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The Unmaking of Ellie Rook
The Unmaking of Ellie Rook
Sandra Ireland | 2019 | Fiction & Poetry, Mystery, Philosophy, Psychology & Social Sciences, Thriller
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
The protagonist in this novel was Ellie, and the whole story was told from her perspective. Ellie comes back to her hometown after the news, that her mother drowned. But as I was going through the pages, it was clear, that Rook family is a very dysfunctional one, hiding many horrible secrets. I really liked the way the author chose her characters, they all have a story to tell, they all are interesting and play very important parts in this book. I liked the way Ellie opened up and shared her story throughout the pages. She seemed fearless but used to crumble after her father’s words. I think she represents many of those, who grew up with abusive, controlling parent.

The narrative was very fast paced, and every chapter allowed to see a little bit more of Ellie’s past, and what shaped her to be the way she is now. The topics covered in this book were emotional and physical abuse, bullying, teenage romance, controlling behaviour and many more. This book has some very cleverly written surprises and twists and was an easy and pleasant read for me.

The atmosphere of this book is very dark, gloomy and messy, filled with scrap cars, crows, and violence. I liked the writing style of this novel, it was complex and layered. The chapters were short, and the ending of this book left me very satisfied indeed. Even though a single perspective was sufficient for me, I would’ve liked to read Imelda’s thoughts as well. I don’t really know how I feel about all that folk story about Finella, it adds a nice touch to the story, but making it a core of this book wasn’t really necessary.

So, to conclude, it is a really good domestic noir, filled with complex characters and difficult situations. I really enjoyed this book and the topics it discussed, and I recommend it to people who are looking for a quick but important read. I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did. 🙂
  
In Bloom (Sweetpea, #2)
In Bloom (Sweetpea, #2)
C.J. Skuse | 2018 | Crime, Law
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
This time Rhiannon takes us on an exclusive journey through her pregnancy, and it is absolutely hilarious. My inner psycho really missed this foul-mouthed but brutally honest character. (Don’t pretend you don’t have one!) It is so amusing to read about all her actions, pretending and manipulations and at the same time to hear what she is truly thinking about everybody in this book. She is a very original and absorbing character, that is why a single perspective in this book works very well.

This book is a continuation of the previous part, so if you would like to understand what is going on, you have to read Sweetpea first. The author takes us through Rhiannon’s pregnancy and the ugly stuff that pregnancy brings you. Yes, all the vomiting, backache, bloating and non stop eating etc., not the bliss, joy and other unicorn poop. SHE KEEPS IT REAL! 😀 The police are on Rhiannon’s back, and her baby is TRYING to stop her from the murdering, that is why our main character has to take it a bit easier in this book. For this reason, I found it a bit slow in some places, as not many things were happening, but the author threw in some unexpected twists in this story as well.

I really enjoyed C.J. Skuse’s writing style, which is not suitable for young readers, this book is filled with swear words, murders, and everything that you trying to protect your young ones from. 😀 The short chapters made the whole reading experience even more pleasurable. The ending of this novel was very unexpected but I really liked it, and I can not wait for another book in the series.

So, to conclude, if you like books about psychopaths, served with a huge portion of humour, foul language, and dark, but honest thoughts, these series are definitely for you! I hope you will give this book a try and will enjoy as much as I did. 🙂
  
Invisible Girl
Invisible Girl
Lisa Jewell | 2020 | Mystery, Thriller
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
A dark, creepy read full of surprises
Owen Pick, a teacher in his thirties, has never had a relationship with a women. He's barely even had a successful date. He's teased by the young female students at the college where he works. He lives in a flat owned by his elderly aunt and recently has found solace on incel forums. Across the street from Owen lives the Fours family. They, frankly, find Owen creepy, especially mom Cate and her teenage daughter. Dad, Roan, a child psychologist, is too busy with work to care that much, while their teenage son is basically the only one Cate doesn't need to worry about. And then there's Saffyre Maddox. Now seventeen, Saffyre, was once a patient of Roan's. She misses their connection and seeks to maintain it by following him. Then, one night, Saffyre disappears, and it seems like Owen was the last person to see her. What truly happened to Saffyre?

