~REVIEW of J.R Ward's LOVER AWAKENED~

 ZSADIST, YOU BROKE MY HEART

++BIG stars



 

Opening Line: "Goddamn it, Zsadist! Don't jump--"

This is an amazing book and my favourite in the series. LOVER AWAKENED tells the agonizingly painful story of Zsadist, a former blood slave and most feared member of the Blackdagger Brotherhood. After Zsadist rescues the beautiful, aristocrat Bella from the Lessoning Society's torture facility she refuses to leave This side (or bed.) Craving the strength and security she now finds only with him. And it's with her growing love and patience that this reluctant hero ultimately `awakens'. It's a bumpy ride for our pair and this relationship will leave you in tears, both of joy and sadness as we witness Z's transformation from the `cold one' into a male of worth. A multilayered novel L.A of course has several stories and POV's running simultaneously and the action never stops. Full of suspense, erotic and ultimately heartbreaking.

Introduced briefly in the past two books, we now get to find out what made Zsadist the way he is. A confirmed sociopath who avoids all relationships, Z is scarred, pierced, tattooed, violent and illiterate. He's the most feared Brother and distrusted by all because of his intimidating and just downright mean nature. He enjoys pain yet can't bare any kind of physical contact due to the years of physical and sexual abuse he suffered during his time as a blood slave. Zsadist makes for an unlikely romantic hero but JR brilliantly gains your sympathy and you will grow to love this misunderstood and abused character.

Phury as Zsadist's twin plays a major role here, and through a series of flashbacks we learn the details of Z's enslavement and Phury's daring rescue of him. It's a striking scene resulting in the loss of his leg and Z's brutal scarring. Phury has spent his life consumed with fixing his twin and is riddled with guilt, sacrificing time and again and it's starting to take a toll. Now exhausted, he's playing a deadly game with the `red smoke' and despite his vow of celibacy can't help being attracted to Bella.

We also get to know Rehvenge the Sympath club owner of Zerosum and John Mathew's story starts to unfold as he begins his training and accepts the love of a family. Of course all the Brothers get some attention so we get shots of Wrath, Rhage, Vishous, Butch and their respective `Shellans.' Some of my favourite scenes involve the Brothers just going about their daily business, little interludes in the kitchen, or hanging out playing pool and teasing each other. Unfortunately the Lessers continue their torment making things personal now as their leader Mr. O attempts to reclaim Bella and a shocking loss occurs within the Brotherhood family that will be felt throughout the rest of this series.

Z and Bella's love story takes center stage throughout though and is utterly fascinating. From the moment of rescue Zsadist won't let anyone else near Bella. And despite being frightened of him she wants him. To Bella he is perfect and she slowly begins to seduce him. Z is subsequently terrified, feeling dirty and hating his body's response to her. When the two finally kiss however...sigh. Ultimately Z's feelings of unworthiness force him to push her away. Into the arms of a male of worth, those of his twin brother. When Bella goes into her 'needing' though which twin will ease her suffering? The celibate one or the one who can't bear to be touched?

The climax of this book is simply unput-downable. With a suicide mission forcing one twin to sacrifice everything for the life of the other and a HEA that brings tears to your eyes as we get a rare glimpse of the future. Each book in this series just gets better and better but JR has outdone herself here. I would give this more *s if I could and can't recommend it enough.

Here's how I see Z:

~REVIEW of Portia De Rossi's UNBEARABLE LIGHTNESS: A Story of Loss and Gain~

 

SAD, FRIGHTENING, WELL WRITTEN AND SHOCKING IN ITS HONESTY

 .5

Opening Line: “He doesn’t wait until I’m awake. He comes into my unconscious to find me, to pull me out.”

I knew almost nothing about Portia De Rossi before reading her gripping biography. Sure I’d seen her years ago on Ally McBeal. I knew she was beautiful, I knew she was married to Ellen DeGeneres and I had just assumed she was another perfect movie star living the dream with a life to be envious of. This is so not the case here.

Unbearable Lightness is brutal, scary, well written and shocking in its honesty, chronicling Portia’s almost lifelong struggle with an eating disorder. We bare witness as she yo-yo diets through the ages of 12-25 binging and purging, basing her happiness on the number on the scale. Then finally (through the help of a nutritionist) we watch as Portia becomes successful at “dieting.” Starving and excessively excising her way down to 82 lbs. Sad, frightening, tortuous and just plain crazy, this was engrossing yet at times painful to read.

