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Kelly (279 KP) rated The Umbrella Academy in TV

Feb 24, 2019  
The Umbrella Academy
The Umbrella Academy
2018 | Action, Fantasy
The cast (2 more)
The soundtrack
Dark humour
Wow!! I was hooked
I confess, I knew little about The Umbrella Academy before picking up the series on Netflix, but I am so glad I did. The series combined dark humour with an intriguing plot line and sprinkled a great sound track into the mix to create a truly unique show.

The series centres around a family, purchased as children by Sir Reginald Hargreeves, and their mission to discover the cause of their fathers death as well as preventing the imminent apocalypse. Each of the children (adults in most cases by the time the series is set) have unique super powers, with the exception of Vanya, who has be partially excluded from family affairs as a result.

The casting of the show couldn’t have been any better, with a mix of characters you can take seriously and others who add a touch of humour to the show. Notably Robert Sheehan, who plays Klaus - I have been a fan of his work since Misfits, and Cameron Britton, who plays Hazel (An assassin who falls for Agnes, a waitress who is significantly older than himself). The series was well acted and a wide range of emotions were shown by the actors.

The only real downfall to the series was that it was so short (and ended on a cliff hanger, so please, please renew the show Netflix). I was left wanting more after episode 10.

I highly recommend watching this.
  
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Kimmic (814 KP) Feb 25, 2019

On my list to watch this. It has good reviews so I cant wait x

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Kelly (279 KP) Feb 25, 2019

I thoroughly enjoyed it- hope you do too x

Killer in the Band
Killer in the Band
Lauren Carr | 2016 | Fiction & Poetry
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
A Killer in the Band is like another Halloween set up for the setting. Lauren Carr once again does it again with her book. You get pulled into this book from the beginning. There seem to be more murderers than the eye can see.

We learn about the Band that Suellen is the leader to. She gets a phone call from a friend in the band named “Cat.” Who could be the Killer of Dylan Matthews and Wendy Mathews? We fall for more mysteries and cold cases. Could all the cold cases be connected?

We also have JJ Thornton and his dad and siblings involved with Cameron Gates. Who would want to kill JJ and his family? His family helps him out along with getting a horse trainer to help with the horses. We also meet Izzy once again and her personally.

We meet Noah and a few others. Who killed Clyde’s wife? There are quite a few twists and turns as you turn the pages. I would suggest that if you have children you are okay with them reading about deaths for this as a lot of it. It is the decent clean book for children that are 13 and up.
If you enjoy one of Lauren Carr’s book. You will enjoy this one as well. I know for this another one that I enjoyed and wished to know more. You will be surprised at how it ends.
  
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Kristy H (1252 KP) rated Mystic Summer in Books

Feb 13, 2018  
MS
Mystic Summer
6
6.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Maggie Griffin seems to have the perfect life - she has a good teaching job at a private school in Boston, even if some of the parents can be a little trying sometimes. She has a loving boyfriend who wants to move in with her. Her best friend is getting married and Maggie is co-maid of honor. She even has a supportive family back in her hometown of Mystic, Connecticut. But when things start to unravel in Boston, Maggie finds herself back in Mystic. She tells herself it's just because her best friend, Erika, is getting married there, but once Maggie arrives back home, she isn't sure she wants to leave.

This book started out a bit slowly, but it quickly grew on me. Maggie is a slightly frustrating character at times, but she's also endearing and sweet. She's still finding herself, so you have to cut her a little slack. It happens to us all as we near thirty, right? The novel is certainly a bit predictable, but Maggie's character, as well as some of the supporting characters -- mainly her high school boyfriend Cameron -- keep it from being too silly and saccharine. It's not a literary masterpiece, but it's a fun, quick read: perfect to toss into a beach bag for the summer.

I received a copy of this novel from Netgalley (thank you!); it is available everywhere on 6/7/2016.
  
Letters from the Earth is an alternative outfit. Not too long ago, they released a music video for their “Frank Ghilardi Sends Off a Long-Tenured Employee” single.

