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7
7.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
177 of 235
Kindle
The Valkyries Calling (Half-blood Rising 2)
By Lucy Roy
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The conquest of Lindoroth seems all-but settled. The monarchs have fled the capital, the usurpers have taken over the thrones, and two foreign armies have descended on the five realms. Lindoroth's fate has fallen at the feet of a king and queen in exile and a spy for the Lindorothian crown.

While Freya and Aerelius hunt for allies in places they least expect to find them, Lea Calliwell takes matters into her own hands by infiltrating the lives of the people who murdered her family and stole her kingdom. Thrust into peril at opposite ends of the world, Freya and Lea must do whatever it takes to save their people, even if it means making the greatest sacrifice of all.

This world and its story are so intense. The characters are all worth investing in. This is part 2 and after escaping with their lives just about the new King and Queen have to find a way to win the war. It’s really really good!
  
The Silence Before Dawn (WW2 Resistance Series Book 1) [Audiobook]
The Silence Before Dawn (WW2 Resistance Series Book 1) [Audiobook]
Amanda Lees | 2022 | History & Politics
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I really enjoyed listening to this audiobook which, although a work of fiction, is based on the true stories of women secret agents during World War II.

As you can imagine, there is an abundance of tension as the Resistance and SOE (Special Operations Executive) undertake their dangerous missions with the ever present threat of being discovered by the Gestapo.

The main character of Marianne is excellent and such a strong character as, in fact, are the rest of the cast. What I particularly liked is that the central focus is on the female protagonists and it depicted their bravery, commitment and sense of duty excellently.

The story, as you can imagine given the subject matter, is intense but riveting and compelling and I cannot praise the narrator enough - what an excellent job Sofia Zervudachi has done; there are quite a lot of characters, both male and female, and she made each one unique.

This is the first in a series and I very much look forward to finding out what happens next and I must give my thanks to Bookouture Audio and NetGalley for enabling me to listen to and share my thoughts of The Silence Before Dawn.
  
The Passengers
The Passengers
John Marrs | 2019 | Contemporary, Science Fiction/Fantasy, Thriller
8
9.3 (7 Ratings)
Book Rating
69 of 220
Kindle
The Passengers
By John Marrs
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

You’re riding in your self-driving car when suddenly the doors lock, the route changes and you have lost all control. Then, a mysterious voice tells you, “You are going to die.”
 
Just as self-driving cars become the trusted, safer norm, eight people find themselves in this terrifying situation, including a faded TV star, a pregnant young woman, an abused wife fleeing her husband, an undocumented immigrant, a husband and wife, and a suicidal man.
 
From cameras hidden in their cars, their panic is broadcast to millions of people around the world. But the public will show their true colors when they are asked, "Which of these people should we save?...And who should we kill first?"

Another brilliant book from John Marrs. This author seriously has me worried about using technology. This was so intense and so frightening. It showed human nature at its worst. There is always someone watching and waiting to bring the truth out in people could you sit and choose who would live or die? I’m not sure I could.
  
Safe House (2012)
Safe House (2012)
2012 | Action, Mystery
6
5.9 (14 Ratings)
Movie Rating
In a complicated deadly game of international espionage things are rarely what they appear to be. Take the case of Matt Weston (Ryan Reynolds), a young man who, for all intents and purposes, appears to divide his time between his adoring French girlfriend (Nora Arnezeder) and a South African hospital. But if one were to pull back the curtain they would learn that Matt is actually a CIA agent who spends his time watching over a safe house, an assignment of painfully tedious monotony.

In the new action thriller “Safe House”, Reynolds eschews his typical charming, cocky, wisecracking on-screen personas to portray Matt as a mature young man with ambitions both inside and outside of his job. Matt longs to be assigned to a more glamorous position and is hopeful that when his 12 month tour in South Africa is up, a more exciting post awaits him in Paris. It doesn’t hurt that a Paris post will also allow him to be closer to his girlfriend when she returns to Europe in the near future. But his boss David Barlow (Brendan Gleason) isn’t as optimistic.