We are given some insight into Portia’s life however this does not read like your standard memoir, focusing almost exclusively on her eating disorder and shying away from any real understanding of her career or personal relationships. In a vague sense we learn of Portia’s childhood in Australia, her early modeling days, first marriage in Los Angeles and almost invisible, worthless feelings associated with Ally McBeal. The only behind the scenes we get there are regarding her fittings and the size of her powers suits. Portia’s sexuality is discussed but again vaguely, mainly it’s as a fear of being exposed and her confusion living life as a closeted gay woman.

Throughout we get the feeling that Portia doesn’t feel she deserves anything, to say she has low self esteem would be an understatement, she has no self esteem. She is lonely obsessed with food and calorie counting and her only real relationship is with her treadmill, basing any happiness on losing weight, because everything will be perfect if she can just lose 5-10-15 lbs. As a warning; during the height of her disease this begins to read a bit like a how-to-guide for the anorexic and I would bare this in mind if you’re at all going to be using this book as a form of recovery tool.

During one Christmas Portia hits her lowest weight. At 82 lbs she’s consuming just 300 calories a day. She knows she’s too thin, she’s hiding her bony arms and her family is crying at the sight of her however she no longer knows how to eat, food scares her and she’s afraid of going back to the binging/purging and self hatred.

Eventually on a movie set DeRossi’s body can longer take the abuse; she’s sick, exhausted and her bones ache. She has also developed osteoporosis and lupus and has to start eating. Portia’s recovery process here is insightful, uplifting and beautifully done and I really wish her the best. Cheers.

This was the scariest passage for me;

“I hadn’t eaten for many hours and my calorie count was fairly low that day, I would allow myself to have a piece of Extra chewing gum. I always allowed myself to have gum, but at 5 calories a stick, I had to add it to my daily calorie allowance because it was these kinds of unrecorded calories that could build up and cause you to gain weight.”

-Portia proceeds to “pig out” in a self described “frenzied feeding.” Consuming the entire pack of gum in a matter of minutes. Then filled with guilt over what she’s done and terrified she’ll gain weight again she begins running sprints (in high heels) across the mall parking lot, in a desperate attempt to rid her body of the calories and maintain control.

~Last Movie I Watched- GREEN STREET HOOLIGANS~

 

-This was really good; violent, brutal, real and unique. Superb acting and very emotional drama centering around the violent world of British football and hooliganism. I've been trying to find out if Green Street is based on a book??

Official IMDB Synopsis: Unjustly expelled from Harvard when a stash of cocaine is found in his possession, Matt moves to London to live with his sister and her husband Steve. He is quickly introduced to Steve's chirpy, cock-sure younger brother Pete. Initially, Pete is reluctant to get acquainted with Matt and allow him to tread around the capital city with him because he may be seen by others as an 'outsider', but after a heavy drinking session with him and his mates he quickly changes his opinion of him. On the way back from a football match, Matt is viciously accosted by a gang of Birmingham City thugs, until Pete and his friends step in and save him. It is from here that Matt learns the truth about Pete and his friends- they are football hooligans, operating the GSE (Green Street Elite) 'firm.' Initially afraid of the violence, Matt soon ends up becoming as desensitized to it as his new found friends

UPDATE: Green Steet Hooligans is based on the book AMOUNG THE THUGS by Bill Buford

Here's the back blurb; Buford, a native of the United States, is the editor of the London-based literary magazine Granta . In 1982 he witnessed the takeover of a train, a football special, by English soccer thugs. He reveals how fascination for this distinctly English phenomenon of "soccer hooliganism" led him to follow a group of violent supporters of the Manchester United Red Devils. Buford is accepted into the group and in time seems to develop a sixth sense about impending violence or when things, in English parlance, are "going to go off." Particularly riveting is his account of the aftermath of a match in Turin, Italy, where 200 or so Manchester supporters marched through the ancient streets leaving fire and destruction in their wake. Buford's original theories on football violence, fraught with notions about disenfranchised youth and the frustration of the working class, are forever dashed. He concludes that the English working class is dead, and what remains is a culture so vapid that " . . . it pricks itself so that it has feeling, burns its flesh so that is has smell." - Mark Annichiarico, "Library Journal"

~REVIEW of Nicholas Sparks' THE LUCKY ONE~

 ~ROMANTIC, SUSPENSEFUL AND ULTIMATELY HARD TO PUT DOWN~

Opening Line: "Deputy Keith Clayton hadn't heard them approach, and up close, he didn't like the looks of them any more then he had the first time he'd seen them."

