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Chris Hooker (419 KP) rated Tides of Possibility in Books
Jan 12, 2018
[Tides of Possibility] is a anthology of science fiction short stories. I really enjoyed most of the stories and a few I would hope to see full length novels expanding on the stories.
A few of note:[The Color of Silence] by [Mandy Broughton] about compassion. [The Woman Who Wanted to Play Havisham] by [Haralambi Markov] which message seems to be, be careful what you wish for. [Imaginary Numbers] by [Corinn Heathers] which I would really love to see expanded to a novel with more a back story.
[Teachable Moments] by [Brandon Crilly] seemed to be my favorite though. Perhaps I am biased as a teacher and the title is a term we are not allowed to have in the classroom anymore thanks to the testing culture. The idea of a former teacher doing what is best for young people and by doing that he teaches them the biggest lesson of life.
I will be looking for more works from some of these authors. I could have done without the poetry though.
A few of note:[The Color of Silence] by [Mandy Broughton] about compassion. [The Woman Who Wanted to Play Havisham] by [Haralambi Markov] which message seems to be, be careful what you wish for. [Imaginary Numbers] by [Corinn Heathers] which I would really love to see expanded to a novel with more a back story.
[Teachable Moments] by [Brandon Crilly] seemed to be my favorite though. Perhaps I am biased as a teacher and the title is a term we are not allowed to have in the classroom anymore thanks to the testing culture. The idea of a former teacher doing what is best for young people and by doing that he teaches them the biggest lesson of life.
I will be looking for more works from some of these authors. I could have done without the poetry though.
BobbiesDustyPages (1259 KP) rated Love, Death & Robots in TV
Apr 17, 2019
Amazing visuals and a little something for everyone
I really just watched rhis on a whom when I noticed how short the episodes ,less then 20 mintues each, were since I had no idea what I wanted to watch and I really got to say I was not disappointed. Love Death + Robots is a really awesome anthology series that has a little something for everyone and depending on who you ask most people are going to have a different favorite episode. Mine personally was episode 4 Suits.
The visuals on this show are gorgeous almost all are animated but some like episode 3 The Witness are so realistic looking you almost can't tell it's not actual people on screen. Then you also have other episodes like episode 5 Sucker of Souls which is very simple and rough animation but which I was still a fan of.
My only real complaint was how a lot of the episodes handled the female characters. Just your typical over sexualized taken on woman which in 2019 really is outdated and I expect better by now.
The visuals on this show are gorgeous almost all are animated but some like episode 3 The Witness are so realistic looking you almost can't tell it's not actual people on screen. Then you also have other episodes like episode 5 Sucker of Souls which is very simple and rough animation but which I was still a fan of.
My only real complaint was how a lot of the episodes handled the female characters. Just your typical over sexualized taken on woman which in 2019 really is outdated and I expect better by now.
Leanne Crabtree (480 KP) rated Sweep in Peace (Innkeeper Chronicles, #2) in Books
Jan 7, 2021
*I'm reading this as part of the Innkeeper Chronicles Anthology, #1-3*
This one was longer. Dina is asked to host a peace summit between three warring factions who live on Nexus, a planet of sorts. They have been at each others throats for years and the Arbitrator, George, is finally hoping that they can work things out.
We see a lot of the same characters from the previous one but I was missing a certain someone quite a lot - Sean. Dina contacted him near the start but Sean was away from Baha-Char and we didn't see him for a lot of the book.
The peace summit turned out really well in the end but everyone had to go through quite a lot to get there. We had deceit, poisonings, deaths... It certainly wasn't easy to achieve and I won't spoil it for future readers by going into details.
I'm glad Sean's back on Earth and that we will possibly see their romance bloom properly in the next one.
Off to start book 3.
This one was longer. Dina is asked to host a peace summit between three warring factions who live on Nexus, a planet of sorts. They have been at each others throats for years and the Arbitrator, George, is finally hoping that they can work things out.
We see a lot of the same characters from the previous one but I was missing a certain someone quite a lot - Sean. Dina contacted him near the start but Sean was away from Baha-Char and we didn't see him for a lot of the book.
The peace summit turned out really well in the end but everyone had to go through quite a lot to get there. We had deceit, poisonings, deaths... It certainly wasn't easy to achieve and I won't spoil it for future readers by going into details.
