• manga,  Uncategorized

    MANGA: Sakura-kun no Hatsukoi wa Natsuiro ni Saku

    Sakura-kun no Hatsukoi wa Natsuiro ni Saku – Kaketama

    Ever since he quit his job, Sakura Hare has been a shut-in, and spends his days getting by lethargically.
    On the other hand, Hare’s childhood friend, Takehana Sakura, is an adventurer who travels around the world with a smile on his face.
    “Even though he was so timid, I was the one who gave him the push…” As Hare’s thoughts turn more and more somber, Sakura suddenly returns…

    Sakura-kun’s First Love Blooms in a Summer Hue is a light-hearted opposites attract romance between childhood friends.

    Hare grew up protecting his smaller friend Sakura, cheering him on throughout their school days. As adults, Hare became a shut‑in from burnout, while the now taller Sakura chased his dream of traveling the world as a vlogger.

    Growing increasingly despondent, Hare missed Sakura badly but couldn’t bear watching his videos. One day, Sakura came home but would their friendship be the same or would it be something more?

    This one-shot is as bright and uplifting as a summer day. While Hare angsted, the vibe remained light with Sakura’s warm affectionate personality sweeping our boy off his feet. A past memory kick things into gear then it was all ridiculously sweet confessions and breathless kisses.

    I loved how Sakura inspired Hare to be a better person, and the manga closed on a hopeful note filled with promises of happier days ahead.

    Overall, a beautiful summertime reunion!


    If you like my content, please consider supporting me on Ko-fi or PayPal. Your donations will help keep this website going. Thank you so much!

  • book,  Uncategorized

    SERIES REVIEW: Signs and Wonders & Cursed (Witchbane Books 7 & 8) by Morgan Brice

    Witchbane: Signs and Wonders – Morgan Brice

    When a coven of dark warlocks killed Seth Tanner’s brother, Seth became a man driven by vengeance, sworn to stop the cycle of ritual killings, willing to die for the cause. He never expected to fall head over heels in love with the witches’ next intended victim. Evan Malone didn’t believe the supernatural was real until Seth swept in with his magic and motorcycle to save him from being the next sacrifice.

    Now they’ve gone on the road together, hunting the rest of the coven while they figure out how to keep the white-hot, once-in-a-lifetime bond between them. Days are filled tracking their paranormal quarry, honing their monster hunting skills, and gaining control of the small magics that have made a life-or-death difference. Nights are spent together, entangled in adrenaline-fueled passion, learning how to make this love last forever despite the odds. Seth fears that if they don’t eliminate the rest of the coven, they’ll be on the run forever, and more people will die. Evan is afraid that Seth’s obsession with revenge means they might not survive to get a happily ever after.

    Seth and Evan head to West Virginia to confront one of the dark warlocks, a master con man running a cybercrime empire. Can Seth and Evan save the warlock’s next target, bring down his crime syndicate, and live to tell the tale?

    Signs and Wonders is a thrill-packed supernatural thrill ride with plenty of paranormal suspense, hurt/comfort, hot nights, found family, deadly magic, immortal witches, determined hunters, haunted places, creepy ghosts, impressive explosions, spooky chills, and sexy thrills, and features an evolving, established romantic relationship with all the feels.


    Rating:
    4 Stars – minor quibbles but I loved it to bits

    Soundtrack: Vigil
    Artist: The Mars Volta
    Album: The Mars Volta


    Witchbane: Cursed – Morgan Brice

    Seth Tanner and Evan Malone head to Savannah, Georgia, to hunt the seventh of the coven members responsible for the death of Seth’s brother and so many other victims over the past hundred years.

    Seth and Evan fell in love when Seth rescued Evan from one of the dark witches, and they went on the road together to stop the murders. Their relationship is new and intense, growing deeper with the danger, giving them both a reason to survive and gain vengeance.