After a bit of a slump with thrillers, I'm on a roll (though what's with ambiguous endings lately?). This was a creepy and ominous read! There is a lot going on here--Saffyre and her childhood issues; Owen and his many problems with women; and the complete dysfunction of the Fours family--but Jewell does a good job weaving them all together. The result is a tense and dark novel that keeps you guessing the entire time.

"I have a dark past, and I have dark thoughts." ~Saffyre

This is an engaging read, with Saffyre, Cate, and Owen turning into dynamic and unique voices. It's also ominous, with the overriding sense that something bad is going to happen. Secrets are the name of the game here, and Jewell turns the sexual predator theme on its head a bit. There's also plenty of revenge and strong women, which is great.

I wasn't a fan of the ending, which leaves things up in the end, but this is still a twisty ride with interesting characters and a different plot. 4 stars.
  
Wolf Girl (Wolf Girl, #1)
Wolf Girl (Wolf Girl, #1)
Leia Stone | 2020 | Paranormal, Romance
7
7.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I got this from the Kindle Unlimited library

This starts with Demi being picked on by her school class for being the only shapeshifter and her trapped wolf trying to break free causing her to leave the room at a run and heading outside where she lets out a howl of pure anger. Only she isn't alone, an attractive wolf shifter - Sawyer - is behind her and invites her back to Wolf City - turns out he's the Alpha's son and will be Alpha very soon himself - and she goes with him, not expecting much, but finds herself included in a strange sort of real life The Bachelor type scenario.

I've never watched The Bachelor but i know the general idea for the show and this felt very similar. Although it was clear from early on that Sawyer is very much into Demi - more than any of the other girls, anyway. I liked how different it was in that way, I've never read a book that went along the lines of a dating show. It was kinda fun.

I actually really liked Sawyer. He wasn't the typical Alpha shifter. He could be very humble at times and was always considerate of what Demi wanted, unlike most other shifters you read about who are rather demanding and shove their thoughts and feelings onto others. I REALLY liked him!
Until that end bit! What was that all about? Doing a total 180 because of one strange thing that happened and then publicly declaring your marriage to someone else without talking about it? That totally knocked my rating down a full star because after everything that you'd done for each other, you do that to her?! It was totally out of left field.
Fair enough Demi thinks she's figured out whats happened but then it ended and I'm all up in the air. On one hand I was loving it up until that last chapter or so...

I need book 2 pronto so I can see what happens next with these two.
  
The Dig (2021)
The Dig (2021)
2021 | Drama, History
8
7.7 (3 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Acting from Fiennes and Mulligan - top notch (1 more)
Cinematography is gorgeous
Why make it so "man heavy" when history was otherwise? (1 more)
Found the asynchronous editing irritating
Archaeology with no fedora required
It’s 1939, and as World War 2 approaches, widower Edith Pretty (Carey Mulligan) hires rough and ready excavator Basil Brown (Ralph Fiennes) to dig into one of the ancient earth mounds on her property at the site that will become famous as Sutton Hoo in Suffolk. Requesting the help of her cousin Rory Lomax (Johnny Flynn) to photograph the effort, the site slowly gives up its Anglo-Saxon treasures attracting the attention of first the Ipswich museum and then the pompous Charles Phillips (Ken Stott) of the British Museum. A battle is on for both the control of the site and the resting place for the treasures found.

Against this backdrop there is a critical illness emerging, a son (Archie Barnes) and his attachment to the father figure of Brown and a potential romance between Rory and archaeologist Peggy Piggott, trapped in a loveless marriage.

Talent:
Starring: Carey Mulligan, Ralph Fiennes, Johnny Flynn, Lily James, Archie Barnes, Ken Stott, Monica Donlan.

Directed by: Simon Stone.

Written by: Moira Buffini (from the novel by John Preston).

