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Sophia (Bookwyrming Thoughts) (530 KP) rated Gathering Frost (Once Upon a Curse, #1) in Books
Jan 23, 2020
<b><i>I received this book for free from Xpresso Book Tours in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.</i></b>
Congratulations, Kaitlyn Davis. I've found my favorite Sleeping Beauty retelling (for now) – FINALLY! (Because a lot of the other retellings I've come across have been Sleeping Beauty, and I've managed to not get along with them.)
The first book in the <i>Once Upon a Curse</i> series is <b>set up in a futuristic New York where two worlds merged as one in an earthquake</b> when Jade was younger. Years later, Jade lives in a world where a queen strips all of the inhabitants' emotions away, leaving them with no emotion. When she comes across the queen's lost son, Prince Asher, the queen sets her on a mission to be captured and trusted by the prince, eventually betraying and returning him back to the queen.
<b>There's something I really liked about <i>Gathering Frost</i> – something that Davis did here that wasn't done in other Sleeping Beauty retellings.</b> I enjoyed the futuristic world Davis creates – two worlds, one of them believed to be parallel to Earth, being merged together and a queen who takes away all emotions from her people, along with the ability to control them. Somehow, throughout all of that, <b>Davis weaves in a bit of Sleeping Beauty and make her own fairytale world as well</b> – I really liked the addition of Jade coming across the original story while staying in the rebel camp.
There's also <b>something about Davis' writing style that I really enjoyed</b>, despite the fact there were a few moments where I started questioning the grammar, or there were commas where there really shouldn't have been any commas, or there were commas thrown in when the sentence would have worked so much better as two sentences. There were some parts that were <b>just written beautifully and flowed together extremely well</b> (read: the beauty of parallel structure).
I honestly can't say too much about the characters, particularly in Jade's case. Since her emotions have been taken away by the queen, <b>it was only natural for Jade to be depicted as a cold, detached, statuesque character and focus mainly on her surroundings.</b> As Jade spends more time in the rebel camp, though, <b>she slowly starts to develop emotions and feelings, and Jade's focus seems to balance out a little with her surroundings, her past, and her newly developed emotions.</b>
With a hint on what the sequel will probably be about, Davis doesn't actually leave us on a major cliffhanger. Instead, she seems to be conveying that <b>Jade's and Asher's story definitely won't be ending with <i>Gathering Frost</i></b> – they're more than likely to appear in the second book, and I can't wait to see what Davis comes up with for her retelling of <i>Beauty and the Beast</i>.
<a href="https://bookwyrmingthoughts.com/review-gathering-frost-by-kaitlyn-davis/"; target="_blank">This review was originally posted on Bookwyrming Thoughts</a>
Congratulations, Kaitlyn Davis. I've found my favorite Sleeping Beauty retelling (for now) – FINALLY! (Because a lot of the other retellings I've come across have been Sleeping Beauty, and I've managed to not get along with them.)
The first book in the <i>Once Upon a Curse</i> series is <b>set up in a futuristic New York where two worlds merged as one in an earthquake</b> when Jade was younger. Years later, Jade lives in a world where a queen strips all of the inhabitants' emotions away, leaving them with no emotion. When she comes across the queen's lost son, Prince Asher, the queen sets her on a mission to be captured and trusted by the prince, eventually betraying and returning him back to the queen.
<b>There's something I really liked about <i>Gathering Frost</i> – something that Davis did here that wasn't done in other Sleeping Beauty retellings.</b> I enjoyed the futuristic world Davis creates – two worlds, one of them believed to be parallel to Earth, being merged together and a queen who takes away all emotions from her people, along with the ability to control them. Somehow, throughout all of that, <b>Davis weaves in a bit of Sleeping Beauty and make her own fairytale world as well</b> – I really liked the addition of Jade coming across the original story while staying in the rebel camp.
There's also <b>something about Davis' writing style that I really enjoyed</b>, despite the fact there were a few moments where I started questioning the grammar, or there were commas where there really shouldn't have been any commas, or there were commas thrown in when the sentence would have worked so much better as two sentences. There were some parts that were <b>just written beautifully and flowed together extremely well</b> (read: the beauty of parallel structure).
