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The Rise of Magicks (Chronicles of The One #3)
The Rise of Magicks (Chronicles of The One #3)
Nora Roberts | 2019 | Science Fiction/Fantasy
10
5.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
A wonderful end to a fantastic trilogy.
The conclusion to this trilogy was everything I wanted it to be and more. A truly beautiful ending. I want to be very mindful of spoilers so as not to ruin the magic (see what I did there?) for other readers.

The evolution of Fallon's relationship with Duncan was exactly right; I love him for her. In fact, I loved all of the relationships in this story.

When they travel to New York, back to where it all began, I could still picture everything the way it was described in the first book, overlaying the current state of things in my mind. This is great storytelling, in my opinion. I could see Arlys at the news desk next to the corpse of her co-worker. I could see Fred and Arlys traversing the tunnels. I could see a frightened Lana discovering her powers.

There are deaths, of course, because, you know, war. One absolutely heartbreaking death in particular - and the characters' reactions to it - literally brought tears to my eyes.

The emotions throughout this story are so powerful. You can FEEL their triumph, their heartbreak, their joy, their rage.

And, while this is classified as fantasy, the entire story certainly feels like a commentary on modern society, no?

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for the ARE!
  
Murder on the Half Shell
Murder on the Half Shell
Shawn Reilly Simmons | 2016 | Mystery
7
7.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Life’s Not Quite a Beach
Penelope Sutherland and her catering crew are working on a period mystery filming on an island in Florida. Penelope has hired a few locals to help out, including two teen girls who work part time as servers. After a party one Friday night, the teens disappear. Suspicion falls on Emilio, one of the chefs that Penelope studied under at culinary school. Penelope doesn’t want to believe her old teacher is guilty, but there is something in his past that makes Penelope doubt her judgement. Where are the girls? Who is responsible for what is going on?

It’s been a few years since I read the first in this series, and I didn’t remember who everyone was. Sadly, this book assumes you remember the relationships, and it took me longer than it should have to figure out those connections. The characters are good, but they don’t feel fully developed to me. I was pulled into the plot, however, with the missing teens making it easy to care about the outcome. There are plenty of twists and turns, and the climax was satisfying. Being able to visit a beach location during the winter was a great treat, and I found the balance of the mystery with the slower life of the island was well done. This is a quick read, and I enjoyed it.
  
Why Did I Get Married? (2007)
Why Did I Get Married? (2007)
2007 | Comedy, Drama, Musical
8
5.0 (4 Ratings)
Movie Rating
I really enjoyed this film. I actually quite like both of them. I love the cast, I love the diversity of marriages, of stories, of imperfections. I am not married and probably won't be for a while but I do know relationships and they are hard work and I like that this movie shines a light on that. Sometimes I think films do a bad job of showing the real stuff and it can almost seem too picture-perfect. We all know there are though films out there.

I think Sheila is the best character in this film. I think it's so obvious how much she wants her marriage to work and how much of an ass Mike is. I think, at least for me, she held the most heart. She's the one I was rooting for the most. She's the one I felt the most connection to.

Tyler Perry is a questionable filmmaker for me. Some of his films are huge wins for me and others are just gigantic misses. It's very obvious that he does all the writing and directing and sometimes I think that can bite him in the butt. Not this film though. I really love this film and have found myself coming back to it several times over the course of my life.
  
He's Just Not That Into You (2009)
He's Just Not That Into You (2009)
2009 | Comedy, Drama, Romance
5
6.7 (11 Ratings)
Movie Rating
the more i see it, the worse it gets
This film is just bad. Some acting is horrible, the plot entirely sucks, and the characters are so one-sided. I like movies like this, in the sense that its characters that are woven with each other through their relationships with others - in the same way, Valentine's Day and New Year's Eve were done. But this one, it's just not it.

I found Gennifer Goodwin's character to be the most annoying, along with Jennifer Connelly's. They were both just obnoxious and frustrating to watch. The way that GiGi was obsessed with literally every guy she ever went out with was just cringy and gross. And then when she threw herself at Alex? I literally muted it so I didn't have to hear their conversation, that's how bad I didn't want to watch that scene.

I think Neil was the best character of all of them. His only "flaw" really was that he didn't want to get married, but even then, he was still committed and loved Beth so much.

I feel like this is the movie you watch when you're going through a breakup and you're lonely and trying not to call your ex. Which I don't think is a good scenario to watch any movie so there's that.
  
Foul Is Fair
Foul Is Fair
Hannah Capin | 2020 | Contemporary, Young Adult (YA)
8
9.0 (3 Ratings)
Book Rating
‏I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book so I could give an honest review.

It can be said about every book but, especially with this one, people are going to either love or hate Hannah Capin's Foul Is Fair. It is a dark novel of revenge, suicide, abusive relationships, murder, and a gang bang. Oh, and it is a Young Adult novel.

At a party thrown by one of the golden boys of St. Andrew's, the unthinkable happens. It turns out this was not the first time. This time, they picked the wrong girl. Jade has 3 close friends who will help her get revenge. The 4 of them are so close Jade refers to them as her coven. They do not practice witchcraft but their friendship is magical.

It is hard to make such dark themes enjoyable to read but Hannah Capin is able to do it well. If I had to describe this novel in 3 words I would say "dark but fun".

I found myself cheering for Jade and friends to succeed in exacting their revenge. The twists and turns are twisted and gritty. I enjoyed the narrative tone and humor used throughout. Golden boys beware! Something wicked this way comes.

I added Hannah Capin to my "authors to read" list.

This 200-word review was published on Philomathinphila.com on 2/24/20.