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The Cataclysm
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The world has never recovered from the Cataclysm a century ago. Though the fires have died, and the...
fantasy epic fantasy
Merissa (11935 KP) rated One to Die For (Les Petites Morts) in Books
Jun 2, 2023
In this short erotic paranormal story, we meet Russell; he's a self-published author with enough money to pay for a clever marketing campaign and to donate to his favourite causes. He lives in a mansion with his childhood friend and makes use of the stories told about him to get what he wants!
This is not a romance story, but it is compelling reading! There is murder, an obsessed crazy woman, journalists, and of course, a vampire. All of this is packed into a steamy bundle of fun.
Well-written, fast-paced, and steamy! 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!
Apr 16, 2016
This is not a romance story, but it is compelling reading! There is murder, an obsessed crazy woman, journalists, and of course, a vampire. All of this is packed into a steamy bundle of fun.
Well-written, fast-paced, and steamy! 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!
Apr 16, 2016
Hazel (1853 KP) rated Summer Days and Summer Nights: Twelve Summer Romances in Books
Dec 17, 2018
<i>This ARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review </i>
Stephanie Perkins, the best selling author of <i>Anna and the French Kiss</i> has compiled a second anthology of short stories. Twelve selected tales have been included from a variety of young adult authors including: Libba Bray, Veronica Roth, Cassandra Clare and Jennifer E. Smith. For those that have read Perkins’ previous anthology, <i>My True Love Gave To Me</i>, the concept is the same. Twelve love stories set in, as the title, <i>Summer Days and Summer Nights</i>, strongly suggests, the summer.
What can be expected from all the stories in this collection is that they fit snuggly into the Romance genre of young adult fiction. The way the authors decided to tackle this, however, was up to their own interpretations. Thus, the final outcome is a selection of works that fall into a variety of categories: fantasy, contemporary, LGBT, horror, sci-fi etc.
As a result there are a number of different character types and storylines, suggesting that there is bound to be something for everyone. There are lovey-dovey stories, heart-wrenching stories, exciting action stories, implying that there will be at least one you will favour, and hopefully make purchase worthwhile.
It is not merely love that can be found between these pages, so if you are, like me, not overly impressed with teenage love stories, there are other themes to focus on. Many of the main characters are nearing the end of their schooling and thinking about the future: college, perhaps. Readers discover, and possibly relate to, their hopes, doubts and fears of what is to come. Yet while these thoughts are buzzing in their heads they are also trying to enjoy their summers, some with summer jobs, others hanging out with friends. Alongside all of this are darker issues of depression, cancer and parents divorcing; events that many teenagers unfortunately have to deal with. So, throughout all the make-ups and break-ups, there is so much more going on under the surface.
It is always difficult to decide what age range “Young Adult” refers to. Some may assume it is anyone in their teens, however in the case of <i>Summer Days and Summer Nights</i> I would label it a book for older teenagers, those of similar ages to the characters depicted: sixteen to nineteen. This is due to the slightly adult themes of a few of the stories and the amount of swearing many of the authors resort to.
Unfortunately for me, I did not find a perfect story within this collection. There were some I enjoyed more than others; likewise there were some I was not keen on at all. It is for this reason I have only given a rating of three stars. I do not want to put prospective readers off however as this is merely a case of personal preferences and not a true reflection of the authors’ exceptional writing skills.
Stephanie Perkins, the best selling author of <i>Anna and the French Kiss</i> has compiled a second anthology of short stories. Twelve selected tales have been included from a variety of young adult authors including: Libba Bray, Veronica Roth, Cassandra Clare and Jennifer E. Smith. For those that have read Perkins’ previous anthology, <i>My True Love Gave To Me</i>, the concept is the same. Twelve love stories set in, as the title, <i>Summer Days and Summer Nights</i>, strongly suggests, the summer.
What can be expected from all the stories in this collection is that they fit snuggly into the Romance genre of young adult fiction. The way the authors decided to tackle this, however, was up to their own interpretations. Thus, the final outcome is a selection of works that fall into a variety of categories: fantasy, contemporary, LGBT, horror, sci-fi etc.
As a result there are a number of different character types and storylines, suggesting that there is bound to be something for everyone. There are lovey-dovey stories, heart-wrenching stories, exciting action stories, implying that there will be at least one you will favour, and hopefully make purchase worthwhile.