I'm glad Sean's back on Earth and that we will possibly see their romance bloom properly in the next one.
Off to start book 3.
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2103 KP) rated Gingerbread Cookies and Gunshots in Books
Jan 4, 2024
Missing Child at Christmas
Lucy Stone gets involved when a four-year-old boy is kidnapped in her community. With no clues to go on, Lucy begins to think that something much larger is happening. Is she right?
Even though I don’t normally read this series, I didn't have any trouble jumping into the characters here. There was enough explanation of who people were that I could follow along. The bits about those I assume are series regulars didn't mean quite as much to me, but I enjoyed meeting everyone. This is on the serious side of the cozy spectrum, and the atmosphere was carried perfectly throughout the story. Lucy did seem to jump to one conclusion, but since she was proved right with evidence later on, I can't call it a major flaw. There are two recipes at the end of this story to enjoy later. This is probably my favorite of the stories I’ve read from Leslie Meier.
NOTE: This is a novella, roughly 100 pages along.
NOTE 2: This was originally published in the anthology Gingerbread Cookie Murder.
Even though I don’t normally read this series, I didn't have any trouble jumping into the characters here. There was enough explanation of who people were that I could follow along. The bits about those I assume are series regulars didn't mean quite as much to me, but I enjoyed meeting everyone. This is on the serious side of the cozy spectrum, and the atmosphere was carried perfectly throughout the story. Lucy did seem to jump to one conclusion, but since she was proved right with evidence later on, I can't call it a major flaw. There are two recipes at the end of this story to enjoy later. This is probably my favorite of the stories I’ve read from Leslie Meier.
NOTE: This is a novella, roughly 100 pages along.
NOTE 2: This was originally published in the anthology Gingerbread Cookie Murder.
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2103 KP) rated Nightmare on Elf Street in Books
Jan 4, 2024
Murder of (a Mall) Santa
Freelance writer Jaine Austen has taken a job as the elf at a mall to a pretty despicable Santa. When he is killed with a Christmas ornament to the heart, there are no shortage of suspects, but Jaine dives in to make sure the case is solved before her annual trip to visit her parents.
The series always features wacky humor, and this story is no exception. Even though the story is only 100 pages, we manage to get a couple of sub-plots and some twists as well. The characters are developed enough to pull us in while making us laugh as well.
This is a novella length story, so it will be faster than a full novel. As long as you know this, you’ll be fine.
Also note that this was originally released in the romance anthology Secret Santa. You’ll want to make sure you haven’t read it before purchasing it again. Although, if you haven’t read it, you’ll be thrilled to add this fun, festive mystery to your to be read pile.
The series always features wacky humor, and this story is no exception. Even though the story is only 100 pages, we manage to get a couple of sub-plots and some twists as well. The characters are developed enough to pull us in while making us laugh as well.
This is a novella length story, so it will be faster than a full novel. As long as you know this, you’ll be fine.
Also note that this was originally released in the romance anthology Secret Santa. You’ll want to make sure you haven’t read it before purchasing it again. Although, if you haven’t read it, you’ll be thrilled to add this fun, festive mystery to your to be read pile.
Louise (64 KP) rated A Tyranny of Petticoats (A Tyranny of Petticoats, #1) in Books
Jul 2, 2018
A Tyranny of petticoats is an all female written anthology about badass females. The 15 stories consist of Pirates, Assassins, Ghosts and Robbers whilst covering relevant American history such as Gold mining, the slave trade and war.
The stories are written in historical order, starting from 1710-1968. These are my ratings for each story:
Mother Carey's table by J.Anderson Coats ⭐.5 stars
The Journey by Marie Lu ⭐⭐⭐stars
Madeleine's choice by Jessica Spotswood ⭐⭐⭐.5 stars
El Destinos by Leslye Walton ⭐⭐⭐stars
High Stakes by Andrea Cremer ⭐⭐⭐ stars
The Red Ravenue Ball by Caroline Tung Richmond ⭐⭐stars
Pearls by Beth Revis ⭐⭐⭐.5 stars
Gold in the roots of grass by Marissa Meyer ⭐⭐⭐⭐stars
The Legendary Garnet Girls by Y.S.Lee ⭐⭐⭐stars
The colour of the sky by Elizabeth Wein ⭐⭐⭐ stars
Bonnie and Clydebank by Sundra Mitchell ⭐⭐⭐stars
Hard times by Catherine Longshore ⭐⭐⭐stars
City of Angels by Lindsay Smith ⭐⭐⭐.5 stars
Pulse of the Panthers by Kekla Magoon ⭐⭐⭐ stars
The whole world is watching by Robin Talley ⭐⭐stars
I wanted to read this collection of short stories as I had heard great things about it. This book should have been ideal for me, it's feminist historical fiction. Sadly this didn't deliver, none of the stories blew me away. In actual fact I have a hard time remembering what the stories were about. Some of the stories felt like they were an excerpt from a novel, some felt rushed and others under developed.
