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Grandpa's Cabin: Book 1
Book
At eighty-four years old, widower and award-winning geneticist Bernie Crenshaw has reached the end...
Horror Mystery
Sisters of Freedom
Book
Sydney, Christmas, 1901. Federation has been achieved but Australian women are yet to gain the right...
Merissa (13414 KP) rated Blood Surfer (Thunder City #1) in Books
Jun 8, 2023
This is the second book in the 'Superhero' category that I have read recently, and this one is once again absolutely amazing!
With a plot that grabs you from the very first word, characters that are completely believable (considering their world), family angst, childish tricks gone bad, and betrayal - it's all here!
The relationship between Scott and Hannah is very fast, whilst paradoxically a slow-burner. The friendship, trust, and possibly more, take time to build up even as circumstances throw them together.
With a world that I would love to return to, and a bunch of characters that I would love to read more of, this is a fantastic read that builds to a rip-roaring climax. Thoroughly enjoyed, highly recommended, and I can't wait for book two!
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
May 9, 2016
With a plot that grabs you from the very first word, characters that are completely believable (considering their world), family angst, childish tricks gone bad, and betrayal - it's all here!
The relationship between Scott and Hannah is very fast, whilst paradoxically a slow-burner. The friendship, trust, and possibly more, take time to build up even as circumstances throw them together.
With a world that I would love to return to, and a bunch of characters that I would love to read more of, this is a fantastic read that builds to a rip-roaring climax. Thoroughly enjoyed, highly recommended, and I can't wait for book two!
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
May 9, 2016
Deliciously Enchanted (D’Vaire #37)
Book
Henry Gennevios is an enchanter with little magic, but his lack of sorcery doesn’t bother him....
MM Fantasy Romance Paranormal
Hazel (2934 KP) rated The Children of Berlin in Books
Jun 25, 2023
I am becoming a fan of historical fiction and this book has only cemented that opinion.
Leah and Magda grew up as best friends but their friendship is put to the ultimate test when the monster that was Hitler came to power and everything changed.
The story is told from both Leah's and Magda's perspectives; Leah's from her memories and Magda's in letter form. I have to admit that I preferred Leah's story as Magda's was a little repetitive and 'wordy' however it did show how easy it was for people to be brainwashed and to take a path in their lives that has far reaching and devastating consequences for them and those they love.
The Children of Berlin is a gripping and powerful story of love, loss, bravery and forgiveness and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend to those who enjoy this genre and many thanks to Bookouture and NetGalley for enabling me to read and share my thoughts of this book.
Leah and Magda grew up as best friends but their friendship is put to the ultimate test when the monster that was Hitler came to power and everything changed.
The story is told from both Leah's and Magda's perspectives; Leah's from her memories and Magda's in letter form. I have to admit that I preferred Leah's story as Magda's was a little repetitive and 'wordy' however it did show how easy it was for people to be brainwashed and to take a path in their lives that has far reaching and devastating consequences for them and those they love.
The Children of Berlin is a gripping and powerful story of love, loss, bravery and forgiveness and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend to those who enjoy this genre and many thanks to Bookouture and NetGalley for enabling me to read and share my thoughts of this book.
How To Overcome Bullying
Book
Empower Kids to Rise Above Bullying - Stand Up and Reach Out Follow AJ's journey as he faces the...
The Olive Tree
Book
We were unbreakable. We were strong, and we were resilient. Just like the olive tree. Nisma...
young adult coming of age
Framed for Murder
5.0
Rate It
Book
After a life-changing injury, Mel O'Rourke trades in her badge for bed sheets, running a B & B in...
BankofMarquis (1832 KP) rated Ford v Ferrari (aka Le Mans '66) (2019) in Movies
Nov 25, 2019
GREAT chemistry between Bale and Damon
Most people are attending - or staying away from - the new James Mangold film, FORD v FERRARI because it is a "race car flick". But to label it as just that is doing a disservice to this film, so if that is what is keeping you away from this movie, think again, for this film is much more than a race car film.