Bullet points of my thoughts:

+ Superb acting by Mulligan and Fiennes – Oscar noms for both?
+ Young Archie Barnes impresses as the son Robert
+ Cinematography by Mike Eley shows the open Suffolk skies at their best
+ Based on fact, a fascinating historical record of the real excitement of uncovering the past
o The script deftly melds the archeology with the love story subplot: but was the latter really necessary?
– Curious “man heavy” script, replacing some of the historical female characters with men and making Peggy Piggott (Lily James) a bit of a klutz
– Asynchronous editing decision I found to be distracting and unnecessary.


For my full review, please see the video at https://youtu.be/m8Ad8B8dkSY .
  
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BookInspector (124 KP) rated 337 in Books

Dec 13, 2020  
337
337
M. Jonathan Lee | 2020 | Contemporary
6
6.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Slow life story
The protagonist in this story is Samuel, a man who lives quite a sad life, in my opinion. He is divorced, lives alone in his parent’s house, and doesn’t have many things going on, to be honest. He had quite a difficult life though. His mother left, the father was rigid and abusive, and his brother left as soon as that was possible. Samuel reflects a lot in this novel. He tells his life story, including the life of his grandmother, who is about to die. I didn’t really like Sam, he seems quite miserable and pretty dull. 😦

The narrative is told from a single, Samuel’s, perspective. There are quite a lot of thoughts and personal experiences shared in this novel. I kept waiting for that investigation and surprises, but they didn’t really come. There were attempts to it, but the time spent in a care home with grandmother took most of the narrative. The topics discussed in this novel were mental and physical abuse, children’s mental health issues, loneliness, drugs and alcohol use, controlling fathers and many more.

The atmosphere of this book is quite depressing, it is divided between sad memories and a dying grandmother. 😦 The writing style is quite thought-provoking and detail-oriented, and I did like the story that Sam shared with the readers. I also really liked the short and snappy chapters, that made the reading experience more enjoyable. I liked the ending of this book as well, it was very satisfying to have some sort of closure, and I do hope that Sam finally can have something positive in his life. 🙂

So, to conclude, it was an interesting experience to read a book focused on a man’s mental health issues and his relationships to his quite estranged family members. Even though this novel felt dark and sad, I think that Samuel’s life has thought-provoking experiences. Do give this book a go, and I hope you will like it. It is quite different…
  
I read A Note of Madness a little while ago and absolutely loved it. Flynn is a great character, and the story of his struggles with mental health is just fantastic. There can never be too much awareness, especially in boys/men.

This book was even more... emotional for me. I don't want to go into too much detail, but Flynn really reminds me of my boyfriend. The ending of this novel - while fantastic and honest - was not very comforting at all.

Jennah and Flynn started dating after the first book, and so in this book we alternate between the two narratives. Hearing Jennah's thoughts on what's happening with Flynn was amazing. I related to a lot of it.

In case you haven't heard about A Note of Madness, it's about Flynn Laukonen, a young uni student in London. He struggles with mental health problems and is misdiagnosed at first, but eventually correctly diagnosed with bipolar disorder. He suffers from extreme manic episodes, followed by severe depression. Fitting his music - especially competitions - around these episodes is quite a feat.

As I mentioned earlier, the ending is great. It was extremely bittersweet. I think it's good to be honest about things like this, though, and not just throw together a stereotypical happy ending.

In this book, Flynn goes through a few treatment methods. Following attempted suicide (which may be hard for some people to read about, so be warned) he is sectioned and sent to a residential unit for a month. He also has some issues involving his medication and the side effects they cause.

The most noteworthy thing about Jennah's take on Flynn's illness is her admitting that Flynn can be horrible and can hurt her sometimes, and it's okay to recognise that. Just because he is ill does not mean he is excused for harmful and mean behaviour. This is so important for anyone to realise when dealing with a loved one with any kind of mental health problems.

A really good book, realistic and reassuring but really quite emotional. 4 stars.
  
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Darren (1599 KP) rated Refuge (2013) in Movies

Sep 26, 2019  
Refuge (2013)
Refuge (2013)
2013 | Horror, Thriller
7
5.6 (5 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Characters – The characters focus on a family, Jack the father, the man that will do everything to keep his family safe, even if it means taking risks by saving strangers, he doesn’t back down from enemies or threats, but is forced into decisions he doesn’t want to make. Nell is the wife and mother, we don’t really learn too much about her though, she falls in the woman being protected circle. Birdie is the daughter that doesn’t fully understand the world and wants to just be a child in this world. Kyle is one of the people that Jack has saved in the past.

