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Hercules the Bear: A Gentle Giant in the Family: the Moving Biography of the 'Untameable' Grizzly Bear Who Became a National Hero
Book
When Scottish Ladies Show-Jumping Champion Maggie Nimmo married British Commonwealth Wrestling...
From Russia with Drugs
Book
It was the story that shocked the world: Russian athletics was revealed to be corrupt from top to...
Girl in the Woods: A Memoir
Book
Girl in the Woods is Aspen Matis's exhilarating true-life adventure of hiking from Mexico to...
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2334 KP) rated Sign of Foul Play in Books
Nov 27, 2020
All Signs Point to a Winner
Two earthquakes in the middle of the night made it hard for Connor Westphal to sleep. However, she is going about her Monday morning when she gets a message from her friend Dan telling her there is a news story at the construction site he is working at. When Connor arrives to get the scoop for her weekly paper, she finds that someone has discovered the dead body of Cullen Delancy. The working theory is that he fell to his death when the earthquake struck, but what was he doing on the site in the middle of the night?
I’ve got to admit, I roll my eyes a bit when I see an earthquake pop up in a story set in California, but I quickly got over that here since it made for an interesting set up to the mystery. There are plenty of twists and surprises to keep us guessing. I did figure a couple of them out early, but I was still plenty surprised when Connor pieced it together at the end. Connor is deaf, which sets her apart from other series leads, and I love seeing how that plays out in the story. She’s a strong main character, and the rest of the cast is wonderful as well. The story edges just a bit toward the outskirts of cozies, but as long as you know that going in, you’ll be fine. The book came out in 1998, and it is really amazing how much technology has changed our lives in the past couple of decades. This is a great second in the series, and I’m looking forward to visiting Connor again soon.
I’ve got to admit, I roll my eyes a bit when I see an earthquake pop up in a story set in California, but I quickly got over that here since it made for an interesting set up to the mystery. There are plenty of twists and surprises to keep us guessing. I did figure a couple of them out early, but I was still plenty surprised when Connor pieced it together at the end. Connor is deaf, which sets her apart from other series leads, and I love seeing how that plays out in the story. She’s a strong main character, and the rest of the cast is wonderful as well. The story edges just a bit toward the outskirts of cozies, but as long as you know that going in, you’ll be fine. The book came out in 1998, and it is really amazing how much technology has changed our lives in the past couple of decades. This is a great second in the series, and I’m looking forward to visiting Connor again soon.
Merissa (12804 KP) rated Where Love Grows in Books
Sep 26, 2019
Where Love Grows is a beautiful story between two men who have struggled with hard times, set in the gorgeous backdrop of Wales. Stephen has been seriously ill and is struggling to get his life back on track. It appears hopeless and he feels helpless. Luke is suffering from depression and has no idea on how to make his life better OR be able to move forward. Together, these two are amazing.
Oh my, I loved this story. I am not a gardener although my heart is in the right place. Unfortunately, my brown thumb doesn't cooperate! So I was immediately sympathising with Luke as he struggled to understand the difference between a weed and a flower. Stephen is a prickly character that endears himself to you as you learn more about his story. Yes, I wanted to slap him upside the head a couple of times, but I want to do that to my husband at times too, so count it as a compliment 😉
The writing is excellent, with clear descriptions of places, weather, emotions, you name it. The pacing is smooth, with the ending sneaking up on me. I was so engrossed in the story, I didn't realise I was nearing the end. I could have carried on reading! There is only a small cast of characters but this works so well. The storyline is superbly simple, focusing on the important things between our two characters rather than unnecessary drama.
This is a book to enjoy all year long, no matter what the season, or what is growing in your garden. Absolutely fantastic, and highly recommended by me.
* 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!
Oh my, I loved this story. I am not a gardener although my heart is in the right place. Unfortunately, my brown thumb doesn't cooperate! So I was immediately sympathising with Luke as he struggled to understand the difference between a weed and a flower. Stephen is a prickly character that endears himself to you as you learn more about his story. Yes, I wanted to slap him upside the head a couple of times, but I want to do that to my husband at times too, so count it as a compliment 😉
The writing is excellent, with clear descriptions of places, weather, emotions, you name it. The pacing is smooth, with the ending sneaking up on me. I was so engrossed in the story, I didn't realise I was nearing the end. I could have carried on reading! There is only a small cast of characters but this works so well. The storyline is superbly simple, focusing on the important things between our two characters rather than unnecessary drama.
