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A Collection of Lies
7.0
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Book
In USA Today bestselling author Connie Berry’s fifth Kate Hamilton mystery, American antiques...
Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) rated The Quiet You Carry in Books
Mar 23, 2019
A Great Read!
I'm a fan of young adult contemporary fiction when it deals with serious issues. When I read the synopsis for The Quiet You Carry by Nikki Barthelmess, I knew it was a book that I needed to read. Luckily, it didn't disappoint!
I found the plot of The Quiet You Carry to be very interesting indeed. I've always found books that deal with the foster system to be intriguing. I won't rehash the synopsis since the actual book synopsis does a good job explaining what the book is about. I found the plot to be very believable and extremely realistic. I didn't find any plot holes, and I was not left hanging. I didn't think there were any plot twists, but with this kind of book, it didn't need any plot twists to be good. I like the way The Quiet You Carry showed what I imagine life would be like for a teen in foster care trying to balance a new school, a budding romantic relationship, friendships, school, and the turmoil of what had happened. It's a lot for a young person to have to shoulder.
The characters in The Quiet You Carry were all realistic sounding and fleshed out perfectly. My heart went out to Victoria. What her father put her through was horrible, and then how he acted as if it were her fault. I hated that her stepmom chose to believe Victoria's father about the abuse. I know this actually goes on, and that's what makes it worse. I loved how she was willing to put everything on the line to protect her younger stepsister. I didn't agree with all of Victoria's choices, and I wish she would have done some things differently, but I realized she's supposed to be a 17 year old girl. I felt bad for Connie, the foster mom, as well. She was only following state rules, but the foster kids thought she was too strict. I think she got a lot of hate, and I always thought she was a good person from the beginning. I actually really liked Connie. Victoria's friends, Kale and Christina, were also really well written. I loved how they wanted to protect Victoria and how much they really cared for her.
The pacing was a bit shaky in some parts during the beginning of the book. However, the shakiness didn't last long, and before I knew it, I was totally immersed in Victoria's journey. I devoured this book, and I couldn't wait to see where Victoria's story would take her.
Trigger warnings for The Quiet You Carry include incest, sexual abuse, violence, domestic abuse, attempted suicide, and drug and alcohol references.
All in all, The Quiet You Carry is a great read. It started out a bit shaky, but it takes off before you know it. The plot and cast of characters were written so well that it was hard to put this one down! I would definitely recommend The Quiet You Carry by Nikki Barthelmess to everyone aged 14+. You will not be disappointed.
I found the plot of The Quiet You Carry to be very interesting indeed. I've always found books that deal with the foster system to be intriguing. I won't rehash the synopsis since the actual book synopsis does a good job explaining what the book is about. I found the plot to be very believable and extremely realistic. I didn't find any plot holes, and I was not left hanging. I didn't think there were any plot twists, but with this kind of book, it didn't need any plot twists to be good. I like the way The Quiet You Carry showed what I imagine life would be like for a teen in foster care trying to balance a new school, a budding romantic relationship, friendships, school, and the turmoil of what had happened. It's a lot for a young person to have to shoulder.
The characters in The Quiet You Carry were all realistic sounding and fleshed out perfectly. My heart went out to Victoria. What her father put her through was horrible, and then how he acted as if it were her fault. I hated that her stepmom chose to believe Victoria's father about the abuse. I know this actually goes on, and that's what makes it worse. I loved how she was willing to put everything on the line to protect her younger stepsister. I didn't agree with all of Victoria's choices, and I wish she would have done some things differently, but I realized she's supposed to be a 17 year old girl. I felt bad for Connie, the foster mom, as well. She was only following state rules, but the foster kids thought she was too strict. I think she got a lot of hate, and I always thought she was a good person from the beginning. I actually really liked Connie. Victoria's friends, Kale and Christina, were also really well written. I loved how they wanted to protect Victoria and how much they really cared for her.
