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Epoch by Of Allies
9.0
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Album Watch
At the time of writing this, Of Allies are a completely DIY and independent band, so every listener...
Of Allies weareofallies Rock Alternative Alt rock British
No Less The Devil
6.0
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'We are each our own devil, and we make this world our hell.' It's been seventeen months since...
Daughter of Belial
Book
Some Family Trees Should Be Burned. . . Greer Girls are special. Greer Girls are rare. Greer...
Psychological Thriller
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2281 KP) rated Murder on Madison Square in Books
Jun 14, 2023 (Updated Jun 14, 2023)
Death by Early Electric Automobile
When Frank Malloy learns of an auto show happen in Madison Square, he is excited to go. While there, he meets Alvin Bing, who is there trying to introduce his electric cars. When one of those electric cars runs over Mr. Bing the next day, his widow hires Frank to find out what happened. With the help of the usual characters, can Frank solve the case?
Yes, the core cast of characters are all here, and I loved spending time with them again. The plot is one of the darker ones in the series, so the character’s interactions helped lighten things. As always, the plot kept me turning pages, even when I figured out a key plot point early. And yes, someone had developed electric cars as early as 1900, when this book is set. I found that part of the history presented here fascinating. While this isn’t the strongest entry in the series, fans will still enjoy visiting favorite characters.
Yes, the core cast of characters are all here, and I loved spending time with them again. The plot is one of the darker ones in the series, so the character’s interactions helped lighten things. As always, the plot kept me turning pages, even when I figured out a key plot point early. And yes, someone had developed electric cars as early as 1900, when this book is set. I found that part of the history presented here fascinating. While this isn’t the strongest entry in the series, fans will still enjoy visiting favorite characters.
The Blue Veil (Seven Deadly Veils #1.5)
10.0
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When one of High Lord Valadon’s rare paintings goes missing, his second in command, Remare enlists...
Urban Fantasy Romance Novella
Highway Blue
8.0
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In front of me the long length of the road wound out, wound out and wound on under hot sky. And I...
Goddess in the Stacks (553 KP) rated That Inevitable Victorian Thing in Books
Jan 11, 2018
A fun alternate history romp
Representation, people! This book features a bisexual, intersex young woman. (I say woman, because she is female-presenting and uses female pronouns.) It also features a not-quite-love-triangle that turns into something more like polyamory. (Sorry, that's a bit of a spoiler, but you can see it coming from a mile away, and the cover description heavily implies the same.)
It's not realistic in the least - everything falls together nicely and it's a bit of a "princess saves the day by virtue of being a princess" kind of plot. But the twist on the history is a very pleasant one - and making the British Empire an Empire that values diversity and the melding of cultures and not looking down on anyone because they're different is a really nice change of pace. It's a WONDERFUL bit of escapist fantasy given today's world, I have to say.
I'd actually really like to see the darker side of this same world explored. One of the main plot points in the book is that there is a computer database of genetics. Everyone in the British Empire, when they turn 18, is encouraged to have their DNA sequenced and entered into the computer to find good genetic matches. They then have the opportunity to chat with those matches and eventually meet them. It's accepted custom, and you're definitely viewed as odd if you choose NOT to do it, though Helena's parents were a love match and never had their DNA matched through the computer. Helena's love interest is a boy she grew up with, she really only ran her DNA through the computer for kicks. So it's not mandatory - except for royals. But that this computer and database exists leaves room for a darker side. What about genetic modification? Forced marriages for certain genetic outcomes? That has to be happening somewhere. That Inevitable Victorian Thing really only looked at the fun, light-hearted, good uses of this technology. I'd love to see the other side.
Oh - while the book definitely has a Victorian flavor, it's definitely set in modern day, or perhaps a little past. It's not Victorian era.
Fun little book. A good escape from a racist, homophobic world to a more diverse, accepting one. But a little TOO fluffy bunny for my personal tastes.
You can find all my reviews at http://goddessinthestacks.wordpress.com
It's not realistic in the least - everything falls together nicely and it's a bit of a "princess saves the day by virtue of being a princess" kind of plot. But the twist on the history is a very pleasant one - and making the British Empire an Empire that values diversity and the melding of cultures and not looking down on anyone because they're different is a really nice change of pace. It's a WONDERFUL bit of escapist fantasy given today's world, I have to say.
