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Safe Shores (Semper Fidelis)
7.5
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A rescue swimmer for the Coast Guard. A fisherman who came out later in life. Will a violent gale...
MM Military Contemporary Romance
Merissa (13132 KP) rated Cycled (Gold Hockey #13) in Books
Oct 18, 2021 (Updated Jul 12, 2023)
CYCLED is the thirteenth book in the Gold Hockey series but you can read it as a standalone as I have.
Scar has had her own issues to deal with, both in personal and work relationships. So when she starts to fall for Kaydon, she does everything in her power to avoid him. This, in turn, leads him to think she dislikes him. When circumstances arise that prove she likes him, Kaydon isn't about to take no for an answer, unless it truly is something she doesn't want. With his coaxing, Scar is able to overcome her past traumas, and realise just how good a catch she actually is.
Although this is written from both perspectives, I would say this is more Scar's book than Kaydon's, simply because he is the one with a loving family, whereas hers are a bit... different! Her brother, Charlie, has his own story to tell and, lucky me, is next! The relationship Scar has with him is completely different to that of her parents, and was wonderful and warm.
There is some fantastic dialogue in this book, that will make you smile, make you laugh, and even make you want to cry. Watching Scar take a stand was sheer poetry in motion.
A brilliant addition to the series that I have no hesitation in recommending.
** 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!
Oct 18, 2021
Scar has had her own issues to deal with, both in personal and work relationships. So when she starts to fall for Kaydon, she does everything in her power to avoid him. This, in turn, leads him to think she dislikes him. When circumstances arise that prove she likes him, Kaydon isn't about to take no for an answer, unless it truly is something she doesn't want. With his coaxing, Scar is able to overcome her past traumas, and realise just how good a catch she actually is.
Although this is written from both perspectives, I would say this is more Scar's book than Kaydon's, simply because he is the one with a loving family, whereas hers are a bit... different! Her brother, Charlie, has his own story to tell and, lucky me, is next! The relationship Scar has with him is completely different to that of her parents, and was wonderful and warm.
There is some fantastic dialogue in this book, that will make you smile, make you laugh, and even make you want to cry. Watching Scar take a stand was sheer poetry in motion.
A brilliant addition to the series that I have no hesitation in recommending.
** 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!
Oct 18, 2021
Debbiereadsbook (1481 KP) rated How To Train Your Human Omega (Coveted Bonds #1) in Books
Mar 24, 2024
very enjoyable read!
Independent reviewer for GRR, I was gifted my copy of this book.
I enjoyed this, a lot!
Clay is human, and Arcay is Aldar. Arcay is Alpha and unmated: he will be lucky to ever be, since omegas are very rare, but steppingon Clay's ship changes all that. He just needs to claim clay, and they can both be happy ever after, right? Oh hell no!
I loved that Clay fought Arcay at every turn, he was not gonna be strongarmed into smething he didn't know! Once he makes that clear to Arcay, though, Arcay does try. It's the other alphas on his ship that are sniffing around Clay, while Clay makes his mind up. Some confrontations occur, which push Clay into making a decision.
Lots of misunderstandings in this book due to the language difference but the best one came right at the end! I loved that, but not saying what it is. Generally they were amusing throughout the whole book though.
Steamy and smexy in places, dark and deadly in others. Some difficult topics hit upon, too. Funny and emotional too.
Some things are a little unfinished, I think. So, I hope things are tidied up in the next book.
From what I can see, this is the author's first book, or the first one under this name. In places that comes across BUT I can see that will change as the author continues to write. There is that book 2 planned, and I hope I can get to read it!
4 very good stars
*same worded review will appear elsewhere
I enjoyed this, a lot!
Clay is human, and Arcay is Aldar. Arcay is Alpha and unmated: he will be lucky to ever be, since omegas are very rare, but steppingon Clay's ship changes all that. He just needs to claim clay, and they can both be happy ever after, right? Oh hell no!
I loved that Clay fought Arcay at every turn, he was not gonna be strongarmed into smething he didn't know! Once he makes that clear to Arcay, though, Arcay does try. It's the other alphas on his ship that are sniffing around Clay, while Clay makes his mind up. Some confrontations occur, which push Clay into making a decision.
Lots of misunderstandings in this book due to the language difference but the best one came right at the end! I loved that, but not saying what it is. Generally they were amusing throughout the whole book though.
Steamy and smexy in places, dark and deadly in others. Some difficult topics hit upon, too. Funny and emotional too.
Some things are a little unfinished, I think. So, I hope things are tidied up in the next book.
From what I can see, this is the author's first book, or the first one under this name. In places that comes across BUT I can see that will change as the author continues to write. There is that book 2 planned, and I hope I can get to read it!