This is a book to enjoy all year long, no matter what the season, or what is growing in your garden. Absolutely fantastic, and highly recommended by me.
* 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!
Night Prayers
Howard Curtis and Santiago Gamboa
Book
A thrilling literary novel about crime and corruption in Latin America told in alternating voices...
Crime thriller
My Story: Choose Your Own Path
Games and Book
App
Welcome to MY STORY, a game where you choose your own adventure and write your life! Be careful what...
Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated Empire of the Vampire (Empire of the Vampire book 1) in Books
May 2, 2022
Contains spoilers, click to show
77 of 230
Book
Empire of the Vampire ( Empire of the Vampire book 1)
By Jay Kristoff
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
It has been twenty-seven long years since the last sunrise.
For nearly three decades, vampires have waged war against humanity; building their eternal empire even as they tear down our own. Now, only a few tiny sparks of light endure in a sea of darkness.
Gabriel de León, half man, half monster and last remaining silversaint – a sworn brother of the holy Silver Order dedicated to defending the realm from the creatures of the night – is all that stands between the world and its end.
Now imprisoned by the very monsters he vowed to destroy, the last silversaint is forced to tell his story. A story of legendary battles and forbidden love, of faith lost and friendships won, of the Wars of the Blood and the Forever King and the quest for humanity’s last remaining hope:
The Holy Grail.
I can’t even begin to tell you how much I loved this book! I’ve tried so hard to pace my self and enjoy every word. The world building, the character building, the artwork and the story were just perfect. This book certainly takes you on a journey. It’s kinda gotta some Witcher vibes but Vampires. I could seriously ramble on all day long on how detailed and how heartbreaking Gabriel’s journey is and we see his relationship with Dior develop and we see this stoic hard faced man start to thaw just a touch! The art work is beautiful and enhances the story and vision. This has to be my favourite book of the year so far! The writing was just brilliant and some of the lines were good especially the opening line just brilliant!!
Book
Empire of the Vampire ( Empire of the Vampire book 1)
By Jay Kristoff
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
It has been twenty-seven long years since the last sunrise.
For nearly three decades, vampires have waged war against humanity; building their eternal empire even as they tear down our own. Now, only a few tiny sparks of light endure in a sea of darkness.
Gabriel de León, half man, half monster and last remaining silversaint – a sworn brother of the holy Silver Order dedicated to defending the realm from the creatures of the night – is all that stands between the world and its end.
Now imprisoned by the very monsters he vowed to destroy, the last silversaint is forced to tell his story. A story of legendary battles and forbidden love, of faith lost and friendships won, of the Wars of the Blood and the Forever King and the quest for humanity’s last remaining hope:
The Holy Grail.
I can’t even begin to tell you how much I loved this book! I’ve tried so hard to pace my self and enjoy every word. The world building, the character building, the artwork and the story were just perfect. This book certainly takes you on a journey. It’s kinda gotta some Witcher vibes but Vampires. I could seriously ramble on all day long on how detailed and how heartbreaking Gabriel’s journey is and we see his relationship with Dior develop and we see this stoic hard faced man start to thaw just a touch! The art work is beautiful and enhances the story and vision. This has to be my favourite book of the year so far! The writing was just brilliant and some of the lines were good especially the opening line just brilliant!!
Merissa (12804 KP) rated Strike a Pose (Model Love, #1) in Books
Oct 6, 2022
A city-country story with all the emotions.
STRIKE A POSE is one of the stories in the multi-author series, Model Love, and we return to Farthingdale Ranch. Sid is one of the ranch hands, working to help pay for his sister to attend college. Heston is one of the models used for a Western photography session. Sid helps Heston wear his cowboy hat correctly and gets snapped in a couple of photos. When the photos turn out to be too poor to use, the owner spots Sid and wants him as a model - for just two weeks. This would help pay for two years of college so, of course, Sid says yes.
