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Debbiereadsbook (1691 KP) rated The Earl's Awakening in Books
Sep 19, 2023
would have preferred a slow burn, rather than the insta-lust
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.
This is the second book I've read of this author in quick succession. And I find myself comparing the two, which I maybe shouldn't, so I'll try to keep the comparison to a minimum!
Leander, Earl of Ockley, is a widow and his mother keeps finding new young YOUNG ladies to throw at him, he needs an heir after all! But Leander isn't in a rush. Meeting the Duke of Arden throws Leander into a tailspin, especially when his brother warns Leander off Arden, but Leander will do what he wants. He's a grown man, after all. Arden has a reputation for all things that "polite" society shun. Leander can't keep away, and finds himself drawn into Arden's circle, and his bed.
I'm not sure I liked this book. There are pages of Leander's internal ramblings and I found myself skimming, far more than usual, huge paragraphs. Possibly, if Arden had been given a say, I would have enjoyed this book more, but he doesn't get a say and that's one point I didn't like.
I didn't feel the romance element here. Leander kinda jumps into things with Arden and I think I would have preferred a longer slow-burn plot, rather than the inst-lust thing. The smexy times were good though!
There's lots of descriptions of rules and regulations of the time. Usually, when reading historical romance, I can get my head around the why and wherefores, but I struggled a bit here.
I DID like that we don't get Arden's given name til right to the very end. I thought that was a great idea.
I did like HOW it was written, rather than WHAT was written, if that makes any sense. I like the way Fielding writes, I just wasn't too fussed with this particular story, you know?
I did finish it, but it was a close thing.
3 stars
*same worded review will appear elsewhere
This is the second book I've read of this author in quick succession. And I find myself comparing the two, which I maybe shouldn't, so I'll try to keep the comparison to a minimum!
Leander, Earl of Ockley, is a widow and his mother keeps finding new young YOUNG ladies to throw at him, he needs an heir after all! But Leander isn't in a rush. Meeting the Duke of Arden throws Leander into a tailspin, especially when his brother warns Leander off Arden, but Leander will do what he wants. He's a grown man, after all. Arden has a reputation for all things that "polite" society shun. Leander can't keep away, and finds himself drawn into Arden's circle, and his bed.
I'm not sure I liked this book. There are pages of Leander's internal ramblings and I found myself skimming, far more than usual, huge paragraphs. Possibly, if Arden had been given a say, I would have enjoyed this book more, but he doesn't get a say and that's one point I didn't like.
I didn't feel the romance element here. Leander kinda jumps into things with Arden and I think I would have preferred a longer slow-burn plot, rather than the inst-lust thing. The smexy times were good though!
There's lots of descriptions of rules and regulations of the time. Usually, when reading historical romance, I can get my head around the why and wherefores, but I struggled a bit here.
I DID like that we don't get Arden's given name til right to the very end. I thought that was a great idea.
I did like HOW it was written, rather than WHAT was written, if that makes any sense. I like the way Fielding writes, I just wasn't too fussed with this particular story, you know?
I did finish it, but it was a close thing.
3 stars
*same worded review will appear elsewhere
Debbiereadsbook (1691 KP) rated The Bond (The Secret Tales #1) in Books
Jun 20, 2023
absolutely LOVED the slow burn/fade to back/very little smexy times!
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.
Historical romance has always been a bit hit and miss for me, I tend to get annoyed with all the rules and regs of the time, but, strangely, that's what I liked about this one!
Because Rosie (to only Rhys and NO ONE else!) kind of flaunts the rules. She pushes the boundaries and smashes down the expectations for ladies of her time.
Given her secret, and how she dealt with that in the past, it's understandable she doesn't want anyone to push her into anything, certainly not a marriage to Penworth, the odious man. Rose's male parental unit (I refuse to call him her father!) is a nasty piece of work, but he does get his comeuppence!
I loved that Rose and Rhys have history, from when they were children. I loved that we get some of that history in flashbacks. It helps you paint the picture of how Rose and Rhys came to be.
And I absolutely LOVED the slow burn/fade to back/very little smexy times that this book has. Hardly surprising given Rose's past, but I loved that Rhys loved Rosie enough to WAIT for her, to come to him, when she wanted more from him.
Quite a lot of angst in this book, for Rose as well as Rhys. I liked that Rhys was able to articulate his feelings for Rose, since men of that time were not expected to be able to do that.
Given the bit at the end, I expect that one of Rose's sister's will be next and I look forward to reading it,
I wrote 4 stars at the top of the page, but I can't find a single thing wrong with it, so. .
5 full and shiny stars
*same worded review will appear elsewhere
Historical romance has always been a bit hit and miss for me, I tend to get annoyed with all the rules and regs of the time, but, strangely, that's what I liked about this one!
Because Rosie (to only Rhys and NO ONE else!) kind of flaunts the rules. She pushes the boundaries and smashes down the expectations for ladies of her time.
Given her secret, and how she dealt with that in the past, it's understandable she doesn't want anyone to push her into anything, certainly not a marriage to Penworth, the odious man. Rose's male parental unit (I refuse to call him her father!) is a nasty piece of work, but he does get his comeuppence!
I loved that Rose and Rhys have history, from when they were children. I loved that we get some of that history in flashbacks. It helps you paint the picture of how Rose and Rhys came to be.
