Carole does TMST: Teen romances

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post on Rainy Day Ramblings where Rainy discuss a wide range of topics from books to blogging. Weigh in and join the conversation by adding your thoughts in the comments. If you want to do your own post, grab the question and answer it on your blog.

I wrote most of my posts before Sigrid was born, then I wrote a couple after that (the short ones ;) And now I have reached the end so I asked Carole to help out this time :D

Favorite teen romances? Hmmm that is a tough one for sure……

I am about to hear the groans and moans on this one, but it isn’t what it will seem. I promise. But I love the teen romances in the Twilight books. NOT Edward and Belle or Belle and Jacob. I love the side character romances like Rosalie and Emmett or Alice and Casper. I love all the pack members when they find the ones they imprint on. I loved hearing about those romances and love stories. Edward and Belle has nothing on them at all. 

The teen romance that I really love is the love story between the characters in Reincarnation by Suzanne Weyn. SO tragic, SO sad. These two spirits keep finding each other in all these lifetimes, but something always pulls them apart. Some may call this one cheating, because in some of their lifetimes they are not teens, but I totally count this one! This is so good and it takes centuries for them to have their HEA. SO GOOD!!! I need to re-read this. 

Thank you, Blodeuedd, for letting me share my thoughts this week!!

What is there really to say? I am of course a lover of books, poetry, movies, plays, and music. Nothing is better than enjoying a cup of tea and immersing yourself in another world and forgetting about the world for just a little bit. My cat and chinchillas keep me entertained over here in Michigan (the mitten state of the USA). I'm game for any genre of book or movie. You can find me over at Carole Rae's Random Ramblings.

Audio: Going Dark - Monica McCarthy

After walking into a trap on a covert op in Russia, the men from top secret SEAL Team Nine are presumed dead. Not knowing whom they can trust, and with war hanging in the balance, the survivors must go dark and scatter around the globe. Marine ecologist Annie Henderson joins her new boyfriend on a trip to the Western Isles of Scotland to protest a hazardous offshore drilling venture. When she realizes that she may be swept up in something far more dangerous than she'd intended, there is only one man she can turn to . . . She and the mysterious but sexy dive boat captain have't exactly gotten off to the best start, but something about his quiet confidence makes her think that he's the kind of man she can depend on. Because he's gruff and guarded, she can tell Dan Warren has secrets. But she could never imagine how high the stakes are for him to keep his cover, even as he risks everything to protect her . . .

My thoughts:

I was reading some reviews, which I tend to do while reading/listening to a book, and I found that many were annoyed with things. But those things did not bother me here, but when I think of it, I think they would have in print, but in audio...nope. Funny how that goes.

Annie is in Scotland to protest oil drilling. She has her new boyfriend with her (an asshat). She is idealistic, kind and perhaps too trustworthy.

Dan, omg, I do not have to tell you he is one of the missing Seals. He is tough as nails and just wants to know what the f went down in Siberia.

They meet and sparks fly, but she does have that asshat of a boyfriend and Dan has gone dark. But things happen that throw them together and sparks fly. Enough passion to set the bed on fire.

I did like how much suspense there was. Bad things happen and there is action, danger and running...can not say more.

I also really want to know what happened in Siberia. Cos no we do not find out, i guess all the other Seals must find love first...arghhh. Need to know!

Conclusion:
I enjoyed it. Good action and a plot that kept me going

Narrator. Elizabeth Wiley

I liked her voices and I can still hear it narrate things in my head. I guess that is a good thing. I would totally listen to more by her

Cover

Nope

MP3 CD, 11 pages
Published September 5th 2017 by Tantor Audio
The Lost Platoon #1
Romantic suspense
For review

Carole's Sunday Review. Woman enters left

Author: Jessica Brockmole

Title: Woman Enters Left

Genre: Historical Fiction

Pages: 352

Published: August 2017

Where I Got It: My shelf (Given to me by the author/publisher for my honest and unbiased opinion)

In the 1950s, movie star Louise Wilde is caught between an unfulfilling acting career and a shaky marriage when she receives an out-of-the-blue phone call: She has inherited the estate of Florence “Florrie” Daniels, a Hollywood screenwriter she barely recalls meeting. Among Florrie’s possessions are several unproduced screenplays, personal journals, and—inexplicably—old photographs of Louise’s mother, Ethel. On an impulse, Louise leaves a film shoot in Las Vegas and sets off for her father’s house on the East Coast, hoping for answers about the curious inheritance and, perhaps, about her own troubled marriage.

