Curtsies & Conspiracies (Finishing School #2)
10.0
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Does one need four fully grown foxgloves for decorating a dinner table for six guests? Or is it six...
steampunk paranormal spies victorian
A Body In A Bathhouse (A Mitch O'Reilly Mystery #1)
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On the verge of bankruptcy, private investigator, Mitch O’Reilly takes any gig that comes his way,...
LGBTQ+ Mystery
Under the Radar
10.0
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It’s 1942 and after a sexual indiscretion, US Navy pilot Zachary MacKenzie is sent to serve in the...
Historical MM Romance Military WWII
David McK (3623 KP) rated The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent (2022) in Movies
Apr 10, 2023
In this, Nic Cage plays a fictionalised version of himself who is thinking of giving up acting and then accepts a 1 million dollar pay-day from a superfan (the internets current BFF Pedro Pascal) to come and visit him for his birthday celebrations, unaware that the FBI believe that superfan to be a drug kingpin and with the FBI then suborning Cage to spy on said fan.
The rest of the film then plays out as a sort of buddy comedy, with Cage and Pascal (not all as he seems) then finding themselves caught up in various, sometimes ridiculous, situations and as they start using their experiences more and more towards the plot of a film that Gutierrez has dreamed up for Cage to star in.
So, yeah, better than I was expecting and it did even make me laugh once or twice!
Silverview
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In Silverview John le Carr turns his focus to the world that occupied his writing for the past...
Dean (6927 KP) rated Vertigo (1958) in Movies
Apr 3, 2022
A former Detective is asked to spy on an old friends wife and keep track of her. Leading to obsession and a tragic event.
The first two thirds of the film are very slow and rather uneventful as James Stewart follows Madeleine wandering around town. Given an odd story by his friend to explain her behaviour, but he becomes more obsessed with her over time. The final third of the film was also a little slow getting to the reveal stage. At the time it would be a great twist but today you start to work out possible explanations quite early. The final scene also felt a bit over the top. Enjoyable to see a Hitchcock film but far from a classic for me.
Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated An Ember in the Ashes (An Ember in the Ashes #1) in Books
Jun 7, 2024
Kindle
An Ember in the Ashes (Book 1)
By Sabaa Tahir
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Under the Martial Empire, defiance is met with death.
When Laia’s grandparents are brutally murdered and her brother arrested for treason by the empire, the only people she has left to turn are the rebels.
But in exchange for their help in saving her brother, they demand that Laia spy on the ruthless Commandant of Blackcliff, the Empire’s greatest military academy. Should she fail it’s more than her brother’s freedom at risk…Laia’s very life is at stake.
There, she meets Elias, the academy’s finest soldier. But Elias wants only to be free of the tyranny he’s being trained to enforce. He and Laia will soon realize that their destinies are intertwined – and that their choices will change the fate of the Empire itself.
This was a really good read. I really enjoyed it. A fantasy with decent characters and a good plot line. I’m interested to see where it’s going.
ClareR (5996 KP) rated Fearless and Free: A Memoir by Josephine Baker in Books
Oct 14, 2025
Born in 1906, mixed race, Josephine made it from St. Louis to New York and then on to Paris - and she was still a teenager. She became famous in Paris for her banana dress in the Danse Sauvage, and she was also a jazz singer and an actress. During WW2 she was a spy, she loved animals, adopted children and donated to many causes.
This memoir ends in 1949, so we don’t get any details about her involvement in the Civil Rights movement, but we do see what happens when she travels home to the US - and it’s not good. Her reception is the complete opposite to the way she’s received in Europe.
When reading this, Josephine’s voice shines through. Her vivacious, fun, tenacious personality is there throughout, which does make up for the non-linear accounts.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book!
The Underhanded (William Dresden #1)
6.0
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Europe' s last line of defense against neofascism— a history professor? Professor William...
International Spy Conspiracy Thriller