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The Travelling Cat Chronicles
The Travelling Cat Chronicles
Philip Gabriel, Hiro Arikawa | 2017 | Contemporary, Fiction & Poetry
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Characters (1 more)
Story
Simple and Beatuful
When I received an email about this book, I knew I had to read it. I took a chance and requested a copy and I was lucky enough to get a physical Advanced Reader Copy of this book. The cover is absolutely adorable and there's just something special about reading the physical book. I knew from the description that this book would be right up my alley and it was exactly as I expected. It was beautiful, simple, and heart wrenching at moments.

This book follows the cat Nana and his owner Satoru throughout their lives. The simplistic narrative just adds to the story. Nana is able to capture the moment without bogging it down with complexity. Each chapter brings new characters into the story that reminded me of my childhood. They were relatable and realistic. It's always refreshing to read realistic characters which is why this book resounded with me.

What I loved the most about this book is the simplistic nature. It reminded me of the simplicity of Parnassus on Wheels. It was beautiful in its simplicity. Even with the simplicity of the story, Hiro Arikawa was able to truly capture the moments in the stories and it made me feel for Satoru & Nana. I was an emotional wreck at moments. I was frustrated with Nana at times, heartbroken for him too. I am not ashamed to admit that I cried at moments. Honestly, if a book can evoke an emotional response in me, it means that the author did their job and did their job well.

If you're on the fence about this book, I highly suggest you read it.
  
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Becs (244 KP) rated Warm Transfer in Books

Aug 27, 2018  
Warm Transfer
Warm Transfer
Laura Holtz | 2018 | Fiction & Poetry, Romance, Thriller
8
7.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
The cover. (2 more)
Laura Holtz's writing.
Well-developed backgrounds and characters.
Victor = arse. (0 more)
A story of courage, potential, finding joy, and one woman's journey to rediscovering herself.
I received a copy from Smith Publicity for read and review. The following review is my honest opinion of Warm Transfer by Laura Holtz.

Okay, this cover is just awesome. Yes, I judge a book by its cover all the time and when I got this, I was like "Yea, this is an awesome cover!" Then I read the synopsis and was a little put off by it. But as I read it, and continued to read it, I was just blown away by the story, the plot, the characters, the emotions that you could feel through Laura Holtz's writing, how her writing also brought memories back from my mother's most recent marriage to my step-father. It was defiantly a roller-coaster of a ride, and I sure as heck enjoyed it.

Victor is an arse and I just want him to die. (I promise I'm not a psycho - I just absolutely hate this character with a burning rage that can only be put out with the blood oozing out of his skull. - Wow, okay Becca. Calm down.) Tamsen is a very relatable MC and her journey brought many different emotions out of me as I read this breathtakingly great novel! I loved how the main and semi-main characters were developed tremendously well. I mean, I could just relate to each and every one of them. Laura, you're the bomb diggity! What a well-versed writer.
  
Bossing My Friend
Bossing My Friend
Suzanne Hart | 2018 | Erotica, Natural World, Romance
8
8.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
Background on the MC's. (0 more)
Some of the actions Jared takes. (0 more)
Good Contemporary Romance/ Erotica read.
A bit fast paced in the prologue; it gave a quick background on the main characters but also continued to do that throughout the entirety of the novel. First off, why in the hell would you tell someone you have very strong feelings, that are damn near love feelings, while you are getting ready to leave?! Like seriously, what in the world is wrong with you. That's the most idiotic thing anybody can do, and guess what, Jared did it. *Red Foreman's voice* Dumbass. I really like how Elsie, the other MC works in charity and tries to be strong even though she's dying to jump Jared. The storyline gets better over time, turned into a contemporary romance with erotica scenes. Overall great plot and scenes.

Will I reread? You bet your ass if I'm craving a bad boy gone good erotica/contemporary romance I will be. Do I recommend? If you love erotica and cheesy scenes all mixed together with a bow on top.

