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Lenard (726 KP) rated Good Joe Bell (2020) in Movies
Aug 1, 2021
The film has a great premise. An alpha male walks from his home in La Grange, Oregon to New York to tell the story of his gay son who was bullied so badly he committed suicide. Sounds interesting until you realize that it is nearly impossible to adapt into a cinematic story. It is one man traveling on the road. He is not rich; he is stubborn; he is kind of a jerk to other people. Mark Wahlberg is good as Joe Bell, but there is not much of a character to play. So you have to give him the spirit of his son, but the son would be his version of the son and not the real son so the actor playing him would need to distinguish the two versions. This never happens. Another huge problem is the ending. It comes too quickly and is extremely shocking (and not in a way a filmmaker would want). Yes, the event is foreshadowed in the first act and it would fit with the character, but there needed to be more story in order to achieve the desired effect of the event. The whole film has a problem by staying true to life instead of adding texture to the characters and story.
Gitchie Girl: The Survivor's Inside Story
5.0
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A terrified voice cried out in the night. "Who are you? What do you want?" The sound of...
Wanted - Bad Boyfriend (Island Confidential Novella)
9.0
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His mother. His best friend. The barmaid at the local pub. Everyone is determined to find Nathan...
Contemporary MM Romance Series Novella
What Once Was Mine
8.0
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The 12th installment in the New York Times best-selling series asks: What if Rapunzel's mother drank...
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2621 KP) rated The Quirky Quiz Show Caper in Books
Jul 4, 2026
Does Sandy Know the Answer to the Big Question?
One Monday, Sandy stops by a small local theater to talk about an upcoming appearance and to talk to his brother, Warren, who moonlights at the theater’s organist when he’s not teaching at a nearby college. As Sandy is going to leave, he stumbles on a dead body in the building’s basement. The victim turns out to be one of Warren’s students, and the evidence seems to be pointing to Warren. Can Sandy find the killer before his brother goes down for a crime he didn’t commit?
Yes, I am teasing the right book. There is a quiz show, but it comes late to the story. I wasn’t bored waiting to get there, and it did tie into the bigger mystery. When we got to the climax, my questions about the plot were answered, but the way the villain tried to silence Sandy didn’t make any sense. I like how we are slowly getting to know the people in Sandy’s life as the series progresses. We get to see him in a different light as a result. The characters were all good. Yes, there were some obvious flaws to me, but overall, I enjoyed this book.
Yes, I am teasing the right book. There is a quiz show, but it comes late to the story. I wasn’t bored waiting to get there, and it did tie into the bigger mystery. When we got to the climax, my questions about the plot were answered, but the way the villain tried to silence Sandy didn’t make any sense. I like how we are slowly getting to know the people in Sandy’s life as the series progresses. We get to see him in a different light as a result. The characters were all good. Yes, there were some obvious flaws to me, but overall, I enjoyed this book.
Whatchareadin (174 KP) rated Skinny Me in Books
Apr 9, 2019
Jennifer is overweight and miserable. She has recently lost her mother and even more recently, her job. After a party at her cousins house, she is feeling even more miserable about her life. She decides to make a chand and finally lose some weight. She joins a gym and when she finds out her trainer is her cousin, Autumn's hot boyfriend, it's all the motivation she needs. If she loses the weight she knows she will be so much happier. She just has to reach that goal weight. But with so many other issues plaguing her life is this really what is going to make her happy? Will lusting after someone she knows is taken make her happy?
I could relate to Jennifer in some ways. There are days when I look in the mirror and am completely unhappy with my reflection. Then there are other days when it is no big deal. There are so many women with body image issues all over the world regardless if they are overweight or not. It's good to see Charlene Carr tackling an issue such as this one. Jennifer's issues were more than just the number on the scale and until she was ready to face those issues and deal with them head on. Along the way she ends and mends relationships and finds the person her family always knew existed, but hadn't seen behind all of the anger.
I could relate to Jennifer in some ways. There are days when I look in the mirror and am completely unhappy with my reflection. Then there are other days when it is no big deal. There are so many women with body image issues all over the world regardless if they are overweight or not. It's good to see Charlene Carr tackling an issue such as this one. Jennifer's issues were more than just the number on the scale and until she was ready to face those issues and deal with them head on. Along the way she ends and mends relationships and finds the person her family always knew existed, but hadn't seen behind all of the anger.
The 7 Secrets of Raising Happy Eaters: Why French Kids Eat Everything and How Yours Can Too!
Book
Are mealtimes with your kids a source of frustration? Ever wonder how on earth to get them to eat...
The Lies That Bind (Dark Lies #1)
Parker Williams and K.C. Wells
8.0
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Mason knew he was valuable. As an omega, his future has never truly been his own, and then he...
Dark Paranormal MM Romance
Merissa (14122 KP) rated Elle's A to Z of Love in Books
Jun 25, 2021 (Updated Jul 18, 2023)
ELLE'S A TO Z OF LOVE is another charming, genteel story from the wonderful Claire Huston. If you want bright lights and big city, then you're definitely in the wrong place. Here you will find the Village Fayre (with a y) and lots of bunting!