I honestly can't say too much about the characters, particularly in Jade's case. Since her emotions have been taken away by the queen, <b>it was only natural for Jade to be depicted as a cold, detached, statuesque character and focus mainly on her surroundings.</b> As Jade spends more time in the rebel camp, though, <b>she slowly starts to develop emotions and feelings, and Jade's focus seems to balance out a little with her surroundings, her past, and her newly developed emotions.</b>
With a hint on what the sequel will probably be about, Davis doesn't actually leave us on a major cliffhanger. Instead, she seems to be conveying that <b>Jade's and Asher's story definitely won't be ending with <i>Gathering Frost</i></b> – they're more than likely to appear in the second book, and I can't wait to see what Davis comes up with for her retelling of <i>Beauty and the Beast</i>.
<a href="https://bookwyrmingthoughts.com/review-gathering-frost-by-kaitlyn-davis/"; target="_blank">This review was originally posted on Bookwyrming Thoughts</a>
*＊✿❀ Maki ❀✿＊* (7 KP) rated Questing Beast in Books
May 3, 2018
Questing Beast had an interesting enough premise, but it certainly would have benefited from being longer. There were several ideas and plots introduced in the thirty-some pages of this short story, but that wasn't exactly enough room for all of the ideas (or characters) to fully develop. Or, at least, develop beyond absolute basic information.
The overall plot of the story is that these scientists have to file their findings on a planet for...a scientific survey? Something along those lines. A virus somehow gets into their system, though, and completely destroys the data they've been gathering for the past two years.
The only possible back up is called Nannybot, and is also partially infected. The virus has Nannybot believe that it is Sir Pellinor, and it has to find the Questing Beast. If the scientists can make Nannybot think that it has caught the Questing Beast, then the virus can be overwritten, and the two years of data can be retrieved, saving the careers of everyone involved.
The Authurian elements of the story don't go much beyond the Questing Beast itself. The rest is the drama of the report being due, and the age-old implications of introducing foreign wildlife into ecosystems. Very Star Trek.
The overall plot of the story is that these scientists have to file their findings on a planet for...a scientific survey? Something along those lines. A virus somehow gets into their system, though, and completely destroys the data they've been gathering for the past two years.
The only possible back up is called Nannybot, and is also partially infected. The virus has Nannybot believe that it is Sir Pellinor, and it has to find the Questing Beast. If the scientists can make Nannybot think that it has caught the Questing Beast, then the virus can be overwritten, and the two years of data can be retrieved, saving the careers of everyone involved.
The Authurian elements of the story don't go much beyond the Questing Beast itself. The rest is the drama of the report being due, and the age-old implications of introducing foreign wildlife into ecosystems. Very Star Trek.
Akward (448 KP) rated Pandemic in Tabletop Games
May 24, 2018
Cooperative (1 more)
Thematically interesting
Pandemic is a lot of board gamers first cooperative game, and for that it has a lot of value. A lot of people have fond memories getting destroyed over and over, feeling that their first win was a big accomplishment. Unfortunately, after your first few wins, the game loses a lot of its charm. You start to recognize the patterns, and can pretty much tell within the first few terms if your group is going to win. As a result, this game is likely gathering dust in a lot of people's collections: too nostalgic to sell, but not good enough to play.
The game also suffers a lot of the basic problems of cooperative games. Experienced players quarterbacking is common. The randomness of the cards drawn is frustrating. The roles drawn don't always work well together (and can largely dictate if you win).
Overall, I would still recommend this to a new board gamer. But I would still probably recommend the Legacy versions more highly.
The game also suffers a lot of the basic problems of cooperative games. Experienced players quarterbacking is common. The randomness of the cards drawn is frustrating. The roles drawn don't always work well together (and can largely dictate if you win).
Overall, I would still recommend this to a new board gamer. But I would still probably recommend the Legacy versions more highly.
