Search
Search results
Merissa (13169 KP) rated Booker's Bliss (Divergent Omegaverse #3) in Books
Aug 12, 2025
BOOKER'S BLISS is the third story in the Divergent Omegaverse series, and for part of the story, we get the same events that happened in Taylin's Temptation. This doesn't happen for long, but just so you're aware.
Frey is the flirty fox, the one everyone thinks is the Omega version of Jupiter. Booker is the big bear who growls all the time. What would these two have in common? Well, a lot of things, as it happens. Not only that, but there's also that thing called attraction, although neither of them will admit to it...
These two are sweet, and both have their own baggage. Booker helps Frey work through his trauma, but deals with his own by himself. Well, with Derick by his side. Due to said trauma, this is more of a slow burn than other books by this author, but it fits. And while I liked that they didn't do anything until Frey's heat, I also sort of wish they had. So Booker would have known that it was just heat madness talking. And Frey, too, now I'm thinking about it. That's shown afterwards, but yeah, I'd have liked to have seen a bit more beforehand.
I will give a Kleenex warning, though. If you've read Taylin's Temptation, you'll remember the incredibly sad circumstances of a certain factory. Well, not only do we revisit that particular moment, but we also go past it, with some tragic and happy events. My eyes were leaking, but as Frey says, blame it on the hormones.
I loved returning to this world and look forward to seeing them on the ranch for the next book, which is Silas and Ziggy's.
** Same worded review will appear elsewhere. **
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book; the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Aug 12, 2025
Frey is the flirty fox, the one everyone thinks is the Omega version of Jupiter. Booker is the big bear who growls all the time. What would these two have in common? Well, a lot of things, as it happens. Not only that, but there's also that thing called attraction, although neither of them will admit to it...
These two are sweet, and both have their own baggage. Booker helps Frey work through his trauma, but deals with his own by himself. Well, with Derick by his side. Due to said trauma, this is more of a slow burn than other books by this author, but it fits. And while I liked that they didn't do anything until Frey's heat, I also sort of wish they had. So Booker would have known that it was just heat madness talking. And Frey, too, now I'm thinking about it. That's shown afterwards, but yeah, I'd have liked to have seen a bit more beforehand.
I will give a Kleenex warning, though. If you've read Taylin's Temptation, you'll remember the incredibly sad circumstances of a certain factory. Well, not only do we revisit that particular moment, but we also go past it, with some tragic and happy events. My eyes were leaking, but as Frey says, blame it on the hormones.
I loved returning to this world and look forward to seeing them on the ranch for the next book, which is Silas and Ziggy's.
** Same worded review will appear elsewhere. **
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book; the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Aug 12, 2025
Movie Metropolis (309 KP) rated Alita: Battle Angel (2019) in Movies
Jun 10, 2019
A visual spectacle
It’s always a worry when a production company feels the need to force feed you the fact that a big-name is in a relatively minor role. In the case of Alita: Battle Angel, 20th Century Fox have been hammering home the fact that James Cameron is involved in a Producer capacity.
You have to feel a little sorry for director Robert Rodriguez as his name has been almost usurped by Cameron’s in the marketing push for this live-action adaptation of the classic manga. Of course, Cameron is too busy making the four Avatar sequels no-one actually cares about anymore and instead, entrusted his vision for Alita: Battle Angel to Rodriguez. He’s certainly an intriguing choice of director, but does the finished product work?
Set several centuries in the future, the abandoned Alita (Rosa Salazar) is found in the scrapyard of Iron City by Ido (Christoph Waltz), a compassionate cyber-doctor who takes the unconscious cyborg Alita to his clinic. When Alita awakens, she has no memory of who she is, nor does she have any recognition of the world she finds herself in. As Alita learns to navigate her new life and the treacherous streets of Iron City, Ido tries to shield her from her mysterious past.
