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Phil Leader (619 KP) rated Raising Steam: (Discworld Novel 40) in Books
Nov 25, 2019
Raising Steam is another Diskworld book by Pratchett and I have to say I enjoyed it immensely.
The main plot is twofold, firstly concerning steam trains being created (with a nice nod to Reaper Man) and spreading across the Sto Plains and secondly the continuation of the story of the Dwarves from The Fifth Elephant and Thud. There is also some continuation of the Goblin thread from Snuff. As Moist von Lipwig is the main hero (of a sort) there are also references to Going Postal and Making Money (which is also where the title comes from - this is a Moist book).
The main plots only converge towards the end of the story but this doesn't really matter. The train story is fun and fast moving, some nice little nods to the steam pioneers on Roundworld thrown in, plenty of one liners and puns. There are also more than enough references to previous books and Rincewind makes an appearance (although Death only has a cameo and there's no Librarian which is a little disappointing). The Dwarf plot concerns the machinations of the Deep Downers in trying to preserve Dwarven ways and not to modernise.
Both have impetus and are just enough entwined that one plot didn't get left behind. The writing was crisp and well paced - Pratchett seems to have finally adapted to speaking the books rather than physically writing them.
Overall I enjoyed this immensely, certainly the one I've enjoyed the most since Going Postal. Certainly there are some flaws - Drumknott is subverted from being a dry dusty administrator and the railway is simply built too quickly - but these can easily be overcome by the reader.
Recommended for any Discworld fan. Possibly not a good introduction as there are too many knowing nods and references to previous works.
The main plot is twofold, firstly concerning steam trains being created (with a nice nod to Reaper Man) and spreading across the Sto Plains and secondly the continuation of the story of the Dwarves from The Fifth Elephant and Thud. There is also some continuation of the Goblin thread from Snuff. As Moist von Lipwig is the main hero (of a sort) there are also references to Going Postal and Making Money (which is also where the title comes from - this is a Moist book).
The main plots only converge towards the end of the story but this doesn't really matter. The train story is fun and fast moving, some nice little nods to the steam pioneers on Roundworld thrown in, plenty of one liners and puns. There are also more than enough references to previous books and Rincewind makes an appearance (although Death only has a cameo and there's no Librarian which is a little disappointing). The Dwarf plot concerns the machinations of the Deep Downers in trying to preserve Dwarven ways and not to modernise.
Both have impetus and are just enough entwined that one plot didn't get left behind. The writing was crisp and well paced - Pratchett seems to have finally adapted to speaking the books rather than physically writing them.
Overall I enjoyed this immensely, certainly the one I've enjoyed the most since Going Postal. Certainly there are some flaws - Drumknott is subverted from being a dry dusty administrator and the railway is simply built too quickly - but these can easily be overcome by the reader.
Recommended for any Discworld fan. Possibly not a good introduction as there are too many knowing nods and references to previous works.
Sarah (7798 KP) rated Doctor Who - Series 12 (New Season 12) in TV
Apr 4, 2020
Getting stale
When Doctor Who first came back into our screens, I loved it and loved it for quite a few series however the longer the show has been running for, the more tired of it I become. Like with any tv show, I think there comes a time when you should call it a day before it starts to become stale and people lose interest. I’m afraid to say that Doctor Who has gone past that point for me.
Don’t get me wrong, this was still a fairly enjoyable series. I adore Jodie Whittaker as the Doctor, I think she’s rather wonderful and I’m surprised at how many people don’t really rate her. I also find all of her companions quite bearable and probably the most bearable out of all of those that have come before - most likely because they haven’t tried to shoe horn in some cringey romantic aspects with the Doctor. Although I can only think of The Chase when I look at Bradley Walsh.
The problem is that the storylines are all getting a bit old and rather samey, whether they’re new enemies or old ones returning. Especially with the old foes returning, how many more times can we see the return of the Daleks or the Cybermen? It’s been done too many times. It was nice in this series to see the return of a familiar friendly face and it was nice in a way to see the return of a familiar and much loved enemy, however without spoilers I will say that this returning face isn’t quite as good as the one that came before it.