Nearly thirty years earlier, Florrie takes off on an adventure of her own, driving her Model T westward from New Jersey in pursuit of broader horizons. She has the promise of a Hollywood job and, in the passenger seat, Ethel, her best friend since childhood. Florrie will do anything for Ethel, who is desperate to reach Nevada in time to reconcile with her husband and reunite with her daughter. Ethel fears the loss of her marriage; Florrie, with long-held secrets confided only in her journal, fears its survival.

In parallel tales, the three women—Louise, Florrie, Ethel—discover that not all journeys follow a map. As they rediscover their carefree selves on the road, they learn that sometimes the paths we follow are shaped more by our traveling companions than by our destinations.

This story follows three women who go on a journey for three different reasons: Florrie to run away to California and make something of herself, Ethel to try and get her husband and child back, and Louise who needs to find herself and what she really wants in life. 

I enjoyed the stories of these women. After a couple of chapters, I could NOT put this down. I finished reading this in a couple of sittings. 

It did take a minute to warm up to Florrie and Ethel's story, but once I really understood more about these women the more I looked forward to their stories. I think it also took me a while to get used to the different format when it would switch to Florrie and Ethel. It was for sure different and you really have to pay attention, because Ethel sometimes adds her own writings to the diary Florrie is writing. It worked, but I feel like there could've been a different way to share Ethel's POV. 

What I really liked about this story is the side characters and how important of a role they play in all the women's stories. I really felt bad for Arnie, Louise's hubbie. I wish I could feel bad for Carl, but his reason for leaving Ethel and taking the kid with him was crappy. I wanted Ethel to yell and scream and be mad when she found out. I think Carl was a real jerk. Especially how he kept so many secrets from Louise. Not cool. 

I loved the complexity behind Florrie. I think she ended up being my favorite character. I can't help but adore really complex characters. 

The ending was the best. I loved how everything tied together and we got all the answers. The "article" snipbits were an added bonus and I think it was a nice way to get a good understanding. I'm happy with how everything ended. So good. 

Overall, this was good. I wasn't 100% in love with the format with the POV for Florrie and Ethel, but it worked. I really loved the whole journey all the women took. It makes me want to do a long road trip like that. I think being on the road for that long really does give time for someone to reflect upon their lives and who they are. I'll give this 4 stars. 

Saturday Movie Review: Storks

Storks have moved on from delivering babies to packages. But when an order for a baby appears, the best delivery stork must scramble to fix the error by delivering the baby.

Directors: Nicholas Stoller, Doug Sweetland

Writer: Nicholas Stoller

Stars:Andy Samberg, Katie Crown, Kelsey Grammer 

Lenght: 1 h 27 min

Adventure/Comedy

Musings:

I should have written this at once, I am so forgetful.

It feels like if I am writing a review I am going to go into all the plotholes. Like how are the babies made? Are they all weird clones? And if someone sends a letter to screw with someone and that someone gets 10 babies. Do not think of that, do not think of that! It's an animated movie for Loki's sake.

Storks deliver babies, or used to, now they work for “Amazon”.

And once they messed up and a baby still lives with them in their warehouse (honestly, wtf, what about the people that wanted that baby, oh, do not think.) That girl is a screw up and ends up going on an adventure with a stork.

The weird ass wolves were fun.

The Pidgeon I wanted to kill, SO annoying.

But you know, it was a good, funny movie and I cried, darn hormones. Yes I cried at the end.