Search
Search results
Kristy H (1252 KP) rated Only Ever Her in Books
Jun 21, 2019
Annie Taft is 26, ready to marry Scott Hanson, and move somewhere fresh. Away from the town of Ludlow, where she is known as the daughter of the murdered woman. Cordell Lewis was sentenced to life without parole for the murder of Annie's mother, Lydia Taft--largely on the word of Annie, who was only three. But his lawyer is advocating for a new trial--and Cordell's release. It's now four days before Annie's wedding; Cordell is out of jail, and Annie has disappeared. At first, Annie's aunt, Faye, who has raised her niece since the age of three, thinks she has hidden away due to nerves. But as the wedding date inches closer, Faye and her daughter, Clary, realize something is amiss. Was it Cordell, seeking revenge after all this time? Or someone who knows Annie well?
"Some people hear their mother's voices in their heads, but Annie hears her aunt's, the closest thing she has to a mother."
This book wasn't anything like what I was expecting, and honestly, it was a rather strange tale, but it was still rather interesting. It's a character-driven read, not a suspense novel, but wow, I got really attached to some of these characters. I picked this one up based solely on the strength of the last Marybeth Mayhew Whalen novel I read, WHEN WE WERE WORTHY. She has a real knack for capturing her characters: they jump off they page and stick with you. In particular, I fell hard for Faye and Clary in this one. And, of course, there was Annie, who was always there, motivating nearly every character:
"She has to make the town happy, like she always has. It is her act of service, her offering on behalf of the greater good. When you're the only survivor of the town's darkest moment, you do whatever you can to bring light."
There are a lot of narrators in the novel, but together they expertly show the web and ties of a small town, where it seems everyone has a secret of some sorts. I thought the beginning of the book was a bit slow, but it picked up in the second half, becoming rather dramatic and suspenseful. It's also an emotional read, as you become more and more invested in the characters. I expected more with Annie's storyline and disappearance--the ending sort of fizzled there for me. The more compelling piece is truly her mother's murder and its aftermath, especially on Faye.
Still, this was an interesting and poignant read featuring some excellent characters. While it was a bit slow to start, I found myself quite immersed in the second half. I really enjoy what Whalen can do with her small town personalities. 3.5 stars.
"Some people hear their mother's voices in their heads, but Annie hears her aunt's, the closest thing she has to a mother."
This book wasn't anything like what I was expecting, and honestly, it was a rather strange tale, but it was still rather interesting. It's a character-driven read, not a suspense novel, but wow, I got really attached to some of these characters. I picked this one up based solely on the strength of the last Marybeth Mayhew Whalen novel I read, WHEN WE WERE WORTHY. She has a real knack for capturing her characters: they jump off they page and stick with you. In particular, I fell hard for Faye and Clary in this one. And, of course, there was Annie, who was always there, motivating nearly every character:
"She has to make the town happy, like she always has. It is her act of service, her offering on behalf of the greater good. When you're the only survivor of the town's darkest moment, you do whatever you can to bring light."
There are a lot of narrators in the novel, but together they expertly show the web and ties of a small town, where it seems everyone has a secret of some sorts. I thought the beginning of the book was a bit slow, but it picked up in the second half, becoming rather dramatic and suspenseful. It's also an emotional read, as you become more and more invested in the characters. I expected more with Annie's storyline and disappearance--the ending sort of fizzled there for me. The more compelling piece is truly her mother's murder and its aftermath, especially on Faye.
Still, this was an interesting and poignant read featuring some excellent characters. While it was a bit slow to start, I found myself quite immersed in the second half. I really enjoy what Whalen can do with her small town personalities. 3.5 stars.
Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Conan the Barbarian (2011) in Movies
Aug 7, 2019
Conan.
The name either evokes pictures of half naked body builders, and topless wenches, or a very tall man with red, quaffed hair. Well, hopefully the former is what you are all thinking about, because that is what you are going to get. Nobody goes to a Conan movie for the tall, red haired guy. Right?
