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Caffeinated Fae (464 KP) rated Into the Wild in Books
Jul 10, 2018
I read this as part of my 2014 reading challenge. This book was recommended to me by one of my close friends. This was definitely a book that I would expect a hiker, climber, and all around outdoorsy person to read.
I have to admit, I had a hard time reading this book. The writing was outstanding but I found the book itself a little dull and honestly, a little frustrating.
As many of my friends know, I grew up with my parents working in insurance. I also grew up working in insurance. This means that I have a (as my dad calls it) risk manager's mindset. That means that I had a hard time idealizing a man that took such a high risk with his life and refused most of the help that was offered.
I have to say that I admire this man's ideals and his bravery but I also feel that he was fairly foolish. I don't think that he was foolish for going out into the wilderness alone but I feel that he was foolish for not being able to swallow his pride and accept help. I think that he was foolish for pushing his family and his friends away.
This is the second Jon Krakauer book that I have read and I have to say that I his writing is spectacular but a little dull. I felt that I was reading a text book and not a novel. I think this is simply because I like my books to invoke emotions in me and all I felt in this book was frustration and deep sadness for anyone that knew and loved McCandless.
All in all, this wasn't my typical read but I'm glad that I took time to read it.
I have to admit, I had a hard time reading this book. The writing was outstanding but I found the book itself a little dull and honestly, a little frustrating.
As many of my friends know, I grew up with my parents working in insurance. I also grew up working in insurance. This means that I have a (as my dad calls it) risk manager's mindset. That means that I had a hard time idealizing a man that took such a high risk with his life and refused most of the help that was offered.
I have to say that I admire this man's ideals and his bravery but I also feel that he was fairly foolish. I don't think that he was foolish for going out into the wilderness alone but I feel that he was foolish for not being able to swallow his pride and accept help. I think that he was foolish for pushing his family and his friends away.
This is the second Jon Krakauer book that I have read and I have to say that I his writing is spectacular but a little dull. I felt that I was reading a text book and not a novel. I think this is simply because I like my books to invoke emotions in me and all I felt in this book was frustration and deep sadness for anyone that knew and loved McCandless.
All in all, this wasn't my typical read but I'm glad that I took time to read it.
Caffeinated Fae (464 KP) rated The Lying Game (The Lying Game, #1) in Books
Jul 10, 2018
This book is definitely not my typical book. I'm not a fan on teenage drama filled novels so I was hesitant to read this book as part of my 2014 book reading challenge. This book was recommended to me my one of my amazing cousins so I committed to reading it this year.
Okay, where to startÛ_ The Lying Game by Sara Shepard is a murder mystery that takes place in high school. This book is filled with drama and murder with a slice of romance. The characters were very "Mean Girls" with an evil streak and I found myself thankful that my high school could not be compared to this high school.
I felt that the characters could have more dimension to them. I felt like they fell flat. Even the main character was only 2 dimensional and very clich̩. I tend to be a character person so I found that I couldn't truly connect with any of the characters in this book.
The storyline was entertaining, I found myself wondering what was going to happen and I was sort of invested in the plot. I wish that the plot line was more flushed out and that the characters were more flushed out. Seriously, I love characters that I can relate toÛ_
I could definitely tell that this was a young adult novel. I liked that it was a quick and surprisingly light read.
Ultimately, I think I may have been too old for this novel. I think I would have liked it better if I were to have read this in middle school. I liked the concept of this book but it just fell flat.
Ultimately, I would give this novel 3 cups of coffee. I enjoyed the book while it lasted but I will not continue on in the series.
Okay, where to startÛ_ The Lying Game by Sara Shepard is a murder mystery that takes place in high school. This book is filled with drama and murder with a slice of romance. The characters were very "Mean Girls" with an evil streak and I found myself thankful that my high school could not be compared to this high school.
I felt that the characters could have more dimension to them. I felt like they fell flat. Even the main character was only 2 dimensional and very clich̩. I tend to be a character person so I found that I couldn't truly connect with any of the characters in this book.
The storyline was entertaining, I found myself wondering what was going to happen and I was sort of invested in the plot. I wish that the plot line was more flushed out and that the characters were more flushed out. Seriously, I love characters that I can relate toÛ_
I could definitely tell that this was a young adult novel. I liked that it was a quick and surprisingly light read.
Ultimately, I think I may have been too old for this novel. I think I would have liked it better if I were to have read this in middle school. I liked the concept of this book but it just fell flat.
Ultimately, I would give this novel 3 cups of coffee. I enjoyed the book while it lasted but I will not continue on in the series.
