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Hazel (2934 KP) rated The Collaborator's Daughter in Books
Apr 16, 2023
This is something a little bit different to what a normally read but I enjoyed it nonetheless.
Set in two timeliness - 2010 and 1944 - the story is written from the point of view of Fran (Safranka) in Sussex in 2010 and her father, Branko in Dubrovnik in 1944. Fran was born in Dubrovnik but left with her mother when she was just a baby and never knew her father but was always told he was a hero.
Fran is now in her 60's; her stepfather has recently passed away having lost her mother a number of years earlier. With her son having grown up with his own family and having found out that her father's remains have been found in a mass grave containing fascists and collaborators from World War II; Fran decides to return to her country of birth to learn more about her father and to find out what she wants to do with the rest of her life now she has no one left to care for.
I loved the characters and particularly the fact that they were of an older generation which was a refreshing change proving that it's never too late to change your life although it remains a scary concept. I loved the setting and the descriptions of Dubrovnik which really made me want to visit. I found the sections set in 1944 were my favourite parts, I wish they had been longer and more in depth however, the author has explained why this was very difficult due to the lack of information available.
Overall, an enjoyable read and whilst I don't usually like a book that has quite such a focus on romance, it did work well with this particular story and it made for a gentle and easy read.
My thanks go to HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter and NetGalley for enabling me to read and share my thoughts of The Collaborator's Daughter.
Set in two timeliness - 2010 and 1944 - the story is written from the point of view of Fran (Safranka) in Sussex in 2010 and her father, Branko in Dubrovnik in 1944. Fran was born in Dubrovnik but left with her mother when she was just a baby and never knew her father but was always told he was a hero.
Fran is now in her 60's; her stepfather has recently passed away having lost her mother a number of years earlier. With her son having grown up with his own family and having found out that her father's remains have been found in a mass grave containing fascists and collaborators from World War II; Fran decides to return to her country of birth to learn more about her father and to find out what she wants to do with the rest of her life now she has no one left to care for.
I loved the characters and particularly the fact that they were of an older generation which was a refreshing change proving that it's never too late to change your life although it remains a scary concept. I loved the setting and the descriptions of Dubrovnik which really made me want to visit. I found the sections set in 1944 were my favourite parts, I wish they had been longer and more in depth however, the author has explained why this was very difficult due to the lack of information available.
Overall, an enjoyable read and whilst I don't usually like a book that has quite such a focus on romance, it did work well with this particular story and it made for a gentle and easy read.
My thanks go to HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter and NetGalley for enabling me to read and share my thoughts of The Collaborator's Daughter.
The Adventures of an IT Leader
Robert D Austin, Shannon O'Donnell and Richard L Nolan
Book
What does it take to lead and manage your company's tech? Becoming an effective IT leader and...
Becs (244 KP) rated An Unholy Magick in Books
Dec 2, 2019
the enemies to lovers (3 more)
the plot
the characters are relatable
there are not any "good guys" or "heroes"; everybody is a "bad guy" or "villain"
An enthralling read that will leave you wanting more
You can also find this review on my blog: bookingwayreads.wordpress.com
“The desire for power is a murderer.”
Trigger Warnings: death, injury, murder, gore, loss of a parent(s), talk of enslavement, crucification, talk of torture, talk of war, beheading, violence
Thoughts:
I haven’t read many “dark fantasy” books and An Unholy Magick really makes me want to start reading more. It was gruesome, it had gore, it was dark, and it was witchy. Everything I love in a book!
Now, this isn’t your typical “main character is the hero” sort of story. Elena Salas was a complicated, morally gray protagonist with a dark past. You could almost say she was a bit villainous with the career she took: assassin-for-hire. Elena wasn’t likable at times but with everything she had been through, she and her actions were relatable.