Jason Momoa, who is not awful to look at for a couple of hours, plays Conan. Physically, he is much truer to the character in the original source material, than the former governor of California. He also has this interesting gravity that makes you sit up and pay attention. Or maybe that was because he was shirtless for most of the movie.
Conan’s story begins as a baby, who is “battle born” and whose first taste, a familiar narrator states, “is not his mother’s milk, but her blood.” He is better then many of his village’s best warrior candidates and joins in a test that ends up being a battle against savages. While the other candidates run back to camp; Conan stay and fights. Not only does he return to the camp having passed the test, but he carries three of the savage’s heads with him. His father (Ron Pearlman) decides it is time to forge a sword and begin to train, with the father imparting sage words like, “You cannot yield the sword until you understand it.”
Conan’s training is interrupted by the arrival of Khalar Zym (Stephen Lang), a ruthless warlord who brings death and destruction to Conan’s village. Zym’s on a a quest to to claim the final piece of a mask that will give him control of the magic of Asheron. Conan is left the sole survivor of his Cimmarian people, growing up to become a fierce warrior intent on avenging his father’s death. All the while, Zym and his daughter Marique continue on Zym’s quest to become a powerful god, in search of a “pureblood” – the one person whose blood will make the mask work. Inevitably, Zym and Conan’s paths cross again and swordfights ensue.
The best thing about this movie, for me, were the female leads. Rose McGowan as Marique and Rachel Nichols as Tamara (the pureblood) are both warriors. It was also excellent to have Conan acknowledge this in Tamara; even saying, “Cimmarian women are warriors, give her the leather and armor.” We would have never heard 1982’s Conan say anything like this.
Listening to people while leaving the movie I heard grumblings about how the Conan character never really had an origin story. This movie provides that, and because of this it also provides something that the original movies lacked: plot. Not that the plot is very rich, but again, nobody goes to a Conan movie for the story or the plot. Right?
The name either evokes pictures of half naked body builders, and topless wenches, or a very tall man with red, quaffed hair. Well, hopefully the former is what you are all thinking about, because that is what you are going to get. Nobody goes to a Conan movie for the tall, red haired guy. Right?
Jason Momoa, who is not awful to look at for a couple of hours, plays Conan. Physically, he is much truer to the character in the original source material, than the former governor of California. He also has this interesting gravity that makes you sit up and pay attention. Or maybe that was because he was shirtless for most of the movie.
Conan’s story begins as a baby, who is “battle born” and whose first taste, a familiar narrator states, “is not his mother’s milk, but her blood.” He is better then many of his village’s best warrior candidates and joins in a test that ends up being a battle against savages. While the other candidates run back to camp; Conan stay and fights. Not only does he return to the camp having passed the test, but he carries three of the savage’s heads with him. His father (Ron Pearlman) decides it is time to forge a sword and begin to train, with the father imparting sage words like, “You cannot yield the sword until you understand it.”
Conan’s training is interrupted by the arrival of Khalar Zym (Stephen Lang), a ruthless warlord who brings death and destruction to Conan’s village. Zym’s on a a quest to to claim the final piece of a mask that will give him control of the magic of Asheron. Conan is left the sole survivor of his Cimmarian people, growing up to become a fierce warrior intent on avenging his father’s death. All the while, Zym and his daughter Marique continue on Zym’s quest to become a powerful god, in search of a “pureblood” – the one person whose blood will make the mask work. Inevitably, Zym and Conan’s paths cross again and swordfights ensue.
The best thing about this movie, for me, were the female leads. Rose McGowan as Marique and Rachel Nichols as Tamara (the pureblood) are both warriors. It was also excellent to have Conan acknowledge this in Tamara; even saying, “Cimmarian women are warriors, give her the leather and armor.” We would have never heard 1982’s Conan say anything like this.
Listening to people while leaving the movie I heard grumblings about how the Conan character never really had an origin story. This movie provides that, and because of this it also provides something that the original movies lacked: plot. Not that the plot is very rich, but again, nobody goes to a Conan movie for the story or the plot. Right?
The Alex Crow
Book
From the critically acclaimed author of cult teen novel Grasshopper Jungle, Andrew Smith, comes a...