“‘Frank Ghilardi Sends Off a Long-Tenured Employee’ illuminates the life of a typical employee. Also, it examines the true value of work in the west. The song’s surrealist music video finds a somber employee attending her own absurd retirement party. Where, Foster, portraying the titular Frank Ghilardi, presents his melancholic address.” – Letters from the Earth

‘Frank Ghilardi Sends Off a Long-Tenured Employee’ tells an interesting tale in the form of a farewell speech. Also, the speech is delivered from a fictional company head to an unnamed subordinate.

The likable tune contains a relatable storyline and ear-welcoming vocals. Also, it possesses charming instrumentation which was produced and mixed by Ben Hirschfield (Against Me!, The Story So Far, and Elder Brother).

“It’s okay to cry. You’ve made it alive through forty years here at Ghilardi. Don’t be afraid of your life turning gray. There’ll be no more files to be sorted. No people to wave you on at the gate. No phone calls to take, no lunches to make, no more coming home to dinners alone.” – lyrics

Letters from the Earth consists of Matt Foster (vocals, guitar), Ben Hirschfield (guitar, keys, synth), Cameron MacBain (drums), and Morgan Foster (bass).

https://www.bongminesentertainment.com/letters-from-the-earth-frank-ghilardi/
  
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Sassy Brit (97 KP) rated Vendetta in Books

Jun 5, 2019  
Vendetta
Vendetta
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Vendetta by Iris Johansen brings back characters introduced in the Eve Duncan books. Although it is billed as an “Eve Duncan” she is only mentioned briefly. But, this does not take anything away from the plot and the main characters, Rachel Venable and Jude Brandon. The story centers on these two and their attempts to bring down Max Huber, the head of Red Star, a terrorist organization with immense power.

The story begins with the shooting of a top CIA official, Carl Venable. His dying breath to the operative, Jude Brandon, to save his daughter, Dr. Rachel Venable, and give her the choice of eliminating Huber to prevent him from wreaking further havoc on a global scale. Huber wants revenge on Rachel, believing that she killed his father by poisoning him. Enlisting the help of her good friend, CIA operative Catherine Ling and her on again, off again boyfriend, Richard Cameron, they work together to bring Huber down.

Johansen noted, “Every other chapter has a choice come into play. It is all about making choices. Rachel had to decide if she would go after the bad guys. Brandon whether he would involve himself emotionally with Rachel. Catherine made the choice not to hide from her desire for Cameron, as well as knowing she had to give Rachel space and control over her own destiny. The bad guy Huber is pure evil without redeeming qualities and his choice was to inflict as much collateral damage as possible. Even though I have a choice as a writer, I just wanted to kill Huber for doing terrible things to the people I love in my books.”

Both Rachel and Catherine had similar experiences of having to overcome rape. At the age of fifteen Rachel was captured by the Taliban in Afghanistan, watched them kill her mother and brother, and was brutally raped as well as tortured. What Johansen does wonderfully is to show how Rachel is determined to overcome her past experiences. One of the reasons she becomes a medical doctor is to heal people. Both Catherine and Rachel are intelligent, tough, strong, independent, and stubborn.

The book quote has Rachel determined to not be seen as a cripple. “I wrote that because I consider it the bravest thing she ever said. She went through a terrible event, but she fought and conquered it. Catherine also had a tough life, growing up on the Hong Kong waterfronts. She learned from it to become stronger. These two women are more similar than different. They had rough teenage years that they had to overcome. I think they are more sisters than friends and will always go to bat for each other. I think Catherine is more like the older sister because she has a son, which makes a big difference.”

Johansen writes female characters that are something other than constant damsels in distress. They find a way to survive and have come out even stronger. This story shows how a character’s past and the decisions made influence the present and future, sometimes to the point of getting revenge by pursuing a vendetta.
  
Terminator: Dark Fate (2019)
Terminator: Dark Fate (2019)
2019 | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Good (enough) conclusion to the Franchise
After a few attempts at resurrecting this franchise, James Cameron has (wisely) decided to bury the franchise with one last TERMINATOR film starring the original Terminator himself, Arnold Schwarzenegger. TERMINATOR: DARK FATE is a direct sequel to T2: JUDGEMENT DAY (or so says Producer/Writer Cameron) as it ignores the 3rd and 4th movies in this series (as well as the television show THE SARAH CONNOR CHRONICLES).