Matthew Krueger (10051 KP) rated The Devil Rides Out (1968) in Movies
Nov 11, 2020
Not Your Average Hammer Film
The Devil Rides Out- is not your average hammer film. It has little sexual or violent content. The film's tone is serious, lacking the intentional camp and tongue-in-cheek style of many other Hammer titles. Which makes the film more intresting. The tone of the flim is serious and focusing on that topic.
The plot: When the Duc de Richleau (Christopher Lee) and Rex Van Ryn (Leon Greene) arrive at a fashionable party thrown by de Richleau's protégé, Simon Aron (Patrick Mower), they soon realize that the party is in fact a gathering of a Satanic cult, led by the high priest Mocata (Charles Gray), that plans to initiate the beautiful Tanith (Nike Arrighi) that night. It's up to de Richleau and Van Ryn to defeat the devil-worshiping Mocata and save innocent young Tanith and the others from a terrible fate.
Its a really good movie and i highly recordmend this film to others. Like i said its not your average hammer film. It takes its topic/subject very serious. And its one of Terence Fisher's best films he has directed.
The plot: When the Duc de Richleau (Christopher Lee) and Rex Van Ryn (Leon Greene) arrive at a fashionable party thrown by de Richleau's protégé, Simon Aron (Patrick Mower), they soon realize that the party is in fact a gathering of a Satanic cult, led by the high priest Mocata (Charles Gray), that plans to initiate the beautiful Tanith (Nike Arrighi) that night. It's up to de Richleau and Van Ryn to defeat the devil-worshiping Mocata and save innocent young Tanith and the others from a terrible fate.
Its a really good movie and i highly recordmend this film to others. Like i said its not your average hammer film. It takes its topic/subject very serious. And its one of Terence Fisher's best films he has directed.
Andy K (10821 KP) rated Ocean’s 8 (2018) in Movies
Nov 3, 2018
Going through the motions...
Ocean's Eight was not an awful film, just completely unnecessary. Who was clamoring for anther "Ocean's" outing. Just remaking famous films like "Ghostbusters" with all women just isn't enough to captivate me especially since this one was very average indeed.
When Debbie Ocean gets out of a five year prison sentence, she decides to take on the Met Gala and heist a $150 million dollar necklace which has come out of retirement for the evening. The usual gathering of cohorts and planning stages are present, but with very uninteresting, flat one-dimensional characters.
I was about to say I was never bored, but I kind of was. I picked up my phone and was checking email which is a sure sign of me waiting to see how long the film has left before it is over.
Anne Hathaway was my favorite in the film as she seemed to have the most to do. Sarah Paulson who I love was given a very boring part with nothing exciting to say or do.
Overall, very disappointing.
When Debbie Ocean gets out of a five year prison sentence, she decides to take on the Met Gala and heist a $150 million dollar necklace which has come out of retirement for the evening. The usual gathering of cohorts and planning stages are present, but with very uninteresting, flat one-dimensional characters.
I was about to say I was never bored, but I kind of was. I picked up my phone and was checking email which is a sure sign of me waiting to see how long the film has left before it is over.
Anne Hathaway was my favorite in the film as she seemed to have the most to do. Sarah Paulson who I love was given a very boring part with nothing exciting to say or do.
Overall, very disappointing.
KatyShubo (75 KP) rated Cards Against Humanity in Tabletop Games
Jan 8, 2019
The premise of this game is great (1 more)
Everyone loves it
I just didn’t get it (2 more)
Complicated
Gathering dust
Too complicated for me
I was really excited to get this game but we just couldn’t get to grips with it.
We tried and tried, we tried with different people but we just couldn’t get it.
Thankfully when it was regifted it made a great gift and I know it’s given its new owners hours and hours of fun.
Who knows maybe they’ll get it out when I visit them and then I can come back change this review and talk about how great it is (note if that happens those cards may find their way back to me)
We tried and tried, we tried with different people but we just couldn’t get it.
Thankfully when it was regifted it made a great gift and I know it’s given its new owners hours and hours of fun.