Nothing is Sacrosanct: No One Can Hide from Their Sins Forever
Book
Nothing is Sacrosanct: Intense, Raw Novel Takes Calculated Revenge on Child Abuse Aggressors;...
BookInspector (124 KP) rated Every Pretty Thing (Darby McCormic #7) in Books
Sep 24, 2020
I was very lucky to win this book in Goodreads Giveaway, and get it approved on Netgalley. Thanks a lot for that. I didn’t have chance to read any other books in Darby McCormimck’s series, but after reading this one, I will try to get other parts as well. This book is seventh in the series, but it can easily be read without reading the previous parts. I really enjoyed this book and it was very indulging.
The main, participating characters in this book were Dr. Darby McCormic and FBI agent Noel Covington. The whole story was mostly described from these two people’s perspective. The book starts by introducing Karen, the survivor of attack. She is trying to find a serial killer, named Red Ryder, who killed her whole family. Then, author introduces Darby and Cooper. Cooper invites Darby to Montana, when Darby gets there, Cooper is gone. Through particular course of events, Darby gets to meet Noel, and they, together start looking for Cooper and Karen. Both of them have their own reasons to look for these two people, while looking for them, they notice that there are some dodgy things going on in the town. Both characters are very interesting and smart. I am quite a fan of strong women in the books, and I really enjoyed Darby’s personality. She is strong, fearless, smart, and very deterrent.
The plot of this book is well thought through, and interesting to read. It flows quite steady during the investigation, showing some turns and twists, but it really spikes towards the end of the book. I would’ve enjoyed this book more, if there would’ve been more suspense in this novel. Around the middle of the book, I kind of lost my interest, to be honest, there were only few turns and twists, but when the author got to the culmination, it was “wow”. I really didn’t expect those things to happen and I was pleasantly shocked. I am very thankful to the author for bringing up a topic about religion, and what it could do to people, if it is used too much.
The writing style in this book was easy to follow and pleasurable to read. I liked short chapters of this book; it didn’t get you bored, and view from different character’s perspectives made it more interesting for the reader. The events of this book are not very suitable for sensitive people, as there is some blood shedding going on in this novel. I really enjoyed the twist at the end of this book, and it got me curious about what is going to happen to Darby next. So, to conclude, I would recommend this book is you are looking for a nice mystery and thriller, filled with unexpected discoveries of a small town in Montana.
The main, participating characters in this book were Dr. Darby McCormic and FBI agent Noel Covington. The whole story was mostly described from these two people’s perspective. The book starts by introducing Karen, the survivor of attack. She is trying to find a serial killer, named Red Ryder, who killed her whole family. Then, author introduces Darby and Cooper. Cooper invites Darby to Montana, when Darby gets there, Cooper is gone. Through particular course of events, Darby gets to meet Noel, and they, together start looking for Cooper and Karen. Both of them have their own reasons to look for these two people, while looking for them, they notice that there are some dodgy things going on in the town. Both characters are very interesting and smart. I am quite a fan of strong women in the books, and I really enjoyed Darby’s personality. She is strong, fearless, smart, and very deterrent.
The plot of this book is well thought through, and interesting to read. It flows quite steady during the investigation, showing some turns and twists, but it really spikes towards the end of the book. I would’ve enjoyed this book more, if there would’ve been more suspense in this novel. Around the middle of the book, I kind of lost my interest, to be honest, there were only few turns and twists, but when the author got to the culmination, it was “wow”. I really didn’t expect those things to happen and I was pleasantly shocked. I am very thankful to the author for bringing up a topic about religion, and what it could do to people, if it is used too much.
The writing style in this book was easy to follow and pleasurable to read. I liked short chapters of this book; it didn’t get you bored, and view from different character’s perspectives made it more interesting for the reader. The events of this book are not very suitable for sensitive people, as there is some blood shedding going on in this novel. I really enjoyed the twist at the end of this book, and it got me curious about what is going to happen to Darby next. So, to conclude, I would recommend this book is you are looking for a nice mystery and thriller, filled with unexpected discoveries of a small town in Montana.
