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Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated Reign of Ash (The Chosen #2) in Books
Feb 19, 2021
27 of 250
Kindle
Reign of Ash ( The Chosen book 2)
By Meg Anne
Once read a review will be written via Smashbomb and link posted in comments
"You will damn us all."
Kiri Helena Solene thought her trial was over. She was wrong. Prophesied to be the strongest of her kind, Helena is still coming to terms with the depth of her power and what it means to rule. Unfortunately, there's little time to learn.
"Without the tether you will fracture."
As her soul mate, Von is Helena's balance. Too bad he's missing. When he disappears, her tenuous hold on her magic begins to slip. Helena must find Von, and soon, or risk losing control completely. If only she knew where to look.
"You have a choice before you."
A malevolent force has risen, threatening the lives of Helena and those in her Circle. What they don't realize is that without Von, she will become the thing they most fear. How do you choose between the people you've vowed to protect and the one person you can't live without? How do you choose when there's no choice at all?
I’m really enjoying this series I loved this book! Was so glad she got her mate back and her circle intact! Full of action it’s one of those books you don’t want to put down!
Kindle
Reign of Ash ( The Chosen book 2)
By Meg Anne
Once read a review will be written via Smashbomb and link posted in comments
"You will damn us all."
Kiri Helena Solene thought her trial was over. She was wrong. Prophesied to be the strongest of her kind, Helena is still coming to terms with the depth of her power and what it means to rule. Unfortunately, there's little time to learn.
"Without the tether you will fracture."
As her soul mate, Von is Helena's balance. Too bad he's missing. When he disappears, her tenuous hold on her magic begins to slip. Helena must find Von, and soon, or risk losing control completely. If only she knew where to look.
"You have a choice before you."
A malevolent force has risen, threatening the lives of Helena and those in her Circle. What they don't realize is that without Von, she will become the thing they most fear. How do you choose between the people you've vowed to protect and the one person you can't live without? How do you choose when there's no choice at all?
I’m really enjoying this series I loved this book! Was so glad she got her mate back and her circle intact! Full of action it’s one of those books you don’t want to put down!
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2346 KP) rated London Calling in Books
Feb 20, 2025 (Updated Feb 20, 2025)
Family Found Finally?
This book starts with Annie in Istanbul. Thanks to things her mom has drilled into her, she realizes someone is following her and manages to give them the slip before she sends out a cry for help. A cry that the City Spies get and immediately jump into action. You see, Annie is the daughter of Mother, their leader. But the spies are already on assignment protecting the fiancée of one of the princes before their royal wedding. Can they find Annie and rescue her while keeping their current assignment on track?
If you haven’t yet started this fantastic series, don’t start here since it will spoil many of the twists of the previous books. But fans will be highly satisfied when they finish the book since it gives us many of the answers we’d been waiting for. A couple things were glossed over, but that’s minor. Along the way, we get all the twists and excitement that fans expect. We also get to spend time with characters we love. They are so great at working together, and it is a joy to watch. While this book does wrap up quite a bit, it leaves the door open for further adventures - ones I hope we get. If you are a fan, pick up this book today.
If you haven’t yet started this fantastic series, don’t start here since it will spoil many of the twists of the previous books. But fans will be highly satisfied when they finish the book since it gives us many of the answers we’d been waiting for. A couple things were glossed over, but that’s minor. Along the way, we get all the twists and excitement that fans expect. We also get to spend time with characters we love. They are so great at working together, and it is a joy to watch. While this book does wrap up quite a bit, it leaves the door open for further adventures - ones I hope we get. If you are a fan, pick up this book today.
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2346 KP) rated Night of the Living Bread in Books
May 28, 2025
Can Sugar Rise to the Occasion and Find Another Killer?
Sugar Calloway and Dixie Spicer are working on a new project for the Jameson County Historical Society. It’s a cook book focused on various breads. It may sound a little narrow, but they already have several ideas for subcategories, and the pair are excited about it. Their contact for the project is Marla Mercer. But Sugar’s appointment one morning never happens since she finds Marla dead on the office floor, a bread knife in her back. Everyone seems shocked by the murder, insisting that Marla was well loved. So who would want to kill her?
It’s been a few years (and a publisher change) since we got the previous book in this series. I was glad to see it back and was easily able to slip back into Sugar and Dixie’s world. It was great to reconnect with the characters, and spending time with them made me smile. The suspects seemed nice as well, at least at first. I did figure parts of the mystery out early, but I didn’t have it all put together until the climax. There are a couple of subplots that helped kept me engaged. We also get five recipes at the end of the book. Fans will be just as happy as I am to revisit these characters.
