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Comment on This Blood (The Grace Allen Series Paranormal Romance) by Brandy Conner

Brandy Conner — Fri, 18 May 2012 21:19:06 +0000

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

This Blood, May 16, 2012

Brandy Conner (NC United States) -

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This review is from: This Blood (The Grace Allen Series Paranormal Romance) (Kindle Edition)

This Blood is a fantastic book that enters a world full of vampires, witches and other fantastical creatures. Grace is a wonderful character full of spunk and fire. She has her flaws and makes mistakes on the way, but she is a force to be reckoned with and has the heart of a hero. Lucian is an sweetheart making your heart melt with his chivalry and charm. You find yourself lost in his thoughtfulness. As for Seth, he is hot personified. He may be a captor and all around bad guy, but you can't help but to want him. He is the bad boy every girl fantasizes about and gives meaning to why someone could get stockholm syndrome. If you are looking for the supernatural, a heroic female, smoking hot men and even hotter sex, then This Blood is for you.

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Comment on This Blood (The Grace Allen Series Paranormal Romance) by William Bento

William Bento — Fri, 18 May 2012 20:19:26 +0000

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful

EXCELLENT READ, March 13, 2012

William Bento -

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This review is from: This Blood (The Grace Allen Series Paranormal Romance) (Kindle Edition)

Intriguing characters, involved and descriptive story and a more original and definitive perspective on vampires as a literary genre. Would highly recommend to anyone wanting a fresh take on fantasy novelization. The protagonist is strong, intelligent and worlds away removed from the triteness that is "Bella Swan" and her sparkling homoerotic crush. The writer coyly lures you into a world that at first feels familiar but then spins in a complete new and unfamiliar direction, urging you to hold on and enjoy the ride.

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Comment on This Blood (The Grace Allen Series Paranormal Romance) by Missa Rose

Missa Rose — Fri, 18 May 2012 19:31:06 +0000

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful

A New Take on the Vampire Genre, March 14, 2012

Missa Rose -

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This review is from: This Blood (The Grace Allen Series Paranormal Romance) (Kindle Edition)

I must say "This Blood" is an amazing new take on the world of fantasy. Not only is the strong, villain-ish, irresistibly sexy vampire present, but a whole new array of fantastical creatures punctuate every turn of this book. Grace, the main character is a strong-headed young woman with a snarky side unwilling to submit to anyone - including the creatures of nightmares. Her smart-ass attitude gives this page turner an air of humor, making the reader unable to keep from loving her. Every page keeps you wanting the next and you are sure to get through this book quickly as you will NOT be able to put it down! Mrs. Basso hits it on the head and I cannot wait for a sequel to see what Grace Allen gets herself into next.

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Comment on Super 8 (Two-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo + Digital Copy) by HiDefGuy

HiDefGuy — Thu, 17 May 2012 17:08:55 +0000

70 of 88 people found the following review helpful

1 of the Best films I've seen in 2011 - 5 Stars for both movie and blu-ray transfer, October 22, 2011

HiDefGuy (Vermont, USA) -

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This review is from: Super 8 (Two-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo + Digital Copy) (Blu-ray)

First off, I just finished watching an advance blu-ray copy of this film and the movie and blu-ray transfer blew me away. IMO, this film is one of the very best of 2011 and if you are a fan of "old-fashioned" type drama/suspense films that have to do with extra-terrestrial life and what happens to a small rural community in the late 1970's is truly a film that will stay with you long after the movie's end. To give any more away would be a sin, so I won't.

The blu-ray video and audio is fantastic. The aspect ratio is what appears to be 2.35:1 or thereabouts (Amazon has it wrong at 1.85:1). The video throughout is pristine with vivid colors in the daylight scenes and ink blacks in the night scenes. Details are vivid as you would expect from a top-notch blu-ray transfer. The audio equals the quality of the video and I've had to monitor the volume because I live in an apartment and use a 9.1 speaker configuration. Vocals came mainly from the center speaker along with the two front speakers that sometimes spilled over to the speakers located in the right and left middle ends of the room. Music and sounds were extremely active in all the remaining speakers. This film's sound truly rocked my movie room.