And that is a wise move as it simplifies things and just lets us get on to what a Terminator movie does best - fantastic action sequences, state of the art CGI, a killer robot that will stop at nothing to accomplish it's mission, and a plucky hero or 2 to battle said killer robot.

Oh...did I mention that they recruit a Terminator to help them stop the Terminator?

And it all works well...enough. Set in this year (2019), TERMINATOR: DARK FATE tells the tale of what happens next after Sarah and John Connor stopped Judgement Day in the 2nd Terminator film. A deadly - even more dangerous - Terminator (version 9!) returns to 2019 to kill a single woman (Natalie Reyes). This time she is helped by an augmented human from the future (Mackenzie Davis) and...Sarah Connor! Returning to this film, all buffed up and aging, is a craggy voiced Linda Hamilton as Sarah, who brings an adequate amount of world-weary, "been there, done that" attitude to the proceedings that pretty much carry the first half of the film.

And...just as the film was beginning to sag in the middle, along comes Arnold.

Playing an aging Terminator (which is explained, well enough, in the plot), Arnold plays the Terminator (who has been living with humans for over 20 years) with a wink in his eye and a sense of humor about him. Yep...this is a Terminator with a funny bone. And - I'll be darned - it works! Thanks to the performance of Mr. Schwarzenegger. He knows exactly what kind of film he is in and brings the right amount of energy, muscle and humor to the proceedings. He pretty much carries this film on his broad shoulders for the 2nd half - and he carries it with ease.

Credit Director Tim Miller (DEADPOOL) for keeping things light, simple and moving along crisply. He, too, understands the type of film he is making (and the audience that will go see this type of film) so he keeps the dialogue light and snappy, the plot at it's simplest and the action as high as he can go - blowing things up at a moment's notice. It's not sublte art by any stretch of the imagination, but it is art - in a way - and art that he does well.

If this is the last Terminator film (and I hope it is), then it is going out on a high (enough) note. I was surprisingly entertained (and not preached to) and, I think that is all I could have hoped for in a Terminator flick.

Letter Grade: B

7 stars (out of 10) and you can take that to the Bank(ofMarquis)
  
Cirque Du Soleil: Worlds Away (2012)
Cirque Du Soleil: Worlds Away (2012)
2012 | International, Documentary, Family
6
7.5 (2 Ratings)
Movie Rating
The talented combination of Academy award-winning filmmaker James Cameron and the renowned Cirque du Soleil combine in a new film entitled “Cirque du Soleil: Worlds Away”. For those unfamiliar with the dazzling and spectacular world of Cirque du Soleil, the company has created several amazing shows which blend music, costuming, innovative sets, and amazing feats of acrobatic, gymnastic and performance art. Many of their shows tour the world and several are in permanent residence in Vegas.

The movie stars Erica Linz as Mia who, after witnessing an unexpected event at a local circus, soon finds herself in another world that is comprised of bright star-filled skies, ever present mist, illuminated tents, and all manner of dazzling yet odd residents.

Mia is attempting to find the trapeze artist who disappeared during his performance and as she journeys around the strange new landscape she witnesses firsthand all sorts of incredible feats performed by the Cirque du Soleil cast. There are dazzling routines performed in water as well as aerial displays, each one is framed by Mia as she journeys to a new area.

While at first I found this captivating it soon became a little repetitious for me. After seeing eight live Cirque du Soleil shows I was quickly able to discern several routines that I’d seen previously. Selections from KA, Viva Elvis, Verekai and more are all being re-created up on the screen. This is not to devalue the stunning and amazing performances but after seeing them live, the acts seemed diminished to me up on the big screen as you do not get the full visual and aural experience of watching it live.

The credits verified that many of the sequences in the film are taken from their performances in Vegas and other venues. Aside from the 3-D aspect it brought to mind watching several of the shows when they’re broadcast on Bravo. While technically brilliant and amazing the movie is an extremely poor substitute for seeing them in person.

I have to say I was also disappointed with the 3-D aspect as James Cameron, who brought stunning visuals to “Avatar” to the point where one believed they were truly immersed upon the alien moon Pandora, came up short this time around. While there were some spectacular 3-D shots with the water based routines as well as some aerial features there simply wasn’t enough there to enhance the film beyond what was already presented by the performers.

