
Hannah's High School Crush
Games and Education
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Hannah wants to look gorgeous on the first date with her secret high school crush Jack! Get ready...

Haley Mathiot (9 KP) rated What Curiosity Kills (The Turning, #1) in Books
Apr 27, 2018
Genre: YA, paranormal, romance
Rating: 4
Mary Richards always knew she didn't fit in exactly with everyone else, but she always attributed that to the fact that she and her sister were adopted. But when her long time crush suddenly starts showing interest in her, she randomly starts sleeping and purring in class, and she starts to turn into a cat, she knows things are never going to be the same.
I was instantly pulled into The Turning. The story starts and progresses quickly, and I read the whole thing in one day, almost fully in one sitting. It's the kind of book that you don't realize you've gotten to the next page, or the next chapter, and before you know it, you're done… but the adventure was so engaging, you forgot who you were for a while, because you were living solely in the character's shoes.
The writing was casual, but good. I rarely felt out of place or confused by what had just occurred. One of the only things that really bothered me about this book was the fact that Nick and Mary's relationship was very fast, and seemingly out of nowhere but lust. The ending, also, didn't quite have enough closure on the relationship aspect, nor on the actual story. It directly after the final exciting scene, with no smooth curve down. My heart was still racing when I got to the last page, and I felt like it should have lasted a little longer. Lastly, I wasn't sure if this book was for pre-teens, ages 12-14, or older. It would probably appeal to both age groups.
My favorite part was watching the characters show themselves for who they were. Yoon being more than what meets the eye, Octavia confessing her secrets and being willing, for love, to face her fears, and all the others, too. They were all very unique. I loved the characters and their interaction and dialogue.
Overall, I enjoyed The Turning, and look forward to the rest of the series.
Content: Some language, no sex
Recommendation: Ages 14-18, or if offended by language 16+

Kristy H (1252 KP) rated Big Lies in a Small Town in Books
Mar 19, 2020
I've never read a book by Diane Chamberlain before, and I really enjoyed this one. It's oddly captivating for centering on a painting from the 1940s. The point-of-view switches between Morgan and Anna and each are compelling narrators in their own right. This was one of those books where I found myself desperately wishing I could read faster, as I wanted to find out what happened to Anna (we're told early on she "went crazy").
I applaud Chamberlain for her original plot. It's odd, but not in a bad way, as it had me interested the entire time. She does a wonderful job of creating two completely different worlds: Anna's in the 40s and Morgan's in near present-day. She deftly weaves in art aspects; Morgan's drunk driving conviction and her past in prison; Anna's possible mental illness; and Morgan's benefactor, so to speak, Lisa, who springs her out of prison to fulfill the wishes of her late father, Jesse, a famous artist.
While this novel is mainly fiction, there are some great twists and turns, especially as we learn what happened to Anna. Chamberlain delves into race relations, as Anna confronts the prejudices of the south in the 1940s. Her writing style is easy, making you want to keep reading, and overall, I quite enjoyed this one. 4 stars.

Awesome Note 2 (+To-do/Calendar/Task)
Productivity and Business
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Fully renewed ‘Awesome Note 2’! The new All-in-one Organizer, Awesome Note 2 is integrated...

Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated Ferns Decision ( Sisters of Hex Fern book 1) in Books
Feb 6, 2022
Kindle
Ferns Decision ( sisters of Hex Fern book 1)
By Bea Paige
Death is a lonely place, silent, or so everyone thinks... Fern is no stranger to death, or the singing that accompanies it. She has always known when a person is about to die, for the singing foretells it. Her mother passed it off as an oddity never to be discussed, so she learned to tune out the voices until they disappeared for good. Or so she thought. Then one day, as she fights to bring back a dying baby in the hospital where she works, Fern hears the familiar melody once more. Except this time the voice belongs to a man with ice-blue eyes and black angel wings. As the baby takes its final breath, the angel sings his last note. For this isn't an angel who gives life, it is one that takes it. One year has passed since that encounter, and just when Fern is beginning to believe it had all been an illusion, the angel returns, and this time he's not alone. For now there are three Angels of Death and Fern appears to be their next victim.Fern's Decision is the first book of Fern's trilogy and continues the Sisters of Hex story. Although this is the start of a standalone trilogy, to get a full picture of the overarching storyline you might wish to read Accacia's trilogy first.***TRIGGER WARNING - This book contains content that some may find triggering***
I loved the first set of Hex sister books so I was looking forward to this set. I wasn’t disappointed in the first book at all I really enjoyed it although the first few chapters were extremely hard to get through with it being so close to my own heart of losing my own baby a few time I cried thinking I need to push through. It was well handled and I’m glad I pushed through a good start to the new trilogy and sister. I would recommend but with a caution of possible trigger warning if you have lost a baby.

