Search
Search results
Merissa (13373 KP) rated The Castle of Thorns in Books
Nov 1, 2021
THE CASTLE OF THORNS is a fantasy story loosely based upon Beauty and the Beast. Gisela has epilepsy, but no one understands (or knows) her illness. Luckily for her, a witch knows which herbs to use to treat her. All that is good until her supply runs too low for the usual trip by sea. Instead, they will have to go through the forest where a man-eating monster-fox lives.
This is a sometimes dark story with plenty of death before Knorren realises the error of his ways. Gisela also has a couple of sisters that really should be in Cinderella rather than this story! Jana is sweet with her, but she still coddles Gisela, making her think she is weaker than she is.
Some of the supporting characters didn't do anything for me and actually left me wondering what their purpose was. It is fast-paced, especially near the end when it wraps up with a hop, skip, and a jump.
This was an enjoyable read that I have no hesitation in recommending.
** same worded review will appear elsewhere **
* 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!
This is a sometimes dark story with plenty of death before Knorren realises the error of his ways. Gisela also has a couple of sisters that really should be in Cinderella rather than this story! Jana is sweet with her, but she still coddles Gisela, making her think she is weaker than she is.
Some of the supporting characters didn't do anything for me and actually left me wondering what their purpose was. It is fast-paced, especially near the end when it wraps up with a hop, skip, and a jump.
This was an enjoyable read that I have no hesitation in recommending.
** same worded review will appear elsewhere **
* 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!
Waking Up Lost (Adirondack Spirit Series #4)
8.0
Rate It
Book
Traveling without warning. Nights lost to supernatural journeys. Is one young man fated to wander...
Historical Fiction Fantasy
Cold Days (The Dresden Files, #14)
9.3
Rate It
Book
Cold Days (The Dresden Files, #14) You can't keep a good wizard down - even when he wants to stay...
Hazel (2934 KP) rated The People Next Door in Books
Mar 20, 2022
Oh my gosh, I can't tell you how disappointed I am after finishing this. I am a huge fan of Tony Parsons' books and have enjoyed a few of them but this just didn't do it for me in any way, shape or form and for that, I am extremely sad.
I couldn't get into the plot ... it seemed to drone on and without much of a purpose, little excitement or thrills. I couldn't get into the characters .. I found them quite one-dimensional and boring and whilst I don't usually have a problem with suspending reality when reading thrillers, let's face it if you can't do that in a fiction book when can you, but this was just a tad OTT even for me and don't even get me started on the ending!
As I said, I am extremely sad to be so negative about this book but I certainly won't stop eagerly waiting for Tony Parson's next instalment and, if other reviews of The People Next Door are anything to go by, I am in the minority with this one so I urge you to give it a go.
Many thanks to Random House UK / Cornerstone and NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest, unbiased and unedited review.
I couldn't get into the plot ... it seemed to drone on and without much of a purpose, little excitement or thrills. I couldn't get into the characters .. I found them quite one-dimensional and boring and whilst I don't usually have a problem with suspending reality when reading thrillers, let's face it if you can't do that in a fiction book when can you, but this was just a tad OTT even for me and don't even get me started on the ending!
As I said, I am extremely sad to be so negative about this book but I certainly won't stop eagerly waiting for Tony Parson's next instalment and, if other reviews of The People Next Door are anything to go by, I am in the minority with this one so I urge you to give it a go.
Many thanks to Random House UK / Cornerstone and NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest, unbiased and unedited review.
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2434 KP) rated Of Manners and Murder in Books
Feb 8, 2023
Dear Miss Hermione, Can You Solve My Murder?
Violet Manville is shocked when her aunt tells her she writes the popular Miss Hermione advice column and then tells Violet that she is in charge of the column while she goes off to the continent. Among the first letters Violet receives is one from a young woman who thinks someone is trying to kill her. When Violet goes to try to help, she interrupts the woman’s funeral. Can Violet figure out what is happening?
I thought the first in this new series, set in Victoria England, sounded like fun. I am glad I picked it up because I was right. The characters are good, although Violet’s half-sister can be a bit shallow. I suspect that is on purpose, however. We do get a few scenes from her point of view, but the switch is always obvious. The plot is lots of fun and plenty to keep us engaged. I did feel Violet made a leap at the end, but the solution was logical. If you are looking for a fun premise for a new series, this is one to check out. I look forward to seeing where it goes from here.
I thought the first in this new series, set in Victoria England, sounded like fun. I am glad I picked it up because I was right. The characters are good, although Violet’s half-sister can be a bit shallow. I suspect that is on purpose, however. We do get a few scenes from her point of view, but the switch is always obvious. The plot is lots of fun and plenty to keep us engaged. I did feel Violet made a leap at the end, but the solution was logical. If you are looking for a fun premise for a new series, this is one to check out. I look forward to seeing where it goes from here.
Merissa (13373 KP) rated Death Wish (Ceruleans #1) in Books
May 24, 2023
This is the first book of the Cerulean series, and as such, it pulls you in gently, giving lots of information and a back story without just being an info dump.
Scarlett's character was immediately likeable, as were Cara and Luke. Jude, you are left questioning - which is the whole purpose of his character! Scarlett is dealing with a personal tragedy, leaving her with unanswered questions that she needs answers to. She decides to spend the summer in her grandparents' old home, trying to give herself both some space and also the answers she wants.