Steve Fearon (84 KP) rated L.A. Noire in Video Games
Sep 5, 2018
Groundbreaking facial animation (2 more)
A fascinating world
Genuinely difficult to 100%
Action gets a bit repetitive (1 more)
Ran its studio into financial trouble :(
Still the best game of its kind
This game...its one of my favourites.
Its not an action masterpiece, in fact its a little clunky at times, with a similar but inferior combat style to GTA, but it has a legitimately great atmosphere, beautifully capturing the period and the stylings.
The detective work actually requires a little thinking (Which is rare) and asks the player to make choices without too much handholding (Which is even rarer), and as the game progresses, the challenge to interrogate the more devious individuals can prove rather vexing!
The animations, and the emotions they are able to portray in a game this old, puts to shame big budget thrillers from recent years (Mass Effec Andromeda, I am looking at you!), the city design is beautiful, and the characters are played by a number of recognisable actors which add to the big budget feel that runs all through this game.
Is the remaster an improvement on the 360 game? A little, higher resolution, parred up for Xbox one, but essentially its the same as it ever was, and that is fine.
There is still not a single game I have come across which has done the detective game as well as this, and it is a crying shame that the technology and effort used to create LA Noire has essentially been lost, since even now, manakin faced characters are still the norm.
This game still has a lot to offer, if you can look past the action sequences, and instead enjoy the characters, peformances, and genuine puzzle solving aspects of this classic title.
Its not an action masterpiece, in fact its a little clunky at times, with a similar but inferior combat style to GTA, but it has a legitimately great atmosphere, beautifully capturing the period and the stylings.
The detective work actually requires a little thinking (Which is rare) and asks the player to make choices without too much handholding (Which is even rarer), and as the game progresses, the challenge to interrogate the more devious individuals can prove rather vexing!
The animations, and the emotions they are able to portray in a game this old, puts to shame big budget thrillers from recent years (Mass Effec Andromeda, I am looking at you!), the city design is beautiful, and the characters are played by a number of recognisable actors which add to the big budget feel that runs all through this game.
Is the remaster an improvement on the 360 game? A little, higher resolution, parred up for Xbox one, but essentially its the same as it ever was, and that is fine.
There is still not a single game I have come across which has done the detective game as well as this, and it is a crying shame that the technology and effort used to create LA Noire has essentially been lost, since even now, manakin faced characters are still the norm.
This game still has a lot to offer, if you can look past the action sequences, and instead enjoy the characters, peformances, and genuine puzzle solving aspects of this classic title.
Hazel (1853 KP) rated Bunker Boy in Books
Jun 18, 2019
Bunker Boy is the latest dystopian novel by the diverse author Jordan Elizabeth. One minute, the eighteen-year-old Zara is studying for her Spanish exam and the next she is waking up in a strange room where she has apparently spent five years in a coma. The world as Zara knew it is over. She is informed that terrorists bombed the East Coast of the United States of America and she is one of the lucky few to survive the viaane gas poisoning.
What initially seemed to be salvation turns into a backward, middle ages scenario where women are oppressed by the government run by a dictatorial headmaster. Zara soon learns that no one can challenge the way of life without putting their own lives at risk. She also discovers that things are not at all what they seem.
Jordan Elizabeth's writing is fast-paced but still manages to gradually build up the storyline. Being told from Zara's point of view, the reader experiences things as they happen rather than being aware of things the characters do not know. As a result, readers share the same emotions as the protagonist, imagining themselves in the same position.
Another great attribute of Jordan Elizabeth's writing is that she does not need to include romance to make the story interesting. Although there are relationships of a sort, there is no love, lust or conflicting emotions to distract from the storyline. The author knows how to naturally engage the reader and keep them interested.
Bunker Boy is just one of many of Jordan Elizabeth's greatest books. The only downside is it is short and, therefore, over way too quickly. The author has the potential to write a full-length novel in the future.
What initially seemed to be salvation turns into a backward, middle ages scenario where women are oppressed by the government run by a dictatorial headmaster. Zara soon learns that no one can challenge the way of life without putting their own lives at risk. She also discovers that things are not at all what they seem.
Jordan Elizabeth's writing is fast-paced but still manages to gradually build up the storyline. Being told from Zara's point of view, the reader experiences things as they happen rather than being aware of things the characters do not know. As a result, readers share the same emotions as the protagonist, imagining themselves in the same position.
Another great attribute of Jordan Elizabeth's writing is that she does not need to include romance to make the story interesting. Although there are relationships of a sort, there is no love, lust or conflicting emotions to distract from the storyline. The author knows how to naturally engage the reader and keep them interested.
Bunker Boy is just one of many of Jordan Elizabeth's greatest books. The only downside is it is short and, therefore, over way too quickly. The author has the potential to write a full-length novel in the future.
Hazel (1853 KP) rated Love Hurts in Books
Dec 17, 2018
This ARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.
