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Phillip McSween (751 KP) rated TinkerBell and the Legend of the NeverBeast (2014) in Movies
Jul 20, 2020
To its Credit, Not Bad
As the scout fairies fear the Neverbeast will destroy Pixie Hollow, Fawn has to convince them that the creature is actually a gentle giant.
Acting: 10
Beginning: 10
Characters: 5
Cinematography/Visuals: 10
I have to give credit where it’s due. I have watched all three of the Tinker Bell movies that made it to theaters (not in theaters) and every movie saw improved visuals. It was kind of like watching the Toy Story movies get better over time. By the time they got to the third, the attention that went into just Lotso’s fur was unreal. I love the attention to detail in this Tinker Bell installment from the lush world to the unique creatures.
Conflict: 10
Entertainment Value: 8
At a very quick 76 minutes, this movie manages to do a lot in a little bit. I was very surprised at how much I got into it. The story flows smoothly and you’re rooting for the characters that are driving it.
Memorability: 4
Pace: 10
It should go without saying, but any movie that can tell a story in 76 minutes will not get any negative marks on the pace side from me. As previously mentioned, a lot happens in a little bit of time. I must also say that nothing ever felt rushed or forced, rather it was a natural pacing of story.
Plot: 2
Resolution: 10
Cute ending that put a bit of a smile on my face. The overall story was a hot mess, but at least it ended well. I was definitely satisfied when it was all said and done.
Overall: 79
Tinker Bell and the Legend of the Neverbeast suffers from a weak story that was obviously made for kids. Had they put a bit more time and energy into the plot aspect of things, the score would have been a lot higher. As it stands, it doesn’t quite get out of the “Folding Clothes Movie” category.
Acting: 10
Beginning: 10
Characters: 5
Cinematography/Visuals: 10
I have to give credit where it’s due. I have watched all three of the Tinker Bell movies that made it to theaters (not in theaters) and every movie saw improved visuals. It was kind of like watching the Toy Story movies get better over time. By the time they got to the third, the attention that went into just Lotso’s fur was unreal. I love the attention to detail in this Tinker Bell installment from the lush world to the unique creatures.
Conflict: 10
Entertainment Value: 8
At a very quick 76 minutes, this movie manages to do a lot in a little bit. I was very surprised at how much I got into it. The story flows smoothly and you’re rooting for the characters that are driving it.
Memorability: 4
Pace: 10
It should go without saying, but any movie that can tell a story in 76 minutes will not get any negative marks on the pace side from me. As previously mentioned, a lot happens in a little bit of time. I must also say that nothing ever felt rushed or forced, rather it was a natural pacing of story.
Plot: 2
Resolution: 10
Cute ending that put a bit of a smile on my face. The overall story was a hot mess, but at least it ended well. I was definitely satisfied when it was all said and done.
Overall: 79
Tinker Bell and the Legend of the Neverbeast suffers from a weak story that was obviously made for kids. Had they put a bit more time and energy into the plot aspect of things, the score would have been a lot higher. As it stands, it doesn’t quite get out of the “Folding Clothes Movie” category.
Alice (117 KP) rated The Enchanted in Books
Mar 3, 2021
<b>4.5 stars</b> (I may change this in the future but for now let's leave it at this)
My rating for this book is slightly confused because I went through a vast majority of the book feeling. "hey this book is really good I'm so glad it was recommended to me" but <i>only</i> feeling that. It didn't get me excited but it was still very, very good. However, the last couple of pages had such a huge impact and it really made the whole story come alive which meant I gave it the extra 0.5 for the pure sense of awe I felt after finishing.
When you read the title "The Enchanted" you expect it to be about fairies or some other sort of magical creature, the last thing that you expect is a book about a prisoner on death row but let me just say that this book is a gem. The language (especially as a debut novel) is exquisite. The use of metaphors and flowery almost pretty language juxtaposed perfectly to describe the scenes which should be gruesome and dark emphasising with the magic-realism style of the novel. Having the entire story told from the inmate's point of view made for an interesting read too because he was narrating the others' thoughts, so the only parts we know to be true are the things that he himself thought. As I mentioned above, the whole story is development, even as I was nearing the end no part truly felt like the climax.
All in all, I highly recommend this book even if you only read it for how beautiful the language is ( that's pretty much what inspired me to read it), it deals with harsh subject matters in a really raw way and makes you think and you will likely leave with more questions than with which you entered.
My rating for this book is slightly confused because I went through a vast majority of the book feeling. "hey this book is really good I'm so glad it was recommended to me" but <i>only</i> feeling that. It didn't get me excited but it was still very, very good. However, the last couple of pages had such a huge impact and it really made the whole story come alive which meant I gave it the extra 0.5 for the pure sense of awe I felt after finishing.
