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Persona 5
Persona 5
2016 | Action/Adventure, Role-Playing
Characters (4 more)
Design
Story
Game Mechanics
Loading Screens/Menus
The Game RPG Die hards have been waiting for
The first thing I can think of to say is WOW. Fans of this franchise have been waiting for a very long time for this entry in the Shin Megami Tensei universe. I, as a long time fan SMT, absolutely adore this game.

To really play this game and to get the full grasp of this game expect to put at least 150 hours into the initial game play. Persona 5 does have a new game plus which opens up other options and avenues for players to choose. Seriously though, my first play through was 153 hours. Plan to spend a lot of time in this universe.

That being sad, don't be scared! The game is visually stunning and the story line is unique and highly involved. You have character relationships, jobs, and side missions.


There is a heavy time management quality to this game. You make the choices to work, hang out, or go to the dungeon. The best way to state what Persona 5 is this: Time Management + Dating Simulator + Dungeon Crawler.


As the story progresses, so do the relationships you choose to grow. The main character will make a relationship with people the represent the major arcana tarot cards (so, 20+ relationships to juggle!) From there you get missions to save people from themselves. Some of these are accomplished in the major dungeons (7 overall), while the rest are in the peoples dungeon.


I love every aspect of this game. I had high hopes going into it and ATLUS did not disappoint.
  
TL
The Life of Glass
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Melissa’s father died almost two years ago. She has been struggling, but is surviving with the help of her best friend Ryan. But through a series of events, her world gets turned upside down. A new girl comes to school and befriends her immediately, for some unknown reason. Ryan gets a girlfriend. Melissa’s mom is dating some guy. Ashley, her older sister, is… well just being an annoying older sister with problems. And in the middle of it all, Melissa still has unsolved mysteries about her father, her desires, and herself.

The Life of Glass is a fast read—I tore through it in a matter of hours. I wasn’t particularly sure why I couldn’t stop reading it. Maybe it was the easy language, maybe it was the characters, maybe I was just in the mood for a good romance novel and that was what was on my shelf. Either way, I didn’t stop reading until my sister turned the light out on me.

I liked the characters a lot (though some of them I despised) and others remained mysteries until later in the book; they were those “oh I had no idea they were that kind of person” characters, and I liked the mystery of their personalities. They were relatable and likeable.

That being said, there was nothing hugely spectacular about The Life of Glass: nothing that will make it a long lasting fantastic memory or escape for me. I enjoyed it and I won’t forget it, but it won’t be one of those “second reads.”

This was part of the 1 ARC Tours for Bloody Bad.
  
<b>3.5 stars

A carnival full of odd workers comes to Sunnydale, Buffy's friends are preoccupied dating a couple of these workers, and a pack of strange coyotes are running amok in the streets. Buffy suspects all of these events are related but has no proof. What's a slayer to do?</b>

Set in the summer between the first and second seasons of <b>Buffy the Vampire Slayer</b>, <b><u>Coyote Moon</u></b> is a short and concise story that conveys the spirit of the show without too many noticeable inaccuracies. The major anachronism was Buffy staying in Sunnydale for the summer, which didn't happen during this time. Since this was written before any of the major angst occurred in the series, this has a lighter feel that carries through to the end. The author manages to get the characters and dialogue right via few lines and passages. The only misstep I caught was Giles' wrong definition of a blue moon -- I don't believe that's something he wouldn't have known. Otherwise everyone (Buffy, Willow, Xander, and Giles) rings true to their early incarnations, though more as a basic outline of their characters than anything too substantial. At first the plot reminded me slightly of the episode "The Pack," though this had to do with coyotes instead of hyenas, but once I got into it the story was completely different. The pace was brisk, and though the Big Bad's defeat was over in the blink of an eye, it was a solid read. I can easily see this fitting right in on screen and it's a good companion piece to read in between re-watching episodes.
  