I have over a thousand blu-rays and this film is in the top two of all films made and released in 2011. YES, it is that good!!!

I just pre-ordered this from Amazon.com at the price of $24.99 and that's more than I usually pay for a new movie on blu-ray. I usually wait until the price comes down (which almost always happens) a few months down the road. But this is one film I have to have on release day.

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Comment on Super 8 (Two-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo + Digital Copy) by Whitt Patrick Pond "Whitt"

Whitt Patrick Pond "Whitt" — Thu, 17 May 2012 16:33:56 +0000

180 of 209 people found the following review helpful

Entertaining, engrossing and extra-terrestrial - Derivative but from the very best, July 4, 2011

Whitt Patrick Pond "Whitt" (Cambridge, MA United States) -

This review is from: Super 8 (DVD)

Super 8 is admittedly not a perfect film, but I enjoyed it so much, and was so taken by the characters and the actors playing them, that I didn't really mind the occasional inconsistency or lingering "awed expressions" scene.

Set in a small town in Ohio in 1979, the basic plot centers around Joe Lamb (Joel Courtney), a 13-year-old boy whose mother recently died in a factory accident, leaving him with only his father, Jackson (Kyle Chandler), a sheriff's deputy who's a more than decent man but who has never known how to really be a father. Jackson's escape is burying himself in his work, while Joe's is helping his best friend Charles (Riley Griffiths) make an amateur zombie movie with the help of their other friends Preston (Zach Mills), Martin (Gabriel Basso) and Cary (Ryan Lee). But Joe's involvement becomes truly committed when Charles persuades Alice Dainard (Elle Fanning), a girl he secretly has a crush on, to join the project.

Things taken a sudden turn when, in the midst of shooting a midnight scene at the local railroad depot, Joe sees a pickup truck suddenly drive onto the tracks, directly in the path of an oncoming freight train, resulting in a spectacular crash that sends freight cars derailing everywhere and the shocked kids running for cover. The plot quickly thickens when Joe gets a glimpse of something bursting out of one of the freight cars, and when they find the driver of the pickup, badly injured, is Dr. Woodward (Glynn Turman), their biology teacher, who warns them to get away and to never speak of what they've seen to anyone or they - and their parents - will be killed. And then there's the knocked over Super 8 camera that has been continuing to roll throughout everything, capturing something that no one else saw while they were busy tried not to get crushed by flying debris. Something that will become important later as strange things begin to happen: dogs fleeing the town for no apparent reason, car engines and other pieces of machinery being stolen, people suddenly disappearing. And of course the massive influx of military personnel who are crawling all over everything while their commander, Col. Nelec (Noah Emmerich) blandly insists that there's _nothing_ going on.

The characters are well drawn, fleshed out with real personalities, quirks and flaws, and you very quickly come to care about them. And the actors, most of them either fairly unknown or newcomers, are marvelous, the kids in particular as they're at the heart of the film, but also the adults, particularly Kyle Chandler and Ron Eldard as the two fathers linked - and separated - by tragedy, each not doing so well at dealing with it. Joel Courtney as Joe has one of those faces that projects everything he's feeling, from the distance he's experiencing with his dad to the secret yet painfully obvious crush he has on Alice. Riley Griffiths as his best friend Charles is a perfect counterpoint, pursuing his film with single-minded determination but holding other things in. Ryan Lee's pint-sized braces-laden (and explosives-crazy) Cary is a riot, as is Gabriel Basso's Martin as the zombie film's leading man who has an unfortunate tendency to puke a lot, while Zach Mills' Preston has the healthiest fear-instinct of the crowd. And last but not least, Elle Fanning's Alice is a wonder, a sensitive girl with her own father issues whose unexpected natural talent at acting leaves the boys with their jaws hanging.

Super 8 is highly derivative, but in a good way. It draws on the best parts of any number of movies from the past, most notably E.T. (1982) and The Goonies (1985) but also films like Joe Dante's Explorers (1985) , The Bad News Bears (1976) and, more recently, Son of Rambow (2007), a little seen but marvelous independent British film about a couple of boys with family issues who bond over making an amateur movie.

