Smashbomb

Merissa (12934 KP) rated Operation Pinpoint (Space Force Rejects, #1) in Books

Nov 2, 2022

Operation Pinpoint (Space Force Rejects, #1)

Landra Graf | 2022 | Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy

8

8.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

It can be hot in space!

OPERATION PINPOINT is the first book in the Space Force Rejects series and we are introduced to a world where people live on Motherships and Space Force helps other species. Of course, help isn't always wanted and Dravos is one who definitely didn't want the humans' help. He has been imprisoned and tortured for the past five years, and now has a kill chip inserted in his brain stem. Ravenna has the code to set it off, but she is more interested in saving her lover, Yve, than blowing up an alien who hasn't harmed her. Plus, she feels a connection with him she's not prepared to admit to, just yet.

This was a great story, with wonderful world-building that helps you to see the ships, the commandos, the scientists, and the other species. Ravenna, for all she is a good commando, is also incredibly naïve, thinking Space Force only does good, not harming anyone or anything. Both Dravos and Ravenna have a lot of learning to do as their story intertwines.

The story moves along at a good pace, the relationship between Ravenna and Dravos deepening as it does. I did feel their declarations were a bit out of the blue, but that's probably just me. I did love how they were together, the protectiveness they felt towards each other shone through.

It ends with a HFN semi-cliffhanger that will definitely leave you wanting to return to this world. I have questions I need answers to, that involve Ravenna, Dravos, and Centra. I need more! A great start to a series that I definitely recommend and can't wait to read more.

** same worded review will appear elsewhere **

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!

Kudos (1)

Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated Hush, Hush (Hush, Hush, #1) in Books

Dec 26, 2019 (Updated Jan 22, 2024)

Hush, Hush (Hush, Hush, #1)

Becca Fitzpatrick | 2009 | Paranormal, Romance, Young Adult (YA)

4

7.6

(36 Ratings)

Book Rating

16 of 220
Kindle
Reread
Hush, Hush (book 1)
By Becca Fitzpatrick
⭐⭐

For Nora Grey, romance was not part of the plan. She's never been particularly attracted to the boys at her school, no matter how much her best friend, Vee, pushes them at her. Not until Patch came along.

With his easy smile and eyes that seem to see inside her, Nora is drawn to him against her better judgment.

But after a series of terrifying encounters, Nora's not sure who to trust. Patch seems to be everywhere she is, and to know more about her than her closest friends. She can't decide whether she should fall into his arms or run and hide. And when she tries to seek some answers, she finds herself near a truth that is way more unsettling than anything Patch makes her feel.

For Nora is right in the middle of an ancient battle between the immortal and those that have fallen - and, when it comes to choosing sides, the wrong choice will cost her life.

This is a reread for me as it was so long ago when I first read it. It was ok but not as good as I thought it was the first time round.

Kudos

Goddess in the Stacks (553 KP) rated Future Home of the Living God in Books

Mar 25, 2018

Future Home of the Living God

Louise Erdrich | 2018 | Science Fiction/Fantasy

3

4.5

(2 Ratings)

Book Rating

Minority Representation (1 more)

Interesting premise

NO ANSWERS (1 more)

No resolution

Well that was a waste of time. This book spends its entire length asking one real question. Will the main character's baby survive? There are a number of smaller questions - Will the baby be born normal? Why is evolution turning backwards, or sideways? What happened to the main character's father? What happened to her friend from the hospital? What happened to her husband? Does she ever find freedom?

THE BOOK ANSWERS NONE OF THESE QUESTIONS.

I am really frustrated with this book. Why did I bother reading it if it refuses to resolve any of its plotlines?

We're going to get a little bit into writing theory here. It has been a classic recommendation to have the climax of your book 2/3 of the way through the book, and have the last third be denouement. Wrap-up. Show us how the climax affected the characters and the world. John Green does this well - all his books follow a standard plot line. Character A is introduced. A meets B. B changes A's life. B leaves A's life. (Those last two are usually incorporated in the climax of the book.) A has to learn how to live without B in a world changed by B's existence in it. It's a little formulaic, but it works for Green, and his books are great. Some books do not do this so well. Wheel of Time had 5-6 pages of denouement after the series climax, and nothing was really revealed about how the events changed the world for the better. Future Home of the Living God had TWO. TWO PAGES AFTER THE CLIMAX. AND THEY ANSWER NOTHING. The main character talks about missing winter.

