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| 0545010225
| 4.62
| 3,960,875
| Jul 21, 2007
| Jul 21, 2007
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liked it
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Gearing up for the last book and the final showdown..whew been a long ride Potter but we are going to finish this..Okay so we start in a Death Eaters
Gearing up for the last book and the final showdown..whew been a long ride Potter but we are going to finish this..Okay so we start in a Death Eaters meeting and they are getting in place for Harry’s demise before his seventeenth birthday � “I shall attend to the boy in person. There have been too many mistakes where Harry Potter is concerned. Some of them have been my own. That Potter lives is due more to my errors than to his triumphs.� (Pg.6) So Harry is all set to leave and not return to Hogswart but run the streets with his Auror family and his friends eluding Voldemort and preparing for their final showdown as Harry is now all on his own for protection� “Now, your mother’s charm will only break under two conditions: when you come of age, or”—Moody gestured around the pristine kitchen� “you no longer call this place home. You and your aunt and uncle are going your separate ways tonight, in the full understanding that you’re never going to live together again, correct?� Harry nodded. “So this time, when you leave, there’ll be no going back, and the charm will break the moment you get outside its range. We’ve choosing to break it early, because the alternative is waiting for You-Know-Who to come and seize you the moment you turn seventeen. (Pg. 47) And whew transporting Harryto a safe place sets the book off tragically with key characters lose their lives to the Death Eaters and Voldemort showing up and trying to capture poor Harry…gangsta .. Other news happens with the wedding of Bill and Fleur where Harry attends in disguise and then all hell breaks loose when the Minister of Magic is murdered and the sage warning of “they are coming� is all they can think about now.. With danger coming from everywhere as Voldemort penetrates the defenses of the Ministry and makes more and more DeathEaters Harry, Hermione and Ron decide to run and search for the Horcruxes on their own or at least get away from families and people who might come to harm from them…however the trio does not have a great time..For weeks they are cold, hungry and forced to split time wearing a charm that darkens their mood and makes them say all the mean things they feel…not long into it Ron is fed up with not hearing from his family and not having real direction � “The rain was pounding the tent, tears were pouring down Hermione’s face, and the excitement of a few minutes before had vanished as if it had never been, a short-lived firework that had flared and died, leaving everything dark, wet, and cold. The sword of Gryffindor was hidden they knew not where, and they were three teenagers in a tent whose only achievement was not, yet, to be dead.(Pg. 308) Despair and frustration abound and Ron, overtaken with negativity decides to leave the group leaving Harry and Hermione all alone and in their searches they again encounter Voldemort and Harry’s wand is broken�. “Harry thought of Ollivander, kidnapped and held hostage by Voldemort; of Gregorovitch, who was dead. How was he supposed to find himself a new wand? (Pg. 349) Harry is beyond over not knowing anything and having no plan and eventually all his angst turns to Dumbledore� “And his fury at Dumbledore broke over him now like lava, scorching him inside, wiping out every other feeling. Out of sheer desperation they had talked themselves into believing that Godric’s Hollow held answers, convinced themselves that they were supposed to go back, that it was all part of some secret path laid out for them by Dumbledore; but there was no map, no plan. Dumbledore had left them to grope in the darkness, to wrestle with unknown and undreamed-of terrors, alone and unaided. Nothing was explained, nothing was given freely, they had no sword, and now, Harry had no wand. And he had dropped the photograph of the thief, and it would surely be easy now for Voldemort to find out who he was. . . . Voldemort had all the information now. . . . �(Pg. 351) It is not looking good for their journey and their quest to vanquish Voldemort–this is a dreary time full of self doubt- “But he shook his head. Some inner certainty had crashed down inside him; it was exactly as he had felt after Ron left. He had trusted Dumbledore, believed him the embodiment of goodness and wisdom. All was ashes: How much more could he lose? Ron, Dumbledore, the phoenix wand . . .�(pg. 360) Ah yes despair and downtrodden feelings all over–but ah ha Ron comes back! And miraculously he is there at the precise moment he is needed as he is the only one who can destroy the Horcrux which in some way was foretold by Dumbledore� The trio come back together to find the other Horcruxes and end this–there are many other stops however with one being their friend Luna’s house to find out about a symbol they learn is from the Deathly Hallows. “Those of us who understand these matters, however, recognize that the ancient story refers to three objects, or Hallows, which, if united, will make the possessor master of Death.�(Pg. 410) So add to their impossible quest are three random objects to ensure the person who has it is the master of Death–the Resurrection stone, the Invisibility cloak and the Elder wand have been lost throughout history and yup Harry has to find them.. “And the wand, the Elder Wand, where was that hidden? Where was Voldemort searching now? Harry wished his scar would burn and show him Voldemort’s thoughts, because for the first time ever, he and Voldemort were united in wanting the very same thing . . .�(Pg. 434) With Harry sensing Voldemort’s thoughts the two are looking for the same objects for different reasons with time running out for their inevitable confrontation� “He’s in the Shrieking Shack. The snake’s with him, it’s got some sort of magical protection around it. He’s just sent Lucius Malfoy to find Snape.� “Voldemort’s sitting in the shrieking Shack?� said Hermione, outraged. “He’s not—he’s not even fighting??� 642 The Elder Wand “He doesn’t think he needs to fight,� said Harry. “He thinks I’m going to go to him.� (Pg 643) Cocky Voldemort is not even attempting to find Potter and knows as he does that it will have to come to the two of them meeting though unfortunately people have to die before this happens� “I speak now, Harry Potter, directly to you. You have permitted your friends to die for you rather than face me yourself. I shall wait for one hour in the Forbidden Forest. If, at the end of that hour, you have not come to me, have not given yourself up, then battle recommences. This time, I shall enter the fray myself, Harry Potter, and I shall find you, and I shall punish every last man, woman, and child who has tried to conceal you from me. One hour.�(Pg. 660) Faced with an hour to determine his fate he is finally presented with Snape’s memories and warnings and what inevitably must happen.. “Finally, the truth. Lying with his face pressed into the dusty carpet of the office where he had once thought he was learning the secrets of victory, Harry understood at last that he was not supposed to survive. His job was to walk calmly into Death’s welcoming arms. Along the way, he was to dispose of Voldemort’s remaining links to life, so that when at last he flung himself across Voldemort’s path, and did not raise a wand to defend himself, the end would be clean, and the job that ought to have been done in Godric’s Hollow would be finished: Neither would live, neither could survive. (Pg. 691) Ah ha ha…ominous and frightening the final confrontation means everything and all that was hidden from him finally makes sense� “He had never questioned that his own assumption: that Dumbledore wanted him alive. Now he saw that his life span had always been determined by how long it took to eliminate all the Horcruxes. Dumbledore had passed the job of destroying them to him, and obediently he had continued to chip away at the bonds tying not only Voldemort, but himself, to life! (Pg. 692) Whew alright yes filled with drama and tension and lots of action towards the end but this one was not my favorite of the seven..Maybe I had high expectations or whatever but I didn’t feel the same way about this one and it was alittle verbose but yep I am now a Potterhead LOL and understand it all..sigh took so long to get the inside jokes and phrases but proud Ravenclaw here and can FINALLY cross these off the list of must reads for School Librarians…yay! ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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not set
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Aug 10, 2024
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Aug 10, 2024
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Hardcover
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| B0056T1OH8
| 4.58
| 3,515,952
| Jul 16, 2005
| Sep 16, 2006
|
really liked it
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Book 6 here we go…this one starts with setting up the backdrop for more of Harry’s adventures and you don’t hear from him in the first two chapters–Th
Book 6 here we go…this one starts with setting up the backdrop for more of Harry’s adventures and you don’t hear from him in the first two chapters–This epic story is definitely one that I am glad I am reading consecutively as the names and histories would be hard to keep track of–anyways we meet the Ministers-one of the Muggle world and one of the Magical one and their mutual problems with Voldemort’s return and we also get into a meeting of Snape-the mean professor from Book One everyone had their suspicions about and two loyal supporters who confront him with some legit questions� Well, continue, Bellatrix,� said Snape. “Why is it that you do not trust me?� “A hundred reasons!� she said loudly, striding out from behind the sofa to slam her glass upon the table. “Where to start! Where were you when the Dark Lord fell? Why did you never make any attempt to find him when he vanished? What have you been doing all these years that you’ve lived in Dumbledore’s pocket? Why did you stop the Dark Lord procuring the Sorcerer’s Stone? Why did you not return at once when the Dark Lord was reborn? Where were you a few weeks ago when we battled to retrieve the prophecy for the Dark Lord? And why, Snape, is Harry Potter still alive, when you have had him at your mercy for five years?� (Pg. 31) Snape has answers it seems for everyone about every shady scenario he has been apart of with his allegiance to the Dark Lord and even enters into a strange agreement to help out two Death Eaters–what is his deal?? Anyways Harry arrives at Hogswart and things go as well as to be expected for the Sixth year students-new teachers of course and even Snape finally getting his position as the Defense of the Dark Arts teacher..Hagrid still has his drama -all self-imposed with his hippogriff, giant brother Gwarp and a dying spider named Aragog� Harry and the crew are into their Quidditch with Harry as the captain this year and he even gets a little help in school by being assigned a textbook riddled with notes and spells that make his potions work and give him a mystery in finding out the identity of this help as all he knows is the name Half-Blood Prince…Ah and if there needed to be more Harry is also starting private lessons with Dumbledore and going into memories that reveal the past of Lord Voldemort -his parentage and childhood in an orphanage…he came up rough man but turned into the greatest..I like him yo LOL.. Anyways so Harry is continuing his lessons with Dumbledore and also fielding a silent war between Ron and Hermione as sigh prepubescent love and the inability to express themselves has them not speaking to each other.. Okay so the Ron-Hermione drama ends and there is more activity from the sneaky Malfoy who is entering rooms; Ron being poisoned by a Love Spell gone wrong; Hagrid’s spider Agragog dying and Harry struggling to procure a memory to explain a crucial piece of Voldemort’s past…So after many schemes Harry is able to get the memory and he and Dumbledore explore what the memory means as they learn how interested young Voldemort is in preserving his soul immortality–even inquiring about hiding his soul in seven Horcruxes to ensure he will never fully die…So aside from the one piece inside him now leaving six soul pieces in the world until Dumbledore and Harry discover they have already had contact with two of them� “However, we should not congratulate ourselves too heartily. You destroyed the diary and I the ring, but if we are right in our theory of a seven-part soul, four Horcruxes remain.� (Pg. 504) Harry sat in thought for a moment, then asked, “So if all of his Horcruxes are destroyed, Voldemort could be killed?� “Yes, I think so,� said Dumbledore. “Without his Horcruxes, Voldemort will be a mortal man with a maimed and diminished soul. Never forget, though, that while his soul may be damaged beyond repair, his brain and his magical powers remain intact. It will take uncommon skill and power to kill a wizard like Voldemort even without his Horcruxes.� (Pg. 509) So knowing all this and even having ideas on what the Horcruxes may be it still seems kinda impossible-especially when Dumbledore tells Harry that he has the secret weapon all along that was passed down from his dear mother: the ability to love ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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not set