When you read the title "The Enchanted" you expect it to be about fairies or some other sort of magical creature, the last thing that you expect is a book about a prisoner on death row but let me just say that this book is a gem. The language (especially as a debut novel) is exquisite. The use of metaphors and flowery almost pretty language juxtaposed perfectly to describe the scenes which should be gruesome and dark emphasising with the magic-realism style of the novel. Having the entire story told from the inmate's point of view made for an interesting read too because he was narrating the others' thoughts, so the only parts we know to be true are the things that he himself thought. As I mentioned above, the whole story is development, even as I was nearing the end no part truly felt like the climax.
All in all, I highly recommend this book even if you only read it for how beautiful the language is ( that's pretty much what inspired me to read it), it deals with harsh subject matters in a really raw way and makes you think and you will likely leave with more questions than with which you entered.
Death Be Blue (Terra Vane #1)
9.0
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Enforcer Field Agent Terra Vane is a human psychic who is trying to prove herself in a world where...
Rachel King (13 KP) rated Hex Hall (Hex Hall, #1) in Books
Feb 11, 2019
The first thing that I found curious was that the author does not begin with when Sophie first discovers who she is, but instead begins with what incident propels her to switch to the paranormal-reject-filled boarding school, Hecate Hall - also affectionately known as "Hex Hall." The incident shows the softer side of Sophie, so it is easy to predict the choices she makes throughout the rest of the book.
Hecate Hall is similar to any other high school, just with a paranormal twist. The werewolves can still talk and walk upright, so they are not considered true shapeshifters. The fairies don't have to hide their wings, can turn into balls of light for travel, communicate through mirrors, as well as many other traditions of legend - but all seem to be pretentious snobs. The witches are divided into dark and light, and Sophie is unknowingly cast as a dark witch, though she can't guess how, which puts her in the line of fire from the other three dark witches on campus, who swing from classic "mean girls" to her best friends unpredictably. Plus, what school would be complete without the resident "hottie", whom Sophie can't help but fall for, especially since fate keeps putting the two of them together. And finally, two vampires also reside at school - though they are not considered equals - Sophie's roommate, Jenna, as well as a teacher condemned into hiding, none other than Lord Byron, the poet. While Lord Byron's role turned out to be a major disappointment, Jenna seemed to be the one with all of the secrets, even as she is repeatedly blamed for the new deaths cropping up.
Sophie is easy to like, with a fantastic sense of humor and strong moral sense. The flip-flopping emotions of the cast of characters matched the average teenager well, and made for many entertaining situations. The many surprises that saturated the plot made the book engaging, and I look forward to reading about what Sophie does with her new-found information about herself in the next book, Demonglass.
Hecate Hall is similar to any other high school, just with a paranormal twist. The werewolves can still talk and walk upright, so they are not considered true shapeshifters. The fairies don't have to hide their wings, can turn into balls of light for travel, communicate through mirrors, as well as many other traditions of legend - but all seem to be pretentious snobs. The witches are divided into dark and light, and Sophie is unknowingly cast as a dark witch, though she can't guess how, which puts her in the line of fire from the other three dark witches on campus, who swing from classic "mean girls" to her best friends unpredictably. Plus, what school would be complete without the resident "hottie", whom Sophie can't help but fall for, especially since fate keeps putting the two of them together. And finally, two vampires also reside at school - though they are not considered equals - Sophie's roommate, Jenna, as well as a teacher condemned into hiding, none other than Lord Byron, the poet. While Lord Byron's role turned out to be a major disappointment, Jenna seemed to be the one with all of the secrets, even as she is repeatedly blamed for the new deaths cropping up.
Sophie is easy to like, with a fantastic sense of humor and strong moral sense. The flip-flopping emotions of the cast of characters matched the average teenager well, and made for many entertaining situations. The many surprises that saturated the plot made the book engaging, and I look forward to reading about what Sophie does with her new-found information about herself in the next book, Demonglass.
Rachel King (13 KP) rated Summers at Castle Auburn in Books
Feb 11, 2019
With all of the series that I constantly fight to keep up with, this was a nice change with an all-in-one plot. The story is told entirely from Coriel Halsing's point of view, so the reader only gets to know things when she learns of them. Sometimes first person P.O.V. is limiting and somewhat claustrophobic, but in this case it simplified the story line and helped me to better get inside the mind of Coriel.
I grew to love Coriel as her story progressed and she matured into a strong, independent young woman. I love that she is not just a pretty face, but possesses both intelligence and wit. In many ways, this book is her coming-of-age story with a fantasy background that could have easily been traded for some other setting without compromising the character of Coriel Halsing.
