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Where We Begin, (The Berkshires, #1)
Where We Begin, (The Berkshires, #1)
Janey King | 2020
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
This was my first time reading a book by Janey King, it is the first book in her series titled The Berkshire Series, and it is her debut novel; so a Trifecta of firsts! The main characters, Hannah, and Collin are an interesting mix match of characteristics and so much heart packed into them both. I enjoyed Janey King's portrayal of their lives and the struggles they faced in the past and together in the present. It was a very realistic and blunt (I do mean blunt) portrayal of the struggles we all go through. I did enjoy the overall plot of overcoming your past and finding happiness with where you are at. One thing I did struggle with was the continual emphasis on sex, it was a constant mention in both mental and verbal conversations. Just not my usual cuppa tea as I like to focus on the story. But it is still a good storyline and I give it 4 out of 5 stars.

*I volunteered to read this book in return for my honest feedback. The thoughts and opinions expressed within are my own.
  
The Sowing Season
The Sowing Season
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
The Sowing Season by Katie Powner was like getting that first taste of fresh hot chocolate, you want to go slow to savor it, but you also want to drink it all down Because it tastes so good. That is what this book felt like for me, it was so good I wanted to savor it, but I also wanted to see the ending. A book theme this year has been books that make you think, and I have been LOVING it. The Sowing Season fits right in, but also stand out from the crowd.

    This story was deep and thought-provoking in ways many books are not. It touched my mind and heart and I loved how Katie Powner showed the characters through real life, the ups and downs, and everything in between. I also enjoyed how the characters lived out their faith. A fantastic debut novel. Now I am looking forward to what other deep thought-provoking books that Katie Powner has in store. 

*I volunteered to read this book in return for my honest feedback. The thoughts and opinions expressed within are my own.
  
Anatomy of a Murder (1959)
Anatomy of a Murder (1959)
1959 | Classics, Drama, Mystery
6.3 (3 Ratings)
Movie Favorite

"My number two movie is Otto Preminger’s Anatomy of Murder starring Jimmy Stewart — one of my favorite James Stewart performances. He’s the country lawyer, so all those folksy tricks that Jimmy Stewart uses just really come into play here– ’cause he’s also so bright, you know? He’s the brilliant, folksy country lawyer. And Lee Remick is in it, in the flower of her youth. Bra-less and in Ray-Bans — you know, who doesn’t want [to see] that? And gosh, Ben Gazzara in a really neurotic, strange performance. I think it’s the screen debut of George C. Scott as the young lawyer from Lansing, MI, who takes on this case; and he’s — it’s just brilliant courtroom stuff. Murray Hamilton — who plays the mayor in Steven Spielberg’s Jaws — he’s the bartender, and he’s wonderful; it’s a great turn. And the music: Duke Ellington and Ella Fitzgerald, so it’s a great jazz score. The Jimmy Stewart character tinkles on the ivories and he plays a little bit of jazz sometimes as a kind of hobby, so that justifies the score. But that’s a great film — black and white, beautifully shot, underrated. Almost a perfect film."

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Awix (3310 KP) rated Halloween (1978) in Movies

Oct 30, 2020  
Halloween (1978)
Halloween (1978)
1978 | Horror
John Carpenter's landmark horror movie; not the first slasher movie, but pretty much the textbook example of the genre. A homicidal maniac (and, just possibly, vessel of pure evil) breaks out of an institution and returns to his home town, where he murdered his sister at the age of six. Obsessive doctor Donald Pleasence is in hot pursuit, but Jamie Lee Curtis (in her debut) is about to find that babysitting really deserves danger money...

Always interesting to watch these classic horror films back on the big screen: as usual, there was a lot of nervous sniggering at some of the technical shortcomings of a low-budget production (plus Halloween has been so extensively ripped off and parodied it's the kind of film you feel you've seen before, even if you haven't). However, there were yelps and screams in the appropriate places as the film got going: Carpenter handles the jump scares with consummate technical skill, but it works as well as it does because of the atmosphere he creates, helped mainly by Pleasance. A film that really sets out to do only one thing, and for the most part achieves that brilliantly.
  