It is not merely love that can be found between these pages, so if you are, like me, not overly impressed with teenage love stories, there are other themes to focus on. Many of the main characters are nearing the end of their schooling and thinking about the future: college, perhaps. Readers discover, and possibly relate to, their hopes, doubts and fears of what is to come. Yet while these thoughts are buzzing in their heads they are also trying to enjoy their summers, some with summer jobs, others hanging out with friends. Alongside all of this are darker issues of depression, cancer and parents divorcing; events that many teenagers unfortunately have to deal with. So, throughout all the make-ups and break-ups, there is so much more going on under the surface.
It is always difficult to decide what age range “Young Adult” refers to. Some may assume it is anyone in their teens, however in the case of <i>Summer Days and Summer Nights</i> I would label it a book for older teenagers, those of similar ages to the characters depicted: sixteen to nineteen. This is due to the slightly adult themes of a few of the stories and the amount of swearing many of the authors resort to.
Unfortunately for me, I did not find a perfect story within this collection. There were some I enjoyed more than others; likewise there were some I was not keen on at all. It is for this reason I have only given a rating of three stars. I do not want to put prospective readers off however as this is merely a case of personal preferences and not a true reflection of the authors’ exceptional writing skills.
BookwormMama14 (18 KP) rated The Knight's Bride: Chivalry Lives in 6 Stories from the Middle Ages in Books
Jan 2, 2019
In an age where chivalry thrives, danger abounds also. Follow six stories of love and honor that will warm your heart during these cold winter months.
With settings ranging from the years 1367 to 1815, there is a wide variety of stories in this collection. Each author brings to life the mystery and romance of the time in their own unique ways. The beauty of the language and the oddity of the customs is always a pleasure to learn more about. The Middle Ages has always held a fascination for me. Times were so different then that it is sometimes hard for me to understand why things happened the way they did. But this collection was eye opening to the culture of the time and inspired me to look up different aspects of the era. This is a nice collection and the stories are short and easy to read. My personal favorite was A Stranger's Kiss by Yvonne Lehman. Even though most of the time I was frustrated with the main character for not speaking out what was on her heart. I realised however, that in the real world, we could save so much stress and confusion if we would only speak out. Unfortunately, this doesn't always happen right away. Fear and doubt riddle us until we no longer know what to do. But in the end the truth will win out and justice will reign.
I received a free digital copy of The Knight's Bride from Barbour Publishing Inc. through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
With settings ranging from the years 1367 to 1815, there is a wide variety of stories in this collection. Each author brings to life the mystery and romance of the time in their own unique ways. The beauty of the language and the oddity of the customs is always a pleasure to learn more about. The Middle Ages has always held a fascination for me. Times were so different then that it is sometimes hard for me to understand why things happened the way they did. But this collection was eye opening to the culture of the time and inspired me to look up different aspects of the era. This is a nice collection and the stories are short and easy to read. My personal favorite was A Stranger's Kiss by Yvonne Lehman. Even though most of the time I was frustrated with the main character for not speaking out what was on her heart. I realised however, that in the real world, we could save so much stress and confusion if we would only speak out. Unfortunately, this doesn't always happen right away. Fear and doubt riddle us until we no longer know what to do. But in the end the truth will win out and justice will reign.
I received a free digital copy of The Knight's Bride from Barbour Publishing Inc. through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
Murder at the Manor: Country House Mysteries
Book
The English country house is an iconic setting for some of the greatest British crime fiction. Short...
Bad Dreams and Other Stories
Book
In these short stories it's the ordinary things that turn out to be most extraordinary: the history...
Joe Goodhart (27 KP) rated Faction Paradox: The Book of the Enemy in Books
Nov 30, 2020
This is, for all intents and purposes, as close to identifying, or, at the very least, understanding who the Enemy is. The stories that make up the whole of this collection is as follows: Subjective
<b>"Interlock" and "The Annotated Autopsy of Agent A" Simon Bucher-Jones
"Cobweb and Ivory" Nate Bumber
"The Book of the Enemy" Andrew Hickey
T.memeticus: A Morphology" Philip Purser-Hallard
"The Short Briefing Sergeant's Tale" Simon Bucher-Jones
"A Bloody (And Public) Domaine" Jacob Black
"Life-Cycle" Grant Springford
"First Draft" Nick Wallace
"Eyes" Christian Read
"We are the Enemy" Lawrence Burton
"Timeshare" Helen Angove
"A Choice of Houses" Simon Bucher-Jones
"Houses of Cards" Lisa Sarah Good
"The Enemy - The Hole in Everything" Simon Bucher-Jones
"The Enemy of My Enemy Is My Enemy" Jay Eales
"No Enemy But Despair" Simon Bucher-Jones
"The Map and the Spiders" Wilhelm Liebknecht</b>
I quite enjoyed the book as a whole, even though there was some weak pieces that did not really seem to fit, like Helen Angove's "Timeshare". Overall, it was a fitting collection for what it was intended to be. Of particular interest were Simon Bucher-Jones' interconnecting briefs that tie it all together. Quite brilliant, despite some of the weaker stories.