4 very good stars
*same worded review will appear elsewhere
Merissa (13132 KP) rated Hooked On You (EMS Station 1 #1) in Books
Feb 24, 2025
HOOKED ON YOU is the first book in the EMS Station 1 series and we begin with Connor, a paramedic, and Judah, the owner of a yarn shop. Connor suffers from GAD (General Anxiety Disorder) and his co-worker has suggested he learns to knit in order to help with that. Being as she's pregnant, he decides he will knit her a baby blanket. This brings him into contact with Judah and the attraction is there immediately, although Connor thinks he is straight, so there's that.
Both Connor and Judah were brilliant characters and I loved how their personalities complemented each other. I can say I didn't like Seb much though. Yes, he's supposed to be this happy-go-lucky kinda guy but he was also completely clueless and sometimes caused hurt where he didn't mean to but just didn't think.
I really enjoyed this story! It was so well written and I loved how although they both were attracted to each other, their friendship grew first. It felt very natural in the build-up to more, and both of their reactions afterwards made perfect sense. I think 'natural' would be my word for this book because not everything was easy but it wasn't with unnecessary angst either.
A great read by a new-to-me author. I give this book 4.5 stars and definitely recommend it.
** 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; the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Feb 24, 2025
Both Connor and Judah were brilliant characters and I loved how their personalities complemented each other. I can say I didn't like Seb much though. Yes, he's supposed to be this happy-go-lucky kinda guy but he was also completely clueless and sometimes caused hurt where he didn't mean to but just didn't think.
I really enjoyed this story! It was so well written and I loved how although they both were attracted to each other, their friendship grew first. It felt very natural in the build-up to more, and both of their reactions afterwards made perfect sense. I think 'natural' would be my word for this book because not everything was easy but it wasn't with unnecessary angst either.
A great read by a new-to-me author. I give this book 4.5 stars and definitely recommend it.
** 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; the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Feb 24, 2025
mostlyinpyjamas (13 KP) rated Still Me in Books
Nov 25, 2017
First chapter has me hooked.
I was lucky enough to receive a sample of the new Jojo Moyes book, Still Me, via Netgalley.
The blurb; Lou Clark is back in the ALL NEW Jojo Moyes novel Still Me, follow-up to the Number One international bestsellers Me Before You and After You. Read the first chapter here! Lou Clark knows too many things . . . She knows how many miles lie between her new home in New York and her new boyfriend Sam in London. She knows her employer is a good man and she knows his wife is keeping a secret from him. What Lou doesn’t know is she’s about to meet someone who’s going to turn her whole life upside down. Because Josh will remind her so much of a man she used to know that it’ll hurt. Lou won’t know what to do next, but she knows that whatever she chooses is going to change everything.
~
I absolutely love Jojo Moyes’ books, she writes in a way that gently pulls you in without you even realising, then by the end of the first chapter you know you’re completely hooked.
I’ve only read the first chapter of Still Me but already I feel as if I’ve met up with an old friend – Lou Clark – and can’t wait to see what’s next for her.
The story begins with Lou arriving in New York, about to start a new job as a companion to ‘a rich mans wife who gets depressed’.
I’m looking forward to reading about life with the Gopnik family and the adventures Lou will have on Fifth Avenue New York.
The only trouble with reading the first chapter of Still Me is that now I have to wait until 25th January 2018 to read the rest of the book.
The blurb; Lou Clark is back in the ALL NEW Jojo Moyes novel Still Me, follow-up to the Number One international bestsellers Me Before You and After You. Read the first chapter here! Lou Clark knows too many things . . . She knows how many miles lie between her new home in New York and her new boyfriend Sam in London. She knows her employer is a good man and she knows his wife is keeping a secret from him. What Lou doesn’t know is she’s about to meet someone who’s going to turn her whole life upside down. Because Josh will remind her so much of a man she used to know that it’ll hurt. Lou won’t know what to do next, but she knows that whatever she chooses is going to change everything.
~
I absolutely love Jojo Moyes’ books, she writes in a way that gently pulls you in without you even realising, then by the end of the first chapter you know you’re completely hooked.
I’ve only read the first chapter of Still Me but already I feel as if I’ve met up with an old friend – Lou Clark – and can’t wait to see what’s next for her.
The story begins with Lou arriving in New York, about to start a new job as a companion to ‘a rich mans wife who gets depressed’.
I’m looking forward to reading about life with the Gopnik family and the adventures Lou will have on Fifth Avenue New York.
The only trouble with reading the first chapter of Still Me is that now I have to wait until 25th January 2018 to read the rest of the book.
