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Once Upon A Wolf (Wayward Wolves #1)
Once Upon A Wolf (Wayward Wolves #1)
Rhys Ford | 2018 | LGBTQ+, Paranormal, Romance
10
9.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
MAHOOSIVE sugar rush!
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.

This book is the first in a new series by Rhys Ford. You all know I love her work, and this one is no exception! It came with a warning though, and I was curious as to how that warning would play out.

The warning?? It is "sweet, dammit!"

And it really is!

It's only short. just under 100 pages, but it packs such a sugar rush, I didn't even notice it was nearly finished, til I ran out of bloody book!

Gibson is looking after his brother, Ellis, who is stuck as his wolf. Something happened that trapped him there, we are not told what exactly, just hints are thrown, and I expect that (insert puppy dog eyes, all begging like at Ms Ford) Ellis will get his own story and all will then become clear. Ellis chases Zach, new owner of local bed and breakfast into the freezing lake, and Gibson has to save him from hypothermia. The fact the Zach pushes every single one of Gibson's buttons is not lost on Gibson, and all becomes clear as to why Ellis choose Zach later in the book.

Both Gibson and Zach have their say, and you get just enough of them both to fully engage you in their story, their here and now and their past.

It is sweet, almost sickly, but I think for these two guys, it is right their story be this way. There is very little actual physical stuff between the guys, and I was kinda expecting it to be totally clean, but it isn't, not quite. I think, maybe, even if it HAD been clean, I would still have loved it!

And love it I did! I had just finished a much longer, heavier book, and this was just what I needed at that time, hence the hang over cure tag.

So, a much needed, perfectly written, perfectly delivered, MAHOOSIVE sugar rush....

5 stars

ps, just remember, it IS sweet, dammit!

**same worded review will appear elsewehere**
  
Tokyo Heat (Nights #3)
Tokyo Heat (Nights #3)
A.M. Salinger | 2018 | Contemporary, LGBTQ+, Romance
10
10.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
loving this series!
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.

This is book three in the series, and you really SHOULD read book one, One Night, first. This is a continuation of Gabe and Cam's story. And it's a 5 star read! Book two, The Escort ain't too shabby either!

A year ago, Cam and Gabe decided one night would never be enough. Then Gabe says those three little words and Cam's world implodes, and he runs.

I loved One Night, made a new shelf for it and everything. But, while still a great, sexy read, I found this one lacking in the emotions i expected with someone running when told I love you.

Oh! Don't get me wrong, these guys still burn high, and hot and long. I just didn't feel connected to Cam as much as I did to Gabe. Because we get Gabe dealing, or rather NOT dealing with the fact that Cam ran, but we don't get much of Cam after he runs, you know??

BUT OH.MY.GOD! When Cam pulls his head out of his ass and gets his act together and finally realises what that pain in his chest is?? That it's what he's feeling for Gabe?? He redeems himself in spectacular fashion! **that fanning again, girls!**

I saw something going on between the two guys who own the company Gabe works for. I wonder what's going on there and whether they will get a story?? It's not book 4 or 5, cos I have those all lined up ready to go, but I HOPE they get a story!

Ah, you know what?? Stuff it! I wrote 4 stars at the top of the page because of that not connecting to Cam thing. But now I'm typing it up, I think that's just CAM, you know?? He doesn't want you to know what he feels for Gabe, what he's dealing with while they are apart. He wants GABE to know, just how deeply he loves him. He DOES love Gabe, he just never thought he could love anyone.

So! Upgrading to...

5 even more scorching stars!

**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
  
Inciting a Riot (Riot MC #2)
Inciting a Riot (Riot MC #2)
Karen Renee | 2018 | Contemporary, Romance, Thriller
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
a good solid 4 star read
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.

6 years ago, Lorraine caught Cary (Vamp) in their bed with two other women and her world imploded. Now, he's back and fighting dirty. Fighting for Rainy's love, and for her life, when an ex turns nasty.

This is book two in the Riot MC series, and I have not read book one. I'll come back, in a minute, to why I think I probably should have.

For the most part, I DID enjoy this, I really did. There are just a couple of things that let it down, for ME.

It's told ALMOST entirely from Rainy's point of view, in the first person. While it's clear, after a very short time who is speaking, it would have been nice to have been told. We do get a bit of Cary, in the third person, but not nearly enough for my liking! I needed MORE Cary.