Overall this was an enjoyable series but not particularly memorable, and I really think they should consider giving this show a rest for a while.
Don’t get me wrong, this was still a fairly enjoyable series. I adore Jodie Whittaker as the Doctor, I think she’s rather wonderful and I’m surprised at how many people don’t really rate her. I also find all of her companions quite bearable and probably the most bearable out of all of those that have come before - most likely because they haven’t tried to shoe horn in some cringey romantic aspects with the Doctor. Although I can only think of The Chase when I look at Bradley Walsh.
The problem is that the storylines are all getting a bit old and rather samey, whether they’re new enemies or old ones returning. Especially with the old foes returning, how many more times can we see the return of the Daleks or the Cybermen? It’s been done too many times. It was nice in this series to see the return of a familiar friendly face and it was nice in a way to see the return of a familiar and much loved enemy, however without spoilers I will say that this returning face isn’t quite as good as the one that came before it.
Overall this was an enjoyable series but not particularly memorable, and I really think they should consider giving this show a rest for a while.
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Baxter Dury recommended Loaded by The Velvet Underground in Music (curated)
Leanne Crabtree (480 KP) rated Like Candy (Candy #1) in Books
Jan 6, 2021
*A copy of this book was received via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*
The thing that drew me in with this book was the cover, and then the description. Note that I haven't been on Netgalley in some time, as I've been trying to wittle down my slowly increasing list of books and then just decided to get rid of the ones I got as freebies back when I first got my kindle and would never read.
So back to Like Candy. I was a little wary to start with. I'm a bit picky with genre's at the minute. I'm liking YA, but not really NA. I'm liking Romance but not in the mood for Erotica. Luckily this was more YA than NA to me and the romance aspect of this story drew me in quickly. Just the chance of something happening with Candy after her last failed relationship and the silent-but-really-nice guy that is Jonah...well *sigh* And when it finally did, I was so happy for them. They were so good for each other!
It read as a normal girl-meets-boy story, a nice slow progression, and then we see Candy in her home life and I was a little stumped with that part of the storyline. Her wanting to do what her dad did. It wasn't something I was expecting, especially with all the mystery surrounding what he does. That was the other plot that was threaded through the story, though I wont spoil it by going into much detail.
But for me, it was all about that emotional connection between Candy and Jonah. I loved it. And that bit near the end with them at school almost killed me. But the actual ending? Cliff-hanger worthy!
I definitely need the second book in the series now.<br/>
The thing that drew me in with this book was the cover, and then the description. Note that I haven't been on Netgalley in some time, as I've been trying to wittle down my slowly increasing list of books and then just decided to get rid of the ones I got as freebies back when I first got my kindle and would never read.
So back to Like Candy. I was a little wary to start with. I'm a bit picky with genre's at the minute. I'm liking YA, but not really NA. I'm liking Romance but not in the mood for Erotica. Luckily this was more YA than NA to me and the romance aspect of this story drew me in quickly. Just the chance of something happening with Candy after her last failed relationship and the silent-but-really-nice guy that is Jonah...well *sigh* And when it finally did, I was so happy for them. They were so good for each other!
It read as a normal girl-meets-boy story, a nice slow progression, and then we see Candy in her home life and I was a little stumped with that part of the storyline. Her wanting to do what her dad did. It wasn't something I was expecting, especially with all the mystery surrounding what he does. That was the other plot that was threaded through the story, though I wont spoil it by going into much detail.
But for me, it was all about that emotional connection between Candy and Jonah. I loved it. And that bit near the end with them at school almost killed me. But the actual ending? Cliff-hanger worthy!
