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Now You See Her
Now You See Her
James Patterson | 2011 | Fiction & Poetry
6
7.0 (4 Ratings)
Book Rating
Nina Bloom is a successful attorney in New York City. She has a beautiful daughter who has just turned 17 and is the most important thing in her life. But Nina has a past that no one knows about. Both of her parents are dead and she was an only child. During her senior year in college, she took a trip to Key West for Spring Break that changed her life forever. Now with a new case being presented to her, she has to face the demons from her past. Will she be able to get through this case and come out on the other end alive? Will she still be able to protect her daughter from the dangers that she has been hiding for so long?

James Patterson has long been one of my favorite authors. I love how quickly I can get through his books and how enthralling the story usually is. I plan on listening to all of JP's standalone books through audio this year. I've gotten caught up with all the Women's Murder Club books and hope to continue to stay on top of those.

What really struck me about this book was Nina's ability to keep the secret for so long. For 17 years no one knew about her past or that she was even hiding in the first place. Her firm decides to take on some pro bono work with other firms in the city in a effort to exonerate people on death row. The first case she is assigned is quite personal as she is quite sure that the person who is in jail for the crime should not be. I wondered the whole time if she would be able to get through the case without having to reveal her true identity or if the past she left behind was going to come back and haunt her and her daughter forever. I great listen for this James Patterson book.

Up next, [bc:Sundays at Tiffany's|2029177|Sundays at Tiffany's|James Patterson|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1266475617s/2029177.jpg|3307932]
  
<img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-12684" src="http://cafinatedreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/Review-Cafinated-Reads-UPDATED-1.jpg"; alt="" width="350" height="214" />
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #993300;">Holy smokes! Ms. Ellis is amazing! I'm used to reading her Amish books, so when the chance to read her Sunset In Old Savannah novel, I jumped on the chance. I wanted to see her talent at work in a suspenseful genre. It was not disappointing, that's for sure. I lost myself among the pages of this gripping novel and I wasn't expecting the ending that I got! I love a book like this.</span>

<span style="color: #993300;">Ms. Ellis created a novel that all readers will love. It's a touch of romance, Godly messages woven through out, a whole lotta twists, and a dash of humor. Beth and Michael's characters will quickly work their way into your heart and they will stay there. They will take you on the whirl wind that is investigations, and lead you on a roller coaster ride that is evident with murders. Following Michael and Beth along the streets of Savannah (I've been once, and fell in love with the quaint town!) was so much fun! I was definitely on the edge of my seat for each page and stayed up long into the night reading.</span>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #993300;"> Ms. Ellis is a wonderful author. I haven't had the pleasure of reading books 1-3 in this Secrets Of The South Mysteries series, but this 4th installment didn't leave me confused. I was easily drawn in and had so much fun trying to figure out the clues.  The plot twists are perfectly written and the ending is amazing! I am looking forward to going back and seeing where these awesome mysteries began and meet the characters of this series from the start. I highly recommend this read with 5 stars and hats off.</span><a href="http://cafinatedreads.com/review-sunset-in-old-savannah-by-mary-ellis/"; target="_blank">This review was originally posted on Cafinated Reads</a>
  
Smashbomb
Smashbomb
Entertainment, Lifestyle, Social Networking
9
8.9 (123 Ratings)
App Rating
I’ve been on Smashbomb for nearly a year now, and let me tell you that when they say “rate anything,” they’re not kidding. Got an opinion on a new app you downloaded? Review it. Can’t believe how good the last book you read was? Review it. Listened to a mind-blowing podcast? Review it. Hated the new Motley Crue movie? Review it. Tell the world what you think! Obviously I’m partial to the Book Reviews. ?

But it’s not all reviews & ratings. Smashbomb also features giveaways, polls, orbs (groups), lists (yay!) and more. I’ve joined a number of orbs, and even participated in a Christmas Book Exchange.

Those “thumbs up” icons you see are “kudos,” which are awarded for many things: reviewing, adding items, etc. Each user is given a set number of “kudos points” each day, which the user can then award to other Smashbomb users. Think of it like those ubiquitous Facebook likes, except with a daily limit. The more things you do, the more your limit increases. Other users can award you kudos as well.

One of my favorite features is the ability to add an item that doesn’t yet exist on the site. For instance: Once I finish a book, I search for it on Smashbomb in order to review it. If the book does not exist, I can add it to the site, including details and a cover photo. Once you’ve added an item, others can also rate it and add it to their own lists. I’ve so far added nine books, and I'm sure I'll add many more!

