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This book is split in half. The first half is written entirely in Spanish while the second half is in English. As a person who speaks no Spanish, it was cool to go back and forth from the two halves to get an understanding to what the words meant.

This book gave a very interesting view into the migrant workers of the United States. Not only are there the testimonials from the people themselves, there are also little vignettes into each person's life.

There are small aspects of dark humor throughout the novel. Some instances, like when the child is trying to evoke the devil by cursing at him, made me laugh while I was reading it.

I really enjoyed how true the characters were to themselves in their stories. Even though we weren't following a single character the entire way through, all of the stories were connected in some way. Even still, we got great glimpses into their lives and the lives of a lot of immigrants in the United States.

Overall, I really enjoyed reading this book. It was quick and didn't seem very drawn out.
  
A(
Avarice (Hell on Earth, #1)
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I received this book in exchange for an honest review.

I have been debating on what my rating for this book would be and I would give it a 3 1/2 star review so I rounded up to 4. This is the very first of A.C. Melody's books that I have ever read and I have to say, I will be coming back for more. A.C. Melody did what not many people can do, they didn't fall into the curse of the novella. This book is 114 pages on my nook. Generally, when I read a book that is less than 200 pages I do not feel connected to the characters, this was a rare occurrence where I found the characters enduring.

I tend to love myself a good dark & gritty romance and this was a lot of fun to read. The humor in here had me smiling and the characters were well done. My only critic was the ending but then again, the ending is what has me wanting to read the next book.

Ultimately, I enjoyed the book and I cannot wait for the next one in the series.
  
Hex Hall (Hex Hall, #1)
Hex Hall (Hex Hall, #1)
Rachel Hawkins | 2010 | Fiction & Poetry
6
8.0 (12 Ratings)
Book Rating
The first thing that I found curious was that the author does not begin with when Sophie first discovers who she is, but instead begins with what incident propels her to switch to the paranormal-reject-filled boarding school, Hecate Hall - also affectionately known as "Hex Hall." The incident shows the softer side of Sophie, so it is easy to predict the choices she makes throughout the rest of the book.
Hecate Hall is similar to any other high school, just with a paranormal twist. The werewolves can still talk and walk upright, so they are not considered true shapeshifters. The fairies don't have to hide their wings, can turn into balls of light for travel, communicate through mirrors, as well as many other traditions of legend - but all seem to be pretentious snobs. The witches are divided into dark and light, and Sophie is unknowingly cast as a dark witch, though she can't guess how, which puts her in the line of fire from the other three dark witches on campus, who swing from classic "mean girls" to her best friends unpredictably. Plus, what school would be complete without the resident "hottie", whom Sophie can't help but fall for, especially since fate keeps putting the two of them together. And finally, two vampires also reside at school - though they are not considered equals - Sophie's roommate, Jenna, as well as a teacher condemned into hiding, none other than Lord Byron, the poet. While Lord Byron's role turned out to be a major disappointment, Jenna seemed to be the one with all of the secrets, even as she is repeatedly blamed for the new deaths cropping up.
Sophie is easy to like, with a fantastic sense of humor and strong moral sense. The flip-flopping emotions of the cast of characters matched the average teenager well, and made for many entertaining situations. The many surprises that saturated the plot made the book engaging, and I look forward to reading about what Sophie does with her new-found information about herself in the next book, Demonglass.
  
Stumbling Stoned (The Patchwork Prince #1)
Stumbling Stoned (The Patchwork Prince #1)
A. Van Wyck | 2018 | Mystery, Paranormal, Science Fiction/Fantasy
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Dark humor (1 more)
Fast paced
A few bad writing techniques (0 more)
When I realized that Wyck's Stumbling Stoned was like Memento meets a season of Fargo, I was all in. A book about a mental patient with amnesia that has supernatural powers? Yes, please!

I was completely blown away by the twists and turns in this story, and even more so by how well it all fit together. But if you find dark humor distasteful, you won't like this book very much. I found myself giggling at things I probably shouldn't have, but these things made it all the better.

Our main character is an amnesiac mental patient known as John Doe, and the entire story is told from his point-of-view. He escapes from the hospital soon after the start of the story with one of the psychiatrists in-tow. We find that Doe has tied up the former in a bathtub while an older man is tied up to a toilet. The man is unknown to the two, and apparently has jet black eyes that make him seem inhuman. And Doe seems to have eaten a fellow patient's finger and upchucked it in the sink- - - something that surprisingly disgusts him - - - and leads him to a drawing on the mirror above, something Doe drew before blacking out.

Doe, after realizing he kidnapped the psychiatrist, quickly lets her go, and goes off on his own with no idea who he is or where he's going. Just when the reader suspects that Doe might find out who he is, he is suddenly swept up into a human trafficking business and mafia dealings he had no idea existed. And because of this, after being drugged by a mafioso, Doe realizes that he has supernatural powers whenever he is hopped-up on drugs.

When Doe makes an escape from the dirty warehouse where young girls are held as sex slaves, he helps these girls by breaking their chains with his bare hands. Not only does he co-lead their escape, but he also ends up saving the daughter of a well-known Mafia boss. However, this leads to Doe being stuck in the middle of a family feud, and he is almost killed by this very same family for knowing just a little too much. And this isn't even half of the story!

Later on, Doe ends up in the hands of a witch, but he realizes quite quickly that she's not the one to fear, but rather who she is working for - - - a man named Zabat- - - who she is delivering our character to. Somehow, Zabat knows exactly who Doe is and why he has supernatural powers, but he refuses to tell him unless Doe helps him first. Doe refuses and, instead, throws himself out of a high rise window. From here, Doe begins to piece some of his life together, but Zabat causes a couple of problems that ends up revealing to the reader that Doe is not human and that the supernatural powers are not a figment of his imagination.

Now, the story is so fast-paced and borders on ridiculous at some points, yet it all fits together quite well; I personally can't think of another way this story could have been told, but that didn't make the book flawless. Stumbling Stoned had some bad writing techniques in it, but not enough that I think readers would put it down.

I can only recommend this book to people who like dark humor, but as far as horror - - - this isn't that type of book. Stumbling Stoned takes readers on a thrill ride through the seedier side of life. I personally believe this is a good book to read to get away from the daily stressors of life. I truly hope that Wyck decides to write a sequel!
  
JCVD (Van Dammage) (2008)
JCVD (Van Dammage) (2008)
2008 | Action, Comedy
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Movie Favorite

"That was one of those movies I saw and it’s… I’m sure that there are movies that are more important, you know? But it was one of those movies that I saw, and it was just perfect, if that makes sense. It’s like all movies are like listening to a bunch of different instruments playing at the same time, and suddenly they all sync up for certain moments, and there’s other times where it’s not quite in rhythm. JCVD was just bang-on the entire time. It was just so lean and solid and this perfect blend of dark humor and some really genuinely touching moments. That moment when he goes up into the loft and it’s all very surreal, and he’s crying, I was like, “This is for real, man. This has really got me.” It’s such a beautiful thing when you’re watching a movie and if somebody told you, “Oh, he’s about to start crying and you’re about to get really emotional in five minutes,” that you would go “No way. Come on, it’s not that kind of movie,” or it’s gonna feel really forced and it’s not gonna work, and they manage to take you there. That’s so impressive."

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