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Autoboyography
Autoboyography
Christina Lauren | 2017 | LGBTQ+, Romance, Young Adult (YA)
8
8.0 (4 Ratings)
Book Rating
When Tanner's family relocates from progressive California to Provo, UT, the bisexual teenager is basically forced back in the closet. While his parents are actually incredibly supportive of his sexuality, their own past experiences lead them to want to keep their son safe and guarded in the largely conservative Mormon community. Now a senior in high school, Tanner is ready to graduate and leave Provo behind. But when his best friend Autumn convinces him to join the Seminar--a rather famous Provo high school class where students write a novel in four months--everything changes. There Tanner meets the Seminar's most well-known graduate, Sebastian Brother, a Mormon who sold his book rights last year. Tanner immediately falls for Sebastian, and he starts chronicling it all: in his own book.

I have a lot of complicated feelings about this book. It's wonderful to see a bisexual protagonist in YA literature, even if Tanner's bisexuality doesn't seem fully explored (and he's not always believed). This is very emotional book, and it certainly wrenched at my heartstrings. From the beginning, it seems pretty clear that there isn't going to be an easy outcome. Sebastian and Tanner are going to fall for each other. The Mormon community doesn't support their brethren being gay. Sebastian can either have Tanner or his family, right?

I also wasn't sure why Tanner's family was so against him a) coming out in Provo or b) falling for a Mormon. We learn that his family has a lot of baggage that causes this, but it was a little strange. The book's exploration of the religious aspect of Mormonism was very interesting and eye-opening, though, as a result, I wasn't sure how realistic the ending was. Still, I found the two boys' exploration and relationship to be heartbreaking and riveting.

There is a lot going on in the book--so many deep emotions, along with coverage of religion and sexuality. I found myself very protective of Tanner and trying to understand his parents, at times, even if they were supportive overall. I even felt that way about Sebastian, even though I couldn't imagine, truly, how he must be feeling, trying to reconcile his own emotions about Tanner against his religious upbringing.

In the end, I liked this one a lot even if I found some areas problematic (Tanner's parents; an incident with Tanner and Autumn; the ending wrapping up a little neatly). It was a very insightful look at religion and sexuality for these two young men and really got me thinking about a lot. Through all the angst, there was a lot of depth and feeling. 4 stars.
  
    Mystery of Fortune 2

    Mystery of Fortune 2

    Games and Entertainment

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    Mystery of Fortune 2 is the eighth episode of Fortune Chronicle Episodes. This is the official...

Betrayal at House on the Hill
Betrayal at House on the Hill
2004 | Adventure, Exploration, Horror, Miniatures
So many variables - you'll never play the same game twice (0 more)
Lots of rules to remember. (1 more)
Depending on a couple factors, the game can last for minutes or hours
Quit following me with that monkey
We recently played this with some friends and loved it. It's a tile game with an RPG element, during which the players construct a creepy mansion, then once activating the Haunt (the mission) one player is turned against everyone else, and the game shifts from tile exploration to a mission.

Each room added to the house has an event to play out, item to pick up or leave there, or omen that may behave like an event or item but also may trigger The Haunt, depending on die rolls.

The part I enjoyed was strategizing once The Haunt was triggered - once it happens, the scenario you play depends on the room you were in, and the cards drawn. The enemy has their own rule book, and everyone else shares another rule book. It really is great fun.

*We were preyed upon by aliens intent on taking us back to the mothership.*

I think the biggest downside to this game is the amount of things to remember, but I've heard the 2nd edition greatly improved on the first, which is what we played.
  
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ArecRain (8 KP) rated Resist in Books

Jan 18, 2018  
R
Resist
4
4.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I received a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.

I have read Missy Johnson before, and while I enjoyed her previous work, it did not prepare me for this novel. It was dark, intense, sexy, and complicated. I wasn’t expecting it to be such an emotional ride, but it sure was.

However, I am way past over the whole torment hero/heroine trope, so I couldn’t help but roll my eyes at some parts. It’s not the author’s fault. My reading list has just been saturated with this trope lately. I would just like some main characters who don’t need therapy. I am also confused by the storyline. Even now, I am still not 100% sure I know what happened. Maybe I missed something or skipped over pivotal parts?

I didn’t enjoy this book for one main reason: as someone who has been sexually abused, this book felt more like abuse than BDSM. I feel there are many authors who try to write BDSM but they follow the vein of 50 Shades. What I mean by this is that it seems more like a game of power with a woman not strong enough to know who to play. Thus it just comes off as abuse rather than a sexual exploration.
  
TH
The Heir and the Spare
6
6.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
2.5 stars really but had to round up. I had high expectations for this book. It sounded like the royal we, which I loved, with a bit of mystery thrown in. While it was very similar to the royal we the mystery bit was way too easy to figure out very early on. I didn't like how it jumped around with no lead in or anything to let you know. I also thought it was way too short at 242 pages (nook app). The entire story was horribly underdeveloped. The author could have done so much more both with the characters, who were fairly one dimensional and flat with no real development, and the plot. The back and forth between evie and Edmund got old fast, their relationship could have used more challenges besides the same thing over and over. Would have been nice to see some exploration of the other characters, namely the gang of friends evie and Edmund shared as well as her mother and grandmother. The quest to uncover the family mystery/secret was far too simple. The ending felt rushed. It was just a general disappointment that could have been a great story had the author only taken a little more time to flesh it out. Definitely not worth the $10.99 I paid for it :(
  
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LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated the PlayStation 4 version of The Park in Video Games

Jul 7, 2019  
The Park
The Park
2015 | Horror
Not the worst way to spend a couple of hours
In The Park, you play as a mother searching for your son inside an abandoned amusement park - a pretty straightforward plot for a horror game.
Being more of a psychological horror game, things are of course not actually that simple....

You play The Park from a first person perspective, whilst you (so very slowly) explore the park, uncovering the backstory of both your character, and the park itself , through notes and clues found littered throughout.
There is zero combat in this, so the focus is solely on the narrative, and the exploration element.
There's a subtle sense of unease throughout the games short runtime, and it does a pretty good job of creating a creepy atmosphere, and uses some pretty trippy and sometimes disturbing imagery to put you on edge.

The Park is low on actual scares (I recall jumping once throughout) and the plotline never makes it clear what is real and what is in your head - which wouldn't usually be an issue, however the ending is left open to discussion and interpretation, to the point that it ends on a rather unsatisfying note.

Overall, certainly worth a play through if you enjoy anything remotely horror related, but I'm glad I picked it up dirt cheap in a PlayStation Store sale!
  
    Be-be-bears

    Be-be-bears

    Games, Entertainment and Stickers

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    Exciting educational game for kids about charming little bears Bjorn & Bucky and Franny the Fox now...

    Anatomy Atlas Free

    Anatomy Atlas Free

    Medical and Education

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    Anatomic.us is a visual atlas that enables to find most of the information about human anatomy. ...