It is, at it's core, a film about friendship and loyalty in the face of adversity and is a very serious contender for multiple awards this Oscar season.
A long gestating film project (Director Mangold first came across this property in 2010), FORD v FERRARI tells the tale of the Ford Motor Company's attempt to unseat the Italian car company, Ferrari, as an elite race car producer by defeating it on it's own turf - the 24 hour race at LeMans.
Entrusted to make this dream a reality by Henry Ford II (Tracy Letts) is (now) legendary race car designer Carroll Shelby (Matt Damon) who turns to his reckless friend - and top race car driver - Ken Miles (Christian Bale) to help put this project over the top.
Will this duo succeed? Will Ford topple Ferrari? Can Shelby help smooth the rough waters that the temperamental Miles will, inevitably, create? What do you think?
But it is the journey - and not the destination - that is the joy of this film, for under the watchful, steady eye of veteran Director Mangold (WALK THE LINE) this film is much, much more than the cliched journey of a maverick bucking the system to, ultimately, prevail. It is a study of friendship and loyalty under intense pressure and Mangold finds the right balance between showing hardcore racing and the friendship and camaraderie of Miles and Shelby.
Mangold, of course, smartly knew that the success (or failure) of this film will rest on the chemistry between the two leads of this film - and he cast them well. Matt Damon brings his usual charm and easy-going attitude to Carroll Shelby, making him the heart and anchor of this film - we see the events unfold through his eyes - and he is a an easy stand-in for the audience during the proceedings and is someone that we are happy, and comfortable, to spend the 2 1/2 hours of this film with.
This is good, for he is strongly complimented - and challenged - by the hard intensity that Christian Bale brings to his portrayal of Ken Miles. This real-life racing car legend is driven (pun intended) to excellence, and does not suffer fools gladly. We spend a good amount of time in this film with Miles staring intently out the window of his race car and no one does smoldering, staring intensity better than Bale. This is another Oscar-worthy performance by an actor who has made a career of Oscar-worthy performances and has me asking - is he the finest actor working today? He certainly is in the conversation.
Bale and Damon play off each other very well, their chemistry seems real and we believe that these are 2 old friends working together. This is the first pairing of these two, and based on these results, I would guess that we'll be seeing these two in a film together again.
They are joined by strong supporting work by the likes of Letts, Jon Bernthal (portraying Lee Iacocca) and Caitriona Balfe (as Miles wife, Mollie). Only Josh Lucas (as the a-hole antagonist of the film) fares less well as his character is written in one note and Lucas just plays that note.
The racing scenes are well done - giving us the visceral intensity of what it must be like in the car, and in the pits, of a major race experience. But it is the friendship between Miles and Shelby that really is the engine that drives this film.
Letter Grade: A
9 stars (out of 10) and you can take that to the Bank (ofMarquis)
It is, at it's core, a film about friendship and loyalty in the face of adversity and is a very serious contender for multiple awards this Oscar season.
A long gestating film project (Director Mangold first came across this property in 2010), FORD v FERRARI tells the tale of the Ford Motor Company's attempt to unseat the Italian car company, Ferrari, as an elite race car producer by defeating it on it's own turf - the 24 hour race at LeMans.
Entrusted to make this dream a reality by Henry Ford II (Tracy Letts) is (now) legendary race car designer Carroll Shelby (Matt Damon) who turns to his reckless friend - and top race car driver - Ken Miles (Christian Bale) to help put this project over the top.
Will this duo succeed? Will Ford topple Ferrari? Can Shelby help smooth the rough waters that the temperamental Miles will, inevitably, create? What do you think?
But it is the journey - and not the destination - that is the joy of this film, for under the watchful, steady eye of veteran Director Mangold (WALK THE LINE) this film is much, much more than the cliched journey of a maverick bucking the system to, ultimately, prevail. It is a study of friendship and loyalty under intense pressure and Mangold finds the right balance between showing hardcore racing and the friendship and camaraderie of Miles and Shelby.
