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Eleanor Luhar (47 KP) rated Anything That Isn't This in Books
Jun 24, 2019
Well this was a surprising read. Not just a typical YA dystopian novel, but a peculiar, artistic novel complete with illustrations throughout.
For some reason, I wasn't expecting the strange world that Priestley created in this book. The Grey is suffocating Frank, the Ministry controlling his every decision. Most people are okay with it, comfortable in the routine provided. But Frank wants more.
First, Frank is obsessed with a girl from his school. Even after they graduate, he is desperate to be with her - he believes they're 'fated'. But after a while, he realises that maybe she's not quite right for him.
This combines two typical YA romance plots - the "unpopular boy gets the cool girl" and also the "childhood friends become lovers" plot. I think it's a bit unusual to mix the two, but I didn't find anything spectacular about this aspect of the novel.
The whole book has a very strange abstract sort of feel to it; I was unsure at times whether to actually take what he was saying at face value or take it as a metaphor. There are loads of weird myths that are thrown around, many of which play a big role later in the book.
The friendship with Scape was interesting; it kind of just happened out of the blue and ended in a similar way. And Mr Vertex was a weird character - it was obvious there was something strange about him, and I felt he really added to the abstract feel created.
The book kind of felt grey, but not in a bad way - as in, I felt how Frank felt about his life. I was pretty shocked by how dark it got at the end, quite suddenly. The ending was a bit of a whirlwind, followed by a moment of calm. The calmness was nice, an interesting ending that left your imagination running wild.
I didn't really enjoy this book at first but I did eventually get into it, and quite liked it. I definitely liked the unique feel it had, almost like Coraline. 3.5 stars.
For some reason, I wasn't expecting the strange world that Priestley created in this book. The Grey is suffocating Frank, the Ministry controlling his every decision. Most people are okay with it, comfortable in the routine provided. But Frank wants more.
First, Frank is obsessed with a girl from his school. Even after they graduate, he is desperate to be with her - he believes they're 'fated'. But after a while, he realises that maybe she's not quite right for him.
This combines two typical YA romance plots - the "unpopular boy gets the cool girl" and also the "childhood friends become lovers" plot. I think it's a bit unusual to mix the two, but I didn't find anything spectacular about this aspect of the novel.
The whole book has a very strange abstract sort of feel to it; I was unsure at times whether to actually take what he was saying at face value or take it as a metaphor. There are loads of weird myths that are thrown around, many of which play a big role later in the book.
The friendship with Scape was interesting; it kind of just happened out of the blue and ended in a similar way. And Mr Vertex was a weird character - it was obvious there was something strange about him, and I felt he really added to the abstract feel created.
The book kind of felt grey, but not in a bad way - as in, I felt how Frank felt about his life. I was pretty shocked by how dark it got at the end, quite suddenly. The ending was a bit of a whirlwind, followed by a moment of calm. The calmness was nice, an interesting ending that left your imagination running wild.
I didn't really enjoy this book at first but I did eventually get into it, and quite liked it. I definitely liked the unique feel it had, almost like Coraline. 3.5 stars.
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LucyB (47 KP) rated Nights at the Circus in Books
Jul 23, 2017
So creative - a totally unique writer
Fabulous!
I'd been expecting good things from this book, as everyone always tells me how wonderful Angela Carter is, and it certainly delivered!
It's a surreal, earthy kind of book, divided into three distinct parts, which largely focus on the introduction of Fevvers (the fabulous cockney winged woman), the days at the circus, and the wilds of Siberia. Hey, I did warn you it was surreal!
In this book, the reader encounters intelligent pigs (I LOVED Sybil!), brothel madams who like dressing up as Nelson, depressed clowns and more. It's a weird, wonderful world that Carter conjures up, but a joy to immerse yourself in!
It's also great to read an author who is simultaneously so elegant with her language, and so brutally down-to-earth. This echoes the main character in a way, who has the potential to soar to the sea or crash to the ground.
Definitely a must-read...I've no doubt I'll be revisiting this book in the future!
I'd been expecting good things from this book, as everyone always tells me how wonderful Angela Carter is, and it certainly delivered!
It's a surreal, earthy kind of book, divided into three distinct parts, which largely focus on the introduction of Fevvers (the fabulous cockney winged woman), the days at the circus, and the wilds of Siberia. Hey, I did warn you it was surreal!
In this book, the reader encounters intelligent pigs (I LOVED Sybil!), brothel madams who like dressing up as Nelson, depressed clowns and more. It's a weird, wonderful world that Carter conjures up, but a joy to immerse yourself in!
