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Possessed (Hollow City Coven #1)
Possessed (Hollow City Coven #1)
Hazel Hunter | 2015 | Paranormal, Romance
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Everyone has heard of the lost city of Atlantis, but how many have heard of the last city of Tenebris? Tenebris is part of Wiccan history that has been relegated to myth and legend - which is actually hard to do when you can live for thousands of years. Gillian loves to research and thinks that she has found a clue about where Tenebris actually is. She is determined to find it, but her Coven Master doesn't want her to go alone. She is assigned a 'bodyguard' in the form of Shayne. Sparks fly between the two before they even know each other.

This is a fast-paced romantic novella, with lots of action too. Wiccans have a very real enemy in the shape of Templars. Gillian appears to be more than she actually knows, so how do the Templars know about her already? What do they want her for? You are left with all these questions, but you still feel that you have started an excellent series.

If you like Paranormal Romance, then I can definitely recommend this new series by Hazel Hunter, and I am definitely looking forward to Book 2.

* 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!
Oct 8, 2015
  
Journeyman (Raven Series #2) [Audiobook]
Journeyman (Raven Series #2) [Audiobook]
Heather Atkinson | 2022 | Crime, Thriller
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Having listened to and thoroughly enjoyed the first in the series, Raven, I was intrigued to see what further escapades the assassin/bounty hunter was going to get mixed up in.

Now Raven was good but Journeyman is better!

Damien, Raven's brother, receives a coded message from their father One-Eye (aka Nik) that means he is in trouble. Unable to contact him and with only a vague idea of where he was going, they set out to try and track him down somewhere in Scotland.

One-Eye is being tracked by a killer from his past who he thought was dead. He is injured and has to 'hide out' in a small Scottish village on the Isle of Skye. Whilst recovering, One-Eye is getting to know the eclectic residents of the village when one of them is found murdered but who did it and why?

With good, strong characters, loads of action, a great and unexpected twist and quite a few laugh-out-loud moments, this was a really enjoyable listen and I look forward to the next in the series.

The narrator does a great job with all the different characters; she really had her work cut out with this one and did it well.

Thank you to W.F. Howes Ltd and NetGalley for enabling me to listen to Journeyman and share my thoughts.
  
The Innocent One
The Innocent One
Lisa Ballantyne | 2023 | Crime, Mystery, Thriller
7
7.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I didn't realise this was a follow on from a previous book (The Guilty One) but I don't think it detracted too much from my reading enjoyment of this, the first book by Lisa Ballantyne I have read.

Eleven year old Sebastian was acquitted of murdering his friend and Daniel Hunter was his solicitor. Fast forward 10 years and Sebastian is studying at Cambridge when one of his tutors is brutally murdered. Sebastian is in the frame and he appoints Daniel as his solicitor once again.

The story focuses on Daniel, the difficulties he is experiencing with his marriage, reconciling a difficult childhood and the fallout from representing Sebastian previously as well as having to deal with the uncertainty surrounding Sebastian's innocence/guilt now.

This was a bit of a slow burn but I thought this worked quite well with this particular story especially as I hadn't read the previous one. There was definitely a growing sense of tension and unease from the start with me wondering where it was going and how it was going to play out and I wasn't disappointed.

Recommended to mystery thriller lovers and thanks to Little, Brown Book Group and NetGalley for enabling me to read and share my thoughts of The Innocent One and for introducing me to another author to look out for in the future.
  
Three Strikes – You're Dead!
Three Strikes – You're Dead!
Various Authors | 2024 | Mystery
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Give This Collection a Sporting Chance
This is a collection of 14 crime fiction short stories with a sports theme. And there are plenty of unique sports here. The collection starts out with one of three baseball stories as the hero of a playoff game winds up dead moments after scoring the winning run. We’ve got a bounty hunter who is trying to bring in an ultimate Frisbee player. A college swimming coach is found dead at practice one morning. A woman plans to avenge her brother’s death in the bull riding ring. A biathlete is kidnapped. And a tennis coach finds himself in grave danger.

With all the stories, this is definitely long enough to be a full-length book, so you are getting your money's worth. The twists on a couple of the stories didn't quite work for me, but most of the stories held together very well. Likewise, the characters are all real. Considering the shorter space that the writers had to work with, I am always impressed when they can pull both of those things off. I'm not the biggest sports fan in the world, but I still found myself being pulled into these stories. Whether you are a diehard sports fanatic or have a casual interest at best, you'll enjoy this collection.
  
Blockers (2018)
Blockers (2018)
2018 | Comedy
Three childhood friends, Sam (Gideon Adlon), Kayla (Geraldine Viswanathan) and Julie (Kathryn Newton, make a pack that they will all have sex for the first time with their dates on prom night. They get together at Julie’s house the night of prom to and get sent off by all families. They head out in a limo for the most memorable night of their lives. Little do they know that Julie left her laptop on with their group chat open. Julie’s mom, Lisa (Leslie Mann), finds the laptop and with the help of Kayla’s dad, Mitchell (John Cena), and Sam’s dad, Hunter (Ike Barinholtz), they decipher the emoji messages and discover the girls’ sex pact. Lisa a single mom, who just found out that her daughter has been accepted to a college thousands of miles away, thinks her daughter is making a huge mistake and wants to confront her. Mitchell, an overprotective father, agrees and they decide to race after the girls to confront them at the dance. Hunter who has been out of his daughter’s life and just wants her to have a great night tries to first talk them out of it, then physically stop them as they get into Lisa’s car. All three in the car they speed off to what will definitely me a memorable prom night for them and their three daughters.

This comedy is the directorial debut for Kay Cannon (writer Pitch Perfect 2, screenplay Pitch Perfect, actress How to Be Single). She does a good job and this is a well-made comedy. The story does an okay job of blending comedy with a heartfelt story of the relationship between parents and children. There are definitely parts that had the audience roaring in laughter. The jokes at time were a little juvenile and for shock value alone, but other times were very witty. There is also a decent amount of cheesiness in this film that didn’t necessarily fit all of the time. With a rooster in front of the title you have to assume there are going to be some raunchy moments. Over all the performances were good. John Cena has some very funny moments but also some pretty campy lines. I did feel his character had the same moment several times though. They had him cry multiple times throughout the film and by the end the big tough guy crying grew old for me. Ira Barinholtz has some fun moments also.

Sometimes the best moments in a comedy are spoiled in the trailers and for me they did a good job of putting enough of the high points in the trailer will out ruining the punchline. I found myself enjoying the buildup to the payoff more than the big finish. I thought that seeing this film in a theater also helped as many of the laughs more contagious audience laughter than punchlines. Overall I left the theater enjoying the film and thinking it was better than expected.