The pacing was a bit shaky in some parts during the beginning of the book. However, the shakiness didn't last long, and before I knew it, I was totally immersed in Victoria's journey. I devoured this book, and I couldn't wait to see where Victoria's story would take her.
Trigger warnings for The Quiet You Carry include incest, sexual abuse, violence, domestic abuse, attempted suicide, and drug and alcohol references.
All in all, The Quiet You Carry is a great read. It started out a bit shaky, but it takes off before you know it. The plot and cast of characters were written so well that it was hard to put this one down! I would definitely recommend The Quiet You Carry by Nikki Barthelmess to everyone aged 14+. You will not be disappointed.
Mistletoe and Murder
9.0
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Book
In Connie Berry’s festive holiday novella Mistletoe and Murder, American antiques dealer Kate...
Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated The Happytime Murders (2017) in Movies
Jul 2, 2019
As a huge fan of Melissa McCarthy, I wasn’t about to miss out on one of her films involving puppets. Especially when said puppets and film were made by Jim Henson’s son Brian Henson. That being said, just remember that these puppets are absolutely 100% “No Sesame, All Street”. “From the studio formerly sued by Sesame Street” STX presents The Happytime Murders.
Private detective Phil Philipps (Bill Barretta) is a puppet and lives in a world where puppets coexist with but are otherwise hated by humans. After a series of murders including that of his brother it forces his ex-partner Connie Edwards (Melissa McCarthy) to help solve the crime. The murderer seems to be targeting all former cast members of the beloved eighties TV show The Happytime Gang. Two worlds clash as the race is on to find the culprit.
Honestly I feel as though I could do without seeing this film ever again. Yes there are funny moments but it seems overshadowed by the lack of a good storyline. Granted audiences might go just to see puppets act raunchy and use profanity however, is that enough to hold a film together for 90 mins? No it certainly isn’t. As much as I love the comedic stylings of Elizabeth Banks, Mya Rudolph, Joel McHale and especially Melissa McCarthy, the film audiences anticipate being the funniest of the year is surely not. Even with a big cast of comedians couldn’t save this film. Perhaps films involving puppets and ridiculous plots should be left to that of children audiences. If you were to stitch together all of the comical scenes in every trailer for the film, you would basically see it all. In my opinion you might want to skip this one and wait for it to come to a Redbox near you.
Private detective Phil Philipps (Bill Barretta) is a puppet and lives in a world where puppets coexist with but are otherwise hated by humans. After a series of murders including that of his brother it forces his ex-partner Connie Edwards (Melissa McCarthy) to help solve the crime. The murderer seems to be targeting all former cast members of the beloved eighties TV show The Happytime Gang. Two worlds clash as the race is on to find the culprit.
Honestly I feel as though I could do without seeing this film ever again. Yes there are funny moments but it seems overshadowed by the lack of a good storyline. Granted audiences might go just to see puppets act raunchy and use profanity however, is that enough to hold a film together for 90 mins? No it certainly isn’t. As much as I love the comedic stylings of Elizabeth Banks, Mya Rudolph, Joel McHale and especially Melissa McCarthy, the film audiences anticipate being the funniest of the year is surely not. Even with a big cast of comedians couldn’t save this film. Perhaps films involving puppets and ridiculous plots should be left to that of children audiences. If you were to stitch together all of the comical scenes in every trailer for the film, you would basically see it all. In my opinion you might want to skip this one and wait for it to come to a Redbox near you.
Awix (3310 KP) rated War of the Worlds: Global Dispatches in Books
Feb 3, 2020
Diverse collection of short stories all revisiting the Martian invasion of 1898 (as originally detailed by H.G. Wells). Most (but not all) of the stories are narrated by notables from the period, most (but not all) of these are famous writers: Henry James, Samuel Clemens, Rudyard Kipling, and so on. The collection kind of overlooks the implication that the Martians only actually invade southern England in Wells' novel, but then most adaptations do the same thing, and the stories here aren't even consistent with each other (the fate of Paris varies significantly in the Jules Verne and Pablo Picasso entries).