However,I am glad I got to read this as I get to explore authors that I have not read before and got to sample their work and see if I get on with their writing styles.
The book also has a short note from the author as to why they picked the era, why they contributed to the anthology and so on. I definitely want to explore more novels with American history such as the gold mining and slavery thanks to these authors.
Overall I rated this 3 out of 5 stars
The stories are written in historical order, starting from 1710-1968. These are my ratings for each story:
Mother Carey's table by J.Anderson Coats ⭐.5 stars
The Journey by Marie Lu ⭐⭐⭐stars
Madeleine's choice by Jessica Spotswood ⭐⭐⭐.5 stars
El Destinos by Leslye Walton ⭐⭐⭐stars
High Stakes by Andrea Cremer ⭐⭐⭐ stars
The Red Ravenue Ball by Caroline Tung Richmond ⭐⭐stars
Pearls by Beth Revis ⭐⭐⭐.5 stars
Gold in the roots of grass by Marissa Meyer ⭐⭐⭐⭐stars
The Legendary Garnet Girls by Y.S.Lee ⭐⭐⭐stars
The colour of the sky by Elizabeth Wein ⭐⭐⭐ stars
Bonnie and Clydebank by Sundra Mitchell ⭐⭐⭐stars
Hard times by Catherine Longshore ⭐⭐⭐stars
City of Angels by Lindsay Smith ⭐⭐⭐.5 stars
Pulse of the Panthers by Kekla Magoon ⭐⭐⭐ stars
The whole world is watching by Robin Talley ⭐⭐stars
I wanted to read this collection of short stories as I had heard great things about it. This book should have been ideal for me, it's feminist historical fiction. Sadly this didn't deliver, none of the stories blew me away. In actual fact I have a hard time remembering what the stories were about. Some of the stories felt like they were an excerpt from a novel, some felt rushed and others under developed.
However,I am glad I got to read this as I get to explore authors that I have not read before and got to sample their work and see if I get on with their writing styles.
The book also has a short note from the author as to why they picked the era, why they contributed to the anthology and so on. I definitely want to explore more novels with American history such as the gold mining and slavery thanks to these authors.
Overall I rated this 3 out of 5 stars
Cyn Armistead (14 KP) rated The Mammoth Book of Paranormal Romance (Otherworld Stories) in Books
Mar 1, 2018
I'm extremely surprised by how much I enjoyed this anthology! I picked it up intending to just read the stories by authors I know I like—Kelley Armstrong, Ilona Andrews, Carrie Vaughn, Holly Lisle, Jeaniene Frost, Maria V. Snyder. I had never heard of some of the other authors. A few names I remembered seeing in other anthologies and not enjoying their work.
I did, however, deliberately put myself in a tolerant mindset: this is a book of romance stories. It wouldn't be fair to judge them as anything else.
That worked rather better than it has in the past. I still got a little annoyed at having so much of each story dedicated to couples (and all het/mono couples, at that!) rather than some intriguing world ideas, but managed to stay on track.
In the end, I only skipped one story—I just don't like the Weather Wardens stuff at all. I found a couple of others substandard, but all in all, Telep chose very well. I definitely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys paranormal romance (maybe even those who usually stick to just romance), and most urban fantasy fans.
I did, however, deliberately put myself in a tolerant mindset: this is a book of romance stories. It wouldn't be fair to judge them as anything else.
That worked rather better than it has in the past. I still got a little annoyed at having so much of each story dedicated to couples (and all het/mono couples, at that!) rather than some intriguing world ideas, but managed to stay on track.
In the end, I only skipped one story—I just don't like the Weather Wardens stuff at all. I found a couple of others substandard, but all in all, Telep chose very well. I definitely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys paranormal romance (maybe even those who usually stick to just romance), and most urban fantasy fans.
