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Jesters_folly (230 KP) rated Dead Island: The Book in Books
Jul 21, 2020
Contains spoilers, click to show
Welcome to the paradise island of Banoi, a luxury, tropical island where you can relax and not worry about anything. That is until a mysterious epidemic started to spread, an epidemic that brings the dead back to life as flesh eating zombies.
Dead Island: The Book is the novelisation of the video game of the same name (Dead Island).
The first couple of chapters introduce us to the four main protagonists of the game: Sam B, Logan and Purna meet on the plane one the way to Banoi and Xian Mei is the receptionist who books them in to the hotel. The we are treated to the first of many scenes that will be familiar the anyone who has played the game, a concert with Sam B as the main act, followed up by a zombie outbreak.
The story follows the four main protagonists and the people they meet as they travel around the island in search for help, a cure or a way off the island. On their way they must work out who they can trust and how to deal with those they can't.
Dead Island the book almost follows the first game but not riptide so the ending is slightly different, there also seemed to be more guns but that may just be because the narrative is more compressed in the novel as there are a lot less side quests.
Dead Island: The Book is the novelisation of the video game of the same name (Dead Island).
The first couple of chapters introduce us to the four main protagonists of the game: Sam B, Logan and Purna meet on the plane one the way to Banoi and Xian Mei is the receptionist who books them in to the hotel. The we are treated to the first of many scenes that will be familiar the anyone who has played the game, a concert with Sam B as the main act, followed up by a zombie outbreak.
The story follows the four main protagonists and the people they meet as they travel around the island in search for help, a cure or a way off the island. On their way they must work out who they can trust and how to deal with those they can't.
Dead Island the book almost follows the first game but not riptide so the ending is slightly different, there also seemed to be more guns but that may just be because the narrative is more compressed in the novel as there are a lot less side quests.
A Simple Plan (1998)
8.0
Rate It
Movie Watch
While in the woods near their small town, upstanding local Hank Mitchell (Bill Paxton), his dim...
Emily (1 KP) rated Emergency Contact in Books
Feb 20, 2020
A great start to 2020!
What a cute start to 2020...
I only got chance to read 30 pages over two days but had such a relaxing NYD, that I managed to read the remaining 95% of this book all in one go. It’s so rare for me to be able to sit down and just devour a book within a day, and I love that feeling when it’s finished and you’ve just found yourself falling in love with even more characters.
<b>Characters:</b>
Penny was so relatable to me as she had only a few friends and had a quiet life. She indulged in her work and was focused on doing things to her best ability — scared of disappointing people. I loved her character because she was just normal. I love normal. Her friendship with Jude was also so heartwarming because both girls were at opposite ends of the spectrum who didn’t care about their differences and made it work.
Sam. <s>Don’t even get me started on Sam.</s> He’s another fictional character to add to my never ending ‘Cute-Not-Real Men’ list. He had the exterior of a tough guy with his tattoos and not wearing anything other than black (stereotypical, I know) but he was such a softie. He worked in a coffee shop and loved baking, he was a little bit of a nerd too. Why don’t people like this really exist?
<b>Plot:</b>
I thought the story started off quite slowly at the beginning, but it needed a build up in order to construct the character backgrounds and introduced events that would essentially come full circle at the end. I liked how the chapters were told from alternating points of view and you got to understand both Penny and Sam's feelings throughout the book. <spoiler>It was a slow burn for both characters to finally get together but it was kind of predictable (in a good way) because you knew that it was inevitable that they were going to end up together.</spoiler>
There were a few little twists that kept popping up here and there that would throw you off and try to convince you that something else would happen, but I liked that because you were constantly thinking what was going to happen next. It kind of pays tribute to real life, as it can throw curveballs at us all the time and we never know what to expect or take for granted.
<b>Style:</b>
I'm such a sucker for books that are broken up with text messages, emails etc. and those that use different formatting as it makes for a much more casual read and it makes it more enjoyable. The way in which the texts were written in 'Emergency Contact' made the story still feel quite soft and light-hearted, and also maybe appealing a little more the YA/teen audience.