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Aug 05, 2024
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Aug 05, 2024
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Paperback
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| 0439686520
| 4.50
| 3,638,902
| Jun 21, 2003
| Sep 2004
|
really liked it
| Book Five and we start the same way–with Harry bored and frustrated on summer vacation with his horrid family the Dursleys and sorely missing Hogwarts Book Five and we start the same way–with Harry bored and frustrated on summer vacation with his horrid family the Dursleys and sorely missing Hogwarts, Ron, Hermione, Sirius and all the drama he just left. He is basically sitting and waiting for news feeling useless—that is until a Dementor; the soul sucking guards of Azkaban prison show up on his street forcing him to defend himself and *gasp* use magic outside of Hogwarts. This unauthorized use of magic by an underage wizard gets Harry expelled–OMG and with a hearing before the Ministry of Magic The arrival of the dementors in Little Whinging seemed to have caused a breach in the great, invisible wall that divided the relentlessly non-magical world of Privet Drive and the world beyond. Harry’s two lives had somehow become fused and everything had been turned upside down: The Dursleys were asking for details about the magical world and Mrs. Figg knew Albus Dumbledore; dementors were soaring around Little Whinging and he might never go back to Hogwarts. (Pg. 37) Ah but of course Dumbledore, Hogwart’s illustrious headmaster could not let that happen so he whisks Harry, Ron and Hermione and the entire Weasley family to the house of Sirius Black and the headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix; a secret society of witches and wizards set on banishing You-Know-Who forever�.but there are other problems for young Harry “Despite the fact that he was still sleeping badly, still having dreams about corridors and locked doors that made his scar prickle, Harry was managing to have fun for the first time all summer. As long as he was busy he was happy; when the action abated, however, whenever he dropped his guard, or lay exhausted in bed watching blurred shadows move across the ceiling, the thought of the looming Ministry hearing returned to him. Fear jabbed at his insides like needles as he wondered what was going to happen to him if he was expelled. The idea was so terrible that he did not dare voice it aloud, not even to Ron and Hermione, who, though he often saw them whispering together and casting anxious looks in his direction, followed his lead in not mentioning it. (Pg. 119) Yes the trial happens and our dear Potter is exonerated of all charges and allowed to return to Hogwarts but the familiar comfort of routine and family are not there and instead he starts to see horses that were usually invisible and is treated like he is crazy and pointed and whispered about..No one knows what happened for real last year and his stories are put under high scrutiny along with the sanity and ability of Dumbledore to lead. With all this mistrust around making it weird it is also highly concerning that Hagrid is missing and that there is yet another Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher.. “Between the absence of Hagrid and the presence of those dragonish horses, he had felt that his return to Hogwarts, so long anticipated, was full of unexpected surprises like jarring notes in a familiar song. (Pg .208) **Pause** As I am reading I did want to note the wonderful vocabulary sprinkled throughout: Asperity,soporific, mollified–great words!!** Alright so things are not going well with the new Defense of Dark Arts teacher, leading Hermione to formulate the brilliant plan of having Harry be their secret teacher as he faced the most real danger� “Yes, Harry,� said Hermione gently, “but all the same, there’s no point pretending that you’re not good at Defense Against the Dark Arts, because you are. You were the only person last year who could throw off the Imperius Curse completely, you can produce a Patronus, you can do all sorts of stuff that full-grown wizards can’t, Viktor always said —� Ron looked around at her so fast he appeared to crick his neck; rubbing it, he said, “Yeah? What did Vicky say?� “Ho ho,� said Hermione in a bored voice. “He said Harry knew how to do stuff even he didn’t, and he was in the final year at Durmstrang.� (pg. 331) So about twenty eight students start to meet to learn to defend themselves against dark wizards right under the insufferable new teacher and Head Inquisitor Dolores Umbridge’s nose he has another huge hurdle to overcome when he is provoked by the Slytherins and ends up fighting. The horrid Dolores Umbridge asserts her authority and imposes a lifelong ban on Quidditch for Harry and the Weasley twins…yikes! Banning Quidditch is a hard pill for Harry to swallow as the whole book he is battling his emotions and temper of the unfair situation of his life and the evil wizard You-Know-Who stalking him he has the weirdest dream where he is inside of a snake and biting Ron’s father! “Sirius, I . . . I think I’m going mad. . . . Back in Dumbledore’s office, just before we took the Portkey . . . for a couple of seconds there I thought I was a snake, I felt like one � my scar really hurt when I was looking at Dumbledore � Sirius, I wanted to attack him —� He could only see a sliver of Sirius’s face; the rest was in darkness. “It must have been the aftermath of the vision, that’s all,� said Sirius. “You were still thinking of the dream or whatever it was and —� “It wasn’t that,� said Harry, shaking his head. “It was like something rose up inside me, like there’s a snake inside me —� Pg. 481 � I’m the weapon, Harry thought, and it was as though poison were pumping through his veins, chilling him, bringing him out in a sweat as he swayed with the train through the dark tunnel. I’m the one Voldemort’s trying to use, that’s why they’ve got guards around me everywhere I go, it’s not for my protection, it’s for other people’s, only it’s not working, they can’t have someone on me all the time at Hogwarts. . . . I did attack Mr. Weasley last night, it was me, Voldemort made me do it and he could be inside me, listening to my thoughts right now. . . . (Pg. 493) Yo so is Harry possessed? It may seem so especially when Dumbledore sends word that Harry is to take Occlumency to learn about the magical defense of the mind against external penetration–ooh intriguing.. The curse that failed to kill you seems to have forged some kind of connection between you and the Dark Lord. The evidence suggests that at times, when your mind is most relaxed and vulnerable � when you are asleep, for instance � you are sharing the Dark Lord’s thoughts and emotions. (Pg. 531) So Harry begins lessons with one of his least favorite teachers-Snape and tries to defend his thoughts from being read..however there is a problem.. � He could not help feeling that his first foray into Occlumency had weakened his mind’s resistance rather than strengthening it, and he wondered, with a feeling of great trepidation, what had happened to make Lord Voldemort the happiest he had been in fourteen years. (Pg. 542) So Harry can see in the mind of Voldemort and possibly the same is true in reverse which is why Harry is heavily persuaded to continue Occlumency while still studying for exams and teaching the secret Defensive Arts class—until the class is found out and they are all about to go down until Dumbledore steps in and takes the heat and also lands himself on the run with Umbridge now running the school� “Yes, shut up, Potter!� barked Fudge, who was still ogling Dumbledore with a kind of horrified delight. “Well, well, well � I came here tonight expecting to expel Potter and instead —� “Instead you get to arrest me,� said Dumbledore, smiling. “It’s like losing a Knut and finding a Galleon, isn’t it?� (Pg. 619) From Minister secretary, professor, to Head Inquisitor and now Headmistress Dolores Umbridge is on the come up for sure and she is deliciously evil with her “hem hem� and she imposes her rule on everything so naturally there are rebels to include Ron’s twin brothers who play pranks until they decide to ultimately leave school. The departure of Fred and George to run their prank shop, Umbridge’s reign of terror, the mysterious dreams and impending exams are enough to occupy Harry but then he gets even more on his plate with his dear friend Hagrid and his latest magical illegal scheme as he harbors a giant in the forest and wants the trio to help civilize and teach him�. But unfortunately, he made Harry and me promise.� “Well, you’re just going to have to break your promise, that’s all,� said Ron firmly. “I mean, come on . . . We’ve got exams and we’re about that far,� he held up his hand to show thumb and forefinger a millimeter apart, “from being chucked out as it is. And anyway . . . remember Norbert? Remember Aragog? Have we ever come off better for mixing with any of Hagrid’s monster mates?� (Pg. 705) “At least they didn’t get to take Hagrid off to Azkaban,� said Ron. “I ’spect he’s gone to join Dumbledore, hasn’t he?� “I suppose so,� said Hermione, who looked tearful. “Oh, this is awful, I really thought Dumbledore would be back before long, but now we’ve lost Hagrid too. . . .� (Pg. 723) It is all building up and building up to a huge scene with Harry and some unlikely supporters-of course Ron and Hermione but also Ginny, Neville and Luna Lovegood..Dramatically they enter the secret Department of Ministries…Confronted by DeathEaters and eventually the Dark Lord Voldemort himself it is action packed and full of tension but they make it out with a prophecy linking Harry and Voldemort since Harry’s birth and after Harry destroys the record of the crystal ball the only one who knows their fate is Dumbledore� “The end of the prophecy . . . it was something about . . . ‘neither can live. . . .� � � �. . . while the other survives,� � said Dumbledore. “So,� said Harry, dredging up the words from what felt like a deep well of despair inside him, “so does that mean that . . . that one of us has got to kill the other one . . . in the end?� “Yes,� said Dumbledore. (Pg. 844) He had not told Ron, Hermione, or anyone else what the prophecy had contained. Neville had told them it had smashed while Harry was pulling him up the steps in the Death Room, and Harry had not yet corrected this impression. He was not ready to see their expressions when he told them that he must be either murderer or victim, there was no other way. . . (.Pg. 849) So yeah it is inevitable that one of the two must die at some point and sigh there are two more books! Yea this was a feat but I enjoyed it …lets see what next year holds for Harry� ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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not set
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Aug 03, 2024