At several points along the way, Cary says something happened to him a few months ago, but it was never clarified just WHAT gave him the epiphany he had that made he realise who he needed to make his life complete. THIS is where I think I should have read book one first. Maybe THAT event is in that book. I NEEDED to know what happened, and we are not told that here.

On a positive note, because it is mostly only Rainy who speaks, the MC stuff takes a bit of a back seat and I did like that. I wasn't too clear whether these guys are into all the illegal stuff that often comes with MC books, but I really don't care.

These guys love their woman, hard, and everyone seems happy. Except Trixie, she's not a happy bunnie and I want her to be! Please Ms Renee, make Trixie happy!

I did like the way the nutty ex thing so so darn complicated!

So,, because of that missing information, because I needed more of Cary, and because I DID read it in one sitting. . .

4 solid stars

**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
  
Home and Heart
Home and Heart
Sean Michael | 2018 | Erotica, LGBTQ+, Romance
6
6.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
so much sex!
Independent reviewer for Divine Magazine, I was gifted my copy of this book.

For the most part, I DID enjoy this. Mostly.

I will always say I like my male/male books on the more explicit side, and I will make no apologies for that. More sexy time is always better for me, SO LONG as the story can carry it. However, HERE, I found that while there is a lot of sex, it's not carried well by the story. What is here is good, and it's well written and super sexy, but I just felt the overall story gets lost somewhere along the way.

Sawyer's husband died 6 years ago, and he took to the bottle to literally drown his sorrows. Now, he's sober and ups and moves clear across the country for a new start. That there are three guys in the building with a friends with benefit type arrangement, helps Sawyer a lot.

The type of relationship Sawyer had with his husband, the depth of that, creeps out slowly, as does the depth of the relationship between Benny and Luke, and I did like that. I LOVED that Luke and Benny were well established and Derek their sometime third. LOVED that Luke saw that Sawyer was a sub, very quickly, and that he began teaching Derek to be Sawyer's Dom. Loved that Derek didn't even KNOW he wanted to be a Dom, before Sawyer. I loved that once in, Derek was adamant that Sawyer was HIS and HIS alone and HE would be the one to give Sawyer what he needed, even if Derek wasn't keen on whatever that might be.

So, what is here is great, brilliant and all that but I just felt the STORY, Sawyer's story, about moving across the country for a new start, coming out of his shell, was lost in all that, very well written and delivered, sex.

And if I say there is too much sex, you gotta know there is a lot!

All four guys do get a say, and I did finish it in one sitting. Enjoyable enough for that so

3 solid stars

**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
  
The Magnificent Seven (2016)
The Magnificent Seven (2016)
2016 | Action, Drama, Western
8
7.4 (33 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Full disclosure, I have never seen The 1960s Magnificent Seven film, nor do I care that at its core it is a retelling of the Japanese legend of the Seven Samurai. This is not a comparison review. Instead this is a simple review of what I watched on screen. Not beholden to anything other than itself as film and it being a western.

That being said, I thoroughly enjoyed this film. The Magnificent Seven hits all the appropriate marks you would expect from a classic western. The sprawling landscapes, big gunfights against all odds, character musical cues, honor bound good guys and dastardly bad guys. The Magnificent Seven is an entertaining gallop for western fans both old and new alike.

That is not to say that this film is anything more thought provoking then a typical “White hats vs Black Hats” western story. However it is the performance of the actors and their portrayal of somewhat typical characters that is the soul and charm of the film. Led by Denzel Washington who plays Sam Chisolm, the deputized bounty hunter hired to free a simple town from under the tyranny of a rich minor who uses violence and intimidation to take what he wants. Chisolm puts together an unlikely posse of the jokester gun-shooter Josh Faraday (Chris Pratt), the civil war veteran sharpshooter Goodnight Robicheaux (Ethan Hawke), his knife welding companion Billy Rocks (Byung-hun Lee), the outlaw Vasquez (Manuel Garcia-Fulfo), the grizzly frontiersman Jack Horne (Vincent D’Onofrio) and the native warrior Red Harvest (Martin Sensmeier). Together they take on the dastardly greedy Bartholomew Bogue (Peter Sarsgaard) and his army of paid mercenaries. The entire ensemble gives solid and entertaining performances, however it is the chemistry among the cast that creates the feeling that they had a blast making this film together, much to our delight.

