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The Silver Tide (The Copper Cat, #3)
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
My 200th book of the year was the final installment in Jen Williams’ The Copper Cat trilogy The Silver Tide and was it a doozie! The Copper Cat trilogy has got to be the best series I’ve read this year, so much so that I devoured it easily. It was without a doubt the best book of the trilogy with characters we’d only heard passing mentions of in the previous ones coming full circle and smacking us in the face. Devinia the Red? FTW!

The Silver Tide brought several running story arcs to a close nicely with just the right amount of action, drama and hate. Now I use the term hate lightly because it wasn’t hate from me but hate of some of the characters who originally I thought were good people – boy was I wrong.

The Silver Tide was the best title and I waited until right near the end to find out what the relevance of that was. Oh it was so good! I tweeted Jen Williams just before I got there grumbling because Sebastian was being abused in the book as a character and then I read the ending and my decision changed entirely.

This book had the same easy flow of dialogue and prose with character descriptions and world building in abundance – by world building, I don’t mean the standard Ede but a new “world” called Euriale where all sorts of weird and wonderful beasties and plants to die for – literally. This new world had some wonderful if slightly psychotic characters in it and there were pirates everywhere, several of those were psychotic as well.

The storyline for this book was based around Euriale and involved time travel, long dead gods and characters who have died and been reborn; Estenn a character who is half-mad at the beginning of the book and completely mad by the time Wydrin kicked her psycho butt is a new one, she’s entirely consumed by the Twins – Res’ni and Res’na – and believes herself to the their Emissary and it is because of Estenn that things happen in this book: good and innocent people die for her cause and Y’Gria followed by Y’Ruen, Res’ni and Res’na aid her in slaughtering the mages in a time gone by.

The ending, although sad because it ended, was brilliant. It was lovely seeing Sebastian finally get his happily ever after especially after the few disastrous attempts he made in the first two books – Oster and Sebastian I ship it. Dragon with dragon-kin oh yes! There was also a major overabundance of dragons and dragon-kin in this book and some pretty sweet new magical powers for Frith which was super.

Wydrin had her moments as always and this book was fantastically British in a lot of ways; including copious use of the words “fuck” and “mum” which I liked. I really can’t fault Wydrin Threefellows character in any way, shape or form and she went through some particularly freaky things in this book (when comparing the other books to this one, definitely freaky-deaky).

In all, this series was brilliant, it was a fantastic read all round and I’ve already got two people I know wanting to steal the series from me so they can read it on their own.
  
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Secrets In Shadows (Shadow Creek #1)
Secrets In Shadows (Shadow Creek #1)
Leah Blake | 2017 | Fiction & Poetry
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Secrets In Shadows (Shadow Creek #1) by Leah Blake
Secrets in Shadows is the first book in the Shadow Creek series, and it starts with a bang! Rex is held within what could be a vicious circle - his father didn't want to be a wolf, so concentrated on fitting in with the human world and passed no information onto his family. Unfortunately, that meant that Rex and his brother grew up knowing very little about what it means, and how to survive. When they are attacked, they head for the only sanctuary they know. It is here that Rex learns just how bratty he has been, and figures out what he must do to change. I'm glad he figured it out, because he was a pain to begin with! Devon is the strong, silent type, and doesn't want a mate, let alone someone like Rex. However, that doesn't stop him from helping Rex when some hyenas get out of hand.

Being the first book, there is a lot to take in as you figure out a new world, new rules, new wars. It never feels like an info-dump though, and is spread out throughout the book. With no editing or grammatical errors that disrupted my reading flow, I was engrossed with the story and found the pacing to be just right for me. I have no hesitation in recommending this book for all fans of #M_M #PNR.

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

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
  
Killman Creek: Stillhouse Lake Series
Killman Creek: Stillhouse Lake Series
Rachel Caine | 2017 | Thriller
9
8.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
Contains spoilers, click to show
150 of 200
Kindle
Killman Creek ( Stillhouse book 2)
By Rachel Caine

Every time Gwen closed her eyes, she saw him in her nightmares. Now her eyes are open, and he’s not going away.

Gwen Proctor won the battle to save her kids from her ex-husband, serial killer Melvin Royal, and his league of psychotic accomplices. But the war isn’t over. Not since Melvin broke out of prison. Not since she received a chilling text…

You’re not safe anywhere now.

Her refuge at Stillhouse Lake has become a trap. Gwen leaves her children in the protective custody of a fortified, well-armed neighbor. Now, with the help of Sam Cade, brother of one of Melvin’s victims, Gwen is going hunting. She’s learned how from one of the sickest killers alive.

But what she’s up against is beyond anything she feared—a sophisticated and savage mind game calculated to destroy her. As trust beyond her small circle of friends begins to vanish, Gwen has only fury and vengeance to believe in as she closes in on her prey. And sure as the night, one of them will die.