This was a very hard review to write as this was not really a movie where one can bring a lot of attention to the acting. The story was little more than a framework to put a highlight reel of performances from many of their shows.

If you have never seen a Cirque du Soleil performance by all means I definitely recommend seeing this film but for those hard-core fans who are regular attendees of Cirque du Soleil, one might want to wait to catch this on DVD and make sure to catch a live show in person the next time that they are able.
  
Lady of Thorns (Two Thrones #3)
Lady of Thorns (Two Thrones #3)
Nicola M. Cameron | 2017 | Fiction & Poetry
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Lady of Thorns (Two Thrones #3) by Nicola M. Cameron
Lady of Thorns is the third book in the Two Thrones series, and we focus on two characters we met in the previous book. Amelie and Alain are about as opposite as you can get - noble-born and street rat who has worked hard and got himself a career. However, their births play no part as the sparks fly between these two. They are evenly matched in intelligence, wit, and humour. And then, through Amelie's courage, they find out they are matched in other areas too. With the Harvest Ball coming up, her mother to contend with, and a husband to find, Amelie is happy to take her chances whilst she can. And of course, it doesn't hurt to have a Queen as your best friend!

It was wonderful returning to this world. It is easy to read, and the characters are all superb. It is smoothly written, with no editing or grammatical errors that I found. I would have loved to have heard more about Matthias and Danae, but then I am greedy where they are concerned. All in all, this book was thoroughly enjoyable, and completely un-put-downable. Palace of Scoundrels is still my favourite so far, but Lady of Thorns is absolutely recommended in every way.

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and my comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
  
Batgirl, Volume 2: Son of Penguin
Batgirl, Volume 2: Son of Penguin
Hope Larson | 2017 | Comics & Graphic Novels
8
8.0 (3 Ratings)
Book Rating
I fell in love with Babs again when her story was reintroduced in DC's New 52 and she got a costume redesign. As much as I enjoyed Gail Simone's run, it was the collaboration of Cameron Stewart, Brenden Fletcher and Babs Tarr that pulled me back in. I became obsessed with the new costume and loved Babs Tarr's art style. I adored issues 35-52, but then there was another change with DC Rebirth and Batgirl left Burnside. I was not quite as invested in the first few issues (plus I didn't enjoy the art), but that was soon remedied with the introduction of Penguin's son.

The story arc contained in Volume 2: Son of Penguin felt more like the New 52 Batgirl I fell in love with, again. Although the plot was predictable at times, it will still enjoyable. Both Hope Larson's writing and the talents of the artists gave me hope that Batgirl's run will continue to improve. As she is my favourite female superhero (other than Wonder Woman, I truly couldn't choose) I cannot wait to see where this team takes her story.

I would definitely recommend her Batgirl of Burnside arc from the New 52 and her new story in Rebirth to fans of comics and interesting female characters. I may also be biased because in this iteration she is a grad school student who is currently studying to become a librarian, which is exactly what I am doing - so I feel like we are kindred spirits, or twins. Whatever.
  
Shifter Woods: Snarl (Esposito County Shifters #3)
Shifter Woods: Snarl (Esposito County Shifters #3)
Nicola M. Cameron | 2018 | Paranormal, Romance
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Shifter Woods: Snarl (Esposito County Shifters #3) by Nicola M. Cameron
Shifter Woods: Snarl is the third novella in the Esposito County Shifters series, and this time we are at the snow resort at Cougar Ridge. As you might expect, there are plenty of cougar shifters around, including Commander Robert Chandler, and his daughter, Kate. When a down-on-his-luck Alpha turns up, citing an offer the Commander had made for him, Kate is willing to give him a chance. He fits in with their life easily enough, but Kate wants more.

I loved how this story progressed. The instant 'Mate' bond is there for Jack, but I loved how it was different for Kate being as she had anosmia. Jack has his morals, but is prepared to bend them to get what he wants. Of course, when he realises the Commander gave him a loophole right at the start, well, that was just downright funny!

With fast pacing, character cameos, and very smooth though, this story transitioned without any hitches from one scene to another. There were also no editing or grammatical errors that disrupted my reading flow. With a full story that is hot and steamy in places packed within the pages, this is sure to delight. Absolutely recommended by me.

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!