 

One of the great (or not so great) things about Nicholas Sparks is that he doesn’t always give you a happy ending and it was with this in mind that about half way through -just as the flood waters started to rise, secrets began boiling to the surface and I was completely invested in the characters and their budding love story, I began to get nervous for the ending. I mean you just knew something bad was going to happen, the clues were all there but the real question that kept me turning pages at a frantic pace was… to who?

Each chapter here has been written from a different characters POV incorporating Elizabeth; a divorced mother with a young son who along with her no-nonsense Nana run a dog kennel in their small North Carolina town, Clayton her ex-husband and the town sheriff (bully) comes from a influential family yet harbours some nasty little secrets and Thibault as our hero. An Iraq war veteran, Logan Thibault alongside his dog Zeus has walked (yes walked) from Colorado in an obsessive search for the unknown woman in a photograph he found during his three harrowing tours of duty in Iraq. He believes the picture to be his good luck charm and directly responsible for keeping him alive. In the end all the characters merge for a predictable yet ultimately nail-biting ending.

The last chapter is very, very sneaky with Sparks keeping you on pins for pages before finally giving up the ending of which I had no clue. I fell in love with all of these well fleshed out characters, each coming with rich personalities and history including several flashbacks. The love story is well done and as I said before not too soppy. Thibault is a quiet, tortured hero and just so damn lovely with Beth perfect as his caring yet tough partner. The antagonist is creepy and also well written yet because of who he is you can’t really wish him dead. Sheesh, I even fell for the boy and the dog. So yeah, I highly recommend another Nicholas Sparks novel.

-It appears that another one of Nicholas Sparks' books is being made into a movie. The Lucky One is filming right now with Zac Efron playing the role of Logan Thibault. Should be good.

THE LUCKY ONE is another great read from Nicholas Sparks. Here we are given a story with a slightly darker edge and far more suspense then his usual soppy romance. Dog lovers and fans of Spark's THE GUARDIAN in particular will appreciate this engaging romantic suspense.

                                                 

                                                                  

~REVIEW of Suzanne Collins' THE HUNGER GAMES~

~SO THIS IS WHAT ALL THE FUSS IS ABOUT~  

Opening Line: "When I wake up, the other side of the bed is cold."

THE HUNGER GAMES is a fantastic, breathless and somewhat brutal read that once you start you simply can’t put down again. Initially I had no idea what this book was about or what to expect in terms of YA writing, it had just been recommended to me by so many people and had such a buzz surrounding it that I had to find out for myself why. Well let me say I was not disappointed and have now joined the legions of Suzanne Collins fans in awaiting her next instalment.

Written along the lines of Stephen King’s THE LONG WALK or Orwell’s 1984 (I may be aging myself here) this story still feels very original and sucked me in completely with its modern day Survivor-esque retelling. The Hunger Games is the ultimate in reality TV, suspense, scripted realism, romance and survival that you should not miss.

                  

 Set in a post apocalyptic future (although we frustratingly never learn the why's, how’s or even when of this future.) This new communist-type America known as Panem has been divided into a Capital and its 12 districts. We follow 16 year old Katniss as she struggles to keep her starving family alive, hunting and gathering with her best friend Gale. Unbeknownst to her these are valuable skills as the annual hunger games are about to begin.

Each year these games require two children from each district who are chosen based on a lottery system for compulsory participation. These televised games are then broadcast throughout Panem (with mandatory viewing) as the 24 contestants fight each other to the death, leaving just one victor at its violent conclusion. It’s kind of like Survivor but instead of being voted off the island you have to kill your competitors. When Katniss’s younger sister is chosen as the female contestant from their district Katniss volunteers to take her place. Then together with Peeta the other lottery winner they travel to the capital and begin preparations for the opening ceremonies and ultimately their death in The Hunger Games.