As his frustrations at the lack of mobility grows, Matt soon finds his quiet world torn asunder by the arrival of Tobin Frost (Denzel Washington). Frost is a former agent who went rogue and is considered an extremely dangerous and high-profile target. Having eluded the CIA for years, he only draws even more suspicion when he surrenders himself to a US consulate in South Africa. The CIA knows they have to act fast to determine what Frost knows, and quickly whisk him away to a safe house for intense interrogation. But the CIA aren’t the only ones who want to know Tobin’s secrets.

Although Matt is highly trained for his job running the safe house, he is very green when it comes to the reality of having to defend his domain against a surprise attack which leaves Tobin and Matt as the only survivors. Forced to flee and with nowhere to turn, Frost tries to convince Matt that they have been set up because someone in the agency does not want Frost to talk. At first skeptical, Matt is forced to step outside of his comfort zones and confront a deadly array of assassins as well as the threat posed by Frost himself and the unseen elements working against them. In a frantic race, Matt must keep Frost and himself alive as they attempt to reach safety and get to the truth behind the deadly game in which they’ve been cast.

Washington and Reynolds worked very well together and had a very natural, unforced chemistry. It was very nice to see Reynolds take on a grittier and more intense role than we have seen from him previously. Washington is a true artist at playing taciturn and wiley, and no one else can portray the pain and shock of being shot as subtly or as convincingly as Washington with just a simple change of expression.

That being said, the film had a number of issues. First and foremost, plot holes that you could drive a truck through and gaps in logic that really require the audience to take some serious leaps of faith. While there was some intense action, it was difficult to appreciate when it looked like the camera was being kicked around the floor during fight scenes, giving the film a very jerky quality. The film also suffered from some pacing issues with parts of the movie dragging as it worked toward an extremely predictable conclusion, one that I figured out very early into the film. There is some fine supporting work in the movie, particularly that of Gleeson and Arnezeder, as well as Ruben Blades as an old cohort of Frost’s, but it is not enough to help the film live up to its intriguing premise.
  
Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
2014 | Action, Sci-Fi
Funny (2 more)
Good acting
Good diversity
Film seems like it lacks something (0 more)
Amazing! Brilliant! Funny
Contains spoilers, click to show
So if you haven't seen the film then go watch it and then come back and read this review! I am about to go in depth!.. GO NOW!!



Right, so the film centres on peter quill who is a earth boy abducted by an alien race, initially you don't know what for *SPOILER* (it gets revealed in GOTG2) that he was abducted for his father but let's not get in to that.
So, Peter is abducted by the alien race and developed into a thief, he's sent to retrieve this orb that he knows nothing about and is to deliver it to ronin... if your familiar with the comics you'll know all about him. He's big, ugly, strong and quite frankly the evil guy.

Peter is meant to take the orb to yondu for him to deliver it. However after taking a little bit of a detour to another planet, Peter finds himself in a 3-way battle with Gamora, rocket and groot. Gamora is there for the orb and rocket and groot are there for gamora and Peter.

All this being said, they end up in a pretty public fight and end up being sent to jail. This is where the film starts to build it's character, they are put in a maximum security stronghold where Drax is. More on him in a moment. The character building in these scenes are quite intense and you really see gamora for who she is..

Drax, right Drax is also seen as the destroyer because Ronin destroyed his planet and family and Drax has held a vengeance for the entirety of his time. Seeing gamora and knowing she is associated with ronin is enough for him to want to kill her. This is where his character starts his arc. After speaking to peter, he decides to join them anf see where he can go.

Following the stronghold scene, they eventually come against ronin after taking a mahoosive detour.

Coming to the end of the film you have been through intense laughter, even bits of sadness but you'll understand all of there standings and why they do what they do. The visual effects are brilliant and second to none and the action and comedy within is also amazing. Then we get to the performances of the cast, these really bring the film together and show the versatility of some of the actors.

Now even without my biased opinion onnthis film it is definitely a family friends amazing film you should definitely watch!!!
  
