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The Wisdom of Finance: Discovering Humanity in the World of Risk and Return
Book
The finance industry is widely thought of as being morally suspect. Even those who work in finance...
Finance
Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated A Luminous Republic in Books
Jan 21, 2024
15 of 220
Book
A Luminous Rebublic
By Andres Barba
⭐️⭐️⭐️
One day, the children begin to show up in the subtropical town of San Crist�bal. Aged between nine and thirteen, the children are covered in dirt and hungry. They beg food, commit small acts of vandalism, play games that don't seem to have any rules, and communicate with each other in a strange language. No one knows where they come from or where they disappear to each night. And then, they rob a supermarket and stab two adults, bringing fear to the town. Thus begins a fearsome and thrilling modern morality tale that retraces the lines between good and evil, the civilised and the wild, and drags our assumptions about childhood and innocence out into the light.
This is a strange little story of 32 children who mystery turn up in a subtropical town in called San Cristobel. These children have come from nowhere and they disappear just as quickly. These children cause mayhem round the town. Things take a turn when In a supermarket raid people end up dead and then the “normal” children start to disappear too. I’m not sure still how I actually feel after finishing it very odd.
Book
A Luminous Rebublic
By Andres Barba
⭐️⭐️⭐️
One day, the children begin to show up in the subtropical town of San Crist�bal. Aged between nine and thirteen, the children are covered in dirt and hungry. They beg food, commit small acts of vandalism, play games that don't seem to have any rules, and communicate with each other in a strange language. No one knows where they come from or where they disappear to each night. And then, they rob a supermarket and stab two adults, bringing fear to the town. Thus begins a fearsome and thrilling modern morality tale that retraces the lines between good and evil, the civilised and the wild, and drags our assumptions about childhood and innocence out into the light.
This is a strange little story of 32 children who mystery turn up in a subtropical town in called San Cristobel. These children have come from nowhere and they disappear just as quickly. These children cause mayhem round the town. Things take a turn when In a supermarket raid people end up dead and then the “normal” children start to disappear too. I’m not sure still how I actually feel after finishing it very odd.
Uptown Oracle (24 KP) rated All That Remains in Books
Jun 30, 2017
A wonderful zombie thriller
All That Remains is a dystopian horror following Kyle, Tim and Sara 13 years after the apocalypse. After finding young girl Kaylee, they need to get to Oak Ridge to protect themselves and maybe save the world.
There's normal reanimated human zombies, but also other monster like creatures that roam the earth. All That Remains is able to describe the monsters, make them horrifying, yet not interrupt the plotline to do so. In previous books I've been pulled out of a tense moment because there's too much description, but Barrera is able to bypass that problem.
There's varying themes of hope and morality within the book. All four of our characters experience hope, and lose hope throughout the book. Whether it's hope to find more people, hope that cities are inhabitable or just hope for survival. Because of this focus, I felt attached to the characters. Even when they were being pessimistic, they still didn't give up.
Morality is a fine line in this new world. You must kill to survive at times, but is it the right thing to do? If you kill a bad person does it make you just as bad? One of the lines mentioned that right is nothing but a direction anymore which I think is relevant to the book as a whole.
As we get to see the point of views of both Sara and Kyle you do feel attached to them. The characters are extremely likable, even when they're not being the best they can be. They don't consciously make bad decisions which puts them in danger, which makes me route for them more. Although problems do arise due to accidents or it's out of their control.
Sara in particular is a great character. She shows both mental and physical strength by not only surviving 13 years but also with her mental fight with 'the walking cancer'. The walking cancer is a monster that no one has ever seen before. It's a new, worse monster in the world, and the main bulk of the book is spent running and hiding from it. Due to Sara being a scanner she can sense and also connect/talk with the monster.
The plague-like spread of zombies and natural disasters mirrors that Kyle is ill throughout the book. It's implied that it's a cancerous tumor, most likely in the brain due to headaches and blackouts. As the situation for the group gets worse, the illness gets worse. I think Barrera was definitely trying to show the similarities. There's also a underlying message of having hope throughout which I think is an important takeaway.