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Aug 03, 2024
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Paperback
| ||||||||||||||||
| 0439139597
| 9780439139595
| 0439139597
| 4.57
| 4,008,641
| Jul 08, 2000
| Sep 28, 2002
|
really liked it
| Ah ha into this world now yo and can’t turn back…this fourth book starts where I think the strength of the series is–by telling a detailed story to ex Ah ha into this world now yo and can’t turn back…this fourth book starts where I think the strength of the series is–by telling a detailed story to explain something..Her world building is intense and you can see her stories…She starts this one talking about the Riddle House and its history where three people were found dead inside ..the last name Riddle is yup the original name of You-Know-Who and after finding out about the house you overhear a meeting of You-Know-Who and his helper Scabber/Pettigrew/Wormtail from Book Three� “If?� whispered the second voice. “If ? If you follow the plan, Wormtail, the Ministry need never know that anyone else has died. You will do it quietly and without fuss; I only wish that I could do it myself, but in my present condition . . . Come, Wormtail, one more death and our path to Harry Potter is clear. I am not asking you to do it alone. By that time, my faithful servant will have rejoined us —� “I am a faithful servant,� said Wormtail, the merest trace of sullenness in his voice. “Wormtail, I need somebody with brains, somebody whose loyalty has never wavered, and you, unfortunately, fulfill neither requirement.� (Pg. 10) That is how we begin but then boom back to Harry as he spends another summer with the Dursleys until post comes from his favorite family the Weasleys and he is invited to attend a World Cup Quidditch match full of action and to stay the remainder of the summer. Hanging out with his friends before Hogwarts is everything to Harry and so even more concerning when they spot You-Know-Who’s sign in the sky and even more troubling it is discovered that the mark was made by Harry’s dropped wand causing serious panic and bad memories... “If?� whispered the second voice. “If ? If you follow the plan, Wormtail, the Ministry need never know that anyone else has died. You will do it quietly and without fuss; I only wish that I could do it myself, but in my present condition . . . Come, Wormtail, one more death and our path to Harry Potter is clear. I am not asking you to do it alone. By that time, my faithful servant will have rejoined us —� “I am a faithful servant,� said Wormtail, the merest trace of sullenness in his voice. “Wormtail, I need somebody with brains, somebody whose loyalty has never wavered, and you, unfortunately, fulfill neither requirement.� (Pg.142) Seeing the Mark brings into question who are his supporters or Death Eaters and does this mean he is strong enough to return? “So . . . whoever conjured the Dark Mark . . .� said Hermione slowly, “were they doing it to show support for the Death Eaters, or to scare them away?� “Your guess is as good as ours, Hermione,� said Mr. Weasley. “But I’ll tell you this . . . it was only the Death Eaters who ever knew how to conjure it. I’d be very surprised if the person who did it hadn’t been a Death Eater once, even if they’re not now. . . . (pg. 143) “It was only a dream,� said Ron bracingly. “Just a nightmare.� “Yeah, but was it, though?� said Harry, turning to look out of the window at the brightening sky. “It’s weird, isn’t it? . . . My scar hurts, and three days later the Death Eaters are on the march, and Voldemort’s sign’s up in the sky again.� As if that wasn’t alot to deal with the students are also getting ready to experience a Triwizard Tournament against the three largest schools of wizardry to compete in three magical tasks though participants must be at least seventeen which none of our crew are.. And at school..things at Hogwarts are going as normal there is yet another new teacher for the Defense of Dark Arts and this one is just as eccentric with a magical eye..Moody’s class is as interesting as he is with his first lesson being on illegal curses- “Now . . . those three curses � Avada Kedavra, Imperius, and Cruciatus � are known as the Unforgivable Curses. The use of any one of them on a fellow human being is enough to earn a life sentence in Azkaban. That’s what you’re up against. That’s what I’ve got to teach you to fight.� (Pg. 217) As always there are alot of side plots and there is one with Hermione and her campaign to free house elves like Dobby and pay them for services rendered..sigh she is so passionate about everything� “House-elves!� said Hermione, her eyes flashing. “Not once, in over a thousand pages, does Hogwarts, A History mention that we are all colluding in the oppression of a hundred slaves!� School progresses and the three schools convene together to hold their Triwizard Tournament and three names are chosen to represent their schools–including a beautiful girl that bewitches people –it's cute how in this book you see them really grow up and get crushes.. “But she wasn’t entirely right about that. As the girl crossed the Hall, many boys� heads turned, and some of them seemed to have become temporarily speechless, just like Ron. “I’m telling you, that’s not a normal girl!� said Ron, leaning sideways so he could keep a clear view of her. “They don’t make them like that at Hogwarts!� “They make them okay at Hogwarts,� said Harry without thinking. Cho happened to be sitting only a few places away from the girl with the silvery hair. (Pg. 252) So the names are revealed but this is a Fantasy novel after all and there are so many pages to go so of course there is a huge twist and Harry Potter is also summoned to participate in the tournament DESPITE it being a Triwizard thing and him being under the age of seventeen..sigh.. “Was anyone except Ron and Hermione going to believe him, or would they all think he’d put himself in for the tournament? Yet how could anyone think that, when he was facing competitors who’d had three years� more magical education than he had � when he was now facing tasks that not only sounded very dangerous, but which were to be performed in front of hundreds of people? Yes, he’d thought about it . . . he’d fantasized about it . . . but it had been a joke, really, an idle sort of dream . . . he’d never really, seriously considered entering. . . . But someone else had considered it . . . someone else had wanted him in the tournament, and had made sure he was entered. Why? To give him a treat? He didn’t think so, somehow. . . . To see him make a fool of himself? Well, they were likely to get their wish. . . . But to get him killed? (Pg. 283) Even his on the run godfather Sirius agrees and imparts wisdom on the head of one of the houses in the Tournament who used to support You-Know-Who. “But whoever put your name in that goblet did it for a reason, and I can’t help thinking the tournament would be a very good way to attack you and make it look like an accident.� (Pg. 336) So much drama that yes it creeps into the friendship trio with Ron finally showing his resentment about Harry’s popularity and the unfairness of him being chosen as the fourth champion- Ron even accuses Harry about lying about placing his name in the Goblet with Hermione trying to force them to talk to each other, but Harry standing strong on his resolve to not talk to Ron again only if Ron admitted that Harry hadn’t put his name in the Goblet of Fire and apologized for calling him a liar. It gets hot and the two even come to words and Harry throws a pin at his head and they stop speaking-oh no! All that aside and then there are the challenges–spaced out from November-February and then June the four champions are put against each other all against the spooky backdrop of Harry’s aching scar, unflattering newspaper articles, shady characters Fudge, Bagman, Madam Maxime and the impending feeling of darkness. On the third challenge it all becomes clear why Harry’s name was put in the Goblet and when him and the other Hogswart champion get close to the finish they are transported to a scene where Harry is tied up and his blood is used to resurrect He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named..yikes! “That will do,� said Voldemort. He had reached the largest gap of all, and he stood surveying it with his blank, red eyes, as though he could see people standing there. “And here we have six missing Death Eaters . . . three dead in my service. One, too cowardly to return . . . he will pay. One, who I believe has left me forever . . . he will be killed, of course . . . and one, who remains my most faithful servant, and who has already reentered my service.� (Pg. 651) Voldemort goes into basically the plots of the last books on the people he used and the ways he tried to come back to power and get the blood of his most hated enemy and the one who has a protection spell already-our dear Harry Potter.. “But how to get at Harry Potter? For he has been better protected than I think even he knows, protected in ways devised by Dumbledore long ago, when it fell to him to arrange the boy’s future. Dumbledore invoked an ancient magic, to ensure the boy’s protection as long as he is in his relations� care. Not even I can touch him there. . . . Then, of course, there was the Quidditch World Cup. . . . I thought his protection might be weaker there, away from his relations and Dumbledore, but I was not yet strong enough to attempt kidnap in the midst of a horde of Ministry wizards. And then, the boy would return to Hogwarts, where he is under the crooked nose of that Muggle-loving fool from morning until night. So how could I take him? “Why . . . by using Bertha Jorkins’s information, of course. Use my one faithful Death Eater, stationed at Hogwarts, to ensure that the boy’s name was entered into the Goblet of Fire. Use my Death Eater to ensure that the boy won the tournament � that he touched the Triwizard Cup first � the cup which my Death Eater had turned into a Portkey, which would bring him here, beyond the reach of Dumbledore’s help and protection, and into my waiting arms. And here he is . . . the boy you all believed had been my downfall. . . .� (Pg. 657) Yes bring on the drama and the inevitable confrontation�- Harry crouched behind the headstone and knew the end had come. There was no hope . . . no help to be had. And as he heard Voldemort draw nearer still, he knew one thing only, and it was beyond fear or reason: He was not going to die crouching here like a child playing hide-and-seek; he was not going to die kneeling at Voldemort’s feet . . . he was going to die upright like his father, and he was going to die trying to defend himself, even if no defense was possible. . . . (Pg. 662) But alas there are more books! So no that was not the end for Harry and there were so many secrets revealed –whew this was admittedly intense reading for ages eleven and up but I did enjoy it..whoa more to go! ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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not set
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Jul 29, 2024
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Jul 28, 2024
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Paperback
| ||||||||||||||
| B00ES27LCQ
| 4.43
| 4,281,941
| Jul 02, 1998
| Jun 02, 1999
|
really liked it
|
Book Two alright so we begin with Harry like me :), home for summer recuperating and reflecting on his adventures with his awful family the Dursleys f