I loved book 1 but this blew it out of the water! I don’t know if it’s because I’m a mum myself but I felt absolutely every agony Gwen went through! That one section of the book had me sobbing and I’m not a crier at books but I was sobbing my heart absolutely broke for Gwen. I think this series Rachel has really pulled you into the characters worlds, I feel like I’m living it with them! This is the best Rachel Caine book I’ve read to date! If I had one criticism it would be more of Melvyns death!
  
Buried Secrets
Buried Secrets
Krissy Baccaro | 2020 | Crime, Mystery, Thriller
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
An atmospheric, emotional, Rollercoaster ride that has you hooked from the start
I’m extremely excited to share my review of Buried Secrets by Krissy Baccaro, courtesy of Love Books Group Tours

What an atmospheric, emotional, Rollercoaster ride this took me on! I’m going to have to bite my tongue, so I don’t include spoilers!

After her Grandfather “Poppy” passes on, our main protagonist Ella, sets out to unravel a family mystery, when she finds “the box” that he asks her to find as it was his dying wish.

It’s not often I find a book in this genre that touches me so deeply. This literally had my eyes welling right from the start. Buried Secrets is a page turner that takes a hold on you from the start and you won’t be able to put it down.

Krissy sets the scene beautifully and you can imagine yourself right alongside the cast of characters, taking in the sights, sounds and smells of Italy that she so wonderfully depicts. I even caught myself googling the places that were visited and now want to go myself to follow in Ella’s footsteps.

The characters are so well developed, multi faceted and believable! Characters you can imagine amongst your own family and circle of friends.

Moving on to the plot, where do I start? It was full of twists, turns and surprises! Just when you thought you had solved the mystery………. nope you’re wrong! Krissy goes and throws in another treat of a twist to throw you off guard.

This seriously isn’t a book to pass up and by the end, you will be left with so many unanswered questions that you’ll be pleased to hear that this is the 1st of a series and let me tell you, I for one can’t wait for the 2nd Ella Perri instalment. So all you mystery, crime and thriller fans, why are you still reading my ramblings? Go buy the book already, so I can talk about it with you.

Krissy……You nailed it!
  
Having not read book 1 in this series, I thought that I may get confused with reading this story. But, pleasantly, I was not and I thoroughly enjoyed this novel by a new to me author. Her writing style is captivating and her characters are heartwarming and friendly. Each page brought me something new to the story and before I knew it, I was on the last page.

This is a story of love, hope, longing and following God's plan for your life, no matter whether you were expecting it, or not. Kyle, Leah, Ben and all the characters within are facing everyday challenges and have to rely on God to help them find their ways. These sweet characters become more than just characters, they become a part of your heart and pull you into their circle. I loved that feeling!

This page turning novel is one that you don't want to miss! You'll be transported to Amish Country, feeling like you've put on that solid colored dress, jumped in the buddies and are following these sweet ladies and men around their homes. If you are looking for a novel that will captivate your mind and soul, grab this 4 star read now. You won't want to miss it! I can't wait to grab book 1 and see where it all began.

*I received a complimentary copy of this book from Publisher and was under no obligation to post a review, positive or negative.*
  
The Hangover Part III (2013)
The Hangover Part III (2013)
2013 | Comedy
When “The Hangover” came out in 2009 it did so with modest expectations. Few critics expected it to become a box office smash much less the highest grossing R rated comedy of its time. Naturally a sequel followed and despite mixed reviews, “The Hangover 2” reaped in millions and vaulted over the original in terms of earnings. So, it was no surprise when “The Hangover 3” was announced and that the cast and writer/director Todd Phillips would be back again for the further adventures of The Wolfpack.

The films starts with dysfunctional Alan (Zach Galifianakis), creating a spectacular mess and being his usual spoiled and oblivious self though the consequences which have tragic ramifications. His friends Stu (Ed Helms), Phil (Bradley Cooper), and Doug (Justin Bartha), decide that an intervention is needed and convince a reluctant Alan to get some help from a clinic in Arizona.

En route, the group is run off the road which results in Doug being held hostage by a criminal (John Goodman) who wants to use the group to bring in insane criminal Leslie Chow (ken Jeong). The group is told they have three days to find Chow and save Doug. It turns out Alan is the only one to have any contact with Chow since he was incarcerated. The guys soon find themselves in Tijuana hatching a desperate attempt to capture and return the demented Chow.

Naturally things do not go as planned and despite their best intentions the group only makes matters worse and sets a chain of events into action which bring them full circle in a race against time to save Doug.

This time out the film has ramped down the gross out humor of the first films aside for one epic scene following the credits. The film has some chuckles along the way but lacks the jaw dropping shock humor that defined the previous films. I spent the majority of the film enjoying the cast but waiting for the big comedic payoff to arrive which sadly did not come until the after-credits scene.

The cast works well with the material but it does seem like they have run out of ideas and are going through the motions. The addition of Melissa McCarthy does add some nice moments to the film and does leave open some ideas should they decide to continue the series despite promising that this is the conclusion. In the end it is a nice enough diversion but for me was neither as enjoyable nor memorable as the previous efforts.

http://sknr.net/2013/05/24/the-hangover-iii/