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Sarah (7798 KP) rated Heart of Darkness in Books

Oct 24, 2018

Not a deserving classic

Literary classics always appear to be very divisive, and Heart of Darkness is definitely one of these. There are some that are very deserving of the word “classic”, however this isn’t one of them.

The writing style is very poor and messy, and it’s very difficult to read a story that is made up of unbroken long winded paragraphs. Even the dialogue between characters isn’t broken apart and it’s very tiresome to read. There’s little character development and the plot is very convoluted, jumping about with little reason or explanation, and it’s very difficult to figure out what’s actually going on. I don’t deny that this could have been a very good read, had it not been for the ridiculous rambling narrative. The only good thing about it was that it was fairly short, otherwise I never would’ve got to the end of it.

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David McK (3369 KP) rated Fool Moon (The Dresden Files, #2) in Books

Jan 28, 2019

<updated review in 2019>

I read the graphic novel version when I accidentally purchased the Dresden Files Omnibus from Comixology, thinking it contained new stories (it doesn't: it contains 'Storm Front', this ('Fool Moon') and the short story 'A Restoration of Faith'). While it's been a few years since I last read the actual novel, from what I remember, the graphic novel sticks pretty close to the original source material. I still have trouble as seeing Harry Dresden as any other than Nicolas Cage from the film 'The Sorceror's Apprentice', though ...

<original review>

Second entry in Jim Butcher's Dresden files series, building upon and expanding the world first introduced in "Storm Front", and in which Harry Dresden - Chaicago's only professional wizard in the phone book - ends up involved in a case to do with Werewolves (of which there are more types than your classical bi-morph).

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David McK (3369 KP) rated T2: The Future War (Gollancz) in Books

Jan 30, 2019 (Updated Dec 13, 2020)

T2: The Future War (Gollancz)

S.M. Stirling | 2004 | Science Fiction/Fantasy

5.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

Final part of S.M. Stirling's trilogy of books that present an alternate story than that told in T3: Rise of the Machines and Terminator: Salvation.

Unlike the previous two entries (T2: Infiltrator and T2: Rising Storm), this is not so much the one-on-one of the Connors versus a single Terminator, but is rather humanity versus Skynet which, remember, had become sentient at the end of the last novel. While the beginning of the novel does take place pre-Judgement day, the bulk of it actually takes place during the war itself: a war only hinted at in the first two films.

I quite enjoyed this read, and how it tied into both the films and earlier novels. In short, one of the better expanded universe novels out there (though you would have to read the first two first).

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Erika (17788 KP) rated Spark of the Resistance (Journey to Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker) in Books

Nov 4, 2019

This middle-grade novel is the first released as part of the 'Journey to the Rise of Skywalker' series of books.
The story features Poe, BB-8, Rey, and Rose. Rose, by far, was the worst part IMO, but, I can't stand her useless character at ALL. I wish the character would have been Finn instead.
This crew is gathering supplies for the fledgling Resistance, when they receive a distress call from a remote planet. They have short adventure, thwarting the First Order, and, of course, recruiting more people to the Resistance. Time will tell if this was a necessary read after seeing the film.
The best part of the book was how thirsty the First Order is for Poe. At one point, a First Order officer remarks that they'd know that magnificent Poe Dameron hair anywhere. It was hilarious, and my favorite part of the entire book.