And I absolutely LOVED the slow burn/fade to back/very little smexy times that this book has. Hardly surprising given Rose's past, but I loved that Rhys loved Rosie enough to WAIT for her, to come to him, when she wanted more from him.
Quite a lot of angst in this book, for Rose as well as Rhys. I liked that Rhys was able to articulate his feelings for Rose, since men of that time were not expected to be able to do that.
Given the bit at the end, I expect that one of Rose's sister's will be next and I look forward to reading it,
I wrote 4 stars at the top of the page, but I can't find a single thing wrong with it, so. .
5 full and shiny stars
*same worded review will appear elsewhere
Billie Wichkan (118 KP) rated The Promise in Books
Mar 15, 2019
Three girls held a deep, dark secret. Three girls made a promise they vowed to keep forever. Now something and someone is threatening that promise. Will the truth come out or will these women do anything possible to keep their secret hidden forever?
I found this to be an excellent psychological suspense story. Some may describe this as a slow burn but I found the pace to be perfect for this story. The characters build and grow with the story as does the plot as told from past to present. The ending you won't see coming.
The are loads of little hints dropped through the story and some are just red herrings to keep you guessing. I found myself totally absorbed and unable to put the story down til done.
All in all I thoroughly enjoyed this psychological story with all it's dark twists and turns!
Many thanks to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and enjoy!
I found this to be an excellent psychological suspense story. Some may describe this as a slow burn but I found the pace to be perfect for this story. The characters build and grow with the story as does the plot as told from past to present. The ending you won't see coming.
The are loads of little hints dropped through the story and some are just red herrings to keep you guessing. I found myself totally absorbed and unable to put the story down til done.
All in all I thoroughly enjoyed this psychological story with all it's dark twists and turns!
Many thanks to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and enjoy!
Awix (3310 KP) rated The Invisible Man (2020) in Movies
Mar 2, 2020
Latest updating of the much-filmed Wells novel (though, to be honest, it bears almost no resemblance) has struggled from the wreckage of the Dark Universe project, but that doesn't mean it's any good. Young woman escapes from an abusive relationship with a brilliant optical scientist, but finds herself plagued by strange and disturbing events. Suspense builds - or it would, if the film wasn't actually called The Invisible Man.
Seriously, this is an issue: you're ahead of the main character from the word go, so the slow-burn build-up to her actually figuring out what you already know gets tedious quite quickly. There are some quite well-mounted sequences in the second half, and the recasting of the tale as a fable dealing with paranoia is reasonably done, but points knocked off for an irritatingly mishandled ending that only serves to make the film worse and longer. Disappointing in all sorts of ways.
Seriously, this is an issue: you're ahead of the main character from the word go, so the slow-burn build-up to her actually figuring out what you already know gets tedious quite quickly. There are some quite well-mounted sequences in the second half, and the recasting of the tale as a fable dealing with paranoia is reasonably done, but points knocked off for an irritatingly mishandled ending that only serves to make the film worse and longer. Disappointing in all sorts of ways.
Dork_knight74 (881 KP) rated The Lodge (2019) in Movies
May 7, 2020
Smh
Contains spoilers, click to show
So a father leaves his kids-with a woman he's planning to marry- for a few days in a remote cabin. Just when his kids need him most(because their mother killed herself in the beginning) and goes off to work(at Christmas time). Somehow, he has ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA idea just how mentally damaged/unstable she is. This movie eas a slow, tedious, mind-numbing burn that just fizzles out in the end(horrible ending). The acting was decent and the cinematography was too. It had creep factor, I'll give it that, but the story was just... sad. These kids go through hell through pretty much the entire film because of this psychotic ex-cultist and it ends up being their last days. You genuinely feel bad for them, but overall this was just a weird movie strangely pieced together that built up to....nothing. Her craziness wins out. NOT worth a watch.
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ClareR (6106 KP) rated The Sunshine Man in Books
Nov 23, 2025
The Sunshine Man is set in two timelines: 1989 and 1971.
In 1989, Bridie prepares to find and shoot the man, Jimmy Maguire, that murdered her sister upon his release from prison. She follows him as he’s picked up from the prison gates by his daughter, and as she drives him to old haunts and to visit his family.
In 1971, Jimmy and Providence are good friends. Jimmy and his family are outcasts, undesirables, always in trouble with the police. Providence can see beyond this with Jimmy.
This is such a sad story of family in all its guises (good and bad), revenge and redemption.
The Sunshine Man is a slow burn, but I found it worthwhile. I really got to know the characters, whether I really wanted to or not. Some were distinctly unpleasant people, but the motivations for their actions, whilst not excusable, were explained. I certainly won’t be forgetting this book in a hurry.
In 1989, Bridie prepares to find and shoot the man, Jimmy Maguire, that murdered her sister upon his release from prison. She follows him as he’s picked up from the prison gates by his daughter, and as she drives him to old haunts and to visit his family.
In 1971, Jimmy and Providence are good friends. Jimmy and his family are outcasts, undesirables, always in trouble with the police. Providence can see beyond this with Jimmy.
This is such a sad story of family in all its guises (good and bad), revenge and redemption.
The Sunshine Man is a slow burn, but I found it worthwhile. I really got to know the characters, whether I really wanted to or not. Some were distinctly unpleasant people, but the motivations for their actions, whilst not excusable, were explained. I certainly won’t be forgetting this book in a hurry.