Isn&#039;t It Romantic (2019)
Isn't It Romantic (2019)
2019 | Comedy, Romance
A slightly self-aware rom-com (yet still a rom-com)
Isn't it Romantic is a self-aware pseudo re-telling of the Bridget Jones' Diary plot. Perennial walkover Natalie (Rebel Wilson) fawns over hunky douche-bag men, while missing the decent, down-to-earth man who clearly has feelings for her. Told from an early age by her mum (a brief, wasted appearance by Jennifer Saunders) that she isn't good enough for fairy tale romance and she shouldn't expect it, Natalie is a huge critic of Rom-Coms and hates their cheesy plots. A bump on the head sees her waking up in a fantasy version of New York where men fall at her feet and she has the apartment of her dreams and a new gay best friend. Finding herself in the plot of her own rom-com, she ends up dating the aforementioned hunky douche-bag while the decent, down-to-earth guy dates a swimwear model.
Some laugh-out-loud moments from here on, as her annoyance at the ridiculous cheesy world she's found herself in. Something similar to Disney Channel's Teen Beach Movie (which I don't mind admitting I love!), but with more adult themes.
But in the end the film lets itself down by falling into the trap of the typical rom-com plot. It nearly saves itself and serves as a good, feminist message but then lets itself down in the dying minutes by reverting to type.
A good funny rom-com but not necessarily the anti-rom-com it bills itself as. Watched with my wife and 11-year-old daughter, it is mostly fine for that age.
  
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Midge (525 KP) rated The Buried Girl in Books

Mar 5, 2019  
The Buried Girl
The Buried Girl
Richard Montanari | 2019 | Crime, Mystery, Thriller
10
9.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
A Chilling Psychological Thriller with Gothic Elements
This book caught my eye as I loved the synopsis and I read a lot of books from this genre, although I haven’t read any of the author, Richard Montanari’s books before. “The Buried Girl” is a chilling psychological thriller with some added Gothic elements.

When the wife of a New York psychologist, Will Hardy, is murdered he moves into Godwin Hall, a dusty, shut-up mansion in the small town of Abbeville, Ohio, with his teenage daughter, Bernadette.

At the same time, Abbeville Chief of Police Ivy Holgrave is investigating the death of a local girl. She is convinced this may only be the latest in a long line of murders dating back decades, including her own long-missing sister.

But what place does Will's new home have in the story of the missing girls and why does he have past memories of Godwin Hall? Is the diary of a young woman, written over a century earlier, linked to the killings?

Richard Montanari writes a wonderfully atmospheric and compelling novel. Tense and suspenseful, the many threads of the story slowly begin to link together, central to which is Godwin Hall. Both the characterisation and the plot are superb with the three main characters damaged, but starting the process of recovery. I am hoping that there will be a sequel to this novel as it was a fantastic read which I highly recommend to lovers of thrillers and crime fiction.

{Thank you to Edelweiss and HarperCollins UK/Witness Impulse for the free copy of this novel and for giving me the opportunity to provide an honest review.}
  
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LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated Shazam! (2019) in Movies

May 14, 2019 (Updated Dec 15, 2019)  
Shazam! (2019)
Shazam! (2019)
2019 | Action, Sci-Fi
A refreshing, and often humourous entry into the otherwise troubled DCEU
Contains spoilers, click to show
I went into Shazam! with low expectations, after not being particularly taken with the majority of past DCEU films.

I left feeling pretty positive about the whole goofy experience.

As with most DC material, the film starts on a fairly dark note, introducing us to a young Dr Sivana (a truly old school super villain, dating all the way back to the late 30s).
After a bit of back story as to why he gets all villainy, the movie wastes no time introducing us to Billy Batson (Asher Angel) and the rest of his foster family, and the movie succeeds in making all of the younger characters likable.

After a bit of comic book magic, we're eventually acquainted with the true power of Shazam!
Zachary Levi absolutely shines as he clearly relishes in playing this goofy, excitable teenager trapped in the body of a God. He bounces back and forth with Jack Dylan Grazer pretty well, and for the most part the relentless stream of jokes land nicely.

The film starts to waiver slightly towards the end, as the story hurtles towards a standard comic book movie CGI showdown, with a by the numbers comic book movie performance from Mark Strong, and some sketchy CGI cloud monsters, but it's hard not to grin with the surprise introduction of the Shazam! family (something I would surely expect from a sequel).