One thing I really liked about this story’s plot was that there was no standard “hero” or “good guys.” Everybody was considered a “bad guy” or a “villain” in their own way. This really made the whole story more realistic. More relatable to today’s standard’s. And with the tasks and complications Elena encounters at what seems like every turn, it makes it seem like the plot is out to tear her down. This causes an extremely headstrong protagonist to form in a mere few chapters.
Now, if you are anything like me and always crave a bit of romance in a fantasy book, you totally get it with An Unholy Magick. There’s a bit of a love triangle and enemies to lovers situation between three (3) of the main characters – Elena, Matvey, and Zoran. I was seriously rooting for all of them and I absolutely despise love triangles. So that was a bit of a first for me! All three of these characters also shared a common theme: pain. At some point in their lives, they had something traumatic happen to them. To me, this just really put the icing on the cake. Even making these three characters along with Elena’s brother, Jamie, all the more likeable, relatable, and realistic.
An Unholy Magick was imaginative, fun, and unique. The world was constructed beautifully and kept making me want more of it. The magick system was also constructed in a way that made it understandable from the get go. The only reason why I didn’t rate this enchanting book a five out of five stars, is due to the beginning being a bit difficult to get into because it read awfully slow. Also, because the format I received the book in was all wanky and hard to read at times. It was an eARC, so that could be why. But other than that, this complex and unique read is one that I feel most will enjoy!
“The desire for power is a murderer.”
Trigger Warnings: death, injury, murder, gore, loss of a parent(s), talk of enslavement, crucification, talk of torture, talk of war, beheading, violence
Thoughts:
I haven’t read many “dark fantasy” books and An Unholy Magick really makes me want to start reading more. It was gruesome, it had gore, it was dark, and it was witchy. Everything I love in a book!
Now, this isn’t your typical “main character is the hero” sort of story. Elena Salas was a complicated, morally gray protagonist with a dark past. You could almost say she was a bit villainous with the career she took: assassin-for-hire. Elena wasn’t likable at times but with everything she had been through, she and her actions were relatable.
One thing I really liked about this story’s plot was that there was no standard “hero” or “good guys.” Everybody was considered a “bad guy” or a “villain” in their own way. This really made the whole story more realistic. More relatable to today’s standard’s. And with the tasks and complications Elena encounters at what seems like every turn, it makes it seem like the plot is out to tear her down. This causes an extremely headstrong protagonist to form in a mere few chapters.
Now, if you are anything like me and always crave a bit of romance in a fantasy book, you totally get it with An Unholy Magick. There’s a bit of a love triangle and enemies to lovers situation between three (3) of the main characters – Elena, Matvey, and Zoran. I was seriously rooting for all of them and I absolutely despise love triangles. So that was a bit of a first for me! All three of these characters also shared a common theme: pain. At some point in their lives, they had something traumatic happen to them. To me, this just really put the icing on the cake. Even making these three characters along with Elena’s brother, Jamie, all the more likeable, relatable, and realistic.
An Unholy Magick was imaginative, fun, and unique. The world was constructed beautifully and kept making me want more of it. The magick system was also constructed in a way that made it understandable from the get go. The only reason why I didn’t rate this enchanting book a five out of five stars, is due to the beginning being a bit difficult to get into because it read awfully slow. Also, because the format I received the book in was all wanky and hard to read at times. It was an eARC, so that could be why. But other than that, this complex and unique read is one that I feel most will enjoy!
Merissa (12346 KP) rated Imminence (Connected #2) in Books
Nov 9, 2017
Imminence (Connected #2) by Kat Stiles
Imminence is the second book in the Connected series, and being as I loved book one, I couldn't wait to read this one. As it had been a while since I read book one, I took the opportunity to re-read that one, and can I just say that even knowing how it ended this time, I still fell in love with the characters and situations just as much! HOWEVER, this review is about the second book, not the first.
