Collects Carnage 1-5

 

So, clearly, I’m reading series out of order.   This may be the first Carnage mini-series, but I should have read the volumes that lead up to this first.  I didn’t realize Cletus Kasady and his Carnage symbiote were in space, or that Cletus himself was presumed dead.   I don’t know when this happened, but it was explained near enough to the beginning of the story that I got caught up with the basics quickly.   

 

And I’m liking Carnage, and the symbiotes, a lot!   He’s a sociopath, completely unconcerned with anything anyone wants other than him.   In fact, this can be said about either Kasady or the symbiote.   The reason they work so well together is that they both seem to crave violence and madness and horror.   One of the most frightening things about Carnage is that his host is a human horrorshow; it’s bad enough that an alien is like that, that they have superpower, but when strip that away, it’s still true.   (Other than the super strength and healing.)

 

So when Kasady and the symbiote are retrieved by Michael Hall, and when he starts creating prosthetics and armor from the symbiote, well, it’s not going to end well for anyone.   However, Tony Stark, Iron Man for those who don’t know, realizes that something is weird given how advanced the prosthetics are when he sees Hall showing off at a medical conference.   It’s not like him not to search for the reasons why, but the fact that Hall embarrassed Stark when he was on stage?   Oh, yeah, that was just daring Tony to come and look for all of Hall’s deep, dark secrets. 

 

It doesn’t help that Hall employs the psychiatrist taking care of Carnage’s girlfriend, Shriek, who has sonic blasts and can cause people to mob, become violent and even to become murderous.    It doesn’t help that Shriek is a jealous psychopath and that her doctor, who /has/ been helping her, got her arm cut off trying to save Shriek.   Except that Hall replaced her arm with a symbiote-based prosthetic. 

 

So pretty much, it all comes together to create an epidemic-like atrocity that Iron Man and Spider-Man must put to a stop, so long as they want to keep their city safe at all.   Being that they are truly heroic, the thought that, hey, maybe distracting Kasady by giving him the guy he wants - the guy who held him in a hospital and took his symbiote - doesn’t even cross their minds.  In fact, Spidey and Stark both go out of their way to protect everyone, including Hall and his lackeys.   

 

There are some nice surprises and absolutely gorgeous painterly art.   Highly suggested, although not for the weak of stomach.   It’s got some pretty horrific moments, but if you can handle it, it’s a real fun ride!

 

I like books with mistaken identities and this was just that. A girl has to travel across the country to meet his father for the first time and to marry his father's neighbour's son. The idea of the marriage is to end the feud between two families. But the headstrong girl is not impressed by her parents decisions and hatches a plan of her own. She pretends to be a house keeper to find out why her mother left her father. Of course her plan doesn't work as she hopes. Some ways it works even better and other ways much worse.

I liked the beginning of the story. Tiffany was spoiled and headstrong and she didn't want to meet her father at all. I liked their trip to Montana but after that everything went downhill. I couldn't see this spoiled girl, who wanted to marry a New York dandy and had visited a kitchen twice in her life, washing dishes and cooking. She matured too quickly. Sure, author wanted me to believe, that she was playing a part, but it just wasn't believable.
The mystery of Tiffany's parents was good but it popped up randomly and the conclusion of it was so disappointing. Why such a rush? I wanted more details.
The story had wonderful secondary characters - so, that's why I give it 3 stars.

Fantastic books for young girls getting into reading!! Great stories about friendship and life lessons. The characters deal with all sorts of situations and often find responsible solutions to problems.

I loved this series growing up and wanted to start my own babysitting business with friends. Great lessons in entrepreneurship for tweens.

The books may be dated with out references to modern technology but the story stands and lessons are still relevant.

Awesome books that girls will love! And the series grows with them! Terrific Author!

Okay I wasn't bowled over by this book instead it was just average and I had a hard time with many things, first off the heroine came off as a snob in the beginning, coming back after years with the perception that she would run the family hotel but what she doesn't know her father sold it to the hero, who is famous for a chain of cheap, affordable motels, of course that is not classy and the hero decides that he will tell her the news in his own time, meanwhile he starts romancing her and feels something deep for her.

The heroine slowly comes out of her shell and falls for him and the hero tries to rush her into marrying him before the truth gets out. I didn't like how she forgave him so easily for the deception and I didn't feel the hero was apologetic.