Oddly this has been written without paragraph breaks and I have to admit the first part of it dragged for me, as Katniss is groomed, clothed, and schooled by her entourage within the capital. However as soon as the games begin, lookout! By this point in the story you have become attached to several key characters and its then that you realize things can’t end well as there will be only one winner. Over a period of about 2 weeks and against overwhelming odds we watch 24 victims dwindle as they struggle to survive. Simultaneously avoiding and hunting each other they form alliances, face hunger and mind numbing thirst, mutant animal attacks, friendship, love and ultimately a distrust of everyone as Big Brother raises the stakes to keep the audience interested.

This is an exciting book that will keep you up late into the night and resonate with you long after you’ve finished. Cheers.



~REVIEW of Robyn Carr's MOONLIGHT ROAD~

 FANS OF VIRGIN RIVER WILL ENJOY THIS INSTALMENT  

                                

.5  Stars

Opening Line: "In the two weeks Aiden Riordan had been in Virgin River, he's hiked over a hundred miles and grown himself a pretty hefty dark red beard."

Erin Foley’s character was first introduced to the Virgin River series way back in book # (VIRGIN RIVER CHRISTMAS) Now she’s back and a whole lot nicer for book #10 (if you‘re counting)

After raising her younger siblings then watching them marry and settle into their own lives Erin is now without any responsibilities for the first time in her adult life and subsequently is suffering empty nest syndrome at the ripe ole age of 35. She’s at a crossroads and with no idea how to face her future she puts her career on hold, renovates her brother in law Ian’s cabin and settles in for the summer. Planning on doing all those fun things she’d never had time for before. The only problem is Erin doesn’t know how to just sit back and watch the sun set.

But this is Virgin River after all and before long a scruffy looking, machete welding former navy man and now unemployed Doctor comes crashing through the bush and into her garden. Sparks don’t fly immediately with this pair as Robyn Carr always has her heroines thinking the hero is someone he’s not before he shaves off the beard and reveals his true self. But through circumstances they manage to find their way together and begin a sweet summer romance. However when Aiden’s crazy ex-wife suddenly turns up, claiming they’re still married it quickly buts a kink in their affair.

Virgin River fans will appreciate trips to Jacks Bar and the many cameos/updates from past characters. Yes Mel, the one we all love to hate (or have just plain had enough of) is also back with a substantial subplot involving a uterus, in-vitro fertilization and adoption. Yup theres still lots of woman talk here. Theres also a sweet story involving mentally challenged adults and marriage.

Unfortunately I never felt a real connection between Erin and Adien, their romance seemed lukewarm to me which could be due in part to the fact that Aiden is a gynaecologist (did I forget to mention that?) Anyways that kind of took the sexy out of their love scenes, listening to Aiden anatomically describe Erin’s girl bits while helping get her ‘there’ for the first time with a man sure ruined the moment. I also honestly don’t remember Erin ever telling Aiden she loved him.

As with all Carr books a couple of babies are born and here I could really have done without the graphically described, medically correct, breach, episiotomy getting home birth. This may just have scarred me for life. Yikes. Carr also decides in the closing chapters that its time for a little suspense and ups the crazy factor with Aiden’s ex-wife and while this was fun it also felt thrown in, rushed and slightly over the top.

Still I think fans of the series will be happy to come home to Virgin River.

            

~Last Movie I watched- WILLIAM & KATE~

This was way better then I expected for a hastily put together, made-for-t.v movie. Although it could just be that because I was still so wrapped up in the magic of the royal wedding I didn't really care and just wanted a bit more. This movie deals almost exclusively with William and Kate's relationship and his time at St Andrews college. I don't know how much of it story is true?

 However we do get a feel for his loneliness, the microscope he lives under, the ever present paparazzi and how his future is mapped out for him. The only other royal represented in the movie is Prince Charles however I really enjoyed seeing Kate's Commoner  family. Ultimately this is a love story and the perfect bit of cheese to watch before or after the royal wedding. The actor who played William (Nico Evers-Swindell) was very good.

~REVIEW of J.R Ward's LOVER ETERNAL~

~Such a perfect, heartbreaking romance, RHAGE IS EVERY WOMANS FANTASY! ~

Black Dagger Brotherhood #2                                                   

 Opening Line: "Ah, hell, V, you're killing me."

LOVER ETERNAL is Rhage's story and oh man are we in for a treat. Continuing directly after DARK LOVER, we find The Black Dagger Brotherhood now living together in Darius's mansion. Wrath has stepped up to the throne with his Queen Beth by his side, as the battle with the Lessers continues.