Alison Pink (7 KP) rated Gone Girl in Books
Jan 15, 2018
I feel a bit let down. Don't take that the wrong way...it is NOT AT ALL because this book was bad, but because it was so good, very, VERY good!!! And I've read it already. And it's over. It's become my favorite read of 2013 & it's only January!! This doesn't bode well for the books I'll read the rest of the year!
This book went from 0 to 10 in the matter of a few pages & just went faster from there. I literally could not put it down. There were so many unexpected twists & turns that it was quite frankly, a roller coaster. I'd love to see it as a movie, but at the same time I dread those words when applied to a book I adored because the movie version never quite lives up to the book itself.
Gone Girl tells the story of Nick & Amy Dunne a seemingly perfect, blissfully happily married. Successful writers, trust fund, living a glamorous life in Manhattan, cool couple. Until they are very suddenly thrust into the "real" world...kind of. Suddenly, they are both laid off, Nick's mom gets cancer, they move to Missouri & then things go terribly wrong. Not just wrong, but horribly, unbelievably, scarily, WRONG! The door to their McMansion is left hanging open, the living room is a wreck & Amy is gone. Of course the investigation, in both the legal & public opinion arenas, is focused squarely on Nick. The cheating, abusive, cheater of a husband...of course. Or is he?
I want to say so much more, but really I can't. I don't want to ruin it for you should you be wise (or lucky) enough to pick up this book & crack open it's spine. You deserve to go into unaware, to experience the ride for yourself. You deserve a great book & this, my friends, is IT!!!!
This book went from 0 to 10 in the matter of a few pages & just went faster from there. I literally could not put it down. There were so many unexpected twists & turns that it was quite frankly, a roller coaster. I'd love to see it as a movie, but at the same time I dread those words when applied to a book I adored because the movie version never quite lives up to the book itself.
Gone Girl tells the story of Nick & Amy Dunne a seemingly perfect, blissfully happily married. Successful writers, trust fund, living a glamorous life in Manhattan, cool couple. Until they are very suddenly thrust into the "real" world...kind of. Suddenly, they are both laid off, Nick's mom gets cancer, they move to Missouri & then things go terribly wrong. Not just wrong, but horribly, unbelievably, scarily, WRONG! The door to their McMansion is left hanging open, the living room is a wreck & Amy is gone. Of course the investigation, in both the legal & public opinion arenas, is focused squarely on Nick. The cheating, abusive, cheater of a husband...of course. Or is he?
I want to say so much more, but really I can't. I don't want to ruin it for you should you be wise (or lucky) enough to pick up this book & crack open it's spine. You deserve to go into unaware, to experience the ride for yourself. You deserve a great book & this, my friends, is IT!!!!
Alison Pink (7 KP) rated No One is Here Except All of Us in Books
Jan 15, 2018
Wow! I've been on a bit of a WWII kick lately with my books. This one was not at all what I expected.
This book tells the story of Lena, a your Romanian Jewish girl living in an all but forgotten village in rural Romania as WWII rages around them. The town decides to reinvent the world in hopes of keeping the war at bay. It works for a time, until a newly forbidden radio is discovered under the floor boards of a barn turned temple. Once the radio is again brought to life, the war crashes in around them. Lena's husband is kidnapped & the people who are left behind struggle to make sense of what is going on.
Lena take matters into her own hands & decides to set out with her 2 young sons to escape the war. They walk & walk losing more than they gain along the way. The help they find turns out to be unexpected. They take from Lena, but also in the end give her much in return.
It is amazing that they were in the middle of the war yet were able to avoid much of what other Jews were not so lucky to miss. Lena's life is not without great loss however, its just not the kind I expected to experience when I picked up this book.
The thing that sticks out most to me is that despite the horrors & loss Lena went through, she was able to come out on the other side better. This is not to say that you will get a fairy tale ending with this story though. Lena is not exactly happy as the book closes, but she is hopeful. And to her that is all she can ask.
This book tells the story of Lena, a your Romanian Jewish girl living in an all but forgotten village in rural Romania as WWII rages around them. The town decides to reinvent the world in hopes of keeping the war at bay. It works for a time, until a newly forbidden radio is discovered under the floor boards of a barn turned temple. Once the radio is again brought to life, the war crashes in around them. Lena's husband is kidnapped & the people who are left behind struggle to make sense of what is going on.
Lena take matters into her own hands & decides to set out with her 2 young sons to escape the war. They walk & walk losing more than they gain along the way. The help they find turns out to be unexpected. They take from Lena, but also in the end give her much in return.
It is amazing that they were in the middle of the war yet were able to avoid much of what other Jews were not so lucky to miss. Lena's life is not without great loss however, its just not the kind I expected to experience when I picked up this book.
