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LilyLovesIndie (123 KP) rated ƒire's Viking (ƒire's Viking, #2) in Books
Nov 5, 2018
In this, the second in the Eire's Viking Trilogy, Agnarr has returned to the Emerald Isle with his heart set on finding himself a wife and making a life amongst the people he had pillaged long ago. Cared for by Charis' adoptive daughter, the relationship quickly spirals into more than that of just a patient and his healer.
This story has a great continuation from the first book, flowing smoothly and sucking you straight back in to the trilogy. That said, I would advise against reading this if you have not already read the first in the series. I was sucked instantly into the series, my attention thoroughly grabbed and it kept me wanting to read more and more. It felt like I was actually there in Ireland, the history was so splendid and totally immersed me in the tale being told. It's just enough history, but it never detracts from the story, rather it enhances it as it makes it so much more real and believable.
The romance in this story is well written, as you'd expect having already seen how Layne developed the relationship between Cowan and Charis. Agnarr and Aislinn seem well suited to each other and their initial resistance is balanced, rather than overplayed. The development of their feelings for each other, and their realisation of that fact, is written with skill.
Charis and Cowan remain wonderful characters to read, and their development, both of their relationship and their characterisation in general, is well continued from the first book. The revisiting of other characters like Tuirgeis was a great addition as, not only is it great to see them again, but it helps build a greater degree of reality to the story.
All in all, this was a very pleasant read, a story I enjoyed and one that developed the trilogy well. If I had to, i'd have a little niggle over the pace, as it did slow slightly, but, nevertheless, it was still a very good read. I am, as with the last book, very excited to see how this trilogy will end.
*This book was first reviewed on Lily Loves Indie as part of a blog tour, for which an ARC was received in return for an honest review*
This story has a great continuation from the first book, flowing smoothly and sucking you straight back in to the trilogy. That said, I would advise against reading this if you have not already read the first in the series. I was sucked instantly into the series, my attention thoroughly grabbed and it kept me wanting to read more and more. It felt like I was actually there in Ireland, the history was so splendid and totally immersed me in the tale being told. It's just enough history, but it never detracts from the story, rather it enhances it as it makes it so much more real and believable.
The romance in this story is well written, as you'd expect having already seen how Layne developed the relationship between Cowan and Charis. Agnarr and Aislinn seem well suited to each other and their initial resistance is balanced, rather than overplayed. The development of their feelings for each other, and their realisation of that fact, is written with skill.
Charis and Cowan remain wonderful characters to read, and their development, both of their relationship and their characterisation in general, is well continued from the first book. The revisiting of other characters like Tuirgeis was a great addition as, not only is it great to see them again, but it helps build a greater degree of reality to the story.
All in all, this was a very pleasant read, a story I enjoyed and one that developed the trilogy well. If I had to, i'd have a little niggle over the pace, as it did slow slightly, but, nevertheless, it was still a very good read. I am, as with the last book, very excited to see how this trilogy will end.
*This book was first reviewed on Lily Loves Indie as part of a blog tour, for which an ARC was received in return for an honest review*

Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated Ferns Decision ( Sisters of Hex Fern book 1) in Books
Feb 6, 2022
22 of 230
Kindle
Ferns Decision ( sisters of Hex Fern book 1)
By Bea Paige
Death is a lonely place, silent, or so everyone thinks... Fern is no stranger to death, or the singing that accompanies it. She has always known when a person is about to die, for the singing foretells it. Her mother passed it off as an oddity never to be discussed, so she learned to tune out the voices until they disappeared for good. Or so she thought. Then one day, as she fights to bring back a dying baby in the hospital where she works, Fern hears the familiar melody once more. Except this time the voice belongs to a man with ice-blue eyes and black angel wings. As the baby takes its final breath, the angel sings his last note. For this isn't an angel who gives life, it is one that takes it. One year has passed since that encounter, and just when Fern is beginning to believe it had all been an illusion, the angel returns, and this time he's not alone. For now there are three Angels of Death and Fern appears to be their next victim.Fern's Decision is the first book of Fern's trilogy and continues the Sisters of Hex story. Although this is the start of a standalone trilogy, to get a full picture of the overarching storyline you might wish to read Accacia's trilogy first.***TRIGGER WARNING - This book contains content that some may find triggering***
I loved the first set of Hex sister books so I was looking forward to this set. I wasn’t disappointed in the first book at all I really enjoyed it although the first few chapters were extremely hard to get through with it being so close to my own heart of losing my own baby a few time I cried thinking I need to push through. It was well handled and I’m glad I pushed through a good start to the new trilogy and sister. I would recommend but with a caution of possible trigger warning if you have lost a baby.
Kindle
Ferns Decision ( sisters of Hex Fern book 1)
By Bea Paige
Death is a lonely place, silent, or so everyone thinks... Fern is no stranger to death, or the singing that accompanies it. She has always known when a person is about to die, for the singing foretells it. Her mother passed it off as an oddity never to be discussed, so she learned to tune out the voices until they disappeared for good. Or so she thought. Then one day, as she fights to bring back a dying baby in the hospital where she works, Fern hears the familiar melody once more. Except this time the voice belongs to a man with ice-blue eyes and black angel wings. As the baby takes its final breath, the angel sings his last note. For this isn't an angel who gives life, it is one that takes it. One year has passed since that encounter, and just when Fern is beginning to believe it had all been an illusion, the angel returns, and this time he's not alone. For now there are three Angels of Death and Fern appears to be their next victim.Fern's Decision is the first book of Fern's trilogy and continues the Sisters of Hex story. Although this is the start of a standalone trilogy, to get a full picture of the overarching storyline you might wish to read Accacia's trilogy first.***TRIGGER WARNING - This book contains content that some may find triggering***
I loved the first set of Hex sister books so I was looking forward to this set. I wasn’t disappointed in the first book at all I really enjoyed it although the first few chapters were extremely hard to get through with it being so close to my own heart of losing my own baby a few time I cried thinking I need to push through. It was well handled and I’m glad I pushed through a good start to the new trilogy and sister. I would recommend but with a caution of possible trigger warning if you have lost a baby.

Andrea D (21 KP) rated Six of Crows in Books
Mar 6, 2019
Variety of characters (1 more)
The lack of black and white thinking
A Second chance.
This is the second time I have attempted to read Six of Crows and I've only chosen to pick it up after loving the original Grisha Trilogy so much. This time around I stuck with it and feel deeply hugely in love with the Dregs.
There are very few morals in this book and money is king, don't expect to go into this book liking all the characters as it seems to take a while to truly understand them.
I love the way Leigh Bardurgo has refused to make her characters pure and innocent people who can do no wrong. Every single person in this book is deeply flawed but that's what makes it all so good.
The Grishaverse has a huge following and it is certainly well deserved. You do not need to have read the original trilogy to read this one but I did find myself overly excited every time I recognised a character from the originals.
There are very few morals in this book and money is king, don't expect to go into this book liking all the characters as it seems to take a while to truly understand them.
I love the way Leigh Bardurgo has refused to make her characters pure and innocent people who can do no wrong. Every single person in this book is deeply flawed but that's what makes it all so good.
The Grishaverse has a huge following and it is certainly well deserved. You do not need to have read the original trilogy to read this one but I did find myself overly excited every time I recognised a character from the originals.

Valerio (15 KP) rated John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum (2019) in Movies
Jun 10, 2019
Keenu Reeves (3 more)
Dogs
Stunning fighting actions
Turn off your brain and enjoy
The most badass assassin the world have ever seen.
I've been introduced to the franchise when the second movie was released. I will review those later on. John Wick 3 was the first movie of the trilogy I watched in the cinema and what a brilliant experience. I'm not an action junkie but this movie is simply amazing. You can sit comfy, turn off your brain and enjoy the fun. The photography is just amazing, probably one of the best I ever seen in an action movie. The colours are vivid and NYC is just amazing. I will not write about the story because its a marginal part of this trilogy. They created a living and enjoyable world where you can lose yourself. The choreography and the fighting scenes are awesome and even if sometimes they can be too extreme (nearly funny to see) it will never be too much. Keenu Reeves. I really need to say anything else?