Performances – The performances from the cast are great throughout, we feel their bleak outlook on the life they are living which is what we want to see, the final act shows them at their best too.

Story – The story here follows a family in a post-apocalyptic world where the biggest threats marauders and the virus that has wiped out most of the world. This is a bleak story that helps show us just how desperate the world now is and not having any sort of zombie side to everything giving us the only enemy the human one. This keeps everything simple because it is all we need, even though it does follow the typical mistakes being made by the characters.

Thriller – This does try to keep us on the edge of our seats about whether our characters will survive and what is next in line for them.

Settings – The film keeps us in the bleak locations from start to finish, they show where people will survive and keeps us away from the big city.


Scene of the Movie – The break in.

That Moment That Annoyed Me – Just shot them.

Final Thoughts – This is one of the best looking bleak virus outbreak movies, it does have questionable character decisions but that does add to the drama.

 

Overall: Simple and effective.
  
Swiss Family Robinson (1960)
Swiss Family Robinson (1960)
1960 | Action, Family
5
7.7 (6 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Characters – The characters focus on a family, Jack the father, the man that will do everything to keep his family safe, even if it means taking risks by saving strangers, he doesn’t back down from enemies or threats, but is forced into decisions he doesn’t want to make. Nell is the wife and mother, we don’t really learn too much about her though, she falls in the woman being protected circle. Birdie is the daughter that doesn’t fully understand the world and wants to just be a child in this world. Kyle is one of the people that Jack has saved in the past.

Performances – The performances from the cast are great throughout, we feel their bleak outlook on the life they are living which is what we want to see, the final act shows them at their best too.

Story – The story here follows a family in a post-apocalyptic world where the biggest threats marauders and the virus that has wiped out most of the world. This is a bleak story that helps show us just how desperate the world now is and not having any sort of zombie side to everything giving us the only enemy the human one. This keeps everything simple because it is all we need, even though it does follow the typical mistakes being made by the characters.

Thriller – This does try to keep us on the edge of our seats about whether our characters will survive and what is next in line for them.

Settings – The film keeps us in the bleak locations from start to finish, they show where people will survive and keeps us away from the big city.


Scene of the Movie – The break in.

That Moment That Annoyed Me – Just shot them.

Final Thoughts – This is one of the best looking bleak virus outbreak movies, it does have questionable character decisions but that does add to the drama.

 

Overall: Simple and effective.
  
Lost In Translation (2003)
Lost In Translation (2003)
2003 | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Characters – Bob Harris is a faded movie star that can still gain a large pay check by starring in commercials, which is why he is in Tokyo, he is feeling lonely because his wife and children haven’t travelled once again, he does offer Charlotte advice about enjoying her life, but not rushing into anything. Charlotte is in Tokyo because of her husband’s work, this sees her feeling lonely as he is always work and she doesn’t know anybody else in the city, she makes friends with Bob as they start to experience the city together, she opens up about her struggle about finding her own calling in life. While Jon is the husband to Charlotte, we don’t really learn to much about him other than he is working.

Performances – The performance revolve around Scarlett Johansson and Bill Murray, they are both wonderful to watch as they show us just how talent they pair can be either alone or as a pair on the screen.

Story – The story follows two people from different worlds in America that are lost in Japan, only to find each other to keep each other company during their time in Tokyo. The story dives into the idea that being in a new country can be isolating and you will need to learn to find somebody new to help them enjoy their time in the country, it does show you can find somebody new could give you a conversation you aren’t able to with friends in your life.

Settings – The film uses the setting of Tokyo which shows just how difficult it can be to find yourself in a country where you have never visited.


Scene of the Movie – Karaoke

That Moment That Annoyed Me – It is just slow.

Final Thoughts – This is a life drama that shows us just how important communication is to the everyday life in a new country.

 

Overall: Just a life drama.