A bit of a mixed bag, to be honest: some of the stories just restage elements of Wells with a different backdrop, others treat the Martians as a backdrop for more introspective tales, still others indulge in literary pastiche. Unlikely juxtapositions and in-jokes abound - Rudyard Kipling meets Gandhi, Tolstoy meets Stalin, Samuel Clemens (d. 1910) makes reference to John Christopher (b. 1922). The best stories are mostly the ones which recognise the political/satirical subtext powering the Wells novel and attempt to do something similar - so Barbara Hambly's story concerns British imperialism in India, and the effect of the Martians on the situation there, while another looks at the consequences for pre-revolutionary Russia. That said, Connie Willis' Hugo-winning contribution sends the whole conceit of the novel up with a predictable mixture of tongue-in-cheek drollery and sheer absurd silliness, as the unlikely effect of a Martian encounter on the poetry of Emily Dickinson is revealed (especially considering Dickinson died twelve years before the coming of the Martians). The good stories are very good indeed, the less good ones merely a bit tedious. A worthy and worthwhile tribute to the original novel.
A bit of a mixed bag, to be honest: some of the stories just restage elements of Wells with a different backdrop, others treat the Martians as a backdrop for more introspective tales, still others indulge in literary pastiche. Unlikely juxtapositions and in-jokes abound - Rudyard Kipling meets Gandhi, Tolstoy meets Stalin, Samuel Clemens (d. 1910) makes reference to John Christopher (b. 1922). The best stories are mostly the ones which recognise the political/satirical subtext powering the Wells novel and attempt to do something similar - so Barbara Hambly's story concerns British imperialism in India, and the effect of the Martians on the situation there, while another looks at the consequences for pre-revolutionary Russia. That said, Connie Willis' Hugo-winning contribution sends the whole conceit of the novel up with a predictable mixture of tongue-in-cheek drollery and sheer absurd silliness, as the unlikely effect of a Martian encounter on the poetry of Emily Dickinson is revealed (especially considering Dickinson died twelve years before the coming of the Martians). The good stories are very good indeed, the less good ones merely a bit tedious. A worthy and worthwhile tribute to the original novel.
Trumpet Blues: The Life of Harry James
Book
Swing is back in style, and with it a renewed interest in the Big Band Era. And few players...
Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)
8.9
Rate It
Movie Watch
Second big-screen outing for the Monty Python team. As King Arthur (Graham Chapman) rounds up the...
The Love Diet: A Personalized, Proven Program That Changes the Way You Feel to Transform the Way You Look
Connie Guttersen and Mark Dedomenico
Book
All You Need is Love: From the New York Times best-selling author of The Sonoma Diet and the...
Cyn Armistead (14 KP) rated and Falling, Fly (Harrowing #1) in Books
Mar 1, 2018
[a:Sam Chupp|11847|Sam Chupp|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1219698183p2/11847.jpg] has been after me to read this book for weeks, so as soon as I finished [b:All Clear|7519231|All Clear (All Clear, #2)|Connie Willis|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1267552735s/7519231.jpg|9735628], I started it. This book is different from anything else I've read in years. I hesitate to say it's more literary than most fantasy, because I don't like "literary" books - they're usually stuffy, dry, and presumptuous.
After the first few chapters, there's no slowing down, because you're as caught up in what's happening as the characters are. I was transfixed by White's descriptions, which can make even ugliness fascinating.