Zoo Sounds - Fun Educational Games for Kids
Games and Education
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Take your kids to the zoo, anytime! A fun game to play with your children, and a great distraction...

Purple Phoenix Games (2266 KP) rated The Kringle Caper in Tabletop Games
Dec 18, 2021
The Kringle Caper is a Christmas-themed escape room type card game. It consists of 18 cards and I found it much more difficult than its sibling, The Independence Incident, which I reviewed in July.
DISCLAIMER: We were provided a copy of this game for the purposes of this review. This is a retail copy of the game, so what you see in these photos is exactly what would be received in your box. I do not intend to cover every single rule included in the rulebook (as there is none), but will describe the overall game flow and major rule set so that our readers may get a sense of how the game plays. For more in depth rules, you may purchase from your FLGS. -T
To setup, open the flaps of the box containing the cards, navigate to the provided website to launch a web-based companion app, and the game may officially begin!
As I do not wish to spoil anything about the game, I will merely state here that following directions, completing puzzles, and knowing a little something about the Christmas holiday will benefit players immensely. Sorry I cannot say more, I would rather you all experience it for yourselves.
Components. This game consists of 18 double-sided cards and a nifty little box to hold it all. The cards are all nice quality, and feature very specific artwork on them. I have no complaints about the components at all here. Grand Gamers Guild always provide great quality games.
Ok, be mad at me if you like, but I just cannot bring myself to go into great detail about the game mechanics, how to play, or what is really included. Just know that this is probably a game you will play once and pass along, or keep several years between plays so that it doesn’t become too repetitive and easy to solve.
I know reviews like these could be considered a cash grab normally, but we don’t accept payment for any of our reviews, so I will use this section to lay out what I like and what I do not like about this installment. I just love the idea of these types of games: small decks that provide so many decisions to be made, or puzzles to solve, and riddles to mull over. Personally, I prefer The Independence Incident, but not because I think this version is weaker, but rather because I was much more successful solving the cards by myself. It is difficult to recruit some of the gamers in my life to play these types of games, so if it can be played solo, that’s the option I will take. That said, I’m sure most people enjoy things more if they are inherently good at them, and such is the case for my preference between the two. That said, Purple Phoenix Games gives this one a festive, but sneaky, 4 / 6. I am glad to have played it, and look forward to passing it along to someone else who has yet to enjoy it.
I will say that I believe all gamers should try both versions, and I am excited to find and try the Halloween and Valentine’s Day versions as well. If you also enjoy these quick escape-room-style card games, give this one a shot, but please promise me you will also try the others as well. Now get out there and solve this mystery, little elf!