<b>Summary:</b>
I loved the story, as it told two separate characters back stories with high maintenance mothers and personal battles. But it also told their own personal stories of growth and development — friendships, relationships and hardships. I’ll definitely have to check out Choi’s newest novel and I’ll probably fall in love with that as much as this.
☆ ☆ ☆ ☆/5
I only got chance to read 30 pages over two days but had such a relaxing NYD, that I managed to read the remaining 95% of this book all in one go. It’s so rare for me to be able to sit down and just devour a book within a day, and I love that feeling when it’s finished and you’ve just found yourself falling in love with even more characters.
<b>Characters:</b>
Penny was so relatable to me as she had only a few friends and had a quiet life. She indulged in her work and was focused on doing things to her best ability — scared of disappointing people. I loved her character because she was just normal. I love normal. Her friendship with Jude was also so heartwarming because both girls were at opposite ends of the spectrum who didn’t care about their differences and made it work.
Sam. <s>Don’t even get me started on Sam.</s> He’s another fictional character to add to my never ending ‘Cute-Not-Real Men’ list. He had the exterior of a tough guy with his tattoos and not wearing anything other than black (stereotypical, I know) but he was such a softie. He worked in a coffee shop and loved baking, he was a little bit of a nerd too. Why don’t people like this really exist?
<b>Plot:</b>
I thought the story started off quite slowly at the beginning, but it needed a build up in order to construct the character backgrounds and introduced events that would essentially come full circle at the end. I liked how the chapters were told from alternating points of view and you got to understand both Penny and Sam's feelings throughout the book. <spoiler>It was a slow burn for both characters to finally get together but it was kind of predictable (in a good way) because you knew that it was inevitable that they were going to end up together.</spoiler>
There were a few little twists that kept popping up here and there that would throw you off and try to convince you that something else would happen, but I liked that because you were constantly thinking what was going to happen next. It kind of pays tribute to real life, as it can throw curveballs at us all the time and we never know what to expect or take for granted.
<b>Style:</b>
I'm such a sucker for books that are broken up with text messages, emails etc. and those that use different formatting as it makes for a much more casual read and it makes it more enjoyable. The way in which the texts were written in 'Emergency Contact' made the story still feel quite soft and light-hearted, and also maybe appealing a little more the YA/teen audience.
<b>Summary:</b>
I loved the story, as it told two separate characters back stories with high maintenance mothers and personal battles. But it also told their own personal stories of growth and development — friendships, relationships and hardships. I’ll definitely have to check out Choi’s newest novel and I’ll probably fall in love with that as much as this.
☆ ☆ ☆ ☆/5
David McK (3673 KP) rated Jurassic Park III (2001) in Movies
Dec 28, 2025
"some of the worst things have been done with the noblest of intentions"
The final part of the original Jurassic Park films, before it took an >10 year hiatus, this time with Sam Neill's Dr Alan Grant (who sat out The Lost World) taking centre stage, as he is hired/kidnapped by a couple who are searching for their son on Site B (Isla Sorna, again).
This one is the shortest if the three films, just hitting roughly an hour and half, and does mice at a fair old lick.
However, the Spinosauris, and in particular the ringing cell phone bit that owes more than passing resemblance to the crocodile in Peter Pan, rankles a bit.
As does the rather abrupt ending.
This one is the shortest if the three films, just hitting roughly an hour and half, and does mice at a fair old lick.
However, the Spinosauris, and in particular the ringing cell phone bit that owes more than passing resemblance to the crocodile in Peter Pan, rankles a bit.
As does the rather abrupt ending.
Supernatural
8.8
Rate It
TV Show Watch
We are introduced to the Winchester Brothers, Sam and Dean set off on a journey to find their father...
Supernatural - Season 1
9.2
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TV Season Watch
We are introduced to the Winchester Brothers, Sam and Dean set off on a journey to find their father...