CO
Call of Duty: Black Ops III - Descent
Shooter
The third DLC pack for Call of Duty Black Ops 3: Descent has arrived for PC and Xbox One users and brings four news maps and a new zombie episode for fans.
Previously available earlier for the Playstation 4, the new map is the third of four planned DLC packs which will pave the way for the release of Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare in November which itself will spawn four packs of DLC content itself.
The four new maps are as follows….
Cryogen

Set in a remote cryogenic lab this tech laden map is a great place for gamers who love to run and gun and have close quarter battles. I had a really good round of Kill Confirmed in this locale but beware, there are numerous areas for enemy players to hide and strike when you least expect them to.
Berserk
A frozen Viking village is the setting for this map and it is an ideal setting for Domination and Hardpoint. The map is even filled with arrows in the woodwork and a nice jump that requires your attention to traverse. The action is intense but it does have more than a few camping spots which ruined it for me at times as Spawn Campers took advantage of this to shoot me before I could even move.

Rumble

A futuristic arena setting which has quickly become a favorite as players must battle behind the scenes and on the main floor to survive. I had a few nice escort and Team Deathmatch rounds on this impressive setting.

Empire

This is a reimagined version of Raid from Black Ops II where a classic Roman themed villa is the setting for intense action. There are long courtyards and elevated windows which also makes this ideal for camping snipers who can really take the fun out of a game. However when played with a nice balance of player styles this is an action lovers dream.

Fans of the Zombie mode will love Gorod Krovi which sets the four players in an alternate Stalingrad. As if the Zombies were not bad enough, there are also robotic enemies and a Dragon for players to contend with.
While the set is not offering any new weapons or any drastic changes, it does offer new maps for players to enjoy and a top-notch Zombie mode which will help tide players over until the fourth pack and Infinite Warfare arrives.

http://sknr.net/2016/08/13/call-duty-black-ops-3-descent-dlc/
  
Sugar: My Life as a Sugar Babe
Sugar: My Life as a Sugar Babe
Monique X | 2018 | Erotica, Romance
10
5.3 (3 Ratings)
Book Rating
A fun, fast and interesting read. (2 more)
Fascinating to read about Monique's travels to different countries.
Intense and emotional
Nothing. (0 more)
Very Steamy!
Sugar was beckoning at me to be read, initially by the eye-catching and attractive cover and that it looked like it would be a very steamy read, as indeed it was. I was definitely not disappointed! I was smitten from the very first, right until the last page.

Monique is a loving single mother, who is trying to create a happy home for her two daughters and she's also a Sugar Babe, dating wealthy men, a practice known as Sugar Daddy dating. She mostly meets her Sugar Daddies during the day, when the children are at school or when they are with their father. Monique finds a thousand pounds in her purse after one night of passionate and very hot sex, and she realises that Sugar Daddy dating could be her way to survive as a single mother.

A heady life of wealthy men, luxury hotels and glamorous experiences ensue. One of my favourites was Iranian engineer Farshad, who liked to lavish Monique with gifts such as expensive jewellery and leather boots and wine and dine her in exotic restaurants.

Dates with Sugar Daddies see her flying to Paris, Barcelona, Vienna, Milan, Japan, Singapore and Hong Kong and skydiving in Dubai. Thanks to her Sugar Daddies, Monique can provide for her children, she has some independence, and experiences a whole new range of sexual fantasies.
 
She deactivates her account with her agency, Seeking Arrangement, and her ex-husband stops paying for the children's' upkeep. She is then prepared to do anything for the sake of her children. Money becomes her top priority and she starts living in the dangerous waters of the escort world. Now she realises that she must find a way out before this hollow existence becomes a habit.
  
I absolutely loved reading Sugar. Maybe it was the novelty of reading a book told as memoirs and based on true events. It was fascinating to read about Monique's travels to different countries and about the different nationalities, cultures and personalities of the gentlemen she dated. However, she ends up working as an escort rather than a Sugar Babe, as it's all about basic survival instincts, money and very spicy sex.
 
Sugar is steamy and hot, passionate and caring, intense and emotional and there are definitely moments where you will laugh. It is such a fun, fast and interesting read.

Monique X is a brilliant storyteller and really draws you in with her descriptiveness.

Thanks to NetGalley and Thistle Publishing for my ARC.