I finished the book and almost threw it across the room. I probably would have, except for two things: I was at a friend's house, and it was a library book. That's all that saved it from that fate. I have stacks of books I want to read, and I feel like I just wasted a few hours on this piece of crap.

The writing was actually pretty good, and the main character is an Ojibwe Indian, so there's minority representation, but the book as a whole was just CRAP. Wrap up your plotlines. Answer the questions you ask. (At least the ones having to do with your plot - you can leave unanswered philosophical questions, that's fine.)

Hard pass on this book.

You can find all my reviews at http://goddessinthestacks.wordpress.com

Kudos (2)

ClareR (5885 KP) Aug 2, 2018

I’m ok with no resolution - in fact I like a book or film like that (I know, I’m a bit weird). I just felt it was all a bit copied from The Handmaids Tale. She tried hard with the whole ‘evolution going backwards’ thing, but I don’t think it was quite enough for me.
I liked her writing though, and I liked Cedar, so I think that’s why my rating is a bit higher.

Kudos (1)

Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated Reclamation ( Shadowed Wings book 3) in Books

Sep 9, 2022

Contains spoilers, click to show

162 of 230
Kindle
Reclamation ( Shadowed Wings book 3)
By Ivy Ash
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
🌶🌶

The last place I ever wanted to be was in the middle of someone else’s war. Too bad fate doesn’t give a fuck.

When I first woke up in the land of the Gryphons, I had one goal...getting back home.

I was so focused on figuring out how to leave that I got myself exiled from the Hidden, captured by the Avowed, and managed to claim not one, but three mates. Although I had no idea about that last one until it was too late.

Oh right, and then I almost died.

I thought having my throat slit from ear to ear was going to be the worst of my problems. But my asshole mates make coming back from the brink of death look like a glide through the sky compared to dealing with them.

I’m ready to accept my fate and right the wrongs of the past. I just wish I had some idea how to keep the pricks I’m bound to from fighting long enough so we can find the help we need.

I’m supposed to awaken all that I am in order to finally free the Gryphons, but will I find the key to unlock all the answers in time?

War is breathing down our backs, and if we can’t figure out how to come together...we’re all going to die.

So I was left reeling after the last two chapters in book 2 so I was thinking all sorts going into book 3. I just loved this book I think Falon is just brilliant she just does not give a f**k. She finally stands up to the 3 meat heads she is mated too and that scene I was just laughing. She finally finds her place in the world and does it with such a filthy mouth, there’s no holding her back. She reminds me so much of a person in my life. Definitely a series I’d recommend I think I need to start the series before this one as the ending has me believing they are lin

Kudos

LoganCrews (2861 KP) rated Saw II (2005) in Movies

Jul 4, 2021

Saw II (2005)

2005 | Horror, Mystery

8

6.7

(23 Ratings)

Movie Rating

Guttural. Few other horror franchises loathe their characters as deeply and as passionately as 𝘚𝘢𝘸 - not even two minutes into the movie and it already proceeds to chuck these people down the garbage disposal without remorse. Has the worst outlook possible on life as a whole, revels in such an instantaneous breakdown of the human body and mind. Trades out the 'knucklehead Shakespeare' vibes of the original to double down on its endlessly creative gore, which is a fair tradeoff if we can't get both I guess. Can't believe this is the same Darren Lynn who directed 𝘚𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘢𝘭 - which I not only am beginning to dislike more and more with each revisit to the originals, but which also gets next to no points for being pro-ACAB when this one did it first *and* better 16 years prior. Filled with a multitude of anxious cuts and cool-as-hell camera trickeries (plus such a tantalizing MTV filth aesthetic), often unfairly shunned for being amateurish I'd actually argue the opposite - quick flashes of people in agony, everyone turning against each other and scrambling for answers with each passing second, visually emulating the final stages of a person's fight-or-flight mode like no other horror series before or after. The hypodermic needle pit still remains an all-time skin-crawler. In an age filled with such intolerably self-conscious bleakness in cinema, it's refreshing to see it done so sincerely with these.