I also love that Coriel is not the center of royal attention - like her sister, Elisandra - and the "handsome prince" is neither meant for her nor remotely appealing to me, the reader. It was quite entertaining for me to be constantly guessing as to whom Coriel would eventually wind up with. When the man was finally revealed, I was very happy with the results, though I would have enjoyed a bit more wooing on his part.
All of the different characters are well-developed and unique, from the narcissistic handsome prince Bryan, to the always-composed Elisandra, to the many aliora that populate the book. The aliora are quite fascinating, comparable to fairies or elves in description, but still unique to Sharon Shinn's design. In many ways, the aliora act as catalysts for political intrigue within Castle Auburn, as well as Coriel's personal development and maturation.
As an adult fairy-tale, this book can easily appeal to both teens and adults, as the romance is tastefully done and the risque topics, such as slavery, suicide, and illigitimacy, are handled with care and respect. Personally, I loved this book as much as I have loved everything else I have read from Sharon Shinn.
I grew to love Coriel as her story progressed and she matured into a strong, independent young woman. I love that she is not just a pretty face, but possesses both intelligence and wit. In many ways, this book is her coming-of-age story with a fantasy background that could have easily been traded for some other setting without compromising the character of Coriel Halsing.
I also love that Coriel is not the center of royal attention - like her sister, Elisandra - and the "handsome prince" is neither meant for her nor remotely appealing to me, the reader. It was quite entertaining for me to be constantly guessing as to whom Coriel would eventually wind up with. When the man was finally revealed, I was very happy with the results, though I would have enjoyed a bit more wooing on his part.
All of the different characters are well-developed and unique, from the narcissistic handsome prince Bryan, to the always-composed Elisandra, to the many aliora that populate the book. The aliora are quite fascinating, comparable to fairies or elves in description, but still unique to Sharon Shinn's design. In many ways, the aliora act as catalysts for political intrigue within Castle Auburn, as well as Coriel's personal development and maturation.
As an adult fairy-tale, this book can easily appeal to both teens and adults, as the romance is tastefully done and the risque topics, such as slavery, suicide, and illigitimacy, are handled with care and respect. Personally, I loved this book as much as I have loved everything else I have read from Sharon Shinn.
Hazel (1853 KP) rated Elora of Stone (Legend of Rhyme, #1) in Books
Dec 17, 2018
<i>This eBook was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
Elora of Stone</i> is the first in an exciting fantasy series, <i>Legend of Rhyme</i>, for young readers. Set in a magical kingdom, an evil magician steals one child of every pair of twins born. In order to protect their children, Asher and Ariana’s parents move to live near Elora – a good witch turned to stone by the sorcerer. Despite the protection, four-year-old Asher goes missing. The night of her thirteenth birthday Ariana learns of Asher’s whereabouts but only has until midnight to save him.
Full of magical creatures such as witches, fairies, pixies and goblins, <i>Elora of Stone</i> is the start of a sensational story for eight to twelve year olds. Heart stopping moments will urge the young readers to see the book through to the end to discover whether the twins succeed in being reunited and learn the truth about who is good and who is evil.
Although Asher and Ariana are the main characters of the series, they are not born until exactly half way through the book. As <i>Elora of Stone</i> is only one hundred pages, there are a bit too many chapters focused on setting the scene, resulting in the main story line and climax becoming rather rushed and crammed together.
Now that the preliminary introductions to characters and settings have been made, the following books in the series will hopefully flow better. <i>Legend of Rhyme</i> promises to be a unique fairytale to enthrall pre-teens of all reading levels. The narrative is clear and easy to follow with a limit on tricky words. To break up the text there is the occasional beautiful illustration depicting the author’s visual impressions of a handful of characters.
Ending on a slight cliffhanger, <i>Elora of Stone</i> will leave readers wanting more, thus making the <i>Legend of Rhyme</i> series a great set of books to collect; a wonderful start to your own personal library.
Elora of Stone</i> is the first in an exciting fantasy series, <i>Legend of Rhyme</i>, for young readers. Set in a magical kingdom, an evil magician steals one child of every pair of twins born. In order to protect their children, Asher and Ariana’s parents move to live near Elora – a good witch turned to stone by the sorcerer. Despite the protection, four-year-old Asher goes missing. The night of her thirteenth birthday Ariana learns of Asher’s whereabouts but only has until midnight to save him.
Full of magical creatures such as witches, fairies, pixies and goblins, <i>Elora of Stone</i> is the start of a sensational story for eight to twelve year olds. Heart stopping moments will urge the young readers to see the book through to the end to discover whether the twins succeed in being reunited and learn the truth about who is good and who is evil.