You can also earn badges for completing various actions, and choose which badges to display on your profile. I’m currently an “Oracle” (hmm…possible new nickname), and I’m about halfway to “Guru.” ?

And, of course, there’s a Smashbomb app as well, so you’re not married to the desktop site.

Smashbomb is fun because it’s different. It’s a social networking site, but more, and less. You won’t find lengthy political rants, duckface selfies, or neverending #hashtags here. And honestly? Sometimes it’s nice to take a break from all of that.
  
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Andy K (10823 KP) Apr 3, 2019

What a great review!

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MelanieTheresa (997 KP) Apr 3, 2019

Thanks so much!

The Martian
The Martian
Andy Weir | 2014 | Science Fiction/Fantasy
10
8.9 (50 Ratings)
Book Rating
Fantastic novel! One of my all time favorite books.
Mark Watney is a snarky, foul-mouthed, crude nerd that’s stuck on Mars and forced to survive by himself. He’s beyond awesome. He takes a pounding from Mars right from the beginning. Has to be able to utilize all his skills and fix all his problems by himself (“Martian taters” “Cannibalized it so much it looks like I left it in a bad part of town”), deal with countless months by himself, and basically frantically try not to die. Through it all, he keeps a sense of humor that still (yes, still, I’m on my 12th listen or so) makes me snicker, and is obviously brilliant in a MacGuyver sort of way, yet utterly relate-able. At this point, I’ve listened to The Martian so much that he’s like a dear friend that I’m constantly rooting for. His reactions are utterly believable .

Andy Weir did a FANTASTIC job with this book.

If you like scifi at all, you will love this book. If you need a hero you can root for, you will love this book. Also, if you're looking for an audio book that is fast-paced, great quality, with an easy to understand and wonderful narrator, you will love the audio book version.

Now, to be fair, some people have complained that there's a lot of science in this book, and that it can be kind of hard to get through because of that. Here's my take on that. Is there a lot of science? Yes. BUT, its not overwhelming. Weir doesn't bombard you with pages upon pages of incomprehensible technobabble. He tells you what's going on in a way that, even if you don't understand the precise details behind what's happening, you still know what's going on. I don't believe at any point that its excessive, and most of the time I found it downright fascinating!

I'm sure this book has a few negatives, but... not any that I can identify.

PS: Lots of F-bombs dropped in the book. Don’t read if you’re sensitive to that.
  
Tails from the Deep
Tails from the Deep
Diane Vallere | 2019 | Mystery
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Zoe is the middle of three sisters, the daughters of Mother, the leader of the merfolk settlement Sirenia somewhere under the sea. Unlike her other sisters, Zoe loves to explore. One of her favorite places is a shipwreck beyond the edges of her merfolk village. She sneaks out there quite frequently, so when things seem off one day, she is quick to notice. When she returns the next day, she finds a human diver trapped on the bottom next to a dead body. She frees the diver, but her actions lead to questions that might impact her settlement. Can she figure out who to trust and what is really going on?

Mermaid mysteries are definitely something different, but I couldn’t resist when Diane announced she was going to write these. After all, I love the water, so the idea of living under the sea, at least for a few pages, was too irresistible. I’m glad I did because I enjoyed this story. This reads very much like a cozy murder mystery with plenty of twists and turns. The end was a little abrupt, but that’s a minor issue. As we read, we also get a feel for mermaid culture, which was a delight. Many of the slight twists on our world and expectations made me smile. It was definitely well thought out. We also get to know Zoe very well over the course of the story since is many ways these stories are coming of age stories in addition to mysteries. Since it is a 100 page novella, there isn’t tons of character development for the rest of the characters, but they still come across as real. The other two stories focus on Zoe’s sisters, and I can’t wait to see how they are developed and how that fits with Zoe’s take on her sisters. If you are looking for a slight fantasy edge to your cozy, I definitely recommend this novella for something different.

NOTE: This story, along with the stories of Zoe’s sisters, are included in the Mermaid Mysteries anthology. Buy them individually or as a set, but there is no need to buy both.
  
Insurgent (2015)
Insurgent (2015)
2015 | Action, Drama, Sci-Fi
With the faction system thrown out of balance, Jeanine Matthews(Kate Winslet) the leader of Erudite needs to find someone who can open a box with the answer to fix it all. Unfortunately, only a special Divergent can open the box, and Tris Prior (Shailene Woodley) is that one. Based on Veronica Roth’s bestselling book Insurgent comes second installment of The Divergent Series: Insurgent.
With Tris, Four (Theo James), Peter (Miles Teller) and Caleb (Ansel Elgort) on the run from Eric (Jai Courtney) and other members of the Dauntless who follow Erudite. Now being blamed for the attack on Abnegation Tris and the others must fight to stay alive; to do so they seek refuge with Amity. From that point on Tris and Four realize they must find the rest of the Dauntless to stop Jeanine from slaughtering anymore innocent lives. With betrayal, alliances, and having to face the truth; Tris struggles to forgive herself for the events that happened in Divergent. Will the truth set her free or will she get herself killed?

