How the Gloves Came off: Lawyers, Policy Makers, and Norms in the Debate on Torture
Book
The treatment of detainees at Abu Ghraib prison, Guantanamo Bay, and far-flung CIA "black sites"...
Leanne Crabtree (480 KP) rated Undeclared (Woodlands, #1) in Books
Jan 7, 2021
I received this copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.
This story tells the tale of Grace, who became the pen pal of a marine as an assignment while at high school. They carried on corresponding for four years before Noah, the marine, sent her a "Dear John" style letter telling her he didn't want to meet her. Grace took the letter badly, after years of pining after him, and shuts him out. Noah on the other hand wanted to get his head sorted out, after spending the last four years in Afghanistan, before meeting her. I don't want to give too much away but they do meet again.
I found the first half of the book a little slow going and it took me a while to get into it, while the second half seemed to flow easier and I found myself unable to put my kindle down as I wondered how Noah was going to get Grace to forgive him.
The characters are all likeable, especially the guys who live at Woodlands. I'm interested in reading their stories, especially Bo to see who ends up winning his heart.
Overall, I did enjoy this book. It's the first New Adult book I've read that involved (ex)military personnel and like I've said before, the reason I like the genre so much is because they mix it up a little and deal with bigger issues.
LoganCrews (2861 KP) rated Serial Mom (1994) in Movies
Jul 4, 2021
"𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘵!"
𝘔𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘪𝘦 𝘋𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘵: 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘐𝘐. Does anyone do the satirization of stuck-up suburban values as originally and/or as brutally entertaining as John Waters? Most other directors would have turned this into a threadbare lecture that refused to have any sort of fun. But here we have this beautiful concoction of B-movie theatrics, gore, pitch-perfect performances, jovial filth, rock-solid lampooning, and A1 comedy - so lovingly inspired by low-budget camp and slashers of the 60s-80s that it honestly could pass off as one in many respects. Kathleen Turner is a live wire - in one of the most religiously entertaining female performances of all time, it has a blast radius that would make a military warhead quake. This is the type of role that just demands your attention, perpetually switching between these polar opposite demeanors at the drop of a hat with expert-level talent and all game for the ensuing absurdity. Which on its own would have been enough to carry 93 minutes of fun but then the film is also super clever and uproarious without rest. Had an ear-to-ear smile on my face for most of the runtime and laughed so often that my mouth began to give out mid-laugh due to the muscles simply being too worn out from overwork. Quotable as fuck and every scene is memorable, a total killer.
Ross (3284 KP) rated Priest of Lies in Books
Jun 26, 2019
Priest of Bones was one of my favourite books of last year. I loved the narrative style, the dark tone and the simple yet thrilling storyline. The returning conscripts using their newly learned military tactics to take back their streets and run their gangland empires was a clever, honest and hard-hitting story. It really was "peaky blinders with swords".
The follow-up continues in that vein, the Pious Men gang have consolidated their hold in Ellinburg and are now at full-on gang war. However, as they returned from war, so does a large number of other former gangsters, and a number of new/revived gangs compete for territory.
The fantasy tone is still used here, despite being the mystical, noble pursuit we are used to. I seriously love Mclean's narrative voice, his action scenes and his overall pace of writing.
I was thrilled to see in the Q&A at the end of the book that I was right in thinking Ellinburg was based loosely on Edinburgh.
The feel of this book is very much a grim and nasty version of Terry Pratchett's Guards series, with characterisation and scene setting to rival Pratchett at his best.
A truly immersive compelling read that I loved from start to finish.
Trenches II
Games and Entertainment
App
DIG FOR VICTORY! TRENCHES II wants you to join the fight! Wage a whole new war, as the Russians join...
FreeTV - Unlimited
News and Entertainment
App
Watch TV right on your iPhone for FREE! With over 85+ shows and 40+ channels to choose from you can...
Kristy H (1252 KP) rated Camino Winds in Books
Aug 20, 2020
It's easy to feel the storm and its tension through Grisham's picturesque writing. Leo hits quickly and the devastation that follows is bad. The post-hurricane feeling on a nearly abandoned Camino Island seems oddly aligned to the pandemic--at least when I read this in May--or it's easy to read that sense into everything I read.
Still, despite the hurricane and the murder and other various killings, this is actually a fun read. Grisham gives us an engaging mystery, and I love his "good versus evil" formula. It always works so well for him and this is one of his breezier presentations. While there isn't much depth, it's a fast read with interesting characters and a snappy mystery. 3.5 stars.
The Empire's Ghost
6.0
Rate It
Book
The empire of Elesthene once spanned a continent, but its rise heralded the death of magic. It tore...
Epic Fantasy
The Miner (2017)
5.0
Rate It
Movie Watch
2009, Slovenia, European Union. For 30 years, Alija, the miner, has been one of the many Bosnian...
international drama history biography
A Bright Shining Lie
Book
Outspoken, professional and fearless, Lt. Col. John Paul Vann went to Vietnam in 1962, full of...