Search

Search only in certain items:

40x40

Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2346 KP) rated The Chosen One in Books

Apr 5, 2021 (Updated Apr 5, 2021)  
The Chosen One
The Chosen One
James Riley | 2021 | Children, Science Fiction/Fantasy
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
The Final Battle Against the Old Ones
The final fight is coming. Fort Fitzgerald and his friends have one week until Damian has promised to return and unleash the Old Ones on the Earth. Damian thinks he can defeat the Old Ones, but Fort believes that Damian will fail, unleashing the Old Ones on the Earth. Fort thinks his only hope is to find a way to destroy magic once and for all. But can he figure out how to do that in time?

This is the final book in the series, so if you haven’t read the earlier books, I definitely recommend you go back and start there. If you don’t, you’ll have some pretty cool twists spoiled for you. Fans will be happy with the story we get here. I do feel the author took a bit too long in the first half, time that could have been cut without impacting the story overall. But the second half is great, with the complications we’ve grown to expect from the series and a page turning climax. All the characters we love show up again here, and I enjoyed the growth some of them got. Fans of the series will be happy with how things are wrapped up.
  
The Festival
The Festival
H.P. Lovecraft | 2020 | Science Fiction/Fantasy
7
7.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
173 of 200
Kindle
The Festival
 by H P Lovecraft

The Festival" is a short story by H. P. Lovecraft written in October 1923 and published in the January 1925 issue of Weird Tales.
The story is set at Christmas time: "It was the Yuletide, that men call Christmas though they know in their hearts it is older than Bethlehem and Babylon, older than Memphis and mankind." An unnamed narrator is making his first visit to Kingsport, Massachusetts, an "ancient sea town where my people had dwelt and kept festival in the elder time when festival was forbidden; where also they had commanded their sons to keep festival once every century, that the memory of primal secrets might not be forgotten."


I am still quite new to reading Lovecrafts work the things that strike me so much about him is his imagination and the way he translates what’s in his head to paper and does it so well! I’m really enjoying these little novellas!

I know not a huge review but I find myself getting bored with long winded explanations of how you should
Or shouldn't feel! With a classical author like this the work tends to speak for itself!
  
The King in Rome (Warrior #1)
The King in Rome (Warrior #1)
6
6.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
As an author, Simon Scarrow is - IMO - most associated with the genre of historical fiction.

Even more so - again, IMO - with those set during the time of the Roman Empire: I think we're approaching 20, now, of his full length Cato and Macro novels (edit: as of typing this, 22 novels).

I can't say much about TJ Andrews, other than I'm aware he has collaborated with Scarrow on a a few e-book novella's.

This is the latest in that collaboration, taking - as it's inspiration - the tale of Caratacus, the British warlord who defied the Empire before the time of Boudica, and who appeared in some of the earlier Eagle (aka Cato and Macro) novels as an antagonist. Eventually defeated by the Roman legions, Caratacus was spared by the Emperor Claudius to live out his life in the confines of Rome (and with Prefect Cato being name dropped when he mentions that in this novella), which is where this series of novellas picks up, as Caratacus is persuaded to tell his life story to a Roman historian who first encounters him at a banquet hosted by the Emperor Nero.

Told, therefore, from the 'other point of view' than the usual, I'm interested in seeing where this goes!
  
TS
The Solder Who Killed a King: A True Retelling of the Passion
David Kitz | 2017 | Fiction & Poetry
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
When it comes to fiction books that are centered around Biblical times, it takes a really good author to hook me into the story line. Don't get me wrong, I love reading my Bible, however, not every author can create a story that brings the Biblical portion off the book pages and to the reader like a movie screen. David Kitz, however, truly hooked me with this book, and took me a first-class whirlwind ride through history. 

I absolutely felt every emotion of this book, watching, most often on the edge of my seat, as Christ was cruxified. This book really brings to life the Biblical and the historical detail. As I watched the Roman Centurion who was tasked with awful task, I found myself with tears in my eyes, both for him, and for Christ. It was a heartwrenching, gut twisting, thought provoking story of sacrifice and pain. 

This book......anything less than a 5 star review would be a disgrace. The style of which David Kitz wrote this novel is stunning and captivating. This book is definitely not for everyone though. If you are a reader of Biblical fiction, if you want to see what happened during that eventful week in time, then this book is for you. You will not be disappointed and you will want more! I know I am already ready for another beautifully written novel of Biblical times by this superbly talented author! Grab this book and be prepared for a jaw dropping experience of watching the cruxifixion come to play. <a href="http://cafinatedreads.com/kregel-blog-tour-review-the-soldier-who-killed-a-king-by-david-kitz/"; target="_blank">This review was originally posted on Cafinated Reads</a>
  
The Geek&#039;s Guide to Unrequited Love
The Geek's Guide to Unrequited Love
5
7.0 (3 Ratings)
Book Rating
Comic Con (0 more)
Main character (0 more)
The title of this book had me wary from the start, but I'd heard good things about it, and the author is a woman, so I hoped it wouldn't be what it sounded like. Because seriously. We don't need more books about angsty white guys complaining about the girl they love not liking them back.

Unfortunately that's exactly what I got in this book.

First, the good points. The author has a very immersive writing style, and she captured the feeling of a Comic Con VERY impressively. I haven't been to NYCC, but I've been to other nerdy cons, and the hectic pace of panels, and getting tickets, and standing in lines, but nerding out over ALL THE GEEKY STUFF - yeah, that was perfectly written. I really enjoyed that. The other characters - Casey and Felicia, specifically, and Samira, and the rest of Roxy and Graham's families - those were also well done. The brief scene with Roxy's Iranian family was especially nice, which is to be expected from an Iranian-American author!

But Graham irritated me. Roxy wasn't well explored because we only saw things from Graham's point of view, and her love interest Devin's appeal wasn't shown very well at ALL.

I spent most of the book wanting to yell at Graham to just TALK TO HER ALREADY. He's all miffed that his plans aren't going right and the obnoxious Brit is stealing his girl but he won't. Just. TALK. To her.

I think the only reason I actually finished the book was because it was short. And for the description of Comic Con, that was actually really good. But the main character was just frustrating. I should have spent this time on another book.You can find all my reviews and more at http://goddessinthestacks.com
  
White is the Coldest Colour
White is the Coldest Colour
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
^^ Dr David Galbraith is a very good child psychologist and all sorts of children come his way for help. But immediately, within the first few pages, we discover that he is NOT to be trusted, and to say he is abusing his power is an understatement. It’s horrifying what he is able to get away with.

^^ Unfortunately, the Mailer family are going through some tough times due to marital breakdown, so in an effort to help their child Anthony, they take him to the well-known Dr Galbraith. Oh yes, you can see where this is going, right? This fact alone made me race through this book. One half of me is screaming at the pages, “Don’t take him to Dr Galbraith!” and the other half of me is going, “WOW! This is going to turn out bad, I can’t wait to see what happens!” ? It’s both terrifying and intriguing at the same time. I loved it.

^^ It’s clear the author also drew from his own experiences as a member of the police force with child protection social worker contacts, and this is also what made the book an outstanding and realistic read. It’s all too terrifyingly real in some places, and that’s what makes this plot so gripping.

^^ This totally exceeded all my expectations as a debut book by an author I have never actually heard of before. It’s well written, fast paced and totally unputdownable.

Overall: This is a stunning, psychological thriller, which really pulls you in deep to the dark side, and although the subject matter at times is very sad, and quite distressing, it’s very well done. I am totally looking forward to what this author has to offer next!