One of the things I loved about the book is that we get to know all the brother's a whole lot better here, their unique personalities along with all their quirks, fears and flaws. The constant teasing and smart ass comments are hilarious and the bond between the men instills in us a true sense of family.

Rhage, as this books hero is a great character. With a boyish style of charm he's funny, sexy and fiercely loyal. Throw in the playboy model good looks and yes he's every woman's fantasy except for one small thing. Rhage has been cursed by the Scribe Virgin and now bears the mark of a dragon inside and out. The only way for him to keep the beast quiet is with violence or sex, and Rhage hates himself for it. Struggling each day to keep from harming those closest to him because once the beast gets out its so violent and unpredictable that even the Brothers fear for their lives.

Mary has been fighting a curse of her own and fears that the cancer which robbed her of her looks and youth may have returned. She is, in her own words nothing special, plain and past her prime with a body battered by chemotherapy. When she befriends a young mute boy named John Mathew her life changes forever. Bella, Mary's friend and neighbour recognizes the boy as one of her own, a pre-transitioned vampire and strangely baring the mark of a warrior. Acting as John Mathew's translator, Mary finds herself at the Brotherhood mansion where she meets Rhage. He is instantly attracted to her, coming on strong although she can't understand what he sees in her. On their first date Mary assumes he's being polite and just wants to be friends but as Rhage continues to pursue her she is thrown into the world of the paranormal.

For Rhage Mary is IT. Her voice soothes him and he finds her to be the most beautiful, interesting woman he's ever met, wanting her like no other before, but unfortunately his beast wants her too. After being told repeatedly to `scrub' Mary's memories and defying direct orders Rhage ultimately must pay the price for his insubordination and this is quite the scene as the Brother's are forced to perform a `rythe' (a ritual where the recipient is struck by a weapon without defending himself) However this turns out to be only the first of his many sacrifices for Mary.

Rhage and Mary's love story is well done, heartbreakingly sweet but also erotic as hell. As Mary attempts to `tame' the chained beast while Butch and V stand guard. I honestly didn't know if they were going to get there HEA until the last few pages and Rhage's final meeting with the Scribe Virgin contains an absolutely heart wrenching scene that kept me gasping as I know her enjoyment of sacrifice.

Throughout this story we have of course go back and forth to the Lessers who have set up a torture facility and a side plot develops which finds Bella irresistibly drawn to Zsadist. He of course pushes her away but not before allowing us a glimpse of softness within 'the cold one.' Phury warns her to leave him alone, explaining that his twin is "ruined not broken" but when the Lessers kidnap Bella's it's Zsadist who makes it his personal mission to find her. Setting up the premise for the next book in this fantastic series,LOVER AWAKENED and this story is not to be missed.

This series just gets better and better and if you like your paranormal romance than I can't recommend LOVER ETERNAL enough

My visual aid choices for Rhage, enjoy:

~Last Movie I watched- NEW MOON~

Its been ages since I first read and obsessed over this book and  a long time since I'd last seen the movie, which surprisingly made a huge difference in watching the movie again. I really enjoyed it this time through but in a totally different way then before. Because the book isn't fresh in my mind I was able to just sit back and enjoy the movie for what it is without comparing it to the book and wondering where that line is or why they skipped that part. It made the movie much better.

I had some "random" favourite moments this time through; like when when Graham Green says he knows Kung Fu, I laughed (GG is awesome) I still felt sad for Jake and mourned his hair when he cut it off but damn he looks good standing shirtless in the freezing rain (is he legal yet?)  I also got mad all over again at the recast of Victoria. I much preferred Rachelle Lefevere in the role and it seems unfair to recast the role she created just when she's getting to the meaty parts in Eclipse.

I choose Lefevere



Graham Green is awesome

Official IMDB Synopsis: After Bella recovers from the vampire attack that almost claimed her life, she looks to celebrate her birthday with Edward and his family. However, a minor accident during the festivities results in Bella's blood being shed, a sight that proves too intense for the Cullens, who decide to leave the town of Forks, Washington for Bella and Edward's sake. Initially heartbroken, Bella finds a form of comfort in reckless living, as well as an even-closer friendship with Jacob Black. Danger in different forms awaits.