Cyn Armistead (14 KP) rated Mirror, Mirror (includes In Death, #37.5) in Books
Mar 1, 2018
The J.D. Robb story, "Taken In Death," was enjoyable - a nice thing, since it's the reason I bought the anthology. In it, Dallas takes on a kidnapper in a rebelling of Hansel and Gretel. I skipped the stupid coin story by Mary Blayney. I read one of her coin stories once and it was just too clichéd and predictable for me to ever put myself through that again. I do wonder, though, if she ever writes anything else? I went ahead and read "Beauty, Sleeping" by Elaine Fox, to see if the rest if the book would be worth reading.. While Fox's piece was okay, it was more romance than anything else. It had a supernatural twist, and it was a reworking of Sleeping Beauty, but in the end it was a romance. And to be honest, I just didn't trust the editors any more at that point. They chose Blayney and then the Fox piece, and one Robb story didn't outweigh them. I suppose if I'm ever truly hard up for something to read, I might try the other two stories in the book - but I would probably read one of the many free novels available before then.
Sarah (7798 KP) rated Nightmares and Dreamscapes in Books
Mar 8, 2020
A varied mix of stories
It's no secret that Stephen King is my all time favourite author, and I'm especially fond of his anthology books filled with a variety of short stories.
I'd read Nightmares & Dreamscapes manybyeats ago, and decided it was about time to read it again. This really is a varied bunch of stories, all well written as you'd always expect from King, but with plots ranging from an alright 6/10 to an exception 10/10. None of the stories are bad at all, but I did struggle getting through this book at times, especially as it's a rather hefty tome with some seriously small writing. But there are some noteworthy excellent stories in here, such as Dolan's Cadillac, The Ten O'clock People, The Night Flier and Umney's Last Case. There's even a surprise appearance from Holmes and Watson, which whilst it seems oddly out of place in a book of King short stories, it's a very welcome and pretty good story to mix things up a little.
Overall this isn't my King book of short stories (that accolade goes to Night Shift), but it's still a very good offering.
I'd read Nightmares & Dreamscapes manybyeats ago, and decided it was about time to read it again. This really is a varied bunch of stories, all well written as you'd always expect from King, but with plots ranging from an alright 6/10 to an exception 10/10. None of the stories are bad at all, but I did struggle getting through this book at times, especially as it's a rather hefty tome with some seriously small writing. But there are some noteworthy excellent stories in here, such as Dolan's Cadillac, The Ten O'clock People, The Night Flier and Umney's Last Case. There's even a surprise appearance from Holmes and Watson, which whilst it seems oddly out of place in a book of King short stories, it's a very welcome and pretty good story to mix things up a little.
Overall this isn't my King book of short stories (that accolade goes to Night Shift), but it's still a very good offering.
Awix (3310 KP) rated Torture Garden (1967) in Movies
Jul 12, 2020
Yet another Amicus horror anthology in which a mysterious stranger tells a mixed bag of actors their fortunes, all of which turn out to be grim. Michael Bryant gets over-familiar with his dead uncle's cat, Beverley Adams learns the dark secret of the Hollywood A-list, Barbara Ewing falls for a man who loves his piano, and it's mutual, and Jack Palance discovers that Peter Cushing owns the ultimate Edgar Allen Poe collectible.
Written by Robert Bloch, which may explain why it's a bit less cartoony than some of these films, and the final twist is not actually the usual one. However, the decision to go with four stories rather than the five or so does slow the film down a bit and there's a bit of meandering about in some of them before we get to the punchline. In the end, there are some good bits: Burgess Meredith's performance is fun and the moment where one character is attacked by a musical instrument has a sort of kitsch grandeur to it. But other films in this series as livelier and more fun. (I should say: not much torture, even less gardening.)
Written by Robert Bloch, which may explain why it's a bit less cartoony than some of these films, and the final twist is not actually the usual one. However, the decision to go with four stories rather than the five or so does slow the film down a bit and there's a bit of meandering about in some of them before we get to the punchline. In the end, there are some good bits: Burgess Meredith's performance is fun and the moment where one character is attacked by a musical instrument has a sort of kitsch grandeur to it. But other films in this series as livelier and more fun. (I should say: not much torture, even less gardening.)