Smashbomb

Search

Search results

All (3272)

Content

Ross (3284 KP) rated Priest of Lies in Books

Jun 26, 2019

Priest of Lies

Peter McLean | 2019 | Science Fiction/Fantasy

10.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

Fantastically grim, gritty sequel

*I received a free advance copy of this book from NetGalley and the publishers in exchange for an honest review*

Priest of Bones was one of my favourite books of last year. I loved the narrative style, the dark tone and the simple yet thrilling storyline. The returning conscripts using their newly learned military tactics to take back their streets and run their gangland empires was a clever, honest and hard-hitting story. It really was "peaky blinders with swords".
The follow-up continues in that vein, the Pious Men gang have consolidated their hold in Ellinburg and are now at full-on gang war. However, as they returned from war, so does a large number of other former gangsters, and a number of new/revived gangs compete for territory.
The fantasy tone is still used here, despite being the mystical, noble pursuit we are used to. I seriously love Mclean's narrative voice, his action scenes and his overall pace of writing.
I was thrilled to see in the Q&A at the end of the book that I was right in thinking Ellinburg was based loosely on Edinburgh.
The feel of this book is very much a grim and nasty version of Terry Pratchett's Guards series, with characterisation and scene setting to rival Pratchett at his best.
A truly immersive compelling read that I loved from start to finish.

Kudos

TJ Creque (3 KP) created a post

Jul 11, 2019

I thought Sweat Equity was a great sequel to book 1 Floor Time. This is where Sara and Jack continue their love story. However, there are still misgivings about the relationship. There are a lot of trust issues on both Sara and Jack's part. Even though eventually they do become engaged it is short lived because neither one of them know what they really want. Sara finds condoms on a weekend trip he took and rather than to try to explain, which he could do, he ruins it and they split up.

Sara runs to Craig a colleague that she works with who is more than willing to be there for Sara, but she is only using him for sexual release. She doesn't want to hurt Craig but that is exactly what she is doing.

Jack runs back to this psychotic woman, whom he doesn't like but he's a man who still doesn't fully get it.

Will Jack finally get it and beg Sara to come back, and will Sara continue to use Craig as she mourns the loss of Jack? Those are all good questions as you read this novel you will be captivated by the twist and turns of how the author captivates you and keeps the pages turning.

I really enjoyed this novel and I can't wait to read Closing Costs.
This novel was gifted to me by the author Liz Crowe. This is a 5+Star Read.

Kudos Comment

Strategy & Tactics: Sandbox World War II TBS

Games and Entertainment

(0 Ratings) Rate It

App

***NOTE: Compatible with iPhone 4s and up, iPad 2 and up - may not work properly on earlier...

Saints Row 2

9.0 (2 Ratings) Rate It

Video Game

Saints Row 2 brings true freedom to open-world gaming. Players can play as who they want, how they...

Awix (3310 KP) rated Hellbound: Hellraiser II (1988) in Movies

Jul 30, 2020

Slightly discombobulating horror sequel. Following the events of the first movie Kirsty Cotton unsurprisingly ends up in a loony bin run by brain surgeon and keen puzzle-box fan Dr Channard (Kenneth Cranham tries mightily to bring a touch of Peter Cushing-style class to an underwritten part). As Channard is a lunatic, he resurrects Kirsty's evil stepmother, and because he is clearly either very forgetful or slow off the mark, together they give a puzzle box (which he already had) to a traumatised patient who's good at puzzles (who he likewise already had about the place) and together they begin to explore the realm of the box.

Meanwhile... oh, does it really matter? As you can perhaps begin to discern, the plot of Hellraiser II Makes No Sense Whatsoever (the Cotton house appears to have teleported from London to New York City in the gap between films, and this is only a minor issue), and there is something baffling and miraculous about the fact the film is as coherent and watchable as it is. Then again, it's not actually about logic, plot, or the motivation of the characters, just a succession of grisly, visceral, nightmarish, surreal images. In this respect at least the film is an astonishing success. Doesn't stop the story from being nonsense, though. Manages to be a very bad movie but also a terrific one, frequently at exactly the same time. Like I say, discombobulating.

Kudos

Sarah (7800 KP) rated The Queen Con (The Golden Arrow Mysteries Book 2) in Books

May 5, 2020

Overly complicated

I wasn't keen on the first book in this series, but it got me just about intrigued enough to want to read the second. And sadly I liked this one even less than the first.

Fortunately MG was a much more bearable character in this book, although still fairly irritating - her actions and emotions are very childlike and not fitting for a grown adult. Calling her car the "Millennium Turd" drove me crazy. But at least her relationship with Matteo wasnt quite as prominent and frustrating. The problem with this book though is the plot. It's just ridiculous and overly complicated. I felt so confused trying to figure out what was going on and to me it was an entirely unnecessary sequel. A standalone story in the same setting would have been a much better idea rather than trying to link it too much into the plot from the first book.

Also the reveal about who the Golden Arrow is comes right at the end of the book and to be frank, I saw this coming from early on in the first book and I was aghast at how the characters in the book didnt see it coming. I've also already spotted the twist that any future books will throw up about this reveal, so it was rather a let down overall. I only bothered to read it as it was free on Kindle Unlimited!

Kudos

LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated 47 Meters Down: Uncaged (2019) in Movies

May 7, 2020

47 Meters Down: Uncaged (2019)

2019 | Adventure, Drama, Horror

5.3

(20 Ratings)

Movie Rating Watch

47 Meters Down: Uncaged is pretty much what you would expect from a low budget shark-horror-sequel. It has ok moments, insufferable characters, dodgy CGI, buckets of nonsense - the whole package.

In all honesty, the first 25 minutes or so are actually half decent. The plot revolves around four friends getting stuck in an underwater Mayan ruin whilst cave diving. This setting is effective, providing a claustrophobic backdrop for the characters to be stalked by a great white shark. There are countless shots of sheer blackness, and it's relatively unsettling now and again.
Of course there's a hastily introduced plot kicker not long after - the shark is in fact blind, and hunts using sound, and here is where the movies big gaping issues lie....
The ladies figure this detail out immediately, but then proceed to constantly scream and shout for the test of the runtime. Not only can they hear each other talking clear as day UNDERWATER, but their incessant warbling had me rooting for the shark before long. What starts as a fairly tense underwater thriller, devolves into Hollywood silliness in a matter of minutes, complete with a set of characters that lack any relatability or likable qualities.

The sharks themselves look ok when shrouded in darkness (there are a few creepy shots, and a few fairly good jump scares), but up close, the poor CGI is easily exposed.

It's not a terrible, but you're not missing out if you give this one a pass.