Mangold, of course, smartly knew that the success (or failure) of this film will rest on the chemistry between the two leads of this film - and he cast them well. Matt Damon brings his usual charm and easy-going attitude to Carroll Shelby, making him the heart and anchor of this film - we see the events unfold through his eyes - and he is a an easy stand-in for the audience during the proceedings and is someone that we are happy, and comfortable, to spend the 2 1/2 hours of this film with.
This is good, for he is strongly complimented - and challenged - by the hard intensity that Christian Bale brings to his portrayal of Ken Miles. This real-life racing car legend is driven (pun intended) to excellence, and does not suffer fools gladly. We spend a good amount of time in this film with Miles staring intently out the window of his race car and no one does smoldering, staring intensity better than Bale. This is another Oscar-worthy performance by an actor who has made a career of Oscar-worthy performances and has me asking - is he the finest actor working today? He certainly is in the conversation.
Bale and Damon play off each other very well, their chemistry seems real and we believe that these are 2 old friends working together. This is the first pairing of these two, and based on these results, I would guess that we'll be seeing these two in a film together again.
They are joined by strong supporting work by the likes of Letts, Jon Bernthal (portraying Lee Iacocca) and Caitriona Balfe (as Miles wife, Mollie). Only Josh Lucas (as the a-hole antagonist of the film) fares less well as his character is written in one note and Lucas just plays that note.
The racing scenes are well done - giving us the visceral intensity of what it must be like in the car, and in the pits, of a major race experience. But it is the friendship between Miles and Shelby that really is the engine that drives this film.
Letter Grade: A
9 stars (out of 10) and you can take that to the Bank (ofMarquis)
Sophia (Bookwyrming Thoughts) (530 KP) rated The Art of Escaping in Books
Jan 23, 2020
<b><i>I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.</i></b>
Hold on a second while I scream in my corner about how I am finally <em>on time</em> to write a review before a book actually releases. Just barely, but you know, it's still relatively on time. 😱
Maybe it's because I've decided to give up on the four books that have been there since 2016 and reset my priorities.
Okay, back on topic.
<em>The Art of Escaping</em> by Erin Callahan is a book that Roberta first introduced to me in sometime in a year far ago and honestly? Well, let's find out.
<h2 style="text-align: center;"><strong>A Few Things About <em>The Art of Escaping</em></strong></h2>
Erin Callahan's latest novel is about escapology, and maybe the title explains what escapology is, but there's probably multiple layers of meaning with the title aside from literally. (I approve of this approach.)
But here: I almost DNFed this one. But I wanted to know the end, so curiosity got better of me.
<h3><strong>Multiple POVs was meh but okay.</strong></h3>
<em>The Art of Escaping</em> is told in two views: Mattie and Will. Three, if you count diary entries as an intermission between chapters. I'm not against multiple views and maybe I was tired, but I struggled sometimes with this one.
There were times where it felt like the story was being told right now as it is happening, and then there were times where it felt the story was being told by a future version of the characters. And then there were times the story kind of repeated itself, then went onwards. 🤷🏻♀️
<h3><strong>Occasionally I liked a line or two. Or three.</strong></h3>
There are some great one-liners in here, but a lot of the writing I glossed over. To be honest, sometimes I was bored and maybe it was just me in a very bad time (I felt like doing nothing for the past few weeks if my lack of posts say anything).
But I was also reading another book, and it was more interesting? Lack of motivation did nothing there. So maybe I'm not the only one who felt meh about the writing.
<h3><strong>There is NO romance.</strong></h3>
Well, not exactly. There are snippets here and there, but it's not a part of the storyline, which is 11/10 okay with me because every book and its sequel has a romance somehow these days. (Am I complaining? Not really. I like books with no romance sometimes.) But the main point is, it's not a <i>huge</i> plot bunny.
<h3><strong>Friendship and sibling dynamics.</strong></h3>
Okay, so I can live for the friendship and sibling dynamics because they were developed quite well, or at least, in the few months timeframe. The brother/sister relationship isn't much, but the friendship is a huge part of the book for both new and old relationships. It was lovely seeing Will and Mattie grow a friendship over escapology and then bringing the other characters in.