Kudos

Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2355 KP) rated Ghosts of Painting Past in Books

Nov 20, 2019

Uncovering the Past at Christmas

The house across the street from Rory is being torn down, so she is trying to drown out the sound of construction vehicles with Christmas carols when the sound suddenly stops. The crew has found bones buried under a building in the backyard. It isn’t long before the police have been able to identify the bones, but their identity puts Rory’s father in the role of suspect. Rory tries to help out with a variety of holiday events planned in the community, including finishing up her own ornaments to sell at the craft fair despite what is happening in town, but when a new body turns up, the stakes are raised. Can she figure out what happened in the past and how that is impacting the present?

Mysteries that involve the past can be great when there is a compelling reason for the characters to care about it today. That’s definitely the case here. Rory has a couple of reasons to make sure this case is wrapped up in time for Christmas, and she gets plenty of clues and red herrings to keep her guessing. The pace is fast, and the climax answers all our questions. The series’ tone is a bit darker overall, and that’s the case here again as well, but we do have some Christmas fun to help lighten the mood. I really enjoyed the fact that this book is set in Southern California, so, while we get plenty of holiday spirit, we do it without snow. I could relate. The main characters continue to grow, and the new characters are just as strong. With Christmas fast approaching, now is the perfect time to pick up this book.

Kudos (2)

Hazel (2934 KP) rated The Little Grave (Detective Amanda Steele #1) in Books

Jan 17, 2021

I admit I don't read a lot of American crime; I've nothing against it but I just happen to prefer my crime books to be set in the UK however, this one caught my eye and I thought I'd have a bit of a change and, overall, I was very satisfied.

The blurb, as you can see, is a long one and sets the scene very well for this solid start to a new series.

Amanda is a complex character and was difficult to get to like at first but this was understandable given what she has experienced; she did grow on me at the end as she started to work through her grief and the true Amanda came out however, I admit to nearly giving up on her but glad I didn't.

As the blurb says, Amanda is investigating the murder of the man who killed her husband and daughter but can she be objective and why is she getting threatening phone calls telling her to back off? She doesn't of course, otherwise there wouldn't be a book, but this is not a straightforward murder and does it have anything to do with the murder of the man's business partner and an exotic dancer or is it just a coincidence? The closer Amanda gets to finding out, the closer she gets to discovering the answers are closer to home than she could ever imagined.

The plot was great, the pace was good and the characters were explored just enough to wet your appetite to want to get to know them more, particularly Trent, but what I felt was really well explored was the grieving process that Amanda was experiencing. I really got a sense of her total desolation and how little things triggered memories of her dead loved ones and how this impacted on her every waking minute because, let's face it, if you had lost your entire reason for being, I'm sure you'd be the same.

Like I said at the beginning, this is a solid start to a new series and I am looking forward to seeing what comes next.

Many thanks to Bookoutre and NetGalley for my copy in return for an unbiased review.

Kudos (4)

Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated Her Wolf (Westervelt Wolves #1) in Books

Aug 12, 2019

Loved it!

Contains spoilers, click to show

Ashlee Morrison has a secret obsession—with a dark and mysterious male. The only problem is that he’s a wolf and she’s becoming convinced that she’s insane. But Ashlee’s wolf is no ordinary canine; he is Tristan Kane, third son in the royal family of the Westervelt Wolf pack.

Trapped in his wolf form by his evil father’s men, Tristan has desperately sought a way out of predicament and is shocked to find that the sad but beautiful redhead who has come to the wolf cage can not only hear him, but awakens in him the knowledge that she is his mate, the other half of his soul.

Ashlee, unaware that she is half wolf-shifter, agrees to accompany Tristan back to his pack in Maine to seek answers to her past and understand her future. But as Tristan and Ashlee grow closer, familial betrayals will threaten to destroy the fragile love they have started to build.

With the odds stacked against them, Ashlee and Tristan will either embrace their love to save the Westervelt Wolves or be lost forever to despair.

<strong>Brilliant</strong>

I was looking forward to this as other books of Rebecca's I've enjoyed. This one has to be my favourite so far! I loved the whole concept of it. It was told brilliantly especially for her her first published book. I really enjoyed the conversation between Ash and her wolf. I'm very much looking forward to reading the test of the series !