    Sterling Vernon is a prominent restaurateur with a thriving array of businesses, and he’s also the seventh witch-disciple with a new victim in his sights. His reputation and wealth protect him, and his dark magic enables him to evade consequences. Vernon needs to work his ritual to replenish his power soon, and that requires a new sacrifice.

    Paxton Miller is Vernon’s next intended victim. When Vernon puts a killing curse on Evan to force a confrontation with Seth, it’s going to take all of Seth’s courage and cleverness, as well as help from their friends with supernatural abilities, to save Evan and Paxton and stop Vernon once and for all.


    Rating:
    4 Stars – minor quibbles but I loved it to bits

    Soundtrack: The Curse of the Fold
    Artist: Shawn James
    Album: The Dark & The Light


    Witchbane by Morgan Brice has become my comfort read, and by now it’s easy to see how the series has evolve while still delivering everything we love about Seth and Evan’s scenic paranormal quest.

    Signs and Wonders, the 7th book and possibly the shortest installment so far, takes our boys to West Virginia’s National Radio Quiet Zone (NRQZ), where radio transmissions are heavily restricted due to scientific and military reasons. What started as a mission for two now involves a network of friends across states, with delightful cameos from the author’s other series.

    This time, the witch they’re hunting runs a wellness retreat inside the zone and taking him down is tricky as magic and technology don’t mesh well. Seth and their hacker allies target the witches’ cybercrime empire while Evan infiltrates the wellness orientation seminars.

    While the plot is straightforward, the writing is fast-paced and there’s plenty of tactics and action to keep things exciting. I loved going over the how-tos of the mission and Seth and Evan collaborating with the secondary characters made it even more dynamic.

    There’s also a change in internal dialogue, Seth and Evan think less of revenge and more about life after the mission. Despite lingering fears, they remain rock solid, comfortable and settled yet always passionate. I enjoyed their cozy boyfriends dynamics and how they’re still as endearing as ever.

    Cursed, the 8th book, took our boys to the food havens of Savannah, Georgia which seriously made me hungry. The witch is a prominent restaurateur mentoring his next victim, a food truck owner. This is another tricky setup because how would Seth and Evan convince him of the danger? Also, Evan was hit by a curse which left him in the sidelines.

    Like in the previous book, our boys had help from friends and the local good witches. The culinary angle has a gruesome aspect with monster meat being sneaked in. The victim’s boyfriend is a musician and I loved the neat musical spell he and Evan used in the end to power up the good guys.

    There’s a change in Seth and Evan’s hectic pace, our boys finished dealing with the bad guys early and took some downtime. They went on a proper date, sight seeing around Savannah and enjoying the food. There’s more talk about dreams of a life after the mission and while I’m rooting hard for a happy ending for our boys, I couldn’t help but feel a pang that the series might be ending soon.

    Witchbane is my tour guide across America, taking us to real life weird and wonderful places. I hope the author could give us a map of Seth and Evan’s roadtrip because if ever I could afford a trip to the US, I want to trace their journey.

    Overall, I’m happily tagging along till the end!

    P.S.

    Witchbane should be read in order. Follow the map below:

    Witchbane

    Burn

    Dark Rivers

    Flame and Ash

    Unholy

    The Devil You Know


    If you like my content, please consider using my Amazon affiliate links below to buy your copy of Signs and Wonders and Cursed. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying Amazon purchases at no additional cost to you.

    SIGNS AND WONDERSAmazon UK | Audiobook
    CURSEDAmazon UK | Audiobook

    If you like my content, please consider supporting me on Ko-fi or PayPal. Your donations will help keep this website going. Thank you so much!

  • song,  Uncategorized

    SOUNDTRACK: Vigil by The Mars Volta & The Curse of the Fold by Shawn James

    Soundtrack to Witchbane: Signs and Wonders by Morgan Brice

    Vigil by The Mars Volta for a book about a century of murder, a quest for revenge, and a dream of a life after.