<h3><strong>Miyu is a precious bean.</strong></h3>
Early on in <em>The Art of Escaping</em>, Callahan introduces readers to Miyu, who ends up being Mattie's mentor who is Crabby<sup>TM</sup>. Honestly though, I absolutely love Miyu - she's a crab, but deep down, she's a soft cookie filled with chocolate chips. Plus 95% of the best sentences in the book come from Miyu, so there is never a boring moment with her on the page.
<h2><strong>Honestly I was hoping <i>The Art of Escaping</i> would be good, but there were a few things missing to make it to that level. It wasn't a mess, but maybe a few sweeps needed.</strong></h2>
<a href="https://bookwyrmingthoughts.com/the-art-of-escaping-by-erin-callahan-thank-you-death-come-again/"; target="_blank">This review was originally posted on Bookwyrming Thoughts</a>
Hold on a second while I scream in my corner about how I am finally <em>on time</em> to write a review before a book actually releases. Just barely, but you know, it's still relatively on time. 😱
Maybe it's because I've decided to give up on the four books that have been there since 2016 and reset my priorities.
Okay, back on topic.
<em>The Art of Escaping</em> by Erin Callahan is a book that Roberta first introduced to me in sometime in a year far ago and honestly? Well, let's find out.
<h2 style="text-align: center;"><strong>A Few Things About <em>The Art of Escaping</em></strong></h2>
Erin Callahan's latest novel is about escapology, and maybe the title explains what escapology is, but there's probably multiple layers of meaning with the title aside from literally. (I approve of this approach.)
But here: I almost DNFed this one. But I wanted to know the end, so curiosity got better of me.
<h3><strong>Multiple POVs was meh but okay.</strong></h3>
<em>The Art of Escaping</em> is told in two views: Mattie and Will. Three, if you count diary entries as an intermission between chapters. I'm not against multiple views and maybe I was tired, but I struggled sometimes with this one.
There were times where it felt like the story was being told right now as it is happening, and then there were times where it felt the story was being told by a future version of the characters. And then there were times the story kind of repeated itself, then went onwards. 🤷🏻♀️
<h3><strong>Occasionally I liked a line or two. Or three.</strong></h3>
There are some great one-liners in here, but a lot of the writing I glossed over. To be honest, sometimes I was bored and maybe it was just me in a very bad time (I felt like doing nothing for the past few weeks if my lack of posts say anything).
But I was also reading another book, and it was more interesting? Lack of motivation did nothing there. So maybe I'm not the only one who felt meh about the writing.
<h3><strong>There is NO romance.</strong></h3>
Well, not exactly. There are snippets here and there, but it's not a part of the storyline, which is 11/10 okay with me because every book and its sequel has a romance somehow these days. (Am I complaining? Not really. I like books with no romance sometimes.) But the main point is, it's not a <i>huge</i> plot bunny.
<h3><strong>Friendship and sibling dynamics.</strong></h3>
Okay, so I can live for the friendship and sibling dynamics because they were developed quite well, or at least, in the few months timeframe. The brother/sister relationship isn't much, but the friendship is a huge part of the book for both new and old relationships. It was lovely seeing Will and Mattie grow a friendship over escapology and then bringing the other characters in.
<h3><strong>Miyu is a precious bean.</strong></h3>
Early on in <em>The Art of Escaping</em>, Callahan introduces readers to Miyu, who ends up being Mattie's mentor who is Crabby<sup>TM</sup>. Honestly though, I absolutely love Miyu - she's a crab, but deep down, she's a soft cookie filled with chocolate chips. Plus 95% of the best sentences in the book come from Miyu, so there is never a boring moment with her on the page.
<h2><strong>Honestly I was hoping <i>The Art of Escaping</i> would be good, but there were a few things missing to make it to that level. It wasn't a mess, but maybe a few sweeps needed.</strong></h2>
<a href="https://bookwyrmingthoughts.com/the-art-of-escaping-by-erin-callahan-thank-you-death-come-again/"; target="_blank">This review was originally posted on Bookwyrming Thoughts</a>