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    iMap 5.0

    iMap 5.0

    Navigation and Business

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    iMap uses your internal GPS to Map the contacts in your address book, based on their proximity to...

    MEGA MAN 6 MOBILE

    MEGA MAN 6 MOBILE

    Games and Entertainment

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    The Sixth Chapter in the Mega Man Saga With the formation of the Global Robot Alliance, world peace...

Rescued (Rescued Hearts #1)
Rescued (Rescued Hearts #1)
Felice Stevens | 2016 | Contemporary, LGBTQ+, Romance
10
10.0 (3 Ratings)
Book Rating
loved this book!
I got this free, from The Gay Romance Reader Club.

Jason broke up with his girlfriend cos he didn't want to marry her. Ryder broke up with his boyfriend cos the boyfriend didn't want to give up his drugs. Over the rescue of some pit bulls, they became friends. Ryder wants more and Jason? Well, he is digging deep into a long buried memory and realising that maybe it wasn't the fact he didn't want to marry his girlfriend, but maybe, just maybe, it was because she was a GIRL.

Oh I LOVED this book! It's one of those books that surprises you for some reason, but you've on idea why! I can't tell what surprised me, really I can't but I can tell you that I loved it!

Ryder is a lawyer, works for a pit bull rescue, has a pit called Pearl. While he loves his dog, she isn't much of a substitute for the warm male body he misses. Jason is a builder, developing his business with his brother. Finding the pit bulls chained up at a site brings Ryder into contact with Jason and both men, BOTH of them, have a reaction to the other. Ryder's is not surprising but Jason's is. As they spend more time together, Jason begins to question just what he's been doing all this time.

And I LOVED that we got to hear from both men! Cos you know I love that, but especially in books like this, when one is going against all he ever thought was right, and having that light bulb moment with someone and the world is a better place for it. And it really is a *light bulb above the head* moment for Jason, once he allows himself to just run with what he's feeling.

I did NOT like Ryder's mum. She's a Class A bitch and deserves to be alone for the rest of her days, for what she did to Ryder and his brother! So glad that his dad got his act together though!

Loved Jason's mum, especially after what his brother Liam says!

And while I'm not usually one for early professions of love, the way Jason came out with it? It was right that he said those words early, even if he didn't actually realise what he'd said! Both guys fell hard and they fell fast but it was right, for them, that they did.

There is a second book for these guys, and I'd love to read it at some point. There is a tiny snippet at the back of this one, and I have a feeling it might not be so warm and fuzzies!

First full length book by Ms Stevens I've read, the wish list is a few longer now!

5 full and shiny stars

**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
  
Max Attacks
Max Attacks
Kathi Appelt, Penelope Dullaghan | 2019 | Children
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
A Cute, Fun Story!
I admit that I was sucked in by the cover for Max...Attacks by Kathi Appelt. Then I read the synopsis, and I knew that I had to read this for myself and for my 4 year old son. We were both delighted and entertained throughout this cute story. In fact, my son wanted me to read this book again right after we were done reading it the first time!

The plot for Max...Attacks if very simplistic yet fun. It's an easy plot to understand for young children. Max is a cat how likes playing (attacking) everything in sight! It's basically just a day in a life of a cat that children (and adults) will definitely enjoy with plenty of humorous moments!

The rhyming in Max...Attacks is done superbly and in such a fun way that makes it easy to read and understand. My 4 year old loved the rhyming throughout this book as did I. The easy language and rhyming help this book to flow smoothly. Sentence structure is fantastic.

The titular character of Max is one that children (and adults) will fall in love with. He's easy to love, and he's funny without even trying to be. My son and I laughed over and over at Max's attacking adventures! We also the dog and even the goldfish in the book. Okay, we loved every character. It was hard not to. I believe Kathi Appelt captured a day in the life of a cat perfectly!

The illustrations for Max...Attacks were done beautifully yet simplistically. Penelope Dullaghan, the illustrator for this book, did an amazing job with the illustrations. They are vibrant, very colorful, and extremely fun to look at. In fact, I'd go as far as to say that the illustrations really helped to make Max...Attacks as great and as enjoyable as it is. The attention to detail in these illustrations is also spot on. Seriously, these illustrations are some of the cutest and most fun that I've seen in a children's picture book in awhile. If you're looking for a book that will hold even the most inattentive child's attention, Max...Attacks is the book you need!

All in all, Max...Attacks is an incredibly fun children's book to read as well as to look at. The amazing illustrations as well as the entertaining story will definitely thrill children and adults alike. I would definitely recommend Max...Attacks by Kathi Appelt to everyone no matter their age. If you are looking for books for a specific age group, I think this would appeal to children between the ages of 3 - 6 the most. Max...Attacks gets a solid 5 out of 5 stars from me and my son.
--
(A special thank you to Lone Star Book Blog Tours for providing me with an eBook of Max...Attacks by Kathi Appelt in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.)
  