After spending nearly $200million on Alita, Fox clearly think they’ve got another massive hit on their hands and to an extent, they deserve one. Battle Angel is a majestic film, filled with visual presence not dissimilar to the spectacle of watching Avatar for the first time in 2009. The bustling world of Iron City feels as if it’s living and breathing right before our eyes and that’s a testament to both Cameron and Rodriguez as well as the visual effects people down at Weta Digital.
This thriving metropolis is populated by practical and CGI effects of varying qualities, but as a movie world, it works much better than Wakanda did in Black Panther and is leagues ahead of the empty, soulless Asgard from Thor.
It is reminiscent of Sakaar in Thor: Ragnarok however, with its narrow streets and market stalls. The difference here is that Iron City is a much darker, eerier place than Sakarr ever was, save for Jeff Goldblum’s Grandmaster towering above everything.
The casting is also very good and features some household names that were clearly intrigued by the project. Waltz is excellent as the compassionate Ido and Jennifer Connelly works well as his ex-wife, though she is underused throughout.
Alita: Battle Angel is a pleasant surprise from a director who has needed a hit for quite some time.
Ed Skrein turns up every now and then as Zapan, a cyborg bounty hunter and provides some light comic relief in a film that has more than its fair share of darker moments. TV actor Keann Johnson makes his big-budget film debut here and he is excellent as Hugo, Alita’s love interest.
Unfortunately, the initial optimism fades somewhat when you realise that Alita: Battle Angel struggles under the weight of its own script. Plot points in the first 45 minutes feel ridiculously rushed and then the film hurtles towards its climax without stopping for breath.
You get the feeling there was much more that had to be cut to trim the runtime down to a more family friendly 2 hours. The dialogue too isn’t a strong point. Overly expositional and riddled in cliché, Alita is not a film you watch because of its sparkling and witty one-liners.
Niggles aside though and Alita: Battle Angel is much better than I thought it was going to be. The plot, while unoriginal, is sweet and easy enough to swallow, making it a great family film. True, it has its darker moments, but the strong visuals and vibrant environment will make it enjoyable for older children and adults alike.
Overall, Alita: Battle Angel is a pleasant surprise from a director who has needed a hit for quite some time. It’s a flawed film that struggles to cope with its many ideas that continuously pull it in hundreds of different directions, but it’s worth a watch just for the visual spectacle and emotionally arresting story. Whether or not it recoups that colossal $200million budget remains to be seen.
https://moviemetropolis.net/2019/02/09/alita-battle-angel-review-a-visual-spectacle/
You have to feel a little sorry for director Robert Rodriguez as his name has been almost usurped by Cameron’s in the marketing push for this live-action adaptation of the classic manga. Of course, Cameron is too busy making the four Avatar sequels no-one actually cares about anymore and instead, entrusted his vision for Alita: Battle Angel to Rodriguez. He’s certainly an intriguing choice of director, but does the finished product work?
Set several centuries in the future, the abandoned Alita (Rosa Salazar) is found in the scrapyard of Iron City by Ido (Christoph Waltz), a compassionate cyber-doctor who takes the unconscious cyborg Alita to his clinic. When Alita awakens, she has no memory of who she is, nor does she have any recognition of the world she finds herself in. As Alita learns to navigate her new life and the treacherous streets of Iron City, Ido tries to shield her from her mysterious past.
After spending nearly $200million on Alita, Fox clearly think they’ve got another massive hit on their hands and to an extent, they deserve one. Battle Angel is a majestic film, filled with visual presence not dissimilar to the spectacle of watching Avatar for the first time in 2009. The bustling world of Iron City feels as if it’s living and breathing right before our eyes and that’s a testament to both Cameron and Rodriguez as well as the visual effects people down at Weta Digital.
This thriving metropolis is populated by practical and CGI effects of varying qualities, but as a movie world, it works much better than Wakanda did in Black Panther and is leagues ahead of the empty, soulless Asgard from Thor.
It is reminiscent of Sakaar in Thor: Ragnarok however, with its narrow streets and market stalls. The difference here is that Iron City is a much darker, eerier place than Sakarr ever was, save for Jeff Goldblum’s Grandmaster towering above everything.