David McK (3557 KP) rated Batman: Knightfall, Part Three: Knightsend in Books
Jan 30, 2019
The final part of the Knightfall trilogy, the earlier parts of which are oft credited with providing the template for Christian Bale's last outing as Batman in The Dark Knight Rises.
In this, Bruce Wayne - mentally and physically scarred by his encounter with and defeat by Bane - finally gets back to full capacity and returns to Gotham to reclaim the mantle of the Bat from Jean-Paul Valley (aka Azrael): a mantle, however, that Jean-Paul is extremely reluctant to give up.
And after Bruce manages to win it back, he promptly passes it on (in a temporary nature) to his former Robin Dick Grayson, now Nightwing. Cue about 2/3rds of this collection really following how that 'new' Batman copes with the costume and responsibility ...
Definitely a very 90s comic, I personally feel that this rides a lot on the fame of the first part of the trilogy - that is, the one in which Bane 'breaks the bat' - more so that it is able to stand on its own 2 feet.
In this, Bruce Wayne - mentally and physically scarred by his encounter with and defeat by Bane - finally gets back to full capacity and returns to Gotham to reclaim the mantle of the Bat from Jean-Paul Valley (aka Azrael): a mantle, however, that Jean-Paul is extremely reluctant to give up.
And after Bruce manages to win it back, he promptly passes it on (in a temporary nature) to his former Robin Dick Grayson, now Nightwing. Cue about 2/3rds of this collection really following how that 'new' Batman copes with the costume and responsibility ...
Definitely a very 90s comic, I personally feel that this rides a lot on the fame of the first part of the trilogy - that is, the one in which Bane 'breaks the bat' - more so that it is able to stand on its own 2 feet.

The Indian
Book
"A beautiful but disturbing portrait of a misfit painfully aware that he's not like anyone else."...

Encircling: Book 2
Book
The island of Otteroya, a rural backwater of Norway, provides the setting for Book Two of Tiller's...

David McK (3557 KP) rated Heir to the Empire (Star Wars: The Thrawn Trilogy, #1) in Books
May 8, 2021
This is pretty much the book that re-ignited the whole Star Wars craze. (Re)reading it, it's not hard to see why.
Set after the events of the original trilogy, "Heir to the Empire" also introduces a host of new characters and soon-to-be-official aliens and planet names (it is here that Coruscant is first named, for example).
Reading the trilogy as a whole, though, you also have to wonder how much inside-info Zahn had on the whole Star Wars mythos: clones are (re)introduced here, the Clone Wars are given a larger role than their original throw-away reference and the role of the Jedi are expanded upon.
I know there's a lot of hostility towards spin-off books, but do yourself a favour and read this one! After all, the original material had to be good for their to BE a spin-off in the first place, and the quality of the first spin-off can often be determined by the quantity of books that followed it ...
Set after the events of the original trilogy, "Heir to the Empire" also introduces a host of new characters and soon-to-be-official aliens and planet names (it is here that Coruscant is first named, for example).
Reading the trilogy as a whole, though, you also have to wonder how much inside-info Zahn had on the whole Star Wars mythos: clones are (re)introduced here, the Clone Wars are given a larger role than their original throw-away reference and the role of the Jedi are expanded upon.
I know there's a lot of hostility towards spin-off books, but do yourself a favour and read this one! After all, the original material had to be good for their to BE a spin-off in the first place, and the quality of the first spin-off can often be determined by the quantity of books that followed it ...

LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated Toy Story 4 (2019) in Movies
Jun 25, 2019
This great trilogy becomes a great quadrilogy
Like many, I initially felt that Toy Story 4 was an unessecary addition to the great trilogy that we already have, but after seeing it, I'm so so glad it exists - I would honestly rate it above 2 and 3!
The story treads new ground, away from Andys family, but yet still feels familiar, as Woody and co set off to rescue a lost toy, meeting various obstacles along the way (those ventriloquist dummies though)
The new characters are all pretty great, including Forky (Buster Bleuth through and through), Keanu Reeves' Duke Caboom, Giggle McDimples, Gabby Gabby, and Ducky and Bunny just to name a few, are all charming in their own ways and fit right alongside the classic characters with ease.
Once again, Pixar manage to squeeze in morals and emotions that honestly had me welling up at times.
Like I said, I was initially was wary of further stories in the Toy Story franchise but on the strength of this, I'll certainly be going to see any future entries!
The story treads new ground, away from Andys family, but yet still feels familiar, as Woody and co set off to rescue a lost toy, meeting various obstacles along the way (those ventriloquist dummies though)
The new characters are all pretty great, including Forky (Buster Bleuth through and through), Keanu Reeves' Duke Caboom, Giggle McDimples, Gabby Gabby, and Ducky and Bunny just to name a few, are all charming in their own ways and fit right alongside the classic characters with ease.
Once again, Pixar manage to squeeze in morals and emotions that honestly had me welling up at times.
Like I said, I was initially was wary of further stories in the Toy Story franchise but on the strength of this, I'll certainly be going to see any future entries!