When we put these elements together the film works on an entertaining level. While some may find it forgettable once it is over, they will no doubt enjoy the ride along the way. In a year where the summer blockbusters have been mostly disappointing and forgettable, The Magnificent Seven is a bright spot on the film landscape than most big budget films this year.
  
Havana Storm
Havana Storm
Clive Cussler, Dirk Cussler | 2014 | Thriller
7
6.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
I've been reading some pretty demanding books recently and needed something a bit more lightweight and the Cussler template usually fits the bill. You always know what you are going to get and sometimes that's just what you need. I didn't expect this book to blow me away and it didn't - but it was better than my expectations.

This is another collaboration with Dirk Cussler and as usual it's hard to know how much of the book is down to Clive and how much to Dirk. But that's not the point. In this book you get lots of underwater action, 'bad guys' intent on making money and creating environmental disaster in the process and Cuban political intrigue.

In previous installments the children of Dirk Pitt (called Dirk and Summer) have sometimes appeared to have written in just to make sure they appear in the series leaving the actual meat of the story progression to the familiar team of Pitt and Giordino. But this is quite notable for the ensemble cast that get their hands dirty in the course of the story, especially when the usual pairings are split up and Pitt works with his daughter and Dirk is with Giordino.

There are the usual scrapes and death-defying escapes but again the reader is kept guessing as sometime the escapes leave the heroes free to continue their task of thwarting the bad guys but other times ingenious and risky plans work but end up with their almost immediate recapture.

Overall the book is indeed a little more realistic that previous ones (although still pretty far fetched). The threat is localised rather than global and the motivation of political power and greed seems plausible, as does the way the NUMA team pull the threads together to work out what is going on.

This is never going to be a must read book or on any kind of literary shortlist for me but for pure escapist adventure, it's really hard to beat.

Possibly one for Dirk Pitt fans only as the first few books are far superior, but a lot better than some installments in the series.

Rating: Some violence but not excessive
  
A Minute To Pray, A Second To Die by The Flesh Eaters
A Minute To Pray, A Second To Die by The Flesh Eaters
1981 | Rock
(0 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"We played with the line-up from this album at 2007's All Tomorrow's Parties. We were allowed to curate a day and we brought them over. That record A Minute To Pray, A Second To Die just got reissued on Superior Viaduct and they played a couple of shows in California. Danny Bland - a guy I knew from way back from the band Cat Butt, works very closely for Dave Alvin from Flesh Eaters [and The Blasters] - asked me if they came to Seattle, would we want to play with them and I was like: "Fuck yeah!" They were great man. They exceeded expectations I think and there were a lot of people at the show who were probably not familiar with the record but were familiar with the guys. They're like "we like The Blasters, we like X" but it's a totally different beast to those bands. It's got more of a Captain Beefheart, early Dr. John feel to it with the marimbas on the record, the Steve Berlin sax (another record with sax!). It was kind of an anomaly at the time. It was part of the punk scene but it wasn't a punk record. There was this thing at the time that I confused it with at first - bands like 45 Grave and Christian Death and the Dance With Me-era TSOL where everything was kind of getting satanic. I initially lumped it in with that stuff but it's so much better and further ahead of the game than that. The record for me was kind of a slow burn. I worked in a radio station and when it came in I put it on a cassette with a more normal hardcore band on the other side. I eventually found myself fast-forwarding through the hardcore side and just listening to A Minute To Pray, A Second To Die over and over again. It wasn't like initially "this is great!", it was more like "this is weird!" to a 19-year-old. Chris Desjardins' lyrics are awesome and dense and intense and pretty much like Nick Cave's. Both those guys - they don't write short, concise pop songs."

