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Kristy H (1252 KP) rated Those Girls in Books
Feb 13, 2018
Jess, Dani, and Courtney live in a neglected house with their abusive and drunken father. One night, after a particularly bad fight, the girls have to flee town quickly -- only to see things go from bad to worse as their truck breaks down during their journey. Eventually, the story picks up 18 years later (with the girls living under new names), when a turn of events threatens to tear down the lives they've managed to somewhat re-build.
This book was rather bizarre, I have to say. First of all, do not read this if you are triggered by scenes of brutal abuse or rape. Just don't. Terrible things happen in this book. It was almost mind-numbing to read - almost too much.
I'm still not sure how I feel about this one. The sisters drove me a bit crazy. It seemed like one bad decision after another with them. I know they are young when they initially leave home, and abused, but seriously? Then it just seems like the book was a series of misfortunes after another. I feel like Stevens could have limited it at some point. However, it was all oddly compelling, and I found myself reading the whole thing rather compulsively, even if I was constantly disappointed and disheartened by each turn of events.
(Note: I received a copy of this book via Netgalley in return for an unbiased review.)
This book was rather bizarre, I have to say. First of all, do not read this if you are triggered by scenes of brutal abuse or rape. Just don't. Terrible things happen in this book. It was almost mind-numbing to read - almost too much.
I'm still not sure how I feel about this one. The sisters drove me a bit crazy. It seemed like one bad decision after another with them. I know they are young when they initially leave home, and abused, but seriously? Then it just seems like the book was a series of misfortunes after another. I feel like Stevens could have limited it at some point. However, it was all oddly compelling, and I found myself reading the whole thing rather compulsively, even if I was constantly disappointed and disheartened by each turn of events.
(Note: I received a copy of this book via Netgalley in return for an unbiased review.)
Fishing for Bodies
In order to help her family deal with their grief, Flavia, her two older sisters, and the family’s servant Dogger have been shipped off on holiday. They are supposed to be enjoying several peaceful days of boating, and Dogger has just happened to pick a location where a vicar poisoned three ladies in his congregation with the communion wine. While Flavia is thinking about this crime, she is letting her hand drift in the water and suddenly grabs something. Instead of the fish she thinks it might be, she discovers it’s a body. Was there foul play? Can Flavia figure out what happened to the corpse?
Series fans, like myself, will be anxious to get this book to find out what is happening to Flavia and her family. We get those updates quite early and then settle in for the latest mystery. The characters are in top form; I loved the develop on Dogger especially. The new characters are sharp, and Flavia charms as always. However, the mystery was poor. We get a strange portion of the book where Flavia is imaging something that happened a few years before. The ending is very weak with guesses instead of facts and deductions. And if Flavia is right on the motive, it is extremely poor. Fans will want to read this one, but definitely start with a stronger book if you are new to the series.
Series fans, like myself, will be anxious to get this book to find out what is happening to Flavia and her family. We get those updates quite early and then settle in for the latest mystery. The characters are in top form; I loved the develop on Dogger especially. The new characters are sharp, and Flavia charms as always. However, the mystery was poor. We get a strange portion of the book where Flavia is imaging something that happened a few years before. The ending is very weak with guesses instead of facts and deductions. And if Flavia is right on the motive, it is extremely poor. Fans will want to read this one, but definitely start with a stronger book if you are new to the series.
One of the funniest books i've read in a long while
Contains spoilers, click to show
OH my I loved this story so much, I don't even know where to begin with this review.
Okay, Lets start with the fan fiction, as a person who sent hours on the computer reading Harry Potter fan fiction into the early hours of the morning and then to writing my own, I understand where Cath was coming form, that sometimes you forget that there is still books to come out or you wish they end the way they did as the fan fiction. I total got this, and i totally related to Cath.
Second Levi, You should always have a good book boyfriend and Levi, yeah he was perfect, could i have him? I'll look after him. he was funny and charming and he loved Cath, you could tell straight away and i just wanted to slap so she saw it too.
The story touched on other issues such as sisters trying to find their own groove, but how hard it can be to break patterns. there mother leaving them and now only wanting to be apart of their lives now they had grown up, their fathers illness.
This book was a great read, once i started i couldn't stop, and there the best kind of books. I will defiantly read more from Rainbow Rowell, now that I love her stuff.
Now to fan fiction :P
Happy Reading :)
Okay, Lets start with the fan fiction, as a person who sent hours on the computer reading Harry Potter fan fiction into the early hours of the morning and then to writing my own, I understand where Cath was coming form, that sometimes you forget that there is still books to come out or you wish they end the way they did as the fan fiction. I total got this, and i totally related to Cath.
