Hello there, lovely ladies 🤗
Happy almost Labour day. I hope you manage to enjoy a well earned rest!
I’m burning to hear some feedback from the Darker DVD release. So, if you’ve spent a recent cosy night with Christian and Ana, spill the beans, girlfriends! 🙏🏻
I love clever signs, moreso when they are Fifty related…
😂😂
My reading week was super slow. Work is just ridiculously hectic at the moment, but here’s what I got up to:
Currently I’m reading:
Twist by Kylie Scott, book 2 in the Dive bar series. Sadly, I’ve not gotten very far, but I’m not seeing the quirky humour that made me fall in love with her Sage Dive series. Time will tell, I guess. 😜
On my shelf I have:
The Hot Shot by Kristen Callihan, book 4 in the Game On series and Trophy Wife by Alessandra Torre.
Then, as May is about to dawn, let’s check out what we’ll be reading:
These screenshots are taken from the Goodreads site.
Lastly, Sharon shared this cute pic:
😋😂
Have a brilliant (long) weekend, girls. Let us know if you have anything fun to share!
fifty shades of grey and more 
DVD release date in the UK not until the end of June 😦
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The end of June?? That’s so far away, Lizzie! Are you sure? I know the digital copies are out: Amazon, iTunes etc. Hope you get sorted sooner rather than laters, baby! 😉
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Hi Monique and ladies,
This week I read a couple of books not in our usual genre and absolutely loved them. Definitely giving me a hangover. I don’t want to move away from our sexy genre completely but this week after reading other books I felt amazing and not just blah. They certainly weren’t girl meets boy have fabulous sex then live HEA!
In saying that I’m looking forward to book 3 of the Pennies Series arriving on my kindle and interested to see what you think of Trophy Wife, I’ve been looking at it and I trust your reviews.
Loved the sign lol it always tickles me how people come up with this stuff.
Have a great week and hopefully you can get stuck into your reading over the long weekend.
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Hi Katherine 🤗 It seems like a break was exactly what you needed, Katherine! Good for you, girlfriend! 👍🏻 No! Sadly this 3-day weekend’s been stupidly busy also! Aarrgghhh! When will I get my life back? 😂
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I read Trophy Wife, and can’t wait to hear what you thought of it. I’m left with questions unanswered.
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Oh dear! Really? Last week we had someone say the same sort of thing! 😜 Torre is so accomplished it surprises me that she’d leave things hanging. I’m going to have to hurry and get to it! 😉
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Hi girls, I got this from Shanon via my Facebook page, encouraging feedback for the extended Darker DVD.
Shanon: “Have seen the digital version on iTunes. I felt that the added footage made a big difference. The 13 extra minutes does include the famous pool scene, which was hot, Beyond that, however, they added bits of depth and texture that helped to round out the movie.”
Monique: “That’s good to know, Shanon. Thank you for sharing. So worth it then? I particularly like the sound of the extra depth and texture! 👍🏻”
Shanon: “Definitely worth it. In the extra footage, we get to see Christian utter 3 magic little words that he didn’t in the theatrical release. I was screaming at my iPad when I heard them. Plus, there are a few extra minutes of the Charlie Tango crash and at Christian’s apartment afterward that helped that part make more sense to a friend of mine who hadn’t read the book. Little things like that.”
Monique: “That’s REALLY good news, Shanon. Can I copy and paste our convo stream in a comment on my blog? I’d like to share your feedback. No pressure. With or without your name, whichever you prefer. I’m relieved to hear about the padded out CT scene. That felt so hollow in the movie. And the ILY? That’s also a necessary addition! ❤️”
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The unrated version is far better than the theatrical version. The added footage includes the connections between scenes that were SO missing in the theatre. The movie flows much better and does a much better job of conveying the emotions between Ana and Christian. I just wonder why the theatrical version was so poorly edited. It didn’t do justice to the story.
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Hi Ellen. Thank you so much for weighing in. Two things, as far as I understand it: firstly, the rating. Hollywood is still very much consumed with overly sexual content. Understandable, I guess, but sorta pointless if they’re going to release a hotter version on DVD. Then, and this is apparently the big kahuna: it has to do with movie house screening times. If a movie runs longer then a specific theatre can have less showings. It all relates back to the $$. It makes no sense to me though. For a movie as big as Fifty, surely folks would go see it en masse regardless of how many showings there are. Either the theatres would be fuller or they would show it over an extended period of time. I don’t see how they can manage it for Lord of the Rings, but fail to do it for something as epic as Fifty. Short sighted if you ask me. Perhaps the movie serves as one big trailer for the DVD? Who knows? But I’m glad to hear that the DVD shows the bond between Christian and Ana. That was an essential missing piece IMO.
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Hi, Monique,
You confirmed my suspicions. It’s unfortunate, though, for Jamie and Dakota’s careers since much of the chemistry was missing in the theatrical version. Oh well. I hope they make good deals for the dvd sales. 🙂
BTW, I really enjoy your book club. Your book reviews tend to be spot on…
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Thank you, Ellen. That’s very good to know 😉
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Library came through with my book on hold and actually got to read a genre book this week. However, so sad that Master Professor was more than a disappointment. More on the order of a ripoff. Poor writing. Lousily executed plot, and trite to boot. FSOG vibe plagiarism. Monique…in the US, we say, “other than that Mrs. Lincoln, how did you like the play?” And that’s punny here because main character is Andie Lincoln. I know, Monique, Tara Sue Me’s stuff has never been your cup of tea. Here you’re 1000% (extra 0 on purpose) right.
