• manga,  Uncategorized

    MANGA: Suki, Dakara Furetai

    Suki, Dakara Furetai – Noda Matsumoto

    With the help of a friendly ghost, Masaki, Ono-sensei can examine his young patient’s teeth without much fuss. It seems that only Ono-sensei and children can see Masaki. He brings a calming presence, which is convenient for children at the dentist and for Ono-sensei as well. But is he really a ghost? He doesn’t remember much about his past but for some reason, he’s very attached to Ono-sensei. So much so that Masaki hangs out around the office and even walks Ono-sensei home. Once they reach the entrance to Ono-sensei’s apartment however, Masaki is asked to stay out. Ono-sensei doesn’t want Masaki to know that something else haunts him behind closed doors.

    I Want to Feel You Because I Like You is a ghost love story with a twist. I normally avoid ghost stories because they usually end in tears. This one is a tearjerker as well.

    Ono is a dentist who can see Masaki. Only he and children can see him. Masaki helps calm the young patients. His presence also helps Ono through some very rough patch.

    The manga slowly goes from light-hearted to heavy. As the story progressed, we learn more about Ono. He suffers from recurring nightmares and has what appears to be a terminally ill lover. A touch from a someone he couldn’t see calms him when the dreams were really bad.

    The story deals with grief and healing. While we witness Ono’s heartbreak, there still a feeling of light at the end of the tunnel. I had some inkling of where this was going and I’m glad I was right. There was a new beginning. Although, this has another surprise which comes with a warning that if you don’t like shota, best not read this.

  • book,  Uncategorized

    REVIEW: Double Or Nothing by Cari Z & L.A. Witt

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    Double Trouble: Double Or Nothing – Cari Z & L.A. Witt

    Rich Cody joined the U.S. Marshals to hunt down bad guys, not babysit witnesses. Orders are orders, though, and now he’s protecting a hacker with ties to the Albanian and Sicilian mobs. It’s just another exciting day in WITSEC.

    Leotrim Nicolosi was born into a world of crime and bloodshed. When that bloodshed hits too close to home, taking down Leo’s boyfriend—the son of a notorious mob boss—Leo is determined to destroy the Grimaldi family. He’s got evidence that will send every last Grimaldi to prison, he’s got the family’s wealth in an electronic chokehold, and he’s got a vendetta that can only be settled with the blood of the man who killed his lover.

    When a routine transfer to a safehouse goes horribly wrong, Rich and Leo narrowly escape with their lives. With the Marshals compromised and Leo being framed for murder, he and Rich are on the run from criminals and law enforcement alike. They have no one to trust except each other, and nowhere to go that their enemies can’t reach.

    And the only way out might mean making a deal with the Devil.

    This novel is approximately 77,000 words.


    How far will you go to keep a witness safe?

    Rich Cody found out exactly how far the hard way when he was assigned Leotrim Nicolosi, a hacker holding information that will bring mafia families down. His transfer to a safehouse went to shit and the Marshal and his witness found themselves on the run from not only the Albanian and Sicilian mob but from several law enforcement agencies as well. There was no one they can trust, not the police nor the US Marshals, nor the FBI. The mob has a long reach.

    Double Or Nothing hit the ground running with a shootout that set the fast-paced action/suspense vibe throughout the book. There was no rest for the weary, Rich and Leo were constantly on the move, driving from one point of the American heartland to the opposite end. The only downtime they had was in the missile silo/bunker when they asked Rich’s marine buddy for help.

    I loved how the authors kept several levels of tension going. The book was very effective in the giving off that constant sense of danger hanging like the Sword of Damocles over Rich and Leo’s heads. Meanwhile, the sexual tension was a simmering slow burn that went nuclear in the missile silo.

    Beyond their romantic connection, there was Rich’s unwavering loyalty to his witness and his duty as a Marshal. I loved his dogged determination to see things through to the end. Grieving the loss of his lover, Leo is equally determined to bring down his killers. The two men took on an entire mob. They didn’t hold anything back.

    The book would make a great action movie. There’s a lot of explosions and gunfights and car chases that will keep you on the edge of your seat. There were twists and turns, double crosses and close calls. It was one heck of a mission.

    There was one scene at the end, where they both just went through hell and Rich thought he lost Leo. That part where he was hugging him while shaking with shock and exhaustion was one of the most poignant moments. You can really feel his heart exploding with emotions. Mine did just that.

    So just how far will you go to keep a witness safe? For US Marshall Rich Cody, all the way.

    P.S.

    Double Trouble is a duology and best read when you already have both books in hand. Double Or Nothing ends with a cliffhanger. Rich and Leo’s mission continues in Doubling Down.

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

    Soundtrack: Run
    Artist: Foo Fighters
    Album: Concrete and Gold


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    DOUBLE OR NOTHING | DOUBLING DOWN

  • song,  Uncategorized

    SOUNDTRACK: Run by Foo Fighters

    Soundtrack to Double Trouble: Double Or Nothing by Cari Z & L.A. Witt

    I used this song for another book last year but I think it’s a very apt song for Rich and Cody on the run. The lyrics go “Run for your life with me“. I especially liked the part “In another perfect life / In another perfect light“. What if had they had meet under different, saner circumstances? What if?

  • quote,  Uncategorized

    Wake up
    Run for your life with me
    Wake up
    Run for your life with me

    In another perfect life
    In another perfect light
    We run
    We run
    We run

    The rats are on parade
    Another mad charade
    What you gonna do?
    The hounds are on the chase
    Everything’s erased
    What you gonna do?

    I need some room to breath
    You can stay asleep
    If you wanted to
    They say that nothing’s free
    You can run with me
    If you wanted to
    Yeah, you can run with me
    If you wanted to

    Before the time runs out
    There’s somewhere to run
    Wake up
    Run for your life with me
    Wake up
    Run for your life with me

    In another perfect life
    In another perfect light
    We run
    We run
    We run
    Run

    We are the nation’s stakes
    If everything’s erased
    What you gonna do?
    I need some room to breathe
    You can run with me
    If you wanted to
    Yeah you can run with me
    If you wanted to

    Before the time runs out
    There’s somewhere to run
    Wake up
    Run for your life with me
    Wake up
    Run for your life with me

    In another perfect life
    In another perfect light
    We run
    We run
    We run
    Run

    Wake up
    Run for your life with me
    Wake up
    Run for your life with me

    In another perfect life
    In another perfect light
    We run
    We run
    We run
    Run