I definitely need the second book in the series now.<br/>
Leanne Crabtree (480 KP) rated Fire Inside (Chaos, #2) in Books
Jan 8, 2021
4.5
I really, really, really liked this book! The only problem I had was it’s length (I seem to have a thing about really long books where I cant read them all at once and have to break them up with other books). There was something about it that just dragged me in and kept me reading. Maybe it was the way Hopper treated Lanie like a lady, simply because she came from a better background than him but still treated everyone fairly. Or his way of talking and thinking because he talked a lot of sense and did a lot of nice things for Lanie.
He was so easy to fall for.
There were two quotes I really liked: “Honey,” I called and his head came up. “You have a monster too.”
“I did. My woman just slayed it.”
And:
He lifted his head and looked down at me. “Have it all now, I made a baby outta love.”
He was killing me.
“Stop making me cry and kiss me.”
Both show Hop’s sweeter side and made me all awwwww…
The only downside for me was that this was my first book by Kristen Ashley, even though I have two other books by her on my Kindle, and I hadn’t read the others to understand the back story of Lanie and her relationship with her previous fiancé Elliott.
Please note: It doesn’t take away from the story at all if you haven’t read it, as it is explained throughout Fire Inside but I personally would have liked to read Lanie’s back story first.
Nevertheless, this was an amazing insight into a motorcycle club and a really nice love story. I love it!
I really, really, really liked this book! The only problem I had was it’s length (I seem to have a thing about really long books where I cant read them all at once and have to break them up with other books). There was something about it that just dragged me in and kept me reading. Maybe it was the way Hopper treated Lanie like a lady, simply because she came from a better background than him but still treated everyone fairly. Or his way of talking and thinking because he talked a lot of sense and did a lot of nice things for Lanie.
He was so easy to fall for.
There were two quotes I really liked: “Honey,” I called and his head came up. “You have a monster too.”
“I did. My woman just slayed it.”
And:
He lifted his head and looked down at me. “Have it all now, I made a baby outta love.”
He was killing me.
“Stop making me cry and kiss me.”
Both show Hop’s sweeter side and made me all awwwww…
The only downside for me was that this was my first book by Kristen Ashley, even though I have two other books by her on my Kindle, and I hadn’t read the others to understand the back story of Lanie and her relationship with her previous fiancé Elliott.
Please note: It doesn’t take away from the story at all if you haven’t read it, as it is explained throughout Fire Inside but I personally would have liked to read Lanie’s back story first.
Nevertheless, this was an amazing insight into a motorcycle club and a really nice love story. I love it!
ClareR (5721 KP) rated The Chalet in Books
Nov 8, 2020
The Chalet was a twisty, turny thriller that had me guessing all the way through. I couldn’t for the life of me work out who had been responsible for the death (and at one point I wasn’t even convinced that he was dead!), and I had a list of pretty much everyone in the chalet. My main reason for their guilt was that they just weren’t very nice (I know, I’ll never make a great detective!).
This story is split between two timelines to begin with - the present day and twenty years before. In the present day, two couples are sharing a chalet for a holiday mixed with business. I’ll say this again: these are not particularly nice people. They’re rich, entitled and generally insensitive.
Interspersed with this timeline is that of two couples twenty years earlier. Two brothers and their girlfriends are on a skiing holiday. They’re all Oxford University students: three come from affluent upper class families, and one, Louisa, comes from a working class, single parent family. She is made to feel different at all times - whether this is her own insecurities is never quite clear. Her boyfriends brother certainly doesn’t do much to make her feel welcome. At some point during this holiday, there’s a terrible accident that has an equally terrible effect on characters in the present day timeline.
I won’t say any more about the storyline - I don’t want to be the one to spoil someone’s reading enjoyment! What I WILL say, is that I thoroughly enjoyed this and looked forward to reading it every morning on the Pigeonhole app. It’s a tense, exciting, addictive read - and I loved it!
Many thanks to The Pigeonhole for serialising this and helping me once more, to read my NetGalley books! And also thanks to the author, Catherine Cooper for reading along with us.