It's also great to read an author who is simultaneously so elegant with her language, and so brutally down-to-earth. This echoes the main character in a way, who has the potential to soar to the sea or crash to the ground.
Definitely a must-read...I've no doubt I'll be revisiting this book in the future!
Haley Mathiot (9 KP) rated Heartless in Books
Apr 27, 2018
This book is devastating.
first of all, listening to the audio, it was a bit silly. The accent switched between American and British, and it was weird. The story itself was bonkers (which is to be expected, this is Hearts we're talking about).
What killed me is there's no way for this story to turn out happy. And I am 100% sure of it, so I quit right after the meadow scene. I'll let it work itself out happily in my head. Because I don't feel like having to explain to my boss why I'm crying about a YA novel.
So in my head, Jest took Cath to the Hatter, who made her a hat to make her brave. She marries the king, kills him, kills the jabberwock, and partners with the white queen in Chess to save their kingdom. And she marries Jest and becomes the happiest girl in the world.
EVEN THOUGH I KNOW WHAT HAPPENS AND THAT'S NOT IT. Here, Marissa Meyer, just take my heart and stomp on it already.
first of all, listening to the audio, it was a bit silly. The accent switched between American and British, and it was weird. The story itself was bonkers (which is to be expected, this is Hearts we're talking about).
What killed me is there's no way for this story to turn out happy. And I am 100% sure of it, so I quit right after the meadow scene. I'll let it work itself out happily in my head. Because I don't feel like having to explain to my boss why I'm crying about a YA novel.
So in my head, Jest took Cath to the Hatter, who made her a hat to make her brave. She marries the king, kills him, kills the jabberwock, and partners with the white queen in Chess to save their kingdom. And she marries Jest and becomes the happiest girl in the world.
EVEN THOUGH I KNOW WHAT HAPPENS AND THAT'S NOT IT. Here, Marissa Meyer, just take my heart and stomp on it already.
Haley Mathiot (9 KP) rated Until There Was You in Books
Apr 27, 2018
I love Kirstan Higgins so much. She's a good writer, she's funny, she's clever, her characters are awesome, and there's always a cute dog or cat.
Also she rocks at writing kissing scenes. WOW!.
The number-one thing I love about her novels is this: She writes these awesome contemporary romance novels, but she doesn't litter them with explicit sex, which I DON'T like to read (I mean really, I feel like I'm sneaking into a XXX movie when I read stuff like that. It's private, man! The characters don't want you to know what's going on under the sheets!).
Anyway, Until There Was You didn't disappoint. Liam was amazing, Posey was sweet, Nicole (the daughter) was adorable, and the family was family: a-typical in every way and funny and weird and full of life. I love it. I wish I could keep this book forever instead of bringing it back to the library. I tore through this thing in like five hours... I stayed up until 4am reading.
But hey, other people have to read it too, right?
:D
Also she rocks at writing kissing scenes. WOW!.
The number-one thing I love about her novels is this: She writes these awesome contemporary romance novels, but she doesn't litter them with explicit sex, which I DON'T like to read (I mean really, I feel like I'm sneaking into a XXX movie when I read stuff like that. It's private, man! The characters don't want you to know what's going on under the sheets!).
Anyway, Until There Was You didn't disappoint. Liam was amazing, Posey was sweet, Nicole (the daughter) was adorable, and the family was family: a-typical in every way and funny and weird and full of life. I love it. I wish I could keep this book forever instead of bringing it back to the library. I tore through this thing in like five hours... I stayed up until 4am reading.
But hey, other people have to read it too, right?
:D
Lee Ann (116 KP) rated Opposition (Lux, #5) in Books
May 24, 2018
It's always weird when you finish a series of books. When it's a standalone novel, it's easier to let go of a set of characters, but with a series - especially when they go past the typical three - you spend so much time with the characters, they become a fixture for a while.
When I started the Lux series, I wasn't sold on it. I'm not a huge fan of YA novels at the best of times. Daemon amused me enough to keep me interested, though, so I slogged through the first and second books and hit the third... and that's when it captured me. Something clicked and the story became more than just a "yeah, it's not bad," to "holy shit, gimme more!"
Opposition has its issues. There are a couple of things I think could have been done better, but overall, a fantastic book which ties up the series nicely.
... and I've been informed today (and pre-ordered) that Luc is getting his own book in October this year (2018) so there's that!
When I started the Lux series, I wasn't sold on it. I'm not a huge fan of YA novels at the best of times. Daemon amused me enough to keep me interested, though, so I slogged through the first and second books and hit the third... and that's when it captured me. Something clicked and the story became more than just a "yeah, it's not bad," to "holy shit, gimme more!"