Oh, man. This story! It really was a case of opposites attract. Sid was the naïve innocent from the country, and Heston was the worldly-wise (or is that -weary?) one to show him the ropes. The connection between the two was there from the get-go but neither of them acted on it for the longest time. Or at least, that's how it felt! Those kisses in the rain though! Phew, there was steam coming off my kindle. I loved seeing their relationship grow and develop into something worth keeping. The circumstances around that were sad, but I'm glad it happened (in a way) as I was worried about how they would stay together.
A fantastic return to Farthingdale Ranch and all the people who live there. I'm so glad that Sid got his story. And he's not Loud-Mouth Sid at all! Grrr!!!!! A city-country story with all the emotions, highly recommended by me.
** 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, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Oh, man. This story! It really was a case of opposites attract. Sid was the naïve innocent from the country, and Heston was the worldly-wise (or is that -weary?) one to show him the ropes. The connection between the two was there from the get-go but neither of them acted on it for the longest time. Or at least, that's how it felt! Those kisses in the rain though! Phew, there was steam coming off my kindle. I loved seeing their relationship grow and develop into something worth keeping. The circumstances around that were sad, but I'm glad it happened (in a way) as I was worried about how they would stay together.
A fantastic return to Farthingdale Ranch and all the people who live there. I'm so glad that Sid got his story. And he's not Loud-Mouth Sid at all! Grrr!!!!! A city-country story with all the emotions, highly recommended by me.
** 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, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Hazel (2934 KP) rated Good Samaritans [Audiobook] in Books
May 14, 2023
![Good Samaritans [Audiobook]](/uploads/profile_image/8d3/35178302-459f-4b44-a863-84f356c318d3.jpg?m=1684075253)
Oh my word ... what a book ... absolutely brilliant and the best audiobook I have listened to this year so far and, I think, it will take something remarkable to beat it!
This is a very dark, disturbing and extremely gripping story that will draw you in, shake you around and spit you out the other side and all the while you're thinking, what the heck and why am I enjoying this so much?!?
It's all kinds of wrong but so right and deliciously wicked and addictive.
I'm not even going to go into the story - you'll just have to buy it - but what I will say is that the characters are scarily normal which makes them ultra creepy, the story is riveting and there's some great twists that I didn't see coming and the build up of tension is palpable.
There are graphic descriptions of murder, a lot about suicide, mental health and a number of sex scenes (maybe too many if I'm honest and this is my only negative) so if any of these are triggers for you, I would steer clear.
Would I have enjoyed it as much had I read the physical book? I'm not sure if I'm honest because the narrator made all the difference and was absolutely perfect and brilliant. I fell in love with his voice from the beginning ... it was so contradictory to the content of what he was reading that it made the story all the more creepy and disturbing.
I haven't read or listened to any of Will Carver's work before and after listening to Good Samaritans, I won't make that mistake again and I must thank Bolinda Audio and NetGalley for enabling me to listen to and share my thoughts of Good Samaritans and introducing me to another excellent author.
This is a very dark, disturbing and extremely gripping story that will draw you in, shake you around and spit you out the other side and all the while you're thinking, what the heck and why am I enjoying this so much?!?
It's all kinds of wrong but so right and deliciously wicked and addictive.
I'm not even going to go into the story - you'll just have to buy it - but what I will say is that the characters are scarily normal which makes them ultra creepy, the story is riveting and there's some great twists that I didn't see coming and the build up of tension is palpable.
There are graphic descriptions of murder, a lot about suicide, mental health and a number of sex scenes (maybe too many if I'm honest and this is my only negative) so if any of these are triggers for you, I would steer clear.
Would I have enjoyed it as much had I read the physical book? I'm not sure if I'm honest because the narrator made all the difference and was absolutely perfect and brilliant. I fell in love with his voice from the beginning ... it was so contradictory to the content of what he was reading that it made the story all the more creepy and disturbing.
I haven't read or listened to any of Will Carver's work before and after listening to Good Samaritans, I won't make that mistake again and I must thank Bolinda Audio and NetGalley for enabling me to listen to and share my thoughts of Good Samaritans and introducing me to another excellent author.