○ interested in its physical book
● a continuous read / page-turner
○ diverse in any way
○ something’s lacking
● took me a long time to finish
○ an LMAO read
○ I laughed more than a few times
○ it’s j u s t awkward
○ gave me goosebumps
○ one of the best books I’ve read
○ painful & sad
○ tear-jerker
● a roller-coaster of emotions
○ thrilling
○ confusing
○ sooo relatable
○ it is kind of annoying
○ it has a lot of flashbacks
○ it moved me
● would recommend!
● great even for a reread
● definitely a YAY
○ I’m sorry it’s a NAY
○ it’s between YAY and NAY
  
Hocus Pocus and the All-New Sequel
Hocus Pocus and the All-New Sequel
A.W. Jantha | 2018 | Science Fiction/Fantasy, Young Adult (YA)
8
6.8 (6 Ratings)
Book Rating
Combined 2 stories in one.. the original and what happened 25 years later (0 more)
Part 2 dragged a little (0 more)
From a fan of Hocus Pocus movie … I loved this book!!!
Part 1 was just like the movie and well as I was reading, the movie played in my head … Who doesn't love a witch story during the month of October with Halloween around the corner?
There was one difference in that a 4th sister is introduced .. Elizabeth, who is written as the good sister!!!
Part 2 dragged a little but was an exciting twist on a continuation of the Sanderson Sisters and All Hallows Eve. It takes you to present time and introduces us to old characters from the first and original story line but adds new characters like Max's and Allison's daughter Poppy. It also added things relative to now such as the lingo and a lesbian crush.
This definitely was a great story line of finding a blood moonstone which is needed for a spell for eternal life. And the spell book makes an entrance in style with one of the characters being a descendant of a witch!!
The writing style was an easy read, characters were current and relatable to now from the technology to the way they talk and act.
Fanfiction is what I felt like I was reading and I liked that about this book!!!! A fun filled, magical read for Hocus Pocus lovers and readers who just want a fun entertaining book for Halloween and not blood and gore!!!
Was fun to enter the world of the Sanderson sisters once again!!!!
  
Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
2017 | Action, Adventure
Great comedy (3 more)
Relatable villain
John Hughes-esque movie disguised as a superhero movie and I dig it
Lots and lots of references
Not exactly a good or bad thing but I honestly think it makes too many references to the MCU (0 more)
Best spider Man movie
Contains spoilers, click to show
While Tobey maguire will always be my spider man, Tom Holland is the second best (at Least he's better than Andrew Garfield) and Micheal Keaton is an awesome villain. The cast of side characters are hilarious and the jokes are on point. And the two side characters that stand out to me are Ned and Zendaya's character Michelle which later to be revealed that her nickname is MJ (do I smell an upcoming romance that they'll probably explore more in Far From Home?) Also there's no mention of Mary Jane or Gwen Stacy for those who haven't watched this movie and don't care about spoilers are wondering

Also there are tons of references to the spider Man mythology so make sure your following along.


If I had to pick one negative although not a bad thing its just it tries too much to tie in to the MCU although the stuff with reusing elements of the MCU weapons is kinda cool although Luke cage beat them to that plotline and let me make it clear referencing the universe isn't a bad thing because they bring stuff up that'll be important later on in either the upcoming sequels or the next avengers movies but when they do it constantly it just kinda distracts me but if u love the marvel movies like I do then u won't have a problem.
  
Love Don't Let Me Down by Bishara
Love Don't Let Me Down by Bishara
7
7.0 (1 Ratings)
Album Rating
Bishara is a 16-year-old singer based in Linköping, Sweden. Not too long ago, he released a music video for his “Love Don’t Let Me Down” single.

“Never wanted to be friends. Never thought it could be more than stories when I saw it made no sense. Better safe than sorry. Didn’t want to play pretend. I stayed back hoping you’d ignore me. Now, I’m off the deep end. Oh, Lord have mercy.” – lyrics

‘Love Don’t Let Me Down’ tells an interesting tale of a young guy who is fearful of giving his heart to someone who he desires to be with.

