Search

Search only in certain items:

The Kiss (The Cotiere Chronicles #1)
The Kiss (The Cotiere Chronicles #1)
Michelle Bolanger | 2015 | Paranormal, Romance
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I was a bit wary when starting this book as I knew from the synopsis that there were three people involved and my immediate fear was a love triangle, which I'm really fed up with reading about! However, my fears were groundless as this book took a turn that I never saw coming and by this point, I was totally engrossed in the story.

Liesl, Baden and Koen all change and grow in this book, no stagnation for any of these characters! However, Liesl is the one who grows the most. She has been lied to and manipulated for most of her life but once the truth is given to her, she makes her stand in her own quiet way, showing a strength of will and character where you might have thought of weakness. I loved her! Baden and Koen are both fantastic characters and I loved both of them. One thing I will point out in particular though, and it's about Koen. He has asthma and I LOVED that. He was not an Alpha Male absolutely perfect in every way. Instead, he has a debilitating illness (that I also suffer with so my chest tightened every time I read about his suffering!) and STILL manages to be an Alpha Male absolutely perfect in every way! He is romantic, funny, caring, protective, and loving - everything a romantic like me needs to read about.

The plot was fantastic and was very smoothly written. There is enough depth to this to make it a fantastic book and, speaking as an English transplant in Germany, I loved reading the German sentences because I understood them without the translation. Trust me, this means that it is simple enough for anyone but the translation is there just in case.

Overall, this book swept me away. Well written, edited and with no grammatical mistakes that I found, I was lost within this book and certainly didn't want it to end. Absolutely brilliant and highly recommended.

* 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!
Jul 26, 2015
  
A Thousand Glittering Lights
A Thousand Glittering Lights
Jennie Lynn Roberts | 2024 | Contemporary, Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy
10
10.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
absolutely stunning book!
Independent reviewer for BookSirens, I was gifted my copy of this book.

Jennie Lynn Roberts has become a firm favourite, her first book blew me away and I'm still struggling to catch my breath! But those books were fantasy/paranormal, and this is a contemporary romance and I wasn't sure how I was gonna feel about this book.

I need not have worried! I loved this book, massively!

It has some many layers and subplots, or at least I thought they were subplots, until everything start to merge together and things become much MUCH clearer! I wasn't confused, not really, just at times I felt I was reading those subplots as multiple books. Once things started to come together, however, those subplots made much more sense.

I loved how I just let myelf fall into this, along with those plots, and didn't really try to figure it out as I went. I usually do, trying to put 2 and 2 together to get 4, but for some reason, I let myself flow with the book. And I am so glad I did, because I didn't see it taking that route! Ok, so maybe I did try, but only a little.

I loved that we heard not just from Ellie, but alos from the male MC and some others. I wasn't WHY we were hearing from them, as I was reading, but I have to say, they were absolutely needed for those plots to come together. Roberts NAILED how Victoria (Ellie's best friend) was dealing with things, she absolutely did.

I can't go too much into what I loved most about this book, for spoilers, but know this: I loved this book and the way it went! I cried a lot, and cheered a lot. It's deeply emotional, not just for Ellie, but for out male MC. Because :

All he knows is darkness… and Ellie.

And never has there been a more perfect tag line!

I can't fault this book, I really can't. I'd love to be able to give it more, but I can't so...

5 full and glittering stars

*same worded review will appear elsewhere
  
40x40

Suswatibasu (1701 KP) rated Digging Up Mother: A Love Story in Books

Oct 14, 2017 (Updated Oct 15, 2017)  
Digging Up Mother: A Love Story
Digging Up Mother: A Love Story
Doug Stanhope | 2016 | Biography, Humor & Comedy
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Crude, hilarious, and sombre at times
Listened to on Audible.

For all lovers of gonzo, Doug Stanhope reaches the top of the list of crude humour, insane experiences muddled in with bittersweet memories.

This autobiography is hilarious, and the only way to read it, is to listen to it, given there are so many 'director's comments', in which Doug and his friends discuss the incident at hand. Also the fact that he is drunk at times and will loudly burp just adds to the book so much more than skimming through the pages. While the majority is about him, it premises around his mother's life and death which have ultimately shaped him. She's no ordinary mother that's a fact.

From being a pyromaniac as a child, a teen male prostitute to telephone salesman, Stanhope has had an interesting life mixed in with drugs, alcohol, women and stand up comedy. And while you do think he's a bit of a so-and-so, it's still very funny. A great listen.
  
