Amazing story, but I had a hard time understanding ...
928310
Amazing story, but I had a hard time understanding his motive for the life he was leading. According to others in the documentary, he was well-intended but not particularly smart about his decisions. Didn't watch the whole thing.
2642713
I feel bad about giving this book only 3 stars; I think 3.5 would be more accurate.  It was well written and very creative, but I had a hard time following it.  The story goes back and forth between two couples in different times (20 some years apart), and it was difficult to remember who did what and when.  Now that I've read through the whole thing, it makes more sense, but I think I would really need to read it again to get the full effect, though I'm still not sure I understand it.

I read this story as part of the Curses, Fates, and Soul Mates boxed set.  It's listed as the first book of a series, but can be read as a standalone.  Some adult content, but not overly explicit.
3818492
The first 20% of this book was mostly confusing to me. It seemed to hop and jump around from character to character and through time. If the author had given more information about the characters in the beginning I think it wouldn't have been as confusing. Once I could wrap my brain around who was who and what was going on then I really started to like the story. The author is brilliant at painting pictures with her words, but sometimes there were way too many words. There were quite a few breath taking scenes that really made me feel like I was in the story. And it has been a long time since I've read the book and completely loved the ending. I just loved how this book ended. Overall, it was a hard book to get into but I stuck with it and I'm so happy I did. I could see this being an excellent movie.
4173105
I found the book a wonderful read !!!  The story is fascinating.  I would recommend this book to anyone that can read and is old enough to understand the courage these children showed..  It was however, the only book I have ever read (and at my age and an English major too many to count), where I had to go back to Chapter 1 to understand the Character change.  I couldn't understand Vivian and Molly and how they came to be.  Molly's interview with Vivian/Dorothy was so well written.  The ending was abrupt, and left so much to the readers imagination.  I still like "And they lived happily ever after".
1967354
I decided to read this book after the movie came out and a few friends recommended it.

There is a lot of jumping around in the story and you have to pay attention to the section headings to figure out what point in time the story is covering. Even with that though, I still got a little confused. I had to keep going back to check and see how old Henry was in the part I was reading. But once I got my bearings it was okay.

And I absolutely loved the book. And then seriously cried at the end. I think I cry at the end of most books, so take that with a little hint of salt. Or a lot, your choice.

I originally wrote a review that was full of confusion, because that's the way I felt after reading a bunch of the other reviews. Some people really disliked the book and poked holes in the characters, the storyline and the author's way of telling the story. It almost seems like we read completely different books. And darn it, it made me question my experience with the book AFTER I'd already read it.

Forget that. I enjoyed it. I got sucked in. It didn't have to be perfect for me to enjoy it. I did read it so fast that I may have missed some things. And maybe even some important things. So when I get my copy back, I'm going to go back and reread it. And I really hope it holds up under a second reading. I think it will.
2863456
This book made me feel a gambit of emotions. At first the story was really good and I loved it, then I got frustrated cause I was confused, I wanted to stop reading it but I just couldn't, I like this book now, I couldn't stop reading it, then it got better and then I was surprised due to twists in the story.

The concept of the story is great. I love stories about fairies and mortals who are half fey or something. That's what drew me to this book.

The beginning of the book starts out great. I'm understanding it and it really draws me in. After Alex enters the park it gets complicated and confusing. I was wishing for an explanation of what was happening. After this, the story goes back and forth between understanding what was happening and being confused. About halfway through the book, that levels out and I'm understanding it and it gets smoother and better. A few surprises arise, but they are good. The ending I had a problem with, though.

Also, the cast of characters are wonderful and well developed.

Overall, the story is really great and written in such a way that it's like I'm watching a movie. The confusing bits are a little bit difficult, but if you press in and continue the wrinkles press out and it becomes smooth.

I received this ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review from Inked Rainbow Reads.
781206
I was going to give this short novella a  three but changed it to a four mainly because of the authors amazing descriptive abilities. Every sentence gives the readervivid details of  what is occurring. Now the story itself was slightly confusing. I didn't completely understand the what or why and think story would have been better if it had been written as a book; giving the author more time expand on what was happening.
2301405
This book was so hard for me to read! It was beautifully written, but very heart rending. My emotions went everywhere and I couldn't help but feel the desperation of the characters reaching out to me.
4487655
We bought this as a read-aloud book to compliment our The Good and The Beautiful History curriculum and I REALLY love the story. the complexity, the language, the history and the morals being taught are amazing, but having kids all under 8 I felt like this book was hard to get through because it was SO advanced. I LOVE had TGATB stretches me and my kids and expect more and learn from advanced language and literature, but I really think they will enjoy and take this in more in a few years. I spend about 1/4 of the time explaining things or retelling in language they can understand.
364813
This is the most intriguing true story that I have read in a while, and the only reason I didn't rate it higher is that it is very difficult to read; I don't mean that the writing's complicated, I just mean that the story rips your heart out. I grew to know and love Tom Hall, John Romero, and John Carmack as I read, and then I grew to dislike most of the people involved in id Software because they were concentrating less and less on story, humor, and fun and more about making money and having the prettiest technology.