Vegas Crime Fighting
Games and Entertainment
App
Get ready to experience thrilling action packed unique open world underground adventure in this free...
What Happened To You?
Oprah Winfrey and Bruce D. Perry
Book
Oprah Winfrey and renowned brain development and trauma expert, Dr Bruce Perry, discuss the impact...
Enchanted Ink
8.0
Rate It
Book
From beloved romance author, Robin Lynn, comes a hotly-anticipated, fantastical adventure in art,...
Fantasy Romance Futuristic LGBTQIA+
Mothergamer (1562 KP) rated the PC version of Fallout 4 in Video Games
Apr 3, 2019
I just finished my first play through of Fallout 4 on the PS4 and my overall impression is that it was amazing. I truly had fun playing it especially when I got to run around in power armor. We'll get to all that in a minute. First you start with the usual creation of your character. You can play as male or female. I chose female and let's just say the hairstyle choices were interesting. Again I ask, why were there several types of bald? At least there were some long hair choices, but I went for a fancy updo. There are a lot of choices for the face also and you can add scarring if you want or different facial features.
Once that was done, I started the story and the world seems like it's a nice place, you even get a cheerful talking robot by the name of Codsworth out of it. Then the Vault-Tec rep shows up at your door informing you that you and your family are approved for entry into Vault 111. A few minutes later a news report warns of a nuclear attack forcing you and your family to rush to the vault and as you're waiting to go in a nuclear bomb detonates in the distance causing even more panic. The platform you're on then lowers everyone into the vault and everyone is put into cryosleep. Years later, events cause you to be awakened and then your adventure in Fallout 4 begins.
Entering Vault 111
Things are not as your sole survivor remembers in their little town. Signs of war, desolation, and destruction are everywhere. You do run into your old pal Codsworth and he becomes your first companion. This also gives you a tutorial on the game controls and the crafting aspect of it i.e. rebuilding settlements. The controls are fairly easy to manage and you can go back and forth easily. Of course the big thing is to loot everything everywhere you go because salvaging things like metal and copper are important to building many things such as water pumps that give you purified water or radio beacons for recruiting settlers.
The old homestead isn't what it used to be.
After the tutorial is out of the way, you're instructed to head to Diamond City as part of the main story quest. Of course, you can explore other areas as you go which leads you to new characters and companions one of the first after Codsworth being your canine companion Dogmeat. There are 12 companions in all to find in Fallout 4 as you progress in your adventure. There are also 4 different factions that you can join and do a ton of quests for, but bear in mind that as part of the main story you are going to have to pick one and this affects your relationship with the remaining factions.
Just a sole survivor and their dog.
There's a lot to do in Fallout 4 with the various faction quests and radiant quests. There are also side quests from various cities and settlements which can keep you busy while doing the main story quest. Factor in the quests that you can do for your companions and there's at least 100 hours of game play or more. There are a ton of dangers while exploring the world of Fallout 4 like Queen Deathclaws, Super Mutants, and Raiders just to name a few. The SPECIAL (Strength, Perception, Endurance, Charisma, Intelligence, Agility, and Luck) system is here too and it's quite streamlined in the way your abilities are managed and each skill requires a higher rank to unlock as you progress via the perks chart.
Taking out some raiders.
The power armor was a great plus for me because it's like running around in a tank and kicking lots of ass and it was awesome! And while I liked the first power armor set I found, the best one to me was the X-01 power armor I found while doing a quest and it was a complete set too. This thing could stand up to all kinds of things even suicider Super Mutants. Walking away from explosions virtually untouched in the X-01 power armor was all kinds of amazing.
One of the first power armors I found.
Behold! The X-01 power armor in all its glory!
There are glitches of course, but not a lot. I only experienced a couple. One was with being stuck in the elevator in one building and the only fix was to reload my last save and start over. There was another one where I was floating above the ground and the game froze completely. Again, reloading my last save seemed to do the trick. Another thing that bothered me was all the radiant quests mainly from The Minutemen leader Preston Garvey because after a while they become tedious especially with the kidnapping ones when it seemed like the same NPC settler got kidnapped three times. I started to think that perhaps they were getting kidnapped on purpose just to screw with me. I also wish there had been a way for the factions to work together against the scary villain instead of forcing you to pick one and depending on your actions, the other factions would become your enemies. I wish there had been a varied path with some options instead of you had to be on this set path and there's no other way around it.