Although Asher and Ariana are the main characters of the series, they are not born until exactly half way through the book. As <i>Elora of Stone</i> is only one hundred pages, there are a bit too many chapters focused on setting the scene, resulting in the main story line and climax becoming rather rushed and crammed together.
Now that the preliminary introductions to characters and settings have been made, the following books in the series will hopefully flow better. <i>Legend of Rhyme</i> promises to be a unique fairytale to enthrall pre-teens of all reading levels. The narrative is clear and easy to follow with a limit on tricky words. To break up the text there is the occasional beautiful illustration depicting the author’s visual impressions of a handful of characters.
Ending on a slight cliffhanger, <i>Elora of Stone</i> will leave readers wanting more, thus making the <i>Legend of Rhyme</i> series a great set of books to collect; a wonderful start to your own personal library.
Make a Cake - Cooking Games for kids HD
Games, Food & Drink and Stickers
App
Once upon a time there was a wicked witch who captured fairies from the land of fairy tales. Only...
Make a Cake - Cooking Games for kids
Games, Food & Drink and Stickers
App
Once upon a time there was a wicked witch who captured fairies from the land of fairy tales. Only...
Princess coloring book pages – games for kids
Book and Entertainment
App
"Coloring pages game for kids to paint or color beautiful fairytale princesses If your kids like...
Louise (64 KP) rated The Girl in the Red Coat in Books
Jul 2, 2018
This book is every parent/guardians worst nightmare! This book made me feel anxious and sick at how realistic this is. For my daughter to be the same age as Carmel is just terrifying to me. This story line will definitely bring out your emotions even if you are not a parent. The premise was what drew me towards reading this book, child abduction is something that we will see on the news occasionally and something that could happen to anyone.
Carmel Wakeford is 8 years old and intelligent for her age, recently Carmel has been “Away with the Fairies” and occasionally wanders off. Beth (Carmel’s mother) is on constant edge when they visit a children’s festival, so much so they Carmel becomes agitated by her mothers clingyness that she decides to remove herself from her mothers grasp just for a while. When Carmel returns to the spot her mother is no where to be seen, a grey haired man appears and introduces himself as Carmel’s grandfather. With never actually meeting her grandfather before and him knowing her parents, she believes him when he tells her that her mother has been in an accident and he is there to look after her. Beth is frantically searching for her daughter realising her worst fear is becoming a reality.
The book is told from two alternating point of views, Beth and Carmel’s. Though this is a crime book, it is not told from the investigation perspective as we are used to, it’s more of the mother/father/family/child’s suffering. Hamer has captured the emotions of the mother really well with feeling guilty and the grieving process and I could feel her despair and knew if I was in the same position I would be feeling exactly the same way. I enjoyed reading from Carmel’s perspective, it’s interesting when the author writes as a child it needs to come across realistically which Hamer managed to pull off.
I found this story to be quite slow even with the alternating POV’s and some parts I was bored but I continued reading as I needed to know what happened to Carmel. The ending all seemed to be a bit rushed and left things unexplained. The writing was really good and packed full of emotion.
This is a great debut novel from Kate Hamer and would be interested in reading her future work.
Overall I rated this 3.5 out of stars
Carmel Wakeford is 8 years old and intelligent for her age, recently Carmel has been “Away with the Fairies” and occasionally wanders off. Beth (Carmel’s mother) is on constant edge when they visit a children’s festival, so much so they Carmel becomes agitated by her mothers clingyness that she decides to remove herself from her mothers grasp just for a while. When Carmel returns to the spot her mother is no where to be seen, a grey haired man appears and introduces himself as Carmel’s grandfather. With never actually meeting her grandfather before and him knowing her parents, she believes him when he tells her that her mother has been in an accident and he is there to look after her. Beth is frantically searching for her daughter realising her worst fear is becoming a reality.
The book is told from two alternating point of views, Beth and Carmel’s. Though this is a crime book, it is not told from the investigation perspective as we are used to, it’s more of the mother/father/family/child’s suffering. Hamer has captured the emotions of the mother really well with feeling guilty and the grieving process and I could feel her despair and knew if I was in the same position I would be feeling exactly the same way. I enjoyed reading from Carmel’s perspective, it’s interesting when the author writes as a child it needs to come across realistically which Hamer managed to pull off.
I found this story to be quite slow even with the alternating POV’s and some parts I was bored but I continued reading as I needed to know what happened to Carmel. The ending all seemed to be a bit rushed and left things unexplained. The writing was really good and packed full of emotion.
This is a great debut novel from Kate Hamer and would be interested in reading her future work.
Overall I rated this 3.5 out of stars