It’s been a few years (and a publisher change) since we got the previous book in this series. I was glad to see it back and was easily able to slip back into Sugar and Dixie’s world. It was great to reconnect with the characters, and spending time with them made me smile. The suspects seemed nice as well, at least at first. I did figure parts of the mystery out early, but I didn’t have it all put together until the climax. There are a couple of subplots that helped kept me engaged. We also get five recipes at the end of the book. Fans will be just as happy as I am to revisit these characters.
Alison Pink (7 KP) rated It's Called a Breakup Because It's Broken in Books
Jan 15, 2018
All right let me first say that I am so not a self help book kind of person. I mean at all...ever! Then the most surreal experience of my life happened. My boyfriend of almost 10 years (yup, YEARS) went on a "business trip" for a week. I texted & called to no avail. While he was gone I cried, cleaned, & cried some more. Then I thought, "Wait! You can't even call me? Well f@$% you!"
A friend saw pictures of this "business trip" that apparently involved a beach front hotel & a blonde girl who just happened to let her tongue slip down his throat. I confronted him when he finally got home & needless to say he's history. But that didn't change the fact that I was scared, sad, hurt, & confused. I was pissed but handling it pretty well considering. But I also felt the need to commiserate with someone who got it. This book did just that.
It offered me a bit of a kick in the ass when I needed it but it also gave me some good laughs too. Not to mention really forced me to wrap my head around things I had been turning a blind eye to for years. It didn't tame itself too seriously but at the same time it was not all cheerleading either. I bought it on a whim on my Nook because I felt like I needed something to hold on to that wasn't his neck! It did the trick. By all means I don't feel over it but I sure as hell have some great ideas on how to get myself on that path. That was what I was looking for at the time.
A friend saw pictures of this "business trip" that apparently involved a beach front hotel & a blonde girl who just happened to let her tongue slip down his throat. I confronted him when he finally got home & needless to say he's history. But that didn't change the fact that I was scared, sad, hurt, & confused. I was pissed but handling it pretty well considering. But I also felt the need to commiserate with someone who got it. This book did just that.
It offered me a bit of a kick in the ass when I needed it but it also gave me some good laughs too. Not to mention really forced me to wrap my head around things I had been turning a blind eye to for years. It didn't tame itself too seriously but at the same time it was not all cheerleading either. I bought it on a whim on my Nook because I felt like I needed something to hold on to that wasn't his neck! It did the trick. By all means I don't feel over it but I sure as hell have some great ideas on how to get myself on that path. That was what I was looking for at the time.
Phillip McSween (751 KP) rated After the Dark (2014) in Movies
Jan 13, 2018
Nope
Ever drank an open soda that's been sitting in the fridge too long? That's kind of like what happens to the premise of After the Dark. Due to its lack of reality (will expand on that in a moment), there are no real stakes and we all know what happens to Phillip McSween when he watches a film with no stakes. I turn green...
Despite a premise that falls flat, I can appreciate the message that the film was trying to get across. Everyone is important and has value. You can never understand that true value of a person or a thing until you give that person or a thing a try. The true value behind this message actually saved this film from getting a worse score.
I also give credit, as I did with I Declare War, for the film daring to try such an interesting premise. On paper it seems like it just might work and, perhaps with a bit more development, it could have. Or perhaps the film was just doomed from the start. One can never be sure.
I'll let you decide for yourself: On their last day of classes, a professor challenges a high school class to imagine different scenarios in which they would have to survive an apocalypse. While this is all happening inside of a classroom, the film takes us into the imaginary world of these different apocalyptic scenarios so what we're seeing is never actual reality, but the scenarios themselves. Ready to drop everything and watch yet?
With me watching 365 movies and having to randomly choose some from my list of all-time Rotten Tomato films, I expect some duds to slip through. Not only was the source material not enough to make me care, but the ending was so ridiculous that it destroyed any hopes of After the Dark being worth anyone's time. I give it a 61.
Despite a premise that falls flat, I can appreciate the message that the film was trying to get across. Everyone is important and has value. You can never understand that true value of a person or a thing until you give that person or a thing a try. The true value behind this message actually saved this film from getting a worse score.
I also give credit, as I did with I Declare War, for the film daring to try such an interesting premise. On paper it seems like it just might work and, perhaps with a bit more development, it could have. Or perhaps the film was just doomed from the start. One can never be sure.
I'll let you decide for yourself: On their last day of classes, a professor challenges a high school class to imagine different scenarios in which they would have to survive an apocalypse. While this is all happening inside of a classroom, the film takes us into the imaginary world of these different apocalyptic scenarios so what we're seeing is never actual reality, but the scenarios themselves. Ready to drop everything and watch yet?