The thing that sticks out most to me is that despite the horrors & loss Lena went through, she was able to come out on the other side better. This is not to say that you will get a fairy tale ending with this story though. Lena is not exactly happy as the book closes, but she is hopeful. And to her that is all she can ask.
Merissa (13132 KP) rated Sleep in Books
Mar 25, 2019
Sleep by C.L. Taylor
Sleep is the second book by C.L. Taylor I have read, and my opinion of her as a first class thriller writer has been solidified. This one was very different to The Fear, but just as good.
We start off with Anna driving home after a team-building weekend in Wales. Everyone else is asleep, and the weather is bad. Through no fault of her own, there is an accident. Two are killed, one is left unable to walk, and Anna walks away from hospital. Not uninjured, not at all, but still walks away. She suffers from survivor's guilt, and it isn't helped by the fact she is convinced she is being stalked. Taking matters into her own hand, she splits with her boyfriend, and takes a job on the remote isle of Rum. Seven guests arrive the same time as a storm. Everyone is hiding something, and Anna doesn't know if she will survive.
This was an intriguing story, full of twists, turns, and red herrings. I'm never one to try and figure out 'whodunnit' as I prefer to let the story take me where it will. I will say in this instance, it became clear who it was, and I was lucky enough to guess correctly as to the reasons why. However, this didn't detract from the story itself in any way.
With no editing or grammatical errors to disrupt my reading flow, I thoroughly enjoyed this book from start to finish, and have no hesitation in recommending it to all #Thriller fans out there.
* 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!
We start off with Anna driving home after a team-building weekend in Wales. Everyone else is asleep, and the weather is bad. Through no fault of her own, there is an accident. Two are killed, one is left unable to walk, and Anna walks away from hospital. Not uninjured, not at all, but still walks away. She suffers from survivor's guilt, and it isn't helped by the fact she is convinced she is being stalked. Taking matters into her own hand, she splits with her boyfriend, and takes a job on the remote isle of Rum. Seven guests arrive the same time as a storm. Everyone is hiding something, and Anna doesn't know if she will survive.
This was an intriguing story, full of twists, turns, and red herrings. I'm never one to try and figure out 'whodunnit' as I prefer to let the story take me where it will. I will say in this instance, it became clear who it was, and I was lucky enough to guess correctly as to the reasons why. However, this didn't detract from the story itself in any way.
With no editing or grammatical errors to disrupt my reading flow, I thoroughly enjoyed this book from start to finish, and have no hesitation in recommending it to all #Thriller fans out there.
* 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!
Daniel Boyd (1066 KP) rated Love, Death & Robots in TV
Apr 4, 2019 (Updated Apr 4, 2019)
A breezy pace throughout the series (1 more)
Some incredible animation work
Now For Something Completely Different
Love Death & Robots is an animated anthology series from David Fincher and Tim Miller, made up of 18 short films, with each one done in a completely different animation style, ranging from stylistic 2D to hyper realistic 3D. I felt compelled to watch this series, not only as a fan of Fincher's and Miller's previous respective works, but as an aspiring animator myself.
My favourite thing about this series is how brief each episode is. Even if there is a story that you aren't enjoying so much, it is over promptly and you are onto the next one. I also like the idea of this series perhaps being a way for filmmakers to pitch their ideas in the form of these short stories and then, - if they are well received, - they could maybe go on to be developed into a longer more fleshed out feature length movie.
The style of animation varies wildly and everyone who watches the series will no doubt have their own personal preference. My favourite of the series was episode 13, which was titled "Lucky 13." It was based around a spaceship owned by a pilot played by Samira Wiley, who gave an phenomenal performance throughout the short film.
If you are looking for something fresh and different to anything else on Netflix, give this one a go. You may not enjoy every single episode, but I guarantee you there will be at least a few that you like. I really hope that this gets a second series and I am looking forward to anything else that is coming in the future from this creative team.
My favourite thing about this series is how brief each episode is. Even if there is a story that you aren't enjoying so much, it is over promptly and you are onto the next one. I also like the idea of this series perhaps being a way for filmmakers to pitch their ideas in the form of these short stories and then, - if they are well received, - they could maybe go on to be developed into a longer more fleshed out feature length movie.
The style of animation varies wildly and everyone who watches the series will no doubt have their own personal preference. My favourite of the series was episode 13, which was titled "Lucky 13." It was based around a spaceship owned by a pilot played by Samira Wiley, who gave an phenomenal performance throughout the short film.
If you are looking for something fresh and different to anything else on Netflix, give this one a go. You may not enjoy every single episode, but I guarantee you there will be at least a few that you like. I really hope that this gets a second series and I am looking forward to anything else that is coming in the future from this creative team.