That being said, I enjoyed Fallout 4 a great deal. There's lots to see and do, tons of things to build, and plenty of adventure to be had. It's worth checking out and definitely worth having in your gaming collection.
Once that was done, I started the story and the world seems like it's a nice place, you even get a cheerful talking robot by the name of Codsworth out of it. Then the Vault-Tec rep shows up at your door informing you that you and your family are approved for entry into Vault 111. A few minutes later a news report warns of a nuclear attack forcing you and your family to rush to the vault and as you're waiting to go in a nuclear bomb detonates in the distance causing even more panic. The platform you're on then lowers everyone into the vault and everyone is put into cryosleep. Years later, events cause you to be awakened and then your adventure in Fallout 4 begins.
Entering Vault 111
Things are not as your sole survivor remembers in their little town. Signs of war, desolation, and destruction are everywhere. You do run into your old pal Codsworth and he becomes your first companion. This also gives you a tutorial on the game controls and the crafting aspect of it i.e. rebuilding settlements. The controls are fairly easy to manage and you can go back and forth easily. Of course the big thing is to loot everything everywhere you go because salvaging things like metal and copper are important to building many things such as water pumps that give you purified water or radio beacons for recruiting settlers.
The old homestead isn't what it used to be.
After the tutorial is out of the way, you're instructed to head to Diamond City as part of the main story quest. Of course, you can explore other areas as you go which leads you to new characters and companions one of the first after Codsworth being your canine companion Dogmeat. There are 12 companions in all to find in Fallout 4 as you progress in your adventure. There are also 4 different factions that you can join and do a ton of quests for, but bear in mind that as part of the main story you are going to have to pick one and this affects your relationship with the remaining factions.
Just a sole survivor and their dog.
There's a lot to do in Fallout 4 with the various faction quests and radiant quests. There are also side quests from various cities and settlements which can keep you busy while doing the main story quest. Factor in the quests that you can do for your companions and there's at least 100 hours of game play or more. There are a ton of dangers while exploring the world of Fallout 4 like Queen Deathclaws, Super Mutants, and Raiders just to name a few. The SPECIAL (Strength, Perception, Endurance, Charisma, Intelligence, Agility, and Luck) system is here too and it's quite streamlined in the way your abilities are managed and each skill requires a higher rank to unlock as you progress via the perks chart.
Taking out some raiders.
The power armor was a great plus for me because it's like running around in a tank and kicking lots of ass and it was awesome! And while I liked the first power armor set I found, the best one to me was the X-01 power armor I found while doing a quest and it was a complete set too. This thing could stand up to all kinds of things even suicider Super Mutants. Walking away from explosions virtually untouched in the X-01 power armor was all kinds of amazing.
One of the first power armors I found.
Behold! The X-01 power armor in all its glory!
There are glitches of course, but not a lot. I only experienced a couple. One was with being stuck in the elevator in one building and the only fix was to reload my last save and start over. There was another one where I was floating above the ground and the game froze completely. Again, reloading my last save seemed to do the trick. Another thing that bothered me was all the radiant quests mainly from The Minutemen leader Preston Garvey because after a while they become tedious especially with the kidnapping ones when it seemed like the same NPC settler got kidnapped three times. I started to think that perhaps they were getting kidnapped on purpose just to screw with me. I also wish there had been a way for the factions to work together against the scary villain instead of forcing you to pick one and depending on your actions, the other factions would become your enemies. I wish there had been a varied path with some options instead of you had to be on this set path and there's no other way around it.
That being said, I enjoyed Fallout 4 a great deal. There's lots to see and do, tons of things to build, and plenty of adventure to be had. It's worth checking out and definitely worth having in your gaming collection.