Book Two alright so we begin with Harry like me :), home for summer recuperating and reflecting on his adventures with his awful family the Dursleys for the next few weeks longing for his friends and life at Hogwarts when a mysterious sad elf named Dobby enters his room. After hearing Dobby’s woes of never being able to follow the rules and life as a house elf Dobby gives Harry a warning that chills his bones and tells him he must not return to Hogwarts� “W-what?!� Harry stammered. “But I’ve got to go back-term starts September first. It’s all that’s keeping me going. You don’t know what it’s like here. I don’t belong here. I belong in your world-at Hogwarts.� “No, no, no,� squeaked Dobby, shaking his head so hard his ears flapped. “Harry Potter must stay where he is safe. He is too great, too good to lose. If Harry Potter goes back to Hogwarts, he will be in mortal danger.� (Pg. 16) Dobby is deadly serious and even ruins the Dursley’s dinner pudding to illustrate his point; of course Harry is blamed and subsequently locked in his room and forbidden from attending Hogwarts..But ya know that can’t happen there are five more books left LOL so his best friend Ron and his brothers come get him and allow him to spend the summer there to Harry’s delight and the drama starts before they get to school with skirmishes and fall outs while school shopping as his old enemy Malfoy and his father still get off on pushing Harry and Ron’s buttons. The summer does go by though their return to Hogwarts is just as eventful as everything else as the boys find themselves with no other option but to fly a car to school against all rules� With a start like that of course his year is to be busy and after getting screamed at by Ron’s mother and finding himself having to prove his humility he has mixed feelings about a new professor at Hogwarts-Gilderoy Lockhart. Harry is unsure Lockhart is the real deal and while he is figuring it out he has new friends in Ron’s little sister Ginny and fellow Gryffindor student Colin Creevey who are Harry’s biggest fans. The big conflict of the book and the title comes as the three friends Harry, Ron and Hermione learn about the Chamber of Secrets aside from the creepy voice Harry hears sometimes and other questions like what happened to the guard cat Mrs Norris become the next mission for the trio.. “Slytherin, according to legend, sealed the Chamber of Secrets so that none would be able to open it until his own true heir arrived at the school. The heir alone would be able to unseal the Chamber of Secrets, unleash the horrors within and use it to purge the school of all who are unworthy to study magic.� (Pg. 131) In between that mystery there is another epic Quidditch match where Harry’s arm is broken and instead of healing it the vain and absentminded Professor Lockhart does a spell where his bones are removed and he has the painful slow process of regrowing them and as he recovers he is faced against Malfoy in a practice class and everyone finds out that he is ParcelMouth meaning that he can communicate with snakes…which is a very important new detail about Harry� “It matters,� said Hermione, speaking at last in a hushed voice, “because being able to talk to snakes was what Salazar Slytherin was famous for. That’s why the symbol of Slytherin House is a serpent.�(Pg. 195) “Hannah,� said the stout boy solemnly, “he’s a Parselmouth. Everyone knows that’s the mark of a Dark wizard. Have you ever heard of a decent one who could talk to snakes? They called Slytherin himself Serpent-tongue.� (Pg. 198 As the hunt is on for the Slytherin heir and the Chamber of Secrets so is a new plan to get information and one that involves shape shifting and changing appearances so Ron, Harry and Hermione all concoct a potion to look like Slytherins to gain access to what they know–only the spell goes wrong and she turns into a cat. Hermione’s bad luck doesn’t stop as she is also petrified -Ron and Harry know they must find out who is behind this and sadly their investigation leads them to an old friend-the giant Hagrid who has an affinity for unusual monsters and fantastical animals� Ron and Harry decide to confront Hagrid and then it goes down–they get to witness Dumbledore being asked to step down and Hagrid being taken to jail! And as if things couldn't get worse they finally find out what the monster is that they are seeking–a Basilisk whose stare could kill but as only glimpses were taken people ended up petrified. Harry and Ron have yet another problem as they are waiting on Hermione to recover when they find out that Ron’s sister Ginny is missing and they still have to find the Basilisk..There is a big action sequence, lots of activity and yet another confrontation with Lord Voldemort and you learn about his past as a student in Hogswart as his anagram Tom Marvolo Riddle.. Eh this one was not as good as the first one in my opinion but it did keep me in the world and intrigued–there is always a twist…Okay let’s keep going ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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not set
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Jul 21, 2024
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Jul 21, 2024
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Hardcover
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| B07SBCZ16W
| 4.47
| 10,899,509
| Jun 26, 1997
| Dec 08, 2015
|
really liked it
|
Sigh, it is finally time LOL…After getting a new job as a School Librarian, shiny official certification and years of denying its power here I am abou
Sigh, it is finally time LOL…After getting a new job as a School Librarian, shiny official certification and years of denying its power here I am about to get my Librarian reading cred up and join the masses who I watch enjoying its magic..(Special shout out to Amazon Prime Day for having all 7 books for $43 yay I will also promptly be donating this set to my new reading community if I don't fall in love and need these in my collection hmm we shall see).…Though there have been far too many opportunities to read LOL I resisted mightily and even shunned my dear sister’s recommendations as I just could not see myself getting into this book about a wizard boy but here I am…Okay so just starting the writing is well paced and descriptive..loved that but then I knew J.K. Rowling could write and you get a little involved in the intro with strange occurrences happening to the ordinary Dursley family–owls, people in cloaks and a shunned baby nephew showing up on their doorstep with the most curious birthmark shaped like a lightning bolt on his forehead. . Yup young Harry Potter is orphaned after his parents mysteriously pass away and the Dursleys are the only family he has though they are not fans and for ten years keep him in as meager accommodations as possible with a room under the stairs and the skinny boy with the lightning bolt scar on his forehead is bullied, ignored and treated like an afterthought..Things start to change the day a letter arrives for him, a letter he never gets to read but then everyday letters start to arrive until his uncle and aunt take him away days before his eleventh birthday..Stuck together in a desolate cabin in the middle of nowhere Uncle Vernon thinks they are safe and whatever is trying to communicate with the weird Potter boy is gone; that is until Hagrid, this huge gigantic man with a curly beard and stories of Muggles and magic comes to visit and changes Harry’s life forever with the introduction of Hogwarts and his parents� wizarding past and even a glimpse of why he is so special� “You-Know-Who killed ‘em. An� then–an� then this is the real mystery of the thing- he tried to kill you too. Wanted ter make a clean job of it, I suppose, or maybe he just liked killing by then. But he couldn’t do it. Never wondered how you got that mark on yer forehead? That was no ordinary cut. That’s what yeh get when a powerful, evil curse touches yeh-took care of yer mum an� dad an� yer house even-but it didn’t work on you, an� that’s why yer famous, Harry.� (Pg. 55) Ah and the introduction of the villain Voldemort (they try not to say this name too often) and a glimpse into his past as Hagrid takes Harry to a series of magical shops to buy school supplies for a wizard ya know books, hat, glove, cloak, an owl named Hedwig and of course a wand which curiously chooses him –and is made from a phoenix feather that was also used in the same wand that inflicted his lightning scar. Harry is finally ready to go and waits until time to board the train to Hogwarts where he meets Ron: youngest of five boys with a mound of expectations placed upon him; Neville a sensitive kid who lost who toad and Hermione: brash, intelligent and bossy who help ingratiate him on the ways of Hogwarts with the most important being the choice of house selection. You learn of the Houses-Slytherin (the one where cunning is rewarded and winning by any means necessary which makes it likely where most villains come from; Ravenclaw (known for intelligence and those of wit and learning); Hufflepuff (known to be just, loyal, patient and unafraid of toil) and Gryffindor (brave and known for their daring, nerve and chivalry) and you wonder what house Harry will be in and as I am surrounded by a world of fans, what house I would represent�. The first year students are sorted into houses by a singing Sorting hat and their internal traits are determined� Harry, Hermione, Ron and Neville all go to the House Gryffindor and as their lessons begin along with his friends he also meets a teacher that hates him-Professor Snape head of Slytherin and some other Slytherin boys Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle who make it their mission to bother him any chance they get..The latest chance comes in the form of a wizard duel where Malfoy and Crabbe are set to duel Ron and Harry at midnight which turns out to be a trap..the year advances and a Halloween incident draws Ron, Hermione and Harry closer as they defeat a 12 foot troll and meet a three headed dog that may or may not be standing on something suspicious. The three study together and even support each other as Harry is selected for the Hogwarts Quidditch team (a complex game of balls, seven players and flying broomsticks) and mysterious happenings like an errant broom and whispering teachers bring more questions for the trio� “I’m tellin� yeh, yer wrong!� said Hagrid hotly. “I don’t know why Harry’s broom acted like that, but Snape wouldn’t try and kill a student! Now, listen to me, all three of yeh-yer meddlin in thing that don’t concern yeh. It’s dangerous. You forget that dog, and you forget what its guarding, that;s between Professor Dumbledore and Nicolas Flamel-� (Pg, 193) Finding out who Nicolas Flamel was becomes paramount and even escapades with Harry’s invisibility cloak and the Mirror of Erised or Desire don’t keep the three from searching him out and discovering that he was a partner of Professor Dumbledore and was the creator of the Sorcerer’s Stone which can turn any medal to gold and produces the Elixir of Life which makes the drinker immortal. The action doesn’t stop with an incident with a dragon and a unicorn chase in the woods where Harry learns the truth about unicorns and what they may have to do with the Sorcerer’s Stone- “The blood of a unicorn will keep you alive, even if you are an inch from death, but at a terrible price. You have slain something pure and defenseless to save yourself, and you will have but a half-life, a cursed life, from the moment the blood touches your lips.� (Pg. 258) Ah yes the conflict and of course you look at the likely suspect of Snape being the one behind this as there is no other person who may need the Elixir of Life but Voldemort the unnamed evil one who killed Harry’s parents and lurks somewhere for his revenge on Harry. Bring on an epic confrontation scene, bright moments of friendship and bravery and lessons learned and an intense rivalry brewing with Voldemort and young Harry as it is only Year One� This book had a lot more chess and games than I expected but I didn’t mind. There is a great set up for more story and sigh let’s go I am in for it now…A new recommendation but one I can do based on reading it now..:) ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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not set
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Jul 20, 2024
|
Jul 20, 2024
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Kindle Edition
| ||||||||||||||||
| 043965548X
| 9780439655484
| 043965548X
| 4.58
| 4,597,328
| Jul 08, 1999
| May 01, 2004
|
really liked it
|
Book Three and yup Harry is on summer vacation with the horrid Dursley family under strict instructions not to do anything foolish to bring attention
