just not how the story will get to that point. If you have read or even know of Alice in Wonderland, you know that the Queen of Hearts is a villain, so it was interesting to see how she got to be that way. I am always a little hesitant to read the villain backstories because a lot of times, authors will make them out to be the heroes and completely go against what the audiences know about these beloved villains. While Meyer does have some instances of this, she also is able to build up the story enough to the point where it may be believable.
So there are going to be some plot spoilers in this paragraph, so if you do not want to read them, skip to the next paragraph! Okay, so the plot goes like this: Catherine doesn't want to be queen, she wants to bake, but the King of Hearts, as well as her parents, want her to be the queen. Cue the Joker, Jest, who is the wrong guy to fall for, but she does it anyway which eventually gets him killed and will make Cath want revenge and become the killer we know her as. There were a lot of moments throughout the plot that I was not as engaged with because they felt like they had been too much. Of course Cath would fall for Jest and of course a man would be her turning point. I was not the biggest fan of those aspects of the story. I wanted her to have more agency in why she becomes the Queen of Hearts, not just that she wants to use her power to avenge her lost love.
There was a prophecy in this book, I won't say what it was, but I will say that it wasn't my favorite because it takes any and all tension out of the story.
I loved the play on names from Meyer. Hatta being the Mad Hatter and Haigher being the March Hair, loved it!
The characters were pretty interesting, but they weren't as gripping or memorable as I would have like them to be.
I usually adore Marissa Meyer's books, but this one fell a little flat for me. Overall, it was enjoyable, but I am not sure if I would read it again.
What a marvelous gem to read. I enjoy every bit of this story. I could not put this book down, I had to know what was going to happen. Who was the Queen of Hearts before she became who she was? Marissa Meyer did exactly that to explain the story.
"Three luscious lemon tarts glistened up at Catherine". Cath the main character of the story absolutely loves baking goods. Her dream is to start her very own bakery one day right in the kingdom of Hearts. What can possibly go wrong with starting your own bakery? Her heart is sought out from the King of Hearts and her heart also falls in love with the kings joker Jest.
The journey between Cath and where her heart truly goes on this journey to her happiness will just make you curiouser and curiouser on where the story will go and how she became what we all know her as the Queen Of Hearts.
Tea parties, Pastry goods, and white rabbits big announcements to the balls! Ohh lets not forget the jabberwocky!
I gave it a five star out of five stars cause its truly a wonderful heart warming story of one of the most notorious villains we all know. It became one of my new favorite stories and Marissa Meyer became one of my top favorite authors of all time.
"Three luscious lemon tarts glistened up at Catherine". Cath the main character of the story absolutely loves baking goods. Her dream is to start her very own bakery one day right in the kingdom of Hearts. What can possibly go wrong with starting your own bakery? Her heart is sought out from the King of Hearts and her heart also falls in love with the kings joker Jest.
The journey between Cath and where her heart truly goes on this journey to her happiness will just make you curiouser and curiouser on where the story will go and how she became what we all know her as the Queen Of Hearts.
Tea parties, Pastry goods, and white rabbits big announcements to the balls! Ohh lets not forget the jabberwocky!
I gave it a five star out of five stars cause its truly a wonderful heart warming story of one of the most notorious villains we all know. It became one of my new favorite stories and Marissa Meyer became one of my top favorite authors of all time.
Sarah (7800 KP) rated Bohemian Rhapsody (2018) in Movies
Nov 16, 2018
Great performances & music, but drags
I asked my usual cinema friend to come and watch this with me, and her response was no because she “doesn’t like Queen”... I was astounded. How is it possible to dislike Queen?!
From the very start of this film, the music made this worth watching. From opening with Somebody to Love and going through all of the hits and classics, to the final set at LiveAid, I was struggling not to dance around and sing along. This film really does Queen’s music justice, it sounded fantastic. And the performances in this are brilliant. Rami Malek truly shines and is amazing as Freddie, I can’t imagine Sacha Baron Cohen doing this well, and the rest of the cast are great too. I loved the cameo from Mike Myers and the reference to Wayne’s World was a really nice touch.
The problem with this film is I found towards the second half, it dragged quite a lot. Freddie’s story is fascinating and I enjoyed watching it, but I think some scenes were overly long and I was getting a little bored. They could have easily cut out a good 20 minutes without having a detrimental effect on the story, and if it was a little shorter I probably would’ve scored it higher!
From the very start of this film, the music made this worth watching. From opening with Somebody to Love and going through all of the hits and classics, to the final set at LiveAid, I was struggling not to dance around and sing along. This film really does Queen’s music justice, it sounded fantastic. And the performances in this are brilliant. Rami Malek truly shines and is amazing as Freddie, I can’t imagine Sacha Baron Cohen doing this well, and the rest of the cast are great too. I loved the cameo from Mike Myers and the reference to Wayne’s World was a really nice touch.
The problem with this film is I found towards the second half, it dragged quite a lot. Freddie’s story is fascinating and I enjoyed watching it, but I think some scenes were overly long and I was getting a little bored. They could have easily cut out a good 20 minutes without having a detrimental effect on the story, and if it was a little shorter I probably would’ve scored it higher!