TS
The Secret Countess
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Countess Anna Grazinsky had it all: riches, jewels, palaces, English nannies, everything. And then the Russian revolution came along. Now in 1919, Anna and her family are penniless in London so she decides to get a job as a housemaid to the newly engaged Earl of Mersham.

This is the third Eva Ibbotson book that IÕve read this year and, whilst I have enjoyed them all, I canÕt help noticing that the characters are basically all the same. Heroine who seems completely perfect and has no flaws, love interest who is complex and often broody (also the most well rounded character in the book) and the obvious villain who spends the whole book being obviously villainous. All that being said, I do really like these characters. I could relate to Anna despite her perfectness, I understood RupertÕs problems regardless of how blind he was being at times and I enjoyed just how horrible and ruthless Muriel could be. I also loved the side characters. Ollie was adorable, Lavinia was hilarious and Baskerville was strangely well fleshed out for a dog (seriously, Ibbotson gives him a whole personality where most authors wouldnÕt have bothered). Yes most of the characters were simple without huge character arcs but I liked them all the same.

IbbotsonÕs writing style is easy to slip into and nice to read, if a little over fond of commas. However it is the atmosphere that really lets this book down Ñ there isnÕt really too much of it. There are a moments where a small amount is created, and those passages are certainly the most memorable, but there are unfortunately few and far between. ThatÕs not to say that the general feeling is bad or uncomfortable to read when it shouldnÕt be, but I would liked to have seen more of...well, something.

In a similar vein to what I said about the characters earlier, most of IbbotsonÕs young adult literature seems to follow a similar structure. Girl leaves family to do something or be someone that they often donÕt approve of, meets a misunderstood man, they fall in love but he is unavailable (or she thinks he is) and she leaves him without a word but donÕt worry, they are reunited and they all live happily ever after. However, if it ainÕt broke, donÕt fix it. While the main skeleton structure is used for most of her work, each of IbbotsonÕs books have a difference and a charm that stays with you and is memorable. There are plenty of little surprises and some twists and turns.

While this review may seem mixed and sound negative, I did really enjoy this book. I have kept it on my shelves with my other Eva Ibbotson novels for a reason and IÕm sure I will return to it.

Character: 7.5
Atmosphere: 5.5
Writing Style: 9
Plot: 8
Intrigue: 8
Logic: 8
Enjoyment: 8
  
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Eilidh G Clark (177 KP) rated Goblin in Books

Jul 2, 2019  
Goblin
Goblin
Ever Dundas | 2017 | Fiction & Poetry
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Everything. This is a top class debut novel (0 more)
Nothing. (0 more)
Brilliant book, well wriiten, original
Winner of the Saltire Society first book of the year award 2017, Goblin, by Ever Dundas is a brilliant and brave first novel. Set in both London during WW2 and in Edinburgh in 2011, the story is told in flashback. For me, the first half of the novel is the best, we meet Goblin as a nine-year-old tomboy with a love for animals and a passion for storytelling - both of which the protagonist collects.
Goblin has a difficult family life; a mother who doesn’t want her, 'Goblin-runt born blue. Nothing can kill you. [...] You're like a cockroach,' (p.5) a father who mends radio’s and barely talks and a brother (David) who spends most of his time in his bedroom. Left to her own devices, the protagonist, her dog Devil, and her two friends Mac and Stevie roam the neighbourhood and hang around in an abandoned worksite. As a collector of stories, Goblin enthusiastically attends the local church with Mac, 'I loved the stories, turning them over in my head, weaving my own.' (p.24) before meeting The Crazy Pigeon Lady who tells her tales of Lizards people from the realm below. The childhood innocence in these chapters, mixed with magic realism, break down the walls of adult reasoning and creates a wonderful suspension of disbelief.
But without giving away the story plot, the suspension of disbelief serves another purpose; to divert the reader (as well as the adult protagonist) from the truth. So, while the adult Goblin searches amongst her tangled past, she takes the reader along for the ride. We meet multiple parents, live life on the road, come alive on the streets and in the circus, explore love, death, desire, and hate – and somewhere in the middle we meet an impressive collection of animals - Goblin has it all. And as far as strong female protagonists go, she’s right up there with Anais Hendricks from Jenni Fagan’s Panopticon, to Janie Ryan in Kerry Hudson’s Tony Hogan Bought Me an Ice Cream Float Before He Stole My Ma, characters who are so real you might just walk by them on the street.
The only teeny tiny criticism about the novel is that the second half spans over a lengthy period of time and it felt a little rushed. However, there is so much to say about this novel, so many angles to discuss, from Queer Theory to Religion, from Myth to Realism, and as a graduate of English Literature I could have a field day studying this book but for now, as a lover of good books, I’ll give it a big thumbs up and a huge recommendation, it’ll be finding a space on my ‘keep’ book shelve.
Goblin, Ever Dundas (2017) published by Saraband
  
Liberator (The Liberators #1)
Liberator (The Liberators #1)
Nick Bailey, Darren Bullock | 2017 | Fiction & Poetry, Science Fiction/Fantasy
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Fast. Loud. Violent. Fun. All good adjectives to use in relation to this book. This is the summer blockbuster of science fiction novels.

