Intimate by Kate Douglas

Summary
HER BEAUTY IS POWERFUL.

They call her Kaz. She's a gorgeous model with a good head for business—until now, at least. Kaz has just been fired from her latest photo shoot for having the wrong tattoo in the wrong place at the wrong time. But a chance encounter with photographer Jake Lowell could make everything right again . . . if Kaz is willing to accept his proposition. What does she have to lose?

HIS DESIRE IS DANGEROUS.

Jake has been searching for the perfect model to pose for a body-jewelry shoot—one that will leave no room for modesty. Is Kaz, who is nothing if not professional, ready to bare it all for a man she is not sure she can trust? It's an offer that's too good to refuse . . . and as Kaz finds herself growing more comfortable with Jake, the attraction between them reaches arousing new heights. But while the artist and his subject learn more about each other in the intimacy of wine country, evil lurks in the shadows—and soon it becomes clear that someone else has designs on them..

Impressions
Cool story, well written but I wasn't touched by it.

Maybe it's me and I should avoid romance for some time but I thought that the story was lacking of grabbing emotions. Sure, you can find them written on the paper, the author is talented and she describes her characters and the stuation very well. But it was like the pages were cold. Even when I was reading the sexy seductive scenes or the sex encounters, I was not into it.

Don't get me wrong, it's really well written and not at all annoying or boring, it's just that I wasn't moved or touched by the characters. I was waiting (a bit too long) for some suspense actions related to Jake past. It's like being teased and then, waiting for real events to happen.
Same with the catastrophe awaiting the couple. You know from the start, it will end not good at some point but it was like the author was building the anticipation too long for my taste.

Since it was a hard week for me, maybe I was a more demanding reader because all the elements are here to make a great romance: actions, sexy characters and glamour.
Hope you will have a better chance than me and will fall under the book sexy spell.
:-)

Source 
Arc provided by Netgalley. I received this book in exchange of a fair and honest review.

Abbadon by Fabrizio Fiorentino

With Jimmy Palmiotti, Justin Gray and Spencer Marstiller too.

Summary
From prolific writers Jimmy Palmiotti & Justin Gray (Jonah Hex, Power Girl, 21 Down) with art by Fabrizio Fiorentino & Alessia Nocera, Abbadon tells the tale of a city steeped in sin.

The western boomtown of Abbadon is poised for a bright future until it experiences a series of gruesome murders. U.S. Marshal Wes Garrett is called to town to solve them.

A legendary lawman, Garrett is known for having trapped and killed a notorious murderer named Bloody Bill who once cut a brutal swath across the country and left scores of mutilated men, women, and children in his wake.

Now Garrett s arrival in Abbadon has revealed a secret that Sheriff Colt Dixon has desperately been trying to conceal: the recent murders have all echoed the style of the killer Garrett supposedly stopped years ago. Garrett and Dixon join forces to uncover the killer s identity in a town so full of corruption that everyone is a suspect.

Impressions
I had a real great time with this western.

Violent, bloody with a true noire atmopshere into the scenes, you are wondering who are the good and the bad guys as you suspect everybody while turning the pages.

And if the story is cool, the art is awesome. I like the realistic and detailed aspect of the characters and the town but i also like the colors. It can be dark, full of light and fire and all the pages are different.
Very cool comics! Really had fun with it.

And I've appreciated that at the end you have some extra informations about the process of drawing the personnages, the scenes and how it was created.
That's was very interesting.

Source
*Arc provided by Edelweiss
I received this book in exchange of a fair and honest review.

Sleepless

Sleepless

Nightmares, memories, I feel empty

In the dead of the night, I call your name

From my sleepy lips, the echo is loud

Bouncing on the walls, bringing me shame

Knowing I’m vulnerable and you are just a cloud

Tonight in the obscurity, your absence is heavy.

Metro: Scenes from an Urban Stage by Stan Raucher

Summary
The metro provides an intriguing location to observe the social landscape of urban regions around the globe. For the past eight years, Stan Raucher has spent countless hours photographing on metro systems in over a dozen cities on four continents including New York, San Francisco, Mexico City, Sao Paulo, Paris, London, Rome, Vienna, Shanghai, Delhi, and more!

His candid photos of ordinary people interacting with one another and their surroundings reveal an intimate glimpse into a variety of human emotions and interactions. These evocative, richly-layered images are like still photographs from a movie or play, and each of the scenes invites the viewer to evaluate the situation and then to generate a unique personal narrative.

At a time when fewer of the images that we see on a routine basis are honest representations of real life, these photographs open a window to the world that actually surrounds us here and now.

Quote

"Images are not seen but lived. They are not just vision but the cosmos itself as it expands and amplifies from the minute to the magnified." Gaston Bachelard, The Poerics of Space

Impressions
Awesome work with great shots of reality!

I like the Parisian Métro since I'm using it every day. Looking at people while you are on your journey is funny. Best way to learn about people habits, when they think nobody is watching, or to learn about a new culture when you are a tourist. I like to be lost, alone in my thoughts, while being surrounding by tonnes of humain beings at the same time. And the smell. LOL!

And Stan Raucher was able to wonderfully pictured the life in the metro through his lense. A common language in all the cities you visit. People laugh, eat, pray, read, avoid eyes contacts, listen to music, tell you their life, kiss, smile at their phone, frown while reading the map.


Marlaine Glicksman says: "For some, the metro is a temporary temple to pore over prayer books, a haven to convene with God. For others, it’s a mobile home, a place to sleep and to store a week’s worth of stuff and smells while on the way to God knows where."

And the pictures show these differents emotions. It's a touching testimony to reality, simple daily routine that speak volume.
The photographer must really like people to capture their souls so easily.

Nice photos book.