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Kudos

Merissa (12934 KP) rated The Nexus Games (Nexus Games #1) in Books

May 10, 2022 (Updated Jun 20, 2023)

The Nexus Games (Nexus Games #1)

Shami Stovall | 2022 | Science Fiction/Fantasy, Thriller

8

8.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

THE NEXUS GAMES is the first book in a new series of the same name that takes you into a game world where kindness is seen as a disadvantage.

Kellen is taken to this world, along with the woman he met that night, Mavis. He is told they have to play the game to get back home. Think of it as a cross between The Hunger Games and Wizard of Oz! It turns out, there is more to the world than Kellen or Mavis ever thought, with other dimensions and different versions of themselves in every dimension.

The team Kellen is playing with is full of secrets -- and you don't get the answers, not in this book! So prepare yourself because you will finish the book with questions unanswered. Also, it ends on a HUGE cliffhanger, so consider yourself warned.

As with all books by this author, the world-building is second to none. You find out what you need to know, when you need to know it. You learn about the magic of this world as Kellen does.

This is a long story so plenty to get your teeth into. It is definitely recommended by me and I can't wait to see where it goes next.

Just one question though, where can I get an albino wyvern?

** same worded review will appear elsewhere **

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
May 9, 2022

Kudos (1)

Kristy H (1252 KP) rated All the Best Lies in Books

Mar 19, 2020

The third book in the Ellery Hathaway series finds FBI Agent Reed Markham taking on a particularly personal case--his birth mother's murder. His mother, Camilla, was stabbed to death over forty years ago while baby Reed was nearby in his crib. Her killer was never found. It's a cold case now for the Las Vegas Police Department. Reed asks for Ellery's help and the two travel together to Las Vegas to search for answers. But Reed soon learns something shocking about his past, leading him to add someone incredibly close to him to his list of suspects. In Vegas, that list soon grows, and they realize that the killer--even after all these years--isn't happy with Reed and Ellery stirring things up.

This was another stellar entry in this series. I absolutely love Ellery and Reed, and it was great seeing Reed work on a case that meant so much to him. It reminded me of an early Harry Bosch in Michael Connelly's books, when he tries to track down his own mother's killer. Both Reed and Ellery deal with family issues in the book. As always, there is sizzling chemistry between the two. Their relationship just gets better and better, as each struggles with their own problems, and they grow closer and closer.

There's a lot of focus on Reed here, of course, as we learn more about both his mother and his adopted family, the Markhams (Reed was adopted by Senator Angus Markham from Virginia). His mother's case is mesmerizing, and there is no shortage of suspects, including lowlife drug dealer Billy Thorndike; her cop boyfriend, David; and more. Schaffhausen does an excellent job portraying Camilla's life forty years ago, and she comes to life easily.

As always, there are some wonderful twists and turns, and the book is easy-to-read. The pages turn quickly, between Reed and Ellery's excellent magnetism and the well-paced, absorbing mystery. This may be my favorite one so far, and that's saying a lot! 4.5 stars.

Kudos

Join Smashbomb

Merissa (12934 KP) rated Operation Pinpoint (Space Force Rejects, #1) in Books

Nov 2, 2022

Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated Hush, Hush (Hush, Hush, #1) in Books

Dec 26, 2019 (Updated Jan 22, 2024)

Goddess in the Stacks (553 KP) rated Future Home of the Living God in Books

Mar 25, 2018

ClareR (5885 KP) Aug 2, 2018

Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated Reclamation ( Shadowed Wings book 3) in Books

Sep 9, 2022

LoganCrews (2861 KP) rated Saw II (2005) in Movies

Jul 4, 2021

Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2355 KP) rated Ghosts of Painting Past in Books

Nov 20, 2019

Hazel (2934 KP) rated The Little Grave (Detective Amanda Steele #1) in Books

Jan 17, 2021

Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated Her Wolf (Westervelt Wolves #1) in Books

Aug 12, 2019

Merissa (12934 KP) rated The Nexus Games (Nexus Games #1) in Books

May 10, 2022 (Updated Jun 20, 2023)

Kristy H (1252 KP) rated All the Best Lies in Books

Mar 19, 2020