It is the far future. Corporate business rules and takeovers and mergers are often done facing down the barrel of a gun - or the threat of destruction from orbit from a massive spaceship.

When Skye Pennington is kidnapped by a rival company in order to gain business advantage, her friend Orlanda Nixon tries to rescue her. After her initial attempt is thwarted, she turns to the only place she can, the old mercenary unit she and Skye were both part of. The Liberators.

However, the former large and fearsome force is now a tattered remnant after one battle too far, kept alive only by their leader, JJ Tristan and a few final loyal members who have nowhere else to go. Tristan must gather as much of the team as he can muster at short notice and get his mighty - and badly damaged - ship back in action. It's a tall order for a disparate group who don't always get on with each other.

In the end the plot is not of any particular consequence. It is a very handy hook to hang the story off of, the initial stirring battles introducing Orlanda and Skye, the introduction and gathering of the Liberators after Orlanda's plea and the adrenaline fuelled fight sequences as they attempt to recapture Skye. There is also some sneaking around by the team's deadly assassin and flashbacks to show the glory days of the team, and some of the history between the characters.

The result is a terrific ensemble piece, the Liberators may be battered and dog-eared, old and tired but they have an instinct for survival and fighting that is only matched by their ability to cause destruction and mayhem. The pace runs fast through most of the book - it does slow in the middle as the characters are introduced but is never dull and certainly never predictable.

Every character is well thought out and at first glance some appear to be simplistic ciphers - the cyborg, the tech specialist with the weird sense of humour, the grizzled commander - but once they start interacting and (most importantly) fighting each comes entirely into their own.

This book doesn't take itself too seriously - it exists for the excellent set pieces rather than for any detailed introspection on future society - and the scenes of the good guys running around in big armour with even bigger guns will bring a smile to your face. In particular the sequence when their ship takes off is a total tour de force and one of the best action scenes I have seen in print.

This is a terrific introduction to what will hopefully be a series of novels. Certainly what happens next to the Liberators will be of interest. Any Hollywood producers looking for the next great summer blockbuster could do worse as well.

Rating: Lots of violence. Then some more. And some bad language
  
The Missing Ones
The Missing Ones
Edwin Hill | 2020 | Fiction & Poetry
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Research librarian Hester Thursby returns in THE MISSING ONES, but she's not the same. Shaken by the traumatic series of events that occurred in book one, Hester is anxious and guilty. This affects her parenting of four-year-old, Kate, the daughter of her partner Morgan's sister, Daphne. (Follow that?) Daphne has now been gone for over a year, and Hester and Morgan are still caring for Kate. Meanwhile, on Finisterre Island in Maine, Rory, a local cop, is watching the ferry come in yet again. He's ignoring the whispers and suspicion of others on the island, who believe he is responsible for taking Oliver, a four-year-old who disappeared over the summer--and whom Rory found, safe and sound. Now another child is missing. Soon Hester gets a text--asking her to come to the island. In short order, she'll find a body there, and connect it to the missing children. But Finisterre Island is a small place, and not one to give up its secrets easily.

Reading this novel has definitely secured Edwin Hill and the Hester Thursby series as a go-to author/series combo for me. This was an excellent and compelling read. Hester is a wonderful, complex protagonist, and I hated to see her so fragile and struggling. I love Hill's stable of regular characters--Hester, Morgan, Kate, and their dog, Waffles. Plus, several folks from the last book pop up again, which was fun. Always hovering in the background is the missing Daphne, and Hester's complicated feelings: Daphne is her best friend; Morgan's sister; and Kate's mother. Of course she wants her back in their lives, but by now, she fiercely loves Kate and feels like her mother. It adds a deeper layer to the books and an aspect that I really enjoy. And Kate, while "just" four, is a total trip. I love that kid.

The mystery presented here is wonderfully plotted and complex. Introducing Finisterre Island gives us a whole host of new characters: Rory; Annie, Faith, and young Ethan, who are all squatting in a broken down Victorian on the Island; Lydia, Oliver's mother, who runs the local inn and bakery and her husband Trey, a state cop; and others. With a small island comes intense and tangled relationships, and Hill presents and handles them all deftly. The story kept me guessing and intrigued--fascinated both by the murder and mysteries, as well as Hester's own personal issues. Seeing a vulnerable side to her was difficult due to my adoration for her character, but it was so well-done. And, of course, she's still able to solve crimes, because she's amazing.

Overall, this was an excellent read. I love Hester--and her little created family. Hill is an amazing writer and does a great job at creating a suspenseful world that easily sucks you in. 4.5 stars.