Apparently, he’s seen a million hearts break before, so he doesn’t want that to happen to him. Later, he admits that he is ready for love if what he feels is considered real love.

‘Love Don’t Let Me Down’ contains a relatable storyline, ear-welcoming vocals, and stripped instrumentation scented with sentimental elements.

Check out Bishara’s music video for his “Love Don’t Let Me Down (Remix)” single.

Not too long ago, Bishara competed in the Swedish Melodifestivalen with his second single, entitled, “On My Own”.

His performance in the TV Show was the first time he ever stood on a stage. In the end, he received an honorable second place in the competition.

Shortly afterward, the song went straight to #2 on the Swedish Spotify Top 50. Also, it was added on Sweden’s biggest radio channels and has today reached gold status.

Bishara’s latest performance was with Benjamin Ingrosso at Gröna Lund where they performed ‘On My Own’ in front of a crowd of 11,000 people.
  
Den Of Thieves (2018)
Den Of Thieves (2018)
2018 | Action, Crime, Drama
Heist films are typically filled with tropes and clichéd action sequences. Den of Thieves offers a new perspective on crime action films. The film stars O’Shea Jackson Junior (Straight Outta Compton) and Gerard Butler (300) on opposite sides of the law. Donnie (O’Shea Jackson Jr) is a new member of a bank heist crew focused on robbing the Federal Reserve in Los Angeles. Gerard Butler heads up a special division of the Los Angeles Sheriff’s department that is determined on stopping this crew.

The film delves deeper than typical films of this genre. Instead of having one-dimensional characters who are either career criminals or law enforcement officers seeking to be heroes, we find characters that are much more than their description. The criminals are cerebral and men of action. We see them as flawed beings who have families, friendships, and goals of eventually leaving crime.

For those on the side of the law, we witness how these heroes are only valiant on the outside. We see them as vulnerable, overzealous, and skirting the law as they view themselves as the embodiment of the law.

Den of Thieves demonstrates that crime action films can have well-developed storylines that don’t rely on the action to carry the film forward. The film will have audiences speculating about the next move and progression of the stories and crimes in a way that would make Ocean’s Eleven envious in its creativity. The characters have you confused and conflicted as who to pull for as they make the criminals relatable and sympathetic.

Den Of Thieves raises the bar for the genre of heist movies.
  
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LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated Us (2019) in Movies

Dec 15, 2019  
Us (2019)
Us (2019)
2019 | Horror, Thriller
The first thing I'll say about Us is just how unnerving it . It's one of those horror films that leaves you with a sense of unease at everyday normal things.

Jordan Peele's second horror offering verges on standard horror tropes, clearly taking influence from horror that had come before, and at times feeling similar in nature to The Strangers, and It Follows, but it's intriguing underneath-the-surface plot and underlying social commentary save it from being just another horror film.
The idea of doppelganger horror has been explored before, but it feels a bit more apt in todays climate, as Peele explores the fear of outsiders, whilst also carrying a message about wealth gaps and the effect of privilege obliviousness.
In doing so, he successfully crafts a family of character we can root for, facing off against 'monsters' that sometimes feel all to familiar.

Lupita Nyong'o in particular is a massive stand out here, playing an inherently good central character, desperately protecting her family against a shadow of herself, who at times come across as relatable.

The plot has a decent amount of depth to it, and I'm glad that the narrative explores beyond the central family.
Jordan Peele's camerawork is fantastic throughout. There are striking shots put forwards from start to finish. He also makes fantastic work of colour... The vibrant setting of Santa Cruz works nicely, and the simple colour setup for The Tethered creates a look that is sure to become iconic in the horror genre.

I found Us to be a hugely enjoyable experience, and between Peele and Ari Aster, the future of horror is looking pretty exciting.