The second installment of the Divergent franchise brings a strong focus to plot progression and more so action. With the main characters on the run the pace of the movie is fast and keeps the viewer entertained. Be warned though, the 3D is kind of a pain; since a lot of the scenes having running or speedy shots the glasses definitely took away from the experience. If I were to go see it again it would be 2D for me. The acting between the two stars Shailene Woodley and Theo James is a homerun; the chemistry from the first movie did not fade in the second! However, one problem I had with this film is the soundtrack; I feel the first movie had such a dynamic background track. Unfortunately, this film’s soundtrack really did not stand out as must as the first one.

I would recommend this movie to anyone who loved the first one, but to the fans of the books I would take it with a grain of salt. It’s not exactly like the book, but as a fan of the books and the first movie I thought it was a great adaptation.
  
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Graham Massey recommended Angel's Egg by Gong in Music (curated)

 
Angel&#039;s Egg by Gong
Angel's Egg by Gong
2019 | Pop
6.0 (2 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"My entry into Gong would've been the Camembert Electrique album, which I bought for 50p or something like that. A lot of people at school had that record and, in fact, my first entry into being in a band at school was a band that just did Gong cover versions. It was an interesting education as I was dabbling around on an electric violin, and what with all those interesting time signatures. We did a street party for the Queen's Silver Jubilee in 1977 and just played Gong covers! Later, down the line, one of the guys who was in the band became a member of Gong in the 80s, a guy called Graham Clark, and we got to the know them quite well. We were that much of a bunch of fanboys that we would make our way into the dressing room. There was a point when Gong founder Daevid Allen was playing with Here And Now, which was like this festival-type band, and every time they came to Manchester they let us play on stage using their instruments. We had this group called Danny And The Dressmakers and we'd play the worst noise you could possibly play; it was like an anti-band. We went on tour with Here And Now in a converted ambulance and did three gigs with them. And so we built a strong allegiance to the brand of Gong, which has carried on throughout my life. We also performed at the Gong Family Unconvention in Amsterdam at the Melkweg many years later, and Daevid Allen stayed at my house a few times. He was a very interesting character and proper musical melting pot in terms of where he comes from. I picked Angel's Egg because it's when the band was still experimenting. There are tracks here that are real improv, while others are really composed. There are tracks where certain members take a lead on it. They recently put a box set called Love From Planet Gong and listening to the re-mastered version of Angel's Egg, it occurred to me that this music couldn't be dreamed up in most people's imaginations. It's a fascinating record."

Source
  
The Girl He Used to Know
The Girl He Used to Know
Tracey Garvis Graves | 2019 | Fiction & Poetry, Romance
4
8.0 (3 Ratings)
Book Rating
This review and more can be found at my blog
https://aromancereadersreviews.blogspot.com
A Romance Reader's Reviews

I'll admit I bought this as a spur of the moment thing from one of my favourite bargain book shops The Works. I've never read anything by this author though I do have her book, "On the Island", to read on my Kindle - and have done for several years now.

This book switches between 1991 and 2001 with almost every chapter after Annika meets her college love for the first time in years, bringing back memories of their time together and making her want to reconnect with him. They meet for coffee and decide to reconnect as friends, going out to dinner later on in the week. Things slowly progress between them and they try again.

The last few chapters of the book take place around September 2001. I honestly had no idea where the author was going with this until the news channel Annika was watching started talking about "a plane crashing into the North Tower" and I'll admit a little shiver went through me.

I'm assuming Annika has some sort of Autism because she has a lot of the same traits as Rikki - from - that I read a little while ago. Doesn't like certain clothing because of how it feels, hates loud sounds, doesn't know how to interact with people very well...etc. In fact this was discussed further on in the book and she is on the Autism spectrum.

I guess people are a bit cruel to those they don't get or understand but I really like how Jonathan always seemed to know what to say and do to ease Annika's anxieties when they were out together. He didn't mind putting his own wants aside to help Annika cope better in situations. They were perfect for each other in that.

I just found the story a little slow and not much seemed to happen in it really. The jumping between months seemed to miss out a lot of their growing relationship and I always feel a little cheated when that happens. I like to read it all.