I'd actually really like to see the darker side of this same world explored. One of the main plot points in the book is that there is a computer database of genetics. Everyone in the British Empire, when they turn 18, is encouraged to have their DNA sequenced and entered into the computer to find good genetic matches. They then have the opportunity to chat with those matches and eventually meet them. It's accepted custom, and you're definitely viewed as odd if you choose NOT to do it, though Helena's parents were a love match and never had their DNA matched through the computer. Helena's love interest is a boy she grew up with, she really only ran her DNA through the computer for kicks. So it's not mandatory - except for royals. But that this computer and database exists leaves room for a darker side. What about genetic modification? Forced marriages for certain genetic outcomes? That has to be happening somewhere. That Inevitable Victorian Thing really only looked at the fun, light-hearted, good uses of this technology. I'd love to see the other side.
Oh - while the book definitely has a Victorian flavor, it's definitely set in modern day, or perhaps a little past. It's not Victorian era.
Fun little book. A good escape from a racist, homophobic world to a more diverse, accepting one. But a little TOO fluffy bunny for my personal tastes.
You can find all my reviews at http://goddessinthestacks.wordpress.com
Asiza Tait (139 KP) rated The Night Circus in Books
Feb 1, 2018
A truly entertaining magical piece of fantasy.
All of our readers enjoyed the beautiful descriptive writing of Erin. Some found the beginning a bit difficult to follow with the abrupt changes of time and scene, though others found the whole mystery of it all utterly engrossing.
Basically, there are two ancient magicians who set their two star pupils against each other to find out who is the best. The issues are that the pupils don't know the rules, or how the winner is declared. The competition arena, is the Night Circus.
There is a great deal that is left to the reader's imagination as not everything is completely explained, which only adds to the enigmas and magic entwined in everything. This is not an ordinary novel. We first get a full view of the almost playfulness of the magic and later the darker aspects of it are explored. How everyone involved in the circus whether directly or not is caught up in it and pays a price as well as benefits from it.
Walking through the circus is so beautifully written that it feels as if you are there, smelling the caramel popcorn and watching the white flames dancing. The joy of the circus permeates the pages, people who visit the circus leave it ever changed.
The love story between Marco and Celia is restrained, elegant and ultimately otherworldly in its strength and beauty. They 'write love letters' to each other through the different tents in the circus. The demonstrations of their affection to each other are so beautiful; so dazzling as to wish that everyone could find such love.
The competition though integral to the story becomes the hardest part to reconcile as the pages flip by and the costs mount up for the magic being used, the balancing that must be maintained. Some of these costs are very heavy, burdensome and even fatal. The darker side of the competition is shown in all it's sinister aspects and we are left waiting for the 'other shoe to drop' so to speak.
To show that this book is not for everyone, half of our readers adored this book and would absolutely recommend it as a must read, and the other half were not at all convinced, conceding only that the descriptive writing was excellent but the plot felt thin.
All of our readers enjoyed the beautiful descriptive writing of Erin. Some found the beginning a bit difficult to follow with the abrupt changes of time and scene, though others found the whole mystery of it all utterly engrossing.
Basically, there are two ancient magicians who set their two star pupils against each other to find out who is the best. The issues are that the pupils don't know the rules, or how the winner is declared. The competition arena, is the Night Circus.
There is a great deal that is left to the reader's imagination as not everything is completely explained, which only adds to the enigmas and magic entwined in everything. This is not an ordinary novel. We first get a full view of the almost playfulness of the magic and later the darker aspects of it are explored. How everyone involved in the circus whether directly or not is caught up in it and pays a price as well as benefits from it.
Walking through the circus is so beautifully written that it feels as if you are there, smelling the caramel popcorn and watching the white flames dancing. The joy of the circus permeates the pages, people who visit the circus leave it ever changed.
The love story between Marco and Celia is restrained, elegant and ultimately otherworldly in its strength and beauty. They 'write love letters' to each other through the different tents in the circus. The demonstrations of their affection to each other are so beautiful; so dazzling as to wish that everyone could find such love.
The competition though integral to the story becomes the hardest part to reconcile as the pages flip by and the costs mount up for the magic being used, the balancing that must be maintained. Some of these costs are very heavy, burdensome and even fatal. The darker side of the competition is shown in all it's sinister aspects and we are left waiting for the 'other shoe to drop' so to speak.
To show that this book is not for everyone, half of our readers adored this book and would absolutely recommend it as a must read, and the other half were not at all convinced, conceding only that the descriptive writing was excellent but the plot felt thin.
Louise (64 KP) rated Now I Rise (The Conqueror's Saga #2) in Books
Jul 2, 2018
*I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and the publishers in exchange for an honest review*
Kiersten White has beaten the second book lull. With a lot of series I have read you find that the second book is sometimes a ‘filler’ or it just not as good as it’s predecessor – This is not the case for ‘Now I Rise’, this book was darker, brutal and action packed.