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Hazel (2934 KP) rated Call Me Mummy in Books

Mar 14, 2021  
Call Me Mummy
Call Me Mummy
Tina Baker | 2021 | Crime, Fiction & Poetry, Thriller
8
9.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
For a debut this is pretty successful and certainly had me reading way too late into the night.

This is a dark, disturbing and harrowing read but totally addictive. With fantastic characters and an all-too-real story line, this is a book that gets you hooked pretty quickly and doesn't let you go until the last full stop at the end.

Told from the perspectives of the kidnapper, the mother and the child, this provides insight from all aspects of the story which makes it all the more gripping. There are also snippets of social media posts which add a further dimension.

This book is about so much more than child abduction and, as a consequence, does contain swearing and abuse so if you are upset by these, I would probably give this a miss but if you "enjoy" (and I say that loosely) reading something on the darker side, then Call Me Mummy is the book for you.

Thank you to Serpent's Tail / Profile Books / Viper via NetGalley - I received a free review copy from the publisher in exchange for my honest unedited feedback.

Another author to look out for in the future.
  
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Peter Strickland recommended Only You (1994) in Movies (curated)

 
Only You (1994)
Only You (1994)
1994 | Comedy, Romance

"I saw this at Helsinki’s Love and Anarchy Film Festival, only missed the beginning of the film, and had to leave early to present my own film at another cinema. This was just a great debut. Really stripped down and honest without the frills and trappings that often come with first film insecurity. I was completely immersed in the couple’s predicament and to my shameful ignorance, there was so much I didn’t know about IVF prior to seeing the film. I’d only seen Josh O’Connor in “God’s Own Country,” but he was just as believable and brilliant in “Only You,” and Laia Costa completely pulled me into the depths of her frustrations. It was also great to see not only a European character in a British film, but also a European played by a European rather than a Brit putting on an accent, which is still often the case. I wonder how that will pan out after Brexit. I had to leave the cinema when the protagonists had a row towards its final minutes and still don’t know or want to know how it ended until I watch it again."

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Austin Garrick recommended Notorious (1946) in Movies (curated)

 
Notorious (1946)
Notorious (1946)
1946 | Drama, Film-Noir, Romance
6.5 (2 Ratings)
Movie Favorite

"Had to at least include one from the master Hitchcock. Being the huge De Palma fan that I am, it would be tough to not be a huge Hitchcock fan as well. Bronwyn loves Ingrid Bergman and was the person to introduce me to Notorious when we were younger. What I love about this film is that you get this sincere, Old Hollywood romantic chemistry between Bergman and Cary Grant, in addition to some classic Hitchcock greatness. We project films while we write and record, and this film played a lot during the making of our debut album. Fritz Lang is another one of the greats who I had to have on this list. I first discovered his films through Giorgio Moroder’s 1984 restoration of Metropolis, whose iconic image of the robot on the soundtrack and posters always intrigued me as a child, and once I eventually saw the film, it quickly became one of my all-time favorites. Most who have seen it, The Testament of Dr. Mabuse, and M will agree that Fritz Lang is one of the best to have ever done it, but perhaps no one film has earned him that reputation more than M."

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Gaz Coombes recommended World Music by Goat in Music (curated)

 
World Music by Goat
World Music by Goat
2012 | Alternative, Psychedelic
6.0 (2 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"I got into this a few years back when I was really getting going with the solo thing. I thought, “This is unusual.” It reminds me a bit of ESG. I really love that delivery – those female vocals that have a drive, power and confidence but are punk and not flying around everywhere. It’s edgy and cuts through in a really cool way. It’s so refreshing in these days of immediacy to hear something like this. I hear some debut EPs that sound like really expensive records and you think, “Where’s the growth coming from here?” When we first started out it was always about playing together ’cos there was no other option – I was too young to get a gig and I wasn’t allowed in venues – so you play, write, mess around and watch movies. There were no distractions, we were just a gang in a living room in front of an open fire, messing around. We did some quick bashed-out B-sides and ropey gigs but it was about the attitude. I wish I saw more uncertainty and vulnerability in young artists."

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