This story is split between two timelines to begin with - the present day and twenty years before. In the present day, two couples are sharing a chalet for a holiday mixed with business. I’ll say this again: these are not particularly nice people. They’re rich, entitled and generally insensitive.
Interspersed with this timeline is that of two couples twenty years earlier. Two brothers and their girlfriends are on a skiing holiday. They’re all Oxford University students: three come from affluent upper class families, and one, Louisa, comes from a working class, single parent family. She is made to feel different at all times - whether this is her own insecurities is never quite clear. Her boyfriends brother certainly doesn’t do much to make her feel welcome. At some point during this holiday, there’s a terrible accident that has an equally terrible effect on characters in the present day timeline.
I won’t say any more about the storyline - I don’t want to be the one to spoil someone’s reading enjoyment! What I WILL say, is that I thoroughly enjoyed this and looked forward to reading it every morning on the Pigeonhole app. It’s a tense, exciting, addictive read - and I loved it!
Many thanks to The Pigeonhole for serialising this and helping me once more, to read my NetGalley books! And also thanks to the author, Catherine Cooper for reading along with us.
Natacha (374 KP) rated The Kiss of Deception (The Remnant Chronicles #1) in Books
Jun 29, 2019
A nice easy read
This was another book that I wanted to pick up when I got back into reading but I ended up reading The Name of the Wind instead. I should have picked this one up...
This was an easy and interesting read. We have a strong female main character and we see that through her actions and not just because the author tells us so.
Things that I liked:
-Lia. She is strong, stubborn and she cares a lot about her friends.
-The mystery of who is the assassin and who is the prince. I thought that was a nice idea, it kept me guessing for a little but if you pay attention to a couple of details you'll guess who is who.
-Love triangle. Yes, that's an unpopular opinion but well-done love triangles are my guilty pleasure.
-Lia's actions have consequences that she needs to deal with.
Things I didn't like:
-This is the first of a trilogy so this was mostly to get to know the characters. The majority of the book is Lia getting on with her new life in Terravin and getting to know Kaden and Rafe, and falling in love. So not too much action.
Worth mentioning:
-If you like complex magic systems in your fantasy book this is not it. There is not magic as see in epic fantasy. The gift that some people have in the book, is another way to say that they are some kind of psychic. They can see into the past and future, sometimes with the help of the dead. And that's all we get magic wise., so don't go in expecting complex magic systems.
This was an easy and interesting read. We have a strong female main character and we see that through her actions and not just because the author tells us so.
Things that I liked:
-Lia. She is strong, stubborn and she cares a lot about her friends.
-The mystery of who is the assassin and who is the prince. I thought that was a nice idea, it kept me guessing for a little but if you pay attention to a couple of details you'll guess who is who.
-Love triangle. Yes, that's an unpopular opinion but well-done love triangles are my guilty pleasure.
-Lia's actions have consequences that she needs to deal with.
Things I didn't like:
-This is the first of a trilogy so this was mostly to get to know the characters. The majority of the book is Lia getting on with her new life in Terravin and getting to know Kaden and Rafe, and falling in love. So not too much action.
Worth mentioning:
-If you like complex magic systems in your fantasy book this is not it. There is not magic as see in epic fantasy. The gift that some people have in the book, is another way to say that they are some kind of psychic. They can see into the past and future, sometimes with the help of the dead. And that's all we get magic wise., so don't go in expecting complex magic systems.
Leanne Crabtree (480 KP) rated Written in Red (The Others, #1) in Books
Aug 26, 2019 (Updated Sep 3, 2019)
Well I thought this one started on a bit of intrigue. Where had Meg come from? What were these scars she had? How had she so new to...life?
I found this really hard to put down, if I'm honest, the story really pulled me in and despite there not being much of a romance, I'll admit I was hooked. I loved the innocence of Meg and her just being really nice to everyone, which equally confused them and made them want to protect her. It was nice seeing them turn from scary "other" beings to almost friendly. Especially with Meg. She became one of them. Part of their family.
