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Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2478 KP) rated The Final Tap (Living History Museum, #2) in Books
Mar 9, 2018
Kelsey Cambridge is getting ready for the first annual Maple Sugar Festival at Barton Farm, the living history museum she runs in Ohio. As part of that festival, she has invited Dr. Conrad Beeson to teach a class on harvesting maple sugar. However, while he is inspecting the trees on the farm, someone stabs him with a hand drill. With the police looking at one of Kelsey’s employees, can she find the real killer?
I was delighted to slip back into the world of this series. The setting is fantastic, and the characters are strong. Not all the returning characters get a lot of page time, but the ones that do get a good deal of development. The suspects are also strong, and the varying suspects and motives kept me guessing until the end.
NOTE: I received an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.
Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2016/05/book-review-final-tap-by-amanda-flower.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
I was delighted to slip back into the world of this series. The setting is fantastic, and the characters are strong. Not all the returning characters get a lot of page time, but the ones that do get a good deal of development. The suspects are also strong, and the varying suspects and motives kept me guessing until the end.
NOTE: I received an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.
Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2016/05/book-review-final-tap-by-amanda-flower.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
Celia Davies spends her days helping the women of 1867 San Francisco via her free medical clinic. One of her patients, a former Chinese prostitute is found murdered, and Celia must know what happened to her. Meanwhile, Nicholas Greaves is the police officer assigned to the case, and he is determined to get justice for the young woman. But where will the investigation lead?
This is a good debut that will please any fan of historical mysteries. The characters are intriguing, and their history makes them seem even more real. The plot did bog down a few times, but never for very long, and we reach a logical conclusion before the end. The world of 1867 is brought to wonderful life as well, and it’s easy to get lost in another time.
NOTE: I was sent a copy of this book in hopes I would review it.
Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2016/04/book-review-no-comfort-for-lost-by.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
This is a good debut that will please any fan of historical mysteries. The characters are intriguing, and their history makes them seem even more real. The plot did bog down a few times, but never for very long, and we reach a logical conclusion before the end. The world of 1867 is brought to wonderful life as well, and it’s easy to get lost in another time.
NOTE: I was sent a copy of this book in hopes I would review it.
Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2016/04/book-review-no-comfort-for-lost-by.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
Sean Farrell (9 KP) rated All the Summer Girls in Books
Mar 15, 2018
Not the type of thing I normally read, but I've been hearing a lot of good things about it from patrons at the library, as the book largely takes place in Avalon, and even makes mention of many recognizable local establishments. While that is kind of cool, it is not ultimately what made me like the book so much. The characters are interesting and the situations they find themselves dealing with are engaging and relatable. The writing does periodically feel a bit rambling, but more often than not the descriptive nature of the book only helps to pull one into the world being created. My only real complaint is that the climax of what is seemingly the central plot point seems to end a bit too abruptly. Not to say it isn't the ending I wanted, it just seemed like it was the one thing the author sort of glossed over, which seemed slightly disappointing. Still, a great book and perfect for reading on the beach on a warm Summer day.
Connie (244 KP) rated Super Powereds: Year 4 in Books
Jun 8, 2018
A brilliant conclusion to an outstanding quartet
I literally don't know what to say. This book took my breath away. The trials were tough, and the fallout from Year 3 is real and well-thought-out. The characters have defined themselves and their growth is evident. The world is ready for these new heroes... Assuming they can make it to graduation.
Personally, I appreciate the struggle that Alice goes through and how she chooses to utilize her Subtlety skills. I also loved watch in Will try to find the lines of his own morality--will I break the law to achieve my ends? His test is brilliant, and I love Kennedy's reasoning when the test is over.
I stumbled onto this series from Crew's NPC series, and it was well worth it! I will be on the lookout every day to see what I can find by the magnificent Mr
Hayes!
This book was $6 on Kindle and comes to almost 2000 pages (yes, almost TWO THOUSAND pages. It's not a typo).
Personally, I appreciate the struggle that Alice goes through and how she chooses to utilize her Subtlety skills. I also loved watch in Will try to find the lines of his own morality--will I break the law to achieve my ends? His test is brilliant, and I love Kennedy's reasoning when the test is over.
I stumbled onto this series from Crew's NPC series, and it was well worth it! I will be on the lookout every day to see what I can find by the magnificent Mr
Hayes!