Love Hurts is a young adult book containing several stories compiled together by the well-known Malorie Blackman. There are a few new short stories however most are extracts from pre-existing novels. The short stories are written by a variety of different authors such as Susie Day, Lauren Dockrill, Lauren Kate, Catherine Johnson and James Dawson. Many readers will be familiar with these authors as well as some of the books that the extracts are from, for example: More Than This, If I Stay, I Am The Messenger and Northern Lights.
The aim of this anthology is to explore what love means. Love is not a simple, straightforward concept. There is love lost and love found, bitter love and sweet love. Each story focuses on a different perspective. Some are about teenagers, some are about adults. Some are about homosexuality and others are not.
Love Hurts is an interesting concept and it is interesting to see different authors' understanding on the term "love". The biggest problem with this book however is due to most of the entries being snippets of other stories as it is often difficult to understand what was going on and who the characters were.
Another issue for me was I found some of the stories uninteresting and difficult to get into; and as they were short there was not a lot of time to appreciate the different concepts and styles of writing.
Although it would have been a challenge, it would have been better for all the stories to be brand new and unique. On he other hand, Malorie Blackman has done an excellent job at sourcing all the content.
Love Hurts is a young adult book containing several stories compiled together by the well-known Malorie Blackman. There are a few new short stories however most are extracts from pre-existing novels. The short stories are written by a variety of different authors such as Susie Day, Lauren Dockrill, Lauren Kate, Catherine Johnson and James Dawson. Many readers will be familiar with these authors as well as some of the books that the extracts are from, for example: More Than This, If I Stay, I Am The Messenger and Northern Lights.
The aim of this anthology is to explore what love means. Love is not a simple, straightforward concept. There is love lost and love found, bitter love and sweet love. Each story focuses on a different perspective. Some are about teenagers, some are about adults. Some are about homosexuality and others are not.
Love Hurts is an interesting concept and it is interesting to see different authors' understanding on the term "love". The biggest problem with this book however is due to most of the entries being snippets of other stories as it is often difficult to understand what was going on and who the characters were.
Another issue for me was I found some of the stories uninteresting and difficult to get into; and as they were short there was not a lot of time to appreciate the different concepts and styles of writing.
Although it would have been a challenge, it would have been better for all the stories to be brand new and unique. On he other hand, Malorie Blackman has done an excellent job at sourcing all the content.
Acanthea Grimscythe (300 KP) rated Chasing Ghosts in Books
Jan 31, 2019
When it comes to novellas by Glenn Rolfe, I expect a sense of urgency. That’s probably because the first thing I read by him was Becoming, which if you’ve read my review, you’ll know I enjoyed it immensely. In that regard, Chasing Ghosts does not disappoint. Brimming with non-stop action, this short book is akin to settling into your chair for a good slasher flick.
Chasing Ghosts doesn’t really bring anything new to the table, which means Rolfe has one hell of a challenge if he’s trying to make it stand out. If you’ve ever seen The Hills Have Eyes, that’s what this book reminds me of–though the setting and cast are a bit different, what with your inbred hillbillies and woods versus mutant savages and desert. Fortunately, Rolfe’s prose alone is enough to guide the story forward, and I actually devoured this in one sitting.
The novella does fall victim to the same cons most short books do, though. Because of its length, there isn’t really any time to grow attached to any of the characters. We know enough about them to recognize them as human, but that’s about it. I would personally love to see this as a more in-depth, full-length novel where attachment to the ill-fated players is more likely.
Once again, Glenn Rolfe has sated my desire for gore and bloodshed, further solidifying his place among my list of must-read authors. In fact, I eagerly await the opportunity to read more of his books.
I received a free copy of this book for the purpose of review from NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions expressed above are my own, without bias.
Chasing Ghosts doesn’t really bring anything new to the table, which means Rolfe has one hell of a challenge if he’s trying to make it stand out. If you’ve ever seen The Hills Have Eyes, that’s what this book reminds me of–though the setting and cast are a bit different, what with your inbred hillbillies and woods versus mutant savages and desert. Fortunately, Rolfe’s prose alone is enough to guide the story forward, and I actually devoured this in one sitting.
The novella does fall victim to the same cons most short books do, though. Because of its length, there isn’t really any time to grow attached to any of the characters. We know enough about them to recognize them as human, but that’s about it. I would personally love to see this as a more in-depth, full-length novel where attachment to the ill-fated players is more likely.
Once again, Glenn Rolfe has sated my desire for gore and bloodshed, further solidifying his place among my list of must-read authors. In fact, I eagerly await the opportunity to read more of his books.
I received a free copy of this book for the purpose of review from NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions expressed above are my own, without bias.
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