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๐ฅ Homecoming โฃ
๐ Season: 2โฃ
Starring: Stephen James & Janelle Monetโฃ.
๐บ on Amazon Prime Videoโฃ
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Did you catch @HomecomingTV on @Amazonprimevideo cause the 2nd season is available for stream as off today!!โฃ
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Since the 2nd season is a continuation of the storyline we were introduced to in the previous season, itโs impossible to disregard season 1.โฃ Also you shouldnโt want to, cause Julia Roberts serves up an incredibly nuanced Heidi Bergman. Her interactions with Stephen James (as Walter Cruz) are simply captivating. Their onscreen connection breaths authenticity. Unfortunately Julia Roberts doesnโt return for the follow up season but Janelle Monet more than makes up for this by delivering a very different but equally fascinating performance. โฃ
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I will refrain from summarizing the plot because knowing as little as possible truly heightens this viewing experience. That being said, the appeal of Homecoming isnโt merely the mysterious corporate conspiracy plot but also the offbeat way in which this tale is being spun. Essential information is divulged very early on in the season but one is only aware of its importance towards the end, when everything magically seems to fall into place. โฃ
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Additionally there is magnificent cinematography, an excellent script and ingenius editing which are all executed at almost motion picture level. Seriously ... even this series score is remarkable. โฃ
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With all these accolades itโs not surprising that Homecoming is a binge worthy viewing experience. There is only one โButโ !! But although I binged and enjoyed this 2nd season, its quite obvious season 1 has set a bar that this follow up season unfortunately could not live up to.โฃ
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#HomecomingTV #Amazonprimevideo #2020 #Season2 #SamEsmail #KylePatrickAlvarez #JanelleMonet #StephenJames #Drama #CorparateConspiracy #Podcastadaption #Gimletmedia #SeriesRecommendation #TvSeries #SeriesToWatch โฃ
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MIDNIGHT AT THE BRIGHT IDEAS BOOKSTORE ... โฃ
Author: Matthew Sullivanโฃ
Rate: โโโโโฃ
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โ His whole life he had turned to books as his only solace, so it made sense that in preparing to undo himself he would do the same: fall into their pages, disappear into their windows, expose his soul on his way out of life. โโฃ
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Lydia Smith lives her life hiding in plain sight. A clerk at the Bright Ideas bookstore, she keeps a meticulously crafted existence among her beloved books, eccentric colleagues, and the BookFrogsโthe lost and lonely regulars who spend every day marauding the storeโs overwhelmed shelves. But when Joey Molina, a young BookFrog, kills himself in the bookstoreโs upper room, Lydiaโs life comes unglued. โฃ
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This book turned out to be a lot of things rolled into one. In fact itโs less murder mystery and more literary fiction than one would suspect. The dramatic event that sets everything off, takes you to unexpectedly dark places. But I didnโt hate it.โฃ
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Although there are plenty of bibliophiles in this story ... make no mistake, this is not a book about books. What begins in a bookstore with eccentric but lovable characters ends up being a multi generational journey about how devastating the ripple effect of one proverbial pebble can become. If this sounds rather vague, just know that itโs totally true and that Iโd like you to know as little as possible in order to have the best reading experience. โฃ
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This at times dark slow burn of a book caught me off guard and if you are into a character driven murder mystery/family drama ... you should totally pick this one up. ๐โฃ
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#MatthewJSullivan #MidnightAtTheBrightIdeasBookstore #Mystery #Thriller #2017 #Bookstagram #bookrecommendations #whattoread #Bibliophile #Bookworm #Books โฃ
- ๐ ๐๐๐ฃ๐๐ ๐ ๐จ๐ฅ๐๐๐ฅ๐ฆ
Author: Anthony Horowitz
Rating: โโโโ
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Magpie murders was an absolutely delightful experience.
I picked this one up somewhere around the time lockdown began, because all the synopsis of sci-fi & dystopian novels pretty much sound like non-fiction nowadays ๐โฃ
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Luckily there is a lot to love about this crime mystery novel and I have been picking up a lot more (cozy) murder mysteries ever since. Because you can find the synopsis on Goodreads, I hope you donโt mind if I dive right in ๐โฃ
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Magpie Murders differs from your regular whodunnit for several reasons...โฃ
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1. Itโs actually two murder mysteries for the price of one. There are two storylines, one in present day where editor, Susan Ryeland is given the manuscript of Alan Conwayโs very last novel and than there is the storyline of the very last novel ๐งโฃ
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2. While reading youโll find out this book is low key a writing manual for aspiring mystery novel writers. Cause I donโt think I ever had the nuts and bolts of a properly structured Whodunnit explained this compelling ๐คโฃ
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3. Although I prefer the storyline in present day, cause Susan Ryelandโs train of thought is often hilarious, on the whole both storylines are enthralling and they actually work well together ...๐คโฃ
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4. As with most whodunnits there are a lot of characters but in this case they are so well crafted you can easily tell all of them apart ... in both storylines ๐โฃ
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So if your fond of murder mysteries, especially cozy ones, you have to experience Magpie Murders .... (you can thank me later ๐)โฃ
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Since I am new at this murder mystery thing, Iโd like to thank you in advance for your recommendation, itโs already very much appreciated ๐โฃ
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#AnthonyHorowitz #MagpieMurders #Mystery #Crime #2017 #bookrecommendations #bookrecs #whattoread #Bibliophile #Bookworm #Books #Bookstagramโฃ
