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Taking Tiger Mountain (By Strategy) by Brian Eno
Taking Tiger Mountain (By Strategy) by Brian Eno
1974 | Rock
9.5 (2 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"There’s something very quirky about the two records Brian Eno made just after he left Roxy Music. They feel naturally 'him’, in a way, like he didn’t really think about it too much. He did it very quickly, in a sort of 'of-the-time’ kind of way, and those records really brought out his character more than any other music he’s done over the years, even including his ambient stuff – I think he thinks about all that ambient stuff too much, in a way. The earlier records feel like they were done with humour and fun. Obviously there’s a big cash incentive if you’re asked to produce Coldplay or U2, they’re difficult things to turn down if you’re any producer. But I think it’s been debilitating for him, he should just be more experimental. [But] I do hear a lot of good stories about his approach and the way he coaxes the best out of people as a producer. There was a bit of a connection between him and Depeche Mode – he did some remixes for 'I Feel You', which were called the Swamp mixes, and they’re typical Eno. They sound exactly like the kind of thing you’d expect him to do, and I loved them. And I thought they were great. There was a connection because Flood had worked with on the U2 records, and they’d hired a house and built a studio there, and all lived together to make a record. I said 'That’s a great idea, let’s do the same thing’. And it was a total disaster. We lived together and recorded together, and of course, it was one of the most uncreative recording sessions… actually, it wasn’t really – it was one of the most difficult recording sessions we’ve ever had. We were all living in this house and nothing was getting done, and yet, when I look back and see what we produced over a very long period of ten weeks, we recorded three of the best Mode tracks ever."

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    FocusNow - Bye delay

    FocusNow - Bye delay

    Productivity and Utilities

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    *Most amazing Pomodoro App helps you overcome dilly-dally. *Most effective habit cultivation tool...

The Fourth State of Matter (The Valence Chronicles #1)
The Fourth State of Matter (The Valence Chronicles #1)
D'Arcy Arden | 2021 | Erotica, LGBTQ+, Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
THE FOURTH STATE OF MATTER is the first book in the Valence Chronicles and we are introduced to Item 2689, a living decor in an alien home. He was human but has been altered to better resemble an object, rather than a living person. It is only as the story progresses you find out just how much has been changed. He lives a monotonous life in a white, sterile environment. He only realises such when three 'ship-dwellers' (used as a slur) inhabit the home where he resides.

What follows is an awakening in every sense of the word. Pet - as he becomes known - is shown how to LIVE. He is wanted for who he is, not for what he is. He has some issues adjusting, but who wouldn't? Their relationship is still early on and I loved watching it develop.

As for his aliens, they are all very different, with individual appearances and voices that make it easy to see which one is speaking/doing/thinking. They have their own history, of which we only get to know some of it. I think they are rounded out perfectly by each other, and Pet fills any remaining gaps. I can't wait to see how their relationship deepens as they spend more time and adventures together.

I thoroughly enjoyed the pacing of this novel, together with the back and forth from the past to the present. Both were needed to fully understand how they came to be together and the difficulties they have and still face.

A brilliant start to the series with a HFN ending and a cliffhanger. I can't wait to continue on my space adventure. Definitely recommended by me.

** 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!
  
    Toca Band

    Toca Band

    Education and Music

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    Play with sounds and create your own band! Rock out with Toca Band! Toca Band is getting ready...

Our Summer Together
Our Summer Together
Fanny Blake | 2017 | Fiction & Poetry, Romance
8
8.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
Second Chance at Love and Life
Review I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.

This latest book by women’s fiction author Fanny Blake is an uplifting story about family and finding love later in life. Our Summer Together begins with Caro, a portrait painter, and part-time art teacher, running around after her two adult daughters, Lauren and Amy. With barely a moment to herself, Caro flits between looking after her three-year-old grandson and helping out at Amy’s florist shop. However, one day, a brief encounter on the train home sparks excitement back into her life.

From the train to decorating her house and, finally, becoming her lodger, Caro gets to know the mysterious Damir as he gradually opens up about his past. Despite being fifteen years younger than her, Caro falls in love with the Bosnian and he with her, but can this elation last?

Despite her new chance at love, Caro has so many other things to worry about. Her ex-husband Chris is filing for divorce so that he can marry his new, much younger woman. However, this involves selling the house that Caro lives in and where her children grew up. On top of that, her eldest daughter, Lauren, is sceptical about Damir and is not afraid of saying so. With life as she knew it crashing down around her, Caro must decide whether Damir is worth it, but, most importantly, does he really want her in his life?

The title of the book, Our Summer Together, creates a sense of foreboding from the very beginning. Implying that Caro and Damir will only have one season together puts the reader on tenterhooks: what will go wrong? Desperate for a happy ending, we plough through the chapters wishing that their happiness could last forever.

It is refreshing to read about a romance developing between older characters rather than the typical twenty or thirty-something. A second chance at love feels much more satisfying than a will-they-won’t-they, playing hard-to-get attempt at a first serious relationship.

Alongside the love and joyfulness is a darker history that opens the readers’ eyes to events occurring during their lifetime that they may not have been very aware of. Growing up in Bosnia, Damir was subjected to war and violence, losing all his family and having a disastrous start at adulthood. For Damir, his relationship with Caro is not only a second-chance at love, but a second-chance at life, too.

Our Summer Together is a relaxing book to read that can either be devoured quickly or eked out over a period of time. With humour, reality and a range of emotions, it is impossible to find the story boring. Whatever your usual genre of choice, this book will be a refreshing change
  
Providence: A Novel
Providence: A Novel
Caroline Kepnes | 2018 | Fiction & Poetry, Science Fiction/Fantasy
9
8.7 (3 Ratings)
Book Rating
Fans of Stranger Things will love this! SO clever and Unique (0 more)
If you don't like love stories, might not be your cup of tea, but I'm not and I still enjoyed it! (0 more)
Super Fun Read!
Wow! This was my first Caroline Kepnes book and let me tell you - it will NOT be my last! I loved this book, I flew through it and did not want it to end, and what a fun and unique story! I'm a HUGE Stranger Things fan, and this reminded me a bit of that - part sci-fi/fantasy/horror, but also part mystery/detective thriller - so many things I love all mixed in to one really clever tale. In the end, it's really a fun journey across time between two star crossed lovers - desperate to be together in a masterfully crafted journey of horrible circumstances that may forever keep them apart.

You get sucked in right away... Jon and Chloe are high school teens, the best of friends, and you assume, in time, they'll be together forever as you can see how much they love one another. Then, one morning Jon gets kidnapped and everything changes. Something happened to him and we might never be able to see if him and Chloe will that next step and spend their lives together. The things that have happened to him, may keep them apart forever.

The coming-of-age part is really interesting here, because Jon misses so much he's forced to grow up when his body has already done so. And the duality of good vs. evil comes into play a lot - and what a struggle it is to keep the two separate, when their pull is almost beyond control. We also follow the story of Eggs, who is a pretty darn smart detective, obsessed with a case that haunts him. And we follow his own life, his struggle with family, and how he tries to put the pieces of his own life back together while it falls apart around him - as he tries to solve a really strange mystery.

There is a lot of HP Lovecraft reference in this book, including a yearly Lovecraft convention (he was from Providence). I've heard him referenced in several novels before but have never actually read his work. I think I just might have to check it out now. BUT it did not hinder the story at all if you aren't familiar with his work. I am not familiar, and I loved every minute of the book!

This book was so much fun - a bit peculiar in parts but seriously, a fun ride from start to finish. Thanks to NetGalley and Caroline Kepnes and Random House Publishing Group for the advanced copy to review.