Book Three and yup Harry is on summer vacation with the horrid Dursley family under strict instructions not to do anything foolish to bring attention to himself and his magical school but alas he is Harry and he gets into it with Aunt Marge after she says a little too much about his family and he finds his way through London by waving his wand and boarding a magical bus. While on the bus the line between Muggle and magic is crossed as both worlds have heard of Sirius Black, probably the most infamous prisoner in Azkaban; the wizard’s prison Hagrid was taken to in the first book. .“The only thing we know for sure is what Black’s after-� “But Harry is perfectly safe at Hogwarts.� “We thought Azkaban was perfectly safe. If Black can break out of Azkaban, he can break into Hogwarts.�........”Molly how many times do I have to tell you? They didn’t report it in the press because Fudge wanted it kept quiet, but Fudge went out to Azkaban the night Black escaped. The guards told Fudge that Black’s been talking in his sleep for awhile now. Always the same words: ‘He’s at Hogwarts…he’s at Hogwarts.� Black is deranged Molly, and he wants Harry dead. If you ask me, he thinks murdering Harry will bring You-Know-Who back to power, Black lost everything the night Harry stopped You-Know-Who, and he’s had twelve years alone in Azkaban to brood on that�.�(Pg. 65) Ooh impending doom and old grudges…just how you start a new school year and this term brings new teachers–after going through two professors there is a new Defense Against the Dark Arts instructor and they even allow Hagrid to teach a class on magical animals. Another new class for them is Divination where you learn to foretell the future and the instructor gloomily sees death for Harry and the presence of a Grim. Yo I have to pause my review much like my reading had to get paused to vent–my book was missing pages! For shame I have a gap from pages 148-245..that is crazy..lucky some dedicated fan transcribed the entire book and I was able to get my missing chapters..ugh..I missed a Quidditch match where Harry is again injured -jeez- and man his broom is broken. Not only is his room broken, an escaped convict out to get him but he also could not get his permission slip signed to leave Hogswart and visit the magical wizarding community of Hogsmeade like the other third-years. As another group prepares to leave and Harry is left behind he is initiated by Ron’s older twin brothers to the underground prankster world of Hogswart through the Marauder’s Map with its invisible ink maps and secret passageways–this is where the popular phrases “I solemnly swear I am up to no good� and “Mischief Managed� comes from as they are everywhere in Potterworld among Potter fans...So Harry uses the Map to sneak into Hogsmeade and hang with his friends until the teachers show up and he overhears talk of Sirius Black’s time at Hogswart and his best friend-Harry’s dad. Finding out his dad and Black used to be so close is jarring–close enough that Black was Best Man in his parents� wedding and is actually Harry’s godfather and to thicken the plot there is another part to the plot� an immensely complex spell that involves the magical concealment of a secret inside a single, living soul or Secret-Keeper, and is henceforth impossible to find -- unless, of course, the Secret-Keeper chooses to divulge it. Ah and Harry’s parents entrusted Black as their guy� � As long as the Secret-Keeper refused to speak, You-Know-Who could search the village where Lily and James were staying for years and never find them, not even if he had his nose pressed against their sitting room window!" "So Black was the Potters' Secret-Keeper?" whispered Madam Rosmerta. "Naturally," said Professor McGonagall. "James Potter told Dumbledore that Black would die rather than tell where they were, that Black was planning to go into hiding himself... and yet, Dumbledore remained worried. I remember him offering to be the Potters' Secret-Keeper himself." (Page Unknown) Hearing about his parents� fate due to the betrayal of their best friend lights a fire of hatred in Harry–a hatred so intense he contemplates going against strict orders and seeking out Black himself� "D'you know what I see and hear every time a dementor gets too near me?" Ron and Hermione shook their heads, looking apprehensive. "I can hear my mum screaming and pleading with Voldemort. And if you'd heard your mum screaming like that, just about to be killed, you wouldn't forget it in a hurry. And if you found out someone who was supposed to be a friend of hers betrayed her and sent Voldemort after her --" "There's nothing you can do!" said Hermione, looking stricken. "The dementors will catch Black and he'll go back to Azkaban and -- and serve him right!" "You heard what Fudge said. Black isn't affected by Azkaban like normal people are. It's not a punishment for him like it is for the others." "So what are you saying?" said Ron, looking very tense. "You want to -- to kill Black or something?" (Page Unknown) Things keep getting worse as Hagrid is brought up on charges for injuring a student-the hated Malfoy of all people and is facing a court case with the execution of a hippogriff on the line just around the holidays where Harry, Ron and Hermione spend their break at Hogwarts. Trying to stay out of trouble and help Hagrid, the three research until Christmas where they open presents and find an amazing broom for Harry to replace his old one sent with no name and Hermione’s sneaky suspicion that it may have been sent by Sirius Black. Hermione goes straight to the professors with her doubt and causes a riff in the tight trio’s friendship.. A truce is called in time for the Final Quidditch match where Harry and the Gryffindors win the Cup for the first time in eight years …Exams come and go for the students and just as things are settling down the trial comes for Hagrid’s hippogriff and he loses; on appeal it seems he also lost and while the team is sneaking around learning of Beaky the hippogriff’s fate they see a dog that ends up taking them on a chase where Ron’s leg is broken and it is revealed that the dog is merely a trick by none other than Sirius Black who has caught them at last.. Stories reveal that Harry’s father and Sirius were authors of the Marauders Map…there is a huge confrontation scene and a big reveal ahead as you find out more and more of the writers of the Map and how Harry’s parents fit in. The book concluded with like thirty pages of action, reveals and you end waiting for more from them –let’s get into the next book friends� ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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not set
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Jul 23, 2024
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Jul 20, 2024
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Mass Market Paperback
| ||||||||||||||
| 1454950072
| 9781454950073
| 1454950072
| 3.45
| 539
| unknown
| Oct 24, 2023
|
did not like it
|
Okay boo…I kinda don’t even want to finish this review cause I was so disappointed at the end ugh…okay so found a new psychological thriller and it se
Okay boo…I kinda don’t even want to finish this review cause I was so disappointed at the end ugh…okay so found a new psychological thriller and it seemed intense so I decided that was my next read LOL..this one follows two girls Audrey and Sarah–neighbors and enemies, two women in an impossibly complex like-hate relationship�..The book begins by introducing them–Aubrey a visually impaired woman who is impressively independent, is addicted to eating dirt and keeping secrets and Sarah- a young single mom with her share of enemies and admirers�-- “Priya and Brian might be a square peg and a round hole, but that’s no reason for Brian to be sleeping with Sarah. But then, people don’t sleep with Sarah because they don’t couple excellently with their partners. They sleep with her because she’s irresistible, even in her third trimester. (Loc 630) Ah Sarah accumulating enemies everywhere overt and covert from her hating coworker Celia who started out genuine but is now proving jealous; her creepy landlord who likes to drop by unannounced and offered her rent reduction for attending pool parties with pretty friends; and Priya the understandably mad wife of Brian a man who keeps her company from time to time.Even Aubrey is cryptic on how she feels about Sarah and if she is truly genuinely friends with her though she babysits her daughter Nicole occasionally. Sarah’s relationships and her complex history with Audrey all comes on display when Audrey discovers Sarah dead with her skull cracked and a murder investigation ensues.. “How well would you say you knew Sarah?� I’d like to think I knew her well. But it’s hard to say. How well do we know people?� (Loc 743) Can we really trust Aubrey and is Sarah all that she seems? This one moves between the two building up suspense and insight into their relationship- “Even with many suspect and motives, it’s only a matter of time before the detectives get to the truth. The last thing they are is stupid. The thought relieves me, but as I turn over once more and flip the pillow to its cool side, a small seed of fear starts to sprout inside me. What if they’re a little too good at their jobs and find out the truth, not only about Sarah but about everything? I can’t let that happen. (Loc 1930) The book switches times between the past and the present with Sarah occupied with her friend Dan being fired for embezzling and her quest to prove his innocence which leads her to sneaking in computers and eventually getting mugged and hit by a car with injuries keeping her unconscious for three weeks. The embezzling case was way too drawn out and kinda boring and then the end reveal–boo I hated it. I was not impressed at all with this one and so it must get the dreaded Wanksta status ugh. ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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not set
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Jul 19, 2024
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Jul 19, 2024
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Paperback
| ||||||||||||||
| 1250042992
| 9781250042996
| 1250042992
| 4.38
| 684
| Nov 17, 2015
| Nov 17, 2015
|
really liked it
|
**spoiler alert** What up third book and yes this one picks up right where it left off with Sunny in a jail cell for picking up a bag of cocaine in Me
**spoiler alert** What up third book and yes this one picks up right where it left off with Sunny in a jail cell for picking up a bag of cocaine in Mexico–though amazingly she still has the audacity to be upset at Malcolm for leaving her in Mexico and flying back to the United States though I hardly blame him. Sunny is left to call her parents for a way out and also confront her daughter about the real reason she was arrested.. “This time she was in the hot seat for real. The people she loved were demanding to know how she could thoughtlessly risk everything again for the sake of getting high.�(Pg. 60) As you go through this with Sunny you also get to catch up with Jada, Sheldon, Born and Anisa as Jada and Born remain separated because of Sheldon’s suicide attempt and obvious contempt for him and Born has slid back to his baby mother Anisa leaving Jada despondent and lonely.. “But the truth was that a large part of Jada hated Sheldon for forcing her and Born apart. It felt as if Sheldon’s father Jamari was torturing her all over again from the grave. She hated it so intensely that she had to make a conscious effort to be nice to her son. She reminded herself that she had no one to blame but herself for Sheldon’s struggles. Still, it was hard not to think negatively about the young man who had taken so much control over her life.� (Pg. 9) The book shifts from our core characters and also into the lives of some new players in Frederick, Angelle, Misa and others that I really couldn’t get invested in as Sunny and Jada’s stories were far more captivating.. And so with all these side plots, animosities and betrayals from everyone the book goes there with a shocking twist that makes you want to scream out —sigh my girl Sunny dies yo..tragic I couldn’t believe my favorite just overdosed like a waste..aw man and then everything goes left–Ava and Zion’s spot gets blown up with their relationship and his drug trade; Born receives a bomb at his doorstep; every member of his old drug crew is mysteriously raided; Jada receives a cryptic note and a vial of crack in her mailbox and on the way home is assaulted in her car by a hooded figure..It goes down (great reading–whew some truly fire ass conversations) even sadly Sunny’s funeral and the mystery man hellbent on revenge is revealed but not until he kidnaps Born’s son Ethan and demands one million dollars. The plot is thick and there are times I truly could not stop reading (personal opinion I could have done without the Noble drug family issues) but yea this one takes it there and makes you want to read�.Everyone’s story ends and you are satisfied but yea there are some sad moments in this one and some great characters..Enjoyed this series alot! ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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not set
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Jul 15, 2024