Note: in one scene, there's a definite tip-of-the-hat prop taken right out of Spielberg's E.T. Just keep your eyes peeled when the camera closes in on the water tower near the climax of the movie and see if anything looks strikingly familiar.

There are admittedly weak points in the film, mainly where it seems uncertain of just which direction it wants to take or where inconsistencies tend to be glaring. Is the alien dangerous and deadly... or just misunderstood? Is the alien killing people... or just holding on to them for a while? The trouble is that in different parts of the film it's definitely one, but in other parts of the film it's the other. And the climactic lingering "awed expressions" scene does feel at odds with the the life-threatening dangers the characters were experiencing earlier (not to mention the burning shambles half the town has been reduced to). Another weak point is the villain, Col. Nelec (I suspect the name Nelec is an in-joke of some kind), who is never anything but a cliched military bad guy. But as I said, while these... Read more

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Comment on Capturing Cara (Dragon Lords of Valdier Book 2) by Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 16 May 2012 07:01:43 +0000

Love these dragons, April 30, 2012

Gina (New York) -

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This review is from: Capturing Cara (Dragon Lords of Valdier Book 2) (Kindle Edition)

I have read the first two books in this series and am looking forward to book three. Very well written very enjoyable. Sex is hot in human and dragon form. This book was laught out funny i really loved cara even more than abby. It was kinda werid how accepting cara was of abby golden freinds. My only issue is for mighty warriors/rulers the guys get hurt alot and the girls get snatched and hurt at will. What i love is the way the girls save themselves and the drama and stress they cause their guys.

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Comment on Capturing Cara (Dragon Lords of Valdier Book 2) by Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 16 May 2012 06:26:45 +0000

A favorite, May 10, 2012

bookworm1972 -

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This review is from: Capturing Cara (Dragon Lords of Valdier Book 2) (Kindle Edition)

I loved the first book and of course i bought this one too and i am glad that i could say that i was not disappointed. Looking forward to the next one and other series that the author might think of writing.

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Comment on Capturing Cara (Dragon Lords of Valdier Book 2) by JLW

JLW — Wed, 16 May 2012 06:00:27 +0000

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

4 1/2 Stars! Another great job by S.E. Smith, May 3, 2012

JLW -

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This review is from: Capturing Cara (Dragon Lords of Valdier Book 2) (Kindle Edition)

When I saw this release, I didn't even bother with downloading the sample. I had read the previous one in the series, "Abducting Abby" where there were glimpses of Cara's character and so I knew this one would be great.

I have read every one of the author's books and with the exception of the cowboy one (which was okay but not great), they were all 4 1/2 stars at a minimum. It's not just that the leads are someone you can respect or want to imagine yourself as being, but as in the case of Cara (and Tink from "Tink's Neverland"), the women have these interesting personalities. In the case of Cara, she has this ADHD/genius type personality that is a hoot and keeps the hero on his toes. And for once, the woman tires the man out!

I really do recommend reading "Abducting Abby" first so that this book makes more sense. I can see that the author has others to contribute to this series (Trish, Ariel, and Carmen's stories obviously need to be told) and I look forward to reading them. I will be interested in seeing how Trish and Ariel will be made to seem different as their personalities seem so alike.

I am soooo glad that I stumbled across this author. S.E. Smith, along with Kaitlyn O'Connor, Angela Castle, Laurann Dohner, and Madelaine Montague are among my consistent fav es. Actually, I have to say S.E. Smith is the most consistent in bringing imaginative world building and fantastic, powerful, interesting female leads.