This book was $6 on Kindle and comes to almost 2000 pages (yes, almost TWO THOUSAND pages. It's not a typo).
Sarah (7800 KP) rated the PlayStation 4 version of LEGO Jurassic World in Video Games
Jun 11, 2018
Loads of fun
Having played Lego HP and been slightly frustrated about it, I hadn’t been expecting much from this. Especially as I didn’t realise that it contained all 4 films - I just thought it was the one for Jurassic World.
All I can say is I’m glad it has all 4 films. Although each film/level set is fairly short and doesn’t quite feature everything from the films, they’re still an awful lot of fun. I love the fact that it uses real dialogue from the films (sometimes randomly during a level which makes it even funnier) and the Lego versions of well known scenes are hilarious. The gameplay is a lot more action based and more interesting than the HP games, which makes it even more entertaining. My only criticism and this is being picky, is that the film plays down some of the darker elements especially of the first film. Whilst the lighter Lego alternative is pretty funny, part of me would have loved to see severed arms etc instead.
All I can say is I’m glad it has all 4 films. Although each film/level set is fairly short and doesn’t quite feature everything from the films, they’re still an awful lot of fun. I love the fact that it uses real dialogue from the films (sometimes randomly during a level which makes it even funnier) and the Lego versions of well known scenes are hilarious. The gameplay is a lot more action based and more interesting than the HP games, which makes it even more entertaining. My only criticism and this is being picky, is that the film plays down some of the darker elements especially of the first film. Whilst the lighter Lego alternative is pretty funny, part of me would have loved to see severed arms etc instead.
Kristin (149 KP) rated Pandora's Succession (Ridley Fox & Nita Parris #1) in Books
Dec 7, 2018
Disclaimer: I received an e-copy in exchange for an honest review.
Fox is trying his best to have a normal life, but the bad guys just keep coming. Seconds from handing in his resignation letter, all hell breaks loose, and a virus found frozen in a glacier is set loose. This virus is wanted by several individuals for horrible purposes, and it's up to Fox to try and stop it from getting into the wrong hands, causing the end of the world as we know it.
I can definitely say that this novel held my interest all the way through. The characters are great, the premise is one that (horrifyingly) could happen in this day and age, and the pacing was superb. I will admit that I got a little confused trying to keep up with who was working for who, who was double-crossing who, etc., but that's how these things go in real life!! The ending is fantastic, and I'm certainly going to add the next one to my TBR list. Great job!
4 1/2 stars
Fox is trying his best to have a normal life, but the bad guys just keep coming. Seconds from handing in his resignation letter, all hell breaks loose, and a virus found frozen in a glacier is set loose. This virus is wanted by several individuals for horrible purposes, and it's up to Fox to try and stop it from getting into the wrong hands, causing the end of the world as we know it.
I can definitely say that this novel held my interest all the way through. The characters are great, the premise is one that (horrifyingly) could happen in this day and age, and the pacing was superb. I will admit that I got a little confused trying to keep up with who was working for who, who was double-crossing who, etc., but that's how these things go in real life!! The ending is fantastic, and I'm certainly going to add the next one to my TBR list. Great job!
4 1/2 stars
Joelene Marie (28 KP) rated The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms in Books
Oct 1, 2018
Finally got around to reading this one to see what all the fuss was about. I purchased the omnibus ebook on my nook app to have all three after reading the sample a few days prior and it stuck with me. let me just say that the hype is warranted. going into it I really didn't expect to be so entranced by the story, as I haven't read this sort of fantasy in a long time, but I found myself resentful every time real life interfered with my reading forcing me to put it down for a while. I was so absorbed that I even dreamed about it lol. there is something about the authors writing style that hooked me from the beginning, the world building is superb, and the characters were very well developed. I loved that there were plot twists I didn't see coming a mile away, especially at the end. the ending was nicely done, tying up this particular story while also setting up the next book in the trilogy. highly recommended! now I'm on to book two!
MoMoBookDiary (20 KP) rated A Puppy's Dream Comes True in Books
Oct 1, 2018
I enjoyed this short adorable heart-warming story of BabyDoll, a maltese puppy who is adopted by a lovely couple, Lisa and Donald. The author has created a wonderful story telling of animal adoption from the dog's point of view.