|
Jul 15, 2024
|
Paperback
| ||||||||||||||
| 0312555237
| 9780312555238
| 0312555237
| 4.17
| 1,219
| Jan 17, 2012
| Apr 24, 2012
|
really liked it
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Went right on into Book two as I heard this one was comparable and may even exceed the predecessor where the focus was on Jada..this book takes us int
Went right on into Book two as I heard this one was comparable and may even exceed the predecessor where the focus was on Jada..this book takes us into Sunny’s life and how the beautiful hustler girlfriend turned model found her way back from her devastating loss of her child’s father Dorian� Sunny, now a single mom to a gorgeous 12 year old named Mercedes deals with her loneliness by popping pills and maintaining her diva persona..Life is going well as she is still best friends with Jada who finally got a proposal from Born on her birthday. The story dips back and forth in the girls� lives as Sunny lives in memories of Dorian and Jada has to deal with the problem of her child fathered by the hated Jamari and alive despite months of crack abuse. Sunny and Jada decide in their free time to co-author a book about their time as hustlers� girlfriends amidst the drugs, parties and drama..their book gets them an invitation to Hollywood however rightfully so Jada is reluctant to expose her past of addiction especially now that she is a mother. In Hollywood Sunny is finally able to shine on her own and not just as a glorified girlfriend or mother or part of a duo of recovered drug addicts. “Sunny wanted it all again. She decided to accept the fact that Jada was on a different page than she was now. Sunny wanted the joy that she’d felt once upon a time, while Jada had found a new contentment. It didn’t matter. They would always be friends, Sunny told herself. But her life was moving in a different direction and she liked the way it felt being back to her old self. (Pg. 121) Sunny relishes in the attention but feels an emptiness only filled by the lavish lifestyle and numbing drugs..and in California at a professional athlete’s party she is again confronted by her biggest demon and she succumbs again to cocaine. At that party Sunny is able to snort the way she missed and even an overdose death and huge publicity move don’t deter her from stealing more and indulging in her favorite pastime even when returning back to New York.. Alongside Sunny’s struggles are Jada’s as she had to reveal her sordid past to her child Sheldon and he resents her for it. It can’t be easy learning your mother was a crackhead and your father was her supplier and resentful of her past love and now fiance. Sheldon is full of anger and becomes disrespectful and his mental health issues surface crazily…Sheldon is all over the place with his emotions and his anger and jealousy arise over those who have more than him like Born’s son Ethan who has a father and his own mother who he feels doesn’t deserve happiness after her crack past. Sheldon’s rage makes him drown a dog and then take all the prescribed medication from therapy..his murder of the dog and suicide attempt make Born understandably cautious and for the second time it looks like the end for the two.. The drama intensifies as the book shifts back to Sunny and internal strife she has to stay away from cocaine and allow herself to be happy with her new man Malcolm. “Still, Malcolm was unlike any man she’d felt that for since Dorian had taken his last breath in her arms she might just have a chance at having it all-the stability of a life with Malcolm and at the same time the thrill of life in the fast lane of getting high, partying and bullshit. (Pg. 179) On a ten day trip to Mexico designed to bring the two closer, all her demons come out in an argument and in an effort to numb herself she goes to a bad part of town to score drugs and this last time will prove to be her downfall.. Man this book ends on a cliffhanger and with so many questions!!---What will happen to Sunny and Malcolm after they get locked up in Mexico? Will Ava and Zion be together at last or will Zion go back to Olivia? Will Jada really sacrifice her happiness with Born for Sheldon? What will happen with DJ’s rap career and yea I will have to read the third one..Enjoyed this one too! ...more |
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1
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not set
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not set
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Jul 14, 2024
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Paperback
| ||||||||||||||
| 0312336489
| 9780312336486
| 0312336489
| 4.51
| 3,943
| Jan 09, 2007
| Jan 09, 2007
|
really liked it
|
Ah ha..I have wanted to read this one for a long time and what better time than the summer when I am trying to get into reading.I have head so much ab
Ah ha..I have wanted to read this one for a long time and what better time than the summer when I am trying to get into reading.I have head so much about this one and I am expecting lots of drama-yay..Okay so this one starts out introducing Jada and Ava..sisters growing up in 1990 Brooklyn amidst the hustle, drugs and street rhythm of living in the projects combined with the inevitable teenage girl draw to cute boys :)...definitely felt them here..In addition to navigating life they have a tumultuous home life as well with a mother weakened by the death and infidelity of their father and the constant abuse from her new boyfriend J.D.. “Edna had a million excuses for J.D.’s behavior. But excuses are never good reasons, and being a very mature ten-year old, Jada could tell her mother was feeding them bullshit. As they grew older, J.D. turned his fury on them. This was the environment in which the girls became young ladies, trying to sidestep a madman living under their own roof.� (Pg. 14) Jada and Ava learn to take care of themselves or rather Jada takes care of Ava until the night that Ava couldn’t take it anymore and an attempted suicide and J.D.’s death moves the family to Staten Island�.with Edna unable to devote much of herself to parenting due to loneliness Jada is left to the streets and gets introduced to weed which eventually leads to blunts laced with crack (woolahs) and eventually a crack pipe and a habit she does just about anything to support. Sneaking around and smoking is her life for a while until her mother’s new boyfriend takes her under his wing and allows her to smoke in his house and even supplies her with money. The relationship which starts out friendly and innocent enough takes a turn when one night Mr. Charlie opens her up sexually and then turns her on to the game of sex for money and he and his wife’s brothel of women. As an unwilling prostitute Jada is disgusted and shamed but does what she needs to for her hit of crack every night until she is given three gross clients and decides to quit. A huge brawl ensues and Jada is tossed out alone–broke and dependent on crack she goes back to stealing until she is arrested, forced in a 90 day rehab and returns with a new lease on life –it is in this headspace that she meets Born around page eighty.. The story gets a new narrator in Marquis as you learn how he became a hustler through his childhood idolizing his father and mother until he discovers his father is a crackhead and he can only depend on himself. Throwing himself into hustling and changes from Marquis to Born and becomes hardened and street minded in and out of the justice system all through his youth�. “By the time he returned home after his stint in the group home, it was no secret to Ingrid that the respectable young man she knew as Marquis was also a ruthless thug known in the streets as Born.� (pg.111) Determined and street smart Born decides early not to give his heart to a woman and his mind and heart to the hustle though he has hard choices to make when one of his customers is his own father� “The relationship between father and son had taken a twisted turn. They’d gone from being a larger-than-life father and his adoring son to an addict and his dealer. (Pg. 123) As you get introduced to these two troubled souls they end up finding each other with Born seeing her and starting their relationship…Alright so at this time Jada is clean from her crack addiction and though Born is a street hustler “who sells her drug of choice along with guns and any other street illegal activity and while she is hesitant to fall back into the same life she left she opens up to Born and tells him her sordid past.. “Born listened to Jada’s story in astonishment. These things happened before he’d met her, yet he still felt disappointed by the revelations. She had been a true fiend. She had sold her body. She was weak like his father had been , and that was something Born couldn’t easily get past.� (Pg. 175) Jada and Born quickly become friends and more than that as a loving power couple with Born taking over more and more of the streets thanks to his new connect Dorian and Jada makes a friend in his beautiful energetic wife Sunny …The foursome make Staten Island their playground with their riches and power and it all comes back full circle for Jada as her old life makes an appearance and so does the call of her addiction� “Born had mixed emotions about the influence that Sunny was having on Jada. True, she looked beautiful tonight but Born was concerned that Sunny might encourage Jada to go too far. Born loved Jada, and he knew how impressionable she was. He didn’t want Sunny, or anyone else, to get her caught up in a lifestyle that didn't suit her. (Pg. 201) But the pull of cocaine is alas too strong and Jada is enticed back into a life of mindless highs with her new friend Sunny.. “Thinking of the fact that she’d just gotten high again she cringed.Jada silently assured herself that she would never stoop that low again. She was in a loving relationship with a man she respected. She had money and status, and if she wanted to party with Sunny from time to time, she figured there was nothing wrong with that. She wasn’t going to be a crackhead again.� (Pg. 230) Jada and Sunny end up spending lots of time together and the cocaine stays around� “Sunny and Jada’s friendship was fast becoming a blur of white lines laid out like a feast before them. Getting high together was something the two of them did together almost daily. Their friendship strengthened by the secret addiction they both dealt with. (Pg. 235) Born’s involvement in hustling gave Jada ample time alone and slowly her addiction comes creeping back and it becomes less and less of a secret when her sister Ava visits from college and discovers Jada taking a bump of cocaine in the bathroom…With her addiction coming back as strong as ever she has to decide how to keep it a secret from Born as she now gets in so deep she starts to steal from him� “She was now doing the one thing that she had sworn she would never do. She was stealing from the one man who had ever truly loved her. She kept getting high to get away from the feeling in the pit of her stomach when she came down.