With me watching 365 movies and having to randomly choose some from my list of all-time Rotten Tomato films, I expect some duds to slip through. Not only was the source material not enough to make me care, but the ending was so ridiculous that it destroyed any hopes of After the Dark being worth anyone's time. I give it a 61.
Zuky the BookBum (15 KP) rated A Stranger in the House in Books
Mar 15, 2018
I really wish I had loved this book more! I have heard so many good things about her debut (which I still need to read!) so I was expecting great things from this one too. Dont get me wrong, this wasnt awful but I guessed the different twists straight away and I wasnt so keen on the writing style, although more on that later because Im conflicted!
I thought the characters in this one were quite well developed. You definitely got a feel for them and their lives, but none of them were particularly enthralling characters to read about. I didnt find myself rushing to get back to the book to know what Tom was going to do next, or how Brigid felt in the next part. They were fine, but not great. Nor, were any particularly likeable, in my opinion.
When it comes to the writing, Im a little conflicted. I said earlier I wasnt so keen on it, but it did add some suspense to the novel, which is always good. I guess what I didnt like so much was the repetition of my wife / my husband or using someones name about 3 times in a sentence.
I cant think of much more to say about this one I enjoyed it enough to continue reading it, and reasonably quickly. It only took me a few days to get through (which may seen like a lot for a short book, but I was in the middle of leaving and starting a new job)!
Even though this hasnt been my favourite book of the year, I still want to read Lapenas debut, and depending on if I like that, I will read her next book too. I always find second books slip in quality, ever so slightly? Not all the time, but thats how I find it a lot of the time.
I thought the characters in this one were quite well developed. You definitely got a feel for them and their lives, but none of them were particularly enthralling characters to read about. I didnt find myself rushing to get back to the book to know what Tom was going to do next, or how Brigid felt in the next part. They were fine, but not great. Nor, were any particularly likeable, in my opinion.
When it comes to the writing, Im a little conflicted. I said earlier I wasnt so keen on it, but it did add some suspense to the novel, which is always good. I guess what I didnt like so much was the repetition of my wife / my husband or using someones name about 3 times in a sentence.
I cant think of much more to say about this one I enjoyed it enough to continue reading it, and reasonably quickly. It only took me a few days to get through (which may seen like a lot for a short book, but I was in the middle of leaving and starting a new job)!
Even though this hasnt been my favourite book of the year, I still want to read Lapenas debut, and depending on if I like that, I will read her next book too. I always find second books slip in quality, ever so slightly? Not all the time, but thats how I find it a lot of the time.
Rob Halford recommended Rage Against the Machine by Rage Against The Machine in Music (curated)
Isabel Smith (34 KP) rated The Wife Between Us in Books
Jun 26, 2018
I CANNOT WAIT FOR THE MOVIE!!!!
Dear Reader,
They think I’m crazy, that I’m unstable and unreliable. I promise I’m not. I have been paranoid, yes. I have put on an act before, for sure. I have been involved in more than one scandal, it’s true. But I am not crazy, regardless of what my ex-husband would have you believe. He is an expert manipulator, a master of deceit, a specialist in the art of charisma. Read my story and you’ll see. There have been plenty of us, the women in Richard’s life. It all starts out the same each time; he’ll sweep you off your feet and shower you with love and lavish gifts. Eventually, though, you will do something wrong…something he doesn’t like. Then the mind games begin. The surveillance emerges. The attacks come out of nowhere. Love gives way to entrapment as he pulls the noose tighter and tighter. Just as it all starts the same, it always ends the same too. But I got away. Now, I need to make sure he can never hurt anyone again. So, read my story and stay away. Stay away from men like Richard.
Take extra care,
Vanessa Thompson
P.S. Don’t let this new psychological thriller slip you by. Read it now, before the buzz of its upcoming movie adaptation hits hard and makes the waitlist a mile long. It’s got so many layers that you’ll get to peel back as you rush through the storyline. Some will surprise you by how subtle they are and others will slap you in the face and make you question what you just read.
They think I’m crazy, that I’m unstable and unreliable. I promise I’m not. I have been paranoid, yes. I have put on an act before, for sure. I have been involved in more than one scandal, it’s true. But I am not crazy, regardless of what my ex-husband would have you believe. He is an expert manipulator, a master of deceit, a specialist in the art of charisma. Read my story and you’ll see. There have been plenty of us, the women in Richard’s life. It all starts out the same each time; he’ll sweep you off your feet and shower you with love and lavish gifts. Eventually, though, you will do something wrong…something he doesn’t like. Then the mind games begin. The surveillance emerges. The attacks come out of nowhere. Love gives way to entrapment as he pulls the noose tighter and tighter. Just as it all starts the same, it always ends the same too. But I got away. Now, I need to make sure he can never hurt anyone again. So, read my story and stay away. Stay away from men like Richard.
