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SkySafari 5 Plus is more than the basic astronomy app, and this is its best version yet! It's a...
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UPDATE: Parents’ Choice Award-winning Super Why app now has 50% MORE CONTENT featuring new stories...
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Gorgeous color charts with insightful interpretations make TimePassages Pro the most advanced...
Wther Complete - Live Weather Forecast, Radar & NOAA Radio
Weather and Utilities
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How often do you stumble upon an unexpected rainfall or a snow storm? It definitely ruins your day...
Ivana A. | Diary of Difference (1171 KP) rated The Half Sister in Books
Oct 5, 2020
About The Author:
I have heard a lot about Sandie Jones, but I haven’t read any books by her prior to The Half Sister. Sandie Jones has worked as a freelance journalist for over twenty years, and has written for publications including the Sunday Times, Woman’s Weekly and the Daily Mail. She lives in London with her husband and three children. The Other Woman is her debut novel.
Synopsis:
I need to mention that the original synopsis of the book may be a bit misleading. Lauren and Kate are two sisters, but they don’t get along too well and their relationship is complicated.
Kate is a reporter, married to lovely Mark, and going through many rounds of IVF treatment, hoping to start a family. Kate had a very close relationship with her father until the day he died, but was never too close to her sister Lauren and their mother, Rose.
Lauren, on the other hand, is a full time mom of three, with a demanding and overprotective husband. She is very close to her mum, and had a complicated relationship with her father, never forgiving him for understanding her in the past.
One day, while Kate, Lauren and their mum are having their usual Sunday roast, a woman knocks on their door and drops a bombshell. Jess claims to be their half-sister.
This allegation is met with denial - how could she be a secret daughter of their father. Their mother is devastated, Lauren is not surprised, and Kate doesn’t believe Jess at all. But as more secrets start to unravel, no one can know who to trust anymore…
My Thoughts:
I loved the idea of this book, even though I am not too big of a fan of domestic mysteries and drama. My impressions were that this would’ve been more psychological thriller, but I was in the wrong. However, despite this, the book is really surprisingly well-written and kept me on my toes until the very end.
The lives of Lauren and Kate in particular were very well written. I can imagine people being able to easily relate to their struggles. The difference between the two sisters is like night and day. I loved the fact that this book was not sugar coating this, and it didn’t end it with a “happily ever after”. Instead, it ended with “we know we are different, and we are working to fix our relationship in its natural course”.
The story about how Jess comes into their lives, and the whole DNA situation was extremely not believable. As well as the fact that doing another DNA test at the beginning of the novel would have solved all assumptions, rather than people believing hearsay and creating more drama. However, I am also aware that drama was needed to keep the story going, so I can’t hold a grudge.
The ending was predictable half-way through the book. Some scenes are completely unnecessary and make the story more complicated. There are many triggering moments in this book. Cheating, domestic violence and abuse, both physical and emotional and abortion. This book may also trigger people that have had difficult relationships with their parents and/or siblings.<br/><br/>Even though not a favorite thriller, I enjoyed this book and recommend it to everyone that loves domestic thrillers. It is a fast-paced read, and the plot twists are juicy.
Together We Rise: Behind the Scenes at the Protest Heard Around the World
Women’s March Organizers and Conde Nast
8.0
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WITH ESSAYS BY: ROWAN BLANCHARD - SENATOR TAMMY DUCKWORTH - AMERICA FERRERA - ROXANE GAY - ILANA...
politics social issues
Sophie’s Dream - ELI
Book and Education
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‘It’s late. Sophie is asleep in her bed and she is having a lovely dream. She is dreaming about...
Gaza Under Hamas: From Islamic Democracy to Islamist Governance
Bjorn Brenner and Magnus Ranstorp
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Hamas is designated a terrorist organization by Israel, the EU, the USA and the UN. It has made...
The Children's Home
10.0
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For fans of Shirley Jackson, Neil Gaiman, Roald Dahl, and Edward Gorey, a beguiling and disarming...
Connor Sheffield (293 KP) rated Supernatural - Season 1 in TV
Apr 20, 2017
The first thing I loved about this show was that the lore's it followed were real from the legend of Bloody Mary, to the Woman in White and even a Wendigo. I knew about these legends but this show taught me more about what people believed about them and how they came to be, so this show is somewhat educational as well as being a great action horror drama show.
SPOILERS AHEAD!
So in Season One we are introduced to a family who witness the death of their mother/wife as she bursts into a fiery explosion on the ceiling of baby Sam's nursery room. Fast forward years later and Sam's in college/university and has left his past behind him until his brother Dean shows up to tell him their Dad has gone missing after a 'Hunting' trip.
This is where we learn that Sam, Dean and their Father, were actual in the life of Hunters who hunt down demons, ghosts/spirits, and monsters.
This show takes you one a journey with Sam and Dean saving lives from all sorts of strange and horrifying evil beings, who don't always turn out to be an evil being, just tortured or maybe even a being trying to warn them of a greater evil.
The effects are on par with a lot of big budget movies, even better than some of the most recent box office hits and in 2005, that says a lot about how the show can only get better with age. And it has!
Writer Eric Kripke truly did create something spectacular and to say that it's still running to this day, with a whole 12 seasons finished and a 13th season coming soon, it's hard to believe that it can still stay fresh and entertaining with this genre, but when you watch this show I guarantee you'll be entertained as there are dozens of pop culture references in every episode from X- Files to Lord of the Rings and many more, and with soundtracks that include rock and metal bands such as AC/DC it's hard to wrap your head around just how awesome this show is.
Many episodes are either named after movies ("Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things", "The Usual Suspects", "I Know What You Did Last Summer") or classic rock songs ("In My Time of Dying", "Born Under a Bad Sign", "What is and What Should Never Be", "Sympathy For The Devil", "When The Levee Breaks"). - Copied from IMDB
The on screen chemistry between characters is brilliant and more often than not, even in serious situations, it can become hilarious with cheesy one liners or pop culture references used with perfect timing to lighten the mood of the show.
Sam and Dean (portrayed by Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles) have some of the best character development that I've seen in a show, and sometimes throughout the different series' the formula of arguing, falling out, and coming back to one another, can become somewhat tedious and repetitive making you scream at the TV saying "WHY!? YOU KNOW YOU'RE JUST GOING TO REALIZE YOU NEED EACH OTHER!" but if you think about it, that's how brothers would be in this situation. Having to spend every day with your brother on the road fighting the unthinkable, it would be stressful and tensions would run high, but you'd soon realize that after everything you've been through, who else could you feel comfortable around?
If you're into the paranormal or want to start learning more about different paranormal legends then this is the show for you.
TIP: For further entertainment, watch the bloopers. Some of the most hilarious clips I have ever seen from a show ;)