� (Pg. 279) As the story heats up with Jada and her drug addiction it takes an altogether tragic turn when Dorian’s jealous baby’s mother Raquel decides she had enough of playing second fiddle to Sunny and comes to her baby shower to kill her though she ends up shooting and killing Dorian instead�. With Dorian dead and Sunny pregnant and retreating from the street life with her family things change for Jada and Born dramatically after Born finds Jada high and their life comes crashing down..Jada is kicked out and Born is forced to move on after this huge betrayal. Jada loses herself again in crack and her addiction which leads her to move in and be associated with Jamari-Born’s old rival and Born gets arrested for a year…While incarcerated Born reads and tries to better himself while Jada falls further and further down after now finding out she is pregnant� Jamari-deadset on revenge and jealousy over Born, is ecstatic with Jada’s pregnancy and sees it as a way to keep her. Jamari’s whole goal had always been to finally get something over Born by having a child with his first love however Jada has mixed feelings and though she decides to keep the baby begins to see Jamari for who he really is. Pregnant and reckless Jada decides to get back at Jamari for herself and for Born and sets him up and steals his product and money. She runs away and despite being pregnant goes back to getting high until she is arrested and held in jail while she delivers her son Sheldon and struggles to find someone to care for him so he won’t go in the system�. Jada’s baby father Jamari proves to be a worthy adversary and keeps Sheldon away from her and in lengthy custody battles until he ends up dead and in a rare miracle for Jada her mother steps in and allows her and Sheldon to live with her. Jada’s life seems to be looking up –she has a relationship with both her sister and mother again, her son though born addicted to crack is now thriving and she finishes her GED, gets a job and starts going to school for journalism even graduating.. With all going right it is a devastating blow when her mother gets breast cancer and passes away leaving Jada again� It is on Edna’s funeral that brings Jada and Born back into each other’s life as Born reaches out to send his condolences. The two never stopped thinking of each other and despite both having children from others they remember their love fondly and tentatively form a friendship but never allowing themselves to venture any further..The book ends hopefully with Jada and Born friends and able to talk but not fully trust again� Hmm so this was a long book and had many plot twists and characters to show the ups and downs of the life of a hustler and his girlfriend..I felt for Jada and liked Born –I even understood why he kicked Jada out and Sunny was captivating as well..Overall I am glad I spent a few days with this one it was entertaining.. ...more |
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1
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not set
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Jul 13, 2024
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Jul 13, 2024
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Paperback
| ||||||||||||||
| 1738465209
| 9781738465200
| B0CNYC8WZZ
| 3.96
| 2,510
| unknown
| Dec 26, 2023
|
it was ok
|
Well took forever to get this review down as I finished this about a week ago but yeah been on a computer hiatus this summer after an intense four day
Well took forever to get this review down as I finished this about a week ago but yeah been on a computer hiatus this summer after an intense four day session..anyways so started reading a new book as part of a book club started with my favorite girls-apparently this one showed up on Facebook with lots of spoilers and the book is very intriguing with its promise of secrets �. Part One (Isabel) Okay so this one starts with Isabel who is an assistant and deeply in love with her boss Mike when he asks her to marry him and move to London with his prestigious family and formidable mother in law..Ah here is where it tricks you into reading as Isabel knows the mother in law but in some way and some of the secret she is hiding “Sure he can know I’m nervous to meet his parents. That’s only normal. But he cannot know the real reason why I’m terrified. Not until he sees it with his own eyes. The true monsters his parents really are. He would never believe it otherwise- no one would. � (Pg. 8) The tension rises as Mike announces their engagement to his family in addition to Isabel’s pregnancy and the need to expose the toxicity of his family increases though Isabel is unsure how exactly to get enough evidence for her and her cousin to prove what she knows� Part Two (Cassandra) Told from the narrative of the stepmother-ah yes I wanted to definitely know more about her as she appears so confident and self assured however underneath it all she is vulnerable and unsure of herself especially around her husband…As Cassandra tries to find out more about Isabel and protect her son she deals with her insecurity and fear of her husband putting her away in a mental institution…again. “And I would do anything to never go back to that place. Because if William could be controlling, that doctor was something else. The only way I got out of there the last time was by doing everything he said. My life with William was the only option.� (Pg. 184) So with all the parts in place for a big secret reveal and confrontation I was ready—and then let down..boo the secret was kind of thrown in there and half done in my opinion..Throwing in a cousin and secret past working histories tried to tie it all in but I felt it was sloppily done with a lot of intriguing chapter endings to make you want to read but with a ending that felt overhyped and not worth it. So yea I enjoyed the intrigue but wanted more from the reveal..trying to get back to reading so let’s see if I can find something amazing :) ...more |
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1
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not set
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Jul 07, 2024
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Jul 07, 2024
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Kindle Edition
| ||||||||||||||
| 0063207265
| 3.52
| 20,502
| Aug 01, 2023
| Aug 01, 2023
|
it was ok
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Ah so this is my fourth book by this amazing author and while most of her books have been Young Adult this is her first adult read and there is no mis
Ah so this is my fourth book by this amazing author and while most of her books have been Young Adult this is her first adult read and there is no mistaking its not for kids with its heavy talk of sex, magical vaginas and adult themes like motherhood adultery, infertility and desire ..This book also was super messy it takes you through the lives of four sisters–Flor, Pastora, Matilde and Camila. The book takes off when 70 year old Flor and the sister whose gift of magic includes seeing deaths decides to have a living wake� “One thing Pastora and Flor did not tiptoe around was each other. Which is why Pastora refused to ask for any details. Which is why Flor refused to offer any. This wake would bear its own truths and breaths, and Pastora would give her sister this gift: let the event speak what she could not.� (Pg. 29) The book takes place in the three days before the event and opens up lots of questions and old hurts for the sisters as they try to understand Flor’s need for this wake that not even her daughter and niece can explain. The book dances around the sisters and their relationships and honestly I liked Matilde the sister with no magical gift but a passion for dancing that helps her become strong� “She came less to advance her dancing than to have one hour that was entirely about her and her body. �(Pg. 55) Poor sad Matilde childless and saddled with a philandering husband the most as her character arc was fleshed out and while you see her become a doormat she also finds herself in dancing and also the strength to leave her cheating husband behind� So much happens in this book and it is hard to keep track of it all–I did not enjoy this one as much as I thought I would but I did learn alot about first and second generation families living in the US from the Dominican Republic and how important culture and ownership is to these families.. “Which is why when Yadi got a lease and reopened a store that had changed hands after hands after hands only to return to Dominican keeping, Matilde felt it was a kind of vindication; their kids returned and grabbed hold of what had slipped through the older generation’s fingers.� (Pg. 128) Okay so this multigenerational family saga like I said was hard reading and all over the place but there were good stories and lots to learn.. ...more |
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1
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not set
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Mar 30, 2024
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Mar 30, 2024
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Hardcover
| ||||||||||||||||
| 1250831911
| 9781250831910
| 1250831911
| 4.21
| 86,989
| Jun 06, 2023
| Jun 06, 2023
|
really liked it
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So got into this book after watching the author on the Daily Show and being intrigued by his premise–a small town in Virginia with its first black she
So got into this book after watching the author on the Daily Show and being intrigued by his premise–a small town in Virginia with its first black sheriff handling a case rife with racism and police doubt.. “There had been a bad man who shot a good man, then other good men had killed the bad man. What more was there to talk about? Titus wished it were that simple. He really did. (11%) Titus is stuck in the middle of a firestorm with his community on one side and his badge on the other� “It was the price of wearing the badge. The moment he had made a choice to live in a no-man’s land between people who believed in him, people who hated him because of his skin color and people who believed he was a traitor to his race.� (13%) Rushing into a local high school and seeing a black teen Latrell whose father he knew come out with a gun after shooting a popular white teacher and ending up shot dead has Titus in a whirlwind of emotions..As he struggles to do what is right and get to the bottom of everything he uncovers depravity and sickness beyond his imagination as the teacher Mr Spearman was a pedophilic murderer and in the disgusting tapes he left behind he is shown with Latrell as an accomplice along with another masked figure whose identity it is up to Titus to now uncover� And they do..sadly the police unearth seven children’s bodies from the ground and tragically they have been there for years� “Some of these bodies have been there for years, it looks like…Why wasn’t someone trying to find them? They was just kids!� Titus took off his hat and ran a hand over his close-cropped hair. “They were Black children, Davy. People are probably looking for them, but blond hair and blue eyes make the news.� (30%) The book takes you through the mind of a police sheriff with the questioning and all the suspects with either real or perceived motives and there are so many dubious characters with hidden racist and evil intentions it makes you really see the evil in people� This is a very smart read–I love how the author effortlessly throws in real vocabulary words like nadir, truculent, chicanery, plaudits, augured, abattoir, atavistic, polemics (yes I looked all these up and feel so much smarter :) and phrases from Macbeth and other classics that speak to how well read and literate he is as an author and person and makes this a step above a typical mystery thrill police read as there are great theological questions on faith and the strained relationship between Titus and his father and brother following their mother’s death. I enjoyed this well paced thriller and I wanted more cases with Titus and just more from Charon county and this author for sure..Recommended! ...more |
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1
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Mar 15, 2024
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not set
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Mar 15, 2024
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Hardcover
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| B0DLT96V9G
| 4.42
| 1,171,286
| Mar 06, 2008
| May 02, 2009
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None
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Notes are private!