Second Levi, You should always have a good book boyfriend and Levi, yeah he was perfect, could i have him? I'll look after him. he was funny and charming and he loved Cath, you could tell straight away and i just wanted to slap so she saw it too.
The story touched on other issues such as sisters trying to find their own groove, but how hard it can be to break patterns. there mother leaving them and now only wanting to be apart of their lives now they had grown up, their fathers illness.
This book was a great read, once i started i couldn't stop, and there the best kind of books. I will defiantly read more from Rainbow Rowell, now that I love her stuff.
Now to fan fiction :P
Happy Reading :)
Micky Barnard (542 KP) rated Geekerella (Once Upon a Con #1) in Books
Dec 6, 2018
Sweet but forgettable
This book was cuteness-incarnate with a slice of grit, a retake on Cinderella with a geeky fandom context that worked in a way that was fun and easy to connect. I found myself sucked into this story of Elle and Darien. Darien is something of a beta-male character and I’m always here for that.
As you might imagine, Elle lives with her stepmother and step sisters, things are pretty grim and abusive at home and that made for difficult reading at certain moments. Darien is playing the lead role in a film depicting a fandom Elle has been immersed in since childhood thanks to her late dad’s love of it.
The serendipitous connection through text between these two was a lovely, sweet slow build but the masking of their identities was bound to lead to complications. The events in the storyline were occasionally fresh outside of the fairytale but mostly predictable too, especially when it came to the meeting of these two. There were some very clever aspects like the pumpkin, the cosplaying elements were enjoyable and the side characters were superb. Sage was a highlight from a side character perspective. The character diversity was oozing from the pages in an unforced and natural way. I appreciated how this was conceptualised. .
This was enjoyable, easy YA reading with a delightful geek-fandom. I think this book would appeal to many.
I voluntarily read an early copy of this book.
As you might imagine, Elle lives with her stepmother and step sisters, things are pretty grim and abusive at home and that made for difficult reading at certain moments. Darien is playing the lead role in a film depicting a fandom Elle has been immersed in since childhood thanks to her late dad’s love of it.
The serendipitous connection through text between these two was a lovely, sweet slow build but the masking of their identities was bound to lead to complications. The events in the storyline were occasionally fresh outside of the fairytale but mostly predictable too, especially when it came to the meeting of these two. There were some very clever aspects like the pumpkin, the cosplaying elements were enjoyable and the side characters were superb. Sage was a highlight from a side character perspective. The character diversity was oozing from the pages in an unforced and natural way. I appreciated how this was conceptualised. .
This was enjoyable, easy YA reading with a delightful geek-fandom. I think this book would appeal to many.
I voluntarily read an early copy of this book.
Carma (21 KP) rated Best of Three (Just Everyday Heroes: Night Shift, #3) in Books
Jun 17, 2019
Best of Three is the 3rd book (shocking I know haha) in the Just Everyday Heroes:Night Shift series featuring the Dixon siblings. A sort of spin-off/continuation of Just Everyday Heroes:Day Shift
Emma Dixon is the wildest of her sisters and a thorn in her big brothers side. She doesnt think before she acts by any stretch of the imagination. She is someone that acts first and thinks second. She doesnt know how else to be until a car accident changes her wild streak drastically.
Dr Nate Sullivan is a single dad raising a teenage son. He has little time or patience for a woman like Emma, someone without constraints or limitations. When a car accident puts her on his operating table he literally puts her life back together. Can he handle this wild woman in his life.
Nate is the only man to ever be immune to Emmas charms, she doesnt quite know how she feels about that. Does it make him more mysterious to her or does she just have the hots for him rebuffs and all.
After some hysterical antics that may involving stalking Nates son Michael and Emmas psuedo daughter Shannon, these 2 find they may just be more suited for each other than either one ever imagined. Together, Emma calms down while Nate looses up, a match made in the operating room.
Emma Dixon is the wildest of her sisters and a thorn in her big brothers side. She doesnt think before she acts by any stretch of the imagination. She is someone that acts first and thinks second. She doesnt know how else to be until a car accident changes her wild streak drastically.
Dr Nate Sullivan is a single dad raising a teenage son. He has little time or patience for a woman like Emma, someone without constraints or limitations. When a car accident puts her on his operating table he literally puts her life back together. Can he handle this wild woman in his life.
Nate is the only man to ever be immune to Emmas charms, she doesnt quite know how she feels about that. Does it make him more mysterious to her or does she just have the hots for him rebuffs and all.
After some hysterical antics that may involving stalking Nates son Michael and Emmas psuedo daughter Shannon, these 2 find they may just be more suited for each other than either one ever imagined. Together, Emma calms down while Nate looses up, a match made in the operating room.