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Comment on Battlestar Galactica: Season Two [Blu-ray] by Edgar A. Trujillo "Edgar"

Edgar A. Trujillo "Edgar" — Tue, 15 May 2012 09:32:15 +0000

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful

Breathtaking Series That Even God Would Like., June 4, 2010

Edgar A. Trujillo "Edgar" (Soledad.CA) -

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This review is from: Battlestar Galactica: Season Two [Blu-ray] (Blu-ray)

I had no idea that this season of televisions most epicly grand series was on bluray. I gaped at how cheap it was and didn't hesitate from buying it at once. Day by day, I waited until my dreams had arrived on my doorstep, waiting to be unwraped. My longing claws dashed at it,hungrily uncovering what it was searching for....and there it was: Season 2 of battlestar Galactica on Blu-Ray!!!

First off, the packaging. It comes in a box with an opening case inside, just like any other tv boxcase, with 5 dvds inside. What i like about it is that each disc doesnt have its own tab that you can flip through. Some tv boxcases have this and it just makes the case much more bulkier, hence taking up more room. How this boxcase is set up is each dvd is piled on top of the other but in a different position so as to allow the view of all 5 dvds. It opens up into three tabs, with an episode and disc guide behind the last two tabs.It is embelished with the faces of the main characters as the back ground for each tab, 2 per tab to be exact.

As for the series itself, lets begin with how awesome this show is. It is, too date, , my favorite sci-fi series. It combines that very nature with harcore drama, something that is hard to pull off without sounding corny. The effects are phenominal, especially in episodes like "Resurrection Ship Part 2" where two balltestars have an all out brawl with the cylons in a beautifully choreographed action sequence, or " valley of Darkness" where...well i'd have to go into full spoilers but just know that even God himself would have gaped at the angelic creations that this episode evinces. As for the episodes themselves, words cannot express how masterfull they are, except for " Black Market" which was just horrible, totally unneccessary and not in tone with the series as a whole, but its just a small price one has to pay for 19 other awesome episodes. Season one did a great job establishing the tone for this dark epic series, and season 2 just builds onto that with some great performaces by the whole cast. It also delves into contraversial topics such as abortion which is dealt quiet well.Some standout episodes are "Pegasus" (The last 3 minutes will have you onm the edge of your seat!) and the season finale " Lay Down Your Burdens Part 2" which ends on a cliffhanger that will give everyone nerdgasms! Michele Forbs does a guest appearance on a couple of episodes and she is fantastic. She commands the screen with such authority and vigor that its as if she has been on the show for years.

Now, every review must have its criticism. First off, why wasn't the television special "Battlestar Galactica Razor" not including? It would make sense to have it in there because it is set in that time frame. I, being a huge geek, already have that dvd but for those new to the series will miss out on it. Moreover, the special features have much to be desired.Each disk has deleted scenes with commentaries. the last disc has some video blogs, more podcasts which are the commentaries, a quiz that tells you which character fits you best, and some other small insignificant stuff. Also, regular version of this boxset has the exact same features. Why couldn't there be a detailed behind the scenes at least, or some gag reel for that matter? The podcasts are insightful and all but you could download those of the website. The special features is definately the weakest part of the whole package, but that should not deter anyone from perchasing this immaculate series because its the content of the episodes that should instigate someone to buy this in the first place.

All in all, besides that one horrid episode and weak special features, there isn't much I could ask for excpet the Blu-Ray version of season 3! Tangent aside, this remarkable series transcends all others with its visual style, performances, and intriguing characters. I highly recommend this remarkable work of art, so buy it now!

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Comment on Battlestar Galactica: Season Two [Blu-ray] by Robert L. Edwards

Robert L. Edwards — Tue, 15 May 2012 09:06:31 +0000

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful

Awesome Series Continues - Episode Synopsis, February 14, 2011

Robert L. Edwards (New York, NY United States) -

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This review is from: Battlestar Galactica: Season Two [Blu-ray] (Blu-ray)

A brief synopsis of the episodes for those of you who have an electronic catalog of your DVD collection and would like to add this to your database. (So you don't have to do all that typing!)

Episode 1: Scattered
Original Air Date--15 July 2005
As the premiere for the second season unfolds, Adama lay dying leaving Tigh in command. Lee and Roslin have been sent to the brig. An emergency jump goes wrong leaving the Galactica alone in space without the fleet.