    I know the way he makes you hide
    Even when the dose is fight or flight
    And the orbits wait for a perfect name
    Clean out the webs he left behind
    And if you want, I can bury him out
    By the salt of sea, in an empty grave
    The past has a way of comin’ clean

    If I didn’t know any better
    I could have sworn you said
    “There will come a day for his reckoning”

    It’s the want of the weight, when it crushed
    All the centrifugal ways our lives fall in and out of place

    Soundtrack to Witchbane: Cursed by Morgan Brice

    The Curse Of The Fold by Shawn James for a book about a curse, a mission, a passion, and a hope.

    Give me your heart and I’ll show you how to feel
    Send me your soul and you’ll know what it is to be free
    We all need a deeper purpose
    One that’s true and bold
    The only thing that could hurt us
    Is the curse of the fold

    I once knew a man who had fire in his eyes
    Bloody right hand, he had taken his enemies’ lives
    The past was his torture
    The future held his hope
    Until he chose his fortune
    As the curse of the fold

    Although you may feel like giving up
    It’s not the only road
    The path less often traveled
    Holds the highest, the highest of hopes

  • quote,  Uncategorized

    I know the way he makes you hide
    Even when the dose is fight or flight
    And the orbits wait for a perfect name
    Clean out the webs he left behind
    And if you want, I can bury him out
    By the salt of sea, in an empty grave
    The past has a way of comin’ clean

    If I didn’t know any better
    I could have sworn you said
    “There will come a day for his reckoning”

    It’s the want of the weight, when it crushed
    All the centrifugal ways our lives fall in and out of place

    One day, you’re gonna see
    That everybody who claimed that you were loved have left
    Because one by one, they would disappear
    Claimin’ all your wolves were symptoms of deceit

    “Don’t let your tongue slit your throat”
    That’s what they always said
    This one last chance that you’ve gotta take

    It’s the want of the weight when it crushed
    All the centrifugal ways our lives fall in and out of place
    No-oh, it’s the want and the weight when it crushed
    All the centrifugal ways our lives fall in and out of place

    Underneath your doubt laid a serpent’s egg
    Hissing his way out
    You were told (you were told)
    Severed tongues (severed tongues)
    Can’t fall onto their swords, because
    You’re the only voice that calls

    It’s the want and the weight when it crushed
    All the centrifugal ways our lives fall in and out of place
    Oh-oh, it’s the want and the weight when it crushed
    All the centrifugal ways our lives fall in and out of place

    I’ll be with you
    Say you will, say you will, say you will
    I’ll be with you, I’ll be with you
    Say you will, say you will

    Give me your heart and I’ll show you how to feel
    Send me your soul and you’ll know what it is to be free
    We all need a deeper purpose
    One that’s true and bold
    The only thing that could hurt us
    Is the curse of the fold

    I once knew a man who had fire in his eyes
    Bloody right hand, he had taken his enemies’ lives
    The past was his torture
    The future held his hope
    Until he chose his fortune
    As the curse of the fold

    Although you may feel like giving up
    It’s not the only road
    The path less often traveled
    Holds the highest, the highest of hopes

    Some used to say that I’d never scale this mountain
    Now that I’m close they shut their eyes and draw their curtains
    Those who don’t believe
    Will always encourage defeat
    They’ll scream and shout and scold
    For the curse of the fold

    Although I felt like giving up
    It’s not the road I chose
    The path less often traveled
    Held the highest, the highest of hopes
    Held the highest, the highest of hopes

  • featured,  Uncategorized

    FLICKer: Howl If You’re Horny

    Featuring LGBT short films I found around the interwebz a.k.a Youtube. Okay sucky intro, but yeah, that’s it


    Howl If You’re Horny, a student dissertation film, explores queerness and mise en scene with a metaphorical relationship between being trapped within the closet and the werewolf exterior. Queer suppression and desire is explored within a dream sequence where posters, which were once in his room, come alive. He must decide if he wants to keep surviving or to live his first day as a human.