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Eleanor Luhar (47 KP) rated Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda in Books
Jun 24, 2019
This was really a wild ride. I think this book managed to get me out of a mini reading slump (yay!).
The book starts off with Simon's private email being read by some guy in his drama club. This may not seem like a huge deal, except Simon's secretly been emailing this guy who he's maybe in love with. But they don't know each other's real identity, and neither of them have come out yet.
So Simon has to help the guy - Martin - get with one of his best friends. Only she isn't interested (at all). At the same time, Simon is falling for Blue more and more with each email, and is becoming desperate to find him in real life. He starts to decode the clues in an attempt to figure out his identity - only for Blue to beat him to it.
Simon's also struggling with tons of friendship issues, a big play coming up, and his family (and the entire school, for that matter) finding out about him being gay. He doesn't want any of it to be a big deal. But it is.
He's a great character, portrayed to be a normal human being. His relationships all seem pretty realistic (though I'm sceptical about the situation with Blue. Would anyone really be that lucky?). I really felt for him throughout the novel, and I was so unbelievably pleased for him at the end. I'm so not used to such great, adorable endings.
My biggest issues are that sometimes the teen voice was being pushed a bit too hard - we don't always say "freaking" or whatever. And the scenarios seemed a little too far-fetched sometimes. (Seriously, has anyone ever experienced people dancing in the crowd at a school talent show?) But generally this was a good representation of life, and I really enjoyed reading it.
I very nearly marked this as a favourite, but decided on just 4.5 stars in the end. I loved the book, but there were a few minor details that put me off just a little bit. It is most definitely a fantastic book, though! I'd definitely recommend this book for the YA audience.
The book starts off with Simon's private email being read by some guy in his drama club. This may not seem like a huge deal, except Simon's secretly been emailing this guy who he's maybe in love with. But they don't know each other's real identity, and neither of them have come out yet.
So Simon has to help the guy - Martin - get with one of his best friends. Only she isn't interested (at all). At the same time, Simon is falling for Blue more and more with each email, and is becoming desperate to find him in real life. He starts to decode the clues in an attempt to figure out his identity - only for Blue to beat him to it.
Simon's also struggling with tons of friendship issues, a big play coming up, and his family (and the entire school, for that matter) finding out about him being gay. He doesn't want any of it to be a big deal. But it is.
He's a great character, portrayed to be a normal human being. His relationships all seem pretty realistic (though I'm sceptical about the situation with Blue. Would anyone really be that lucky?). I really felt for him throughout the novel, and I was so unbelievably pleased for him at the end. I'm so not used to such great, adorable endings.
My biggest issues are that sometimes the teen voice was being pushed a bit too hard - we don't always say "freaking" or whatever. And the scenarios seemed a little too far-fetched sometimes. (Seriously, has anyone ever experienced people dancing in the crowd at a school talent show?) But generally this was a good representation of life, and I really enjoyed reading it.
I very nearly marked this as a favourite, but decided on just 4.5 stars in the end. I loved the book, but there were a few minor details that put me off just a little bit. It is most definitely a fantastic book, though! I'd definitely recommend this book for the YA audience.
Emma @ The Movies (1786 KP) rated Juliet, Naked (2018) in Movies
Sep 25, 2019
If there's one thing you can guarantee it's that Nick Hornby can write a good book that turns into a good movie. While they never usually hit my favourites list they're always consistent.
This year has seen the romcom take a step back to something more traditional, and I'm loving it. So many have been more about the comedy, but while this one is funny it's very much focused on the relationships.
The movie opens with Duncan's video that sets up part of the background really well and goes a long way to explaining his life's obsession. What follows is a really well implemented flow with the voice overs mixed in.
I went off and read some comments people had been writing about some of my thoughts on Juliet, Naked. It made me remember that a film like this is only ever as good as your own personal experience. It depicts mild obsession in such a realistic way. Watching Chris O'Dowd reactions to Annie and then later Tucker was really on point, and as his behaviour starts to really cause the split between him and Annie her reaction too was just right. In fact I felt the three of them were brilliant on screen throughout.
