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The Student
The Student
Iain Ryan | 2017 | Crime, Mystery, Thriller
6
7.0 (3 Ratings)
Book Rating
Wow, well this really wasn’t what I was expecting. I thought this was going to be a little mysterious but it wasn’t in the slightest. It was just hardcore, gritty Australian crime.

This one is seriously dark and graphic. I’m not really into the gritty sex, gritty crime kind of books, so a lot of this one wasn’t really my cup of tea. We follow around a student drug dealer whose friend, and supplier, has gone missing. What ensues is a long journey of some seriously gruesome discoveries. While, of course, this book has a plot, it’s one of those books that also feels like it has no plot. It concludes itself, but it doesn’t really finish.

I enjoyed the way it was written. The snappy sentences and the minimal descriptions, it felt right for this book. It definitely wasn’t the best written book in the world, but it did what it needed to do and it did it quite well.

As for characters, there’s no one to like in this book and I think that’s intentional. I mean, don’t me wrong, I did empathise with Nate in some parts but he wasn’t a likeable guy.

In the end, this one just kind of depressed me and was reminiscent of Sarah by JT LeRoy in it’s brutal darkness. I think maybe the synopsis needs to be changed because it definitely sounds like a completely different novel to the one I just finished.
  
<a href="https://awindowintobooks.wordpress.com">Full Review</a>
Animal Planet Farm Animals by Animal Planet is a book that the whole family can read and enjoy. It is informative but the pictures are what really draws the child in to the book. Through reading this book the reader will learn about all sorts of farm animals from around the world.

The information is just perfect of a child to enjoy the facts without being overwhelmed. In fact, the facts draw any reader, even reluctant readers into the information. The pictures are high quality with bright and vibrant colors. Both the information and the pictures have a wonderful balance that make the book interesting and enjoyable.

The book describes many aspects of Farm Life in an enjoyable and interesting way. This isa great addition to a school library or home library for kids to learn about farm animals, life on the farm, and showing animals at the fair (the list could go on). Through reading, the reader learns about habitats, adaptation, and family life for animals.

I really like the special sections that included unique animal facts, kids-friendly infographics and the illustrated map of the earth to teach where the animals lives in the world. This book will allow for further discussion and research since it gets the student excited about animals where they want to know more.

I would love to have this book in my classroom library.

I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
  
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Becs (244 KP) rated Final Draft in Books

Oct 29, 2019  
Final Draft
Final Draft
Riley Redgate | 2018 | Contemporary, Fiction & Poetry, LGBTQ+, Young Adult (YA)
4
4.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
female body positivity (0 more)
MC overshadowed plot (2 more)
secondary characters were dry
self-hatred pushed onto others
Not my favorite read
You can also find this review on my blog: bookingwayreads.wordpress.com

I listened to the audiobook of Final Draft and it was honestly not my favorite. The whole thing was out of order and there were a variety of things that made me extremely uncomfortable with the plot.

Firstly, the relationship between Laila and Mr. Madison was a massive cringe-fest. It crossed a lot of lines, not sexual in any way, but it went from a professional student-teacher relationship to something more personal. Laila would email Mr. Madison things that just shouldn’t have been said to a teacher. It made the rest of the book awfully weird.

It was also difficult to relate to Laila as she seemed to overshadow the plot of the story more than was needed. Many of her actions were selfish and she projected self-hatred onto others. The secondary characters weren’t even fleshed out and the relationships between each of the characters were poorly written. The plot didn’t even stick with the whole creative writing aspect and was mainly more drama than anything else.

The ending was rushed and too much happened within the last few pages. Although Laila does explore her sexuality, she never officially comes out. There was a lot of female body positivity which is really nice to see in a book! But I feel that was about the only thing going for this story.
  
Book of Monsters (2018)
Book of Monsters (2018)
2018 | Comedy, Horror
At its best, Book of Monsters is really silly, and it knows it. It's not trying to be anymore than it is, and it has a sort of low budget charm to it.
At its worst, it feels like a tiny step up from a run of the mill student film, cringey acting and all.

It's not fair to shit on BoM too much. It's important to remember that it started life as a Kickstarter project, from Stewart Sparke, the director of the similarly low rent The Creature Below.
It was made on a micro-budget, and as such has a cheap look to it. But the movies tongue-in-cheek approach and semi-inspired creature designs make it more enjoyable than expected! Everyone involved seems to be having a great time, the (intentionally?) awful script still managed to make me laugh here and there, and there's enough silly gore to satisfy fans of the genre.

That being said, the acting isn't great from anybody, even if it is a bit of fun. The pacing is questionable, and there are several awkward silences littered throughout which are quite cringey. There's nothing wrong with going for silly campy horror-schlock, but its been done before and much better (although admittedly, on higher budgets!)

I won't be watching it again anytime soon, but I'd say it's worth checking out the once just to experience the sheer silliness of it all. It would be nice to see what this team could do with proper funding.
  
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AJaneClark (3975 KP) Jan 22, 2020

Completely agree with you here

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