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0
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not set
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not set
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Oct 16, 2023
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Kindle Edition
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| 0593463331
| 9780593463338
| 0593463331
| 3.66
| 13,785
| Jan 31, 2023
| Jan 31, 2023
|
really liked it
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Yay..I was so excited to read this one and had it on hold with the library until one of my coworkers told me she had the physical copy and lent it to
Yay..I was so excited to read this one and had it on hold with the library until one of my coworkers told me she had the physical copy and lent it to me! Ah so great to have the book to read over the long weekend..Exciting :) Alright so this one starts introducing beautiful Black girls Olivia, Amy-Rose, Helen and Ruby as they navigate their lives in Chicago after the Reconstruction as they are pressured and expected to marry soon and well. The girls grew up together and are great friends but there is also rivalries and jealousies as Olivia and Helen’s brother John is sought after for his status by both Amy-Rose and Ruby and the dangerous politics of the time with the restrictive Jim Crow laws threatening to affect them also. “Helen is impossible to rein in and your brother can’t keep his eyes off the maid.� Her mother was so lost in her thoughts, she didn’t notice Olivia stiffen at her side. Sure enough, John was tracking Amy-Rose’s movements on the fringe of the crowd. “It’s a relief to know we don’t have to worry about you.� Olivia nodded numbly at her mother’s side.� (Pg. 201) The book shifts perspectives between the four ladies and their complicated romances as they struggle to find themselves as the world literally changes with enslaved persons fighting for their equality and dignity and women fighting for their right to vote..The women want to find themselves and the loves they deserve and whew it gets messy and takes a lot of twists that I didn’t expect but enjoyed.. This one reminded me of a period soap opera with lovely African American leads from different walks of life (Amy-Rose was my favorite) and it held my interest and made me curious for a book two..This was good.. ...more |
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1
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not set
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Sep 03, 2023
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Sep 03, 2023
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Hardcover
| ||||||||||||||
| 1668010410
| 9781668010419
| 1668010410
| 3.54
| 80,743
| Apr 11, 2023
| Apr 11, 2023
|
it was ok
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A friends reunion ten years in the making-an anniversary celebrated by friends to keep each other safe and as much as Cass wants to forget and move on
A friends reunion ten years in the making-an anniversary celebrated by friends to keep each other safe and as much as Cass wants to forget and move on; an obituary for one of her friends calls her back. The nine friends were survivors of and now there are only seven of them left and time for the yearly meet up at one of their summer houses� “It was the perfect haven for us, the lucky ones; survivors of the crash, and then of the raging river, the unrelenting storm……We came here the first time out of convenience, but we kept coming back because returning here year after year removed the necessity of decisions, the burden of plans. And because it was hundreds of miles from the site of the accident, protected from the undertow of the past..� (Pg. 7) A sense of obligation and duty bring the “friends� together year after year and Cass finds out that it wasn’t one of her friends that contacted her but a random cell phone she finds on the beach that she finds out was owned by their recently deceased friend Ian.. “I already knew we all were liars. The question came down to whether I believed them about this. Did I trust their reactions? Did I really trust any of them? Not enough to tell them there was more to it. Not enough to say I have the phone. Not enough to say, like Josh would, accusatory and to the point. I know. I know it was one of you.� (Pg. 60) The paranoia is palpable as the whole book new clues and secrets emerge that make the group trust each other less and less. The book delves into flashbacks of that fateful night with the present until the conclusion where they do finally lay out the whole night and why everyone feels so guilty but it doesn’t hit as hard because the book was so set up to have them have done something terrible and the real story is kinda lame. The group spends their lives regretting and covering up what happened but it wasn’t even really that shocking or interesting LOL..this book built up suspense and an air of distrust for nothing when there were real ways to make this one so much more..Eh it was alright. ...more |
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1
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not set
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Aug 18, 2023
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Aug 18, 2023
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Hardcover
| ||||||||||||||
| 1641294205
| 9781641294201
| 1641294205
| 3.45
| 578
| Jun 06, 2023
| Jun 06, 2023
|
it was ok
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Um yeah this one was different–I had no preconceived notions and just thought the title was cool so decided to try this one and the main character Lol
Um yeah this one was different–I had no preconceived notions and just thought the title was cool so decided to try this one and the main character Loli was not a favorite.. what can I say about this YA read..hmm�.. So this is the story of Loli, Ryan and Cairo..three best friends that love listening to music, hanging out with each other and occasionally going on adrenaline pumping adventures like sneaking out and throwing parties at ex boyfriend’s houses..This one starts in the middle of one such party that Loli is throwing to get a necklace back� “We had great food, a luxurious venue, pending guests and the target all lined up. If everything went according to my plan, I would have the necklace back in my rightful possession and yet another feat for the history books-all before the start of the weekend.� (Pg. 5) Loli as the main character is the definition of reckless as she goes against her best friends as well in her party schemes because neither of them know she even lost the necklace and just as she is in position to get her necklace back she meets a guy on the floor of a dark closet and they can’t see each other only talk but the brief encounter forms a tentative bond that keeps the two in each other’s lives causing mischief and mayhem..They decide to becomem secret agents and set missions for each other which become even more intense as they don’t know each other’s identities and find random ways to communicate and schedule dares..they break in houses, public properties, set fires and just become very destructive together however the flirt and intensity keeps them involved in the game.. Loli as a self described daredevil relishes the thrill of doing bad things and the annoymity of her friend from the closet but he is also more intense than she is and his dares go a little too far with guns and then the worst one of all time that had the silly and selfish Loli take her best friend Ryan’s car to a mission and having it sink in the lake…I would have been so mad at her ugh.. “Without thinking about what I’d done, or what was happening, I pushed the door open and stumbled out into the shallow water, frantically splashing and running up the sandy slope toward a giant red spray-painted X.� (Pg. 232) The level of selfishness and immaturity that she displayed for getting her best friend’s car totaled was apalling and made me seriously dislike her and not even care if she won her mission as she was just an awful person and friend. I did like the fact the main character was Black and very contrary to the norm as she is rich and spoiled and bratty but her energy was the so arrogant and cruel I had a hard time rooting for her or forgiving her dumb moves.. Overall this one did not hold my attention and took me longer to read so I can’t say I liked it though it was different that was not a good thing in this case LOL..Next� ...more |
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1
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not set
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Aug 13, 2023
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Aug 13, 2023
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Hardcover
| ||||||||||||||
| 0593568567
| 9780593568569
| B0B52ZBKLH
| 3.99
| 3,325
| Jan 31, 2023
| Jan 31, 2023
|
it was amazing
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Clap clap clap�.I enjoyed this one alot wow…A new YA thriller off hold…yes DC Public Library #winning..Alright so this one starts with a tense high sc
Clap clap clap�.I enjoyed this one alot wow…A new YA thriller off hold…yes DC Public Library #winning..Alright so this one starts with a tense high school rivalry over Homecoming Queen..and as if the pressures of popularity and relationships aren’t enough for our teens there is race as the two girls Tinsley (rich, privileged and White) and Nova (sassy, poor and Black) are in competition for the school’s Homecoming title.. “You’re the only Black girl on the ballot.� Tinsley says, her tone even and compassionate. “If you drop out, it’ll be impossible for this new policy to be implemented. Which is okay. They can pick a Black girl next year, no harm done.� …………”I heard you weren’t even all that excited about being nominated at first,� Tinsley continues. “That has to mean something. So how about it? I get you a check for whatever amount you come up with, and you can use it to honor your ancestors. You know I can make it happen. Is the crown worth that much to you?� (Pg. 9) In a school where both the White and Black students stick to their own groups meeting only during Elective classes like Painting as the school was 95% White and the two are thrown together after Hurricane Katrina this threatens to cause major problems as Nova refuses to drop out of the race…Game on. The coronation takes place and Nova is crowned…however later that night she is also murdered…the book is told in alternating perspectives from Tinsley and Duchess, Nova’s best friend and daughter of the police who become unlikely friends investigating Nova’s death and uncovering truly shocking secrets as the book progresses.. I honestly enjoyed reading this one it had a little of everything from social justice, White saviors, racism, abuse, betrayals, hate, underage relationships and just scandal upon scandal..Loved it this was well done with its twists and turns and the ending gives you hope that people can change and learn from their past…This had a lot and it was a good read for real..Highly recommended-Five Star. ...more |
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1
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not set
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Aug 07, 2023
|
Aug 07, 2023
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Kindle Edition
| ||||||||||||||
| 9798885781725
| B0B1NTTLB1
| 3.41
| 875
| Jun 28, 2022
| Sep 07, 2022
|
liked it
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Alright so� Read the first installment of these Harlem Renaissance mysteries in April 2022 but remembered it so that is a good sign that I liked it :)
Alright so� Read the first installment of these Harlem Renaissance mysteries in April 2022 but remembered it so that is a good sign that I liked it :) Glad that this one is off hold as my last read failed to hold my attention and sigh I had to abandon it..So onto Harlem..this one starts with the protagonist Louise Lloyd as she tries to dance and love her way past the trauma of being abducted, losing her sister, killing a man and living with crushing guilt and sense of obligation to help others� “The shooting was the first thing she thought about when she woke up. It was the last thing on her mind when she went to sleep. The ghost of Theodore Gilbert followed her around, weighing her down with misplaced guilt.� (Pg. 11)� After one of their epic nights out with her girlfriend Rosa Maria, Rosa Maria’s twin brother Rafael, the bar manager Eugene a blast from the past enters with a girl named Nora –and as the group unwinds and ends the night drinking the crew wakes up with no memory of that night and Nora stabbed to death� After bargaining with the officer she reluctantly worked with in the previous case and despite their mistrust in each other Louise agrees to find Nora’s killer and clear her and her friends� names� “All of us drank from the same bottle and none of us can remember anything. “Oh that makes sense.� “And my darling Louise has yet to tell you the stupidest part,� Rosa Maria said. Louise rolled her eyes. “I made a deal with Martin. And now I have to figure out who killed Nora.� “Or…� “Or Martin takes in both of us.� Hearing the words come from her mouth sounded insane. How was she going to do this? She couldn’t just try; she had to do it. Not just for herself but for Rosa Maria.� (Pg. 32) Crazy times cause for crazy measures and so Louise decides to try hypnotism and after not seeing that night and getting cryptic messages she decides to investigate Nora’s life starting with her job.. Louise finds that Nora isn’t well liked there and has a reputation of being rude and shifty from her numbers hustle which Louise decides to look into� Louise delves into Nora’s life while also fielding investigations from inquiring newspapers and investigators which leads her to meeting some interesting characters like Harriet, a white woman aspiring journalist who bargains her way into an exclusive retelling of Louise’s story and Fox Schoonmaker, a White self made millionaire Club King who runs clubs all around New York after coming from poverty in New Jersey..Between Harriet, Schoonmaker and the detective Martin hellbent on putting Louise behind bars there are not many new characters so it quickly becomes obvious who the killer is and the motive behind the framing of Louise for Nora’s murder..this was a fun read not really strenuous in the mystery solving department but I liked the book for what it was as a fun story about the beauty and culture of Harlem..these were good reads ...more |
Notes are private!
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1
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not set
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not set
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Aug 04, 2023
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Library Binding
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my rating |
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| 4.62
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liked it
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Aug 10, 2024
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Aug 10, 2024
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| 4.58
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really liked it
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Aug 05, 2024
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Aug 05, 2024
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| 4.50
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really liked it
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Aug 03, 2024
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Aug 03, 2024
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| 4.57
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really liked it
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Jul 29, 2024
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Jul 28, 2024
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| 4.43
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really liked it
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Jul 21, 2024
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Jul 21, 2024
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| 4.47
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really liked it
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Jul 20, 2024
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Jul 20, 2024
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| 4.58
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really liked it
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Jul 23, 2024
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Jul 20, 2024
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| 3.45
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did not like it
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Jul 19, 2024
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Jul 19, 2024
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| 4.38
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really liked it
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Jul 15, 2024
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Jul 15, 2024
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| 4.17
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really liked it
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not set
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Jul 14, 2024
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| 4.51
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really liked it
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Jul 13, 2024
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Jul 13, 2024
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| 3.96
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it was ok
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Jul 07, 2024
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Jul 07, 2024
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| 3.52
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it was ok
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Mar 30, 2024
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Mar 30, 2024
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| 4.21
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really liked it
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not set
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Mar 15, 2024
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| 4.42
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not set
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Oct 16, 2023
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| 3.66
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really liked it
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Sep 03, 2023
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Sep 03, 2023
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| 3.54
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it was ok
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Aug 18, 2023
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Aug 18, 2023
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| 3.45
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it was ok
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Aug 13, 2023
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Aug 13, 2023
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| 3.99
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it was amazing
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Aug 07, 2023
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Aug 07, 2023
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| 3.41
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liked it
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not set
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Aug 04, 2023
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