40x40

Kevin Phillipson (10017 KP) rated the PlayStation 4 version of Assassin's Creed: Odyssey in Video Games

Jun 9, 2019  
Assassin's Creed: Odyssey
Assassin's Creed: Odyssey
2018 | Action/Adventure, Role-Playing
Kassandra (2 more)
Ancient Greece
100s hours of gameplay
What a game so far as I've only played about 6 hours of gameplay so far and Impressed by the game in my opinion so even better than red dead redemption 2 one of the best open world's I've seen ancient Greece looks amazing it looks so real. Currently playing the game as Kassandra one of my favourite female protagonists in any game I've played u also get the option to play as akexos but I will stick with Kassandra to the end of the game. I also like it when the game gives u the choice to change the outcome of a mission it can be tough but the right decision isn't allways the right one later in the game. also u can choose who to get romantic with either male or female characters u meet along the way. Currently started the sea faring missions with my crew where we will go next that's the exciting part of the game and I'm in for adventure.
  
Crazy Rich Asians (2018)
Crazy Rich Asians (2018)
2018 | Comedy
Entertaining (0 more)
Lead male character is not a good boyfriend in spots (0 more)
I did enjoy the movie for the characters and the story. The jokes were funny and I did find myself entertained. I also giggled at the aspects of the nosy aunties because my Filipino family is very much like that, always knowing your business or wanting to know. While I did like Nick, I found at times that he was rather a terrible boyfriend. For example, it seemed bad form to not tell Jessica that his family party would absolutely be a black tie affair or expecting her to be able to somehow get a ride to his house without really knowing where his family house was in another country. I know it's typical romantic comedy fare, but honestly if someone I was dating did that to me I would be pretty irritated with them. That being said, I did appreciate the movie for the engaging cast and the moments that had me smiling or laughing. It's a good, entertaining popcorn movie and has a lovely and cheerful optimism to it.
  
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017)
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017)
2017 | Action, Adventure, Comedy
Forced humor, cliches, and way too many jokes about male anatomy.
Contains spoilers, click to show
Okay, I'll start by saying that I did legit chuckle a few times watching Jumanji. I can't even recall why at this point, but there was definitely some laughter involved.

What stands out to me though (I watched the movie a few weeks ago) was all the things that annoyed me.


Like the African American kid from what appeared to be upper middle class whose mother made it seem like the team was his only hope of succeeding.


Also, the fact that it's of course the African American character in the game that is the one who loves alcohol and gets plastered without exercising any common sense.


Or, you know, the fact that it was just so funny to see Jack Black overplaying the 'female trapped in a man's body' thing to limp-wristing levels.


This movie could have been so much better than it was. But it was almost painful to watch. I was hoping we were moving past thinking that laughing at this type of crap was a good thing.
  
TH
To Hell With Love
4
4.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I seriously do not even know what to say about this piece of work. It's a rare and special day when you run across a romance novel where the male protagonist is death/devil/Hades. They are personal favorites of mine. So you can imagine I snatched this one up as soon as I saw it. I am glad I only dished out $2 for it.

The plot is as thin as wet tissue and more boring than watching mud dry. Every page was obvious and expected, the obstruction between the protagonists was blaring, and it was just very...bland. I will give the author credit for knowing how to write and tell the story she wants to tell. However, I must deduct points for the lack of creativity. I wanted so much to be wowed or at least enjoy the novel, but instead I felt like this would be a the love story about death and his lady as written by a high school freshmen, still dewy eyed.
  
TD
The Duke Meets His Match
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I had a love hate relationship with the novel. The hate comes from my annoyance with the certain character traits. I don’t enjoy the “tortured” heroes/heroines who push people away because they feel they don’t deserve love or have done terrible things in the past. However, I loved the strong female lead and her willingness to take things into her own hands to get things done and the sassy male lead who didn’t know what hit him. The hero actually ended up being one of my favorites to date particularly for his ability to realize he is not infallible and must correct his own wrongdoings/misconceptions.

Overall, it was an enjoyable novel. The pity parties got old, but I enjoyed watching the main couple fall in love. It was an easy kind of love that happened over time rather than forced. Not to mention the female lead had a brain on her shoulders. Always a plus in my book!

I am looking forward to reading the rest of the series.
  
40x40

Awix (3310 KP) rated Journey's End (2018) in Movies

Feb 7, 2018 (Updated Feb 9, 2018)  
Journey's End (2018)
Journey's End (2018)
2018 | Drama, War
Trench to Nowhere
Handsomely mounted and very well-performed war drama that does a good job of hiding its low budget. Made to mark the centenary of the (fictionalised) events it depicts, the focus is very much on the characters of the men in the front line of war, rather than action and adventure - when fighting takes place, it is confused and chaotic, and preceded by an almost palpable sense of dread.

There's a way in which this film adheres to the received narrative when it comes to the First World War, which is that it was a pointless slaughter in which a generation of young men were callously sacrificed by unfeeling senior staff, but this is not overplayed and the uniformly fine acting means that the focus is always on the individuals involved, rather than laboriously sending a message.

The fact that pretty much every speaking role goes to a white male means this is a film which is probably going to struggle to get traction with modern audiences and commentators, but it remains a sincere and powerful piece of drama.