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The Break
The Break
Marian Keyes | 2017 | Fiction & Poetry
8
8.8 (4 Ratings)
Book Rating
MoMo’s Book Diary highly recommends this author’s latest release “The Break”

Marian Keyes has given us many brilliant novels – some of which I have ‘laughed out loud’ embarrassing my mother while on holiday in strange places. I have many happy memories reading Marian Keyes while on holiday.

I haven’t read anything by this author in some time and was excited to be given the chance to read and review for NetGalley and Penguin UK – Michael Joseph. It is a well paced book that is difficult to put down but I found that unlike some other books I have read recently I was able to put it down and take a break for normal life stuff… maybe it is due to this being a longer book that most that I read these days? Or maybe I have been reading too many crime based books that this just didn’t hold my attention as much as Marian Keyes did in the past. Don’t get me wrong I really enjoyed it and do recommend it as a novel.

It is a long read – enjoyable – and funny.

If you have read Marian Keyes in the past then you really don’t want to miss this one!

Thanks NetGalley and Penguin UK – Michael Joseph for the opportunity to read and review this fantastic novel.
  
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Daniel Boyd (1066 KP) rated Killing Eve in TV

Oct 22, 2018 (Updated Oct 22, 2018)  
Killing Eve
Killing Eve
2018 | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Good script (1 more)
Great cast
A Solid Spy Thriller With Laughs
Killing Eve is a BBC series based on the novel, 'Codename: Villianelle.' It stars Sandra Oh as Eve and Jodie Comer as Villianelle. Both are brilliant in their respective roles and are the main players in driving the show forward. They are supported by a very strong supporting cast as well, with everyone selling their character convincingly.

There are a few twists and turns that keep you guessing, but there are also a lot of spy story clichés present in the series. These aren't too offensive though, as I don't think that the show's main focus is to break the mould when it comes to spy thrillers, but instead to take its audience in an exciting espionage story while giving us some laughs along the way.

Speaking of which, the humour in this show doesn't take away from the gripping narrative, but instead adds to the show's charm. I will admit that it took me a while to get fully on-board with the show's off-kilter tone and quirky humour, but thankfully more of it lands than misses.

I am not familiar with the source material, so I am not sure how accurately it has been adapted. I don't even know if the novel contains the same odd tone or humour. It has intrigued me enough to go and read the book though, which is always a good sign.

Overall, this is a fun spy thriller. It is not going to break the rules of the genre, but it will keep you engaged throughout and give you a couple of laughs for good measure.
  
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Lee (2222 KP) Oct 23, 2018

Watched the final episode of this last night and totally agree with everything you've said. However, wasn't impressed with the final 10 seconds or so of that last episode - obviously wanting to make sure that it gets a second season!

Pacific Rim (2013)
Pacific Rim (2013)
2013 | Action, Fantasy, Sci-Fi
Brave and comparatively rare (these days) attempt to do a blockbuster that isn't a remake nor based on a novel, comic book, toy line, TV show or theme park attraction. Which is not to say this isn't a tremendously derivative movie; clearly inspired by tokosatsu movies, manga, and anime, just with most of the actual Japanese characters replaced by Americans and Australians. (Hmmm, isn't this cultural appropriation?)

Anyway: big monsters lumber out of the sea, get smacked in the mouth by giant robots. Story isn't really anything special, but the background details of this slightly cartoony world are engaging, as are some of the supporting performances. Film subscribes to the prevailing American dogma, which is that giant monster fights must take place at night and preferably in bad weather: apparently this makes them much more believable. The Hong Kong battle is terrific, the others not so much. In the end I think the premise of this movie is really much better than the way it is realised; maybe the sequel will address some of the shortcomings here.
  
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Joe Dante recommended The Innocents (1961) in Movies (curated)

 
The Innocents (1961)
The Innocents (1961)
1961 | Horror
8.0 (4 Ratings)
Movie Favorite

"From my own personal tastes, my favorite horror film, I think, is a movie called The Innocents, which is based on this Henry James novel Turn of the Screw. The British picture from 1961 with Deborah Kerr as the repressed governess who goes to the faraway estate to take care of these kids who are seemingly possessed by the ghosts of the people who used to haunt the place. It’s a beautifully made movie and it’s not a rock-em’ sock-em’ movie, but its got really great psychological chills in it. And of course, there’s the eternal question as to whether the governess is imagining these things, or are they really happening? And it’s left kind of ambiguous, and it’s a really artful movie. I don’t think it was ever a particularly popular movie. I think a movie like The Haunting, which is somewhat similar, was a little bit more accessible to people than The Innocents, but, for my money, it’s, I think, the best horror film I’ve ever seen."

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