BookwormMama14 (18 KP) rated Keturah (The Sugar Baron's Daughters, #1) in Books
Jan 2, 2019
Keturah has one of the most unique settings that I have ever read in Historical Fiction; 1773 in the West Indies. The sisters Banning have been through so much. They have lost both their parents, are threatened with financial ruin, and set sail "unchaperoned" all the way to the Caribbean to save their sugar plantation.
I really enjoyed the unique setting, the island life of the 1770s, the cultural differences, the hardships, and the romance. The author does address the issue of abuse throughout the story. The pain, the effects, the healing process, which I found very well done. Although I can not relate to Keturah's situation, I know that many have, and I pray that God uses this story to speak to and bring healing to them.
The reason for my rating is for the simple fact that the story moved very slow. I had a really hard time staying focused on the story while reading. My mind would wander too easily. The writing quality was good overall, just not a fast enough pace to keep me fully engaged.
If you are looking for a unique story, I would recommend you give Keturah a try. Just because it was too slow for me, doesn't mean it will be for you.
I received a complimentary copy of Keturah from the publisher through Litfuse. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are mine alone.
I really enjoyed the unique setting, the island life of the 1770s, the cultural differences, the hardships, and the romance. The author does address the issue of abuse throughout the story. The pain, the effects, the healing process, which I found very well done. Although I can not relate to Keturah's situation, I know that many have, and I pray that God uses this story to speak to and bring healing to them.
The reason for my rating is for the simple fact that the story moved very slow. I had a really hard time staying focused on the story while reading. My mind would wander too easily. The writing quality was good overall, just not a fast enough pace to keep me fully engaged.
If you are looking for a unique story, I would recommend you give Keturah a try. Just because it was too slow for me, doesn't mean it will be for you.
I received a complimentary copy of Keturah from the publisher through Litfuse. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are mine alone.
Deborah (162 KP) rated The Children of Henry VIII in Books
Dec 21, 2018
I was surprised to see that this book, covering a fair subject - the four known children of Henry VIII - had only about 200 pages of actual text. A rather different prospect to Guy's weighty biography of Mary Queen of Scots. As reams of paper and oceans of ink of already been expended on the Tudors, I'm not sure quite what the impetus behind this book was. It's not that it wasn't well written, because it was, but that I felt that it offered up almost nothing new. As an introduction to the subject to a reader new to the period I think I would recommend it, but to someone for whom this is already an area of interest, you've probably heard it all before.
The one new point that Guy does bring up, is the theory that Henry VIII belonged to a rare blood group, which resulted in problems with offspring surviving. We can see that no one woman appears to have more than one surviving child by him, but I would have liked a little more detail to support this - how did Henry come by his rare blood group? He was one of several siblings who survived infancy and his surviving sisters themselves had more than one surviving child.
A good brief guide to the subject, probably more suited to a reader fairly new to the subject. I felt disappointed as there was nothing new in here for me.
The one new point that Guy does bring up, is the theory that Henry VIII belonged to a rare blood group, which resulted in problems with offspring surviving. We can see that no one woman appears to have more than one surviving child by him, but I would have liked a little more detail to support this - how did Henry come by his rare blood group? He was one of several siblings who survived infancy and his surviving sisters themselves had more than one surviving child.
A good brief guide to the subject, probably more suited to a reader fairly new to the subject. I felt disappointed as there was nothing new in here for me.
LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated Frozen (2013) in Movies
Nov 21, 2019
It's nearly the end of 2019, and I have only just watched Frozen...and I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I would!
I would say that I've been actively avoiding watching it, but I guess I heard 'Let it Go' when it was EVERYWHERE and just assumed this wasn't for me.
But I'm glad I out that to one side and gave it a watch.
Firstly, Frozen is filled with heart. It has a whole host of immediately likable characters, and a straightforward plot that gives room for witty and genuinely funny dialogue.
It feels familiar yet fresh, with a typical Disney story of princesses and castles and people being afraid of what they don't understand, but then openly mocks one of the characters for immediately falling for a prince charming, and replaces true love between a princess and prince with the true love shared between sisters
The animation is great, and the whole film is really pleasant to watch.
The songs for the most part are ok, and serve as devices to move the plot along, but I've never been a huge fan of musicals, so this is a weird negative for me, as it's something that's on me, not on the movie.
Frozen isn't anywhere near my favourite Disney film, but it's genuinely enjoyable, and hard to watch without smiling for most of the runtime. All I know is that I would do anything for Sven and I love him 😭
I would say that I've been actively avoiding watching it, but I guess I heard 'Let it Go' when it was EVERYWHERE and just assumed this wasn't for me.