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๐ง๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐๐ฆ๐ง๐๐๐ฆโฃ
Author: Tiffany Tsaoโฃ
Rating: โโโโฃ
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โ ๐ ๐ฉ๐ง๐๐๐ ๐ข๐ฎ ๐๐๐จ๐ฉ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐๐๐ฃ๐ฎ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐จ๐ฉ๐ง๐๐ฃ๐๐ฉ๐ ๐ค๐ ๐๐๐ข๐๐ก๐ฎ ๐ฉ๐๐๐จ ๐ฌ๐๐๐ฃ ๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐ฎ๐ค๐ฃ๐ ๐ฌ๐๐จ ๐จ๐ฉ๐๐ก๐ก ๐๐ก๐๐ซ๐, ๐๐ช๐ฉ ๐ฃ๐ค๐ฌ ๐ ๐ง๐๐๐ก๐๐ฏ๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ฉ๐ง๐ช๐ฉ๐ ๐ค๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐๐ก๐๐๐eฬ: ๐ฝ๐ก๐ค๐ค๐ ๐๐ค๐๐จ ๐ง๐ช๐ฃ ๐ฉ๐๐๐๐ . ๐๐ซ๐๐ฃ ๐๐ ๐ฅ๐ค๐๐จ๐ค๐ฃ ๐ฉ๐ง๐ช๐ข๐ฅ๐จ ๐๐ก๐ก. โ โฃ
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I truly enjoyed this book. Probably because I didnโt buy into the tagline that this is โCrazy Rich Asians as written by Gillian Flynnโ. In defense of whoever came up with this ... itโs not a complete lie. The โCrazy Rich Asiansโ box is definitely checked!! There is a lot of wealth and nauseating classism, fortunately without the incessant brandname dropping, but introduced with a more sinister undertone. That being said, the level of mystery and suspense is lackluster when compared to anything by Gillian Flynn. The problem with this beautifully written family drama is that while it has similar themes to, it totally lacks the feel of the bestsellers that its being linked to for marketing purposes.โฃ
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The Majesties is a slow-paced โwhydunnitโ that takes its time to recount the relationship of two sisters, adds the dynamic between the wealthy Wirono and the even wealthier Angsono family to it and than tops it off with a teensy bit of race relation history in Indonesia and the collapse of the Asian economy in the 90โs. The aforementioned complexities are merely the backdrop to the family drama that ensues. There is also the multiple levels of psychological abuse one is subjected to, which seems inherent and tolerated when you come from money. Tiffany Tsao is definitely equipped to package all of this information and tell the tale without breaking the spell, right up until the last few pages. Than accepting what the author presents becomes somewhat challenging and I believe your enjoyment of this book depends on how well you respond to the conclusion of the story.โฃ
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Personally, the wonderful writing was enough to turn to the next page and the journey was enthralling enough to keep me invested. I still donโt know how to feel about the ending ...
โ I am not aware at this moment that I have lost my innocence. I will realize it many years later. One day I will look back and understand that just as there was a moment in my life when I realized where my power lay, there was also a specific moment when I stopped believing in authority just for its own sake and started coming to my own conclusions about the world I lived in. โ
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- Barbara Feldman - Unorthodox .
I picked up this memoir in preparation for the Netflix original series Unorthodox. Mainly because I wanted to be able to detect which elements of a story get lost in adaptation but itโs also nice to see how one art form influences and shapes another. .
Turns out that Etsy Shapiroโs story (Netflix) is only loosely modeled after Barbara Feldmanโs real life encounter and to be honest I liked the book better. Donโt get me wrong, the Netflix original is certainly worth your while and Sira Haas as the main character definitely does not disappoint. Itโs only that Barbaraโs actual story is far more interesting and, for me, a lot more educational.
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Because the memoir only documents Barbara Feldmanโs years within the ultra religious Satmar community, you get a more balanced view of Hassidic Judaism. Sure ... the community maintained a code of enforced customs governing everything from what one could wear, what was permissible to read, and to whom one could speak. But when you read the memoir you realize that is not just about repression, there is also a level of kinship and warmth within this community. .
The memoir is a joy to read because the author has a very pleasant writing style. The upside is that you can almost taste the meticulously prepared kosher meals but alas you also feel trapped, frustrated and deprived because so much of what is deemed โnormalโ is prohibited within this community. And by the time the author makes the decision to escape and leave everything behind, you also grasp that itโs about more than having to abide by a slew of restrictive rules. .
For a multitude of reasons this ended up being a โโโโ-read!! ๐
โ This book is a collection of the ideas, mantras, and poems I turn to when I feel like I am losing it. I wrote this so that I could have them all in one place when I feel overwhelmed...โ
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- @cleowade - Where To Begin .
Since the start of the lockdown (12th of March in the Netherlands) I have slowly but surely been social distancing. In retrospect this doesnโt just apply to my actual life, but I guess at times I am taking unplanned social media breaks too. ๐ค
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The thing is that although I am used to working from home, these past few weeks all the perks that came with rolling out of bed and not having to commute to get behind a desk, seem to have evaporated. The deep work that use to be a breeze, has become increasingly difficult to get to, mostly because of the ever increasing amount of unnecessary e-mail I have to plow through and the ridiculous amount of MS teams meetings I have to attend. So while everybody is having mild to full blown anxiety attacks due to COVID-19, my main problem is just that working from home doesnโt equal working in peace ... anymore ๐
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So by the end of a working day I mostly want to ... NO desperately need to unplug!! ๐ฉ
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Needles to say that lately ... I got quite a bit of reading done and one of my faves is Cleo Wadeโs โWhere To Beginโ ... a short, heartwarming comfort read with just the right message imprinted on each and every page. Since itโs the kind of book that leaves you centered by the time youโve finished it, I return to it often when I feel scatter brained!! By the way Cleo Wadeโs soothing voice totally adds to the experience, so the audiobook comes highly recommended!! ๐