It is clear to see from quick glance at this story that the author is American and in the fashion/entertainment world.
This is a great book for young children however I couldn’t relate to the way the family treat the dog – its a dog not a human. I have a dog myself who is treated like one of the family but I wouldn’t feed him real ‘human food’. I am sure there are families who do -but I feel there may be more families out there that are trying to get their children to stop feeding the dog scraps of human food and this book would not help with that. Otherwise it’s a great book with cute illustrations.
Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review prior to publication.
It is clear to see from quick glance at this story that the author is American and in the fashion/entertainment world.
This is a great book for young children however I couldn’t relate to the way the family treat the dog – its a dog not a human. I have a dog myself who is treated like one of the family but I wouldn’t feed him real ‘human food’. I am sure there are families who do -but I feel there may be more families out there that are trying to get their children to stop feeding the dog scraps of human food and this book would not help with that. Otherwise it’s a great book with cute illustrations.
Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review prior to publication.
I had high hopes for this one.
I quite enjoyed [b:Ready Player One|9969571|Ready Player One|Ernest Cline|https://d2arxad8u2l0g7.cloudfront.net/books/1406383612s/9969571.jpg|14863741] and it's almost-plausible-near-future setting that read a bit like a mix between Bruce Willis's movie "Surrogates" with a dash of "The Matrix" thrown in, and always like a bit of sci-fi.
Unfortunately, this fell flat for me.
I don't know whether it's because it's not as believable (and yes, I'm futher aware that I'm talking about fiction here) as [b:Ready Player One|9969571|Ready Player One|Ernest Cline|https://d2arxad8u2l0g7.cloudfront.net/books/1406383612s/9969571.jpg|14863741], or because I could tell where the plot was going within the first 100 pages or so - think "The Last Starfighter" meets "Ender's Game" with a bit of "BattleStar Galactica" thrown in for good measure, but - for me - this just didn't really do it.
Tricky second novel syndrome, perhaps?
N.B.: I did pick up on the numerous real-world sci-fi references :-)
I quite enjoyed [b:Ready Player One|9969571|Ready Player One|Ernest Cline|https://d2arxad8u2l0g7.cloudfront.net/books/1406383612s/9969571.jpg|14863741] and it's almost-plausible-near-future setting that read a bit like a mix between Bruce Willis's movie "Surrogates" with a dash of "The Matrix" thrown in, and always like a bit of sci-fi.
Unfortunately, this fell flat for me.
I don't know whether it's because it's not as believable (and yes, I'm futher aware that I'm talking about fiction here) as [b:Ready Player One|9969571|Ready Player One|Ernest Cline|https://d2arxad8u2l0g7.cloudfront.net/books/1406383612s/9969571.jpg|14863741], or because I could tell where the plot was going within the first 100 pages or so - think "The Last Starfighter" meets "Ender's Game" with a bit of "BattleStar Galactica" thrown in for good measure, but - for me - this just didn't really do it.
Tricky second novel syndrome, perhaps?
N.B.: I did pick up on the numerous real-world sci-fi references :-)
Phil Leader (619 KP) rated Coal House in Books
Nov 11, 2019
Set just after the Second World War this follows the story of Finn Harper who decides to turn to property development with his wife. When they are on holiday in Wales they see a house for auction which seems to be a bargain. When the locals won't bid on it they decide to buy the remote and long-deserted house.
So begins Coal House, a suspenseful ghost story that slowly builds to a shattering ending with a chilling twist. Any ghost story turns on the ability of the author to conjure up locations and events that seem both ordinary and strange at the same time and Barton does this with ease, able to raise goosebumps with a few simple words.
The story is clever and interesting with several layers and with characters to match. Finn is initially a skeptic but as strange events happen in and around the house he must consider if they are real or just his imagination.
This is not a long book but does pack a lot into its pages. An excellent read
So begins Coal House, a suspenseful ghost story that slowly builds to a shattering ending with a chilling twist. Any ghost story turns on the ability of the author to conjure up locations and events that seem both ordinary and strange at the same time and Barton does this with ease, able to raise goosebumps with a few simple words.
The story is clever and interesting with several layers and with characters to match. Finn is initially a skeptic but as strange events happen in and around the house he must consider if they are real or just his imagination.
This is not a long book but does pack a lot into its pages. An excellent read