If you want to know what happened to your favorite old games like Commander Keen and Doom and why the industry isn't putting out anything that's as good or better, read this. If, however, you are happy to pay fifty dollars for what is essentially a showcase of some neat new lighting trick (or whatever) that the programmers just learned, you will not find this very satisfying.
1622398
I loved the story, the developed history and myths. I reread some of the amazingly beautiful descriptive scenes, they awed and left me breathless. The action was nail bitting worthy. The book was an epic movie in written on pages. This epic-ness made it hard to read at times.
There was so much information dumped, so many extremely detailed details, written with such artistic flourish  that the book felt heavy. I could only read for short amounts of time, my brain needed  time to rest after struggling to unwind the woven words into meaning. This was not an easy book to read, it had to be savored slowly taking time to contemplate the events both past and present.
Ben the man who is not a man but a red dragon from lore lost with time, was trapped in a web. He had lived centuries hidden, long lonely centuries with humans never knowing his secret. He has a woman, Rose, that he cares for but knows it can not last, and he doesn't have the nerve to be honest with her. Her safety, his secrets and the world will all be trapped in a tornado of ancient myth come to the present. His secrets are held in check by a pact.
It is a pact him and others not human made after years of slaughter and near extinction threatened them when the Fae left this world. This world full of suppressed magic and lore is ruled by humans with a hope that the Fae will return and the magic will once again be free. Witches, Egyptian gods, spirits, Fae and more. When the pact is broken everything bleeds and worlds collide .
I don't think I'll continue with the series. It was a story I loved but was so difficult to read it took some of the pleasure out of reading. I would go see the movie !
3.5 stars
3544861
I loved Sam! With that being said, overall the entire story was great. I loved the dysfunctionality of the family. Very real. I loved the twists and turns we constantly went on with everyone. So why the four star and not five? At times, I got lost. There were so many characters I was having to go back and "review" as to who was who. I felt like people [and scenarios] kept popping up that I had either forgotten about or it was a brand new character being introduced. I would have like to see Mason express more than just sexual feelings with Sam. Although I was drawn into them, I couldn't quite become as obsessive as I thought I would.
Final: The cluster was still a must read and I did read in one day. Great job!
2953059
This was a story that I gained much from on a personal level, but it did get a little hard to plunge through the more complex and dense parts.  I recommend this book to anyone, though, because my life became simpler after reading this.  If I can read anything I want to into the world, all I can say in the end is "It's so beautiful."
2784519
Smother Review
Finding the words to say what this story did for me is extremely difficult. I wish I had a better vocabulary to properly express what this story does to the reader. While I think of my own expression, let me start this off with a standard review.
************SPOILER ALERT*************
The main character, Reese, living in a world of her own, is on a path that is likely to lead to her own self destruction. Twenty four years old and this woman has had to deal with situations that nobody so young should ever have to deal with. Her innocence stolen by someone who should only keep her safe, she frees herself from a monster and a mother whose only concern is to keep the monster around. Resulting in Reese leaving home at a very young age, she drags herself from one place to another and into more abusive situations. Finally coming to a place where she has to depend on herself, she meets a man who is not who he appears to be. He harbors secrets that can only lead to the ultimate destruction of Reese if she ever finds out what he is up to.
Leo, a once lost soul, only wants to keep Reese safe from herself and others who mean to destroy her. Coming from his own miserable younger years, he plunges into a life that could ultimately lead to not only Reese's destruction but his own as well. Taking Reese under his wing, he does everything he can to save her life and bring her around to the beautiful person he knows she can be. In the process of that, he and Reese clash over situations that may make the reader angry at certain points.
Leo, the man who wants to save Reese and Reese fighting every step of the way. It is hard for the reader to decide where the story is going until the very end.
**********
This story touched me in ways I never would have expected. At times hurtful and other times angry, this story was difficult at first to read. I kept going because, there are times when I could see a light at the end of the dark tunnel. I also needed to see how things went for Reese as I was never sure what might happen to her and her destructive ways.
The story draws the reader in and makes it hard to put it down. As angry as I got at times, the author found a way to bring me back into the story and continue to see what happens with Reese and her serious ability to get herself into very bad situations. My greatest fear was that she would not survive.
As per her usual style, Lindy Zart, has gotten another story well worth taking the time to read. The story flows smoothly and the reader gets to know the characters and their personalities relatively easily. Well described situations and characteristics paints a very clear picture in the readers mind. This story rates 5 stars from me.
4953051
I've tried to read (and enjoy) this award winner twice now. I've plowed through the first 10% and it has to be one of the most ridiculously confusing books I've ever read. I even read a couple of on-line synopses to see if  that would clarify things. How did this thing win awards?
2642797
Really cool book but I find it to be hard to understand. The illustration could be a tad better, but I still love it.
318247
This book is beautifully illustrated, but I was utterly confused about the poem that makes up the story. My kids tried to explain it to me. Aren't kids wonderful! I am certain there will be readers who love this book, but it was a bit too abstract for my taste.