Jessica - Where the Book Ends (15 KP) rated The Astonishing Color of After in Books
Jan 30, 2019
Let me start at the beginning… Leigh’s mother commits suicide. Her mom’s name is Dorothy and goes by Dory for short. While my mom didn’t commit suicide, she did die unexpectedly in August of 2016. I know, I know you’re thinking what does this have to do with the book but just put your patient pants on. My mom’s name was Doria, and she went by Dory. While Leigh was lucky enough to be the one that didn’t find her mom, I wasn’t lucky enough to have the same luxury. I could relate to how Leigh was feeling on so many levels. So much so, it felt like the author had interviewed me and then written the book based on that interview. Leigh feels like she is to blame partly for her mother’s death. She feels like if she would have only done x better, if only she’d been in y place at z time she would have been able to save her mom. I know because I had these same thoughts and still do until this day. After reading this book and realizing there just wasn’t anything I could have done to change the outcome of what was destined to happen. But just because my mom isn’t physically here anymore doesn’t mean she’s gone forever. I still see her in myself every time I look in the mirror. She is always with me.
The magical realism aspect of this book brought the journey and the imagery to life for me. I could picture this big beautiful red bird soaring around Leigh. The more I read of this book the more I found myself looking to the sky to see what is out there for me, and then I realized that looking to the sky is something that I’ve done since the day my mom died. I find myself looking around at the clouds and the sky seeing if there is a trace of her looking down on me. Now my favorite time to look to the sky is at night and I imagine her as one of the stars looming overhead keeping an eye on me.
The characters in this book are so real. Leigh, her grandparents, her dad, and Axel. Though, I must admit I feel as though the story could have been just as good without Axel. Sometimes he just seemed to crowd the story and take away from what was happening. I think my most favorite character was Feng, and all the she represents. I absolutely loved this aspect of the book. I also loved Ghost Month as this was something I had never heard of before and it and it reminds me of one of my other favorite holidays El Dia de los Muertos. I loved learning about the Taiwanese culture.
The way the author wove this story together through her words brought the magic and the storytelling to life. Her writing style worked extremely well for the subject of this story and I can’t wait to see what she is going to write in the future. The only aspect of this story that just didn’t mesh for me was all the colors sprinkled throughout the story. Honestly though, that is such a minute detail that it’s barely worth mentioning.
As you can see this story hit me very close to home, and I am so incredibly grateful to the author for writing it. It rebroke my heart and then helped to heal that same broken heart.
Now, on to the important bits… Suicide… If you are ever in a position where you feel that you just absolutely can’t go on do me one solid. Pause. Pick up your phone, and text HELP to 741741. This is the number for the Crisis Text Line. You will be connected to one of their trained Crisis Counselors. I am a trained Crisis Counselor on the CTL and I can guarantee you that you are not alone in how you’re feeling. Ask for help, we’re here to listen, we’re trained to help you. You are not alone. Just remember 741741 and HELP. That’s all it takes and someone will be there for you.

Lee (2222 KP) rated Frozen II (2019) in Movies
Nov 25, 2019 (Updated Nov 25, 2019)
Following the events of the first Frozen movie, Arendelle is once again a calm, happy and carefree place. Elsa and Anna are close sisters once more. Anna and Kristoff are a couple, although in a running theme throughout the movie, Kristoff is now keen to try and propose to Anna. Meanwhile, some magic from Elsa means that Olaf now has a permafrost, no longer needing his own snow cloud and able to freely go around without fear of melting. He's also extremely keen to learn - becoming more thoughtful and aware of the world, asking existential questions, and sharing new found facts with his friends.
An early scene shows a young Elsa and Anna being told a bedtime story by their parents. The story involves an enchanted forest and their grandfather, who went to the forest as king in order to make peace with it's inhabitants, the Northuldra, and to sweeten the deal by building them a shiny new dam. But a betrayal caused the elemental forces of the forest - air, earth, fire and water - to become angered, resulting in a fierce battle and the entire forest being sealed for all time beneath a magical shield of mist. Clearly this story is being told in order to set the scene for a major plot point in this sequel, so it's not long before present day Elsa begins to hear voices - a mysterious siren, beckoning her with a beautiful melody. And when the terrifying elemental spirits strike the town of Arendelle, forcing its residents to flee for safety, she remembers the story we've just heard and heads off to the enchanted forest to look for answers and a resolution, closely followed by Anna, Kristoff, Sven and Olaf.
What follows is an epic adventure involving all of the main characters as they work together, or separately at times, to try and regain order and peace to this expanding world we're being introduced to. It becomes a quest to uncover the sisters ancestry and an attempt to undo damage caused by past generations with each character deals with their own personal transformation and growth. It's all beautifully animated, as you'd expect, full of peril, action and fun. And Olaf still manages to generate big laughs in pretty much every scene he's in!
Once again, Frozen 2 boasts an impressive soundtrack of songs. At least one is extremely powerful and catchy, knocking loudly at the door of 'Let It Go' in terms of memorability (admittedly, I've already listened to it a few times since leaving the cinema!), and there are more fun songs for Olaf to sing too. Kristoff comes up short though, getting dealt the worst of the songs, but that's not to say they're not still enjoyable.
Like Toy Story 4 earlier this year, Frozen 2 is a sequel that wasn't really necessary. But, as with Toy Story, it is still wonderful to be back in the company of such great characters. Having re-watched the original Frozen the day before seeing Frozen 2, I can honestly say that the sequel for me was just as enjoyable and entertaining as the first. Highly recommended.

Clinometer + bubble level + slope finder (3 in 1)
Utilities and Productivity
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This professional tool called Clinometer is the most precise (all you can get with some...