Search

Search only in certain items:

40x40

ClareR (5674 KP) rated The Bees in Books

Apr 21, 2019  
The Bees
The Bees
Laline Paull | 2015 | Fiction & Poetry
10
8.4 (7 Ratings)
Book Rating
After a few pages, you forget they’re actually bees...
This is set in a Bee hive. Yes, really it is. I thought it would be in the style of Watership Down, but it's definitely a book for the grown ups. It's a bit scary in the respect that everything in these bees lives is regulated by the Sage level of Bee (there are various types of Bees, named after a particular plant. They all have their pre-ordained role in life, which they know how to carry out as soon as they hatch out of their final stage of growth). If you step out of line, you are destroyed. Kind of like the more hard-line societies around the world. And that's where it gets you. You start off reading about a bee hive, and you end up realising that people have lived like this in the past, live like this now, and will probably live like this in the future.
  
Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu!
Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu!
2018 | Action, Action/Adventure, Fighting
Overworld Pokemon (0 more)
Only Kanto region and dex (0 more)
This was a great game, though I wish it had a full pokedex and other regions to explore since this is the fifth time we've seen Kanto (including going back to Kanto in g/s/c/hg/ss). The catching mechanic was a little weird at first, but I grew to enjoy it quite a bit. I love the pokemon being seen in the overworld, and I thought the art style was very cute. All this good being said, the game was short. I finished the story in about ten hours, and the pokedex in about 20 (but the longer times were because I was spending a lot more time catching things than I really needed to in the hopes of finding a shiny pokemon). After completing the pokedex I feel very little need to pick the game back up again, which is unfortunate. For what it was though, ot was a very good experience.
  
The Accidental Further Adventures of the Hundred-Year-Old Man
The Accidental Further Adventures of the Hundred-Year-Old Man
Jonas Jonasson | 2018 | Comics & Graphic Novels, History & Politics, Humor & Comedy
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Humour (3 more)
Main character
Unique
Does not take anything seriously
The last book felt madder (1 more)
The previous was funnier
A step down from the previous but still excellent
I picked up the first book as I loved History and the first one includes many different people from modern History like Hitler and Stalin. I loved the ridculousness of history being told through the main character and how they fit in.

I think the reason I do not like this one as much is because it deals with politics today (which bores me easily) and ends up being a politcal opinion piece instead of a piece of entertainment.

Even though I still enjoyed it I dud not have as much fun as the previous.

If you like books that do not take much seriously and have perculiar writing style then definately get this book. The poltical aspects are still sprinkled with the same humour the first book had.
  
For Your Eyes Only (1981)
For Your Eyes Only (1981)
1981 | Action, Mystery
First of the 80s Bonds takes a step back from the camp excesses of the previous couple of entries and tries for a more Connery-esque, down to earth style; the results are impressive if perhaps a little too bland for this to really qualify as a Great Bond Movie.

Roger Moore's search for a missing component of a missile defence system (it's a Maguffin) takes him all around the Med and up into Italy; highlights include various inventive chases and other set pieces - everyone seems to be trying hard to do something original, which is nice. Also includes a scene where Bond rebuffs a hot young blonde who turns up in his bed, possibly the most out-of-character moment in the entire series. The lack of a really memorable villain also counts against it, but this is still possibly the best of the Moore Bonds, and the best of the decade.
  
40x40

April Rose Mossow (93 KP) rated Sadie in Books

May 20, 2019  
Sadie
Sadie
Courtney Summers | 2018 | Young Adult (YA)
8
8.5 (11 Ratings)
Book Rating
When Sadie’s sister Maddie is found dead, it sets off a series of events: A road trip, uncovering secrets, but also, asking more questions than it answers. I really enjoyed this book, slowly the adrenaline just kicks you into gear and you’re rushing through the book to finish. It’s a murder-mystery, tangled with lies, family dysfunction, and vengeance. Told between podcasts and the perspective of its main character, it’s a different style of writing, written especially for this generation’s teens. You feel so deeply for Sadie, and the people she meets along the way. The story is fast-paced and keeps you thoroughly engaged. (I didn’t want to put it down!) Sadie is a well written, real character you root for through the entirety of the book. It’s such a sad chain of events, you don’t really know what to expect, but you hope against all hope that Sadie makes it out alive.
  