As a focus for the film, Annie is a wonderful character. Rose Byrne really brings an honesty out of her. You can feel her exacerbation with Duncan's behaviour, her nervousness around Tucker as well as her joy and sadness. That accompanied with the way Tucker changes around her is really beautiful to watch.
Overall there wasn't much to grumble about in this film... but... there's always a but! I didn't feel that the supporting cast were quite as essential. Annie's sister was a little over the top for me, and the diversion around Duncan's affair didn't really match up to the calibre of the rest of the film either.
What you should do
It's definitely one to watch, and remember to watching into the credits!
Movie thing you wish you could take home
I actually wouldn't mind taking home my own Tucker Crowe.
This year has seen the romcom take a step back to something more traditional, and I'm loving it. So many have been more about the comedy, but while this one is funny it's very much focused on the relationships.
The movie opens with Duncan's video that sets up part of the background really well and goes a long way to explaining his life's obsession. What follows is a really well implemented flow with the voice overs mixed in.
I went off and read some comments people had been writing about some of my thoughts on Juliet, Naked. It made me remember that a film like this is only ever as good as your own personal experience. It depicts mild obsession in such a realistic way. Watching Chris O'Dowd reactions to Annie and then later Tucker was really on point, and as his behaviour starts to really cause the split between him and Annie her reaction too was just right. In fact I felt the three of them were brilliant on screen throughout.
As a focus for the film, Annie is a wonderful character. Rose Byrne really brings an honesty out of her. You can feel her exacerbation with Duncan's behaviour, her nervousness around Tucker as well as her joy and sadness. That accompanied with the way Tucker changes around her is really beautiful to watch.
Overall there wasn't much to grumble about in this film... but... there's always a but! I didn't feel that the supporting cast were quite as essential. Annie's sister was a little over the top for me, and the diversion around Duncan's affair didn't really match up to the calibre of the rest of the film either.
What you should do
It's definitely one to watch, and remember to watching into the credits!
Movie thing you wish you could take home
I actually wouldn't mind taking home my own Tucker Crowe.
ClareR (6101 KP) rated The Hiding Game in Books
Sep 8, 2019 (Updated Sep 9, 2019)
A completely engrossing novel about Weimar, Bauhaus and complicated relationships
The Hiding Game is set mostly in the period between the two World Wars at the Bauhaus art school. This was a time of great change in Germany, both politically and artistically. Paul Beckermann starts his study at Bauhaus in 1922, and forms one of a group of six friends. He falls in love with the unobtainable Charlotte, a young woman from Czechoslovakia, but she loves Jenö, who in turn is loved by Paul’s best friend Walter. It seems like an impossible love triangle (or even a square?!). These strong feelings lead to betrayal in a time that it was very easy to utterly destroy lives. The six friends drift apart, mainly out of necessity (Bauhaus was not liked at all by the traditionalists in the National Socialist party), but also they just couldn’t be together anymore.
Paul, as an older man living in England, looks back at this period in his life and how it went tragically wrong. Not all of the six friends were as fortunate as he was.
It’s a heartbreaking and also a suspenseful novel. Someone with only a limited knowledge of this period will know of the kind of tragedy that could befall people then. Paul’s guilt and sadness are palpable throughout the book, and I really felt for him. This isn’t really a book where the characters find some sort of forgiveness for themselves - there is none to find. Terrible things happened, and the survivors had to find a way to live with themselves afterwards.
I loved the details about Bauhaus. I did some study on it during my German degree, and it filled in some gaps in my knowledge (there are quite a few gaps to fill when you did that degree 25 years ago!), and I’m always on the lookout for books set in Germany, especially those with a good helping of history (this has it in spades!). And for me, this really didn’t disappoint. I loved it, and I’ll be recommending it to friends (ex-German degree friends as well!).
Many thanks to NetGalley and Picador for my copy of this wonderful book.
Paul, as an older man living in England, looks back at this period in his life and how it went tragically wrong. Not all of the six friends were as fortunate as he was.
