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Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane - Book Review

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 Shutter Island is a movie and a book. If I like the book, I may compare it to the movie. We'll see. Until then, I go in with high expectations, having read Live By Night and one other book by Lehane. Let's go.  This book was mind-bending, and for that reason, I really will tell you to read it yourself before you read this review. This is here to warn you of spoilers, heavy spoilers. I need to talk about the nuances of the plot and it will not be a spoiler-free review. You've been warned. Proceed with caution.  I said, read it yourself first. I'll wait while the ones who never read it or watched the movie leave.  Now we can proceed. Thank you. The review From the beginning we meet Teddy, a US marshall, investigating a missing woman on an island institution with a his new partner, Chuck. This is the setup we get. Quite frankly, I already knew I couldn't trust Teddy because someone online did spoil one small part of the end. But it still hit me like a truck at the end...
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The Odyssey - Book 3 review

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 Let's jump into it without further adieu. Let's talk about Telemachus and Nestor. Let's save time. Here's the video of the expert summarizing the Book/Chapter 3.  ODYSSEY BOOK 3 SUMMARY (Homer) Telemachus is going to talk to Nestor in Pylos at this point, with Athena (as Mentor's form) supporting him. I will review this in two ways. The first is a star rating (out of 5) of plot, and the other is the same star rating system for readability. Readability is essentially "how easy is it to figure out what is going on" and "did I understand this".  The Review for Plot Basically, this is a visit to see if Telemachus can get Nestor's take on what happened to his father. Nestor doesn't know. He says he can have a son accompany him to Sparta to see someone else who might know more. He also suggests the suitors might ransack Telemachus' home, so go see Menelaus and be quick to get home, lest your mother and your belongings be gone. That's t...
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Surrendered Sexuality - a book review

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 I stumbled upon this book because of my home church. This book wasn't even on my radar until my peers picked it up. Let's talk about connecting our faith and sexuality, which is a concept I have not heard much about.  This book was a group read because of my home church. It is not the type of book I'm usually consuming. I read mostly fiction and some nonfiction on the side (more nowadays than I used to). The title alone had my attention. The concepts within the book deal with giving God our all and not just parts of us. It talks about sexuality as not an identity, but a part of us to surrender to God. Being God's children should be our identity core and part of our faith journey, according to this book. It has some guts as a whole, mostly because it's talking about stuff a lot of Christians aren't.  Why this book has guts This book has boldness that I don't usually see in Christian Self-Help (the only category I can think of for this book to fit in). It tal...
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Read it or unhaul it challenge - Summer 2026

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I haven't done this challenge in a while. It's definitely time. Today we read three books at random and decide whether or not they stay in my personal library.  The rules of this challenge are simple. I picked three random books from "the unread" tab of my book inventory (not including the series I collect). I read them or DNF them. I decide what to do with them at the end of the challenge. I chose three, a good number to handle for one blog. I can do up to five if I DNF two in a row (a rule I added this past year), but today I'm just doing three. That's about it for rules. I'm going to go one book at a time.  If you take on this challenge, it is a good rule of thumb to read ten percent or four to five chapters before making a decision. Unless, of course, you hate it already, then you know what to do. I recommend this challenge to book dragons like me. We hoard books, but don't always read them all. We need space constantly for books. This will help yo...
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The Dungeon Anarchist's Cook-book - Dungeon Crawler Carl 3 Book Review

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 At this point in the Dungeon Crawler Carl (DCC) series, we're at level 4 of the dungeons. If you haven't got to this point, you should back up and read those first. Let's get into level 4 of the dungeon.  Carl, Donut, and Katia are now going through a subway system with no map or limited maps. They trade intel of the train lines with other crawlers as time goes on. The crawlers themselves are either out to get them (as Donut learns) due to the bounty on their head or helping them map out the system. Hekla's crew and part of the nursing home group are sharing intel with each other at this point. Carl and Donut connect with literally everyone who's willing to ensure most everyone can work together. They take on Katia as a favor, then permanently for reasons you'll find out yourself.  The train system is confusing. No one can get to the stairs early, the announcer says. After some absolute nightmare monsters, they come to the conclusion the environment is rigged t...
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Friendship and attraction - Are we attracted to our friends?

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 Attraction to friends? Being drawn to certain people? It's real. The very fact you want to hang out with your friend is a nonromantic attraction.  Let's get into it.  Attraction can be platonic or romantic. You heard me, non-romantic attraction. The reason you want to hang out with your friends of any gender is attraction. Attraction means wanting to be near them. There are different levels of attraction and romantic is just the highest degree of it.  Today I researched attraction in friendships - and I don't mean cross-sex friendship issues. I mean the actual concept of wanting to be near someone. You like seeing your family, your friends, and your significant other, which are two types of attraction but the same concept.  What magnets us to other people Familiarity is what we want as humans. Exposure effect is seeing someone over and over again, increasing our comfort. This connects us over time. Think about family here and how we connect with family. Most of...
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Carl's Doomsday Scenario - Book 2

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 Today we review book 2 of the Dungeon Crawler Carl series, Carl's Doomsday Scenario. At this point, Carl has just entered floor 3. If you don't know what I'm talking about, read the first book. Let's get into it.  Basic overview, this is where the real drama and dungeon crawling begin. This entire book is level 3. All of it. From the circus quest, to the desperado club, to the quest that led every crawler to run to level 4 early. This was level 3 alone, and I can't wait to see what level 4 has in store next book.  There is a lot to say. The stakes go higher and higher. There are also moments I wouldn't be eating lunch and reading this book. The circus quest left me feeling a little ill. Ice cream anyone? I didn't think so. You'll understand when you get there.  The main thing is that the crawlers are starting to interact more, and we learn that high crawlers have bounties on their heads. This game just keeps getting crueler and crueler. We see some NPCs...
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