And, yes, as some people have remarked in their reviews, there were some noticeable punctuation and formatting errors. However, the stories are good enough to overlook and not focus on those shortcomings.
Recommended to all fans of Faction Paradox as a whole!!
<b>"Interlock" and "The Annotated Autopsy of Agent A" Simon Bucher-Jones
"Cobweb and Ivory" Nate Bumber
"The Book of the Enemy" Andrew Hickey
T.memeticus: A Morphology" Philip Purser-Hallard
"The Short Briefing Sergeant's Tale" Simon Bucher-Jones
"A Bloody (And Public) Domaine" Jacob Black
"Life-Cycle" Grant Springford
"First Draft" Nick Wallace
"Eyes" Christian Read
"We are the Enemy" Lawrence Burton
"Timeshare" Helen Angove
"A Choice of Houses" Simon Bucher-Jones
"Houses of Cards" Lisa Sarah Good
"The Enemy - The Hole in Everything" Simon Bucher-Jones
"The Enemy of My Enemy Is My Enemy" Jay Eales
"No Enemy But Despair" Simon Bucher-Jones
"The Map and the Spiders" Wilhelm Liebknecht</b>
I quite enjoyed the book as a whole, even though there was some weak pieces that did not really seem to fit, like Helen Angove's "Timeshare". Overall, it was a fitting collection for what it was intended to be. Of particular interest were Simon Bucher-Jones' interconnecting briefs that tie it all together. Quite brilliant, despite some of the weaker stories.
And, yes, as some people have remarked in their reviews, there were some noticeable punctuation and formatting errors. However, the stories are good enough to overlook and not focus on those shortcomings.
Recommended to all fans of Faction Paradox as a whole!!
LeftSideCut (3778 KP) rated The Mortuary Collection (2019) in Movies
Oct 16, 2020
The Mortuary Collection is the latest in a long line of Creepshow style horror anthology films, a particular sub genre that can be hard to pull off, but director Ryan Spindell rises to the challenge pretty damn well.
The short stories presented here escalate in tone and subject as the film progresses, starting off relatively fun, but getting increasingly darker and in depth. This is something that the characters comment on between the segments, showing a nice sense of self awareness, but not going over the top with it.
Some of the later stories are hard to watch at times, and are quite emotional in places, especially the one that features actress Sarah Hay as a woman in a vegetative state. It's a genuinely sad story, topped off with some fantastic creature design. An interesting mix to say the least.
The stories are all good in their own right, but are tied together with a clever twist and a satisfying conclusion.
The main character is Montgomery Dark played by a brilliant Clancy Brown. He has a proper Phantasm/Tall Man/Angus Scrimm vibe to him (definitely no accident) and is suitably creepy as this movie's story teller.
The film is pretty damn visceral, and employs both practical effects, and decent digital effects to achieve what it does. It's all looks disgustingly awesome. It also has a great music score by Mondo Boys to compliment all the creepiness.
I was pleasantly surprised by The Mortuary Collection. It's a good time, a competent anthology film, and well worth a watch for horror fans.
The short stories presented here escalate in tone and subject as the film progresses, starting off relatively fun, but getting increasingly darker and in depth. This is something that the characters comment on between the segments, showing a nice sense of self awareness, but not going over the top with it.
Some of the later stories are hard to watch at times, and are quite emotional in places, especially the one that features actress Sarah Hay as a woman in a vegetative state. It's a genuinely sad story, topped off with some fantastic creature design. An interesting mix to say the least.
The stories are all good in their own right, but are tied together with a clever twist and a satisfying conclusion.
The main character is Montgomery Dark played by a brilliant Clancy Brown. He has a proper Phantasm/Tall Man/Angus Scrimm vibe to him (definitely no accident) and is suitably creepy as this movie's story teller.
The film is pretty damn visceral, and employs both practical effects, and decent digital effects to achieve what it does. It's all looks disgustingly awesome. It also has a great music score by Mondo Boys to compliment all the creepiness.
I was pleasantly surprised by The Mortuary Collection. It's a good time, a competent anthology film, and well worth a watch for horror fans.
Gone Wild: Stories from a Lifetime of Wildlife Travel
Book
Often amusing, sometimes romantic or fraught with danger, these 30 short stories are about local...
Toddler Bible – The Carry Along Bible
Book and Education
App
Hear angry lions roaring in the story of Daniel in the lions den! See Jesus in the boat as he stills...