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The Boy and His Ribbon
The Boy and His Ribbon
Pepper Winters | 2018 | Romance, Young Adult (YA)
10
9.3 (3 Ratings)
Book Rating
Heartwrenching & characters you cant help but love (0 more)
Slightly questionable couple some may have issues with (0 more)
Growing up changes us and sometimes life, and our hearts, have other plans...
Admittedly, I'm a sucker for anything Pepper Winters writes and in the past, she had originally drawn me in with multiple dark romance/suspense series. A Boy and His Ribbon is unlike most of her well-known works, yet similar to Unseen Messages (one of my all-time favorites), as both stories are based on characters living wild. A scenario that speaks to my wanderlust soul and moves me like no other topic. The story follows Ren and Della, two children who escape abuse and a fate worse than even any animal should endure. Growing up alone, fending for themselves, this story takes us through years of this unlikely pair growing up uneducated, unsocialized and learning from each other. And with such fierce love, devotion and determination from children so young... We've all had to deal with the ups and downs of growing up. Imagine facing your teenage years that come with messy feelings and changes, without any guidance or expectations? This Coming of Age/Romance teeters between not quite right and completely understandable. Like every other Pepper Winters title in the past, I devoured this book. It tore my heart out, leaving me in suspense until book 2 in the Ribbon Series, The Girl and Her Ren is released in June.
  
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JT (287 KP) rated Midsommar (2019) in Movies

Mar 10, 2020  
Midsommar (2019)
Midsommar (2019)
2019 | Drama, Horror, Mystery
As the end credits rolled I sat back and contemplated what I had just witnessed – this was the most fucked up piece of cinema I’d seen in some time. Burdened by a horrific tragedy Dani (Florence Pugh) turns to boyfriend Christian (Jack Reynor) for support, who is unsure himself that their relationship can continue.

Joining a small group of friends they head off to Sweden to attend a mid-summer festival in the hope of rekindling their dying relationship.

The film is disturbing on almost every level and does take time to get going as the group is introduced to an idyllic community where not everything is as it seems. Director Ari Aster has made no illusions of his dislike for jump scares – and you won’t find too many here, well, maybe one. But this is a new age break-up film, not an out an out horror as many people might have expected.

But how do you turn a mild mannered community such as the Harga, into a sinister cult, justifying their ways via ritualistic events and ancient scripture – easy, you do it slowly. Aster builds the story well, introducing subtle clues to the foreboding which is inevitably coming. When it comes, it is a tour de force of shock value.

It’s a solid follow up for Aster whose feature length debut, Hereditary, split audiences – but there is no denying that he has upped his game significantly.
  
Sleeping with the Fishes
Sleeping with the Fishes
Diane Vallere | 2019 | Mystery
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Ava is the oldest daughter of Mother, and as such has been groomed to take over the leadership of Sirenia, their merfolk territory under the sea, someday. Most view Ava as aloof and bossy, but Ava will be the first to tell you she is really afraid – afraid her past will come out and afraid she will fail when the time comes. The time comes sooner than she expected when Mother is kidnapped and Ava must take over leadership immediately. Then comes word that sharks are encroaching on mermaid territory. Can Ava deal with this crisis?

This is the third novella about three mermaid sisters, and it is another fantastic tale. Ava finally gets her chance to step into the spotlight, and she fully comes alive for us. As the story unfolds, we get to see her grapple with what she has been handed and rise to the occasion. Yes, this is another fantastic coming of age story with a strong mystery to keep you turning pages. These novellas are best read in order, but there is enough background to follow Ava’s story. It’s been wonderful getting to spend some time under the sea with all three of these sisters.

NOTE: NOTE: This story, along with the stories of Ava’s sisters, are included in the Mermaid Mysteries anthology. Buy them individually or as a set, but there is no need to buy both.
  
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Omari Hardwick recommended Mean Girls (2004) in Movies (curated)

 
Mean Girls (2004)
Mean Girls (2004)
2004 | Comedy

"One is probably the biggest surprise for my fanbase. If they were to say, “What’s the movie that would most surprise someone that Omari likes?” it would be Mean Girls. I love Mean Girls. Freaking love it. I think she’s at an age where she can watch it. So, we had it on, days before we get on the plane to come back to New York, because obviously, this time of year, we keep coming back for the start of Power. She started kindergarten, so I thought she’s old enough to watch it. But that fight scene in the hallway, with the girls, when everybody goes crazy on each other. She ran out, into her playroom, and I looked at my wife, like, “It’s Mean Girls. It’s not that bad.” What I realized is, part of my daughter’s reaction was because it’s so… not necessarily over the top, but it is. Where it’s not over the top is, girls, as you and I know, that’s the way they fight. Whereas, in kindergarten, we punched each other in the face, and then the guy that you punched becomes your best friend for 35 years. So, it’s just the level of truth in it that makes it so freaking funny. The level of how mean girls can be to each other just makes it really, really funny. Also, I just find Tina Fey’s writing to be very subtle, and so good."

Source
  
Art Something
Art Something
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Art Something (Strange Art #1) by Devon Layne is the first instalment of the Strange Art series, in which the main protagonist, a teenager called Arthur Étrange, lives in his own world where he expresses himself through his art. This causes most of his school mates to think him a little odd, hence his need to escape from the social side of life and immerse himself in his art.

His older sister, Morgan, not only loves and truly understands Art, but guides and protects him through the teenage trial and tribulations of life. So when she is due to go back to college Morgan worries how he’ll cope without her. Her answer? She decides to introduce Art to her friend, Annette, in the hope they’ll hit it off together. They do!

Although it’s not high on action, there is conflict in the form of issues teenagers can relate to. For example, Art’s lack of self-confidence and insecurities are exposed to the reader via his innermost thoughts and feelings. The threesome also provides that key support system to help Art overcome these obstacles with the love and understanding of two girls who have his best interests at heart.

This coming of age story is also my first ‘taboo’ book which explores a very loving and highly erotic, consensual polyamory relationship between brother, sister and their friend. Admittedly, this is not something I’d usually read, having said that, Devon Layne is a talented writer and this is a beautiful and sensual story encompassing a controversial subject. I’m looking forward to seeing how this series develops.
  
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Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) created a post

Jun 10, 2021  
Today's special guest on my blog is James Wade, Writer sharing his top 5 novels set in East Texas. There's also a spotlight on his new crime fiction novel RIVER, SING OUT. Check it out, and enter the giveaway to win an autographed first-edition hardcover the book plus an autographed paperback of his multiple award-winning coming of age novel All Things Left Wild - two winners!

https://alltheupsandowns.blogspot.com/2021/06/book-blog-tour-and-giveaway-river-sing.html

**BOOK SYNOPSIS**
“And through these ages untold, the river did act as the lifeblood of all those things alongside it.”

Jonah Hargrove is celebrating his thirteenth birthday by avoiding his abusive father, when a girl named River stumbles into his yard, injured and alone. The teenager has stolen thousands of dollars’ worth of meth from her murderous, drug-dealing boyfriend, but lost it somewhere in the Neches River bottoms during her escape. Jonah agrees to help her find and sell the drugs so she can flee East Texas.

Chasing after them is John Curtis, a local drug kingpin and dog fighter, as well as River’s boyfriend, the dangerous Dakota Cade.

Each person is keeping secrets from the others—deadly secrets that will be exposed in violent fashion as all are forced to come to terms with their choices, their circumstances, and their own definition of God.

With a colorful cast of supporting characters and an unflinching violence juxtaposed against lyrical prose, River, Sing Out dives deep into the sinister world of the East Texas river bottoms, where oppressive poverty is pitted against the need to believe in something greater than the self.