But I'm glad I out that to one side and gave it a watch.
Firstly, Frozen is filled with heart. It has a whole host of immediately likable characters, and a straightforward plot that gives room for witty and genuinely funny dialogue.
It feels familiar yet fresh, with a typical Disney story of princesses and castles and people being afraid of what they don't understand, but then openly mocks one of the characters for immediately falling for a prince charming, and replaces true love between a princess and prince with the true love shared between sisters
The animation is great, and the whole film is really pleasant to watch.
The songs for the most part are ok, and serve as devices to move the plot along, but I've never been a huge fan of musicals, so this is a weird negative for me, as it's something that's on me, not on the movie.
Frozen isn't anywhere near my favourite Disney film, but it's genuinely enjoyable, and hard to watch without smiling for most of the runtime. All I know is that I would do anything for Sven and I love him 😭
Sarah (7800 KP) rated Everything's Eventual: 14 Dark Tales in Books
Apr 2, 2020
Another great collection of stories
I feel like I need to include a preface with all of my Stephen King reviews, or some form of disclaimer, to warn any readers that he is my favourite author so my review may not be as neutral as it could be. Either that or he really is a great writer 😆
Everything’s Eventual is a collection of short stories that I read well over a decade ago, and as short stories require a lot less brain power than a full on novel, I decided to give this a go as I couldn’t recall many of the stories. And overall this is a very good collection of short stories. They’re all well written with developed characters (as you’d expect with King I’m sure), and the stories themselves have all got very good plots and storylines. The stories are all well balanced and there are none in here that are either overly long or too short, they’re very well paced. There are some great stories in here, most notably for me the John Dillinger story ‘The Death of Jack Hamilton’ and the Dark Tower prequel ‘The Little Sisters of Eluria’, but all of the stories are entertaining and very enjoyable. I wouldn’t say there are any amazing standout ‘wow’ stories in this, which is possibly why I’ve marked it down a little from some of King’s other collections of short stories.
Everything’s Eventual is a collection of short stories that I read well over a decade ago, and as short stories require a lot less brain power than a full on novel, I decided to give this a go as I couldn’t recall many of the stories. And overall this is a very good collection of short stories. They’re all well written with developed characters (as you’d expect with King I’m sure), and the stories themselves have all got very good plots and storylines. The stories are all well balanced and there are none in here that are either overly long or too short, they’re very well paced. There are some great stories in here, most notably for me the John Dillinger story ‘The Death of Jack Hamilton’ and the Dark Tower prequel ‘The Little Sisters of Eluria’, but all of the stories are entertaining and very enjoyable. I wouldn’t say there are any amazing standout ‘wow’ stories in this, which is possibly why I’ve marked it down a little from some of King’s other collections of short stories.
BookwormLea (3034 KP) rated Pushing Daisies - Season 1 in TV
Feb 19, 2020 (Updated Feb 19, 2020)
Does anyone remember this?
Contains spoilers, click to show
I first watched this as a bright eyed primary school child of the ripe age of 10. I remember thinking how strange a programme it was and that I hadn't seen anything like it before. Granted, I was stuck watching barbie and disney movies with my younger sisters but you get my point. This programme single handedly introduced me to death. And is very likely the reason I love horror and thriller movies now.
Don't get me wrong, this show was about love and very much a comedy. There was very little gore if any and from what I remember, I only saw one bloody face. The worst part was probably the dog dying in the beginning or the fact that the ML and FL can't even kiss because she will cease to live(again).
What I loved most about this show was how fantastically stupid it was, as much as I would have loved more seasons I'm really not suprised it only had 2. Have you ever wanted to see a man able to bring the dead to life with his touch fall in love with a dead ex girlfriend? Oh and he helps solve crime with his cop friend? Oh, and the dead stay alive for a minute unless someone replaces them? Well, this is the show for you! And its exactly as it sounds. Amazing!
Don't get me wrong, this show was about love and very much a comedy. There was very little gore if any and from what I remember, I only saw one bloody face. The worst part was probably the dog dying in the beginning or the fact that the ML and FL can't even kiss because she will cease to live(again).
What I loved most about this show was how fantastically stupid it was, as much as I would have loved more seasons I'm really not suprised it only had 2. Have you ever wanted to see a man able to bring the dead to life with his touch fall in love with a dead ex girlfriend? Oh and he helps solve crime with his cop friend? Oh, and the dead stay alive for a minute unless someone replaces them? Well, this is the show for you! And its exactly as it sounds. Amazing!