Take extra care,
Vanessa Thompson
P.S. Don’t let this new psychological thriller slip you by. Read it now, before the buzz of its upcoming movie adaptation hits hard and makes the waitlist a mile long. It’s got so many layers that you’ll get to peel back as you rush through the storyline. Some will surprise you by how subtle they are and others will slap you in the face and make you question what you just read.
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2346 KP) rated The Chocolate Raccoon Rigmarole in Books
Aug 4, 2021
Thieves on Main Street
It’s the beginning of tourist season, so Lee Woodyard is trying to prepare for the busyness that brings to the shop of TenHuis Chocolade. However, that’s hard to do with the series of burglaries that have been happening on the town’s main street. Someone is breaking into the shops in Warner Pier’s downtown. However, all they are taking is snack food. Still, when your business is a gourmet chocolate maker, that is worrisome. The stakes are raised when someone Lee knows is held at gunpoint as a suspect on the night the thieves hit the jewelry store next door, but again, they didn’t steal anything of value. Will Lee figure out what is going on?
It’s always a pleasure to slip back into the resort town of Warner Pier, and this book was no exception. While many of the supporting characters stay in the background, I felt we got to see more of them than usual, which I enjoyed. The oddest thing with the characters is that we have two named Mike here. One is a main part of the story, and the other is in the background, which helps. I never had a problem keeping them straight as I was reading. The plot was light, even for this series, but it kept me engaged the entire time. The trivia in this book is actually a collection of the rare recipe we’ve gotten in earlier books in the series. Since we’ve had very few, those who like the recipes will enjoy having them all in one place. When you are looking for a light, relaxing mystery, this is the book to pick up.
It’s always a pleasure to slip back into the resort town of Warner Pier, and this book was no exception. While many of the supporting characters stay in the background, I felt we got to see more of them than usual, which I enjoyed. The oddest thing with the characters is that we have two named Mike here. One is a main part of the story, and the other is in the background, which helps. I never had a problem keeping them straight as I was reading. The plot was light, even for this series, but it kept me engaged the entire time. The trivia in this book is actually a collection of the rare recipe we’ve gotten in earlier books in the series. Since we’ve had very few, those who like the recipes will enjoy having them all in one place. When you are looking for a light, relaxing mystery, this is the book to pick up.
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2346 KP) rated The Last Mrs. Summers in Books
Aug 5, 2020
Gothic Trip to Cornwall
It’s fall 1935, and Lady Georgiana O’Mara is back from her honeymoon and settling into her new married life until Darcy is called away on another of his assignments. Suddenly at loose ends, Georgie jumps at a chance to join her friend Belinda is looking at the cottage she just inherited in Cornwall. However, the cottage turns out to be more of a shack. The friends are deciding what to do when they run into Rose, a childhood friend of Belinda’s. Rose announces she is now the mistress of one of the nearby mansions, and insists that Georgie and Belinda stay with her. However, something is off about life at the mansion. Will Georgie figure out what is going on before tragedy strikes?
It's always fun to slip back into Georgie’s world, and I picked up this book with anticipation. As usual, the book opens with updates on Georgie’s various friends and family, and I enjoy finding out how life is going for them. Once the story gets going, we are treated to a mystery filled with confusing happenings and plenty of atmosphere. The plot is minimally inspired by the classic Rebecca, and it uses the gothic elements well. I’m not familiar with Rebecca, but not picking up on nods to that book didn’t diminish my enjoyment at all. The new characters we meet along the way help pull us into the book. Naturally, everything makes sense once Georgie figures it all out. When you pick up this book, be prepared to be swept back in time. Fans of the series will be thrilled to catch up with Georgie’s latest adventures.
It's always fun to slip back into Georgie’s world, and I picked up this book with anticipation. As usual, the book opens with updates on Georgie’s various friends and family, and I enjoy finding out how life is going for them. Once the story gets going, we are treated to a mystery filled with confusing happenings and plenty of atmosphere. The plot is minimally inspired by the classic Rebecca, and it uses the gothic elements well. I’m not familiar with Rebecca, but not picking up on nods to that book didn’t diminish my enjoyment at all. The new characters we meet along the way help pull us into the book. Naturally, everything makes sense once Georgie figures it all out. When you pick up this book, be prepared to be swept back in time. Fans of the series will be thrilled to catch up with Georgie’s latest adventures.