It’s a heartbreaking and also a suspenseful novel. Someone with only a limited knowledge of this period will know of the kind of tragedy that could befall people then. Paul’s guilt and sadness are palpable throughout the book, and I really felt for him. This isn’t really a book where the characters find some sort of forgiveness for themselves - there is none to find. Terrible things happened, and the survivors had to find a way to live with themselves afterwards.
I loved the details about Bauhaus. I did some study on it during my German degree, and it filled in some gaps in my knowledge (there are quite a few gaps to fill when you did that degree 25 years ago!), and I’m always on the lookout for books set in Germany, especially those with a good helping of history (this has it in spades!). And for me, this really didn’t disappoint. I loved it, and I’ll be recommending it to friends (ex-German degree friends as well!).
Many thanks to NetGalley and Picador for my copy of this wonderful book.
Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated Retribution (Dark Hunters #19) in Books
Sep 20, 2019
Contains spoilers, click to show
Harm no human...
A hired gunslinger, William Jessup Brady lived his life with one foot in the grave. He believed that every life had a price. Until the day when he finally found a reason to live. In one single act of brutal betrayal, he lost everything, including his life. Brought back by a Greek goddess to be one of her Dark-Hunters, he gave his immortal soul for vengeance and swore he'd spend eternity protecting the humans he'd once considered prey.
Orphaned as a toddler, Abigail Yager was taken in by a family of vampires and raised on one belief - Dark-Hunters are the evil who prey on both their people and mankind, and they must all be destroyed. While protecting her adoptive race, she has spent her life eliminating the Dark-Hunters and training for the day when she meeting the man who killed her family: Jess Brady.
A gun in the hand is worth two in the holster....
Jess has been charged with finding and terminating the creature who's assassinating Dark-Hunters. The last thing he expects to find is a human face behind the killings, but when that face bears a striking resemblance to the one who murdered him centuries ago, he knows something evil is going on. He also knows he's not the one who killed her parents. But Abigail refuses to believe the truth and is determined to see him dead once and for all.
Brought together by an angry god and chased by ancient enemies out to kill them both, they must find a way to overcome their mutual hatred or watch as one of the darkest of powers rises and kills both the races they've sworn to protect.
I love this series to be honest there's not a Kenyon book I don't enjoy! Loved learning about Jess and Abigail the story was so involved not sure I'd enjoy the plagues though!
I enjoy the relationships in this book as we don't normally get so many Dark Hunters in one place!
The bonus chapter was even more special showing a very rare occasion of Artemis doing something nice for Ash! Oh and Simi no book is complete without Simi and her BBQ sauce.
A hired gunslinger, William Jessup Brady lived his life with one foot in the grave. He believed that every life had a price. Until the day when he finally found a reason to live. In one single act of brutal betrayal, he lost everything, including his life. Brought back by a Greek goddess to be one of her Dark-Hunters, he gave his immortal soul for vengeance and swore he'd spend eternity protecting the humans he'd once considered prey.
Orphaned as a toddler, Abigail Yager was taken in by a family of vampires and raised on one belief - Dark-Hunters are the evil who prey on both their people and mankind, and they must all be destroyed. While protecting her adoptive race, she has spent her life eliminating the Dark-Hunters and training for the day when she meeting the man who killed her family: Jess Brady.
A gun in the hand is worth two in the holster....
Jess has been charged with finding and terminating the creature who's assassinating Dark-Hunters. The last thing he expects to find is a human face behind the killings, but when that face bears a striking resemblance to the one who murdered him centuries ago, he knows something evil is going on. He also knows he's not the one who killed her parents. But Abigail refuses to believe the truth and is determined to see him dead once and for all.
Brought together by an angry god and chased by ancient enemies out to kill them both, they must find a way to overcome their mutual hatred or watch as one of the darkest of powers rises and kills both the races they've sworn to protect.
I love this series to be honest there's not a Kenyon book I don't enjoy! Loved learning about Jess and Abigail the story was so involved not sure I'd enjoy the plagues though!
I enjoy the relationships in this book as we don't normally get so many Dark Hunters in one place!
The bonus chapter was even more special showing a very rare occasion of Artemis doing something nice for Ash! Oh and Simi no book is complete without Simi and her BBQ sauce.
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