Episode 2: Valley of Darkness
Original Air Date--22 July 2005
A Cylon virus is interfering with Galactica's power supply, while Cylon centurions are heading for crucial systems. Somehow they must be stopped.

Episode 3: Fragged
Original Air Date--29 July 2005
Tigh has problems with the responsibility of being a leader, president Roslin loses control without chamalla. The Kobol team discovers a Cylon battery.

Episode 4: Resistance
Original Air Date--5 August 2005
Tigh's decision to impose martial law is protested in the fleet as well as on Galactica. On Caprica, Helo and Starbuck meet other humans.

Episode 5: The Farm
Original Air Date--12 August 2005
Starbuck finds herself wounded in a hospital on Caprica where she is suspicious about her doctor. President Roslin makes an appeal to the fleet to follow her to Kobol.

Episode 6: Home: Part 1
Original Air Date--19 August 2005
Starbuck, Helo and Boomer bring back the Arrow of Apollo, but Boomer doesn't seem welcome. Commander Adama wants to keep the fleet divided and appoints a new CAG.

Episode 7: Home: Part 2
Original Air Date--26 August 2005
While Commander Adama tries to join Roslin's team on Kobol, Dr. Baltar's Number Six tells him he's crazy.

Episode 8: Final Cut
Original Air Date--9 September 2005
Journalist D'Anna Biers is making an item on the Gideon incident, when she's asked by Adama and Roslin to film daily life on Galactica.

Episode 9: Flight of the Phoenix
Original Air Date--16 September 2005
While Tyrol decides to start building a new fighter, the Cylon virus is rearing its ugly head again. Boomer tells it means a large Cylon attack is imminent.

Episode 10: Pegasus
Original Air Date--23 September 2005
Gallactica meets Pegasus, and Adama's command is threatened when the captain of Pegasus outranks him. A joyous celebration turns sour at some of the secrets emerging out of the differences of the two crews, and Baltar meets a familiar Cylon prisoner aboard Pegasus.

Episode 11: Resurrection Ship: Part 1
Original Air Date--6 January 2006
Adama and Cain find common ground when Starbuck returns with footage of the Cylon ship. Roslin negotiates a temporary truce, while Starbuck plans an attack.

Episode 12: Resurrection Ship: Part 2
Original Air Date--13 January 2006
Starbuck and Fisk are preparing for the murder jobs, while the attack on the Resurrection ship is planned. It goes wrong for Apollo. Dr. Baltar has feelings for Pegasus' Number Six.

Episode 13: Epiphanies
Original Air Date--20 January 2006
President Roslin, who is about to die, believes Sharon's baby is dangerous and orders it must die. Meanwhile, a terrorist group inside the fleet starts to ask for a peace negotiation with the cylons.

Episode 14: Black Market
Original Air Date--27 January 2006
Apollo investigates the murder of one of the crew and falls for a young prostitute, whom he vows to save from the rogue ship dealing with the Black Market. As well as confronting the bad guys, Apollo has to confront some past mistakes.

Episode 15: Scar
Original Air Date--3 February 2006
This is an episode about loss. Kat and Starbuck confront each other about their piloting skills and each vow to kill Scar (a Cylon spaceship) before the other.

Episode 16: Sacrifice
Original Air Date--10 February 2006
A terrorist attacks and holds several key people hostage and threatens to murder them unless she is given the Cylon prisoner.

Episode 17: The Captain's Hand
Original Air Date--17 February 2006
Two of Pegasus' raptors go missing after a suspicious distress call. President Roslin must make a decision on abortion that could hurt her political career.

Episode 18: Downloaded
Original Air Date--24 February 2006
The Cylon baby is finally born, leading to some political decisions being made. Meanwhile, the Cylons on Caprica contemplate life and humans when they meet up with a certain human from a previous episode. This story explores the Cylon world.

Episode 19: Lay Down Your Burdens: Part 1
Original Air Date--3 March 2006
While Dr. Baltar is behind in the polls for the election and tries desperately to turn things around, Starbuck is planning a mission... Read more

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