The casting is also very good and features some household names that were clearly intrigued by the project. Waltz is excellent as the compassionate Ido and Jennifer Connelly works well as his ex-wife, though she is underused throughout.
Alita: Battle Angel is a pleasant surprise from a director who has needed a hit for quite some time.
Ed Skrein turns up every now and then as Zapan, a cyborg bounty hunter and provides some light comic relief in a film that has more than its fair share of darker moments. TV actor Keann Johnson makes his big-budget film debut here and he is excellent as Hugo, Alita’s love interest.
Unfortunately, the initial optimism fades somewhat when you realise that Alita: Battle Angel struggles under the weight of its own script. Plot points in the first 45 minutes feel ridiculously rushed and then the film hurtles towards its climax without stopping for breath.
You get the feeling there was much more that had to be cut to trim the runtime down to a more family friendly 2 hours. The dialogue too isn’t a strong point. Overly expositional and riddled in cliché, Alita is not a film you watch because of its sparkling and witty one-liners.
Niggles aside though and Alita: Battle Angel is much better than I thought it was going to be. The plot, while unoriginal, is sweet and easy enough to swallow, making it a great family film. True, it has its darker moments, but the strong visuals and vibrant environment will make it enjoyable for older children and adults alike.
Overall, Alita: Battle Angel is a pleasant surprise from a director who has needed a hit for quite some time. It’s a flawed film that struggles to cope with its many ideas that continuously pull it in hundreds of different directions, but it’s worth a watch just for the visual spectacle and emotionally arresting story. Whether or not it recoups that colossal $200million budget remains to be seen.
https://moviemetropolis.net/2019/02/09/alita-battle-angel-review-a-visual-spectacle/
My Pet House Decorating Game.s: Animal Home Design
Lifestyle and Games
App
▶▶▶ Decorate your house for animals and play with your favorite “virtual pets”. ▶▶▶...
LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated Avengers: Endgame (2019) in Movies
May 14, 2019 (Updated May 14, 2019)
A truly incredible end to the MCU Infinity Saga
SPOLIER FREE REVIEW
Avengers: Endgame is finally here after the shocking events of Infinity War.
First and foremost, a huge amount of respect is owed to the Russo brothers for managing to juggle so many characters across these two films (and Civil War) to a hugely satisfying degree.
But with a smaller cast to manage this time around, this is a film that is able to focus more on the original six Avengers from 2012.
The majority of the film is quite dialogue heavy, as the film focuses on a fun time travel plot, that takes us through a nostalgia filled trip through some of the past MCU films, filled with cameos galore.
The usual mix of thrilling set pieces, emotional beats (that scene set in 1970?), and comedy land just as well as they always have done, with Paul Rudd and Chris Hemsworth delivering most of the humour.
Robert Downey Jr and Scarlett Johansson shine as Tony Stark and Black Widow, as they always do, and I also enjoyed the amount of time they spent with characters like Hawkeye and Nebula, characters who would usually be considered secondary.
A concern I had going in was that they might use the recently added Captain Marvel, but thankfully isn't the case. She is used sparingly, and therefore effectively.
The only real gripe I have with Endgame, is that Thanos is forced more into a backseat role, after his incredible character arc throughout Infinity War, but is understandable, as mentioned above, this film is all about the original 6, and that's where the main focus lies. Saying that though, I did feel pretty unsatisfied with how they concluded the story arc for Black Widow...
As the movie approaches the inevitable big showdown, the ensuing battle is nothing short of thrilling, a pure scene of unobstructed comic book joy, that will have any Marvel fan trying not to shout at the screen.
All in all, it's a phenomenal ending to this chapter of the MCU, and I can't wait for what comes next (especially now that Marvel Studios have the Fox properties back)
Avengers: Endgame is finally here after the shocking events of Infinity War.
First and foremost, a huge amount of respect is owed to the Russo brothers for managing to juggle so many characters across these two films (and Civil War) to a hugely satisfying degree.