Despite its lack of romance--I can't decide if something may happen between Meg and Simon in the future--I enjoyed this. It had a few elements of horror style things in--at the beginning and towards the end some trespassers are eaten alive and then some detailed snow related deaths towards the end--but although I didn't enjoy that bit so much, I forgot about it quickly enough.
I loved how every species of other in the Courtyard had their own little traits. The Crows with the "shiny". The wolves with their "arroooo" greetings. Tess with her living hair. The Hawks and their love of rats and mice. The elementals and their horses.
It was really well thought out and though it was almost 500 kindle pages long, I didn't lose interest once.
I'm interested enough in this group of characters to carry on the series. I even read the excerpt for the next book and it HAS given me hope for something more between Meg and Simon so I will be buying the next book at some point in the future.
I found this really hard to put down, if I'm honest, the story really pulled me in and despite there not being much of a romance, I'll admit I was hooked. I loved the innocence of Meg and her just being really nice to everyone, which equally confused them and made them want to protect her. It was nice seeing them turn from scary "other" beings to almost friendly. Especially with Meg. She became one of them. Part of their family.
Despite its lack of romance--I can't decide if something may happen between Meg and Simon in the future--I enjoyed this. It had a few elements of horror style things in--at the beginning and towards the end some trespassers are eaten alive and then some detailed snow related deaths towards the end--but although I didn't enjoy that bit so much, I forgot about it quickly enough.
I loved how every species of other in the Courtyard had their own little traits. The Crows with the "shiny". The wolves with their "arroooo" greetings. Tess with her living hair. The Hawks and their love of rats and mice. The elementals and their horses.
It was really well thought out and though it was almost 500 kindle pages long, I didn't lose interest once.
I'm interested enough in this group of characters to carry on the series. I even read the excerpt for the next book and it HAS given me hope for something more between Meg and Simon so I will be buying the next book at some point in the future.
Merissa (12051 KP) rated Ascension (Southern Spirits #7) in Books
Apr 25, 2023
Connor has been the mischievous spirit from Book 1, even when it wasn't the right time or place. So much so, that Sev is very surprised when Connor makes a comment and he is 100% correct about it. It was wonderful to read this part, and I hope that Connor gets the recognition for it, and realises that he doesn't have to be the pesky spirit all the time. Going by the end of the book, he still has that cheeky side but has rounded out other aspects of his personality.
Another aspect of this book that I enjoyed is that Laine, Sev and all the others, are AGING!! Yes, what happens to most people has now caught up to the town of McKinton. Although this is an unexpected twist that usually doesn't appear in books, I really enjoyed this and even enjoyed Connor's stealing of Sev's hair dye and facial creams.
With a supernatural sweet and hot love story, this is perfect for Connor and Ro's happy ending, whilst still leaving it open for more fun and frolics. Don't get me wrong though, this isn't always nice. There is a section about how Ro deals with his mum's death that is hard reading. JD is not a nice person and whilst I wanted him to get his comeuppance, I also understand that it wouldn't have been possible without raking Ro's name through the mud.
A wonderful addition to the series and definitely recommended.
* 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!
Nov 16, 2015
Another aspect of this book that I enjoyed is that Laine, Sev and all the others, are AGING!! Yes, what happens to most people has now caught up to the town of McKinton. Although this is an unexpected twist that usually doesn't appear in books, I really enjoyed this and even enjoyed Connor's stealing of Sev's hair dye and facial creams.
With a supernatural sweet and hot love story, this is perfect for Connor and Ro's happy ending, whilst still leaving it open for more fun and frolics. Don't get me wrong though, this isn't always nice. There is a section about how Ro deals with his mum's death that is hard reading. JD is not a nice person and whilst I wanted him to get his comeuppance, I also understand that it wouldn't have been possible without raking Ro's name through the mud.
A wonderful addition to the series and definitely recommended.
* 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!
Nov 16, 2015