The Dilemma
4.0
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Book
Knowing the truth will destroy her. Keeping it secret will destroy him. It’s Livia’s 40th...
graveyardgremlin (7194 KP) rated Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Retreat (Season 8, Volume 6) in Books
Feb 15, 2019
<b>Sorry, this is kinda more ranty then when I started out, and probably not very well-written. You've been warned. Also, no spoilers are revealed in my <s>rant</s> review</b> (though that was hard not to do ;P)<b>.</b>
Why do I keep reading this series? Why do I expect it to get any better? Or even come close to resembling what the show was about in the first place? What in the Sam Hell is wrong with me that I persist in reading this travesty? Ack!
Again, the plot is ludicrous, the characters don't always feel true to form, the witty banter is nearly non-existent, and the illustrations are making the characters indistinguishable from one another, most especially the darker haired girls, such as Faith, Dawn, and Kennedy (Why exactly isn't she gone yet?). The villain, Twilight, isn't very interesting and I wonder how much longer it's going to be before the big reveal. Just get to it already, will ya? Amy and Warren also need to go. Lame is the word that comes to mind when I think of them. Old characters who have long exceeded their welcome, and Amy in particular doesn't add anything anymore; she's run her course, let's move on now. Oz was a mixed bag, I liked some of what happened to him since he left Sunnydale and some...not so much. The interactions between him and Willow were rather weird and didn't seem to fit where they had left off exactly. Willow herself was quite angsty and I don't understand how she got to that place at this time. Perhaps I've forgotten something from a previous entry.
Gone is the show I've known and loved, instead they've decided to pull out all the stops, literally, and we're left with this bizarre mess. I don't know if they made a deal with the devil or what, but everything has been thrown into this story, including the kitchen sink, with no rhyme or reason. Do they know what control is, or careful selection, or do they just not care? I don't expect graphic novels to be as detailed as a TV show, but this whole season has gotten more and more ridiculous as it has went on and I cannot fathom why I'm torturing myself. Oh, I know, it's great entertainment. I want to see how much further they can destroy the memory of a great show. Does this deserve two stars? Probably not, but I can't help myself, apparently. Bah!!
Why do I keep reading this series? Why do I expect it to get any better? Or even come close to resembling what the show was about in the first place? What in the Sam Hell is wrong with me that I persist in reading this travesty? Ack!
Again, the plot is ludicrous, the characters don't always feel true to form, the witty banter is nearly non-existent, and the illustrations are making the characters indistinguishable from one another, most especially the darker haired girls, such as Faith, Dawn, and Kennedy (Why exactly isn't she gone yet?). The villain, Twilight, isn't very interesting and I wonder how much longer it's going to be before the big reveal. Just get to it already, will ya? Amy and Warren also need to go. Lame is the word that comes to mind when I think of them. Old characters who have long exceeded their welcome, and Amy in particular doesn't add anything anymore; she's run her course, let's move on now. Oz was a mixed bag, I liked some of what happened to him since he left Sunnydale and some...not so much. The interactions between him and Willow were rather weird and didn't seem to fit where they had left off exactly. Willow herself was quite angsty and I don't understand how she got to that place at this time. Perhaps I've forgotten something from a previous entry.
Gone is the show I've known and loved, instead they've decided to pull out all the stops, literally, and we're left with this bizarre mess. I don't know if they made a deal with the devil or what, but everything has been thrown into this story, including the kitchen sink, with no rhyme or reason. Do they know what control is, or careful selection, or do they just not care? I don't expect graphic novels to be as detailed as a TV show, but this whole season has gotten more and more ridiculous as it has went on and I cannot fathom why I'm torturing myself. Oh, I know, it's great entertainment. I want to see how much further they can destroy the memory of a great show. Does this deserve two stars? Probably not, but I can't help myself, apparently. Bah!!
TB
T Bone Burnett: A Life in Pursuit
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