I am not going to go into too much detail with this book as I don’t want to give any spoilers away. Lada is off to Wallachia with her men, she is has having a pretty hard time of convincing people to back her as being prince and then she has to contend with assassins trying to kill her. Lada’s loyal army will do anything for her, they fight for her and then follow her when she starts taking revenge on anyone that gets in her way of the throne.
Radu is still as loyal as ever to Mehmed and fantasizes that one day he will look at him the way he did Lada. He will do anything for Mehmed even if that means becoming a pawn and risking his and Nazira’s lives.
There were some great characters in this book, Nazira (Radu’s wife) she was smart, funny, had a political head on her but foremost she really truly cared for Radu. She had this warmth about her that was very much-needed as a lot of the book is dark and gritty.
Hunyadi, we hear of him a little in ‘And I Darken’ but we really get to see him in this book and though he is depicted as some awful killer that murdered Vlad Dracul and his son, we find there is more to this man and reasoning behind his motives.
This installment is much darker, bloodier and Lada is even more badass than before. I preferred this book so much more than the first one. The first book was obviously setting the scene and giving us the back story to each of their lives and this one was jammed packed with action. There is such great character development, I can’t wait to see where the story goes next.
I rated this 4 out of 5 stars
Kiersten White has beaten the second book lull. With a lot of series I have read you find that the second book is sometimes a ‘filler’ or it just not as good as it’s predecessor – This is not the case for ‘Now I Rise’, this book was darker, brutal and action packed.
I am not going to go into too much detail with this book as I don’t want to give any spoilers away. Lada is off to Wallachia with her men, she is has having a pretty hard time of convincing people to back her as being prince and then she has to contend with assassins trying to kill her. Lada’s loyal army will do anything for her, they fight for her and then follow her when she starts taking revenge on anyone that gets in her way of the throne.
Radu is still as loyal as ever to Mehmed and fantasizes that one day he will look at him the way he did Lada. He will do anything for Mehmed even if that means becoming a pawn and risking his and Nazira’s lives.
There were some great characters in this book, Nazira (Radu’s wife) she was smart, funny, had a political head on her but foremost she really truly cared for Radu. She had this warmth about her that was very much-needed as a lot of the book is dark and gritty.
Hunyadi, we hear of him a little in ‘And I Darken’ but we really get to see him in this book and though he is depicted as some awful killer that murdered Vlad Dracul and his son, we find there is more to this man and reasoning behind his motives.
This installment is much darker, bloodier and Lada is even more badass than before. I preferred this book so much more than the first one. The first book was obviously setting the scene and giving us the back story to each of their lives and this one was jammed packed with action. There is such great character development, I can’t wait to see where the story goes next.
I rated this 4 out of 5 stars
Neon's Nerd Nexus (360 KP) rated Jojo Rabbit (2019) in Movies
Jan 6, 2020 (Updated Jan 6, 2020)
F*ck Off Hittler!
Jo Jo Rabbit while by no means a bad movie its just one that I think would of worked better as a short instead. Think Son Of Rambow meets Wes Anderson and Jo Jo sits somewhere in between, its not bad but its also not greatness either. Containing way more serious drama and a much darker tone than the trailer has you believe what I found most interesting of all were the bleakest parts of the story which hit home way more than the comedy side. I just felt the humour took away from the films more serious messages of manipulation and the mind poluting of the naive. A good job is done of showing how fragile, young and inocent minds are easily lead astray/influenced by propaganda, stories, lies, the spread of hatred and how the excitement of holding a weapon, fighting in a war or wearing a uniform almost takes away from the overall bigger picture for them as children. Most of these kids see probably grew up without a dad as a role model so seeing hittler praised by all, hearing cool fables about him and seeing him on tv/posters to them at that age is almost like how kids are today with superheros, then to think thats actually what probably happened sends chills up your spine in horror. Sadly these scenes are always dampened with comedy killing the impact of them for me and while I do get what type of film its going for I think id rather of just seen a movie on the darker stuff. Acting is great especially by the boy playing Jo Jo however accents do slip constantly all round again breaking the illusion. Couple this with a middle act that I really struggled with losing intrest frequently and looking at my watch. While it does have the heart and certainly the depth in places I cant help but feel really let down by this movie and sadly I left wanting more. Far too serious for teens and not serious enough for adults Jo Jo Rabbit is an alright watch with definitely a few good messages at its muddled heart 'love will always defeat hate' and 'even if you are ugly on skin you still can be lovely from within' so I guess its not all bad.