Source
  
Superbad (2007)
Superbad (2007)
2007 | Comedy
It's been about ten years to the day that me and my middle school friends saw this for the first time on television, naturally it became a classic from there since we were the embodiment of all of these guys, in spades - their demeanors, writerly crassness, even their *looks*. Plus it was just funnier than hell on top of that. At the time we saw college and the possible divide of our respective friendships as something that was untouchable, so far away that you couldn't even picture it if you tried. Ten years later, now in my fourth year of college and no longer friends with any of those guys, I view this through a completely different lens - and it's even better now than it was back then. This is still, and forever will be, one of the greatest comedies of all time - nay - one of the greatest *movies* of all time. The way as a middle schooler it depicted what was to come, and now the way it depicts what was - both nostalgic for the past and for the future, it's no wonder every teen sex comedy from then on copied this because it's a goddamned fully optimized template to use. Comedies that touch the two hour mark better be funny as sin and/or at least do some decent emotional heavy lifting. This does both with a colossal ease. I can wax lyrical about my love for this all day: the amount of respect it has for and in spite of all its (totally realistic) crudeness, the way I'm always doubled over in crippling laughter from Cera singing "These Eyes", Christopher Mintz-Plasse giving the Holy Grail of teen sex comedy performances (though... everyone is spotless), the picturesque time capsule of being in that awkward high school/college transition that's done so effectively that we as middle schoolers couldn't see at the time even though now as a college student I can see it depicted right there before my very eyes a la real life, etc. I really don't think a single element is done any lesser than it should be. Hope to still be watching this expertly-made masterpiece again another ten years from now. Comedy perfection.
  
Snatch (2001)
Snatch (2001)
2001 | Comedy, Crime
A Movie Carried By Brilliant Performances
In Snatch, three separate groups of characters revolve around a missing diamond.

Acting: 10
In a movie like this where the character list looks more like a laundry list, you have to count on a number of solid performances to carry the film from large to small. Every performance is on point here, right down to smaller showings from guys like Ade playing the role of Tyrone the overweight getaway driver. You get to see a guy like Brad Pitt step out of his comfort zone playing a gypsy boxer by the name of Mickey O’Neil. Meanwhile Benicio Del Toro absolutely crushes his role as gangster Franky Four Fingers. None of these characters succeed without the great actors behind them.

Beginning: 10

Characters: 10

Cinematography/Visuals: 10

Conflict: 10
Each of the three groups of characters have no shortage of their share of problems in the film. The film grows and relies on conflict to keep it afloat. It’s a movie that keeps you guessing as you never know what’s going to happen next or who’s going to live to see the next scene. The conflict within ultimately gives you the motive to care about what’s happening to each of these guys.

Entertainment Value: 9

Memorability: 6

Pace: 8
Barring a couple of lulls, the movie moves at a consistent clip. There are occasions where things are happening too quickly and I wish they would slow down just a tad but, for the most part, the pace is on point. I was impressed by how quickly it moved while still managing to develop the plight of each character.

Plot: 6

Resolution: 8
Solid ending that could have been a tad better. I was hoping for a bit more closure. All things considered, it will do.

Overall: 87
Snatch kicks off with an original robbery and it’s off to the races from there. I can’t wait to watch it again to catch some of the things I might have missed. I can definitely see why the movie is beloved.
  
Conrad (Assassin's To Order #4)
Conrad (Assassin's To Order #4)
JP Sayle, Lisa Oliver | 2023 | LGBTQ+, Paranormal, Romance
10
10.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
saved the best for last!
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.


This is book 4 in the Assassins To Order series, and I strongly recommend you read books 1 to 3 first. OR at least, book 3 Duron. The Devil pops up first in that book.


I think, for me, Sayle and Oliver saved the best for last! I LOVED this, the final book.


Conrad is an assassin, and Kylo a police officer in Paraguay where the lost boys seem to originate from. Kylo has been chasing The Devil for 20 years and calling for an assassin to finally help him seemed like a good idea. Until Conrad gets off the plane and they scent each other: mates!


What I especially liked about this one was that Conrad is fully aware of his sexuality, while his brothers had not been. And Kylo calls to his Dom, much like his lion. And while Kylo is an Alpha male, a panther, he doesn't question Conrad and his connection and what Conrad can do for him, he just goes with it, and accepts what the Fates have planned for him.


Loved that Wyatt pops up, and who with and how THAT all plays out! Kinda saw that coming in the last book, but loved that it gets explained.


The Devil and what happens with all that was a surprise, and I loved the showdown! I'm still not entirely sure how many animals Conrad has, but they range from a blue dragon to a spider and everything inbetween. What happens between them all at the showdown was shocking but Kylo took it all in his stride. Loved that, while Conrad's lion is his most Dominant animal, the dragon has to have the last say!


There is talk of the other assassins, but only Wyatt pops up, The Thalassa guys are mentioned as well, but none appear here. I kinda missed them!


I'll miss ALL these guys, now both series are finished, but I think this really was a fitting end. I do hope we get some follow ups shorts!


I was waiting for this, and it did not disappoint.


5 full and shiny stars


*same worded review will appear elsewhere