Source
*Arc provided by Edelweiss
I received this book in exchange of a fair and honest review.

More Than Comics by Elizabeth Briggs

Summary
They're friends online - but can they be more in real life?

Writer Tara McFadden has been friends with artist and drummer Hector Fernandez for years, long before his band became famous on reality TV – yet they’ve never met in person. They finally have a chance to connect offline when they’re both sent to Comic-Con to promote the graphic novel they collaborated on.

Hector's secretly been in love with Tara for as long as he can remember, and once they meet, she sees him in a new light. All the years of longing lead to an incredible night of passion after one of his concerts, but neither is sure if their online relationship can translate into a real life romance – or if this will ruin their friendship forever.

Over four crazy days at Comic-Con, Hector and Tara must decide if they want a future together. But when their story seems to be over, it’s up to Hector’s entire band to make sure he and Tara get their happy ending.

Impressions
Sweet and easy

A nice romance super fast to read with cool characters.

What was really interesting was the description of the Comic-Con atmosphere, the fans behaviours as well as the comics world industry.

For once, you see characters, even if they are young, been dedicated to their passion and really trying to make a living from it. Like the spirit.
The author doesn't tell you it's easy. Of course, there is a happy ending but you can still see that the heros have worked to achieve their dreams. And it's done in a nice way.

As for the characters, they are cool, drama but not enough to make me roll my eyes. :-D
If Tara is a little too confused about what she wants and where her heart is for my taste, I've liked her nevertheless. I like her excitation, nervousness and humility at meeting her fans.
Hector is super cute. Ok, not the part where he is an ass but come on...he is a cool sweet one!

Honestly, it's a nice read. Perfect to chill after a long day.

Source 
Arc provided by Netgalley. I received this book in exchange of a fair and honest review.

Seven Continents: Photography of Mohan Bhasker

Summary
Join physician and landscape photographer Mohan Bhasker on a round-the-world journey to some of Earth's most exquisite sites. 

Vicariously traverse a Laos jungle, kayak among Antarctica's icebergs, trek through Nepal's Himalayan mountain range and Brazil's scorching sand dunes, and come upon impossibly blue lagoons tucked into the rugged Argentine terrain. 


Interspersed with the images are adventure travel stories about close calls with nature, opportunities missed, serendipitous timing, and the payoff of persistence. 


The camera lens lingers on everything from pristine panoramas to quiet coves and closeups of penguin chicks. In a fifteen-year collection of more than 220 photographs, the author pays tribute to the beauty, history, and significance of some of the most remote places on Earth.

Reactions
Mixed feelings.

While seeing the cover, I was immediatelely attracted by the book.
Reading the summary, I thought I would be hooked and punched in the guts by traveling through the lense of this photographer.

Like his explanations about his journey and the stops he has decided to make in the different continents.
But I was dissapointed by the pcitures.
They are nice, some lovely but just one or two really had an impact on myself. I'm talking about the "wow" effect.
And for a photo adventure, i prefer to react and be impressed by the intensity.

The book is great. My opinion in this review is a question of sensibility. Always the case when you are talking about art and beauty. You can see the expression of the artist work and his pleasure in taking the pictures and you can have a different view and really enjoy it.

So make your own decision and see if the photos are talking to you...
Enjoy!

Source 
Arc provided by Netgalley. I received this book in exchange of a fair and honest review.

Timeless: Photographs by Kamoinge

Edited by Anthony Barboza  & Herb Robinson, Coedited by Vincent Alabiso, 

Foreword by Quincy Troupe

Summary
Immerse yourself in the visual stream created over the past 50 years by Kamoinge, the pioneering photographic collective.
Over 280 stunning photos are interspersed with insights and thoughts from Kamoinge's 30 members, who include many of the nation's most acclaimed photographers.

Taken in New York City, in West Africa, in Guyana, in suburban America, the photos include abstracts; daily moments of men, women, and children, together or alone; portraits of Miles Davis, Biggie Smalls, a young Ntozake Shange, and many other visionary citizens; and landscapes.

Kamoinge, a collective of African-American photographers seeking artistic equality, was founded in 1963 at the height of the American Civil Rights Movement. As a collective, the members gained entrance into venues that were previously inaccessible to blacks.
The oldest collaborative group of photographers in the nation, Kamoinge continues to photograph, as well as to mentor others, and commemorates its 50th anniversary with this compendium.

Quotes

"Photography for me is a tool to rediscover in a more profound manner things that I thought I already knew.
It’s a vehicle through which one can reveal and meditate on the beauty of “everyday suchness.”"
C. Daniel Dawson

"A photograph is a means to remember, as well as express my feelings about, the meaningful people, things, places and events that I encounter in life. Hopefully, I can record those encounters in a way that will have meaning not only for me, but for others viewing the photograph."
Gerald Cyrus

Impressions
A wonderful Time Warp through powerful pictures!

First I was interesting by the photos. While turning the pages, I've been lead through history of the 70's to nowadays. Daily life images of Black people in New York. Intense, poignant, others that was the expressions that were incredible.
Katherina, famous people, anonymous, joyful scenes, all these pictures were taking me by the hands and making me discovering a period I didn't know in a very cool and beautiful way.

There is also the landscapes, the people outside of the U.S and all the time you feel like a witness of the time through the lens of all these photographers.

Then , I went back to read Anthony Barboza words. And I've learned about the Kamoinge members and their works.

“This collection is a reflection and a spiritual reminder of the men and women who picked up the camera in order to document and reflect on the beauty, style, and struggles that make black communities across the country unique! These photographers did not just pick up the camera to make a good photograph – they spent some four decades observing, documenting, photographing and interpreting life’s experiences.”

Really cool book with powerful pictures.

Source 
Arc provided by Netgalley. I received this book in exchange of a fair and honest review.