Search
Search results
Richard Serra recommended Self-Reliance and Other Essays in Books (curated)
Roxanne (13 KP) rated The Boy Who Taught the Beekeeper to Read: and Other Stories in Books
Nov 14, 2018
Well...I finished it but I didn't enjoy it. I found the collection of short stories to be very depressing and once I had finished each one I felt like I had missed the point completely. I just didn't understand them and I found the writing to be quite muddled. I can't decide if it's a case of 'it's not you, it's me', or 'no, it's definitely you...yeesh'.
I picked this up as I enjoyed 'The Woman in Black' but they just can't be compared.
For quite a short book this took me ages to read...it's great if you need help falling asleep though.
I picked this up as I enjoyed 'The Woman in Black' but they just can't be compared.
For quite a short book this took me ages to read...it's great if you need help falling asleep though.
Not quite but alright
Some people are giving it hell because of a couple of punctuation and grammar mistakes, big deal. My five comes from the shortness and quality of writing compared to others of the same price. However despite that this is still money well spent. You will probably, like me, sit and read this in one sitting. It is short true stories told by police with no frills, just the facts or what they see as the facts. It's a complete thrill ride which will shock you and make you think. Let's hope he brings out another.
Leanne Crabtree (480 KP) rated Dead Sexy Dragon (Dragon Heat, #1) in Books
Sep 5, 2019
This started quite strong and I was enjoying it but then at the 50% mark when the sex started I...got bored. I don't know what's wrong with me lately, but sex scenes are annoying me.
Anyway, I liked the plot, though the thing with Cora was a bit of a surprise (I wont spoilt it by mentioning it in my review) near the end.
With it being short (finishes around the 85% mark) there wasn't that much to it, but it was good for a short read. And it being a paranormal romance with a dragon shifter makes it slightly different to all the others out there.
Anyway, I liked the plot, though the thing with Cora was a bit of a surprise (I wont spoilt it by mentioning it in my review) near the end.
With it being short (finishes around the 85% mark) there wasn't that much to it, but it was good for a short read. And it being a paranormal romance with a dragon shifter makes it slightly different to all the others out there.
Sarah (7798 KP) rated Nightmares and Dreamscapes in Books
Mar 8, 2020
A varied mix of stories
It's no secret that Stephen King is my all time favourite author, and I'm especially fond of his anthology books filled with a variety of short stories.
I'd read Nightmares & Dreamscapes manybyeats ago, and decided it was about time to read it again. This really is a varied bunch of stories, all well written as you'd always expect from King, but with plots ranging from an alright 6/10 to an exception 10/10. None of the stories are bad at all, but I did struggle getting through this book at times, especially as it's a rather hefty tome with some seriously small writing. But there are some noteworthy excellent stories in here, such as Dolan's Cadillac, The Ten O'clock People, The Night Flier and Umney's Last Case. There's even a surprise appearance from Holmes and Watson, which whilst it seems oddly out of place in a book of King short stories, it's a very welcome and pretty good story to mix things up a little.
Overall this isn't my King book of short stories (that accolade goes to Night Shift), but it's still a very good offering.
I'd read Nightmares & Dreamscapes manybyeats ago, and decided it was about time to read it again. This really is a varied bunch of stories, all well written as you'd always expect from King, but with plots ranging from an alright 6/10 to an exception 10/10. None of the stories are bad at all, but I did struggle getting through this book at times, especially as it's a rather hefty tome with some seriously small writing. But there are some noteworthy excellent stories in here, such as Dolan's Cadillac, The Ten O'clock People, The Night Flier and Umney's Last Case. There's even a surprise appearance from Holmes and Watson, which whilst it seems oddly out of place in a book of King short stories, it's a very welcome and pretty good story to mix things up a little.
Overall this isn't my King book of short stories (that accolade goes to Night Shift), but it's still a very good offering.
Ross (3284 KP) rated Of Gods and Men in Books
Jan 31, 2018
Enough hints to anticipate twists and reveals (1 more)
Short and concise
Fantastic taster of Aryan's writing and world
*** I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review ***
This novella serves as an excellent taster of Stephen Aryan's writing style and the world in which his other books take place. I haven't read any of his other work yet, but as this is a prequel I didn't feel I was missing out on any inside knowledge. If anything, this book serves as an expanded backstory to one of the main characters of the first series, Vargus.
