
Hope's Deceit (The Fated #2)
Book
In the end, light may not be enough to outshine the darkness. After Melia’s near fatal attack,...
Young Adult Urban Fantasy

Now & Then (Parker City Mystery #1)
Book
Parker City now…Parker City then…Every city has its stories and secrets. In the spring of...
Mystery

Dark Empathy (Compound Series #1)
Book
For an empath, "How do you feel?" is never just a question. Not when it can kill you. These are...
Science Fiction Adventure Romantic Suspense MM Romance

David McK (3562 KP) rated Maskerade (Discworld, #18; Witches #5) in Books
Mar 28, 2021 (Updated Aug 19, 2023)
So, around the time of the likes of 'Lords and Ladies, 'Small Gods', and this one, in other words.
(and I've just realised that 2/3rds of those books quoted concern The Witches Nanny Ogg and Granny Weatherwax)
In this one, and following Magrat marriage to King Verence, the Witches find themselves down to a duo instead of a trio, and - since you can't have a coven of two ("When shall we ... two ... meet again ....") - are in need of a replacement (well, so Nanny Ogg thinks).
Said replacement is the first appearance of Agnes Nitt who, unfortunately (from their perspective) has moved to the city of Ankh-Morpork and joined the Opera.
Cue Pratchett's take on 'The Phantom of the Opera' (which, when I first read this, I'd never actually seen) ...

Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated Blood of Elves in Books
May 21, 2023 (Updated May 21, 2023)
Book
Blood of Elves ( The Witcher 3)
By Andrzej Sapkowski
⭐️⭐️⭐️
For over a century, humans, dwarves, gnomes, and elves have lived together in relative peace. But times have changed, the uneasy peace is over, and now the races are fighting once again. The only good elf, it seems, is a dead elf.
Geralt of Rivia, the cunning assassin known as The Witcher, has been waiting for the birth of a prophesied child. This child has the power to change the world - for good, or for evil.
As the threat of war hangs over the land and the child is hunted for her extraordinary powers, it will become Geralt's responsibility to protect them all - and the Witcher never accepts defeat.
This was a bit flat I’m not sure I can say I really enjoyed it I didn’t hate it and it was ok but meh. I think I’m being slightly generous with a 3 star but not sure it’s as low as a 2!

David McK (3562 KP) rated Shazam! (2019) in Movies
Apr 17, 2019 (Updated Jul 14, 2024)
I was also quite surprised by how dark/scary parts of this were for a child-friendly film, with it really only lightening up once the 14 year old Billy Batson gets his powers and transforms into Zachary Levis's adult superhero (but still with his child's mind).
With a subplot concerning family - one strand of which could probably have been handled better - and Levi knocking it out of the park (I'll admit, the TV series Chuck in which he starred is one of my favourites) as Shazam, this is one of the better entries in DC growing catalogue of movies.

The Change
Book
Nessa: The Seeker Jo: The Protector Harriett: The Punisher With newfound powers the time...
Magical Realism Paranormal Feminism

Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated Enlightened Ascent ( The Pearson Prophecy 2) in Books
Mar 22, 2024
Kindle
Enlightened Ascent ( The Pearson Prophecy 2)
By Jen L Grey
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Afraid the king will find out she's not truly dead, Ariah flees from the kingdom, leaving her family and enemies behind to think the worst. She thinks she's finally struck a bit of luck with the help of a prince, but when he betrays her, she realizes she'd only had a false sense of security.
On the run again, betrayed and in pain, Ariah vows to never be weak again. Soon, she finds herself in another kingdom as an untrustworthy outsider, but she's determined to make it her new home.
However, her fate begins to unravel in the presence of another persistent royal. Now, to fulfill her destiny, Ariah must make a decision as the war looms closer.
This was so much better than the first book Ariah really comes into her own. She takes charge of herself and her growing powers it shows what someone can do when they are pushed too far. Really enjoyed it.

Broken Fates (Severed Flames #3)
Book
Queen. Savior. Sacrifice. The realms are fracturing—and Vale Tenebris stands at the center of...
Fantasy Romance Reverse Harem Why Choose
I personally love superheroes, I read comics and can completely see the similarities to the X-Men in this novel. The gifted in this novel are called prodigies and have such amazing (and unique) powers. My personal favourite was Adrian, who had the ability to draw and make his art come to life. Even if you're not super familiar with powers in comics, you'll not be surprised by invincibility or flight. That's why Adrian's ability was so fascinating to me. It was wholly different from the powers I've grown to know and infinitely more surprising because of how versatile it is.
I also really enjoyed that the book wasn't black and white, good and evil, right and wrong. Meyer did a brilliant job illustrating the nuances so that as a reader you could see both sides of the coin. Neither was completely the one that you wanted to root for, as they were all real, flawed people. Even Nova, who I didn't completely connect with at the beginning of the book, grew over time and learned to think more openly. I ended up liking her a lot more, and love reading the struggle she went through throughout the entire book as it helped her develop as a character.
The main characters in this story definitely felt more real than the supporting ones, but I still feel that everyone was fleshed out. I never had those moments when I couldn't remember who was who, which can happen with a large cast of characters (especially when they have both real names and aliases). Meyer allowed people to form a connection with almost all of her characters, no matter how many pages she dedicated to them. I think that is definitely where this book shone.
I've always loved Marissa Meyer's ability to build a believable world that populates in your head as you read, and this is no exception. It could see Gatlon City with its heroes and villains, ordinary people, towering base of command, filthy subway tunnels and abandoned theme park buildings. I was so intrigued by the characters and the world that the storyline took more of a backseat for me. It was still fantastic, and even though the pacing of some scenes wasn't perfect, it was a really enjoyable book.
I would highly recommend this book, especially if you like reading about superheroes (or supervillains, I won't judge). I definitely think you'll enjoy the book otherwise, but it might just not end up being your favourite. Who knows? You may discover that you actually love superheroes because of this book. Trust me, it's pretty great.