Imminence starts where Connected finished. Basically, Em puts the phone down on her dad - the one she had thought was dead for years - and tries to understand just what is going on. Also, whilst dealing with the adrenaline drop from the attack. Not easy for anyone, let alone a sixteen-year-old! The gorgeous Tommy is on hand though, to help her cope. And yes, this is one of those times that I felt like a complete cougar, lusting after a (much) younger man!! I blame Kat Stiles though - if she hadn't made him so scrummy, I wouldn't be needing counselling right now! ;)
Suffice it to say, this story is packed full of action and melting moments, plus you get to see Em's dad and why he did what he did. I loved that part, when it all became clear. If an author can make you relate to the 'big bad' then she is definitely doing it right. Lauren was a star in this book, and the repartee she has going on with Demetri had me laughing out loud.
Excellently written, with a fantastic storyline, and amazing characters, Imminence is a wonderful addition to the Connected series. Fair warning though, it does end on a cliffhanger that had me shouting out! Absolutely loved it, and definitely recommended by me.
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and my comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Imminence starts where Connected finished. Basically, Em puts the phone down on her dad - the one she had thought was dead for years - and tries to understand just what is going on. Also, whilst dealing with the adrenaline drop from the attack. Not easy for anyone, let alone a sixteen-year-old! The gorgeous Tommy is on hand though, to help her cope. And yes, this is one of those times that I felt like a complete cougar, lusting after a (much) younger man!! I blame Kat Stiles though - if she hadn't made him so scrummy, I wouldn't be needing counselling right now! ;)
Suffice it to say, this story is packed full of action and melting moments, plus you get to see Em's dad and why he did what he did. I loved that part, when it all became clear. If an author can make you relate to the 'big bad' then she is definitely doing it right. Lauren was a star in this book, and the repartee she has going on with Demetri had me laughing out loud.
Excellently written, with a fantastic storyline, and amazing characters, Imminence is a wonderful addition to the Connected series. Fair warning though, it does end on a cliffhanger that had me shouting out! Absolutely loved it, and definitely recommended by me.
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and my comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
graveyardgremlin (7194 KP) rated Hunters: The Beginning (Hunters, #1 and #2) in Books
Feb 15, 2019
Honestly, I can't believe I read the whole thing. Here's the premise of the first story: Girl gets turned into vamp. Has sex. Has some more sex. A tiny bit of plot. Even kinkier sex. Sex, sex, sex. And more sex than plot throughout the remainder of the story. Honestly the redundancy got really boring. Now, I knew this was erotica (or Erotic Romance as it says on the spine) going into this, but I had read that there was a good plot in there too. I would think even erotica would have at least equal plot with the sex, if not slightly more. Maybe I'm wrong, I don't know, this is the only book in this genre I've read. And seeing as it does say it's also a romance, I would expect some feelings and emotions behind all the rutting sex in almost every possible sexual situation known to man (and wolf), but no, there's nothing there. The second story is slightly better in the love territory, but the plot is a complete disaster. While I didn't care for Tori in the first story, I hated her here. What a *bleep*! And if there's nothing I despise more, it's a Mary Sue; every guy wants her, she's this perfect creature, et cetera, et cetera, excuse me while I throw up. And it's carrying it too far that everyone hates Sarel and she has to suffer that much because she made a big mistake, but geez, deal with it! She knows she was stupid and wrong, and Eli forgave her. Bunch of hypocrites.
So it sounds like I totally hated the book, not so. The ideas are solid and in between sex scenes in the first story, it was well-written. So overall, not the worst thing I've read, but far, far from the best. I do have another in the series sitting here that I'll give a try, although I think it might be my last one by this author, unless she goes strictly romance.
So it sounds like I totally hated the book, not so. The ideas are solid and in between sex scenes in the first story, it was well-written. So overall, not the worst thing I've read, but far, far from the best. I do have another in the series sitting here that I'll give a try, although I think it might be my last one by this author, unless she goes strictly romance.