Who knows maybe they’ll get it out when I visit them and then I can come back change this review and talk about how great it is (note if that happens those cards may find their way back to me)
Kim Pook (101 KP) rated Halloween Kills (2021) in Movies
Apr 15, 2022
Fab movie
Contains spoilers, click to show
When I first heard they were reimagining the Halloween series, my first response was "leave it alone," but I was pleasantly pleased. I liked the first one, but this one was even better.
Unlike the previous film, this one isn't really about Laurie; in fact, she doesn't appear in it very much because she spends most of her time in the hospital. This one is largely on Michael still being on the prowl and the other children's desire for vengeance as adults. It's fantastic that it eventually reveals Laurie wasn't the only one who was affected on Halloween night.
There are so many killings in this film, and each one is masterfully executed. My favourite scene was when Michael was killing a gathering of people one by one. However, I was grieved by a few fatalities because I so much wanted them to succeed in their intentions; one death in the hospital that was not caused by Michael was terrible; I felt so bad for this person; and one kill towards the end devastated and enraged me. Overall, a very good film; however, I would strongly advise watching the extended version rather than the theatrical cut, since you will receive more clear answers.
Unlike the previous film, this one isn't really about Laurie; in fact, she doesn't appear in it very much because she spends most of her time in the hospital. This one is largely on Michael still being on the prowl and the other children's desire for vengeance as adults. It's fantastic that it eventually reveals Laurie wasn't the only one who was affected on Halloween night.
There are so many killings in this film, and each one is masterfully executed. My favourite scene was when Michael was killing a gathering of people one by one. However, I was grieved by a few fatalities because I so much wanted them to succeed in their intentions; one death in the hospital that was not caused by Michael was terrible; I felt so bad for this person; and one kill towards the end devastated and enraged me. Overall, a very good film; however, I would strongly advise watching the extended version rather than the theatrical cut, since you will receive more clear answers.
Merissa (11726 KP) rated Scarlet (Alpha Marked, #1) in Books
Dec 17, 2018
I received this book by signing up for Celia Kyle's newsletter on her website.
Don't you just love it when you hit upon a book that is as hot as hell but will also make you laugh? I know I do and that's what I got with Scarlet. She has reached the incredibly OLD age of 30 and hasn't yet found her mates. Due to her having the Mark, she is now having to attend a Gathering in which she will try to find them.
I love the descriptions of the Wickham triplets and find it hilarious when Scarlet's mouth runs away with her. She may have two mates but she is not prepared to just let them walk all over her.
The descriptions of Scarlet's Alphas was also very well-done as they did indeed seem to balance each other out. Madden made me smile more than once with his quips.
A novella but jam-packed full of action and hotness. Can't wait to read Gabriella, book 2 in this series.
Don't you just love it when you hit upon a book that is as hot as hell but will also make you laugh? I know I do and that's what I got with Scarlet. She has reached the incredibly OLD age of 30 and hasn't yet found her mates. Due to her having the Mark, she is now having to attend a Gathering in which she will try to find them.
I love the descriptions of the Wickham triplets and find it hilarious when Scarlet's mouth runs away with her. She may have two mates but she is not prepared to just let them walk all over her.
The descriptions of Scarlet's Alphas was also very well-done as they did indeed seem to balance each other out. Madden made me smile more than once with his quips.
A novella but jam-packed full of action and hotness. Can't wait to read Gabriella, book 2 in this series.
Mothergamer (1514 KP) rated My Time At Portia in Video Games
Jul 11, 2019
Relaxing And Fun Game
I love this game because of how much there is to do in it, but it gives you a relaxed feel like Stardew Valley. If you like Stardew Valley and Minecraft you will like this game. The game allows you the freedom to explore and take your time with it. There are fun festival days and you can get to know your neighbors as well as romance specific characters with your male or female character. There are a few build missions that are timed, but the game doesn't really punish you if you miss the deadline. There are fun mini games too as well as dungeon crawl areas where you can battle monsters and earn rewards. The game has a ton of things to do and it can feel a little overwhelming, but if you take your time with it you find a rhythm that works. I found I really liked just gathering materials for my workshop and crafting. It's a fun and relaxing game that offers a lot of different things for everyone.