I really enjoyed the entry into the world, Aryan's easy-flowing narrative and the short, concise self-contained story which contains some good, well described action scenes, good dialogue and hints at a larger world to be explored and does lead you to want to read more.
This novella serves as an excellent taster of Stephen Aryan's writing style and the world in which his other books take place. I haven't read any of his other work yet, but as this is a prequel I didn't feel I was missing out on any inside knowledge. If anything, this book serves as an expanded backstory to one of the main characters of the first series, Vargus.
I really enjoyed the entry into the world, Aryan's easy-flowing narrative and the short, concise self-contained story which contains some good, well described action scenes, good dialogue and hints at a larger world to be explored and does lead you to want to read more.
Merissa (12069 KP) rated Dark Night (The Amulet #2) in Books
Apr 14, 2023
This is a short and spicy quick read about Soli-B, a witch who has been bound to a vampire before, who is fighting against her attraction to Master Eligio. He, of course, doesn't play fair and will use anything to gain an advantage, including a warrant of arrest.
This is a novella so therefore it moves along at an incredible pace - everything happens within the space of a few short hours. There is attraction, flirtations, humour, and the threat of violence - all within a few pages.
If you are on the lookout for a hot, coffee-break book, then I can highly recommend this book and The Amulet Series as a whole.
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book; the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Jul 29, 2015
This is a novella so therefore it moves along at an incredible pace - everything happens within the space of a few short hours. There is attraction, flirtations, humour, and the threat of violence - all within a few pages.
If you are on the lookout for a hot, coffee-break book, then I can highly recommend this book and The Amulet Series as a whole.
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book; the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Jul 29, 2015
Kyera (8 KP) rated The King's Locket in Books
Feb 1, 2018
The King's Locket is a lovely story about family and forgiveness. Throughout the short text, there are illustrations of important moments that children can marvel at. This is a book that a parent would need to read to their child, as there are some words that would be challenging for younger readers and require explanation. Overall, it was a cute story and I would definitely read it to my younger cousin when I babysit for her. I think she would enjoy the tale very much. I would probably rate it a 4.5/5 mostly because a child couldn't read it by themselves (although nightly reading to a child is important) thus it felt a little above a child's level at times.
Roxanne (13 KP) rated Dragons, Flowers, Trees And Other Pretty Things in Books
Nov 14, 2018
___ <b>3 Star Rating</b> ___
<b>Ebook downloaded for FREE from Smashwords</b>
This is a really beautiful collection of poetry written straight from the heart of the author. The subject matter of each poem changes throughout the book, containing life, love, nature and beauty.
It is a short, refreshing read which I recommend.
The main reasons I removed some stars was because some of the writing and poems were not to my personal taste (no fault of the author) and it is very obvious that english is not the author's first language as there were quite a few spelling and editing errors which made some of the poems quite difficult to read and understand. Other than that this was a nice and pleasant read.
<b>Ebook downloaded for FREE from Smashwords</b>
This is a really beautiful collection of poetry written straight from the heart of the author. The subject matter of each poem changes throughout the book, containing life, love, nature and beauty.
It is a short, refreshing read which I recommend.
The main reasons I removed some stars was because some of the writing and poems were not to my personal taste (no fault of the author) and it is very obvious that english is not the author's first language as there were quite a few spelling and editing errors which made some of the poems quite difficult to read and understand. Other than that this was a nice and pleasant read.
Rachel Maria Berney (114 KP) rated The Yellow Wall-Paper in Books
Dec 4, 2018 (Updated Dec 4, 2018)
If you love gothic, read this.
I had to read this for my English module at uni, and am really glad I did.
On the surface its really gothic and really creepy. Very well written and the author paints a great picture of someone going insane.
Underneath the surface, this is an attack on patriarchy in the enlightenment period. Knowing this makes it a completely different read, not so much gothic and more feminist and historic. There's a clear aim that to show the reader how enlightened men drive women insane.
On a side note, Charlotte gives us the first image of a creeping scary thing, way before we see this in horror movies in the 20th century.
On the surface its really gothic and really creepy. Very well written and the author paints a great picture of someone going insane.
Underneath the surface, this is an attack on patriarchy in the enlightenment period. Knowing this makes it a completely different read, not so much gothic and more feminist and historic. There's a clear aim that to show the reader how enlightened men drive women insane.
On a side note, Charlotte gives us the first image of a creeping scary thing, way before we see this in horror movies in the 20th century.