But with a smaller cast to manage this time around, this is a film that is able to focus more on the original six Avengers from 2012.
The majority of the film is quite dialogue heavy, as the film focuses on a fun time travel plot, that takes us through a nostalgia filled trip through some of the past MCU films, filled with cameos galore.
The usual mix of thrilling set pieces, emotional beats (that scene set in 1970?), and comedy land just as well as they always have done, with Paul Rudd and Chris Hemsworth delivering most of the humour.
Robert Downey Jr and Scarlett Johansson shine as Tony Stark and Black Widow, as they always do, and I also enjoyed the amount of time they spent with characters like Hawkeye and Nebula, characters who would usually be considered secondary.
A concern I had going in was that they might use the recently added Captain Marvel, but thankfully isn't the case. She is used sparingly, and therefore effectively.
The only real gripe I have with Endgame, is that Thanos is forced more into a backseat role, after his incredible character arc throughout Infinity War, but is understandable, as mentioned above, this film is all about the original 6, and that's where the main focus lies. Saying that though, I did feel pretty unsatisfied with how they concluded the story arc for Black Widow...
As the movie approaches the inevitable big showdown, the ensuing battle is nothing short of thrilling, a pure scene of unobstructed comic book joy, that will have any Marvel fan trying not to shout at the screen.
All in all, it's a phenomenal ending to this chapter of the MCU, and I can't wait for what comes next (especially now that Marvel Studios have the Fox properties back)
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2395 KP) rated The Big Kahuna in Books
Jun 5, 2019
The Big Letdown
Unlikely duo FBI agent Kate O’Hare and former (maybe) conman Nick Fox have been asked to look for a tech billionaire known to pretty much everyone as The Big Kahuna. He disappeared a few days ago, but Kate and Nick are shocked to find that both his wife and his business partner are already hoping to have him declared dead. Kate and Nick aren’t willing to declare him dead yet; they think he might be hiding out in Hawaii. With Kate’s father and Cosmo, another FBI agent, tagging along, they set out to see if they can find him. However, it appears someone wants The Big Kahuna dead. Can they find him in time? Or will they lead the killers right to him?
The last book in this series was three years and a different co-author ago, and it shows. Nick and Kate are shadows of themselves, with Kate going to Nick for plans on everything instead of them working as partners. Their romantic relationship has gone back several books, too, and yet they don’t appear to be hiding the fact that they work together professionally. Kate’s dad is just a caricature now, and the new characters are one note jokes, per se, which makes spending so much time with them painful. While the plot does include a couple of small cons, it is nowhere near as elaborate and therefore fun as the previous books. Really, any group of characters could have been the stars of this plot. The pacing is uneven, especially early on when we get travelogues of Hawaii. We could have easily cut 30 pages without noticing at all, and in a book that already reads short, that is saying something. I did get hooked as I went along, but I think the flaws would have been more frustrating if I hadn’t been able to knock the book out in a couple of days. I borrowed this book from my local library, but I’m not sure even that price (free) will be enough to get me to come back if Nick and Kate have any more adventures.
The last book in this series was three years and a different co-author ago, and it shows. Nick and Kate are shadows of themselves, with Kate going to Nick for plans on everything instead of them working as partners. Their romantic relationship has gone back several books, too, and yet they don’t appear to be hiding the fact that they work together professionally. Kate’s dad is just a caricature now, and the new characters are one note jokes, per se, which makes spending so much time with them painful. While the plot does include a couple of small cons, it is nowhere near as elaborate and therefore fun as the previous books. Really, any group of characters could have been the stars of this plot. The pacing is uneven, especially early on when we get travelogues of Hawaii. We could have easily cut 30 pages without noticing at all, and in a book that already reads short, that is saying something. I did get hooked as I went along, but I think the flaws would have been more frustrating if I hadn’t been able to knock the book out in a couple of days. I borrowed this book from my local library, but I’m not sure even that price (free) will be enough to get me to come back if Nick and Kate have any more adventures.
Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Jonah Hex (2010) in Movies
Aug 8, 2019
DC is at it again spinning comic book heroes, or better yet anti-heroes, into film adaptations. Moreover, the company is maintaining their one-of-a-kind knack for providing lead characters with bad vocals. In this case the raspy voice belongs to the traumatized lead character, a Bounty Hunter named Jonah Hex (Josh Brolin), who has a story to tell, in brutal and confusing detail.
The film mixes the lore of the Old West, vaguely historical aspects of post-Civil War America, and weapons from a very steampunk-the-Industrial-Revolution. The resulting environment is more explosive than the dynamite that is apparently everywhere.
Filled with ideas that trail off into the dust, it quickly becomes clear that this film was finished in a rush. There are too many characters that lack compelling, if any, back-story. The tale that remains is disjointed and drags. All the buzz about the leading lady, Lilah (Megan Fox), was over minimal participation in the film. Sure she looks nice, and wears a steampunky outfit while performing a few quick stunts, but the resulting character (and poor acting) is not worth the media hype.
The few well-played and interesting characters, aside from the brash but tends-to-grow-on-you Jonah, all have bit parts. Among the best performances are Hex’s best friend, Jeb Turnbull (Jeffery Dean Morgan), one of President Grant’s cohorts, Lieutenant Grass (Will Arnett), and the store owner and gun-runner, Smith (Lance Riddick). Most surprising is that the frequent scenes with screen veteran John Malkovich, as lead bad guy Quentin Turnbull, result in a drab uninterested character that completely fails to engage the audience. It is almost a shockingly poor performance for Malkovich.
But hey, the melding of comic book history with actual film shots in the beginning was some of the best work out there for explaining a complex and multi-media adapted back-story. Additionally, the bold uses of color, costume, sets and scenery made the film visually interesting to watch. But with a budget as big as this film had it is hard to accept there wasn’t a better story to tell.
The film mixes the lore of the Old West, vaguely historical aspects of post-Civil War America, and weapons from a very steampunk-the-Industrial-Revolution. The resulting environment is more explosive than the dynamite that is apparently everywhere.
Filled with ideas that trail off into the dust, it quickly becomes clear that this film was finished in a rush. There are too many characters that lack compelling, if any, back-story. The tale that remains is disjointed and drags. All the buzz about the leading lady, Lilah (Megan Fox), was over minimal participation in the film. Sure she looks nice, and wears a steampunky outfit while performing a few quick stunts, but the resulting character (and poor acting) is not worth the media hype.
The few well-played and interesting characters, aside from the brash but tends-to-grow-on-you Jonah, all have bit parts. Among the best performances are Hex’s best friend, Jeb Turnbull (Jeffery Dean Morgan), one of President Grant’s cohorts, Lieutenant Grass (Will Arnett), and the store owner and gun-runner, Smith (Lance Riddick). Most surprising is that the frequent scenes with screen veteran John Malkovich, as lead bad guy Quentin Turnbull, result in a drab uninterested character that completely fails to engage the audience. It is almost a shockingly poor performance for Malkovich.
But hey, the melding of comic book history with actual film shots in the beginning was some of the best work out there for explaining a complex and multi-media adapted back-story. Additionally, the bold uses of color, costume, sets and scenery made the film visually interesting to watch. But with a budget as big as this film had it is hard to accept there wasn’t a better story to tell.
Family Guy Freakin Mobile Game
Games and Entertainment
App
It's time you wet your whistle and put a little Peter in your pocket! From the producers of the hit...
Patterns with Ibbleobble
Education, Games and Stickers
App
Winner of the People's Choice Award for Best Application at the Creativepool Awards 2016. Patterns...
GlassesOff: Read Without Glasses
Medical and Health & Fitness
App
TRAIN YOUR VISION TO READ WITHOUT GLASSES The GlassesOff program is designed to eliminate...
Work! Consume! Die!: I am Actually Almost Completely Insane Now
Book
Brace yourself, Frankie's back, and he's more outspoken and brilliantly inappropriate than ever....