Search

Search only in certain items:

40x40

BookishWoo (317 KP) rated Zodiac in Books

May 25, 2020 (Updated May 25, 2020)  
Zodiac
Zodiac
Anamaria Lonescu | 2019 | Mystery, Thriller
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Zodiac is the 2nd book of the Sergiu Manta Series and the first to be translated into English.
 
I was captivated by Zodiac right from the first page. Anamarie wrote this extremely well and in a way that you felt you were reading a script for a crime drama, scene by scene. This is slightly different to what I'm used to, but I found as long as I paced myself and didnt speed through it I could keep up with the scene jumps and found that I completely enjoyed her writing style. Although this is a fast paced thriller do not be fooled that being only 218 pages long you can speed through this quickly. This is a book to savour and enjoy.

I can honestly say that I fell in love with the main protagonaist Sergiu, he was an unpredicatable, motorbike riding, charming "Agency" man willing to do whatever it takes no matter what the cost.
His character was in stark contrast to Marius who was a typical police inspector and family man with a moral conscience. This worked well alongside Sergiu's character and didnt give you that typical good cop, bad cop feel. They complimented each other well.

The plot was fantastic, and just when I thought I had it all figured out the twist came along and surprised me completely!

I cant wait to read more of the series and hope that the first book gets translated so I can read this too!

If you are a fan of fast paced thrillers I highly recommend this!

Trigger Warnings: swearing, sexual themes, rape, murder, guns, violence

I received Zodiac by Amamaria Ionescu for free in exchange for an honest review from Love Book Tours and Corylus Books.
  
Star Trek - Nemesis (2002)
Star Trek - Nemesis (2002)
2002 | Action, Sci-Fi
This film should have worked. They had four years to work up the film: the biggest gap between movies in the series to date. The sets and special effects deployed are a notable improvement on “Insurrection” and are, at times, very impressive. It’s a movie that has personal angst for Picard; an epic space battle; and the death of a major character. And a young Tom Hardy turns in a memorable performance, belying what was to come: it’s interesting that this is only Hardy’s third feature (following his debut in “Black Hawk Down” just the year before!). It’s also a full NINE years before he won the BAFTA Rising Star award!

And yet it’s just not very engaging: I find myself fiddling with my phone while its on, which is never a good sign. Gone are any of the comic asides that have tended to lighten the mood of these films: this is dark and plot-heavy throughout. It’s even got a ‘mind-rape’ scene that is quite disturbing.

Naturally, the Enterprise insurance premium has taken another hammering by the end of the film. You can just imagine the discussion back in space dock… “no mate…” – sucking air in through his front teeth “…that whole front bumper’s gonna have to be replaced, and that’ll cost you a pretty packet”!

Combined with poor marketing and fierce competition (the film opening in the same month as “Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers”), this ended up with the worse financial performance of any of the Trek movies (in terms of budget to return ratio). And it killed the franchise. The only option was to be a full reboot: something that was to take another seven years to happen.
  
The Captain's Pet (Alien Slave Masters #1)
The Captain's Pet (Alien Slave Masters #1)
Samantha Cayto | 2015 | Erotica, LGBTQ+, Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy
8
9.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
First of all, this book comes with a Reader Advisory - TAKE NOTE OF IT! Seriously, this book is not for everyone and contains scenes that may trigger. Don't think that the advisory is put there for the fun of it because it isn't, believe me.

The story itself is completely sci-fi. Earth has become overcrowded and colonists are sent out to various planets that have been discovered. One such planet, Seven, where our main character Wid comes from, has apparently been colonised by the Travians. War ensues between the humans and the Travians, resulting in a mindless act of vandalism that results in Wid and his associates being taken aboard the Travians' ship.

What happens next is why the advisory is there. There is a lot of violence and rape, although it is incredibly well-written. I won't say anything else about that part but this IS dark and it does come with an advisory.

As the story progresses, you see that some of the boys, Wid included, start to actually have a relationship with their captors. This doesn't feel like Stockholm Syndrome to me, mainly because of how it is written with each of the boys' personalities and experiences taken into account. You learn more about the Travian way of life and, indeed, the Travians learn more about the humans and why they won't just leave Seven even after they've been defeated.

I enjoyed this book, and even if parts of it did make me uncomfortable, I'm glad I stuck with it. I would certainly be interested in going further with this series. I can't emphasise enough though - TAKE NOTE OF THE ADVISORY!!

* 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 29, 2015