Uptown Oracle (24 KP) rated Clockwork Prince in Books
Jun 30, 2017
Clockwork Prince avoids the middle book slump that a lot of trilogies endure. The first book was good but this book was definitely better in my eyes. One of the main reasons must be because of the amount of backstory. It really felt like Clare had thought out every single little detail. Such as what happened to Will as a child, or what is Tessa really?
Clare also didn't make the mistake of reiterating her previous TMI books. Often writers have a set formula for their books, but Clare has branched out and added extra layers. There's some deceit, secrets and mystery woven within the plot.
I personally enjoyed all the information shown about the Clave and politics. We learn how heads of institutes are chosen, and that it can be challenged. We also learn about how Shadowhunters do cooperate with mundanes to a degree. There's involvements in the monarchies and governments of the time. These may be throwaway lines but I enjoy the world building it brings.
I also enjoyed the travel of England a bit. Clockwork Prince visited Yorkshire. There was also a throwaway comment about Grantham which is in my home county of Lincolnshire. Although it wasn't explored as a location, I enjoyed the reference since I did grow up 20 minutes away.
Overall I enjoyed Clockwork Prince. I hope the third book lives up to expectations.
Peter Shephard (2822 KP) rated Game Of Thrones - Season 8 in TV
Jun 1, 2019
It was a good distance away from the best seasons. I cant actually think of a season I liked less, but it wasnt a BAD season.
The set piece battles were visually amazing (even if the tactics were a bit suspect...), the story was "wrapped up" satisfactorily. It would have benefitted massively from an extra 1 or 2 episodes, even if just to get a sense of the scale of the undertaking - remember in Season 1 it took a month to travel from Kings Landing to Winterfell? Well apart from a fade-to-black and a comment about "three weeks" in the final episode, all the events could have been taking place in neighbouring cities. That's something which S7 and S8 have been guilty of, actually - the sense of scale was horribly lost (a quick marathon to the Wall, warp-speed ravens to Dragonstone, and a dragon flight back up, all within about 12h...?). It was also never explained how so many Dothraki and Unsullied survived the Battle of Winterfell - I have heard people saying that there was a comment that "only half of our forces are at Winterfell; the rest are at Dragonstone" but I've rewatched it and I must have missed it every time. Literally a 10 second clip would have made it all much more acceptable.
It is really unfortunate that S8 (and S7) felt rushed. I fully expect there to be a "viewers cut" on YouTube at some point which reuses scenes from other seasons to make it feel right.
I did enjoy it though.
Sassy Brit (97 KP) rated Anatomy of a Scandal in Books
Jun 5, 2019
James is accused of rape one of his assistants, but did he do it? While his wife Sophie is seemingly supportive on the outside, on the inside her mind is going crazy thinking about his alleged crimes and what he could in fact be capable of. Just how long can she remain loyal as the story unfolds?
We travel from the court case, back in time to Oxford in the 90s and into the current murky goings on within the privileged political world, where money, corruption and power rule the day.
This is an extremely well written and cleverly plotted, insightful story, which I can easily see adapted into a BBC drama, very much like Louise Doughty’s Apple Tree Yard.
Sarah Vaughan has mastered a treat for us with Anatomy of a Scandal, a sharp, engrossing and poignant political drama, which highlights some shocking hard-hitting facts with sensitivity and realism. Terrific!
BookwormMama14 (18 KP) rated The Innkeeper's Daughter (The Bow Street Runners #2) in Books
Jan 2, 2019
This story has so many moving parts that you just want to keep reading to figure out WHAT IS GOING ON??? Also, there were several times our hero needed a good purse whomping. I absolutely LOVED this story. The romantic tension between Alex and Johanna...*whew*...And the climax of that tension in their kiss(es)...Make sure you keep a fainting couch nearby...and possible smelling salts.
The common thread throughout this story is all about giving over the control of our lives to God. It is easy to SAY that we trust God to see us through things...And yet we can still be found trying to fix all the little things that go wrong on our own...Trying to make it all better...in our own power. Instead of trusting for a door to open from God...we pry open the cellar door into destruction and chaos and say, "LOOK! I found a way!!! It isn't a GOOD way...but I did it ALL ON MY OWN!" Michelle Griep addresses the need to trust in our Lord so well. And it really rings true.
If you love a good romance that is clean and passionate, sprinkled with mystery and intrigue, this is definitely a book that you will enjoy!
I received a complimentary copy of The Innkeeper's Daughter from the publishers through Celebrate Lit. I was not required to write an honest review. All opinions expressed are mine alone.
Leanne Crabtree (480 KP) rated Five Feet Apart in Books
Nov 18, 2019
Already at the hospital is her long time friend and fellow CF sufferer, Poe. And then there's new to the hospital Will, who's on a drug trial to stop his B. cepacia - which is a dangerous bacteria that can eventually kill CFers.
There's an instant attraction between Stella and Will but initially Stella's a little antagonistic towards Will as he seems too ready to give up on his treatment so he can travel before he dies. While Will thinks she's a teachers pet and a goody two shoes with how close she is to the nurses who've treated her since she was 6.
They eventually come to realise that they can help each other and the attraction grows - making them shrink the required 6 feet to 5 - and they fall in love.
I cried about three times during my reading of this because I had grown to like the characters and for being so young they'd all been through a lot.
I thought it was a cute story, falling in love while being poorly but did they really get their HEA?
LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014) in Movies
Aug 5, 2019
After becoming familiar with the characters throughout the X-Men and X2, it broke my heart when the third film failed to deliver the goods, as it seems like we wouldn't see a lot of the same actors again, especially after First Class introduced all new faces for some familiar characters.
When it was announced that DOFP would include both casts, I was so genuinely excited.
And rightly so.
This is the FOX-X-men equivalent of Infinity War. All of these characters coming together to stop a threat that fans have wanted to see on the big screen since day one - The Sentinels.
The bleak future painted is truly horrifying, as mutants are on the edge of extinction after being hunted down.
Throw is a little time travel to stop this future from ever coming to pass, and we are set with Wolverine in the 70s, with the cast of First Class.
It's a great move, and makes for a really fun setting, with high stakes to boot.
The action is plentiful and thrilling (especially the future-set fight near the end - hard to watch at times), and it's a real throwback to hear the original score from the original trilogy.
It ticks all the boxes as it plays on nostalgia, whilst giving us something new simultaneously.
It's a real treat for X-Men fans, and was for a short while, my favourite entry in the franchise (then Logan came along...)
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