<blockquote>We are traveling into time, burning two hours for every one I endure beside this babbling, cursed child of Greece. I see them all the time, these bastard half children of stories and mortals, trapped between worlds, the genetic lineage of myth reasserting itself across the inextricable ages. Helen of Troy is born the socialite child of a partial Zeus mated to half of a swan-loving Leda, the mythic DNA in each of them dormant until they breed and damn their offspring with its expression.</blockquote>
White's vampire mythos is like no other I've encountered. I found it far more believable than most of what's being printed over and over and over again. Another refreshing thing about the book is that there's no feeling of a set up for a series. Oddly, though, I'm now seeing the book identified as the first of a series called Harrowing, at least on GoodReads, but as far as I can tell, the second book has no characters in common with the first. Perhaps it's simply set in the same universe?
In any case, I've added [b:In Dreams Begin|7850577|In Dreams Begin|Skyler White|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1269478625s/7850577.jpg|10971303] to my to-read stack, and I'll be keeping an eye on [a:Skyler White|2977214|Skyler White|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1290046039p2/2977214.jpg].
After the first few chapters, there's no slowing down, because you're as caught up in what's happening as the characters are. I was transfixed by White's descriptions, which can make even ugliness fascinating.
<blockquote>We are traveling into time, burning two hours for every one I endure beside this babbling, cursed child of Greece. I see them all the time, these bastard half children of stories and mortals, trapped between worlds, the genetic lineage of myth reasserting itself across the inextricable ages. Helen of Troy is born the socialite child of a partial Zeus mated to half of a swan-loving Leda, the mythic DNA in each of them dormant until they breed and damn their offspring with its expression.</blockquote>
White's vampire mythos is like no other I've encountered. I found it far more believable than most of what's being printed over and over and over again. Another refreshing thing about the book is that there's no feeling of a set up for a series. Oddly, though, I'm now seeing the book identified as the first of a series called Harrowing, at least on GoodReads, but as far as I can tell, the second book has no characters in common with the first. Perhaps it's simply set in the same universe?
In any case, I've added [b:In Dreams Begin|7850577|In Dreams Begin|Skyler White|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1269478625s/7850577.jpg|10971303] to my to-read stack, and I'll be keeping an eye on [a:Skyler White|2977214|Skyler White|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1290046039p2/2977214.jpg].
Dianne Robbins (1738 KP) rated 9-1-1 in TV
Jul 8, 2019 (Updated Apr 4, 2021)
Stiff acting (4 more)
Fake fake fake fake fake
Scenarios no professional first responder would ever get into.
Terrible writing
Are there no medical director/firefighter/police officer technical advisers to tell them the correct way to do ALL OF THIS?
I like Connie Britton, who was a cast member during the first season of this show. However, she is no longer there and there is nothing to hold my interest and many, many things to make me lose interest. 911 has stiff acting and outrageously fake scenarios. She was replaced by Jennifer Love Hewitt, whom I'm neutral on for the most part, but I don't like her character, the scenarios she gets into, or her lines. Her acting isn't that great in this show, either, come to think of it. The manufactured drama is too forced. I've seen her do a better job with drama so I don't know if it's the director's choice or if she's taking dramatic license, but either way, her character isn't great. The characters, for the most part, are not believable or likable. It's just not a good cast. I like the diversity of the cast. There are several black cast members, an Asian cast member, and at least one Latinx cast member, which is so much better than most other shows, and let's face it than most of society. Come on, people, Let's mingle and mix things up.
I recently tried to watch 911 due to a draught of medical dramas and I ended up yelling at the tv about all the technical mistakes the EMTs and firefighters were making. I mean, they took an elevator up to an upper floor when the building was unstable and at risk of collapse or having a power outage. It was ridiculous. Who does that? If you are good at suspending belief, maybe you can tolerate this show. But as a hard-core medical freak, I cannot.
I recently tried to watch 911 due to a draught of medical dramas and I ended up yelling at the tv about all the technical mistakes the EMTs and firefighters were making. I mean, they took an elevator up to an upper floor when the building was unstable and at risk of collapse or having a power outage. It was ridiculous. Who does that? If you are good at suspending belief, maybe you can tolerate this show. But as a hard-core medical freak, I cannot.