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2271 KP) rated All That Is Necessary in Books
Mar 9, 2018
20 years ago, the small Boston town of Exeter was rocked when it was learned the Boston mob was using the swamp to dump bodies. Now, Rick, the son of one of the men convicted as a result, is moving back to town. And his old friends don't know what to make of it. I could not put this book down, literally reading most of it in one day. While not a mystery, the tension is still very real, and the characters are so great you want to root for them. NOTE: Jennie is a friend who sent me the book for free. I honestly can't wait for the sequel to come out.
<a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2013/01/amazon.html">Read my full review at Carstairs Considers</a>.
<a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2013/01/amazon.html">Read my full review at Carstairs Considers</a>.
Leanne Crabtree (480 KP) rated Two-Way Street in Books
Jan 6, 2021
Firstly, this book was written almost ten years ago when MySpace was a really popular site. Now if it had been a newer, edited version where all the MySpace's were replaced with Facebook or Twitter I might have gelled with it a little more.
Secondly, it's supposed to be YA but the way the characters were acting for 18 year olds was pretty ridiculous at times. It was like they were fifteen or something. I struggled to get Courtney. She was so annoying at times, so whiny and inner turmoil-y. So immature compared to some other books I've read lately.
Thirdly, the thing that split them up was pretty obvious after about 100 pages. A lot of drama over something that could have been so easily sorted out.
Not my sort of book.
Secondly, it's supposed to be YA but the way the characters were acting for 18 year olds was pretty ridiculous at times. It was like they were fifteen or something. I struggled to get Courtney. She was so annoying at times, so whiny and inner turmoil-y. So immature compared to some other books I've read lately.
Thirdly, the thing that split them up was pretty obvious after about 100 pages. A lot of drama over something that could have been so easily sorted out.
Not my sort of book.
Debbiereadsbook (1303 KP) rated A Star to Sail By in Books
Sep 9, 2023
loved being kept on my toes!
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.
Crispin wanted to be in the Navy, and now he finds himself on a pirate ship, helping them. But these pirates aren't like anything he heard about and Billy, especially, calls to him for reasons he can't figure out. Billy knows though, and it takes a storm to bring them finally to admit to each other what they could be.
What I especially liked about this, was being kept on my toes!
We are aware that something happened to Crispin to mean he is surviving on a merchant ship, and is no longer in the Royal Navy, but not WHY. We know Billy hates Naval officers, but not WHY. And we get the answers to both almost at the same time. Very different reasons, but equally devastating to them. I'm not going to go into it, for spoilers, but difficult reading, Billy's especially. Be mindful of the trigger warnings on this book.
It's not especially explicit, but I didn't mind that here. It's more about the feeling these two men have for each other, and knowing that they can be together, in this time, and be safe.
It is, however, quite violent. These pirates are ...reasonable...in their behaviours, but things happen and then Crispin and Billy are dealt a nasty blow. The level of violence is not graphic, though it does carry some detailed descriptions of punishments and the aftermath. Also, the reason Billy hates Naval officers is described in some detail.
It's not a complicated read, and I found I read it faster than I normally would for a book of this length, some 370 pages.
First I've read of this author, I like the way she spins her tales. I'll certainly read more by this author.
A very enjoyable, 4 star read
*same worded review will appear elsewhere
Crispin wanted to be in the Navy, and now he finds himself on a pirate ship, helping them. But these pirates aren't like anything he heard about and Billy, especially, calls to him for reasons he can't figure out. Billy knows though, and it takes a storm to bring them finally to admit to each other what they could be.
What I especially liked about this, was being kept on my toes!
We are aware that something happened to Crispin to mean he is surviving on a merchant ship, and is no longer in the Royal Navy, but not WHY. We know Billy hates Naval officers, but not WHY. And we get the answers to both almost at the same time. Very different reasons, but equally devastating to them. I'm not going to go into it, for spoilers, but difficult reading, Billy's especially. Be mindful of the trigger warnings on this book.
It's not especially explicit, but I didn't mind that here. It's more about the feeling these two men have for each other, and knowing that they can be together, in this time, and be safe.