Rim of the World (2019)
Rim of the World (2019)
2019 | Action, Adventure, Comedy
....I'm thinking....that 1 funny camp counsellor (0 more)
Cheesy script & story, generic monster and awful TV movie ending. (0 more)
Stranger things this aint
Stranger Things is great and its brought a resurgence of the 80s style kids adventure films. Unfortunately for every Stranger Things & Scouts Guide to the apocalypse theres also one of these disasters...starts abruptly in space where the space station is attacked by a massive spaceship. Then it starts to introduce the stereotypical kids who all end up going to the same summer camp just as aliens attack Earth. The script is shoddy and the acting is pretty poor. It feels like a poor after school daytime TV movie - the fate of the Earth lies in these 4 kids hands blah blah. The aliens are pretty generic and unscary and it all leads to a pointless climax and ridiculous credits scenes. I was hoping for some mindless fun - i got half!!!
  
The Animatrix (2003)
The Animatrix (2003)
2003 | Action, Animation, Drama
Great supplement to the trilogy
This collection of short films, some of which were written by the The Wachowski Brothers, is a great set of stories as both prequel and supplement to the Matrix trilogy of films. They show various wars and clashes between humans and the robots they created to the basis of forming the Matrix itself which exists in the live-action version.

The animation is really bright and eye popping and reminded me of Ghost in the Shell or even Samurai Jack at times. Some of the stories were a little too close to the trilogy while others really went in their own direction. Others reminded me of other genre films including District 9 or even War of the Worlds.

I liked the fast paced style of animation in some and others let the stories develop a little more.

For those Matrix movie fans I think you would thoroughly enjoy this!

  
Despite being the second in the series, you don’t need to read the first to enjoy this novel.

Overall, the novel wasn’t terrible. I am not a fan of insta-lust nor people contradicting their morals with their actions. While there was chemistry between the leads, the insta-lust factor put me off. The erotic scenes were also a bit tame for my tastes. Filled with innuendos instead of being straightforward, I feel the erotic scenes would be more suited for someone who is put off but more vulgar language.

I also wasn’t a fan of the author’s writing style in general. Some part seems too long, dragging out unnecessarily or was just too flowery.

Bottom line, this is a historical romance meant for those who want a tamer historical romance. Honestly, it reminds of the novels that my grandma used to read, like Kathleen Woodiwiss and older Jude Deveraux.
  
WP
When Passion Rules
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I had been wanting to read this novel since I first saw the cover before it was even released. I don't understand why the cover is so delectable, but it made this novel a must read for me.

I love Lindsey's Malory Series. It's on my top 10 series list in fact. I have read some of her other works but this is the first in a few years. The greatest thing about Lindsey is that she knows how to tell a story. From her style to the dialogue, from the plot and character development to the story itself, the woman has a gift.

However, I did not fall in love with it the way I expected myself to. I love historical romance, and Lindsey is the Queen of Historical Romance. Despite this, I was not wowed like I thought I would. I loved how Lindsey put a little murder mystery in it. The twist towards the end was interesting, though not wholly unexpected.
  
Murder In Steeple Martin
Murder In Steeple Martin
Lesley Cookman | 2006 | Crime, Mystery
8
7.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
Slow starter but soon pulls you in
This book starts a little slowly but very soon rewards those who stick with it and becomes one of the most engaging books I have read in a long time. Vaguely reminiscent of Agatha Raisin, in that the heroine is a dumpy middle-aged, neurotic woman who lives in deeply rural England with a cat. Yet this is by no means a rip-off.

Somewhat less manic than A.R., both series carry on an old and well-established style of British Mystery writing. That said, it is clear that Lesley Cookman has gone out of her way to break some of the rules. For example there is only -shock, horror!- *one* murder in her book;her characters have no access to the Police enquiry, so are working completly in the dark; and as much as she can she has avoided having characters do obviously stupid things.

This is not an earth-shattering book, but it is a thoroughly good read.