There's normal reanimated human zombies, but also other monster like creatures that roam the earth. All That Remains is able to describe the monsters, make them horrifying, yet not interrupt the plotline to do so. In previous books I've been pulled out of a tense moment because there's too much description, but Barrera is able to bypass that problem.
There's varying themes of hope and morality within the book. All four of our characters experience hope, and lose hope throughout the book. Whether it's hope to find more people, hope that cities are inhabitable or just hope for survival. Because of this focus, I felt attached to the characters. Even when they were being pessimistic, they still didn't give up.
Morality is a fine line in this new world. You must kill to survive at times, but is it the right thing to do? If you kill a bad person does it make you just as bad? One of the lines mentioned that right is nothing but a direction anymore which I think is relevant to the book as a whole.
As we get to see the point of views of both Sara and Kyle you do feel attached to them. The characters are extremely likable, even when they're not being the best they can be. They don't consciously make bad decisions which puts them in danger, which makes me route for them more. Although problems do arise due to accidents or it's out of their control.
Sara in particular is a great character. She shows both mental and physical strength by not only surviving 13 years but also with her mental fight with 'the walking cancer'. The walking cancer is a monster that no one has ever seen before. It's a new, worse monster in the world, and the main bulk of the book is spent running and hiding from it. Due to Sara being a scanner she can sense and also connect/talk with the monster.
The plague-like spread of zombies and natural disasters mirrors that Kyle is ill throughout the book. It's implied that it's a cancerous tumor, most likely in the brain due to headaches and blackouts. As the situation for the group gets worse, the illness gets worse. I think Barrera was definitely trying to show the similarities. There's also a underlying message of having hope throughout which I think is an important takeaway.
*＊✿❀ Maki ❀✿＊* (7 KP) rated The Warrior Heir (The Heir Chronicles, #1) in Books
May 3, 2018
[a:Cinda Williams Chima|125308|Cinda Williams Chima|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1291420167p2/125308.jpg] was my biggest takeaway from [b:The Way of the Wizard|8121665|The Way of the Wizard|John Joseph Adams|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1297656860s/8121665.jpg|12917149]. I absolutely adored the short story of how Linda and Hastings met, and knew that I had to read the actual series.
You can definitely tell that this was written a few years before the short story in The Way of the Wizard. The writing isn't quite on the same level - all of the key elements are still there, but in a rawer form.
That's not a bad thing. I'm not insulting the quality of the writing, at all. It was still a very enjoyable story, and the writing and the editing were solid. And I'm happy to watch the progression of the narrative, as it gets stronger over time.
...but. If I had read The Warrior Heir before I read "The Trader and the Slave", I probably would have enjoyed this book more than I did. Part of me kept waiting for the dark, grittiness that the short story had, and it never really showed up.
Were parts of The Warrior Heir heavy? Sure. There's a lot of double-crossing, morality, and self-sacrifice in there. But it wasn't quite the same.
Sorry for that slight detour there. I felt that, before I started talking about the book itself, I should explain the factors that went towards my final rating.
Because, in general, I loved this book. It was a lot of fun to read. I loved the "world" and the magic system, I loved the history and explanations of why magic works, and where it came from. The dedication to the magic system was very nice, and much appreciated in such an action-based fantasy book.
The main characters all managed to keep me interested in what was going on (even though there wasn't nearly enough Linda and Hastings in there for me), and the antagonists walked a delicate balance of being evil, and just doing what they thought would be best for themselves, or for those around them. Even some of the protagonists walked that line, which was <i>really</i> nice to see.
Morality - it's pretty important to the story.
There weren't really any surprises in the plot department. It was incredibly easy to guess the various "twists" the book had to offer. <spoiler>Especially anything having to do with Ellen.</spoiler> But personally, I was too distracted by the world-building to overly care about how predictable things were.
Because in Maki-land, well-established magic system > plot.
You can definitely tell that this was written a few years before the short story in The Way of the Wizard. The writing isn't quite on the same level - all of the key elements are still there, but in a rawer form.
That's not a bad thing. I'm not insulting the quality of the writing, at all. It was still a very enjoyable story, and the writing and the editing were solid. And I'm happy to watch the progression of the narrative, as it gets stronger over time.
...but. If I had read The Warrior Heir before I read "The Trader and the Slave", I probably would have enjoyed this book more than I did. Part of me kept waiting for the dark, grittiness that the short story had, and it never really showed up.
