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Another winner from the uberly talented Roseanna M. White. I sat down to read this book, coffee in hand (singing 'the' coffee jingle.....perhaps someday you blog readers will know just what that means!) to myself, and relaxing into my recliner. I was so reading to dive into this book. It was long awaited after reading A NAME UNKNOWN and falling in love. This book couldn't come fast enough for me. Did it disappoint? Oh no. No it did not. It gripped me, sent me spinning like I was on a tiltawhirl, and left me feeling breathless by the last page.

Willa and Lukas....oh Willa and Lukas. What can I say about this tenderly created characters? They are real to me. They came alive with each page turn. Their story, their music, flowing together, each strand of their being becoming mine. I loved that feeling! Their feelings wrapped me up, making me a part of their lives.

The faith and hope that is woven among these pages is beautifully done. I could heard the strands of the music coming from Willa's violin. I could feel the harmony of the love blending perfectly. Oh what a feeling that was! God's unending grace and mercy were the cords to this fantabulously written story.

I absolutely recommend that you stop what you are doing right now, find a retailer and click on the "buy now" option. While it could be read as a stand alone, I still recommend you read book 1, A Name Unknown, to feel the depth, the fullness that these books can leave you with. This 5 stars times 50 worthy. This is two thumbs up, hats off, mountain top shouting worthy. Ms. White has once again fulfilled her duties of bringing forth a novel that her fans, old and new alike, will forever talk about. Well done, Ms. White! Well done!

*I received a complimentary copy of this book from CelebrateLit/Publisher and was under no obligation to post a review, positive or negative.*
  
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Daniel Boyd (1066 KP) rated After Life in TV

Apr 3, 2019 (Updated Apr 3, 2019)  
After Life
After Life
2019 | Comedy, Drama
Brilliantly written (1 more)
Fantastically performed by the entire cast
Beautiful
Ricky Gervais seems to be like Marmite to most people. I have always really liked the guy. I love The Office and Extras and his first 3 stand up shows are amongst some of the funniest that I have ever seen. In the years since however, I have seem to fallen away from his projects. Not for any particular reason, but this lull meant that shows like Derek, Life's Too Short and An Idiot Abroad all passed me by. I'm not sure what it was about After Life that got me back on-board, maybe it was the fact alone that it was on Netflix.

Regardless, this show is fantastic. It is hilarious, it is truly touching, it is brilliantly written, acted and surprisingly well shot for what it is. The characters are all fantastic and their relationships with each other and the way that they analyse and question each other is brilliant too.

I think that the most impressive thing about the show overall though, is how much Gervais is able to say with such a simple premise and a small cast. There are only about 15 characters that we see in the small village where the show is set and yet Gervais has managed to tackle some really serious issues like grief, depression and suicide in a realistically convincing way and on top of that, he still manage to make you laugh. It really a masterful script and the entire cast do a brilliant job in their respective roles.

Overall, this is one of the best things that I have seen this year and I would strongly encourage everyone to give it a go, even if you are not a fan of Gervais or his previous projects. This show can take you from splitting your sides laughing to tearing up in an instant and any piece of art that can make me feel that way is extremely valuable in my eyes. Also the dog is amazing.
  
Patron Of Mercy (Lords of The Underworld #3)
Patron Of Mercy (Lords of The Underworld #3)
Sam Burns, W.M. Fawkes | 2019 | LGBTQ+, Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I was missing . . . .something!
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.

This is book 3 in the Lords of The Underworld series, and it CAN be read as a stand alone. However, personally, I felt I was missing. . . something . . .that I can't quite put my finger on, for not having read books one and two YET. I have them, but I have not got round to them yet! I will do, now though!

Lach walked away from Thanatos a milennia ago, because now he was immortal, who wanted to hang aroudn the God of Death? But both Thanatos and Lach lusted after the other for all that time. When Lach discoveres a way to save the world from starvation, he knows he will need Thanatos. Can Lach win back the only man, the only GOD he would ever love?

I did enjoy this, apart from the previously mentioned . . .something . . . I really did!

All the major players get a say, and you don't see what fate has instore for Lach and his friend till all is made clear in the book.

