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David McK (3425 KP) rated Morningstar in Books

May 31, 2021  
Morningstar
Morningstar
9
8.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
The only Gemmell book I know of that was written in the first person, in which he returns to the same world as his earlier "Knights of Dark Renown" (the events of which are only mentioned in passing).

In this Robin Hood-a-like tale, he details how an outlaw (who cares for nothing and no-one save himself) becomes a hero of legend, with a bit of time-travel, sorcery and the undead all thrown into the mix!
  
    Draugen

    Draugen

    (0 Ratings) Rate It

    Video Game Watch

    A first-person, single-player Fjord Noir tale of mystery and suspense, set in 1920s Norway. You...

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Akward (448 KP) rated Sea of Thieves in Video Games

Jul 22, 2018 (Updated Jul 22, 2018)  
Sea of Thieves
Sea of Thieves
2018 | Action/Adventure
Graphics look great (1 more)
Cooperative
The entire game is a grind (2 more)
Player-vs-player interactions
Basically requires exactly 4 people
Rediculously Not Fun
This game is very, very bad for two reasons:

The entire game is a grind. The quests are all "go get this chicken" or "go kill this one guy." In order to complete the quests, you'll need to sail to a nearby island. But even sailing is a grind. Getting from one place to another requires 1 person steering, 1 person manning the sails, and 1 person on the map. At first, the cooperation is fun, but it gets old very quickly. Once you have completed the quest, you'll be rewarded with roughly 400 gold. Even the cheapest upgrades cost 8000 gold.

That brings us to the other killer: player interaction. While you are completing that quest, you had better hope that you don't run in to another player. Because that other player can easily sink your ship, killing those chickens that you just spent 15 minutes getting. This is likely fun if you are the attacker, but is aggressively unfun if you are the person who just lost an hour's worth of quest progression.

This game is not worth $40. You will be bored after 2 or 3 hours (if you even make it that long, there is no tutorial). It might be worth downloading if you have Gamepass, but even then I do not think that it is worth the space on your hard drive.


By the way, this is the first 1-star review I have ever given on Smashbomb. When I say this is the worst game I've ever played, I mean it.
  
Season of the Witch (The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, #1)
Season of the Witch (The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, #1)
Sarah Rees Brennan | 2019 | Horror, Young Adult (YA)
6
7.7 (3 Ratings)
Book Rating
This was at least a readable YA book based upon the Chilling Adventures of Sabrina universe (I prefer the original Archie one, it's more fun). The characters were fleshed out a little, and I liked the alternating first-person narrative of Sabrina and the third-person chapters featuring the people around her. Harvey's brother, Tom's chapter was by far, my favorite. It developed his character more, and it makes me care about him more.
The reason I rate this as ok is because it was perfectly predictable and was just an ok story. If you're a fan and can stomach modern YA, it's a useful read. It's also self-contained, so you don't really have to watch the show in order to understand it. There were little nuggets of detail for viewers of the show.
  
As I Am
As I Am
Melissa Collins | 2018 | Contemporary, LGBTQ+, Romance
6
6.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
3 good solid stars
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.

I thought I was getting over the first person/multi point of view thing, you know, but it appears that I still prefer to LISTEN to first person books than READ them.

That said, I enjoyed this, mostly. It's not a difficult, complicated read. It's quite emotional in places, Chase has to deal with the aftermath of his parents death, bringing up his younger brother in the best way he can. Noah is dealing with the aftermath of that too, but in a very different way. It's sexy in places, and inspiring in other, Chase's brother has a wise head on his 17 year shoulders.

It just didn't blow me away. It was a nice book, that is the best word I can come with, and ya'll know how much I hate using the N word!

It's told from both men's point of view, and the story flows well.

I just didn't love it.

3 good stars

**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
  
M(
Marines (Crimson Worlds #1)
Jay Allan | 2012
4
4.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
The first in [a:Jay Allan|1024374|Jay Allan|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png]'s 'Crimson Worlds' series, which - unfortunately - I struggled to really connect with.

I can see what the author was aiming for, with hints of a better, more compelling story peeking through every so often but I'm afraid, for me, this particular entry didn't really grip me all that much.

I don't know whether that's a result (probably) of the conscious decision to tell this entirely in the first person, meaning that there is, of necessity, a very tight focus on the central character or Erik Cain. If you do that, however, you have to make that character in and of themselves interesting and somebody you want to follow the trials and tribulation of: for me, Eric Cain just doesn't cut the mustard.

I may read the second entry (told, apparently, in the third person) to see if it gets any better, but - based on this - I'm afraid I'm not really holding out any high hopes.
  
Everything I Never Told You
Everything I Never Told You
Celeste Ng | 2014 | Fiction & Poetry
6
7.7 (14 Ratings)
Book Rating
This book was, as I've read in many reviews, very beautiful and poetic. It made me hurt, made me angry, made me smile and gave me hope. But the third person narrative was confusing, because one sentence would be focused on James while the next focused on Marilyn and the transition was not always clear enough to not be confusing at first. The chapters were so long and, honestly, the first 1/3 of the book was so boring I almost put it down for good. However, the story in itself was very emotional - I didn't cry, but it definitely had me feeling some type of way. It was also scary, the notion that happiness can be taken away so quickly and easily, even when there are so many signs pointing to a change; and not just for one person, but for many people at once. While I didn't love this book, it's given me something deep and profound to think about while I lay awake at nights.