Here’s my Amazon review of it:
An exceptionally clunky half-hearted effort. This author took a new direction that seemed to have potential and squandered her goodwill with her readers. The structure of the Academy is poorly formed and expressed. Lots of illogical facts and unanswered questions of how and why. Why does this matter? Because this is the stated first book of a series. As for the story itself, the ‘ripped from the pages of Fifty Shades’ details are lazy and insulting to her readers. (Virgin at an ‘elderly’ age, Seattle, hotel in Portland, fresh clothes delivered in AM, etc.) The stock characters are formless. One barely cares a jot about them. Her relationship pre-Academy with her A-list Hollywood actor boyfriend is not believable… on any level. Her setting up future books in the series is blatant and annoying. Oh, and did I mention the lack of believable BDSM activity?
Okay, you’re probably gonna want to read it anyway. Consider supporting your library and not reward this author directly. She has a responsibility to her readers. She has either let us down, or, more sadly, might be spitting in our faces
CD Reiss’ Bombshell just arrived on my Kindle. Want to run right to it…but have to finish up other two library books sitting on the Kindle as they expire soon.
Katherine: did I miss the names of the non-genre books you loved? I get the feeling Monique doesn’t get upset if we mention non-genre. I think of them as, um, like palate refreshers between courses of genre.
And group….all I want is to plain download the Amazon video of FSD. Do I get the unrated, extended version referred to or just the cinema version we’ve seen? I so do not want another DVD sitting on my shelf.
Monique….Labor Day? So, I guess Oz celebrates May Day? US celebrates Labor Day first Monday in September. But unlike May Day was not connected to Socialist holiday of May Day (no value judgement here, just the facts) designated in late 1900s. US Labor Day was just a day off to lengthen enjoyment of summer and give factory workers another day off. And, of course, original May Day in history is sexually laden in meaning like “Lusty Month of May” from Camelot, as the opening of spring…and other openings
Too many topics in one post? If so, sorry.
Lissa
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Oh no, Lissa. Don’t you just hate when that happens? Yeah, I’m not a fan, and this is not the first time she’s written a “like FSOG book”. Your review is enlightening. Thank you for a great share. The Fifty-style book has been done to death, and that by some magnificent writers. Personally I think writers should aim elsewhere now. Chances of making another feel fresh is close to nothing. I’ve started Bombshell. Looking good so far. And you’re right, I’m happy for you to post about whatever you’re reading.
As for the DVD, I’ve heard good things of the extended unrated edition, Lissa, but I fail to see how an extra 13 minutes will give us the bond we wanted to see, especially if it includes the pool table scene. Nevertheless, I’m going to give it a go when I can find a quiet block of time. Yes, May day is quite a big day here. The unions march in support of their members. It’s all very civilised and peaceful. The Camelot connection is new to me! How fun? Progress takes all the fun out if everything! 😝 Never too many topics. We are women, after all. 😂 Always a pleasure to hear from you, girlfriend 🤗
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Sorry…loquacious today.
Just saw item about which movie JD is making after current turn as Will Scarlet (thus short hair) in new Robin Hood movie:
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/entertainment/news/jamie-dornan-cillian-murphy-and-pierce-brosnan-to-star-in-maze-prison-break-film-35664242.html
Lissa
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Ooohhh, Pierce used to be a big heartthrob for me. The Remington Steele days… *sigh* And I loved him as 007. Never a hair out of place regardless of what violent shenanigans he was up to! ❤️😂
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Excited to see the DVD, but it may be delayed for me as we have started caregiving for a family member, and it drains away time for extras. I’ve been reading out of genre as well. One series was advertised as romance, but it is extremely light on the romance and more science fiction. Despite that, it was fun to read, but looking forward to getting back to some hot & heavy romance!
LOVED the vet sign – forwarded it right away to some animal rescue groups I work with.
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Aww, that’s very nice of you, Sharon. 👍🏻Hope you find a delicious hottie read soon. Yes! The vet sign was fun!! Thanks for the cute M&M pic. So funny! 😂
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A question for the group….I never read Twilight but just recorded the movie. Does the movie capture the passion that ELJ had for her to write the fan fiction? I’m not about to read the book but I need movies to help me stay up and slowly change ten time zones. Off to Seattle next week. Should I watch the movie?
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I only liked New Moon, and Breaking Dawn, parts one and two. The first movie was low budget and it showed, in Eclipse, Kristen Stewart looked bored out of her mind. The movies in my opinion were okay as far as following the story. I thought New Moon and Breaking Dawn part II were the best of them all. If you ever get to read the books, do so. That’s just my opinion…..
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Hi girl 🙂 So I take it the movies compares poorly to the actual books in terms of captivation? I always get the impression that the target market is 16 year olds. Or am I missing something awesome?
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Hi Lissa. I’ve never read the books. For some reason they’ve always felt juvenile to me, but concede that I might be wrong considering the massive following. One of the movies has cross my path in the past, not by design but by accident. I can’t say I was impressed. And I’m team Jacob all the way. Edward is far too skinny and pale (even for a vamper) for my liking, but again, that’s just me.
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