It is HEAVY on the Greek gods history. I *sort of* managed to keep up, because I paid no attention to histoy at school, but I felt I was given enough to *sort of* keep up! Someone else will have paid far better attention, and followed it beautifully.

Thanatos and Lach's story, though, I had no trouble following!

It;s not overly explicit, but hot enough. There is some detailed descriptions when Lach is in major trouble, though.

It is the first book I've read of Sam Burns or WM Fawkes. I'd like to read more, as I said, I have books one and two to read. Their collaboration is really well written, and you really can't tell how they split the writing! (sometimes, it's very obvious!)

So, ONLY because of that . . .something . . .I (personally, me, myself, and no one else!) was missing. . .

4 solid stars

**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
  
Guns of the Dawn
Guns of the Dawn
Adrian Tchaikovsky | 2015 | Fiction & Poetry
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
A couple of years a go I was involved in a Twitter conversation about strong female characters in fantasy. The conclusion what that they were there but not very common. This book addresses this by adding another in the shape of Emily Marshwic.

Born into a priviliged family, she is nothing but practical, sparring with the local governor whom she blames for the suicide of her father. Then war breaks out with a neighbouring country and as the fighting drags on, taking the men of the Marshwic household, Emily ends up joining the army to do her bit. The war is brutal and through her experiences Emily finds out unexpected things about not only herself but those around her.

This story is entirely driven by character, not only of Emily but of all of those she meets and this is where Tchaikovsky shines, conjuring up a host of main and supporting cast, all of whom are three dimensional and painted in shades of light and shadow, even those whose lives are destined to be cut short. Emily herself is the central pillar of the book and is more than capable of that task.

The descriptions of the war - both of the frantic, muddled fighting and the times in between - is spot on, showing the futility of it all but also why the sides feel they must fight on. The plot is far from predictable and takes sudden turns onto new territory just as the reader becomes comfortable with the current situation.

The world is well drawn. This is definitely fantasy in style and there are magic users in the shape of the flame wielding Warlocks, but the main fighting is with muskets and flintlock pistols and it is clear that the war is driving technology on.

The only problem with this book? It is stand alone. I would definitely read more stories about Emily and will now be searching out Tchaikovsky's epic Shadows of the Apt series for future reading.

Advisory: Voilent scenes of battle and some sexual violence and references
  
    Le Marchand de Sable

    Le Marchand de Sable

    Book and Entertainment

    (0 Ratings) Rate It

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    " ... a bedtime story with sumptuously blocky, simple illustrations that you can interact with......

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Butch Vig recommended track London Calling by The Clash in London Calling by The Clash in Music (curated)

 
London Calling by The Clash
London Calling by The Clash
1979 | Rock
8.8 (10 Ratings)
Album Favorite

London Calling by The Clash

(0 Ratings)

Track

"London Calling is probably my favourite rock record of all time. It’s incredibly powerful and diverse, it’s social, political and has all sorts of musical genres - punk, rock, ska, ballads, jazz and dub - rolled into the song arrangements. The Clash were at their peak when they made it and the kick-off track is the most anthemic song they ever wrote. It’s got everything, brilliant lyrics, a brilliant performance, it just sounds killer and Mick Jones’ guitar playing is phenomenal, when you hear that guitar riff it’s like a fire alarm going off. ‘London Calling’ is like a call to arms, it makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up every time I hear it, it’s that powerful. I went to see them on that tour at the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago and it was absolutely rammed. The second they started playing the entire room started jumping up and down and I thought the building was going to collapse, you could feel the whole place shaking. It was an old theatre and I was watching from the balcony, thinking we should maybe get to a safer location but I became so immersed in the music I forgot about it, it was a fantastic show. There were obviously differences between the British and US punk bands and some of that is in the sound of the records. The British records had a bit of a darker sound to them and that could be due to technical stuff in the mastering, but a lot of it had to do with the performances. To me, the British bands have always been ground-breaking, as a whole there were better new wave and punk bands coming out of the UK than the US, it was like the second British invasion. There was a great scene in New York, The Ramones, Talking Heads, Television and Blondie were ground-breaking at the time, but England, a country with a much smaller population than the US, had a larger percentage of iconic bands from that era."

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