It is, however, quite violent. These pirates are ...reasonable...in their behaviours, but things happen and then Crispin and Billy are dealt a nasty blow. The level of violence is not graphic, though it does carry some detailed descriptions of punishments and the aftermath. Also, the reason Billy hates Naval officers is described in some detail.
It's not a complicated read, and I found I read it faster than I normally would for a book of this length, some 370 pages.
First I've read of this author, I like the way she spins her tales. I'll certainly read more by this author.
A very enjoyable, 4 star read
*same worded review will appear elsewhere
Debbiereadsbook (1303 KP) rated Sloane's List in Books
Dec 19, 2023
high on the cute scale!
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.
Sloane is now an empty nester, after sending her 18 year old daughter off to college. She has a list of ten things she wants to do. She just needs a man to help her. Enter Oscar. He meets her the day before Paige goes off, and is smitten from then on. But Oscar is younger than Sloane, and has a bit of a reputation. What's a girl to do, eh?
Bar one thing, and I will come back to that, I loved this!
It's a really easy read, and I mean that in a very VERY good way.
There were some plot lines I did not see coming, so well played there, but the penny did drop really fast! And some coming at ya like a freaking freight train, and there was nothing anyone could do to stop it. But I loved that! Sometimes, it really is lovely to see it all laid out for you.
It's not overly explicit, and I loved that here, for these two. I was expecting it to be, for some reason, and I loved being proven wrong about what I needed to read at this point in time.
Fairly low on the angst scale, but high on the cute scale and scorching on the warm and fuzzy scale!
I loved that we got to hear from both Sloane and Oscar, but also from Paige (Sloane's daughter) Alex (Oscar's brother) and the mother hen in the apartment complex, Auntie Ernie.
So, what didn't I like? Simple. First person, present tense AND multi point of view. In fact, I very VERY nearly dumped this, once I saw how it was written. So very VERY glad I didn't!
I haven't read anything by this author before, and I think I'd like to read something with a bit more bite.
But still, a very VERY good, 4 star read.
*same worded review will appear elsewhere
Sloane is now an empty nester, after sending her 18 year old daughter off to college. She has a list of ten things she wants to do. She just needs a man to help her. Enter Oscar. He meets her the day before Paige goes off, and is smitten from then on. But Oscar is younger than Sloane, and has a bit of a reputation. What's a girl to do, eh?
Bar one thing, and I will come back to that, I loved this!
It's a really easy read, and I mean that in a very VERY good way.
There were some plot lines I did not see coming, so well played there, but the penny did drop really fast! And some coming at ya like a freaking freight train, and there was nothing anyone could do to stop it. But I loved that! Sometimes, it really is lovely to see it all laid out for you.
It's not overly explicit, and I loved that here, for these two. I was expecting it to be, for some reason, and I loved being proven wrong about what I needed to read at this point in time.
Fairly low on the angst scale, but high on the cute scale and scorching on the warm and fuzzy scale!
I loved that we got to hear from both Sloane and Oscar, but also from Paige (Sloane's daughter) Alex (Oscar's brother) and the mother hen in the apartment complex, Auntie Ernie.
So, what didn't I like? Simple. First person, present tense AND multi point of view. In fact, I very VERY nearly dumped this, once I saw how it was written. So very VERY glad I didn't!
I haven't read anything by this author before, and I think I'd like to read something with a bit more bite.
But still, a very VERY good, 4 star read.
*same worded review will appear elsewhere
I really enjoy Steve Harvey as a comedian, but this book just didn't do it for me. Maybe the book would have been helpful when I was still dating but now that I am in a relationship the advise seemed obvious. Even if I was still dating I think most of his advise is common knowledge on how to conduct yourself as a lady but I guess some people need help in that area. The first chapter was the most helpful for me. After that I just read to finish the book. I really wouldn't recommend this book to anyone I know,but it could be helpful to some single women out there.