The thing I really enjoyed about this is that Elle doesn't find her 'one' immediately. And it's not the typical boy she's known forever and just didn't realise it. Instead, Ms Huston gives a more realistic version of Elle stumbling through life and trying to figure it out. Now, Elle is mostly a passive character. Don't get me wrong, she's very nice, but she does need to grow a backbone! Thankfully, she does and I was cheering along with everyone else. I loved how life got in the way and things changed and evolved.
The pacing is smooth and the story moves along steadily, helped by an amazing supporting cast of characters. There were no errors that I noticed which helped me enjoy this story.
As far as I am concerned, this is another winner by Claire Huston and absolutely recommended by me. Anyone for a slice of cake?!
** same worded review will appear elsewhere **
* 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!
Jun 25, 2021
The thing I really enjoyed about this is that Elle doesn't find her 'one' immediately. And it's not the typical boy she's known forever and just didn't realise it. Instead, Ms Huston gives a more realistic version of Elle stumbling through life and trying to figure it out. Now, Elle is mostly a passive character. Don't get me wrong, she's very nice, but she does need to grow a backbone! Thankfully, she does and I was cheering along with everyone else. I loved how life got in the way and things changed and evolved.
The pacing is smooth and the story moves along steadily, helped by an amazing supporting cast of characters. There were no errors that I noticed which helped me enjoy this story.
As far as I am concerned, this is another winner by Claire Huston and absolutely recommended by me. Anyone for a slice of cake?!
** same worded review will appear elsewhere **
* 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!
Jun 25, 2021
Merissa (14122 KP) rated Gabriel (Legacy Ranch #2) in Books
Aug 17, 2017
Gabriel (Legacy Ranch #2) by R.J. Scott
Gabriel is the second book in the Legacy Ranch series, and we find out a bit more about the young man who cried at the trial that happened in book one. His life hasn't been a good one so far, but he is broken enough that he thinks it is just fine. He lives with his pimp, Stefan, who controls every aspect of his life, and makes Gabriel pay for any misdemeanours that Stefan thinks has happened, or that he has just made up because he's not having a good day. Stefan has managed to get into Gabriel's mind and twist things around so that Gabriel is actually thankful for all that Stefan does for him.
Cam, on the other hand, appears to have it all. He runs a successful hotel, has plenty of money, and even has a bodyguard. Things must be good, right? Wrong! Cam's family, with the odd exception, are a bunch of BEEP, condescending, BEEP, know-it-alls, who think that just because Cam is losing his sight, he must be losing all of his faculties too. His father, well, enough said about him!
Cam and Gabriel end up together on a purely business level. Cam needs someone to pretend to be with him, Gabriel wants the money. However, feelings quickly become involved, and then it's anyone's guess. Six tries to tell Cam not to get involved, but Cam pays no attention. Their road is anything but smooth, but luckily the folks at Legacy Ranch are there to help... once Gabriel lets them in.
This is a dark book, with dark topics and it's not a HEA situation full of rainbows and glitter. This is hard, and horrible, and may be a trigger book for some readers. There is light at the end of the tunnel for Gabriel though, and I really hope that he will feature in the next book, just so I can see what progress he's made.
Gabriel is extremely well written, with no editing or grammatical errors that disrupted my reading flow. Like I've already said, it's not an easy book to read, but it is definitely worth it. I would also say that it isn't fully necessary to have read book one in this series, or indeed the Texas series which is where we first meet Jack and Riley. This book does stand on it's own merit, but personally I would recommend reading Kyle at the minimum, just to give you a feeling of what the Legacy Ranch series is about.
If you like your M/M Romance with angst, then I can definitely recommend this book/series. Just remember the trigger warnings!
* 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!
Cam, on the other hand, appears to have it all. He runs a successful hotel, has plenty of money, and even has a bodyguard. Things must be good, right? Wrong! Cam's family, with the odd exception, are a bunch of BEEP, condescending, BEEP, know-it-alls, who think that just because Cam is losing his sight, he must be losing all of his faculties too. His father, well, enough said about him!
Cam and Gabriel end up together on a purely business level. Cam needs someone to pretend to be with him, Gabriel wants the money. However, feelings quickly become involved, and then it's anyone's guess. Six tries to tell Cam not to get involved, but Cam pays no attention. Their road is anything but smooth, but luckily the folks at Legacy Ranch are there to help... once Gabriel lets them in.
This is a dark book, with dark topics and it's not a HEA situation full of rainbows and glitter. This is hard, and horrible, and may be a trigger book for some readers. There is light at the end of the tunnel for Gabriel though, and I really hope that he will feature in the next book, just so I can see what progress he's made.
Gabriel is extremely well written, with no editing or grammatical errors that disrupted my reading flow. Like I've already said, it's not an easy book to read, but it is definitely worth it. I would also say that it isn't fully necessary to have read book one in this series, or indeed the Texas series which is where we first meet Jack and Riley. This book does stand on it's own merit, but personally I would recommend reading Kyle at the minimum, just to give you a feeling of what the Legacy Ranch series is about.
If you like your M/M Romance with angst, then I can definitely recommend this book/series. Just remember the trigger warnings!
* 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!