Were parts of The Warrior Heir heavy? Sure. There's a lot of double-crossing, morality, and self-sacrifice in there. But it wasn't quite the same.
Sorry for that slight detour there. I felt that, before I started talking about the book itself, I should explain the factors that went towards my final rating.
Because, in general, I loved this book. It was a lot of fun to read. I loved the "world" and the magic system, I loved the history and explanations of why magic works, and where it came from. The dedication to the magic system was very nice, and much appreciated in such an action-based fantasy book.
The main characters all managed to keep me interested in what was going on (even though there wasn't nearly enough Linda and Hastings in there for me), and the antagonists walked a delicate balance of being evil, and just doing what they thought would be best for themselves, or for those around them. Even some of the protagonists walked that line, which was <i>really</i> nice to see.
Morality - it's pretty important to the story.
There weren't really any surprises in the plot department. It was incredibly easy to guess the various "twists" the book had to offer. <spoiler>Especially anything having to do with Ellen.</spoiler> But personally, I was too distracted by the world-building to overly care about how predictable things were.
Because in Maki-land, well-established magic system > plot.
Elvis Fox (24 KP) rated Young Adult (2011) in Movies
May 1, 2019
Charlize Theron (2 more)
Patton Oswalt
Elizabeth Reaser
Adulting Not Suited For Everyone
First off, in order to enjoy this deliciously vapid slice of life film I highly recommend suspending your moral compass to get a truly enjoyable viewing. Charlize Theron is absolutely PERFECT as ghost writer Mavis Gary, who for the most part, hasn't matured beyond her glory days as a popular high school cheerleader and displays questionable morality traits as the film progresses. She's tall, blonde, and beautiful and as such was destined to go on to do amazing things in life...until life got in the way. Enjoying moderate success as a ghost writer of a once popular young adult series, Mavis's only real source of income is dwindling, as the series is coming to an end as she struggles to write a satisfactory ending which mirrors what's happening in her own personal life. As luck would have it, an old high school flame of Mavis's sends her an e-vite to a celebration for the birth of his first child and the events that unfold is anything short of cringe worthy, rage, and ultimately dissapointment. I highly recommend this quant little film that I feel doesn't get nearly as much attention and praise as it deserves, it makes for one heck of a Friday night in!
Holly (1 KP) rated Pestilence in Books
Jul 17, 2018
Grey morality (2 more)
Narrative voice
Provoked tears
The cover makes it seem like a dime a dozen romance (1 more)
Never addressed possible Stockholm syndrome
Unexpected
I downloaded this book to my kindle thinking it would be a quick mindless read for my daily commute.
It was not.
This is as a book that moved me to tears on said bus, hoping no one would see me and think I was crazy.
The author has created a world in which you find yourself torn between hating and caring for a mass murderer. She uses the idea of the Four Horseman to highlight both the redeemable and the irredeemable facets of humanity. The writing was very enjoyable, and overall this was a great read possibly because I was expecting a trashy romance and instead got death and disease.
There is still romance in the plot, but I’m on the fence about how about it. If you have an issue with overly possessive men who have no boundaries or idea of how much the human body can take, then I wouldn’t recommend it. I also feel as thoug Stockholm night play a lot in the heroines eventual love of Pestilence m, but it was never addressed or even hinted at.
If your looking for a slow burn romance, without the fluff, full of angst and darkness this is definitely worth a go.
It was not.
This is as a book that moved me to tears on said bus, hoping no one would see me and think I was crazy.
The author has created a world in which you find yourself torn between hating and caring for a mass murderer. She uses the idea of the Four Horseman to highlight both the redeemable and the irredeemable facets of humanity. The writing was very enjoyable, and overall this was a great read possibly because I was expecting a trashy romance and instead got death and disease.
There is still romance in the plot, but I’m on the fence about how about it. If you have an issue with overly possessive men who have no boundaries or idea of how much the human body can take, then I wouldn’t recommend it. I also feel as thoug Stockholm night play a lot in the heroines eventual love of Pestilence m, but it was never addressed or even hinted at.
If your looking for a slow burn romance, without the fluff, full of angst and darkness this is definitely worth a go.
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