Shazam! also struggles at times to balance it's humour with it's more serious beats, but for the most part is an enjoyable origin story that the whole family can enjoy.
  
Anatomy of a Scandal
Anatomy of a Scandal
Sarah Vaughan | 2018 | Thriller
10
7.8 (8 Ratings)
Book Rating
Anatomy of a Scandal is based around three central characters. First there’s James, the suave, charismatic family man and politician who is also good friends with the Prime Minister. He’s wealthy and over-privileged. Then we meet Kate, the young, ruthlessly ambitious prosecutor, who’s determined to see James get the guilty verdict he deserves. She’s also good at her job and made her name prosecuting the very worst sexual assault cases. Finally we meet Sophie, James’ wife who has been dating James since college and knows him better than anyone else. All have a vital part to play in this psychological, legal drama, which starts with a shocking scandal being revealed, which is then dissected in court.

James is accused of rape one of his assistants, but did he do it? While his wife Sophie is seemingly supportive on the outside, on the inside her mind is going crazy thinking about his alleged crimes and what he could in fact be capable of. Just how long can she remain loyal as the story unfolds?

We travel from the court case, back in time to Oxford in the 90s and into the current murky goings on within the privileged political world, where money, corruption and power rule the day.

This is an extremely well written and cleverly plotted, insightful story, which I can easily see adapted into a BBC drama, very much like Louise Doughty’s Apple Tree Yard.

Sarah Vaughan has mastered a treat for us with Anatomy of a Scandal, a sharp, engrossing and poignant political drama, which highlights some shocking hard-hitting facts with sensitivity and realism. Terrific!
  
Living With The Dominator:  A Book About The Freedom Programme
Living With The Dominator: A Book About The Freedom Programme
Pat Craven | 2008 | Crime, Education, Philosophy, Psychology & Social Sciences, Reference
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
It's written simply to get the point across (0 more)
The stats at the start of each chapter are incredibly shocking which will make you feel sad. (0 more)
Be Free
The Freedom Programme was a course devised by the author and from what she learnt she wrote this book for those who can't attend so more (mainly women) can protect themselves from abuse. The chapters begin with a sentence of a statistic that will shock and chill you which shows domestic violence is a huge blight and consern in this country. Once the sentence shocks you the chapter describes a different type of abusor, his tactics, why he thinks like that and where he gets his thoughts from. What I really like about this book as well is each chapter then lists the opposite of how a partner should behave and how you should be treated.

Finally the book tells you the things you should look out for when starting a new relationship so you don't fall for another abusor. All in all I recommend every women reads this before they start dating and statistically if a handful of people are rearing this review then chances are at least one of you is in an abusive relationship. My message to you is this. You are here as you on this planet living your life just once. Go to the police today, don't think you don't want them to get in trouble, what they have done to you is wrong and they know what they have done is wrong, they deserve to be dealt with by the authorities and you deserve freedom.
  
The Poet X
The Poet X
Elizabeth Acevedo | 2018 | Fiction & Poetry
8
7.8 (6 Ratings)
Book Rating
Xiomara Batista is a 15 year old Dominican American living in New York. She has a twin brother and lives with both of her parents. She's at the point in her life where boys are an interest, but her parents would never approve of her dating a boy. They are strict Catholics and Xiomara's mother tells her Jesus is the only man she needs to worry about. But Xiomara needs a way to express herself that she is unable to do with her family, so she writes poems. Her teacher thinks she is talented and encourages her to share her writing. But with her mother always on her about church, will Xiomara be able to find an outlet for her writing.

This book has been on my TBR and I have heard great things about it. This is a great road trip audio book to listen to. Since it's on 3.5 hours long, you can listen to the whole thing on a plane ride or long drive which is what I did.

I liked Xiomara character. I can understand how it feels to be a misunderstood teenager. Where you want to do the things you want to do, but also you don't want to disappoint your family. How do you live in both of those worlds? How do you please your parents and yourself? Being a teenager is tough, especially when you don't have someone who you can trust to share your problems with. Writing is a good outlet to get out the emotions that are hard to share with others.

This is the first book I've read by Elizabeth Acevedo. I look forward to reading her next book,