Sensitivemuse (246 KP) rated Amberlough in Books
May 23, 2018
Rich setting, memorable characters
This was the type of book that when I finished it, I had to lie back down and just stare at the ceiling. It was mind blowing. There are layers of intrigue and you don’t watch it unfold, in fact it’s the opposite, you watch it form and develop as the story progresses.
The setting in this one is one of a lot of political instability. It’s explained in the earlier parts of the book. It’s a bit difficult to follow (notes may help some readers) perhaps a character list would help in this case to keep everything straight. A glossary would have helped as well as the characters have their own slang - most of it straight forward but it would help nevertheless. That being said despite these little shortcomings, the world is rich and detailed. Amberlough is decadent and has remnants of Weimar Berlin. Now I did say previously it’s hard to follow because of the slang, but it’s precisely because of this slang that makes the world more detailed and fun to read.
The pace of the plot is slow and steady as it sets up the stage for what would follow after. It is essentially, a spy novel, so it quickly leads to a lot of double dealing, moments of backstabbing and betrayal. There are only three characters that you really need to focus on as the supporting ones just add to the flavor of the novel. Of the three that are central to the plot, one must love Aristide.
With a name like Aristide Makicosta you know he’s going to be a character to remember. He’s flamboyant, street smart and clever. Despite the world burning around him he always manages to do everything in style. It’s hard not to fall for his charms and so you would understand Cyril’s love for him. I still don’t know what to think about Cyril. He was doing the job and had to. It came at a great cost but he had no choice and he had to think for himself (although I know there seems to be a lot of hate for him).
I love Cordelia. She’s got sass, she’s just as street smart and a survivor. Her character development is on point in this book. Yes she may be just a ‘dancer’ but she soon develops into someone with a cause to defend the city she loves. Despite the horrors she goes through in the latter half of the novel, she doesn’t let it break her. It’s admirable and she’s likable not only because of her catchy personality but also because of her unstoppable strength.
That ENDING THOUGH. I felt my eyes grow wide each time I turned the pages throughout the last third of the novel. This was why I had to sit back and just absorb everything I’ve read when I finished this one. It was that good.
Greatly recommended if you like intrigue, a decadent setting, and memorable characters. I absolutely enjoyed this book.
The setting in this one is one of a lot of political instability. It’s explained in the earlier parts of the book. It’s a bit difficult to follow (notes may help some readers) perhaps a character list would help in this case to keep everything straight. A glossary would have helped as well as the characters have their own slang - most of it straight forward but it would help nevertheless. That being said despite these little shortcomings, the world is rich and detailed. Amberlough is decadent and has remnants of Weimar Berlin. Now I did say previously it’s hard to follow because of the slang, but it’s precisely because of this slang that makes the world more detailed and fun to read.
The pace of the plot is slow and steady as it sets up the stage for what would follow after. It is essentially, a spy novel, so it quickly leads to a lot of double dealing, moments of backstabbing and betrayal. There are only three characters that you really need to focus on as the supporting ones just add to the flavor of the novel. Of the three that are central to the plot, one must love Aristide.
With a name like Aristide Makicosta you know he’s going to be a character to remember. He’s flamboyant, street smart and clever. Despite the world burning around him he always manages to do everything in style. It’s hard not to fall for his charms and so you would understand Cyril’s love for him. I still don’t know what to think about Cyril. He was doing the job and had to. It came at a great cost but he had no choice and he had to think for himself (although I know there seems to be a lot of hate for him).
I love Cordelia. She’s got sass, she’s just as street smart and a survivor. Her character development is on point in this book. Yes she may be just a ‘dancer’ but she soon develops into someone with a cause to defend the city she loves. Despite the horrors she goes through in the latter half of the novel, she doesn’t let it break her. It’s admirable and she’s likable not only because of her catchy personality but also because of her unstoppable strength.
That ENDING THOUGH. I felt my eyes grow wide each time I turned the pages throughout the last third of the novel. This was why I had to sit back and just absorb everything I’ve read when I finished this one. It was that good.
Greatly recommended if you like intrigue, a decadent setting, and memorable characters. I absolutely enjoyed this book.