This is a book that definitely builds up, and there is no insta-love or love triangles, which I will be forever grateful for! The story is intriguing and smoothly paced, and the contemporary world setting is both complex and carefree.
Fair warning - this story comes to a close with one major cliffhanger!
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am looking forward to reading more about the Ceruleans. 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!
Mar 5, 2016
Scarlett's character was immediately likeable, as were Cara and Luke. Jude, you are left questioning - which is the whole purpose of his character! Scarlett is dealing with a personal tragedy, leaving her with unanswered questions that she needs answers to. She decides to spend the summer in her grandparents' old home, trying to give herself both some space and also the answers she wants.
This is a book that definitely builds up, and there is no insta-love or love triangles, which I will be forever grateful for! The story is intriguing and smoothly paced, and the contemporary world setting is both complex and carefree.
Fair warning - this story comes to a close with one major cliffhanger!
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am looking forward to reading more about the Ceruleans. 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!
Mar 5, 2016
Life in Distortion: Surviving life with Bipolar and PTSD disorders
Book
Life in Distortion is the true story based on the traumatic life of a young girl and her family that...
bipolar PTSD disorders BookBuzz
Sticks and Stones
Book
This action thriller is a complex story of three people, their lives, work, and adventures, and what...
thriller crime thriller action thriller
Frank Herbert's Dune, the Graphic Novel book 3: The Prophet
5.0
Rate It
Book
The highly anticipated finale of the graphic novel adaptation of Frank Herbert's 1965 novel Dune...
Daniel Boyd (1066 KP) rated 22 July (2018) in Movies
Oct 22, 2018 (Updated Oct 22, 2018)
Good Direction (1 more)
Well Acted
An Important, If Terrifying Recent Tragedy
22 July is a Netflix film directed by Paul Greengrass about a brutal 2011 terrorist attack in Oslo.
This film is hard to watch.
I'm a guy that loves gory action flicks and intense horror movies, but something like this is far more disturbing to me. The film is so well made on a technical level, that at some points it actually feels like you are watching the real life massacre play out, which to me felt a little bit too real. Thankfully, I have never been affected by an act of terrorism, nor has anyone that I know, but if I had, I'm not sure how I would feel about someone making a movie like this retelling the trauma that those people went through.
I appreciate that this is an important event in recent history and shouldn't be something that is easily forgotten, but the brutal realism of this film is hard to stomach at times. It really puts you in the shoes of the victims and let's you imagine the terror and crippling fear that they must have felt.
The actor that plays the perpetrator of the attack, Anders Behring Breivik, (played by Anders Danielsen Lie,) has to be commended. He was so believable in the role that I ended up getting really angry every time that he appeared in a scene. I don't even want to know what an actor has to do to get into that headspace, but he put in an absolutely sublime performance as a deplorable scumbag.
The other standout role was Jonas Strand Gravli as Viljar Hanssen, one of the victims of the attack. He is the audience's main conduit into this horrific event and he is brilliant throughout the film.
The main criticism that I have is that we are shown this horrific attack in brutal detail and the aftermath of the event, with no real purpose. I am not sure what the point of this movie was other than to retell a gut wrenching, terrifying story of a real life terrorist attack. I guess, if you were to do some reaching, you could say that the fact that the film has no point echoes the fact that this brutal act of mass violence also had no point and sometimes these horrific things just happen with no real reason.
Overall, this is a very well made movie. It is full of heavy emotions and will make you think about the nature of the human mind. This is if you can get through it though, the movie is very hard to watch and I can see a good amount of folks turning off because they can't handle it, which I can totally understand.
This film is hard to watch.
I'm a guy that loves gory action flicks and intense horror movies, but something like this is far more disturbing to me. The film is so well made on a technical level, that at some points it actually feels like you are watching the real life massacre play out, which to me felt a little bit too real. Thankfully, I have never been affected by an act of terrorism, nor has anyone that I know, but if I had, I'm not sure how I would feel about someone making a movie like this retelling the trauma that those people went through.
I appreciate that this is an important event in recent history and shouldn't be something that is easily forgotten, but the brutal realism of this film is hard to stomach at times. It really puts you in the shoes of the victims and let's you imagine the terror and crippling fear that they must have felt.
The actor that plays the perpetrator of the attack, Anders Behring Breivik, (played by Anders Danielsen Lie,) has to be commended. He was so believable in the role that I ended up getting really angry every time that he appeared in a scene. I don't even want to know what an actor has to do to get into that headspace, but he put in an absolutely sublime performance as a deplorable scumbag.
The other standout role was Jonas Strand Gravli as Viljar Hanssen, one of the victims of the attack. He is the audience's main conduit into this horrific event and he is brilliant throughout the film.
The main criticism that I have is that we are shown this horrific attack in brutal detail and the aftermath of the event, with no real purpose. I am not sure what the point of this movie was other than to retell a gut wrenching, terrifying story of a real life terrorist attack. I guess, if you were to do some reaching, you could say that the fact that the film has no point echoes the fact that this brutal act of mass violence also had no point and sometimes these horrific things just happen with no real reason.
Overall, this is a very well made movie. It is full of heavy emotions and will make you think about the nature of the human mind. This is if you can get through it though, the movie is very hard to watch and I can see a good amount of folks turning off because they can't handle it, which I can totally understand.