Opposition has its issues. There are a couple of things I think could have been done better, but overall, a fantastic book which ties up the series nicely.
... and I've been informed today (and pre-ordered) that Luc is getting his own book in October this year (2018) so there's that!
Alex Trybus (79 KP) rated One More Thing: Stories and Other Stories in Books
Feb 6, 2019
Funny (at parts) (1 more)
Some stories provoked good thought.
It took me almost four months to read and it wasn’t even 300 pages.
“I have been reading this damn book off and on since October of 2018. I honestly really struggled with it. I honestly only bought it and started reading it because it was written by @picturesoftext and I was REALLY curious to read some of his work. Some of the stories were actually really cute, or funny, or thought-inducing. However, a lot of it was filled with weird stories that I didn’t quite understand (though I’m sure that’s the point). I would have enjoyed it more if some parts of the separate stories intersected or crossed over. Anyways, this is definitely the kind of book that I could have seen BJ’s character on The Office writing while at his temp desk! .
.
I gave it 3/5 stars on Goodreads, and be sure to look out for my review of it tomorrow on Smashbomb!”
-From my bookstagram account, @rorythereader
.
I gave it 3/5 stars on Goodreads, and be sure to look out for my review of it tomorrow on Smashbomb!”
-From my bookstagram account, @rorythereader
Sam (228 KP) rated Deadpool 2 (2018) in Movies
Mar 6, 2019
Hilarious (1 more)
Great Characters
Weird Choices for Music (1 more)
Overwhelming Music in Some Scenes
Looking Forward to the Next Movie
Everybody loves Deadpool and this film was a great continuation to the first film. Although the jokes got a little gimmicky at some points my biggest and probably my only real complaint to this film would be the music. In the last movie the music was spot on every single time, however in this second film the music overwhelmed many of the scenes and we rent good choices for the scenes playing out. I hated the addition of Annie during a serious scene, a different song choice could have made the scene but rather it made the whole thing awkward and broke the moment. I understand it was meant to be played over as funny in the spirit of Deadpool but rather it broke the scene and the magic of Deadpool, a true moment where they simply tried to hard. Beyond this the film was great, true to Deadpool and even as it tackled series topics it held a funny overtone just as Deadpool should
Madbatdan82 (341 KP) rated Doom Asylum (1987) in Movies
Apr 18, 2019
Watching this may send you mad
This horror spoof tells the story of a couple who get into a car crash. She dies and he is presumed dead and sent to the local asylum (not a hospital for some reason!) for autopsy which he wakes up during and kills the 2 coroners. 10 years later the daughter of the woman who died in the crash and her friends visit the now abandoned asylum to see if the legend about a psychotic killer dressed as a coroner - the man from the crash. Whilst at the asylum they run into a weird all female punk band and they are all picked off one at time by the coroner...the gore is actually really good including a particularly nasty drill to the head and a toe snipping scene. The acting is awful as is the script but it's difficult to tell if that's by design as this is a send up of the slasher genre. Worth a watch for the gore but don't expect too much!!!
Awix (3310 KP) rated Woman at War (2018) in Movies
May 8, 2019 (Updated May 8, 2019)
Oh, yawn: yet another movie about a middle-aged choir mistress with a secret identity as a longbow-toting eco-terrorist (Green Arrow, if you will). Various exploits and close shaves with the heroine being pursued across country by helicopters, drones and dogs ensue, until the prospect of motherhood gives her pause.
How much of this film you can take probably depends on your capacity for self-conscious quirkiness. Quite apart from the main thrust of the plot, the film includes an identical twin, a comedy subplot about a hapless tourist who keeps getting nicked by the cops (through a series of weird coincidences he's always in the area when our heroine strikes), and, oddest of all, a device where the people providing the soundtrack (a three-piece band and a Ukrainian choir) keep appearing in shot and occasionally interacting with the story. The results are certainly memorable, but the plot becomes increasingly preposterous and what point it's all supposed to be making is a little unclear. Certainly diverting, and rather entertaining, though.
How much of this film you can take probably depends on your capacity for self-conscious quirkiness. Quite apart from the main thrust of the plot, the film includes an identical twin, a comedy subplot about a hapless tourist who keeps getting nicked by the cops (through a series of weird coincidences he's always in the area when our heroine strikes), and, oddest of all, a device where the people providing the soundtrack (a three-piece band and a Ukrainian choir) keep appearing in shot and occasionally interacting with the story. The results are certainly memorable, but the plot becomes increasingly preposterous and what point it's all supposed to be making is a little unclear. Certainly diverting, and rather entertaining, though.